Infinite Appetite

Chicken Poussin

2014-01-27T23:21:00.001-05:00

Well first year of marriage has been everything it is hyped to be and then some more, 223 days of sabbatical from the blog for starters. Sorry to fellow readers, I will try and gain your vote back one recipe back at a time. We took full advantage of the first year of marriage and also turning 30 this past year. Trips to Hawaii and Africa allowed me to try new things, meet new people, experience new cultures, try some mouth watering cuisines and not to mention increase my waist size (no joke), the sabbatical from the blog also extended to a sabbatical from the gym. But anyways I am back and most of the new posts are going to be inspired from my recent travels, starting with the best thing I had in Africa. Chicken Poussin - 'Poussin' refers to a young chicken. This dish is a staple dish, the chicken is fried, juicy, moist and drenched in an awesome sauce. To be kinder to my waistline, I went for a shallow fry and then finish off by baking it. But traditionally it is deep fried.

Ingredients:

for Chicken Marinade

4 Chicken Leg quarters, pierce the chicken with fork
6 tbsp yogurt
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp ginger/garlic paste (use fresh if you can)
2 tsp Chilli powder
Salt to taste

for Poussin Sauce

4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp fresh ginger paste
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tbsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste
1 tbsp black pepper

1) Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients under marinade section for 2-3 hours.

2) Shallow fry the marinataed chicken in oil, 5 min each side.

3) Add the chicken to the baking sheet and bake em in the oven for about 30-40 minutes at 350 or till the chicken is cooked completely. You will also need to baste the chicken every 10 minutes with the sauce in order to get the full flavor. For the sauce, heat the butter till hot, add the ginger and fry for a minute or so. Next add the vinegar and salt and cook for another minute. Add the remaining ingredients and cook for another minute. Before you put the chicken in the oven dip both sides in the sauce and then keep basting to keep the chicken moist. Traditionally served with fries and a yogurt sauce, but we went with Naan and get the yogurt sauce. Enjoy...

Banana Pudding

2013-06-20T00:03:00.000-04:00

Day 195 - Magnolia bakery in NYC is my new fav desert shop. Thanks to brother and sister in law, they have me hooked. They are famous for their cupcakes. But its the banana pudding that is like heaven in a tub. Last time it was actually sold out by the time we made it to the store and being in Boston can't really get it on demand. But I was super excited to find out that Magnolia bakery had its own recipe book and I have made it twice so far, It's pretty damn close to what we get at the bakery. So next time you are in NYC, def go down to the bakery and get more than one tub, trust me. Once you do that, you can satisfy your craving by coming back to the blog and making it at home. Guaranteed compliments on this desert. Next up from streets of NYC Chicken over rice.....lol

Ingredients:

16 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 cups ice cold water
Small box (3.4 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
3 cups heavy whipping cream
Box Nilla Wafers
4 sliced bananas

In the bowl of a mixer, beat sweetened condensed milk and ice water for about a minute. Add the pudding mix and beat for about two more minutes. Transfer to a smaller bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

You want the mixture to be extremely firm. In a large bowl on medium speed, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form (Use a handheld mixer) Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the pudding mixture until fully combined and no streaks of pudding are visible.

In a large bowl, layer wafers, bananas, and pudding. Ideally, you want three layers but if you go with a larger baking dish you might only have two. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 8 hours or overnight before serving.

Note: Second time I made it, I used more waffers (box and half).

