Kitchen Corner-Try It

Gobi Manchurian is a wonderful appetizer and a great side dish for fried rice and is immensely popular Indo Chinese dish.This fusion food is a flavorful and delicious starter and one of my favorite.I made this dry to suit my taste,but can make it with gravy by adding vegetable stock.Try this you will surely love it. Ingredients Cauliflower florets- 4 cups corn flour- 1/3 cup Maida- 3 tsp salt to taste pepper powder- 3/4 tsp oil For the sauce Onion - 1 small Spring onions chopped - a hand full  Garlic cloves- 3-4 Ginger chopped- 1 tsp Tomato sauce- 1/3 cup Soya sauce- 2 tbs sugar- 1 tsp Chilly sauce- 1 tbs  Vegetable stock/water- 1/3 cup Corn starch- 1 tsp oil   Mix flour, corn flour, pepper powder and salt with water to form a batter( thinner than dosa batter). Dip the florets into this and deep fry them till crispy and set aside. Heat oil in a pan and add ginger and garlic and fry till there is a nice aroma. Add onion and saute till ...

Kerala Style Chicken Roast Spicy chicken roast is an easy-to-make naadan recipe. It is a go-to when it comes to family favorites. This chicken roast is a spicy pan-fried chicken with a delicious masala. It is a dish that defines Kerala cuisine.  Chicken roast is a must-have for Christmas meals and festive occasions. The pan-fried chicken is succulent, finger-licking good, and gets coated with a delicious caramelized onion gravy.  The chicken can be deep-fried or shallow fried, but it is the masala that does all the magic! The chicken and the gravy, are gently roasted by turning down the heat to low and sautéing until it turns brown. It is perfect for special occasions and an exotic eating experience, try pairing this chicken roast with neypathal, pathiri, coconut rice, or ghee rice. It also goes well with chapati or steamed rice. Growing up in the coastal region of South India, coconut oil is an integral part of everyday cooking. For an authentic taste, try using coconut oil...

Yet another Malabar recipe and this time it is a delicious snack called Unnakaya.It is a sweet and delicious snack made with plantains and stuffed with a sweet coconut and nut filling.There is also a non vegetarian version with egg stuffing which  is most popular during the Ramadan fasting.Mine is the vegetarian version. Even though it is a very popular recipe, I must admit that I am trying this for the first time and that too after watching many cookery shows and demonstrations to bring somewhat perfect consistency for the dough and shape.My family really enjoyed this yummy snack. Ingredients Ripe Plantain- 2 Coconut- 1/2 cup Sooji/rava- 2 tsp ( optional) Sugar- 3-4 tsp salt- a pinch Raisins- a few chopped cashew nuts- a little ghee- 2 tsp Cardamom- 1/3 tsp To make the filling Heat ghee in a pan and fry cashew nuts and raisins followed by rava. Stir fry this for a minute and add coconut. Fry this till it attains light  golden brown.Add sugar and blend well...

Pathiri is part of the cuisine of the Muslims of the Malabar region of Kerala. It is fluffy and soft flat bread made with roasted rice flour and coconut paste. There are different varieties of pathiris and some have more  elaborate procedures. This is a simple basic pathiri and it is a delicious combo with spicy chicken or mutton curry. Ingredients Roasted rice flour- 2 cups Water- 2 1/2 cups salt -to taste sugar- 1 tsp coconut oil/butter- 1 1/2 tsp Grated coconut- 3/4cup shallots- 2 cumin - a pinch Rice flour- 1/3 cup Make a fine paste of coconut, shallots and cumin.  Bring water to a boil. Add salt, sugar and butter and the coconut paste and stir well. Now add the rice powder little by little and mix in till all the water is absorbed by the flour and it comes to one mass. Close with a lid and switch off the flame. Let is rest and cool down.  Now knead this into a smooth dough by greasing your hands with little oil. Make lemon shaped balls and flatten...

This is a delicious stuffed fish fry which is tangy and spicy.I was fascinated when I saw a stuffed Pomfret recipe. Usually there are different types of stuffing like sauteed prawns or crab meat. But here I used a tangy tomato and onion masala very similar to the Karimeen  pollichathu , that I posted earlier. You can use two fish fillets and make a  sandwich or slit through the fish very close to its bone and fill in the stuffing. Give this recipe a try,you will surely love this. Fish - 2 Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 1/3 tsp Lemon juice- 1 tsp Salt- to taste For the masala gravy Onion diced - 1 Tomatoes - 2 medium Green chilly - 2 Curry leaves chopped- 2 springs Ginger- garlic paste- 2-3 tsp Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder - a pinch Garam Masala-  1/2 tsp Vinegar - a few drops( optional)  Coriander leaves salt to taste oil  In order to prepare the masala heat oil in a pan and saute green chilly, ginger garli...

