Hassan's Dry Chicken

Hi everyone! I survived Draft Day yesterday - yes my Fantasy Football Draft Part 1 was successful. I also have a Part 2 at 8:30PM tonight! That is why this recipe was probably the best thing for a quick meal to make, or even just an appetizer to share with some individuals. I treated this as more of an appetizer for this evening as we had a lot of leftovers that we needed to eat from last nights draft. However paired with some side dishes I think this would've been a great full-sized meal.

So enough talking, and more posting. (I've got another draft to do people!)

Hassan's Dry Chicken

Main

• 1 Chicken Breast (Halved, and cut into strips)
• 1 Egg
• Milk

Chicken Coating

• Crispy Panko Crumbs (Enough to coat chicken - 1 to 2 Cups)
• Garam Masala Seasoning (3 Tablespoons)
• Red Chili Powder (1 Tablespoon)

Dipping Sauce

• Mild Curry Paste (2 1/2 Tablespoons)
• Honey (1 Tablespoon)
• Butter (2 Tablespoons)
• Water (3 Tablespoons)

Instructions

• Pre-heat oven to 350 Degrees Fahrenheit.
• In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the egg, and add milk equal to the egg amount. Place the chicken into this mix.
• In another bowl take the Chicken Coating mix and mix together. Make sure the spices are blended well with the Panko crumbs. 
• Place the chicken on a metal baking sheet, and place in the oven for 15 minutes. (Or longer if needed).
• In the meantime take the Dipping Sauce mix and bring to a simmer. (Do not boil!) 
• Plate and enjoy!

I know this is more of an American twist on what the book was saying… Yet it's practically football season and I really couldn't resist. I personally loved this version - it had a spicy-sweet flavor that wasn't overwhelming. I also find that sometimes something simple like this would be great to take more twists on. I can picture down the road a Garam Masala and Red Curry sauce drizzled all over some chicken wings - and a yoghurt saffron dipping sauce… (Once I can afford the damn saffron of course…)

It's officially 6:30PM here, and I've got Fantasy Football Draft Part 2 in a couple of hours! (Yeah, I'm not excited or anything…) Tomorrow I'll be posting about what Tuesday's recipe is going to be from The Hundred-Foot Journey - and it's not Indian food folks!

Pre-Cook Post for Tomorrow!

I want to first start off by saying this post may seem sporadic, with random off topic sentences, and this is because tonight is Fantasy Football Draft Night Part 1. Yes Part 1. In this family we are signed up for two fantasy football leagues - the off-season was too long this year… So when draft day is here I'm pretty much thinking in terms of QB's, RB's and WR's right now.

Yet I really would like to introduce the next recipe I'll be cooking for tomorrow night before Fantasy Football Draft Part 2!

I chose to cook something that Hassan's family makes at their restaurant - that ironically also is named after Hassan himself. It's called Hassan's Dry Chicken. There's a few reasons why I chose this recipe: it's importance, football draft night, and I had chicken (which I really need to cook).

There is a section in the book that I've taken a quote from, it may be simple but it really hit's close to the development of young Hassan as a future chef.

This was to me an important part - after all Hassan's still young in this section of the book. To make a suggestion to a dish, and then to have that dish become popular says something about Hassan's abilities.
I'm not particularly sure how I'm going to make this one yet, but I think this one may be a tad different then the books description. (Draft's in forty-five minutes!)

I hope you all will catch back up with me tomorrow evening as I post about this dish! It may be later than last night's post, tomorrow's draft is at 8:30PM. I'll make sure no matter what that I post tomorrow!!

Machli Ka Salan (Spicy Fish Curry)

Hey everyone! I just made the Machli Ka Salan from The Hundred-Foot Journey (or as close to it as possible). I must confess I did have Ricky cook the fish this time so he could show me what to do. (I even tasted it!)

