Spicy Mango Shrimp Curry

I was cleaning out my fridge when I found this homemade sweet and sour mango chutney sitting in a corner. I had my mind set on making mango chicken for a while but I never had the two ingredients at the same time. This time too there was the mango but no chicken, so I decided to go ahead with shrimp.
If you are using fresh or frozen mangoes add the mangoes before adding the coconut milk.

Ingredients:
Shrimp – 35-40
Onion – 1 medium (chopped)
Garlic – 4 cloves (finely chopped)
Bell pepper (optional) – 1 (diced)
Mango chutney – 5 tbsp
Light coconut milk – 6 oz.
Fish sauce (optional) – 1 tsp
Red chili flakes – 1 ½ tsp
Salt – to taste
Oil – 2 tbsp

Procedure:
My family loves their shrimp soft and tender so I pressure cook the shrimp. You can directly add the shrimp to the pan once the gravy is done.

In a pan heat oil and add red chili flakes and garlic and fry until the garlic is cooked. Next add the chopped onions and sauté until golden brown.

To the onion mixture add 3 tbsp of the mango chutney and fish sauce. Stir until the chutney has blended into the mixture.

Now add water (I used the fish stock from boiling the shrimp) and let simmer. When the gravy has reached the desired thickness, add coconut milk, shrimp and bell pepper (if using) and bring to a boil. Cook until peppers are cooked but still retain their crunch.

Garnish with sliced chilies and a few sprigs of fresh cilantro. Serve with steamed rice.

Seared Scallops with Lemon-Basil Pasta

Ingredients:
For the scallops:
Scallops – 4
Garlic cloves – 3 (minced)
Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
Olive oil – ¼ cup
Italian seasoning
Salt & pepper
For the pasta:
Spaghetti – 2 servings
Grated parmesan cheese – ¼ cup
Lemon juice – ½ lemon
Fresh basil – 5-6 leaves (chopped)
Salt & pepper

Procedure:
In a mixing bowl mix the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and Italian seasoning.

Now add the scallops, turning to coat. Season with salt and pepper and let sit for 30 minutes.

Heat a cast iron skillet on high, and drizzle olive oil.

Now add the scallops and sear them until golden brown. Flip with tongs and sear the other side.

Meanwhile cook the spaghetti in a pot of salted boiling water. Drain the pasta, reserving a ladle of the pasta water.

In a skillet warm up the reserved marinade from the scallops, just to avoid the smell of raw garlic. Add the spaghetti and coat well.

Add the grated parmesan and lemon juice. If required to moisten add the pasta water, a little at a time until you have the desired result.

Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with the chopped basil and serve with the seared scallops.

Herb roasted salmon with caramelized onions

While cleaning the house last weekend we chanced upon a printout of a salmon recipe dated Nov 2005. The recipe was shared by my husband’s friend who is an awesome cook and a food connoisseur. Hubby had prepared this dish before but it was from his memory and tasted good. But once he followed the recipe it tasted awesome. And along with the salmon he made a simple spaghetti (his specialty btw) with cherry tomatoes, garlic and olive oil. Saturday night dinner didn’t taste this good in a long while. Thanks Dr. Ghosh for the recipe :-)

Unfortunately the recipe doesn’t mention any exact amounts, and neither did my hubby measure out anything. So I am unable to give any measurements, just eyeball everything. The original recipe uses sour cream along with the caramelized onions, but we didn’t have any in the house. And instead of oregano and basil we used Italian seasoning and fresh basil leaves.

Ingredients
Salmon – two 8oz pieces
Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Garlic salt
Italian seasoning
Fresh basil
Onion – 1 (sliced)

Procedure
Preheat oven to 400F.

Marinate salmon fillets in red wine vinegar, Italian seasoning, basil, olive oil and garlic salt for about one and half hours.

Line a baking tray with aluminium foil and bake the fish for 15 minutes. Then flip and bake for another 10 minutes.

Then broil the fish until a red crust forms on one side. Turn over and broil the other side. Be careful not to over fry or else it’ll become dry.

Add a squeeze of fresh lime and serve with caramelized onions.

To caramelize the onions warm olive oil in a skillet and add sugar. When sugar starts to melt throw in sliced onions. Cook till the onions turn brownish in color.