my favorite kitchen gadgets

Thats my tiny kitchen and gadgets i can't live without.

The slicer and right knives along with the red pepper grinder, a blender and my fun tea pot.

These are all valuable products and yet very affordable and worth every buck you spent. Most of them are available in regular stores and my tea pot in asian stores.

Take time to build up your kitchen because that will make you feel more at home than anything else.

Thai food in seconds

I am amazed at everyone who dedicatedly take pics after they are done with cooking and post it along with their recipe. I'm too lazy or may be very instinctive. I never plan on cooking something unless I have been craving it for a week or so.

By the time the food gets done am all in the eating mode and realise once the plate is cleaned up that i should have taken the pic. Anyways here is the Thai Green chicken curry. If you have seen my earlier post you know I had my bottle of the curry, you get it everywhere these days in international grocery stores.

to get

• green chicken curry paste or sauce


• chicken (boneless)


• oil

I had drumstick chicken in my fridge, so I defrosted and cut off the chicken from the bone.

to do

• heat a pan and add 1 table spoon of oil


• add the chicken and just let it sear in the pan on both sides (cover the pan)


• once done, open up the green chicken curry (bring it to room temperature)


• remove the chicken and add the curry paste in the same pan


• let it boil for a few minutes and add the chicken to it

Remember the drumstick that I have used for the chicken and I had stripped the meat clean from the bone. So, now I take a stock pot and add 5-6 cups of water, salt and pepper, one onion and 5 cloves of garlic and add in the bones. The product- home made chicken stock. Let it boil for an hour and strain off the liquied or easier (what i do), just throw away the bones.

the chicken rice

• to be served with the green curry


• take a small container and add the stock to it and let it boil


• rinse a cup of rice (make sure you have the right amount so extra liquid does not stay behind, i eyeball my measurements)


• let the rice boil and add a little black pepper or chopped bell peppers if you like.


• once it is done, serve with the green chicken curry

You can add vegies to it and you can serve yourself one hearty meal even without the chicken curry or throw in some leftover meat to the rice.

(pics: courtesy google images. I promise will try to think of clicking pics and restrain myself from eating the delicious food next time)

magazine scribblings

I have been scribbling in this Chicago local magazine for a while now............ and I thought it would be nice to have the link here.

http://wassuplocal.wehaa-server2.com/

My article is on page 34-35...so you have to use the navigation buttons! Last week I tried green chicken curry and will place the recipe soon. Enjoy the Sunday!

My Award

Look what I have got! Look to your right- the cute pink award. Rv just handed it over to me and am so excited!

More posts coming your way.

grocery today

I love to cook and nothing is better than a well stocked kitchen-

• red potato
• white potao
• red onions
• yellow onions
• egg plant
• cilantro
• salmon steak
• tuna steak
• salt
• thai green curry in a bottle
• italian bread
• mango preserve
• cauliflower
• turkey slices
• pickled jalapeno

steak time

Tonight for dinner I am planning on having tuna steaks and veggies. I had a salmon steak a few months back and liked it so much I decided to try tuna today.

Yesterday, we actually went for a steak dinner at “Chilies” and I enjoyed it too. We ordered a plate with half rack of baby back ribs and a steak with a side serving of mashed potatoes and veggies. The dinner ended with a cheesecake.

The portion size was so big that two of us actually could share it easily. It was a cool think to do, instead of ordering two entrees which happens most of time times and I never end up eating it entirely. So I have to pack them because I don’t want to waste it and it doesn’t feel so good the next day.

So, we actually decided to split one entrée for both of us and waited to see the quantity. It turned out to be a smart decision. The meal was delicious and it also gave us the chance to grab a dessert- the cheesecake.

Ah- all that gibberish. Today I got both the tuna and the salmon steaks. Now for the dinner plans-

The tuna steak
Season with salt and pepper on both sides
Heat a wide pan with vegetable oil
Add the tuna and fry both sides
When done heat up your oven top grill and place it there
One minute on both sides and they look yummy

The veggies
Clean fresh beans
Dice one red potato ( I like to keep carbs to minimum)
Boil one pot of hot water and add salt to it
Blanch the beans and potato in it
Drain off the water
Add the veggies to the pan with a little oil and one clove of garlic
Add salt and pepper

Serve the tune steak with veggies and if you are in a mood light up a candle and pour for yourself a glass of wine.

