Chinese red-braised ribs

Recipe adapted from Marion's Kitchen (serves 3 as part of main meal)

Baby back ribs- 1 kg, separated into individual ribs (I used the loin ribs from Waitrose)
Oil- 1 tbsp
Brown sugar- 3 tbsp

Dark soy sauce- 1 tbsp

Soy sauce- 2 1/2 tbsp

White vinegar- 3 tbsp

Chinese cooking wine- 2 tbsp (I only has Sake at had so used that instead)

Oyster sauce- 1/2 tbsp

Water- 1/4 cup

Ginger- 2 big slices, but thin

Garlic- 4 large pods, crushed

Spring onions- 3, white bit separated and the green bit finely chopped

Star anise- 2, small

Cinnamon stick- 1 inch piece

Cloves- 4

Dried red chillies- 2 (optional)

Salt- to taste (if necessary)

Maggi seasoning sauce- a few dashes (optional)

Sesame seeds- 1/4 to 1/2tsp

Place the ribs in a large saucepan and fill with room temperature water to cover them properly.

Bring to a continuous simmer over high heat and using a slotted spoon remove all the frothy bits from the surface of the water.

Simmer for a further 3 to 4 minutes and then drain the water.

Rinse the ribs well in clean water and transfer to a bowl.

Heat oil in a large wok and throw in the brown sugar. 

Wait for it to melt and caramelise a bit.

Add the pork ribs and give a good mix to coat them with the sugar.

Do so for about 3 to 4 minutes until the ribs are a light brown in colour.

Pour in all the liquids one after the other including water and then the ginger, garlic, spring onions, and whole spices.

Mix well and cover and cook on medium heat for about 25 minutes, making sure you give it a mix half way through.

If even after 25 minutes your ribs arent cooked through, continue cooking till the meat comes away from the ribs. Mine took about 35 minutes.

Remove the ginger and whole spices (whatever you can find), increase heat a bit (not too high) and stir the ribs till they are well coated with the liquid and starts to become sticky. 

Be careful not to burn them at this point. You need to keep an eye on them.

Once there is no more liquid, add the maggi seasoning, give a final mix and transfer on to a serving dish.

Garnish with the green bits from the spring onion and sesame seeds and serve warm.

Notes: The ribs in the original recipe are way shorter as she says shes sourced them from a Chinese store. I couldnt get hold of them, so the next best were these loin ribs.

Ive also tried them with the big ribs, but these are definitely better as the sauces get distributed well and coats them properly than the big ribs.

Salt- if your soy is salty enough then you wont need to add any. I did need to add a bit.

If you end up over cooking the ribs they become chewy and dry. Make sure that doesnt happen.

Ive tried the exact same recipe with pork belly and its absolutely fabulous, maybe even better than ribs :)

Appam batter (no soaked rice nor grated coconut)

Rice flour- 2 cups (not the roasted one)

Rava- 1 tbsp (not the roasted one)

Coconut milk powder- 3 tbsp

Cooked rice- 1/2 cup (any leftover rice even basmati is fine. I prefer matta rice though)

Instant yeast/ active dry yeast- 1 1/4tsp

Salt- to taste

Sugar- to taste

Mix all the first five ingredients together in a blender using lukewarm water. 

Add a little at a time and blend well till you get a smooth batter. I used just under 1 1/2 cups of water.

Transfer to a large bowl, cover and keep to rise in a warm place, for about 4 to 5 hours or till the batter has almost doubled in quantity. It would be light and airy and would bubble up at this point.

Stir in the required amount of salt and sugar (i may have added around 1 1/2tsp salt and around 3 tsp sugar) and warm water to make it the consistency you prefer. (I added around 1/4 cup water and this was correct consistency for kal appam. For palappam you will need to thin it out further in order to spread around the vessel.

Add a little at a time cos you dont want to end up with a really loose batter. I mostly try one appam and adjust the water consistency accordingly.

To make appams, heat a tawa on medium heat (I have a flat ceramic hob so i cant use the traditional appam chatti due to its curved base).

Pour a ladle full of batter and wait for the bubble to slowly start showing.

Cover with a lid and cook for about a minute or so, till there is no raw batter visible.

Serve warm with curry of choice.

Notes: You can store this batter in the fridge for about 4 to 5 days and use as required.

You can also make the normal palappam as well with this recipe.

Since i live in a cold country, i sometimes adapt to methods to make the batter rise. I usually dont have any problem with this batter as it seems to rise after 4 hours without any prompting. But i do keep in a warm oven or an airing cupboard for the process to be quicker. Otherwise its mostly kept covered in a room which has the heater running or on a window ledge with sun directly on it.
I've mentioned not to use roasted rice flour and rava, but truth be told, i once did use roasted one and it came out fine. Dont take my word for it, just use the un roasted one :)

Madurai kari dosa

Makes 6 to 7

Dosa batter- 1 to 1 1/2 cups (not too loose)

Ghee/ sesame oil- couple of teaspoons

Eggs- 2 small

Mutton kheema- around 3/4 cups

Salt- to taste

Pepper- to taste

Coriander leaves- 3 to 4 tbsp, finely chopped

Make the mutton kheema as per this recipe. Use mutton mince and omit the potatoes.

