Author: Anandhi

Lamb Bone Marrow Curry/Nalli Curry

A rich curry simmered in thick coconut milk, game changer I tell you. This is a special dish for us, and I reserve it for the special occasions. If you’re looking for a minimalist food then this is exclusively for you.

We usually pair this with appam/idiyappam. An appam straight from the pan with this curry, there’s more to yum than you might think. This recipe goes well with any meat. If you give this recipe a try, let me know how it turns out.

—Ingredients—

For pressure cooking
1/2 kg lamb bone marrow
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 sprig curry leaves
2 green chillies

For sautéing
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
2 medium sized onions(roughly chopped)
2 medium sized tomatoes(roughly chopped)
1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon curry powder or garam masala
2 inch cinnamon
2 bay leaf
4 cloves
1 sprig curry leaves
2 green chillies
1 teaspoon pepper powder
3/4 cup coconut milk(1st extract)
Salt as needed
Oil as needed

—Process—

1. Pressure cook the bone marrow with above ingredients for 20 minutes in a medium flame.
2. Heat oil in a pan, sauté cumin seeds, fennel seeds, and poppy seeds for a minute.
3. Add onions and sauté till it turns golden brown then add ginger-garlic paste and sauté until the raw smell goes off. Add tomatoes and all the powders and mix well.
4. Pour in the stock, close the lid and cook in a medium flame for 4-5 minutes. Switch off the flame and let it cool. Grind it to a fine paste and keep aside.
5. Heat oil in a pan, sauté cinnamon, bay leaf and cloves for a minute. Add the cooked bones, curry leaves and green chillies. Then the ground paste, pepper powder and coconut milk, let it boil for 3-4 minutes.
6. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve warm.

Happy Cooking!

by Categories: MainsTags: , , , Leave a comment

Piña Colada Smoothie

“Be a pineapple: stand tall, wear a crown, and be sweet on the inside.” ― Katherine Gaskin

Is there any other better way to start your day than with a tropical smoothie? Made with simple ingredients and no added sugar. With this smoothie in hand, all that you’ll miss is just the sand between your toes. This delicious, creamy smoothie will take your heart to the shoreline in an instant. You can even add a frozen banana to get a smoothie bowl and make your breakfast a breeze.

My love for pineapple is never-ending. An inch of ginger and a squeeze of lemon will give you the best version of tangy smoothie with a tinge of spice.

—Ingredients for 2 servings—

1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup coconut milk(first extract)
An inch of ginger(finely chopped)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
A handful of ice cubes

—Process—

Add all the ingredients into a blender/mixer jar and blend for a minute or two, as simple as that. Serve immediately and enjoy!

by Categories: BeveragesTags: , , Leave a comment

Curry Powder

Curries are a staple food of every Indian kitchen, regardless of the cuisine or region. Let it be a Kashmiri Rogan Josh or Kanyakumari Fish Curry, every cuisine has it’s own kind of curry with their very own indigenous ingredients. The curry powders are one of the key elements and it varies across cuisines.

I have grown up watching my mom making various curry and rice powders at home, and so I’m comfortable making them, too! Here, I’ve shared the powder recipe that I use for beef and lamb/goat curries — where I use only turmeric and garlic powders in addition to this, no other powders. This powder has a shelf life of 1 month if stored in an air-tight container. I generally prefer medium spice and have used byadagi chilli, which will yield a bright color with less spice. You can fine-tune the number and variety of red chilli according to your preference.

—Ingredients for approximately 150 grams of curry powder—

25 dry red chillies
5 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
1 tablespoon carom seeds
1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds
2 tablespoon black pepper corns
8 green cardamom
2 black cardamom
1/2 nutmeg
4 inch cinnamon bark
5 bay leaves
10 cloves
2 star anise

—Process—

Dry roast the red chillies and keep aside, then the rest with poppy seeds going in at last. Blend them together into a fine powder and transfer it to an air-tight container.

Happy cooking!




by Categories: DIY spice powdersTags: , , , Leave a comment

Brigadeiros/Nutella Fudge Balls

Do you love chocolates? Then this incredibly addicting Brigadeiro recipe is for you. A traditional Brazilian confection with just 3 ingredients under 10 minutes. This is closer to truffles/fudge balls and it is the best fudge you will ever have! A simple and best coconut Brigadeiro from one of the popular restaurants had inspired me to make this at home.

A traditional Brigadeiro is made out of sweet condensed milk, cocoa powder, and butter, coated in chocolate sprinkles. Here, I’ve used nutella instead of cocoa powder and dipped a few in white/dark chocolates, piped the same atop them. There are a lot of options for flavors, sprinkles and topping, so the floor is yours to play around.

–Ingredients–

200 grams condensed milk
3 tablespoons cocoa powder or nutella
1 tablespoon butter
Sprinkles, as needed

–Process–

1. Combine condensed milk, cocoa powder and butter in a saucepan. Place them over a medium flame and keep stirring until it thickens, approximately 10-12 minutes.
2. Transfer it to a greased plate and let it chill for 1 hour.
3. Shape the mixture into balls and roll them on sprinkles.

by Categories: DessertsTags: , Leave a comment

Beef Puttu

Puttu, an authentic breakfast of SouthIndia! Beef is one of our all-time favorite meat, especially the undercut ones. It’s been raining lately in Bangalore, a warm beef puttu and ginger chai in a rainy evening is just the paradise. This recipe can be made with any kind of meat that you prefer. So, now you know what to cook when the day is mundane.

–Ingredients–

2 cups rice flour (puttu flour)
200 grams minced beef
1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
1 large onion(finely chopped)
2 green chillies(finely chopped)
1 tomato(finely chopped)
2 tablespoons chilli powder
2 tablespoons coriander powder
1/4 tablespoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 sprig curry leaves
3 sprigs coriander leaves
Salt as needed
Oil as needed
Warm water as needed

–Process–

1. Sprinkle warm water into the rice flour, add salt and mix well to form a lump free crumbles.
2. Pressure cook beef with 1/2 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste, curry leaves, turmeric powder and salt for 10-15 minutes in a medium flame.
3. Heat the oil in a pan and saute onion until it becomes translucent, add the green chillies, remaining ginger-garlic paste, onion, tomato and all the powders and saute for 3-4 minutes.
4. Add in the meat and cook until oil separates, approximately 5 minutes in a medium-high flame.
5. In a puttu mould, layer 5-6 tablespoons of the rice flour mixture and 3-4 tablespoons of beef and repeat. Steam it for 5-6 minutes, garnish with coriander leaves and serve warm.

–Tips–

If you don’t have a puttu mould, layer the rice flour mixture and meat in a coconut shell or any container and press it well to retain the shape. Demould it into an idli plate and steam in the idli steamer.

by Categories: MainsTags: , , Leave a comment