Chicken stroganoff

On Valentine's day I made this for my darling hubby...My charming,sensible and totally adorable six-pack hubby!
Did I hear someone chuckle at the last adjective??
Six packs,I tell you....
Six packs combined into one whole pack and wrapped up somewhere round the belly...He says its easier to maintain it that way!

The Stroganoff is one of my all time favorites.It is the first thing I hunt for in a menu card at any continental restaurant.And over the years, he has grown to like it too.Yess!I've managed to transform my 'kappa, meen curry' loving husband to a 'Stroganoff' loving guy.It wasn't easy at all...Eight long years of hard work and patience; that's what it took!;p And though he annoys me at times by behaving like one of the masterchef judges,I must admit that he's a perfect guinea pig and my most honest critic.
Okay,jokes apart,let me tell you that he's the bestEST thing that has ever happened to me.I'm having the 'time of my life' being his wife and wouldn't trade it for anything else in the whole,wide world!!
And now over to the dish...Stroganoff or Stroganov is a Russian dish of sautéed pieces of beef served in a sauce with smetana or sour cream. From its origins in 19th-century Russia, it has become popular around the world, with considerable variation from the original recipe.Various explanations are given for the name, presumably derived from some member of the large and important Stroganov family, perhaps Alexander Grigorievich Stroganoff of Odessa or a diplomat, Count Pavel Stroganov....
And perhaps you're wondering...'Whats wrong with this woman?Now she's giving history lessons...' Sorry,but this was a bit of information I got when I googled for the right spelling of 'Stroganoff'.Those of you who would like more of history can read it here.Others,come with me...

Though Stroganoff originally is a beef dish,I chose to do a chicken version for the sheer love of chicken.I followed the recipe posted by a member at the Jamie Oliver website with a few,minor changes here and there.And the result was a lovely,classy Stroganoff with succulent pieces of chicken and mushrooms drenched in a creamy sour cream and white wine sauce accompanied with some buttered herb rice...mmmm...heaven!!
Here's wishing all my lovely readers a belated 'Happy valentine's day'.And to you Stroganoff Jem,I can't help falling in love with you a bit more everyday!

CHICKEN STROGANOFF

2 or 3 chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/4 cup flour
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsb butter
2 shallots, finely sliced
1/2 packet button mushrooms, quartered
1/4 cup white wine
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup sour cream
2 tsp paprika
1-2 tsp dried parsley flakes
2 cups basmati rice
handful of parsley, finely chopped
salt
freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Cook the rice and toss with parsley and a blob of butter.
Dust the chicken pieces with flour.
Heat the olive oil and butter in a frying pan.
Add the chicken and fry until just cooked through. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the shallots to the pan, adding more olive oil or butter if needed, and cook until softened.
Add the mushrooms and cook further on high until all the water has evaporated.
Add 2 tsp paprika and cook for a while until a warm,earthy aroma rises.
Pour the white wine and stir,scraping out the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.Then simmer until the wine reduces a bit.
Pour in the chicken stock and turn the heat up to high. Reduce the stock by half and then turn the heat down to a simmer.
Add the chicken to the pan, along with the sour cream and stir through. Season with salt and pepper.Sprinkle dried parsley flakes and simmer until the sauce has thickened and is creamy.
Serve, accompanied by the rice and sprinkle some paprika over the Stroganoff on each plate.

NOTE:If sour cream is unavailable to you,fresh cream would be a good substitute.
If you feel your chicken breasts are tough,it is a good idea to give it a gentle steam before cutting it to strips,so that you will not have to fry it for too long.

Veg pulav/Tomato rice

I have been married into a wonderful family.United,supportive and happy....a true blessing in every way!A houseful of loving people,who will always be there for each other,come rain or sunshine!
And I have two co-sisters,both of them excellent home makers and incredible cooks.Back home ,whenever I'm with them in the kitchen,I always volunteer to do the dishes because I simply cannot seem to master the art of 'cooking by instinct',without written down recipes or accurate measurements.It is with such ease that they throw in a little bit of this here and a little bit of that there to cook up 'perfect' dishes every time!They have always been a source of inspiration and I've learned so much from them.
The basic rice recipe in this dish is borrowed from one of them,Pinky chechy.She calls it 'tomato rice',and I when I added a good lot of vegetables to it(as my fridge needed a clearing up),it became a veg pulav!And this dish,I tell you,is too good to be vegetarian.It is a favorite even in a 'strictly non-veg' household like mine.Do try it.Tomato rice or veg pulav...either way it is just too good!
Sending this as my entry for the Indian cooking event at Lisa's kitchen.

VEG PULAV

2 cups rice(I like to use jeera rice)
1 medium onion(finely chopped)
2 large tomatoes
A handful of coriander leaves
2 tbsp broken cashew nuts
1/4 cup grated coconut
6 each of pepper corns,cardamom and cloves
2" piece of cinnamon
1 1/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
2 green chillies crushed(less or more according to your taste)
1 tsp kashmiri chilly powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp garam masala powder
Enough refined oil
Vegetables of your choice:
1/2 cup carrot cubed
1/2 cup potato cubed
1/2 cup beans cut into 1/2" pieces
1/2 cup cauliflower split into florets
1 cup button mushrooms halved
1/2 cup green peas

