DHANIA CHICKEN / CHICKEN IN CILANTRO SAUCE

Every dish that we make always have a story associated. Some kindles those childhood memories that gets hidden over years and others are those we picked up over the life from some books or resturants or even television... :) . Restaurants and television are the major places from where I collect my inspirations. The recipe I am sharing today has several stories to it as well. When I was in school, not sure which class, I had gone to visit my maternal uncle and his neighbour had treated us with this dish...although I dont remember how it looked or tasted, I just remember Mom saying..."Need to Try it" :) . My mom is very good in guessing the ingredients just by tasting a dish, so that's how she picked up this recipe. On my 18th birthday , I was having a small party at home and mom made this dish for my friends and everyone loved it....and thats the flavor I remember. :) I moved to Bangalore in the year 2003---I was sent here by my family only cause my cousin sister was here. For the first year I used to stay in a hostel for the name sake at least , most of the time I would be at her place.... :) . A very innovative and creative person thats what describes her. She is a very loveable person and honestly till date I have not met anyone that knows her and dislikes her, thats just impossible. She would help anyone and everyone all you have to do is ask even if that ended in choas for her. She always gave her 100% or even more to whatever she did, when she was working she was great and achieved a lot for her age. Now that she is a homemaker, she has a wonderful blog with breath-taking photos---you all know her as Kankana and to me she is my Didibhai.... :) . She is always more then just a sister, she is my friend--- my comfort pillow :) . We all need someone with whom we can share our secrets and she is that person in my life. There is nothing in my life that she doesn't know and its same with her too.  I have cried and laughed with her several times. My cooking experiments also started while I was with her :) . And one day I decided to treat her and so I made her this dish. She loved it and would often keep taking about the dish :) Times changed and now she got settled in USA . A few weeks back when she told me that she would be coming to India I was so excited and I had thought to make the same dish for her just to remind her of those days. Sadly she told me she wont be coming to Bangalore :( however I thought to make the dish for her ---- its the thought that counts right.   This dish is called ------ Dhania Chicken or Chicken in Cilantro Sauce

FOR DHANIA CHICKEN
Boneless Chicken	500 gms
Cilantro	500 gms
Onion paste	2-3 tablespoons
Ginger-garlic paste	2 teaspoons
Yogurt	4-5 tablespoons
Tomato puree	4 tablespoons
Paprika	2 teaspoons
Salt	As per taste
Ground-Nut Oil	2 tablespoons

    DHANIA CHICKEN / CHICKEN IN CILANTRO SAUCE:-

1. Cut the chicken into small pieces. I used boneless chicken thigh however chicken breast can be used too.
2. In a bowl marinate the chicken pieces with ginger-garlic paste and yogurt. Let it stand for 30 min.
3. Blend the cilantro with slight water till it forms a smooth-green puree.
4. Heat oil in a large pan and add the onion paste. Fry till the water is absorbed and till it gets a slight brown color.
5. Add the marinated chicken pieces to the fried onion. 
6. Add salt to the pan, cover and cook the chicken over low flame till all the water is evaporated and the chicken is soft.
7. Mix tomato puree and paprika with little water and pour it on the cooking chicken.
8. Cook the chicken over medium flame till all the water is soaked.
9. Pour the green puree to the chicken and let it cook. The color changes from green to greenish brown when the dish is cooked.
10. Garnish it with butter poached cherry tomatoes.

         

The dish goes well with Paratha or Chapati. I had it with sesame coated butter naan.

QUICK EASY MEALS FOR THE GOURMAND ON THE GO --- Guest Post by Carolyn Knight

Today is a very special day for BUON APPETITO. I have the very first guest to welcome in my blog. I love to be surprised---in a good way that ends in me being happy and a few days back when I got a mail for Carolyn Knight that filled me with joy and I could not stop smiling :) .

Prior to today I didnt have any guest post in my blog-----frankly I dont know how it works actually , and then Carolyn introduced me to it.Carolyn is a reader of my blog and is concerned about healthy and nutritious meal. I for one need to learn a lot from her :) . 

Quick Easy Meals for the Gourmand on the Go

So you’ve only got 30 minutes to get dinner on the table, and takeout is seriously not an option … again. Fortunately there are plenty of quick easy meals that can be put together with little fuss. Cut down on prep work, choose a protein with a short cook time, and you’ll discover a lot of delicious meals can be prepared from scratch with these easy options.

Fish as a main dish is a good way to cut down on prep and cook time. Go directly to the fish person at the market and have the fish cleaned, or buy cuts that you don’t have to do anything to except rinse before cooking. Pan-seared salmon or halibut don’t take any time at all. A pre-made pesto is an acceptable option; however, you can make this simple pumpkin seed chimichurri in just a few minutes!

Ingredients to serve 4:

Fresh Salmon – About 1 lb.

Shelled Pumpkin Seeds – ½ c.

Cilantro – 1 bundle

Lemon – 1 small (juiced)

Garlic – 2 cloves

Extra Virgin Olive Oil – ¼ c.

Coriander Seeds – ½ tsp.

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

In a large skillet, heat a little bit of oil over medium heat, and place the salmon skin side down to sear for about 6 minutes or till opaque, all the way through. Toast the pumpkin seeds in a skillet for about 2 minutes, till they start to smell aromatic. Then, put on a paper towel to cool. In a small food processor, pulse garlic, cilantro, lemon juice, pumpkin seeds, salt, pepper, and olive oil to make a simple chimichurri sauce to top the salmon. Serve with a side of sautéed spinach or asparagus. Try using a little bit of garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil to get the job done with a tad more flavor.

