Chicken Samosa

Assalamo Alaikum,

I wanted to share this post that i make me quite excited with my fellow readers,

“As we enter the month of Rajab, we are reminded of the need to prepare for the blessed month of Ramadan.

“The month of Rajab is the month of planting, Sh’aban the month of watering and Ramadan the month of harvesting.”

“The month of Rajab is like the wind, Sh’aban is like the rain clouds and Ramadan is like the rain”

This is a beautiful reminder. We cannot expect to harvest in Ramadan if we fail to plant the seeds of goodness in Rajab and nurture the goodness in Sh’aban.

O Allah, bless us with the ability to work righteous deeds in this month and the next. Help us reach Ramadan in a state that we are ready to harvest.

(Abu Bakr Muhammad bin ‘Omar al-Warraq al-Balkhi al-Hakim (d.243 AH), quoted by Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (d.795 AH) in his book regarding the virtues of the different months and the deeds one should strive to carry out in them; Lataif al-Ma’arif)” 

Ramadan is coming oh!! i cannot wait for Ramadan,MashAllah this month somehow puts a magical spell on me for example  the stuff i struggle to do during rest of the year Ramadan makes it easy on me my spiritual energy becomes amazing ,this Ramadan I’m praying that  i have the same energy all year long in Sha Allah:).So i’m starting early as above quote states and in sha Allah with the help of Allah Subhana wa tallah!!

Food is an important part of Pakistani family and every occasion has its own special dishes like samosas if i make samosa other then Ramadan everybody would say it feels like Ramadan,
Ramadan is incomplete without Samosas. I’m sharing my tasty chicken samosas which i usually make ahead of Ramadan in large quantities (as i can be easily frozen ),so i have to spend less time cooking and more time praying in sha Allah.

Chicken Samosa

Recipe

Ingredients:

Dough:

All purpose flour  2 cups

salt 1 tsp or to taste

oil or ghee     4 tbsp

water enough to make a semi soft dough

Filling:

Chicken Qeema  1 pd

Onion sliced one medium

Oil 2 tbsp

Ginger paste  1 tsp

Garlic paste   1 tsp

Chili powder  1 tsp

Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp

Salt to  taste 

Cumin seeds   1/2 tsp

Frying:

Oil        2-3 cups

Direction:

Mix Flour and salt together

then add oil and mix thoroughly

now add water little by little to form a semi soft dough (not very hard and not very soft)

leave to rest for at least 15 mins.

In a saute pan heat oil for filling and add sliced onion

fry until golden brown

Now add chicken qeema and then ginger and garlic paste ,

Add chilli powder , tumeric,salt and cumin seeds, cook on high until brown

Lost the picture of ready qeema 😦

Make golf ball size  balls from the dough and using rolling pin roll out the balls in  8 inch circle

Cut in the middle of the circle

Fold one side over like this

then apply water on the side and flip over the other side ,pinch it from top to bottom so it sticks

hold it in your hand like a cone

add about 2 tbsp of filling and apple water on top edges of the samosa

press together the mouth of samosa to close it so it wont open up while frying, at this point you can place the samosas on a flour tray and freeze until hard ,then place them in zip-lock bag and defrost and fry as many as you want ( you can freeze samosas in layers on a tray by using wax paper or plastic bag in between)

 Heat oil in a deep wok or Karahi on medium high heat and then fry samosas on medium low until golden brown

strain them out in big strianer to remove excess oil

Serve hot with delicious green chutney and enjoy!!

Assalamo-Alaikum,

Today I’m going to share a secret with you so please keep it to you(shh) ,cooking was never a big passion for me until i got married and mind you i had an excuse i got married when i was “eighteen”!!!so no experience literally. So here I was a newbie cook(by the way i loved baking but desi homes don’t run on baking lol)  and in a foreign country living with desi food fan,with no help in sight except the one and only “Shan” masala’s just imagine oh wow Alhamdulilah that time also passed but slowly i realized, that there’s more to it I can create food specially desi food by grinding up spices and as long as i know the right ratio with lots of hits and misses i learned a lot. Still i depend on some ready made spice for some dishes but slowly and steadily I’m learning.At this moment i would love to give credits to my mom,my late mother-in-law,sisters and Skype (ever since Skype communication has been changed from here to anywhere)

Oh by the way i have  learned a lot from blogs and videos also!!So i want to give back what i have learned so a newbie like me would benefit from it in sha Allah!!