Here is a delicious and easy to make cookies,with its traditional crisscross fork mark.Peanut butter cookies is one of the favorites especially among kids and is easy to put together. Ingredients Flour-1 1/3 cup Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp Butter 1/2 cup ( or margarine) Creamy Peanut butter- 1/2 cup Sugar-1/2 cup Brown sugar- 1/3 cup Milk-3 tsp egg - 1 Vanilla extract- 1 1/2 tsp Mix flour and baking powder and keep aside.  Cream butter,peanut butter sugar and brown sugar till light and fluffy.Add in eggs, milk and vanilla essence. Beat well till fluffy.Mix in the flour till it forms a single dough. Cover and refrigerate for two hours. Line cookie sheets with butter paper. Shape dough into one and one half inch balls, press down a little and gently flatten in crisscross design using a fork. Bake in 250 degree F for 10 minutes,cool in the cookies sheet for 3-4 minutes and remove to cooling rack. Store in air tight containers when the cookies is completely cooled. ...

Easy Chicken Fried Rice Recipe Chicken fried rice is simple and easy to make at home. Who does not like fried rice? There are so many varieties of fried rice that you can try, and it is irresistibly delicious and packed with flavor. Chinese restaurant-style fried rice is the best healthy weeknight dinner, and the leftovers are great for lunches. It is my number one favorite when it comes to takeout. But you got to admit sometimes the takeout fried rice can be boring, and bland with little veggies and under cooked rice. So why not try making fried rice at home. This homemade fried rice recipe has been a lifesaver that is better than takeout fried rice!  I make a big batch of fried rice once a week, and it can be easily customizable.You can make delicious fried rice with whatever we’ve got on hand in the fridge or freezer. Try different kinds of proteins like chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, fish or eggs or with veggies like peas, carrots, beans, bell pepper, mushroom, pineapple, etc. ...

Kappa and Ayala curry Ingredients Fish- 1 lb Coconut- 3/4 cup Shallots- 1/2 cup Ginger- 1 inch thick Tomato- 2 small Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 2 tsp Coriander powder- 3tsp Fenugreek powder- 1/2 tsp Tamarind- a small ball Mustard- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves- 1 spring. oil salt to taste Clean and cut fish and keep aside. In a pan pour two tsp of oil and add coconut and stir fry till golden brown. Now add onion and ginger and saute till onion turns golden brown. Add all the powder and saute till raw flavor disappears. Add tomato and saute till it becomes soft. Let this cool and then make a fine paste of this mixture. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and when it splutters add curry leaves. Now add the paste and saute for a minute. Add one and half cup of warm water and also tamarind pulp. Allow this to boil till you find traces of oil on top. Slide in the fish, lower heat and cover and cook till the fish is done. Serve fish curry ...

 Puttu and Kadala Curry Puttu and Kadala Curry have steamed rice cakes with black chickpeas curry combo- a favorite and quintessential Malayali breakfast recipe. The combo is classic, healthy, and super delicious. It is the most common and favorite breakfast in Kerala,  made in every home throughout Kerala. Black chickpeas or Desi chickpeas are the best to make Kerala-style kadala curry. It is protein and fiber-rich with a warm earthy flavor. Kadala curry also goes well with appam or chapathi. The sauce is versatile and is good with any vegetable of your choice, lentils, or beans. The gravy consists of roasted ground coconut and aromatic spices. Puttu is simple to make with roasted rice flour and grated coconut. What makes it hearty and filling is the combinations that go with puttu, like black chickpeas curry, green gram, pappadam, bananas, etc. For those who like fiery spice, like my grandmother, crispy fried salted dried chilly and pappadam makes the meal complete. Anoth...

This recipe is for those who love gingery aroma. I love the flavor of fried or roasted ginger which enhances the taste of chicken. This is not the Thai version but a Kerala style chicken fry and is inspired by the chilly ginger chicken fry or perattu popular in my native place.I just tried different version by adding lots of ginger. It tasted delicious as a side dish for rice. Ingredients Chicken boneless- 1 lb Chilly powder- 1 1/2 tsp ( add according to your taste) Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp Coriander powder- 1 tsp Garam Masala/meat masala- 3/4 tsp Ginger finely chopped- 3-4 tsp Thinly sliced shallots- 2-3 Mint leaves - a few Curry leaves fennel seeds- a pinch mustard seeds oil-2 tsp salt to taste Cut chicken into small pieces and marinate with chilly powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder,garam masala and salt and keep aside for half an hour. Pour one tsp of oil in a pan and add curry leaves and mint and then the chicken.  Close the lid and cook i...

 Papaya coconut cake is a delicious, moist and buttery cake and the inspiration is from the  by the Bahamian papaya cake.Usually a little of rum is added for extra flavor in these cakes.This cake can be better known as a papaya sauce cake as I cooked the papaya into a chunky sauce before adding to the cake. You can also add the puree or just chopped papaya, but cooked papaya reduces the water content and gives it a sweet caramelized flavor which you will surely enjoy. Here are the ingredients. Ingredients All purpose flour- 2 cups Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp Baking soda- a pinch salt 1/3 tsp Papaya sauce-1 cup ( I used an orange red papaya for this recipe) coconut- 1/2 cup Sugar- 3/4 cup brown sugar- 1/3 cup ( Adjust sugar according to the sweetness of the papaya) butter- 1/2 cup egg - 2 candied ginger- one tsp ( optional) Vanilla essence- 2 tsp Imitation Rum Extract- 1 tsp ( Optional) ( I used McCormick Imitation Rum Extract or you can add 1/3 cup rum ) ...