If red meat is what you crave, but you don’t think you have the time, try pan searing individual rack of lamb segments. Salt and pepper each rack and place in a large skillet over medium heat with garlic, sage leafs, and a touch of olive oil. Chop fresh herbs and mix into butter to dab on top of the lamb as it comes off the stove. 3 minutes on each side should be plenty for a rare center, moist and full of flavor. Let the lamb rest outside of the pan for a couple of minutes before serving.

It doesn’t have to be time consuming or super complex for it to be a tasty and elegant meal. Try whipping up one of these quick easy meals for your family tonight!

GAJAR HALWA KA PATISHAPTA / SWEET EGGLESS CREPES STUFFED WITH CARROT PUDDING

On the 26 October 2011, Wednesday we celebrated the festival of light - Diwali or Deepavali, it is celebrated on the New Moon Day after Dashera. This festival brings immense happiness and joy to one and all. There are so many wonderful things about Diwali celebration - the puja done at home, the lighting of the diyas - small clay lamps filled with oil, bursting of crackers and the special homemade sweets. There are lot of significant mythological events associated with Diwali. It marks the return of Lord Rama with his brother Lakshman and wife Site to Ayodhya after 14 years of Vanvas. The subjects of Ayodhya decorated the entire city with diyas. The day is associated with Pandavas returning from 12years exile as they were defeated by Kauravas. The people of Hastinapur celebrated their Kings' return by lighting diyas. The Goddess Kali is worshiped on this day. It depicts the victory of Good over Evil, so the dark night is illuminated with diyas and crackers. Diwali is very special for me - I get to be a kid for a day :) . It’s been 7-8 years that I celebrate Diwali away from my family and with my friends. Although I miss my family but I always enjoy this festival. I start planning from morning, there is shopping for lights to be done and the last minute cracker to purchase. I love decorating my house with diyas and lighting and this is something I do every year, these small diyas always bring a lot of smile. Then the final part - burst crackers as much as I can, I really feel like a kid -- literally jumping with joy as they burst and then laugh out loud :) But this year I did one thing different--made some sweets at home :) - one of them was Gajar Halwa ka Patishapta (Sweet Egg-less Crepes stuffed with Carrot Pudding) . Patishapta is a very common Bengali sweet, its sweet egg-less crepes stuffed with sweet coconut or sweet khoya filling. This sweet is made is almost all Bengali house to celebrate Makar Sankranti which is mostly in the between (January to February). India being a predominantly agrarian country the harvesting season is joyfully celebrated throughout the country. However I can have Patishapta anytime....it’s mine and Baba's favourite sweet...so Patishapta in Diwali. As you know me by now I love to experiment with foods and so I decided to stuff my Patishapta stuffed with Carrot Halwa rather than Coconut or Khoya and called it Gajar Halwa ka Patishapta and served it with Rabdi Sharing the recipe with These Chicks Cooked Link Party - Featuring Your Recipes from All Around Blogland #25

FOR GAJAR HALWA
Carrot	7-8 medium sized
Ghee	2 tablespoons
Milk	3 cups
Condensed Milk	1/2 cup
Cardamom powder	1/2 teaspoon
Sugar	2-3 tablespoon

FOR PATISHAPTA
Maida/All Purpose Flour	2cups
Semolina	1/2 cup
Sugar	1 & 1/4 cup
Water	2-3 cups
Salt	As per taste
Oil	2 tablespoon

FOR RABDI
Milk	2 cups
Condensed Milk	1 cup
Almond	4 numbers
Pistachio	7 numbers

    GAJAR HALWA/CARROT PUDDING:-

1. Grate all the carrots finely.
2. Heat ghee in a pan, add the carrot and fry till the carrots soften and are properly fried (see that the color is kept intact).
3. In a separate pan, add milk , condensed milk and sugar. Bring it to boil .
4. Add cardamom powder to the sweet-boiled milk and simmer it in low flame for 5 min
5. To the frying carrot add the milk and keep cooking in low heat till the milk is completely absorbed.
6. Remove it in a bowl and set it aside. Let the pudding cool slightly.

    PATISHAPTA/SWEET EGG-LESS CREPES:-

1. In a large pan add water and sugar and let them boil till the sugar dissolves completely
2. In a separate bowl , mix maida/all purpose floor , semolina and salt.
3. Pour the sugar syrup to the dry mix and whisk well till a batter of crepes consistency is formed. 
4. Let the batter stand for at least half an hour.
5. In a flat non-stick pan, brush oil. The oil should be very less, so I used the head of the brinjal to spread the oil .
6. Using a ladle pour the batter to the pan and evenly distribute the batter in a circular shape.
7. When it can hold the shape and the bottom is partially done, put a little amount of the carrot halwa lengthwise on one side.
8. Using a spatula start folding the sides like an omelet. 
9. Fry for 3-4 min more, see that the color is not changes.

   RABDI:-

1. Dry roast pistachio and almond. 
2. Grind the nuts very finely.
3. In a pan, add the milk and condensed milk. Bring it to boil.
4. Keep stirring occasionally till the sweeten milk is slightly thicken.
5. Add the grounded nuts to the milk and stir them well till it gets a smooth consistency.
6. Let the rabdi cool down

       
Plate the patishaptas in a flat dish , garnish with toasted pistachios. Serve with the Rabdi.