Easy Fish Curry

I started cooking regularly more out of a need to find something healthier than restaurant food as an everyday option. Back then, I was working 15-16 hour days and cooking was a luxury although a necessity (for the reason stated in the previous line). So, I tried to find easy recipes that were quick as well as tasty. Pasta ofcourse is simple and fast. But eating pasta everyday was counter-productive to my cooking strategy. So, I turned to my roots - Indian cooking.

It's in my blood; I grew up with it all around me and although I rarely (almost never!) stepped into the kitchen at home, it is easy for me to create Indian dishes. The flavor combinations come intuitively and although most of the dishes are involved, there are some which are quick and with a little help from the store, even quicker.

My mother has always been an inspiration for fast and flavorful cooking. She did not believe in spending too much time in the kitchen. Yet, she turned out dishes after dishes which were fantastic. She would whip up a whole three-course meal in under an hour! I still haven't been able to emulate that efficiency...

This fish curry was borne out of the need for a quick meal while incorporating the familiar flavors that I grew up with. Indian coasts have abundant fresh seafood as well coconut trees. The pairing is almost reflexive. Although curry is the all-inclusive, generic name used for any Indian dish with a gravy outside India, dishes made with coconut paste or milk would be called Kurma or Korma back home. So the correct nomenclature for this dish would be Fish Kurma.

The beauty of this dish is in the simplicity of its ingredients. It uses just three - fish, tomato puree and coconut milk. That is it! And, it goes well with any kind of firm fish or shrimp. This is my version of a 30-minute meal that is satisfying as well as comforting.

I tend to make it spicy because that's the way we had it at home. But, you can easily tone it down to suit your palate.

Fish Kurma

3/4 lb firm white fish in 2 inch cubes
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 14 oz can coconut milk
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
4 cloves
1 star anise
1/2 stick of cinnamon
5 whole peppercorns
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 tsp cumin-coriander powder
1 tsp chilli powder or cayenne
2 tsp garam masala (very commonly used Indian spice, you can make it at home or buy from Indian store)
salt to taste
1 T vegetable oil

Fish marinade
2 tsp salt
1 /4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder

Rub the fish pieces evenly on all sides with the marinade and set aside.

In a sauce pan, heat the oil over low flame. Drop in the cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, cumin seeds and star anise and saute until they release their aromas. Add the powder spices and cook for a minute. Increase heat to medium, add tomato paste and 1 cup of water. Simmer until the tomato is cooked. Stir in the coconut milk and bring the Kurma to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Lower to medium and simmer for 10 minutes till mixture thickens slightly.

Carefully add in the fish pieces ensuring that they are fully covered by the gravy. Cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes until the fish is cooked and flaky.

Let the kurma rest for 5 minutes off the heat and then serve over hot flavored rice.

Tip: To make flavored rice, saute 4 cloves, 2 cardamoms, 5 whole pepper corns, 1 bay leaf and 3/4 tsp cumin seeds in 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil or ghee. Add 2 cups of basmati rice and 1.5 tsp of salt and lightly toss everything together. Add 4 cups of water and cook with lid-on over medium heat until the water completely evaporates and the rice is puffed.

The Perfect Souffle :)

I have been enamoured by souffles for quite sometime. And, I will be the first to admit that my many failures to make the perfect one has added not insignificantly to the appeal of the dish. That is not to say that the souffle does not stand up for itself by taste alone. But, sometimes the skill required to make the perfect dish stretches the desirability beyond the line!

As any moderately accomplished chef will tell you, the secret to the perfect souffle is in beating the egg whites to a frothy lightness that adds air and bounce to the dish. Get the right consistency for the whipped whites and manage to not break its fluffiness while incorporating it into the rest of the dish and you have sailed home. After watching many, many of Giada's and Ina's shows on Food Network, I found out that the skill is much aided by just a light touch of the sacred ingredient, Cream of Tartar!

Ah! what a world this is that gives us such awesome stuff as cream of tartar! It acts as a stabilizing agent that helps keep the egg whites peaks from not breaking. A teeny pinch of it is all that is required. The science behind it is amazingly simple; Egg whites are the rare few of nature's stuff that are completely non-acidic i.e. they are alkaline. And cream of tartar is an acid salt. A little bit of both is need for maintaining balance and that is exactly how it works to create the perfect egg white peaks and hence, souffle.

Science aside, the sheer joy of seeing your egg whites not fall flat and dissipate when combined into rest of the dish is totally worth the rather steep price of the salt. And discovering this simple helper has made my life so much easier to make a variety of stuff involving beating egg whites - souffles, meringues etc.

