Bihari Boti Kadai- a rustic, fiery gateway to bliss...

My husband loves my cooking but has one significant gripe. I am never consistent in rustling up the same-tasting dish over and over, especially if he has liked a particular curry a lot. He says he can guarantee, I wont be able to come up with the same stuff again. Whis is true! I cook everyday, but in all these years of our marriage and being a family, I am quite surprised to recall that, indeed, I not only hardly repeat recipes, I also go on a different tangent even when I am supposed to stick to it... do any of you have that 'problem' too? Strange! Good thing then that I am writing some of the favourites here. Today I am sharing a rather easy lamb recipe. Bihari Boti Kadai- lamb or beef chunks cooked in a spicy blend. No onions-no chopping required. Which is always a bonus.

I dont really know for sure if this dish is from the state of Bihar, India. I simply, know it as Bihari Kadai and have been making it since forever. Boti ofcourse, refers to the largish chunks of meat with bone in. Kadai- as a dish refers to any 'gravy-curry' made in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent/Pakistan. The gravy could be thin and runny or even a thick masala flavoured one, to be eaten with breads. Bihari Boti kadai is quite spicy, so adjust the chillies according to your preferance and you wil be good.

Here's what you will need.

Lamb/Mutton/Beef  : 1 kg, I usually take shoulder cuts of a baby goat.
Ginger-Garlic paste : 1 tbsp heaped along with paste made of 5-8 (reduce if you want)- I simply ground them all together.

*You may even take boneless chunks of meat of your choice.

For the Bihari Masala, spices to dry roast and grind to a coarse powder:

Cumin seeds: 1.5 tsp
Corriander seeds: 1.5 tbsp
Pepper corns      : 1 tsp
Gram flour (besan) - 1tbsp (optional)
Dry roast the spices and gram flour on a gentle heat. Cool and girnd.

Salt to taste.
About 5-6 tbsp of oil (reduce if you aren't big on cooking with lots of oil)
A fresh lemon to squueze over in the end and a few ginger jullienes to garnish (optional).

Marinate the meat in the ginger-garlic-chilli paste along with the spices you powder. If you have time, as always I recommend a marination of at least 4 hours or more, even over night. However, if you dont have time, worry not, just marinate and mix, and begin to cook! I did too this time because I had surprise visitors. And I served this for breakfast actually with parathas and a big cup of masala chai. Heaven!

Heat the oil in a 'kadai'-  Add the marinated meat and cook(really that simple) initially on high heat for a couple of minutes then reduce the heat to medium/low. This dish is supposed to be dry, so aim for that in the final stages. A lot of moisture will be naturally rleased by the meat/salt combination, let it all help cook the meat and then gradually let it dry on its own while cooking.

The colour here is still that of raw meat and spices, the water is being released now...

Again, over the next forty-fortyfive minutes, if you are slow cooking it on the stove top, you may have to baby sit it and watch for any burning/sticking -to- the -bottom action happening. In which case, all you need to do is keep adding a little water, say about 1/3 cup of hot water. Always try and add warm/hot water to curries, helps retain the flavours better than just adding regular/cold water. I usually keep a big mug of hot water around myself. You may also pressure cook with 1 cup of water to hasten the process but dont omit the 'bhunoing' process in the begining for at least twenty minutes and untill oil has seperated.

Half an hour in to cooking, see how the colours change! I added extra hot chillies for our guests who enjoy it like that. So just follow the recipe if you are not ok with too much heat.

Then go ahead and pressure cook, once 'almost' done, remove lid, leave the pan open and cook to evaporate any water/moisture left.  Keep mixing and stirring untill the final look is thick, dry with the marinade sticking to the meat pieces. In the last few minutes, while you are letting the excess water evaporate, all 'doneness' of the meat will be achieved now. So dont worry even if pressure cooking it hasnt cooked the meat completely. Usually, you will find beef taking time.

Do you see how all the moisture is gone and the spices stick to the meat? Using 'besan' also helps in that.

I used thai red chillies to garnish as well as in my marinade paste, feel free to use whichever chillies you enjoy normally.

Garnish with ginger jullienes and serve with a wedge of lime to sqeeze over if preferred. Also ofcourse, you will need to make some warm chapatis to make it a perfect meal.

My Star Pork Ribs in a fiery, chilli-garlic sauce!

I have been dying to share this recipe with you all out there. It is that good, trust me on this one. Years ago, I tasted some buffalo wings brought to work by a Vietnamese colleague. The wings were to die for and I begged him for the recipe. He said it was all in the marinade. Ok, so give me the marinade recipe, I asked him. He was not too willing and was vague. I dont get it. Good food and good books are meant to be shared. Some people might want to add 'good music' to that list too. Anyhow, I have come across enough people who are unwilling to share their recipes/food tips. I think such people are plain mean.

Now, on to the recipe I want to share today. So, I was saying, this colleague did not give me much and for quite some time I was left trying to replicate that same taste. Over last week, I am super-duper pleased to inform you that I not only got the same taste as his buffalo wings marinade, but mine was better and how! Come now, let us not waste anymore time bitching about 'vague' colleagues and get down to producing some serious flavours...

