PRAWN CURRY

 PRAWN CURRY

My husband and I love shrimps, or prawns as they are commonly called in India. They are called Jhinga  in Hindi, Sigadi in Kannada, and Sungat in my mother tongue, Konkani. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for some dishes made with prawns such as:-

• Goan Prawn Curry
• Sungta Humman
• Prawn Masala

Besides being so yummy - prawns are rich in Omega 3 Fatty Acids and have an abundance of proteins. So, I make some prawn dish from time to time.

I have adapted this from Prawn Curry from Indian Healthy Recipes.

In making this dish I have used Large Sized Freshwater Prawns, cleaned and deveined, from Licious. 

I find the quality to be excellent and the fact you get it delivered home makes it a sensible and easy solution to buying prawns. 

We enjoyed this dish immensely- served as an accompaniment for hot rotis. I hope you will like this too!  

Ingredients:-

• Large sized Prawns, 18-20 
• Cumin Seeds, 1/4 tsp
• Green Chilli, slit, 1
• Curry Leaves, 1 sprig
• Garlic Clove, large sized, 1
• Coriander Leaves, 2 tbsp - for garnish
• Tamarind, a pellet sized piece

For the Masala:

• Onion, medium sized, 1 
• Ginger Garlic Paste, 1 tsp
• Tomato, large-sized, 1 
• Fresh Coconut Gratings, 1/4 cup
• Turmeric Powder, 1/8 tsp
• Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder, 1 tsp
• Coriander Powder, 1 tsp
• Garam Masala, 1/2  tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Oil, 1 tbsp ( for roasting ingredients for grinding) + 1 and 1/2 tbsp 

Method:- 

Wash the cleaned and deveined prawns thoroughly. Keep aside

Chop the tomato and onion

Chop the garlic clove 

Slit the green chilli

Finely chop the coriander leaves

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a thick-bottomed kadhai, when it gets heated add the chopped onion and saute till they become translucent

Add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes

Next add the chopped tomatoes, a little salt, and turmeric powder. Mix well and cook on medium heat till the tomatoes become soft and mushy

To this add the garam masala powder, coriander powder, Kashmiri red chilli powder and fresh coconut gratings

Saute on medium heat for 3-4 minutes taking care to see the spices don't get burnt

Transfer to a plate and let this cool completely

Once it is cooled, transfer to a mixer jar, aadd the piece of tamarind and 3/4 cup of water  

Grind to a smooth paste and keep aside

Heat 1 to 1 and 1/2 tbsp of oil in the same kadhai and on medium heat add the cumin seeds

When they sizzle, add the slit green chilli, and chopped garlic

Saute till the garlic gets roasted then add the curry leaves and saute for a few seconds

Add the freshly prepared ground paste and mix well

Add water to get a curry like consistency

Check for salt and add if required 

Bring this to a boil and cook till the curry thickens

Now lower the heat and add the prawns one by one

Let it cook on medium  heat till the prawns tails form a C shape which indicates the  prawns are fully cooked. Please remember prawns get cooked very fast- approximately 3-4 minutes

Switch off the gas and garnish the Prawn Curry with finely chopped coriander leaves

Transfer to a serving bowl

Serve hot with jeera rice/fried rice or rotis

BROCCOLI AND GREEN PEAS CURRY

 BROCCOLI AND GREEN PEAS CURRY

I first came across broccoli when visiting the US. We liked it and since it is so good for health, I started using it in our Indian dishes. Nowadays it has become a regular item in my cooking. 

Broccoli is part of the cauliflower family and ranks as one of the healthiest vegetables.

 Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for other dishes made with broccoli such as:-

• Broccoli and Almond Soup 
• Broccoli and Potato Stir Fry 
• Butter Garlic Broccoli

Today's recipe is for a yummy dish made with broccoli and green peas. I have adapted this from the YouTube video for Broccoli Curry in Sharadhini's Kitchen.

This dish goes great with both rice and rotis. We had this for lunch recently and loved it!! 

