Mushroom Pepper Chili (It's Delicious!)

 You have no idea, how much have I fallen in love with this dish! Mushrooms have become the star guest on the grocery list, ever since this was made for the first time in my kitchen. And you know you like it a lot when you have already eaten most of it from the plate and still trying to go for the last piece (even though you know the other person wants it as bad.) J

And you will know why I am raving so much about this once you make it too. If you love Indo-Chinese food, go, get the mushrooms NOW! J . I am not sure if the exact same dish is served in restaurants, but I do know chilly paneer, chili chicken are similar in some ways.  But quite frankly, this beats them all. For one, it tastes good, second – it’s super healthy. Seriously, give it a try!

I write too much, cause I love sharing the story behind every dish/ recipe. And each time I try to just move on to the recipe, I recollect what else I wanted to share. J . Ok this recipe happened purely because one of my vegetarian friends told me that he eats this mushroom recipe at some place in Bangalore and it’s called Pepper Mushroom and raved a lot about it. And the name sounded so fascinating that I just made something assuming what 'could' it be like. So never know, I could be horribly wrong in replicating that recipe, but it sure does work for me!! J

And one last bit. I usually share recipes with my friends to get their reactions/feedback before posting here. And one of my very good friends/ critics, Shaan had this to say:

“Truly a great dish...esp if u love indo-Chinese cuisine! Pls pls post this and help poor souls like us..:-) we are enjoying it with d-coke! I added all three types of peppers as well...”

You need: (should serve 3 but with me around, it’s good for 2 only!)

Button Mushrooms – 8 Oz or 250 grams

Cornflour – 3 Tbsp

Rice Flour – 1 Tbsp (for crunch)

Salt – to taste

Pepper – about a tbsp. (fresh coarse ground)

Oil – about 2 tsp (can use more if no restriction J )

Ginger – 1 tsp grated, ½ inch cut into juliennes.

Garlic paste– 1 tsp

Onion – 1 no. medium (fine chopped)

Onion – ½ medium size (with layers cut into square shape)

Long green chilies – 5-6nos. (the variety that has absolutely no heat, slit them)

Small green chilies – 1-2 nos (slit and seeds removed, adjust to taste)

Capsicum/ Bell Peppers – 1 Nos (cut into squares, can use colored peppers too)

Dark Soya Sauce – 1 Tbsp

Vinegar – 1 Tbsp

Tomato Ketchup – 1 Tbsp

Lemon Juice – 1 tsp  (optional)

Spring Onion – only green part cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)

1. Dunk the mushrooms in hot water for a minute and run under cold water and decant all water. Let the mushrooms remain a little moist so that the flour mixture sticks well to the mushroom.
2. In a bowl, mix cornflour, rice flour, a 2-3 pinches of salt, and about a 1tsp of ground pepper and mix well. 
3. Now coat all mushrooms with the flour mix. I usually coat them well once and wait for a few min and repeat the process with the remaining flour that didn’t stick the first time. This helps as the first layer soaks all the moisture and then second layer sticks even better but will be a little dry-ish adding to the crunch.. 
4. In a wide non stick pan, add about 1 tsp of oil and pan fry the mushroom on medium high and then on low flame to make it crispy. Pan should be wide enough so that mushrooms have space to fry well, else the moisture will make them soft instead. And if you are generous with oil, you don’t have to worry about all this. J
5. Transfer the mushrooms to a plate once they are brown from all sides.
6. Also fry squarish shaped layers of onion pieces and the bell peppers (typically the kinds u get in chinese gravy) in the same pan and transfer to another bowl.
7. In the pan add remaining 1 tsp of oil. 
8. Add grated ginger and garlic paste and fry well. 
9. Now add fine chopped onions and slit green chilies both big and small. Fry till onions get translucent. 
10. Now add soya sauce, tomato ketchup and vinegar. Fry till a little dry.
11. Now add mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, ginger juliennes and give a quick stir and add the remaining freshly ground pepper.
12. And if you are adding the greens of spring onions, do it now. 
13. Serve on a nice looking plate and squeeze lime if you wish to add some zing!

