Schezwan Sauce

The 'Schezwan Sauce' serves as a base sauce for most of the Indo-Chinese recipes such as Schezwan Paneer,Schezwan Noodles,Schezwan Fried Rice,Schezwan baby corns/potatoes and so many more.Most grocers sell these sauces by the bottle but they can be easily made at home too.They come in handy when made in a large quantity and stored for use in the above said dishes. Here's a quick look at the recipe.

Ingredients
5 long red chillies
1 cup spring onion or shallots( just the white part)
1 large tomato
1 bunch chopped corriander leaves
3 tbsps minced garlic
3 tbsps corn oil/sesame oil/peanut oil(I prefer corn oil)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar
2 tsps brown sugar
A dash of salt to taste

Soak the red chillies in hot water for 30 minutes and pulse the red chillies in a mixer along with the water.Now add the diced tomato to this red chillie mixture and pulse it again to form a thick puree.The sauce should be chunky and not very mushy.

Preparation
Add 3 tbsps of corn oil in a deep bottomed pan and add the spring onions,minced garlic and chopped corriander leaves. Saute for a few minutes until the onions become tender.
Add a pinch of salt to hasten the cooking time of onion. For best results use the white portion of the spring onion and reserve the green portion for garnishing.

Add the red chillie and tomato purée into the pan and cook for a few minutes.As soon as you notice the bubbles on top of the cooked mixture, add soy sauce and vinegar and keep stirring the sauce untill it starts leaving the sides of the pan and the oil seperates.Now add the brown sugar.Brown sugar mellows down the spiciness of the sauce and balances the taste. At this stage the sauce is ready.Turn off the heat now.

Transfer the contents in a glass container along with the oil and store it in the refrigerator for future use.You can make this sauce in a large quantity and store it for a long time.Its important to use oil generously in order to preserve this sauce for a long time in refrigerator.

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Schezwan Paneer

Indo-Chinese dishes are in vogue in most of the Indian restaurants these days. The Indian tweak to these Chinese recipes add up spice,flavor and color to the dishes. One such hit Indo-Chinese dish is our very own 'Schezwan Paneer'. It's a mouth watering dish and my personal favorite too !!

Ingredients
1 cup cubed paneer
1 large red onion (chopped)
2 tbsps olive oil
2 cups chopped green,red and yellow peppers
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 tbsp ginger paste
3 tsps schezwan sauce( Look for this recipe in my recipe index)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 cup water mixed with 1 tsp cornflour
A dash of salt to taste

Preparation
Add 2 tbsps of olive oil in a saucepan and shallow fry the cut paneer cubes on both the sides until golden brown.

Now remove the paneer and transfer to a plate.In the same oil,put onion,peppers,ginger-garlic paste and saute until the bell peppers are semi crisp.Add a little salt so that the onions cook faster.

Now add 1 tsp soy sauce and 3 tsps of schezwan sauce and cook on a medium flame until the oil starts leaving the sides of the pan.

Now add the fried paneer cubes and the water corn flour mixture and cook till a thick gravy is obtained.You can add water further based on the consistency you prefer.Finally add salt according to taste.

Turn off the heat and transfer the dish into a bowl and decorate with spring onions on top. And the yummy schezwan paneer is ready to be served !

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Vegetable Indo-Chinese Noodles - A Healthier Version

Indo-Chinese noodles are very popular among the Indian noodle lovers.I am no exception to that but I always wondered if they are healthy to be eaten frequently since every Chinese noodle dish invariably contains Ajino-moto and soy sauce(which has a combination of not so healthy ingredients too).Hence I am always skeptical when it comes to making Chinese noodles at home. I then decided to try an alternative and a much more healthy version of the indo-chinese noodles without compromising on the original taste and have come up with that recipe here. So here's a guilt free version of the ever popular indo-chinese noodles !

Ingredients
1 cup cooked wheat noodles(tossed in olive oil)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup Julienne carrots
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup sliced onion(length wise)
1/2 cup sliced green peppers(length wise)
5-10 broccoli florets
2 tbsp peanut butter(A replacement for ajino moto)
2 tbsp organic plum or prune puree(A replacement for soy sauce)
1 tsp green chillie(either slit or sauced)
A dash of pepper and salt to taste
Note :
1) Peanut butter gives an earthy flavor to the noodles.
2)Plum/prune sauce give a tangy/sweet taste effectively replacing soy sauce.