Here is a recipe of simple Chicken Salan that can be useful for everyday cooking.You can add potatoes to it also would taste great, today I’m sharing  the recipe without it.

Chicken Ka Salan

Ingredients:

Chicken whole cut into medium sized pieces

Onion  1/2 medium sliced

Onion 2 medium ground

Bay leaf 2

Cloves   6

Black pepper whole 6

Black cardamom  1

Cinnamon   1/4 inch stick

Green cardamom 2

Coriander powder 2 tsp

Cumin powder 2 tsp

Red chili powder  1 tsp

Salt to taste

Garlic paste 1 tbsp

Ginger paster 1 tbsp

Oil 3-4 tbsp

Direction:

Heat Oil in big wok or Karahi and fry whole garam masala or spice until fragrant ,then add sliced onion and fry until golden brown

then add chicken pieces and fry on high heat until they change color

Now add garlic and ginger paste and fry for few more minutes

then add Salt,chili powder,coriander powder and cumin powder,cook on high for 2-3 minutes

Now add ground onion and cook on high until oil seperates,add 1/2-1 cup water

After this you can add pieces of peeled Potatoes if desired.

Bring to boil and simmer on low heat until chicken is tender and oil is seperated from the gravy and gravy is thickened

Serve with Naan or vegetable pulao and enjoy!!!

BITTERBALLEN: THE DARING COOKS’ OCTOBER, 2014 CHALLENGE

Assalamo alaikum,

Bitterballen, never heard of it right me either ,no no it’s not a vegetable nor a fruit as you might be thinking its a name of a very delicious Dutch appetizer. That’s  the beauty of the daring cook challenges in which we learn various countries cuisine and by participating in these challenges we get to try these delicious recipe 

 this month’s daring cook’s challenge was brought to us by Andrea from 4pure, she introduced us to one of her family favorites which is soon to become one of yours, too. Welcome to the world of Dutch Bitterballen!

This dish was so much fun to make and was delicious too. I really enjoyed it thanks Andrea for such a wonderful challenge .Now my dear readers here is the recipe I followed it for most part with some variations.so here it is hope you guys will try and enjoy it !!

BITTERBALLEN

RECIPE

ingredient :

1-1/3 lbs boneless chicken leg

2 cubes chicken stock

3 cups water

1 small onion 

1 stick butter

1 cup flour

salt, pepper,and nutmeg

coating :

flour

2 eggs beaten

Panko Japanese style breadcrumbs

oil for deep frying

Directions:

Boil chicken with water and chicken cube until fork tender

let it cool and shred it finely

take 2 cups of stock and set aside

chop  onion finely

make roux by melting butter and browing the onion for 2-3 mins

add all the flour and cook on medium heat for about 3 mins

now add stock keep stirring  bring to boil,cook on high simmer for another 5 mins

Add cooked and shredded chicken

Add salt.pepper and nutmeg

cool it in refrigerator by spreading the misture in a rimmed dish for about 2 hrs or better overnight

for outer covering take flour , egg mixture and panko bread crumbs in three bowls

make balls of about golf ball size  and coat them with flour then eggs and lastly bread crumbs

let the balls rest in refrigerator  for 30 mins

deep fry the ball in medium heat , it should take 2 to 4 minute for them to turn golden brown

note : these can be frozen for a month before fried and fry them right out of the freezer it might take a minute more to completely fry them.

