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My Clog - Indian and Beyond

Hello All,
 
I am an engineer. I have passion for cooking and exploring different cuisines.
I cook regularly and like my food really really hot and spicy.
 
I am starting this page with an intent to post my cooking adventures and recipes. Most of them might be Indian dishes but I do cook other dishes too.
 
Here we go.
 
Lamb chops - Indian style:
 
I am new to growing peppers and I am very happy how the plants are growing. 
I am also growing Tomato, Mint, Cilantro, Holy Basil and Curry leaf plants.
 
Yesterday I got to harvest my peppers for the first time and so I thought of making my favorite dish using the produce.
 
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I brought home some nice lamb chops from costco.
 
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Coarsely chop 2 sprigs (about 20 leaves) of mint, 10 sprigs of cilantro and peppers (according to your heat tolerance level) in a blender .
 
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Add 3 table spoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice and blend.
 
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Now in a bowl , mix the following:
Above blended mixture,
3 table spoons of yogurt (I used home made, but you can use Greek yogurt),
half tea spoon of salt,
1 tea spoon of ginger-garlic paste ( blend ginger and garlic paste. You can substitute this with half teaspoon ginger powder + half tea spoon of garlic powder)
a pinch of turmeric
half tea spoon of garam masala ( blend of dry roasted spices like cinnamon, cardamom, clove etc. You can get this at any Indian grocery store)
1 tea spoon of paprika ( substitute with any pepper powder you like. watch out for heat as we have already added peppers in the above step)
 
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Now marinate the lamb chops with this mixture till all the chops are coated well on all the sides.
Cover the lamp chops with a food wrap and let is marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours ( I usually leave it over night).
 
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Now your lamb chops are ready for grilling.
You can grill them in any of your favorite way and according to your preferred doneness. 
 
On a Gas/Charcoal grill :                  3 minutes on each side ( for well done).
In a oven :                                         8 minutes each side at 400 degrees (for well done).
In a non stick skillet over stove top : 5 minutes each side (for well done).
 
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Meanwhile, I made some sauce to balance the heat on lamb chops.
Mix thoroughly: one table spoon yogurt, a little finely chopped onion, 6 leaves of mint finely chopped, 2 green peppers finely chopped (you can skip this if you have added enough heat in the marinade), half a cup of water, a pinch of salt to taste
 
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Now sit back, relax and have yummy lamb chops cooked Indian style.
 
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Onto my next adventure.Presenting you
 
Jerk Chicken Kebabs
 
  • Get some good chicken thighs. Remove the excess fat and take the bone out. Also, remove the skins, clean them and keep them aside(  I promise, we will not be wasting them). Clean the thighs thoroughly. 
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  • Mix the following ingredients in a mixing bowl:
2 table spoons of Jamaican Jerk Seasoning sauce ( I love grace brand).
2 table spoons of dark soy sauce ( to keep the meat moist).
1 table spoon of cayenne pepper powder ( mainly for color).
A little of your favorite super hot pepper powder mix ( I used a mix of bhut and naga pepper powder).
2 table spoons ketchup.
  • Mix all of the above and add little salt if you still need salt ( soy already has loads of it).
 
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  • Now marinate the chicken thighs with this mixture till all the piecies are coated well on all the sides.
 
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  • Cover the them with a food wrap and let is marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours ( I usually leave it over night).
 
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  • Remember those chicken skins that we removed from the thigh pieces, marinate those on the same mixture.
 
  • Now your chicken thighs are ready for skewering. You can also grill the thighs as a whole.. but whats the fun in it :)
  • Cut each thigh into equal strips.
  • Skewer each strip onto a metal or wooden skewer ( if you are using wooden skewer, pre-soak the skewers in water for at least an hour to avoid burning)
 
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  • Now your chicken kebabs are ready for grilling.
  • You can grill them in any of your favorite way and according to your preferred doneness. Use the remaining marinade ( left in the bowl) to baste the kebabs when you turn them.
 
On a Gas/Charcoal grill :                  8 minutes on each side ( for well done).
In a oven :                                         10 minutes each side at 400 degrees (for well done).
 
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  • Also, don't forget to grill those chicken skins. Grill them for 3 min on each side and they will turn crispy and yummy just like bacon.
 
  • Now, as always... Sit back, relax, make yourself a nice drink and have yummy jerk chicken kebabs ( and crispy chicken skins)
 
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Looks great!
 
saiias said:
2 table spoons of Jamaican Jerk Seasoning sauce ( I love grace brand)
 
 I can't take the salt! To me Walkerswood is way better.
 
I was banished from our kitchen for being untidy :)
Wife is the law...
 
Anyways, got into her good grace again and here I am with another recipe.
This one is specially for nmlarson and muckyai.
 
Sweet spicy and savory bitter gourd curry
 
Ingredients:
  • 3 good sized bitter gourds (bitter melons)
  • 10 curry leaves
  • 2 dried red chilies 
  • a pinch of cumin seeds
  • a pinch of mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp chana dal
  • 1 large Onion finely chopped
  • chopped spicy peppers (according to your taste) 
  • 1 tsp salt
  • a pinch of turmeric
  • a pinch of masala/curry powder
  • 2 tsp dried coconut powder
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • half a cup of oil.
Cooking:
  • Take 3 good sized bitter gourds ( you can find them in any Indian grocery store) 
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  • Wash them with salt water. roughly scrape off the ridges from the skin as shown. This will help in reducing the bitter taste.
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  • Chop them into thin rings or semi circles.
 
  • In a shallow pan, take oil just enough to shallow fry the bitter guard pieces 
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  • Fry till the pieces look crispy enough.
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  • Remove the pieces from the oil and set them aside.
  • In the remaining oil in the same pan ( add oil if necessary), fry cumin seeds, mustard seeds, chana dal and dried chilies on low flame till the mustard seeds start to splutter. Add curry leaf and fry for half a minute. 
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  • Add chopped onions and chopped spicy peppers to the pan. Turn the heat to medium flame.
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  • Add salt and turmeric and masala/curry powder. Cook till onions turn golden brown (translucent).
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  • Once onions are cooked, add dried coconut powder 
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  • Cook for 2 more minutes or till the the rawness is gone from the coconut powder 
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  • Add the fried bitter guard pieces back to pan.
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  • Mix well and cook for 5 min. Add sugar, reduce the flame and cook for 3 more minutes on low flame. 
Sweet,Spicy,Savory and a very healthy bitter gourd curry is ready.
 
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