Chicken Lollipop

Nothing can beat this in terms of a finger food. The best part is that it is real easy to make and it can be done real quickly. When you just want to relax over a drink and some snacks, then nothing can be better than this.

Infact when you have guests suddenly, it can be one of the best options.

So there we go!!

Ingredients

·         Chicken Wings (8-10)

·         1 Tbsp of Soya Sauce

·         Salt as per as your taste

·         1 Tsp of Chilli Powder

·         1 Tbsp of white vinegar

·         1 Tbsp of ginger garlic paste

·         4 Tbsp of cornstarch

·         1 Tbsp of all purpose flour

·         1 egg

·         1 Tsp of black pepper

Method

To make the marinade combine red chilli powder, soya sauce, salt, black pepper, vinegar and ginger-garlic paste.

Beat the egg, corn starch and flour together.

Mix the above two mixtures well.

On each chicken wing, push the meat down to one end. Marinate them in the mixture for atleast 1/2 an hour.

Deep fry and serve with chopped onions, chopped green chillies and lemon.

NB: Wrap the bones with silver foil and serve to make it easier to eat.

Happy Cooking,

Shreya

Herbed Roasted Chicken (Whole)

Another weekend has just gone by and even before you could actually realise that it has come it zooms away. You can’t really get really get enough of it!!!

I am quite sure you would not like to spend all your weekend in the kitchen. So came up with this mouth watering dish.

The combination of unique ingredients makes this chicken a dish delicious. It roasts beautifully and is surprisingly fast once it's in the oven.

So here we go!!

Ingredients

•          1 whole chicken, about 1-1.2 kilos (with skin on)
•          Salt as per as taste
•          Pepper
•          Red Wine Vinegar
•          Olive Oil
•          Oregano
•          Fresh Parsley
•          Thyme
•          Chili Flakes
•          Lemon
•          Garlic pods
•          2 boiled eggs
•          Butter Sticks
•          Cheese
•          Whole big cloves (for pinning)

Method

Wash the chicken well, especially the cavity within. If possible use luke warm water.

Rub everything on the chicken, both outside and inside and keep it aside for atleast 6-7 hours.

Grind the herbs into a coarse mixture. If possible use a motor & pestle.

Once the chicken is marinated, rub the herb mixture inside properly. Put the boiled eggs inside along with some butter sticks. Then seal it properly with the cloves, making sure that it doesn’t open up inside the oven. Make tiny punctures underneath the skin & slide in the butter sticks at different places.

Grease the roasting tray well & place the chicken with the legs beneath. Grate the cheese on top.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and roast for about 30 minutes. Turn over the chicken and roast for about 10 min. 

Then again turn it over and roast it for another 10 minutes. Make sure to spoon away the juices every time on the chicken. It would help the chicken to be juicy & not be charred.

And there you go. Its done.. Serve it with salad, grilled veggies and bread loaves.

Chilled White Wine goes really well with this!!

Happy Cooking,

Shreya

Sunday Brunch – A Quickie!!!

We all love Sundays, don’t we??? Waking up late is a great way to begin it. So obviously the time for breakfast is gone and you feel hungry before lunch time. On top of that you do not feel like cooking, like actual cooking! So here we come with our quickie Sunday Brunch. A salad, a sandwich served with wafers along with a thirst quencher.. And the best part is everything together took just took a little over half an hour..  So let’s get started!!!

Egg Mayonnaise Sandwich

Egg is always one of the best options for breakfast, a very healthy & nutritious choice. And this sandwich is quite a filling one, atleast not to make you hungry till evening.

Ingredients

• Sandwich Bread (4-6 slices)
• 3 Eggs
• 2 Tbsp of Mayonnaise
• 1 Tsp of mixed herbs
• Pepper
• Salt
• A pinch of red chili flakes
• Butter
• Wafers

Method

Boil the eggs, peel them & keep aside. The best time to peel boiled eggs is when they are still hot.

Cut the eggs into for pieces and put them in a bowl.

Put the mayonnaise, herbs, pepper, chilli flakes, salt as per taste in a bowl & mix it well.

Mix the mayonnaise mixture with the eggs, making sure that the eggs are not smashed. We want to keep the texture of the eggs.

Put butter on the bread slices. Put the egg mayonnaise mixture on one slice & cover it with another.

Grill it if you like a grilled sandwich and serve it with wafers.

Watermelon Juice

No other fruit says summer choice than the faintly crunchy, thirst slaking watermelon. Summer’s preferred fruit has more going for it than a better excuse for a picnic. Turns out this sweet and juicy luxury is loaded with hither multiple that charges blood movement in much the same way Viagra and other “performance” drugs do.

