Kitchen Corner-Try It

Shrimp masala is a spicy,semi-dry prawn dish cooked in a thick sauce of ginger,  fried onions and tamarind paste.It is a simple home-style preparation,the recipe handed over to me by my mother. It is quick and easy to make. Whenever I cook seafood I cannot help remembering my hometown... the beautiful backwaters that adds to its beauty, the lovely boat rides ,the seashore, boats and ferries loaded with fresh catch and my grandmother hurrying to buy fresh fish as soon as the boats reaches the banks of the kayal (backwaters). It was like a ceremonious duty which my grandmother enjoyed and many times felt offended if my father offered to help or plan to go all by himself. Who will not enjoy.... beautiful dawn, light morning breeze,  little gossips and chatting with friends and finally the struggle and  tactics to get the best fish at reasonable price of which she could boast the whole day :) Ingredients Shrimp-1b Fried onion paste- 3/4 cup Shallots chopped -4-5 Green chil

Chenna or yam pachadi is a delicious way to cook yam. I tried this recipe after I saw it in Lakshmi Nair Cookery show. This is a simple and quick recipe and she called it "instant pachadi'. I brought a little variation to the original which was like a chutney- grinding all the raw ingredients in a blender and then adding the thadka. The recipe had asked to use raw yam, but I was a it reluctant to try that since I did not get fresh yam and tried this with the frozen one. Ingredients Yam- chopped- 2 cup Coconut- 1/2 cup yogurt- 1 cup Green chilly- 3 Ginger- 1 inch thick Jaggery- 1 tsp Tamarind a small ball oil Shallot -1 mustard seeds-1/2 tsp Red chilly-3 Curry leaves- Salt to taste Chop the yam into small cubes. Cook this along with slitted green chilly, tamarind juice and salt. Make a fine paste of coconut, ginger, a pinch of  mustard seeds. When the yam cooks add this paste and mix well. Simmer for a minute and add yogurt and heat it for a few s

Mutton Biryani Mutton Biryani is the most loved and popular dish of India. It is an exotic dish prepared and served on all festive occasions. This is more a Kerala style of mutton biryani - a rather simplified version. It is not an authentic style as different regions of Kerala have their own subtle taste preferences and their own style of making biryani- north is milder and south seems more spicier. Anyways here is a strange blend of both styles...both my parents are from two different parts of Kerala :). I have only added green chilly in this recipe, but you can add chilly powder also as per your taste preference. Ingredients Rice- 3 cups Ghee- 1 tsp Salt- to taste Water- 6 cups Cinnamon- 2 inch clove- 4-5 Star Aniseed - 2 Mutton - 1 1/2 lb Onion - 2 large Shallots- 1 cup Green Chilly- 10- 15 Ginger- 2 inch piece Garlic pods- 8-10 Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp Pepper powder-1 tsp Poppy seed- 2 tsp Badam/ cashew nut paste- 1 tsp Tomato- 1 Lemon juice- 1 tb

Apple Raspberry halwa is a must try delicious sweet. This was an accidental recipe..it sometimes happens in my kitchen..I started with another recipe and ended up with this one.I started with not so optimistic note and with a grim determination.....no experimenting with food in  future. To begin  with it was pale and unattractive pink.But as the cooking proceeded I was surprised and once I let the halwa set I was truly happy..But my laziness reflects in these pictures..the seeds of the raspberries. I did not puree and stain them but just dumped them along with chopped apples. Anyways hubby felt that the seeds looked cute:). Ingredients Apples - 4 Raspberries-  1 cup Sugar- 2 1/2 cup Ghee- 1/2 cup water- 1/2 cup evaporated milk- 1/2 cup rice flour- 3 tbs Cashew nuts roasted or plain- 1/3 cup Cardamon  powder - 1/2 tsp Dice apples into thin slices or chop them and fry them in two tsp of oil.Saute till it is cooked and get easy to mash. Add in the raspberry (pureed and strained)and

Erisseri is a traditional Kerala vegetarian dish. Pumpkin erisseri is the most popular for sadhyas or feasts,  but you can use other vegetables like snake guard, yam, plantain, papaya or a combination of several of these vegetables. Erisseri is usually mashed vegetables and lentils seasoned with roasted coconut, fried curry leaves which adds to its unique flavor and taste. Personally I like pumpkin erisseri due to its mild sweet flavor and beautiful yellow color. Traditionally red beans and black eye beans are used, but you can also use green gram for this recipe.  Ingredients Pumpkin diced - 3 cups Red bean- 3/4 cup Shredded Coconut- 3/4 cup+ 1/3 cup Turmeric- a pinch Dry red chilly- 5 Jeera -1/3 tsp Garlic- 2 pods Curry leaves oil mustard seeds- 1/3 tsp Salt to taste Soak beans for at least three hours and cook them and set aside. Chop pumpkin into cubes and cook with 1/2 cup of water, turmeric and salt. Roast 3 dry red chilly with a little of oil till a ni

