Monica Saigal Bhide's Blog, page 20

Sizzling chicken with ginger

The mint adds a glorious note to this spicy chicken dish. This dish reheats better in a skillet than in the microwave. The original recipe also includes baby corn and bell peppers along with the mushrooms. It is adapted from Best of Chinese Cooking by Sanjeev Kapoor (Popular Prakashan 2003).

Makes 4 servings

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/2 small white or red onion, peeled and chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (white or dark meat, or a mix)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon peeled, chopped fresh ginger

10 fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup sliced white mushrooms

2 scallions, white and green part, thinly sliced

2 fresh chilies, thinly sliced (chili de arbol or serrano green chilies)

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon fish sauce

Steamed rice, for serving

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent.

Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Remove the onion and garlic from the pan and set aside.

Add the chicken pieces to the oil in the skillet and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the soy sauce, ginger and 5 of the mint leaves. Stir well.

Add the mushroom, scallions, chili and sauteed onion and garlic, and cook, stirring continuously, until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

Stir in the rice vinegar, sugar and fish sauce.

Garnish with remaining mint leaves and serve hot with rice.

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Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival 2014

I was so delighted to be a part of the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival this year. I am grateful to be invited and honored that so many kids come to participate and spend time with me. A life changing experience! I would love to share that experience with you in pictures:

 

Customize your own free slideshow design

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Food Bloggers Connect 2014- London

I am so delighted and so honored to be speaking at the Food Bloggers Connect 2014 conference in London this year. Come join us! I will be conducting several food writing workshops.

REGISTER NOW

Here is a list of all the terrific speakers at the conference. 

Here is a look at some of the workshops being offered this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am so delighted and so honored to be a presenter and speaker at the Food Bloggers Connect 2014 conference in London this year. I will be conducting several workshops on food writing, creating media kits etc. I will also be moderating panels on food writing. I hope you will join us. Come and say hi!! Looking forward to meeting London-based bloggers and writers!

REGISTER NOW

 

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Tomato Egg Drop Soup

Chef Vinod’s Tomato Egg Drop Soup

I watched Chef K.N. Vinod of Indique Heights restaurant in Chevy Chase, Md., as he whipped up this delicious soup in no time at all. The simplicity of the soup is its charm. You can see the Indian influences of green chilies and cilantro. The quality of this soup depends on using a good quality stock, and also ripe and red tomatoes.

Courtesy of K.N. Vinod

Serves 4

5 cups low-sodium chicken stock

2 cups diced ripe tomatoes

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup cold water

1/4 teaspoon white pepper, or to taste

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

Salt to taste

2 sliced green chilies

In a deep saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil. If any scum forms on top, gently remove it.

Add the tomatoes and boil for 5 to 7 minutes.

Add the cilantro leaves, pepper, cornstarch mixture and soy sauce.

Very slowly pour egg whites into the soup in a steady stream.

Gently stir the eggs in a clockwise direction until they form thin streams or ribbons.

Remove soup from heat.

Taste for salt.

Garnish with green chilies and serve piping hot.

 

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Powered by Hope: Judging

In January 2014, I complete ten years of following my dream to become a writer. In January 2004, I changed from a full-time consulting job that paid six-figures, to live my dream of becoming a writer. These ten years have taught me a lot about life, the need for tenacity, the value of support systems, the lessons of failure and so much more. My last ten years, spent in the pursuit of my dream, have been POWERED BY HOPE.

POWERED BY HOPE is my new, one-year long digital storytelling project. It is FREE to subscribers. This digital project focuses on sharing what I have learned. I am hoping that as I make my “mess my message,” I can help other people pursue their goals and dreams. Each week, readers will get a story that is intended to be motivational but mostly to get people thinking. Mondays, they will get a story, and on Fridays, they will be able to interact with me LIVE on Facebook as we discuss the topic at hand, like the one below.

******* YOU CAN SIGN UP HERE ******

**********Here is an example of what you will receive *********

JUDGING

I was very opinionated as a child, often making strong remarks about other peoples’ appearances. My father sometimes glared at me but never said anything. Then one day, he sat me down and told me a story that helped me understand why judging was so wrong. Of course, I was seven or so at the time so that story had to be one that my little mind could understand, internalize and own.

