Italian, Chinese and Indian fish roll with similar flavored rice

Ingredients :

1. Any fish thin fillet (boneless and skinless)
2. Home made pesto sauce
3. Home made chill and garlic sauce
4. Home made Tandoori masala
5. Cooked basmati rice
6. oil
7. cheese optional for the pesto roll

Method:

1. Apply each sauce on one fillet of fish and roll it up. continue the same with all fillet. I made 2 with pesto, 2 with chill garlic and 3 with tandoori. keep it aside.
2. Added cheese on the sauce for the pesto roll.
3. Take a pan drizzle olive oil add the pesto sauce add the boiled basmati rice sauté and remove from fire. Continue the same process with chill garlic and tandoori rice. Keep aside.
4. Take a pan with little oil and shallow fry the roll.
5. Place each roll on the flavored rice.
6. Salad is optional.

Fish, carrot and Broccoli in white sauce

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup diced carrot
• ¼ cup Broccoli
• 2stalks finely chopped celery
• 5 cloves garlic
• ½ cup diced boneless fish/ Veggies can use paneer, Tofu or Mushroom
• 1 tsp melted butter
• 2tsp olive oil
• 2tsp maida/ all purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1tsp dry Italian herbs
• salt to taste

Method:

• Marinate the fish in garlic paste, 1/2tsp herbs and salt for 15-20minutes
• Take butter and oil in a pan. Sauté the marinate fish in the hot oil.
• After 3minutes add the broccoli, celery and carrot and sauté for 3-4minutes. Check salt and add if required. Add the rest of the herbs.
• Sprinkle the maida/ all purpose flour and mix gently.
• Add milk and bring it to boil. When the milk boils and sauce is thick, it is ready.

Italian Herb Bread

Ingredients: 

• 2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
• 1 Cup wheat flour
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 1 teaspoon active dried yeast
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3 ½ teaspoons butter
• 1 teaspoon Dry Italian mixed herbs

Method:

1. Dissolve yeast and sugar in the warm water and let stand five minutes or until it foams. Now add the salt and mix with the flour Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth, add butter and knead for 8-10 minutes.

2.Place bread dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise until double, 1 hour.

3.Knock down dough and add the mixed dry Italian herbs and make them into 4 equal long bread and place them on a well-greased and dusted cookie pan next to each other. Leave some space in between since it will raise and increase in size.

4.Cover with a damp tea towel and let rise until doubled, 45 minutes to an hour.

5.Dip a tissue in some milk and lightly run over the rolls or you could also make a egg and milk mixture and run over the bread.

5. Bake at 200 C for 20-30 minutes, until the bread is deep golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped with fingers.

6.Remove from cookie sheet and let cool.

7.Gently rub some butter over the bread rolls.

Tips to follow:

1.Yeast must be alive ie must show signs of foaming within 5 minutes else throw away and buy new yeast.

2.Use luke warm water else it will kill the yeast.

3.Important to add sugar to yeast to activate it.

4.Oven must be pre heated before bread goes in.

5.Be patient for 1st rise….very important..

6.Enjoy your bread making process…

Garlic dip

Ingredients:

• 2 egg whites
• 4 pods garlic
• Juice of ½ lime
• pinch of salt
• ½ cup light oil (sunflower/vegetable) do not use heavy oil like olive or gingelly oil.

Method:

• In a food processor crush the garlic.
• Add the salt lime juice and whisk again
• Add the egg whites and whisk for 2minutes, gently keep adding the oil like a string and keep blending.
• Dip is ready, for thicker consistency keep it in the refrigerator for some time.

Ingredients:

• 8 sea crabs (medium size)
• 1 medium potato
• 1medium carrot
• 1 capsicum
• 2 stalks celery
• 1 cup crab stock
• ½ cup milk
• 2-3tbsp Maida/plain flour
• 1tbsp butter
• salt to taste
• Dry mixed herbs
• Grate mozzarella cheese

Method:

• Wash, clean, cut and boil the crab with water in a big pot. Wash the shell and keep it aside.
• When the crab cools down, remove the meat, shred the meat and keep it aside.
• Cut the potato into small pieces and boil it.
• Take butter in a big pan, add the veggies and celery and sauté in butter for 3-4minutes. Add the potato, than the flour and sauté for 2-3mins. Add the milk, crab stock, salt and herds and keep mixing on low flame, till the filling thickens to the right consistency.
• Add this filling into the crab shell, garnish with cheese and bake at 200 degree for 20mins or till the cheese melts and turns to light brown color.
• .

2015 Diwali saw a new twist in my life as a cook, all my mom’s recipe’s that i never could imagine that i could make to perfection was untrue. It was like my mom was holding my hand and guiding me. I would be termed as selfish if i did not share these simple but mouth watering recipes. Thank you mummy for being my guiding Angel.

My Mother Hemalath Uchil’s Besan Ladoo Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1Kg Besan/ Channa Dal powder/ Chick pea flour
• 3/4kg Sugar powdered
• 1/2kg Ghee ( you may use 50-80gms lesser)
• Nutmeg and Elaichi (Cardamom) powder
• 4-5 Tbsp Powdered Cashew nuts/Almonds (Optional)

Method

Dry Roast the Besan/ Chick pea on medium Flame until it starts giving off fragrance and turns a little dark yellow.

Remove from fire, add sugar dry mix well, add the nutmeg and elaichi powder and mix well again, If you are adding nuts add that too at this stage.

Heat the ghee till it melts, when its warm and not too hot, add it the flour. Mix well and make ladoo’s.

