Homemade Fish Fingers..

Hii..friends..another tempting evening snack is ready for u..This time I picked up a very crispy snack item made of fish.. For all the fish lovers out there ,I’ve tried to bring out a very easy recipe. You can make this anytime at home.. & this can be a fabulous starter item for welcoming guests..So, here I go with my recipe of “Homemade Fish Fingers”.. I’ve made this out of Tilapia fillets..  You can try it with  any boneless fish fillets..:)

Ingredients:

Fish fillets (cut into thin strips-1 inch thick) ; onion & garlic paste ; ginger paste ; cumin powder ; coriander powder ;  garam masala powder ; cilantro leaves  chopped ; green chilies chopped ; lemon juice ; black pepper powder ; salt
For frying :- Bread crumbs ; Besan ( gram flour ) ; white oil.

Procedure:

 1)Take a bowl & marinate the fish slices  into it.

 2)Marination: To the fish slices one by one add 4 tsp of onion-garlic paste ; 1 tsp ginger paste ; 1 tsp each of cumin powder ; coriander powder ; garam masala powder ; then add chopped cliantro & green chilies into it. Now sprinkle salt and pepper powder over it. Last but not the least, mix all the above ingredients with the fish slices & add 2-3 tsp of lime juice into it.

3)Keep this marination covered for 1 hour.

4)Now take a flat dish and mix equal amount of besan & bread crumbs . Add a pinch of salt into it. Mix this very well.(It must be dry)

5)Now take each of the marinated fish strips & roll it over the dry mixture(step 4) very evenly & keep it in another clean dish. Repeat this process with the other ones too.

 6)Heat  enough oil in a frying pan. As the fish slices get well coated , take each of the slices and deep- fry till they turn brown..

7)Serve it with salad & kasundi..& ..enjoy it over a hot cup of tea..:)

Shorshe Doi Begun(Brinjal)..!!

 Shorshe Doi Begun is a pure vegetarian dish..It is mainly a preparation out of  brinjal or eggpalnts cooked in a muddy gravy comprising  mustard paste & curd..Brinjal is widely used all over  India & many dishes r tried & tasted over it. Owing to its vivid nature it is often called the “king of vegetables .”  Not only in India,  many other  countries also  include Brinjals into their cuisine..

This  is my own experimental  dish with Brinjals..It is indeed a good recipe & easy too..Just need to grab brinjals from your  store & rest of the ingredients are already there in your kitchen shelves..:)

Ingredients:

Medium sized  brinjal (eggplants); paste  ;  mustard seeds ; poppy seeds ; green chilies –slitted from middle ; beaten yogurt – 3 tsp ; kalonji ( kala jeera) seeds ; turmeric powder; salt .

Make a smooth paste with mustard seeds , poppy seeds (in the ratio 1:1) along with  a green chili.

 Procedure:

1)Cut the brinjals into round shapes. Coat them with a pinch of salt & turmeric. Take a kadai or frying pan and heat mustard oil in it..

2)As the oil gets heated up fry the brinjals till golden..and keep aside.

3)To the same oil add ½ tsp of kalonji seeds and two slitted green chilies. As they start to splatter ,lower the heat and add the mustard + poppy seeds paste  to it. Stir the mix continuously blending with the oil.

4)Now add a pinch of turmeric  and mix well. Then add 2 -3 tsp of beaten yogurt. Go on stirring in medium heat..As oil starts to leave the mixture add salt & sugar as per taste..

5)To dilute the gravy add ½ cup of water & allow the gravy to boil cover it with a lid.

6)After 3 min open the lid &  be sure of a muddy gravy. Now its time to add the fried brinjals.

7)Never  stir the gravy after adding thebrinjals..Keep it in flame for a min or so..& then turn off the heat..

8)Sprinkle mustard oil on top & serve with rice..:)

Chingri (Prawn) Posto Malaikari..!!

Chingri(Prawn) Posto Malaikari..is a dish purely from Bengal..The name Malaikari always comes after chingri for all Bengalis..but this time I tried this very popular dish with a change in spices..& the main thing is that I added posto(poppy seeds) to it..I followed this recipe from a tv show..& I liked it very much . I enhanced the recipe by adding some of my own tricks &  tried it a lot of times..u can also try this out & surprise everyone @ lunch..:)

Ingredients :

Fresh jumbo prawns (head intact) -10 nos ; onion(2 med sized) paste ; garlic(8 med sized cloves) paste ; 1 tsp of ginger paste ; poppy seeds paste ; green chilies paste ; beaten  yogurt  2 tsp ; coconut milk ; garam masala powder ; turmeric powder ; bay leaves & whole garam masala   ; salt ; sugar ; mustard oil ; ghee.

Procedure :

1)Clean the prawns nicely & coat them with salt & turmeric powder.

