Baby Corn Manchurian

One of my favorite crispy dish from Indo-chinese cuisine.This is a very simple and easy to make recipe.You can serve it whenever you have unexpected guests at home.

Tastes best when used as an accompaniment for Veg Hakka Noodles and Veg. Fried Rice.

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

1. Baby corn- 8-10 (chopped as shown in pic)
2. Oil for deep frying
3. Salt as needed

Batter Ingredients

1. Cornflour - 1/4 cup
2. Maida/All Purpose flour - 1/4 cup
3. Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp
4. Kashmiri Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp
5. Black pepper powder- 2 tsp
6. Salt needed

Manchurian Sauce

1. Garlic Pods-5-6 (Chopped finely)
2. Ginger- 1 inch (chopped finely)
3. Green Chilies-2 (chopped finely)
4. Soy Sauce - 2 tsp
5. Vinegar - 1 tsp (Rice vinegar or any)
6. Spring Onions-Finely chopped(Both leaf and the onion part)
7. Cornflour paste- 1 tbsp + 2 tbsp water
8. Tomato Ketchup- 1 tbsp
9. Red Chili Sauce - 1 tbsp
10. Pepper Powder - 2 tsp

Garnishing

Spring Onion leaves &  the spring Onions bulb- Chopped

Method

1. Mix the ingredients under batter with required amount of water.The batter should be of thick pouring consistency.

2. Chop the baby corns into medium sized length.Boil the cut Baby corns in water for 5 mins with a tsp of salt.Pat dry them.

3. Dip the Baby corns in the batter and coat them well with batter.

4. Deep fry the coated Baby corns in hot oil till the color turns light golden brown and keep it aside.

5. Heat some oil in a pan.Add spring onions and normal onion,garlic,ginger, chilies and saute till the onions turn transparent and the garlic turns light brown in color.

6. Add soy sauce,tomato sauce,vinegar and red chili sauce sauce and cook for about a minute.

7.  Add 1/4  cup water,salt,pepper powder and cook for another few minutes.Add cornflour paste for thickening and also to get a glaze saucy texture.

8. Add the fried  baby corns and saute well till they are coated completely with the sauce.

9. Add chopped spring onion leaves and serve hot.

Notes,Tips & Add-On's

1. Soy sauce already has salt and hence adjust the salt accordingly.
2. You can also garnish with normal onions and capsicum after sauteing them for a min with salt for additional add-on's.
3. Make sure the oil is hot before frying the baby corns,else the masala mixture may come off
4. Tomato ketchup can be adjusted according to the taste.

Veg Hakka Noodles

Hakka Noodles is one of the main dish from the chinese cuisine and a very frequent menu in any restaurant.This yummy noodles is very easy and simple to me.Lets explore the ching's secret!!!

INGREDIENTS

1. Hakka Noodles- 1 medium packet *I used Ching's Secret
2. Soy sauce-2 tsp
3. Sesame Oil/Olive Oil/Cooking Oil-2 tbsp
4. Keya Chinese Seasoning - 2 tsp (Optional)
5. Sugar- 1 tsp
6. Salt and pepper - as needed

Veggies Used

• Spring Onions-3-4 finely chopped(Onion Part)
• Carrot-1 (Thinly shredded)
• Beans-8-10 (finely chopped)
• Capsicum/Bell Pepper-1 (green,red or yellow cut in thin Julienne)
• Green Chilies-2-3 (slit lengthwise)
• Garlic-3 pods (finely chopped)
• Cabbage-1/4 Cup (shredded thinly)

Garnishing

Spring onion leaves-finely chopped

Method

1. Boil noodles as per package instructions and keep it aside.

2. Heat up oil in a pan and saute the chopped garlic pods.

3. Add all other vegetables along with sugar and stir fry them quickly on medium high flame.This should be done until the veggies are semi cooked yet crunchy.

4. Add boiled hakka noodles,add soya sauce,salt and pepper powder. 

5. Toss the noodles well until the noodles is mixed well with veggies,soy sauce,salt and pepper.

6. Garnish with spring onions and serve it hot.

Notes,Tips & Add-On's

1. The vegetables have to be stirred continuously on a high flame.Ensure they don't get burnt.
2. Soya sauce already contains salt and hence watch out on the salt added.
3. Sugar is added to balance the taste and retain the color for veggies.