The Maharaja of Alwar, of the princely Indian state of Rajasthan used to love Rolls-Royce cars. This was in the early 1900s when Indian royalty adored buying these cars. Some even had their painters paint portraits of the cars, and a few had the cars decked out with jewels of all kinds.

The story goes that this particular Maharaja was visiting England at the time and stopped into a Rolls-Royce showroom. He was dressed in a nondescript way and let’s just say, as my father told me, he looked very plain. When he asked to see one of the cars, the salesman shooed him off, telling him that he could not afford to buy the car and that he should leave.

The Maharaja made a graceful exit. Upon returning to Alwar, he placed an order for seven Rolls-Royce cars. His condition was that the salesman from that showroom should come to deliver the cars.

When the cars arrived, the salesman set them all up outside the royal palace and waited to show them off to the Maharaja.

The Maharaja arrived, graceful as ever, and gave the order that the cars would be used to pick up the municipal garbage in the city of Alwar, and that no one in his family would ever buy that car again.

That story has stayed with me. When I recently heard of the clerk who told Oprah Winfrey that she could not look at a bag because she probably could not afford it, it reminded me of the Maharaja.

I try hard not to judge. It is hard sometimes, I admit, but now when I judge, I do it consciously and know that mine is a considered opinion and not just a bad call.

POWERED BY HOPE is an interactive digital project intended to inspire and motivate you to follow your bliss! Sign up to get inspiring stories every Monday from me. Sign up here to subscribe to my newsletter. I would be so honored to have your support.

******* YOU CAN SIGN UP HERE ******

 

I am working on an ebook for POWERED BY HOPE. If you find these posts and the project meaningful, please consider donating. You can email me for details.  In return for your kind and generous donation, your name will appear in the acknowledgement section of the ebook, along with receiving a copy as soon as it is published.

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The Someday Speech podcast

The Someday Speech has been one of the most popular posts on my site. It has gained really inspired readers to follow their dreams and so many folks have encouraged me to follow mine.

So now, here it is in audio. I am told by the few who have heard this that the audio version is very inspiring.

PODCAST HERE —->>>>> I would really love your feedback. Please listen and let me know what you think…

Important question — Do you want more audio from me?

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Sichuan Chili Stir-Fried Potatoes

 

Use Yukon gold potatoes for best results. I have used this many times as a filling for Indian-style sandwiches. The original recipe calls for deep-frying the potatoes after boiling them. I have avoided that step here, but the taste is still wonderful. The recipe is adapted from Best of Chinese Cooking by Sanjeev Kapoor (Popular Prakashan 2003).

Makes 4 servings

4 small boiling potatoes, preferably Yukon gold

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

1/2 small white or red onion, peeled and sliced

1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 teaspoon red chili paste or red chili-garlic sauce (optional)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sugar

8 Sichuan peppercorns, crushed

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/4 cup vegetable stock

Salt

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 scallion, white and green part, thinly sliced

Bring lightly salted water to a boil in a saucepan.

Peel and cut each potato into 8 to 12 wedges each. Boil the potatoes until almost done. When you poke them with the point of a knife, there should still be a little resistance. Drain and set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the garlic and saute until lightly browned. Add the onion and saute until it has softened slightly. Stir in the chili flakes and red chili paste, if using. Add the potato wedges and toss well. Add the soy sauce, sugar and peppercorns, and toss again.

Blend the cornstarch with the vegetable stock and gently mix into the potatoes. Cook until the sauce has thickened. Adjust the salt to taste.

Add the lemon juice and scallion. Mix well and serve hot.

The post Sichuan Chili Stir-Fried Potatoes appeared first on Monica Bhide | Indian Recipes, Cuisine, Cooking with Spices.

Powered by Hope: Focus

In January 2014, I complete ten years of following my dream to become a writer. In January 2004, I changed from a full-time consulting job that paid six-figures, to live my dream of becoming a writer. These ten years have taught me a lot about life, the need for tenacity, the value of support systems, the lessons of failure and so much more. My last ten years, spent in the pursuit of my dream, have been POWERED BY HOPE.

