Basic Chicken Stock

It happens to me all the time ...Taking a break from blogging is easy, getting back into the blogging mode really takes time. Before every vacation I feel excited about all the possible things I would like to blog about after coming back, till date it has never happened :) 

Nevertheless, while I am still struggling to get out of this, I thought may be I could share a simple recipe of how I make my basic chicken stock, may be some soup made using that would do the trick, may be I could post about the soup as a follow up. Well, though the later two still seem distant, let me tell you how I make the stock...

Where I live (in the suburbs)  we don't find halal chicken stocks at the stores (I mean the desi grocery where we buy our halal meat), so I usually make my own. I think a good stock can add loads of flavour to any thing you make out of it  and it sure is a very good thing to have in your pantry / fridge.  

Tender stalks of cilantro



I take 1 cup uncooked bones of chicken, its OK if they have some meat on it, you could shred it and use it in your sandwiches or soups. Add 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp. whole black peppercorns,  one small onion chopped, 2-3 green cardamoms, 1/2 " stick of cinnamon, 1/2 tsp cloves, 3 and half cups of water and cook on high uncovered for a few mins. Chop off the tender stalks of a small bunch of cilantro/coriander and add it to the stock. Season it with salt and let it cook until it reduces to half or a little over half. Your Chicken stock is ready to use. 

To store, let it cool and then store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 15 days. You can also freeze it in ice trays and store it for up to a month. I don't keep it that long and use it within a week in all possible ways, soups, rice, dal, to knead parathas,  curries, etc... etc. 

The recipe is pretty simple, I don't add the veggies or spices or even oil, which makes it very versatile and pretty basic, hence the name. 

By the way, Ramadan was the best part of the year as always and I thank you all for your Eid wishes. 

See you soon !

Update:

I am trying to catch up with all the new visitors to my blog, for those who did care to comment I add you to my Fellow Bloggers List. If you don't see your name in the list, plz, plz, plz let me know. 

Thanks!

Greek (Yogurt) Goodness

Few days back, Kristina from The Stonyfield farm emailed me asking if I would like to try their Greek yogurt. And since I have been using and loving their products for quiet some time now I was only happy to oblige. So they sent me this wonderful package full of coupons, info and a cute little hand bag.

Oikos Organic Greek yogurt can be used in a variety of ways while cooking – in baking, as a substitute for sour cream, and mayonnaise, to create tasty low-fat dishes. Greek yogurt is strained, making it thicker and more versatile in recipes than regular yogurt. Oikos is organic, which means it's made without artificial colors, flavors or sweeteners, and it's made from organic milk produced without the use of toxic persistent pesticides, chemical fertilizers, antibiotics, or artificial growth hormones (rBST).


I could not wait to try it. The yogurt comes in different flavors like vanilla, blueberry and honey . The honey yogurt has a beautiful n delicate golden layer of honey at the bottom n the blueberry flavoured yogurt has kinda like a blueberry jam... so try emptying these containers upside down on a platter for a lovely presentation. I blended the vanilla with some rose syrup and sugar to make rose lassi served with some grated nutmeg, just whipped the honey yogurt and tossed in some toasted walnuts to spread on the breakfast toast , blueberry smoothie was the quickest and refreshing with a hint of mint. I also enjoyed the eating spoonfuls of the plain Greek yogurt, and used the rest to marinate chicken kebabs, the recipe I intend to post soon.


Thank You Kristina for introducing me to these delicious treats ,these will be a staple in my kitchen from now on. Meanwhile for more recipe inspirations using Greek yogurt you can check this out.

Lemon Squash n Pickled Onions !!!

Labor Day weekend is just around the corner and we are planning a road trip... thanks to Anupama's Picnic Food event, I now have so many tasty options to pack for munching n brunching.

One of my favourite things to do before road trips is pickled onions, just because it can be made way ahead of time, its easy to do, is ready in no time , jazzes the taste of any plain old sandwich/ wrap n looks gorgeous hot pink :) .

All you need is :

2 large thinly sliced red onions, i use the food processor,
some boiling hot water,
juice of 1 -2 lime/lemon, preferably lime,
salt , to taste.

Method :

Pour boiling water over the sliced onions n keep aside for few secs. Strain the onions in a colander, remove all the water by tapping the colander and dump the onions in a container, to this add the lemon juice n salt n refrigerate till you use.

You can immediately see the onions start to change their color. These onions go well with tacos too. Though this is the basic recipe for pickled onions, u can add green chillies or sugar or any pickling spice .... try any combination of flavors.

Now time for some home made lemonade. Why not make a lemon squash ? Keep it in your cooler/ icebox n just stir in some water when ever you want to have a cool sip.

I flavored mine with ginger, you can use mint or both ginger n mint ....what ever u like ...

Feel free to add n reduce the quantity of lemons n sugar, depending on how sour the lemons are n how sweet u like your lemonade. The following recipe yields 1ltr. of syrup

Ingredients:

2 cups lemon juice,
3 cups water,
3" ginger root, chopped into thin slices,
2 cups sugar,
1 tbsp white vinegar.

Method:

Boil water n sugar in a pan , till the sugar dissolves (at this stage u can add more sugar if you want , but make sure that u boil the syrup after sugar is added) . When all the sugar is dissolved remove it from heat n let cool completely. Then add the lemon juice and vinegar, mix well, throw in the ginger , cover n let it steep for at least 12 hrs , the more you steep the better. Now remove the ginger slices with a spoon, give it a stir n store in a sterilized glass bottle. You can also strain it before transferring into the bottle. Keep refrigerated.

Once the syrup is made , all you have to do is, stir in 1 part of the syrup (or to taste) to 3 parts of water n enjoy.

SOS and AFAM - Watermelon

SOS - Share Our Strength, invites us all to join them in their effort to end Childhood hunger ....all you have to do is organise a bake sale anytime till 31st of August 2007 and donate the proceeds to the organisation.

I thought of posting about this event because there are so many people who cook , bake and blog everyday . I may not know a lot of them as i have just joined the blogging world but if "you" know, you could spread the word, for details please click here.

Now for the AFAM- Watermelon event hosted by Bee and Jai from Jugalbandi (got to know about the event through Asha's blog Aroma).



Watermelon is one of my favourite fruits. Nothing compares to taking a big bite of a fresh, juicy sweet watermelon on a hot sunny day. Take it with a pinch of salt (or black salt), pepper or squeeze some lemon on it ...

I thought of many options for this event , milkshake, sorbet and many recipes on the net etc... finally this is what i came up with .....just plain watermelon juice blended with some salt n sugar .....A well chilled glass of this is amazingly refreshing. I was so tempted to add lemon or lime juice to it ....but I do not regret not adding it :)

I avoid using ice cubes in fresh fruit juices, instead I prefer to chill it in the refrigerator or keeping the juice in an ice bucket .



Ingredients:

2 cups watermelon cubes,
1.5 tbsp. sugar, or to taste,
a big pinch salt.

Method:

Dump all the ingredients in the blender and puree them. By pureeing, and not 'blending' you get a thick and frothy juice. I didn't strain it because I like the texture, but you can. Serve chilled.