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Thai Basil And Chilli Stir Fry With Beef Recipe


This spicy stir fry recipe is common throughout Thailand. Bulked with rice and topped with a fried egg, it is a delicious tasting, cheap, easy to prepare and filling meal.

Spicy and meaty, pretty much every visitor to Thailand is sure to have tried and enjoyed this recipe.

Usually served with minced pork, however I have used minced beef. You can also use minced chicken. The egg is optional, but I find it goes well with the dish as a whole.

Thai Basil And Chilli Stir Fry With Beef Ingredients

* Serves 2

  • 250g minced beef
  • 1/2 red pepper
  • 5 bird eye chillis
  • 1/2 cup of thai holy basil leaves
  • 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce
  • string green beans
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
  • Optional: 2 fried eggs

Thai Basil And Chilli Stir Fry With Beef Cooking Instructions

Step 1: Peel and finely chop the garlic

Step 2: Thinly slice the chillies, ensuring you remove the green stork beforehand

Thai Basil And Chilli Stir Fry Ingredients

Step 3: Slice the peppers, removing any seeds

Step 4: Thinly slice the green beans

Thai Basil and Chilli Stir Fry Chopped Ingredients

Step 5: Heat a pan or wok on a high heat, and then add the vegetable oil

Step 6: Add the garlic, stir in with the oil, then add the chillies and mix together for 1 minute

Step 7: Add the minced beef, and cook for a couple of minutes until brown

Step 8: When the mince has browned, add the peppers and green beans. Keep stirring

Step 9: Add the oyster sauce, stir for 1 minute, then add the basil. Let everything simmer for 2 minutes longer, stirring often. Then serve with rice and a fried egg

Thai Basil And Chilli Stir Fry With Beef

Thai Coconut Curry (Panang Curry) Recipe


Thai coconut curry, also known as panang curry, is a very rich and creamy curry, with a hint of fresh sourness provided by the addition of chopped lime leaves. It can be somewhat spicy too, so if you prefer mild food, use less panang curry paste. It’s my personal favourite, and is very popular amongst westerners.

The ingredients and cooking process is very simple, however the knack lies in getting the sauce at the right consistency – it should be thick and creamy, not watery, which is why we do not add water in this recipe.

Thai Coconut Curry (Panang) Ingredients

* Serves 2

  • 2 chicken breasts, chopped
  • 1/4 cup of chopped lime leaves
  • 1/2 to 1 can of coconut milk
  • 3 tablespoons of panang curry paste
  • 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon of fish sauce

Thai Coconut Curry (Panang) Cooking Instructions

Step 1: Chop the lime leaves into very fine pieces

Step 2: Chop the chicken breasts into cubes

Thai Chicken Coconut Curry

Step 3: Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to a pan or wok and turn the cooker to a high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the 3 tablespoons of panang curry paste, and mix together

Step 4: Pour in about 1/4 can of coconut milk, and mix. Once mixed, top up several times with a dash more coconut milk. Keep adding until you have used about 1/2 can of coconut milk in total

Thai Coconut Curry In Pan

Step 5: Once you have a rich thick looking sauce, add the chopped chicken and the chopped lime leaves, and stir

Step 6: Let the chicken cook for about 5 minutes, regularly stirring, then add 1 teaspoon of fish sauce, and continue to stir. Add a dash of coconut milk here and there to keep the sauce at a thick consistency, you don’t want the sauce to reduce down too much

Step 7: Once the chicken is cooked, serve on a plate, ideally with some Thai jasmine rice. Drizzle some more coconut milk over the curry to give it a creamy white finish. You’re ready to eat and enjoy!

Thai Coconut Curry Panang

Real Pad Thai Easy Recipe


Pad Thai is a delicious, quick, easy to prepare, and healthy dish, with low cost ingredients. It’s easy to see why this dish is so readily available on the streets of Bangkok, and why it’s so popular with budget conscious backpackers. Flavors are somewhat complex, combining hot, salty, sweet and sour, but together a good balance is created. Check out this easy Pad Thai recipe below!