Fried eggplant is a simple and easy recipe. Eggplant is a wonderful vegetable but I like it best when fried and my mother had a tough time making us ( me and sister )eat this when we were kids. But we made no fuss when it was fried. This is definitely lot more calories but what is wonderful in this recipe is that it gets  fried crispy but not soggy. The best  way to fry eggplant is to use very little oil as it has a tendency to absorb and you will never get it crispy. It goes well with rice and dal/sambar, but it is also a nice snack or an appetizer.  Try this recipe ..you will surely love this. Ingredients Egg plant big- 1 Italian bread crumbs- 1/2 cup Chilly powder- 3/4 tsp Pepper powder -a pinch corn flour- 1 tsp Egg-1 Chopped coriander leaves- 2 tsp Chopped lemon grass- 1/2 tsp Parmesan cheese- 1 tsp salt to taste oil for frying Cut eggplant into half inch thick round pieces and sprinkle a little salt after a minute place them on  paper towel and gently press do

Simple Shrimp Curry/Chemmeen Oyichu Curry This is a simple Kerala style nadan chemmeen oyichu curry /shrimp curry with minimal ingredients. Moru curry and puliserri are usual curries served over rice in Kerala. Yet another popular curry served over rice is oyichu curry.  It is a quick coconut based gravy and is less spicy compared to the regular prawns curry. You can use fresh prawns or dried prawns. There are also vegetarian versions and different vegetables green mango, cucumber, jack fruit seeds, plantains etc can be used.Try this recipe,you will surely love it Ingredients Shrimp- 1 lb Onion / Shallot- 1 medium/1/2 cup Tomato-2 Ginger - 1 inch piece Green Chilly-3 Grated coconut- 1 cup Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 1 tsp Fenugreek powder- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp Salt to taste Oil Clean and marinate the  prawns with a pinch of turmeric, salt  for ten minutes. Make a fine paste of coconut, ginger and

Tamarind Rice/ Puliyodharai- South Indian Rice/ Temple Prasadam Do you want to spruce up regular rice into a beautiful and satisfying meal? Try puliyodharai/puliyogare/tamarind rice, a South Indian favorite. It is a bowl of fragrant and exotic rice made with simple ingredients and yet tastes divine! If you are from South India, this tangy, spicy aromatic rice recipe needs no introduction. It is made on all festive occasions and is a popular prasadam at several temples in South India. Rice is a staple in the region and has a divine appeal. It is a cherished offering of South Indian temples. I still remember as a child, sitting in temple courtyards, relishing tangy rice offered as prasadam in small leaf bowls.  You can find the tastiest tamarind rice prasadam in temples. Tirumala temple has had tamarind rice as an offering for centuries, and there are several inscriptions and historical accounts.   The exact recipe of temple/kovil puliyodharai is unknown. This recipe is not the authent

Pepper Fish Masala is a simple fish preparation which can be served as a side dish for steamed rice or masala rice. It is fried fish  sauteed in masala gravy till completely dried up.It is flavorful with caramelized onion, roasted coconut and sesame seeds. I have added a little of garam masala., but  it is optional.You can use any kind of fish..here I have used King fish. Ingredients Fish - 1 lb Onions- 2 medium Tomatoes-1 medium Ginger- 2 inch thick Sesame seeds  - 2 tsp Coconut grated- 1/3 cup chilly powder- 1/2 tsp Pepper powder- 1 tsp turmeric- 1/3 tsp coriander  powder - 1/2 tsp Garam masala- 1/2 tsp Lemon juice-1/2 lemon coriander leaves Salt to taste oil for frying Marinate fish pieces with turmeric,salt, half of the pepper powder and lemon juice. Keep aside  for ten minutes and then fry them till cooked and golden brown . Use boneless bite size pieces . Roast sesame seeds and coconut till browned up and make it into a fine powder.

Spicy chicken puffs is a favorite tea time snack with my family..when I say spicy it is the really spicy peppery chicken puffs with hot piping tea.  This crunchy munchy tea time snack is perfect for every occasion. Puffs can be made with several types of filling. But my most favorite is this chicken filled pastry. I was so happy to find a pack of ready to roll puff pasty sheet at our local grocery store. I was really missing the spicy yummy puffs sold at the corner bakery near my home in Kerala. The aroma of the fresh baked puffs would fill the surroundings and many times we felt that he purposely baked them in the evenings when we children were coming back from school  hungry :)  Ingredients Puff Pastry sheets- 1 pack Egg white -1 Boneless chicken- 1/2 lb Onion- 1 medium Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp Turmeric powder - a pinch Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp Coriander powder- 1 1/2 tsp Pepper powder - 3/4 tsp Tomato chopped- 1 medium Garam Masala- 3/4 tsp Meat Masala- 3/4 tsp Cho