Now that I have laid open the secrets to making of a perfect souffle, let me tell you about my shrimp version of it. I wanted to make shrimp souffle; where I got the inspiration, I don't know but I was adamant about bringing the shrimp and souffle together. I googled and did not find an appealing recipe. So I kind of made up one of my own. It is a bit of an effort but is totally worth it.

It makes for a nice project for a lazy Sunday lunch; no hurry to eat and a large appetite to appease. :) And, you can easily substitute the shrimp with crab meat or tuna. I would, as I did, serve it with a light salad and a generous helping of the shrimp sauce on souffle and salad. The salad takes away from the heaviness of all the eggs in the souffle and the sauce harmoniously marries everything on the plate together.

Update: Since the first attempt using the perfect recipe but imperfect dish, I recreated the dish with the right sized dish. Have updated the picture in this site! Doesn't it look gorgeous?! :)

Shrimp Souffle with Shrimp and Wine Sauce
(Serves 2-3)

3/4 lb medium sized shrimps peeled and de-veined
1 medium red onion diced fine
1 clove of garlic minced
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne
5 egg whites
4 egg yolks
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup grated Parmesan + 2 T for coating souffle dish
4 T butter
3 T all purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup fish/clam/shrimp stock
1/2 cup half & half or light cream
3/4 tsp tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil as needed

Heat the oil in a medium pan, saute onions until they are translucent. Toss in the cleaned shrimp along with the thyme, oregano, paprika, cayenne, salt and pepper. Saute for a 5-6 minutes until the shrimps are completely cooked and opaque. Remove from heat and cool. Divide the shrimp mixture into two parts - finely mince one and rough chop the other.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat the milk till it is scalding but not boiling. In a sauce pan over low heat, melt 3T of butter and add 3 T of flour to it. Stir the mixture continuously till the flour is cooked and the roux is light golden, about 2-3 minutes. Add the hot milk and continue stirring till the mixture thickens and becomes smooth. Remove from heat and mix in the egg yolks one at a time. Stir in the parmesan and the finely minced shrimp mixture.

In a large bowl, whisk together egg whites, pinch of salt and cream of tartar. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, on medium speed for 1 minute, then finally on high speed until they form firm, glossy peaks. Whisk 1/4 of the egg whites into the shrimp and white sauce mixture and then carefully fold in the rest.

Pour into a 1-1/2 quarts souffle dish that has been buttered and coated lightly with parmesan cheese. Smooth the top. Place in the middle rack of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees and bake for 30-35 minutes until puffed and golden.

Important: Do NOT open the oven in between to check!

While the souffle bakes, add stock to the pan in which shrimp mixture was made. Over medium heat, add the wine to it to deglaze it. Reduce the mixture to half. Add the tomato paste and rough minced shrimp mixture and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the cream and remove from heat. Just before serving, reheat the sauce and melt in 1T of butter. Sauce will be chunky in texture which lets you taste the shrimp as you bite into the bits.

Serve the souffle immediately after removing from oven with a generous helping of the shrimp and wine sauce and green salad.

Have a happy Sunday!

Pastrizza!

Voila! I have coined a new culinary term - Pastrizza! I googled to check if it was taken and well, I did not find the word.. So it's all mine! I know you are curious, so let me jump right in to the description. It is something between a tart and a pizza made of puff pastry and with whatever filling, sweet or savory, you like. I hit upon this brilliant concept, when I had to make a quick dinner that was not boring, super easy to make and well, ofcourse, very flavorful.

So, who doesn't like pizza?! It's the ultimate comfort food - the crust, the cheese, the overall goodness. Ah! I love it and could really have it everyday. The only problem aside from being, well, unfortunately unhealthy is that it's not so customizable. So I thought "What if I deconstruct the idea of a pizza and a roll and also turn the volume up a bit?" And the bulb went on!

I used store bought puff pastry (which always in my freezer) and made a super easy topping of caramelized onions, sausage and swiss cheese. And to turn the volume up, I used a homemade cheese spread as a base for the pastrizza. The idea for the spread came from one of Giada's recipes.

The spread is just great on a pizza or a sandwich. And since it is made from real cheese, it melts in the heat of the oven and creates this wonderful cheesy base that adds so much more flavor. And, the puff pastry makes for a light, flaky crust with lots of crunch. It's real fun to eat!

And what a cool idea for entertaining!! You can make mini-pastrizzas and serve as appetizers or just make it a casual meal with different kinds of toppings.

