Parma Ham wrapped fish with pesto sauce

 

Last week I attended a cooking session hosted by The Consorzio del Proscuito di Parma at the Underground Cookery School. It was a day the tube strike was on and the Underground cookery school being really 'underground,' it was a bit of a feat to get there and also to find the place. But one glug of the chilled Processo, on arrival and I was ready to tackle the evening. 

We are big fans of cured meat and I even cook with it once in a while. My asparagus wrapped in Parma Ham is a hit at parties and the simple Parma Ham with mayo on toast is a regular at ours. Did you know that by law Parma Ham can only be produced in the Parma region using pigs born and bred in Italy? I had absolutely no idea. I also didn't know they were low in cholesterol and high in proteins..well, am I glad or what that I was invited to attend the hands-on cookery class with Parma Ham as the hero.

So after we were segregated into groups, we got around to our tasks. First up was making our own pasta. GULP! I've never done that before and although the kneading and mixing was not really new to me, the pasta maker did intimidate me a bit. Luckily, our chef was very patient and helpful and he guided us towards making fresh tagliatelle. The pasta maker did prove a bit difficult to handle in the beginning, but I soon got the hang of it and it ended up being a fun exercise. 

(Photo credit: Parma Ham event)

After the strands were hung out to dry, we moved on to getting dessert done. A stiff meringue was whipped and baked and the filling, some gorgeously tasty raspberry coulis was whisked with Chantilly cream and made into a roulade. How the Parma Ham was going to be incorporated into it was still a mystery. The final bit of the session was learning how to separate the legs, thighs and breast from a whole chicken (believe it or not, the first time I've ever done that) and then fill the breasts with a tarragon-cream cheese mix, wrap them in Parma Ham and baked.

We took our place at the table while the food was being plated and we chatted with fellow food bloggers over some delicious wine. First course was the tagliatelle we made, tossed with black pepper and truffle oil and topped with a generous sprinkling of Parma Ham and Parmigiano Reggiano. It tasted divine. Main course was the stuffed chicken wrapped in Parma Ham, fried to get the outside crisp, and then baked till done. This was served on a salad of new potatoes, spring onions, cress and purple sprouting broccoli. I loved how the dish looked and ate as much as I could, but was too full to finish the whole thing. I'm not a chicken breast fan, but this was nicely moist and not stringy and dry like other preparations. The grand finale, and perhaps my favourite was the dessert- meringue roulade with candied Parma Ham. This was mindlblowing good. I mean I would have never thought of adding parma Ham to the dessert, but this was really good. The salt for the ham went very well with the sweetness from the roulade and although I was terribly full, I ate the entire thing without flinching.

The evening ended with a nice cup of coffee and we were sent away with a goodie bag full of information and samples. With that I decided to make this fish wrapped in Parma Ham- my take on the main course- and threw in some veggies and a sauce to make a meal of it.

(Photo credit: Parma Ham event)

Serves 2 as part of main meal

Italian Parma Ham- 6 to 8 thin slices

White firm fish- 250 gms (I used River Cobbler)

Salt & pepper- to taste

Sage leaves- 5 to 6 (optional)

Olive oil- 2 tbsp

New Potatoes- 4, quartered

Asparagus heads- 300 gms

Onion- 1 large, finely chopped

Basil pesto- 3 tsp

Spinach- 100 gms

Single cream- 1/2 cup

Salt- to taste

Clean the fish, slice into smaller portions if they are too long and season well with salt and pepper.

Separate the Parma Ham slices and lay flat on a chopping board or plate. 

Place the fish slice on top and roll tightly. Use more than one slice of ham if needed. Keep aside.

Boil the potatoes and asparagus till done. Drain and keep aside.

Melt the butter in a large frying pan and when hot, fry the sage leaves till crisp.

Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen towels.

Into the same pan add the wrapped fish and fry on all sides till done.

Make sure you dont over cook this, or it will turn touch. Around 3 minutes on each side should be good if the fish is really fleshy.

Drain on paper towels and keep aside.

Add some more oil into the same pan if needed and saute the onions till caramelised, around 5 minutes on medium heat.

Add the pesto and mix it all in.

Throw in the cooked potatoes, asparagus and spinach, mix it all in. 

Add salt and pepper to season.

Pour in around 1/4 cup of water and let it come to a simmer.

Reduce heat, pour in the cream and mix well. 

Add the fish, gently stir and cook closed for another 5 minutes, just so the fish takes in some of the pesto flavour.

Finally garnish with the fried sage leaves and serve with some crusty bread.

Notes: Follow the same method for chicken breast, but remember, cooking time will be longer.

The pesto flavour just comes through, if you want it stronger, add a tsp more

With thanks to The Consorzio del Proscuito di Parma for the event invite.

