Meat n Poultry

Bone broth

9:50 PM


Its wonderful what 20 minutes of brisk walk in a chilly evening can do to your mood. I am not good at selfcare, I have never been. and with two small kid and plethora of work that needs to be done no matter what i hardly get any time to call my own. But this year I made a concious effort to niche out some 'me time' to do things that makes me happy inside out. and the first I did was to commit to a 20 minutes brisk walk everyday. For the kind of lifestyle I have I know I need to go for a more serious commitment but right now am happy with my small step towards my goal. 

But then most days especially the days when I go out with the day light still there the kids love to tag along. That definitely slows me down as they wonder about everything on our way and ask plethora of questions. It's like a full on blabbering session with one running after the butterfly and the other collecting leaves and flowers, playing with a sprig of twig as an imeginary car steering and what not. Those days definitely my 'all by myself' time is lost but I gain another perspective that us mothers  need to be flexible with our self care routine too. Our precious me time might look different everyday but no matter how disturbed it is we need to carry on and there still would be a certain joy. because we always know it in our hearts that this phase soon will go away and we would all be left to ourselves. 

Meat n Poultry

Chicken and Noodle soup

9:31 AM


How many times have you heard the words 'keeping it simple', 'less is more' etc etc. If you are an avid Masterchef Australia fan then you know that it's the best advice that the judges like to give the contestant. Respecting the ingredient, it's colour, form. taste, texture, flavour is the key and developing a recipe to celebrate the beauty of seasonal local produce is the mantra of modern day cooking.

Soup and Salad

Purple potato and Quinoa Salad

8:15 PM


I have been cooking and experimenting more than I usually do these days back in Kolkata. The whole day I just keep opening the fridge, touch the ingredients and wait for my daughter to sleep. And once she does I start working like a maniac, peeling some veggies here, whizzing some berries there. I do all I can to experience these new ingredients. In the hotel I could try only easy recipes like Guacamole sandwich or Chorizo rice. But now that we have shifted to an apartment complete with a big oven, microwave and a huge fridge my experiments is stopping within any boundary.

Last week while doing our veggie shopping I bought a small sack of gorgeous purple potatoes. Yes you heard me right, deep purple pretty potatoes and some Artichokes. I have neither touched or ate these two veggies before so I was definitely excited. My imaginations ran wild and finally decided on making a simple salad with Quinoa, steamed purple potato, sauteed asparagus in a simple Chermoula style dressing. For variation in texture I ended up adding a handful of sunflower seeds.

The artichokes were steamed for a simple snack with dip. We liked this new veggies but were not overwhelmed with the taste or texture the way we are with purple potatoes. It made us feel like small kids to discover something so unusual in colour yet so familiar in taste. We enjoyed our meal with a poached egg on top.

Curry

Tomato Rasam

6:04 AM


My stay in Japan is memorable in many ways. Not only it gave me an insight into living life in a foreign country but also taught the real value of relationship. Near or far ,many times we just forget or to put it more appropriately...the daily rut consumes us so much that we dont think of how special, how blessed we are to belong to a family. but being away makes our heart ache for those familiar touch, caressing voice. for some people its never a home away from home if your family is not around. but then, that is what life is all about. Making adjustments, finding happiness in a distant land makes us stronger. and having good friends makes the task much more easier. They are family when you are away and provides the comfort of home away from home when you seek.

I was blessed to find such friends in Japan. Lets call them S and T. We lived in the same apartment and the fact that all of us had kids of almost same age helped the matter initially. With the onset of heavy cold winter our friendship became more cosier. Every evening we used to meet at one of our apartments to have our cup of tea or coffee. While the boys played, fought, screamed and patched up amongst themselves we used this time to unwind from the daily grind. We shared everything from life to jokes to annoying habits of our husbands and more often than not food. We tried to support each other with whatever way possible. If one was not well the other did the grocery or looked after the kids. 

Soup and Salad

Leek and Potato soup with Pan roasted Broccoli

11:21 AM


Ohh! so it finally rained.
Though its not Monsoon yet but It gave this city, reeling under severe heatwave a much needed respite.
Also to a mother who was getting insane day by day...
and to two bored kids, being at home all the time...
and to a helpless husband who had to face all the mood swings in the evening...
and three a/c s who had to hum alternatively to keep everyone's pressure under control...

Soup and Salad

Roasted veggies, Purslane, Chickpeas and Herb Salad

7:30 AM


If you are still dealing with the leftover Diwali snacks and sweets and thinking of returning to your regular healthy lifestyle then check out this recipe. This light salad is a power pack of taste, nutrition and textures. The juiciness of the cucumber and carrot ribbons, the lightly grilled vegetables with their intense flavour and caramelized sweetness, The peppery taste of the purslane leaves, the soft yet succulent boiled chickpeas pairs perfectly  with the fresh herb dressing. Its sweet, its juicy, its spicy and very very flavourful. Try this out for a perfectly refreshing lunch and feel the lightness in your body.
Purslane on my windowsill

One Pot meals

Roasted Beetroot Soup

12:43 AM



Beetroot and I have a hate hate relationship and the hating part solely lies with me. In this matter, no one can blame the beetroot when it selflessly imparts such gorgeous reddish hue to any dish, even to my not so appreciating teenage fingers when I used to cut them for my mom. The only dish that I can fathom with beetroot in it would be the vegetable chop but in curries???? Forget about it.