Pastrizza - Caramelised Onions and Sausage with a Dijon and Jarlsberg Spread

1 puff pastry sheet, thawed

1 spanish onion julienned

2 spicy sausages with casing removed

1/2 cup grated swiss cheese

1 egg + 1 tsp water beaten for egg wash

1 tsp Italian seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

For the cheese spread:

1 cup grated Jarlsberg or any Swiss cheese; Gruyere would be great too!

1 T Dijon mustard

2 T room temperature butter

1/2 tsp minced garlic

To make the cheese spread, blend all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth and creamy and spreadable.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large frying pan, brown the sausage. To the same pan, add the onions and saute until they are almost cooked. Season with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Toss and cook for a minute more and take off the heat.

Meanwhile, place the puff pastry sheet on a well-floured surface and roll it out to about a 10" x 12" rectangle. Spread the cheese mixture evenly leaving a 1 inch border on all sides. Pile on the onions and sausage mixture distributing it evenly across the base. Apply the egg wash on the one inch exposed borders. The wash will help the pastry to come out nice and golden!

Place the pastrizza on a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes or until the sides are puffed and golden. Transfer to a tray and let it sit for 2-3 minutes before serving.

Hearty Mac and Cheese

Dear BM, this one is for you! Bon Apetit!

There is a story behind this dish. Mac and cheese happens to be one of my closest friends, BM's favorite meals. She being vegetarian usually has truncated menu options in most restaurants we go to. But, if there happens to the said dish on the offer, then its a cert. she will order it! :). As for me, I just love cheese and feel that it can only add to any dish.

But, I never really manage to order it even though I get a good visual of all its splemdid qualities whenever I dine with BM. Somehow there is always some other distracting item on the menu. So, for me, this dish has always something to make at home and enjoy. It just evokes a sense of warmth and happiness! I guess it is from all the creamy, cheesy goodness.

We had some left over velveeta cheese slices and chorizo sausage in the fridge. Velveeta is an extra-creamy cheddar cheese form Kraft; it's a bit too creamy, for me, in a cheese sandwich but is Oh!-so-fantastic when melted into a cheese sauce. The creaminess just makes the mac and cheese! Plus, I had just spoken to BM (she moved overseas recently, so sadly, I have not been able to see much of her lately) and the idea of her favorite meal just popped and stuck in my mind. And, that's how the dish came to be made.

Now, the husband has been a bit resistant to the idea of a cheesy dinner claiming that he wanted a 'healthy' meal. So, I promised him a wholesome, hearty meal packed with good stuff nicely rounded off by the cheese! I think that's the best part of a versatile dish like the M and C. You can make it just plain or vegetarian or meaty or add any ingredients you like and change the spice combinations to cater to different tastes.

My M and C was slightly spicy and packed with veggies and herbs. I just used a generic version of the recipe and added all my customized ingredients to it. Traditionally, bacon is added for extra flavor. I substituted it with the chorizo; the spice from the sausage gives a nice kick while the meat makes the dish heartier. You can use a variety of vegetables in it from potatoes to asparagus but stay away from those that become mushy after cooking. I used carrots and cauliflower and for the record, there is simply no better way to eat cauliflower.

There is something in it for everyone and the cheese sauce, as I repeat often, just adds so much flavor to everything. Even the pickiest eater will love this dish!

I am sending this post to the Mac & Cheese event being hosted by 5-Star Foodie. Check out the event details here.

Hearty Mac & Cheese

(Serves 3-4)

1/2 lb chorizo sausage without the casing

2 carrots, grated

1/2 large onion, diced

1 large clove of garlic minced

1/4 head of cauliflower chopped into bite sized flowerlets

1/2 pound of elbow or cavatappi pasta

2-3/4 cups milk

6 oz velveeta cheddar cheese

1/4 cup provolone

5 T butter

4 T all purpose flour

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 paprika

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 T chopped parsley

2 T chopped dill

1 tomato sliced thin

2 T grated parmesan

salt and pepper to taste

In a medium pan, brown the chorizo. When the chorizo is almost done, add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are translucent. Sprinkle the paprika over and add in the grated carrots. Cook until carrots are done. Adjust seasoning if needed.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Season with lot of salt (this is the only chance to season the pasta, so do not miss it!) and cook the pasta till they are just under al dente, about 9 minutes. About half way through cooking the pasta, add the cauliflower in. By the time, the pasta cooks, the cauliflower will be also perfect and well seasoned too.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a pan but do not boil it. In another sauce pan, melt 4 T of butter and whisk in the flour. Cook for 3 minutes on low till the rawness of the flour goes away and the roux turns golden brown. Continue whisking and add in the milk. Cook the mixture till it thickens to a smooth consistency. Add the pepper, cayenne, cinnamon and nutmeg and cook for a minute more.