My Mother Hemalatha Uchil’s Garlic Omapodi/ Sev Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1kg Besan/ Chick pea Flour/Channa Dal flour
• 2Tbsp Ajwain/ Carom Seeds/ Omam
• 4-5 green chilis
• 1 pod garlic (I use the small garlic/ Not the chinese garlic)
• Salt to taste
• Oil to deep fry

Method:

Take the flour in a bowl.

Ajwain/ Carom Seeds/Omam, Green chilis and garlic goes to the grinder and made to a chutney consistency. Strain this mix and get all the juice out.

All the juice to the flour, add salt, water and bring to poori consisteny (poori consistency is always a little tougher consistency than the Roti or chapathi consistency)

Heat oil in a pan, Press the dough into omapodi/ sev and deep fry.

My Mother Hemalatha Uchil’s Butter Muruku/ Chakkli Recipe

Ingredients:

1) 6cups rice powder

2) ¾ cup udad dal

3) ¼ cup channa dal

4) 1tbsp jeera / cumin seeds

5) 150 gms unsalted butter

6) 100gms white Til/Sesame seeds

7) Salt to Taste

8) Oil to deep fry

Method:

Roast Udad Dal , Channa Dal and Jeera dry grind to fine poder. Mix with rice powder.

Add butter, salt ,white til/ Sesame, cold water and bring to poori consistency (poori dough is always a little tougher that a roti/chapathi dough)

Shape them to muruku’s and fry on medium heat.

Dry Fruit Burfi Recipe

Ingredients:

• 500 gms Dates
• 200gms mixed nuts (Almond, Cashew and Pista) shredded
• 2Tbsp Ghee
• 100 gms Poppy / Khas Khas

Method:

Chop the dates to fine pieces.

Pour 2 tbsp of ghee in a hot pan add the dates and cook till soft, will take 5-10mins based on the texture of the dates.

When the dates turn soft add the chopped nuts mix for 2mins and keep aside to cool.

When cool, make them to long cylindrical shape, roll them in poppy/ khas khas seeds and keep it in the fridge for 1-2hrs.

Cut them when its firm.

Stuffed squid- Goan Style.

Ingredients:

1. 6 Medium Size squid
2. 3-4Tbsp of oil
3. 2 Large onions finely chopped
4. 1 large potato finely chopped
5. 1-2 kokam finely chopped
6. 2tsp ginger garlic paste
7. 2 large tomatoes finely chopped
8. 1tsp turmeric powder
9. 2-3tsp chilli powder
10. ½ tsp garam masala powder
11. Salt to taste
12. Coriander leaves to season
13. Toothpick for sealing the mouth of the squid

Method :

• Clean the squid
• In a Large pan, take oil, when the oil is hot add the onion, ginger and garlic paste and fry till the onion turn lights brown in color. Add the finely chopped potatoes and the finely chopped tenticle’s of the squid, add water if required and cook till the potatoes are soft. Add the turmeric powder, chili powder, tomatoes and salt and cook till the tomatoes are soft and cooked. Add the finely chopped kokam and Garam Masala and cook till the stuffing is all blended and ready, season with Coriander leaves. Cool the mixture.
• When the stuffing mixture is nice and cool, take a squid fill it with the mixture and seal the mouth with a toothpick. Continue this with every squid.
• Take 1-2tbsp of oil in a pressure cooker, when the oil is hot place the squids in the pressure cooker, sprinkle some water and pressure cook for 7-8 whisltes. Open the pressure cooker when all the pressure is realized. Dry the remaining sauce in the cooker by cooking it on high flame in the same cooker or move it to a non-stick pan. Cook till all water is evoprated.

What makes me happy on a sunday? Buying live fresh fish, just out of the net and cooking it for my family. This sunday it was Eral karuvaeppilai fry ( prawn curry leaves fry is the literal meaning). Just when I was driving back from the beach, my mind was thinking of the menu for lunch, both my boys at home love prawns, but I was bored of making the same prawn fry everytime. I had seen a tv show and remembered this different recipe and decided to try it. And so our lunch was eral fry, king fish naked fry and mackerel rava fry with yummy mangalorean fish curry with the freshest of mix fish ( mackerel, king fish, prawn head and a few thorny fish) with red boiled rice. Now, could I have asked for anything more?

Recipe for Christmas Fruit cake

Ingredients

1)   1 Cup maida/flour

2)   1 Cup sugar

3)   170 gms unsalted butter

4)   ½ cup sugar + 1tbsp water+1/2cup water to caramalise the sugar

5)   6 tbsp tutty futty soaked in rum/ brandy

6)   3eggs

7)   1tsp baking powder

8)   1tsp vanilla essence

9)   4 cloves, 1 small piece cinnamon and small peiece nutmeg – powdered.

Method :

To make the caramel:

Take a heavy bottom vessel and put the 1/2cup of sugar and 1tbsp of water  and leave it on medium heat. You will see the sugar melt and color change, do not use a spoon to mix it, gently swirl the vessel, when the sugar turns dark brown switch of the flame and add the 1/2cup of water into it and mix well. Do not go close to the pan/pot when you are adding water as it will splash, stand far away and add the water. Leave it to cool.

Sieve the maida/flour and baking powder and leave aside.

Take egg, soft butter and sugar and blend it well till you get a creamy consistency Add vanilla essence, 1/2cup of caramel and the spice powder and blend for a few minutes. Little by little add the maida and baking powder and mix well.

Bake in a preheated oven  at 180 degrees for 30mins, if required more.

Please note – I did not have brandy or rum at home. So added Bailey’s.

I made two 1/2kg cakes with this batter.