Ambode (aa-mbo-day)

This is a classic from Karnataka. Any festival is incomplete without these golden fried lentil fritters. No one can eat just one!

For this you will need

100 gms - Bengal Gram ( Chana Dal)
1 No. - Large Onion (fine chopped)
3 - 4 - Green Chilies ( fine chopped, optional)
A handful of chopped Mint leaves or Dill leaves
A handful of chopped Coriander leaves
A handful of coarsely chopped cashew nuts
Few curry leaves chopped
3 tspns - Red chill flakes or red chill powder
Salt as per your liking
1 tbspn - Rice Flour

A wok with one thirds oil.

Method -

Soak the bengal gram for 5 hours. Drain all the water and coarsely grind in the blender. To this add all the above ingredients except the rice flour.

 

Give it a good mix and add the rice flour so you can get the consistency to make small balls.

 



 Heat oil in a wok and press the balls slightly to form a disc. Deep fry and serve hot!

 

Dill and Red Cabbage Pasta

I love Italian food, especially thin crust pizzas. I don't make much pasta at home because there are not many takers other than me but recently I had great craving and so bought angel hair pasta and decided to try a simple recipe. Just adding dill made it my favourite! Dill is one of my all time favorite herb, so if you like it, you have got to try this.

For this you will need -

Angel Hair Pasta
Dill leaves (fine chopped)
Red Cabbage (cut long)
Red Onions (fine chopped)
2 nos Eggs (optional)
A pinch of paprika to garnish on top

For the white sauce -

1 tbspn - Whole wheat Flour
2-3 tbspns - Butter
Pinch of Salt
2 tspn - Pepper
Cheese as much as you like
1/4 cup - Whole Milk
2 -3 pods - Garlic (fine chopped or crushed)

Method -

Cook the pasta as per instructions on the packaging till it is al dente.
In another pan, melt the butter with a tspn of oil, so the butter does not burn. Add the garlic and flour and keep stirring till it emanates a cooked fragrance and turns colour just so slightly. Now add the milk little by little, making sure no lumps are formed. If you have added more flour, then you might need to increase the quantity of milk. Basically keep on stirring and adding till you get a thin sauce. Turn off the flame, add the cheese, salt and pepper.
Once the pasta is cooked, drain the water and in the same pan, heat olive oil. Toss in the onions and cabbage. You can add any other veggie that you like, mushrooms, carrots or even meat like turkey, chicken or bacon. Stir till the veggies are soft. Add the eggs and cook well, with salt and another dash of pepper. Finally add the dill, give it a stir. Now add the pasta, stir and mix well. Add the sauce on top and turn off the flame. Give it a good mix and serve with a pinch of paprika on top just for the colour :) You can serve with garlic or any other bread.












 

Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani

Distance makes the heart grow fonder and so it has been for me and the beloved hyderabadi biryani. When we lived in Hyderabad, I fell in love with the chicken biryani, the juicy tender meat and the fragrant rice. I could never get enough of it. So I went in search for a recipe and I did get this one from a local but sadly the masala I use is a store bought one. I never could get my hands on a masala that is made from scratch. If any of you have one, please share.

Having said that, this recipe also makes one heavenly dish. It is really hard to get it wrong and I think the best dish to impress anyone. Excuse the bad pictures. Even though I made it twice, the temptation to eat couldn't be resisted and so the pictures took a backseat.

For this you will need -

To marinate -
1/2 to 3/4 kg - Chicken (cut into pieces)
1 - Large Onions (Finely Chopped)
1 - Green Chilly (Finely Chopped)
2 tspn - Ginger -garlic paste
1 1/2 tspn - Red Chilli Powder
1 1/2 tspn - Turmeric Powder
1 tspn - Garam Masala
A handful of Mint leaves (Chopped)
A handful of Coriander leaves (Chopped)
1 tbspn - Yoghurt
1/2 of a Lemon's juice
2 tspn - Salt

Clean the chicken well and add all the above ingredients and allow to marinate in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to half a day. You can alter the quantities of the powders and the herbs as per your liking.

Other Ingredients -
3 - Large Onions (Thinly Sliced)
1 1/2 tspn - Biryani Masala ( I used a brand called Shan Bombay Biryani Masala, you can use any that you get)
3/4 kg - Basmati Rice
A Pinch - Saffron in a glass of warm milk
A handful of roasted cashew nuts
4 - Boiled Eggs
1 - Bay Leaf
2 inch - Whole Cinnamon
3 - Whole Cloves
2 - Whole Green Cardamom
10 - Whole Black Pepper Corns
1 - Green Chilly (Slit)
2 tspn - Fennel Seeds
Oil and Ghee

Take a large pot and put some oil and ghee in it. Allow to heat and add the sliced onions. Fry till golden brown, take out three quarters of it and keep aside. To be used for garnishing on top. Now, if required add some more oil or ghee to the pot. Add the marinated chicken to this and cook on low flame for about 20 minutes. Then check for salt and if required add some. Then add the biryani masala and cook for another 5 minutes. By now the chicken should be cooked. You will most likely not need to add any water but if you feel it is dry, add just a liitle bit of hot water. On the other hand, if you feel there is still too much liquid, cook till it is not completely dry but just enough gravy to be absorbed by the rice. Then switch off the gas.

In the meantime, in the pot in which you plan to assemble the biryani, heat ghee and a spoon of oil. Add fennel seeds, bay leaf, green chilly slit, cinnamon, cardamom, pepper, cloves and a teaspoon of salt. Fry till you can smell their aroma and add soaked and drained basmati rice. Soak for at least 20 minutes. Don't throw that water away. Fry the rice for a minute or two and add water that is twice the quantity of rice. Use the soaked water, it has a lot of the aroma from the rice. Cook without closing the lid for 15 minuted or so, till the rice is about 80 percent cooked. Take the rice out.

Now, add a layer of the chicken gravy with two boiled eggs (cut in half), then a layer of rice, some of the saffron milk, then another layer of remaining chicken gravy with the eggs cut in half, the remaining rice, rest of the saffron milk and right on top all the fried onion, coriander, mint, roasted nuts and a pinch of garam masala. If you feel you don't have enough for two layers, just make one. Close the lid tight and either you can seal it with dough or if you can place some weight on the lid. In my case I could do neither as it is a glass top, so just shut it and cooked on very low flame for 10 minutes.

You can do the same thing for vegetable biryani, no need to marinate of course :)