 *I sprinkle very little, ready ‘very little’ water after I coat the mushroom with flour mixture the first time. This helps more flour stick to mushrooms. But be careful to not make it gooey.

**You can always be generous with oil while frying mushrooms. And infact mushrooms taste very good even as simple stir fry like this.

***If you are not sure about the tang bit, try squeezing lime juice on a small portion only. Only then on the rest if you like.

****The black pepper quantity can be adjusted to suit your liking.

*****I feel this recipe will work well with paneer and boiled potatoes too.  

Malaysian Chicken Curry (Nyonya Style)

This is a typical Nyonya (also called nonya) preparation. Nonya cooking is the result of blending Chinese ingredients and wok cooking techniques with spices used in Malaysian and Indonesian cuisine. The food is tangy, aromatic, spicy and herbal.

Personally for me, its a perfect mix of Indian spices in a curry (like cinnamon, start anise) with Thai herbs (lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves). When you take the first bite, you will realize that all the herbs and spices lend a special taste to the curry as they blend in but at the same time hold on to their unique flavors as they unfold slowly, one after another.

Give it a try, as this Malaysian curry will take you by surprise. Tastes best with jasmine rice made with a little bit of coconut milk. Add Vietnamese Summer Roll with a peanutty dipping sauce as an appetizer and bingo! You have a perfect Asian dinner ready!

You need:

For the Chicken Curry

Paste:

Garlic cloves – 4-5 (peeled and roughly chopped)

Long red chilies - 4-5 (trimmed, deseeded and roughly chopped)

Lemon grass – 3 stalks (trimmed, outer leaves removed and thinly sliced)

Galangal - 5cm piece (or fresh root ginger, peeled and chopped)

Large shallots - 4 (peeled and chopped)

Ground turmeric – 1 tsp

Vegetable oil – 2-3 Tbsp

Curry:

Boneless chicken – 300 grams (thigh pieces cut into bite size cubes)

Vegetable oil – 2 Tbsp

Onions – 2 medium size (thinly sliced)

Salt – ½ tsp

Freshly ground black pepper – ½ tsp

Kaffir lime leaves – 4 nos.

Cinnamon stick – 1 no.

Star anise - 1

Coconut milk/ cream – 200 ml (try using a Thai brand which is thick)

Palm sugar (or soft brown sugar) – 1 tsp

Light soy sauce – 2 Tbsp

Fish sauce – 2 Tbsp

Long green beans - ½ cup trimmed and cut into 5cm lengths

Coriander leaves/Cilantro - Roughly torn

For the Coconut Rice:

Jasmine Rice/ Thai fragrant or other long grain rice – 300 grams

Coconut milk – 200 ml

Water – 200 ml

Fresh ginger, peeled - 5cm piece

Pinch of sea salt

1. First make the curry paste: Put the garlic, chilies, lemon grass, ginger, shallots and turmeric in a food processor and whiz to a paste. With the motor running, trickle in a little groundnut oil and blend well, scraping the sides of the processor several times. (Or you can pound the ingredients together in batches using a pestle and mortar).
2. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a large heavy-based pan or a wok.
4. Tip in the curry paste and stir over a medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant.
5. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes until they are beginning to soften.
6. Add chicken to the pan and stir to coat them in the spice paste.
7. Add the lime leaves, cinnamon stick, star anise, coconut milk, stock, sugar, soy and fish sauces and bring to the boil.
8. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook gently for 12-15 min or until the chicken is tender.
9. Skim off any excess oil on the surface of the curry. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
10. Tip in the beans, put the lid on and cook for another 3-4 minutes until the beans are tender.
11. Scatter the coriander leaves over the curry and serve with the coconut rice.

