Mutton Cutlets

These are best tea time snacks. Whenever mom makes these I ve so enjoyed them from the making of it to the eating of it. Best when they are eaten hot, tastes yum when they are cold as well; this snack is an all-day thing to eat.

Ingredients:

Mutton (minced)- 250g

Potatoes- 5 medium sized

Onions- 2 big

Green chillies – 3

Tomato- 1 big

Ginger-garlic paste- 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Red chilli powder- 2 tsp

Coriander powder- 1 tsp

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Garam masala- 1 ½ tsp

Pepper powder – 2 tsp

Egg- 2

Bread crumbs- 1 cup

Salt- to taste

Oil – 3 tbsp

RECIPE:

          In a pressure cooker, add the minced mutton, water, turmeric powder, salt and cook it for 15-20 minutes. Keep it aside. Do not drain the excess water.

          Boil potatoes with a pinch of salt. Mash them well and keep aside.

          In a kadai, add oil and splutter finely chopped green chillies. Then add finely chopped onions and sauté them till they are caramelised. Now add ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell is off. Add tomatoes and a pinch of salt and cook well till they are mashed.

          Add the masalas given and add a cup (100ml) of the mutton stock and cook well the masalas are cooked. Now add the remaining stock and simmer till the gravy turns dry.

          Add the mashed potato and blend the masala into the potato. Once done add the minced mutton and salt and mix well. Leave them on a low flame for 10 minutes turning them over every two minutes.

          Put the flame off and add pepper powder, mix well keep it aside and let them cool.

          Break open the eggs in a shallow bowl, whisk them well adding a pinch of salt and keep them aside.

          Spread the bread crumbs on a flat plate.

          Make small balls of the mince mutton, flatten them into small rounds. Wash them with egg and coat them with bread crumbs. Shallow fry in hot oil, making sure not to burn the bread crumbs.

The tastiest mutton snack is ready to serve.

          Tastes good if eaten as it is , or when it is inside a burger or with biriyani or with sambar/rasam/curd rice. Name anything, you can eat cutlets with them.

         

         

Fish Masala

          Almost similar to fish moilee, I would rather this is a tamil style of fish moilee. This is the only benefit when you belong to both groups… Integration of cuisines and that result in amazing new recipes which form a legacy later.

Ingredients:

Pomfret fish- 1 of size 500-750g

Onion- 1 big

Shallots- 15

Ginger-garlic paste- 2 tsp

Green chillies- 3

Tomato- 1 big

Coriander leaves- a few

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Red chilli powder- 3 tsp

Dhania powder- 2 tsp

Pepper powder- 2 tsp

1^st Coconut milk – 200 ml

Salt- to taste

Coconut oil – 3 tbsp

Recipe:

          Marinate fish with salt, pepper powder, red chilli powder. Shallow fry in a tawa and keep it aside.

          In a kadai, add two tablespoons of coconut oil. Add shallots and sauté them until translucent. Now add onions and fry them till they caramelise. Then add green chillies and sauté for a couple of minutes. Now add ginger-garlic paste and then add tomatoes and cook well until they are mashed.

          Now add the coriander leaves and toss them a bit. Now add the masalas and cook them until done. Now add the fish and fry them along with the masala till they get blended. Once these are over turn the flame off and add the first coconut milk.

          This dish goes well all forms of flavoured rice and maida breads like naan, roshi, maida chapathi and roti.

PS:

·        Do not fry the fish too much as this tends to be very crunchy and doesn’t blend well with the masala

·        After adding the fish make sure u toss the gravy less so that the fish is intact

         

Squid Curry

          Of all sea food there is few stuff that are really special, exquisitely tasty but are available verily on a seasonal basis. Squid tops this list. The aroma while it is getting cooked, the flavour of the dish and a unique non-seafood taste is what makes this special.

Ingredients:

Squid- 500g

Shallots- 20

Green chillies- 5

Tomatoes- 2 big

Ginger-garlic paste- 2 tsp

Mint leaves- few

Coriander leaves- few

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Red chilli powder- 1 tbsp

Dhania powder- 2 tsp

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Pepper powder- 1 tsp

Cinnamon- 1 stick

Cloves- 2

Cardamom- 2

Star anise- 1

Curry leaves- a sprig

Salt- to taste

Coconut oil- 3 tbsp

Recipe:

          Clean the squid off all the ink and its shell and dice them into cubes.

In a pressure cooker add the cleaned squid, a few shallots, two slit green chillies, one teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste, one chopped tomato, turmeric powder, salt and a teaspoon of coconut oil and pressure cook for 20 minutes.

          In a kadai, add oil and splutter curry leaves. Add all the whole spices and sauté them for a minute. Add sliced shallots and fry them till translucent. Now add the slit green chillies and sauté them. Add ginger-garlic paste and cook for a few minutes. Now add chopped tomatoes and a pinch of salt and cook them well till they are mashed.

          Now add all the masalas one by one and the stock from the cooked squid and mix them well. Let the masalas get cooked in the squid stock for 10 to 15 minutes on low flame. Now add the squid along with all the additives and cook them for 10 minutes. Add mint leaves, coriander leaves and sauté for a couple of minutes. Put the flame off and sprinkle pepper powder and squeeze out a few drops of coconut oil on to the gravy.

PS: Squid is a crustacean and has a high tendency to induce allergy even if you are not allergic to other crustaceans like crabs, prawns or lobsters. Never store up raw/marinated/cooked squid in the refrigerator as this triggers the allergic responses very quickly.