2)Take a frying pan & heat mustard oil in it. Now fry the prawns in it.(Don’t fry too much)  Take the fried prawns in a bowl.

3)Extract juices from the pastes of onion, garlic , ginger.

4)Now we need to marinate the fried prawns with the above juices (extracted from onion, garlic, ginger pastes in step 3). Next add poppy seeds paste, green chili paste, 2 tsp of beaten yogurt, whole garam masala, salt & ghee to the marination. Cover the marinated fried prawns & keep aside for sometime.

5)Now start heating the remaining oil in the same pan with pinch of sugar & as it caramelizes..then add bay leaves(2 nos.) & just over the bay leaves (not directly into the fry pan) add 1 &1/2 tsp of garam masala powder.

6)Now add the marinated prawns along with the marinade.Cover the frying pan with a lid & allow it to get cooked for 5 min in low –medium heat. As the gravy thickens add coconut milk into it. Check out for salt & sugar as per ur taste…

7)Stir the gravy  for 2 mins  & turn off the gas..

8)Serve this delicious Chingri Posto Malaikari with hot steamed rice..:)

[  Note :- U can sprinkle coconut flakes on top before serving. If u want to avoid green chili paste, u can add whole green chilies into the marination .Don’t fry the prawns too much or they will get stiffened]

!! Butter-y Chicken !!

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appy New Year to all my friends..!!! Something or the other keeps me busy..& if I’m not wrong then my beloved friends awaits for my new recipes…but very sorry for that…the time I prepare new dishes..its only for u all to try it once lyk me…but then I get entangled in all other works without posting them for u…L Now I bring u an authentic Punjabi delicacy..”Butter Chicken”…I learnt this dish from a show..& then as usual I made it with some renovations..& believe me it came out awesome..The first time we dipped the naan into the gravy..& on a bite..it got melted in mouth..& wow..!!it’s just what I wanted..& I was pretty surprised that I myself made it…
So, here’s the recipe for u..do try it out..hope u’ll love it..

I termed it  Butter-y Chicken.. 

Ingredients

Boneless chicken ; onion ; garlic ; ginger ( make a paste out of ginger & garlic) ; tomato ; green chilies ; cumin seeds ; coriander powder ;  yogurt ; fresh cream ; kasuuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) ;   cashews ; kashmiri red chili powder ;tandoori masala powder;  yellow / orange food colour ; garam masala powder ; vegetable oil ; butter ; salt ; sugar

How to make

1)Marinate boneless chicken pieces with ginger garlic paste, salt, 1 tsp of tandoori masala powder..Then take the chicken pieces fry them in oil..Or..  U can also tandoor the chicken pieces in skewers for 20 min at 400 F .(for browning u can broil for 5 min also)&  then keep aside.

2)To the oil in skillet one by one add cumin seeds, sliced onion , ginger garlic paste , chopped tomato , green chilies, cashews , coriander powder .Sauté them well and as they turn golden brown add water into it. Cover it & let it cook for 5 min or so.

3)Now take the hot gravy & blend it in ur blender..to make a smooth gravy out of it.

4)In the same skillet add 2 tsp of butter & melt it. Add the blended mixture into it along with the chicken pieces( fried or baked before).

5)Now in medium heat we need to add salt, sugar, beaten yogurt (1 Tsp), food color ( just a pinch), garam masala powder & ½ tsp of kashmiri red chilli powder.As the chicken gets tender add whipped fresh cream to the gravy mix well.

6)Cover ur skillet allow to cook in simmer for 3 min..The gravy will be silky & smooth..not too thick..Crush kasuri methi leaves and sprinkle all over..Turn off the gas.

7)Let the  taste  of kasuri methi merge into the gravy & serve it hot with Naan …or kulcha..:)

The taste will be little sweeter …U can also avoid  yogurt to prevent extra sourness..

!! Vanilla Sponge Cake !!

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y dear friends..this is a time for holidays..Christmas gone..& now its time for the New Year..So, I thought of bringing u an item for desert & a reason to celebrate ur holidays..:) I baked this cake for the Christmas..it came out very well & both of us loved it ..It was snowing outside all day here ..& I can’t resist myself to put on my baking gloves..& hunting all the available ingredients from my kitchen shelves..

Finally I baked this ” Vanilla Sponge Cake ” . It is very simple..& u can make it any time..I loved a slice of this cake with a cup of hot  tea or coffee..on   a wintry evening..:)

Try it out..hope  u’ll  love it..

Ingredients:

Maida / all purpose flour – 1 & ½ cups ; powdered sugar- 1 cup ; any vegetable oil or canola oil – 1 cup ; milk- 1/4^th  cup ; baking powder – 1 tsp ; vanilla essence – 3/4^th of tsp ; 3 eggs ; dry fruits and nuts for decorating..

How to do..?