(the other pic is a to-go tiramisu available in downtown Chicago in cafe BACCI).

garbanzo salad

A light salad is a perfect snack or meal anytime. Here is the 10 minutes summer chick pea/garbanzo salad salad.

You need-

• garbanzo beans
• green pepper
• onions
• tomatoes
• lemon
• salt and pepper
• olive oil

It's as simple as it looks, just heat up your grill and throw some onions and green pepper, even tomatoes if you want to. Rinse the garbanzo beans and add it to a bowl. once the grilling is done, chop it finely and all the green pepper and onions to the bowl, add salt and pepper, a squeeze of lemon and some oilive oil, toss it and you are good to go!

delicious potstickers

Sunday is the only day I get to try experimenting new dishes. I have been eating out a lot and it has added a few visible calories on my waistline. I decided to stop it right there and get back to cooking more at home and eating healthy.

I love going to downtown everyday and though I bag my lunch, after a hectic day and all those eating places all around i sneak out to get some lunch. I did find some great places and fabulous dishes.


Today, I decided to try making some potstickers, I bought the potsticker wrappers last month and have been sitting in my fridge like forever. I had some shrimp and decided to give it a try. what came out was really good......I didnt expect it to turn out that perfect!


So, try this out and here's the recipe-

You need-

• potsticker wrappers (available in asian/international grocery stores)
• oil
• shrimp (fresh/frozen)
• onion
• garlic
• turmeric
• chilli flakes
• salt and pepper

To do

The filling

• keep your potsticker wrappers in the refrigerator and not in the freezer.
• pull them out and let it come to the room temperature.
• meanwhile clean up your shrimp
• put your pan in medium flame and add vegetable oil
• out the shrimo and let it get lightly fried
• add the onions and garlic and stir it all together
• when almost done, add a pinch of turmeric, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste.
• when they are almost red and done, take it off the flames and let it rest for a minute.
• transfer the whole pan to the food processor/blender
• pulse it, till it is all smooth and done. add a little water if needed.
• transfer it to the pan and heat up a little and stir, so the water evaporates and you potstickers don't seem runny.

The Final Act

• keep a bowl of room temperature water.
• take a wrapper and fill in a scoop of the shrimp filling
• dab our index finger with water, add wet the sides of the wrapper.
• fold the wrapper and make sure to have it sealed.
• once done, add some oil to the pan and out it on medium flame
• add the potstickers to the pan one by one and let them fry 1 minute each side.
• now the trick, add a little water to the pan (just enough to cover the bottom of the pan)
• close the lid of your pan and let it steam
• the water will evantually evaporate and since it had the left over oil in it, will fry ligtly again.
• transfer them to the dish and serve with a tomatillo salsa.

Now, thats a perfect Sunday meal and couple it with some good reads and you are ready for a grilling week coming ahead.

10 minute Lunch

How much do you cook on weekdays if you are working full time?

Yeah, I do but really it's more of a way to feed my hunger than trying out new things. After working for long hours I most of the time don't have the energy to cook. Do you take lunch along or take it as an oppurtunity to find out new places and cuisines to eat during lunch hours?

As for me I brown bag my lunch, days that I dont I look for some eats outside. The positive sit that you dont end up over eating and adding calories you dont need. I make my lunch early morning, which means it's a relatively short process. Last week was mostly burrito- it works great. To do that better I get some sauces or salsa prepared during the weekend and I refrigerate it. It definitely adds flavor, doesnt have preservatives and is all healthy.

So, today here are some recipes of sauces and my 10 minute burrito that kept me going for lunch last week. First, a cilantro sauce and second a salsa and third hummus.

Cilantro Sauce-All you need is a food processor.

• Add one entire bunch of cilantro
• 3/4 cloves of garlic
• green chillies
• salt
• pepper

Thats it, pulse it till it's done and you can keep it in the refreigerator for the rest of the week to use in sandwich, pita bread, burrito or even grill chicken with.

Tomatoe salsa- A food processor is needed.

