Eggs Curry (Anda Curry)

Ingredients:

12 eggs
oil for deep-frying
4 tbsp oil or ghee

Blended ingredients:

5 cloves garlic, peeled
6 onions, peeled
1 knob fresh ginger, peeled

Seasoning ingredients:

1 tbsp coriander powder
2 tbsp fennel powder
1 ½ tbsp cumin powder
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp chili powder or to taste

4 tomato, diced and pureed
4 tsp salt or to taste
1 tsp pepper powder
1 cup water
2 tsp garam masala
250 g paneer (farmer cheese) and/or 1 can green peas (optional)
coriander leaves or curry leaves for sprinkling (optional)

Method:

Boil a pot of water and hard boil the eggs.

Transfer cooked eggs to a running cold tap water, shelled and set aside.

In a wok or deep pan, heat enough oil, deep fry peeled eggs till golden brown, drain on absorbent paper towels and cool to a handle-able temperature.

Make a cross-cut at one end of the eggs and set aside.

With blender/food processor, blend together garlic, onion and ginger to paste; set aside.

Heat 4 tbsp oil or ghee in wok or deep pan over medium high heat, saute the blended paste till fragrant and start to golden brown (about 3 minutes).

Add-in all the seasoning ingredients and fry for a few seconds till aroma.

Add-in tomato, salt and pepper, stir for few minutes.

Pour-in water, add-in paneer or green peas (if desired), cover and simmer till gravy is thick (water can be added if the gravy is too dry).

Stir-in garam masala and return eggs into wok, stir to heat through and the gravy is homogeneously dispersed.

Sprinkle-on leaves.

Dish-up and best serve hot with rice.

Cheese Filled Naans

Ingredients:

1/4 cup lukewarm water/milk
1 ½ tsp sugar
1 ½ tsp instant yeast

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp plain yogurt
1 tbsp vegetable oil/butter
1/3 cup lukewarm water

1/4 cup butter/ghee for surface brushing

Filling:

50 g cream cheese, softened
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

Dissolve sugar and yeast in 1/4 cup warm water, leave for 8 minutes or till foamy.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt and baking powder.

Pour-in yeast solution into flour mixture, stir to mix.

Add-in yogurt, oil and gradually pour-in water while kneading until dough becomes smooth and soft (about 10 minutes).

Transfer dough into a lightly oiled container and turn the dough to coat lightly with oil; set aside covered to rise until doubled in volume (about 1 ½ hours).

Preheat oven to 250 °C.

In a bowl, mix together cheese and salt, divide into 4 portions; set aside.

With oily hand, punch down the dough.

Divide dough into 4 balls (I divided it into 2 portions, yield to very heavy naans, sure cure empty stomachs for quite sometime, hahaha!).

Flatten each dough balls, fill-in 1 portion of cheese mixture into the center, twist together edges to seal and shape up nicely into balls again.

Dust work surface with flour.

With a well-floured rolling pin, roll out dough balls flat into 1/4" thick

Wet both hands with water, transfer filled naans onto a lightly greased baking tray.

Bake naans for 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Remove naans from oven and brush each naans with butter/ghee.

Mee Goreng Mamak (Mamak's Style Fried Noodles)

Ingredients:

Fritters:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
65 mL water
1/2 tsp finely chopped green chili
1 onion, finely chopped
oil for deep-frying

Sauce:

1 onion, peeled
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tbsp chili paste (blend from fresh red chili or commercial chili paste)
1/2 tsp toasted belacan powder (dried shrimp paste)
1 boiled sweet potato, peeled and mashed (yield 2/3 cup)
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
3 tbsp light soy sauce
3 tbsp ketchup
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/3 cup lime juice/lemon juice/tamarind juice (juice of 2 tbsp tamarind paste in 50 mL water)
1 cup roasted peanut, pounded
2 tsp salt or to taste
1 ½ cups water
4 tbsp oil

Noodles Stir-Fry:

350 g yellow noodles
3 potatoes, peeled, boiled and coarsely sliced
homemade fritters' slices
1 egg
3 tbsp oil
1 lime, cut into wedges

Other Garnish Option:

bean sprouts
shrimps with tail's shell on
lean chicken/meat slices
deep fried firm beancurd, cut into small squares
fresh red chili's slices for sprinkling
crisp deep fried shallot for sprinkling

Method:

To Prepare Fritters:

In a large bowl, mix-in flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.

Gradually, pour-in water and knead till smooth dough forms; set aside to rest for at least 1 hour.

Add-in chili and onion.

With floured hands, knead well to mix, shape dough into smooth log (about 3 cm in diameter).

