The Sydney Harbour Bridge

Being star-struck!!! That's all that comes to my mind when I recall seeing the harbour bridge up front for the first few times. In the year 2000 I had seen the harbour bridge for the first time on TV. I was a 7th grader and was extremely excited to see such a magnificent structure with the Olympic rings hung around it. Prior to that I am not sure if I was aware of its existence or of the differences Australia as a country had, being in the southern hemisphere.

I watched it in person for the first time with my family. It was an outing on a lovely sunny day. We went to see the Opera House and the Harbour bridge after completion of our quarantine. For me it took a lot of time for the feeling to actually sink in. I have been to quite a few different countries in the world but never felt so different, so amazed. This could be because of the fact that Australia being in the southern hemisphere experiences everything opposite to what we do in the northern part of the world. It is also not a part of our regular conversations. Countries like America, European countries find better place in tourism conversations. 

Second time, I was travelling alone on the train for an interview. I had to reach North Sydney. From the train, I could see the Opera House. Being the Harbour Bridge fanatic that I am, I immediately started looking around searching for the harbour bridge as both the structures are so close by. I was taken aback as I could not find it anywhere. It took me quite some time to realize that I was actually on the bridge and the train was passing over it. 

When I had seen the harbour bridge on TV as a 13 year old in a small town in India, little did I know that I would get a chance to live in a city that shares the structure. It is an amazing city,  with awesome beaches, lovely natural beauty and scenic landscapes. Sydney has been good to us so far. 

The view of the bridge from my office is amazing. The Opera house just beside it increases its appeal and adds to its beauty. I can keep watching it the whole day given a chance. :)

Gulaab Jamun

What better than homemade gulab jamuns for dessert after an Indian meal. This is one dessert every Indian knows about and most of us like. There are many instant packs available in stores but it is very easy to make at home. A riddle that my daughter asked us a few days ago:

What do you call a rose that went to the moon?

You guessed it right, "Gulaab JaaaaMooonnn"

 I got the recipe from Hebbar's Kitchen and followed it. Have documented the recipe below:

Ingredients:

Jamun:

- Amul Milk Powder - 3/4 cup

- Maida / All Purpose Flour - 1/2 cup

- Baking powder - 1/2 tsp

- Ghee/Clarified Butter - 2tbsp

- Milk - 3/4 cup

- Oil and Ghee for frying

Sugar Syrup:

- Sugar - 2 cups

- Water - 2 cups

- Cardamom - 2

- Lemon juice - 1 tsp 

Method:

- Add sugar, cardamom pods and water and bring to a boil. Reduce it to a 1 string consistency. Add lemon juice after turning off heat. Let it cool.

- For the jamuns, add milk powder, ghee, maida, baking powder and mix the dry ingredients with the tip of your fingers. Give it a good mix.

- Add milk and make a firm but soft dough.

- Divide the dough into equal portions and form balls with your palm.

- Heat oil and ghee in a wok. Deep fry the dough balls.

- Fry on medium low heat till deep brown.

- Transfer to cooled sugar syrup and let it sit there for at least 2 hours.

Serve hot with ice cream or enjoy as a simple dessert.

 

Pudina/Mint Chicken

This is one of those recipes which I made during lockdown in India, possibly April-May 2020. Our worlds started changing and everything around us came crashing down due to the covid pandemic. We were locked in our homes and had to manage with whatever grocery we had at our disposal. One day we got to know from some friends Swiggy had started delivering chicken. We ordered some immediately and in came the much awaited packet. Now the problem at hand was, what should we prepare it with. With grocery stores around us closed all we could do was manage and figure out with whatever we had at our disposal. This experiment turned out to be rather tasty and hence this finds a place in my recipe blog.

Ingredients:

- Chicken - 500gms

- Salt - As per taste

- Sugar - 1/2 tsp

- Lemon - 1/2

- Lemon Zest - of 1 lemon

- Mint leaves -  a handful

- Onion - finely chopped

- Mustard Oil - 2 tbsp

- Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

- Chicken 65 Masala (I used Banne Nawab brand. You can use brand of your choice.) - 2 heaped tbsp

Method:

- Heat the oil in a pan.

