Honey Sesame Chilli Chicken

Indo Chinese cooking has come a long way since I first tasted Chinese food at local restaurants like Nanking, Ho Pei, Lai Lai, Shin Min, Hao Hao, Ting Hao and Hao Ming. Popular starter and main course chicken dishes they served were Fried, Chilli, Manchurian, Garlic, Ginger and Schezuan style.

As years went by, new range of hotels started catering to the demanding foodies of Mangalore. I also became internet savvy and browsed many Indo Chinese delights by browsing. Some of my online friends also posted pictures of exotic dishes they tasted at various elite restaurants.

Honey Sesame Chilli Chicken is one such dish that I came across, but had never tasted at any restaurant so far. When I made Chicken Kadipattha couple of days ago, an idea struck to my mind about making a small portion of this dish and thought, if I succeed, it will be a regular dish on our menu! With available ingredients we made this, but the ingredients listed as below are a must to get the real taste. Go ahead and spoil yourself and your family members with this fantastic dish!

Ingredients:
Chicken pieces without skin - 500Gms(Around 16 pieces)
Diluted White Vinegar - 1 Tbsp(For marination) + 2 Tsp(Optional for garnishing)
Salt and white pepper powder
Corn Flour - 2 Tbsp+2 Tsp
Refined Flour - 2 Tbsp
Refined oil - For deep and shallow frying
Onions - 2 medium cubed
Green Chillies - 6 cut into wedges
Capsicum - 1/2 cubed(Optional)
Garlic flakes - A handful peeled and chopped
Brown Onion Paste - 2 Tsp
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 Tsp
Red Chilli Paste/Red Chilli sauce - 3 Tsp
Dark Soy Sauce - 2 Tsp
Sugar - 1 Tsp
Chicken stock or water - 1 cup
Diluted White Vinegar -
Honey - 4 Tsp
Spring Onion - 1 Stalk chopped
White Sesame Seeds - 1 Tbsp toasted(Dry Roasted)

Method:
Marinate chicken pieces with salt, pepper and vinegar for 2 hours.
Mix in 2Tbsp each of the two flours, adding little water if necessary so that the batter has butter like consistency.
Heat oil in a wok and fry the marinated chicken pieces on medium heat till golden and keep aside.
Mix 2 Tsp corn flour in 20ml water.
Heat a shallow pan and add 1 tbsp of the hot oil from the wok.
Fry onions, green chillies and capsicum till crisp and golden. remove and keep aside.
Add another tsp oil from the wok to the pan and fry chopped garlic till golden.
Add ginger garlic paste and brown onion paste and fry till oil leaves the sides.
Add chilli paste/chilli sauce, salt to taste, sugar, 1tsp white pepper powder and soy sauce.
Fry well on high heat, sprinkling chicken stock/water and taking care not to burn the sauces.
Now add the corn flour paste and mix well. Add the remaining stock/water and allow the sauce to sizzle for a minute.
Mix in the fried chicken pieces and roll them so that they are well coated with the sauce.
Switch off the heat, garnish with optional vinegar(If you are using chilli paste and not sauce) and honey and toss the chicken along with the sauce so as to glaze the pieces with a coat of honey.
Transfer to the serving bowl and garnish with chopped spring onion and toasted sesame seeds.
Serve with Fried Rice or Noodles of your choice or as a starter dish.

Shiyaanle Margol(Bonda/Tender Coconut Malai Dessert)

A foreign traveller once said "Amazing fruit this coconut is! It has food, drink, container and spoon all packed within!"

We, living in the coastal towns of the undivided Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka State are accustom to Coconuts, as coconut trees grow here abundantly. Shiyaanle in Konkani, Bonda/Yelaneeru in Tulu and Kannada or in general Tender Coconut on a sunny day is a refreshing natural drink. Malai or Ganji, the thin tender coconut kernel is a tasty natural dessert that the vendors patiently scoop with a makeshift spoon sliced off the outer cover of the nut.

My memory rewinds to the Seventies and Eighties when there were enthusiastic shop keepers in Mangalore in Car Street, Ballal Bagh and Market Road scooping the malai, mixing in sugar, Rasbaale banana and make an excellent dessert that we used to relish like we eat any pudding or ice cream! The GSB guy on Market Road near Variety Stores used to add Phova(beaten rice) to this malai dessert and make a complete snack after we consumed the tender coconut water.

A young friend of mine Mangala Shenoy recently recalled the name of that formula as 'Margol'. She mentioned that her father used to make that at home when she was a small girl, adding home made ghee to it. In some places, they even add cardamom powder or honey and make it better. Use your imagination and add a few of these natural ingredients and you have a healthy tasty dessert. Shown here is the process of making simple Malai Dessert and the ever popular Margol without ghee or honey.