For the coconut rice:

1. Rinse the grains in cold water to get rid of any excess starch.
2. Drain and tip into a heavy-based pan.
3. Add the coconut milk, ginger, water and salt. Stir well and bring to the boil.
4. Then reduce the heat to a simmer.
5. Cover and gently simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Keep the lid on, remove the pan from heat. Let it stay as is for 5-10 minutes.
7. Fluff the rice with a fork and serve while it is still hot.

Vietnamese Summer Rolls

Very healthy, very quick, very fresh, very tasty ! This is indeed a very good choice for an appetizer!

Most of the vegetables can be replaced with the ones of your choice, so that leaves you and your imagination to go wild. While pre cooked shrimps/ prawns make this appetizer super nice, this time around I replaced them with eggs to keep it light. You can omit egg too if you wish to eat something pure vegetarian.

You need:

For the rolls:

Rice paper (usually found in round shapes)

Thinly sliced lettuce

Bean sprouts

Rice vermicelli/ cellophane (soaked in hot water for 10-15 min and drained)

Shrimps/ Prawns - precooked and tails removed (omit if making vegetarian)

Carrot julienne

Green onions (1 inch length, only green part)

Thinly sliced basil

Chopped mint

Boiled eggs - Sliced (omit if making vegetarian)

Ginger juliennes

Cucumber – seeds removed and cut into fine juliennes

For the Peanut dipping sauce:

Roasted peanuts – 1/3 cup

Coconut milk - 4 Tbsp

Thai red curry paste - 2 tsp

Salt - Adjust to taste

Palm sugar/ Jaggery - 1 tsp (substitute with brown sugar or plain sugar)

White/ Cider vinegar – (Don not use red wine or balsamic vinegar))

Water - to adjust consistency

How to make the rolls:

1. In a medium bowl, cover the vermicelli with cool water and let soak until pliable, about 20 minutes. Drain and keep aside once done.
2. Keep all the ingredients handy as you will have to work fast once you start rolling the rolls.
3. Dip each rice paper in a bowl of warm water to wet it. Set the rice paper on a work surface to soften; the paper will become opaque and pliable.
4. Place any one vegetable on the rice paper along the lower third of rice paper, leaving 1 inch gap from all three sides(bottom, left and right). Layer all the vegetables, eggs, and noodles on top of the first layer.
5. Pull the rice paper up and over the filling and roll up tightly, folding in the sides as you go. Same way as you roll your burrito or spring roll.
6. Place the roll on a large platter, seam side down, and repeat with the remaining ingredients.
7. When you place them on a platter, make sure they don't touch each other else they will stick.

How to make the peanut dipping sauce:

1. Blend the roasted peanut to a very fine paste using water.
2. In a heavy bottom pan, add the peanut paste and all other ingredients. Bring this to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.
3. Now let the mixture simmer for 3-4 min over low heat. Keep stirring to not let the mixture stick to the bottom.
4. Remove from heat and transfer to a clean glass container. The refrigeration will thicken the sauce a little. Whenever you want to use, just add a little water and reheat. You can also freeze it in an ice tray and once frozen,transfer to a freezer safe container or zip lock bags to use later.

Mei Fun (Stir fried thin rice noodles)

A very mild flavored noodles dish which is often served with a side that is spicy, tangy or hot. The noodles are thin, white, and have a transparent appearance and are super light. A dish you may eat to your hearts content and still not get an over dose. A very versatile dish that can be prepared with any kind of meat, but the most favorites are the shrimps and eggs as they compliment the delicate taste of the noodles very well.

You need:

Thin rice noodles – Enough for 2 (Usually ¼ of a standard packet)

Carrot – ½ (Thin sliced)

Bean sprouts – Handful

Snow peas – Handful cut into halves

Mushrooms – 4-5 (Thin sliced)

Spring onion green part - 6-7 (Thin sliced)

Hoisin Sauce – 1 Tbsp

Sesame oil – 1 tsp

1. Soak the noodles in hot water for 10-12 min. Till al-dante.
2. Marinate shrimp with a little 1 Tbsp of light soy sauce, grated ginger and sugar.
3. In a wok add oil. Heat it till you see fumes coming from the oil.
4. Add all the vegetable. (since they are cut into same size they will take equal time to cook)
5. Once cooked, reduce the heat. Add red vinegar, hoisin sauce, soy sauce and ½ tsp of sugar. Give a nice stir.
6. Tip in the noodles and stir well. 
7. After a minute, add sesame oil and mix well.
8. Serve hot!

