Thursday, June 12, 2008

Spicy Zuchini fry and my first award!


I don't know how many of you are like me, but if I happen to like some food when I am eating in a restaurant, I have a tendency to quietly investigate the ingredients in the dish both by tasting and viewing. When I'm satisfied that I have the idea of ingredients, my curiosity catches up, and it continues to linger in my mind until I experiment it in my kitchen. There are many recipes that I have tried like this. There have been exellent outcomes and ofcourse some major disasters too :) But it's just so exciting when something that I have "tasted" in my mind interprets on the plate perfectly, especially with Indian food. Indian food uses so many ingredients unlike western food and its a challenge to replicate the exact taste with lot of guesstimates and assumptions.

This is one such dish that I tasted for the first time in an Indian restaurant when we were vacationing in Canada. The vibrant flavors and the authenticity amused me and I was pleasantly surprised to taste a western vegetable like zuchini so well blended with our authentic indian spices. Naturally, I had to start my investigation right away! The first time I tried and tested it in my kitchen, I couldn't control my excitement, because I had gotten the hang of it in just one shot! Soon after trying a couple more times, it took a permanant place in my recipe book. If I think back, probably just this curiosity and the interest to try new things is what that's driving my motivation and passion for cooking.

I had a lot of different plans for cooking today, but it all changed when a pile of fresh mexican zuchinis caught my attention in my local grocery store yesterday. It immediately reminded me of this wonderful dish and I couldn't resist buying them after that thought. I haven't made this dish in a long time and all the ingredients are pretty common and its made in a few minutes. So, what other good reason do I need to change my plans :) After coming back from the grocery store, I started preparing my favorite zuchini dish and chapathis for dinner. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
  • Zuchinis - 2
  • Onions - 1/2 cup chopped
  • Garlic - 2 big pods
  • Tomatoes - 1 medium
  • Chilli powder - 1 tsp
  • Corriander powder - 2 tsp
  • Cumin powder - 1 tsp
  • Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
  • Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
  • Corriander leaves - a handful
Procedure:

  • Peel and slice the zuchinis in triangle shapes and set aside.
  • Mince the garlic and chop the onions finely.
  • Heat oil in a pan, season with mustard and cumin seeds. Add the onions and minced garlic and fry until onions turn golden brown.
  • Add the zuchinis and all the spice powders along with salt and mix well.
  • Turn on the heat and fry the mixture for 3 - 4 mins. No need to add water as the vegetable itself releases enough water to get cooked.
  • Simmer and cover for 5 mins. Then add the tomatoes and cover for another 5 mins or until the zuchini is fully cooked.
  • Increase the heat to high and let all the water evaporate.
  • Add the corriander leaves and keep frying until the vegetable is well roasted and turns to a nice dark red color.

Yummy! and an excellent side dish for Rotis/chapathis.


I feel so privileged to received my first award from my dear friend Vandana. It means a lot to me and is very encouraging and motivating to know that you really enjoy reading my posts. Thanks Vandana! I will pass this award very soon.

16 comments:

delhibelle said...

It looks so very delicious! This is exactly what I am going to make with zucchini next time:)

Unknown said...

lovely colour..looks delicious too!!!

Finla said...

Congrats with the award and thaat zuchini fry looks superb

Uma said...

delicious zuchini curry! Bookmarked to try. Thanks for sharing, Sujatha! Congrats on your award. Have a great weekend.

Suganya said...

Zucchini fry looks so good. YUM!... Love the beautiful color. Nice recipe to try this weekend....Congrats on ur award.

Suganya said...

Hay have something for u in my blog.

Dori said...

I use to always bring something to my mom and have her taste it and then she could always cook something that tasted almost identical. It looks really good!

Sujatha said...

Delhibelle - please do try and let me know how it came out.

Sowmya - thanks for the comments and welcome to my blog!

Happy cook - Thanks and Thanks! :-)

Uma - Please do try and keep me posted. Thanks & You too have a great weekend!

Sukanya - Thanks for your sweet comments and if you happen to try it this weekend, let me know how it came out. And thanks for tagging me :) I will soon post my MeMe's hopefully.

Meeso - Wow, your mom sounds like a great cook! I have that tendency to try, but experiments are not always successful :)

Chef Jeena said...

This looks amazing what a fabulous picture, it sounds delicious. Congratulations on the award. :-)

Sujatha said...

Jeena - Welcome to my blog and thanks for your comments.. You have a great blog with mouthwatering recipes!

ST said...

Looks delicious and love the colour too. Congrats for the award.

Sunshinemom said...

Looks tempting! I am sure that tasted delicious. Congrats!

Karishma VP said...

Hi Sujatha, I'm new to your blog, a food lover, and contemplating starting a blog of my own (but too scared to start!)...Anyway, your pic of the zucchini fry was so tempting that I just had to try it out, and try it I did, yesterday, and it was simply delicious, not just tasty, but very aromatic too! I find it amazing how you can recreate a dish just from tasting it alone...as Gordon Ramsay might say, you have a gift :-)

Sujatha said...

Hi Kary! Welcome to my blog, I'm so glad you liked my recipe! And thanks for your encouraging words, they mean a lot to me.

Starting a food blog is not hard at all, dear Kary. I was debating a lot too just like you.. But at one point, I stopped debating and just did it.. Once I did it, I'm enjoying every bit of it! A Blog is your space, you can post whatever you want, and no one is going to question you :) So just go for it, friend!

I am always on the lookout for new recipes, if you start a food blog, I can guarantee I will be a regular visitor to your blog as well :)

Good luck!

Vadivu S Nathan said...

Sujatha,

I tried Zucchini fry and came out very tasty. Included Zucchinis in my regular grocery list. Planning to cook again today. Thanks for sharing. Your blog is now one of my favourite receipie sites.

Sujatha said...

Hi Vadivu, Sorry I'm seeing your comments just today.. Thanks for your sweet words and I am so glad Zuchini came out well.. I love this dish too..

Hope things are fine with you :)