Tuesday 24 February 2015

Shami kebabs with coriander-mint chutney

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I love kebabs, and its a pity we don't get them as frequently as we did back home. We had this really nice tandoori restaurant near home and my dad would so often go pick up tandoori chicken, seekh kebabs, chicken tikka and the like from there. Even now when i go back home, he gets me the kebabs and it tastes just as nice, but i just haven't had anything close to that here. I mean Tayyabs is good and so is Kadiri's but they are so far away, and i miss those corner kebab places you find in abundance in India.

So the next best thing is to try and make your own. I have a few favourites that i have proudly mastered, like the Afghani murgh malai kebabs, the beef seekh kebabs and chicken tikka, and they make it to the table at most of my parties because they are so easy to make. Shami kebabs on the other hand is a bit difficult to make, i admit, but so frikking tasty and def up there on the kebab list. Like seriously melt-in-the-mouth types.
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I had some friends over last weekend and I made these kebabs as starters and served them with a spicy coriander mint chutney, which i must say came out so well. The one time i previously made them, they were bitter...its a problem i always seem to face with coriander leaves when ground. I started putting it together with a plan b in mind, 99 percent sure it wasn't going to turn out nice, but then, it just did...and i decided to post it here before i forgot the measurements.

The recipe is from Maya's Yummy O Yummy, a blog i religiously follow for all my mallu recipes. She's really got some amazing stuff up there so do drop by and check them out. 

Makes 25 to 30 small patties
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Ground beef- 1/2 kg
Chana dal- 1/2 cup, rinsed
Ginger- 1 1/2 tsp, peeled and chopped
Garlic- 2 tsp, peeled and chopped
Onion- 1 cup, roughly chopped
Dried red chillies- 2
Salt- to taste
Water- 1/2 cup

To grind
Coriander seeds- 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
Whole peppercorns- 1 tsp
Cinnamon stick- 1/2 inch
Cardamom- 2 pods
Cloves- 4

Coriander leaves- 1/2 cup, washed and roughly chopped
Mint leaves- 25 (around 1/4 cup packed)
Onion- 1/2 cup, roughly hopped

Oil- enough to shallow fry the patties
Egg- 1, beaten
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Into a pressure cooker throw in the ground beef, chana dal, ginger, garlic, onion, red chillies and salt.
Break the meat down, while mixing in the other ingredients as well.
Pour in the water and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes or for around 2 to 3 whistles.
Once the pressure releases, open the cooker and add the ground mix.
If there is any water, put it back on medium-high heat and cook till the water completely evaporates, while stirring continuously.
Keep aside to cool.

Once cool, transfer the contents of the cooker into a food processor/ blender along with the coriander, mint leaves and onion and grind to a paste.
(I do not have a food processor and my spice mill is too small, I'd have to grind it multiple times, so i used my immersion blender which surprisingly worked fine. I think I've solved my minced meat dilemma for cutlets)
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Transfer the ground meat to a large bowl and start making small lime size balls and flatten.
You can freeze the patties at this point and continue with the next step once you take them out of the freezer.
When ready to cook, heat oil in a pan, dip the patties in the egg and fry till brown on both sides.
Drain on paper towels and serve hot with the chutney.

Notes: The shami kebabs are traditionally made with ground mutton, but i went with beef. Feel free to use the exact measurement of ground lamb.
The kebabs weren't spicy at all, and so i made the chutney a wee bit spicy, which worked well.

Coriander-mint chutney
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Coriander leaves- 1/2 cup, roughly chopped
Mint leaves- 1/4 cup
Cumin powder- 1/4 tsp
Lemon juice- a generous dash
Green chilli- 1, chopped
Salt- to taste
Yoghurt- 2 heaped tbsp

Blend together all the ingredients, except yoghurt, in a food processor (I used my spice mill).
Transfer to a bowl and stir in the yoghurt.
Adjust seasoning if required.
The chutney stays in the refrigerator in an air tight container for about 5 days.

Friday 13 February 2015

Rosewater pistachio cupcakes with mascarpone cream frosting

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Because its Valentines day and because no ones going to do anything special for me and because I felt like eating cake :)

I used to get all upset cos Ro hates everything to do with celebrating something (although he gives me some darn gift these days so i wouldnt sulk and make his life hell). These cupcakes were baked eons ago for Great British Chefs. I'm not a rosewater fan but the pistachio cake on its own is brill. Try it, cos you know, its Valentines day and all.

