Chicken Do-Pyaaza

Most of my dishes these days call for the simplest of the ingredients and procedures but result in a delicious and soul satisfying meals. Today's recipe is no different. The concept of Do-Pyaaza curries, whether veg or non-veg, comes from the inclusion of two different forms of onions and that is how the curry gets its name. Here, however, I did a twist and included a third form of onion. So can in fact call this curry Chicken Teen-Pyaaza!! Lol! Nevertheless, the variation did add an X-Factor to the gravy and it was all the more delicious. I have made this curry keeping in mind children tastebuds but you can spruce it up as per your liking. 

Ingredients 

1 kg chicken, washed and cleaned 

4 big onions, 1 made into a paste, 2 cubed/diced, 1 finely chopped 

1 tbsp ginger paste 

2 tbsp garlic paste 

2 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder divided 

1 red bell pepper cubed 

2 big tomatoes finely chopped 

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp shahjeera/caraway seeds (optional)

2 each of cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon 

1 black cardamom 

1/2 star anise and 1 small mace

1 tsp turmeric powder 

1 tsp cumin powder 

2 tsp coriander powder 

1 tsp good quality garam masala powder 

1 tbsp kasuri methi roasted and crushed 

Salt to taste 

Fresh coriander for garnish 

Oil as required 

Direction 

Marinate the chicken with onion paste and ginger garlic paste and salt and 1 tsp  kashmiri chilli powder. Keep aside for at least an hour. 

Meanwhile, heat oil in a pan and fry the cubed onions and cubed bell peppers till onions are translucent and bell peppers are slightly soft and fried but still have a crunch. Drain from the oil and keep aside. Now in the same oil splutter the cumin seeds and shahjeera and add the whole garam masala. Once the aroma is released, add the chopped onions and fry till golden. Now add the chopped tomatoes and fry till soft and mashed and oil starts sticking out. Add the dry spices and fry further for 2-3 minutes. Now add the marinated chicken and coat it well with the masala. Fry the chicken on high heat till the meat changes color and is somewhat fried. Now reduce the flame to medium and cover and cook till the chicken is done. You can add water as per your requirement. Once the chicken is cooked through remove the cover and dry up any excess gravy to reach the consistency that you desire. Add the fried onions and bell peppers and stir. Add the crushed kasuri methi and stir. Check for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot with roti/rice or pulao. 

Simple Chocolate Cake

With my home bakery slowly getting its pace and my fitness regime in full mode, I hardly have any energy left to do any blogging these days. While I am still cooking for my family and friends, I do not always have the time to post the recipe. This week I did not have any orders to complete nor much cooking to do as husband was busy with a conference. With a special house guest coming to stay with us for a night during the week, I thought it was a great idea to do some simple baking for myself for a change. So here it is, my super simple chocolate cake. Frost it or eat it as is, it is a great tea time companion!

                                       

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour/maida

3/4 cup brown sugar (can be substituted with regular sugar)

1/3 cup oil (I used extra light olive oil or you can use any unflavored neutral oil)

3 eggs (can be substituted with 3/4 cup whipped yogurt)

1 tsp vanila essence 

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

150 ml fresh cream ( I used some leftover whipping cream; can also be substituted with full cream milk)

55 gms chopped plain chocolate (you can either use semi sweet baking chocolate or any leftover plain chocolate like I did)

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup semi sweet choco chips (optional)

Direction

Pre-heat the oven at 175 degree celsius. Grease a 9" round pan and line it with parchment paper. Lightly grease the paper on top for easy removal later on. 

In a microwave safe bowl, heat the cream and chocolate for 30 seconds. Take it out, mix and put it back in the microwave for another 30 seconds. Take it out again and mix well till the chocolate dissolves. Now sift the cocoa powder and mix into the chocolate cream mixture. Mix it well till incorporated. Keep aside and mix at regular intervals so that a film does not form on top and the mixture comes to room temperature. 