POWERED BY HOPE is my new, one-year long digital storytelling project. It is FREE to subscribers. This digital project focuses on sharing what I have learned. I am hoping that as I make my “mess my message,” I can help other people pursue their goals and dreams. Each week, readers will get a story that is intended to be motivational but mostly to get people thinking. Mondays, they will get a story, and on Fridays, they will be able to interact with me LIVE on Facebook as we discuss the topic at hand, like the one below.

******* YOU CAN SIGN UP HERE ******

**********Here is an example of what you will receive *********

FOCUS:

It is said that when the student is ready, the teacher appears.

A few years ago, I found myself in a difficult spot. I was surrounded by noise: it seemed I needed more of everything and yet nothing that I got made me happy. I recall feeling overwhelmed and yet very empty at the same time. It was a classic situation of water water everywhere.

In a feeble attempt to clear my head, I began to clean my son’s toy room. As I was putting away his books and toys, I found a bunch of Indian comic books lying around. I picked up the one about Arjuna, a talented prince in Hindu mythology. My younger son is named after this brave warrior prince and I thought perhaps I could read my son the story that night. Turns out the lesson applied to me more than it applied to my son: The story opens with a teacher, guru Dronacharya, training a group of royal Indian princes, the Pandava brothers, in the art and skill of archery. The guru ties a fish to the branch of a tree. He then calls all the warriors and says to them, “See that bowl of oil placed below the fish? I want you to aim your arrow at the fish’s eye, while looking only at its reflection in the oil below.”

“Oh, this would be easy,” the princes said out loud.

The oldest prince, Yudhistra, came first, ready with his bow and arrow, and the guru asked, “What do you see?” He answered, “I see the fish, the leaves …”

The guru shook his head. “You are not ready. Move on.”

The next prince came up and the guru asked him the same question. He responded that he saw the sky in the bowl of oil. He was asked to move on.

The third one saw the fish, the branches and fruit. The fourth one saw the leaves and the oil. They were both asked to step aside.

Finally, it was Prince Arjuna’s turn.

“What do you see?” asked the guru.

“I see the eye of the fish.”

The guru smiled and gave Prince Arjuna the order to shoot. The ace archer’s arrow pierced the eye of the fish.

The story hit home for me. I was focused on the sky, the branches, the numbers, the followers, the echo of praise gone by and the hollowness of the feared future when what I needed to do was focus on the moment at hand and what it demanded of me. For me that meant working on a dream writing project.

What is your moment at hand? Are you focused on the sky, the leaves, the fish? What do you need to be focused on? What is your “eye of the fish”?

POWERED BY HOPE is an interactive digital project intended to inspire and motivate you to follow your bliss! Sign up to get inspiring stories every Monday from me. Sign up here to subscribe to my newsletter. I would be so honored to have your support.

I am working on an ebook for POWERED BY HOPE. If you find these posts and the project meaningful, please consider donating. Email me for details. In return for your kind and generous donation, your name will appear in the acknowledgement section of the ebook, along with receiving a copy as soon as it is published.

 

******* YOU CAN SIGN UP HERE ******

 

 

 

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Of Rice And Zen

This year my book, Modern Spice, celebrates five years! In honor of the book, I will be posting a few recipes over the year. This is a great way to use left over rice.

 

Of Rice and Zen

This recipe uses previously cooked plain basmati rice, which really does need to be cold for this stir-fry. So if you want to make this dish, make the rice the day before and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. You can also make this dish without the chicken, or substitute cooked pork, beef or diced tofu. 

Makes 4 servings

1 1?2 cups frozen mixed vegetables, such as peas/corn/green beans

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 egg, lightly beaten

1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into fine matchsticks

2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

2 whole cloves

1 cinnamon stick

1 black cardamom pod

1?4 cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon vinegar

1?2 teaspoon red chili flakes

2 scallions, white and pale green parts only, finely chopped

1 cup cooked boneless chicken cut into 1?2-inch dice

3 cups cold cooked white rice, preferably basmati

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Cook the frozen vegetables in the microwave according to directions on the package. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, pour in the egg and rotate the pan to spread it thin. Cook until set on both sides but not browned. Transfer to a plate and cut into thin strips.