Ingredients

• One watermelon chopped
• Sugar as per as your taste
• A pinch of salt
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 Tsp of Jaljeera
• Mint leaves if you like

Method

Slice the watermelon. Take out the red pulpy layer and chop it roughly into parts. Abandon the outer white layer.

In a mixer add sugar, lemon juice, salt and along with watermelon. Blend it well. Store at a low temperature for a while. Do not add water as watermelon itself has water content in it.

Best when served cool.

Chicken Salad

To many people salad seems to be very boring and so a complete no no. But I am sure that this one they would have more than willingly.

Ingredients

• 2 Cups of chicken cubes
• 1 Cup of chopped lettuce
• 4-6 green olives pitted
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 green bell pepper
• Half cup of chopped onions
• Chopped cherry tomatoes
• Chopped broccoli

For the dressing

• Basil
• Thyme
• Red Chili Flakes
• 3 Tbsp of Vinegar
• 1 Tbsp of Mayonnaise
• Parmesan Cheese

Method

To poach chicken for this recipe, start with a pound of boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into large (2 to 3-inch) pieces. Bring a 2 quart pot of well-salted water to a rolling boil. Add the chicken to the boiling water, turn off the heat and cover the pot. Let the chicken pieces sit in the hot water for 15 minutes, then drain the water and chop the chicken pieces into smaller pieces for the salad.

Blanch the broccoli in salt water. Chop all the other veggies into small pieces. Mix them with the chicken pieces.

Prepare the chicken salad dressing in a separate smaller bowl. Mix together the mayonnaise and vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add basil, thyme and chilli flakes.

Gently stir the dressing in with the chicken and other salad ingredients. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Grate the parmesan cheese on the salad and mix it well.

So there you go with a wonderful brunch!!

Happy Cooking

Shreya

Posto Murgi (Chicken cooked with Poppy Seeds)

A couple of months back we were invited for lunch to a friend’s place when his parents had come over. It was a complete Bengali lunch and almost everything was cooked by his mother. One of the items which I really loved was Posto Murgi (Chicken cooked with poppy seeds). I couldn’t stop myself from asking her the recipe over the lunch itself. And ofcourse she was too sweet to give me the recipe instantly.

After that I have made it a number of times & have also incorporated some of my own ideas. And it turned out to be awesome. So do try this..

Ingredients

•         Chicken (500 gms)

•         2 big sized Onions

•         Mustard oil 3-4 tablespoon/ you can also use sunflower oil

•         Green Chilli (4 pieces)

•         3-4 tbsp of curd to marinate chicken

•         1 tsp of black pepper

•         1 tsp of ginger paste

•         1 tsp of garlic paste

•         ½ tomatoes finely chopped

•         1 bay leaf

•         ½ tsp of chili powder

•         1 tsp of coriander powder (dhaniya powder)

•         ½ tsp of cumin seed powder  (jeera powder)

•         ½ tsp of cumin seeds

•         Posto , also known as khus-khus or poppy seed - (6 tablespoons made into paste)

•         2 Potatoes of medium size peeled, cut into two halves & boiled in salt water. (Though I didn’t use it   this time)

•         ½ of garam masala

•         ½ tsp of ghee

•         Salt 

Method
Cut the onion in long, fine slices. Wash the chicken pieces well and marinate them with curd and a little oil for about an hour.

Make a fine paste of poppy seeds in the mixer. While making the paste put 2 green chillies, a pinch of salt and 1 tsp of mustard oil. Use a bit of water if required to make a fine paste.


Heat 4 tablespoon oil in a kadai or utensil with lid. I always prefer a non stick one. When the oil starts smoking put the cumin seeds & bay leaf. When it starts to crackle, add the sliced onions.


Fry onions till it turns brownish. Add the ginger & garlic paste. Lower the flame & fry it for about 2 minutes. Then add the tomatoes.


Add the cumin seed, coriander & red chilli powder. Add black pepper. Make sure that the spices do not burn, so add a little water if required.


When the oil starts coming out from the spices, add chicken, green chillies and salt.


Cook the chicken on low heat - stir the chicken occasionally and keep it covered. Cook till it becomes soft. You can now add the boiled potatoes if you are sing them.


Now add the poppy seed paste. Sprinkle a bit of water (only if water has not come out of chicken while cooking). Remember this is a gravy preparation so do not pour too much water.

Add ghee & garam masala and stir well to mix


Serve hot with steamed rice.

PS: Poppy seeds induces sleep.. specially if you are having it in the afternoon… So have this only when you know you have ample time to take a nap!!


Happy Cooking
Shreya