Makes 8 cupcakes
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Pistachio nuts- 50 gms
Ground almonds- 60 gms
Plain flour- 25 gms
Baking powder- 1/2 tsp
Butter- 100 gms, at room temperature
Caster sugar- 100 gms
Eggs- 2 small
Milk-2 tbsp
Rosewater- 1 1/2 tsp
Vanilla extract- 1/2 tsp (optional)
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Preheat oven to 176C and line a cupcake pan with 8 liners
Grind together the pistachio nuts, almonds and plai flour in a grinder or food processor. Make sure you dont over do this, or else you will be left with lumps.
Transfer to a bowl and add the baking powder.
In a separate bowl beat together the butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
Add the eggs, one after the other, beating well after each addition.
Pour in the milk, followed by rosewater and vanilla (if using) and mix well until well combined.
Fold in the ground mix using a spatula, till there is no trace of it in the batter.
Pour into the cupcake liners till about 3/4th full and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or till a skewer inserted into the centre of the cupcakes come out clean.
Take them out of the oven and leave to cool completely on a cooling rack while you get the frosting done.

Mascarpone cream frosting
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Double cream- 100 ml (cold)
Mascarpone cheese- 250 gms 
Icing suagr- 2 tbsp
Red food colouring- a small bit to get the rose colour (optional)

Whisk the double cream in a large, clean bowl using the whisk attachment of your mixer or even a hand held whisk till stiff peaks form. Be careful to not overdo the beating or else it would split.
In another bowl mix the mascarpone cheese and icing sugar slowly till well combined.
Add this to the whipped cream, followed by vanilla and food colouring and continue whisking on low speed till they all come together and are mixed well.
Transfer into a piping bag and once the cupcakes are completely cool, pipe them.
Store in refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Monday 9 February 2015

The Telegraph Cruise Show with James Martin

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Picture courtesy Siren Comms

I've never been on a cruise. I remember how awed i was at the Star Cruises that had taken India by storm a long time back with the cruise liners all named after the star signs. It was a pretty cool thing at that time and i remember a friends sister and husband went on their honeymoon on the super star Virgo or something and we ooh-ed and aah-ed at how lucky she was. Back then it was so totally a luxury thing that was just beginning to gain popularity.

Whereas now every other person i know has been on a cruise, a lot of them on immensely fancy ones. I most certainly want to go on one sometime in the future, but till then I will have to make do with attending annual events like the Telegraph Cruise Show which i was invited to beginning of this year. It was at the London Excel Centre and spanned over 3 days. The event mostly targeted travel enthusiasts, cruise fans, first timers and anyone who was interested in learning more about cruises. There were a wide range of talks by industry experts, interactive Q & A sessions with travel experts and a lot of offers on cruises which were exclusive to the show. 
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Picture courtesy Siren Comms

However, from a food enthusiast's point of view, the interesting bits were the cooking demo's that were part of the show. P & O Cruises' Food Heroes James Martin, Eric Lanlard and Michelin starred chef Atul Kochhar put up free live cooking demos along with wine expert Olly Smith who hosted a free wine tasting session. These celebrity chefs, on top of featuring heir own signature restaurants, bars and dining experiences, would be travelling on numerous cruises throughout the year and you will have the opportunity to accompany them on shore excursions, be part of cookery demo's, and even join them for hosted dinners at the chef's table. 
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We opted to attend James Martin's session at the Kitchen and also dragged the husband along, him being a big fan of Saturday Kitchen Live and all. James Martin, who was exuberant all throughout the 2 hours was absolutely fun to watch. He kick started the show with some almond biscotti, followed by a fillet of mackerel with dressed crab, pickled turnips, cucumber and radish. He then showed us how to portion a chicken and to grill it to perfection. He served the grilled chicken on a bed of cauliflower cous cous which I'm soo going to try. The highlight of the session however was the gorgeous monkey bread he baked and served with a snicker bar ice cream. The very thought of it is making my mouth water, and its been at the back of my mind ever since i saw the demo. Its about a million calories with 2 bottles of maple syrup and tonnes of butter, but so totally worth it, i can tell. We were unfortunately not allowed to taste any of the food, but going by how they looked, they were all bound to taste brilliant.
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If you do fancy any of the dishes i mentioned, (especially the Monkey bread) i suggest you get on board one of the P & O cruise liners and have it hand made by the man himself :)

Thanks to The Telegraph Cruise show for a VIP invite. I thoroughly enjoyed myself :)