Stew style Qeema

Assalmo alaikum,

Today was such an amazing day it was my kids last day of school ,my second oldest son promoted to seventh grade he is going to junior high (middle school) mashAllah !! Kids grow up so fast I can still remeber the first day he called me “ammi”(mom) and the day he took his first steps,my eyes are filled with tears as I am writing mashAllah so many memories and many to make in sha Allah 🙂 A mother’s is always filled with Dua’s (prayers) for her kids for their health and success!!!

 

Qeema (ground meat) is always my go to dish as you can cook it in fairly less amount of time and my kids love it ,leftovers are used easily in sandwiches ,quick quesadillas or with pasta so I love to make it .Also Ramadan is coming closer this could be good for Sehri or suhoor too.This recipe is really delicious and has very nice flavors ,so do try it and enjoy it!!!

 

Stew style Qeema

Ingredients

Qeema (ground meat) chicken or beef 2lbs

Onion thinly sliced medium 3

Oil 3 tbsp

Garlic thinly sliced 8-10 cloves

Ginger thinly sliced 1 inch piece

Red chilli powder 1/2 tsp or to taste

Whole red chillies 4-5

Whole Cinnamon 1/2 inch piece

Whole Black pepper 6-8

Whole bay leaf 1-2

Whole black cardamom 2

Whole green cardamom 3-4

Salt to taste

 

Direction:

Heat oil on high in a karahi or wok

Add thinly sliced onion fry on medium high until light brown ,then put heat on until onion ges gold color

Add all whole spice fry for a bit then add sliced ginger and garlic fry for few seconds

Now add ground meat and cook until mixed properly keep stirring

Add salt and red chillie powder

Cook qeema until all liquid is evaporated

Now cook it covered for 10-15 mins on low until oil separates

Garnish with sliced onion and hot chapatis !!:

 

 

Chicken shami kabab

Assalamo alaikum,
It’s been a few weeks since I wrote on my blog so first I need to apologize to my readers for being away for some time ,I really wanted to write but these two three weeks were so hectic and busy that I couldn’t get time to sit down and write something.first my dear hubby went to Pakistan to visit his sisters,then me and my hubby went out of town to attend a wedding very small trip and the third week my parents went to Pakistan ,thanks to them I could leave my kids with them to go and attend the wedding.April was filled with shopping ,meeting lots of relatives (at the wedding) and some time out with my dear hubby .i hope you are not thinking I didn’t do any cooking ,our desi lives cannot survive on takeouts and frozen food we need good and fresh food but couldn’t capture most of my cooking but surely share with you guys later on!! I think I have talked so must that some of you must be thinking of leaving the page but please please !!!! There is a good recipe coming up my first take on chicken shami kababs:) I have only made shami kababs with beef before and always thought chicken shami kababs would be so blah but recently when I had some at my friends house I couldn’t tell the difference,so I had to think over my blah thought and had no option but chicken qeema (ground boneless chciken leg) so decided to give it a try ,asked my friend and searched over Internet and a recipes was created well actually not really I had different sources i.e my late mother-in-law (who taught me to make original beef shami kababs)and my friend and http://www.fauziaskitchenfun.com/recipes,
So here is :
Chicken Shami kababs
Ingredients:
Chicken qeema (ground boneless chicken leg) 2pds
Chana daal 1 cup
Garlic 6-8 cloves
Ginger 1 inch thick piece chopped
Green chillies 2 medium roughly chopped
whole dried red pepper 3-4
Black pepper corn 1/2 tsp
Bay leaves 2
Black cardamom 1
Cloves 3-4
Cumin seeds crushed 1 tsp
Corriander seeds crushed 1tsp
Onion 1 medium roughly chopped
Salt to taste
Turmeric 1/4 tsp
Water 2 cups
Onion 1 medium finally chopped
Cilantro 1/2 bunch finally chopped
2 Eggs
Oil for shallow frying
Direction:
In a big pot add chana daal,qeema,garlic ,ginger,green chillies,onion ,dried red pepper ,turmeric powder,water and all whole spices ,(I have mentioned above to use crushed cumin and corriander seed as chicken needs less cooking time the seeds might not cooked through and won’t chop up properly )
Bring this on boil over medium high heat ,then cook it covered on simmer until chicken and chana daal is cooked (over here chana daal mostly doesn’t take that long to cook but if you are doubtful soak chana daal for an hr or two in hot water)