Ingredients:-

• Broccoli, 350 gms 
• Green Peas, 1 cup
• Cardamom, 2
• Cloves, 4
• Cinnamon, 1 " piece
• Cumin Seeds. 1 tsp
• Onion, 1
• Coriander Powder, 1 tsp
• Chilli Powder, 1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder, 1/4 tsp
• Garam Masala, 1/2 tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Water, 1 cup
• Oil, 2 tbsp 
• Coriander Leaves, for garnish 

For the Masala Paste:-

• Garlic Cloves, 10
• Ginger, 1 " piece
• Green Chillies, 2
• Onion, 1
• Tomatoes, 2
• Oil, 2 tsp

Method:-

Wash the broccoli and break it into florets

Immerse in water with a little salt and drain after 10 minutes and wash again with fresh water

Wash the green peas

Chop the onion, tomatoes, ginger and coriander leaves 

Peel the garlic cloves

Slit the green chillies 

Boil 2 cups of water in a kadhai and add the broccoli florets and green peas

Add a little salt, mix well and cook uncovered for 4-5 minutes

Cooking the broccoli uncovered helps retain its colour

Drain away the water and keep the broccoli and peas aside

Heat 2 tsp of oil in a kadhai and on medium heat add the peeled garlic, ginger, and green chillies and saute for 1 minute 

Next add the chopped onion and saute till it becomes translucent

Add the chopped tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes becomes soft and mushy

Allow this to cool then transfer to a small mixer jar

Grind to a smooth paste without adding any water. Keep aside.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a thick bottomed kadhai and when hot add the cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon 

followed by cumin seeds

When the cumin seeds sizzle add the chopped onion and saute till it becomes translucent

Now add the freshly ground masala paste and mix well

To this add the coriander powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, and salt to taste

Mix well

Add 1 cup of water and cook covered on medium heat till the oil separates

To this add the boiled broccoli and green peas and mix well 

Cook for another 2 minutes for the broccoli and green peas to get well blended with the masala paste

Switch off the gas and garnish with chopped coriander leaves

Transfer to serving bowl

Serve the Broccoli and Green Peas Curry with rice or rotis

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: VIK'S AT BERKELEY, CA

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: VIK'S AT BERKELEY, CA

Recently we had lunch at Vik's -a popular eating place on 4th Street in Berkeley, Ca. Vik's Chaat  has been around for long. Adjacent to the restaurant is a grocery store which the elderly lady at the counter told us proudly was started over 40 years ago. The person behind this venture is Mr Amod Chopra who came to the US in the 1980s from present day Mumbai ( then called Bombay). 

The business started in smaller rented premises in a warehouse back in the day and they moved as they prospered. The shift to the present and more spacious location took place in 2009.  You do get good stuff in the grocery store. I am sure the lady at the store is right when she says this is the best place for Indian groceries in the East Bay Area.

Let me share our experience at Vik's. Firstly there is ample place to park so that's not an issue. Secondly, you get the choice of eating indoors or outdoors. We went on a Friday so the restaurant wasn't that crowded. We could quite easily get a table of our choice. The decor and furniture is functional. Nothing fancy here. 

However, I was told that it is tough to get a table during the weekends when most people visit Vik's.  Of course, not everyone eats here. A large section of their clients order "take outs"so that they don't waste time waiting for a place to sit . They can take the food home or elsewhere and eat it at their leisure.

While we ate I noticed they had a streamlined system. You first placed your order and paid for it. There were different sections for Dosa, Chaat etc, probably six in all. When your order was ready, the staff would call out your name and you would then go and get the food you ordered. I don't think there is any concept of reserving a table here. It works on a first come first served kind of system. . 

We noticed there were three options for the Indian Thali. Two had vegetarian side dishes to supplement the main dishes in the thali which are rice and roti. The third - which we opted for - had Mangalorean style Chicken Curry. Each thali had a portion of rice, one roti, boondi raitha, (a  curd-based salad with fried gram flour balls) ,  Imli (Tamarind) Chutney, Chole (a North Indian dish made with  chickpeas and spices),  pappad, and the chicken curry,  of course.

We enjoyed the chicken curry. The size of the helpings was just right.  My husband's cousin who took us to Vik's had Masala Dosa served with sambar and chutney, which he said was very tasty. 

We also shared a plate of Sev Puri which was quite delicious! 

Along with our meal, we had cool refreshing Salted Lassi and Rose Lassi which complemented the food.

On our way out, we bought some samosas for the evening. This came with usual accompaniments of imli chutney and green chutney. 

Overall, we enjoyed our dining experience at Vik's Chaat. If you happen to be in the area, do try it out for yourself.