CURRIES

Chicken Casserole

What you need:

3 medium potatoes – diced into 1 inch pieces
2 large chicken breasts – quartered and skinned
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic – minced
1 green pepper – sliced into 1 inch pieces
1 medium onion – sliced
1 cup mashed Italian plum tomatoes or leftover tomato sauce
¼ tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp oregano
Freshly milled pepper to taste
3 tablespoons parmigiano cheese – grated
Salt to taste

How to make:

Preheat oven to 190˚C (gas mark 5 / 375 ˚F). Steam potatoes for five minutes and set aside. Wash chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Oil baking pan with olive oil. Put chicken breasts in pan, skinned side down. Place steamed potatoes around the chicken, being sure that they are on the bottom of the pan to catch cooking juices. Distribute garlic, green pepper and onion evenly over chicken and potatoes. Ladle tomato sauce over casserole. (If sauce is thick, add ¼ cup water.) Sprinkle fennel seeds and oregano on top, and cover with liberal grating of fresh pepper. Sprinkle the cheese over all and cover with tin foil. Bake for ½ hour in preheated oven. Remove foil and turn the potatoes. Season with salt and baste with the cooking liquid. Bake another 15 – 20 minutes uncovered.

Note: This recipe for chicken Casserole calls for skinless chicken breasts, but you may want the additional flavor from the skin. If you do, brown the pieces in a skillet before putting in the casserole.

Kulhimas (chili tuna)

     

WHAT YOU NEED:

500 g fresh tuna – diced into small pieces
3 tbsp cooking oil
1 cup onion – finely sliced
¼ cup curry leaves
1 tsp ginger – grated
4 cloves garlic – pressed/grated/very finely chopped
1 Dorset Naga (Chinese capsicum/ ghost chili/githeyo mirus) – chopped
3 pieces of Pandan (rampe/ raambaa) leaves – cut into ½ inch pieces
3 cardamom seeds
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp chicken curry powder/paste
¾ cup coconut cream/milk (thick)
Salt to taste

How to make:

Heat the oil, sauté the onions, garlic, ginger, curry leaves, Pandan leaves. Add the chili powder, while stirring. Add the tuna and toss until all tuna pieces are well coated. Add salt, Dorset Naga, cardamoms, ½ cup coconut cream/milk, water and cook on low heat, stirring occasionally. When the tuna is well cooked, add the remaining coconut cream/milk and simmer for about a minute.

Aluvi hiki riha – potato fry

What you need:

500 g potato – diced into about 1 inch cubes
4 tbsp cooking oil
2 cup onion – diced into about 1 inch cubes
¼ cup curry leaves
1 tsp ginger – grated
3 cloves garlic – pressed/grated/very finely chopped
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 Dorset Naga (Chinese capsicum/ ghost chili/githeyo mirus) – finely chopped
3 cardamom seeds
½ tsp chili powder
1 tsp curry powder
Salt to taste
Vegetable oil for frying

How to make:

Deep fry the potatoes on medium heat until crispy and brown. Leave aside. Heat the 4 tbsp oil and sauté the onions, garlic, ginger, curry leaves and mustard seeds. Add the fried potato, cardamom seeds and Dorset Naga. Toss. Add the chili powder, curry powder and salt and stir. Simmer for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Note: add 2 tbsp of smoked, dried tuna (sliced/chopped) for additional flavor.