Shrimp Masala

Things you will need:

Chemmeen/Shrimp/Prawn: 2 lbs (You can use the frozen kind) peeled , deveined, cleaned well

Onion- 2 diced

Curry Leaves

Ginger- 1 inch piece, grated

Garlic- 4 or 5 pods minced

Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp

Red Chilli powder – 1 tsp

Green Chillies- 4 or 5 slit in half lengthwise

Cilantro – chopped

Ketchup- 1 tsp

Lime juice – 1 tsp

Oil -1 tbsp

Butter- half stick

Water – 1 cup

Salt to taste

Preparation Method:

Heat oil. Add ginger and garlic.

Once brown , add butter ,onion, curry leaves and green chillies and sauté .

Then add turmeric, coriander, and red chilli powder and stir until it looses its raw smell.

Now add the shrimp ( chemmeen) , salt and water.

Bring this to a boil and cook until shrimp is nice and tender .

Then add ketchup, and let it simmer for 2 minutes.

Now add lime juice and garnish with cilantro.

Shrimp (aka Chemmeen or Prawn) Masala is now ready to be served with warm rice and raita (yoghurt salad).

Key Lime Pickle

Things you will need:


Key Limes- 10;
Green Chillies- 2 or 3 ; finely chopped 
Curry Leaves- few 
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp 
Fenugreek powder- 1 tsp 
Asafoetida powder - 1 tsp 
Red Chilli Powder- 3 tbsp (you may reduce this per your taste and tolerance) 
Dry Red Chillies- 2 or 3 
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp 
Gingelly Oil- 2 tbsp; preferably 
Coconut Oil- 2 tsp for flavor
Vinegar- 2 tsp 
Salt to taste 
Water-2 cups


Preparation Method:

In a pan, pour 2 cups of water and a tsp of salt. Bring this to a boil. 

Add the key limes to it and keep the heat on high. 
Keep the pan covered.
When the key limes change its color, reduce the heat and let it cook. 
After 5 mins, drain the water and set it aside to cool. 
Chop the lime into halves or quarters as desired and set aside.

Heat oil in another pan and add mustard seeds. 
Once mustard seeds crack, add dry red chillies,fenugreek powder,fenugreek seeds,asafoetida powder and stir well. 
Then add green chillies,curry leaves and saute till the raw smell is gone. 
Now add red chilli powder and stir well.  
Remove from flame and set aside to cool. 
After around an hour or so , when the above mixture has cooled down, add the key lime pieces,coconut oil,salt and vinegar and mix well.  
Later store in an airtight container. 


Key Lime Pickle is now ready to be served with warm rice and curry like Sambhar or with plain and simple 'Curd Rice'. 

Chilli Chicken with Indian touch

Chilli Chicken is originally an east-asian delicacy, which has been tried, tasted and tested by all who love Asian cuisine.Following is the preparation method for a typical Chilli Chicken with a Indian touch....

Things you will need:

Boneless Skinless chicken- 2 lbs

Corn Flour- 2 tbsp

Black Pepper powder-1 tsp

Ginger- chopped finely-1 inch piece

Garlic-6 to 7 pods- chopped finely

Egg-1

Onions-2 large

Sesame seeds

Oil- 4 tbsp

Green Onions- thinly sliced

Bell Pepper or Capsicum- cubed and seeded

Soy Sauce-4 tsp

Ketchup-2 tsp

Vinegar- 2 tsp

Red Chilly Paste-1 tsp

Sugar-1 tsp

Salt to taste

Roasted whole cashews- 1 handful

Preparation Method:

Cut chicken into bite-size cubes.

Now add corn flour,black pepper,salt to taste , and egg to the chicken.Mix well and set aside for 30 mins.

In a pan , heat 3 tbsp oil. Now add marinated chicken one-piece-at-a-time to this oil.

Fry in medium heat until chicken pieces are brown in color.

Remove chicken from pan.

Now add 1 tbsp of oil to the pan.Once heated , add sesame seeds,red whole chillies,roasted cashews,ginger garlic and stir fry in high heat. Make sure it does not burn. Keep stirring so that it does not stick to the botton of the pan.

Now add green onions and bell pepper.Saute till it looks fried.Once done, add soy sauce, ketchup, chilli paste and stir for 3 mins. Now add 1 cup of water , vinegar and bring to a boil.Add the fried chicken pieces and simmer for a couple of mins. Keep stirring.Now to thicken the gravy, add 1 tbsp of corn flour mixed in water to the pan.Stir continously for 2 mins.

Chilli Chicken is ready to be served with hot steamed rice or noodles or Chappathi.