Category Archives: Apetizers

Indian Finger Fish (Fish sticks)


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I grew up in a small coastal town, Tuticorin. My parents were busy doctors (still are..) and the earliest they would come home is 10 at night. It was our routine that we went out for dinner every Saturday night, and we always went to this particular restaurant called “Sugam”, coz’  it was the only restaurant that had most items in the menu still available at 10:45 p.m. ( Yeah, in our town, in the 80’s , night life ended in the early evening 🙂 ). As a child , there is not much to look forward to a late night dinner, as by then, hunger would have arrived and left and sleep was fast approaching. One of the few things that kept me awake and interested in dinner was the amazing “finger fish”  in that restaurant, crunchy on the outside and super juicy on the inside with the perfect blend of spices. That was my standard order every week. I will stop by the restaurant during my visit next month. I won’t be eating finger fish anymore, neverthless, I just can’t wait to relive the memories.

  • I am using Tilapia for this recipe. Any mid fish can be used. Clean and cut the fish fillets into finger shaped pieces. I used about three fillets today.

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  • Mix turmeric powder, chilli powder, black pepper, salt and garlic powder with a little water to make a paste. If you do not have garlic powder, you can use garlic paste.

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  • Marinate the fish with the paste and set aside for 30 mins.

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  • Beat an egg for the egg wash.

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  • Dip the fish pieces in egg wash and roll in bread crumbs. I prefer regular bread crumbs. Breading should be minimal, so I avoid panko.

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  • Prepare all the fish pieces this way.

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  • Heat oil for deep frying and fry the fish to golden brown. Once oil becomes hot enough for frying, lower the heat. If your fish sticks turn brown as soon as you drop them in the oil, it means the oil is too hot. The sticks should gradually turn from light brown to golden brown.

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  • As you know, fish cooks quickly. However, make sure it is done.

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  • Serve with ketchup. This is usually a big hit with kids.

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Idli Siyali


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This dish is one of my earliest food memories. But until recently, I never knew what it was called. While growing up I always referred to it as “orange idli upma” or “gundu idli” (coz’ of the big chunks) or simply ” that idli thing you made when we went to the park”.  Then when I started to cook, this was one of my earlier trials(as you will see below, its quite a simple recipe),  I started calling it “Masala idli”, adding ‘masala’ to a food’s name makes it official, right ? 🙂 Recently, while I was browsing for something else, I stumbled upon this familiar recipe and figured out it is called “Idli Siyali”. After all, this has a name , that too such a sweet name. 🙂

  • This is usually made with left over idlis. Your idlis “must”  be in room temperature if not colder. Fresh idlis will lose form and crumble.

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  • Cut the idlis into big cubes, roughly 1 idli into 4 pieces.

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  • To make the masala, you will need 1 big red onion, 1 medium tomato and few curry leaves. Tomato and onion should be cubed , no fine chopping.
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  • In a pan/wok,heat 2 tbsp of oil (sesame oil, preferred), splutter a tsp of mustard seeds and fry a tsp each of urad dhal and channa dhal to golden brown.

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  • Saute the onions and curry leaves, Onions do not have to brown.

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  • Add the tomatoes. Sprinkle salt to sweat the tomatoes.

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  • Tomatoes do not have to soften too much. Add 1 tsp of turmeric powder, 3 tsp of sambar powder (add more or less as you wish) and some salt. If you do not have sambar powder, use 2 tsp of red chilli powder and 1 tsp of coriander powder. Let the powders mix with oil.

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  • Add about 1/2 cup of water. Water allows the sambar powder to cook fast. But don’t add too much water, as the gravy is going to be reduced to a thick paste anyways. Also add a pinchof vellam/jaggery/brown sugar.

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  • Allow the masala to boil thoroughly and reduce. When you see the oil separating , it is done.

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  • Add the cut idli pieces to the masala and mix it gently without breaking them.

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  • Sprinkle coriander leaves  and remove from heat.

