Thalassery style Chicken Biryani

Thalasserry, a city on the Malabar coast of Kerala has always been popular for its amazing food including the biryani. In our eyes, this is the Biryani to die for, the very best in its kind. And ever since this blog came into existence, this is one item we endlessly talked about making. Though it comes with such a delay and such a tedious procedure, its truly worth a try.  

Prep Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

Chicken (medium size pieces): 1 cup

Jeerakasala rice* : 2 cups

Onions (finely sliced) : 4-5 medium sized

Tomatoes (medium size chopped): 3

Green chillies: 5-6

Ginger (crushed): 1 teaspoon

Garlic (crushed): 1 teaspoon or 2 pods

Coriander leaves (chopped): 1 bunch

Mint leaves: 1 bunch

Cashew nuts: handful

Raisins: handful

oil: 1/4 cup

Ghee: 1/4 cup

Lemon Juice: 2 tablespoon

Saffron Milk : 5 -6 saffron strands mixed in 3 tablespoons of warm milk

Spice powder : 3/4 - 1 tablespoon (Adjust to your liking)

Dry roast the following on low flame and  grind into a fine powder.

Cardamom: 2

Cinnamon stick: 1

Cloves: 4-5

Nutmeg (grate  a pinch)

Javithri/Mace: 1/4 teaspoon 

Saunf: 1 teaspoon

Shahi Jeera/Caraway seeds:  1/2 teaspoon

Pepper: 2 teaspoons

Cumin seeds: 1 teaspoon

* Jeerakasala also called Kaima / Jeerakasamba  rice is a special type of Indian rice mainly used in Biryani preparation. It has shorter grains compared to Basmati rice, but is equally aromatic and flavorful.

* You can fry the onions fully in ghee or like we did, in a mix of oil and ghee.

* Deep fried onions are called bista in local thalasserry slang

*  Rice/water ratio = 1 cup rice : little more than 3/4 cup or 85% of  1 cup

* Frying the cashew and raisins are optional since it will anyway get steam cooked in the Dum procedure.

Heat oil and ghee (1/4 cup each) in a deep dish/kadai to deep fry the onions until golden brown. Make  sure you fry onions in batches else the water content will make it mushy. Keep aside 3/4 rth of the fried onions  for the chicken and the rest is for Dum/garnish. In the remaining oil fry the cashew nut and raisins.

Heat a deep heavy bottom dish (like a stockpot). Add the chopped tomatoes and stir. Its not like we missed the oil, this recipe doesn't call for any oil to make the chicken base. Add 2-3 table spoon water to cook the tomatoes. Once the tomatoes start softening add the crushed ginger, garlic and green chilies and stir. When the raw smell fades away, add the cleaned chicken pieces and mix well. Add salt and chopped mint leaves. Cover and cook. Make sure it doesn't burn at the bottom. If its drying up too much add 1/4 cup water and mix. 

When the chicken is almost cooked, add 3/4 of the fried onions and stir well. Let it simmer. Add the spice powder, lemon juice and chopped coriander leaves. Keep it on low flame and mix thoroughly until  the gravy thickens. It should be a semi dry to dry consistency. Adjust the salt. If you want it to be more spicy, add some more pepper powder.  Turn off the heat.

Parallelly cook the rice in a deep dish. We usually cook the rice in a pressure cooker. Boil the water, add salt, 2 teaspoons ghee, 5 cloves, 1 cardamom pod and 2 cinnamon sticks. Add the washed rice to the boiling water. Cover it with the pressure cooker's lid without the whistle until steam starts to come. Now keep the whistle on and cook at medium heat for about 10 mins. Remove it from the heat and keep aside. Fluff it up with a fork.

To do the final Dum procedure, add the fried onions and chopped coriander leaves on top of the cooked chicken. Now spread the rice evenly over it. Sprinkle the saffron milk. Add the cashew and raisin. Top it off with any leftover fried onions. Cover it tight and leave it either on the gas stove on low flame or in the oven at 350F for 15 - 20 mins. 

Mix well before you serve.  Typically this Biryani is served it with coconut chammanthi, pappadam and dates pickle.

After a thousand searches we hit the right note with this recipe courtesy Taste of Kerala, Amrita TV.  

White Chocolate Mousse Cake

Continuing with the valentine's day spirit, we decided to make something that will make you fall in love with desserts again. This rich, creamy and absolutely divine chocolate mousse cake will take your senses away with every bite. So next time when you want to impress that someone special, give this a try.