Turkey Keema Matar

2013-06-19T23:36:00.001-04:00

194 - Was craving some keema with fresh roti's the other day, but wanted to keep the weight loss going strong. So decided to make keema matar. I was actually planning to make chicken matar, cause not everyone eats beef. But they were out of ground chicken, so picked up ground turkey. Once I add the spices and let it get crunchy on the non stick pan, wasn't really too different in taste.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey
4-5 cloves of garlic, grated
1 inch ginger, grated
2-3 green chilies, diced
Salt
1 tsp red chili pepper
1 tbsp coriander powder
1/4 cup green peas
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup bell pepper

Marinate the ground turkey with all the ingredients except the peas, onions and the cumin seeds. In another pan add some oil and saute the cumin seeds for a minute. Add the onions and cook till dar brown and caramelized. Add the spiced ground turkey and cook till browned and crisped. Add the green peas towards the end. Serve with fresh roti's. Enjoy

Tomato Kale Chicken

2013-06-06T02:01:00.000-04:00

Day 192 - Kale - yesss 200 some recipes and kale has made is debut and looks like its going to be here for a while and make a recurring appearance. Although a 2.0 version of this will collard greens has already been requested, this was tonight's dinner and possibly tomorrows' lunch sandwich if left over.
I was kinda perplexed on how to cook kale. First thought I would throw it in the green juice, but decided against it. This is a quick recipe and surprisingly really really tasty dish.

Ingredients:

1 lb boneless chicken, cut into bite size pieces
1 large red onion, sliced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 lb Kale, cut up...remove the stocks
1 tbsp cumin seeds
Salt
1 tbsp ginger, crushed
1 tbsp garlic, crushed
3 green chilies
2 tsp Black pepper
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp red chili powder
Small bunch of cilantro
2 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp cumin powder

1) In a pan heat some oil and fry the cumin seeds for a minute. Add the onions next and cook for couple more minutes. No need to wait till they are translucent, add the chicken next and add the cumin, coriander, garam, red chili, turmeric, salt and the black pepper and cook on med-high heat till the chicken is almost cooked, good 10-15 minutes on med hight heat. Once done, take out the chicken and keep it aside. In the same pan add the diced tomato and cook for couple minutes till it leaves a bit of water and starts drying up. Add the ginger. garlic and green chilies next and cook for another couple minutes.

2) Add the cut up kale to the tomato mix and add some more salt, chili powder and black pepper so the kale can also get some seasoning. Once it's wilted away and it will go real quick, like in two minutes add the chicken back and cook for another five minutes. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy.

Bacon Chicken salad with lemon dressing

2013-06-06T01:39:00.001-04:00

Day 191 - Mixing up the lunch salad is becoming fun. Couple posts ago I put up the Bacon chicken burgers. Had couple left over, didn't wanna make a sandwich out of it so cut it up and added to my salad, but this time I made my own dressing.

Ingredients:

3 cups mixed greens
1 chicken bacon burger, cut up into small pieces
1 small red onion, sliced
Dressing

2 tbsp soya sauce
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp sriracha sauce

1) Mix in all the ingredients under the dressing well and pour it over the salad, close the box and shake will till all the ingredients are mixed well. Enjoy a guilt free lunch at your desk.

Green Juice

2013-06-06T01:23:00.001-04:00

Day 190 - After the cheat day at the BBQ, had to get back on track and to undo the weekend torture to the body, decided to go extreme with an all mix fruit and vegetable juice. For this a Juicer is a must.

Ingredients:

4 stick celery
5 small carrots
1 inch piece ginger
1 orange
1 pear
1 lime

1) The orange and pear give a sweetness and the carrots and celery give a nice earthy/rooty taste to the juice. The kicker is the ginger and lime, somehow it ties the sweet and earthy taste actually makes the a juice taste good to the pallet rather than just bearable. It also gives you a one stop veggie and fruit fix for the day. Gonna take advice from a fellow co-worker and start making big batches and use it as a snack at work. You can add other fruits or vegetables as per your liking. The juicer is pretty wicked, no need to peel the veggies or the fruit, except for the orange.

Chicken Bacon Burgers

2013-06-06T01:14:00.000-04:00

Day 189 - Finally summer is here and that means grilling time. Unfortunately I had to wait for an invitation for bday bbq invite to make this awesome burger. This is I guess the cheat day hehe, nothing healthy about this. Now I forgot to take a photo of the final product with all the condiments but had couple leftover. Not sure what to call these in title, but these were not Chicken burgers with bacon on top. I added chopped up bacon into the ground chicken.