Now if your mixture has some extra water cook it on high heat uncovered stirring frequently so doesn’t get burned from the bottom.
Cool the mixture down completely ,and chop it up in the food processor or chopper

Take out chopped mixture in a big bowl and check for salt ,add if needed then add one egg ,finally chopped cilantro and onion ( at this point you can also add chopped green chillies if need extra heat)

Now shape your mixture into palm size flat discs ,

Shallow fry them in hot oil, my experience with frying theses kababs without dipping in egg was not so good as edges were breaking during frying,so I covered them lightly all by dipping them in an egg mixture I only fried around 10-12 kababs but you will surely need more egg mixture for frying all of them as the recipe makes around 25 kababs,you can freeze them too to enjoy them later !!!

I enjoyed them with chilli garlic sauce but it will be great with green chutney too!! Enjoy!!

Chicken Chow mein

 

 

Assalamo alaikum,

 

Chinese food is one of the favorite meal in my household when it’s time to go out for dinner most of the time Chinese is on top of our list.i also love cooking Chinese at home specially when you want to give your taste buds some change of flavors .chow mein being one of a favourite dish for my kids I often make it and it doesn’t take much time too if you plan ahead a bit .today I’m sharing my simple chow mein recipe which I learned from a Chinese cookbook ,just added some spice to adjust to my desi taste lol but very simple yet delicious recipe!!!

 

 

Chicken chow mein

Ingredients:

Chow mein Noodles 1 6 oz packet

Boneless chicken leg cut in small cubes or thin strips 2lbs

Garlic cloves 4-5 finally chopped

Oil 3-4 tbsp

Coleslaw mix 1 cup ( this makes life easy)

Yellow onion 1/2 medium sliced

Chopped green onions or scallions1/2 cup

Sliced green bell pepper 1/2 cup ( I had red so i used that)

Sugar 2 tsp

Soy sauce 3 tbsp

Whole dried red chilies 2-3

Salt to taste

Chilli garlic sauce 2 tbsp ( use less or more as per your taste)

egg white 1

Corn starch 2 tsp

Direction:

Marinate chicken pieces in 1 tbsp of soy sauce,1 tbsp of chilli garlic paste, egg white ,cornstarch and 2 tsp oil leave it in refrigerator for about an hr or so

Mix together in a bowl 1 tbsp soy sauce, sugar and 1 tbsp oil and set aside

Boil noodles as per package direction

Drain and run cold water over it ,as sometimes noodles get sticky ( learned by bad experience)

Now after draining toss the noodles with soy sauce and oil mixture

Take out marinated chicken and bring to a room temperature

Now in a wok heat 2 tbsp of oil add whole red chili fry a bit and add chopped garlic until fragrant, then add chicken pieces fry on high heat until chicken becomes brown.take it out

Now add 1 tbsp of oil to the wok ,heat and fry sliced onion until transparent ,then rest of the vegetables fry on high heat until little bit cooked but not lumpy, mix in your noodles and chicken until all ingredient are distributed properly

Add chillie garlic paste and soy sauce if needed,

Garnish with chopped green onions before serving

And enjoy , love to hear from my dear readers and thank you for stopping by!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHICKEN STEW (PAKISTANI STYLE)

Assalamo alaikum,
I’m back !!!after 8 long months but now I’m here to stay yeah inshAllah!!! (if Allah wills) I will continue to write good recipes on my blog .hope my visitors will enjoy it!!
So here we go ,today I’m going to share a recipe in which we traditionally use veal,beef or mutton but today I’m using chicken but I’m sure when made in your home its going to be a hit inshAllah!!!
Ingredients:
Whole Chicken cut in small pieces 2-3 pd
Onion sliced 3
Oil 2 tbsp
Yogurt 2tbsp
Garlic cloves 10 sliced thinly