Minced pork and egg fried rice and Cooking with Kikkoman Masterclass

I know...been almost a month since I posted here. I'm not going to give excuses blaming work, weather, this, that etc etc. Instead, I'm going to jump right into it and talk about the 'Cooking with Kikkoman masterclass'  I attended a month back at the fabulous Matsuri St James restaurant. Kikkoman is a leading brand of soy sauce and I regularly use it for all my Asian cooking. We networked over cocktails at the foyer before being escorted into the restaurant and seated around a Teppan table. Bing-yu Lee, Manager for Kikkoman UK gave a talk on Kikkoman- how it is made, how its different from the usual ones and we even did a blind tasting between two different types of soy sauces.

Michelin Starred Chef, Simon Hulstone then took over and demonstrated how to use Kikkoman in a mean broccoli and scallop dish which we all got to taste. After a sushi making demo and a theatrical teppan-yaki meal cooked in front of our eyes we went on to enjoy our meal, full on, paired perfectly with wine.

In our goody bag was a Kikkoman cook book and this fried rice is adapted from that. There are so many easy recipes and even though i made this rice a week after the event, it didn't make it to the blog because I wasn't happy with the pictures. I thought id make it again and take better pictures, but nope, that never happened and so you are gonna have to just believe me when I say the fried rice tasted simply good. Its really really simple to make and you should give it a go.

I went a bit crazy with the stir frying and that's why it looks like tiny grain. Its just that the rice broke while I got carried away. So be careful when you do the final mixing.

Recipe adapted from the Kikkoman cook book (serves 2)

 

Basmati rice- 1 cup

Water- to cook the rice

Oil- 1 tbsp

Minced pork - 300gms

Ginger- 1 1/2 tbsp, peeled and grated

Garlic- 2 tbsp, peeled and finely chopped

Spring onion- 1/4 cup, finely chopped (reserve a few greens for garnish)

Green chilli- 1, finely chopped

Salt and pepper- to season

Kikkoman soy sauce- 2 tbsp

Eggs- 2

Coriander leaves- 1 tbsp, finely chopped (optional)

Cook the rice al dente. Drain and keep aside. Make the rice a day ahead and store in the refrigerator. This would make it drier- perfect for fried rice

Heat the oil in a non stick wok and add the minced pork. Stir fry on high heat till the meat changes colour.

Throw in the ginger, garlic, spring onion and green chilli and fry till the pork is cooked through.

Season with salt and pepper and 1 1/2 tbsp of Kikkoman soy sauce. Mix well and cook till the meat turns a bit brown.

Add the rice and stir fry on high heat continuously.

Whisk together the egg and remaining 1/2 tbsp soy sauce in a bowl.

Move aside a bit of the rice from the wok and add the egg. Scramble a bit, turn off the heat and leave covered for about a minute or two for the eggs to set.

Just before serving, garnish with the remaining spring onion greens and coriander leaves.

Notes: The original recipe called for chicken breasts. If using chicken (around 2 medium), dice them into cubes and do as above.

With thanks to Kikkoman for inviting me to the event and the goody bag.

Poori and pork (tikka) masala

The weather has been brilliant the past couple of days and its (almost) like summer is round the corner. I saw the first few daffodils outside my apartment today and almost jumped up in joy. Even if its not bright and sunny, the temperature sure is in double digits and the winds are bearable. Anything to not go out in layers of clothing is a big relief for me. That said, I'm pretty bummed I couldn't wear my uber cool Coccinelle gloves enough.

So on one of those really good weather days, I was in a mood to cook. Like really, painstakingly make things from scratch. These kinda moods pass by soon, so before it did I became proactive and decided to make poori's. Now, people who know me, know my phobia about kneading, rolling and deep frying. I was willing to forego all that and made a tremendous attempt to make round-like poori's. The optimism was too good to be true, so after the first few, it was back to shapeless ones. But I decided it was high time I jotted down a poori recipe for days like these, where I didn't have to exhaust myself doing google searches for exact water measurements etc.

To go with it, my initial plan was to make the usual potato masala. But that's what I'd do on a lazy day. It was a proactive day instead and so I made pork tikka masala. Now, its not one of those authentic tikka masala recipes, but kinda nice and easy in comparison. Its a slow cooker recipe and I didn't have the time for that and hence used the ever helpful pressure cooker for the same. I'm sure taste-wise, the slow cooker version would have been better, but it served my purpose and tasted great with hot poori's.

Poori (Indian fried bread)- recipe adapted from here (makes 12 medium sized ones)

Chapati flour (atta)- 1 1/2 cups

Salt- 1/4 tsp

Oil- 1 tbsp + enough for deep frying

Warm water- 1/2 cup

In a large bowl mix together the flour and salt.

