Restaurant style Apollo fish fry recipe

"A small step for me and a giant step for the mankind (family at home :P)!!" Does that ring a bell ? Did that take you out of space ,landed you in moon ? ...Well,it did for me ! When my hubby said one day ,"Today I'll take you out for an Apollo mission."

I was like ...Oh how romantic!!!..Usually Bollywood heroes would brag to bring down stars and moons for their beloved (remember that Hindi movie song- chaand taarein tod laoon.....),here I've a romantic better 1/2 who wants me to take directly to moon...Needless to say,I turned pink without any blush ...(I know we are crazy couple!!)

But then my curious mind started working ...thought that sounds too good to be true...without even asking him anything to clarify, he blurted out,probably after seeing my expression like a statue...."I meant Apollo fish...Let's eat Apollo fish today." ;)

 Since after coming to USA (during initial days),I was still learning all the English names of fish ,when I already was struggling with the Malayalam names of the fish ,I thought Apollo was nothing but the name of a fish !

 On the way to the restaurant,my hubby couldn't stop himself raving about how spicy and one of a kind dish it was . My idle brain started working real hard and thought no wonder why this is called Apollo,it sounds so out of the world....

Since I was silent, my hubby guessed sommmething was wrong with me...he knew how sharp my brain was ..He said,"My dear,Apollo fish is not from moon or related but in fact a famous dish from Hyderabad ",though he had no clue why it was called "Apollo" fish...."It was an exclusive seafood item prepared in Hyderabad,favorite of all spicy food lovers and famous in bars especially,"He said.....That literally brought tsunami in my mouth (I love spicy foods) :D...

When the Apollo fish was served,it already looked red and fiery ! ....The moment I bit into one piece ,I was totally out of this space not in moon may be in mars ..Man,so spicy,so flavorful ,so red what a kick !! Whatever I ate after that became tasteless automatically...it became one of my favorite seafood dish,which I wanted to recreate at home ASAP....I checked every video in youtube and Vahchef's too,,consulted my Andhra friends and took the best of all that would be apt to our spicy taste buds and came out with this very version which was pretty much close to the one we ate at Paradise restaurant.

So, Apollo fish fry is an Andhra special /Hyderbadi seafood appetizer ,where small fish chunks are dipped in a spicy marination ,deep fried and covered with spicy seasoning.

Here is how I made restaurant style Apollo fish at home...

 Apollo Fish Fry recipe

Ingredients

Salmon fillets boneless  ,cut into bite size - 10-12 nos.

Green chili slit -6 nos.

Oil for deep frying

For marination:

Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Red chilli powder - 2 teaspoons

Coriander powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Pepper powder - 1 teaspoon

Fennel powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Garam Masala - 1/4

Ginger-garlic paste - 1 teaspoon

All purpose flour/Maida - 2 tablespoon

Corn flour - 1 tablespoon

Yogurt/Curd - 1-2 tablespoons(optional)

Lemon juice -1 tablespoon

Egg ,beaten - 1 no.

Salt to taste

For seasoning:

Oil - 1 tablespoon

Red chilli paste/sauce/Siracha hot chilli sauce - 1/2 cup

Slit green chilly - 6-7 nos

Curry leaves a few

Method: 

 

• Clean the salmon fillet under water and cut them into bite size pieces.
• In a bowl,add everything under "Marination" above and mix well.
• Now add a few green chilly and the salmon pieces one by one into the marination and coat every piece well .Keep it aside in the refrigerator for 15 minutes approx so that the flavor soaks into the fish.
• Heat oil in a pan and put a drop of batter into it ,when the drop surfaces on the top quickly that means oil is ready for deep frying.At this point,reduce the flame to medium-low.Fry two three marinated fish pieces without overcrowding .
• Meanwhile heat oil in a pan ,season it with curry leaves and slit green chilly.
• Add the red chilly paste/red sauce.
• Now add the fried fish pieces to it and toss it with the seasoning.
• Serve hot.

Note:

• Use any thick fish that won't break while frying.Taste may vary according to the fish used.
• The pieces should be approx 1-2 inch thick.Square shaped or strips .
• Adjust the red chilly powder,chili paste,green chillies as per your preferred spice level.
• If you want more kick you can also add chopped ginger-garlic while seasoning.You can also add hot sauce later. 
  

  Doesn't that look lip-smacking ? Though the name of the fish and its origin is still a mystery and "fishy" ,the taste undoubtedly is out of the world and may land one in moon or mars....What do you think? Wink wink.....

Eat,Love,Live deliciously,

Quick Sooji ka halwa |Rava Halwa|Semolina Halwa (Microwave recipe)

What will be your answer if I ask you,what would you do to go to heaven for sure (after your expiry date:P)? Mmmmm,let me guess,some of you may say,"Good karma" ,some of you ,"Swarag-naath baba ki sharan...jai ho", some would for sure complete reading the holy books like Gita,Bible,Quran etc ,some would even say "Heavenly affirmations - I can,I will go to heaven" :D etc etc..