- Add cumin seeds and let it splutter.

- Add the chicken pieces, onion, salt and chicken 65 masala.

- Fry till chicken is completely cooked.

- When the chicken is soft, add lemon zest, mint leaves and sugar. Let it cook for 2 mins. 

- Add lemon juice from half a lemon just before turning the stove off.

Serve smoking hot with parathas or phulkas. 

Banana Oats Dates Smoothie

This recipe is from my friend Amrita. I made it once and have been using this for a quick breakfast ever since. This is a life saver when you are running short of time and want to make something healthy real quick.

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

- Banana - 1

- Oats - 2 tbsp (slightly roasted on a pan)

- Dates - Deseeded 4 to 5

- Curd - 3 tbsp

- Milk - 1/2 cup

- Chia seeds - 1 tsp

Method: 

- Peel the banana and slice it into pieces.

- Put all the ingredients (apart from chia seeds) into the mixer jar.

- Beat on low speed for a min.

- Pour in a jar and mix the chia seeds.

Serve cold on a hot summer day.

Ghar ki Murgi with Dahi (Chicken curry with curd)

This post has been lying in my drafts since 2014. This lockdown made me open the blog and then came the realisation of how much has changed in life. 

This is a dish that I prepare too often at home (hence the name Ghar ki Murgi). As usual instead of posting a sweet recipe or Pachadi I am posting chicken curry on Ugadi. Happy Ugadi folks!! This chicken curry also has potato in it. My friends here ask me why do you need to add potatoes to a chicken dish. Well, i reply saying you have to be a bengali to understand that. Bengalis can add potatoes to everything. They can have potato in breakfast, lunch and dinner. Loving potatoes is a sign of being a true bengali.Now straight to the recipe.

Ingredients:
- Chicken (500 gms)
- Curd ( 1 cup)
- Ginger garlic paste (2 tbsp)
- Onion paste ( 5 tbsp)
- Mustard Oil (1 cup)
- Potatoes (Diced into big pieces 2)
- Turmeric powder (1 tsp)
- Cumin powder(1/2 tsp)
- Coriander powder(1/2 tsp)
- Salt (2 tsp)

 - Kashmiri Mirch Powder (1/2 tsp)
                                - Coriander leaves (chopped finely)
                                - Water (1 cup)

Method:
- Marinate the chicken with curd, salt and ginger garlic paste for 2 hours.
- Marinate the potatoes with salt and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder for 30 min.
- Heat oil in a pan for deep frying the potatoes.
- When the oil is smoking hot deep fry the potatoes in it till golden brown and keep aside.
- Now in another pan take 2 tbsp of oil and when it is hot add the onion paste into it.
- Fry the onion paste till golden brown in colour.
- Now add ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell vanishes.

- Add the marinated chicken and put the flame on high heat.

- Add coriander powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, salt to taste and sugar. 

- Once the water vanishes fry on medium flame. 

- Add potatoes and cover.

- Check in 10 mins and add water to adjust consistency.

- Serve with hot rice.

Mutton Biriyani - The way I prepare it

This is going to be a long list of ingredients and a huge recipe. So, let me get to the recipe quickly, without much ado.

Ingredients for biriyani masala :

- Black Pepper (1 tbsp)
- Cumin (2 tbsp)
- Cinnamon (4 long sticks)
- Cardamom (3-4)
- Cloves (7-8)
- White Pepper (1 tbsp)
- Fennel seeds (1 tbsp)
- Star Anise (2-3)
- Black cumin ( 1 tbsp)
- Nutmeg (grated 1 tsp)

Preparing the Biriyani masala:

Dry roast all the spices and cool it. When it is at room temperature grind it to powder. Dry roasting the spices gives it a good flavour and increases  its shelf life. You can store it for about a month or two.
U can also use store bought biriyani masala as well but it is not as good as the fresh home made masala.