Preparation
Add 1 tbsp olive oil in a saucepan and sautee the onions and garlic until golden brown. Add a little salt so that the onions cook faster. Now add the carrots,green peppers,broccoli and cook until semi crisp.I like the vegetables to be slightly raw in my noodles to get a good bite of it in the noodles. Now make a well in the center of the saucepan and add the plum/prune puree,peanut butter and green chilli sauce and saute them in the oil for a few minutes. Combine this with the rest of the vegetables and saute for a few more minutes. Now add the cooked noodles into the sauce pan and combine well with the rest of the ingredients. Finally add salt and pepper according to taste.A healthy guilt free version of the original Indo-Chinese noodles is ready to be served !

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Brown Rice With Herbed Mushrooms

Mushrooms are a rich source of Selenium and are high in natural antioxidants. When combined with brown rice they make a wholesome dish full of fiber and nutrients. Not many like the taste of plain mushrooms so its a great idea to combine them with herbs to bring out the earthy flavor of mushrooms. Here's how to do it !

Ingredients
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green peppers
1 tbsp parsley,thyme and rosemary
1/2 cup dessert wine(optional)
2 tbsp hot peppers and cheese mix(look for my recipe index for this recipe)
Salt,pepper to taste
Preparation
Add 1 tbsp olive oil in a saucepan and sautee the onions and garlic until golden brown. Add the herbs,salt and pepper and toss for a while until the herbs start giving out the aroma. Now add the mushrooms and close the saucepan with a lid.Let the mushrooms absorb the flavors from the herbs and cook well. Now add the cooked brown rice and a good choice of dessert wine(optional) and cook for few minutes until the rice incorporates well with the other ingredients.Finally add the hot peppers and cheese mix according to your taste and how spicy you would like your dish to be. The flavored brown rice is ready to be served !

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Healthy 2-Minute Egg Salad

Egg is a versatile product that can be used in literally any dish (as is) to enhance flavor and nutrition.It cooks faster than most veggies and hence a smart addition to any breakfast menu. We all know that salads are a perfect system cleanser.Incorporating raw vegetables in our diet in the form of salads help retain fiber and water in our body thereby flushing out the toxins from the system. Not to mention the load of vitamins and minerals that a few servings of vegetables would provide;an ideal menu for breakfast.Adding eggs to the salad would ensure that a good amount of protein goes into the already vitamin packed breakfast !

Ingredients
2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped spring onion
1/2 cup chopped green peppers
1 tsp paprika or red chillie flakes
Salt,pepper to taste
Preparation
Boil the eggs in hot water for about 10 minutes and remove the egg shells.Place the boiled eggs in a ziplock bag and leave it in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.This method is called 'Hard Boiling'.This process gives the cooked eggs a hard texture and prevents it from breaking easily when trying to toss in a salad.
Note : This can be done the previous night in order to save time. Now cut the hard boiled eggs into nice little cubes and throw in salt and pepper giving it a nice toss. Now grill the vegetables till semi crisp for a few minutes and add the vegetables into the egg pepper mixture.If you do not prefer to grill, then satuee the vegetables in olive oil for just under a minute. The healthy egg salad is ready in just under 2 minutes.

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Low Calorie Vegetable Quiche

Quiche is an awesome dish that is simple to make,requires fewer ingredients and is a low calorie food - a perfect breakfast material !
It is a very popular menu in any bed and breakfast style restaurant and also a preferred breakfast choice in many western households as its enjoyed both by kids and adults alike. All you need to do is, just assemble the ingredients together and transfer them into an oven and before you even know your breakfast is ready ! Quiche resembles a delicious pizza - (what a smart way to disguise all the veggies in a breakfast?) but is full of goodness and no fat !

Ingredients
4 whole eggs
1 9 inch pie crust(store bought or homemade)
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped spring onion
1/2 cup chopped green peppers
1/2 cup broccoli florets
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tbsp tomato sauce(optional) 1 tsp paprika or red chillie flakes
Salt,pepper to taste
Preparation
Break open all the eggs in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Throw in the Italian seasonings,salt and pepper and give it a nice stir. Now arrange all the veggies one after the other inside the pie crust.This should cover the bottom of the pie crust entirely leaving no room. Now pour the egg mixture into the pie crust,over the arranged vegetables. Carefully place the pie crust in the microwave oven and heat it on medium high for about 9-10 minutes.Keep turning the pie crust by 60 degrees every 3 minutes so that all the sides of the crust bake uniformly. Pull out the crust when ready.You can check if the egg mixture has cooked by inserting a knife into the crust and pulling out to see if it sticks. Slice the pie into 4 pieces and serve hot. A protein rich breakfast is ready in no time !

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