Method:
Cook rice and keep aside.
Saute mushrooms in a little oil over high flame till all the water evaporates and keep aside.
Cook peas in water until soft.
Cook the remaining vegetables(carrot,potato,beans and cauliflower) in a pressure cooker for one whistle.Remove lid to prevent vegetables from losing color and keep aside.
Blanch tomatoes in water,peel skin and puree in mixer.
Soak coriander leaves in water for a while and grind in mixer.
Grind the cashew and coconut together with a little water to make a paste.
Heat oil in a large kadai and splutter the spices.
Add ginger garlic paste and green chillies and stir for a minute.
Add chopped onions and stir till translucent.
Add the powders(chilly,turmeric and garam masala) and stir well.
Cook till the raw smell goes and the oil rises to the top.Sprinkle a little water if necessary.
Add the coriander paste and cook for a while.
Add the tomato puree and stir.Cook on medium-low flame till well cooked and an aroma rises.
Add the cashew /coconut paste and cook while stirring.
Add the cooked vegetables including the peas and mushrooms and mix carefully.
Remove from flame.
Take a large pan,add the rice and gravy alternately and start mixing it together little by little until you feel that you have added enough gravy to coat all the rice and give it a beautiful golden color.Adding more gravy makes the pulav clumpy and less makes it dry.Reserve the remaining gravy in the freezer for later.
You can bake this for 10 to 15 minutes in a hot oven or microwave it for 3-4 minutes because the rice would have cooled a bit by now.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with raita and achar.

Note:Just don't add the vegetables to the gravy for the tomato rice variation.

Chinese rice and beef dish

The Chinese have probably not heard of this!

Pardon me China,for taking your name in vain.But that is the title given for this recipe in my Amma's old,torn and tattered,yellow pages almost falling apart,yet a million dollar worth recipe book.And she is going to state in her will that this book,along with the other precious recipe books(the dark blue binder and the orange german note book)has to be rightfully handed down to her first born and favorite daughter...;p Did the other daughter get the message clear?
Well,I'm assuming that some old grand aunt of mine would have cooked up this dish in her Indian kitchen and since it uses a few Chinese ingredients,she called it 'The Chinese rice and beef dish'.But it is so yum that I don't think the Chinese will ever complain!
For me it is pure comfort food.Perfect for the weather.Enjoy it piping hot on a cold,rainy day.Bliss!!

CHINESE RICE AND BEEF DISH

Rice 2 cups
Beef 500 gms(cut into small chunks)
Cornflour 2 tbsp + enough to thicken gravy
Onion 1(cut into fairly big cubes)
Green chillies 2(finely chopped)
Garlic 4 cloves(finely chopped)
Capsicum 1/2(cut into big cubes)
Pepper
Salt
Soy sauce 1 tbsp or more
Salad oil
Spring onion(finely chopped)

Method:
Cook the rice and keep aside.
Pressure cook beef with enough salt and pepper till just tender.Separate the stock and the meat.
Mix cornflour with cooked beef and leave aside for sometime.
Fry the beef in salad oil until nice and brown.Do not over cook.
In a pan,heat salad oil and fry the garlic and green chillies for 30 secs.
Add onion and stir fry until just translucent.
Add the fried beef and stir well.
Add soy sauce and enough pepper and salt.
Now mix enough cornflour(I added a tsp)into the stock and pour it into the pan.
Wait for it to boil and thicken.The gravy should be nice and thick not runny.So pour the stock accordingly.
Put some rice in a plate and pour the beef gravy generously over the rice.
Garnish with spring onion and serve hot.

Pan grilled salmon served with hung curd dip, mashed potatoes and steamed greens

This recipe comes from my dear aunt Teena and since this blog is going to feature many many recipes from this source,I think it would be good to introduce her to all my readers(if there are any at this point).Well,she is my mom's youngest sister...her favorite and mine too!!I should say I've never seen a more lively, happier person in my life.Her tiny frame is filled with so much of positive energy and her cheerfulness and laughter is so very contagious.I've always loved being with her....laughing our hearts out at the silliest of jokes,late night chats,fooling around,shopping,....oh how I miss her!!And of course she is a fabulous cook and was my greatest inspiration to start cooking.Her recipes are all winners(tried and tested in her kitchen before passing it on) and she is always ever ready to share all her prized recipes with every little detail.Love you Teena chechy....you are the yummiest aunt ever!!
Now onto the dish...Please don't let the rather long title stop you from trying it.It is in fact a simple,easy and quick-to-fix recipe.It uses no fancy ingredients,no complicated steps and the whole dish can be put together in less than an hour.A hearty,healthy,happy meal in no time!

PAN GRILLED SALMON(Meal for 2)

Salmon (cut into medium sized fillets)-2 pieces
Ginger-1 piece
Garlic-1/2 pod
Coriander leaves-1 handful
Green chillies-2(reduce amount if you want it less spicy)
Whole black Pepper-1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 small lemon
Olive oil

Method:
For the marinade,grind ginger,garlic,coriander leaves,pepper and salt together in a mixer and make a smooth paste.
Make slits on the salmon fillets and smear generously with lime juice.
Marinate the pieces with the above paste and set aside for at least 1/2 hr.
Drizzle olive oil in a non stick pan and heat it.
Lay the salmon on the pan and cook on medium low heat till the fish is cooked through on one side.Gently flip over and cook on the other side.The fish should be flaky and appear charred here and there.
Remove from pan and serve hot with hung curd dip,mashed potatoes and fresh,steamed greens of your choice.

HUNG CURD DIP

Curd-1 cup
Garlic-5-6 cloves(ground coarsely)
Onion- 1/2(finely chopped)
Coriander leaves(finely chopped)
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Method:
Hang curd in a muslin cloth until all the water is drained off(a few hours).
Whisk until smooth and creamy.
Add all the other ingredients and mix well.