MASALA SEMIYA (VERMICELLI)

This is one regular thing in my kitchen .I always being lazy to do a post on this recipe for no reason :).Everyone’s favorite Maggi noodles has been banned and lot of controversies is going on. I guess this is the right time to do a post on this recipe as this Masala Semiya resembles Maggi in appearance and taste as well. Hope this one can be a boon to all desperate magi lovers like me.

Semiya , these cute strings are my utmost favorite. I love to have it any form sweet or savory. While I was kid, it was  my duty to break long strings of semiya for making payasam.But now things are easy as broken roasted semiya is available everywhere. I make sure to buy a packet of semiya on every grocery purchase. Whenever I feel like to binge on something I make this masala semiya.When I made this last time, I was struggling to get my plate from my little Kannan.Yes he also loves it. It was fun watching him gobble up those strings. Whenever he is reluctant to take baby foods, I make this to feed him. This recipe is simple and can be made in a jiffy. This is a basic recipe. Chicken or vegetables can be added to make it more nutritious and flavorful.

Ingredients

1.      Roasted semiya-200gm

2.      Onion-1 small, chopped

3.      Ginger – ½ inch piece, chopped

4.      Garlic-5 pods, chopped

5.      Tomato-1 medium, chopped

6.      Whole spices-1 or 2 cardamoms,2cloves,1 small stick of cinnamon

7.      Coriander powder-1 tsp

8.      Chilly powder-1/2tsp

9.      Garam masala-3/4tsp

10.  Salt

11.  Oil-1tbsp

12.  Water- for 1 cup of semiya around 1 cup of water to be  required. It may vary depends on the type or brand of semiya.So add water accordingly.

Method of preparation

1.      Heat oil in a pan. Add whole spices .when the aroma comes add ginger and garlic. Sauté for a minute.Add onions and saute until onion turns soft. Add in all powders and stir for a minute. Add chopped tomatoes and a tbsp of water .Cook until it turns mushy.

2.      Add salt and required quantity of water. Let it boil. Add semiya in. Mix well. Reduce the flame. Cover and cook until water dries up and semiya is cooked through. Stir in between to prevent it from sticking to the pan. Switch off the flame .Separate  the strings and  give a nice mix  again using a fork and serve hot.

EGGLESS WHOLE WHEAT BANANA BREAD

Fruits are one thing which iam not interested in, particularly bananas. Once it gets dark spots poor bananas find its space in trash. But that was an old story. After making this banana bread iam waiting my banana to get spots  :).This banana bread is totally addictive. One can’t stop eating just a piece. It almost taste like ‘unniyappom’. Above all you don’t feel guilty while having an extra piece since it is made with healthy ingredients. The bread is soft and moist. It was as delicious as I was eating it continuously. It was hard for me to keep few pieces even for my Husband :).The whole loaf was finished within few hours. Do try this healthy delicious bread. It might satisfy even the banana haters!!

Ingredients

1.      Whole wheat  or Atta-1.5 cup

2.       Grated Jaggery or sugar-1/2 cup

3.      Ripe banana mashed-1 cup,(I used robusta variety, around 3 or 4 medium sized can yield 1 cup)

4.      Baking soda-1/2tsp

5.      Baking powder-1 n 1/2tsp

6.      Oil-3/4cup

7.      Cinnamon powder-1tsp

8.      Vanilla essence-1tsp

Method of preparation

1.      Preheat an oven at 180◦ c For 10 minutes. Prepare a loaf tin and keep it ready

2.      Mash bananas using a fork or mixie without any lumps.(use over ripened bananas).

3.      Mix wheat, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon powder using a whisk or swift all the dry ingredients.

4.      In a mixing bowl mix oil, vanilla and jaggery well.(Jaggery may tend to form clumps with oil. Do not worry, go head. It will dissolve upon adding flour).Add all the dry ingredients little by little and mix to incorporate everything. Do not over mix as it will make cake dense.

5.      Now bake at 180◦ for 50 minutes or until the inserted toothpick comes out clean.

6.      Allow it to cool .Slice and serve.

EASY BUTTER CHICKEN

Butter chicken is one classic Indian dish loved by Indians and non Indians as well. We never fail to order this whenever we gorge on North Indian cuisine. Recently my Mother in law got a butter chicken recipe from a professional chef. She tried it at home and we all enjoyed it to the fullest. But that recipe calls for lots of ingredients and the entire process took one half day!!!So I never ever wanted to give it a try by myself. Though I love cooking, I don’t like to spend much time in kitchen. Then I happened to see this recipe here . Immediately i tried it with slight modifications.  I did  not use cream, instead I used milk. However it turned out as delicious as the one we get in Punjabi  dhabbas or restaurants .The actual recipe calls for the use of home made tandoori masala..The deliciousness of this curry greatly depend on that masala.I strongly recommend you to make it rather buying from stores.

While reading the methods you may wonder is this the easy butter chicken??Trust me only description seems elaborate, but the work involved is very less!!!

Ingredients For the tandoori masala

1.      Garam masala- 2tbsp

2.      Cumin powder-2tbsp

3.      Coriander powder-1tbsp

4.      Kashmiri chilly ppowder-4 and ½ tsp

5.      Kasuri methi-2tsp

6.      Turmeric powder-1tsp

just mix everything up by using mixie or even with a spoon.

Ingredients for the marinade

1.      Ginger,garlic- finely chopped,1tbsp each

2.      Curd-1cup

3.      Tandoori masala-1tbsp

4.      Tomato paste-1/4 cup

5.      Salt

6.      Ghee or butter-2tbsp,melted

Chicken-cleaned and cut into medium sized pieces,around750gm

Mix everything and marinate the chicken pieces well. Keep the marinated chicken in fridge for a minimum of 1 hour. Arrange the chicken pieces along with the marinade in a baking tray and bake in a preheated oven 200◦C for 30 minutes.

 Ingredients For the gravy

1.      Ginger ,garlic-chiopped,2tbsp each

2.      Tomatoe-4 medium sized,chopped

3.      Tandoori masala-remaining masala after the marinating process

4.      Kashmiri chilly powder-1/2tsp

5.      Salt

6.      Milk-1cup( see notes)

7.      Kasuri methi-1tbsp

8.      Coriander leaves-1tbsp,chopped

9.      Water- 1/2cup

10.  Butter-2tbsp+2tbsp

11.  Sugar-1/2 tsp

Method of preparation

1.      Heat butter in a pan. Saute ginger and garlic for a minute or until the raw smell disappears. Add in chilly powder and tandoori masala powder. Stir .Add chopped tomatoes and salt. Cook until it turns mushy. Let this cool down. Grind this into smooth paste by adding little water. Pour it back into the pan along with ½ cup of water. Bring it to boil.

2.      Add baked chicken along with the juice into the gravy. Close the pan and cook in medium or law flame for about 10 minutes. Check for saltiness. Add milk ,kasuri methi,chopped green chilly.mix well. Do not let it boil. Just heat it up. Lastly add chopped coriander leaves,sugar and remaining butter.Give a gentle stir. Switch off the flame. Keep it closed for some time.

Enjoy with any  flat  breads…

Notes: the actual recipe uses cream instead of milk. Since I did not have it on hand I substituted it with milk. If you use cream reduce the amount by ½ cup. If the gravy is too thick, more milk can be added.