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You can use boiled egg instead of idlis in this recipe to make a quick egg masala.

Another variation, is instead of using tomatoes ,you can also use tamarind juice.

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Beach Sundal (Chick peas salad with green mango)


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I don’t know if I could call this street food, because I’ve only tasted these in Tamilnadu (South India) beaches. It is quite an experience, munching on this hot and spicy sundal while caressed by the salty ocean breeze. It is called  “Thengaa (coconut) Maangaa (green mango) Pattaani (peas) Sundal”. I have never tasted coconut in this sundal, so I don’t add coconut in my recipe.

  • Ingredients:

(Traditionally dried green peas are used for this sundal, but I love chick peas.)

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  • In a pan/wok, heat 3 tsp of oil and splutter a tsp of mustard seeds. Then saute the chopped green chillies, grated ginger and curry leaves.

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  • Then add the onions and green mango together and saute, just enough to take the edge off. The onions and mango shouldn’t become too soft.

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  • Saute the grated carrot. Again , make sure they don’t soften too much. Add salt to taste.

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  • Add the chick peas and mix with the other veggies. Add crushed garlic and mix well. Garlic is optional, but it is always wise to add some garlic to all your lentils/beans recipes 🙂

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  • Finally sprinkle the chopped cilantro and turn the heat off. Add more salt if needed. Also if you want to make it more spicy , you can add crushed red peppers.

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  • Cover with lid and leave the sundal in the same wok for at least 10 minutes (with heat turned off).

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  • And you have to serve this sundal in  paper cone to complete the beach experience.

[After I prepped all my vegetables today, I realised that my camera was completely out of charge. I couldn’t wait an hour for the camera to re-charge as the kids were already in the car with their beach toys. So all  pictures were taken with my windows phone today. Though I had some lighting issues, I think they turned out okay 🙂 ]

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Besan puttu / scrambled chick peas flour


This is a  perfect rainy day snack without frying (ready in 5 mins). If you crave for bajji/pakora on a rainy evening, but double thinking it because of its deep frying, try this, same flavor, same taste sans the frying.
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Mix 5 tbsp. of besan (chick peas flour) + 2 tbsp. of rice flour + 1 tsp turmeric powder + 2 tsp chlli powder + salt to taste.
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Add water and make batter with the consistency of bajji/pakora batter.

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In a non-stick pan add a tbsp. of oil and fry mustard seeds, urad dhal, curry leaves and chopped green chillies.
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Sauté chopped red onions and coriander leaves. (You can add thinly sliced bell peppers also).
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Pour in the prepared batter and stir.Image
Keep stirring as the batter thickens.
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Try breaking the big chunks while stirring…
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This is just like scrambling an egg. If you don’t use a non-stick pan, you might have to use more oil.
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And its done… This is traditionally a side for rice, but I like it as a snack.
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Easy Onion Rings


This recipe is so easy, you can make it faster than reheating the frozen rings 🙂

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Cut the onion in rings. I am using white onions, I have tried with red onions too. So yellow, white , red…they are all good.Image

 

The shortcut to the batter is to use  pancake mix . To  cup of pancake mix , add red chilli powder, garlic powder, a pinch of salt. In case you can’t get pancake mix, you can make your own as below :
1/2 cup flour
3/4 tsp salt
pepper
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 egg beaten
1/2 cup milk

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Add water to make a batter, the batter doesn’t have to be smooth. consistency similar to bajji/pakora batter.Image
 
Bread crumbs ( any kind, regular, panko or pulsed cornflakes).Image
 
Dip the onion rings in the batter and then roll them in bread crumbs.Image
 
These are ready to be fried. Image
 
Fry the rings in oil to golden brown.Image
 
Coating with bread crumbs is optional. I prefer just batter fried rings… kids do love the crunch of the bread crumbs.Image
 
To make a simple dipping sauce : Mix your favorite hot sauce with your favorite ranch.
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Wasn’t that easy ? 🙂
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