Heat enough oil in wok or pot, deep-fry fritters till golden brown and fragrant.

Drain well on paper towels, set aside to cool and cut into slices with 1 cm thick; set aside till use.

To Prepare Seasoning Sauce:

With a blender, blend-together onion, garlic, chili paste and belacan; set aside.

Heat 4 tbsp oil in wok or pan over medium high heat, saute blended mixture till aroma.

Add-in the remaining ingredients and bring to boil.

Reduce heat and simmer to thicken the sauce.

Remove from heat and set aside.

To Stir-Fry Noodles:

Heat 3 tbsp oil in a wok or pot over high heat.

Add-in meat slices and/or shrimps (if applicable), stir-fry for 1 minute or till almost cooked.

Add-in noodles and seasoning sauce, stir-fry to well-mix the ingredients and spread out the sauce evenly (meantime, adjust the taste accordingly with lime juice, chili paste and salt if desired).

Add-in potatoes, fritters or any other garnish, stir fry for another 2 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium.

Scrape noodles to side, pour egg into middle, stir quickly to scramble the egg, cover egg with noodles and leave for short while (about 1 minute).

Stir-fry for another short while to incorporate all ingredients and dish-up.

Sprinkle-on chili's slices and deep fried shallot if desired.

Best serve immediately with additional juice of lime's wedges.

Dry Besan Curry Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 chicken, cut preferentially
125 g plain yogurt
6 tbsp meat curry powder

6 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 slices ginger, minced
1/2 large onion or 1 shallot, minced
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp sugar or to taste
1 ¼ tsp salt or to taste
1 tbsp besan/chickpeas/gram flour

Method:

In a bowl, marinade chicken with yogurt and curry powder for at least 30 minutes (ease to mix with hand).

Heat oil in a wok or non-stick deep pan over medium high heat.

Stir-fry garlic, ginger and onion until fragrant and starting to be golden brown (about 5 minutes).

Add-in marinated chicken, stir-fry for about 3 minutes to shrunk the chicken slightly.

Pour-in water and let simmer covered for 15 minutes or till chicken is tender and cooked thoroughly.

Remove the cover and stir chicken for short while.

Remove chicken from gravy, add-in flour and stir continuously to cook and smooth the gravy.

Once the gravy reach the smooth consistency, return chicken into the wok, add-in sugar and salt accordingly, stir to evenly coat and to further thicken the gravy.

Dish-up and best serve hot immediately with rice.

Coconut/Thengai Burfi

Ingredients:

1 cup dessicated/freshly grated coconut
1 cup sugar
1/3 water
4 tsp besan/gram/chickpeas flour
6 tbsp ghee

Method:

Greases a vessel with size about 5 x 4 x 1 1/2 inches; set aside.

In a nonstick pan, boil sugar in water till becomes a thick syrup (soft ball consistency).

Add-in coconut and keep-stirring.

Once mixture starts to thicken, add-in flour, stir-constantly till incorporated well.

Add-in ghee, continue stirring for another 1 minute or till well-mix (not to overcooked as it will lead to dry coconut and sugar flakes).

Remove from heat and pour immediately into the prepared vessel; set aside to lightly cool down for 10 minutes.

Cut into desired size and shape while still warm with sharp knife.

Set aside to completely cool down before storing into airtight container.

Mysore Pak

Ingredients:

1 cup ghee
1 cup besan/gram/chickpeas flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 water


Method:

Greases a vessel with size about 5 x 4 x 1 1/2 inches (deepness at least 1 1/2 inches); set aside.

In a nonstick pan, melt 1 tsp ghee.

Add-in besan flour and roast for 2-3 minutes by continuous stirring.

Remove from heat and set aside.

In a wok or pot, heat the remaining ghee till very hot, keep hot on flame.

In another nonstick pan, boil sugar in water till becomes a thick syrup (arrange the hot ghee near to the sugar syrup).

Add 1/4 cup of hot ghee into sugar syrup.

Gradually, stir-in the flour.

Occasionally, pour-in the hot ghee into the flour-sugar mixture while keep stirring the flour-sugar mixture.

Once the ghee separates from dough and mixture thickens, remove from heat and pour immediately into the prepared vessel; set aside to lightly cool down for 15 minutes.

Cut into desired size and shape while still warm with sharp knife.

Homemade Ghee (Clarified Butter)

Ingredients:

450 g butter

Method:

In a nonstick pan, melt butter over moderate heat, bring to boil with stirring till foamy.

Reduce heat and leave to simmer for 10 minutes or till the solution changes color from cloudy yellow ti clear golden color, develops pop-corm aroma, stops foaming with crackling noises, a thin light tan layer with crusts on nearly motionless surface appeared and milk solids at bottom changes color from white to tan.

