Kitchen Corner-Try It

Country Captain is an Anglo Indian chicken recipe, an adapted style of korma. It is very popular in club menu in Calcutta. The name is peculiar and may have come as it was a dish prepared for British officers when they were out of the country. It was a native curry adapted to European taste.There are different versions of this recipe in many countries especially in Southern American cuisine. To know more about this recipe check here . Recipe source-Simon Parkes and Udit Sarkhel, The Calcatta Kitchen , Interlink Books,2007. Ingredients Chicken- 1kg turmeric- 1/2 tsp salt as needed onion- 3 medium Broken cashew nuts- 1/2 cup Water- 2 1/2 cup Ginger- 1 inch Garlic- 6 cloves vegetable oil- 2 tsp Cumin seeds- 1/8 tsp Bay leaf-2 Paprika- 3/4 tsp Crisp fried onion- 1 cup Ground coriander- 1 tbs Heavy cream- 1/4 cup Saffron-  a pinch Mint- 2 springs Cilantro- 2 tbs chopped Garam masala- 1 tsp ( cinnamon, cardamon, clove and dried bay leaf) Garnish Ghee- 1 tsp

Egg Curry/Nadan Mutta Curry  A classical Kerala breakfast of appam/idiyappam and mutta curry/egg curry is irresistible and filling too. I love this egg curry,it is simple and a perfect accompaniment with rice and chapathi too. The creamy gravy of this curry comes from a generous use of thick coconut milk. This curry can be made mildly spicy,if you do not like a spicy dish for breakfast. Ingredients Eggs- 5 hard boiled Onions thinly sliced-3 medium Tomatoes-2 Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp Curry leaves - a few Thick coconut milk- 1 cup Thin coconut milk- 1 1/2 cup Fennel powder- 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 3/4 to 1 tsp Pepper powder- 1/8 tsp Coriander powder- 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon stick - 2 peices Clove- 3 Boil egg for three minutes and set aside. Heat oil in a pan and add cinnamon sticks and clove and saute till fragrant. Add curry leaves and ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw flavor disappears. Add onions and fry till golden brown,fo

Peach Ice Cream Custard based fruit ice cream are creamy rich and very refreshing.I tried  mango and strawberry ice cream and this was next in the list. It was in my draft for quite some time and finally decided to post this yummy summer treat.Peach ice cream has the flavor of vanilla and caramel. Try this, you will surely love it. Ingredients Whole milk- 1 cup Heavy cream- 2 1/2 cups Sugar- 1 cup Egg yolks 4 Corn starch 2 tbs Pureed peaches- 2 cup Finely chopped peaches- 1/2 cup Salt - a pinch Caramel syrup- 2 tbs (optional) Vanilla essence- 1 1/2 tsp Make a puree of peaches and allow it to chill. Mix milk, corn starch and sugar in a heavy bottom pan. Cook this in medium and stir continuously till it slightly thickens  Beat egg yolks and gradually add 1/3 of the warm milk into the egg mixture stirring continuously. Add this egg mixture back to the milk and simmer whisking continuously. Cook whisking continiously until the mixture thickens and coats t

Linzer Cookies Baking partners challenge for February,Valentine month is heart shape Linzer cookies. This recipe was suggested by Swathi . Swathi send us two cookie recipes- Linzer heart cookies and heart shaped crunchy seed cookies.Linzer cookie recipe is egg less almond flavored cookies. It is buttery and delicate sandwiched cookies. The filling is jam/fruit preserve. Try this yummy cookies,you will surely love it. Adapted from Alice Medrich, Chewy, Gooey, Crispy, Crunchy Ingredients  Unbleached all-purpose flour-1  cup 2 tablespoon  (5.06 ounces)/145g Ground almonds and/or hazelnuts-1/2 cup (2.5 ounces) 63g Sugar-1/4 cup (1.75 ounces)/50g Salt- 1/8 tsp Ground Cinnamon- 1/8 tsp Ground clove- 1/8 tsp Butter- 8 tbs Almond extract- 1/8 tsp  Lemon zest- 1 tsp Orange zest- 1 tsp Strawberry jam- Powdered sugar for dusting Blanch almond and process in food processor till fine powder along with one tsp powdered sugar. (you can also use store brought al

