Spinach & Kielbasa Noodles with Angel hair pasta

I love to try new dishes. So today I took on the challenge of making dinner with what is available in my kitchen without running to Wal-mart or the farmers market.
So I opened my fridge and aimlessly gazed through; trying to convince myself that my challenge was stupid as I had not gone grocery shopping over the weekend.
I found a big packet of baby spinach and 1 small turkey kielbasa. (Kielbasa is a polish sausage and it is very tasty. It is made with pork, beef or turkey or a combination of all 3).
Then I dragged my feet to my pantry and found some garlic and a packet of whole wheat angel hair pasta. I was not in a mood for any pasta with a creamy sauce and hubby is not too fond of tomato based sauces (not that I had any tomatoes here).

So I decided to try my hand at making some Asian noodles with all the ingredients I had. I immediately reached out for some soy sauce as well and headed towards the cooking area.
The end result was a yummy and interesting noodle dish. This dish was healthy too (if I may say so) with all that whole wheat pasta and spinach.. the only unhealthy part may have been the sausage but it was made out of turkey so I guess it was not as bad!

1 packet whole wheat Angel hair pasta
2- 3 cups baby spinach (washed)
1 cup Turkey kielbasa sausage chopped into small pieces
4 cloves garlic chopped
2-4 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp pepper powder
1 tbspn Olive Oil

Heat a pan add a few drops of olive oil and stir fry the sausages till they cook and keep aside (drain on a kitchen towel). The sausages don't need much oil as they will let out some fat.
Cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain and mix some olive oil and keep it ready to be used.
Now in the same pan which was used for cooking the sausages add some olive oil and the chopped garlic and fry. Then add the spinach and stir fry. I didn't wilt my spinach a lot as it was baby spinach which tastes good even if consumed raw but if you are using regular spinach cook it well. Now add the cooked sausage and mix. Add the soy sauce start with 2 tsp depending on how salty your soy sauce is or how strong a flavor you want.
Now add some pepper powder and the cooked angel hair pasta. Toss it well.
Serve.

Note:

I didnt add any other herbs or spices as I use a mushroom flavored soy sauce which has a good flavor. I have made the same with regular soy sauce and it still tastes great.
Also the kielbasa gives a good flavor.
The pasta needs to be tossed in some olive oil and covered if you are keeping it for sometime before adding it to the spinach mixture so it doesn't dry out.
Feel free to add any spices of herbs you feel like using.
You can make it vegetarian by omitting the sausage and adding few other veggies of your choice.

Prawn Biryani

The terms shrimp and prawns are often used interchangeably. I myself had to read on few different websites the difference between the two. I am not going to go into detail here. Though they are not the same they look very similar and taste quiet similar as well. Hence in my kitchen and I am sure in most kitchens they are interchangeable in any dish.

The other day hubby wanted to eat some rice dish and we didn't have any veggies and there was no time to defrost chicken. So I looked in my freezer and found some tiger prawns. So I immediately decided to make some prawn biryani. I took the frozen prawn out and put them in some water and left it for 30 mins and they were ready to be cooked. We buy our seafood from the farmer's market in Memphis. Oh I go crazy when I go there everything looks so fresh & yummy. It reminds me of our Indian fish markets.

So here goes my recipe for jhatpat/quick prawn biryani.

3 cups basmati rice (washed and soaked for atleast 15mins)
10-12 prawns/shrimp (washed and cleaned)
1 big tomato chopped
1 onion chopped
2 tbspn ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
whole garam masala/spices (2 bay leaves, 2 cardamoms, 3 cloves, 4 peppercorns, 1 star anise, 1 big black cardamon)
1/2 tsp cummin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp tandoori masala (I use Shan brand for the color)
1 tsp Kasuri methi 
Salt

Marinate the prawn with salt and turmeric powder and keep aside.

