Royal Biryani

Biryani is one such dish that is very fondly loved by almost everyone and has a very special appeal - almost like a spell that’s caste on food lovers. People across this nation and across the globe can connect and relate to it with nostalgia, often having a personal story of childhood memories and college days experience to tell. The mixture of different spices and the aromatics with the amazing looking kesaria (saffron) rice gives it a very special get up to it.

The word Biryani is derived from the Persian word 'Birian'. In Farsi, Birian means 'Fried before Cooking'. Traditionally rice and the leg piece of goat used to make Biryani. Now people are making Biriyani with beef, chicken, fish & prawns.

Biryani was originated in Persia and it might have taken different routes to arrive in India. Based on the name, and cooking style (Dum), it is also called as Dum Biriyani. It is believed that, it could have come from Persia via Afghanistan to North India. It could have also been brought by the Arab traders via Arabian Sea to Calicut, Kerala. (Derived from squidoo.com).

After my first few attempts on making Biryani, I realized it is simpler than I thought initially. It is important to keep the end picture in mind before you begin to make one. The Biryani in Hyderabad has its own uniqueness and spice combination and so it is in Lucknow, Delhi and Calcutta. The Biryani in Calcutta MUST have potatoes in them. 

Procedure

I am not going into the details of ingredients and quantity simply because there are so many recipes on the net. http://www.indobase.com/recipes/details/chicken-biryani.php is a good and simple one to get an idea.

What is important to know is the procedure behind it.

The first thing you would want to ensure is that the meat, either chicken or mutton, gives you a great kick. Therefore it has to be marinated well. Yogurt (Dahi) is a very good acidic ingredient. There are three major component that is involved in the marinate.

1.       An acidic agent like Yogurt, Vinegar, Wine etc makes the meat soft and tender. While meat like fish/chicken can be marinated anywhere from ½ hour to 2 hours, red meat can be marinated to 4-6 hours or even over night. It is important to refrigerate the meat if the marinate process is for more than 2-3 hours. Ensure that the meat comes back to room temperature before cooking it.

2.       Spices. There are two types of spices to consider – aromatic and flavor. Cinnamon, cardamom, cloves etc are aromatic spices while ground coriander, red chili powder, garam masala etc are flavor intense spices.

3.       The Herbs. Fresh herbs like coriander, mint, basil, fresh chili etc are amazing aromatic and subtle in flavor that compose and compliment well with other spices in the marinade

.

Bearing this in mind you can combine any combination of herbs and spices that you feel like. There is no hard and fast rule to have a strict combination. The only thing to remember is to add salt just before cooking because salt throws water out from the meat. In the marinate process we want the spices and mixtures to seep and soak right through the meat.

Preparing the rice is really simple. Basmati rice should always be preferred. The rice should be ¾ cooked in water with a little pinch of salt and oil. Once drained, you may add a couple of drops of orange food colour.

It is important to have a thick bottom base handi or cooking vessel.

Ghee is a good oil option to have as described in the recipe link above.

You can layer the rice alternately with the meat or just have the meat at the bottom and layer the rice on top. Sprinkle with rose water and saffron (preferably soaked in luke warm milk) and add a layer or caramelized/ fried onions.

Seal the lid with atta (flour dough) and slow cook the biryani. The mutton/beef biryani would take longer to cook than chicken biryani. For chicken biryani 40-50 min is good whereas for mutton anywhere an hour to an hour and half should give you a well done result. Just make sure that it is slow cooked all the way.

Your Royal Biryani would be ready to be savoured and admired.

Cheers & Slurp

Vishal

Orange Cake with Custard Layer topped with Chocolate Ganache

I LOVE deserts. I am the kind of person who excitedly checks the desert counter first to see how good the menu is !! It doesn't matter how full i am, deserts easily find their way in my stomach!! My 'Sweet Tooth' can be explained by the 'Bengaliness' in me having lived in Kolkata since birth. Probably its also genetic. My father has the sweetest tooth I've ever known. The 'Sweet Tooth ' in our genes got confirmed when Vaanya, my daughter, started showing her liking towards sweets. 