Ingredients:

3 lbs ground chicken
1 pack of uncooked smoked bacon, chopped into small pieces
8-10 cloves of garlic, pureed
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
2 green chilies, chopped
Salt
2 tbsp soya sauce
4 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp Black pepper
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg

1) Mix all the ingredients really well. I would suggest to mix the ingredients separately first so you can taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly. Also make sure the mix is dry, add more breadcrumbs if required. Make patties and keep em individually wrapped plastic wrap, and keep em overnight if you can. Allows the mix to set up. Throw on hot grill, cook till internal temperature is 165. Add onions and tomato and siracha ketchup to a toasted bun. Add some cheese on top towards the end to get some melt and enjoy. If you don't have a grill you could always do it on the stove top. The half ground chicken/ half bacon is just wicked tasting burger. Enjoy the summer

Achari tilapia

2013-06-06T00:49:00.000-04:00

Day 188 - Continuing with the healthy eating spree, dinner has also become lean fish and or chicken or lentils these days. The wife prefers tilapia over any other seafood, so tilapia it is. I have cooked currie and tacos with it before, but wanted to make something healthy. Went with baking in the oven, to keep the oil and fry to the minimum and also to take it easy in the kitchen. Achari in hindi means pickle Wife had made the carrot pickles, which were so awesome (will put up the recipe). Well the carrots ran out and left behind the pickle mix (mustard seeds, spices, oil and lemon).

Ingredients:

1 lb tilapia
2 tbsp oil
Leftover Pickel mix

OR - 2 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp red chili powder
Salt
Sugar
1 tsp black pepper

Lime

1) If you don't have a pickle mix, heat some oil and add the mustard seeds and fry for couple minutes. Add the the remaining ingredients and mix well. Coat the fish on both sides in the mixture or any pickle mix. Pre-heat the over to 375 deg F. On a baking sheet, spread some foil and let time and heat do the rest. 30 minutes was enough for my oven. Check after 30 minutes, make sure the fish is white and flaky, if not cook for another 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh lime.

Apple and Grape Salad

2013-06-05T23:58:00.000-04:00

Day 187 - Have put on few pounds since the wedding, so started going green for lunches. Surprisingly ended up filling and deliciously refreshing and yummy. The hardest part at the store was choosing the dressing. I do make my own dressing but there are some awesome dressing at whole foods. I spent like 20 minutes picking one and chose the one with the least amount of fat, sugars etc. I picked the Mango lime dressing.

Ingredients:

3 cups packed mixed greens (whole foods)
1 apple, sliced
1/2 cup grapes
5 tbsp salad dressing (Mango chile)
Chaat masala

1) Mix in all the ingredients and toss well. The chaat masala is optional, if you want a little more tangy taste. Apple with chaat masala is totally awesome. If packing for lunch, always keep the dressing separate until ready to eat. I learnt it the hard way one time, the greens had gone all soggy. All in all fantastic lunch with an orange.

Chicken curry pasta

2013-06-04T23:17:00.001-04:00

Day 186 - You getting bored of eating chicken curry and rice, well try using pasta. Lol.. I actually ran out of rice so thought of boiling up some pasta and pairing it up with it. I also didn't wanna spend 30-40 minutes making the chicken curry so went the real quick way, skipped the onions and tomatoes and the some raw spices and still got flavorful chicken. Was really hungry and wanted to have it ready by the time pasta boiled. It should take about 15-20 minutes max. Feel free to sprinkle with parmesan cheese for full pasta effect.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound chicken, cut into small pieces
Salt
1 tbsp

Black pepper
Ginger powder
Garlic powder
Red chili powder

2 tbsp coriander powder

1) Mix all the dry ingredients and toss the chicken in it to coat all sides well. Once done, on med heat cook the chicken in some oil for about 3-5 minutes.

