My 'go to' tomato sauce and a chicken tikka pizza

Till recently I used to buy pizza sauce and marinara sauce for pasta and such and after using half of the bottle, the remaining used to stay in the fridge where it would grow other inedible stuff and finally make its way through to the bin. And then again, when I needed a couple of spoons of tomato sauce for a pizza, I'd go out and buy a bottle which would repeat the same cycle.

That's when a friend mentioned she made her own tomato sauce and it freezes really well. I shrugged off the idea saying I'd never really do it because it sounded like a tough job. What I didn't know was the number of easy peacy recipes on the internet that fetched me same results. So off I went on a fanatic search and came up with this easy to do recipe that suited my taste buds and more importantly, was easy to prepare. I now use this for any kinda dishes like in a lasagna, for spaghetti meatballs and of course as the pizza sauce. If not anything, it works well as a dip for those tortilla chips as well. 

So yesterday after a rather heavy dinner, the husband suddenly announces that he wants pizza. I had a doubt if I heard him right and asked him what he meant. He said he had a craving for pizza. Yes, craving is the exact word he used. I said if he was hungry, I could make a couple more rotis, but no he wanted pizza and only pizza.

Well too bad, I wasn't going to make pizza at 8 in the night nor was I gonna order pizza because I was too damn full to eat anything more. Fed him some grapes and promised I'd make pizza soon. Well little did I know it would be this soon, but I ended up making it today and even had the will power to take some pics in spite of the lighting being shitty and such.

I happened to have some sauce tucked away in my freezer and thought it was a good idea to blog it since I intend on making it again. I also had some leftover chicken tikka from a dinner party on Sunday and decided to go for an Indianised version, just for kicks. I'm mighty thrilled with the outcome, as I have evolved from the amoeba shaped pizza to a rather round-like one in about 6 months. I'm getting there people, I'm getting there :)

On a completely different note, a big thanks to my uber creative friend Arun for doing the header for me. He's such a genius, you should check out some of his work here. When he becomes an aspiring film maker, I'm not gonna have this privilege. But till then I'm definitely gonna harass him for random stuff like this. Thanks a bunch A.

Sending the tomato sauce and pizza to the 'Taste for Tomatoes' competition over at Love the Garden. Now I'm just crossing my fingers and waiting to see if I've won :)

Tomato sauce (loosely adapted from Jamie Oliver's recipe)

Chopped tomatoes- 400 gms (canned)

Garlic- 5 cloves, peeled and finely chopped

Fresh basil leaves- a handful, cleaned and torn

Olive oil- 1 1/2 tbsp

Dried oregano- 1/2 tsp

Dried red chilli- 2, broken in half (optional)

Salt and pepper- to taste

Into a saucepan add the olive oil and once it becomes hot throw in the chopped garlic.

Swirl it around a bit and once it changes colour a bit, add the tomato followed by all other ingredients.

Stir well and bring to a boil.

Then reduce heat to low and let it simmer away for about 20 minutes, and remember to stir in between.

Once it becomes thick and saucy-like, remove from heat and let it cool for a while.

using an immersion blender, blend to a smoother consistency.

Store in sterilized glass jars and once completely cool, freeze.

When ready to use again, thaw at room temperature, gently heat at a really low temperature and use again.

Notes: I added a wee bit of home made garam masala to the tomato sauce because i was doing a chicken tikka pizza. 

The red chillies add a bit of spice, so omit if you dont want a spicier version.

Chicken tikka pizza (makes 2 8-inch pizzas)

For the base (recipe halved from here)

Plain flour- 250 gms

Olive oil- 2 tbsp

Salt- 1/2 tsp

Luke warm water- 150 ml

Active dry yeast- 1 tsp

Sugar- 1/4 tsp

For the topping:

Above mentioned tomato sauce- 1 cup 

Chicken tikka pieces- 2 cups (recipe from here, the first part only i.e, the marinade and then grill as per instructions)

Grated Mozzarella cheese- 1/4 cup (optional)

Fresh mozzarella balls- 2 medium, sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices

Cherry tomatoes- 1/2 cup, each of them sliced in half

Spinach leaves- 1/4 cup, pre cooked in the microwave for a couple of seconds

Grated Parmesan cheese- a couple of spoons (optional)

Olive oil- to drizzle

In a small bowl mix together the yeast and sugar and pour in 50ml lukewarm water. 

Mix well and leave aside for about 10 minutes by which time the yeast would bubble up.

In another large bowl whisk together the flour and salt and rub into it the olive oil, till slightly crumbly.

Once the yeast mix is ready, pour it into the flour mix along with 100ml lukewarm water, and using your hand mix till they all come together.

Lightly flour a work surface and knead till it is no longer sticky, say for about 4 to 5 minutes (yeah that's all it takes, trust me).

Place it back in the bowl, cover with a damp kitchen towel and keep aside to rise for about an hour.