In a pan heat some oil add the whole spices if using any for the rice (check notes), add the rice  (drain the rice before adding) fry for 2 mins and add some salt and add around 5 or 6 cups hot water ( 1 1/2 - 2 cups of water for each cup of rice approx) and cover and cook. Once the rice is done open the cover and let the steam out to cool it.

In another pan add some oil and heat it then add the whole spices and fry. Now add the onions and fry. Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook till the raw smell goes away and onions are golden brown. Now add the tomatoes, cumin powder, coriander powder, tandoori masala and cook till tomatoes are soft and can be mashed with the back of the laddle. Now add the prawn mix well and cook.
Now add some kasuri methi mix and add some water (around 2-4 tbspn) to give it a good consistency. Adjust salt.

Now layer the basmati rice over the gravy and garnish with cilantro leaves. Cover and cook on low heat for 10-15 mins till the flavors mix.
Serve with salad.

Note:
While adding water to the rice start with 1 1/2 cups for each cup of rice so that the rice is not over cooked. You can add more when the rice is half cooked (midway) using your judgement.
You can add some whole spices (cloves, bay leaves cardamom etc.) while cooking the rice as well. I actually forgot to do so.
You can also add 1-2 tbspn of cilantro-mint paste after the onions are golden brown for more flavor.
You can layer this biryani in an over safe dish and cover with foil and keep in over for 10-15 mins for the flavors to blend as well. 
You can make the same biryani using any white fish. Be careful while cooking fish as it can break easily.

Guacamole

I am not a big fan of Mexican food but I do like some dishes. I guess I should say I am not a big fan of Tex-Mex as hubby says Mexican food in Mexico is awesome! He lives in Mexico every year for three months during summer for his research work and he loves it there. Every August when he gets back he cooks some authentic Mexican meal for me. I must say I love what he cooks so I can't wait to go to Mexico and enjoy some authentic Mexican food & Margaritas on the beach.

One of my favorite dips/salads is guacamole. I first tasted it when Kartick made it for us on his first visit back to India from the US in 2007. I wanted to make it for my sister, bro-in-law and friends. Then I had no clue about cooking so I was excited and headed off to the market in Bombay. I got only 2 avocados as they were super expensive, being an imported product.
I came home and cut it open and scooped out the pulp and proceeded to make the salad. Oh! I was so confident that I didn't even taste it till it was ready to be served at the dinner table. To my horror (of course I was unaware of the basics that the avocado needs to be soft/ripe!) I had picked out two raw ones and I made everyone eat it. My family and friends were sweet enough to taste it but never reached out for another helping or had the courage to finish what was in their plate ;)
I am surely going to make this for them on my next visit.

So here goes my guacamole recipe and mind you its good ;)

2-3 Avocados
1 tomato chopped
1 onion chopped (I dont like onion in mine but if you like raw onions go for it -tastes good)
2 tbspn Cilantro/Coriander leaves chopped
1 small green chilli chopped (optional)
2 tbspn Juice of lime (juice of 1 lime)
1/2 tsp cumin powder
Salt as per taste

Cut the avocados and scoop out the pulp using a spoon. Keep the seeds/pit aside.
In a bowl add the pulp and mash it with the back of a spoon. Now add the chopped tomato, onion, chilli, cilantro, cumin powder, salt and juice of lime and mix well.
Place the seeds in the middle  of the salad and refrigerate till you serve.
Serve with chips as a dip or can be eaten as a side dish.

Note:
The seeds/pits are inedible so please don't eat them
The seed is placed so that the salad doesn't go brown and maintains its nice green color. Avocado (like apples and few other fruits & veggies) changes color when exposed to air due to oxidation.
Avocado salad is similar to our Indian kachumbar/salad

Fish curry with raw mangoes - Kerala Ishtyle!

Oh! Fish is my first love among all the non-veg food. I love fish in all forms..I love the smell of raw fish! My best friend back in Bombay is half Mallu and when I visit India I go to her house for dinner. She makes the best kerala mutton sukkha and fish curry.
I love the Kerala style fish curry with raw mangoes, they make the same with prawn too. Yum! I am already drooling. I am typing this post while I wait for hubby to get home and have dinner. I made this fish curry this afternoon. By now all the flavors must have blended!