2) Add some water and cook covered for about 10-12 minutes on high heat. Make sure the chicken is cooked. While the chicken is boiling, boil some pasta along side. Garnish it with dry herbs, I used oregano and multiple servings.

Chicken Mushroom omelet

2013-06-03T23:44:00.001-04:00

Day 185 - O man, got a lot of catching up to do. So gonna jump right into it. This is a savory mushroom omelet. I'll be honest, married life has been fantastic and I have been mega lazy....but I will catch up. This is a hearty breakfast dish that everyone can enjoy and is more than a simple egg omelet.

Ingredients:

3 eggs
2 tbsp of milk
3-4 white mushrooms, rough chop
Shredded chicken, (best to use left overs) or boil some small cuts in 5-7 minutes
Salt
Black Pepper
Dill or any other dry herb
Sundried tomato

1) Saute the mushrooms, chicken and the sundried tomato and keep it aside. Whip together the eggs with salt and the milk

2) In the same pan, on med heat spread the egg mix and swirl it till it kinda thickens and forms a base. Sprinkle the dill and black pepper and cook till the liquidy part of the eggs is cooked. Add the mushroom and chicken mix in the center and close up the omelet.

3) Serve with hot coffee for wicked filling breakfast.

Tilapia Constructed tacos (Fish Tacos)

2013-05-03T01:17:00.000-04:00

Day 184 - Wanted a quick dinner dish, yet something that would be filling and yummy. Had picked up some fresh tilapia earlier from whole foods so decided to make fish tacos. Now I have previously made the tacos but these ones were pre constructed of sorts. Didn't have to put the items together, not that it takes a long time but def is easier to eat when its all ready. Bought the corn tortillas but one day soon gonna make em from scratch. Its fairly simple, just got to cook the fish with the ingredients and stuff it in the tortillas and Enjoy.

Ingredients:

1lb tilapia
6 corn tortillas
1 onion, diced
1 tomato diced
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 red chilies, diced
1 tsp red chili flakes
Salt
1 tsp Black pepper
1 tsp coriander powder
Lemon wedges for garnish

1) Saute the mustard seeds for a minute and then add the onions and the red chilies. Once translucent, add the ginger/garlic paste and cook till the onions brown. Add the fish next and cook one side till white (5-7 minutes) and flip.

2) Once the other side cooks, add the tomato and let it cook for couple minutes. Add the remaining spices and break up the fish and cook for couple minutes and stack em up in the corn flour tortillas, top with cheese and squeeze some lemon juice and enjoy.

Gin and orange martini

2013-05-03T00:12:00.000-04:00

Day 183 - Continuing on the different drink recipes that we tried back to back, hence the back to back drink recipes. This one a has a litte umbrella on it for the extra touch...hehhe....the significant wanted something sweeter second time around. So went with the sugar rim and orange juice for the mixer.

Ingredients:

2 oz gin
1 oz vermouth
2 oz orange juice
Couple drops of bitters (orange bitters)

1) Mix all the ingredients in a shaker with some ice and strain the drink into a sugar rimmed glass

Gin Margarita

2013-05-02T23:49:00.000-04:00

Day 182 - Trying to setup a new bar at home so gonna be trying a lot of new drinks. I am a big fan of gin and so got the big bottle. Now the significant other likes margaritas a lot, and since I didn't have tequila, I decided to make em out of gin. Just a basic few ingredients and you can have a pretty good starter bar ready and couple different mixers will also allow to try new drinks. This is a good substitute for when you don't have tequila or you find it too strong.

Ingredients:

2 oz gin
1 oz vermouth
1.5 oz sweet and sour mix
Margarita Salt
Lime for garnish

1) Mix in all the ingredients listed above and shake em well in a shaker with ice and strain and pour in salted rim glass. I topped it a with a splash of limoncello for a sweet twist.

