soya chunks pilav: what is the difference between pilav, fried rice and biriyani? Kukskitchen

As promised here is my soya chunks pilav made using left over stir fried soya chunks recipe.

What is pilav / fried rice / biriyani?

Pilaf or pilav or pulav, is a dish in which rice is cooked in a seasoned broth.The English term pilaf is borrowed directly from Turkish, palov, which in turn comes from Persian polow (پلو), and ultimately derives from Sanskrit pulāka- (पुलाक), "lump of boiled rice". We know it, everything gains their origin from india :-).

In India pilav is mostly prepared in a coconut milk broth.

Fried rice, on the other hand is a popular component of Southeast Asian cuisine, where it is staple as Southeast Asian foods. It is made from steamed rice stir-fried in a wok, often with other ingredients, such as eggs, vegetables, and meat.

Biryani or biriyani ( Malayalam: ബിരിയാണി, Kannada: ಬಿರಿಯಾನಿ, Tamil: பிரியாணி, Hindi: बिरयानी, Telugu: బిర్యాని, Urdu: بریانی) is a set of rice-based foods made with spices, rice (usually basmati) and meat, fish, eggs or vegetables. The name is derived from the Persian word beryā(n) (بریان) which means "fried" or "roasted".

My best award ever: Look what asiya's daughter made for me.

It is with a heavy heart that I write this post today. I want to share something very close to my heart.


Today I got an email from Asiya of My healthy happy kitchen . It read like this:


"Sherin, my daughter is your fan.She specially made this award for you."


Here is what she made for me :-)

Thank u so much mole. This is the best award I have ever had.
I will cherish this.


Thank u Asiya. My words are not enough dear, to describe how I feel.:-)

My second guest post, on Sumanarthy's kitchen | Non diary vegetarian pannacotta | Kukskitchen

I proudly present my second guest post, this time in my dear friend Sumanarthy's blog,  who I met in the blogophere :-) She own's a beautiful blog featuring traditional and western recipes. I was delighted when she asked me to do a guest post. To see the post and to get the recipe visit  here .

The recipe I chose was a non-diary vegetarian pannacotta. My son went through a phase of milk protein intolerance and I was trying to make his favourite desserts milk protein-free. I present here one such effort.

Ingredients for one layer:

Plain almond milk - 2 cups
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1/4 cup
1 envelope powdered gelatin
Water - 4 tbsp

Method:

• In a saucepan, combine the almond milk, vanilla and sugar. Turn the heat on and cook on medium heat until the mixture begins to simmer, stirring frequently.
• Pour the gelatin into a small bowl and then pour the 4 tablespoons of water over the gelatin. Let sit until spongy, about 5 minutes or less.
• When the almond milk mixture gives the first bubble, remove from heat.
• Pour a small amount of the almond milk mixture in with the spongy gelatin, let sit for a minute and then stir. Pour the gelatin mixture back in to the saucepan containing the almond milk and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
• Pour the pannacotta mixture to a mould, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight to set up.
• Serve with slices of peach and orange rind for that bite.

To get the layered effect.

Strawberry essence - 2 drops + Edible pink colour - 1 drop (or use strawberry dairy free powder)
Chocolate chips / powder dairy free - 1 tbsp

• Mix the above portion with chocolate chips (or powder), pour in a mould and leave in the fridge for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile prepare a second portion of the panacotta following the above recipe again and mix in strawberry powder (or essence +colour) and mix well to combine. Pour this carefully over the set chocolate panacotta making sure not to disturb the bottom layer. Leave in fridge for another 10 minutes.
• Now is the time to prepare a third portion of panacotta using the above recipe again, leave it plain and pour this over the second layer, carefully again. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in fridge for 8 hours or overnight.

Cheers

Sherin

Chicken n Broccoli Lunch Bowl in 10 Minutes | featuring whole wheat cous cous | Kukskitchen

Spicy indian rice noodles | Kukskitchen

Mutton Lamb Seekh Kebab | Kukskitchen

Barbequed Seekh Kebab

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 10-15 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients :

1 - Mutton kheema - 2 cups

2 -  Onion thinly chopped - 1
Green chillies thinly chopped - 2
Ginger-garlic paste - 2tbsp
Garam masala powder - 1 tbsp
Cornflour - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Nutmeg Powder - 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
A pinch of black pepper powder
Salt to taste

3 - Chaat masala to sprinkle
Oil to fry

4 - Olive oil or melted butter to baste

Method:

• Squeeze the water from mutton kheema, add all the other ingredients and mix well. Marinate for 1 hour.
• Make kebabs to ur desired shape. I shaped them around metal skewers. Take a big portion or ball of the keema mixture and press around the skewer. Flatten the mixture to stick tightly around the skewer.
• It is always a good idea to shallow fry a tiny ball as tester and taste it for salt and spices.

• Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees on high heat. Place the skewers in hot oven and keep the oven on grill mode. Keep rotating them occasionally and bast either with butter or oil. When the kebabs seem cooked, remove them from the skewers.
• Now heat a flat griddle and drizzle some oil. Place these kebabs over the tawa for few minutes.
• Sprinkle some chaat masala and serve immediately with coriander chutney and salad.
• They are great for a hot barbecue.
• To serve:
• Kebabs are delicious with rice or any flat bread like naan.

Tips:

- U can use bread crumbs or roasted dal powder to help shape ur kebabs if they turn too soft.

Gulab Jamun {recipe no 1} using milk powder: An indian sweet fit for the kings | Kukskitchen

SNC#2- North Team challenge- Gulab Jamun

Divya Pramil of You too can cook Indian Food is the brain behind SNC challenge - recipe exchange where two teams challenge each other with their authentic recipes. The teams get a month’s time to prepare the recipe and post on their spaces. This is the 2nd event of the series and this November months challenge was posted by Pallavi (Northern team) and Yasodha ( South team)

A bit about Gulab Jamun 

The history says that Gulab jamun originates from an Arabic dessert called Luqmat Al-Qadi and became popular during the Mughal era.

In Nepal it is widely known as Lalmohan,The Persian word Gulab (गुलाब) means rose, as rosewater syrup is often used, although saffron syrup and honey are also common.

Jamun may refer to the jambul fruit, which is usually of a similar size to pieces of the dessert. There are various claims regarding the originator of the dish, with some saying a Sikh chef named Sajjan Dhillon first prepared it as a delicacy for the king of Jalalabad. The dessert also became popular throughout the Ottoman Empire.

First cash price: Yeah!

So pleased to share my first cash price of Rs.1000 from Asiya of My healthy happy kitchen

thank u very much dear. :-)

Event judged by Mrs Mano cooking expert and singer.

Coconut- Onion- Tamarind chutney

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Serves: 3

Ingredients

Dessicated coconut - 1 cup , presoaked in warm water

Dried red chillies - 3

Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp

Onion, roughly chopped - 1

Ginger - 1/2 inch piece

Salt - 1/2 tsp

2 tablespoons water

Method

Grind all of the above ingredients to a smooth paste.

Best served with dosa, idli or kappa

Spicy Egg biriyani | Mutta biriyani | Malabar style | Kukskitchen

Source: Adapted from 'The Epicure Cookbook' by Ms. Ummi Abdulla

Serves: 4 adults

Mambazha pulisseri : Mango - coconut - yogurt savoury mousse | Kukskitchen

My dear friend A from med college was asking for a veg- kid friendly recipe and I instantly thought about the below recipe which was resting in kukskitchen's drafts. 

My son luvs everything sweet: spicy chicken with honey, dosa - appam etc with sugar, pancakes with golden syrup and the list goes on.

Healthy no ghee microwave kheer : Thattikkuttu payassam : featuring rice Kukskitchen

Yes another thattikkuttu recipe. :-)

My son wanted a payassam and I was too lazy to do it the hob method. Microwave was the way forward. :-) And the result is.........

Boiling milk in a microwave is always scary; one tiny minute more than needed and u end up having to clean up the whole oven. I kept on looking thru the glass window every other minute. Well, now I know the time needed for the perfect taste, still leaving my microwave clean :-)

My attempt on the famous Coorg pandi curry | featuring pork | Kukskitchen

For those of you who have never heard of it, Coorg is Kodagu, the smallest district in Karnataka. If you were to draw a rectangle around it, it is only about 60 miles by 40 miles. During British Raj, Kodagu was called Coorg ; and its people, Coorgs, rather than Kodavas as they call themselves.

The Kodavas are a rather unique community, a martial race of handsome, brave and hospitable people, 

tall, handsome men and beautiful women with sharp features. :-) 

Coorgs are "pure" or "strict" non-vegetarians, as some of them like to call themselves. This obviously goes back to the times when they hunted the wild boar, deer and birds that populated their dense forests.

Pork is a great delicacy in Kodagu,and this classic curry is the star of the table.

I attempt to make the famous Coorg pandi curry. With ur blessings, here I present. It was so yummy so yummy, I have no words to describe the taste. No wonder it is so famous. :-)

Source: Chef Naren Thimmaiah’s . This is his mum's recipe 

Ingredients:

1- Pork - 1 kg, with some fat( and ideally some bones,cut into cubes) not exceeding 250 grams.
Turmeric powder - 2 tsp

2- Onions - 2 large, chopped fine.

3- Ginger - 4 inch piece
Garlic - 4 cloves

4- Mustard seeds - 1 1/2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 2 tbsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Whole black peppercorns - 1 tbsp

5- Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
Red chili powder - 1 tbsp

6- 2 cups hot water.

7- 1 ½ tablespoon kachampuli (kudampuli), or dark malt vinegar ( see note)

8-Green chillies - 3 slit in half

9-  salt to taste.

10- A little oil for frying

Method :

- Grind the ginger and garlic to a fine paste.

- Dry roast (4). Start with the spices that take longer to roast. Mustard seeds should turn white and begin to crackle; the cumin and fenugreek should turn dark brown and begin to release their aromas, followed by peppercones. Allow them to cool, then grind to a fine powder.

