Chicken Tikka Masala Kebabs

Taken from the taste.com.au website, these would be yummy with a green salad in summer, I reckon.

Ingredients:
2 tbs tikka masala paste
1 1/2 cups (420g) thick Greek-style yoghurt
1kg skinless chicken thigh fillets, trimmed, cut into 3cm pieces
1 bunch coriander
2 tsp caster sugar
4cm piece ginger, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 2 limes
1 telegraph cucumber, thinly sliced
2 tbs sunflower oil

Method:
1. Soak 8 wooden skewers in cold water for 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, combine tikka masala paste with 1 cup (280g) yoghurt and season well. Coat the chicken in the marinade, then cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
3. Place coriander stalks and leaves, sugar, ginger, garlic, olive oil and half the lime juice in a food processor and whiz until a coarse puree. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup (140g) yoghurt. Season. Set aside.
4. Meanwhile, toss the cucumber with remaining lime juice. Season. Set aside.
5. Heat sunflower oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Thread chicken onto skewers, then cook, turning, for 8-10 minutes until cooked through.
6. Serve the skewers with coriander dressing and cucumber salad.

Tomato, Basic and Bocconcini Chicken

Renee sent me this recipe through a recipe swap email - it sounds like a super-yummy dish, so it'll be tried out very soon here!

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This dish is sooooo scrummy. I get really excited when I see it coming up on our menu planner! Bocconcini has to be one of my favourite cheeses - It is usually a "one for the dish, one for my mouth" scenario when I am using it in recipes ;)

Tomato, Basil & Bocconcini Chicken
1 400g tin diced tomatoes
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tablespoons of shredded fresh basil
Olive oil spray
2 single chicken breast fillets, thinly sliced horizontally
75g bocconcini, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 190 celsius.
Heat tomato in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add garlic and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir in basil and season with pepper.

Spray a large non-stick frying pan with olive oil spray. Heat over high heat.
Add half the chicken and cook for 1-2 minutes each side or until golden. Transfer to an oven proof dish and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Pour the tomato mixture over the chicken and bake in oven for 10 minutes.
Arrange the bocconcini over the chicken and bake for a further 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

The website that I found this recipe on (www.taste.com.au) recommends serving this dish over polenta....which is very yummy. However I find that my arm practically falls off when I have to stir that polenta for hours as it cooks...so I prefer to serve it over cous cous with a little side salad. Just as yummy :)

Coconut Chicken

This sounds like a nice variation on crumbed chicken - I'll give it a go, and see how it turns out.

Ingredients:
6 (about 12 oz) chicken tenderloins
6 tbsp shredded coconut
1/4 cup panko crumbs
2 tbsp crushed cornflake crumbs
1/3 cup egg substitute or egg whites
pinch salt
olive oil spray

Method:
1. Combine coconut flakes, panko, cornflake crumbs and salt in a bowl. Put egg whites or egg beaters in another bowl.
2. Lightly season chicken with salt. Dip the chicken in the egg, then in the coconut crumb mixture. Place chicken on a cookie sheet lined with parchment for easy cleanup. Lightly spray with olive oil spray and bake for 30 minutes turning halfway, or until chicken is cooked through.
3. Serve with a green salad.

Mexican Hot Flower Soup

This sounds intriguing, so I'm keen to give this a go next winter.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 small yellow onion
2-3 stalks celery
1 split skinless, bone-in chicken breast
1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes w/chillies
2 medium limes
1/2 bunch cilantro
2 medium avocados
2 Tbsp chicken bullion/base

Method:
1: Chop the garlic, onion and celery. Place them in a large pot with 1 Tbsp of olive oil and cook over medium heat until soft (about five minutes).
2: Add the chicken breast and 6 cups of water. Simmer with a lid on for about 30 minutes (med/low heat).
3: Carefully remove the chicken breast from the pot and remove the meat from the bone with a fork and knife. Shred the meat into small pieces and return it to the pot.
4: Add the chicken soup base, stir to dissolve. Add the can of tomatoes with chiles and the juice from one lime. Chop 1/4 bunch of cilantro and add to the pot. Taste the broth and adjust the salt, lime or cilantro to your liking.
5: Slice the avocados, chop the remaining cilantro and slice the remaining lime. Serve each bowl of soup with avocado, cilantro and lime as garnishes.

