Fattoush-The Middle Eastern Bread Salad

Fattoush is one of the known traditional salads in the middle eastern cuisine. The main ingredient of this salad is "Sumac" which gives fattoush its sour taste. Another special ingredient of this salad is crispy toasted flat bread which soaks up the dressing beautifully. It's a simple recipe, packed with freshness and flavor. The sharp flavor of the sumac, the crunchiness of the chunky cuts of tomato, cucumber and the thin baked pieces of bread to soak up the dressing, make it the favourite salad of middle east.

Ingredients

• Lettuce : 1 cup shredded
• Lebanese cucumber : 2 cut into half circles
• Tomatoes : 2 diced
• Flat parsley leaves  : 1 cup chopped
• Sumac : 1 tsp
• Pita bread (flat arabic bread ) : 1/2 cup, cut into 1 inch squares
• Black olives : 10

                                  

For dressing 

• Extra virgin olive oil : 3 tbsp
• Lemon juice : 1 tsp
• White vinegar : 1 tsp
• Black pepper : 1/4 tsp crushed
• Garlic : 1 clove crushed
• Sumac : 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method

Prepare dressing by mixing all dressing ingredients together in a jar. Shake well and keep in fridge while preparing the salad.
Place the bread pieces in an oven tray and drizzle thoroughly with some extra virgin olive oil and place in a preheated oven for about 5-10 minutes till golden and crunchy, or you can deep fry the bread instead.
Mix all salad ingredients ( except pita bread and sumac ) together.
Mix with half of the toasted bread pieces. Add dressing and mix well.
Top the salad with rest of the bread and sprinkle some sumac and serve.

Easy chicken fry

This quick and easy chicken fry recipe is perfect for bachelors or any one looking for fast yet satisfying dish. No need of marination, so very less time consuming and no compromise on taste. We are using only little oil for frying this, if there is excess oil you can remove that before adding the tomato puree. You can garnish with slitted green chillies and curry leaves.

Ingredients

Chicken pieces : 1/2 kg

Oil : 2 tbsp

Ginger garlic paste : 1tsp

Kashmiri chilli powder : 1 tsp

Tomato : 1 big

Salt to taste

Method

Use an iron vessel (Cheena chatti) or a cast iron pot to make this dish. If you don't have one you can use non stick pan, but making in an iron vessel gives this dish an awesome taste.

Heat oil ( preferably coconut oil ) and add ginger garlic paste into it. When it's raw smell goes add chilli powder ( simmer the flame while adding chilli powder otherwise it will burns easily ).

Saute and add chicken pieces and fry. Keep the flame low and stir in between.

Fry for 10 minutes. Make tomato puree and add to the chicken. Mix well, when oil separates from the chicken off the flame and serve hot.

My BH's Recipe, Shredded Brown Chicken

     Eid Mubarak to all. I am so happy to share this recipe on this special occasion, actually this is my better half's own recipe. He used to make some special dishes for us on his off days, those days i will be totally free from my kitchen. I love to cook but who doesn't like a change in daily routine :-)

     I enjoy those days when he cooks for us. Some times he makes 'butterfly chicken' (grilled full chicken with his secret masalas) and 'hummus', we have this dish with 'tandoori roti ' or ' khubs ' Its a heavy meal, we eat this for lunch.

     Off to today's recipe, a non gravy side-dish which he often makes, that goes well with fried rice, bhatura etc,. Its even used as a filling for sandwich or spring rolls. Its a kids friendly recipe too. You can make a chapati roll with this for your kid 's lunch box.

Ingredients

• Chicken breast : 1/2 kg
• Soy sauce : 3 tbsp
• Chilly powder : 1 tsp
• Onion : 3
• Capsicum : 1
• Green chilly : 2 nos slitted
• Coriander leaves : 1/2 cup chopped
• Oil : 2 tbsp

Method

      Cook chicken breast with 1 tsp chilly powder and 2 tbsp soy sauce. Shred chicken into small pieces. In a pan add oil and fry onion slices till brown, add green chillies followed by shredded chicken. Saute chicken till it becomes dry, add remaining sauce and saute again. When chicken is dried completely, remove from fire. Garnish with capsicum and coriander leaves.

Soy Sauce Chicken

            This quick and easy chicken curry recipe is perfect for students, bachelors or anyone looking for fast yet satisfying meal.