For the dosa, you wont need 500gms mince, so for me this is mostly a what-to-do-with-leftover-kheema kinda dish.

Beat the eggs till slightly frothy.

Place a dosa tawa on medium heat and pour in one ladle full of the batter. Dont spread it too much, it must be thick, like a kal/ thattu dosa.

Cover with a lid, and just when you start seeing the bubbles, drizzle some ghee/oil along the edges.

Reduce the heat a bit and add about 2 to 3 tsp of the beaten egg, spread it carefully.

Season with salt and pepper and top with 2 to 3 tsp of kheema followed by a sprinkling of coriander leaves.

Press the meat slightly using a spatula and cook for about a minute,

Carefully flip the dosa and cook for another minute or so.

Make sure you dont burn the kheema, it should be a fried consistency.

Serve hot with some empty gravy on the side.

Notes: When i had this at the legendary Konar Mess in Madurai as part of the food walk i did, they drizzle a bit of mutton curry as well on top of the egg and then top with the kheema.

Also, the dosa is really thick.

The kheema on the dosa must be slightly fried and not burnt. So when its flipped, make sure you dont keep it on for a long time.

Masala egg and vegetable butter sandwich

Recipe adapted from Sanjeev Kapoor Khazana (serves 2)

Eggs- 2 large

Onions- 2 tbsp, finely chopped

Tomato- 2 tbsp, finely chopped

Chilli powder- 1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Salt- to taste

Bell pepper- 1/3rd cup, julienned

Cabbage- 1/3rd cup, julienned

Carrot- 1/3rd cup, julienned

Mayonnaise- 2 tbsp

Salt- to taste

Pepper- to taste

Butter- 1 tbsp

Bread- 4 medium slices

Cheese- 3 to 4 tbs

Beat the eggs along with onions, tomato, chilli, turmeric and salt. Keep aside.

Mix together the sliced vegetables with mayo, salt and pepper. Keep aside.

Place a frying pan/tawa on medium heat, and melt 1/2 tbsp butter.

Dip (rather generously) 2 slices of bread into the egg mixture, both sides, and place on the pan. Top with a few scoops of the egg, tomato and onion mix.

Flip over after 2 minutes and top with about half the veg mix and half the cheese.

Close the sandwich with the other slice and continue grilling the sandwich till the cheese slightly melts.

Keep flipping the sandwich carefully so both sides are slightly crisp.

Remove from the pan, slice the sandwich into two and place on a serving plate.

Continue the same with the remaining slices of bread.

Serve with some tomato sauce on the side.

Chettinad pepper chicken (dry)

Recipe adapted from Rick Stein's India

To lightly roast and grind
Fennel seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
Whole peppercorn- 1 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 tsp

Chicken with bone- 700gms, cut into small pieces
Oil- 2 tbsp
Fennel seeds- 1/4 tsp
Cinnamon stick- 1, 2 inch piece
Onion/shallots- 1 1/2 cups, roughly chopped
Curry leaves- 2 sprigs
Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Kashmiri chilli powder- 1 1/2 tsp
Coriander leaves- 1/4 cup, finely chopped
Salt- to taste

Lightly roast all the whole spices and once cool, grind to a powder. Keep aside.

In a large pan , heat the oil and throw in fennel seeds and cinnamon. 

Let it sizzle for a couple of seconds at which point throw in the onions and one sprig of curry leaves.

Cook till the onions turn a light brown. Make sure you take time and do this step or else your curry may end up being sweet.

Once the onions turn light brown, add the ginger garlic paste and cook till the raw smell disappears.

In goes the turmeric powder and chilli powder. and salt Saute for about 2 minutes.

Add the cleaned chicken pieces and mix well so its coated in the masala.

Stir in 1/4 cup water and cover and cook for about 20 minutes, or till the chicken is done.

Open lid and mix in the ground masala powder. Saute well to coat the chicken.

Cook till almost all the water has been evaporated, and you see oil along the sides.

Add the remaining sprig of curry leaves and coriander leaves and give one final mix.

Serve warm with rice.