* Serves 2

Ingredients:

  • 200g of Shrimps or prawns (raw preferred)
  • 2 medium sized eggs
  • approx 130g of dry rice noodles 
  • 4 tablespoons of pad thai sauce
  • 1/2 lime
  • 1/2 cup chinese chives
  • 1 cup of bean sprouts
  • 1 tablespoon of crushed chillis
  • 1 tablespoon crushed peanuts
  • 2 teaspoons of fish sauce
  • 1 carrot (optional)
  • 2 spring onions (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil

Directions:

Step 1: Soaking the noodles – Fill a large bowl or container with warm water, and place the 130g of dried Thai rice noodles (approx 1/3 of the pack) into the bowl so that the water is completely covering the noodles. They will need about 10 minutes of soaking, so that they become soft, but not cooked.

Soaked Thai Rice Noodles

Step 2: Take the 200g of prawns and using a sharp knife, make a cut along the back to open them up slightly, removing any stringy vein type material from inside (see video) Once this is done, wash them all under cold water. 

Step 3: Cut away the bottom 1/3 of the Chinese green chives and put aside for use later. Chop the other 2/3 of the chives up for cooking. Follow by slicing the spring onion diagonally into thin pieces. Also slice the carrot into thin slices, or grate it, keeping a handful aside for use later. Finally cut your lime into quarters, wash the bean sprouts, and your preparation is complete. 

Chopped Pad Thai Ingredients

Step 4: By now the noodles should have been soaking for about 10 minutes, poor them into a sieve and drain all excess water. 

Step 5: Put 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil into a wok or pan, and set your cooker to a high heat. When the wok is hot, put the prawns in (ensure they have been drained of any water to you don’t get hot oil spat at you!) Immediately after the prawns, crack the 2 eggs and put the white and yoke into the wok. Stir contents thoroughly adding more oil if required. After a few stirs, add the noodles, and continue to stir quickly and frequently. 

Pad Thai Cooking

Step 6: Add the 4 tablespoons of pad thai sauce, and stir in. Ensure all ingredients are thoroughly mixed together and the sauce evenly distributed. By this stage, all ingredients should have been cooking for just a couple of minutes on a high heat, cook for too long and the dish will become too dry. 

Step 7: Add the chopped Chinese green chives, spring onions, some of the chopped carrot, and the bean sprouts into the wok. Once again stir everything together so the ingredients are well mixed. Add the 2 teaspoons of fish sauce, and continue stirring. 

Step 8: Now the noodles should be soft and tangled – the cooking is complete. Pour contents onto a plate, and add to the side of the plate the bottom 1/3 of the Chinese green chives, bean sprouts, the 1/4 of lime, 1 table spoon of crushed chillies, and 1 tablespoon of crushed peanuts. Sprinkle some of the grated carrot you kept back earlier over the noodles. Serve and Enjoy!

Pad Thai

Rice with Mustard Seeds Recipe


In the South India, rice recipes are a must. Most Southerners would feel cheated if they did not have an rice dish to complete the meal. Basmati rice is most commonly used for these dishes.

Regardless of the type of rice used, it is always important to pick through the rice well, looking for impurities like small stones or plant parts. For any rice dish it is also important to wash the rice well since there is always some loose starch on it from the milling process.

In South India, rice recipes are rarely plain! Although rice dishes are present at virtually every meal, there are almost always some interesting ingredients in them. Some of the common variations are Black Pepper Rice, Curd Rice, Tamarind Rice, and even in simple rice dishes there is an ingredient like mustard seeds, fenugreek or some dal.

It is also very common to serve curds along with the rice as a standard accompaniment. Or you can serve the rice with Podis, or flavored powders mixed with oil. This practically makes it’s own meal!

For special occasions, a pulao or pilau rice dish would be made, and you will be able to see some on this web site. The Pulao dishes have a variety of vegetables, spices and sometimes meat in them. To get you started, here is a basic southern Indian rice recipe with mustard seeds.

