Ayala pollichathu (Roasted Mackerel)

Ingredients:
For marination:

1. Ayala (Mackerel)- 2
2. Kashmiri chilly powder- 1tsp
3. Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
4. Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
   
5. Salt

For gravy:

1. Onion: 2 medium, thinly sliced
2. Tomato-1, chopped
3. Green chilly- 3-5, sliced lengthwise
4. Pepper powder-1 tsp
5. Coriander powder- 2tsp
6. Garam masala-1 tsp
7. Coconut milk-2 tsp
8. Salt

plantain leaf
Curry leaves
Coconut oil


Method:

1. Clean fish, make gashes and marinate with ingredients 2-4 for an hour.
2. Warm oil in a pan and add few curry leaf sprigs and fry fish over that. Cook both sides and keep aside
3. Heat oil in a pan, fry onions, curry leaves and green chillies. Saute until onions are slight brown. Add all masala powders and saute for a while. Stir in chopped tomatoes and cook covered. Finally add thin coconut milk and cook until the gravy is thick.
4. Place half of the gravy in a plantain leaf, then fried fish and the remaining gravy. Sprinkle 1 tsp of lemon juice and make a parcel using plantain leaf.
   
5. Spay some oil in a pan and roast both sides of the parcel until you see the leaf turned brown. Open up the parcel and serve hot with rice.

Stuffed Chicken

I saw this yummy recipe in My treasure...My pleasure and decided to give it a try with few modifications.

Ingredients:

For marination and shallow frying chicken:

1. Chicken-1, small
2. Lemon juice - of one lemon
   
3. Kashmiri Chilly powder-2 tsp
4. Coriander powder-2 tsp
5. Chicken masala-1 tsp
   
6. Pepper powder-1/2 tsp
7. Ginger garlic paste-1 tsp
8. Salt
   
9. Cloves-3
10. Cardamom-4
11. Cinnamon sticks-3
12. Oil for frying
    

For gravy and filling:

1. Onion-2 medium, thinly sliced
2. Tomato-1 medium, chopped
3. Potatoes-2 medium, sliced lengthwise
4. Ginger -1/2 inch piece, chopped
5. Garlic-4, chopped
6. Chilly powder-1/2 tsp
7. Coriander powder-1 tsp
8. Chicken masala-1 tsp
9. Fennel powder-1/2 tsp
10. Cumin powder-1-2 pinch
11. Coconut milk-2 tsp
12. Salt
13. Curry leaves

For garnishing:
Cilantro
Lemon wedges
Tomato slices


Method:

Marination and shallow frying:

1. Clean chicken, make few gashes. Make a paste of ingredients 2-8. Rub this all over the chicken (inside and outside) and keep it for at least 4 hours in refrigerator (overnight is the best).
2. Heat oil in a pan and fry cloves, cardamom, cinnamon sticks. In to this place the whole chicken and shallow fry for 5 min each side and keep aside.

For gravy and filling:

1. In the same pan fry onion, chopped ginger and garlic, add all the masala powders and saute for a while. Add tomatoes and cook covered. Finally dilute the coconut milk in 1/4 cup of water and add into the gravy. Boil off any excess water. The gravy should be thick.
   
2. Fry potato slices in oil and combine with the above gravy.

Stuffing chicken:

1. Bake the marinated chicken at 400 F for 20 min each side. Push half of the filling to the cavity and remaining spread in the baking tray. Finally bake for 10 more min at 400 F. Garnish with cilantro and slices of tomato and lemon.

Tips: Reduce the amount of chilly powder if you want to make it less spicy

Chicken and Spaghetti

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

1. Chicken breast : 1 lb
2. Fresh parsley : 1/2 cup, chopped
3. Garlic- 2, crushed
4. Mint leaves -6, chopped
5. Salt
6. Olive oil-2 tsp
7. Pepper powder-1/2 tsp
8. Thin spaghetti -1 lb
9. Marinara sauce -2 cups
10. Parmesan cheese
11. Mozzarella cheese-1/2 cup
    
12. Bell pepper -2 tsp, chopped (optional)

Method:

Cook noodles according to the instruction given in the package.Cut the chicken in to strips and rub the ingredients 2-7. Cook the chicken pieces in 1 cup marinara sauce. When chicken is cooked add one more cup of marinara sauce and spread this and mozzarella cheese over cooked spaghetti. Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese and chopped bell pepper.

Herbed chicken fry

Ingredients:

1. chicken breast slices- 1 lb, (4-5 pieces of 1/2 inch thickness)
2. ginger garlic paste-1/2 tsp
3. parsley flakes-3 tsp
4. chives-3 tsp, (finely chopped)
   
5. mint leaves- 5-8 nos, (finely chopped)
6. lemon juice-2 tsp
   
7. soy sauce-3 tsp
8. salt
9. pepper powder-1 tsp
   
10. bread crumbs
11. olive oil-3-4 tsp

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken pieces with the ingredients 2-9 and keep in refrigerator for at least two hours
2. Coat the pieces with bread crumbs. Heat oil in a non stick pan and cook both sides until brown (or bake at 350-400 C 20 min each side).