Schezuan Fried rice and Gobi manchurian

Schezuan Fried rice



Serves 4


2-1/2 cups pre-cooked rice (each grain of rice shouldnot be overcooked but should be separate)
1-1/2 tbs Schezuan sauce (you can get it from the stores ready-made or make it at home by mixing red chili paste, vinegar,garlic, tomato sauce, sugar and salt- the one from the store is really spicy so use sparingly as per your spice level)
4 tbs chopped spring onion
1-1/2 cup diced vegetables (carrots, red and green bell pepper, baby corn, cabbage or any other of your choice)
salt to taste


1. Heat oil on a very high flame in a wok. Add some ginger (optional) and some spring onions -saute for 2minutes and add the vegetables. Saute for 2-3 minutes, add salt and 1/2 a tablespoon of the schezuan sauce.
2. Next add the rice, add salt and rest of the sauce, mix well and serve hot garnished with some spring onions



Gobi manchurian

Serves 4

For the manchurian
5 tbs cornflour
4 green chilies finely chopped
1 tbs ginger-garlic paste
salt to taste
pepper to taste
2 small gobi (cauliflower)

For the gravy
1 small onion finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped spring onion
1 can tomato sauce
5 tbs ketch-up
6 green chilies finely chopped
3 tbs ginger-garlic paste
salt to taste
2 tbs soy sauce
1/2-1 tbs green chili sauce
2 cup water
2 tsp cornflour

1. Cook the cauliflower florets by boiling them in water so that they are well but not over-cooked.
2. Mix the cornflour, salt, pepper, ginger-garlic, chilies, add a little water and make a thick paste. Dip the cauliflower florets in the paste and fry it in oil till its lightly brown and crispy all over.
3. Set aside on some paper towels so that any additional oil is absorbed.
4. For the gravy, heat oil and add some ginger garlic paste and saute it for 2 minutes.
5. next add the spring onions, regular onion and green chilies, saute it some more and add the tomato sauce, ketchup, soy sauce and green chili sauce.
6. Saute the mixture for 3-4 minutes and add 2 cups of water to it.
7. When its boiling, mix the cornflour in some cold water and add it to the sauce mix. Let it thicken up and remove it from the stove.
8. Add the manchurian balls to the gravy and heat it up just before serving. Garnish with spring onions.

Mexican sandwich

A complete hit at my home-this is a slightly Indianised and less spicy version of the Nacho Bread Pizza from Rachel Ray's 30- minute meals. Its fairly simple to make - kind of semi-homemade and something that can be dished up in a few minutes. Whenever you are short of time, this is the meal to dig. My addition to the dish- red and green peppers, refried beans and ketchup.


Serves 2


1 French bread roll (you can subsitute it with any other bread roll of your choice)-cut into 4 equal pieces
1 can vegetarian refried beans (you can use any other beans to your liking)
1/2 red bell pepper finely chopped
1/2 green pepper-finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic-finely chopped
1 serrano chili pepper-finely chopped (or any chili of your choice)
1-1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder (or as per your taste)
3 tbsp ketchup
salt to taste
4 tbsp chopped coriander
medium spicy salsa- (i used both the original salsa and mango salsa)
1/4th onion- finely chopped
shredded cheese of your choice (i used monterey jack and cheddar)
1 cup romaine lettuce


1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat oil and add garlic and the serrano chillies to it. Saute for a couple of minutes and add the red and green peppers to it.
3. Add salt and saute for 5-10 minutes.
4. Next add the refried beans and mix well.
5. Add the cumin and chili powder to this mixture and cook this over medium heat for 5 minutes.
6. Next add ketchup to it, mix well and set it aside.
7. Cut the french bread horizontally and layer the sandwich with the refried bean mixture. Top it with lots of cheese and bake it for 15 minutes in the oven.

8. Remove the sandwich from the oven and top it with onions, salsa, lettuce and coriander. And..... start munching on it.

P.S.- A suggestion from P- Add a dollop of sour cream to further enhance the flavor.

Chinese fare for Valentine's

A trip to India is always fabulous -meeting family and friends, enjoying the comforts of putting up your feet and letting mom cook for you, eating out or at home and in all - a break from your hectic everyday schedule. Well, thats what i had been doing for the past month and a half in addition to attending my sister's wedding. I had promised earlier to post from India, but little did i know that with a wedding in the family and lack of good connectivity from home, posting would be almost minimal. This year hopefully i should be able to post more often, given that i am finished with my course work and am into my hospital rotations currently. Here are some really spicy indo-chinese recipes that you can make in a jiffy.

Vegetable Lemon Coriander soup

Serves 3

600 ml (1-1/2 can) vegetable broth
3 tbsp finely chopped coriander
1/2 piece fresh lime
1/2 cup finely chopped veggies (cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, baby corn, mushroom)
salt to taste
pepper to taste

This ones from the Taj cookbook that i have. A refreshing soup that goes well with any Chinese meal and without one too.

1. Boil the vegetable broth and add the veggies, salt and pepper.
2. When the veggies are cooked well but not too mushy, add the coriander and boil for another 2-3 minutes.
3. Remove from flame and add the lime juice. Serve hot after adjusting for seasoning.

Vegetables with water chestnuts and tofu in schezuan sauce

As the title suggests, i did start out to make the veggies in schezuan sauce but it didnt turn out to my liking and hence i made a couple of adjustments- so the sauce is not exactly schezuan. The recipe ultimately turned out well but i would have loved to fry the tofu before i added it to enhance its taste and make it more compatible with the crunchy water chestnuts. You can serve it with plain white rice or vegetable fried rice. You can also add veggies of your choice like broccoli and mushrooms and substitute the ones in the recipe.

Serves 6

1 can vegetable baby corn (available at whole foods)
1/2 cup whole sugar snap peas
1/3 cup diced carrots
2 small cans sliced water chestnuts (available at whole foods)
1 lb tofu
1/2 can vegetable broth
2 tbsp hot red chili paste
2 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp grated ginger
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp vinegar
4 tbsp chopped green onion
salt to taste

1. Heat oil on a high flame. when its really hot add the ginger-garlic and some chopped green chilies as per your liking.
2. Next add the green onion and saute for 2 minutes.
3. Add all the veggies and the vegetable broth, salt and cook till the veggies are well cooked and tender yet firm (add more vegetable broth if needed).
4. Now add the hot red chili paste, soy sauce and vinegar and cook till the the sauce seeps into the veggies.
5. Next add the tofu (fried preferably) and cook for 5-10 minutes.
6. Garnish with green onion and serve with rice.

Cream Fruit Salad

Serves 2

1/2 can (14 oz) whipping cream
1 cup vanilla icecream
sugar to taste
fruits of your choice (banana, apple, mango, strawberry, pineapple, grapes)
1-2 drops vanilla essence

1. Put the whipping cream and vanilla icecream through a blender.
2. Dissolve the sugar, add the fruits (shouldnt be sour)and the vanilla essence and enjoy a simple yet awesome dessert.