Prep Time: 1 hr + setting time (5-6hrs)
Ingredients

*White Vanilla cake: 1 box
Vanilla Jello pudding mix: 1/2 box
Heavy whipping Cream: 1 pint
White Chocolate chips: 1 Packet /2 bars
Hershey Cookies n Creme chocolate bar: 2 
Milk: 1 cup (for pudding mix + strawberry spread)
Sugar (optional): 1 tablespoon 

*Strawberry spread: 4 tablespoons

Some fruits to decorate 
Strawberries :7-8
Blueberries: 10
Banana

*We used the instant cake mix to save on time.

*Blend a few strawberries with some sugar and little milk (1 tablespoon) to make the strawberry spread.

If you dont find fresh strawberry you can use raspberry instead. Use the same instructions listed above to make the raspberry spread. If it's sour you can add sugar to sweeten it.  

Bake the cake according to the instructions on the box. Let it cool and keep aside. Cut off the top and the crust which might be golden brown. Slice the white inside and set it as the base in the dish you want to make the dessert. Brush the strawberry spread all over .

Mix 1/2 the contents of the pudding box and set according to the instructions. Leave it in the refrigerator for about 10-15 mins.

Meanwhile melt the white chocolate chips in a double boiler. The chocolate chips and pudding mix add the sweetness to the mousse. But if you need more sweet you can add 1 tablespoon of sugar in the whipping cream. Beat the heavy whipping cream with until it forms firm peaks. Now slowly fold the melted chocolate and pudding mix into the whipped cream. The mousse is set. Now spread it all over the cake base (like half the dish is cake and the remaining half is the mousse). Grate the cookies n creme bar generously over the top. Decorate with the berries and banana slices. Let it set in the refrigerator for at least 5-6 hours. Serve chilled.

Egg Masala Curry

Whether you are an egg lover or not, here's one of those curries which surely tastes awesome inspite the minimal effort. This is a simple coconut based gravy with a slight touch of mint.

Prep Time: 20 mins
Ingredients

Eggs (Hard boiled): 3 
Onions (sliced): 1 big
Tomatoes (sliced): 2-3
Green chillies (slit): 3-4
Ginger (finely chopped): 1 teaspoon
Garlic (finely chopped): 2 pods
Curry leaves: 5-7
Mint leaves: 1 sprig
Coconut milk: 1/4 cup
Turmeric powder: 1 teaspoon
Chilli powder: 1  1/2 teaspoons
Coriander powder: 2 teaspoons
Garam Masala/Chicken  masala:  1  1/2 teaspoons
Water: 1 cup
salt and pepper to taste
Oil: 3 tablespoons

Hard boil the eggs and cut them in halves or slice them and keep aside. Heat some oil in a deep dish. Saute the ginger garlic and green chillies. Add the curry leaves and the sliced onions. Add a pinch of salt and saute until slightly done. Add all the spice powders. Add the tomato slices and mix well. Add the chopped mint leaves and 1 cup of water and let it all simmer into a fine gravy. Adjust the salt and spice to your liking. Pour the coconut milk and leave on low heat. Add the sliced eggs. Cover and let it cook on low heat for another five minutes. The delicious egg curry is ready. Serve it with hot rotis.

Hot n Spicy Chicken Wings

With the football (NFL) mood peaking up for the Super bowl, we decided to make the traditional American favorite appetizer Buffalo style Chicken Wings. Originating from the region of Buffalo, the classic wings are deep fried and then coated with the hot sauce. We have been little less generous on the oil, hence the baked version. But have no doubt, they are still  finger smacking good !

Prep Time: 30 mins
Ingredients

Chicken Wings: 10 Pieces

Marinade

Chili Powder: 3 teaspoons
Turmeric Powder: 1 /2 teaspoon
Vinegar: 2 teaspoons or Lemon Juice: 1-2 tablespoons
All purpose flour: 1/4 cup
Olive Oil: 3-4 tablespoons
Pepper: 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

Final Dressing/Coating Sauce

Chili Garlic Sauce: 2 teaspoons
Frank's Original  Red Hot Sauce: 5 tablespoons
Butter(optional): 1 tablespoon

* We have removed the complete skin on the wings to suite our preference, however some people will like to keep the skin on and no harm doing so.
* Its better if you can marinate the wings a day or two earlier.
* Any brand of hot sauce is okay, we have used Frank's red hot sauce in this recipe

Mix all the marinade ingredients and rub generously over the wings. Coat the bottom of a deep dish (oven safe) with little oil. Put the marinated chicken wings  to bake. Pre-heat the oven to 475° F and bake for about 15 mins. Toss it over to other side and bake for another 15 minutes until its fully cooked and becomes crispy. Take it out of oven, drizzle the coating sauce and toss. Enjoy it hot.

Some chilled beer, celery sticks and ranch dip.You are all set for the big game.