STRAWBERRY MOJITO ( A Refreshing Non Alcoholic Mocktail )

 This is such a refreshing non alcoholic drink and simple to make.It has strawberries, mint,  The authentic Mojito is a Cocktail made with mint, sugar, lime, rum  and soda..

Ingredients:

Strawberries ... 10 - 12 ( or as needed)

Mint leaves ...  few ( 8-10)

Lemon juice ... 2 tbsps

Sugar .............. 2 tbsps

Soda / sparkling water .. 1 bottle 

Ice cubes ..  to serve( I put some sliced strawberries and set the cubes )

Fresh strawberries and lemon wedges for garnishing.

Method:

1. Take about 6-7 chopped strawberries and some torn mint leaves.

2. Put them in a flat bottomed glass and crush them with a wooden spoon.

3. Add the sugar and lemon juice and crush again until well blended.

4. Leave it covered in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.

5. Just before serving, spoon the crushed mixture into tall glasses.

6. Put the strawberry ice cubes and pour the chilled soda on it.

7. Mix well and garnish the glass rim with a lemon wedge and a strawberry.

Serve chilled immediately.

Yield  -   2 glasses.

For variation you can try out with other fruits like pineapple and blue berries.

Recipe Courtesy - EZ CookBook

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KERALA FISH CURRY

This is a spicy and tangy fish curry from Kerala. Use any fish like King fish, pomfret or even sardines for this curry. Even the fish head cooked this way tastes really good. Serve it with plain rice and fried appalams. 

Recipe Courtesy - Pristy Sajeev

Ingredients:
Fish – 500 gms (1/2 kg)
Tamarind – lemon size
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds– half tsp

Turmeric powder – half tsp
Kashmiri Chilli powder – 1-2 tbsps ( use less if you like)
Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek powder .. 1/4 tsp

Garlic - 6-8 cloves

Ginger – one inch piece
Green chillies – 2-3 ( or as per your taste)
Shallots – 10 ( you may use chopped onion instead if you don' have shallots)
Curry Leaves – a few
Oil – 2-3  tbsp (preferably coconut oil)
Salt – to taste
Coriander leaves - handful (not in the recipe but I like to add them)

Method:
1. Clean the fish, drain and keep aside.
2. Mix together the red chilly powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, and fenugreek powder with little water, to make a smooth paste.
3. Heat oil in a traditional chatti or any pan
4. Add mustard seeds and when they start spluttering, add fenugreek seeds followed by the sliced onions, ginger, garlic, curry leaves and the paste and fry till the oil separates.
5. Now add tamarind extract and check the level of sourness according to your liking.
6. When the water starts boiling, add the fish pieces and salt. 
7. Add enough water to cover the pieces and simmer to cook.
8. When the pieces are almost cooked, increase the heat and cook till the gravy thickens and the oil is visible. 
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with plain rice and appalams.

Tips:
If you want to keep this curry more than a day, at room temperature, it's better to avoid coriander powder.
The addition of raw coconut oil and fenugreek powder at the end,does magic to the texture and taste of this curry. If you really like coconut oil, go ahead and add one more spoon and a little bit more fenugreek powder.

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TINDORA / TENDLI SABZI

Friends, I had made this tindora / tendli sabzi while I was in India.  In English we call it as ivy gourd, also known as scarlet gourd The ivy gourd plant is known to improve the metabolism, reduce the blood sugar level and prevent conditions like diabetes. It is also very good for the heart.
I wanted to post it in the January Potluck Party but somehow couldn't do so due to settling down in the new place. This is a simple preparation but I love it. We do not get this vegetable here in Brazil. So today I am having a virtual feast while posting it for the event hosted by Jagruti @ Jagruti's Cooking Odyssey.

Ingredients:
Tindora .... 250 gms
Onion .... 1 cup (sliced)
Tomato .. 1
Green chillies .. 1-2
Ginger ... 1 tsp
Garlic ... 1 tsp
Mustard seeds .. 1 tsp
Asafoetida .. a pinch
Turmeric powder .. 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder ... 1 tsp
Cumin powder ..... 1 tsp
Red chilli powder .. 1/4 tsp ( or as per your taste)
Coriander leaves ... handful
Salt ... to taste
Oil ... as needed.

Method:
1. Wash the tindora well. Chop off the tips on the both ends and cut them into long strips.
2. Heat oil in a pan and fry the tindora strips until almost cooked.
3. In a sauce pan heat a little oil and add the asafoetida and mustard seeds.
4. When they crackle add the sliced onion, ginger, garlic and green chillies.
5. Saute for a minute and add the tomato. Simmer for a minute.
6. Now add the salt and spice powders mentioned in the list. Keep stirring until well blended.
7. Tip in the fried fried tindora and mix carefully.
8. Simmer to cook further until done. It does not take long as the tindora are fried and almost cooked.
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
Serve with any kind of roti or as a side dish with dal chawal.

Linking to :  Potluck Party - Cyber Style

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XACUTI CHICKEN ( Goa)

Xacuti chicken - (pronounced as sha-koo-tee) is a spicy curry from Goa. It goes well with plain boiled rice. These days xacuti masala is easily available in the stores but nothing better than using freshly home made one. You can prepare more quantity of masala and store it for later use. You can make mutton, pork, fish, egg, crab, prawn curry or any vegetarian curry too with this masala. 

