Crabs Roast

Ingredients:

4-5 crabs

2 large onions (sliced long)

Curd (1/2 cup)

10-12 curry leaves

garam masala

4-5 tbp of oil

salt to taste

Masala: (grind to a paste)

Ginger garlic paste

1 tomato (chopped)

4 green chillies

1-2 tsp red chilli powder

Method :

Marinate the crabs with salt and curd and keep aside. Take a thick bottom pan . On a medium flame , add oil , add curry leaves & roast until light brown now add the sliced onions & roast well until they turn pink. Pour in the masala and keep tossing until oil floats. Add the marinated crabs and mix well. Donot add water . Cover and keep it on a low flame until they are cooked. Sprinkle the garam masala and add salt if necessary and mix well. Cover for another 5 minutes .

Garnish with corriander leaves.

Stuffed Eggplant

Ingredients:
6-8 Baby Eggplants
½ cup oil

Stuffing : (grind to dry paste)
4 garlic cloves
1 cup coriander leaves
1 cup coconut
1 cup chopped onions
1 tsp garam masala powder
2-3 tsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste

Method:
Slit the eggplants in a cris-cross manner such that the stem remains intact.Apply salt to it and keep aside for 15 minutes.
Now stuff the eggplant with the stuffing.
Heat oil in a broad thick bottom pan. Add the eggplant one by one. Toss it on a high flame for 5 minutes. Now cover it and keep on low flame until its done. On a medium flame toss the eggplants for 15 minutes .

You can serve this with roti / rice and dal.

Hot Garlic Prawns

This is specially for those who love the garlic flavor.
This is also my mom’s special.

Ingredients:
Prawns 2 cups (fresh and cleaned)
Garlic 10 cloves (crushed with skin)
Red chilli powder 3 tsp
Coriander powder 1 tbsp
Oil 4-5 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
Marinate prawns with red chilli , coriander powder and salt for half an hour.
Take a thick bottom pan. Add oil. Add the garlic cloves and roast well until light brown in color. Now add the prawns and roast well for an hour.
If you like it soft then roast it lesser. And if you like garlic then you can add a few more cloves.
This goes very well with rice and dal fry.

Mutton Sukha

Ingredients:
Mutton 1 Kg
oil 3 tbsp
bay leaf 1
3 tsps rd chilli powder
3 tsps garam masala

Masala 1:
Onions 4 (sliced long)
Grated coconut 1 cup
Grated dry coconut ½ cup
Roast onions and coconut separately until brown. Grind to a fine paste.

Masala 2:
Garlic 4-5 clovets
Ginger 1 inch
Coriander leaves 1 cup (chopped)
Tomato 1 cup (chopped)
Grind to a fine paste.

Method:
Cook mutton in a pressure cooker until done. Now take a thick bottom pan and add oil.
Add the bay leaf . As it splutters , add Masala 2. Roast well on a low flame until it gets shades of brown. Now add the mutton stock. Then add Masala 1 and keep on low flame for 10-12 min. Now sprinkle in the red chilli and garam masala powder and bring to a boil. Keep on low flame for another 15 minutes. Add the mutton. Keep it on a high flame for 10 – 15minutes until the water evapourates and mutton's coated well with the spices. Garnish with sliced onions and coriander leaves.

Tips: The more you roast the masalas , the better they shall taste.
Dry coconut gives a very good flavor to mutton.
Lastly, this dish tastes better if eaten a day later. So you could prepare this in advance if you are expecting guests. :)
This is my M-I-l's special .

Prawn Fry

Ingredients:

Prawns / Shrimp - 1/2 cup

Gram Flour - 1 cup

Rice flour - 1 tbsp

Red Chilli pwd - 1 tbsp

Mint leaves - 1 tbsp finly chopped

Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp finely chopped

Ginger Garlic paste 1 1/2 tsp

salt to taste

oil for frying

Method:

Mix all the ingredients dry with out water and oil.

Add 1 tbsp of warm oil to the above.

Start adding 1 tbsp of water at a time and mix well to form a hard dough.

Heat oil and then add the dough with the help of ur fingers in the form of pakoda.

Deep fry them on medium flame till golden brown.

Sever it hot.

Delicious Biryani

Ingredients:

For Rice:
2 cups basmati rice
3 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp ghee or butter
3 each of cloves, cardamoms, & cinnamon
1 bay leaf
1 tsp black cumin seeds

For Mutton:
1/2 kg mutton
3 green chilies
3 large onions
3 tomatoes
3 each of cloves, cardamom & cinnamon
4 tsp ghee
1 bunch coriander leaves
1/2 bunch mint leaves

Masala 1:
1 large pod garlic1 large piece ginger Grind together to a fine paste

Masala 2:
12 red chillies
2 tbsp coriander seeds
2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp khus khus seeds
Grind together to a smooth paste

Masala 3:
1/2 cup grated coconut
3 tsp chopped cashew nuts
1/2 cup yogurt
Grind together to a smooth paste

Hard boiled eggs for decoration

Mehod:

For Rice:
Soak the rice in water for 20 minutes, drain and keep aside.
Heat ghee, add the remaining spices for rice preparation and fry for 1 minute.
Add rice and fry for further 2 to 3 minutes.
Add water, salt and cook till the water is absorbed. Allow rice to cool.

For Mutton:
Clean the meat, cut into pieces and soak in the yogurt.
Heat ghee, add spices, chopped green chilies and onions and fry till mixture turns brown. Also add masala 1 and 2 and stir well.
Now add the tomatoes and fry for 2 minutes.
Then add mutton pieces, coriander and mint leaves and simmer for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of water and salt to taste.
Cook for 15 minutes and add masala 3. Cook till the gravy becomes thick.

Arranging the Biryani:
Divide rice into 3 parts and mutton into 2 parts.
Grease a dish and arrange alternate layers of meat and rice and meat, beginning and ending with rice.
Dissolve a little saffron or yellow coloring in 1/4 cup of milk.
Pour over rice, cover and bake for 20 to 30 minutes.
Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with fried onions, cashew nuts, raisins and hardboiled eggs.

Shahi Chicken

Ingredients
1kg Chicken

For Marination:
Salt to taste
1-2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1-2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp clove powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

Blend these to make a fine paste and set aside:
1 bunch corriander leaves
5-6 garlic cloves
1" ginger
2-3 cardamoms
2-3 cinnamon sticks
4-5 cloves
2-3 medium green chillies
1/2 onion

Blend these to a smooth paste and set aside:
2 medium tomatoes
1 tbsp cashewnuts
2-3 medium onions finely chopped
3-4 tbsp oil/ghee(clarified butter) for frying
1/2 tsp garam masala powder

Method
Mix salt and spices with the chicken pieces and let it marinate for 1/2 hr. Heat 1/2 the oil and fry onions till they turn light brown. Add the marinated chicken pieces and fry on a high flame till the chicken pieces get a good color and done.This should take around 1/2 hr. Take the chicken pieces out of the pan, drain and keep aside. Keep the oily liquid that is left to prepare the gravy later.

Wash the pan with a little water, dry it , add some oil and fry the coriander paste till the mixture loses all mositure and turns dark. Put the chicken pieces back in and add some salt.Stir together the chicken, till the chicken pieces are well coated with the green paste.Fry for 3-5 minutes on high flame.

Now add the tomato/cashewnut paste and the leftover oily liquid from the first frying.
Mix well and keep covered on low flame till the mixture boils over. Sprinkle garam masala, boil for 1/2 minute and remove from heat.

This goes well with rice/roti.