Zucchini Stir Fry and Rice

My Hus fell in love with Zucchini when he had them recently in an Iftar Party here organized by his colleagues. He said, “I had more Zucchini than Chicken”. It was surprise to me as Chicken is his all time favorite. He asked me to try once.

Though it is available plenty in Market, I had never bought them and have no idea how to pick them. So bought whatever the shopkeeper gave. 

My hus wasn’t able to figure out the added ingredients in it except for Tomato and I am not much aware of Middle Eastern cooking. So made this normally like other stir fries. It came out nice. I mixed this with Rice and Zucchini Rice was super. My little one liked it a lot and I have decided to prepare this often.

Ingredients:

Zucchini 250g

Onion (Medium) 1

Tomato (Medium) 1

Chilli powder ½ tsp

Coriander Powder ¾ tsp

Cumin Powder ¼ tsp

Turmeric Powder 1/8 tsp

Asafoetida 2-3 pinch

Cumin Seeds ½ tsp

Urad Dhal ¼ tsp

Salt

Oil

Preparation:

Peel Zucchini’s skin and chop into small cubes. Chop Onions lengthwise. Cut Tomato into four equal pieces.

Method:

Puree the chopped Tomato pieces.

Heat Oil in a Pan. Add Mustard seeds. When they complete popping up, add Urad dhal and chopped Onions and fry till translucent.

Now add Tomato puree and fry till the oil separates. Add chopped Zucchini, all the Powders and Salt. Mix well. Cover with lid and cook till done.

Serves: 2

Serve with Rice and any Kuzhambu/Curry. This can also be served mixing with Rice.

Linking this recipe to Anyone can cook series of Taste of Pearl City.

Vegetables in Milk Gravy

I am little bored with preparing Tomato or Onion based gravies to serve with Chapati. Some time back, I tried vegetables with Masala and milk alone. I didn’t like its taste much and so didn’t prepare it again.

When I came across Green Peas in Milk gravy in Tarla Dalal’s website, got very excited and prepared immediately with mixed vegetables and adjusting to my taste. Though this is a milk based gravy, Tomatoes and Onions are used but in small quantities. We liked its taste and decided to prepare this often.

Ingredients:

• Mixed Vegetables 1 cup (Peas, Carrot and Beans)
• Onion (small) 1
• Ginger-Garlic Paste 1 tsp
• Chilli Powder ½ tsp
• Coriander Powder ½ tsp 
• Cumin Powder ¼ tsp
• Garam Masala 1/8 tsp
• Kasoori Methi ¼ cup
• Milk 1 ¼ cups
• Maida ½ tsp
• Cream 1 tsp
• Cloves 2
• Cumin and Aniseeds 1/8 tsp each
• Butter and Oil

To grind:

• Tomato (medium) 1
• Onion (small) 1

Preparation:

Cut Tomatoes into four halves. Chop Onion into pieces. Chop Vegetables into medium pieces lengthwise.

Method:

• Heat little in a Pan. Add chopped Onions and fry till translucent. Now add chopped Tomatoes and fry till its skin separates. Keep it aside to cool and then grind.
• Pressure cook the Vegetables for one whistle.
• Heat Butter and Oil in a Pan. When hot, add Cloves, Cumin and Aniseeds. When the seeds crackle, add the Ginger-Garlic Paste and chopped Onions.
• When Onions turn slightly brown, add Tomato-Onion Paste. Fry till the Oil separates. Now add the cooked Vegetables, Kasoori Methi and all the Powders.
• Mix well. Fry for a while and then add Maida mixed in 1 ¼ cup of Milk and Salt. Allow to boil.
• When it is almost done, add Garam Masala and Cream. Mix well. Boil for few more minutes and then serve.

Serves: 2

Serve with Chapati or any Indian Bread.

Notes: Cauliflower can also be added. Adding cream is optional.

Rotisserie chicken

Rotisserie is a style of roasting where meat is skewered on a spit - a long solid rod used to hold food while it is being cooked over a fire in a fireplace or over a campfire, or roasted in an oven. The rotation cooks the meat evenly in its own juices and allows easy access for continuous basting if desired. Source - Wiki.

I had a very strong desire to bake the whole chicken in this Rotisserie style. But my Hus alone cannot eat so much chicken. So decided to experiment with a small piece. The end results were good, said my hus who tasted it. I was very happy as my son liked it. Who knows what kids like??

Ingredients:

• One whole leg of Chicken – approx 200g
• Pepper Powder ½ tsp or acc. to your taste
• Salt
• Juice from a Lemon
• Oil 2-3 tsp

Preparation:

Marinate Chicken with all the other ingredients and keep it aside for half an hour.

Method:

• Preheat Oven to 225°C for 10 minutes.
• Once done, arrange the marinated chicken in between the rotisserie spit.
• Allow to bake for 35-40 minutes or till done.

Linking this recipe to Anyone can cook series of Taste of Pearl City and Iftar Nights of Jabeen's Corner. 

Kadalai Maavu Urundai (Besan ki Laddoo)

It is Wednesday today and I am paired with Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal of Mharo Rajasthan’sRecipes. I fell in love with her subzis and have decided to try one by one. But I liked her Besan Laddoo very much and wanted to give a try first. 

My Laddoos were not as perfect as priya’s but we loved its taste and texture. I had very less cashews in hand, so didnt use them.

Here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

• Chickpea Flour (Kadalai Maavu) 2 cups
• Ghee ½ cup
• Sugar 1 ¼ cups
• Cashews for garnishing

Method:

• In a wide bottomed pan, heat Ghee. Add the flour. 
• Fry on a medium flame continuously stirring until it releases a nice aroma and its color changes.
• Switch off the flame. Let it cool for some time. 
• Add sugar (should be bearable hot now) and mix well. Make balls, add cashews and serve.

Linking this recipe to blog hop Wednesdays. Check out other blog hoppers here.