Christmas chicken curry

Christmas is a special time of the year! We await it with great anticipation even if there is nothing to do other than church and a feast that day... Time of joy and acceptance and sharing.. all goody goodies :D :D The perfect day of the year!

And my Christmas chicken curry has nothing to do with Christmas! I named this so for the divine reason that I used all the remaining goodies in my fridge, which by themselves weren't voluminous enough to make solo curries, thereby showing togetherness and the peace of inclusivity :D :D How truly immaculate!

PS: If I made you feel divine, am glad to have reignited the Holy Spirit within you, but please please DON'T get all pious with it and eat this in Church. Feel free to have it in the sanctity of elsewhere

What I used
The good part of this dish is that it is made just like a regular chicken curry except that I used vegetables. I have shared the recipe of Spicy chicken curry before. I followed the same method here

1. All the ingredients from the spicy chicken curry
2. Diced carrots: 2
3. Diced Padavalanga (snakegourd): 1 cup
4. Lady's finger cut into 1/2 inch pieces: 2
5. Yardlong beans cut into 1/2 inch pieces: 2

How I made it

Method follows the same sequence as the Spicy chicken curry. The additional step is to add all the above vegetables along with the chicken so they cook in the chicken gravy... and that's it!

The day I made it, I had freshly baked raisin bread from a confectionery close by. It made a really good Sunday brunch

Like chicken curry, it goes with everything, rice, chappthi, bread, idiappam, palappam, kallappam, porotta, pidi, patthiri, dosa, ada and anything you can think of :D :D

PS: In case you are wondering if this will taste like sambar with all the vegetables, well no... it tastes just like chicken curry but with lot more vegetables ;D

Soya chunk stirred fry

With great pleasure I announce that cooking is fun and if you look at it, it's more than just tossing this and that together to create something to gulp down to stifle the pangs of hunger. If that's what cooking is to you, I would say you are yet to discover the beauty of your creation. Nevertheless, it's not too late for a change ;D 

That's the best part of life isn't it? You can always choose to be different when you wish to :D :D

Who knew making food can be soo sooo soooo transforming... the feel of the vegetables, the poultry, the slices of steak, the boiled ovals that are eggs, the aroma of the herbs and spices, the magically mouth watering effect of the dish as it changes from individuals in different bottles and racks to an accomplished team called the "meal" that people just can't get enough of because they are all soooooo good together :D :D

How a dish becomes an example of a teamwork of ingredients that blended and mixed and churned and tossed and transformed together to achieve a common goal!

So next time you cook, you are not just cooking, you are leading a team ;D 

And you... you changed too didn't you? 

You chose the ingredients, cleaned them, prepped them, decided on the how muchs and whats of each one, you raised and reduced the heat as per need, keeping a mindful watch on the timing. 

C'mon you transformed an unrelenting onion that makes people who deal with it raw cry into a soft, sweet, melty pliable ballerina by plunging it into hot oil! The onion would never have known how sweet she could be if it wasn't for your discretion and faith! :D :D  

You have cut your fingers, and worked bandaged, was the frontline of the oil splutter to finally transform each one to be delicious together. You emerged a Team Lead! 

So everyone who cooks, the Masterchefs of your own kitchens.. Congrats on being amazing leaders!! 

Now back to the topic here... soya chunks :D :D These are my substitutes for beef :D :D Especially when am all sentimental about the fact that the concerned animals bid adieu against their will to get me beef (and because the all the meat markets in Trivandrum are not at walkable distance from my house)

But then fact is fact, we are all parts of an active food chain. So bless the food and all the people involved in getting that food to us and RE:LISH it so the life that was taken wasn't in vain :D :D It lives on through us :D :D Gotta justify our deeds shouldn't we :D Amen!

