Nisha and Nishanth's Culinary Debacles

One fine day my husband asks me to make him some nice food and i decided to make ghee rice. Whenever i think of ghee rice, i think of Moghul Durbar in Bangalore and the bygone days more than a decade back where as a teenager i hung out with my friends and ghee rice was definitely one of the favourites on the moghul thali. I tried this recipe out http://www.syvum.com/cgi/online/serve.cgi/recipes/srcpr11.tdf?0 It came out good although not the Moghul Durbar style.. Definitely easy to make and worth trying

A famous chicken dish that can be prepared in a jiffy. This came out pretty good. INGREDIENTS (here is a link for converting metric to pound ) Chicken pieces 1 kg. (2.2lb) Onions, sliced 500 gms. (1.1lb) Garlic, sliced 50 gms. (.1lb) Ginger, sliced 50 gms. (.1lb) Red chili powder 1/2 tsp. Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp. Whole red chili 4 nos. Garam Masala 10 gm. Tomato puree 300 ml. Coriander powder 15 gms. Water 500 ml. Ghee 150 gms. Salt To taste Method: Slice the onions, ginger and garlic and keep aside. Heat ghee for 1 minute, then add tomato puree, turmeric powder, red chili powder, red chilies and coriander powder, cover the dish and cook on high for 3 minutes. Put the sliced onions, ginger, garlic and cook for 3 minutes on high. Mix chicken in the above ingredients and 500 ml water and cook for 8 minutes. Stir well, add salt, garam masala and cook for 7 minutes, till done.

Serves: 8 to 10 Ingredients 20 to 25 large lychees ( i tried this with tinned lychees got from the indian store) 20-25 almonds-blanched (soaked in hot water and skin removed) 10 sheets of varq(silver sheets) - Makes the dish look pretty - i did without it 1/2 tin of milk maid or sweetened condensed milk (3/4 cup) 1/2 cup of milk 250 gm paneer grated ( i tried with the paneer grated long - its better to grate it fine) 1/4 tsp kesar(saffron) soaked in 1 tbsp of rose water 300 gm cream - chilled nicely and whipped until it turns thick (i bought whipped cream) Garnish A few rose petals a few green pistas sliced Method Peel and carefully deseed the lychees keeping the lychees whole Insert one almond in each lychee in place of the seed (The dish tastes just as good if this step is ommited). Open up a varq carefully and place two lychees on the broad end(open end) downwards on the sheet leaving some space in between the lychees.Carefully lift the paper beneath the varq to coat the lychees wit...

Ingredients 2 cups curd 2 green chillies chopped fine 1 onion chopped fine 1 tomato fine 1/2 cucumber chopped 2 tsp coriander leaves chopped fine Salt to taste Method Mix all the ingredients Preparation time 5 minutes

This recipe was passed down to me by my mami in Mysore who is an awesome cook. I spent almost a month with her in 2002 and her recipes have been a hit. This is mainly meant for the indian audience for i am yet to find equivalent ingredients in the US supermarkets. Ingredients: 1 small tin milkmaid around 150 to 200 gm 250 gms fresh cream 1 small tin chopped pineapple around 250 gm 1 tbsp gelatin Method: Mix the pineapple, milkmaid and fresh cream in a bowl Heat water in a pan and in the a smaller pan add the gelatin and pineapple syrup from the tinned pineapples Place the smaller pan in the bigger pan and continue stirring until the gelatin dissolves Add the syrup and gelatin mixture to the rest of the mixture Stir and place in freezer until set Cooking time: 5 -10 minutes Tips: One could also used any other variety of fruits. I have tried the same recipe with tinned lychees and peaches but found that the combination was a little too sweet to my liking... Pineapple on the other hand ha...

This is a favourite dish of mine that anyone who is brought up on the Kenyan Coast loves! Easy to make and ideal on a cold day with a cup of tea or coffee Ingredients: 10 small potatoes boiled, peeled and cut into slices 1/2 inch thick 1 tsp chilli powder mixed with 1 tsp lime juice 1/2 cup gram flour 1/4 cup water Salt to taste Oil for frying Method: Take a slice of potato and smear a layer of chilli paste on it. Cover it with another slice of potato thereby making a "packed potato". In this manner you will get at least 10 depending on the size of your potatoes Mix the gram flour with water and salt to make a batter which has a consistency similiar to what we use for making pakodas. Heat oil for frying Dip the "packed potatoes" into the gram flour and therefter fry them until golden brown Serve with tomato ketchup or coconut chutney! Cooking time: 10-15 minutes

This is an all time favorite recipe with my guests. I tried it several years using the recipe at this website: http://www.cookingmarvel.in/rice/vegetable_biryani.html It is mostly the same with a few changes. Ingredients: 2 cups rice soaked in 4 cups of water 2 cups chopped vegetables of your choice(i generally use potatoes, french beans, carrots and peas) 1 medium size onion sliced 1 tsp garam masala powder 1 tsp cumin (jeera) seeds 1 tsp coriander powder 1 tsp red chilli powder(if its extra hot 1/2 would suffice) 2 inch long cinammon stick 2-3 cloves 2-3 white cardamom (elaichi) Salt to taste 2 tbsp oil or ghee or butter Method: Heat the oil in a pressure cooker Add the cinammon stick, cardamom and cloves Fry the onions until golden Add the chopped vegetables and fry for around 5 minutes on medium heat. Keep stirring. Add the rice along with the water Add the rest of the masalas Cover the pressure cooker and cook on medium heat for 2 whistles Serve with ...

For 4-5 normal people (for people like us -3 people) Ingredients : 300 grams tomato (8 medium ones approx) 2-3 bay leaves 150 grams paneer (cottage cheese - desi style) cut into small 1/2 inch squares - if u get fried paneer.. good. 1 table spoon butter(ghee or oil can be used too) 1 tsp garam masala powder 1 tsp chilli powder 1 tsp jeera(cumin) powder 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp lime juice salt to taste Procedure : Boil the tomatoes around 10 mins till they become soft and cooked puree the tomatoes by mashing them in a mixie(blender) till there are no lumps around Shallow fry the paneer in butter, ghee or oil if required (just in case ur diet concious, dont fry it..;) ). add all the indregients in pan except for paneer and heat on medium flame for around 5 mins.. Add fried paneer and heat for on medium flame for 2 minutes garnish with coriander leaves and voila.. ur done.. Serve with parotha, roti or naan. Can be served with basmati rice Cooking Time : 10-15 mins...