Since the beginning of this year, I had decided to do new things on the blog. I wanted to do new giveaways, fun collaborations, new outfit ideas & much more. But even then I hadn't thought of trying my hand at a recipe post!! Being the foodie that I am, I should have known this wouldn't be far behind! So ladies and (however few) gentlemen, here's the very first recipe post on this blog!!! *drumrolls*
We have had food review posts here before, but I hadn't quite gotten around to writing a full post on a dish I have rustled up on one of my rare visits to the kitchen (mostly because when I start cooking, am too engrossed in the process to take pictures! :P)
I grew up seeing my mom take care of all things within the four walls of the kitchen and I never felt the urge or the need to step into its premises to wield the colander...
During my short stay in Mumbai, where I worked for about 6 months, I had to cook my own food and I mostly made do with easy & quick staples such as rice, pulses, & eggs.
But, I guess our mind & our hormones keep track of the years ticking by and as I'm growing older, I'm starting to develop a strange affinity to cooking. Nowadays, the kitchen often beckons to me and we spend some happy moments together rustling up tasty noodles, crispy starters or yummy desserts!
So, when I thought of making some spicy Chilli Chicken for dinner one Saturday night, I was determined to make it into my first recipe post on the blog.......and here we are! :)
1. Cut the chicken into medium pieces. Boil them and marinate them with salt, pepper, a bit of soya sauce, ginger paste, garlic paste. Leave the chicken to marinate for 2-3 hours.
2. Finely chop tomatoes, capsicums, onions & a few green chillies (depending on how hot you want it) and keep separately.
3. Heat oil in a pan (preferably non-stick). Dip the chicken pieces in a mixture of water, cornflour & flour and deep fry the pieces of chicken till golden brown. The light layer of the cornflour mixture makes the chicken more crispy. Once fried, remove them, drain the oil and keep them aside.
[I had fried the chicken a wee bit more than required. Make sure that the chicken doesn't get over-fried, as they'll be cooked later along with the vegetables too]
4. Heat oil again in the pan and sauté the vegetables together till they are lightly fried. Add salt and a wee bit of sugar for taste. I added a bit of oregano too, but that's because I love the smell of oregano in almost everything! :P
5. Once the vegetables are fried, add the fried chicken along with the required quantity of soya sauce, a bit of tomato sauce and a small amount of mixture of cornflour & water for a light saucy gravy. Cook till the chicken and the vegetables mix well with the sauce.
6. Voilà!! Your yummy & spicy Chilli Chicken is ready! Garnish with a few chillies and bell pepper pieces and see your guests drool at the mere sight of it!
Jaipuri printed cotton table napkins (set of 6) by HOWRAH BRIDGE
What do you guys think of my first recipe post?
Should I do this more often?
Do let me know who all tried this easy-peasy Chilli Chicken recipe and how it turned out to be! :)
Love,
Anupriya DG