Golden Chilly potatoes - a quick starter

I wanted to replicate the Mainland china version of Chilly potatoes. In the due course i came up with my own style of chilly potatoes, which is a spicy starter that will be finished in no time. Yet very easy to cook it up. This one serves 5 persons.

1. Potatoes - 4(large)
2. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
3. Red chilly - 6-8
4. Mustard - 1 tsp
5. Peppercorns - 10
6. Sesame/gingely oil - 6 tsp
7. Garlic - 5 cloves
8. Shahi jeera - 1 tsp
9. Coriander - for garnishing
10. Soy sauce - 2 drops!!!
11. Tomato sauce/ketch up - 2 tsp
12. salt to taste
13. Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp

Peel and cut the potatoes into desired shape. Either cubes or you could go with the ever loved french fries shape. Let them not be very finely cut, instead dice them. Chop garlic finely. Dry roast all the fresh spices (Cumin , Red chilly, Mustard , Peppercorns, Fenugreek) until the flavor is out. Grind them coarsely.

In a sauce pan (better to have a wide mouthed pan, which is easy to toss the potatoes), add gingely oil, when hot, add shahi jeera. Add chopped garlic and potatoes to this. Allow the potatoes to fry for sometime (10 minutes) by gently tossing it, so as to take care that the potatoes don't get mashed, in this process.

Now once potatoes are half done, add the ground spices, salt, soy sauce and tomato ketchup. And toss this mixture until equally spread. Allow the potatoes to fry till they are cooked but NOT MASHED.

Note: Please use tossing method as far as possible and not a ladle to stir the potatoes.

Garnish with coriander and needless to say Serve hot ;)

tc,
N:astro

Meen kuzhambu (Fish gravy)

I made "meen kolambu" by taking it very seriously the 1st time and put in a lot of effort to make it the best by researching for many hours and also had it after 6hours of cooking. But the 2nd time, i just did it in a hurry - 15 minutes and had it after an hour! As of my hubby's conclusion, the 2nd time meen kolambu was better than the 1st one!

Given below are the raw materials required to build "Meen kolambu" :-)

1. Fish (i used Tilapia) - 6 pieces
2. Turmeric - 1 tsp
3. Onion (Pearl/Sambar onion) - 12 numbers
4. Chilli powder - 2 tsp
5. Salt to taste
6. Tamarind paste - 1 tsp
7. curry leaves - 5-6
8. Fenu greek seeds - 1 tsp
9. Oil for frying
10. Tomatoes - 1 (small)
11. Mustard seeds

Marinate the fish with turmeric & a pinch of salt for just 10 minutes!

Use 2-3 tsp of oil in a sauce pan and add mustard and fenugreek seeds, allow it to roast.

Add shallots/onion, curry leaves. Allow it become golden, then add tomatoes, cook until soft. Now add chilli powder, tamarind paste an a glass or 2 of water and allow it to boil for 15 minutes or until 3/4th of the desired consistency is reached.

Now add the rest of the salt and the marinade(Drop the fish pieces). Let it boil for 5 minutes. done. :-)

Meen kolambu is ready to be pounced on.

tc,
N: astro

Chettinad fish fry

There u go... The simplest of all fish items is this. I can vouch for it. All u need is

1. Fish pieces - 6-8
2. Turmeric - 1 tsp
3. Red chilli powder - 3 tsp
4. Gingely oil/sesame oil - 1 tsp
5. Salt to taste
6. Oil for shallow frying

Clean the fish, dry them, add all the above ingredients excluding oil for frying. Marinate them and keep aside for half an hour.

use a shallow frying pan to fry the pieces, by using just a spoon of oil! It will take about 15 minutes for 1 set to completely fry. Fry 5-6 pieces simultaneously!

tc,
N:astro

yummilicious, buttery, melting in the mouth "Thattai" - a south indian snack!

As always, this one also is on the simpler side, either by preparation or by cooking. I approached it, single handedly. 1st thattai was a mock of shattered Madeline but rest of them took the "real" thattai look and feel ;)

All you need is :

1. Rice flour - 4cups
2. Urad dal flour (Bengal gram) - 1/2 cup
(Roast urad dal, til slightly brown, cool and blend till smooth)
3. red chilli - 10
4. Channa dal - 1 fist, soaked for half an hour
5. curry leaves - 10
6. Asafoetida - 1 tsp
7. sesame seeds/jeera - 1 tsp
8. butter - 1 stick or 100gms
9. Salt to taste
10. Oil for deeeeeeep frying!!!

Soak red chilli and curry leaves in water and grind them to a paste form.

Mix all the above ingredients, except oil. add water to the mixture, spoon by spoon and form a dough of very thick consistency, which will withstand the pressure your palm applies to make them into plates, without getting crumbled in the process!

Now, make small balls and use a greased(grease with either butter or oil) plastic sheet to flatten them, as thin as possible. heat oil, and deep fry each one, till slightly brown and dry them on a tissue to lose that extra amount of oil in it.

There you are - at a point where you cannot resist saving them for tomorrow! Indulge into it, with a cup of tea.

Tc,
N:astro