Meanwhile, beat the sugar and oil till smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add vanila essence and mix. 

Now, sift the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the chocolate cream mixture and mix well into the batter. Now add the flour in three additions, folding it in after each addition. Now add the choco chips if using and fold it in. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Remove from oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then unmould and let it cool on a wire rack. Slice and store in air tight containers. 

Note for eggless cake:

Beat the yogurt till smooth and add the baking powder (with an additional 1/4 tsp) and baking soda and let it stand for 10 minutes. It will start frothing. You need not add any baking powder and baking soda  to the flour in this case. Beat the sugar and oil together and then add the chocolate cream followed by the vanila essence. Now add the flour alternating with the yogurt mixture. Take care not to overmix in this case as we do not want to let the air bubbles escape. 

                                       

  

Mutton Curry with Paratha

Frankly, I was quite confused as to what should be the name of this dish. There was no specific recipe that I followed or any particular technique to prepare it. The procedure was almost spontaneous and whatever spices caught my attention while standing in the kitchen, I just added all of them. Since it was prepared especially to be served with parathas, Parathewaali Mutton Curry seemed to be most apt. I did not have time to marinate the meat but I would highly recommend overnight marination to reduce the overall cooking time. Most important of all, please do enjoy this dish with some fresh out of the stove hot parathas, with a dollop of desi ghee!!! Your ticket to heavenly bliss!! 😋😋

Ingredients 

500 gms mutton on the bone

2 big onions thinly sliced

1 tbsp ginger paste

2 tbsp garlic paste

2 medium potatoes cut into halves 

Mustard oil as required 

Fresh coriander leaves and ginger juliennes for garnishing 

For marination 

1/4 cup yogurt

2 tsp meat tenderizer (can be substituted with 2 tbsp grated raw papaya)

Spice powder (as listed below)

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder 

For spice powder 

8-10 whole kashmiri red chillies 

3 green cardamom 

1 black cardamom 

3 cloves 

1/2 star anise 

1/2" cinnamon 

1 tsp fennel seeds/saunf

1/2 tsp shahjeera/caraway seeds 

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds 

2 bay leaves

6-7 black peppercorns

Dry roast all the ingredients and grind to a fine powder. 

Direction 

Start with the marination first. If you have time, I would recommend overnight marination but if pressed for time, a minimum of 1 hour marination is a must. 

Wash and clean the meat thoroughly and apply little salt and keep aside for 10 minutes. Now wash the meat again and drain off excess water. Now mix all ingredients listed under marination and coat the meat well. Cover and keep aside till you prepare the rest of the ingredients. If you are marinating overnight, bring the mutton to room temperature before starting to cook. 

Heat a little oil in a deep frying pan and fry the sliced onions till crispy golden. Remove from heat and drain on paper towels. Now in the same pan, fry the potato halves till golden and keep aside. Strain out bits of onions from the pan, if any, and add the remaining oil to another pan where you will be preparing the mutton. 

I did not add any additional oil to the second pan as the mutton will itself release a lot of fat. However you can add if you feel the oil is not adequate. 

Now add the marinated mutton along with the marinade and fry on a high till the water evaporates and the mutton changes color. Now reduce the flame and continue stirring at regular intervals till the oil separates and the spices no longer smell raw. Now add the ginger garlic paste and fry 2-3 minutes more. Add the potatoes and give a stir. Add half the fried onions and stir. Now add 1/2 cup water and mix. Cover and cook the mutton on a medium low flame till done. Keep checking and stirring in between to ensure it doesn't burn. Add little bit more water if required to cook the mutton. You can also do this in the pressure cooker if you are running short of time or if the mutton is taking too long to cook. 

Once done, reduce the gravy, if any, to minimum and add the remaining fried onions. Adjust the seasoning and stir. Let the mutton cook for another 10 minutes on a low flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and ginger juliennes and serve hot with parathas!!