Easy Cooking Easy Recipes

2011-07-26T10:24:00.003+01:00

Pickled Onions and Gherkins

Using the same brine as before, add your onions, gherkins, peppers and I added carrot ribbons too.

Pickled Cucumbers

2011-07-24T09:41:00.003+01:00

Simply make the brine and pour the boiled brine over the sliced cucumbers and seal in sterile jars.

Brine recipe:

6 TBS salt
3 cups vinegar
3 cups water
1 TBS pickling spice
10 Black peppercorns
6 tsp sugar
1 Cinnamon stick
2 Bay leaves

Place in the bottom of the sterile jars:
half teaspoon of mustard seeds, coriander seeds, a few peppercorns and some dried chillie flaks if you wish.
Some fresh dill sprigs ( I used dried as I had no fresh)

Make up the brine by boiling the ingredients above.
Slice up your cucumbers and fill sterile jars to about 1 inch from the top.
Remove the cinnamon stick from the brine
Pour the brine over the cucs up to about a half inch from the top of the jar and put the lids on the jars
Leave for 24 hours until the lids seal.

For the sweet pickled gherkins I simply doubled the sugar.

Jam and Chutney

2010-11-21T18:02:00.004Z

Pumpkin Recipe:

2lb (900 g) pumpkin, peeled and chopped
1 1b (450 g) tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pint (570 ml) white vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons allspice berries
1 ½ teaspoons white peppercorns
11b (450 g) onion, peeled and sliced
1 ½ lbs (675 g) brown sugar
1 ½ tablespoons salt
1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
1 ½ teaspoons of black peppercorns

Method:

Place the chopped pumpkin in a pan and cover with vinegar, add the sliced onions, chopped garlic and chopped tomatoes.
Crush the allspice and peppercorns, add both to the pan then stir thoroughly and leave for about 1 hour.
Add the ginger, salt and sugar to the mixture and bring it to the boil slowly.
Simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and taking care that the consistency does not get too much like that of jam.
Allow the chutney to cool, pour it into clean jars, cover and store.

This recipe originally appeared in the National Vegetable Society Bulletin

Kasundi Recipe (from my good friend Indian food author Kris Dhillon...yes name dropping and I don't care)

Kasundi
Cook time: 2-3 hrs on High 4-6 hrs on Low
Spice Mix
1 ½ tbsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
1 tbsp black cumin seeds
2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp turmeric
1 tbsp chilli powder
============================================================

10 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 x thumb sized pieces of ginger, roughly chopped
6 hot green or red chillies, roughly chopped
1.5kg Roma style tomatoes, chopped
400ml malt vinegar
200ml olive or sunflower oil
½ cup grated palm or soft brown sugar 110 grams
1 tbsp salt
Process garlic, ginger and chillies until finely chopped. Place half the chopped tomatoes in food processor or blender, add about half the vinegar and process until fairly smooth. Repeat with remaining tomato and vinegar.
Heat the oil in a wok or large pan until very hot but not smoking. Turn the heat down a little and add the spice mix. Cook stirring for about 2 minutes until mixture darkens a little and becomes deeply aromatic. Take care not to burn it or it will become bitter.
Add the garlic and ginger mixture and stir fry over medium to high heat for about a minute and a half or until aromatic.
Add processed tomato, sugar and salt and stir until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes. Foam will form at the surface. Skim this off and discard. Don’t worry if you don’t get it all.
Transfer mixture carefully to slow cooker, cover and switch on. Stir half way through cooking.
Kasundi is ready when it develops a jam like appearance and the oil rises to the top.
The kasundi will keep in the fridge for up to 4 weeks or indefinitely if transferred whilst still hot to sterilised jars and sealed.

All the jams were made using jam sugar. Follow the instruction on the back of the packet of jam sugar.

Fruit Scones

2010-03-24T13:38:00.002Z

Fruit Scones

You will need:

450 grams of plain flour (sifted)

Pinch of salt

20 Grams of baking powder

75 grams of butter or margarine

2 eggs

140 ml of buttermilk or plain milk

85 grams of sultanas

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.

Put the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a large mixing bowl.
Rub in the butter or margarine, until the mix becomes like breadcrumbs.
Add in the sultanas.
Whisk the eggs and milk in a jug and add to the flour mixture.

Work well until the mix comes together in a ball, leaving the bowl clean.

Place the mixture on a lightly floured surface and knead gently for a minute or two.
Roll the scone mix out to a thickness of about 1 inch, flouring lightly if needed.

Use a cutter to cut into rounds.