Remove the pan from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

Drain the ghee via cheesecloth into a jar.

Yield 2 cups ghee.

Gulab Jamun

Ingredients:

250 g paneer/hariali mava/khoya or ricotta cheese
6 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
oil for deep-frying

Sugar Syrup:

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups water

Method:

To prepare sugar syrup, boil sugar in water via stirring till the sugar is fully dissolved and sticky (not to over boiling), set aside and keep warm.

In a bowl, combine flour and baking soda.

Add-in cheese, mash and knead the mixture to make a medium-hard dough.

Pick-up enough dough and gently roll with hand palms into bite-size smooth balls; set aside covered with wet kitchen towel.

In a deep pan or wok, heat oil over medium-low heat.

Slip-in balls one by one into the hot oil from the side of pan (dough balls will sink to the bottom of the pan and not to overlap each other).

Not to stir as the dough balls are very soft but shake the pan gently for even frying for the first 10-15 minutes (balls will expand and rise to surface after 5 minutes).

Once balls start to change color (after 10-15 minutes), agitate the pan gently and constantly to ensure even browning till to the desired color of golden brown (another 15 minutes).

Drain on paper napkin then transfer immediately into hot syrup; leave gulab jamun immerse in syrup for at least 2 hours or better overnight for best result.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pistachio-Peanut Sandesh

Ingredients:

250 g paneer or ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cup sugar
10 toasted pistachio, coarsely grounded
1 tbsp toasted coarse grounded peanut

Method:

Place coarse pistachio and peanut in bowls, respectively; set aside.

In a nonstick pan, mix cheese with sugar over moderate heat till sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is solidified (about 15 minutes, stir constantly).

Remove the pan from heat and stir the soft dough for another half minute.

Pick up enough dough and forms into bite size balls.

Dip each balls, first into peanut bowl to coat-up all the side surface and secondly into pistachio bowl to coat-up the upper surface.

Serve cold.

Murukku (Chakli)

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour
1/2 cup gram/besan/chickpeas flour
1/2 tbsp ajwain/carom seeds
1/2 tbsp toasted white sesame seeds
3/4 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
27 g (1 3/4 tbsp) melted butter
50 mL lukewarm water
enough oil for deep-frying

Method:

In a large bowl, mix together flours, ajwain seed, sesame seed, red chili powder, garlic powder and salt.

Add-in butter and mix well.

Gradually pour-in water and knead well till soft-wet dough.

Take enough dough and fill into murukku mold (I use thick dry cotton clothes with small hole...God...really hard-works while waiting for my murukku mold to arrive from India :P) .

Press the murukku presser and shape the murukku dough circularly onto individual parchment papers/banana leaves/paper napkins.

Heat oil in a wok or deep pan, carefully slide murukku doughs into hot oil.

Fry both sides on medium high heat till crisp and golden brown (turns the murukku doughs occasionally for even frying).

Filter up murukku from oil and drain on paper towel.

Let cool completely before store into air-tight container.

Chapati (Indian Roti)

Ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat flour (extra flour for coating and rolling)
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
120 mL water
oil for coating

Method:

In a bowl, mix flour and salt.

Gradually pour-in water, knead till smooth dough (the more it is kneaded, the lighter the bread will be).

Lightly oil both hand palms, form dough into ball, set aside for an hour or more (if left overnight, the chapatis will be lighter and tender; wrap dough with plastic wrap for that).

Flours working surface and rolling pin.

Lightly oil both hand palms, knead dough again for another 2 minutes.

Shape dough into smaller ball about the size of 3 cm in diameter (the size depends on the size of griddle and personal preference) .

Flatten dough ball with hand palms, pick another smaller piece of dough, coat all surface with oil, place it into the center of flattened dough, wrap-up to seal, reform to ball again, repeat the filling and shaping steps for the remaining dough.

Heat-on griddle or high heat resistance frying pan till very hot.

Flatten dough balls with hand palms, smear dough around with flour to coat.

Plate on floured working surface, roll out dough to a circular shape with the thickness of about 2 mm.

Flip thin chapati around both hand palms for few times and lastly flip it on griddle.

Cooks chapati till proof-up small air-trapped bubbles, lightly spread-on some oil or ghee on both sides with spoon.

Flip chapati around continuously till brown spots formed at both sides (occasionally press lightly for a second interval around the surface of chapati with kitchen towel to encourage bubbles to form and thus yield lighter chapati; punch-down large air-trapped bubbles with spoon for even griddling).

