MySpice -- Garam Masala

Whole Garam Masla for me consists of the following spices, Elaichi or Cardamom, Laung or Cloves, Tej Pata or Bay Leaves, Darchini or Cinnamon and in some cases mace and peppercorns
In North Indian and Bengali cuisine Whole Garam Masala and Ground Garam Masala play an important role. If you have paid any attention to my recipes till date you will find in most I use Cardamom, Cloves, Bay Leaves and Cinnamon or whole Jeera for tempering. This is in sharp contrast to the cuisine from South of India where the spices for everyday tempering is Mustard seeds and Curry leaves. The different spices used for tempering lend a different flavor to the oil and hence the food.
While Whole Garam Masala is used for tempering, ground garam masala is mixed with the food at the last stage of cooking to lend a flavor and aroma and peps up the dish. I use the Ground Garam masala mostly for meat dishes and if I want to make a dish rich & spicy.
Ground Garam Masala is sold at stores in several varieties. But most of the time I dry roast the above whole spices and then grind them in a spice or coffee grinder to make the powder. In many regions the Bay Leaves might be omitted while grinding.
Though "Garam" means hot, this hot is not the same "hotness" as in peppers. This masala helps increasing the body temperature and so makes it "garam".

So in this cold winter spice up your life with Garam Masala

Strawberry and a Meme

Strawberries...my daughter loves them so. She eats them just as they come fresh, juicy and red. When Maheshwari of Beyond the Usual said Fruit of this Month is Strawberry, I knew that was a fruit I always had in my refrigerator. But I didn't want to make anything using them, they are so good and delicious just as they come, I don't have the heart to put them in a pie or a cake. Since a fruit is best eaten fresh I didn't want to present another option to my daughter. She likes strawberries fresh, biting into them, the juice filling her mouth and so let that be so...

Shilpa of Flog & Rosbif had tagged me with a MeMe "5 Things Most people Don't Know About Me". Now I am not very good at Memes but this was funny, so here are some skeletons from my closet

Though I drive a considerable distance each way to work every day, I am afraid to drive on the dreaded NJ Turnpike. Just to avoid the turnpike I have to drive 15 minutes extra :)

Now to dispel some myths -- dear Supriya said I am "fun loving and adventurous". Fun loving, yes but adventurous, have my serious doubts on this one. The most adventurous I am is when we go out to eat, I always end up taking the less trodden path i.e. deciding on something I have never even heard of before and then almost always end up eating what D has ordered. In other walks of life, less said the better.

One more...another blogger buddy Sra said she thought I was cherubic. Now I would love to think what she meant was I had an "angelic demeanor". However what she must have actually meant is I have a "chubby" appearance :) and I must give it to Sra for her insight. I am inclined to put on weight easily, no luck like Shilpa here and have never been skinny.

I have a penchant for hoarding...no no don't get me wrong..what I mean is I just cannot throw/give away stuff as in books, old shoes, old clothes etc., I cling on to them. I still have almost all the issues of the "Anandamela" a very popular children's bi weekly magazine in bengali, I used to subscribe from LKG to High School. My Ma threatens to sell them each year.
Now whenever I have to sort my lil' girl's clothes as she outgrows them, I am tormented. Maybe that's another reason I like computers, just store.

I love, love, love to read fiction both in bengali and english and I like learning as in go to class, take part in hot discussions, do assignment, give test. Strange as it may sound and though I cursed when I had to study, I now realize that I really like the process.

I was in the hospital for the last 17 weeks of my pregnancy, yeah 17 you didn't read that wrong, due to some complications. I was in total bed rest and was allowed to get up for occasional showers only once in a week or so. That experience taught me a lot and made me a better person I think. I now know how important everyday things that we take for granted are and I know when God closes one door he opens another, we just need to have faith and believe.

Ooop six already...stop, stop that's it. I would like to tag IndoSunGod, Sri and Maheshwari if they haven't done this already. Take it only if you want to.