Raise the heat to high. Add the ginger, garlic, cloves, cinnamon stick, cardamom and mixed vegetables. Saute for about 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the soy sauce, vinegar and chili flakes, and mix well. Add the scallions and chicken, and saute for another 2 minutes or until the chicken is completely heated through.

Add the rice and mix well. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until the rice is completely heated through.

Serve hot, topped with the egg strips and cilantro.

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Healthy French Cuisine? Why, yes!

I recently received a gorgeous cookbook written by a French chef. The book, Eat Well Stay Slim, is written by Chef Michel Guerard.  The photos and the recipes were gorgeous but what really caught my attention was the book’s claim – healthy French food. I guess, as a bad stereotype, I have always associated French food with being very rich. (I guess I should know better, right? Indian food is NOT all about heat!)

 

I wrote to the chef and asked him a few questions about this lovely book and also to provide us with a few tips on how we can make our food healthier. I adored his answers and I hope you will as well.

BUY NOW - Eat Well Stay Slim,

 

1. Chef, I am really enjoying your book. Can you talk a little bit about the premise on which this book is based?

I am glad you’re enjoying it! I hope you will have the chance to cook some recipes. As you may know, we’ve been specializing in healthy and slimming-down cuisine for the past 40 years at Les Prés d’Eugénie. This book holds some of the results of our research and experimentation that we’ve been conducting in our kitchen for this cuisine. It is a sort of bible on healthy cooking that we published in France, in 2012, because we were opening a cookery school for cooking and health professionals teaching them healthy cooking. Part of the training program of the course is based on the book. We wanted to spread around this knowledge as much as we could in order to draw people’s attention to this matter of public health, that is eating.

2. Can you talk about where you used to cook and now how you andy your wife own a restaurant in the south of France devoted to healthy French cuisine. And why did you decide to do that, especially in light of the French Women Don’t Get Fat books.

We settled down in Eugénie in 1974. Before that, I was working in Paris. I had my own restaurant called the Pot au Feu, which had 2 Michelin stars. I met Christine, my wife, in 1972 and we moved to the southwest where her father had bought a hot-spring resort that she was already managing.

I starting thinking about developing a healthy and slimming-down cuisine in 1975. Eugénie les Bains is a hot spring resort, and is used to welcoming overweight or obese people, thanks to the chemical features of the hot spring waters (it is considered a medical treatment in France). Their stay in Eugénie is generally combined with a diet. When I discovered, in 1974, they were eating boiled vegetables and unseasoned carrot salad, I decided it was high time to do something. I wanted to create for them, a light, flavorful and delicious cuisine that was good for the health.

3. Do you think that traditional French cooking is fattening? How have you changed some of the traditional methods of cooking to make them healthier.

French cuisine is definitely fattening as is every other cuisine in the world. There are two things responsible for that. First, the size of the servings, even if we are far from measuring up to the Americans on that subject. So, we put a lot of care in weighing everything we serve in order to abide by dietary balance recommendations (carbs, proteins, fat), and our servings are designed to to fulfill the right level of hunger. French meal structure is helping us because the three courses extend the duration of the meal which allows the eater to feel satiated (this feeling starts happening about 20 minutes after beginning the meal).

The second thing that makes a cuisine fattening is, of course, the ingredients that are used. What is the most emblematic in French cuisine are the sauces, which are exquisite but also full of butter or oil in their traditional versions. Our research has consisted in finding ways to make these sauces healthy: we replace oil with broth, butter with whisked concentrated milk, we changed our cooking methods, etc. Those healthy recipes bring as much as pleasure as the traditional ones, and sometimes more as they are more in sync with our way living now.

 

4. What are a few ingredients that a healthy cook should have in their kitchen — ingredients that provide great flavor without the fat.