Brush any remaining egg and milk mixture on top of each scone and place on a greased and lightly floured baking tray.

Bake the scones for about 12-15 minutes until slightly golden on top.

Leave to cool on a wire rack and eat the same day.

Kris Dhillon's Butter Chicken

2010-03-21T19:21:00.002Z

A really beautiful dish.This is worth making.

Makhan Chicken
This is a fairly simple but quite spectacular dish in which tandoori chicken is transformed by a delectable creamy sauce.

Serves four.
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes.
2 oz (50g) butter, preferably unsalted
½ pint (275ml or two cups) curry sauce
2 tablespoon tomato puree
1 level teaspoon garam masala
½ teaspoon salt
½ ground cummin
1 green chilli finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped green coriander
3 teaspoon lemon juice
½ pint single cream
4 portions freshly cooked chicken tikka

Melt the butter in a large frying pan with deep sides. Add the curry sauce, tomato puree, garam masala, salt, cummin, chilli, coriander, and lemon juice. Mix well.
Bring to a simmer and cook on medium heat for a minute or so, mixing in the butter as you do so.
Stir in the cream, cook for another minute, and add the chicken pieces.
Stir once and serve.
-

Chicken Dhansak

2010-03-13T15:59:00.001Z

PART ONE:
You have to make tarka dall first:

Recipe:

1 cup red split lentils
4 cups water
half a teaspoon salt
1 small onion chopped
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
4 tablespoon melted vegetable ghee
half a teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon garam masala

Put the lentils into a saucepan with the water, add the salt, and bring to the boil.
Then simmer for 20 minutes, or according to the instructions on the pack, skimming off any froth that gathers at the top.
As the dal is cooking fry the onions and garlic in the ghee until the onions are just brown.
Add the turmeric and garam masala to the onions and cook for about 30 seconds.
Add this onion mixture into the cooking lentils.
Cook, stirring occasionally, for a total of one 30 minutes, at the end of which you should have a yellow, soup-like consistency.

PART TWO

2 tablespoon vegetable oil
200ml of the base gravy
4 tablespoons of the tarka dall
2 breasts of chicken cut into chunks
1 teaspoon teaspoon salt
half a teaspoon chilli powder
1 red chilli chopped
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cummin
1 teaspoon of tamarind concentrate
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh green coriander

Cook the chicken in the oil until almost done, this will take only a few minutes
Add the curry sauce and lentils and bring to the boil
Add the salt, chilli powder,red chilli. garam masala, cumin and sugar
Stir well and continue to cook on a high heat
Add the tamarind concentrate and continue to cook for about five minutes, or until sauce thickens, stirring regularly.

Now turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for a further three minutes. Stir occasionally.

Serve sprinkled with the green coriander.

Thai Style Chicken and vegetable curry

2010-03-12T16:23:00.003Z

1 TBS oil
1 chicken breast cut up into chunks
1 TBS grated ginger
1 TBS thai curry paste (I used PanAng Paste)
1 small onion diced
½ a yellow or red pepper cut into strips
1 mushroom sliced
3 or 4 snow peas, whole
1 TBS fish sauce
1 tsp of tamarind concentrate
1 TBS mango chutney
1 tsp sugar
100 ml base gravy
150 ml coconut milk

method:

Add oil to a hot wok or pan
Fry the chicken on a high heat until almost done
Add ginger and fry for 1 minute
Add onions and fry for a further 3 minutes
Add the curry paste and fry for 3 minutes
Add the pepper and fry for 3 minutes
Add the tamarind, mango chutney and sugar; the mushrooms and snow peas and fry for 2 minutes
Add the gravy and the coconut milk and reduce the heat and cook for 5 minutes stiring all the time.

Serve with Jasmine rice

Malt Loaf

2010-02-08T23:10:00.004Z

Preheat an oven to 150 degrees
Prepare a 2lb loaf tin by putting greased parchment paper on the sides and botom.

225 Grams of plain or cream flour
5 Grams (1 teaspoon ) of Baking Powder
3 Grams ( about 1/2 teaspoon) of Bicarbonate of soda
175 Grams of Sultanas
2 eggs
150ml of Luke warm strong black tea
50 Grams of dark brown sugar
175 Grams of Malt Extract (available at most health food stores)
1 heaped tablespoon of Molasses

1. Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl
2. Sift in the Bicarb and the Baking Powder
3. Add the Sugar, Molasses and Malt Extract to the luke warm tea and mix well
4. Beat the two eggs and add to the dry ingredients
5. Pour in the wet ingredients
6. Beat well until very smooth. Using a food processor to do this saves a lot of time and arm ache
7. Pour in the sultanas and mix them into the bread mix, reserving a small amount for decoration on the top
8. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin
9. Sprinkle the leftover sultanas on top of the mixture
10. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour

When ready the loaf will have risen and will be quite firm to touch.
The loaf can be eaten as soon as it is cold but it better eaten the next day, as this allows the flavours to develop.

