Mutton Masala

Ingredient Set A – To be dry roasted and ground

• Black cardamom – 2
• Green cardamom – 5
• Clove – 4
• Black pepper – 1 tsp
• Black cumin seeds (Shahi Jeera) – 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
• Whole coriander – 2 tbsp
• Nug meg – a small piece
• Mace – 1 full
• Dried bay leaf – 2
• Cinnamon – 1.5” piece
• Poppy seeds – 2 tbsp

Dry roast the above ingredients without any oil until the aroma is released. Cool and then grind them into a fine powder.

Ingredient Set B

• Vegetable oil – 4 tbsp
• Finely sliced onion – 4 large numbers
• Finely chopped red tomato – 3 large numbers
• Curd – 1 cup (curd should not be sour)
• Water – 2 cups or as required
• Green chilly slit lengthwise – 2
• Kashmiri red chilly paste – 3 tbsp (You can substitute with 3 tbsp of Kashmiri red chilly powder mixed with a little water)
• Ginger garlic paste – 2 tbsp
• Chopped mint leaves – 2 tbsp
• Chopped coriander leaves – 2 tbsp
• Salt as required.
• Mutton cubes with bone – 1 kg

Method

• Heat a large skillet or kadai and add the oil
• Add the sliced onions and sauté them until they are translucent and begin to turn golden brown
• Add the washed and drained mutton cubes to the onions and over medium high heat sear them in the oil – cook them this way for about 10 minutes turning them around after every minute or so.
• Move the mutton pieces and onion to the sides of the skillet and add the ginger garlic paste into the oil at the center. Sauté the ginger garlic paste for about a minute in the oil. And then mix the ginger garlic paste with the mutton pieces and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
• Add the red chilly paste and then cover and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
• Add salt as per taste at this stage.
• Now add the garam masala powder prepared earlier (Ingredient set A)
• Now add the chopped tomatoes and then cover and cook for another 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are fully cooked and have become mushy and the oil is separated from the masala
• Add the curd, chopped mint and coriander leaves and cover and cook for another 5 minutes
• Add sufficient boiling water and then cover and cook over low flame for another 25 – 30 minutes or until the mutton pieces are tender and the gravy has the desired thickness.
• Adjust salt as required.
• Serve hot garnished with chopped coriander leaves along with rice or naan/roti. The dish would have a rich dark red color and velvety gravy.

I have not added any garnish since the curry looked so beautiful without any garnish.

 

Pan Seared Tuna Steak

 

Tuna is an interesting fish. They can be as small as weighing 1 kg and can be as large as ones weighing upto 400 kg (Atlantic Bluefin Tuna) or more. The ones I have seen in the local markets are about 1 – 3 kg in size. Tuna has red flesh and you can get large chunks boneless fillets. Because of this, it can be used for cutlets, sandwich filling etc. It is also used extensively in Japanese cuisine for Sushi & Sashimi. In the West they are cooked like steak – rare, medium rare etc.

Ingredients

• One tuna steak – ½” - 1”thick, 1" - 2” wide, 6”-8” long
• 1 tbsp of finely chopped coriander leaves
• 1 tsp of finely chopped curry leaves
• ½ tsp of finely chopped green chilly
• Salt as per taste
• Black pepper powder as per taste
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp of olive oil for the marinade
• Finely sliced onions and lemon for garnish
• 2 tbsp of vegetable oil for pan searing the steak

Method

• Wash and pat dry the tuna steak
• Apply the marinade of salt, black pepper, lemon juice and olive oil all over the fish and leave it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes
• Mix together the coriander leaves, curry leaves and green chilly in a plate and then roll the tuna steak to coat on all the sides with this mix
• Heat the oil on a pan and the sear the tuna steak on all the sides until done
• Serve with a garnish of onion slices drizzled with lemon juice and lemon wedges.

 

 

Bacon Wrapped Chicken, Sausage and Vegetable Roll

Ingredients
Ingredient Set A - For the roll

• Two boneless leg pieces with the skin (not just the drumstick but the whole leg). Ask your butcher to prepare these for you. If not you can do this at home using a small boning knife and with a bit of care.
• Bacon strips
• 2 tbsp of olive oil or any other neutral tasting vegetable oil (avoid oils like coconut, mustard oil etc.)
• 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp of ginger garlic paste
• Black pepper powder as per taste
• Salt as per taste

 Ingredient Set B - For the stuffing

• 1 cup of chopped sausages (use any sausage of your choice like pork, chicken etc. In the pictures shown I have used minced chicken breast, but sausages would be the best)
• 1 large finely chopped onion
• 1” piece of finely chopped ginger
• 2 tbsp of finely chopped coriander
• 1 finely chopped green chilly
• 1 tbsp of finely chopped mint leaves
• Black pepper powder as per taste
• Salt as per taste
• Juliennes of vegetables like bell peppers, carrots, beetroot etc. In the pictures shown I have used green bell peppers and carrots

Method

• Wash the boneless chicken legs and pat them dry with a kitchen towel
• Spread the pieces flat and if needed use a meat tenderizer to spread out the meat evenly
• Season these with salt, lemon juice, ginger garlic paste and black pepper powder. Set them aside for 30 min.
• Mix together all the ingredients under the “Ingredient Set B”
• Take a large aluminum foil and grease one side with oil
• Sprinkle a bit of black pepper and salt
• Lay out the bacon strips on the foil so that they cover the width of the boneless chicken leg
• Place the chicken leg with the skin side down over the bacon strips
• Spread the stuffing over the chicken legs
• Now wrap the chicken legs together into a cylinder (you will get an idea from the pictures)
•  And then roll the bacon strips around it along with the foil and tighten both the ends like a toffee wrapper
• Prepare both the chicken legs this way
• Boil enough water in a large vessel
• Put the chicken rolls into the boiling water and cook them for about 30 min
• Remove the rolls from the boiling water, wipe them dry and then put them in the refrigerator to set
• Remove from the refrigerator after about an hour and carefully open and remove the aluminum foils
• Heat a skillet and add olive/vegetable oil to it
• Once the oil is hot, place the rolls in the skillet and fry all around the roll by rolling them in the skillet every few minutes until the bacon strips are crisp
• Remove from the skillets and slice the rolls into ½” thick pieces
• Serve hot some with spicy sauce like szechwan (or schezwan as we call it) sauce

Tip
Use your imagination and experiment. If you do not eat bacon/pork, substitute with chicken salami or something similar for the outer wrapper and the filling.



The Poached Rolls

The Unwrapped Rolls Ready for the Final Frying



The Roll Slices Plated