Chicken Spinach Curry

2013-04-29T23:45:00.000-04:00

Day 181 - Married life is hectic...actually its pretty awesome...been busy setting up the new digs so haven't had a chance to write in a couple and now have fallen even further back, but I will make the 365 days on time. This is a chicken and spinach dish. I was as usual going through the fridge and saw a bag of spinach nearing its expiration date so decided to make use of it. It gave the chicken a nice leafy taste and texture. Not to mention contribution towards your daily recommended veggies.

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless chicken, cubed
2 cups of spinach
1 onion, diced
1 tomato, diced
4-5 garlic, fine dice
1/2 inch ginger
2-3 red chillies, diced
1 tsp each mustard and cumin seeds
couple bay leaves
Spices (Salt to taste, rest 1 tsp each)

Salt
Red chili powder
Garam masala
Cumin powder
Coriander powder

1) Roast the bay leaves, cumin and mustard seeds for about a min. Then add oil and then saute the onions. (I had half red onion and half sweet onion left).

2) Once the onions are sauted add the ginger, garlic and the red chilies. Once that has a chance to cook for a few minutes. Add the spinach next and cook it down for about a couple minutes. And then add the chicken. Note: I am trying to add the tomatoes later in the cooking process.

3) Add the spices after cooking the chicken and spinach for 5-6 minutes and next add the tomaotes and cook down for about 10 minutes or so. Add some water and let it boil covered till the chicken is cooked and the water reduces. Serve it rice and enjoy.

Ginger infused vodka

2013-04-17T23:39:00.001-04:00

Day 180 - When not in mood for beer, I always look for some flavored drinks. Also making drinks at home a lot more often now. And was kinda getting bored with regular flavored vodka, rum, gin and tequila. I know there are flavored liquors out there but I like stronger flavors. So decided to try a batch, and started with some ginger and lime in vodka. Its fairly simple and gives a nice flavor profile. Also found a nice little store in Boston that sells these cool jars and bunch of neat stuff, they had a full section on TINTIN...no kidding....

Ingredients:

1 750ml bottle vodka
1 root of ginger (Med size)
1 lime
Strainer
Resealable glass bleaker
Paitence

1) Cut up the ginger into large strips along with the lime and pour the vodka over it.

2) Close the jar up and leave it alone for at least 3-4 days in a dry-cool place.

3) Give it a shake every other day after the first couple days, taste it after a week and see if you like a stronger flavor. I left it for couple weeks and it turned out pretty wicked. Strained it couple times to get the ginger pieces out. Refrigerated it. Enjoy the cocktails...

Meat Coliseum, Thanksgiving 2012

2013-04-16T21:19:00.000-04:00

Day 179 - I am bakkkkk, sorry for the sabbatical. The wedding, the moving of apartments, honeymoon period is finally over and I am back on the trail of blog a day. I know I am behind by 45 days but I will try to double and maybe even triple up on the weekends and make up for the lost days. And to be clear didn't stop cooking these past few weeks but did have a chance to take a break and pick up some tips from being in the marriage house and seeing my moms and aunts cook like super pros. Anyways this was always on the backlog and I think its perfect for a comeback blog. So this is also thanks to idea from the EPICMEALTIME group, they had done a meat coliseum. I wasn't sure how to top the pig stuffed with five birds from last thanksgiving, but this was just over the top and the ultimate. I obviously modified from the original recipes, I actually had full edible gladiators with bacon skirts in the middle. Turkey vs chicken, the epic fight continues below.

Ingredients:

10-12 pork ribs
1 full chicken
1 full turkey
Bacon strips
Mac and Cheese (Sand)
Onions and potatoes
Sausage
Spices

http://infiniteappetite.blogspot.com/2012/11/stuffing-recipies.html

http://infiniteappetite.blogspot.com/2012/11/spicy-macoroni-pasta-mac-and-cheese.html

I have already added the stuffing recipes for the birds and the pasta . The links are above.