 No wonder when we have friends at home, my menu planning begins from deserts!! This cake was made as an experiment when my schoolfriend Minu came to visit us with her husband Amit and her adorable daughter Suhani. The cake in itself is super spongy  and is low in fat. The custard layer was my idea to keep the cake moist  and give it a pastry look while maintaining the low fat. The only place i went overboard was the Chocolate ganache. Since then this cake has been made many times and was polished off every time !! 'Baker's delight' you may say !!

The orange cake recipe is from a blog i love to follow  Cakes and more by suma rowjee


Ingredients : Makes one 8-inch round cake

• 1 cup refined flour, sifted
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup yogurt
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp grated orange zest
• 1 tbsp orange juice 
• 1 large egg 
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 

Procedure : Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Prepare an 8-inch round cake pan by greasing and lining with butter paper.
Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
Whisk together yogurt, oil, orange zest and juice, egg, and vanilla in another bowl. 
Fold in the wet mixture into the flour mixture.  Mix well.
Pour into prepared pan. 
Bake  for 30 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. 
Cool on a wire rack.
Take a thread and cut the cake horizontally to  make two layers.

Custard for layering

Ingredients :

• 1 cup milk
• 3-4 tbsp custard powder
• 1 tbsp sugar

Procedure : Heat milk in a pan and add sugar.

Dissolve the custard powder in some water in a bowl.

Once the milk comes to a boil add the dissolved custard powder slowly while stirring continously. Let the milk thicken and then take off the burner to let it cool. Spread the custard between the cake layer.

Chocolate Ganache 

Ingredients :

• 1/2 cup chocolate 
• 2-3 tbsp cream
• 3 tbsp milk 

Procedure : Melt the chocolate in a microwave for 1 min or in a double boiler. Add cream and milk and mix well. Pour immediately on the cake otherwise the chocolatle will harden and the icing will not look smooth.

 

I used the remaining thick custard as icing for the cake and decorated with some orange flanks .

 

Happy baking and eating !!

Amrita 

 

Corn on the Cob in rich Onion sauce

I decided to try something different this time. Usually my cooking revolves around sea food, fish and chicken but there comes a time when you want to explore something outside your domain.

I got this recipe from a wonderful series from the OM and the HHI publishers called the 'Indian Cooking'. I highly recommend this series as they give amazing illustrations and techniques into the art of cooking.

We had some corn at home which were waiting for some justice to be done to them. I came across this simple recipe and thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to try it out.

Ingredients:
2 Corns
Vegetable oil for frying
1 large Onion, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
2 in fresh root ginger, crushed
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp onion seeds (kalounji in hindi , kalo jeeray in bengali)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera in hindi )
1/2 tsp chili powder
150 gms fresh yogurt
Salt to taste

Procedure:

Cut the corn cobs into two using a heavy knife
Fry them in a wok or karahi until golden brown and set aside.
Remove excess oil.

In the grinder combine the onion, garlic and ginger and grind it to a paste.
Take 2 tbsp oil in a pan , add onion and cumin seeds.
Fry the onion paste mixture till they release their flavour.
Add the spices and cook until the spices have blended and the oil starts to separate
Lower the heat and add the yogurt, whisking them to make a consistent sauce.
Add salt to taste.
Pour on top of the corn.

Serve warm.

Note: I found that the baby corn could have been a better option. You may also use any other ingredient instead of corn.

The combination of the spices in the sauce were very amazing in this recipe. This sauce can be used in preparing any other dish.

Cheers

Vishal

Egg Pie

 What do you call a recipe that never falters, is super easy to make and comes out super yummy every single time. Recipes that you must have made over and over again and remember the entire procedure so well that you never need to go back to your recipe notes...???

 I simply call them  ''Works Out Everytime'' recipes.

Egg Pie for a long time has been our staple Sunday morning breakfast .When I got married , I learnt of Vishal's, love affair with eggs. Every morning when I asked him ''what will you eat ?'', his answer always was-''Eggs'' . He can have eggs boiled, poached, fried or at times even raw .

