Sausage, Peppers, and Onions

Sausage, Peppers, and Onions Recipe

You can use different colored bell peppers, or just stick with green. This recipe uses a combination of sweet and hot sausages, but if you want a milder dish, use only the sweet sausages and reduce the amount of chili pepper flakes in the recipe. (Likewise if you want it hotter, use hot sausages and/or bump up the amount of chili pepper flakes.)

INGREDIENTS

• 4 Italian sausage links (sweet, hot, or a couple of each)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced into 2 to 3 inch long strips
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced into 2 to 3 inch long strips
• 1 bell pepper of another color (yellow or orange or purple), sliced into strips 2-3 inches long
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced into slivers
• 1 large sweet or yellow onion, sliced into 1/4-inch half-moons
• 1 small (15 ounce) can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp of dried oregano
• 1/2 cup Marsala or red wine (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt to taste

METHOD

1 Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pan that has a lid. When the oil is hot, add the sausages and brown them slowly. If they sizzle and crackle too much, turn the heat down. You want a gentle browning, not a sear. Cook for several minutes, turning them occasionally so they brown on all sides. When the sausages are browned, remove from the pan and set aside.

2 Increase the heat to high and add the onions and peppers. Toss so they get coated with the oil in the pan and sear them as well as you can, stirring every so often. You want some blackening. Once the onions and peppers soften, sprinkle some salt on them. Once you get some searing on the onions and peppers, add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.

3 Add the Marsala or red wine if you are using, and with a wooden spoon scrape the bottom of the pan to release all the browned and blackened bits. Let the wine cook down by half.

4 Add the tomatoes, oregano and red pepper flakes (if using) and stir well to combine. Add the sausages back in. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer until the peppers are soft the sausages are cooked through, about 20 minutes.

Sausage, peppers and onions will keep in the fridge for several days.

Serve over polenta, or with penne pasta, or load up in a hoagie roll. Any leftover sauce makes a great sauce for pasta.

Serves 4.

Hot and Spicy Quail Curry

Ingredients:

Quails 1 pound(Cage free bird/ peasant bird)
Garlic 2 whole head, peeled and grated
Country Tomatoes large 3-6 (made into puree)
Dry Red Chilies 10-15 (Roasted and Powdered)
Turmeric 1/4 spoon
Lemon 1 large fruit
Mustard seeds 1 spoon
Cumin seeds 1/2 spoon
Fenugreek seeds 1/4 spoon
Asafoetida 1/2 spoon
Dry red chilies 3 - crisply fried for decoration
Curry leaves crisply fried for decoration
Sesame oil 1 cups

Method:


In a large non-stick wok, heat oil. Add mustard, cumin, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves. Let them pop and splutter well. Set aside to garnish.

Marinate the birds with salt, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder and pinch of turmeric.

In a wide wok, add oil. Add garlic and fry them till fragrant. Then followed by chili flakes/powder...fry till fragrant.

Stir-in marinated meat along with its juice. Fry real good till opaque.

Now add tomato puree to it. Cover and cook over medium heat. This gravy will splatter around your stove top. So keep it covered.

Once gravy consistency is achieved and oil shows up on top, remove from heat.

Squeeze lemon juice if necessary. Garnish with the tempering spices(step 1).

Serve warm to go with you plain steamed rice

Potatoes in rich Spinach Gravy

Ingredients:

For Alu

Potatoes 1 cup(boiled, peeled, cubed)
Coriander seeds 1/4 spoon
Cumin seeds 1/4 spoon
Garam masala 1/4 spoon
Salt
Turmeric 1/4 spoon
Chili powder 1 spoon
Oil few spoons.

For Saag

Fresh spinach - cleaned 1 large bowl full
Green chilies 6-8
Onion 1 small
Ginger 2 inches chopped
Garlic 2 cloves chopped
Tomato 1 small
Salt
Oil few spoons
Fresh cream to garnish.

Method:

Stir-fry potatoes with all the above mentioned ingredients(Alu) and set aside.

Heat oil in a vessel, add all the above mentioned ingredients(Saag) except cream. Once the leaves wilt, puree them.

Now mix the both fried potatoes with greens puree, top them with fresh cream.

Serve to go with pulkah rotis or rice.

Chinese Chicken Drumsticks

Ingredients

8 chicken drumsticks

4 tblsp hoisin sauce

4 tblsp soy sauce

1 tsp chilli purée

3 spring onions, chopped finely

1 orange/yellow/red pepper, chopped finely

1 tblsp sesame oil

2 tblsp oyster sauce

Method

1.In a large mixing bowl add all the ingredients (except the chicken) and mix well together

2.Add the chicken and mix until the chicken is completely coated

3.Place in the fridge for 30 mins (overnight is even better, but time is of the essence!)