Healthy Brown Bread

2010-02-07T18:51:00.002Z

225 grm plain flour
150 grm wholemeal flour
50 grm porridge oat flakes
30 grm pinhead oatmeal
20 grm mixed seeds
1 rounded teaspoon of bread soda (bicarbonate of soda)
1 heaped teaspoon of sugar (honey)
3 tablespoons of veg oil
1 egg
400 ml of buttermilk

Method:

Add all the dry ingredients together and sieve in the bread soda.
Mix well.
Add the oil, egg and buttermilk.
The mixture will be very wet as in pic below:

Pour into a 2LB loaf tin and flatten down with the back of a dampened hand

Sprinkle some porridge oats over the top and push in.

Run a knife down the middle to allow even cooking.

Bake in an oven at 180 degrees for 50 minutes

Leave to cool, but best eaten the day it is made, but the loaf does hold well if kept in a sealed bag.

2010-01-07T15:55:00.002Z

Hi All

I made these Potato Bhajias yesterday and they were very nice indeed. I had an onion in the fridge and sliced it into rings and dipped it into the batter as well as in the picture.

Ingredients:
250 grm of besan
1/2 teaspoon bicarb of soda
1 teaspoon turmeric, chilli powder, coriander powder and cumin powder.
1 Tablespoon of salt
400ml water
1 teaspoon mint from a jar
1 tablespoon pataks tandoori paste
3-4 potatoes washed and sliced. I left the skin on.

Mix everything up as for onion bhajias and fry

Curry Sausages

2009-12-15T18:00:00.000Z

Curried Sausages

Got this recipe from a Kiwi friend of mine.
Really nice.

CURRIED SAUSAGES.

2 tsp oil
8 beef sausages (I used lamb,Rosemary and Garlic ones I had in the freezer)
1 onion. chopped
1 tsp hot curry powder
1 Tbsp flour
3/4 cup beef stock
1 Tbsp relish or chutney (optional)
salt to taste

Heat oil in a frying pan. Cook sausages for 10 min or until golden on all sides
and cooked through. Remove from pan and pour off all but 2 Tbsp fat. Add onions
and cook until clear. Stir in curry powder and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in
flour and cook for 30 seconds. Gradually add stock, stirring constantly until
mixture boils. Reduce heat and add relish (I've never added it but it might be
nice) Slice sausages into bite size pieces. Add to mixture. Cook a further 5
minutes to heat through. Serve with rice.

Harissa Paste

2009-12-15T17:59:00.001Z

This is a superb paste that I use to marinate meat before cooking.
It is very fiery and has that 3 second after burn that really catches you off guard.
Use as you choose but I would be sparing with it.

50 grms dried chillies
4 tablespoons of coriander seeds
2 tablespoons of Cumin seeds
Salt
Pepper
400ml Olive oil

Soak the dried chillies in boiling water for 5 mins and when soft put into a food processor. Toast the Coriander and Cumin seeds and crush or grind to a rough powder. Put into the processor with Chillies and add salt and pepper to taste. Add the Olive oil and blitz until you have a consistency of grain mustard or smoother if you like.
Use to marinade steak, lamb, chicken or pork before cooking.
Absolutely gorgeous.

Next stop America

2009-11-10T14:25:00.004Z

I was away for the weekend..in County Donegal with my brother. He has lived there for the last 25 years. It is a lovely place, lots of scenery, the kind you probably think of when you think of Ireland. I went up there to collect a full lamb for the freezer, his friend has his own flock and butchers a few times each year so I got my spoke in and picked one up...great meat. I will be making merguez tomorrow.

Here are some snaps from a location about 30 minutes from where he lives....the next piece of land you will meet from here is New York. The waves you see smashing against the cliffs were about 50 foot high. There is a lovely photo of a cliff with a waterfall coming down from it and the waves crashing against it.
unfortunately I am now back in the city.

