THE KITCHEN AFFAIRE

The thought of egg puffs brings back fond memories of my college days. The bakery near my hostel sold the tastiest puffs in the world. That too, egg puffs. An egg puff and Sharjah shake was always the popular combination at that hangout. It was just fantabulous. I was trying to recreate that aroma and taste. Though I couldn't match that taste, it was pretty close. :) Ingredients Puff pastry sheets : 1  Eggs : 3  Chopped onions : 2 cups Ginger paste : 1 T  Garlic paste : 1 T  Coriander Powder : 1 t  Garam masala : 2 pinch  Turmeric powder : 1/4 t  Red chilli powder : 1 t  Salt as required  Oil : 3 T   Method Preparing Thaw the pastry sheet by leaving it out in room temperature for about an hour or so.  Boil the eggs and take the shell.  Cut each egg vertically(lengthwise)into two halves. For the stuffing Heat oil in the pan. Fry onion until it gets brown.  Then add ginger a...

Ingredients Chana dal (split bengal gram/kadala parippu) – 2 C Onion – 1, finely chopped Green chilli – 3, finely chopped Ginger – 2 t, finely chopped Curry leaves – 2 sprigs Kayam (asafetida) – 1/8 t Salt - to taste Oil for deep frying Method Wash and soak chana dal in water for 2 hours.  Drain the water completely and make sure that the dal is dry. Coarse grind the drained dal (do not add water) for a few seconds. Make sure not to grind it to a smooth paste.  Add rest of the ingredients except oil to the ground mix and gently mix together.  Make small balls with the ground mix. Heat oil for deep frying pan on high flame.  While the pan gets hot, flatten the balls in your palm. When oil is really hot, reduce the flame to low-medium and add the vada/fritter.  Fry till the vadas (fritters) become golden brown or if you like it extra crispy, fry till you get a darker shade.  Drain excess oil on a tissue paper....

The spirit of Christmas is everywhere. The twinkling lights on the Christmas trees, decorations on the mantles, angels and reindeer dancing in the front yard. Aww.. I love this season. Hubby and I enjoy driving by the beautifully decorated residential localities. Even the malls and streets have the holiday mood. And a lot of parties too ;) Its so much fun to meet all your friends and have a great time together. With so much holiday spirit around us how could I not bake anything!! And here I am baking or making the perfect Christmas treat "The Gingerbread Man". :) Aren't they cute? So here is a fresh batch of gingerbread cookies for all you folks out there. Lets welcome the holiday season :) Recipe : Simply Recipes Ingredients Unsalted butter, room temperature - 1 stick or 8 T Brown sugar/ Jaggery - 1/2 C Honey - 1/2 C All purpose flour/ Maida - 2 1/2 C Ginger powder - 1 T Cinnamon - 1/2 T Nutmeg powder - 1/2 t Black pepper powder - 1/4 t Baking po...

I just love bonda. Sometimes the word bonda sounds very funny. Does it to you guys too? hi hi..  Anyways, bonda is one of the popular snacks in Kerala (India). The first thing that comes into my mind when I think of them are of those little bakeries which display freshly made bonda's in glass cabinets right in front of the store. One look at those yummy ball like thing and you know you want it!! I remember dragging daddy to the bakery to buy me some :)  Nostalgia..  Here is the recipe for you guys.. Make em and I hope you enjoy them too! Ingredients For the filling Potato - 3 Onion, chopped - 1/2 Green chill - 2 Curry leaves - a few  Turmeric powder - 1 t Salt - to taste  Oil - 1 T For the batter Chickpea flour/Gram flour/Besan - 1 C Rice flour - 1 T Ginger, finely chopped - 1 t Red chilli powder - 1 t Asafoetida/Hing - 1/2 t Salt - to taste  Water - as needed Method For the filling  Pee...

I just love all kinds of fried snacks. :-) Well, I love everything about food. So here I was blog hopping and I came across this lovely blog of Arundhuti called My Saffron Kitchen . And I found what I was looking for, the ultimate recipe for Dahi Vada. Thanks a ton dear :-D Dahi Vada is one of the most popular varieties of Indian Chaat. A yummy snack that everybody loves to relish, especially during a hot summer day. Dahi Vada is made in different ways across different parts of India. South Indians make it without adding Tamarind Sauce and call it "Thairu Vada". I love both the styles. :) Whats not to love? Yesterday, heat was at a record high of 101 F!!! Can you imagine that? I shouldn't be complaining a lot as I have lived in cities (in India) where it was more hot and humid. Those were my high school days. A time when heat or no heat, life was all about fun, friends and food :D  Dahi Vada is a combination of lentil dumpling and yogurt to...