Rub in the oil as evenly as possible.

Add the warm water bit by bit and bring the flour together.

Knead for a couple of minutes till the dough becomes pliable.

Brush some oil on it, cover with a wet towel and let it rest for about half an hour (or 10 minutes)

When ready to roll, heat enough oil in a pan. Keep the fire on medium heat and wait for it to reach the right temperature.

Knead the dough once more and make 12 golf-ball size balls out of it.

Roll out each ball into a disc, not as thin as a chapati, and keep ready.

Pint a tiny piece of dough and drop into the oil. If its the right temperature, it would immediately float to the top.

Slowly slide in one rolled out disc. When it floats to the top, lightly press it with a ladle, allowing it to puff up.

Roll over and fry the other side similarly.

When it becomes golden brown, take it off the oil, let it drip out the oil and drain on paper towels. Repeat the same with the remaining dough.

Pork (tikka) masala- recipe adapted from here

Pork shoulder/ leg (with or without fat)- 1 kg (diced into medium pieces)

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Coriander powder- 1 tsp

Chilli powder- 1 tsp

Garam masala- 1/2 tbsp

Coriander leaves- 2 tbsp, roughly chopped

Oil- 2 tbsp

Water- 1/2 cup

Salt- to taste

Marinade

Onions- 2 large

Garlic- 8 cloves

Ginger- 2 inch piece, peeled, roughed sliced

Plain yoghurt- 1/2 cup

Chilli powder- 1 tsp

Salt- to taste

Make a paste out of the all the ingredients listed under the marinade section.

Place the diced pork into a large bowl and pour half of the marinade over it. Reserve the other half.

Mix well, cover and leave aside for at least 30 minutes.

When ready to cook, place the marinated pork and water in a pressure cooker and cook till the pork is tender, still holding its shape, about 15 minutes.

Once the pressure subsides, open the lid and if there is a significant amount of water, place it back on medium-high heat and allow most of the liquid to evaporate.

Once that's done, heat oil in a large heavy bottomed pan and add the reserved half of onion paste.

Cook till it turns a light brown, about 10 to 12 minutes on medium heat.

Stir in the cooked pork along with all the masala/gravy and cook on high for a couple of minutes, stirring well.

Then, reduce flame to medium and add turmeric, cumin, coriander and chilli powder and stir fry till the meat turns darker in colour.

Once you see the oil releasing the sides, sprinkle garam masala, give a final stir and take it off the flame.

Keep covered, and just before serving, sprinkle coriander leaves.

Notes: This is not a spicy preparation, add one green chilli along with the powders, if you want it spicier.

I didn't dry out the pork too much as I wanted it to be a semi-gravy-like consistency for the poori's

You can cook the pork in the pressure cooker for up to 24 hours in advance and do the last bit before you serve.

You can also freeze the dish once completely cooled. Just leave it out at room temperature to thaw and maybe sauté it in a little oil before serving.

Minced pork cocktail kebabs

First of all Happy Onam to all you gorgeous people. I am craving a traditional feast, but then sheer laziness to make it and the unnecessary exorbitant prices the restaurants are charging for it is making me stick to er, a pizza for dinner. My plans of posting the pictures have also gone awry as I dove straight into work and was left with no time whatsoever. Now I have just lost the enthusiasm to do the same.

My life revolves around the weather, a fetish I developed after moving to the UK, and so here is the update. Its officially Autumn in our neck of woods and I must say its not as depressing as I thought it would be. In fact I'm secretly enjoying the gloomy weather and continuous rains to an extent. The only down side is the fact that photography has taken a back seat as it starts getting dark early and since I start cooking only by around 5, I've missed out on what little sunlight is pouring through.

This dish however happened by fluke. I had picked up some minced pork to make some burger patties and since I didn't know what else to do with the leftover meat, these kebabs were born. Since it was a comparatively warmer and brighter day today I decided to embrace the occasion by taking these pics outside on my balcony. I am pretty sure I wouldnt be seeing this kinda weather any time soon, so I'm thinking there would be a bit of a delay with my next post as well. Just letting you all know in advance, you see. Coming back to the recipe, you can make them as patties if you prefer or make larger kebabs using the entire skewer. I am thinking this is a brilliant appetizer idea served along with a dip.

On a completely different note, please head over to Miss Tam Chiak owned by the lovely Maureen, and check out my guest post 'South Indian Egg Roast' among other fabulous reviews and pics. Once again thanks a lot for giving this amazing opportunity.

Minced pork- 450 gms
Curry powder- 3 tsp
English shallots- 3, finely chopped
Coriander leaves- a handful, finely chopped
Green chilli- 1, sliced
Chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
Salt and pepper- to taste
Wooden skewers- 5, broken in halves

Soak the wooden skewers in a glass of water for at least 1 hour.