Ingredients:
Chicken ........... 500 gms. ( with bones)
Onions ............. 2 (sliced)
Coconut .......... 1/2 cup ( grated)
Ginger paste .... 1 tsp
Garlic paste ...... 1 tbsp
Tamarind paste ...... 2 tbsp ( Less or more according to your taste)
Turmeric powder ..... 1/2 tsp
Salt ..................... to taste
Oil
Coriander leaves ... to garnish.
Xacuti masala ... 3 tbsp ( see recipe HERE )

Method:
1. Clean the chicken and set aside.

2. In a sauce pan stir fry the grated coconut until golden brown. Let it cool.

3. Grind the coconut, ginger, garlic, tamarind to a smooth paste adding a little water. Set aside.

4. In a pan heat a little oil and fry the sliced onions until brown. Add a little water to cook. Grind to paste.

5. Pour a little more oil and put the onion paste and the ground coconut paste. Saute. Add salt, turmeric powder and 3 tbsps of xacuti masala powder. Stir it to mix.

6. Now add the chicken pieces. Stir fry for a few minutes. Add 2 cups of water and simmer it to cook until done.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with plain rice.



I tried out boneless chicken dry preparation using the same recipe with xacuti masala.

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PULIYODHARAI / TAMARIND RICE

This is always my favourite rice dishes that I end up making whenever I have some left over rice. So simple to make and delicious too. People carry this for journeys as it stays longer because of the tamarind and can be relished cold too. You really don't need any accompaniment with this as it is tasty on its own.

Ingredients:

Left over rice ... 1 cup

Turmeric powder .. 1/4 tsp

Tamarind extract .. 2-3 tbsps ( as per your liking)

Salt .. to taste

Sugar / jaggery .. little to balance the sourness.

Oil ... 2 tbsps

 For the masala:

Chana dal .. 1 tbsp
Urad dal ..... 1 tbsp
Sesame seeds .. 1 tsp
Dry red chillies .. 1-2 (as per your taste)
( Dry roast and grind the masala )

For Tempering:
Mustard seeds .. 1 tsp
Asafoetida .. a pinch
Groundnuts ... 1 tbsp
Curry leaves .. 1 sprig

Method :
1. Heat oil in a pan and add the tempering ingredients.
2. When they crackle, add the tamarind extract and the ground masala powder.
3. Add the tamarind extract, salt, sugar or jaggery, turmeric powder and stir well.
4. Simmer for a minute or two until the masala is incorporated into the rice. Sprinkle a little water if you like a softer consistency.
5. Serve hot or cold with fried papads.

Check out the video 

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KEEMA DOSA

Most of us always make extra dosa batter at home to make use of it for different variations with it. I had some left over keema too and I used it for the filling instead of potato masala. It tasted awesome.

How to make dosa batter:

Ingredients:
Urad dal .... 1 cup
Rice ........... 3 cups
Methi seeds .... 1 tsp.
Baking soda ... a pinch
Salt ... to taste
Oil.

Method:

1. Soak dal and rice separately for at least 5-6 hours.Add methi seeds while soaking.
2. Grind them separately adding enough water to a smooth batter. Mix them well, adding salt and leave to ferment preferably over night.

How to make Keema :
Ingredients:
Keema ..... 1/2 Kg. (Mutton or Chicken)
Onions ..... 2 large
Ginger-garlic paste ... 1 tbsp.
Green chillies .. 2 (finely chopped)
Coriander powder ..1tsp.
Jeera powder .......... 1 tsp.
Garam masala ......... 1-2 tsp.
Amchoor powder .... 1 tsp.
Salt ........................... to taste
Red chilli powder ....1/2 tsp.
Oil

Method:
1. Wash the keema and squeeze out the water completely.
2. In a pan heat a little oil and fry the onions till golden brown.
3. Now add the ginger garlic paste, green chillies and a little water to cook the onion.
4. Add the mince, salt and the dry masalas. Stir fry sprinkling little water from time to time until the keema is cooked to a very dry consistency. Let it cool.( You can sprinkle a little kasoori methi if desired)

To make keema dosa:
1. Spread the dosa batter on the tawa / griddle.
2. Sprinkle some podi evenly on it and spoon the keema.
3. Spoon a little oil or ghee to make the dosa crisp.
4. Roll it and serve hot.
You can serve with chutney or even relish it just with the keema masala.

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GRILLED FISH WITH FRESH BASIL

Simple grilled fish can be made with many variations .. Today I had some fresh basil at home and used it for the marination. The fish tasted awesome with just a few ingredients.
Here goes the recipe:

Ingredients:
Fish Fillet ...   2   (or as needed) use any variety preferably boneless.
Lemon juice ... 2 tbsps
Olive oil ........ 2 tbsps
Garlic paste ... 1 tbsp
Fresh basil .... handful ( crushed)
Salt ... to taste
Black pepper .. freshly crushed to sprinkle on top before serving.

Method:
1. Marinate the fish with all the ingredients except black pepper.
2. Leave them for a couple of hours in the refrigerator.
3. Bake them in a pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes on medium heat. Alternately you can also pan fry them.
4. Serve hot sprinkled with freshly ground black pepper and any vegetables or salad of your choice on the side.

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