Mick's Lamb Dopiaza

2009-11-10T13:56:00.004Z

Follow video for instructions and list of ingredients

Noodles with stir fried vegetables in black pepper sauce

2009-10-31T15:58:00.013Z

Noodles with stir fried vegetables in black pepper sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Enough cooked noodles for two people

1 large onion thinly sliced

2 cloves of fresh garlic minced

1 thumb size of ginger cut into matchsticks strips

1 large red pepper thinly sliced

1 large green or yellow pepper thinly sliced

1 stick of celery chopped on the diagonal into pieces

1 small carrot thinly sliced

A handful of frozen prawns (optional)

2 Tablespoons of oyster sauce

1 Tablespoon of soy sauce

1 teaspoon of ground black pepper

1 teaspoon of fish sauce instead of salt

1 teaspoon of MSG (optional)

1 teaspoon of mango chutney instead of 1 tsp of sugar

A few dashes of sesame oil

2 teaspoons of cornflour dissolved in a glass of water to thicken up the sauce

2 Tablespoons of oil

Method:

Heat the oil until smoking

Add the garlic and ginger and fry for a minute

Add the veg and stir fry until cooked but still crunchy

Add the black pepper and cook for 1 minute

Add the rest of the ingredients and cook for a couple of minutes

Add the prawns if using and cook for a further two minutes

Stir in the cornflour to thicken the sauce

Add the cooked noodles and continue to cook until everything is well mixed together and completely cooked through. When I made this I reheated the noodles in the microwave and put them into bowls and then poured the veg and black pepper sauce over them.

Serve

Shahi Korma (Kris Dhillon)

2009-10-27T19:16:00.001Z

Taken from the curry secret by Kris Dhillon (copyright)

re-printed with permission

Shahi Korma

This is a delicious creamy lamb dish.

Serves 3-4.

Preparation and cooking time: 15 minutes.

4 tablespoon vegetable oil

¾ pint (425ml or three cups) curry sauce

1 lb (425g) cooked lamb

2 tablespoon cashew nuts roughly chopped

1½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon yellow food colouring

½ teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon ground cummin

¼ pint (150ml or one cup) single cream

2 teaspoon finely chopped green coriander

Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan and add to it the curry sauce. Bring to the boil on a high heat.

Without turning down the heat, put in the lamb, cashew nuts, salt, and food colouring. Stir, and cook for five minutes or so stirring frequently.

Turn down the heat slightly and cook for a further five minutes. Sir in the garam masala and ground cummin.

Now stir in the cream and heat gently for 4-5 minutes, stirring all the time.

Serve sprinkled with green coriander.

Kris Dhillon

2009-10-26T10:11:00.002Z

I was in contact recently with author Kris Dhillon and am delighted to announce that she has allowed me to put up some of her recipes on the blog.

This is where I started my "real" curry experience. For years I had been making curry the Madhur Jaffrey way and although the results were great they never quite tasted like anything I was after. Then I bought "The Curry Secret" by Kris and everything changed in the world of curry making.

The approach in the book was dead easy, even for a novice like me; and I have been in contact with Kris by email for the last year or so, hounding her with questions on curries and more. I have to say that she has never failed to answer any email I have ever sent her and most times will offer more advice than what I asked for.

It is like finding the Holy Grail of Indian cooking when talking with Kris, she is so knowledgeable and luckily for me, very willing to share.

So I will be putting up some of her recipes soon but I urge you to buy her books if you want a real taste of Indian restaurant cooking, at a fraction of the cost and to be honest...sometimes at twice the flavour of your local.

Check out the Kris Dhillon Link on the right hand side of the blog.

Thanks Kris

Onion Bhaji

2009-10-25T15:45:00.005Z

Here is recipe for Onion Bhajis.

You will need:

1kg of onions, chopped into slices

600g of Besan flour
2 Tablespoons of finely chopped fresh coriander
1 fresh chili chopped into very small pieces
2 teaspoons of turmeric powder
2 teaspoons of coriander powder

1 teaspoon of garam masala
1 teaspoon of methi leaves

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teasppon MSG (optional)

1 Tablespoon of mint (from a jar)
300ml of water

Makes about 30 bhajis

Mix everything together and let stand for about 30 minutes. Put Tablespoonfuls of the mixture into hot oil, about 180 degrees. Fry about 4 at a time until the bhajis are turning golden. Take out the bhajis and press them flat and put back in the oil until golden brown and cooked through.