Ingredients for the Biriyani :

- Basmati Rice ( 1.5 cups)
- Curd ( 1 cup)
- Rose water (1/2 cup)
- Milk (1/2 cup)
- Mutton ( 4-5 large pieces or biriyani pieces)
- Ginger paste (2 tbsp)
- Garlic Paste (2 tbsp)
- White pepper powder (2 tbsp)
- Onion paste (2 tbsp)
- Ghee (4 tbsp)
- Sunflower oil (2 tbsp)
- Turmeric powder (1/2 tsp)
- Salt (4 tbsp)
- Sugar (2 tbsp)
- Coriander powder (2 tbsp)
- Cumin Powder (2 tbsp)
- Curd (1/2 cup)
- Potato (2. Each cut into 4 pieces)

Method for cooking the biriyani:

- Wash the potatoes, and fry in hot oil till they turn brown.Keep aside.
- Soak the rice in water for 30 mins.
- Marinate the mutton with salt, sugar, turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, garlic paste, ginger paste, onion paste and curd for 3-4 hours.
- Cook rice on medium flame for 5-7 mins. The rice should not be overcooked. Infact a little undercooked is fine.
- For the mutton, heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok and add 1 tbsp ghee to it.
- When it is hot add the mutton and 2 tbsp biriyani masala and cook it fully. You can also pressure cook the mutton if u feel so. But make sure there is no water left in the gravy when the mutton is ready. When fully cooked add half the rose water and 1 tsp biriyani masala before turning off the flame.
- Now take a flat bottomed pan and rub ghee on its suface.
- Add a layer of rice and then a layer of mutton along with the fried potato.
- After you add the layer of mutton, add some rose water and milk over it. Also add 2 tbsp biriyani masala and 1 tsp salt.
- Continue doing this layering till your rice and chicken are over.
- On the top of this layering you can add fried julienned onions (fry them till brown). This is called adding the " Birista ".
No its not over yet. Now the actual cooking starts. :)
You have to seal the cover of this pan with some dough so that the heat within it cannot escape. Now you have to put it on "Dum". How to do that??
There are two ways to do that:
- You have to take an even larger flat bottomed pan and put some water in it. Put the water to boil and when it boils place the biriyani pan over it. Place it on low flame over the stove.
                                                              OR
- Take a tawa (disk shaped griddle) and place it on medium flame and place the biriyani pan over it.
According to my experience the first method is better.
Remember the more time you keep ur biriyani on dum the tastier it is.. :)
Serve it hot with Raita or Salan :)

Basic English Pancakes

My baby "A" is 3 years now. After a lot of struggle, hopping between the roles of a Mother,Wife and a working woman, now, I finally am able to find some time to return back to my blog.

In these last 3 years, I have realized how difficult it is to manage everything with a baby. I must say, I am really lucky to be blessed with a caring and supporting husband, without whom I would not have been able to live up to the expectations in all my roles. While in the world, the debate still continues on "Working Woman VS Stay At Home Mom", I feel if you have a supportive family to fall back to, you can manage everything - be it your office job or household work.

Let us now talk about today's recipe:  Basic English Pancakes

Ingredients:
- Maida (1 cup)
- Powdered Sugar (1/2 cup)
- Melted butter (2 tbsp)
- Egg (1 no.)
- Vanilla essence (2-3 drops)
- Milk(1/2 cup)
- Baking Powder (1 tsp)
- Oil (2 tbsp)

Method:
- Sift flour and baking powder together.
- Mix well the above dry ingredients with Sugar.
- In another bowl, mix egg, vanilla essence, melted butter and milk. I use a hand mixer for mixing, you can also do it with a fork.
- Now form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture little by little and mix.
- Heat a girdle and put 2-3 drops of oil/butter. Spread accross the girdle.
- When the girdle is hot, pour one ladle of the pancake mixture on the girdle.
- Cook on medium heat. Pores will be formed on the surface of the pancake.
- Check the pancake and when it turns brown flip it and cook the other side as well.
- Serve hot with chocolate sauce/ honey / maple syrup or any sweet sauce of your choice.