Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Green peas-chow chow Kurma

12-12-12 Its the centurys last sequential date. For some, it represents luck. For others, its a day of romance. For most of us, its just another Wednesday. Regardless of your beliefs, 12/12/12 comes along with some rather amusing facts and superstitions.On this special day thought of cooking something special for my family.                      
 Today I've prepared 2 dishes using Chow chow(kannada -seemay badane) which grew in my kitchen garden.This vegetable i a delectable pleasantly coloured and easy to cook vegetable.It can be easily grown by planting a mature sprout got from the market ( which can not be used for cooking) and trailed over a pandal or in your balcony or compound wall.to enjoy a basketful of harvest. You can make so many yummy dishes from this humble vegetable. I've exactly used 12 ingredients in this dish just to make the day more memorable 
Cook time: 55-60 mins
Ingredients

  • 3 cups Green peas
  • 1 cup Chow chow ( diced)
  • 1/2 Copra/dry coconut,grated
  • 1tbsp Kashmiri chilly powder
  • 3 Tomatoes
  • 3 Onion
  • 8-10 Garlic cloves
  • 1/4 cup Coriander leaves
  • 5 Cardamom pods
  • 2tsp Garam masala powder
  • 1tbsp Ghee/oil
  • salt to taste
Cooking Directions
  1. Pressure cook both peas and chow chow with little salt till 20-25 Mins or take 2 whistle.
  2. Grind grated copra/dry coconut,cardamom,tomatoes,garlic and 1/2 of the coriander leaves to smooth paste
  3. Fry onion till golden brown in ghee or oil ,drain and ground to paste.
  4. In the same pan add onion paste, chilly powder and salt to taste ( do not add too much as we have already added while cooking the vegetable)stir for a minute on low flame.
  5. Now add ground masla paste and stir till oil comes on top.
  6. Add cooked peas and chow chow and boil again for 15-20 mins until the gravy becomes thick.
  7. Garnish with remaining coriander leaves and serve hot with Jeera rice or roti


Chicken and corn Fajita pizza


 This Home made pizza is really easier than you think,if you get some readily available pizza base then it is really quick and gets ready within 10-15 mins with different topping of your choice.In this pizza  i have used  fajita as a topping and believe me its awesome and really very tasty .
Fajita is a Mexican dish ,easy and quick to make.Just seer the meat on a griddle along with onion and bell peppers and served with Tortillas.What i do is i prepare this topping and sauce and  refrigerate for a week, so whenever my kids feel like having some fresh pizza just open the fridge and take out some fajita ,add some fresh stir fried veggies and its ready in no time and its a delicious way to welcome your guest too.
Ingredients
  • 4 medium sized pizza base
  • 300 grams chicken breast ,boneless (cut into 1 inch strips)
  • 2 Onions (chopped)
  • 1 cup Sweet corn
  • 2 Red and green capsicum
  • 2tsp chilly powder
  • 1/2tsp Pepper powder
  • 2tsp Giger -garlic paste
  • 2tsp Olive oil
  • 1 cup Pizza sauce(spicy sauce refer this link for pizza sauce)
  • 1 cup Mozzarella cheese,grated
  • 10-12 Tinned black olives,(pitted and diced)
Cooking Directions


  1. Heat oil in pan,add onions,stir on high heat till it changes to light pink colour.
  2. Add chicken breast pieces and cook, stirring frequently until lightly browned.
  3. Now add ginger garlic paste,chilly powder,pepper and salt and stir again for couple of minutes.
  4. add sweet corn and bell peppers, cook an additional minute or so until vegetables are crisp-tender.
  5. Now arrange pizza base on a flat board and spoon Pizza sauce/ spicy sauce and spread some chicken - corn mixture over that, and finally, top with olives and cheese.
  6. Microwave,high for 2 minutes or until cheese melts.
  7. Serve hot with oregano and chilly flakes
Chicken corn fajita pizza
Variation: Vegetarians can replace chicken with paneer /Cottage cheese strips