Lima bean chicken noodle soup

This extra ordinary chicken soup is made with Cauliflower noodles...not your every day store bough noodles.
I made the noodles from the dough I made for the cauliflower Gnocchi and instead of making gnocchi's out of the dough, I flattened it to 1/8 inch thick circles and cut into strips 1/8 inch wide and 1.5 inches long.

Lima bean chicken noodle soup

Chicken Cauliflower noodle soup 

Ingredients:

1. 2 chicken breasts boiled in salted water for 30 minutes. Drained and shredded
2. 1 medium small onion chopped fine
3. 1 chicken bouillon
4. 1 medium carrot chopped into half circles
5. 1 cup noodles made like here (Cauliflower Noodles)
6. 1/2 tablespoon each of olive oil, butter
7. 3 large garlic grated
8. 1/2 teaspoon salt or as needed
9. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
10. 1 can lima beans drained

In a heavy bottomed pan heat the oil and butter and fry the onions till tender. Add garlic and fry for 30 minutes. Add chicken and fry for 5 minutes. Add carrots and fry for 5 more minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the noodles and keep boiling for 10 minutes . Enjoy a piping hot bowl of chicken cauliflower noodle soup

Sweet and spicy thai coconut soup

After moving to this new city we have missed our favorite Thai restaurants on the west coast. So here one day we found a Thai restaurant with good reviews to it and went to try it. The Thai coconut soups was very good but that's it. Nothing else was praise worthy. Anyway, the following is my take on the Thai coconut soup and yum yum it warms your up from inside. Enjoy

Sweet and spicy Thai coconut soup 

Sweet and Spicy Thai Coconut soup

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
2. 1/2 tablespoons each of grated fresh ginger , grated garlic
3. 1 teaspoons red curry paste
4. 2 cups chicken broth
5. 1 tablespoons fish sauce (optional)
6. 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
7. 1 heaped teaspoon smooth peanut butter (optional)
8. 1/4 teaspoon or more sambal
9. 1/2 (13.5 ounce) can coconut milk
10. 1 Tablespoon each of finely sliced onion, sliced mushroom

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions and mushroom for 5 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add red curry paste and stir for 1 minute. Add all the other ingredients and bring to a gentle rolling boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add 1/4 teaspoon dried basil and finely chopped cilantro before serving. Serve hot

Fish biryani

Fish Biryani is something which feels weird but its super delicious to eat. Especially hen the weather is cold and you want to eat something hot.

I called it biryani but it is actually fish Pulao, because it is not cooked in the over for the second half.  I am making the whole dish on stove top

Fish biryani ( rice cooked with lightly fried fish)

Fish biryani/ fish pulao

Ingredients for marinade

1. 12 oz of your fav white fish cut into 1-1.5 inch wide pieces (I used Swai)
2. 2 tablespoons each of corn starch, lemon juice
3. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, turmeric, garlic powder

Ingredients

1. 2 cups basmati rice
2. 3 tablespoons oil divided
3. 1 medium large onion sliced thin
4. 1 medium large tomato sliced thin
5. 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
6. 1 tablespoon lemon juice
7. 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin, turmeric, coriander powder, dried fenugreek leaves
8. 2 dried red chillies or 2 green chillies slit
9. 1/2 cup plain yogurt beaten

marinate the fish with the marinade ingredients for 1-2 hours.

In a  pan heat 2 tablespoons oil and fry the fish 4 minutes on each side . drain and set aside. Add the remaining oil add the cumin and dried red chillies (if using) and fry till cumin splutter. Add onions and fry till they become dark brown. Drain and reserve some onions. Add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies if using and fry for a minute. Add the spices and mix well. Add tomatoes and fry for 5 minutes. Add the rice and mix well. Add the beaten yogurt and 4.5 cups of water (normally the ratio is 1:1.5 cups of rice: water. But this basmati I am using is taking more water hence I am adding 2:4.5 cups rice:water). Stir well. add half of your fried fish pieces and salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until almost done. Spread the saved fried onions and the remaining fish and lemon juice. Simmer further for 7-8 minutes. Serve hot with cucumber, carrot and onion rings. 

I served it with my tri-color carrots I got from Trader joes today

Tri colored carrot