There are no miracle ingredients unfortunately! But what is sure is that anyone can cook without the fat, and keep great flavors. When cooking meat or fish, it is easy to choose the right cooking methods (in a pan with a dash of oil or broth that produces a delicious sauce, in the oven en papillote). What is the most important is the seasoning and this is why the composition of the sauces matters a lot. Aromatic herbs and spices are great helps. You may find a lot of options in the book for dressings that can be used cold for salads and hot to accompany meat, fish or vegetables. I strongly suggest you use a rainy week end to produce a large batch, that you can put in the freezer and tap into the following weeks or months.

10 Tips for Healthy French Cuisine from Chef Michel Guerard.

 

Cut the fat of rich sauces: Instead of using a lot of oil (even olive oil is still oil!) in vinaigrette sauces, replace ¾ of what you would use with a broth that you thicken (with corn starch for example) in order to give it an oily consistence. If you have time, you can even infuse oil with fresh herbs (rosemary, verbena, thyme, etc). This will bring a very complex and aromatic feature to your sauces without the superfluous calories. When you are making mayonnaise, replace ½ the oil with fat free yoghurt. Do the same for béarnaise sauce: instead of butter, use whisked concentrated milk.
Go crazy for vegetables: You can have them everywhere. Again in sauces, replace the traditional butter and flour with a thinly mixed blend of different vegetables (try potatoes, leeks, celery and Parisian mushrooms, it’s great for a blanquette….. or other combinations, the sky is the limit!). You can also use these great purées and make gratins, mixing even fruit for a bit of sweetness. Your children will ask for more. You can also prepare a fantastic risotto and replace half of the rice with mixed cauliflower or celery to give it the shape of rice. Your guests won’t see a thing.
Take out the fat off of the meat: It takes a few more minutes than usual but it is worth it. It won’t be possible for some pieces you are using to make a sauce dish (like a beef burgundy, navarin of lamb, etc), but if you prepare it in advance, you can put it in the fridge when it’s cooked. Once cold, the fat will fix and come up at the surface and you will be able to take it all out.
Choose the right cooking method: There are plenty of ways to cook meat or fish that are very easy. Steaming, poaching, or making delicious papillotes with your kids… If you prefer roasting or grilling, use the adequate utensil, in terms of size, in order to limit the fat you use, and when you can, always apply the fat directly onto the meat with kitchen paper. You will use so much less!
Don’t over salt your dishes: Eating too much salt can cause or worsen arterial hypertension. In order to use less, you can cook with broth, use spices or aromatic herbs; it will even be better. And take as a rule to taste before adding salt on your plate.
Let the meat rest: The secret for tender, juicy meat is that its resting time should equal its cooking time. Wrap the piece with foil; this way, the blood that flowed to the centre of the meat when it was seared can flow back to its extremities and your piece of meat will be perfect.
Don’t burn the fat: When fat (butter or oil) is cooked at very high temperatures, it burns and transforms into toxic matter (that is why the renowned stripe in black butter is now forbidden). To prevent that, you may add water to cool down the oil during cooking which will become delicious syrup. You need to be careful with butter that burns faster: you can either start cooking with oil which is less delicate, then add butter if you want to use some for the taste at the end; or mix butter and oil at the same time.
Eat healthy fries: The reason why fries are so full of oil is because they undergo two oil baths: the first one to make them poached where they will pump all the fat, then the second to make them golden and crunchy. You may replace the first bath with a more sanitary method like steaming or poaching in the water. You may also use the specific kitchen appliance that allows you to cook a large quantity of fries with only one oil spoon!
Don’t oversweet your desserts: There are now a large number of sweet products you can use instead of sugar. You would rather choose the natural kind of course, such as agave syrup, fructose, and xylitol. Don’t forget that fruits contain sugar and you may as well not add any. And remember, the less you eat sweet, the less you’ll crave sugar.
Use whisked egg whites: Replace ¾ of cream or whipped cream you would normally use with whisked egg whites that you will delicately blend with the remaining cream. It will make your desserts light, aerial and exquisite. It is how we manage to make the famous Paris-brest for 150 calories!

 

 

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