Mick's Chicken Chasni

2009-10-24T13:36:00.006+01:00

Another classic from Mick

Chicken Chasni

1 CHEFS SPOONS OF OIL
1 TSP GARLIC/GINGER PASTE
1 SMALL ONION
1 TBL MIX PDR
1/2 TSP CHILLI PDR
1/2 TSP SALT
1 TBL SPOON TOMATO PASTE
8-10 PIECES OF CHICKEN
2 TBL TOMATO KETCHUP
BASE GRAVY 250ML
100ML SINGLE CREAM
1 TBL MANGO CHUTNEY
1 TSP SUGAR
1 TBL LEMON JUICE
1 TSP MINT SAUCE
1/4 RED FOOD COLOURING

Just follow the timings on the video,
You dont need to be exact,
This, as many recipes is quite forgiving timewise,

Yoghurt

2009-10-22T19:16:00.004+01:00

I decided to make yoghurt since I eat quite a lot of it.

I reckoned that home made has to be better than shop bought as it wont have preservatives and so on in it.

It is sitting there now fermenting away.

I will post the results later.

recipe:

1 Litre of shop bought milk

2 Tablespoons of LIVE yoghurt

Heat the milk in the microwave for about 6-7 minutes until it reaches about 45 degrees. Leave to cool a little and add the live starter yoghurt. The reason I used the microwave and not a pot on the stove is that the milk tends to burn on the bottom if not constantly stirred and the microwave eliminates this.

Most people say to bring it to 80 degrees first and then leave to cool until it reaches 40 degrees, but this should be only for unpasteurised milk to kill any harmful bacteria. Shop bought is already germ free so I have skipped the initial boiling part.

I put the luke warm milk into a measuring jug and covered it with cling film.

I heated up a cooler box with boiling water and then put a towel in the bottom of the box.

I placed the jug in there and covered it with another towel.

I will leave it in the cooler (now a heater) box for about 4 hours and then put it in the fridge to set.

I am interested to see what happens as it is the first time I have made yoghurt.

Ok,so I made 4 attempts at the yoghurt. Each one failed, and I eventually found the problem to be maintaining the heat until the yoghurt set.

My final attempt was to make up 1 pint of hot milk, let it cool to 40 degrees and add the tablespoon of live yoghurt and put the milk into a thermos flask. I left it overnight and in the morning...1 pint of yoghurt. The thermos is a great way of holding the heat until the milk turns to yoghurt.

I will keep back 1 tablespoon of this yoghurt as the starter for my next batch.

Chicken Tikka Pathia VIDEO (the best curry around IMHO)

2009-10-18T21:00:00.007+01:00

This is another curry video by Mick.

To be honest, it is one of the best I have ever tasted.

One chefs spoon of veg oil,

2 chefs spoons of precooked onion/pepper mix

1 chefs spoon of watered down tomato paste,

1 tbsn of mix powder,

½ teaspoon of salt,

1 teaspoon of chilli powder,

1 teaspoon of methi (fenugreek leaves),

1 tbsn of sugar,

1 tbsn of mango chutney,

1 tbsn of lemon juice,

8 pieces of precooked chicken tikka,

250 ml of base gravy,

Fresh coriander,

Fresh tomato 2 or 3 quarters,

Curry Powder

2009-10-17T12:10:00.009+01:00

Here's a recipe showing you how to make your own Curry Powder.

4 Tablespoons of whole coriander seeds

2 Tablespoons of cumin seeds

2 Tablespoons of whole peppercorns

3 Tablespoon of mustard seeds

10 whole cloves

6 dried hot chillies, broken up ( add more if you want a Madras style Curry Powder )

1 Tablespoon of fenugreek seeds

1 Tablespoon of Turmeric

Dry roast all the seeds until they emit a roasted aroma, this will take a few minutes. Be careful not to burn as it will leave a bitter taste in the finished result.

Use as large and wide a frying pan as you can to distribute the heat better and reduce the chances of the spices burning.

Leave to cool and then grind in a coffee grinder until you have a fine powder.

Add the Turmeric and mix well.

The addition of the following will make a tikka style curry powder:

Paprika

Green Cardamom

Cinnamon

Remember it will not taste like the stuff you buy in the shop because you have not added Salt, MSG or anti-caking agents, but it will be much better in the end result, and your salt is added to the dish, which you will control.

Store in an air-tight jar.

Better than any you will buy in the store.

