Roasted Cauliflower Ester Restaurant in Chippendale has been one of the hottest restaurants in Sydney for a couple of years now. I went there recently with low expectations, thinking that it would be another “trendy” restaurant that was big on cool factor but mediocre on delivery. I love being proved wrong! (Eerm, well, for something like this!!) I was floored by how fantastic it was. Modern western food with a very subtle Asian twist which seems appropriate given the restauranteur, Mat Lindsay, is the former head chef of Billy Kwong (Kylie Kwong’s restaurant)....

Breakfast Casserole Bacon + sausage + egg + milk + cheese + potatoes + bread does not = nutritious low fat energy breakfast for every day. But it DOES equal DELICIOUS!!! This is my “make-ahead-feed-an-army” version of a country breakfast fry up that is one of my favourite things to order when I go out for brunch (especially if I had a few too many champers the night before). A ginormous plate loaded with eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes and toast on the side....

Two years back, one day when I was talking with my friends in the evening, and discussing the dinner plan, I told them I am planning to make semiya upma, and one among the group told that making upma with semiya/vermicelli is totally new to her. Somehow that incident came to my mind yesterday while I was making this for my breakfast. Since blogging was in the back of my mind, as to what to post, I clicked while making the upma and here comes the recipe....

Crispy Sesame-Crusted Tofu Steaks Let’s get the uncomfortable truth about tofu out of the way. For many people, tofu looks weird. And has a strange texture they struggle with. It’s not helped by the fact that the internet is awash with recipes that use tofu as a meat substitute in classic dishes, but doesn’t exactly improve them. Like tofu bolognese and tofu cottage pie – no!😩 Or they try to convince you that tofu cheesecake is totally a thing and stacks up to the real deal....

I’ve used ramen noodles because I had them in the pantry, but this recipe is suitable for most dried or fresh noodles. Or even spaghetti – yes, really! Teriyaki Salmon Noodles My mother is such a stickler for the traditional in Japanese foods that she once wrote a furious letter to a TV network after watching a celebrity chef make what she judged to be total mockery of authentic tempura....

Tetsuya’s oyster recipe Tetsuya’s is a fine dining establishment here in Sydney that is set amongst beautiful Japanese gardens yet is located right in the middle of the bustling city. It offers a modern Japanese degustation menu and is, as you probably guessed, a restaurant reserved for very special occasions! Credited with bringing new-style fusion dining to the Sydney restaurant scene back in the 90’s, it was probably the first time I enjoyed a really oyster served with Japanese flavours....

Method : Notes: Δ

Last week a friend of mine messaged me that her hubby is going to mumbai and will get all the winter vegetable from there to make this Undhiyu recipe. She asked me whether i am interested to post the recipe in my jeyashri’s kitchen. I readily accepted and she also taught me how to make undhiyu too. This is the recipe she learnt from her mil, so if you have any idea of more authentic version please leave it in the comments section....

Ready to take a virtual trip to Saigon?? Chicken Pho soup Chicken Pho – called Pho Ga in Vietnamese – is the chicken version of Beef Pho, Vietnam’s most famous food export. The magic of Pho is that while the broth looks completely unassuming, it’s actually full of complex-yet-delicate spice infused flavours. That special something-something that makes it unforgettable, and you just can’t stop eating it. If you’re a Pho fan, you will love this chicken version because it’s easier to make than Beef Pho – no need to hunt down specific bones, just use chicken pieces!...

This recipe is made using 5 cups of watermelon rind, though you can easily make more or less of this recipe according to how much rind you’ve got. Just make sure to remove the thin tough green skin. You only want the light green/white/pinkish rind for this chutney. This picture is from my rind curry recipe – for this chutney I cut my rind into smaller cubes than what you see here: This chutney is simple and I made it using my slow cooker but you can also make this on the stove if you want....

Does this really taste like cheesecake? Yes – as long as you chill it first! If you eat this cheesecake while it is warm then it will taste like custard BUT if you chill it for a few hours then the texture DRAMATICALLY changes and it tastes like cheesecake. It really, really does. Try it if you don’t believe me 😉 What size pan can I use? You can use any oven-safe container to make this cheesecake but the size of the dish may adjust the cook time....

I have never heard of this summer cooler with raw mango. I was introduced by one of my relatives a few years ago. Though I liked the drink very much, I don’t know till date why I didn’t try this at home. Last week when I got a sudden craving for this raw mango drink and to my luck a friend of mine was getting ready to visit the Indian store for vegetable shopping and send me an SMS as to what I needed from there....

Adai is loved by everyone at home. Generally, we take adai with molagapodi or Jaggery. Rarely I make chutney for adai. This time i tried a version of tomato chutney which paired well with the adai and also tasted so yum with idli dosa too. I will share the recipe soon. Kerala matta rice adai Wash and soak 1 cup kerala matta rice.Soak 10-12 red chilis in the water. This will ensure smooth grinding of chilies....

This is ridiculously good. There are simply no words! Bacon Wrapped Chicken I apologise in advance to anyone who is trying to “be healthy” this week because chances are, your good intentions will be thrown out the window when you see this Bacon Wrapped Chicken!!! We all know that bacon makes (almost) everything better….I mean, what a way to dress up a humble piece of chicken… Seriously. Do you know any non-vegetarians who would turn down juicy chicken wrapped in gorgeous caramelised bacon?...

And PS – just wait until you see how soft these are in the video! Chicken Meatballs Monday Meatball Mania* is back – and fellow meatball lovers, I have a ripper for you today! Beautiful, juicy, super tasty chicken meatballs that are baked, not fried. No more rolling meatballs around in the skillet, tediously ensuring they brown as evenly as possible all over and praying to a higher power that they stay nice and round....

Baked Fish If the idea of baked fish conjures up the words pale, colourless and bland, then this one’s going to be a game changer for you!! It’s an effortless 15 minute recipe one pan recipe where fish is baked with a creamy lemon sauce. It’s the sort of recipe you can make no matter how hectic your household is, or on a lazy Sunday night because it’s this easy: And out comes this – tender baked fish fillets with a beautiful lemon cream sauce that’s perfect with fish!...

Beans Curry recipe, a South Indian version of beans curry, the addition of cooked toor dal enhances the taste of the curry. This beans curry is a quite common one in our house and pairs well with Sambar, Rasam, and Vathakuzhambu too. Generally, we don’t add cooked toor dal to beans curry. We just temper it with mustard seeds and red chili and cook the beans and add coconut in the last....

Beef Enchiladas I love that there are so many variations of Beef Enchiladas in this big-wide-world. Simple ones, filled with a plain cooked beef filling then topped with enchilada sauce and (lots of) cheese. Fancy ones with the addition of chillies, beans, corn and even olives, sometimes even bacon. Hidden vegetable versions (don’t ever try that on me, I can pick them a mile away). Shredded beef enchiladas, short rib ones....

A classic comfort dessert, custardy on the inside, golden and buttery on top. The only real question is this: what will you serve it with? Ice cream, cream, custard – or something else? 😉 Bread and Butter Pudding I remember the first time I had Bread and Butter Pudding. I was really cynical. Stale bread for a dessert?? It sounded ridiculous. How wrong I was. If you’ve never tried Bread and Butter Pudding before, be prepared to be amazed because it truly is a thing of beauty....

Gulab jamun is made in almost all houses for Diwali. Two years back I posted Khoya gulab Jamun and I wanted to try a dry Jamun recipe. Dry Jamun will be easy to pack for guests and friends and also the sugar syrup will not get wasted. You can try this version of dry jamun even with instant gulab jamun mix too. Bread Jamun was very tasty and pretty soft too....