Into a mixing bowl add all the other ingredients and using your hand, mix well until well combined.

Cover and keep the bowl in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 176C and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

Wet your hands lightly, take small portions of the meat and press on to the skewers, leaving a couple of inches below.

Make sure they are not too heavy, or otherwise it would fall off.

bake for about 9 minutes on each side and then drain on paper towels.

Serve with a spiced mint yoghurt dip and some salad greens and you are good to go.

Notes: You can use minced beef or even boiled and mashed vegetables instead of the meat.
The above mentioned amount makes about 5 medium sized patties as well.
The curry powder mentioned is a mixture of all sorts of spices and powders and we get it here in grocery stores under- mild, medium and strong. I think you can use any meat masala in its place.
The kebabs are not spicy at all, so increase the amount of chilli powder or green chillies for a more spicier version. I made the dip spicy instead.
While adding salt, go according to your instinct because you obviously cant taste raw meat. The next time i am definitely going to jot down the measurement.
Go ahead and grill it on an outdoor BBQ or even in an oven for a max of 3 to 4 minutes each side. I tried one batch in the frying pan, but that means you have to add oil and I ended up making a mess. But not everyone's like me, so go ahead and fry it if that's more convenient.

The Yum Factor with South Indian pork fry and cumin flavoured rice

We are all such big fans of MasterChef aren't we?? Well I was one and still do catch bits and pieces of it on telly, but time constrains and such have made me reduce TV time drastically. That's when the 888ladies came up with a brilliant online MasterChef New Recipe Competition where you could win one of two Ikea kitchens worth 2000.

The Yum Factor-888 Ladies' search for Kitchen Superstar started on the 29th of March and runs till the 20th of  May 2011. The contest allows you to upload your original recipes on the competition website and visitors can vote for their favourite dish. After the panel of judges go through the collection, they will then decide which three entries go on to the final round Taste-off. And then in the Taste-Off, a professional chef will cook all three recipes for a panel of cooking experts and the two best among those will each win Ikea vouchers worth 2000 for a swanky new kitchen (now we all know how awesome Ikea kitchens are, don't we?).

Anyone can enter the competition. Just make sure the recipe is your own or adapted and then just get all your friends to vote for your recipe online, As simple as that. So what are you waiting for? Put on your Chef caps and get cooking.

I on the other hand is donning the head chef hat and so wont be able to attend the competition myself. Instead I have submitted this kick-ass recipe for pork fry and cumin rice and so do head over to the Yum Factor page to read the recipe.

Stir fried rice noodles and Pork Vindaloo

I was not that big of a pork fan till I somehow ended up making a pork fry once. The meat was so tender and it tasted so damn good, I made it again and again....but just that one preparation and that too with pork shoulders and none of that immensely greasy pork fat which I despise, and Ro loves. Its the same case with my mom as well. She makes yummy pork curries and stir fries, but has only the gravy. So the other day we were casually talking and then she suddenly blurt out that she'd made this amazing Pork Vindaloo and it was so good even SHE ate it. That was a revelation and so I decided to give it a go as well. I took down her recipe but got side tracked and came up with a more complicated recipe but the outcome was simply marvellous. 

The stir fried rice noodles also kinda happened by fluke. I have this bad habit of grabbing things at the supermarket and piling it up in my cart with the intention of making something with it, but the moment I get home I forget and end up throwing it out once other life starts growing on it. Yes these noodles were once part of that scenario, but this time Id done proper research on what to do with it and so it didn't get chucked. They came already cooked in these small packets (one of the reasons I picked it up in the first place) and all you need to do is stir fry it with whatever veggie or meat you want for 2 minutes and you're good to go. I decided to do a South Indian version (upma as its called). But once I tasted it, I wasn't too impressed. Its alright, not out of this world. So that's not really gonna make its way back into my kitchen that often, but the pork vindaloo..definitely a YES and strangely the combo was a good one.

Stir fried rice noodles (rice noodle upma)

(loosely adapted from here)

Rice noodles- 300 gms (cooked as per instructions)

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves- 1 sprig

Dry red chillies- 3

Urud/ chana dal- 1 tsp

Onion- 1 small, chopped into tiny pieces

Green chillies- 3, slit lengthwise

Ginger- 1/2 inch piece, thinly sliced

Frozen green peas- 1/4 cup

Oil- 1/2 tbsp

In a wok heat the oil and splutter mustard seeds.

Add the curry leaves, dal and dry red chillies and sauté for 5 seconds.

Add the onions, green chillies and ginger to this and saute on medium heat till the onions turn a little brown. Not too much though.