Once he called up his mother in Allahabad and said with excitement - ''Pata hai aaj breakfast mein kya khaya ?".

Poor Amma knew the answer very well but still tried to be a good sport and asked ''Kya khaya?''

Vishal gleamed and exclaimed-"Anda fry".

''Usme naya kya hai ?'' enquired Amma. 

Vishal replied-''Aaj ande ka yolk 20 degree left tha." !!

 

Well his 'egg for breakfast' fascination has now changed and he is more open to try out other options too. But this recipe still tops his list of egg recipes .

Ingredients : For 2 people

• 2 eggs
• 2  boiled potatoes(medium sized)
• 1/4 of red,yellow and green capsicum (or 1 green capsicum if you don't want to use red and yellow)
• 4-5 button mushrooms
• 1 onion
• 1 green chilly
• 1 tbsp Olive oil 
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 4-5 tbsp mozzarella cheese(grated)

Procedure :
Roughly chop the onion , capsicums , mushroom and green chilly. Take olive oil in a pan and saute the vegetables for 1 min with salt and pepper .(Do not overcook as the veggies will be baked later on)

Mash the boiled potatoes. 
Take eggs in a bowl and whisk them. Add salt to taste .
In a mixer, mix the eggs and the mashed potatoes until blended well.
Preheat oven to 200degree Celsius.
Now take an ovenproof bowl and put a layer of the veggies. 

Then pour the egg and potato mixture.  
Finally sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese on top.

 
Bake in the oven for 25-30 mins or till the cheese melts and becomes brownish To check if the eggs are done ,insert a toothpick and check if it comes out clean .

Serve with  a slice of toast and hot tea .

Happy Baking !!
Amrita

Spicy Mustard Prawns

This is one of my absolute favourite prawn preparation which, believe me, is actually very very simple to make. I love this as a starter, usually with drinks, but it can also be served as a side curry dish.

This dish was introduced to me by my very bubbly  sister-in-law Tina. Since then it has become almost like a religious custom in our family, devouring about 1-2 kgs of these amazing prawns at a time with drinks.

Chachaji often goes to the fish vendor and the question asked is 'How much prawn do you have?'

The reply comes like 'Do (Two) kg sahib. Kitna chahiye?'

'Sab de do' shoots Chachaji in a tone that says, even this is not enough.

The amazing balance between mustard, fresh curry leaves, garlic and chilli goes extremely well with the prawn. It is very simple to make and so enjoyable to relish.

Recipe Source:  My sister-in-law Gurveena'Tina'Gill (who makes the yummiest prawns)

Ingredients:

• Prawns Large 500gms
• Mustard Oil 3-4 tbsp
• Mustard Seeds 1 tsp
• Curry Leaves 15-20 leaves
• Dry Red Chili  2
• Garlic 4-5 cloves
• Turmeric Powder (Haldi) 1 tsp
• Salt to taste

Procedure:

Clean the prawns. De-shell and de-vein.

Marinate the prawns in haldi(turmeric) and salt and set it aside for about 15-20 min.

In a frying pan (kadhai) heat about 3-4 tbsp mustard oil and fry the prawns till they turn reddish/orangish colour. This should take 2-4 minutes.

(The prawns can be cooked in advance and set aside in refrigerator to be cooked later. The frying procedure also preserves the prawns longer and takes the fishy smell out. If refrigerated, bring the prawns back to room temperature before cooking)

In the meanwhile, break the dry red chili into two halves and de-seed them. Soak them in warm water for about 5 min. Roughly chop them and make a paste with the garlic cloves in a mortar and pestle .

In the frying pan heat about 1 tbsp mustard oil. Put  mustard seeds and then the curry leaves  for few seconds till they release their flavour. Stir in the garlic and chili paste and let them cook for few minutes. Stir in the prawns and cover for few minutes.

To make it into a curry, pour in about 1 1/2 Cups of water and let the gravy reduce to the consistency of your liking.

Serve hot with rice or eat them as a starter with drinks.

Cheers & Slurp

Vishal