Ingredients:
Tender Coconut(with thin malai) - 1
Rasbale or Kadali banana - 1
Sugar - 1 Tsp
Phova - A handful(About 1/2 cup)
Honey - 1 Tsp(Optional)
Ghee - 1 Tsp(Optional)
Cardamom Powder - A pinch(Optional)

Shiyaanle Margol

Method:
Clean and spread the phova on a microwave proof plate and microwave for 10-15 secs in reheating mode. You can also dry the phova in the sun for and hour or so to dehydrate it. That way, phova doesn't get too soggy when mixed into the malai banana mixture.
Shave the tender coconut around the stem with a sharp knife. The vendor will do this for you.
Make a small hole in the center of the shaved portion with a knife or sickle and drain the water.
Make a 3" diameter opening on the shaved portion.
Slice off one of the three bottom ridge portion of the tender coconut and prepare a spoon with that. Wash it clean.
Scoop the malai with the spoon and lightly mash.
Peel and chop the banana into tiny bits and add to the scooped malai.
Add sugar and mix well. The malai banana and sugar mixture is slightly watery.
Now add phova and other optional ingredients and mix.
Eat directly from the tender coconut using the natural spoon, the natural way!

Plain Malai Dessert

Note:
1. Before adding phova, you may chill the malai banana sugar concoction in the fridge and serve as a tasty Malai Dessert.
2. Tender coconuts from old Mysore areas like Mandya, Tiptur, Arsikere, Channapatna and Nanjangud are best suited for this. You can also go for Kendaale Red ones(As shown in the pics) that have a unique flavour.

Chicken Kadipattha Fry

Ever since Saigeetha Pai, a friend and blogger with her blog spot Geeths Dawath told me that the starter item Chicken Kadipattha at Deepa Comforts Mangalore is superb, I was planning to visit Deep Comforts to taste that spicy tangy dish. However, in passage of time, my wish remained unfulfilled.

Last week Nisarga Restaurant came out with their new menu and I spotted Chicken Kadipattha on the menu. We went for a take away and that tasted very good, with heaps of curry leaves, mounds of mustard seeds and loads of red long chillies! The spicy tangy tongue tickling taste made me come out with a recipe somewhat based on the two popular dishes Chicken Urval and Chicken Kubera. Unlike those two dishes, this is not so rich, but very spicy.

This is a starter dish, a South and North Indian fusion. It is not based on authentic recipe but is my own formula, but the dish turned out finger licking good as per those who tasted this. Once you taste this dish made with pure and healthy ingredients, you may not like Chinese starters.

Ingredients:
Chicken pieces with bone, without skin  - 500Gms(Around 16 kebab size pieces)
Lemon - 1/2
Corn Flour - 4 Tsp
Refined Flour(Maida) - 4 Tsp
Refined Oil - 250Ml or more for deep frying
Ghee/Refined Oil - 2-3 Tsp for shallow frying
Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 Tsp
Brown Onion paste - 4 Tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 Tsp
Red Chilli Powder - 1 Tsp
Pepper powder - 1 Tsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1/2 Tsp
Salt - 1 Tsp or to taste
Cumin Powder - 1/2 Tsp
Tamarind extract - 4 Tsp(Small ball of tamarind in 20Ml water)
Red Long Chillies - 8-10
Curry leaves - 3-4 springs
Sugar - 1/2 Tsp)
Chopped Green Chillies - 2
Water - 1/2 cup
Coriander leaves - A handful chopped(Optional)

Method:
Wash, drain and marinate chicken pieces with with lemon squeeze, 1/4 Tsp turmeric powder, 1/2 Tsp salt and 1/2 Tsp pepper for 2-3 hours in the fridge.
Mix in corn flour and refined flour.
Add little water if necessary to coat the batter smoothly on the chicken pieces. The batter should feel like butter.
Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry the chicken pieces, 4-5 pieces at a time on medium flame till crisp and golden. Drain and keep aside.
In a shallow pan, 2 Tsp ghee/oil, fry broken red long chillies and curry leaves well, remove and keep aside.
Add more oil and mustard seeds. Allow them to splutter.
Add chopped green chillies and fry till white and dry.
Add the ginger garlic paste along with brown onion paste and fry well till oil leaves the sides.
Add all the remaining masala powders, sugar and salt to taste. Fry quickly, taking care not to burn the masala.
Add tamarind extract and water. Mix well.
Let the sauce sizzle for a minute and thicken.
Now reduce the flame, add the fried chicken pieces, roll them in the gravy to coat them well and keep frying till they are semi dry.
Add the fried curry leaves and chillies, toss well and transfer to serving bowl.
Garnish with optional freshly chopped coriander leaves and serve with lemon wedge.

Vegetarians please note:
You may try making this with any convenient veg item like Cauliflower, Paneer, Mushroom, Baby Corn, Potato, Yam, Raw Plantain or Soya Chunks.
Make a batter like you make for fritters using the ingredients mentioned for marination and the two flours. Dip the veg pieces in the batter and deep fry them till crisp and golden.
Further steps are similar to making Chicken Kadipattha but you may reduce the amount of spices.