Mick's Chicken Tikka Masala

2009-10-16T19:33:00.014+01:00

This recipe is from my mate Mick. I wish it was mine as it is brilliant and all the family just LOVE it. You make the chicken tikka first and then add it to the sauce. Yummmm. I urge you to try this out!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chicken Tikka Masala

1 Portion precooked Chicken Tikka
4 Tbsp Coconut powder
3 Tbsp sugar
250 ml Base Gravy
150 ml Single Cream
4 Tbsp Masala Paste

Masala Paste

2 Tbsp Tomato Puree
3 Tbsp Pataks tandoori paste
2 Tbsp Pataks tikka paste
500 ML yogurt (Sainsburys basics is ok)
1 teaspoon of mix powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon mint sauce
1 teaspoon red food colour.
- mix all together

Method:

Add sugar and coconut to the pan and warm through,
Add base gravy, stir,
Add masala paste,
Add Chicken Tikka,
Add Single cream stir again and leave on med/high heat for a few minutes until chicken is heated though and the sauce has reduced,
Quick stir and Serve with fresh coriander
========================

Chicken Tikka

Ingredients

One kg of chicken breast
Cut each breast once lengthways,

Marinade

One teaspoon of any mild curry powder
1/2 teaspoon of garam masala powder
Good pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of Pataks Tikka Paste (not sauce)
1 teaspoon of Pataks Tandoori Paste (not sauce)
1/2 teaspoon of mint sauce (in jars)
One teaspoon of vegetable oil
One teaspoon of chopped fresh coriander
1/2 teaspoon of orange food colouring powder
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
100 ml of plain yoghurt, (Sainsbury basics is good enough)

Method

Combine all marinade ingredients in a bowl
Add chicken and stir in marinade, ensure all chicken is completely coated
Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 24 hours,
Stir once or twice to ensure even distribution of flavours.

To Cook

Lay out on a baking tray or similar, cook in a hot oven until chicken is cooked through.
Once cooked then cut the chicken into chunks across the grain,

Garam Masala

2009-10-16T18:25:00.003+01:00

Garam Masala Recipe

3 cinnamon sticks broken into pieces
50 grm green cardamom pods, husked

2 Tablespoons of black cardamom pods, husked

25 grms cloves

25 grms black peppercorns

3 dried chillies

1/4 of a nutmeg grated

25 grms of cumin seeds

50 grms of coriander seeds

Place all spices in a dry frying pan and heat on a gentle heat until smoke starts to rise. This will take about 5 minutes. Keep the pan and spices moving all the time so as not to burn the spices.

Take off the heat and leave to cool.

Grind all the roasted spices in a coffee grinder until you have a fine powder.

Use as required.

Indian Take Away style Chicken and Mixed Vegetable Curry

2009-10-15T19:43:00.004+01:00

1 TBS oil
1 tsp fresh garlic
2 TBS onion paste
1 tsp mix powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
2 green chillies halved(remove the seeds to reduce the heat if you wish)
8 - 10 pieces of pre cooked Chicken
4 mushrooms halved
4 TBS pre cooked mixed vegetables ( any mix you want.)
1 thumb sized piece of fresh ginger grated or in strips if you prefer
2 TBS pre cooked spinach
300ml of gravy
Fresh coriander

Heat the oil on high heat in a large heavy based pan or wok.
Add the fresh garlic and fry for 1 minute making sure it does not catch and burn as this will give a bad taste to the dish
Add the onion paste ( recipe on the blog) and fry for 2 minutes
Add the chilli powder and the mix powder and fry for 30 seconds then add the lemon juice.
Add the fresh chillies and mushrooms and fry for 2 minutes
Add the chicken and cook out. When re-heated through add the pre cooked veg and the fresh ginger. Cook for two minutes and then add the spinach.
Add the gravy and reduce the sauce to your required consistancy.
Finally add the fresh coriander and stir in well.
Serve.

Indian Take Away Chicken Madras

2009-10-13T18:35:00.006+01:00

Chicken Madras

This recipe has a slightly different mix powder and requires some new ingredients and a coffee grinder, but it is well worth the extra effort as this mix powder adds a lovely flavour to the dish. You can of course, use the normal mix powder if you wish.

2 tablespoons of veg oil,
1 teaspoon of garlic / ginger paste
2 tablespoons of watered down tomato paste
1 tablespoon of MADRAS MIX powder (see below)
1 teaspoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon of methi
1 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of chopped coriander
8 to 10 pieces of pre-cooked chicken
300 ml of base gravy

Heat the oil and add the ginger / garlic paste and cook for one minute.
Add the tomato paste and cook for a further minute.
Add the madras powder mix, the chilli powder, methi and salt.
Cook for two minutes.
Add the base gravy.
Add the chicken ( or whatever pre-cooked you wish) and cook for five minutes stirring constantly.
Add the frsh coriander and cook for a further two minutes.
Serve.

