how to make chicken biryani when you have no idea how to...

I recently tried my hand at biryani. You can use any meat – chicken, fish, prawns, lamb. I did it with chicken.

I used 1 small chicken which looked enough for 6 people. I cut the chicken into medium sized peices and marinated them with around 4 tbsp of biryani masala (you can get this at Lulu) (you can put more masala if you wish as long as all the chicken pieces are coated thoroughly), 2 tsp chilly powder, 1 tsp turmeric powder (haldi), 1 tsp cumin powder (jeera) and 1 tsp coriander powder (dhania), 1 tsp salt (or less if you prefer), 0.5 tsp of pepper powder and a little water. You may wish to add some yoghurt (around 2-3 tbsp) to the marinade but, as I did not have any that day I substituted for water.

For the Rice - I used 2 full cups of rice and it was enough for 6 people. You may wish to add more or less depending on the quantity of rice you need. If you use more rice then you probably need more chicken as well. Wash the rice well and drain it completely off water. I fried the washed rice with 2 tsp of oil, 1 small bay leaf, 3 cardamom pods, 3 cloves, 4 whole black pepper, 0.25 tsp of turmeric powder for colour and 0.5 tsp of salt. You can also add 1 cube of chicken stock (I did not use this as I didn’t have any). Stir for a minute or two and then add 2 cups of water (it should just cover the rice as we don’t want it to boil completely, it should only be half boiled). Don’t stir the rice around too much when you add the water as it makes it mushy. Leave it untouched and once all the water evaporates you can just run a fork through it.

For the Masala – I first fried couple of cardamom pods, 2 dried bay leaves, 0.5 tsp of whole black pepper and a couple of cloves. After a minute I added 2 onions (chopped fine); 2 tomatoes (chopped very fine); 1 tsp ginger garlic paste; 0.25 tsp salt; 0.25 tsp of chilly powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and biryani masala; 0.25 tsp of whole cumin (put this in last as it tends to burn). Fry this for a good few minutes till the tomatoes are all mashed up and oil starts to float on top. To this I added the marinated chicken and chopped up potatoes and fried for around 5 mins. Then add some water to the chicken (around quarter of a cup).

Finally – I added the half boiled rice on top of the chicken and covered it with a tight lid (I put a kettle on top of my lid just to make it stay tight) and cooked it for 15-20 mins on a very low flame.

Voila – the biryani should be ready. Garnish it with golden fried onions, boiled eggs (cut in halves) and some fresh coriander leaves.

Thai Terrace - Dubai!

My hubby and I are sort of on a mission to try out different cuisines. So after finger licking French our next stop was tempting Thai. After reviewing a couple of places online we opted for Thai Terrace (For Delivery - 050 939 2497, Karama - 043969356, Knowledge Village - 043658442).

Located in Karama the restaurant looks pretty much average from the outside. When we entered, we were greeted by our hostess who showed us to our seats. The restaurant didn't look anything fancy from the inside either but had a few touches of Asian decor (or what I think it was). It was a Thursday evening and there were a few people besides us. While reviewing the menu the manager came over to tell us that a single portion was large enough for two. It was decent of him as sometimes we tend to over order thinking portions will be small.

So here is what we ate with the respective prices in AED.

Starters

Tod Man Pla (Spicy Fish Cakes) - 52 the fish cakes weren't anything special, it tasted mainly of lemongrass but the accompanying dip was amazing - it had peanuts and cucumbers!

Main Course

Ph Taek Haeng (Stir Fried Spicy Seafood) small - 52 consisted of tiny crabs, mushrooms, squid, prawns - was spicy and had a very different flavour to it, which both my hubby and I liked..

Gai Phad Prik Pao (Chicken with Chili Paste)  small - 48 yum yum yum - the sauce in which the chicken was cooked was amazing...apart from the chicken there was babycorn and cashew nuts and lots of green and red peppers...

Khao Phad Prik (Spicy Fried Rice) small - 53 not much to say about the rice except that it had decently sized prawns in it :D (I was expecting the tiny frozen prawns)

Drinks

2 Iced Teas

We didn't have any dessert as we were just too stuffed. The mango sticky rice looked like a good option though.

Overall we were very impressed with the food. The servers were friendly. The restaurant itself does not have a very great ambience but the food is worth trying. I would definitely love to go back but we have many more eateries to explore.

BEWARE - if you tell them to make your dish spciy they actually listen to you and make it spicy with lots of red chillies!

Our total damage was approximately AED 250.

Chan chob...

Honey in my hair!

In one of my previous posts I did say I would blog about the goodness of honey. So here is something that I tried last evening.

