Ginger Chicken Instructions

INGREDIENTS:

Ingredients

1 kg chicken

4 tomatoes, medium size (roughly cut)

250 ml or 1 cup milk

1 Tbsp salt, leveled or as to taste

1 Tbsp red chilli powder, heaped

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 Tbsp coriander seeds (sabut dhaniya), leveled

100 gm ginger (cut in julienne)

3/4 cup oil

PROCEDURE:

In a blender, put roughly chopped tomatoes and milk. Blend till tomatoes are well blended and no chunks are left. Let it remain in the blender for now.

Heat oil in a cooking pot and add chicken in it. Stir fry till chicken starts turning white. Add salt and further stir fry till chicken completely turns white from pink.

Add red chilli powder, turmeric powder and coriander seeds powder. Mix well so that chicken is well coated with spices. Now pour the tomatoes and milk mixture.

In the same blender's jug, put 1 1/2 cups water. Cover the lid and shake well so that the sides are washed.

Now pour this water in chicken and mix. Increase flame to high and bring a boil. Add in the ginger julienne. Mix, cover and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally till chicken is cooked.

Remove cover and reduce water on high heat till the gravy gets a little thickened and leaves oil on sides.

Enjoy hot with chapati/bread .

Recipe: Methi Khakhra

Methi Khakhras make a good tea time snack.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup chopped fenugreek/methi leaves or kasuri methi(dried leaves)
• 2 teaspoons carom/ajwain seeds
• ¼ teaspoon chilli powder
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon oil more for making the khakra
• Salt to taste

PROCEDURE:

Mix all the ingredients and knead by adding little water at a time, till it becomes stiff dough. Keep aside covered for 15 minutes.
Divide the dough into 20 portions/balls. Roll out the each ball into very thin circles and arrange them on a paper towel separately.
Heat the griddle in medium high heat. Add one rolled out portion of the dough, add 1 teaspoon of oil and keep pressing and turning it on the griddle not allowing it to puff. Continue this pressing and turning for a few minutes. Turn over and continue the press and turn method on medium heat until the rounds become crisp. Now the crisp rounds called khakra’s are ready.
Continue the same with the other rolled out portions and stack them one on top of the other and store in an air tight container.

Recipe for chicken with sherry vinegar and tarragon

Serves 4

Typically made with white or red wine vinegar, this classic French dish, called poulet au vinaigre, uses sherry and sherry vinegar, an idea from Britain’s beloved chef Delia Smith. Cut up a chicken yourself (it’s cheaper that way) or buy it cut up.

INGREDIENTS:

1 chicken (3 to 3½ pounds), cut into 8 pieces (2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 2 wings, 2 breasts)
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ cup sherry vinegar
1 cup sherry
1 can (14 ounces) whole tomatoes, drained well and chopped
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons creme fraiche
Extra sprigs fresh tarragon (for garnish)

PROCEDURE:

1. Set the oven at 200 degrees.

2. Pat the chicken dry. Halve the breasts crosswise to make 4 pieces. Sprinkle all the pieces with salt and pepper.

3. In a skillet large enough to hold all the pieces in one layer, heat the oil over medium high. Add the butter and when it melts, add the chicken, skin side down. Brown for 3 minutes, or until golden. Turn and brown the other sides for 3 minutes more. Transfer the breasts and wings to a plate.

4. Lower the heat to medium. Cover the skillet and cook the leg pieces for 10 minutes. Return the breasts and wings to the pan. Cover and cook 20 minutes more or until the thickest pieces of chicken register 160 degrees on a meat thermometer. Transfer the chicken to a baking dish and keep warm in the oven.

5. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan, leaving the browned solids on the bottom. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, for 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add the vinegar and sherry and bring to a boil, stirring the mixture to dissolve the browned solids. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until the sauce reduces by half.

6. Stir in the tomatoes and tarragon, simmer for 5 minutes more. Whisk in the creme fraiche and taste for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper, if you like. Tip any juices that accumulated in the baking dish into the sauce.