*Make your own Hoisin sauce – mix 4 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon peanut butter or 1 tablespoon black bean paste, 1 tablespoon honey or 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 2 teaspoons white vinegar, 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/8 teaspoon onion powder, 2 teaspoons sesame oil, 20 drops Chinese hot sauce (or habanero or jalapenos), 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

** Add shrimp along with vegetables if you wish to. 

*** If you want to add eggs, pull the vegetables to the side of the wok once they are almost cooked. Break the egg in the center and cook till 3/4 done and form light ribbons. And continue as per the recipe above.

Thai Red Curry (Vegetarian & Non Vegetarian)

Bright aromatic red curry is conventionally the strongest of  curries in Thai cuisine, while green curry is usually considered the mildest.  Like any other Thai dish, perfect balance between the sweet-sour-spicy taste is the only secret to an irresistibly tasty dish. 

With the ease of  availability of all kinds of curry pastes nowadays, it's pretty easy to make a decent Thai dish. But it's a different magic watching the bright, bubbling, fiery, red curry simmering on your stove, while the jasmine rice steams in the background. 

You need:

For the paste: 

Dried Thai Red Chilies – 7-8 or to taste

Galangal – 1/2  heaping Tbsp (Replace with ginger if not available.  But galangal does make a difference)
Shallots – 1/4 cup, chopped (use frozen if you don't have fresh)

Lemon Grass – 1.5 heaping Tbsp (finely chopped)

Cilantro Stems – 1 Tbsp (don't use leaves, only the stems)

Garlic – 3-4 cloves chopped

Thai Red Chilies – to taste (optional)

Kaffir Lime Leaves – 4 to 5 (Lime peel can be substituted but a huge huge difference in taste)

Whole White Peppercorns – 1/2 tsp (black can be substituted)

Salt – 1/2 tsp or to taste

Paprika – as needed and optional for red color

Oil – 2 Tbsp

* Zesty lemongrass and aromatic kaffir lime leaves are irreplaceable parts of Thai curries. And anyone asking you to substitute it with something else, is perhaps kidding with you! :)

For the curry:

Cut vegetable chunks of eggplant, carrot, onions

Shrimps/ Prawns

Kaffir Lime leaves

Lemon grass 

Lime juice - 1/2 tsp

Fish sauce (can replace with light soy sauce, but fish sauce does add to the real  flavor)

Palm Sugar/ Jaggery/ Sugar - 1 tsp

Thai basil - 3-4 leaves

Oil - 1 tsp

Salt - To taste

Preparing the paste:

1. Soak de-seeded dried red chilies in 1/3 cup hot water for 20 min. Remove the soaked chilies from the water and place them along with all of the remaining ingredients in a blender or spice grinder. 
2. Grind all of the ingredients into a smooth paste.
3. Heat oil in a pan and fry the paste. Cook until the oil starts to separate and the paste starts to clump together . This should not take more than 6-7 min. If you feel, the red color is not intense, add paprika and mix on a very low flame for 1 min.
4. Remove from the heat and allow the paste to cool down. 
5. Store it in a clean airtight jar. You can store unused paste to use it in future. You can refrigerate up to 1 month  and keep it frozen for unto 6 months. 