4.Preheat the oven to 180°C

5.Place the chicken and sauce into an oven proof dish

6.Cook in the oven for 30-40mins, or until chicken is cooked through

Serve with rice or noodles.

Serves : 4

Preparation time : 35 mins

Cooking time : 30-40 mins

Weight Watchers brown rice lemony pilaf

It has a lot of flavor, it’s very easy to prepare, and is a nice change from plain brown rice. You can prepare the rice in your rice cooker if you have one.
Ingredients
1 cup long grain brown rice
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cups chicken stock (heated)
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1-2 teaspoon lemon zest, finely minced
2 tablespoons lemon juice
additional lemon juice, to taste

Preparation
1. In a heavy saucepan, saute the onion until soft in about half of the butter.
2. Add the rest of the butter and allow to melt.
3. Stir in the rice and cook for about two minutes, stirring to coatthe rice with butter.
4. Add the chicken stock and the two tablespoons lemon juice.
5. Bring to a boil and cover tightly (if your pot lids aren’t very tight, put a clean tea-towel over the pot and jam the lid on over it).
6. Turn the heat low and simmer for about 50 minutes (or until the liquid is absorbed).
5. Remove from the heat and add the lemon zest and additional lemon juice to taste.

Servings: 4

Nutritional information for one serving:
WW points: 5
Calories: 263
Calories from fat: 64
Total fat: 7.1g
Cholesterol: 15mg
Sodium: 206mg
Total carbs: 42.7g
Dietary fiber: 2g
Protein: 7g

tamarind pork

ingredients

50g tamarind pulp
250ml hot water
2 large onions, quartered
4 garlic cloves, crushed
3 whole dried chillies, soaked in hot water
120ml peanut oil
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon shrimp paste
700g pork, cut into 3cm chunks

method

Prepare the tamarind first. Add the hot water to the tamarind and soak for a few minutes. Use a fork to mash up the pulp and strain through a sieve to remove any fibres or stones.

Using a pestle and mortar, pound the onions, garlic and dried chillies until they resemble a rough paste. Heat the oil in a saucepan and cook the onion paste for 15-20 minutes. When it has caramelised and turned reddish brown, add the turmeric and shrimp paste. Use a wooden spoon to break up the shrimp paste and stir through the mixture.

Add the pork and cook over a moderate heat until any liquid that has come out of the pork has evaporated. Keep stirring to avoid burning the onions. Pour in the tamarind liquid and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 45-60 minutes.

Check at regular intervals to make sure the gravy has not dried out. Add a little more water if necessary. Check the pork, it should fall apart easily. Season with a little salt if you wish.

serves: 4
cooking time: 60-80 mins

TUNA NOODLE CASSEROLE

TUNA NOODLE CASSEROLE

Adapted from San Francisco à la Carte

Putting together this recipe is about as easy as it gets.  In fact, the only real room for error is overcooking the pasta.  To avoid this, fill a large pot with an abundant amount of water and bring to a rolling boil before adding the egg noodles.  Make sure to season the water well — it should taste salty.  Cook until the noodles are almost done as they will continue to cook a bit more in the oven.  Also, using good quality canned tuna and some excellent sharp cheddar cheese will make a world of difference in the flavor of the dish.

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 ounces egg noodles, cooked until al dente and drained
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1 10 1/2-ounce can of cream of celery soup
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 7-ounce cans tuna, drained and flaked
• 1 cup diced celery
• 1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped scallions with some green tops
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 3/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds
• Chopped parsley for garnish

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 425°.
2. Lightly butter a 2-quart casserole and combine the cooked noodles with the salt and minced thyme.  Set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, mix together the milk and canned soup over medium heat until smooth, stirring constantly.  Gently fold in the tuna, celery, red bell pepper, scallions, mayonnaise and all but 2 tablespoons of the grated cheddar.  Stir until the cheese is melted.
4. Add the cheese sauce to the casserole and mix thoroughly with the noodles.   Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese and the chopped almonds.
5. Bake for about 20 minutes until bubbly and lightly browned.  Garnish with parsley before serving.