MADRAS MIX POWDER:

1 Tablespoon of coriander seeds
1 teaspoon of black peppercorns
1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
10 fenugreek seeds
4 cloves
4-5 dried hot chillies

Place all the above in a non-stick pan and heat until aroma starts to come off, probably 1 - 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Grind in a spice grinder or coffee grinder.
Store in an airtight jar for further use.

Pre-cooked meat

2009-10-13T18:09:00.002+01:00

Most of the recipes here will call for pre-cooked meat.
There are a number of ways to do this but the method I use is as follows:

Chicken:

Cut the chicken breasts into chunks.
Place in a pot of water covering the chicken.
Add 1 tablespoon of the mix powder.
Add 1 teaspoon of Methi
Add 1 teaspoon of salt.

Cook the chicken in the water for about 15 minutes until it is done but DO NOT over cook or it will become dry.

Add this to the recipe as required.

Beef:
Cut the beef into chunks.
Cooking method is the same as above but cook the beef until it is done. Depending on the cut it could take up to 1 hour or longer.

Lamb:
Cook the same as the beef, again depending on the cut the cooking times will vary.

If unsure take out a piece of the meat and cut it in two to see if it is cooked through.

The meats can now be used straight away or frozen in portions of 8-10 pieces per person serving.

Indian Take Away style Chicken Jalfrezi

2009-10-12T23:08:00.003+01:00

Chicken Jalfrezi

8-10 pieces of pre-cooked chicken,
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 red or green pepper in slices
2 whole green chillies cut in half
1 teaspoon garlic paste or fresh
1 teaspoon ginger paste or fresh
2 tablespoons of watered down tomato paste
1 teaspoon of chilli powder
1/2 tablespoon of mix powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of methi
1 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped
2 medium tomato cut in wedges

300ml base gravy

Preheat a pan and add the vegetable oil
Add the garlic and ginger and cook for approximately 1 minute
Add the onions and red pepper, stir and cook for 1 - 2 minutes on high heat until almost cooked through
Add the green chillies, tomato paste, chilli powder, mix powder, methi, salt and the chopped coriander and stir well.
Cook for one minute.

Add the gravy.

Stir well and add the chicken and allow to cook for 4 - 5 minutes.
Add the the chopped tomato. Stir in and cook for 3-4 minutes.
Reduce the sauce to your required consistancy.

Indian Take Away Onion Paste

2009-10-12T20:00:00.003+01:00

This is a pre-cooked onion paste used in some recipes.
Freeze in portions of 3 Tablespoons for handy use.

2 Tablespoons of oil
2 Spanish onions chopped
3 teaspoons of Ginger / Garlic paste
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 Tablespoon of mix powder ( recipe posted on blog )

Heat the oil
Add the onions and fry gently for about five minutes.
Add the ginger / garlic paste.
Fry for a further five minutes making sure the onions don't burn
Add the salt and mix powder and mix well.

When the onions are soft take from the heat. When cool, blitz very quickly in a blender but make sure not to turn it into a slush.

Freeze for further use.

Indian Restaurant Style Mix Powder

2009-10-12T19:52:00.011+01:00

This is a mix powder used by a lot of Indian Take Aways.

4 Tablespoons of a Madras style curry powder ( I use a hot one , but as pointed out by Mick in the comments I shouldn't be doing this, so I will change to a mild one in future)
2 Tablespoons of Paprika
1 Tablespoon of Tumeric
1 Tablespoon of Cumin powder
1 Tablespoon of Corinder powder
1 Tablespoon of Garam Masala

1 tsp MSG (Optional)

Mix very well and keep in an airtight jar.

Indian Restaurant Style Chicken Tikka

2009-10-12T19:49:00.005+01:00

3 large chicken fillets

MARINADE

5 tablespoons plain yoghurt
½ teaspoon red chilli powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
2 teaspoon cooking oil
¼ teaspoon yellow food colouring
¼ teaspoon of red food colouring
1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1 tablespoon of Pataks tikka paste (optional)

Cut each chicken fillet in half. Wash and drain.
Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix very well. Add the chicken and make sure it is well covered in the paste.