Preparing the curry:

1. Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan, add lime leaves and lemon grass. Stir fry for 15-20 sec. 
2. Add the shrimps or chicken or both (skip for vegetarian curry), all the vegetable and 2 Tbsp red curry paste. Stir for another 1 min. 
3. Add half of a 14 Oz. coconut milk can, fish sauce, lime juice. 
4. Add 1 tsp of Palm Sugar/ Jaggery/ Sugar. Mix well
5. At this stage you can give it a taste and adjust the curry paste and coconut milk to get a balanced spicy-sweet taste.
6. Adjust salt if required.  Boil for 1-2 min. Don't boil too much else coconut milk will curdle and lose the taste and smooth texture of the curry
7. Add 2-3 basil leaves roughly torn. 
8. Serve hot with steamed rice.

*Lemon grass - use from the root till the point where it is soft and juicy. Only this part has all the flavor, discard the rest. 

**Reserve the water used for soaking chilies and use it to grind a smooth paste is required.

***Wear gloves while de-seeding whole red chilies to avoid any burning sensation. Its a much cleaner process and helps you remove all the seeds. Hand are all clean and eyes safe, so its worth wearing those gloves!

****If you are refrigerating, place a parchment paper or plastic sheet on a plate. Now    put tablespoonful mounds which are a little spread out. Freeze them. Once frozen, store them an air tight, freezer safe container. This way, you can use as much as you want each time, without having to thaw all of it. 

Thai Prawn-Mango Salad (Thai Shrimp-Mango Salad)

The only difference between this salad and Thai Mango Salad, as the name suggests, is the addition of prawns/ shrimps. I think the sweetness of prawns goes so wonderfully well with tangy-sweet-spicy salad! It is a good appetizer too! I have written so much in the Thai Mango Salad post, I feel this time around, I should just get on with the recipe!

OK. There are three key ingredients that make this salad flavoricious (don't know if there is any such word like that, I just coined it) – toasted peanuts, kaffir lime leaves and of course shripms. While shrimps lends a sweet, rich flavor, toasted peanuts give a nice crunch between the tangy-hot-sweet bite. Though traditionally kaffir lime leaves are not added to this dish, I feel lime leaves give it a totally new dimension. But I  know, in most part of the world kaffir lime leaves are hard to come by, so if you can't find any, don't worry, it will still taste awesome!! 


You can always add deep fried calamari, crab meat, baked tilapia,  or any seafood of your choice

You need:

Semi ripe mango – 2 Parts (I prefer slightly ripe mango which is still very firm when you press the surface and try picking a variety that is not too sour) 

Cucumber – 1 Part (discard the seed part completely)

Carrot - 1 Part

Tomato - 1 Part (discard the juicy seed part completely)

Greens of spring onion - 1 Part

Red onion - 1 Part

Kaffir Lime Leaves – 2-3 Nos.

Shrimp/ Prawns – As per your liking

Salt

Pepper

Cream Sherry (optional) – 2 Tbsp 

Toasted peanut – roughly broken into halves

Getting the veggies ready:

Make very fine juliennes of all the vegetables. You can always add or subtract as per your choice. 

Getting the salad dressing ready: 

Just follow the ratio of ingredients as below, and make as much you wish. Best way to do it, is to first make the dressing, taste and then add the veggies. This is because you can always tweak the dressing to your taste before you add the veggies, but once added, there is no going back! ;)

Lime juice – 2 Tbsp

Sugar – 1 tsp

Fish sauce – ½ tsp (optional, or replace with ¼ tsp of light soy sauce)

Getting the Shrimp ready:

Marinate the shrimp/ prawns with salt, pepper and cream sherry for not any more than 15 min.

In a pan, heat 1 tsp of oil, add shrimps and fry on high flame. Don't over cook or  they will not be succulent anymore. Rule of thumb - cook till shrimps turn pink, and there is no pale patch anywhere, that's when you know its done. 

Now getting the salad ready:

Pour the dressing in a big bowl, add all the veggies, add the toasted peanut and then shrimps. Toss all of them gently so as to coat the dressing uniformly. Serve immediately. 

**If you are making it for a party, you can chop all the veggies and keep them all in an air tight container (don't mix them, keep them separate so that their individual flavors intact) in refrigerator. Make the dressing and store it in a glass jar and refrigerate. Keep toasted peanuts in a box. Only shrimps will have to be made just before serving.