Serves 6

Nargisi Kofta

Serves: 6, Preparation time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients:

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For Koftas:

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250 gms Paneer (cottage cheese)

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4 tsp Maida

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1 big Potato (boiled)

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1/2 tsp Salt

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For Gravy:

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2 Onions

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6 pods of Garlic

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2 tsp Green chilli paste

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2 tsp Ginger paste

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3 Tomatoes

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1 tsp Coriander powder

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1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

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1 tsp Garam Masala

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2 tsp Poppy seeds (soaked for 1/2 hrs and ground to paste)

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3 tsp Fresh cream

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Salt to taste

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Method:

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For Koftas:

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Mash paneer and sprinkle salt. Seperate 1/3 of the paneer and put 3-4 drops of yellow colour. Mash and mix well. In the balance 2/3 paneer add flour, mashed potato and salt. Make small balls of yellow coloured paneer. 

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Now flatten the white mashed paneer and stuff the yellow paneer. Smoothen out the koftas with wet hands. Shape of the koftas should be oval. Deep fry to a rich brown colour. Keep it aside.

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For Gravy:

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Make a paste of onion and garlic. Keep it aside. To make tomato puree, boil the tomatoes for 10 minutes on medium flame. Wait till it cools down and throughly blend it in a blender. Keep it aside. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan and fry onion garlic paste. Stir a few times. When the onion turns brownish add paste of poppy seeds, keep stirring to prevent it from sticking. Add ginger and green chilli paste now. Stir for 2 minutes. Now adda pinch of haldi, dhaniya and salt. Add the tomato puree and stir for 3-4 minutes till the puree leaves oil. Pour in about 2 cups of water, cover and cook on low flame heat for 6-7 minutes. add fresh cream in the gravy and cook for 2 minutes only. Garnish it with garam masala and coriander leaves.

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User comments & tips: 

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Pour the gravy in the serving bowl, cut the kofta equally into 2 halves so that the yellow paneer is clearly visible.

Tomato curry served with Biryani

Ingredients:

Cherry Tomatoes – 8 (or medium sized tomatoes, each cut into two semi circles)
For masala paste:
Khus Khus/White Poppy seeds – 1 tbsp
Till/Sesame Seeds – 1/2 cup/50 gms
Groundnuts/MoomPhalli – 1/2 cup/50 gms
Dry Desiccated Coconut – 3/4 cup/50 gms
Coriander seeds/Dhania – 1 tsp
For gravy:
Canola oil – 1/4 cup
Yellow Onions – 3, large, each quartered into 4 pieces
Ginger garlic paste – 2 tsp
Salt – 1 tbsp
Red Chilli Powder – 2 tsp
Turmeric/ Haldi – 1/4 tsp
Cilantro/ Kothmir – 3 tbsp, finely chopped
Thick tamarind pulp – 3 tbsp
For baghaar/tempering:
Cumin seeds/ Zeera – 1 tsp
Curry leaves/ Kariyapaak – 2 sprigs
Mustard seeds/ Rai – 1/2 tsp
Nigella seeds/ Kalaunji – 1/3 tsp
Fenugreek seeds/ Methi dana – 1/8 tsp

Method:
1. Wash the cherry tomatoes well. Discard the stalks and make four incisions, perpendicular cuts (an X) from the stem end of each cherry tomato, taking care the other end is intact. Keep aside.
2. Puree the onions into a smooth paste. Also, smoothly/finely grind all the ingredients seperately under the heading ‘for masala paste’ adding just a few drops of water if needed.
3. Heat oil in a heavy non-stick pan at medium heat and as soon as it is warm, add thebaghaar ingredients – cumin seeds, curry leaves, mustard seeds, nigella seeds and fenugreek seeds. Once they start spluttering, add the pureed onion paste and mix. Cover with a lid for a minute. Uncover and keep frying until the raw smell of the onions goes away. Add ginger garlic paste, salt, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and chopped cilantro and the masala paste and mix well. Keep cooking until the raw smell of the masala paste goes away and you can see the paste leaving oil on the sides. Add a few drops of water if needed during the process. This might take about 5-10 minutes. Later add tamarind pulp and mix well. Now pour in about 4-5 cups of water and mix. Let it come to a boil. Once boiling, add the prepared tomatoes and cover with a lid. Let cook for 5 minutes. Once the tomatoes are soft, remove from heat and serve the curry along with Pulao or Biryani.