Rice with Mustard Seeds Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups long grain rice (preferably Basmati)
  • 1/4 cup ghee or oil(clarified butter)
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds (the black kind found in Indian stores)
  • 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
  • 3 1/2 cups water
  • salt

Directions:

  1. Pick through and wash the rice. In a large sauce pan (I prefer a 3 quart size) heat the ghee and add the mustard and fenugreek seeds until they splutter. This seasons the oil and brings out the flavor of the seasonings.
  2. Add the rice and coat in the oil. Add the water and salt and bring to a boil.
  3. Once the rice boils, reduce the heat to medium low and cover, taking care not to let it boil over. Let it cook for about 20 minutes or until it is fully cooked.
  4. Serve with curds or with a Podi (spice powder mixture with ghee).

Note: If you like yellow rice, add 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon turmeric to the recipe when you add the rice.

3 Indian Bread Recipes – Chapatti, Poori, And Paratha


It is no surprise that bread is a super important part of Indian cuisine. Today I will share 3 Indian bread recipes – chapatti, poori, and paratha. They are easy to make and taste just amazing. And also, you will need just a few ingredients – flour, warm water, salt, and oil. Check out the recipes below!

Chapatti Indian Bread Recipe

Chapatti is a favorite bread throughout India. The ingredients for this chapatti recipe are simple: flour, water, salt and oil, but it takes practice to make them just right. Traditionally, chapattis are made in a Tawa which is a slightly concave round griddle. A cast iron skillet makes a good substitute.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups flour, sifted (Whole Wheat is traditional)
  • Cold water
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 Tablespoon oil (for the mixture)
  • oil for frying

Directions:

  1. Put the flour in a bowl and add salt and oil and mix well. Slowly add the cold water and knead, making a soft dough. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside for 1-2 hours.
  2. Divide the dough into 10 portions and roll each one into a round ball. Flour your working surface and roll each one into a round pancake about 5-6″ in diameter. Shake off the excess flour and set aside until they are all done. You can also start cooking after the first one is done.
  3. Heat an iron frying pan or Tawa on medium heat. Oil the pan and place the chapatti on the pan and cook for about a minute or bubbles start to appear and then turn over. The chapattis might puff up on their own or place over a gas flame for a few seconds.
  4. Place the chapattis between napkins until ready to be served. They are best served hot with a masala.

Note: The chapattis can be wrapped in foil and refrigerated or frozen. They taste best if they are reheated in an oven at about 400-425 for 15 minutes.

Indian Fry Bread (Poori) Recipe

Throughout India, Poori, or Indian Fry Bread is a favorite accompaniment to any curry. The Indian fry bread recipe is unique because when the bread is fried in hot oil it puffs up if done correctly. The texture of this bread is also very light and flake and ideal for dipping. The bread is usually fried in a Kadai, or cooking pan with a curved bottom. With a little practice, you will be able to make delicious Pooris in your own kitchen.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoons yoghurt or buttermilk
  • about 1 cup water
  • salt to taste
  • oil for deep frying

Directions:

  1. Mix the whole wheat and all purpose flours together and add salt. Add the yoghurt and half of the water and knead. (The traditional method of kneading uses the knuckles and spreading the dough flat and then repeating the process). Add enough water to make a firm dough, although it still needs to be workable. Set the dough aside for about an hour.
  2. Make the dough into balls about the size of golf balls or about 1 1/2 inch in diameter. Spread some flour very thinly on a work area and roll the balls into flat patties.
  3. Heat the oil in the pan until it just smokes and put the dough in completely in the oil. It is important that the oil covers the top of the poori. The bread should puff up within a minute or two. When it does, turn it over carefully and cook the other side. Remove the pooris from the oil and drain well on a rack or paper towels.
  4. Indian fried bread is best served hot with chutneys, potato crumble or as an addition to a curry.

Indian Fry Bread (Paratha) Recipe

Parathas or Flaky Indian Fry Bread is one of the home delights that you can make in your own kitchen. It is similar to the chapatti, except that once you have rolled out the dough into flat tortillas, you butter the top side and fold it over and repeat, which gives it the wonderful flakiness.