Char Kway Teow

Char kway teow, is a very popular street food in Malaysia, Singapore region. The dish was (and still is in some places in Malaysia and Singapore) typically prepared at hawker stalls. It is made from flat rice noodles (the kinds  pad thai is made of), stir-fried over very high heat with light and dark soy sauce, chili paste, oyster sauce (vegetarians can replace with dark soy sauce), whole prawns(skip for vegetarians), eggs, bean sprouts and chopped spring onions.

Though, I must say, you need to develop a taste for this, especially if you are a hard-core fan of  the Indian chow-mein:). But once you fall in love with char kway teow, it will get irresistible. Ask me! The slight charred, smoky taste of soya sauce occasionally sweetened by shrimps and eggs is delightful. Bean sprouts are an integral part of this dish, so missing it is a big no-no. 

I have never tried the vegetarian version myself, but I feel, mushroom and tofu will be a good replacement. Maybe I'll give it a try one day! 

Serves 2 

You need:

Flat rice noodles (1 cm thick) –  Once soaked and soft, should be 1 big serving bowl

Spring onion – inch chopped (white and green kept separate)

Well pounded garlic – 5-6 cloves (do not chop or grind)

Red chili paste – 1 Tbsp (de-seed whole red chili, soak in water for 20 min and blend with min water)

Oyster sauce – 2 Tbsp ( vegetarians replace with 1 Tbsp soy sauce)

Tomato ketchup – 1 Tbsp

Thick Soy sauce – 2 Tbsp

Thin soy sauce -  1 Tbsp

Eggs – 2

1. Soak noodles in hot water and leave for 30 min. It will be soft enough to cook well. 
2. In a wok add oil and fry eggs till ¾ done. Make sure eggs are still chunky and have formed ribbons. They should not be too mashed up. Remove and keep it aside.
3. In the same wok, jack up the heat to maximum possible, add garlic, white portion of spring onion and give a quick stir.
4. Add chili paste, and fry for 15-20 secs.
5. Now add the shrimps (vegetarians replace with mushroom, tofu) and fry till done.
6. Add oyster sauce and tomato ketchup and fry. 
7. Add the noodles, thick soy sauce and thin soy sauce. Fry for 2-3 min or till noodles become soft. 
8. Add the egg, spring onions and bean sprout. Give a quick stir, fry for a minute  and switch off the flame.
9. Serve hot!

Thai Mango Salad (Vegetarian/ Eggetarian)

I just love the way this salad preparation relaxes me. I usually put down all the ingredients on the kitchen counter near the the window and look at all the colors that will soon be a part of this sweet-sour-spicy salad. The pale yellow from the mango, light green from the cucumber, light pink from onion, deep red from tomato, orange from carrot, bright red from thai red chili, and a fresh green color from cilantro. It's like a song!

I diligently try to get fine juliennes of everything to form lovely ribbons. There are so many textures and flavors in one single platter, yet they all marry together so beautifully! 

You can't help but wonder, it really must have been someone who looked at life so differently to think this up! Or maybe it's just my love for Thai food, that makes me so happy. 

OK now back to the dish. There are two ingredients that make this salad interesting – toasted peanuts and kaffir lime leaves. Toasted peanuts give a nice crunch between the tangy-hot-sweet bite. Though traditionally kaffir lime leaves are not added to this dish, I feel the lime leaves adds a totally new dimension. But I  know, in most part of the world kaffir lime leaves are hard to come by, so if you can't find any, don't worry, it will still tastes awesome!! 

You need:

Semi ripe mango – 2 Parts (I prefer slightly ripe mango which is still very firm when you press the surface and try picking a variety that is not too sour) 

Cucumber – 1 Part (discard the seed part completely)

Carrot - 1 Part

Tomato - 1 Part (discard the juicy seed part completely)

Greens of spring onion - 1 Part

Red onion - 1 Part

Kaffir Lime Leaves – 2-3 Nos.

