Fusion Pub-Grub

After a long day at work, some days all I want is to come home, defrost a TV dinner and catch up on TV shows. But in the best interests of my health, I put a simple meal together most days. And then there are days when culinary creativity is the best antidote to all of the work stress. Today was one of those 'outburst of culinary creativity' days.

Last week, I strolled over to the farmer's market near work to get some dumplings (so amazing.....but that's for another day) and fresh produce. I found a beautiful looking, small yellow cauliflower that I bought pretty much the moment I set my eyes on it. I've been eyeing colorful cauliflowers for a while, but the ones in grocery stores are just too large for one person to consume....unless I want to eat cauliflower for a week. Oh what would I do without farmers' markets and 'petite-sized' vegetables!! But anyway, I've been wondering what to do with that cauliflower without drowning its natural color in a sauce. A quick internet search led me to cauliflower rice, which is really pulverized cauliflower. And then came the idea of a Mexican-food and pub-grub inspired, Indian-spiced dinner. Fish tacos with a yummy green masala marinade, cauliflower rice with green peas, and spicy masala fries. Interested now, aren't you? Alright well then, here's the recipe. I really just threw this one together without precisely measuring ingredients. It's one of those recipes where you don't need to measure ingredients perfectly.....just go with your judgment and ask me (or anyone) when you hit a roadblock. :)

Fish Tacos with Cauliflower Rice and Masala Fries

Yup.....that's the yellow color of the cauliflower....no turmeric or coloring added!!

The Fish 

A generous handful of cilantro (coriander leaves)

1-2 green chili peppers 

Couple of cloves of garlic

A small knob of fresh ginger

A spoonful of chopped onion

Turmeric

Salt

Cumin powder

2 medium to large fillets of fish

Rice flour

Oil

Throw all the ingredients into a food processor with a spoonful or two of water. Grind it into a fine paste. Apply the paste to the fish and keep it aside for about half an hour. After that, dredge the fish in the rice flour and shallow fry in a teaspoonful of oil.

The 'Rice'

1 small yellow cauliflower

Half a cup of green peas

A clove of garlic

Salt

Pav Bhaaji Masala or Garam Masala

Oil

Wash the cauliflower and separate the florets. Now pulse it in a food processor until you get a fine short-grained rice type consistency. Heat a tiny bit of oil in a pan and lightly brown some garlic. Now add the cauliflower and pan-fry for 5 minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients and cook until the peas are done.

The Fries

1 medium to large potato

Salt

Sugar

Red chili powder

Turmeric

Coriander powder

Cumin powder

Oil

Cut the potatoes into matchsticks. Heat a teaspoonful of oil. Throw in the potatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes. Then add the salt, sugar and spices. If the spices start smoking, add a tiny bit of water. Cook until the potatoes are done. 

The Tacos

Heat small tortillas or rotis/chapatis. (I used the latter). Add shredded, cooked fish and tomato slices and prop the tacos up in a plate. (Restaurants have really pretty taco stands...maybe I should get one of those.) Add some sour cream or mayo if you like that. A little bit of peach or pineapple salsa will work wonders too! 

Serve all of the components with a few slices of lime and some ketchup. Bon appetit! And here's one more photo....

Photo Recipe: Pasta with Arugula and Chicken

Hello there! Many moons ago, when this blog was still new, I did a photo recipe post about fried rice. I like photo recipes - they allow me to post when I don't feel like typing out a recipe and work well for easy recipes that are just meant to inspire some ideas. Well at least I hope they inspire ideas.... :) Here we go with another photo recipe then.

Tonight, I made pasta for dinner (with no intention of immediately writing a post about it). Pasta is good for lazy days when all you have the energy for is boiling water and opening a jar of sauce. But it's also great for creative days when you want to experiment with sauces. And experiment I did. Here's what I had left of this week's grocery: arugula, poached chicken, heirloom yellow tomato and a decent, cheap Riesling. This is what it ended up coming together as:

How you ask? Start with putting a pot of salted water to boil. Then bring out a skillet or saute pan and throw in some olive oil. When the oil is hot enough, throw in garlic, red pepper flakes and thyme. Let it sizzle around in the pan. Choose your own herbs if this is not your combination.

Then it's time for some chopped, cooked chicken. You can also go with raw, marinated chicken. If you're a vegetarian, I'd say mushrooms....or bell peppers....or whatever else you're craving. Get the meat/veggie to brown up a little and then throw in your wine of choice. I had a Riesling...you could go with Marsala or Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir. Or no wine if you don't drink or are serving this to kids. Go with a splash of stock or some lemon juice....or a mix of the two. Let the meat simmer away for a few minutes, smelling glorious.

In the meanwhile, get some tomato chopped up and clean the arugula. If you don't like arugula, try spinach or chard. At this point, the pasta should also be cooking...just in case you forgot. :) The scene at this point is about like this :

When the liquid in the skillet has almost evaporated, throw in some salt, pepper and the vegetables from that beautiful scene above. Let the greens wilt.....won't take more than 2 minutes. Now add a little bit of the water the pasta was cooking in just to have enough liquid for the pasta. Simmer for a minute or so and then throw in the drained pasta. Et voila!!

Dinner is ready! Add some grated cheese if you like that.....I'd say Parmesan or Gouda. Slurp the deliciousness off your plate!

A Tale of Spice(s)

No surprises here given the blog title, but I love spices. You can use one to add a particular kind of flavor, like cinnamon in your oatmeal, or you can mix and match to build layers of interesting flavors (now you also know that I binge watch Chopped!). There is a spice somewhere that pairs with almost any food out there. Spice blends like curry powders, garam masala and Italian season have been around forever making every cook's life easier. But you know what's more fun? Making your own spice blends. And that is just what I have for you in this post.

This is a spice mix that I put together for roasting sweet potatoes. This happened at some point when I fell in love with sweet potato fries, but eating those all the time is just too unhealthy. So I started experimenting with spiced, roasted sweet potatoes as a substitute and that's when I hit upon this spice mix. It will work with regular potatoes, carrots and squashes (butternut, acorn) as well. I haven't tried it on other vegetables or on meat, but let me know if you try it. This blend is a breeze to make if you have a coffee or spice grinder, or a mini food processor that can chop nuts. If not, there's nothing like grinding whole spices with a mortar and pestle after a long, frustrating day at work/school/home. So here we go....

Spice Blend for Roasted Vegetables

1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 cloves
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon brown sugar
scant 1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
1/4 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
1/4-1/2 teaspoon black pepper powder

Grind the fennel, coriander and cumin seeds, and the cloves together. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix well and store in a dry, airtight container. That's it......easy-peasy!

Notes:
1. You can dry roast the seeds on a dry skillet for a couple of minutes before grinding if you prefer it that way.

2. Choose your grind for the spices....I typically go with slightly coarse, as you can see in the picture, but that has more to do with using a mortar and pestle. You will likely get a finer grind with a grinder / processor.

3. You can leave the brown sugar out if you don't like the sweetness, but I find it helpful for the caramelization when roasting.