-Wash and drain the pork, sprinkle with the turmeric and set aside.

-Fry the chopped onions in a little oil ( 3-4 tablespoons) until lightly browned.

-Add the garlic ginger paste and fry for a few minutes.

-Add the pork and turmeric, and fry until the pork releases water, and begins to change colour.

-Sprinkle and mix in (5), and finally all the dry roasted spices. Stir thoroughly. Add salt to taste.

-Add about 2 cups of hot water, or according to the gravy required.

-Pressure cook on medium heat for about 20 mins. Remove from gas and allow the pressure to drop.

-Add about 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of kachampuli, and simmer for a few minutes. If you are using a substitute for kachampuli, like a dark brown vinegar, you will have to double the quantities, and the curry may not be so dark in colour. Finally, add the green chillies.

Goes great with chapathi.

Soya chunks stir fry | Low fat meat alternative | Kukskitchen

Soya chunks is something that has never been featured in kukskitchen. The whole 'going healthy' pairs well with soya chunks.  Soy is rich in protein and low in fat. There are many a variety of soya available in the shops - tofu and dried soya meat being just the most common ones I have seen.

Gothambu halwa | Atta halwa | Flour halwa | Kukskitchen

This one is close to my heart as it is one of the first sweets I made, and I was in school. Those days my brother  would eat anything I made and was my critic. Me, my sis and my mum would try all sorts of things in our kitchen in Trivandrum.  Luckily my SIL is an amazing cook herself. :-)

The only slight change I made from my first attempt was to add dark muscovado sugar for that extra colour and taste.

Bread caramel pudding: Dinner party special | Kukskitchen

Puddings are a vital element to a dinner party success. Here is a quick and easy yet tasty pudding with a presentation enough to wow ur guests.

A few things before you start:

-If the caramel syrup becomes too hard, heat it with 1/4 cup of water and it will turn syrupy again.
-Take care not to add hot caramel syrup to the egg-milk mix, or else u will end up with scrambled egg.
- While the bread pieces are soaking the juices, use ur fingers to gently press them down.

Chicken curry: chettinad style | Kukskitchen

Chettinad cuisine is the cuisine of the Chettinad region of Tamil Nadu state in South India. The Chettiar community, who are a majority in this region, are a very successful trading community. Chettinad cuisine is one of the spiciest and the most aromatic in India. Chettinad cuisine is famous for its use of a variety of spices used in preparing mainly non-vegetarian food.

Thattikkuttu baked chicken: featuring Schwartz Italian seasoning

A quick fix is what I prefer on weekdays when I come home tired after work. Chicken is one versatile ingredient which comes around tasty quickly with much less effort. I have a few of these thattikkuttu (malayalam for whipping up something with no particular recipe or plan)

Heavenly sweet coconut balls | Kukskitchen

Sweets!! my favourite food, to make or to eat. They r so quick to prepare, well most of them, and sooooo yummylicious  too. With Diwali around the corner, kukskitchen tried a few of them too. There is an interesting story to share about one of them, let me leave that till I post its recipe ;-) It was sooo embarassing!

Anyways, anything to do with coconut and I get excited, yes me the Keralan wakes up again. One night I had the erge to eat some thing sweet and, as it always happens on such occasions, there was nothing sweet in the house, well, except for sugar and honey. I was so desperate for a sweet and it was past 10 at night already, and we were watching X-factor. My mind got to work, something very quick to make, with the ingredients I already have stock in house. Something that I can prepare during the ad break!

Oven baked Herring, Keralan style, with salad: One evening sorted :-) | Kukskitchen

Being a native of Kerala, fish flows in my menus. Shallow fried spicy keralan fish is OMG yummy. My SIL's dad always says, what's there in life if one can't have a fillet of fried king fish for lunch. Hat's of uncle :-)

Recently the whole health-fitness theme has made me try baking/grilling my fish and chicken. A tiny splash of olive oil is all it needs for that heavenly taste. My friend S is a veteran on grilling fish, she adds fenugreek powder to the marinade which helps take  the fishy smell away.

Carrot halwa | Gajar-ka-halwa : using pressure cooker, hob or microwave oven | Kukskitchen

'Maa ke haath ka bana Gajar ka halwa'  features a lot in hindi movies of yester-years. As a child I always drooled on hearing this dialogue. It was only when I grew up that I started making carrot halwa and after marriage, esp after moving to UK, because of the ease of getting ingredients for this sweet in this 'foreign' land :-), carrot halwa featured a lot in my kitchen.

The pictures were taken a while ago, before I started blogging. Apologies for the solo picture.  

I post this recipe here today on request by my friend C. Here's to u C and my dear dear friend N who also shares my passion to food and cooking. Cheers!

Keralan chicken biriyani | A treat for the soul | Kukskitchen

This is one of the best chicken biriyani recipes I've ever owned. Tastes superb each time. Takes a bit of work and hence get made in my kitchen on occasion. This recipe is sourced from my dear S I L. This one she inherited from her mom. A few changes ( very few) were made by yours truly :-)