1)Sieve the maida nicely to get rid of any lumps. Now add powdered sugar to it. Sieve the baking powder also before adding.

2) In a separate bowl pour 1 cup of oil & beat it with 3 large eggs to bring a fine mixture. Now add this to the maida mix above.

3)Now combine  all the above ingredients together .To it add 1/4^th cup of milk & the vanilla essence.

4) After u finish u adding all d ingredients blend this mixture very well so that no lumps exist. I normally blend the batter with hand blender for 2 mins...U can use any blender available to u..

5)Then take around baking pan..Grease it with butter or any oil dusting with a pinch of flour..Pour the batter into the baking pan…Take the dry fruits & nuts (dusting them with flour at first & then shake off d extra flour before u add) & sprinkle on the top of cake batter. U can use as many as dry fruits & nuts u get for d toppings..:)

6) Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit (or 180 degree Celsius) and bake your cake for 35 mins..

U can check by inserting a bamboo skewer or a tooth pick into the cake..If it comes out clean..then ur cake is done..& ready to be taken out from the oven..

Take out the cake from d oven..cool it for sometime..& then njoy a slice with a cup of tea in your hand..:)

!! Fried Onion Posto !!

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here’s another recipe for u..This is also a very easy to make recipe..another one from My “ Chot-Jaldi “ recipes. Each & every bengali  houses cook  ‘posto’.. My grand ma used to say that  posto or poppy seed is a great ingredient that goes well with almost every vegetables such as potato, onion,  all kinds of gourds etc and some some non-veg too. Here I tried to give you a delicious traditional Bengali starter item ‘fried onion posto’. According to me, in bengali we can use this item as “prothom paater khabar”.
Here goes the secret…Fried Onion Posto  or  “Pniyaj posto”.

Ingredients

 4 red onions - chopped in Julian shapes   , paste of poppy seeds, green chilies split from middle, mustard oil, salt & sugar.

Make it

1) Heat mustard oil and a green chili in a frying skillet.

2) As the oil gets heated up add the chopped onions to it. Fry till they are golden brown. Sprinkle salt from top so that the onion get soften.

3) When the onions are golden brown add 3 tsp of poppy seeds paste and blend well with the fried onions.

4) Add salt & sugar to taste.  (This recipe takes a sweeter taste).  Sprinkle   water from top and continue frying in medium heat.

5) As the oil starts leaving the mixture turn off the gas & serve   with hot steamed rice.

!! Bhuna Chicken !!

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i all.. this season I wanna share with u a very easy chicken recipe.. It’s called "Bhuna Chicken"..It is mainly a blend of easily available masalas from your kitchen.. You can make it any time..It is not a curry item .The ingredients needed to marinate the chicken pieces becomes the gravy itself..It is medium gravy in nature..The recipe is all about marination & very often beat the chicken pieces during cooking to bring the traditional bhuna type chicken..There must be a lot of ways to make Bhuna chicken but  I made in this way..try it yourself..It goes well with any type of Indian bread such as roti, naan, paratha and our very favorite luchi..:)

Ingredients 

Boneless chicken pieces ;  chopped - onions , garlic, ginger , onion green chilies ; beaten yogurt ; cumin powder ; coriander powder ; garam masala powder  ;  kashmiri red chili powder  ; shah jeera ;  turmeric powder ; mustard oil ; ghee ;  shredded cilantro leaves ; 2 bay leaves ; 4 cardamon pods ; salt  & sugar.

Procedure

1)        Marinate boneless chicken pieces with  all the chopped ingredients (onions , garlic, ginger, tomato, green chilies, cilantro leaves ).Then add  beaten yogurt ,  shah jeera( roasted) , cumin powder , coriander powder , garam masala powder , kashmiri red chili powder , salt & sugar as needed. Blend the ingredients nicely with a spoon & pour 2 tsp of mustard oil from top. Cover the marinated chicken and refrigerate for an hour or so.

2)        Take a flat bottomed frying pan add 2 tsp of mustard oil and 1 tsp of ghee and let it heat..Then add bay leaves & cardamom pods to it and then sprinkle some sugar to caramalize .

3)        Take out the marinated chicken mixture and in low heat add it to the oil in frying pan. Blend the oil with the chicken mixture and keep it covered in simmer over  flame. Allow the ingredients to get cooked.

4)       When the chicken leaves enough water  take  a flat spoon and beat over the chicken and try to make as small pieces as possible.(Do not switch off the flame)This process brings the bhuna chicken..

5)        Now when they become enough small and cooked well  turn off the heat and give it a standing time. Make sure the chicken pieces get well shredded and mixed nicely with the masala..

6)       Sprinkle cilantro leaves on top and serve your mouth watering  Bhuna Chicken..

Note : For making Bhuna , beat over  half- cooked chicken pieces in a symmetrical way..(diagonally or straight in a line)