Rediff reader Reshma Aslam shows us how to indulge in homemade delicacies.
Ladies, why eat out when you can enjoy a five-course meal at home.
Here are the recipes:
Russian Salad
Photograph: Miansari66/Creative Commons
Ingredients
- 2 medium sized potatoes (boiled)
- 1 cup peas (boiled)
- 6 to 7 slices of pineapple (boiled with 2 to 3 tbsp sugar for 10 minutes)
- 2 apples (peeled)
- 4 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup corn kernels, boiled (optional)
- 1 tsp black pepper powder
- 1/2 cup fresh cream
- Sugar (optional)
- Salt to taste
Method
- Cut the boiled potatoes and apple into small cubes.
- Cut the pineapple slices into small chunks.
- Take a large bowl and put the boiled potatoes and apples cut in small cubes, boiled peas and pineapple chunks.
- If you are adding corn, add it to the above mixture. Mix all the contents well.
- Add salt and pepper. Add mayonnaise and fresh cream and mix well.
- Add sugar if required.
- Keep the bowl in the fridge. Chill and serve.
Broast Chicken
Photograph: Venturiantale/Wikimedia Commons
Ingredients
- 1 kg chicken drumsticks
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp red chilli powder
- Oil for frying
- Salt to taste
For broast masala
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 4 tbsp rice flour
- 1/2 cup corn flour
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 2 tbsp white pepper powder
- Salt to taste
For egg wash
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- Pinch of salt
Method
For broast masala
- Mix all ingredients of the broast masala and keep it in an airtight container. This mixture always comes handy whenever you want to make broast chicken.
For egg wash
- Whisk the eggs in a bowl
- Add milk and salt. Keep it aside
For broast chicken
- Cut and wash the drumsticks thoroughly
- In a mixing bowl, place the pieces. Add salt, red chilli powder and vinegar. Mix well.
- Refrigerate the above mixture for 5 to 6 hours.
- Once the marination is complete, coat the drumsticks in broast masala.
- Dip it in egg wash and coat it with broast masala again.
- Heat oil in the frying pan and fry the chicken drumstick pieces till they turn golden brown.
- Serve hot.
Chicken Jalfrezi
Photograph: Jonathan/Creative Commons
Ingredients
- 1/2 kg chicken pieces
- 2 tbsp fresh cream
- 2 tbsp garlic (chopped)
- 1/2 tbsp turmeric
- 1/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- Pinch of saffron dissolved in milk
- 5 to 6 green chillies (finely chopped)
- 3 big onions (finely chopped)
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 lemon
- 2 tsp red chilli powder
- 2 eggs
- 4 big tomatoes (grounded into paste)
- 3 1/2 tbsp ghee or oil (as per your choice)
- 1 inch dry coconut
- 1 tbsp cashewnuts
- 1/2 tbsp shahjeera
- 1/2 cup of water
- Salt to taste
Method
- Take oil or ghee in a pan. Add chopped onions and fry well.
- Add ginger garlic paste, green chillies and ground tomato and fry.
- Add garam masala, salt, red chilli powder and turmeric.
- In a separate pan, roast the coconut piece, cashewnuts and shahjeera. Grind this mixture well in a mixer.
- Add the grinded mixture in the other pan. Fry the entire contents well.
- Add chicken pieces and water. Let it simmer on low flame for about 20 minutes
- Put cream and saffron slowly. Whisk the eggs and add it to the pan. Mix well till it turns into a dry gravy.
- Serve hot with roti, naan or parathas of your choice.
Vegetable Fried Rice
Photograph: Brian Yap/Creative Commons
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cup boiled rice
- 1/2 cup finely cut cabbage
- 1/2 cup finely cut carrot
- 1/2 cup finely cut spring onion green
- 1/2 cup finely cut capsicum
- 1/2 cup French beans
- 5 to 6 green chillies (chopped fine)
- 1 tbsp soya sauce
- 2 tsp black pepper powder
- 1/2 tsp ajinomoto
- 2 tbsp oil
- Salt as per taste
Method
- Heat oil in a pan.
- Add green chillies slowly and add all the veggies except for spring onions.
- Let it boil on a high flame for about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add salt, black pepper and ajinomoto.
- Add rice and stir well. Add soya sauce and toss it well.
- Add finely chopped spring onions.
- Serve hot.
Shahi Kheer
Photograph: Syedandy/Creative Commons
Ingredients
- 200 ml condensed milk
- 1 cup rice (soaked in water for 3 to 4 hours)
- 2 tbsp vanilla custard
- Few almonds (sliced)
- 1/2 cup khoya
- Few pistachios (chopped)
- 1 litre milk
- 3 tbsp cold milk
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
Method
- Drain the rice and blend it in a mixer till it turns into a fine paste.
- Boil the milk in a bowl.
- When it starts to boil, add rice paste.
- Keep stirring continuously or else the rice will settle at the bottom.
- Add condensed milk and khoya. Cook it on a low flame. Keep stirring.
- In a small glass add cold milk and dissolve the custard powder.
- Add the above mixture in the milk and keep stirring until it gets thick. Switch off the flame.
- Garnish with almonds and pistachios and serve.
Note: All images used for representational purposes only
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