Take the sauce pan off the heat and add the cheeses in. The heat of the sauce will melt the cheese. Whisk to combine to a smooth texture. Mix in the carrot, onion and chorizo mixture. Drain the pasta and cauliflower and add to sauce along with the parsley and dill. Combine everything completely.

Pour mixure into a 2 quart casserole. Arrange tomato slices on top and sprinkle parmesan cheese. Distribute the remaining 1 T of butter over the slices. Bake in the oven for 30-35 mins until the top is browned and the sauce is bubbling.

Let cool for a few minute and relish!

Note:

1. If you are making plain mac and cheese, then make the roux with 3T of butter and flour and 2 cups of milk.
2. You can also make the mac and cheese on just the skillet. Just cook the pasta all the way through. Combine the vegetables, herbs and pasta into the sauce and serve.

Zucchini Bread - A surprise in every bite

OK! I can't keep it in anymore - Zucchini bread tastes fantastic and surprisingly, really like a lovely spice bread. Since the first time I heard of the bread, I have been intrigued about it just as much as carrot cake. I like the carrot cake, so I decided it was finally time to give zucchini a chance!

Now, I like my zucchini just as is - I like to roast it with a little salt and pepper and snack on it or pile it with some goat cheese on a sandwich. But the bread is now my new favorite use for the vegetable. The water content of the zucchini makes the bread nice and moist.

Aside from little green flecks that are distant reminders of the vegetable, there is really no actual taste of the vegetable. Isn't that the best of both worlds ?! Get all the nutrients and good karma from eating a green vegetable while not really tasting it. And, when I tell you, that even my husband, who rarely eats vegetables for just themselves, was won over by the bread, you know it is definitely a great way to get children to eat their veggies. :)

The recipe (modified from Simply Recipes) is very simple, just like the banana bread I make. There is no need for a mixer and you can literally mix everything together in one bowl. Now, is that an added benefit or what?! I really can be a messy cook and since my dishwasher is my husband, he appreciates these recipes even more! :)

And, it is great for breakfast because it isn't very sweet and the cinnamon and nutmeg in it give you a wonderfully warm start to the day! You can easily substitute the zucchini with any mild flavored, high water content vegetables, like carrots.

Zucchini Bread

1-1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1-1/2 cups of grated zucchini
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/3 cup melted butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of salt
3/4 cup raisins


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix together the egg, sugar and vanilla. Mix in the melted butter and the grated zucchini. Add the salt and baking soda. Mix in the flour, a third at a time, until just combined. Sprinkle the cinnamon and nutmeg and fold in the raisins.

Pour the batter into the buttered and floured loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool for sometime, slice and enjoy!

It's Spring and time to lighten up!

OK! Spring is not really here.. atleast not in NYC. The ground hog predicted more winter and so far, it's prophecy has been sadly true. Nevertheless, one has hope; When all else fails, resort to make-believe. So, in an effort to evoke some spring time cheeriness, I decided to go with a light and fruity salad for dinner last night.

Celery and Apple salad - simple yet delicious enough to forget about the cold winds billowing outside. The tart and tangy flavor of the celery contrasts with the sweetness of the apple and the mustard and lemon vinaigrette binds it all together nicely. Oh! you can even incorporate the leaves of the celery (which I usually discard) into the salad. Now, you can really use any kind of apple but, to keep the flavors balanced, I would recommend a Golden Delicious or Gala over Granny Smith.

Anyway, it did put a smile on my face and I almost believed Spring is here (which was the idea!). So I would say, the salad was a success!

Celery and Apple Salad with Lemon-Mustard Dressing

(serves 4)

1 bunch of celery with leaves, sliced at a deep angle

2 apples, julienne

1/2 cup celery leaves, chopped

Dressing

1/4 cup lime juice

3 T Dijon mustard

3 T honey

2/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Whisk together the lime juice, mustard, honey, salt and pepper. Continue whisking and add the olive oil till it is incorporated completely. Place the celery, celery leaves and apples in a salad bowl. Pour the dressing over and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

News Flash: Product Reviewing

Hello everyone! I have some exciting news to share. I am going to review the seasoning products of Amazing Taste Foods Inc.. I think this marks a new phase in my food blog and culinary writing effort! I am really thrilled about it!

Amazing Taste Foods is a Malibu based company that makes sprinkle-on seasoning for meat, poultry and seafood. I just received some samples from them of their products and am looking forward to trying them out. I am going to test these seasoning mixes in some of my recipes and ofcourse blog on my experiences.

So, keep watching this space for my reviews on the products and recipes using them!