I have used a recipe with part wheat and part all-purpose flour, but you can make it with all whole wheat or all all purpose white flour. This Indian fry bread is a great addition to any meal. It can also be used for a snack especially if you have sauce to dip in. The variations of this recipe are great for stuffing since it is folded over. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 Tablespoon oil
  • 1 cup water
  • flour for rolling
  • 1/2 cup oil for brushing

Directions: 

  1. In a bowl, stir the whole wheat and all purpose flour together with the salt. Work in most of the oil into the flour, reserving about 1 teaspoon. Add about half the water to the bowl at first and mix slowly adding the rest until you have a nice firm dough. It will take less or more water depending on the moisture content of the flour. Take the reserved oil and coat your fingers and the kneading surface with it and knead the dough on the greased surface for at least 10 minutes. The dough will end up soft (softer than chapatti or poori) and put it back into a bowl and cover with a damp towel and let it sit for 1/2-1 hour.
  2. Divide the dough in half and form one half into a thick roll about 1 1/2-2 inches thick and divide it into about 8 pieces (you can divide it into fewer pieces if you prefer larger parathas). Repeat with the other half and cover the divided pieces with a moist towel so that the dough does not dry out while you are working with each piece.
  3. Put a little flour on a rolling board and take one piece and roll it out to make a thin circle. Brush the top lightly with melted butter oil and fold the dough in half with the butter side in the middle so that you have a semi-circle.
  4. Roll this flat and butter again. Fold over again with the butter side in the middle and roll flat so that you have roughly a triangluar shape. Lightly oil a flat griddle or Tawa, which is an Indian circular flat pan used for chapattis and Parathas.
  5. Place the Paratha on the griddle and fry a golden brown. As one side is frying, lightly brush melted butter on the uncooked side. Turn over and fry the other side. Repeat this with the remaining dough. Serve the Indian Fry Bread or Parathas warm. Enjoy!

Egg Curry Easy Recipe


This Egg Curry Recipe is reminiscent of the delicious egg curries that you can find in one of the small cafes in the streets of Madras (Chennai). Eggs are very high in protein and are quite versatile. Many vegetarians will also eat eggs even though they do not eat meat. This egg curry features a sauce which is typical of the masalas in South India. It uses tamarind, coconut, curry leaves and other savory spices.

Egg Curry Easy Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 6 eggs
  • 1 golf ball sized (1-1 1/2 inch round) tamarind
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 1/2 inch cinnamon stick
  • 8 curry leaves
  • 1/4 tsp fenugreek
  • 1/2 tsp cummin seeds
  • 1/4 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1/2 tsp urad dal (see note)
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 chili, chopped (optional)
  • 1/2 tsp garlic paste
  • 1/2 tsp ginger paste
  • 1 medium tomato diced
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk or 1/3 cup shredded coconut (see note)
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cup water (hot)
  • 1/2 cup tomato sauce
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Boil the eggs until they are fully cooked, usually about 12 minutes. Peel the eggs and set aside.
  2. If you have tamarind pressed together, soak it in 1/2 cup warm water and set aside.
  3. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or fry pan. When the oil becomes hot (the oil will start to shimmer, also before it smokes) add the cinnamon stick, curry leaves, fenugreek, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and urad dal. Fry this until the urad dal turns a nice golden brown. Add the onion and chili (if you like it hot!).
  4. Fry for 2-3 minutes or until the onions are clear. Reduce the heat and add the garlic and ginger.
  5. Fry another 1-2 minutes or until the garlic becomes very fragrant and add the tomato. If you are using the shredded coconut, add it with water. If you use coconut milk, you may omit the water, unless you like a thinner sauce.
  6. Add the tomato sauce, tamarind paste and turmeric and season with salt and pepper. Let this come to a boil and reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is thickened.
  7. Add the eggs and simmer for at least 5 more minutes so that the eggs absorb the flavor.
  8. Serve with rice and bread such as chapatti or poori. Enjoy!

Note:

The Urad Dal for this egg curry can be found in specialty stores. It is the split, white lentil without the black shell. With the shell it is known as black gram dal. This is often fried with mustard seed in oil at the beginning of making a sauce.

Coconut can be found in many different ways. In South India, it would primarily be shaved straight from the coconut shell. In stores, it can be found fresh shaved, in coconut milk or dessicated or dried. If you use the dessicated coconut for this egg curry, put it in some water or milk, bring to a boil, remove from the heat and set aside. This will extract the rich flavor from the coconut.