This recipe is my rendition of the Machli Ka Salan mentioned in this book, while I know it's not 100% what the book described I know it's as close to it as possible. (I also didn't want to cook fish heads…)

Machli Ka Salan (Spicy Fish Curry)

Main Ingredients

• Fish (1/2 Pound, I used a Tuna Steak)
• 1 Cup Couscous

Pre-Marinade

• Vinegar (2 Tablespoons)
• Salt (1 Tablespoons)

Marinade

• Red Chili Powder (1/2 Tablespoon)
• Turmeric Powder (1/4 Teaspoon)
• Lemon (Juiced)
• Salt (1/2 Teaspoon)
• Ginger (1/4 Teaspoon, Minced)
• Garlic Clove (Minced)

Curry

• Red Chili Powder (1 Teaspoon)
• Turmeric Powder (1/4 Teaspoon)
• Coriander Powder (2 Tablespoons)
• Lemon Juice (1 - 2 Tablespoons)
• Ginger (1/2 Teaspoon, Minced)
• Garlic Cloves (2, Minced)
• Salt (1 Teaspoon)
• Water (1/4 Cup)

Instructions

• Marinate the fish in the Pre-Marinade mix for 10 minutes, and then rinse in cold water.
• Marinate the fish overnight in the Marinade mix overnight (or no less than 1 hour). 

Tuna Steak - Marinated Overnight

• Heat oil in a pan and sauté the garlic, and ginger for five minutes, adding in the rest of the Curry mix after. Bring to a light boil and reduce heat to a simmer. 
• Boil water in a sauce pan, and make the couscous, while the couscous cooks heat oil in a frying pan.
• Cook the fish un the marinade until cooked through. (This took about 8 - 10 minutes for our tuna steak).
• Plate and Enjoy!

Curry Sauce Made, and Plated Up

This dish was new, and not something I'm used to… Don't get me wrong I've definitely had curry before - I'm actually a huge fan of curry. This however is not your American-style curry from whatever place you get your take out food from. (Don't deny you've had take-out curry people!)

As I was tasting my curry sauce I honestly wasn't sure how I felt about it. It wasn't like anything else I've tasted - yet it was amazing! I thought "spicy fish curry" was going to be reminiscent of when you order "spicy curry" from a restaurant - but this was more of an aromatic and fragrant spicy. It pairs so well with fish. (Yes Ricky even watched me eat a bite of this tuna!) 

I know it may not be the same as Hassan's family's Machli Ka Salan but I know it's as close to what I wanted to attempt for my first fish dish. Next time I'll actually try the fish heads, who knows it might be fun!

I'm going to post tomorrow what my next recipe will be for Sunday - if it's rushed it's cause I'm drafting my fantasy league. (Yep gonna kick some ass!)

Cooking Tomorrow for The Hundred-Foot Journey

Hello all, this was kind of an easy section of this book to cook for! Food is at the soul of this book thus far, and Hassan (the main character) even describes things in relation to food at times - often resulting in funny analogies. (Or I'm just immature).

I've decided to make on Friday a dish mentioned on the very first page of The Hundred-Foot Journey: Machli Ka Salan (Spicy Fish Curry). 

I feel that this meal was of important significance to the character Hassan and therefore there's just no way for me not to use it as the first dish I've cooked.

This quote is how we are introduced to our narrator from the beginning of this book, and from there it becomes a world full of food to be enjoyed.

Now I've never made fish before (never, not even once) so this will be a new venture for me. I know my boyfriend Ricky is going to have to help me cook the fish, otherwise I can picture firetrucks rushing down the street as I burn a fillet on a frying pan… Yes hello neighbors, we're new - have some burnt fish for dinner with us?
In addition to that I'm personally not a fan of fish (I.E. I friggin' hate it) but I shall try this because I can't blog about a recipe I don't even touch. I know Ricky will love it, he hates how I don't know how to cook fish - it'll be an adventure definitely.

Now I'm off to venture for ingredients for my cooking endeavor tomorrow, and I hope you all check back in on Friday evening (probably late, like really late) to see how my version of Machli Ka Salan turns out!

Book Intro: The Hundred-Foot Journey, Richard Morais

I decided I was going to start out easy with this new blog - after all I am still reading Harry Potter. Yet that doesn't mean I want to skimp out on what content I want to read myself and post about.

I don't know how I stumbled across this book, I know that a long while back I had bought The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard Morais when I was out at a local book store in Portland. I never read it though, let's just call it bad timing. Never buy more books when you're about ready to move out of an apartment. Because I'm pretty sure that I had packed this book into the Goodwill donation box by mistake. 

