Creamy Lemon Chicken Curry

A rotisserie chicken can be a pretty useful thing to bring home on a weeknight. The kids like the chicken as is, for us I need to do a little more, but nonetheless gets dinner done real quick. There are several things that I have done to dress the chicken up. This recipe is one example and I shall in time talk about others. The sauce for this chicken is simple and rich. It can be used to cook shrimp or tofu if you wish.

Creamy Lemon Chicken Curry

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4 people

Ingredients

2-3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 onion, cut into a dice
1 tablespoon of finely grated ginger
1 tablespoon grated fresh garlic
1 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
1 teaspoon powdered cumin
1 teaspoon powdered coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1 large tomato, coarsely chopped
1 cup water
1 lemon
1-2 pods cardamom
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 cup of frozen green peas
1.5 cup cooked chicken, cut into small pieces
1-2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Lots of freshly ground black pepper

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the onions, garlic and ginger and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the mixture is very fragrant, and the onions soften start turning golden on the edges.
2. Add in the red chili pepper flakes, cumin, coriander, salt and tomato and cook stirring occasionally for another 5 minutes, until the tomato is soft and mushy.
3. Place the mixtur in a blender with the water and blend until nice and smooth.
4. Return the sauce into the cooking pot. Cut the lemon and squeeze in the juice.
5. Add in the cardamoms, cream, bell peppers, peas and the chicken and simmer the mixture on low for 10 minutes.
6. Remove from the heat, stir in the cilantro and place in a serving bowl.
7. Add freshly ground black pepper and serve with rice.

All Indian Salad dressing

A meal salad for me is usually a fussy creation, especially if you are making the dressing by yourself. However the garden is now filled with all varieties of beautiful multicolored greens - mostly mesclun and romaine. Our first year trying out lettuce growing and I quite like the results! The highlight of this whole effort was the salad dressing that I created. It captures a lot of the base flavors for an essential curry. To add some meal-like substance I mixed cauliflower, nuts and fish to the salad and we ended up with quite a hearty meal.

All Indian Salad dressing

Cauliflower and fish salad with an all indian salad dressing

Prep Time: 7-8 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 3-4 people

Ingredients

For the dressing

5 tablespoons olive oil

1-2 tablespoons grated ginger

4 pods of garlic

1 cup chopped scallions

1-2 minced green chilies

1/2 teaspoon powdered cumin

1/2 teaspoon powdered coriander

4 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon honey

4 tablespoons thick lowfat yogurt (like greek)

1 teaspoon salt

For the salad

1/2 pound fresh white fish fillets (such as mahi-mahi)

1 cup of cauliflower flowerettes

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1-2 tablespoon oil

1/2 cup mixed nuts (I used walnuts and cashews)

2 cups of mixed fresh chopped greens

Method of Preparation

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil and add the ginger, garlic and scallion and cook for 3-4 minutes.

2. Remove and place these in a blender bowl. Add in the remaining oil, green chilies, cumin, coriander, cilantro, honey and yogurt and the salt.

3. Blend till smooth, set aside in the refridgerator.

4. Mix the fish with half the coriander, turmeric, and salt.

5. Mix the cauliflower with the remaining coriander, turmeric and salt.

6. Heat the oil in a large flat skillet place both the cauliflower and the fish in separate sections and cook till the fish is flakey (about 4 minutes on each side). The cauliflower needs to be stirred lightly and cooked till lightly brown and soft.

7. Place the cauliflower in a large mixing bowl. Add in the nuts and the greens and mix lightly.

8. Mix in the salad dressing generously.

9. Flake the fish and stir in.

10. The salad can either be served at once or kept in the refridgerator and served when needed (it can stay for 1 hour).

My kind of fish dish

Ok, so I did post the lamb post earlier this week, I am still scared and troubled but a lot more resolved about my job decision. I had the lovely cilantro chutney, that I had made a few days back and some fresh scrod from the market.

In case, people have not realized by now, Saturdays are my day of sleeping in followed by a mad dash to get groceries and then getting a meal on the table for me and the husband, yes the kids too..

So, here is where the quick and brisk splashing it all together comes in handy.

Cilantro Chili Fish

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound of fresh white fish
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin-coriader powder
1 lemon cut into half
1/3 cup oil
1 cup chili cilantro chutney

Method of Preparation

1. Place the fish on a plate and rub with the chili powder, salt, turmeric, cumin-coriander powder and squeeze the lemon juice and set aside for 15 minutes.
2. Heat the oil and place the fish in a single layer and cook for 8-9 minutes and turn and cook for another 9 minutes.
3. Pour the chutney over the fish and cook through.
4. Serve immediately with rice.

Decisions and pan roasted lamb

So can one survive a professional mis-step in the recession? I do not know the answer to this question yet, time and time alone will tell? I can only hope that the answer is yes...

This week, after some consideration I have decided to quit my job and focus on wrapping up the book, now called the CIT (contemporary Indian table), you knew that one.. and look for a more locationally compatible job. I have never actually taken on bet on letting go of something without another posibility on hand, but this time I am doing this, how practical is this time alone will tell.

