Beef mappas

Recipe adapted from here

To pressure cook

Beef- 500gms (cut into medium cubes)

Freshly ground coarse pepper- 1/2 tsp

Garam masala- 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Crushed garlic- 1 heaped tsp

Crushed ginger- 1 heaped tsp

Green chilli- 2, slit

Shallots- 12 small, roughly chopped

Vinegar- 1 tsp

Water- 1/2 cup

Salt- to taste

For the curry

Coconut oil- 2 tbsp

Cinnamon- 1 inch stick

Cardamom- 3 pods

Cloves- 3 pods

Onion- 2 big, finely chopped

Crushed ginger- 2 tsp

Crushed garlic- 1 1/2 tsp

Green chilli- 1, slit

Curry leaves- 1 sprig

Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp

Coriander powder- 2 tsp

Freshly ground black pepper- 2 scant tsps

Garam masala- 1 tsp

Meat masala- 1/2 tsp (optional)

Tomato- 2 small, finely chopped

Potato- 1 large peeled and cut into largish cubes

Thin coconut milk- 2 1/4 cups

Fennel seed powder- 1 tsp + enough to sprinkle

Thick coconut milk- 1/2 cup

Salt- to taste

To temper

Coconut oil- 1 tsp

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Shallots- 3 to 4 small ones, roughly chopped

Dried red chilli- 1 large, broken in half

Curry leaves- 1 sprig

Mix together all the ingredients to pressure cook and cook till the beef is done. 

I cook on high heat till the steam comes and only then put the weight. Wait for one whistle, and then i reduce heat to medium low and cook for about 15 minutes. 

Once the time is up, remove from heat and wait for the steam to die on its own and then open the lid.

Heat a large pan over medium heat and add the coconut oil

Throw in the whole spices and once they become fragrant add the onions, crushed ginger, garlic, curry leaves and green chilli. Cook till the raw smell disappears and the onions turn a light golden brown.

Add all the spice powders and give a good mix. Cook this for about a minute or two.

Mix in the chopped tomatoes and cook till they turn mushy. You can cover and cook to speed up this process.

In goes the potato, give a good mix so the masala coats the potatoes.

Pour in the cooked beef along with all the stock and stir it all together.

Pour in the thin coconut milk and cook covered for about 12 to 15 minutes till the potatoes are cooked and the curry comes to a light boil.

Check for salt and add more if required and also don't forget to stir in between.

Once it comes to a boil mix in the fennel seed powder.

Cook without the lid for another 5 or 6 minutes, for the gravy to thicken.

Finally, add the thick coconut milk and heat through. It shouldn't come to a boil after you've added the thick coconut milk.

Sprinkle a little fennel powder on top, close with a lid and remove from heat.

To temper (I do this just before serving, after I've heated up the curry), heat coconut oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds.

Once they splutter, add the dried red chilli, shallots and curry leaves and cook till the shallots turn golden brown.

Pour over the curry and leave covered for a few minutes after which you can stir well and serve with bread of choice.

Its ridiculously tasty with appam, idiapppam and bread.

Notes: When buying beef make sure you buy it was a bit of fat, trust me it makes a world of a difference.

I thought the pepper flavour was a bit over powering, so next time id reduce it to about 1 1/2 tsp in the curry.

Its a really thick, delicious curry which tastes much better the next day. 

Brioche French Toast

Serves 3 as part of breakfast

Whole milk- 1 cup

Double cream- 1/4 cup

Eggs- 3

Vanilla extract- 1/2 tsp

Dark brown sugar- 1/4 cup

Salt- a pinch

Brioche bread- 6, one inch thick slices

Butter- 1 1/2 tbsp

Whisk together the milk, double cream, eggs, vanilla brown sugar and salt in a bowl until well combined.

Arrange the brioche slices in a high rimmed baking tray, without overlapping each other

Pour the milk-egg mix over the bread slices, making sure all the pieces are soaked.

Cover with a cling film and leave in the fridge for about an hour.

Remove after 2 hours and flip the bread slices over, carefully.

Cover with cling film and place back on the fridge for another hour.

 

When ready to cook, place a frying pan over medium heat and melt about 1/2 tbsp butter.

Fry the bread slices till they turn golden brown on both sides. 

Do them in batches of 2, as its easier to manage. Make sure you dont burn them. 

After each batch, add more butter, 1/2 tbsp at a time and continue frying.

