Sauteed Hot Sweet and Spicy Shrimps on Pan Fried Bread

Ingredients: (for 5 - 6 people)

1 1/2 lbs shrimps, de-veined and with the tail on
1/2 cup red and green bell peppers, sliced
1/2 cup sliced red onions
1/2 cup chopped onions
About 1/3d cup cornmeal
1 tsp Madras Curry paste
1 tsp shrimp paste
2 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 1/2 tbsp ketchup
A little brown sugar
A little salt
1 tsp hot sauce
2 tsp garlic chilli paste
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
Green onions and cilantro for garnishing
Bread (5 dinner rolls, each cut into two pieces)
4 tbsp melted butter
2 tbsp cooking oil.

To prepare:

Marinate the shrimps in Madras Curry paste, shrimp paste, a little brown sugar (maybe 1 1/2 tsp - just "eyeball" it),  salt to taste. Note the other marinade ingredients contain salt so taste the marinade before adding salt. Mix these ingredients, add shrimp, drizzle a little cooking oil, and leave for about an hour.

Heat the (rest of the) cooking oil and the chopped onions and sautee until translucent (not brown). Add the ginger and garlic paste and the chilli garlic paste. Take out the shrimps from the marinade and coat with cornmeal and add to pan. Sautee it until it look cooked but do not overcook. Once it looks "cooked" (translucent) remove immediately from heat; do not overcook. Cover and keep aside.

In the same pan put a little butter and stir fry the bell peppers and the sliced onions and keep aside. Put some more butter in the same pan, use to pan fry the bread, then arrange the bread on a plate.

In a small saucepan, combine a little butter, hot sauce, and ketchup and lightly warm the mixture over the heat. Arrange the sauteed bell peppers and onions over the pan fried bread. Arrange the shrimps over these and finally drizzle the butter/hot-sauce/ketchup mixture over the shrimp. Garnish with green onions and cilantro. Sprinkle the lemon juice (optional).

Butter chicken

Butter Chicken

Chicken kabab with garden salad

 Ingredients:

 2 lbs boneless chicken thighs

Marinade ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup yogurt
8 cloves of garlic, minced
4 tbsps lemon juice
2 tbsps tandoori mix (make sure the packet ingredients do not contain artificial colors)
1/2 cup unsalted melted butter (some will be used for the sauce, below)

Sauce ingredients:
1 cup creamy tomato soup
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garam masala
1 cup of cream (or Half-and-Half)
Chopped cilantro for garnishing.
2 tbsp cooking oil.

 Preparation:

Marinate the chicken pieces in yogurt, buttermilk, lemon juice, and 3/4th of the melted butter, tandoori mix. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

- Heat oil in the pan.
- Sautee the onions with the ginger and garlic paste.

- Discard the marinade and add the chicken to the sauteed onions.
- Cover and allow to cook on low heat, until the liquid from the chicken dries up.
- Sprinkle some salt and pour in the soup.
- Cover once more and let it cook on low heat. When the chicken is done, turn off the heat and pour in the cream, mixing it properly.
- Pour the preparation in a serving bowl, drizzle the butter on top, and garnish with cilantro.

NOTE: If you want to make chicken kababs instead, then do not make a gravy. Pull out the chicken from the marinade and place on skewers and broil until it browns. Then take it out, brush it with butter, sprinkle some tandoori powder on it, and cover with squeezed lemon juice. Serve with garden salad as in the picture.

Chicken kabab broiling

Chicken marinade

Cooked butter chicken

Steamed Cabbage Leaf Salad

This is a salad for 4 - 6 people

Ingredients:

- 1 whole steamed cabbage
- 6 to 8 steamed cabbage leaves
- 1/2 cup steamed cabbage

- 1/2 cup roasted chestnuts
- 1/2 cup roasted julienne(d) beetroot
- 1/4 cup julienne(d) red bell peppers
- 2 tablespoons chopped green pitted olives
- 1/4 cup sliced red onion- 1 cup sauteed shrimps in Shiracha hot sauce (or any other hot sauce)

Dressing: Chinese soya sauce in a owl

Served with avocado dip

Serve accompanied by chopped green onions,  chopped tomatoes and salted roasted peanuts

To prepare:

Steamed cabbage

Steam the cabbage.

This is a platter showing the olives, red bell pepper, beetroot, shredded steamed cabbage,

Avocado dip (avocado, garlic, olive oil, salt and lime juice crushed together).

Salted roasted peanuts

Sauteed shrimps in Shiracha sauce

Mix all the above ingredients together

Arrange the leaves and the topping on a platter. To assemble a cabbage leaf, first put the avocado spread, then the mixed vegetables and onions. Next sprinkle with chopped tomatoes, peanuts and green onions.

Lastly drizzle some soya sauce dressing

.

Squeeze lemon juice

Enjoy!

Spanish Style Chicken with Saffron Rice

Spanish Style Chicken with Saffron Rice (estimated preparation + cooking time 45 minutes)

Ingredients (for 6 people):

12 pcs of chicken

1/2 cup dry white wine, (eg Pinot Grigio) of good quality

1 cup chicken broth

1 small red bell pepper

1 small green bell paper

9 cloves of garlic

2 whole shallots

1/2 of a large white onion

About 12 olives, pitted

4 whole canned tomatoes with the juice

2 teaspoons of tomato paste

1 bay leaf

Olive oil for cooking

Salt, pepper and (brown) sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons of all purpose flour

A pinch of saffron

Preparation:

- Slice the peppers and white onion.

- Mince the shallots and garlic

- Crush the canned tomatoes, and mix in the tomato paste

- Sprinkle salt and pepper over the chicken and coat it with the flour

- Dust out the extra flour

- In a skillet, heat two tablespoons of oil

- Lightly brown the chicken and take it out

- In the same oil put in the minced garlic and minced shallots and sautee until translucent in color

- Add the bell peppers and sliced onions, sprinkle some salt.

- Wait till it looks "fried" (not just "brown")

- Add the tomatoes and let it cook until it is reduced.

- Add the wine, the chicken broth, little salt and little sugar and saffron and mix

- Put in the chicken on top of that and cover the skillet

- Let it cook until you see the oil on top, the chicken is soft, and the gravy is reduced, stirring from time to time to avoid burning at the bottom

- Serve it hot with saffron rice and bread