Mangalorean Chicken Curry (Gassi)

This is my mums recipe :)) I made it from scratch today and it tasted absolutely fabulous, I am sure it turned out well because mum kept hovering in the kitchen while I made it!!


Ingredients

200 gms boneless chicken ( I prefer boneless chicken)
1 onion ( finely chopped)
2 tbsps ghee

For the red masala
6 dried chillies ( 3 kashmir and 3 bedgi) (roasted)
1 tbsp coriander seeds (roasted)
tamrind paste ( as per taste)
1 tsp turmeric powder

For the white masala
1/2 coconut (scrapped)
6 pepper corns (roasted)
10-15 fenugreek seeds
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1/2 small onion

Method:

1) Heat a pan and put in the scrapped coconut, keep tossing to ensure that it does not burn. Fry it till all the moisture evaporates.

2) Put the ingredients for the red masala in a mixie, add some water and blitz it till it turns into a fine paste.

3) Clean and cut the chicken into small peices and marinate it in the red masala for about 15-20 minutes.

4) Heat the ghee in a thick bottomed pan, add the chopped onion, fry till it turns crisp and brown.

5) Add the marinated chicken, cover and let it cook on high for about five minutes.

6) Add salt and let it cook on simmer till nicely done.

7) For the white masala, grind the roasted coconut to a fine paste.

8) Add the onion, fenugreek seeds, pepper corn and garlics and cumin seeds and grinds till all the ingredients are mixed well. (Ensure that you do not grind for a long time after you add these ingredients as it loses it aroma or some such thing(will check with my mom and let you know, a quick turn should suffice. Hence always add these only once you are satisfied that the coconut is reduced to a fine paste).

9) Add the white masala to the chicken and let it come to a boil.

10) Simmer and cook till done.

11) Serve with rice, sliced bread or chappati.

Chocolate cake

This is really easy to make and is absolutely heavenly!!! This cake is a result of a great deal of trial and error ( my family gets scared these days when I don the chefs hat). I can only list the ingredients and give you a fair idea with regards to the quantity of each...

Ingredients:-

For the cake:
Maida about 1 cup
Baking Powder, 1 tbsp
Cocoa powder about two table spoons
2 eggs
Butter, two huge dollops
about 100 gms of powdered sugar
few drops of vanilla essence
sugar dissolved in water

For the icing:
1 small packet Amul cream
Milk chocolate (melted)
Two tbsps powdered sugar

Method:

1) Pass the maida, cocoa powder and baking powder through a seive. Mix well and keep aside.

2) Beat the butter and powdered sugar.

3) Add the eggs one by one and mix well. Ensure that you fold the mixture in one direction only.

4) Add vanilla essence.

5) Gently fold the maida into the butter-egg mixture. Mix gently and ensure that there are no lumps.

6) Grease a bowl and pour the batter.

7) Place the bowl in a microwave oven at medium for about 5 minutes.

8) Beat the cream till it is thick and mix in the sugar and chocolate.

9) Cut the cake into two layers.

10) Soak each layer in sugar water.

11) Place a layer of cake and cover it well with chocolate cream, place the other layer on top and pour the remaining chocolate cream on it.

12) I have garnished this cake with grated dark chocoalate.

What I have been upto...

Not that anyone is dying to have an account of where-I-have-been-what-I-have-been-upto, I still intend to unleash it on the unsuspecting blog reader who in moment of madness happens to stop by my space.

So here goes...

Finally went to Esselworld last Sunday. I am pleased to finally scratch off "Sr. No. 123 Visit Esselworld" off my place-to-visit-things-to-do-before-I-die list. I can say with some conviction that this was my first and last visit to Esselworld. To put matter in perspective let me venture a spot of explanation, I suffer from vertigo and cannot go on any of the rides, so P(a fellow afflictee)and I had to follow the rest of the gang all day. The only rides we could go on was Dashing Cars and all I got for my pains was a sprained back. To make matters worse as evening set in, the starving mosquitoes at Esselworld pounced on me and I was left with legs (wearing Capris...bbbbaaaadddd idea) looking like I was suffering from measles. Monday morning found me so sore, I could barely drag myself out of bed. Somehow I managed to get to office and sleepwalk through the day. A who sits next to me at work was all set to wheel me to the nearest doctors clinic after putting up with my "oohs and aahs" all day. The next day I decided to spare A, the rest of the public and myself the torture and spent the day curled up in bed.

I missed a wedding cause I forgot the date. As a rule I hate wedding, but I was particularly looking forward to this one as a close friend had invited me. This Thursday found me getting all decked up for the wedding and when I open the invite to check the venue details, what do I find ...the wedding took place last Thursday.

What can I say, age sure is catching up with me...

Chilli Chicken (Dry)

Ingredients

250 gms boneless chicken (cut in strips)
1 egg
2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
Soya sauce
10 cloves of garlic ( chopped finely)
1 capsicum (deseeded and cut in strips)
1 small onion (chopped)
1 springs onion ( use only the leaves)
oil for frying

Method:

1) Marinate the chicken strips in ginger-garlic paste, egg and soya sauce mixture for 15-20 mins.
2) Heat oil and fry the marinated chicken.
3) Heat a little oil in a pan.
4) Add onions, garlics and the spring onions. Fry for a couple of minutes till the raw smell dissapears.
5) Add the capsicum and cook till half done.
6) Add the fried chicken and the soya sauce and stir well.
7) Serve hot.

Note: I have not used salt at all as soya sauce normally contains a lot of salt.