Noodle and Pasta

Miso soup with noodles and vegetables

9:33 PM



Hope you all had a wonderful Diwali with your near and dear ones. Mine wasn’t bad either. Though away from home and all the lights and sounds that make Diwali so special but still managed to celebrate it in a cosy way. Cooked some festive food, decorated the apartment with fall leaves and flowers, lit some candles and enjoyed shopping with my lil one. He has been my constant companion on this trip. The whole day we roam and explore various parts of the city, play in the parks, do picnic on the bank of a nearby river, watch movies, shop for our daily needs and pass time in various supermarkets and malls that dot this locality. Though its not rosy all the time. Sometimes he is angry for not buying him what he wants and sometimes am upset when he nags too much. But all in all its fun being with him. More so because now he has his own perspective to everything.

Meat n Poultry

Winter Warmth: Warm Mediterranean Salad

11:07 AM

Here is a quick post to bring you some winter comfort. A perfect bowl of warm vegetable and egg salad. We love this salad and it fits the bill perfectly when you don’t want to slog in the kitchen for hours to prepare dinner. Just cut the veggies thickly, blanch them in salted water, toss with some olive oil and herbs and there you are, with an warming meal. Serve in pretty bowls, curl up on the sofa, wrap your finger tightly around it and enjoy the goodness.

I prepared this long back in Bangalore, when the single cherry tomato plant from my green patch was generous enough to fulfill all my requirements. It was difficult even for us that the tree grew from a single cherry tomato that I brought from my favourite super market and just buried the whole thing in the vegetable garden. Almost a year later that turned into a huge bush laden with small cutesy tomatoes. I really miss that garden especially when am tied here with two tiny spaces passed on as balconies.

The recipe belongs to a cookbook called ‘Mediterranean; quick and simple recipes’, which I got from my library. it’s a paperback but contains some real good recipes. After drooling at the picture for some days I finally decided to make it with some minor amendments to suit my situation. So here is my version. Pardon the lousy pictures which were clicked at night and we then were really struggling with the new DSLR. Give it a try this season. It’s a bowlful of goodness, which will keep you warm.

Soup and Salad

Grilled eggplant, fresh vegetable and chickpea salad with za’atar

9:50 AM



For most homealone lunches I prefer to have salads or soups. Like many of you cooking for self is not something I enjoy and some dats even whipping up a soup seems like a task. Those days fresh salads come into my rescue. Recently hubby went to Chennai for a week and I took a break from the kitchen chores. Apart from cooking the baby’s food I prefer not to enter there and lunch comprised of some fresh salads with grilled veggies, paneer and cheese.

This is one salad that I particularly enjoyed. There is not much recipe but the za’atar gave it an extra edge. For all those who does not know what za’atar is I will refer this link. In short it is a middle eastern spice which is a mix of several dried herbs like thyme, oregano, marjoram, toasted sesame seeds, salt and sumac. This has a very nutty taste and a lovely green color. I got my batch from Israel which Hubby got for me on his last trip there. In my pantry this is mostly used as a topping for focaccia bread and manakeesh or as a seasoning for salads and cocktail samosas. If you don’t have this try adding dried herbs like oregano or mixed Italian seasoning and top it with dry roasted sesame seeds.

The extra crunch of the fresh vegetables like cucumber, carrots, tomato, corn and onion goes really well with this soft grilled eggplant and the nutty flavours of za’atar. Here is the quick recipe.

Fish and Seafood

Tom Yum Goong (Hot n Sour Thai Prawn Soup)

4:15 AM

Lately the weather in Bangalore has become very cold, which I never experienced in my 4 years stay here. Being a winter lover am not complaining at all though. I like to experience each and every season in its full glory…hot and humid summer with Ampora sharbat (Raw Mango drink) to quench the thirst, hot out of the wok Pakodas to enjoy monsoon and colourful winter clothes and warm bowl of soup to beat wintry evenings. For me winter is all about spending the days outside soaking the sun and enjoying the nippy evenings curling under the duvet with a hot cup of coffee and good books. And that’s what I planned to do this weekend. But along with the routine weekly veggie shopping, the baby’s vaccination was also due.

We wanted to wrap up all outside works before evening to come back and watch the latest Bollywood fliks. But by the time we managed to reach the market it was already 5. The place was too crowded with a long que at the billing section. The veggies were almost finished and we almost had to fight for those last packets of mushrooms or bunch of celery. But the highlight of the veggie shopping this weekend is we got fresh herbs like Oregano, Basil and Lemongrass, which I never got to cook with. So grabbed the opportunity and settled for a quick warming soup with our favourite cellophane noodles.

