Creating a blog was out of the question for a long time for me, as measuring everything in the kitchen was like biting into an eggshell. I enjoy cooking and don’t want to waste even a slightest bit of enjoyment in that small world of mine. But little did I know that everything will change, when my husband came home with the Oscar nominated film ‘Julie and Julia’( a real life story) where Julie Powell (part played by Amy Adams) challenged herself to make all the 524 recipes from Julia Child's cook book ‘Mastering the Art of French Cooking’ and blogging all her experiences (The Julie/Julia Project). It was an inspiring movie. A few days later when we were discussing this casually with a friend of ours over tea…everything changed dramatically…..” How about you making at least half of it in one year? Not French but your own. 262 recipes that will inspire others and present it as a blog?” For a minute my mind traveled faster than light… With an experience as a helper in my mother in laws kitchen for 6 years followed by a three year everyday struggle to satisfy the palate of my foodie husband, if I cannot do it then why should I cook? But on the other side with an experience in English literature extending no more than expanding outline stories in English grammar class when I was 18 and two small kids that come in handy at times, will a commitment for the next one year work? Anyway my ‘cook's ego’ didn’t allow me to say no...

So my friends …here I am opening my recipe book, trying to perfect and present 262 recipes in the coming 365 days….A Challenge that will of course tastes good. Come.. Have a walk with me along my journey.. Cheering and inspiring….Forgiving and tolerating…Testing and tasting….for ‘A Tasty Challenge’

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Thursday, October 21, 2010

Ali Baba’s Chicken Curry (My Version)

Recipe No: 102
Did this ever happen to you?  You get up early in the morning and slave in the kitchen to make food to pack your husband a delicious homemade lunch….  And he together with his foodie friends go out to eat the lunch ignoring the food that his wife packed with love… Coming back home with his untouched food boosting about the food that he ate at noon while you were expecting him to say something about the food you packed…

Hmm… this has happened to me many times… not only me but many wives when we were in California. One of their hot spots used to be a Middle Eastern Restaurant ‘Ali Baba’ and most of them were crazy about their Chicken Curry that they served on top of yellow Saffron rice with a side salad and  sauteed Vegetables. One day when we went that way he forced me to have this dish saying that it was awesome, even though the above coated incident has already created some sort of an inhibition in me towards that Restaurant…. (My bad!!!) Any way I did eat it once and I should say that was superb…. If you happened to read my earlier posts then you will be aware of my habit to imitate food that I like… whether it is from a restaurant or from a home….  So I took their menu back and read the description that they had given with that dish and this Chicken curry was born…
Ingredients                                                  Serves 3
  • Cubed Roasted Chicken……. 2 Cups (Leftover Rotisserie Chicken works well)
  • Capsicum/ Bell Pepper………1/3 Cup (Cut into thin, small pieces)
  • Olive Oil………………….……….1 Tablespoon (Can substitute with regular Oil)
  • Cream…………………….……….1 Cup
  • Water………………………………1/2 Cup
  • Pepper Powder………………….1/2 -1 Teaspoon
  • Curry Powder………….………..1 ½ Tablespoon (Recipe Follows)
  • Salt as needed
Curry Powder Mix
  • Coriander Powder…………….2 Tablespoons
  • Cumin Powder…………………1 Tablespoon
  • Turmeric Powder……………..1 Tablespoon
Method of Preparation
  1. Mix the ingredients to make the Basic Curry Powder and keep it aside. We will be using only a part of this and you can store the rest for later use.
  2. Heat Oil in a pan on medium heat and add Capsicum and saute for a minute.
  3. Add the Chicken followed by the Curry Powder and saute for one minute.
  4. Add Cream, Water, Pepper and Salt. Let it come to a slow simmer. Close the pan and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Reduce the gravy more if you want a thicker sauce.
  5. Serve hot over Saffron Rice with a side salad and sauteed Veggies.
To Make Yellow Saffron Rice
  • Grind ½ Teaspoon Salt and a good pinch of Saffron in a mortar and pestle and keep aside. Bring 2 Cups of water to a rolling boil and add 1 Cup washed Basmati Rice, a pinch of Turmeric Powder and the Salt Saffron Mixture. Close the pan and put it on the lowest possible flame till the water is absorbed and the Rice is cooked through.
Notes:
  • The Masala mix given here is what I consider as the basic Curry Powder. Sometimes (not in this case) I add enough Red Chilly Powder to it to make it hot.
  • The Curry Sauce tends to become thick when it sits. In that case add a bit of water to thin it before serving.




Make it, enjoy the deliciousness and
serve it to your family with love…

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Thank you for the recipe ,i always wanted to know how to make this dish as it's my favorite at Ali Baba's here in Dallas !I will try to make it.

Ihsan said...

I am attempting this tonight, minus the peppers, as the Ali Babas in Dallas doesn't use them. The one my husband and I frequent uses mushrooms- so I will be playing with the recipe a bit :) I will let you know how it turns out!

Asha said...

Go ahead...

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