HERB - CRUSTED FISH

I love fish, can have it every single day.Most of the time i try making the kerala type fish dishes like fish molay or meen pollichathu or fish fry. For me making those dishes are really tough because even though they are edible they dont come close to perfection.But this one is as perfect as it can be.Credit goes to my brother who taught me to cook this. I never thought such simple ingredients could make a fish so tasty. He served it on top of some caramelized onions and pepper. YUMMY!!!Its melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Its great as an appetiser.My l'il one  loves it too. This is just one of the many tasty dishes i got out of my brother, hoping for more :).

 INGREDIENTS

Fish fillet - 1-2 nos(i used tilapia. You can use any white fish like catfish or flounder)
Dry oregano
Dry thyme
Dill weed
Salt and pepper
Oil
No particular measurements just spread as much or as less as you want.
(You can use any combination of dry herbs that you have in your pantry)

METHOD

First clean the fish and wipe it dry.Apply some oil on both sides of the fish to help the herbs and salt stick to it.Put salt,pepper,and herbs all over the fish on both sides.Press it gently so tht they stick well to the fish.

Heat a tbsp each of butter and oil in a wide cast-iron skillet.When its smoking hot put the fish in the skillet and let it cook for couple of minutes on both sides.This fish cooks pretty fast.Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb the extra oil. Serve warm on the side of white rice  or as an appetizer.

PANEER CASHEW CURRY

Paneer is one of my favorite ingredients to cook with.Every time i make some paneer at home i want to cook something different.This time as the title says i combined paneer and cashews.Here the Paneer/cottage cheese is cooked in a combined onion ,tomato and cashew gravy.This is one of the tastiest dish i have cooked.Simply melts in your mouth.The green bell pepper compliments the paneer well.

INGREDIENTS

Paneer cubes - 20 nos
Onions - 2 medium size , diced
Tomatoes - 2 medium size, diced
Green bell pepper - 1 medium size, diced
Frozen green peas - 1/4 cup
Ginger- Garlic - 1 tbsp, finely chopped
Green chillies - 3 nos ,slit
Curry leaves - 1 whole sprig
Broken Cashews - 3 tbsp, divided 2 + 1
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric pdr - 1/2 tsp
Chilli pdr - 1/2 tsp
Coriander pdr - 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp
Sugar -1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil,Butter
Water as reqd

METHOD

First we need to brown the paneer cubes.For that spread some butter on the bottom of a pan.Put the paneer cubes  on it and brown 2 sides of the cottage cheese/paneer.Remove and keep it aside.

Next step is to prepare the gravy.For that heat some oil in a pan.Add finely chopped ginger garlic, green chillies and curry leaves.Saute for a few secs.Add chopped onions and some salt.Let it caramelize.Then add turmeric pdr,chilli pdr and coriander pdr.Saute for a minute.Now add the diced tomatoes.Let it cook for some time.Check salt.Transfer the contents into a food processor ,add 2 tbsp of cashews and enough water to help grind it smoothly.Keep aside.

In the same pan heat a tsp of butter and oil.Add cumin seeds and 1/2 tsp of oriander pdr .Then add the diced green bell pepper and the remaining broken cashews.Add salt.Saute until the pepper is slightly soft.Add the frozen peas.Saute until the peas get warmed up.Add the onion tomato gravy.Pour enough water to make the consistency thin.Stir in the Paneer cubes.Cover and let it simmer for 5-8 mins.Serve warm with rotis,rice,bread.

ENJOY!!!

THIKSANI BAJJI/ MULAGA BAJJI/ CHILLI FRITTERS

Weatherwise its been so dull the last couple of days, continuous rains and still going on.Days like this i crave to have something spicy. Most of the time i would settle for a bowl of hot soup or some spicy curry on the side. But this time when there were some ready-to-be-picked banana peppers in my garden, i just couldnt resist making these spicy Chilli Fritters to go with my hot cup of coffee.No doubt they were absolutely perfect.

Chilli Fritters also brings back fond memories of my childhood tirupati trips with my family.After getting a good darshan dad used to buy us these freshly made fritters from the small food stalls there.They fry these whole without removing the seeds which makes them extremely spicy.To add to the heat we had some delicious hot badam milk to go with it.A Deadly combo indeed.

INGREDIENTS

Banana peppers - 9-10 nos
Oil for deep frying

For the batter:-

Besan - 1 cup
Chilli pdr - 1 tsp
Asafoetida - A big pinch
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp (optional)
Salt to taste
Water

METHOD

Clean the banana peppers well. I leave the top stalk as it is to help me hold and i think the final product looks good with the stalk on it. Now using a knife slit the pepper from top to bottom to help remove some of the seeds. Apply some salt and leave it aside.

Mix all the dry ingredients of the batter in a wide bowl.Add water just enough to make a medium thick batter. The consistency of the batter should be such that it holds onto the pepper when dipped.Not too thick though ,that will take way the taste of the pepper.Check salt.

Heat oil for frying.When its ready.Dip the pepper in the batter and slowly drop it in the oil. Fry 2-3 at a time depending or how big your frying pan is.Do not over crowd the pan. Let it cook until brown on all sides. Transfer it to a paper towel inorder to soak the extra oil. Serve warm with a hot cup of tea or coffee.

ENJOY!!!