To this add the frozen green peas, salt and cooked rice noodles and on medium- high heat stir fry for a few minutes, making sure the masala is evenly coated.

Take it off the heat and serve hot with any curry of your choice.

Notes: You can add any veggie of your choice..carrots, beans etc.

I cut the long cooked strips of noodles randomly so i got smaller easier to handle strips before throwing it into the wok.

Pork Vindaloo

(a mix of Anjum Anand's recipe and Yummy o yummy's recipe)

Diced pork shoulder or any cut you please- 450 gms

Pepper powder- 1/2 tsp

Salt- to taste

To grind:

Cumin seeds- 1/2 tbsp

Cinnamon sticks- 1/2 inch piece

Cloves- 2

Cardamom seeds- from 3 cardamom pods. Lightly crush them and take off the seeds

Dry red chillies- 4

Whole black peppercorns- 1/2 tsp

Black mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp (I only had fenugreek powder so used about a 1/4 tsp)

Onion- 1 large, roughly chopped

Ginger paste- 1 tbsp

Garlic paste- 1 tbsp

Coriander powder- 1 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp

White wine vinegar- 2 tbsp

Brown sugar- 1/4 tsp

Oil- 1 tbsp

Marinate the cleaned pork cubes with pepper powder and enough salt. Keep aside.

Grind together all the ingredients under the 'to grind' section. Mix the white wine vinegar and brown sugar to the ground spices. Keep aside.

In a pressure cooker, heat the oil and sauté the onions on medium heat till they become slightly brown. About 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove with a slotted spoon and keep aside to cool slightly.

Once cooled, combine it with the spice-vinegar mix and blend to a smooth paste like consistency.

In the same pressure cooker, add some more oil if required and sauté the ginger and garlic paste till the raw smell goes.

Add the coriander powder and turmeric powder and stir for a further 2 minutes.

Finally add the ground spice-onion mix and sauté on medium heat till the oil starts separating.

Throw in the diced pork, salt and give a generous stir, making sure the masala coats all the pork cubes well.

Add about 2/3rds of a cup of water, give one more stir and close with the lid.

Once the steam appears, place the weight and cook for 3 to 4 whistles.

Wait till the steam releases on its own and then open the lid. Do a taste check, add salt if required.

There will still be some liquid left. Either leave as it is or if you want it dry, transfer the same to a frying pan and fry till you get the required consistency.

I paired it with the rice noodles and so I preferred some gravy.

Notes: You can make the same with beef, lamb or even chicken.

The curry was extremely spicy and I think the next time I'll reduce the red chillies to 2.

Its one of those curries that taste extremely good the next day.

Two for Tuesdays

Well these are two completely unrelated recipes and since they were both stupidly easy, I thought it was pointless separating them into two posts, but had to pen it down for my record.

Asparagus heads wrapped in streaky bacon and grilled

I am completely in love with asparagus. It all started with that asparagus thoran I made and then there was no looking back, Seriously, its just so pretty to photograph and I'm in love with the taste and what all it can do to a simple dish. We had guests over last Sunday and I made a mince meat bake, something like a shepherds pie, but with lots more veggies, garlic bread (thanks to Salisbury's) and then these asparagus heads wrapped in bacon as part of the main course. It was such a hit and the best part... I haven't ever made a dish that is easier than this, but tastes so darn awesome. 

Asparagus heads- 15 to 20

Smoked streaky bacon- 7

Salt and pepper- to season

Preheat oven to 175C and line a baking tray with silver foil or baking paper.

Arrange asparagus heads in sets of three and season with salt and pepper. 

Wrap then up with streaky bacon and place on the baking tray

Grill or bake for 15 minutes, turning it around after about 6 to 7 minutes. 

Drain on paper towels and serve immediately

Foodgawked :)

Notes: The bacon does the whole job of giving it a nice flavour. So there is not much seasoning you need to do. Also watch the salt, cos bacon is really salty.

You can wrap a single long asparagus shoot or do an arrangement of two instead of three.

Beetroot Pachadi (beetroot cooked in a mild coconut and curd gravy)

Yeah I know, what a contrast...well, I'd like to be philosophical and say, 'that's life,' but I'm not that boring, so here's to mallu goodness :)

I hate beetroot and so does Ro..so why did I pick it up, god knows..and that too a whole bunch. So whole of yesterday I spent googling beetroot recipes and was amazed at the number of recipes the www had to offer. I settled for beetroot kichdi and now I have an entire bowl of red stuff staring back at me and I don't know how id finish it and what I'd finish it with. It was pretty alright, taste-wise, but I'm not sure I want to make it a common visitor. Ro is yet to taste it and I can already see him making a face that would make you ask yourself that question, 'remind me again why I married this man!'