1) The rub for the pork ribs was custom made by fellow foodie, Mr. Tony Lin. He did the heavy lifting and gave it a good marination. We used a mix of fresh ground coffee, brown sugar, cumin, paprika, cayenne, black pepper, Salt, onion powder, garlic powder, mustard seeds (ground powder). Rub and have it sit overnight if you can.

2) After that get a drink (yes it was def a breakfast mimosa, we didn't have beer just yet). Let the smoker do its magic. I think we let it go for 7-8 hours. I cooked the birds in the over upstairs, and it took about the same time because there were two massive birds stuffed to the core with all the stuffing. I broiled the birds in the end to give them nice color. We also flipped the ribs every half hour after 4-5 hours of untouched. Sprayed it with some juice and oil every hour to keep em moist. Thats whats in the spray bottle. It also has some spices.

3) The putting it together is the fun part. You def need a Styrofoam covered in foil to get this roiling Cover it in foil and get some skewers and couple of extra hands.

4) Start with a base layer of ribs by putting skewers through it. Then get the birds standing. You can see in the photo that we had so fashion a seat for them. Also notice the gladiator skirts made out of bacon. Once its done close up the coliseum around em. Add some chicken wings on top of the skewer, yeah we smoked some wings and some fish on a plank as well.

5) Filled in the bottom with the mac and cheese (spicy and regular) to simulate sand in an arena. Added apples on top for aesthetics.

6) Final plate looked something like this. Rib, chicken wings, bacon, mac and cheese, bread and mashed potatoes. It was just an awesome event, bunch of ppl showed up, it was a crazy night, had horseradish vodka shots for Tony's Dirty 30, it was quite a memorable night. Many thanks to the regular crew for bringing together another awesome and ultimate thanksgiving @ Saif, Srikant, Tony, Angel, Shiv, Rajul....not sure how we can top this, this year....please post some suggestions or any questions you may have.

Esquire, EAT like a MAN

2013-02-28T22:12:00.000-05:00

Day 178 - Going away for the weekend and the fridge is still full, so today going to introduce a book I picked up recently on sale from urban outfitters. If you are just beginning learning how to cook or want to learn some neat tricks, tips and just basic good cooking styles. This book is a great start, its just the right amount of detail with great illustrations and simple wording. It has recipes marked by skill level so you can easily work up or start at the level you are comfortable with it. It has cameo's from famous chef's on what cooking means to them along with their personal tips.

Now esquire is a magazine geared towards the male audience, hence the cookbook from them is so.

This cookbook has everything a man would need in order to learn and cook for himself and guests. The book is divided up into Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Desserts and Cocktails. Recipes range from oatmeal to roasting a leg of lamb. The pics are mouth watering and couple of mine were fairly close, which always makes me pop my collar. It has recipes that men usually like to eat and would want to cook, while having one of the drinks from this very book.

It has a list of basic kitchen tools, basic cooking techniques even some good pointers on how to host a party and inspiring words from other chefs and writers that will encourage you to be fearless in the kitchen. Go get it.

Garlic Chicken Manchurian

2013-02-27T23:52:00.000-05:00

Day 177 - Had a craving for chicken manchurian, but with the wedding date getting closer wanted to try and make a healthier version. Step 1 to eliminate was the deep frying of the chicken. But I still wanted the crunch from the flour. So what I did was to marinate it in the soy sauce and flour for about half hour and then cook everything in one go. Usually I deep fry the chicken first with a good crunchy batter and then coat it into the sauce, but in this case decided to just add em all together. I put a ton of garlic into this dish, the thinly sliced ones while cooking and half of them crushed in the marinade.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of chicken, boneless, cut into bite size pieces
2 onions, rough chop
10 cloves of garlic, half crushed, half sliced thinnly
1/2 inch piece of ginger
1 tomato, diced
2 tbsp ketchup
1/4 cup soya sauce
Salt
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp red chili flakes
1 tbsp sweet chili sauce
Thinly sliced carrots or bell pepper

1) Marinate the chicken in soya sauce, ginger and garlic and some vinegar for about half hour. Saute the chicken for about 10-12 minutes (5-6 on each side). Add all the remaning ingredients and cook for another 10 minutes. or till the chicken is cooked.