Tom yum soup is most probably the most famous dish of Thailand. It’s a very light and flavourful soup made with freshest of ingredients. Like all Asian dishes this also is characterized by its very balanced hot and sour taste. The base is made with stock to which fresh Prawns, chickens and mushrooms are added. This has no oil but is flavoured with freshest of herbs like galangal, lemongrass, coriander roots, kaffir lime leaves and chilli pepper. There are various versions of this soup like Tom Yum goong (with prawns), Tom yum kai (with chicken) and tom yum pa (with fish), tom yum po taek (with seafoods) ot tom yum nam khon where coconut milk is also added to the broth.

Being said all this now am confused which name to call mine as mine is a hybrid between Tom yum goong and tom yum nam khon. I adapted the recipe from here and then added few spoonfuls of coconut milk…that made this flavour packed soup just perfect with a rounded taste. All in all a very fulfilling, satisfying and warming soup to curl up on the couch to catch your favourite telly show even after a long day at work.

Here is the recipe:

Tom Yum Goong (Hot n Sour Thai Prawn soup)
(serves 2)

Ingredients:
Prawns: 8; cleaned and devained (I used fresh water prawn)
Button Mushrooms: 8 medium
Tomato: 1 big or 2 small
Carrot: 1

Herbs:
Ginger: 1” piece
Lemongrass: 3 stalks
Small onion: 4/5
Coriander roots: 2 roots
Lemon rind: of 1 lemon
Lemon: 1
Dry red chillies: 3-4
Green chillies: 2
Coriander leaves: handful
Salt

Stock cube: 2 (I used Maggi)
Coconut milk: 4 tbsp
Oil: ½ tsp (generally prawns are used raw in this dish but we don’t like it so used this tiny amount of oil to lightly fry our prawns)
Turmeric: a pinch

Method:
For this dish the preparation takes more time than cooking. So lets first prepare the prawn by deveining it. Remove the legs and the shell as well. Wash and keep aside. Rub a pinch of turmeric and salt to the prawn and lightly fry with the oil (probably a minute).

Peel and cut the carrot in juliennes, the mushrooms in big chunks lengthwise and the tomatoes in 6 to 8 pieces lengthwise.

Remove the outer layer of the lemongrass, slice the stalk and smash in a mortar and pestle. Remove the skin of the small onions and smash in a mortar and pestle. Do the same with coriander roots and ginger.

Dry roast the red chillies and with a little lemon juice and salt make a fine paste.

In a bog pan or heavy bottomed bowl heat 5 cups of water. Add the stock cubes to this and bring this to a boil. Now one by one add all the herbs like smashed ginger, shallots, green chillies, lemon rind, lemon grass and coriander roots. Cover and simmer for 6-7 minutes till the water becomes fragrant.

Now add the prawns (along with the oil), mushrooms, tomatoes and little bit of salt.

Cover and again let it cook for 4-5 minutes. By the end of it the prawns would be cooked and would turn pink. Add the carrot juliennes and mix well.

Decrease the heat to lowest and add the coconut milk. Mix and finally add the seasoning very little at a time. Lemon juice, chilli paste and salt. The taste should be very balanced with the sweetness of the coconut milk balancing out the sourness of the lime juice and the heat of the chillies.

Finally sprinkle chopped coriander leaves and serve Hot with a wedge of lemon.

We boiled some cellophane noodles to make our soup more filling.


A Homemaker's note:
I have made this several times and it tastes equally good without the prawns. To be true I prefer the taste more without the prawns.


I have also been showered with these awards. Thanks friends for remembering me.
award+3.jpg (320×195)
Thanks Biny
Thanks Satrupa and Indrani.
Thanks Sulagna


Tags:
Thai soup, Thai food, Thai curry, Thai prawn soup, Thai hot and sour curry, lemon grass in soup, thai herbs, prawn soup, shrimp soup, sweet n sour clear soup, coriander soup, broth, tomato and vegetable clear soup, best Thai soup, Asian soup, Perfect prawn soup. best ever thai soup, coconut milk soup, fish sauce, soup for dinner, filling soup, cellophane noodle soup, hot and tangy asian soup recipe.galangal, kaffir lime.

One Pot meals

Mushroom soup with Chili Oil

10:16 AM



This time am not going to start my post with the weather of Bangalore. My brother yesterday called up and said that my blog seems more like a weather report on Bangalore, all its missing is a picture of mine in a business suit with a stick in hand pointing to the map beside me. Ha, very funny but I realized may be a lot of you must have been thinking the same way. So rather today am going to give you a recipe that is very comforting to sustain such bad weathers. That’s my deliciously creamy mushroom soup with chili infused oil.
READ MORE...

Popular Posts