Pistachio Cardamom Rolls This is a cardamon flavored sticky, sweet bun, for all those who have a sweet tooth like me.You can have it as a treat or a yummy snack. I have used pistachios,but you can use any kind of nuts or dried fruit. Ingredients All purpose flour – 2 1/2 cups Instant Yeast – 1 pkt Egg-1 Milk – 3/4 cup (lukewarm) Butter – 3 tbsp Sugar – 2 tbsp Vanilla – 1 tsp Salt – 1 tsp Pistachio- 1/2 cup Demerara sugar- 1/3 cup Cardamom- 1/2 tsp In a wide bowl, mix flour salt, sugar . Now add the butter and the vanilla. Cut in and blend the butter with the flour using a pastry blender. Mix in the yeast.Now add the milk little at a time and knead into a smooth dough. Cover and allow it to proof until doubled in size (40 to one hour) When the dough proofed to double its sized, place on a floured work space and punch the dough and smooth it. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into approximately 12x12 inches square.Spread the sugar,pistachi

Pazham Nirachathu Pazham Nirachathu is a yummy snack from North Kerala. It is whole plantains stuffed with a sweet coconut filling, dipped in batter and fried. It is similar to pazham pori and kids will surely love this. Ingredients Whole plantains-2 All purpose flour/maida- 1/2 cup Rice flour- 2 tbs salt- a pinch Sugar- 1 tbs For the filling Coconut- 1/3 cup Sugar- 3 tbs Ghee- 1 tsp Cardamon- 1/3 tsp Raisins- a few Chopped cashew nuts- 4-5 ( I also used 1 tsp dates and 1 tsp candied pineapple) Heat ghee in a pan and roast cashew nuts and raisins till golden brown. Add coconut and sugar and stir for a minute and set aside. Allow this mixture to cool. Make a medium consistency batter with maida,rice flour, salt and sugar and water. Keep aside. Peel plantains and making a long shallow slit lengthwise ,leaving one inch towards both edges.  The slit should reach the center and carefully remove the black seeds. Stuff in the filling mixture. Heat oil in a

Varutharacha Neimeen Masala Curry Varutharacha meen curry has a distinct aroma and is very appetizing.There are different dishes in Kerala cuisine, both vegetarian and non vegetarian, which uses roasted and ground coconut paste.This process of roasting add a rich dark color and thickness to the gravy. It is time consuming,but surely worth the effort.  I have used king fish/neimeen to make this curry. Serve this with rice, chapati or pathiri. Ingredients King fish/Neimeen- 1 kg Shallots sliced - 1/2 cup Ginger- 1 inch thick Garlic- 2 pods Kudampuli/Malabar Tamarind- 3 pieces Tomato- 1 Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 2 tsp Coriander powder-2 1/2 tsp Mustard- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves- 1 spring. oil salt to taste To roast and make paste Coconut- 1 1/2 cup Fennel seeds- 1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds- 1/3 tsp Clove-2 Cardomon-2 Shallots- 2 sliced Curry leaves- 1 spring Oil- 2-3 tbs Soak kudam puli/ Malabar tamarind in 1/2 cup warm water and set as

Italian Spicy Breaded Shrimp It is a classic appetizer from the Adriatic coast.It is crispy with the flavor of lemon,almond and cinnamon. Recipe calls for Ameretto or Italian almond liquor, I also used a little of almond flour and panko bread crumbs to the breading flour which adds a crunchy nutty flavor to the shrimp. Recipe source: Betty Crocker's Italian cooking - recipes by Antonio Cecconi Ingredients Shrimp-25 large shrimp Egg-1 Lemon juice- 1/2 lemon Ameretto-3 tbs (or 1/2 tsp almond extract) Finely chopped garlic- 2 cloves Oil for frying All propose flour-1/3 cup Almond flour- 3 tbs Panko bread crumbs-3 tbs (optional) salt- 1 tsp Ground red pepper/ Cayenne-1 tsp Ground cinnamon- 1/2 tsp Peel shrimp,leaving tails on,take off the vein. Wash and pat dry. Beat egg till light and fluffy and add amaretto,lemon juice and garlic.Into this add shrimp and mix till well coated. Cover and refrigerate for 10 minutes. Heat oil in a pan ( 325 degree F