Khaman is a very popular delicacy from Gujarat. Like the many other snacks that "Gujjus" (Gujaratis generally refered to as) are popular for, Khaman is such another one. Khaman is always confused with Dhokla. I have to pen down the difference for you guys and for myself :) What is the difference major between  Khaman  and  Dhokla ? Khaman majorly comprises of chickpeas flour whereas Dhokla comprises of rice grain. P.S. Do correct me if I am wrong :) I remember eating the authentic khaman, at a friends place, when we where at Raipur, M.P. (Now the capital of Chhattisgarh - North India). Time flies so fast. I was a little kid then. Recently, I tasted one from one of my Gujju friend here. And it was awesome. I did not wait for a second thought and jumped to make it the following day. Thanks to my dear "A", he is always supportive about trying new stuff and happily eating them :) He loved it. And I did too :) Wont ask for more! Ingredients Besan / Chi...

I just love the aroma of fresh snacks and bakes that surrounds a bakery. This reminds me of my favorite bakeries at Kerala. They are KR Bakers at Cochin and Famous Bakery at Kasargod. I miss the mouth-watering taste of cutlets, puffs and egg rolls. All these thoughts made me hungry and I was determined to make cutlets :D I did not have this much determination even during school exams. :D This is one awesome snack… Try it out :) Ingredients  Potato - 2 Beetroot - 1 1/2 Onion, chopped - 1 C Ginger - 1" pc Garlic - 1 t Green Chilli, chopped - 2 Pepper Powder - 1 t Garam Masala - 1 t Egg - 2 Bread Crumbs - 1 C Salt - to taste Oil - for frying Water - enough for boiling Method  For the Filling Peel the potatoes and beetroot. Boil them together for 8 mins (I microwaved) or until they turn soft. Remove from oven. Mash and allow them to cool. Meanwhile, heat oil in a pan. Add all ingredients from onion to green chilli...

I  am always on the lookout for almost-vegan recipes. :) You must be wondering - almost vegan?? Yes. Almost-Vegan.  Meaning, I try my best to reduce the usage of oil and milk products. But as you would have understood by now, Indian food tastes best when you splash it with butter and ghee. :D While on this pursuit I came across the black eyed pea patty recipe a lot of times. Each time I saw this I thought I would try this next time. And it went on for some time. Last day I came across this again. I decided it was time to try my hands on this J All of the recipes I came across were Americanized ones. Meaning - low in spices and salt. So, I made mine with a “Desi” twist. Ingredients Black eyed peas (soaked in water -> overnight) - 1/2 C Green chilli or Jalapenos - to taste Garlic, minced - 1 clove Bread (left over) - 1/2 C Lime Juice - 1 T Cilantro, chopped - 2 T Turmeric powder - 1/3 t Chilli Powder - to taste Amchur (dry mango) ...

Samosa!!! Ahaaa.. One of our favorites for sure! :) Samosa is a very popular South Asian snack. Its a type of stuffed pastry. Samosas' are mostly triangular in shape. They go well with Tamarind or Cilantro chutney, even Tomato Ketchup too. I have made Samosa's before too. But none of them looked or tasted like the Samosa I had had long time back. When I saw the awesome pictures of Samosas' in Prerna's blog ( Indian Simmer  ), I knew it was Jackpot!! And Voila! It was true, the recipe was perfect. Ohh.. Thank you so much Prerna (Indian Simmer). You have shared the perfect Samosa recipe of all times. Hey folks!! Try it out for sure. :) Ingredients For the Pastry All purpose flour/Maida - 1.5 C Semolina - 2 T Oil - 2 T Salt - to taste Ajwain Seeds - 1/2 t Water - 2/3 C For the Filling Potato, mashed - 2 Sweet green peas - 1/2 C Onions, sliced - 1 C Cumin Seeds - 1 t Green chilli, minced - 2 Coriander Powder - 1.5 t Method For t...