Eggs (Optional) –  Soft boiled or Scrambled with salt pepper

Toasted peanut – roughly broken into halves

Getting the veggies ready:

Make very fine juliennes of all the vegetables. You can always add or subtract as per your choice. 

Getting the salad dressing ready: 

Just follow the ratio of ingredients as below, and make as much you wish. Best way to do it, is to first make the dressing, taste and then add the veggies. This is because you can always tweak the dressing to your taste before you add the veggies, but once added, there is no going back! ;)

Lime juice – 2 Tbsp

Sugar – 1 tsp

Fish sauce – ½ tsp (optional, pure vegetarians  replace with ¼ tsp of light soy sauce)

Salt - if required

Getting the eggs ready:
Bring water to a boil, add eggs. Cover and boil for 1 min. Switch off the flame and let the eggs rest in hot water for 15-20 min. You get perfect, soft boiled eggs with soft centre. De-shell and cut into 4-6 parts

Tossing the salad up:

Put all the ingredients of dressing in a big bowl, whisk well. If the taste is balanced (else, adjust at this stage), add all the veggies, toasted peanut. Toss all of them gently so as to coat the dressing uniformly. Serve on platter and add eggs on top of the salad. 

* If can replace egg with tofu or you can skip that as well.

**If you are making it for a party, you can chop all the veggies and keep them all in an air tight container (don't mix them, keep them separate so that their individual flavors intact) in refrigerator. Make the dressing and store it in a glass jar and refrigerate. Keep toasted peanuts in a box. 
***You may also want to try the seafood version of this salad  here: Thai Prawn-Mango Salad (Thai Shrimp-Mango Salad)

Bok Choy Stir Fry

This is considered to be a very delicate, no fuss and yet a flavorful side dish in Chinese cuisine.

But for me, its vintage Kuala Lumpur. Yeah, its been 6 years since we left that place, still all the memories are so vivid. I had on numerous occasions enjoyed hot steaming sticky rice in a bowl, topped with soupy bok choy. The sweetness of  rice was so perfect with the nutty taste and crunchy texture of bok choy. Whether you have it as a side or with rice as main, it's always very comforting!

You need:

Baby bok choy – 300 grams (shrinks considerably)

Finely minced garlic – 4-5 cloves

Light soy sauce – 2 tsp

Balsamic Vinegar- ½ tsp

1. Pour oil in a wok or frying pan, add the garlic. 
2. Now turn the heat to medium-high. Let the and garlic gently sizzle in the oil. When the aromatics become fragrant and light golden brown. Make sure its just pink and does not burn, as garlic starts tasting bitter very quickly if burnt and makes the entire dish bitter too.
3. Add the bok choy leaves. Toss very well to coat each leaf with the garlicky, oil for 15 seconds. 
4. Add balsamic vinegar and 1 tbsp of water. Immediately cover and let cook for 1 minute. 
5. Serve hot!

* You can add more vegetable stock (try not using water) if you want to make it a little soupy. 

Vegetables tossed in light soy based sauce.

A very refreshing, healthy vegetarian side with delicate flavor of soy and garlic. Super quick to make and you can eat as much as you wish to, with absolutely no guilt. This preparation goes well with both mild as well as a spicy main dish.

You need: 

Vegetables like Onions (layers removed, cut into squares), Cauliflower, Broccoli, Beans, Carrots/Baby carrots, Sugar snap peas, Squash of your choice or Zucchini, Peppers (red, yellow, green), Asparagus, Water chestnut, Lettuce leaves cut into chunks etc.