When you are ready to make the pizza, punch down the dough, knead it a couple of times and roll it out into the desired shape and to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. I used my silicone mat for this purpose so didn't need any flour. If doing so on your work top, then lightly flour the surface.

Place in a lightly greased pizza pan and then using your fingers stretch it out further.

Generously douse with the tomato sauce, leaving about half an inch from the edges.

Top with grated mozzarella, if using, or else place the chicken tikka slices randomly. Don't crowd it too much though.

Next, arrange the chopped tomatoes followed by fresh mozzarella.

Finally top with the cooked spinach leaves, drizzle some olive oil and place in an oven preheated at 200C.

Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, by which time the cheese would have melted.

Once you take it out, you can sprinkle some freshly grated Parmesan cheese, drizzle some more olive oil, slice and serve with a glass of wine...BLISS!

Notes: Add olives and mushrooms if you feel like and as a veg option, paneer tikka can be used. Just replace the chicken in the recipe with paneer.

The pizza is crisp around the edges and soft at the centre, just like we love it.

It is thin crust and not deep pan. For that you will have to keep the base thicker while rolling it out.

Spicy Tuna Cutlet

Since Ro visited the doc the other day, he's been on my trip to make food that's rich in iron. Now other than Palak (which again i only know the usual palak paneer, palak aloo, dal) i really don't know what else is rich in iron. I am anaemic and it would do me good as well. So after doing some research we found out that oily fish like tuna is rich in iron. I detest eating sea food and among the list of other oily fish, tuna was the only acceptable one to me because i could make cutlets out of it and masala-fy it so much, it hardly tastes of fish. A friend of mine, here in UK, suggested cutlets and said they were easy to make if you buy the tuna in cans. Making beef cutlets were a task and so i quit making them long time back. This was my second attempt at making tuna cutlets and they came out really well. You can make them in plenty and freeze them and they come as a really big help on a rainy day when you are in no mood to cook and cant go out either.

I was also having this conversation about tuna to a blogger friend and she said it was way too expensive to waste on cutlets. Well, what i think is, making cutlets would thoroughly make it worth buying an expensive can of tuna....one because you get about 30 small cutlets out of a 400gm tuna can, and two...it will last you a long time if you freeze it. Whereas if you make a curry or masala fry out of it, I'm sure it will vanish in seconds. Just a thought! Do give it a shot the next time you pick up a can.

Here is the recipe:

Canned tuna- 400gms in brine (tuna in brine, water or oil..any of it is fine).

Potato- 1 large (ones we get here are humongous so i used only one) or 2 if medium sized

Onions- 1 large (white or red) diced into thin, small pieces

Green chillies- 4 sliced into small pieces

Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp

Coriander pwd- 1 tsp

Pepper pwd- 1 tsp

Biriyani masala- 1/2 tsp

Lemon juice- 1 tsp

Oil- 2 tbs

Salt- to taste

To fry:

Egg- 1

Bread crumbs

Oil- enough to shallow fry

Open the tuna can and completely drain out the liquid.

In a wok heat the oil and throw in the onions and green chillies. When golden brown, add the Ggp, mix well till the raw smell dies. Now add the tuna chunks and mix well, breaking it into finer pieces. After the 'fishy' smell has completely gone, add the biriyani masala, coriander pwd and the salt required. Mix at intervals for about 8 to 10 minutes and then add the lime juice and pepper pwd. Make sure the mixture is not too dry and doesn't stick to the vessel. If so, add some more oil. Take it off the flame after about 5 to 6 minutes and keep aside.

Wash and boil the potato. I used the microwave method for this, as it is faster and more convenient. Alternatively, you can boil it or pressure cook with water. Once its done, peel and mash the potato with a masher, fork or your hands. Make sure there are no lumps. Add the mashed potato to the tuna and mix well with your hands. You can increase spiciness, salt, lime juice etc. at this stage if it isn't enough.

Make small balls out of the mixture and shape it in whichever way you like (round or oval).

Beat the egg and keep a plate with the bread crumbs ready. Dip each ball into the egg, roll it in the bread crumbs and if you are not frying them immediately, at this stage you can freeze them. Use zip lock bags or a plastic container and place the cutlets apart, without touching one another, so its easier to take out the required number and thaw them later.

Whereas if you are frying it, beat the egg and keep a plate with the bread crumbs ready. Dip each ball into the egg, roll it in the bread crumbs and shallow fry in hot oil till both sides are brown.

Notes: I got about 30 small cutlets from a 400gm tuna can. Double it if you want to make more.

You can also use the tuna mix (before you shape them) for sandwiches. Will post a recipe for that later

Like i mentioned before, i have masala-fied it to take the fishiness off. You can reduce the masala to suit your taste

If you do not have bread crumbs, you can make them on your own. Place a few slices of bread in the microwave and heat on high for about 3 minutes, or till they become crispy. Break them into smaller pieces and grind them in a mixer till they are fine and powdery. Alternatively, you can put the pieces in a zip lock bag and crush with a mallet.