Beetroot- 2, medium ones, washed and thinly sliced (I have 3 more left, what do I do with it????)

Green chillies- 3, thinly sliced

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Water- 1/4 to 1/2 cup

Salt- to taste

Shredded coconut- 1/4 cup

Cumin powder- 1/4 tsp

Curd- 4 tbsp

Oil- 1 tsp

Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp

Fenugreek powder- a pinch (optional)

Curry leaves- a sprig

Dry red chillies- 2 or 3 (optional)

Cook the beetroot with the green chillies, turmeric powder, salt and water till done. Drain the water, if any and keep aside to cool. I took about 15 minutes.

In the meantime, grind together the coconut and cumin powder to a paste.

Add the curd to this, mix well and keep aside.

In the same blender, puree the cooked beetroot (I am not sure this step is compulsory, but I didn't want bite size beetroot slices to get in the way) and add to the curd- coconut mix. 

Do a tadka with the oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, fenugreek powder and red chillies and pour over the  kichdi. Give it a good stir and serve with rice.

I think you can put this mix back on the stove the warm it up a bit, but I didn't bother doing that.

Now you know why I don't make that many mallu dishes, I suck at it!

I still don't know the difference between a pachadi and kichdi..someone please enlighten me.

Edited to add: I changed the heading from Kichdi to Pachadi cos I think I got it mixed up and a lot of you wrote to me saying its more like a pachadi...Also I think I have mixed up the two pachadi-kichdi procedures together...like i said..i suck at making mallu dishes ;)

Spanish- style prawn and chorizo skewers

We have a George Foreman Grill which we put to continuous use...especially to grill burger patties and now, we even make pancakes in them. Since the weather in this part of the world is quite unpredictable, and since we've had bad luck with bbq's all the time, we have to depend on indoor grills like these to feel all summery. 

What i love about this grill is, how everything gets cooked so fast. I would also have to agree its a much healthier option, since the oil drips down. It has indeed made us highly fond of grilling and this prawn and chorizo on skewer is such an easy bbq/ grill idea that the whole thing is ready in a matter of 15 minutes, i.e, if you are really not keen on a half hour marinating period (like us) 

All said and done, George Foreman Grill or not, these can be whipped up in the oven or on stove top as well. So the next time you have a bbq planned, make sure this is def. on your menu.

King Prawns- 250 grams or about 25 to 30, deveined but preferably with tail on.

Mild paprika- 1 tsp

Lemon juice- 1/2 tbsp

Garlic cloves- 2, lightly crushed

Olive oil- 2 tbsp

Chorizo sausages- about 15 to 16 small slices

Chopped parsley- 2 tsp (I used about 1 tbsp dried parsley)

Pepper powder- to taste

Chilli powder- 1/4 tsp (optional)

Wooden skewers- 8, soaked in cold water for atleast 1/2 an hour

Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl and marinate the prawns and chorizo in it for half an hour or more. I didnt have the patience, so i used it immediately and it tasted just fine.

Thread the prawns and chorizo, alternating, on to each skewer.

If using an electric grill or bbq cook for about 3 to 4 minutes max on each side.

If using the grill mode in the oven, then preheat the oven to 175C and grill for about 6 to 7 minutes, each side..the oil from the chorizo oozes out, so keep a baking paper on a tray and do the needful.

On stove top, heat a large enough frying pan or griddle pan and do the 3 minute on each side cooking method...again loads of oil will ooze out of the chorizo. Drain on paper towels if necessary.

You can squeeze a lime on top if needed...season with more pepper and serve as an appetizer.

Notes: Chorizo can be replaced with veggies as well..peppers, zucchini, onions etc.

I had guests waiting to dig in and so couldn't take pics of the end result.

Tortilla Pinwheels- absolute party snack (did I say EASY?)

Had a summer picnic at a friends place today and it was kinda like a pot luck and I was given the job of bringing dessert. Since I was swarmed with work on Saturday- cleaning the house and making some grub for guests coming in on Monday, I conveniently bought a Thorntons celebration cake which was sinful to the core, but ya ya I agree, for a person who considers baking therapeutic, I should be ashamed to buy ready-made cake. I also had to pick up some nibbles, and again was about to buy crisps when I had this sudden thought and decided to MAKE something instead. I'd come across tortilla roll ups on Pan Gravy Kadai and thought of mixing and matching a few other recipes to come up with an easy option. Thank god, this moment of enlightenment happened on isle 6 of Sainsbury's and so picked up all the ingredients required and scooted. 

These tortilla pinwheels turned out nice (atleast Ro and myself thought so) and is incredibly easy to make especially if you have all the ingredients at hand. 