7. Serve the chicken with the sauce, garnished with tarragon sprigs.

Sesame Noodles with Spinach and Salmon

Normally the idea of sesame noodles conjures images of a dense, nutty sauce. Here, a lighter approach is taken, with toasted sesame seeds offering a subtle nuttiness, alongside hearty whole wheat or soba noodles. Tender, wilted spinach soaks up the garlicky soy sauce, and seared salmon is a lovely accent; you can't beat crispy salmon skin. However, it is truly just an accent. If you're looking for a little more heft, you may want some additional protein, be it fish or tofu. Either way, the dish comes together quite quickly, and tastes great at room temperature.

Sesame Noodles with Spinach and Salmon

Makes: 4 servings

Time: 30 minutes

The flavors of oshitashi-Japanese spinach salad garnished with shaved dried bonito flakes-are at play here, only the fish is fresh salmon. I love the flavor and texture of seared salmon skin, but you can discard it if you prefer. (In either case, don't eat the scales!). Instead of the spinach, you might try shredded Napa cabbage.

Salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
8 ounces salmon fillet, preferably wild
Black pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 1⁄2 pounds spinach, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon sesame oil
8 ounces buckwheat (soba) noodles or whole wheat spaghetti

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Put the vegetable oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. When it's very hot, sprinkle the salmon on both sides with salt and pepper and sear it in the pan until nicely browned on both sides, about 6 minutes total. Remove from the pan and cut or flake it into bite-size pieces.

2. Reduce the heat under the skillet to medium. Add the garlic and sesame seeds and cook, stirring constantly, until the garlic begins to soften and the sesame seeds turn golden, about 30 seconds. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, for another minute or 2. Add the soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and a splash of water and cook until the spinach is wilted, another 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

3. Cook the noodles in the boiling water until they're tender but not mushy (start tasting after 5 minutes), then drain, reserving some of the cooking water. Turn the heat under the spinach mixture to medium and add the noodles and reserved salmon. Toss, adding enough reserved liquid to keep things moist. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Serve immediately or at room temperature.

Sesame Spinach and Tofu with Noodles. Instead of the salmon, cut 8 ounces firm tofu into 4 thick slices and brown about 2 minutes per side. Proceed with the recipe. Serve a slice of tofu on top of each serving of noodles.

Classic Meatloaf Recipe

Why do I love meatloaf? It reminds me of being a kid. Where does one get meatloaf other than at home or at a school cafeteria? When I lived in San Francisco I bought meatloaf already mixed and seasoned from my local butcher. Just mixed in an egg, put it in a loaf pan, and popped it in the oven for an hour. These days I wait for my father to whip up a batch. He makes the Best. Meatloaf. Ever. His trick? Italian pork sausage (half sweet, half spicy). He once substituted this sausage for regular ground pork and never looked back.

Classic Meatloaf Recipe

Many meatloaf recipes call for ground veal or pork in addition to ground beef. You might want to experiment with a third each of beef, pork, and veal. If you don't have access to spicy ground pork or Italian sausage, add a pinch of fennel seeds and a half teaspoon of hot sauce to regular ground pork.

Preparation time: 20 minutes to prep, 1 hour to cook.

Ingredients

1 cup of finely chopped onion
1 celery rib, chopped fine
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 carrot, chopped fine
1/2 cup of finely chopped scallions (can substitute onion)
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 teaspoon salt (use 1 1/2 teaspoons if using Italian sausage)
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2/3 cup ketchup
1 1/2 pounds of ground chuck
3/4 pound of spicy ground pork sausage or Italian sausage (a mix of sweet and hot if you are using links)
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
2 large eggs, beaten slightly
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

Method

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2 In a large heavy skillet cook the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, and scallions in butter, over medium heat, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Cover the skillet and stir occassionally until the carrots are tender, about 5 more minutes. Stir in salt and pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/3 a cup of ketchup. Cook for 1 more minute.

3 In a large bowl, combine the meats, eggs, vegetables, bread crumbs, and parsley. Form into a loaf and put into a rectangular baking pan with 2-inch high sides. Cover the loaf with remaining ketchup.

4 Bake the meatloaf in the oven for 1 hour.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6, with plenty for leftovers for meatloaf sandwiches.