This soya chunk stirred fry is really easy and a quick fix. The below recipe is for the dry version 

There is a gravy version too.. but that's for another day (I don't have the pics of soya curry .. that's why the delay .. shhhhh) ;D

What I used

1. Vegetable oil: 2 tablespoons
2. Mustard seeds: 1/2 teaspoon
3. Diced onions: 1/2 cup
4. Salt: to taste
5. Diced tomatoes: 2
6. Curry leaves: 1 sprig
7. Meat masala: 2 tablespoons
8. Pepper powder: 1/2 teaspoon
9. Green chillies: 2
10. Boiled and softened soya chunks with water squeezed out cut into comfy pieces: 2 cups

TIP: You can add ginger and garlic too if you like gingery garlicky flavor. It's yummy!
I didn't use it when I made the dish shown in the pic as I didn't have it that day

How I made it

1. Heat the oil, splutter the mustards and saute the onion with some salt
2. When onions are soft, add the tomatoes and mix till tomatoes melt
3. Add the meat masala and pepper powder and cook till the raw smell is gone. This should take about 5 minutes
4. Add a tablespoon of water so the contents mix well and then add the soya chunks, green chillies and curry leaves. Mix everything well till the soya chunks are coated with the masala mix
5. Keep the pan covered and cook for 10 minutes and serve after 10-15 minutes

Since this was made in jiffy on a working day for lunch, I had it with rice and it was so fulfilling (am not sure if it was because I was so hungry). But it was good

So I can say this goes well with rice and pickle. It should be just wow with chappathi as well. Do try it sometime and have it when you are really hungry. That way, I assure you that you won't be disappointed ;D Just kidding.. It's a good dish for a fast-paced day :D :D

Chicken chakkakuru mezhukkupuratti (Chicken stirred fry with jackfruit seeds)

Same old story... hungry... need something quick... don't wanna get out as it is damn sunny outside...
As always, a rumbling tummy is what drives me to take action on what to fuel myself with...

Of course there will always be hurdles when one is set out to make history :D :D But today I wasn't gonna let those hurdles tempt me to dial home delivery once again like the umpteen times as in the past (truth is I am fed up of dining out. Everything started tasting the same)

So yes.., am making my history today. With just chicken and chakkakuru (jackfruit seeds) in the pantry along with some spices, am making my version of a chicken mezhukkupuratti (stirred fry) ;D 

That's it!

What I used

1. Vegetable oil: 3 tablespoons
2. Mustard seeds: 1 teaspoon
3. Diced small onions: 2
4. Halved garlic cloves: 6
5. Salt: to taste
6. Curry leaves (optional): 1 sprig
7. Meat masala: 2 tablespoons
8. Turmeric powder: 1/4 teaspoon
9. Pepper powder: 1 teaspoon
10. Garam masala: 1/2 teaspoon
11. Cleaned and cut chicken pieces: 1/2 kg
12. Cleaned and sliced chakkakuru: 10
13. Water: as needed

How I made it

1. In a pan, heat the oil on medium flame and splutter the mustard seeds
2. Add the onions along with salt and saute well on low flame till onions soften
3. Next goes in the garlic and curry leaves. Continue cooking on low flame
4. Add the spice powders, mix well and cook on medium flame till the masala aroma is released
5. Add the chakkakuru and chicken and mix the contents thoroughly
6. Cook with the pan covered with occasional stirring
   PS: Since chicken releases its water content, a yummy gravy will form. It will help cook the meat and the chakkakuru well. Continue cooking till the gravy is reduced and the contents are semi-dry. If the gravy dries too quickly, add about a cup of water, mix contents well, cover the pan again and allow to cook till the gravy fully disappears and the dish is well cooked. The whole process takes about 40 minutes
7. Once the contents are semi-dry, turn off the flame and keep the pan covered for another 15 minutes before serving

TIP: This dish is really easy to make with very less ingredients barring the spices. But then again, you can make it with just 3 tablespoons of meat masala in case you don't want to use the remaining spices

It's that simple and is delicious with rice and chappathi :D :D  

Since this was made on a day with ingredient sparsity, I had this dish alone with rice. But it will be a fulfilling meal when clubbed with pulissery, long beans mezhukkupuratti and a pickle :D :D