Garlic – Finally chopped

Dark soy sauce

Vinegar

Honey

Oil – ½ tbsp

Lime juice (optional)

Peanuts (optional) – handful (roasted and lightly crushed) -

1. Steam/ Cook all veggies (using microwave or on gas) till ¾ done. The vegetables need to be crunchy, and not soft/ soggy.
2. In a pan heat oil, add garlic. On low heat fry for 30 sec (make sure you don't burn it, else it will become bitter).
3. Add equal quantity of dark soy sauce, vinegar and honey. Stir till it thickens a little.
4. Add the veggies and toss for 30 secs.
5. Quickly transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle slightly crushed peanuts and squeeze a little lime juice on top. (adjust the lime juice as per your taste since vinegar has already been added)

* I use pre-cut oriental veggie pack when too lazy to chop (found Valley Fresh Steamers, or Whole Food's organic pre-cut packs to be good) But make sure you cook a minute lesser than what's mentioned in the package directions.

** You can skip peanuts if you wish to or replace it with any nut of your choice.

*** Note that salt has not been added since soy already has some salt in it . Adjust to taste.  

Pad - Thai (Phat/ Phad Thai)

Hands down, one of the most popular/ loved Thai dishes across the world. Every time I make/ order Pad Thai, I promise myself - I shall not over-eat. And each time I fail. ;).  Its the burst of flavor, like any other Thai dish, that makes this preparation so delectable. Though traditionally, Kaffir lime leaves and Lemon grass are not used in Pad Thai, but i like to add a lot of them to mine, especially Kaffir lime. I just love the fresh and zesty aroma it lends to the sweet-tangy dish. 


You can make vegetarian version by skipping the shrimp and adding veggies like broccoli, colorful peppers (capsicum), asparagus.

You need:

Thai rice noodles - 250 grams

Tamarind paste- 5 Tbsp

Shrimp/ Prawns – 125 grams (de-shelled and cleaned)

Tofu – fried and cut into ¾ inch cubes

Kaffir Lime leaves – 6-7 (optional, but try not skipping)

Lemon grass – 2 (Use from the base till its soft, cut into 1 inch pieces - but optional)

Roasted unsalted peanuts - 6 tbsp 

Fish sauce - 3 tbsp

Brown sugar- 2 Tbs

Lime juice – 2 Tbsp

Vegetable oil -1/4 cup

Garlic- 1 tbsp (chopped)

Fresh red chillies- 2-3 (blended to a paste with small handful of fresh coriander)

Eggs - 2

Bean sprouts - 1 cup 

Spring/ Green onion -  2 stems (cut into 1-inch pieces)
Fresh coriander leaves

Wedges of lime

Keep the following things ready before you start cooking Pad - Thai: 

- Soak noodles in tepid water till softened,drain.

- Mix tamarind juice, fish sauce, sugar and lime juice. 

- Coarsely crush peanuts.

*If you want to make chicken Pad Thai, use 120 grams of chicken breast. Slice the chicken into 1/4-inch strips,marinate with cornflour,a pinch of sugar and a dash of fish sauce. Add chicken in Step 3 and stir fry on high heat for 1 minute, then add Tofu. 

**If you want both chicken and shrimp, use 60 grams chicken, 60 grams shrimp. First cook the chicken for a minute in step 3, and then add the shrimp and tofu. 

***You can omit tofu if you don't like them. 

****And replace Fish sauce with dark soy sauce if you don't have any.

1. Heat oil in a wok (or large frying pan) until it is just about to smoke. Add garlic, chili paste and stir, letting it cook for about 30 seconds. 
2. Add tofu and shrimps and stir-fry for 1 more minute. 
3. Pull everything on the side of the pan and break eggs in the center of the wok and  fry without scrambling it too much. The eggs should look something like ribbons after 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the noodles to the wok now,  stir-fry for 1 minute gently so as to not break the noodles too much.  
5. Add reserved tamarind juice, continue stir-frying, mixing everything together for 1-2 minutes. Your noodles should still be al dente.
6. Add the bean sprouts and all the spring onion. Stir-fry for 30 seconds and take off heat. 
7. Check the seasoning,it should have a tang to it.
8. Transfer noodles to a serving dish and sprinkle the ground peanuts, and fresh coriander leaves. 
9. Stick a couple of lime wedges on the side and serve immediately.