Milagai (Mirchi) Bajji | Vegetable Fritters
Milagai (Mirchi) Bajji | Vegetable Fritters If you’ve ever been anywhere down South in India, there is a good chance you’ve walked past street vendors frying up bajji’s of all kinds in large iron pans… up North, these go by pakoras, a close cousin to the bhaji, and are equally popular too. Geographies aside, what’s … Continue reading
South Indian Fish Fry
South Indian Fish Fry This is my sister’s recipe for fried fish, and an absolute favorite with my 3 (almost 4 now!) year old. The freshly ground marinade that includes a little bit of the shallots/onions, along with a few other fragrant whole spices, gives the fish pieces such a delish crust and you could easily … Continue reading
Oreo Truffles
Oreo Truffles ~ Cookies and Cream Cheese balls dipped in melted chocolate I had never heard of these until I tasted them at a friend’s holiday party last December. Mind-blowing! And I really couldn’t believe these gourmet-looking, gourmet-tasting, home-made chocolates were made out of just 3 ingredients?! Turns out these are all the rage on the … Continue reading
Pesto Panini (With or Without Chicken)
Pesto Panini (With or Without Chicken) This recipe is inspired by the chicken panini that’s served in my workplace’s cafeteria. Right after my very first bite of this super-flavorful sandwich, I had to take a peek between the slices of bread to try and deconstruct it. The pesto obviously takes most of the credit, but the … Continue reading
Zebra Bundt Cake
Zebra Bundt Cake What’s not to like about a marble cake, patterned like a zebra and baked in a bundt pan? So it was an easy choice for a cake experiment… plus, if I get it right I might even be able to play with the colors (imagine making this in black and orange for … Continue reading
Javvarisi Semiya Payasam | Sabudana Seviyan Kheer
Javvarisi Semiya Payasam | Sabudana Seviyan Kheer Have you noticed how food has the ability to teleport you to places that only exist in your memory from the past? I only had to think of sago (javvarisi / sabudana), and in no time I was transported back to the sunny kitchen at my grandmother’s home. What’s … Continue reading
Veggie Cutlets
Veggie Cutlets ~ Patties made with vegetables and potatoes Have you had a recipe that’s been on your mind or to-do for a while, but you somehow never get to it? This is mine. Well, for some reason, the thought of putting together a veggie patty or cutlet is sometimes intimidating. But turns out that is mostly … Continue reading
Tandoori Chicken
This might indisputably be the most liked Indian chicken dish ever. And it comes as such a welcome surprise that it doesn’t take much to put it together right at home, that too without a tandoor! Now the version I used to make before was certainly yummy, but not the dry-roasted-reddish-colored-drumsticks that you find at … Continue reading
Pavakkai Varuval | Karela Fry | Fried Bitter Gourd
Pavakkai Varuval | Karela Fry | Fried Bitter Gourd Does bitter put you off? You might want to re-consider with this vegetable. Sometimes, taking the not-so-favored route is not too bad, especially if it helps with the consumption of a new vegetable that you would otherwise not try at all. Now I’m not saying you … Continue reading
Dal Makhani | Black Lentils In a Creamy Punjabi Sauce
Did you know that dal makhani (the famous Punjabi Maa di Daal) needs just about the same time and effort as needed for a regular simple dal tadka and is not even that very different in terms of what goes into the dish? But it still gets slotted as a more elegant, ‘special’ dish fit for … Continue reading
Mildly Spiced Chicken Patties with Green Yogurt Dip
Are you some-what back to work, or being wise and waiting it out until the year’s grand end coming up mid-week through? No matter what you’re doing, don’t get over partying and feasting just yet. Not for another 2 days at-least! So, if you’re still deciding on appetizer options for the New Year’s party, these … Continue reading
Rich Chocolate Beetroot Cake
Rich Chocolate Beetroot Cake Every once in a while there is a recipe or dish that takes over you such that it becomes the centerpiece of every party or special occasion in your life. For me, it’s this cake right now. When I was tasked with being the cake-maker for a dear friend’s baby shower, … Continue reading
Butter Biscuits
Butter Biscuits ~ Egg-less soft white butter cookies Earth – Round. Sun – Hot. Butter biscuit – Buttery white, bunny soft. Growing up, every one must have had their fill munching on butter biscuits at one time or the other. I had many. And they were always these super soft cubes of melt-in-your-mouth white biscuits … Continue reading
Vazhakkai Varuval | Green Plantain Spicy Stir-fry
Vazhakkai Varuval | Green Plantain Spicy Stir-fry ~ Raw green plantains sliced thin and stir-fried in a spicy marinade With any varuval dish, the cooking process usually extends well beyond the ‘getting done’ stage. Which is a necessary evil in order to get the crispy, crunchy texture and deepened flavor that is only gotten when … Continue reading
Jeera Peas Pulao / Cumin and Green peas Rice
Jeera Peas Pulao ~ Rice cooked with cumin and green peas If you’re wondering why something as easy as jeera pulao warrants a blog post, it is more so you’re reminded of how it only takes a few extra minutes to make a regular meal feel like a whole special spread. This could be the … Continue reading
Chicken and Vegetable Frittata
You are probably wondering if I have been on an egg diet all month, this being my 3rd post in a row with eggs in them! Well eggs just happen to be so versatile that it might even fully justify having an entire blog for these little guys. Saturday mornings are usually big-breakfast days and … Continue reading
Egg Fried Rice
It’s hard to believe I still haven’t posted the recipe for my all time favorite egg fried rice – every single person who’s tasted this has wanted the recipe right away and I kept thinking it would take me no time to get it on the blog. Well, I was wrong. The best things about … Continue reading
Spicy Hard Boiled Egg Fry
How often have you made a nice simple dish, that did not take very long, but it just wasn’t good enough to complete your meal? I often find myself in that position, especially when I make my favorite butter milk curry mor kuzhambu – I could eat portion after portion of the curry with rice and not … Continue reading
Homemade Ghee / Indian Style Clarified Butter
I’ve been away from the blog – for a while now. And I’d really like to think at least some of you missed seeing my posts 🙂 As always, there’s a lot of very convincing reasons for my hiatus.. a cross-country move, virus-colds-sick visits for the little guy and the grown ups, 2 record setting … Continue reading
Paneer Burji Sandwiches / Scrambled Paneer with Toast
Even though we all like to try out different recipes and add to our repertoire, there are some dishes that make it to a whole different class that’s super special: the go-to-recipes. It’s the ones that you can put together with eyes closed (so to say), and can easily find the will to muster up after … Continue reading
Aish Cooks 