Notes: The dish has a nice level of spice, but next time ill probably increase the peppercorns to about 2 tsp. The pepper didnt stand out enough i though.
Shallots definitely make a difference so try and use that if possible.
Rick Stein's India is one of my absolute favourite books. I can just sit and look at the pictures, if not anything else :)

Meat pattichu varuthathu

Adapted from Mrs K. M Mathew's book Flavours of the Spice Coast

 Beef- 1 kg*, cut into medium size pieces

To roast and grind

Fennel seeds- 1 1/2 tsp

Cinnamon stick- 2 inch piece

Cloves- 6

Peppercorn- 2 tsp

Kashmiri chilly powder- 2 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Coriander powder- 3 1/2 tsp

Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp

Vinegar- 2 tsp

Salt- to taste

Coconut oil- 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds- 1 tsp

Curry leaves- 2 sprigs

Shallots- 10 to 12, roughly chopped

Ginger- 2 tbsp, sliced

Garlic- 5 cloves, sliced

Dry roast all the ingredients in the roast section for about 3 to 4 minutes on medium heat. Keep stirring continuously or else you will end up burning the spices.

Once slightly cool, grind them finely.

Remove 1 tsp of this powder and to the rest add the ginger garlic paste, vinegar and salt.

Marinate the meat with this mix, and keep aside for an hour or so. 

Transfer the meat to a pressure cooker and cook with about half cup water till done. 

(I close the lid and cook on high till steam comes after which i put on the weight and wait for the first whistle. Once the first whistle is out, i reduce heat to medium and cook for about 15 minutes. For the beef we get here, this method works well).

Open the pressure cooker, and if there is a lot of liquid, evaporate most of it on high heat, leaving about a quarter cup of liquid with the meat.

Heat coconut oil in a large wok and add mustard seeds.

Once they splutter, add curry leaves, shallots, sliced ginger and garlic and cook till slightly brown and the raw smell from the ginger and garlic disappears.

Add the reserved tea spoon of masala powder to the onions and saute for a few minutes.

Finally, tip in the beef along with the gravy and fry on medium heat till dark and semi dry. I dont like my beef too dry, but with some wet masala smothering it.

The masalas will start leaving the sides of the pan, and there will be some oil visible around the pan. At this point, you can add some more fresh curry leaves, give a final mix and take it off the flame.

Serve hot with Kerala porotta or rice and moru kachiyahu.

Notes: The preparation is just moderately spicy, you can increase the pepper and red chilly powder to suit your taste

*The beef i used here is a roasting joint which has a nice layer of fat. Please do yourself a favour and use beef with a bit of fat, for this recipe. Trust me, it makes a difference.

I also added a few beef short ribs just to see what its like. I personally think it didnt make too much of a difference, however if it was a curry i was making, it would have amped up the taste. 

You can do the entire prep in a normal pot, but cooking time is longer and also make sure you add at least 2 to 3 cups of water to the beef while cooking, so it doesnt dry out.

You can try the same with mutton as well, and it tastes great.

Naadan chicken chilli roast

Recipe adapted from here

Chicken (with bone)- 650gms
Coconut oil- 2 tbsp
Curry leaves- 3 to 4 sprigs
Small onions (shallots)- 3/4th to 1 cup, crushed (refer notes)
Red chilli flakes- 3 tbsp (refer notes)
Soy sauce- 1/2 tbsp (optional)
Salt- to taste

Heat coconut oil in a frying pan and throw in the curry leaves.

Fry till slightly crisp and then add the crushed small onions.

Saute for about 4 to 5 minutes and then add the red chilli flakes.

Cook on low to medium heat until the mix turns a dark brown in colour. 

Make sure you don't burn the flakes, and keep mixing in between. This step is important as it determines the final colour of the dish.

The mix should be a dry one, as opposed to a wet masala.

Tip in the chicken, add enough salt, mix well with the masala, close and cook for about 10 minutes.

By now water would have released from the chicken, stir well, cover and cook till the chicken is almost done.

Then open lid and on high heat, saute the chicken till all the water has evaporated and the masala sort of clings on to the meat.

Reduce heat a bit and add the soy sauce. Roast the chicken till all the masala coats the chicken and the colour turns a dark brown. This can take a while, about 10 to 15 minutes. Don't skip this step though.

Add a few torn curry leaves, give a final mix and transfer to serving plate.

Notes: I've used chicken wings here, but you can use any part really. If using a whole chicken, make sure you cut them into small pieces. I've also tried this with boneless chicken thighs and it works great when you want to serve as an appetiser with drinks.

Using small onions (cheria ulli/shallots) make all the difference. Using a pestle and mortar gently crush them. If you don't have one, then roughly slice each small onion into two or so.

That said, I've made this using normal onions and it tastes fine as well. I've sliced them to the size of a small onion and used that. Haven't bothered crushing them.

Use dried Kashmiri chilli flakes for this, as you need about 3 tbsp and you don't want it to be unbearably spicy. I get ready made chilli flakes here and I've used that, but you can just dry roast whole Kashmiri chilli till crisp and roughly grind it to get flakes.

Soy sauce is my personal addition and i love the flavour, but it tastes perfectly fine without the soy as well.

I sometimes add a handful of coriander leaves at the end instead of the curry leaves.