2) Adjust the spices as per your palette, garnish with fresh cilantro and enjoy.

Eggplant, potatoes and artichoke curry

2013-02-27T23:21:00.002-05:00

Day 176 - Found some fresh eggplant at the store and with monday rolling around had to go the vegetarian route. Had some artichoke too, so decided to mix em all and make, it kinda got lost in adding to the taste but when you bite into a piece of artichoke, the taste came through. I thought the canned artichoke would add more brine and a lil more tangy taste, And it was there but kinda subtle. Something I learnt on Good eats, thanks to Alton brown is that the Irish (red skin) potatoes will hold their shape better compared to the russet potatoes.

Ingredients:

1 eggplant, cut into bite size pieces
4 small potatoes, peeled and cut into bite size pieces
2 onion, chopped
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste, fresh
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ajwaan
Salt
1 tsp red chili powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1 dried red chili, crushed
1 bay leaf

1) Saute the cumin and ajwaan seeds along with the dried red chili and the bay leaf for about about 1 min. Add the onions and the ginger/garlic paste next and cook till the onions are tender and translucent.

2) Add the tomatoes and the remaning spices next and cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add the potatoes and artichoke next and cook for about 4-5 minutes more.

3) Add the eggplant next and cook for about 30-35 minutes or till the eggplant and potato is tender. Adjust the seasoning and garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice and or bread.

Stir Fried Eggs with tomato

2013-02-27T00:55:00.002-05:00

Day 175 - Worked half day saturday so only got time for Sunday breakfast. I finally got a chance to stock up and got eggs and had fresh tomatoes, got some good colombian coffee. So had to get the eggs cooking. This is basically scrambled eggs, but the tomato and mustard seeds with dried herbs and sirarcha ketchup, makes for a tangy twist to the eggs. It simple fast and tasty.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 tomato, diced
1 tsp mustard seeds
Salt
Black pepper
Dired herbs, pinch
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp ketchup

1) Cook the mustard seeds and tomato down till its tender. Beat the eggs with ketchup and salt.

2) Pour the beaten eggs in, once the tomato is cooked. Cook on low heat to cook the bottom and then add the remaning spices and cook for another 4-5 minutes till its scrambled and cooked through. Serve with Toast and coffee for a yummm breakfast.

Baked Spicy Drumsticks

2013-02-24T23:54:00.001-05:00

Day 174 - This started off as the idea to make tandoori chicken but ended up trying something else, since didn't have some of the tandoori chicken items (the split leg pieces, the red food color, some whole spices) so instead of shortcutting it, I got some chicken drumsticks and came up with new paste to coat the chicken and then baked and broiled it for some delicious bites. This one requires some work and you def need some fresh ingredients which just enhance the flavor of the chicken.

Ingredients:

12 Drumsticks, skin on
1 pod elephant garlic, or 6-7 cloves
1/2 ginger, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
Cilantro chopped
4 tbsp yogurt
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chili powder
Pinch of crushed red chilies
1 tsp garam masala

1) Saute the spices only in some oil about 2-3 minutes and then mix in all the ingredients except the chicken and half the garlic.

2) While the spices are cooking, make some slits in the chicken under the skin about 3 per drumsticks and stick some sliced garlic into the cavities. Rub the mix on the chicken well so the mix gets into the slits as well and under the skin. Let it marinate for atleast an hour. I gave it about two. Pre heat the oven to 375 and throw the pieces in for about 30 minutes. Flip the pieces after 30 minutes and cook the other side for about 12 minutes. Broil it for about 5 minutes to the skin gets charred, enjoy with chilled beer and a good NBA game.