Here's what you need to do first off,  prepare your marinade. This is how.

• 10-15     small Thai red chillis
• 10          cloves of garlic- chargrilled or boiled- skin included
• 2            large tomatoes- chargrilled or boiled, skin removed
• 2            tbsp of soy sauce or any fish sauce
• 2            tbsp of any rice vinegar
• 2            tbsp heaped sugar
• 2            tbsp of oil, I used sesame oil, salt to taste.

How To:

Chargrill Tomatoes, chillis and the garlic pods untill only slightly charred. Cool and clean the tomato skin if grilling. Else, if you are boiling the three, boil them  together untill the tomatoes are softened. Remove skin. Now, cool and blend everything together, except the oil, in to a coarse or fine paste, depending upon your preferance. Keep the skin of the garlic on, it gives a lovely texture.

*Take a tbsp of extra sugar if you like your marinade on the sweeter side, can substitute with honey too, in which case you will have to take more as compared to sugar. I'd say another 2 tbsp more. If you want a tangier kick, take extra vinegar. As usual, do a taste test and decide.

*I recommend using thai red chillis not only because it is fiery hot but also for the lovely red colour it imparts. However, if you cant find these, use any red chillis-fresh or dry, and adjust according to your preferance.

Heat the sesame oil in pan and pour this sauce in. Cook on medium flame untill the oil floats on top. That's it.

*This paste is rather hot and I have used it also as a dip/chutney and a  marinade. Works both ways.

Edited to add: The measurements in the ingredients will yield about 1.5 cups of paste. I used only 6 ribs and used just half cup in the ribs. The entire amount will be good for at least a kilo of any meat easily or even more. Use as per your requirement and store the rest in the refrigerator for use later. Will stay upto a week easily.

Marinate the prok ribs in this marinade for as long as you can. I did not have much time on hand, so made do with only 2 hours. It was all good anyway. Grill on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes on each side. If you marinate the meat longer, you might need to grill less. Adjust according to your grill settings.

 In the mean time prepare your sides. I usually serve pork ribs with chunky bites of grilled veggies and mash potatoes and sometime not even that. Just a big, garden salad is good for us. This time I did make an effort and served up some veggies with Halloumi cheese- all seasoned simply with salt, pepper, dried herbs, whole pods of garlic and a generous drizzle of extra virgin oilve oil. I also made some garlic dinner rolls, mashed potatoes and a salad. I was in a good mood obviously!

And the veggies....

Slices of zuchini, jalapeno, bell peppers, red onions, garlic and halloumi cheese...I love grilled Halloumi.

That cutlery belonged to my grandparents, from the 1950's, Sheffield, England. Now, they belong to me and shall be passed on to my grandchildren one day! :)

 Weeknight inspiration folks! Hubster loved it.

PS- Use this marinade for chicken wings, shredded lamb or duck, boneless beef kebabs or simply cottage cheese. Or use as a dip/sauce with fries and nachos.  100% heaven assured.

My Favourite and The Very Desi- Shaami Kebabs

My maternal grandmother was an awesome cook and although she is no more with us, her strongest legacy perhaps, are her desi recipes. They have been passed down to almost every family member and we have all taken great pains to continue cooking certain dishes just the way she taught. My own mother does not cook at all but she has ensured that Nani's traditional recipes carry on being cooked and served by our family cook. My mother's cook had the good fortune to have met my Nani and managed to learn much from her. Thankfuly, she does a great job! Some of our family favourites include Yakhni Gosht Pulao (Pulao cooked on slow heat in a meat stock and yoghurt), Bhuni Kaleji (Fried liver), Mata Keena (Mince with peas), and ofcourse Shaami kebabs.

Shaami kebabs remain an absolute favourite of every member in our family and even amongst friends who have been visiting us for years. Mom gets this made especialy for her X'mas parties, kilos and kilos of it. We have been told by our friends that they wait the whole year especially to get invites for X'mas and eat shaami kebabs to their heart's content! Not that they need to wait for Xmas per se! When I visit Benaras for my holidays, mom makes sure there is plenty of Kebab mixture kept in the fridge so that my entire holidays are spent in utter bliss-think kebab parathas for breakfast, Dal-chawal and kebab for lunch, Kebab and buns for tea and so on....

It is easy enough to prepare. Once you have the mix ready, you can alsomake patties and keep a batch in the freezer for use later. They can be simply taken out and shallow fried straight away. No need to even thaw!

Here's the How To:

500 gms Calf/Mutton mince
1/2 cup of (medium sized) Soaked chana dal-10 mins
1' stick of cinammom
4 green cardamoms
1 big black cardamom
4-5 cloves
10-15 black pepper corns (depending on your taste)
5-6 whole red dry chillis
1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp Saunf- fennel seeds (this is my addition and not a part of Nani's recipe)
1tbsp ginger-garlic paste

Boil the above in 1 cup of water in a pressure cooker. Untill completely done. About 5-6 whistles on medium flame.

When the mince is bolied along with the spices, open pan, take out the mixture, let cool on a plate. Also, fish out the cinammon, big cardamom, cloves(if you can) and chuck them away.

