Zaiqa

I am not much of a ‘Mithai’ person, I do not like sweets/mithai’s a lot. Just yesterday I had to attend a party at my aunt’s place and she gifted us some Boondi Laddu’s and the one to have them are everyone besides me in this house. I usually prefer sweets/desserts that are light, with not too much sugar, infact only a hint of sugar in it.

Kaddu/Bottle Gourd/Opo Squash

One such meetha that is light on stomach and calories, quick to get prepared, nonetheless satisfies my sweet cravings is Kaddu ka Meetha. For all those of you who haven’t tried this delicious meetha yet, I recommend you prepare it and try it atleast once.

Kaddu Ka Meetha/Halwa – Bottle Gourd Sweet
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Bottle gourd/Opo Squash/Kaddu – 1, medium sized, around 1 kg in weight
Ghee – 1 tbsp
Milk – 1/2 cup
Green Cardamom – 3, skin discarded and black seeds finely powdered
Sugar – 1/2 cup
Chopped/Sliced Almonds or Chopped/Sliced Pistachios or Raisins or Chopped Cashewnuts – shallow fried in little oil/ghee, for garnish

Method:

1.Wash, pat dry and peel the bottle gourd. Discard the peels or use them to prepare this curry. Then slice off the central pith containing the seeds and discard it. Use only the clear white flesh devoid any seeds present between the central pith and the peel. Grate this flesh using a grater or in a food processor. Mine came to around 4-5 cups of grated bottle gourd.

Grated Bottle gourd (left); Cut and Peeled bottle gourd (right)

2. In a heavy bottom sauce pan on medium heat, add the grated bottle gourd and cook it stirring continuously, but very gently, make sure you do not mush it up while stirring; until mostly dry. At this point add ghee and let it cook for a minute while stirring it gently. Pour in milk and let it cook again until it absorbs most of the milk. Add cardamom powder, sugar and keep stirring it. You can add more or less sugar according to your taste. Let it cook again until the sugar dissolves for about 5-10 mins more. Add fried nuts or raisins and mix. Remove from heat and let cool. Once cool, refrigerate for a few hours and serve chilled.

Kaddu Ka Meetha/Halwa – Bottle Gourd Sweet

Suggested Serving: To impress your guests, serve the chilled meetha in mini pastry cases that are easily available in stores. You can name it ‘Kaddu ka Meetha Tarts’.

Luv,
Mona

The secret to a juicy chicken is to marinate and let it brine well. Enjoy this sweet and spicy grilled chicken along with mango salsa or a cold pasta salad on a lazy weekend afternoon.

Ingredients:

• Chicken drumsticks/Chicken wings – 8 pieces
• Butter – 6 tbsp
• Soy sauce – 3 tbsp
• Honey – 2 tbsp
• Maggi Chilli Sauce – 2 tbsp
• Turmeric – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – 1 tsp
• Vinegar – 1 tbsp
• Ginger-Garlic Paste – 3 tsp
• Crushed chili flakes – 1 tbsp
• Black pepper – 1/2 tsp
• BBQ Sauce- for basting

Method:

• If you are planning to grill your chicken indoors in your oven, take a roasting pan with higher walls and line it on the base with aluminium foil folded twice. And if you have an outdoor gas or charcoal grill its all the more better.
• Make small slit marks on the chicken drumsticks or chicken wings, whatever you plan to prepare for the day.
• Mix all the ingredients well and coat the chicken the chicken with it. Let it refrigerate for 3 hours preferably. Let the chicken come back to room temperature again just before when you begin to grill it.
• Pour all the contents of the marinate with the chicken in the roasting pan if using an indoor grill oven, or place the individual marinated chicken on the charcoal or gas grill and begin grilling it. Remember to keep the grill temperature on low heat so that the chicken cooks properly.
• Let it grill for an hour time, until it is thoroughly cooked. Keep turning and basting the drumsticks with any of your favourite BBQ sauce.
• Griil it until it is perfectly cooked, and make sure you do not burn it. You can test if it is nicely cooked by piercing it with a fork at the thickest portion of the drumstick. Once done, Serve it hot.

Luv,
Mona

Butter chicken is one of the famous North-Indian dishes that made its way on the menu card of almost every Indian restaurant all over the world. Each person/household has their own style of cooking this delectable dish, but I prefer this procedure, its simple, healthy and gets prepared soon, and its delicious.

Butter Chicken – Makhani Murgh

Butter Chicken can be enjoyed along with parathas, naan or with plain rice.