Black peas and red kidney beans curry

2013-02-24T23:54:00.000-05:00

Day 173 - Trying to clean out the pantry before I move out, had about half a cup of black beans and red kidney beans leftover. Didn't have any tomatoes or any onions left. Went to trusted spices, ketchup and hot sauce to do the trick and also make it tasteful. As usual since this was a last minute idea, I did not soak the beans overnight so had to pressure cook for about 8 whistles. The taste in the end was something you could use as a base for a good chili recipe. not too mention all the protein from the beans, this is a good healthy recipe. If you do have some time, add some hot water to the beans for about 20 minutes.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup black peas/beans
1/2 cup red kidney beans
1 tbsp crushed garlic
2-3 dried red chili
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp sirarach sauce
Salt
Black Pepper

1) Saute the crushed garlic, dried red chili and the bay leaf and cook for about 30 seconds in some oil.

2) Add the ketchup and hot sauce and the spices and cook it for another minute or so. Add the beans and 3 cups of water and give it about 8 whistles. Let the pressure simmer down before you open the cooker.

30 minute chicken curry

2013-02-24T22:51:00.001-05:00

Day 172 - Normally I will always recommend using fresh spices. But sometimes when you just want to eat a hearty meal and not up for spending too much time in the kitchen and just want to throw stuff into a pot in 10 minutes and come back to a hearty cooked meal, you can use the pre mixed spice from MDH or some other company, they have enough taste to make the dish good enough, specially when you are super hungry. This was one of those days, woke up right close to lunch time one day and just wanted something filling. Something else I have started doing is using ketchup and siraracha sauce when I run out of tomato, which also give the dish a different taste the sweet from the ketchup and kick from the siraracha sauce is fairly unique. Normally I like to marinate the chicken, use some whole spices and cook onions and tomatoes down, but sometimes this is enough. This is also great if you are starting cooking and want to take the easier route to cook some decent chicken curry.

Ingredients:

1.5 lb boneless chicken, cut into bite size pieces
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp red/green chili pepper
2 tbsp pre mixed chicken curry recipe
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
Salt
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp sirarcha sauce

1) Saute the onions, ginger/garlic paste and the chillies for about 3-4 minutes. And then add the ketchup and siraracha sauce, this also goes quickly since you don't have to wait for the tomatoes to cook down, the ketchup and siraracha sauce quickly mixes.

2) Add the chicken next and saute for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Add about a cup and half of water and boil covered for 15-20 minutes. Throw some rice in the microwave and wait for the machines, time and heat to work their magic. I literally was standing next to the stove to pour myself a plate.

Tuna Pasta

2013-02-24T20:15:00.000-05:00

Day 171 - Moving out soon, so kinda trying not to stock up on the inventory of food. With all of us also gone away for the bachelor party had no groceries left. So went to the pantry, found some canned tuna and some vegetable pasta. So decided to make tuna pasta, but didn't want to use tune out of can, wanted to cook it a little bit spicy and tangy paste. The pasta is the vegetarian macaroni pasta, which I think has a little more flavor. With no extra veggies, it really helped the taste of the pasta to come together.

Ingredients:

2 canned tuna
1 pack vegetable pasta (cooked as per the pack instructions)
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, diced
1 tbsp wasabi mayo or red chili flakes
4-5 olives, chopped
1 tsp mustard seeds
Chopped cilantro
Salt
Black pepper

1) Saute the onions, mustard seeds and the olives for a few minutes till the onions are tender. Add the tomatoes, salt, black pepper and the cilantro and cook till the tomatoes loose the water/juice and dry up into a paste.

2) Fold the tuna into the tomato and onion mixture and add the tbsp of wasabi mayo or red chili flakes (optional) or the kick. Add the cooked pasta to the tuna and top it off with some cheese. Tastes great the next day as well.