Tortilla- 3 large

Garlic and herb Philadelphia cream cheese- 1 tub, 200gms (room temperature)

Spring onions- 4, sliced

Jalapeño pepper- 1, de seeded and roughly chopped (optional)

Freshly ground pepper- to taste

Baby spinach- 3 cups or more if you please

Cured and cooked ham- 12 slices

Cheddar cheese- 1/2 cup (optional)

Cling film- to roll the tortilla

Mix the softened cream cheese, spring onions, jalapeño and pepper powder together in a large bowl. If its too thick, add a wee bit of water and loosen it up. You can either add grated cheese at this stage or later. 

Clean the spinach leaves (chop if required), drain and transfer to a microwave safe bowl with just enough water clinging form the leaves. Cover and cook in the microwave for 3 minutes. Drain the water.

Heat the tortilla's for about 6 to 7 seconds in the microwave.

Spread the cream cheese mix generously on the tortilla, sprinkle a cup of spinach leaves and spread out four ham slices on to each and top with grated cheese. If you want, sprinkle some freshly ground pepper too.

Roll it up tight, wrap with cling film and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 to 3 hours or over night.

Once ready, peel off the cling film, cut off the edges and slice the tortilla rolls into bite size pieces.

These pinwheels are best had cold, but you could warm it up too, if you are not that big a fan of cold food. Serve on a platter with salad leaves.

Notes: You can basically choose from a whole array of filling like turkey slices, olives, salmon, prosciutto ham etc.

You can use any soft cheese for the base or maybe even mayo.
Stick a toothpick through and serve it as an appetizer with drinks.


Edited to add: A big big big thanks to all my friends on FB who started following my blog (well after i shamelessly announced I was one follower short of a 100). It did mean a lot to me :)

Spanish favourite- Paella (two ways)

Did you guys see the Spain- Germany game? I secretly wanted Spain to win and voila they did. And as coincidence would have it, I made this Spanish favourite of ours today, and what better way to say 'way to go Spain' than with this utterly delicious all in one paella (pronounced paeya), a wholesome meal.

I was introduced to Spanish food two years back and there was no looking back. However, it was the Chorizo and seafood paella at Borough Market (Monchichi of 'Not another big menu' has given a nice description of Borough Market) that blew my mind away. Ro and myself used to frequently have lunch dates at Borough Market and if it wasn't the Thai curry stall, then it was definitely Paella and Sangria for lunch on Fridays. I never in my dreams thought I'd actually attempt making paella at home, but after doing some research online, I decided to give it a shot anyways, only to realize its one of the easiest meal preparations, especially because you can add in veggies and meat and what not and have it on its own. There was no hassle of gravy or side dish, just a glass (well a bottle in our case) of Rioja wine and we were happy!

Now, I have made two versions of it. One is the veggie version and the other a chorizo and shrimp version, both equally tasty and not out-of-the-way difficult.

Mixed veg. paella

White onion- 1, thinly sliced

Garlic- 4 pods, crushed and chopped into tiny slices

Courgette- 1 medium, sliced into small cubes

Red pepper- 1, cut into long thin strips (I used one red sweet pointed pepper)

Button mushrooms- 1/2 cup, cleaned and sliced

Jalapeño pepper- 1 large, roughly chopped (optional)

Tomato- 2 large, roughly chopped

Paprika- 1 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp (more if you want a stronger colour)

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Dried chilli's - 4, crushed

Paella rice/ risotto rice- 1 1/2 cups

Vegetable/ chicken broth/ water- 3 cups (hot)

Frozen peas- a handful

Spring onions/ scallions- 4, white part roughly chopped

Parsley- a few sprigs for garnish (optional)

Olive oil- 2 tbsp

Salt- to taste

Heat the olive oil in a container (big enough to hold the rice) and sauté the onions till soft and fragrant.

Add the garlic and continue sautéing for a few more minutes.

In goes the courgette, red pepper, mushrooms and jalapeño pepper. Cook on medium heat till the veggies are slightly cooked, stirring in between.

Add the chopped tomatoes and keep stirring. Cook till the oil starts to separate.

Add the paprika, turmeric and cumin powder, dried chilli flakes and salt. Combine well, making sure the veggies are all coated well.

Add the paella rice and mix well, stirring for about 3 to 4 minutes, till the rice begins to slightly crackle.

Add the hot stock/ water at this point. Give it a mix, close the lid and cook on medium to high flame till the rice is cooked through. If its starts burning or sticking to the vessel, pour some more water. Its ok if the mix is lightly mushy and loose, that's how the consistency should be.

Check for salt spice, add if required.

Add the frozen peas towards the end, about 3 minutes before you take it off the flame. Stir well and just before serving throw in the scallions and garnish with parsley leaves.