Sweet and Sour Fish

Ingredients:
2lbs tilapia, cod, halibut or any other whitefish (cut into 1” chunks)
1 large green pepper (cut into 1” chunks)
1 large tomato (cut into 1” chunks)
1 large onion (cut into 1” chunks)
1 can pineapple chunks (with juice)
Oil (for deep frying)Breading-¼ cup cornstarch
2 cups flour
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper
2 cups water
Sweet and Sour Sauce-
½ cup vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup orange juice
¼ cup pineapple juice
¼ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons cornstarch 

Cooking Instructions:Step 1: Toss fish with cornstarch in a bowl and coat well. In another bowl whisk together flour, 6 tablespoons of oil, baking powder, seasoning salt, and cayenne pepper. A little at a time, add 2 cups of water whisking until the batter has become smooth. Pour batter over the coated fish pieces and stir to coat.  
Step 2: In a deep frying fry fish pieces in batches for 4 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and keep warm in the oven.Step 3: In a wok heat a tiny bit of oil. Stir fry green pepper and onions for 3 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
Step 4: To make sweet and sour sauce – In the wok mix vinegar, sugar, salt, orange juice, pineapple juice and ketchup. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in 1/8 cup of juice, pour into the sauce and stir until sauce has thickened.  Add tomatoes and pineapple chunks to the sauce and heat.
Step 5: In a large serving dish mix fish pieces, sauce and green pepper and onions. Serve with white rice.
(Makes 6 Servings)

Egg Curry

This makes an unusual and delicious lunch or brunch, or a great light supper. 
It’s even better when prepared a day ahead,
 so that the eggs have time to absorb the complex flavors of the sauce.

Ingredients Serves 4–6 6 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 small onion, minced 1 1-inch piece ginger, minced 2 teaspoons crushed garlic 1 tablespoon ground coriander 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 1/2 teaspoon chili powder 2 whole black cardamon pods, lightly crushed 2 small bay leaves 6–8 whole black peppercorns 8 whole cloves, lightly crushed 1 1-inch cinnamon stick 1/2 cup canned chopped tomatoes, drained 1 teaspoon salt 1+ cups water 6 hardcooked eggs, halved ~ cilantro for decoration

	Directions
	Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan set over medium-high heat until sizzling. Add the onions and cook until golden brown, adjusting the heat as needed to prevent burning. Add the ginger and cook for two minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for one minute. Add the coriander, turmeric, chili powder, black cardamom pods, bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon stick and cook for 30 seconds. Add half of the tomatoes to the mixture, stir well, and cook for one minute. Add the remaining tomato and the salt and cook for another minute. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Bring to a lively simmer, and then adjust the heat to medium-low. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking. Thin the sauce with more water if required. Adjust the seasonings. Pour half of the sauce on a deep-lipped platter, arrange the eggs, and cover with the remaining sauce. Decorate with the cilantro. NOTE: If you make this dish ahead, handle it carefully during storage to ensure that the eggs remain intact. Bring to room temperature, then heat in the microwave before serving.

Medu Vada

Ingredients:-

Urad dal soaked in water for 2 hours – 2 cups
Finely chopped shallots – 10
(I used Onion as I didn’t have shallots)
Green chillies – 3
Chopped Ginger – 1 tsp
Chopped curry leaves – 2 tsp
Crushed pepper – 1 tsp
Baking Soda – 1/4 tsp
Salt – to taste
Oil – to taste

Method:-

Grind urad dal and salt together adding very little water,into a coarse paste.It would be better if you don’t add water at all.But if you think,your grinder won’t coperate,just add necessary water little by little.
Now add shallots,ginger,curry leaves,pepper and baking soda into the ground paste and mix them together.

Pat your hands with water and make a ball with the paste.Flatten it and make a hole in the center like a doughnut.Wet your hands with water,when ever needed.

Drop the vadas into hot oil and deep fry till golden brown in color.Serve with chutney or sambar
If you’ve accidently added more water while grinding,you can always use Urad dal powder to compensate it.

Garlic Baked Shrimp

Real Simple’s Garlic Baked Shrimp
Serves 4
Print Recipe
Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs. raw, deveined, tail-on shrimp (size is your choice)-thawed if frozen
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 tbsp white wine
salt/pepper
¼ cup butter, melted
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
dash or two of red pepper flakes-optional (I added this and loved it.)
2 tbsp fresh parsley or cilantro (coriander), chopped (dried will work in a pinch)

Preheat the oven to 425.

In a baking dish, combine the shrimp (patted dry), garlic, white wine and salt/pepper. Mix the butter and breadcrumbs (add the red pepper flakes-optional) and sprinkle over the shrimp. Add the chopped parsley or cilantro and bake until the shrimp are opaque, 15 to 18 minutes.