Beef Curry (Kerala Style)

I want to wish you and your loved ones a "Great Holiday Season and a Happy New Year." As this is the last post of 2017, I can't help but feel a little nostalgic and sentimental about the year gone by. I guess the last week of December in any year has that effect on people. :-) I started this blog in April 2017 and I was determined to post a new recipe every week. I am happy to report I have done so successfully and I am quite pleased with myself. For those of you wondering what's the big deal in this rather low achievement, I'd like to share that I have been trying to write a blog and post consistently for the last seven or so years. This is the first time I have planned my blog posts in advance, written them diligently and published them consistently. Yay! for me. And a big thank-you to all you lovely people who visit me here and read what I have to say.... Bless you guys!

Now coming back to the recipe below, which by the way has no connection whatsoever to my ramblings above, is one of my all time favourites. This dish makes a fairly regular appearance in my elder sister's (Anita) home. And obviously if I am visiting it is a part of the menu for one of the meals. What I particularly like about this preparation is the number of spices that come together to create this delightful spicy curry. As always, please use the number of chillies, cinnamon and peppercorns as per your spice tolerance. You may also use your discretion in using ginger and garlic. This dish is fiery hot if prepared with the exact measurements given below. It is a very popular dish in Kerala. Enjoy!

Recipe credit: Ms Anita Arakal

Ingredients:

1. Beef - 1 kg (cubed into 1 inch pieces)
2. Oil - 3 -4 tbsp (as required)
3. Mustard seeds - 2 tsp
4. Curry leaves - 3 sprigs (roughly 25 leaves)
5. Onions - 3 big sized (roughly chopped)
6. Green chilly - 4 nos ( roughly chopped)
7. Garlic - 25 flakes (finely chopped)
8. Ginger - 2 and 1/2 inch piece (finely chopped)
9. Red Chilly powder - 1and 1/2 tsp
10. Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
11. Coriander powder - 2 and 1/2 tbsp
12. Bay leaves - 3 nos
13. Vinegar - 1 and 1/2 tbsp
14. Methi (fenugreek) seeds - 1/4 tsp (roasted and ground)
15. Coconut - 1 and 1/2 cup (thinly sliced into 1/2 inch bits)

Spice Mix coarsely ground:

1. Cinnamon - 7 one inch sticks
2. Cloves - 6 nos
3. Cardamom - 6 nos
4. Cumin - 1 tsp
5. Aniseed (Saunf) - 1 tsp
6. Peppercorns - 10 nos

Method:

1. Wash and drain the meat. Apply salt and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when they stop spluttering, add the curry leaves, onions and green chilies. Fry till the onion are brown.
3. Add the chopped ginger and garlic, and continue frying for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the ground spice mix, the powders, bay leaves, meat and vinegar. Mix well.
5. Cook till the meat is done. This should take about twenty to thirty minutes depending on how tender the meat is.
6. While the meat is cooking, fry the coconut bits in oil till they change the color. Add a pinch of turmeric powder to this. Keep this aside.
7. Dry roast the methi seeds and and powder it. You can use a rolling pin or a mortar and pestle to do this.
8. When the meat is cooked, adjust the consistency of the curry. It should ideally be a thick gravy. Add the fried coconut and methi powder. Mix well. Put off the flame after about two minutes.

This curry goes well with steamed rice, appams and dosas.

Minced meat cutlets

Cutlets are a great accompaniment to any meal. They can be had as starters by themselves or can be eaten with pao like a sandwich, or with a meal of rice and daal. Many years ago, when I was studying in Goa, going to Miramar for cutlet pao was an exciting event and my friends and I looked forward to that trip with all the excitement that we could muster. We also loved the choris pao, squid masala, sorpotel pao and other delicacies that could be bought at the cart and eaten, whilst looking at the crowded beach on Sunday evenings. The cart was very popular and had a loyal clientele. Just thinking about the cart at Miramar makes me so nostalgic.

Anyway, coming back to the cutlets, the recipe I share with you today is my mother-in-law's recipe.  Whatever I am in the kitchen today is due to her encouragement and guidance. She has taught me many things inside the kitchen and other wonderful things about life. What can I say, I am a lucky girl!

Recipe credit: ms Rozita Coutinho

Ingredients:

1. Mince meat (beef) – ½ kg
2. Turmeric – ½ tsp

Method to cook the mince:

1. Wash and drain the mince on the drain board.
2. Put a pan on the stove, and put the mince and the turmeric, dehydrate the mince completely.
3. Once dehydrated you could mince it further in a mixer. Keep aside.

Ingredients:

1. Onion – 1 medium (finely chopped)
2. Tomato – 1 medium (finely chopped)
3. Ginger Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
4. Coriander leaves – 1/4 cup tightly packed
5. Green chilly – 3 nos (finely chopped)
6. Egg – 1 no
7. Bread crumbs – as required
8. Oil – as required
9. Salt – as required

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan, fry the onions, add salt, fry till translucent, add the green chillies and tomatoes, fry well, and add the ginger garlic paste. Let this cook well and then put off the flame.
2. Cool the above mixture and then give it a twirl in the food processor or a mixer. Add this to the cooked minced meat, add one egg and mix well.
3. Make small balls and flatten in your palms, roll in the bread crumbs and shallow fry on both sides till they turn brown.