Non- veg version

Spanish chorizo- 3/4 cup, diced

Shrimp- 200gms, de-veined and cleaned

In a frying pan, cook the chorizo slices for 5 to 6 minutes or until soft.

Add the shrimp to this and cook on high heat for a few minutes. The oil oozing out of the paella will give a nice flavour to the shrimp and will also cook it.

Drain on paper towels. Keep aside.

At the stage where you add the green peas to the rice mix, add the cooked chorizo and shrimp and give it a final stir.

Edited to add: this pic got tastespotted and foodgawked:)

Notes: Any vegetable of your choice can be used, for example, zuccini, asparagus, beans etc.

Any meat and seafood of your choice can also be included. Mussels, squid, chicken etc. are very popular

I did not have stock with me, so I used water. It turned out perfectly fine. Next time however I would like to add about a half cup white wine as well.

Paella is actually made in a paella dish which I didn't have. I guess a heavy-based saucepan would be your closest bet.

Sending the Mixed veg. Paella to the AWED-Spain event hosted by Priya this month, brain child of DK  of Chef In You.

Mushroom and Salami Cutlets by Miri

Me and Miri of In Vogue at Home are cousins, but it wasn't till recent times (about a year back probably) that we started talking to each other over chat and realising that we had way lots in common than we gave credit for. And as coincidence would have it, we started the food blog more or less at the same time and would have numerous discussions over chat about interesting blogs we've discovered, events we want to take part in, pushing each other to be active bloggers, shopping, photography, bitching and just about anything and everything. She came down to London for a holiday and we ended up having the best time ever...and more than a cousin, I now value her as a close friend. So when Miri agreed to do a guest post on my blog, I was thrilled. She has some interesting recipes on her blog and what interests me the most is her love for vegetables and how easy her recipes are. She experiments with them and her love for mushrooms gave way to this interesting combination of salami and mushrooms ...a combination I would have never thought of. Thanks Miri for being generous enough to do a guest post for me :)

Here is the recipe she coined:

Fresh Mushrooms- 400 gms, chopped

Salami or Bacon- 4 slices if using Salami and 3 if its Bacon (I used Salami)

Butter- 2 tbsp

Eggs- 2

Bread- 1 slice, crumbled (I used Brown Bread, but any type would be fine)

Onion- 1 small, roughly chopped

Black pepper- to taste

Salt- to taste

For frying:

All purpose flour, 1 egg, beaten and bread crumbs (in this order)- take as much as required

Oil- enough for shallow frying ( basically just to brown the cutlets)

Heat the butter in a pan and fry the onions. Once they are golden brown, add the chopped mushrooms.

Season with salt and pepper and cook until soft

Add the chopped salami, crumbled bread and eggs

Once the mixture cools a little, shape them into small pancakes, or rounds or ovals or any shape you fancy

Frying:

Coat the cutlets in flour, dip it in the egg and breadcrumbs and fry until golden brown.

Drain on paper towels and serve them on their own as a starter or with fluffy mashed potato and some green salad. If you want to store them in your freezer for later use, you can do that as well.

Notes: The Salami and Bacon will already have some salt in it, so be careful when you add salt

The bread acts as a binding agent here instead of boiled potatoes which are commonly used in cutlets.

Pandhi Curry

This is Roshans version of the Coorg Pandhi curry which he claims is the most tastiest thing on earth. I'm not a big fan of pork, but this one tasted pretty good. Its not the healthiest of dishes and so I'd not want to have it on a regular basis. Its best with ghee rice, but we had it with Pita bread instead.

Pork- 1kg cut into bite size pieces

Onions- 2 big chopped fine

Jeera- 2 tsp

Coriander pwd- 1 tbs

Chilli pwd- 1/2 tsp

Turmeric pwd-1/2 tsp

Pepper pwd- 1/2 tsp

Ginger- 1 tbs crushed coarse

Garlic- 1 tbs cut fine

Green chillies- 3 slit lengthwise

Salt- to taste

In a heavy bottomed pan boil the onions, pork and 1 tsp jeera with a bit of water. When it becomes semi-gravy like, add the remaining 1 tsp jeera, the powders, ginger, garlic, the green chillies and enough salt and cook till done. The meat will be nice and soft and all the masala would have caught on to the pork very well.

Note: We bought about 500gms of stir fry chunks without any fat and bought the rest as loin with some fat on it.

Its a really spicy dish, so go easy on the chilli pwd if you dont want it so hot

Oil seeps out in plenty and after you refrigerate it overnight, you can actually scoop off the oil that forms a layer on top.

Coriander leaves and curry leaves add that extra flavour and the recipe asks for it, but my man here dislike all those 'leaves' as he calls it and didn't add any. I would have loved it though

Ginger garlic paste will do the trick if you do not have ginger and garlic separately.