Cover and refrigerate for 4-6 hours
.
Turn on the grill in your oven
Place the chicken pieces on a rack or in a shallow baking tray in a single layer.
Cook for ten to fifteen minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Indian Take Away Style Duck Vindaloo

2009-10-12T19:33:00.001+01:00

Duck Vindaloo
1 chefs soons oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 chef spoons of pre-made onion paste
1 TBS garlic / ginger paste
1 TBS watered down tomato paste 1 tsp salt
1/2 chefs spoon of mix powder
1/2 chefs spoon chilli powder ( or more if preferred)
1 tsp Garam Masala
2 cut up Duck breasts, pre cooked (for quick re-cooking). Skin removed as it is too fatty.
1 tsp methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
1 TBS fresh coriander
2 ladles of base gravy
1 TBS vinegar ( I use balsamic for the flavour of it)

Fairly straight forward. Heat oil. Add mustard and fenugreek seeds fry for a few seconds. Add the onion paste and cook out. Add the garlic / ginger paste, cook out. Add tomato paste cook out. Add salt and mix powder cook out (well) Add garam masala and duck. Add methi and gravy. Cook until the duck is properly reheated. Add coriander and then vinegar and stir well in until flavours marry. Let the base gravy reduce slightly and serve

Indian Take Away Butter Chicken

2009-10-12T19:27:00.003+01:00

Butter Chicken

25g butter
200ml gravy base sauce
2-tablespoon watered down tomato paste
1-teaspoon mix powder
½ teaspoon of Garam Masala
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander
1 tablespoon lemon juice
150ml single cream
8 pieces of freshly cooked chicken Tikka

Melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the curry sauce, tomato puree, mix powder, salt, fresh coriander, and lemon juice. Cook out for a couple of minutes on high heat.Continue cook on medium heat for a three to five minutes, making sure the butter is mixed in well.
Stir in the cream, cook for another minute, and add the chicken pieces.

If using cold (pre-cooked) chicken Tikka then add them straight after the other ingredients and cook out for five minutes until the chicken is heated through.

Stir well and serve.

Indian Take Away Lamb Passanda

2009-10-12T19:19:00.001+01:00

For this dish use strips of lamb from the leg.

500 Grms Lamb flattened with a rolling pin or meat mallet until ¼ inch thick. Cut into wide strips

MARINADE
1 TBS ginger / garlic paste
1 tsp mint sauce
4 TBS plain yoghurt

2 TBS oil

1 tsp cumin powder
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garam masala
200 ml of base gravy
1 TBS ground almonds
100 ml of single cream
1 TBS fresh coriander

METHOD

Cook the lamb in boiling water until done, 10-15 mins
Add hot meat to the marinade and leave for 2 – 4 hours

Heat the oil and add the gravy. Cook until bubbling.
Add the meat, marinade, Paprika, salt, cumin and turmeric.
Cook for 5 mins stirring often.
Turn down the heat and add the garam masala and cook for 1 minute
Add the Almonds cook for 1 minute
Stir in cream and fresh coriander and cook for a further minute
Serve.

Indian Take Away Curry Base Gravy

2009-10-12T19:01:00.005+01:00

Here is the secret of all restaurant curries.
It's all in the gravy base and here it is...dead easy to make. This is my version. There are plenty others out there.

The base gravy,
750 grams chopped onions,
1/2 a green or red pepper(capsicum),
1 t-spoon garlic(fresh),or from a jar
1/2 t-spoon ginger(fresh),or from a jar
1 t-spoon salt,
100ml sunflower oil,
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander,
1 t-spoon fenugreek leaves,
1 t-spoon coriander powder,
1 t-spoon cumin powder,
1 t-spoon turmeric powder,
1 and 1/2 t-spoons garam masala,
1 tablespoon of tomato paste,1 can tinned tomatoes,
1 and 1/2 litres of water. I add another half litre of boiling water at the end while blending.

Fry the onions, in a large pot, until soft but do not allow to colour.
Add all the other ingredients and boil gently, covered, for 1 hour.
After one hour blend the mix until smooth using a blender or hand blender, add more water when you blend, if you have to. Make sure the mix is blended very well indeed.
The blended gravy should be quite thin( like a soup), when you make the curries and boil on high heat this will reduce the gravy to the consistancy you want, this also intensifies the flavours.
Leave to cool and place into individual portions of 300ml each.
The gravy can be used straight away or frozen in its portions for use later.

I usually vac seal the portions but you can use a food seal bag or tuppaware type containers.

This is the gravy used by most Indian restaurants, some have added other ingredients, like coconut block, but this to me is the general one and gives a perfect result every time.

Note:
When using to make a curry de-frost and re-heat as it will make cooking the dish easier.

Thanks to Mick (Curry barking mad) for his help on this one and others on my blog. I have changed some of his recipes to suit my own taste. This is Mick's video on how to make the gravy. Mick has been very helpful with all my questions about curry making. His Chicken Tikka Masala is fab and I hope to get his permission to put it up on the blog.