Once the above is cooled, grind them in your mixer to a paste. Ensure that it does not become too thin a paste. Coarse is fine. The picture above is of the bolied and cooled mince with the spices.

To this now add :

1 medium sized onion, very finely chopped.
A handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
A handful of fresh corriander leaves, finely chopped
4-6 fresh green chillis ( or as many as you prefer) finely chopped. I make it rather hot.
*2 eggs beaten or *1 tbsp of hung yoghurt or *2 slices of stale white bread. Either one is fine although using hung yoghurt gives it a nice flavour and a hint of tanginess.

* Add salt to taste (and onion too), at the very end, just before frying the kebabs so that you dont get a wet, soppy mix due to the moisture content in the salt and onions.
* Instead of fresh onions, you can also use fried/caramelised onions.

Mix and make patties. Shallow fry in very little oil. Say about 2 tbsp. If you use too much oil, the kebabs will surely crumble, like it happened to my kebabs in the picture below...I used more than 2 tbsp because I was distracted. In my next batch, I used only 2 tbsp and they were perfect!  Fry them untill browned on both sides.

 Serve warm with mint chutney/dip and some onion rings. As a starter or even as a side to your main course.

Fish Fry-The only kind I seem to know!!

I grew up in a small town called Varanasi in the state of Uttar Pradesh, North India. It is a town sacred to Hindus/Buddhists and eating a lot of non vegetarian food is not the norm. However, many people ofcourse do. The preferred meat of choice is lamb and chicken. Fish is consumed largely by the Bengali folks here and Pork/Beef meat, hardly at all. Like most of the regular families, mine also mostly eats lamb and chicken although my father loves fish/seafood. My mother is allergic to all kinds of fish as a result of which, cooking fish was a rarity in my house. Me and my brother never developed a taste for it and till date we often struggle to get reasonably excited  to eat fish.

All that changed for me when I fell in love with a South Indian boy! My husband is from Kerela and was  brought up in Chennai. He is from a family which is a hardcore fish/seafood  eating one. They sometimes even eat fish curries for breakfast! This is some kind of 'blasphemy' for a staid north Indian like me-food wise that is. Anyhow, I quickly realised after getting married that I will have to buy, clean and cook fish on a very,very regular basis if I was to be peacefuly and happily married. Oh dear! I had never ever bought fish, never cleaned or cooked it before my marriage. This was going to be a genuine test for me. Over the years though, I am happy to report, I have surprisingly grown fond of at least all kinds of shell fish , if not fresh water. I do feel squeamish cleaning it but have now mastered many kinds of curries and dry fish dishes which my husband says is almost 'Malayalee' (Keralite). Most of the curries/fries I know belong to Kerela and I never use Bengali styles of cooking fish because my husband actively dislikes bengali cuisine. I cook fish at least four times a week if not everyday.

The recipe I am going to share today is my all time go-to recipe for a quick and simple fried fish. Requiring minimum marination time, I recommend using Sardines or Mackeral, which is what I have seen being used in Kerela cuisine. I sometimes go a step further in changing up the marinade slightly which also tastes just as nice. Husband of mine is one happy bunny whenever I make this. The traditional way I have seen my mother in law marinating is the use of simply- tumeric powder, red chilli powder and salt to taste. She then shallow fries the marinated fish. Thats is. I however add corrainder powder, black pepper powder and fresh lemon juice too. You can prepare your marinade whichever way you wish to. My mother in law's method is just as good and keeps the flavours more natural and fresh.

How to:

4-5 pieces of small to medium sized whole Sardines/Mackeral, not sliced.
1 tsp heaped red chilli powder or according to preferance
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp corriander powder
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper powder (optional)
salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon if large in size or juice of 2 small sized lemons.

To be used when frying the fish:

5-6 tbsp any vegetable or coconut oil (which I personaly dislike)
1 tsp heaped ginger/garlic paste
5-6 curry leaves

Mix the ingredients listed in the first section in a bowl and marinate the fish pieces in it for at least half an hour. As usual, the longer you marinate your meat, the better the taste. But fish being so tender as a meat, does not usually demand a very long marinating time. Anyhow.

Now, this is where I do it slightly differently apart from using corriander powder in the marinade. Some people also apply a small quantity of ginger-garlic paste to the fish. I used to do that too but realised that when I started to fry them, they would quickly burn and taste bitter. So now this is how I fry the marinated fish.

Take about 5-6 tbsp of cooking oil in a frying pan. Once it is heated through, add in 1 tsp of heaped ginger-garlic paste. Brown this paste to a nice golden brown but take care not to burn it. Now place the marinated fish pieces in the pan and shallow fry till crisp, and browned on both sides. Say about 4-5 minutes in each side on a high or medium flame. The use of ginger garlic paste this way gives it a nice crunch and colour. In the last 2 minutes of frying, I also throw in a few curry leaves, about 5-6. Curry leaves used at this stage takes it to a whole new level.

Here are some pictures to guide you along.

The marinated fish above.

Fried with some curry leaves and fresh green chillis.

Serve fresh along with Sambhar and rice or even just as is at the start of the meal with some sliced onions and crisply fried green chillis.