Gobi Manchurian

This is one of the most important recipe from the Chinese Cuisine and always kid's favourite.Goes very well as a starter and also as a side dish.Tastes best when used as an accompaniment for Veg Hakka Noodles and Veg. Fried Rice. This recipe is very similar to my recipe Baby Corn Manchurian.

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

1. Chopped Cauliflower - 10 florets 
2. Oil for deep frying
3. Salt as needed

Batter Ingredients

1. Cornflour - 1/4 cup
2. Maida/All Purpose flour - 1/4 cup
3. Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp
4. Kashmiri Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp
5. Black pepper powder- 2 tsp
6. Salt needed

Manchurian Sauce

1. Garlic Pods-5-6 (Chopped finely)
2. Ginger- 1 inch (chopped finely)
3. Green Chilies-2 (chopped finely)
4. Soy Sauce - 2 tsp
5. Vinegar - 1 tsp (Rice Vinegar or any vinegar)
6. Spring Onions-Finely chopped (Both leaf and the onion part)
7. Cornflour paste- 1 tbsp with 2 tbsp water
8. Tomato Ketchup- 1 tbsp
9. Red Chili Sauce - 1 tbsp
10. Pepper Powder - 2 tsp

Garnishing

Spring Onion leaves &  the spring Onions bulb- Chopped

Sauteing of vegetables in sauce

Adding fried Gobi and stir frying

Garnish with spring onions

Method

1. Mix the ingredients under batter with required amount of water.The batter should be of thick pouring consistency.

2. Boil the cut cauliflower in water for 2 mins with a tsp of salt.Pat dry them.

3. Dip the cauliflower in the batter and coat them well with batter.

4. Deep fry the coated cauliflower till the color turns light golden brown and keep it aside.

5. Heat some oil in a pan.Add spring onions,ginger,garlic,chilies and saute till the onions turn transparent and the garlic turns light brown in color.

6. Add soy sauce,tomato sauce,vinegar and red chili sauce sauce and cook for about a minute.

7.  Add 1/4  cup water,salt,pepper powder and cook for another few minutes.Add cornflour paste for thickening and also to get a glaze saucy texture.

8. Add the fried  cauliflower and saute well till they are coated completely with the sauce.

9. Add chopped spring onion leaves and serve hot.

Notes,Tips & Add-On's

1. While deep frying the florets,ensure the oil is at the right temperature and perfectly hot.If the oil is not hot, the florets will draw in more oil and it will become soggy.At the same time, too much heat can cause the florets to burn.
2. Soy sauce already has salt and hence adjust the salt accordingly.
3. You can also garnish with normal onions and capsicum after sauteing them with salt for a minute.

Vegetable Steamed Momos

I had this dish for the very first time at Bylakuppe when I had been there for an excursion. I never knew what momos were till then. My friend was insisting me to try this dish. I still remember, a gang of 8 of us had went to this small canteen like shop near that Tibetan monastery.One of my friend had ordered for a plate of momo which was 85 rs at that time.He served 8 momos which were sizzling hot with a super hot schezwan chili sauce.I was damn hungry and being a foodie, I just can't take when I have to share something that is too delicious with others:P:P Each of us had got just one piece and i had that for the very first time in my life.I closed my eyes and had the first bite of it. Oh my god!!! It was something the best I have ever tasted in my entire lifetime.If I am able to re collect so much about that day,you should realize how tasty those momos were. Till date, I have not tasted a single momo that is as tasty and delicious as the one they serve at Bylakuppe. I thought let me make these at home as the momos you get in chennai malls are so damn expensive. When something is very easy and simple to make at home, why to pay for it at hotels.:)

Serves:16 Momos

Ingredients

1. Salt to taste
2. pepper-1 tsp
3. oil-1 tbsp    *You can use either normal cooking oil or sesame oil
4. soya sauce- 1 tsp   
5.  Cabbage leaf for lining 

Vegetables used

• Cabbage -2 cups (shredded finely)
• onion-1 medium sized (finely chopped)
• spring onion- 2-3  (both onion part and the leaf part finely chopped)
• carrot-2 (finely chopped)
• capsicum-1 (finely chopped)
• Garlic - 3 pods (finely chopped)
• 1 inch ginger (finely chopped)

For dough:

1. Maida(plain flour) -1.5 cups
2. Salt - 1 tsp
3. Oil as needed
4. Warm water as needed

                             

Cooking the veggie stuffing

Momo dough is ready

Stuffed dumplings ready to get steamed

Cabbage leaf greased with oil and lined

Place the momos on the leaf for steaming

Momos after being steamed in a pressure cooker

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a pan, add garlic and ginger and saute for a minute. Then add the cut vegetables and saute for few mins till they are semi cooked.