Serve immediately with butter or dry curries.

Yield 12 chapati with 12 cm in diameter.

Jalebi

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp rice flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2/3 cup warm water
oil for deep-frying

Sugar Coating Syrup:

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp milk

Method:

Batter:

In a bowl, sieve flours and baking powder; set aside.

Add half of water to yogurt; beat well to incorporate.

Add yogurt solution to the flours mixture, gradually add-in the remaining water, whisk well till smooth batter; leave overnight to ferment.

Sugar Coating Syrup:

Dissolve sugar in boiling water.

Add-in milk, boil for about 15 minutes or till achieves one thread consistency (when single thread is formed and does not break when your forefinger and thumb are pulled apart gently).

Keep the syrup warm.

To Make the Jalebis:

Heat enough oil in wok.

Fill batter into an empty ketchup dispenser (or any plastic bottle with a small hole on lid).

Press batter out from bottle, circularly drop the pouring consistency batter into hot oil.

Fry jalebi till both sides are golden yellow.

Remove jalebi from oil and place on paper napkin to adsorb excess oil for about 1 minute.

Immerse jalebi into warm sugar syrup, set aside to soak for about 5 minutes.

Lift jalebi from the syrup and serve hot.

Turmeric Squid/Calamari

Ingredients:

500 g squid

Marinate:

1 tbsp turmeric spice
1 tsp Everest Sambhar Masala (optional)
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
1/2 tsp salt

Seasoning:

2 tbsp cooking oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 inch galangal, finely chopped
few curry leaves/kaffir lime leaves
1 tbsp omelek chilic paste
160 mL coconut milk
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt or to taste

Method:

In a bowl, mix all the marinate ingredients.

Marinate squid for at least 2 hours or overnight in refrigerator.

Heat oil in a wok or non-stick pan.

Stir-fry garlic, onion, galangal and curry leaves until fragrant and starting to brown (about 4-5 minutes).

Add chili paste, stir-fry still fragrant for about 1 minute.

Add squid, stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes.

Add coconut milk, sugar and salt, simmer till squid is tender and cooked-through (stir occasionally for even cooking).

Stir squid to thicken the gravy and for homogeneous coating (skip this step for liquid-base dish).

Dish up and serve hot with rice.

Tandoori Potato Fingers

Ingredients:

10 small potato
2 cup water
3 tsp salt

Seasoning:

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp tandoori masala
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 230 °C.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.

In a bowl, dissolve 3 tsp salt with 2 cup water.

Peel potato, cut into finger size and immerse into the salt-water for 30 minutes.

Drain potato fingers on paper towel.

In a large bowl, mix together all the seasoning ingredients, add-in potato fingers and stir to evenly coated with seasoning.

Spread out potato fingers on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until softened and cooked-through (stir from time to time for even baking).

Naan Breads

Ingredients:

3/4 cup warm water
1 tsp instant yeast
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp oil
2 1/2 tbsp yogurt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup butter/ghee for surface brushing

Method:

Dissolve yeast in water, leave for few minutes.

In a large bowl, mix flour, oil, yogurt, sugar, salt and baking soda.

Pour yeast solution into flour mixture to form dough.

Knead dough until becomes smooth and soft (about 5 minutes).

Transfer dough into a lightly oiled container and turn the dough to coat lightly with oil.

Flatten the dough and leave covered to rise at room temperature until doubled in volume (about 3-4 hours).

Preheat oven to 250 °C.

With oily hand, divide dough into 8 balls.

Dust work surface with flour, roll each balls out into 1/4" thick.

Wet both hands with water, flips the individual doughs among two hands few times and transfer onto a baking tray.

Bake naans for 3 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove naans from oven and brush each naans with butter/ghee.

Cool on a wire rack.

Paruppu Vadai

Ingredients:

250 g Chana Dal
1/2 cup shrimp, peeled and finely chopped (omit it for vegetarian version)
2 red onion, finely chopped
4 red chili
2 green chili (optional)
2 tsp curry powder
1.5 tsp salt or to taste
few curry leaves, roughly chopped
3 tbsp flour
1/4 cup water
oil for deep-frying

Method:

Soak channa dal in water for at least 3 hours or overnight.

In a food processor, add red chili, green chili, curry powder and salt, grind for 5 minutes.

Add-in soaked dal and water (use water as little as possible just for processor to roughly grind), partially grind for 1 minute (divide into few batches for smaller processor).

Withdraw from processor, add-in chopped shrimp, onion, curry leaves and flour, mix-well to form homogeneous paste.

Shape into small balls and lightly press to flatten.

Heat oil in wok, deep fry till golden grown.