Ingredients

• Chicken pieces : 1/2 kg
• Soy sauce : 4 tbsp
• Chilly powder : 1 tbsp
• Oil : 2 tbsp
• Garlic cloves : 4 chopped
• Onion : 1 big ( cut in to square pieces )
• Capsicum : 1 ( cut into square pieces )
• Vinegar : 1 tbsp
• Corn flour : 1 tbsp
• Sugar : 1/2 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method

             Combine chilly powder, 3 tbsp of soy sauce and chicken in a pressure cooker and cook up to one whistle. At the same time heat oil in a kadai and add garlic, saute it. Then add onion, when it becomes transparent and add capsicum, saute for few minutes then pour cooked chicken with the sauce in it. Add salt to taste and cook for few minutes. Add little water and 1 tbsp soy sauce into corn flour, mix well and add to the curry. If you want more gravy add more water. Now add vinegar and sugar. Sweet and tangy soy sauce chicken now ready to serve!

Ambalapuzha Palpayasam (Rice Kheer)

     Ambalapuzha Palpayasam, the king of all payasams. The best thing is its simplicity, just three ingredients: Rice, Milk and Sugar. We can make this in home in a simpler way. Here I added Cashew and Raisins because I like it. It is not necessary. The exact taste, texture and the pinkish color of the Payasam comes from thickening of the Milk. There is absolutely no added flavors like cardamom. If you prefer you can add.

Ingredients:

• Rose Matta Rice (Payasam Rice) : 1/2 cup
• Sugar : 1 1/2 cup
• Milk : 4 cups
• Cashews : 50 gms
• Raisins : 50 gms
• Pure Ghee : 2 Tbsp

Cooking Method :

      

    Wash the rice and add into a pressure cooker with milk and sugar. Cook for one whistle and lower the flame and cook for another 15 minutes. Open the lid only after all the steam escapes. Fry cashews and raisins in the ghee and add into the payasam. Allow to rest the payasam for sometime in the same vessel. Delicious Palpayasam  now ready to serve, Enjoy....

Chicken Biriyani In A Hurry

 

      If you are in a hurry, you may not have too much time to spend in kitchen. Then also you can make this biriyani. No need of soaking or frying rice.

      Ingredients:
     
      For Rice:

• Basmati rice: 4 cups
• Ghee: 2 tbsp
• Oil: 1 tbsp
• Cinnamon: 3 sticks
• Bay leaves: 2
• Cloves: 3
• Cardamom: 4 crushed
• Onion: 1
• Water: 6 cups
• Salt: To taste

      For Chicken Masala:

• Chicken medium size pieces: 1 kg
• Ghee: 2 tbsp
• Oil: 1 tbsp
• Onion: 3 big
• Ginger&Garlic Paste: 2 tbsp
• Green chilly: 10 
• Tomatoes: 2 big
• Coriander leaves: 2 tbsp
• Mint leaves: 2 tbsp
• Coriander powder: 1 tbsp
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Garam masala: 1 tsp
• Pepper powder: 1/2 tsp
• Yogurt: 2 tbsp
• Lemon juice: 1

      For Layering (Dum):

• Coriander leaves: 2 tbsp
• Mint leaves: 2 tbsp
• Garam masala: 1 tsp
• Onion: 1
• Cashew nuts: 10 slitted
• Kismis: 1 tbsp
• Pure ghee: 2 tbsp

     Preparation Method:

     Cooking Rice: Heat ghee+oil in a pressure cooker. At the same time you can slice the onion. When ghee become hot, first add cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves and cardamom following by sliced onion. Saute for one minute then add water and salt. When water is being boiled you can wash the rice. After adding the rice close the lid and cook up to one whistle. Off the flame. Open the lid only after all the steam escapes.

     Cooking Chicken masala: In a biriyani pot heat oil+ghee, meanwhile make one onion (for layering) thin slices and add to the pot. After a few seconds, add cashew nuts followed by kismis. After onion become golden color remove  and drain in a paper towel. Keep it aside for layering.

     In the same pot we can make the chicken masala, add 3 onion (chopped) in to the same ghee and saute for few minutes. You can add salt in this stage for saute the onion quickly. Add ginger garlic paste followed by chilly paste. When the raw smell leaves, add turmeric powder, coriander powder, garam masala and pepper powder. Saute again, chop the tomatoes and add in to it. Then add chopped coriander and mint leaves followed by yogurt and lemon juice. Then add chicken pieces and cook for 8 minutes.

      Layering: Place one layer of rice above the chicken masala, then sprinkle pure ghee, garam masala, chopped mint leaves, coriander leaves and fried onion cashew kismis mixture on the top. Make two or three layers like this. Close with tight fitting lid and keep in low flame for 5 to 10 minutes. Serve with Raitha or Salad.

      Note: You can use a hot cast iron skillet instead of the lid.

                 If you like to serve masala and rice separate you can place an aluminium foil between the rice and                  masala.