• tomatoes
• green chilli
• chopped onions-1
• garlic- 3/4 cloves
• salt
• pepper
• olive oil
• cilantro

Put everything together in the processor except the onion and cilnatro and just pulse it, till its done. Once it gets the consistency, transfer it to air tight containers to be refrigerated. Add the choppped onions and a handful of cilantro and if you have a squeeze of lemon. To give it a twist roast the tomatoe and the garlic, it brings out the flavor more.

Also, if you keep tomatoes in the refigerator for a longer period of time it kind of gets mushy, so this is a better way to store it longer and not having to throw it away.

Hummus-

• garbanzo beans-2 cans
• garlic-3/4
• olive oil
• salt
• pepper
• roasted sesame seeds

Rinse the canned beans well and add the rest in the food processor and pulse it. You are all done. you can use it as a dip with fruits or chips or in burrito.

Now that you are all prepped up all you need is just 1o minutes in the monring to get your lunch all together.

10 minute Burrito

• warm up your skillet while you make your morning coffee
• warm the burrito in the skillet
• add olive oil and toss in some mushroom, or some mixed vegies (i use the frozen packet- saves time)
• if you have some left over chicken/fish/eggs/bacon you can chop it to or just use vegies.
• place the burrito on a flat place and add the vegies and whatever you want to include
• add your choice of sauce from above- cilnatro/hummus/tomatoe salsa and wrap it up carefully
• place the inner contents in the middle of the burrito and then fold it horizontally first and then veritically.
• wrap it up in paper and finally in a foil.
• even if you dont have time to warm it up at lunch, it will taste wonderful.

I hope you like it. Next week is my all sandwich week and may be some salads. So, I got some French bread, fruits, chives and my sauces ready today.

Biryani- well almost

Last weekend was fabulous I visited my newly found friends in Elgin and had a wonderful time. To top it off, they took me out for dinner and lunch (the next day) and we chatted till I had a sore throat. It was great, very relaxing and their wonderful house is picture perfect. The next evening she had invited a few of their close friends for dinner and I stayed back before driving all the way to the city.

Working women and kitchen have not always been best friends but I disagree. While it is easier to order out and save the hassle to cook and then clean which no one enjoys after a hectic day at work, some perform it graciously. The party was a hit, people enjoyed and sipped their drinks and talked about the difference between the working and stay at home women/wife. My friend with her high profile full time job had managed to cook for all her friends a complete seven course meal. The meal was perfect and yet people pondered if she had actually cooked. It was weird as if women with degrees and a job are not supposed to be good cooks. I drove back later with food all packed in by her to keep me going for the rest of the week.

I have enjoyed her hospitality and the food. So, while am still seated in my couch with Doris Lessing’s “Golden Notebook” and jotting down pointers to be included in my next column, I’ m thinking about dinner and the fact that I love to cook.

Here is one of my recipes that work best if you have left over rice and want a good meal and yet don’t want to spend your entire Friday in the kitchen. Biryani or Chicken fried rice is fast and yummy. Don’t take it as the authentic recipe for Biryani, because it is not. It’s the fast way out to enjoy some traditional cooking.

Fetch
Left over chicken/fresh chicken/lamb
Left over rice
Onion
Biryani spice mix (in Indian grocery/multi-ethnic grocery stores)
Oil
Salt & pepper
Ginger and garlic paste
Yogurt (if you have in refrigerator)
Chili powder/flakes (optional)

Marinate
Add the ginger and garlic paste, salt, pepper, half chopped onion, chili powder, one tablespoon of yogurt to the chicken and marinate. Make sure it’s all mixed well. If you have planned it early marinate for 3-5 hours, if not as long as you can. Half an hour would be fine.

To Do
Heat a skillet in high flame
Add oil
Lightly toss and turn the chicken don’t have to fry it completely (if you are watching your calories).
Keep the skillet covered so that the chicken gets cooked. If you don’t want to fry it all the way, add ½ cup water to it and let it simmer.
Remove the chicken and keep it aside.
In the same skillet add oil, then the rest of the chopped onion and fry until light brown
Add garlic and pepper and 1-2 tablespoon of the biryani mix powder, according to the amount of rice used.
Once mixed together and lightly fried, add the rice and mix it well. Stir it for 2-3 minutes.
Add the chicken to the rice in the skillet and cover it with the lid and let it cook for a minute before you serve.
Serve with a garden salad and enjoy!

(Pic: Courtesy Google images)