Indian Chicken Curry

We remembered a few years back in college, an Indian friend had taught us how to make Indian curry. So we thought that it would be nice to have curry for lunch today. Well, wanting something different from what we already know, we decided to try another Indian Chicken Curry that requires more ingredients from the ones that we used to prepare.

So it took us about 30 minutes to finish cooking and this includes preparation time such as slicing chicken meat, etc. Well, not bad. The result came out good. We hobbits had fun and of course finish the whole plate of four servings!

This recipe is provided by Natasha Levitan from food.about.com. This website has prepared a video of the whole preparation process. Take a look here.

Chicken Curry Ingredients

For this recipe, you will need:

• 1 pound chicken
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 star anise
• 2 cloves
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 curry leaves
• 2 teaspoos crushed garlic
• 1 teaspoons crushed ginger
• 2 teaspoons turmeric powder
• 3 cardamon pods
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup coconut cream
• 2 tablespoons curry paste

Combine the Spices

Heat oil in medium saucepan. Add to it cloves, cardamon, cinnamon, star anise, and curry leaves. Fry the spices until cloves swell and the curry leaves are slightly burnt.

Next, add the onion, ginger, and garlic paste, and fry until onions brown. Add curry powder and turmeric powder, and fry until oil separates.

Cook the Chicken

Add your chopped chicken pieces, and mix well with the spices. When all the pieces are evenly coated, put a lid on your saucepan, turn the heat to low, and cook until the meat is done.

Serve the Curry Chicken

Take the lid off, add chopped tomatoes and creamed coconut. When you're ready to serve it, add chopped cilantro and mix it all together. Serve it warm.

Cuban Cocktail: Mojito

How many of you have tried Mojito? Well, if you like juices that are made from herbs and other leafy stuff, you might want to try this. It's a Cuban cocktail and it is great for a hot summer day or even when enjoying your day with friends over a meal. This recipe is provided by Ben Kurtzman from food.About.com.

Mojito Ingredients:

• Fresh mint
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 lime
• 2 ounces light rum
• Ginger ale
• Ice

Preparing Mojito Ingredients
We are going to start by crushing the mint and the sugar in a mortar and pestle. Mortar and pestles are great for crushing garlic and herbs, they are fairly inexpensive, and you can pick them up at just about any kitchen store.

When you are making a mojito you can use as much fresh mint as you want. I would start with a minimum of 5 or 6 leaves. Mixing the mint leaves with the sugar creates kind of a paste, and the reason we do this is so that it will mix in much more smoothly with the liquids and when we take a sip it will not be grainy.

Crushing Mint Leaves
It is important to be patient when you are crushing the mint leaves. It may take few minutes, but it really is the best way to bring out the natural juices in the mint. And it may be a stretch, but it almost looks like pesto when you are done with it.
Mojito Sugar Paste
I am going to take my mint sugar paste and put it in the glass that I am going to use for my drink. Next we are going to work with the lime. We are going to cut it in half and use half of it for juice, and the other half will be garnish.

Add Final Ingredients
Next, we are going to add the rum and the ice, and finally we are going to top it off with a little bit of ginger ale. Now I am going to give it a quick stir to get everything mixed properly, and we are going to add a lime garnish, and it will be ready to enjoy.