Butter Chicken – Makhani Murgh
Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:

For Marinade
Chicken – 1 (large) whole, cut into pieces
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Yogurt (thick) – 1/2 cup
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
For Curry
Cloves – 3
Green Cardamom – 4
Cinnamon stick – 2 inch long stick
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Fresh tomato puree – 5-6 cups
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Salt – 2 tsp
Half and half – 1 1/4 cups (or) equal amounts heavy cream or light cream
Garam masala – 1 tsp
Kasoori methi – 1/4 cup
Canola oil

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients under the heading ‘for marinade’, and keep aside for 2-3 hours or overnight. Bring it back to room temperature before you start cooking. Heat a stove top grill pan and grill the marinated chicken pieces until lightly charred on both sides. Baste with canola oil whenever needed.
If using boneless chicken, marinate them as above directions. Skewer them onto bamboo skewers and grill them both sides until charred as shown here.
You can even grill the chicken on a charcoal grill for best flavors.
Cover and keep the grilled chicken aside in a bowl.
2. Heat 3 tbsp oil in a saucepan, add cloves, cardamoms, and cinnamon stick. As the spices begin to sizzle, add ginger garlic paste and stir fry for a few seconds. Add pureed tomatoes, red chilli powder, salt. Cover and let it cook until the puree is thick. Give a stir every once in a while. Add half and half or whatever using and let it come to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat and add the grilled chicken, kasoori methi, garam masala and water according to the consistency of the curry you desire. Cover and let cook until the chicken is tender and thoroughly cooked. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with drizzles of cream.

Suggested Accompaniments: Parathas, Naan, Basmati Chawal, Pulaos.. or even in between toasted bread as sandwiches.

Luv,
Mona

Mazadaar!! (meaning ‘yummy’ in English) is what everyone in my house say when they have just had thier first niwaala/morsel of my Dum Pukth Murgh Biryani.

Chicken Biryani is an exotic one-dish meal, served usually at large get-togethers, occasions and parties like weddings, ceremonies and festivals in the city of Hyderabad, India. The method of cooking involves a layering process of half cooked rice with the cooked till done spiced chicken mixture. Hyderabadi people have a great fondness for Biryanis and it is seen at almost every restaurant in the menu cards as the speciality item.

Saffron strands

Basically, there are two kinds of Biryani: Pakki Biryani, and Kachchi Biryani.

Pakki Biryani: where are half Basmati cooked rice is layered along with completely cooked chicken or lamb meat and then cooked till done on slow heat on dum.
1. Pakki Gosht ki Biryani
2. Pakki Murgh Biryani

Kachchi Biryani – which is the true Hyderabadi Biryani – where are half cooked Basmati rice is layered along with raw marinated meat and then finished on slow heat till done on dum.
1. Kachchey Gosht ki Biryani
2. Kachche Aqni ki Dum Murgh Biryani

The following is the procedure how I prepare Pakki Murgh biryani in my house on a regular basis. In this recipe you can use a whole chicken with bones, cut into pieces; but I usually prefer to use boneless Chicken, as my family prefers boneless breast pieces of Chicken, which has minimal fat in it, hence a healthier option. Check out my Instant Light Chicken Biryani, which is light on stomach, and gets prepared in less than 30 minutes.

The caraway seeds, garam masala powder, saffron strands, and all other spices used in this recipe can be easily found in most Indian grocery stores which sell spices. My family prefers to have Biryani a bit hot and lemony with a little bit of an acetous flavor, so I’ve added red and green chilli and lemon juice according to our tastes. You can alter those according to your tastes.

Do not worry if you have never prepared Biryani till now by yourselves. I have tried here to explain each step in as simpler method as possible. Do write to me if you have any doubts regarding the procedure. Go ahead and prepare this for your family, Enjoy.

Hyderabadi Dum (Pakki) Murgh Biryani – Fragrant Rice-Chicken Casserole with Spices
Serves: 8

Ingredients:

Ginger-Garlic Paste – 2 tbsp
Garam Masala – 1 1/2 tsp
Yogurt -1 1/2 cup
Tomatoes – 2, large and ripe, pureed into a smooth paste (or) Canned tomato paste – 5 tbsp (optional)
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Lemon juice – 6 tbsp
Salt – to taste
Almonds – 1/2 cup, slivered
Cashew nuts – 1/2 cup
Yellow Onions – 5, large, sliced
Chicken – 900 gms, Boneless, skinless breast pieces, cut into 2 cms cubes
Basmati, Long Grained Rice – 5 cups
Water – 8 cups
Canola Oil -9 tbsp
Caraway seeds/ShahZeera – 1 tbsp
Warm Milk – 1/2 cup
Saffron strands – one big pinch
Bay leaves – 1
Green cardamom – 3
Green Chillies – 5, small sized, slit lengthwise
Home-made Ghee – 3 tbsp
Fresh Mint leaves/Pudina – 2 tbsp, wahsed, chopped finely
Fresh Cilantro/Kothmir – 2 tbsp, washed, chopped finely

Hyderabadi Dum Pukth Murgh Biryani

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken with the first 8 ingredient for about 6-8 hours maximum or one hour minimum covered in the refrigerator.
2. Start by pouring 1 tbsp oil into a large heavy bottomed non-stick frying pan and fry the almonds and cashewnuts till they are golden brown and remove them into a bowl.
3. In the same pan add 8 tbsp oil and add the sliced onions. Fry them till the onions are brown and crisp. Make sure not to burn them. Remove from heat. Remove about a cup of the fried onions with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel in a platter.
4. Take out the chicken from the refrigerator, bring it to room temperature. In the pan with oil and fried onions, dump the whole bowl consisting of the marinating chicken and all its juices into it and put the pan on medium high heat. Let it cook uncovered until the gravy is dry and dense and the chicken is done. Keep stirring it occasionally. This might take about 20-30 minutes. Remove from heat and keep aside.
5. Meanwhile take half a cup of warm milk, and add a few strands of saffron. Let them soak  for an hour.
6. Wash and soak the rice in water for preferably half an hour. Later, drain the rice and keep it in the sieve. Boil 8 cups of water and add cinnamon sticks and caraway seeds/shah zeera, bay leaves, green cardamom and salt (I use the proportion:1 tsp salt for 1 cup rice). Once the water is boiling add the strained rice, give it a stir and let the rice soften up a bit. Once the rice is half done, strain the rice and throw away the water. Discard the bay leaves and the cinnamon stick.
7. Arrange half the amount of rice as the bottom layer layer in a large dish. Next, add the chicken mixture prepared earlier in a layer. Now add the remaining rice above the chicken layer, covering it completely.
8. Garnish with mint, cilantro, fried onions, slit green chillies, and fried nuts from step 2. Now pour evenly the milk with saffron strands and two tablespoons of ghee over the layered and garnished rice. Cover the dish with a lid or aluminium foil.
9. Preheat the oven to 350°F and put the dish in the oven for 10-12 minutes, till a nice steam has formed inside the dish, and the rice has been done. Serve hot for a delicious meal.

Tip: Adding salt to the water in which you cook rice is essential, or else the whole taste of Biryani turns upside down. One tip if you have forgotten to add salt to the water while boiling rice is – stir the required amount of salt in a little quantity of hot water, about half cup or a few tablespoons, and pour this on the biryani evenly. Warm the biryani in microwave and serve immediately.

Suggested Accompaniments: Biryani goes very well along with Mirchi Ka Salan or Baghare Baingan, or Tamatar Ki Chutney and Dahi Ki Chutney.

Luv,
Mona

Serves : 4-5
Preparation time : 15 minutes
Cooking time : 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Chicken-small boneless cubes – 1 kg
Canola Oil – 1 tbsp
Ghee – 2 tbsp
Bay leaf – 1
Cinnamon – 2, 1-inch sticks
Cloves – 3
Green Cardamoms – 4
Yellow Onions-grated – 1 cup
Ginger-Garlic Paste – 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Salt – to taste
Almond paste – 100gms
Heavy/Light Cream – 120 ml
Green chillies – 6
Mint leaves – 2 tbsp

Method:

• Heat the oil and ghee in a pan. Add bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms and saute over medium heat until they begin to cracle.
• Add the onions and saute for a few minutes. Add ginger and garlic pastes, turmeric, red chilli powder, salt and almond paste and cook over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the oil seperates from the mixture.
• Add the chicken, stir and cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes.
• Add the cream, slit green chillies, mace powder and vetivier.
• Sprinkle with fresh mint leaves, cover and seal lid tightly either with aluminium foil or with dough. Let the chicken simmer for 5-6 minutes on a very low heat.
• Garnish with coriander and chopped whole red chillies (optional) and serve hot accompanied with Laccha Parantha.

Suggested Accompaniments: Basmati Rice/Naan.

Luv,
Mona