For dinner this week, was this amazing lamb that I put together, if you like lamb like me, you should definitely give it a try...

Pan Roasted Spicy Lamb

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Serve 2-3 people

Ingredients

2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1 pound lamb on the bone cut into pieces (I used shoulder lamb chops)

1/3 cup yogurt

2-3 tablepoons oil

2-3 pods cardamom

2-3 cloves

2 bay leaves

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1-2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Mix the ginger-garlic paste with salt, chili powder and rub on the lamb.

2. Apply the yogurt on the lamb.

3. Heat the lamb and add the cardamom, cloves and bay leaves and cook for a few seconds.

4. Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring lightly until the onions soften and begin to curl and turn gently brown on the edges.

5. Add the lamb and cook on low, stirring and turning occasionally from time to time. The onions gradually turn brown and melt and cling to the lamb, the yogurt evaporates and the lamb turn a beautiful brown and is fork tender. The process takes about 25 minutes.

6. Turn off the heat and stir in the cilantro.

Chili Cilantro Chutney

There are many variations of your basic chutney, a spicy fresh condiment that we use as a dipping sauce for savory snacks such as samosas, pakoras and even crackers.

I like this zippy variation, among others and its uses range way beyond the condiment stage. I like to use it as a no cook sauce for fish or even chicken. I shall tell you about this soon.

Here is how I made it in class this evening.

Chili Cilantro Chutney

Prep Time: 8 minutes
Makes 1 cup chutney

Ingredients

1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro (leaves and tender stems)
3 green chilies
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 inch peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup buttermilk

Method of preparation

1. Place the cilantro, chilies, salt, ginger in the food processor and add the buttermilk in small amounts to process the mixture into a gently textured sauce.

2. The results described is accomplished by a food process as opposed to a blender.

3. Use as desired.

Hunan Ritz at Thornwood

There are a few basics that you should be able to count on in your neighbourhood chinese restaurant - such as the colorful fish tank and the flashy bar and maybe staples like chicken with brocolli and mu shu pork. Now, if the restaurant is Hunan Ritz in Thornwood, you can count on some respectable sushi as well.

The restaurant was suprisingly empty this Saturday, when I made a quick stop to pick up food for all of us. They were very prompt and worked on my order of assorted Sushi while I watched the fish. I have tried a bunch of items on their menu and the food is predictably interesting, good but not great. However, they are very convienient and I have stopped their often.

Yes, I know, I know Sushi is not Chinese, but a lot of Chinese restaurant now have a Sushi chef around to cater to customers like me who are not terribly fussy when they are running late and need a quick pick up. They actually have a really interesting role (we love it in our household!) called the Thornwood roll a nice assortment of asparagus, avacado, crab and shrimp. Their orders came with salad and wonton soup. Now the wontons were a little dissapointing, in that they were rather doughy.

Sweet and Crunchy Eggplant

There is something interesting about playing around with everyday food, adding an ingredient or two. That is kind of what I did with this eggplant recipe that I made over the week. In essence, it is a nice and simple recipe full of the sweetness of plump raisins and addictive crunch of walnuts. I also added in some Feta cheese for good measure, and folded in some crisp garlic. All in all, it was a nice satisfying meatless dinner. I must be going through another degree of change. I am actually not missing meat when I do not cook it. I am not giving up meat or anything, I just think this is another step in appreciating the natural flavors of nature's bounty.

Anyhow, back to the eggplant.

Sweet and crunchy eggplant

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 3-4 people

Ingredients

1 medium sized eggplant
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive or grapeseed oil
6-7 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1/3 coarsely crushed walnuts
1 teaspoon powdered coriander
1 teaspoon red chili pepper
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup large raisins
1 tablespoon thinly sliced black olives (optional)
1-2 teaspoons roughly torn mint leaves

Method of Preparation

1. Place the eggplant on the open flame of a gas-stove and cook turning occasionally until the eggplant is soft and the outer skin is nicely charred. Now, if you do not have a gas stove, the eggplant can be first baked and then broiled for a few minutes till the outer skin is burnt. The second method is less fussy, but it does take longer and produces a less intense smoky flavor. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

2. While the eggplant is cooking, in a cooking pan, place the oil and butter and cook till the butter is melted. Gently add in the sliced garlic and cook on medium heat stirring occasionally until the garlic gently turns golden.

3. Stir in the walnuts and cook for 1-2 minutes until they turn toasty. Gently remove the crisp garlic and walnuts from the oil and set aside and turn of the heat.

4. Carefully peel the outer skin of the eggplant and place the soft flesh in a bowl.

5. Turn the heat on, and in the remaining oil add in the powdered coriander and sizzle for 20-30 seconds. Add in the chili pepper and the eggplant and mash the eggplant coarsely with the spoon.

6. Stir in the feta cheese and the raisins and cook for 2-3 minutes, mixing well.

7. Stir in the olives (if using), and the reserved garlic and walnuts. Place in a serving dish and serve garnished with the mint leaves.