Pav bhaji or Pao bhaji is one of the most popular fast food items that you can find in most cities.Pav bhaji consists of a potato based curry and "pav" which is bread. Its history takes us to Mumbai.Yes, we should thank Mumbaikars on bringing out this relishing dish to us. Though Pav bhaji was introduced to the world by Mumbaikars and to me by my mom ;) Not exactly. The first timeI had Pav bhaji was on a trip to Delhi. But that was quite some while back. Don't remember much!! So I can remember onlyMoms homemade pav bhaji. Moms Pav bhaji was not the Mumbaiah one but it was yummy too.Well, I wanted to always try homemade authentic Pav Bhaji. Now that I rule this kitchen, I gave it a try.Who else could I go to for such authentic recipe other than Tarla Dalal.I was an ardent fan of her cookery show on Star Plus and still follow her website, www.tarladalal.com. Voilaaa!! The Pav Bhaji came out great. Not simply great it was fantabulous. Really guys. I loved itand so did...

Ingredients Chickpeas - 1 C Onion - 1 C Cilantro - 2 T Salt - 1 t Dried hot red pepper - 1/2 - 1 t Breadcrumbs - 1/4 C Pepper - 1/2 t Garlic - 3 cloves Cumin - 1 t Chick pea stock (from soaking the chickpeas) - 1 T Baking powder - 1 t Oil for frying Method Soak chickpeas overnight in a large bowl with enough water to cover them by at least 2 inches. Save 2 T of the stock and drain rest. Add chickpeas to a blender/mixer. Add cilantro, salt, red pepper, chick pea stock, garlic, pepper, breadcrumbs and cumin to it. Process the mix until they blend well but not pureed. Sprinkle in the baking powder and mix well. Transfer this into a bowl and refrigerate for 3/4 hours. Form the mixture into 12 patties. Fry in hot oil, turning frequently until they turn a dark brown and crisp.

Every evening I sit & wonder, "what do I make today?". Soon, I reach for the laptop and start browsing for something "new"! :) Thats how I got this yummy & easy Sindhi snack from Alka's Sindhi Rasoi. Thank you Alka. :) I learnt that Took Patata (Double fried potato) is generally served with Kadhi Chawal but is also enjoyed as an evening snack. So, here I am starting off with the recipe. :) Ingredients Potatoes: 3 Salt Turmeric powder: 1/4 t Coriander powder: 1/2 t Red chilly powder: 1/4 t Amchoor powder(Dry mango powder): 1/4 t Oil for frying Method Peel the potatoes and slice them into four. Slit them(not too deep) in criss- cross pattern. Sprinkle salt over the slit potatoes and keep aside for 2 mins. Wash them with some water and pat dry. Heat oil  in a pan and gently slide the potatoes into the oil. Fry on high flame for a min. Lower heat, cover the pan with a lid and continue cooking the potatoes till well cooked. ...

The thought of pazham pori reminds me of the vendors who walk around us in trains. All my morning trips to cochin was something i would look forward to, mainly for the yummy pazham pori, uzhunnu vada and cutlets.. What an aroma they have.. :) Ingredients Ripe Plantain- 1 ( peel and cut into 2 parts, cut them lengthwise into 3 ) Maida / all purpose flour - 1/4 cup Rice flour - 2 teaspoon ( for crispness of the covering ) Salt- a pinch Sugar -1/4 teaspoon Water - for diluting the batter ( 1-2 tablespoon ) Oil for frying Method For the batter Mix maida, salt, rice flour and sugar with water. Batter should not be too watery. For frying Heat oil in a pan. Dip each banana slices into the batter and fry on a medium flame till get golden colour. Turn occasionally. Drain out from oil and keep in paper towels. Serve with tea / coffee.

I just love Medhu Vada (Tamil Name) or Uzhunnu Vada (Kerala Name). You guys should try this out. Awesome it tastes. Really :) Ingredients Black Gram Dal/Urad dal - 2 C Curry Leaves - Few sprigs Green Chilli, chopped - 1 t Ginger, finely chopped - 2 t Asofoetida - 1/2 t Pepper - 1 t Salt - to taste Oil - to fry Method Soak black gram dal in water for 2 hours. Drain the water from it and grind to a fine paste till it is creamy, but make sure it is not watery. Add to batter, green chillies, ginger, asofoetida, curry leaves, pepper and salt and mix well. Roll batter in to small balls and flatter in palm. Make a small hole in the middle. Heat oil in a deep frying pan and immerse the vada balls in it. When it turns golden brown, remove and drain oil. Serve with coconut chutney or sambar.