Grilled Aubergines (photographs included)

Grilled Aubergines

Ingredients:

1 Aubergine cut into round slices

Thin slices of cheddar cheese(60 grams, approx.)

A handful of onion and red pepper strips for garnish

1 tsp of vegetable oil

Salt as per taste

Method:

Heat oil in a pan and  lightly saute the slices of aubergine till done. Season with salt. Then cover the bottom of a small pie dish with a layer of  aubergine slices  followed by a layer of cheese, then aubergine and finally cheese. Sprinkle over the strips of onion and red pepper  and grill on medium for 5 minutes.

I used a rectangular pie dish(6"x 4"x 3" depth)and managed to make two layers of aubergine and  cheese with the above quantities.

Chirmooli requests credits from anyone wishing to use the images in this post

Three Tofu Recipes

Tofu or soya cheese is made by coagulating soyamilk. I tried to make tofu with the help of this youtube video (and it turned out good!).

Tofu is originally a Chinese creation! But some people believe it's Japanese! I don't really know, which is more correct. Origin apart, Tofu is widely used as the basic ingredient in many Southeast Asian dishes. The low calorie, high protein content of Tofu has led to it's popularity in varied cuisines across the world. 

Personally, it took me a while to develop a taste for tofu. Now, I love it!

By itself, togfu is tasteless but it can easily absorb the flavours of the other ingredients used in the recipe. 

A Tofubergine Recipe:

Tofubergine stands for Tofu and Aubergine. Cooked with cheese, capsicum and tomatoes, it makes a delightfully delicious meal!
Ingredients:

100 grams tofu cubes lightly roasted

50 grams cheddar cheese grated

2 Aubergines diced

1 green capsicum-cut into bite sized pieces

1 onion, diced

1 chopped tomato

1 cup of chopped and steamed vegetables like carrot, cauliflower, french beans,etc.

1 vegetable cube (Maggi or Knorr)

1 tablespoon soya sauce

1 teaspoon vinegar

1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

3 Garlic cloves chopped fine

1 tablespoon olive oil or any other vegetable oil of your choice

Salt to taste

Preparation method:

Stir fry the garlic, onion, capsicum, tomato and aubergines. Add the soya sauce, vinegar and chilli powder. Stir a bit and mix in the steamed vegetables and maggie/knorr. Let it cook for a while and then add the tofu and grated cheese. Turn off the flame  and serve immediately.

Tofu sopa estilo português or A Tofu Soup in Portuguese style
Ingredients:
1 tomato
1 carrot
10 french beans
1 cup caulifour florets
1 cup broccoli florets
3 cloves
6 black pepper corns 
salt as per taste
1 maggie vegetable cube (optional)
2 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
Preparation method: 
Wash all the vegetables. Chop into approximately 1 inch square pieces tofu, potato, onion, tomato, carrot, broccoli and cauliflour. The french beans, cut in half or three parts. Put all the vegetables into a pressure cooker or pan. Add cloves, pepper, salt, maggie cube and water to the tofu and vegetables. Pressure cook  for 2 whistles and your soup is ready. Pour olive oil just before serving.
If if you cooking in a pan, then bring the soup to boil and then let it simmer for 20 minutes. 

Tofu Scramble 
A sumptuous dinner meal.
Ingredients:
1 cup of onion, tomato and green capsicum, chopped fine;
1 tablespoon of grated mozzarella;
1 teaspoon of mixed dried herbs
Salt and pepper as per taste
For greater variety you may also like to add half a cup of shredded carrot and chopped french beans. While non-vegetarians can include steamed/boiled and/ or fried pork(chopped into small pieces) and scrambled eggs to the recipe. I usually add vegetables and meat and egg when making tofu scramble.
Preparation method: 
Stir fry all the vegetables and then add the tofu. Stir fry for another couple of minutes and then season  with herbs, pepper and salt. When ready, sprinkle the cheese over the scramble.
If using eggs then scramble separately and then add to the prepared tofu scramble. Similarly for the chopped meats like chicken and pork that you may like to add to your tofu scramble.
Tofu scramble can be had plain or accompanied with a bowl of steamed rice or brown bread! 

Bon Appetit!

<a href="http://chirmooli.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/tofu-recipes.html" alt="" target="">tofu recipes</a>

Tamarind Pork Recipe

Since Chirmooli is very much still at the stage of blog in the making...She continues learning new ways to improve her dress design and lay out!  But right now, she  is focused on getting herself to be seen, viewers!
On a happy note, Chirmooli's views have crossed the dozen mark, as of today, and in due course of time she hopes to evoke even more interest in those SEs(search engines!).
Having said that, Chirmooli can't wait to tell you all about her mouth watering Tamarind Pork Recipe!

250 to 300 grams pork steak

1 tablespoon tamarind juice

1tablespoon soyasauce

1/2 teaspoon  red chilly powder

1 teaspoon of water

1 tablespoon of oil

salt to taste

Cut the pork steak in to strips. Add salt(according to your taste) to the strips and mix a bit. Heat oil in a pan and fry the strips of pork in it , till just about done(don't overdo it). Mix together the tamarind juice,soya sauce,chilly powder, and water, and pour over the fried pork. Stir fry for a couple of minutes before turning off the flame.

TIPS from my cooking experiences(Spanning all of 25 years!)

 I find it better to have a less salty dish than a salty one simply because it's easier to remedy. More salt can always be added, if needed, later.

Stir-fry's are best done on medium to high flame. General rule of thumb for home-made stir fry is to  use medium flame and then just before turning off the fire, bring it up to high for a couple of minutes(not more than five!)

And remember that Chirmooli would love to hear from you, should you try out this recipe!

