MUSHROOM STIR-FRY

Mushrooms are  fat free, natural sources of Vitamin D and a valuable source of fiber. Over the years, mushrooms have gained popularity in Indian Cooking as it is easily available in market and is no longer considered an exotic ingredient.

INGREDIENTS:

Button Mushrooms (Thinly Sliced) - 12-14

Onion (Thinly Sliced) - 1

Tomato (Julienne) - 1

Vinegar - 2 tbsp

Soya Sauce - 1 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt & Pepper- To taste

PROCESS:

1. It is important to clean the mushrooms before cooking. Use a wet cloth or wet tissue paper to wipe them nicely. Then thinly slice them.

2. Take a Wok or Kadhai with big surface area. This will help in spreading them out which will make the moisture from the mushrooms evaporate quickly. Add 1 thinly sliced onion to heated 2 tbsp oil and sauté till the onion turns translucent.

3. Add julienne of 1 tomato to it. Stir well.

4. Now add the mushrooms and sauté it for a while.

5. Now add the vinegar and soya sauce one after the other and mix well.

6. Add salt and black pepper to taste and stir for a while. It is important to add salt at the end and not in the beginning because it will quickly take out all the juices resulting in chewy mushrooms.  

7. Its done. Serve hot! You can also have it with any Chinese dish of your choice.

CREAM CHICKEN

Cream Chicken is very rich in taste and you can serve it to your guests with chapati or steamed rice. This mouth watering chicken dish is really easy to cook with less effort and time.

Ingredients: (for 1 kg chicken)

1. Bayleaf (Tej Patta) : 1
2. Cardamom & Cinnamon (Elaichi and Dalchini) - crushed
3. Peanut (crushed) : ½ cup
4. Fresh Cream : ½ cup
5. Milk : 1 cup
6. Green Chilies: 3-4
7. Onion : 3-4 
8. Tomato : 3 
9. Ginger-Garlic Paste :  2 tsp
10. Chicken : 1 kg
11. Cashew nut & Raisin (Kaju-Kishmish) : ½ cup
12. Turmeric powder : 1 tsp
13. Coriander leaves : for garnishing (optional)

Process:

1. Marinate chicken for 15-20 min adding salt, turmeric powder, onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste.
2. Heat oil in a wok/kadhai. Put Bay-leaf, crushed garam masala (Eliachi-Dalchini) and Green chilies. Add crushed peanuts and stir for 2 more mins. When it starts spreading good aroma, add the marinated chicken and stir continuously for some time.
3. Once the chicken is half cooked, add the milk, kaju-kishmish and cover it with a lid until the chicken is boiled completely. Add 3/4^th cup cream and stir properly to get a nice color.
4. Put the curry in a serving dish and add the 1 tbsp cream and coriander leaves.

   5. Serve hot with steamed rice or chapati.

SORSE RUI / ROHU FISH IN MUSTARD PASTE

Sorse Rui (Rohu Fish cooked in mustard paste) is a traditional Bengali dish. It is easy to cook and is usually prepared with Hilsa fish. However, I have used  Rohu fish (Rui maach) for this dish. Happy Cooking!

Ingredients:

1. Rohu Fish - 9-10
2. Bay leaf (Tej Patta) -1
3. Kalounji (Kalo jeera/black cumin) - 1/4 tsp
4. Green Chilies - 3-4
5. Onion - 2 finely chopped
6. Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
7. Mustard seeds (paste) - 1/2 cup

8. Coriander leaves (optional)
9. Salt to taste

Process:

1. Add salt and turmeric powder to the fish. Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the fish pieces until golden brown.

2. Put 2 tbsp oil in the kadhai and add bay leaf, kalounji and green chilies. Add chopped onions, turmeric powder and salt. Stir them till the onions turn brown. Add mustard  paste with a very little water (less than 1/2 cup).

3. When it starts boiling, add the fried fish pieces.

4. Cover with a lid and let it cook for 4-5 min in medium heat.

5. When it’s ready, garnish with coriander leaves and green chili slices. Serve hot with plain rice. Enjoy!

EGG REZALA

Eggs are frequently used in cooking as it is simple to prepare and easily available. They are typically prepared for breakfast, lunch or dinner as omelette, scrambled, boiled and curry dishes. Here is an interesting recipe which is different from normal curry dishes, easy to cook and tastes great.

Ingredients: 

(Preparation for 4 person)

1. Eggs (boiled) - 8
2. Onion (chopped) - 1 
3. Onion (paste) - 1 cup
4. Ginger garlic paste - 2 tbsp
5. Tomato (paste) - Half cup
6. Dry Red Chilly - 2 
7. Cardamom & Cinnamon - Crushed 
8. Black Salt (Crushed) - 1 tbsp
9. Curd - 150g
10. Raisins - 9-10
11. Salt to taste
12. Sugar - 1 tsp
13. Bayleaf (Tej Patta) - 2
14. Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
15. Coriander leaves - For garnishing (optional)
16. Refined oil - 5 tbsp

Process: 

1. Heat oil in a frying pan and put the red chillis to fry. Once done, chop them and keep aside for garnishing.

2. In the remaining oil, fry the boiled eggs adding a pinch of turmeric powder. When they eggs turns into golden yellow, remove from flame.

3. Add bayleaf, crushed black salt, chopped onion, a pinch of turmeric powder, crushed Cardamom & Cinnamon (Elaichi and Dalchini)  and stir well for 2 mins, then add onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste and sauté for few minutes.

4. When the masala is cooked, add curd, sugar, raisins and salt to taste.

5. Add two cups of hot water and mix well and cover with a lid with low flame for 5-8 mins.

6. Add boiled and fried eggs and cook for 2 more mins.

7. When ready, put the eggs in a flat serving dish or a bowl, you can cut them in halves too. Pour the gravy in the dish and garnish with coriander leaves and crushed / chopped and fried red chilies. Serve hot with rice or roti!