The story of the Tomatillo and the Pepian sauce

Have you seen the movie "Fried Green Tomatoes" ? I saw it a few years ago when I was still in India. Interestingly complex movie with a stellar cast but the reason I bring it up is the "green tomato". Until I saw this movie, I thought tomatoes were always red or when not fully ripe yellow or orange. I had not previously heard of anyone eating green tomatoes. Actually, come to think of it, somehow it never struck me that the vegetable went through a green phase. Anyway, interesting as it sounded, I did not give much thought to it then.

Last summer, at the farmer's market in NYC, I saw one of the farm stalls selling small green tomatoes. They reminded me of the said movie and I was interested. As it turned out, these were not the same "green tomatoes" of the movie fame but the Mexican vegetable called "Tomatillo" (which by the way means 'green tomato' in Spanish!!).

I will explain more about the tomatillos in a minute. But, for the moment, let me digress a bit to the American green tomatoes. These are the unripe tomatoes which are popular in Southern American cuisine. They are typically, breaded and deep-fried and supposed to be fantastic. I have not yet tasted them and when I do will let you know my opinion.

Getting back to the Tomatillos. They look just like tomatoes and are green (surprise!). But a distinguishing feature is that they have a green husk around it, sort of like a papery outer wrapper (like in the left picture). The husk ofcourse has to discarded. The dehusked tomatillo needs a good wash as the skin can be a little sticky. But all this is the side story; the main story is the taste. Tomatillos have a tart and tangy flavor which makes it a unique and distinguishable ingredient in many Mexican recipes notably Salsa Verde.

Salsa is perhaps the most popular result on a Google search for Tomatillo recipe. But, I did not want to make salsa. So my green tomatoes stayed put in the refridgerator for two days before I chanced upon an Elli Kreiger recipe for "Chicken Pepian" whose star ingredient is the tomatillo.

Now, I am not a big fan of chicken in the US because I find the meat a bit dull on the taste compared to back in India. Or perhaps, it is a prejudice created by the method of preparation. Indian dishes tend to be a bit heavy on the spice and the meat can't but help absorb some of the flavor. Nevertheless, the first time I made the pepian sauce, I substituted cod fillets for chicken and it worked wonderfully. The tanginess of the tomatillo comes through in the sauce and just teases your taste buds and then the heat from the jalapeno kicks in.

Once I had tasted the sauce, I totally fell in love with the tomatillo. I just couldn't get enough of the tarty taste; if you like eating raw mangoes, you'll love the tomatillo. Recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find them at the Whole Foods store and happily grabbed a poundful. I wanted that sauce again! This time, I decided to give chicken a try and played around with Ellie's recipe adjusting spices and ingredients to suit my tastes and what is usually in my pantry. I used chicken thighs which have a lot more flavor than the breasts (red vs white meat). I have included my version of the recipe below.

The sauce goes great with any white meat such as fish, chicken, pork and veal. If you are vegetarian, you can substitute the meat with portobello mushroom caps or cottage cheese (paneer) fillets. I like my sauce spicy but if that isn't your preference, you can tone it down by de-seeding the jalapeno and substituting the poblano with a regular green bell pepper.

Pepian Sauce over Chicken

To roast:
1 pound fresh tomatillos
1 large poblano pepper
1/2 medium green bell pepper

Dry spice:
1/2 cup raw unsalted pine nuts
5 whole peppercorns
4 cloves, 1 stick of cinnamon, 1 star anise broken
1 tsp whole cumin seeds

To saute:
1 large onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno chopped fine

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus 1/4 cup for garnish
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
2 T sour cream
6 boneless chicken thighs pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
salt and pepper to taste and olive oil as needed

Turn the broiler on. Remove the papery husk from tomatillos and rinse them in warm water to remove their natural stickiness. Cut into quarters. Deseed the poblano and green peppers and cut into quarters. Toss the tomatillos and peppers with some olive oil to coat them. Place them cut side down on a baking tray and broil for about 10 minutes or until the skin is charred.

Meanwhile, toast the dry spice in a large pan until the mixture releases its fragrance. Transfer to a plate and cool. In the same pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and jalapenos and sauti until the onions are soft and translucent. When done transfer to a plate and let cool.

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and set aside. Blend the tomatillos, peppers, onion mixture, cilantro and dry spices on high until totally smooth. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in skillet and brown the chicken on both sides and nearly cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Add the blended pepian sauce to skillet and covering chicken pieces. Add the chicken broth and sour cream and stir to incorporate. Season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to bring the sauce to a simmer and cook an additional 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked completely.

Serve chicken topped with sauce. You can serve this dish with herb rice or crusty bread.

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