<a href="http://chirmooli.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/tamarind-pork.html" alt="" target="">Tamarind Pork Recipe</a>

Crispy Crunchy Stir Fry

Food blogs are highly competitive. No wonder! Poor chirmoli is struggling to attain her first 10 views! PEOPLE WHERE ARE YOU?
Discovered a delicious stir fry recipe while preparing dinner yesterday. It was inspired my whatever vegetables I had in my refrigerator plus a few things more.

 red pepper

white cabbage shredded

small onion 

tamarind juice

soya sauce

sesame oil

red chilly powder

salt, and

a handful of salted peanuts

In a wok, heat about two tablespoons of sesame oil and add to it  sliced red pepper and onion and shredded white cabbage. Stir fry on medium to high flame for 5 minutes or until vegetables are crisp(but not burnt!). Then add red chilly powder, 1 tablespoon of tamarind juice, 1 tablespoon of soya sauce, salt to taste, and finally the salted peanuts(split in half). Toss for a minute or two. Turn of flame and serve hot with grilled white fish and/or garlic bread.

PS: Since the inception of chirmooli , me thinks  it may be a good idea to photograph  the food I cook! I have a good Nikon professional camera so gotta get clicking!

<a href="http://chirmooli.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/crispy-crunchy-stir-fry.html" alt="" target="">Stir Fry </a>

Favorite Food Blogs

Since chirmooli is a blog on food and cooking, she thought it wise to look around and see others of her kind. And what caught her eye, is the amazing Fourth Estate.Thank you, chirmooli is inspired!  For those outside the loop, Fourth Estate is a London food blog. I was stunned by it and more so by Scandilicious . And if you are (by some small chance :)) here, right now, please, please click on the two links! I spent half an hour mesmerised by all the stuff on Scandilicious. Someday I am going to Eat Scandi! And maybe if you are in London, you'll want to do the same too.
Talking about food always makes me hungry. Besides it's nearing lunchtime and I don't have anything cooked...my kitchen cupboards are quite empty(needed to do shopping today but blogging kept me very busy!).What will I eat?

Corn Chips and Cucumber Salad
Pepper Chicken
And Banana Yogurt for dessert

The principle of my cooking is always "quick and easy". When I read recipes, I often wonder how they manage to make even a simple dish like bolognaise for instance, sound so difficult to make (enhance's the exotic value, I guess?!). Anyway stomach rumbling gotta go get my lunch ready.

Corn Chips and Cucumber Salad
Peel cucumber and cut in slices. Sprinkle salt and a few drops of fresh lime(or lemon)juice over the slices.Toss well.Open a packet of plain corn chips(I am lucky I have Doritos today:)) and  mix into the cucumber slices. Serve instantly!Or else the chips will become soft and soggy.

• If making this salad for a large party, it maybe a good idea to arrange the cucumber slices and corn chips in platter in such a way that they don't mix.  You could use of few leaves of fresh parsley or coriander for added decoration.

Pepper Chicken
I have some already prepared in the refrigerator. This version of pepper chicken is so easy to make(and great on taste too), that I can say it's as simple as boiling water. 
Really, all you need to do is: Place one or two chicken breast( with or without bone, skin removed) in a pan or vessel, cover completely with water.Add salt and a teaspoon or two of freshly ground pepper and boil till the chicken is cooked.

• If the water dries up before the chicken is done, add some more boiling water and cook some more till ready to eat. 
• If the chicken is cooked and  water remains you can use it as stock for gravies or soup. It can even be used in pulav(flavoured rice dish)recipes. 

And finally we find ourselves ready for dessert,

Banana Yogurt
Puree together one ripe banana(medium size) and half a tea cup of greek yogurt. You might also like to sweeten it some more with sugar or sweetner(your choice entirely).

• Decorate your Banana Yogurt with sweetened cherries and a sprinkling of chopped almonds. 

<a href="http://chirmooli.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/recipes-and-more.html" alt="" target="">recipes</a>

Goan Curry Recipe

I am, what I call, a creative cook! I rarely follow recipes, I prefer to cook by instinct instead. And the results of my creations are, mostly, top class(being truthful, not boastful!). With airwaterlight, I made my foray into the world of blogging. And barely a few days on, I find myself wanting to share with you my cooking: recipes, tips, and more. Some learnt, others taught, and some my own discoveries.

Chirmooli is the Konkani term for a grain of puffed rice. Konkani is the mother tongue of the people of Goa. Where Rice-Curry-Fish is the staple! 
And true to her root, chirmooli begins with her recipe for making mouthwatering Goan Curry.

How to make Goan Curry(with prawns or fish):

Ingredients:

½ coconut grated

3tbsp coriander seeds

1tbsp red chilly powder(or a little less if you  want a blander curry)

1tsp jeera(cumin)

1tsp haldi(turmeric) powder

½ diameter size ball of tamarind (deseeded)

salt as per taste

water for grinding

Method for  preparation:

Grind all the above ingredients in an electric mixer-grinder. Adding water, a little at a time. You may choose to put in a little more or less of water depending on the kind of consistency you like for your curry. I find 2 tea-cups  are perfect. Extract juice from the ground mixture using a strainer.

Next,heat a little oil in a vessel and add to it 2 flakes of sliced garlic, one small chopped onion, two whole green chillies(slit  the chillies, for a hotter curry!) and a cup full of cleaned fresh medium prawns or pieces of cleaned fish. Add a little salt to the raw prawns/fish before cooking.
 Cook for a while and then pour the strained curry juice into the vessel.Bring to boil, then turn down the flame and let the curry simmer for a while(approximately 10 minutes).

Traditionally, a few chopped lady’s finger is also added into the curry with the prawns. While if fish is added instead of prawns, then a few pieces of dried kokum would give the curry a more authentic flavour.

<a href="http://chirmooli.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/cooking-and-blogging.html" alt="" target="">cooking</a>