I made a mixture of coconut oil (home made by my sister's mom-in-law - you can use any oil), lime juice (1 whole lime) and 2 tsps of honey. I applied it on my scalp and hair left it on for about an hour. I washed it with little shampoo and then applied some conditioner on my hair (not scalp) and left it for about 5 mins and then washed that off too. I can really tell the difference it made to my hair. It's so soft and shiny today :) I did however hear that honey makes your hair turn grey. Check out this answer -

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Can_honey_make_hair_grey

Apparently it does not turn hair grey or white - well I'll let you know in a couple of weeks...

Have a sweet weekend =)

Haircut at Juice!

I was dying to have my hair cut for a few months now. I told my hubby that after we were married in Jan I would do something dramatic with my hair. I have had long hair since a few years now and I just couldn't resist going short. Someone I know had a nice hair cut so I found out through a friend that she went to Juice Salon +971 (0)43988731). I called Juice, fixed an appointment and voila I have short hair now and I'm absolutely loving it.

St Tropez Bistro, Dubai

My hubby took me out on a romantic dinner a few days ago. St Tropez Bistro (+971 (0)42869029) is a small French restaurant/bistro at Century Village - Garhoud. I simply loved the ambience. At first I thought we would sit inside but the host said there was going to be live music so we were better off seated outside which infact was a better idea. It felt like a fairy tale as there are trees all lit up around you.

Here is what we orderd along with their respective prices in AED -

Starters

Frog Legs - 46 (It was our first time with frog legs and they tasted pretty much like chicken with lesser meat. It was cooked in a batter with lime or something which was not too overpowering and had just the right amount of tanginess.)

Main Course

Rib-Eye Steak - 99 (My hubby just loved this - it was almost 300 gms i think and he ate IT ALL.)

Duck Leg - 75 (I liked this but duck meat is a bit tough for my taste even though it was cooked very well. I had ordered it with a side of spinach and I felt the spinach had too much butter in it which was too rich for me.)

Dessert

Chocolate Fondant - 40 (Anything with chocolate is usually always amazing :) )

Lemon Sorbet - 33 (My hubby ordered this and it was very very sour and too lemony.)

Drinks

2 iced teas - 34

Our total damage was AED 359.70 including 10% M fees (I don't know what "M" stands for). On the whole I thought the food was ok but a bit pricey. I would recommend it for a nice little place to have dinner with friends/family and enjoy some nice live music. The servers are extremely friendly so I would give it plus points for that too.

Bon appetit!

Hunger Games

I had no idea of what the movie was going to be like because I hadn’t read any of the reviews before going. I, infact, like doing that because you never know what you are going to expect. On the whole the movie was a bit depressing. It still kept me glued to my chair. It makes you wonder if this is what the world is going to be like in the near future.

In short a man and a woman (tributes) from 12 districts are chosen every year to compete in what is called the Hunger Games. The games are showcased live on television. The tributes are some sort of sacrifice that the districts have to make. By competing they basically have to kill each other and be the last man/woman standing. In the end the only prize the winner seems to win is that he/she is alive. So they basically compete for their lives. On one hand the districts seem to be starving and on the other the audience who watch the games are floating in and around goodies. It appeared as if the world was just divided into the rich on one hand and the starving 12 districts on another (I just confirmed on Wikipedia and well yes the nation was divided into the Capitol and 12 districts). I won’t go into the story line as you must watch it for yourself. It definitely gets you thinking!

the bento box...

On Monday evening my hubby and I met my cousins and the four of us went out for some sushi at the Sumo Bento in Tower Centre. The restaurant is an open space and the servers greet you warmly when you enter. We paid a total fo AED 300 approx and here is what we ordered -

                                      

Starters                                  AED

Gyoza                                     20
Pan-seared and simmered
chicken dumplings - was just ok

Main Course

Salmon Lovers Bento               49
A combination of your favorite salmon
sushi and sashimi selections - my hubby's favourite

Nigiri Sushi Combo                 42
2 pieces of fresh tuna, salmon and
red snapper nigiri and 4 pieces of
the California roll - everything was good except the crab which I felt was a bit odd in taste

Spicy Tekkadon                       42
Sliced fresh tuna mixed with spicy
seasonings over a bed of sushi rice - it had too much rice

BBQ Beef Bento                      38
Thinly sliced beef sautéed in
Sumo’s very own spicy BBQ sauce - the beef was a bit sweet but tasty nonetheless

Tempura Bento                       38
Tempura shrimps and vegetables - the prawns were too oily and again it had too much rice

Drinks - 4 Ice Teas                 15 (approx)

Although a few of the dishes were a disappointment I would still recommend Sumo Bento for some good sushi. I don't think you can go wrong with salmon and tuna. You might want to stay off the crabs.

Go Sumos!!