Well...I am not sure about you but "Me",I would say give me a bowl of ,"Sooji ka halwa".Yep ! Sooji ka halwa a.k.a Rava Halwa,(my bowl of heaven) is one of my most favorite Indian sweet.The reason being, its preparation is not time consuming at all like other sweets and are usually made at home with easily available ingredients from pantry .

Once you know how to make this dessert quite well ...in no time, it will change into one of your favorite go to breakfast (well..my story !!:P).... and not only me even my God would be glad to have this sweet as prasadam/offering . That reminds me, during my childhood days,my friend's mom would invite me and our friend gang for a small treat on the occasion of her Navratri vrat, which had this very tasty halwa ,some coins and then bangles,earrings etc thereafter...Oh I loved it !!

My amma's rava halwa used to be quite simple one which had more of a South Indian touch to it .However,I love the typical North Indian version the most.

The yumminess of this halwa relies on the rava aka semolina roasted well until light brown and the addition of enough ghee and sugar.Traditionally, it would take like 10-15 minutes to just roast the semolina but then,how about if we can make this halwa within just 10-15 minutes.My tummy is rumbling with happiness and yelling "Awesome"!! Sure it is !!

Because if you have a microwave at home,"Jai ho"! Within no minutes the rava halwa will be ready to EAT !! It's like my prayer that I vaguely prayed got answered.

So,Sooji ka halwa aka rava halwa aka semolina halwa is a very famous Indian dessert made with semolina,milk and ghee .


This is how I make my quick sooji ka halwa,make it anytime,everytime...and get hooked !
                                                   

          Sooji ka halwa

          Ingredients

Semolina/Sooji/Rava - 1/3 cup

Milk - 2 cups

Sugar - 5 tablespoons

Cardamom powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Saffron strands - a pinch (optional)

Raisins & cashewnuts for decoration - 1 tablespoon

Ghee - 4-5 tablespoons

Method:

1.   

OR,

1. *In a microwave safe bowl,put the milk ,saffron and sugar and microwave it for 5 minutes.Stirring every one minute.
2. In another microwave safe bowl,add the ghee and semolina,mix well and microwave it for 3 minutes until semolina's color changes to light brownish.Do check every one minute to make sure it is not burnt.
3. Now add the milk* ,cardamom powder to it and mix everything well.Microwave it for 1 1/2 minutes,stirring every 30 seconds.
4. Decorate it with raisins and cashewnuts.
5. That's it yummy rava halwa is ready to eat.
6. Serve hot or cold.

Now tell me ,isn't that heavenly ? Oh yes,for ME,it is a slice of heaven !! You see,there is infact a shortcut to heaven...Free advice hai ..lena hai toh lo ..warna jaane do... :P...

Eat,Love,Live DELICIOUSLY,

Whole wheat Banana almond muffin

I wonder who coined this phrase "Go bananas".Whoever it is,I also wonder if he/she wanted to dedicate this to me exclusively somehow because I do go Bananas whenever I get Bananas and then I get my Ghajini moment /dementia-tic attacks and I ignore this fruit for longtime UNTIL it gets chickenpox and bit stinky !

Then my better 1/2 would also go Banana and taunt me ,saying ,"My dear monkey whoops wife-y,did you complete those Bananas yet ?" Aaah look they became dual colored -black & Yellow..what a combination and what a aroma !! Our dining room has become so aromatic- Welcome to Banana spa !!

Happy new year wishes in advance!

Can't blame him,this story happens everytime I buy Bananas and I never remember the previous lesson !! And then I would be digging recipes day in and day out  to hide these spoiled Banana neatly.

So,this time I made a very healthy muffin with of course Bananas,almonds and whole wheat flour .Oh so good !! It screams HEALTHY  yet tastYYY!

This is how I make a healthy Whole wheat Muffin with Banana and nuts.

  WholewheatBanana Muffin

Ingredients

Whole Wheat flour - 1 cup

Wholewheat bran - 1/4 cup(optional)

Cinnamon powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Salt -1/4teaspoon

Eggs - 2

Oil/butter - 1/2 cup

Agave nectar/Sugar - 1/2 cup

Ripe Organic Bananas- 2-3

Almonds slices - 1/2 cup

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degree F.
• In a large bowl,mix together all dry ingredients-Whole wheat flour,whole wheat bran,cinnamon powder,baking powder,salt and keep it aside.
• Put the ripe bananas in a blender and mash it well or mash it with hands.
• In another bowl ,beat eggs ,butter and agave nectar well.Add the above dry ingredients to it plus the mashed bananas .
• Mix everything until well incorporated.
• Fold in the almond slices.
• Now put cupcake liners in the muffin pan and pour the batters into each cups.
• Bake it for 15-20 minutes approx or until the toothpick inserted into it comes out clean.

That's it.That's one of the way ,how I tastefully hide and end the Banana story forever ..Ennoda kalee/Humse hai muqabla

Have a fun filled,joy filled,blessings filled new year ya'll!

 Eat,love,Live deliciously,