Cornflake Chicken

This is a new recipe I tried earlier this week and it was delicious!  Definitely one that will be used again and again in our household!

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
4 Tbsp mustard (I used Mild American, but I think wholegrain might be quite nice, too - definitely something not too sweet)
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp white vinegar
Cornflakes, crushed up - probably a cup or so

Method:
1. Combine mustard, honey and vinegar in a bowl.  Cut chicken up as desired (I just cut them in half) and marinate in bowl for a couple of hours.
2. Take chicken out of marinade, keeping as much marinade as possible on the pieces.  Press in cornflake crumbs.
3. Bake in oven until cooked - will depend on the size of the pieces, but probably around half an hour.

Chicken Korma

We were given this recipe at our last Indian cooking class, but didn't get a chance to try it out - I'll give it a go soon, and report back what I thought of it!

Ingredients:

300g chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces

2 medium onions

2-3 Tbsp oil

1 tsp salt (or to taste)

¼ cup fresh cream

½ cup yoghurt

½ cup coconut milk

1 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp white pepper

½ tsp turmeric powder

Paste:

2 tsp poppy seeds

handful cashew nuts (approx 25 nuts)

2-3 green cardamom seeds

2 red dry chillis (optional)

Method:

1. Wash chicken pieces and keep them aside in a drainer.

2. Roast poppy seeds and cashew nuts, allow them to cool.  

3. Combine poppy seeds, cashew nuts, deseeded red chillis and cardamom seeds and grind them in a dry grinder.  Mix this with ¼ cup warm water to make a paste, and keep aside.

4. Grind onions in a food processor, or finely grate them.

5. Heat oil in a pan.  Add onion and cook until they are translucent or light pink (do not allow them to brown).  Add ginger and garlic, and stir for 15 seconds.

6. Add chicken pieces, salt, pepper, coriander powder, cumin powder and turmeric powder, and cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes or until it is cooked (make sure not to colour the chicken).

7. Add beaten yoghurt, stir for 30 seconds and then add the paste (made earlier) and coconut milk.  Add ½-1 cup water as required, and simmer for another 5-10 minutes until the chicken is tender.

8. Finish with fresh cream, simmer for another 20 seconds to mix it thoroughly and remove from heat.

Garnish with fresh coriander and serve hot with naan, chapati or rice.

Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)

From the last week of our Indian cooking class - a favourite curry!

Ingredients:


Marinade:
500g chicken breast
2 tsp garlic paste
2 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
½tsp chilli powder
¼ cup plain yoghurt
4-6 Tbsp fresh cream - or 1 Tbsp cooking oil
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
2 Tbsp tandoori paste (I got this premade from my local Indian spice shop)

Gravy:
30g butter
300g tomato puree
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp chilli powder
3-4 tsp honey
200mL fresh cream
1 tsp crushed ginger
3 Tbsp roasted cashew pieces (optional)
1 Tbsp cashew powder

Method:

Marinade:
1. Remove skin from chicken, wash and make cuts over the pieces.  Dry chicken with a paper towel so that all the water is drained off.
2. Mix lemon juice and salt and rub over the pieces and into the cuts and leave for 15 minutes.
3. Mix yoghurt, fresh cream/oil, ginger, garlic, tandoori paste, and all dry ingredients in a big bowl to make a paste.  Now rub it over all the pieces thoroughly.
4. Leave it in the fridge overnight (or for least least 5 hours) before cooking.
5. Preheat the oven and place the chicken in a single layer in a greased shallow baking pan.
6. Brush the chicken with melted butter or oil and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes on 220°C.
7. Turn pieces over, brush with butter or oil and let it bake until cooked through.  The water in the chicken should be absolutely dry.
8. Cut the roasted fillets into cubes.