If you feel the butter is getting burnt, use a kitchen towel to wipe off the burnt butter before proceeding with the next batch.

Dust some icing sugar on top and serve with honey, maple syrup or golden syrup and fruit on the side.
If you would like to try a butterscotch brioche bread pudding, you can find the recipe here

Notes: Add 1/2 tsp cinnamon or a pinch of nutmeg to the batter for another version.

Soaking the bread till all of the liquid is used up is ideal, but if you are short of time, you can leave it for just half an hour or so just till the bread slices are pretty well soaked.

I fried the bread in my Le Creuset cast iron pan and it worked wonders because of the heat retention.

Harissa spiced eggs on cheesy English muffins

My boss Dora is one of the best cooks I've come across. Till we moved to our professional kitchen a year back, I had the privilege of enjoying some of her cooking during lunch breaks and it was my first foray into the world of French food. Not only are her creations delicious, the fact that she used to whip them up in no time was something that amazed me. Be it a simple puff pastry pizza, or her signature vegetable lasagna- the taste was consistent all throughout, not to mention the copious amounts of mint tea we used to drink during brainstorming sessions.

I mentally wrote down her quick recipes and of course threw so many doubts her way as well. She is the one who made me experiment with aubergines for the first time, and enjoy fish in various forms (Ro secretly thanks her for my tolerance to mackerel now). Dora's Tunisian routes (which is her strong point, even when it comes to macaron flavours) made the dishes even more interesting. She introduced me to harissa, ras-el-hanout, brik pastry and so many other ingredients and dishes that were then new to me.

This recipe or rather creation is truly Dora's. When we were short of time she would whip this up in a matter of minutes and i would devour it without batting an eyelid. I have watched her do it so many times, but even now it just doesn't taste as unique as hers. I remember making it at home the first time and it was an instant hit with Ro. I have then made it at several brunch sessions and everyone s absolutely enjoyed it.

Over time i changed the procedure and ingredients a bit, but it still is hands down one of the best recipes I've learnt from Dora. I have also used the authentic home made harissa paste she gave me, which is as authentic as it can get.. Once you taste the real thing, you will not want to try any of the store bought versions.

On a different note, i think i have cracked my lighting issue. It's still a bit harsh, but i have narrowed down my light source and that is half of the issue sorted there. Now i just have to play around with diffusing and stuff to get it right. Talking about photography, this recipe goes straight to the #happyeggtastemakers challenge this month, which is to cook something using the happy eggs co and photograph it using food stylist and instagrammer Marte Marie Forsberg's top 5 tips for creating the best looking food. I hope i have done justice to the image, seriously, it tasted fab.

This harissa spiced baked eggs are so easy to make, you have to try it out. You can do so many different versions of it, and it would just not go wrong. Thank you Dora, for all those cooking lessons which you unknowingly instilled in me. I really do miss it :)

Serves 2

English muffins- 2, sliced in half to get 4

Cheddar cheese slices- 4

Spring onion greens- 2 tsp (to garnish)

Olive oil- 1 tbsp

Shallot- 1 large, finely chopped

Bell pepper- 1, finely chopped

Garlic- 1/2 tbsp, finely chopped

Harissa paste- 2 generous tsp

Tomato- 2 small, finely chopped

Double cream- 1/4 cup

Salt and pepper- to taste

Eggs- 4

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

Place the muffins, cut side up and top with the cheddar cheese slices

Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet and saute the shallot, bell pepper and garlic till soft, around 3 minutes on medium high heat.

Make a paste with the harissa and some water and add to the pan.

Stir till it loosens and coats the vegetables.

Add the tomato slices and cook till they turn mushy, after which you pour in the double cream and mix it all together

Season with salt.

Separate the mix in a few places and break the eggs into them.

Break the yolk and stir it gently into the mix. This is purely optional, you can of course leave the yolk intact

Bake for 10 minutes, or till the eggs are cooked. 

Around 5 minutes into the baking time, put in the tray with the muffins.

Once done- the eggs cooked and the cheese on the muffins melted, take them out of the oven, wait for a few minutes for the bubbling to settle.

Slice the baked eggs into four and place on the cheesy muffins.

Garnish with spring onions and serve warm.

Notes: You can use bread slices, ciabatta, crumpets (these are the best) and any break of choice as the base

Add prawns, shredded chicken, minced meat etc to the mix before topping with the egg

With thanks to the happy egg co for the voucher