Now that the movie came out recently in theaters (no I haven't seen it yet!) it reminded me of how I had purchased this book so long ago and not been able to find it. 

So lo and behold I bought this book on my Kindle in about thirty seconds - and thus far have been devouring it in the past hour.

The best thing too is how this book will introduce the wonderful style of Indian cooking in my household. I can already imagine some of the dishes I'm going to cook up for us this coming week!

Here's a short synopsis from Amazon on The Hundred-Foot Journey for those of you that would also like to read this book now. At the end I also plan on publishing my own review per completion of this novel.

The Hundred-Foot Journey

By

Richard Morais

"That skinny Indian teenager has that mysterious something that comes along once a generation. He is one of those rare chefs who is simply born. He is an artist." And so begins the rise of Hassan Haji, the unlikely gourmand who recounts his life’s journey in Richard Morais’s charming novel, The Hundred-Foot Journey. Lively and brimming with the colors, flavors, and scents of the kitchen, The Hundred-Foot Journey is a succulent treat about family, nationality, and the mysteries of good taste.
Born above his grandfather’s modest restaurant in Mumbai, Hassan first experienced life through intoxicating whiffs of spicy fish curry, trips to the local markets, and gourmet outings with his mother. But when tragedy pushes the family out of India, they console themselves by eating their way around the world, eventually settling in Lumière, a small village in the French Alps.
The boisterous Haji family takes Lumière by storm. They open an inexpensive Indian restaurant opposite an esteemed French relais—that of the famous chef Madame Mallory—and infuse the sleepy town with the spices of India, transforming the lives of its eccentric villagers and infuriating their celebrated neighbor. Only after Madame Mallory wages culinary war with the immigrant family, does she finally agree to mentor young Hassan, leading him to Paris, the launch of his own restaurant, and a slew of new adventures.
The Hundred-Foot Journey is about how the hundred-foot distance between a new Indian kitchen and a traditional French one can represent the gulf between different cultures and desires. A testament to the inevitability of destiny, this is a fable for the ages—charming, endearing, and compulsively readable.

Second Blog Attempt

This is my second attempt at starting a blog, my first one was haphazardly pieced together at best… I never realized how hard it it to write a blog when there's so many out there - it doesn't help when you give yourself no direction either.

My first blog attempt was here on Blogger, and I attempted a "DIY Everything" approach, but with no focus it's hard to gain any ground. It was like running up a mountain to build something, only to realize you left all your blueprints back at base camp. Then after I had invested all that time hitting the ground running I realized what a waste that previous blog really was. 

Rule Number One of Blogging: 

Don't make a blog trying to do everything. I mean who's going to be able to find anything in such a jumbled mess?

So this is why I find myself on blog number two, because now I have to remedy the mistake I made by not following Rule Number One. 

One of the things I did learn however when I had my old blog was that most of the things people seemed interested in was my cooking. (Thank you Google analytics for that insight!)

However sometimes I always seemed stymied that I ran out of ideas for recipes to make in my household. Then it hit me right in the head, why not marry two of my favorite things together? Cooking and Books? After all it's the only two things I don't ever seem to tire of, and reading always has hints of inspiration for recipes if you just know what to look for. 

Cook and Books - a new blog, a new passion, and a new inspiration. 

I really can't start just yet on this blog, because I currently am in the middle of a book series (yes it's Harry Potter)! However once I finish the remaining three books (for the 20th time running) I cannot wait to start this blog! 

One thing I can say is how I will be bringing cooking and books together though, and it's a little different then some food blogs out there, and different then book review blogs as well. What I plan on bringing out in this blog is the following:

I'm going to choose a book to read and give just the basic synopsis, and as I progress through the book I'm going to cook a meal no less than three times a week from food mentioned in the book or even just inspired from the book. Once I have finished the book I will give everyone an in depth book review (with no spoilers!) and a little baked treat to complement the ending.

I hope everyone can bear with me as I get adjusted to doing a new blog - correctly this time I hope. I promise it won't be long, after all I'm a vociferous reader (especially for Harry Potter), and I have three more books to go!