Ginger 1 inch piece shredded

Red chili pd 1/2 tsp
Turmeric pd. 1/8 tsp
Salt to taste
Whole black cardamon 2
Bay leaves 2
Cinnamon stick 2 1/2 inch pieces
Cloves 10
Whole black pepper 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds 1/2 tsp
Whole dried red chillies 3-4

Procedure:
Heat oil,and then fry sliced onion until golden brown

Now add sliced all of the whole spices and fry for few minutes

Then add sliced garlic fry until fragrant

Add chicken pieces cook until lightly cooked

Now add shredded ginger and fry again for few minutes

Add red chili powder,turmeric and salt fry for 4 mins
And also add yogurt

Keep frying the meat until all the spices and yogurt are mixed thoroughly
Now add 1 cup water cook on high heat until stew is bubbly

After 2 mins lower down the heat cook covered on low flame until chicken is tender
Now cook it uncovered on high heat until gravy is little thick

Now simmer on low flames so the oil separates from gravy
Enjoy your stew chicken with roti or rice!!!

Semi homemade tandoori chicken kabobs

Assalamo alaikum,

The recipe I’m sharing with you guys is one of kids favorite ,they call these “orange kabobs” due to their tandoori orange color.This recipe is very simple either you can deep dry these or cook them shallow fry,i made these shallow fried less oil much better!!!

So here is the recipeI used Shan tandoori masala but in small quantity to give them tandoori taste and orange color.

Ingredients:

1 pd Ground boneless chicken ( I used boneless thigh meat as it give more juicier kabobs)

2 tbsp Shan tandoori masala (available at most Indian or Pakistani stores)

1/2 tsp cumin seed ground

1/2 tsp red chilli fLakes (optional)

I small pouch instant mash potatoes

1/2 bunch finally chopped corriander

2 tsp lemon juice

2 bread slices crumbs(you can either use food processor or crumble them with your hands )

Direction

Mix together all the ingredients.let it rest for 15 min in the fridge,so it’s easier to handle

Use the back of wooden spoon or skewers to make Long kabobs that are hollow in the middle .Now heat a regular or a grill pan and brush it with 1 tbsp oil (non stick pan will use less so if possible use that)

Cook on both side on medium heat, then lower the heat and cook it covered so the kabob get cooked from inside for about 10 minutes or until tender.

Serve hot with coriander chutney , sliced onions and naan.

Enjoy!!!

Chicken corn soup

Assalamo alaikum

When I was waking my hubby this morning ,he was a having a bad cold and he wanted to take a day off and get some rest.I decided to make some chicken corn soup and ginger tea for him so he could feel better soon inshallah (by the will of Allah)

Let me tell you about the ginger tea,my mom use to give it us when we had cold and it work great and makes you feel a lot better

Ginger tea:

Boil together 1 inch piece of ginger,4 whole black pepper corn and 3 cups of water

Cook it until its reduce to one cup , add some honey as sweetener and throat soother.

Back to my chicken corn soup

Ingredient:

Chicken piece about 5-6

Garlic cloves 5 whole

1 cup corn kernels

Vinegar 2 tsp

2 eggs

2 tbsp cornstarch

Water

Salt to taste

Recipe:

Boil chicken pieces in water and add garlic cloves and salt.Cook until until chicken is tender

Strain chicken,place broth back in the pot on simmer.

Shred chicken when cooled

Chop corn in a food processor,don’t purée it very fine.

Put corn and shredded chicken in the broth ,bring to boil and add vinegar

Mix together cornstarch and water to make a smooth paste, add this mixture to boiling broth and cook until soup thickens

Now add beaten eggs to your boiling soup ,stirring constantly for for 5 secs until mixed thoroughly

Serve hot with soya sauce,vinegar ,hot sauce and enjoy!!!!

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