Ma-in-laws Ginger Chicken

This is not the real Ginger Chicken, in fact this is not even my Ma-in-laws Ginger Chicken. My Ma-in-law makes a very unique and tasty Chilli Chicken. Every state in India worth their salt has their unique version of Chili Chicken, there is Varanasi Chilli Chicken, The Kolkata Style Chilli Chicken, the Madrasi Chilli Chicken and then there is my Ma-in-laws Chilli Chicken.

Last year when she was here with us, she made this for us and everyone was pretty much bowled over by it. Her version did not have any garlic, yeah no garlic, I remember. However I had a gut feeling that she used a lot of ginger in it. So when I saw JFI Ginger for this month I thought I would make it as my entry. So deciding to make it for friends and for JFI I called her bright and early on Saturday Morning to get the recipe

So I said " Could you give me the recipe for the Chilli Chicken you make ?"
She said " You need chicken, soy sauce, corn flour, blah blah …"
I said "Yeah, that's fine but what about the Ginger…"

My voice drowned somewhere in mid-Atlantic, leaking from those fiber optic cables

She said "Marinate the chicken in vinegar, soy sauce, blah, blah…"
I said "But how much Ginger do I use ?"
She gingerly side stepped my question and went on "Heat oil, fry the chicken pieces, blah, blah..."
I was now desperate "But wait I really need to know about the Ginger, that is what is important, for all I care the chicken can take a backseat"

And she said " There's no Ginger…"
I said "Whaaaaaaaaat NO GINGER, and you tell that now, What am I to do…"

All these numerous events had taken their toll, I knew I was cracking up. She the poor soul had no clue what was happening, so preferred to talk to her grand daughter about un-gingerly issues rather than giving me a recipe of a chili chicken sans ginger
I was desperate, and my Ma said "What's the big deal, put a lot of Ginger instead, if it's not Chilli Chicken , it's going to be Ginger Chicken"

So that's what I did, and it turned out great. It had a gingery flavor and could well be Bengali Ginger Chicken. I was pretty flustered by this time to take exact measures, so measures are approximate (which it is in most of my cooking anyway)

Read more...

Ginger Chicken

What You Need

Chicken ~ I used 2lb of boneless, skinless Perdue Chicken Tenderloins cut in small pieces
Soy Sauce
Ginger ~ 3" fresh ginger grated
Green Chillies ~ 5/6 finely chopped
Onion ~ 4 tbsp of onion paste

Corn Flour ~ 2-3 tsp
Vinegar ~ 1 tbsp
Tomato Ketchup ~ I used about 1-2 tbsp of Maggi Hot & Sweet Tomato Ketchup

Salt
Oil

How I Did It

Cut the Chicken in small pieces
Marinate the chicken in Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Salt and 1/3 of the grated ginger for an hour
Sprinkle corn flour on the chicken and mix
Heat Oil in Kadhai/Frying Pan
Lightly Fry the chicken Pieces till they are brown. Remove and drain on paper towel
Grind the Onion to paste. I already had Onion Paste so I used 4 tbsp of it
To the oil add the onion paste
Fry till the onion is nicely browned
Add the rest of the ginger, the green chillies and sauté a little
Add 1 tsp of soy sauce. If you think you need more go ahead and do it.
Add 1 tbsp of Hot & Sweet Maggi Tomato ketchup
Add salt
Add the fried chicken pieces
Saute till the masla coats the chicken nicely
Cook on low till the chicken is done. Avoid adding water, I just sprinkled a little

Mine was on the dry side. You can have a little gravy if you want. Serve it with Fried Rice or just by itself. Sending this for JFI Ginger to Rosie of WTRT Jim ? Heard she is moving, so hope she gets this in her Inbox.

Trivia: Tangra is a district in north-west Kolkata known for it's famous Chinatown. Food from Tangra is a distinct variety of traditional Chinese food adapted to Indian ingredients and the Bengali palate.