2. Add soy sauce,pepper,salt and saute for 2 mins on high flame with constant stirring.

3. Remove the veggies from flame and keep it aside.Now the stuffing for our momo is ready:)

4. In a bowl, mix maida,salt and warm water and knead the dough well.

5. Use oil as and when you knead as it prevents your hand from getting sticky and simplifies the kneading process.

6.Once you are done with your kneading, keep the dough aside covered with a moist cloth.Now the dough part is ready:)

7. Take a small amount of dough and start rolling in a greased surface. Dust flour as needed to make a thin base for momo. Add about a tsp of stuffing. seal the dough as shown in the picture into your favorite desired shape.

8. Line a cabbage leaf and grease it with oil on a steaming pan. Alternatively, you can steam it in traditional way in a Idli steamer using a pressure cooker. Make sure you grease the container of the steaming pan so that momos do not stick to the container after steaming.

9. Allow the momos to get steamed for at least for 10 mins.The white outer layer of momos start becoming transparent. This is the indication that your momos are getting cooked.

10. Once, the momos are fully cooked, it fully becomes glossy and transparent.

11. Momos are now ready to be served hot with GB'S  spicy hot Momo Chutney.

Vegetable Fried Rice

This is an exotic recipe from the Indo-Chinese cuisine.The rice is being fried after cooked.This is also a very popular menu in most of the restaurants. In restaurants, they make small batches by tossing the vegetables and rice in a big wok high in the air. However, this can be done in a very simple way at home and yet get the same taste as that of restaurant. I have used Keya Chinese Seasoning to get the flavor more authentic. However, adding this is completely optional.
Check out Baby Corn Manchurian and Gobi Manchurian which can be used as an amazing accompaniment for this dish.

serves: 3

Ingredients

1. Basmati rice - 1.5 cups
2. Garlic Pods-3-4 (finely chopped)
3. Oil-2 tbsp *You can use either olive oil or any refined oil
4. Sesame oil - 1 tbsp 
5. Keya Chinese Seasoning - 2 tsp (optional)
6. Star Anise-2-3
7. Cloves-2-3
8. Salt to taste
9. Soy sauce-1 tsp
10. Vinegar - 1 tsp (balsamic/apple cider/white/rice vinegar) 
11. Pepper Powder-1 tbsp
12. Sugar-1 tsp

Vegetables used

• Beans-1/4 Cup(finely chopped)
• Carrot- 2 Nos.(shredded finely)
• Onions- 1 big (sliced thinly)
• Spring Onion-5 (finely chopped-both onion and leaf part)
• Cabbage-1/4 cup (shredded)
• Capsicum-1( Red,Green or Yellow -Cut into julienne)

Ready to cook the rice

Vegetables being Fried

After mixing the rice and veggies

Method

1.  Cook Basmati rice as mentioned here with star anise, cloves and 1 tbsp sesame oil.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add spring onions and onions and saute till they become transparent.

3. Add garlic pods and saute till the raw flavor goes off. Add keya chinese seasoning and saute for 2 mins on medium flame.

4. Add all the vegetables with a tsp of sugar and salt. Saute well on medium flame until they are cooked. Make sure the vegetables are not overcooked that they become too soft. The veggies should be crunchy.

5. Add soya sauce,vinegar,pepper and mix well for all the flavors to combine.

6. Add cooked rice to above vegetables and mix well. 

7. Garnish generously with chopped spring onion leaves and serve hot.

Notes,Tips & Add-On's

1. The most important thing in preparing fried rice is that, it is being continuously stirred on a medium flame. Hence,ensure continuous stirring so that the bottom of the pan is not burnt.
2. The vegetables have to be finely chopped so that they are cooked easily and at the same time they are crunchy too.
3. Soy sauce already contains salt and adjust adding salt accordingly.
4. Ensure that the rice is dry,separate and not sticking to each other.