Schezwan Fried Rice

The last weekend, we had some friends come over and while I was wondering what rice dish to make, I came across this very appetizing Schezwan Fried rice  recipe here. Thanks Seema, for a mouthwatering recipe.

I followed Seema’s recipe for the most part, except for just a few subtle changes and additions.

Ingredients:

2 cups Basmati rice or long grain rice
1/2 each of green, yellow and red bellpeppers
1/2 cup baby corn
1/2 cup snow peas
1/2 cup beans
1/2 cup Bokchoy (Chinese cabbage)
1/2 cup broccoli
1 big onion cut into big pieces
1 Jalapeno, minced
4 green chillies
1 bunch spring onions chopped
2 tsp ginger garlic paste
2 tbsp Ching’s Schezwan sauce
2 tbsp Soya sauce
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
4 tbsp olive oil
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and cook rice, taking care to see that the grains are separate.
2. Heat oil, saute onions, ginger garlic paste, jalapenos and green chillies.
3. Add vegetables, with beans and broccoli first then add baby corn, bell peppers, snow peas and finally, bokchoy, and stir fry in that order(harder vegetables first).
5. See to that the vegetables are not “cooked”; should be al-dente, crisp.
6. Add the schezwan sauce and soya sauce and salt.
7. Add rice and mix thoroughly, finally add the chopped spring onions and mix well.

Serve with any Chinese side dish like chilli paneer or Gobi Manchurian. Even tastes good as is.

Benne Biscuit

Since I have’nt been to Bangalore in a while now, my cravings for all the goodies I used to eat at home and nearby places have only been increasing. And as there is no way I can get the things I used to there, I have been on a quest to find the recipes and recreate the magic myself. Ofcourse, my mom’s recipes, I can always call her and get them. But, I have been finidng it pretty tough to collect the recipes for some of my favorite bakery stuff. Topping the list are Dilpasand, Benne Biscuit, Kobbari Biscuit, Honey cake……I’ll keep the hunt going… Meanwhile, when we took our last vacation, my friend S had made Benne biscuits…they were mouthwatering and delightful. She did give me the recipe too, but, it included dalda. I read somwhere that using dalda is not healthy and did not try the recipe. Finally, I came across …Vaishali’s recipe for Nankhatai urf Benne Biscuit (its a North vs south name game, huh?)

They looked soo good, a quick look at the ingredients and I immediately set to work, following Vaishali’s recipe word to word. I’ll anyway repeat the recipe for my own quick reference later…Thanks Vaishali!

Ingredients:

Maida – 1 cup
Sugar (powdered) – 1/2 cup
Ghee – 6 tbsps (approx)
Elaichi crushed – 3 to 4 pods
Baking powder – 1/2 tsp

Method:

1.Mix all the ingredients except ghee.
2. Add ghee a little at a time and knead the dough into a nice soft ball.
3.Keepthe dough for a couple of hours.( I did not, as I had no patience to wait)
4.Preheat the oven to 300deg
5. Divide the dough into small round balls and flatten them on the top with your fingers.
6. Bake for 15 mins or until the bottom starts to turn slightly brownish.
7. Let cool before eating (forget about storing )!!!

Here’s a fresh batch straight outta the oven!

Masala Peanuts

Peanuts! A protein powerhouse! Back home, peanuts are eaten boiled, roasted, salted, in a variety of dishes, both sweet and savory! My favorite way of eating peanuts is with Jaggery like in “Kallekkai Unde”…my mom makes the best crucnhy peanut undes or balls! Will get the recipe from her and post it later. My oldest memories of peanuts goes back to when we were kids, one of my aunt had a farm in Chennai and they grew peanuts. Every year, when she came visiting us for the summer she would bring with her bags full of peanuts and cashewnuts and other goodies. The entire family would sit and try to open the peanut shells and we would either boil them with salt or roast them and eat. Those were farm fresh delicious peanuts, Thanks Atthe! for that! .

But, here, I am always looking for easy to make recipes. One such recipe, I came across on this wonderful website, Masala Peanuts. Absolutely effortless and yet delicious and crunchy. Its now a family favorite. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

Raw groundnuts – 1 cup
Besan – 2tbsp
Rice flour – 2 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Salt
Oil – 4-5 tsp

Method:

Wet the groundnuts completely, by smearing water on them, very lightly but thoroughly.
Mix all dry ingredients well.
Sprinkle over the wet groundnuts & shake the vessel well for them to get a uniform coating.
Heat the oil in a shallow microvessel for 4 mts Hi. (pls. note microwave timings vary)
Carefully transfer the coated groundnuts to the vessel.
Microwave on Hi for 4 mts.
With the help of a fork, try to separate the peanuts(while still hot), if they are sticking to each other
Allow to stand for 5 mts.
Remove to 2,3 absorbent tissues for the oil to be absorbed completely.

Enjoy the crunchy masala peanuts!