Gravy:
1. Heat the butter.  Remove from heat and add ginger, chilli powder, salt and honey.
2. Add tomato puree and melon juice and cook for 3-4 minutes.
3. Add cream and cook for a further 2 minutes.
4. Add roasted chicken pieces and cashed powder to sauce.
5. Simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes, keep stirring every 4-5 minutes as cashew powder tends to settle at the bottom.
6. Finally, add cashew pieces and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Serve hot with naan bread or plain rice.

Murg (Chicken) Makhmali Kebab

This is a recipe from Week 4 of the Indian cooking class I'm taking - it is lovely, once you can get over the curdled cream/yoghurt texture!  Next time, I'd probably make it with a lot less white pepper, as it was quite overpowering.

Ingredients:
400g boneless chicken thigh
2 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste
4 Tbsp thickened cream
4 Tbsp natural yoghurt
1 tsp white pepper
4 Tbsp green coriander
2 green chillies
pinch nutmeg (optional)
1 egg white
2 Tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
½ Tbsp lemon juice

Method:
1. Clean chicken pieces and cut them into 2-3 inch pieces
2. Mix ginger, garlic, lemon juice and salt, and mix it with pieces and set aside.
3. Chop green chillies and coriander fine, or liquidise it in a chopper.
4. Mix cream and yoghurt with white pepper, green chillies, nutmeg and egg white, and half of the chopped coriander.
5. Now mix the chicken pieces with this mixture and leave it for 2 hours.

{We did all of the above before we attended our class, left the chicken to marinate overnight, and then took it along to our class to carry on with the rest of the method...}

6. Preheat oven for 5 minutes on 180ºC
7. Prepare tray with aluminium foil and grease it with butter or oil nicely and then place marinated chicken pieces on this and cover loosely with tin foil.
8. Bake at 180ºC for 8-10 minutes. Turn the pieces and bake again for 5 minutes or until done.
9. Remove, put in a serving dish and garnish with the rest of the coriander and thin carrot/cucumber sticks in side.

Serve hot.

{An alternative way to cook this is in a wok on medium heat, stirring constantly}

Murg Masala (Spicy Chicken)

The second recipe from Week 1 of my Indian cooking class - this is delicious, but I have to admit that I only put in ¼ tsp of chilli powder, and no fresh chillies, as I'm a bit of a wuss! It was delicious though, and I'll happily make it again for myself and someone that wishes to join me (it won't be a regular in our house, due to the number of onions, and hubby's intolerance of onions).

Murg Masala:

Ingredients
• Boneless chicken 500g cut into bite-sized pieces
• Coriander seeds 1 Tbsp, roasted lightly and coarsely crushed
• Fenugreek seeds ½ tsp
• Cooking oil 7-8 Tbsp
• Onions 2 large, cut into slices
• Garlic paste 2 tsp
• Tomatoes 3
• Tomato puree 8 Tbsp
• Salt 1 ½ tsp
• Fenugreek leaves (dry) 4 Tbsp (aka Kasoori Methi)
• Red chilli powder 1 tsp
• Coriander powder 1 ½ tsp
• Cream 4-5 Tbsp
• Milk 1 cup
• Green coriander 3-4 Tbsp, finely chopped
• Green capsicum 1, finely sliced into long thin slices
• Ginger 2” piece, cut into match sticks (optional)
• Green chillies 1-2, cut into long thin slices (optional)

Method
1. Dry roast whole coriander lightly in a pan, crush with a rolling pin.
2. Heat oil in a wok, reduce heat. Add fenugreek seeds and stir for a few seconds until they turn golden.
3. Add onions and cook on medium heat until light brown.
4. Add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
5. Add tomatoes, cook for 2 minutes. Add fenugreek leaves.
6. Add crushed coriander, chilli powder and coriander powder.
7. Add chicken and fry for 10-15 minutes on medium heat, stirring well to mix everything together.
8. Add salt. Cover and cook for 5-10 minutes until tender, stirring occasionally.
9. Add tomato puree and chopped coriander. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until dry.
10. Reduce heat, add milk and cook for 2-3 minutes on low heat, stirring constantly.
11. Add capsicum, ginger sticks and chilli slices (deseeded). Mix well.
12. Reduce heat and add cream. Mix well and remove from fire. Serve hot with rice or chapatti.