Daal Fry

Daals or lentil preparations are common in most Indian meals. There are a vast variety to choose from and every part of the country has a different way to cook it, and not to mention each family has their own recipe. It is a staple food in many Indian homes, mostly among vegetarian families that rely on daals or lentils for their rich protein content. A regular Indian meal typically includes daal, chawal, sabzi, roti or chapatti and achar(lentil soup, rice, vegetable sauté, Indian flatbread, and pickle). A wholesome and nutritious meal. The beauty of cooking dals is that it can be cooked in so many different ways, by adding as many or as little spices, vegetables and other ingredients from your kitchen. I personally prefer to keep it simple. But today's post is by no means a simple dal recipe. It is one of the most popular daal preparations of all time.

I learnt this recipe from my elder sister, Anita, and this recipe has a special place of honor in her kitchen. Her family loves a meal of daal fry with jeera pulao and fried chicken. Who wouldn't! In fact as I am writing this post I am salivating for this meal. :-( But this meal will have to wait, at least for now.

This specific daal preparation goes well with jeera pulao (cumin tempered rice), Indian pickle and papad. According to me, this simple meal is worth many scrumptious buffets, as it brings many fond memories of my childhood and loved ones. Hope you like it as much.... Enjoy!

Recipe credit : Ms. Anita Arakal

Ingredients:

1. Tuvar Dal - 1/2 cup
2. Onions - 2 medium (Finely chopped)
3. Tomatoes - 3 medium (Finely chopped)
4. Green chilly - 6 nos (Finely chopped)
5. Garlic - 6 fat flakes (Finely chopped)
6. Ginger - 1/2 inch (Finely sliced)
7. Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
9. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
10. Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
11. Asafoetida (hing) - 1/4 tsp
12. Curry leaves - 20 leaves
13. Coriander leaves - for garnish (Finely chopped)
14. Oil - as required
15. Salt - as required
16. Juice of 1 lime
17. Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

1. Wash and soak the daal and cook in 1 cup of water till it is soft and squishy. Once cooked, whisk it so that the consistency is thick throughout. Keep aside.
2. In case your cooking the daal in a pressure cooker, take three whistles, and then take it off the stove. The daal should be thick in consistency, and not watery and runny. Keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a deep pan, add the mustard seeds, let it stop crackling. Then add the chopped garlic,green chilly, curry leaves, and asafoetida(hing). Mix well and let it fry for a minute. Add the ginger.
4. Then add chopped onions and fry well till the onions turn golden brown.
5. Add the tomatoes. Mix well. Let this mixture cook for a couple of minutes. When the oil starts leaving the sides, add the powders. Stir well and fry the mixture for two to three minutes.
6. Finally add the cooked daal and salt. Mix well. Let the daal simmer and mix with all ingredients for three to five minutes. Add the lime juice and mix well. Check for taste and consistency. Switch off the flame. 
7. Garnish with fresh chopped coriander leaves.
8. Serve hot with steamed white rice or jeera rice, papad and pickle.

Black eyed beans in tamarind curry - Puli Kuzhambu

My idea of South Indian cuisine for a very long time, was limited to idlis, dosas, sambhar, avial and vegetarian preparations that use massive amount of coconut. I'm sure many people share my narrow view. However, this changed when I met Sudha, a dear friend and a great cook. She is a Tamilian and has opened my eyes to the wonders of the amazing Tamil and Telugu cuisine. And she has very kindly shared so many of her recipes with me when we were neighbours in Cebu. She was always generous with her food, she'd send me a bowl of whatever she cooked almost everyday. One of the preparations that I absolutely loved was the tamarind curry or "Kuzhambu"(pronounced koh-ehm-buh). Recently she visited me and very kindly offered to cook something for me and made the "Puli Kuzhambu" or black eyed beans in tamarind curry.

Recipe credit: Sudha J

Ingredients:

1. Black eyed peas or Chawli beans - 2 cups cooked
2. Onions - 2 medium sized, chopped
3. Tomatoes - 3 medium sized, finely chopped
4. Green chilly - 3 nos, chopped
5. Garlic - 8 cloves
6. Red chilly powder - 1 tsp
7. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
8. Tamarind - a lime sized ball soaked in water
9. Salt - as needed

Tempering:

1. Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
2. Channa dal - 1/2 tsp
3. Urad daal - 1/2 tsp
4. Jeera - 1/2 tsp
5. Curry leaves - a few sprigs
6. Oil - as required

Method:

1. Soak the peas in water for 6 to 8 hours and cook in a pressure cooker for 5 to 6 whistles. You can take 3/4 cup of dried beans and it will yield approximately two cups after soaking.
2. In a pan, heat oil and add the mustard seeds first, when they stop spluttering, add the remaining ingredients under tempering. Stir the ingredients for a few seconds.
3. Add the finely chopped garlic and fry it well, add the finely chopped onions and keep stirring till they are fried well and look golden.
4. Add the green chilly and all powders and finally the tomatoes. Mix well and cook on slow flame till they are mashed well. This takes a while as the tomatoes have to disintegrate completely, so patience is the key. For faster cooking you can blend the tomato and then add to the pan.
5. Once the contents look well cooked and mushy, add the beans and tamarind water. Mix well, let it come to a boil and cook on slow flame for about ten minutes.
6. Check for salt, and consistency and switch off the flame.
7. Serve with hot steamed rice.