My friend G sent me the recipe last night so I made sure I had all the ingredients. I had bought raw mango and fresh pomfret (fish) from the farmer's market few days ago to make this curry.

1 pomfret (cleaned, washed and sliced into pieces - you can use any firm white fish)
1 raw mango/kairee cut into medium sizes pieces
1 chopped onion
1 cup coconut milk
2 green chillies
1 tsp ginger (chopped into pieces)
1/2 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds
5 tsps corriander seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilly powder
1 shallot chopped into small pieces (optional)
10 curry leaves
4 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp tamarind paste (or tamarind soaked in hot water and pulp squeezed out)

 In a small pan heat oil. Add the methi and coriander seeds and fry. Make sure you don't burn them it's easy to burn them, trust me! Now grind this with a little coconut milk, turmeric and red chilly powder, garlic and the tamarind paste.

In another pan take some water and add the chopped raw mango pieces and chopped onion and boil it till the onion becomes translucent and the mango becomes soft. Now add the coconut paste to this. Mix well. Add the slit green chillies, ginger and salt. Add the remaining coconut milk. Once this comes to a boil add the fish pieces.
In the small pan that you used to fry methi add some coconut oil and fry shallots and curry leaves and pour on the fish curry.  
You can also just boil the curry leaves and add a dash of coconut oil directly to the curry instead of frying.
Keep for few hours before serving with steamed rice and tapioca/kappa (will post recipe soon).

Note:
You can use freshly grated coconut/frozen coconut instead of the coconut milk.

Palak Paneer

I am very fond of non-veg food as mentioned earlier in my posts. I can just go on eating non-veg for days but I am trying to now eat veggies more. I am even thinking of eating meat only on weekends (ugh! that's gonna be tough!).
So we got some fresh spinach/palak from the farmer's market and I had some paneer in the freezer so hubby wanted me to make palak paneer.
My mom makes it so well. I miss her cooking. I never cared for it much while I was back in Bombay as I got to eat it everyday..while everyone else would crave for it. Now I crave for it ;(

When I was newly married I decided to make Palak paneer at my in-laws house in Bombay and I had to call my mom for the recipe as I didn't know how to cook. I followed her recipe to the T and the dish was a hit.
I don't remember all the ingredients my Amma had told me to add back in 2008 but I make it often and everytime its almost the same recipe I follow (as much as I can remember).

2 bunches Palak (washed well and ends trimmed)
1 cup paneer cubes
I onion chopped
1 tomato chopped
2 green chillies
few sprigs of cilantro (optional)
1 tsp Kasuri methi (optional)
3-4 cloves garlic cut into pieces
1 small piece ginger cut into pieces
2 cloves
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp corriander pwd
1/2 tsp garam masala/Everest meat masala (can add more)
oil

In a kadai add oil when it's hot add cumin seeds, cloves and let them splutter. Then add onions, garlic and ginger pieces and fry till onions turn golden brown. Now add the chillies and chopped tomatoes mix well and cook till tomatoes are soft. Add the spinach leaves and let them wilt.
Now turn off the gas and let this mixture cool. Once cool grind it with the cilantro to a smooth paste (don't add water).
Now back in the kadai add the paste, add the corriander powder and garam masala and mix well. Let the mixture boil. Add salt and slide in paneer pieces. Cook for 5 mins till the paneer cooks and turn off gas.
Serve with Roti's or with pulav.

Note:
Sometimes I dont grind the onions just fry them and add them to the spinach & tomato paste.
I added Kasuri methi and cilantro for the first time today and it turned out great.
Some of my friends fry the paneer pieces before adding them, if you plan to fry you need to soak the fried pieces in warm water till you use it. This will keep the paneer soft.