Chingri Malai Curry (Bengali Prawn and Coconut Curry)

Bengali food resonates with me on a deeper level even though I’m a pucca Southie. Maybe it’s the rice that bonds us (Bengali’s also eat rice with every meal!), or maybe my love for rosogullas and rasamalai’s have sweetened me towards them, or maybe it’s the fact that half the employees in my ex-company were Bengali! For whatever reason, I love Bengali food.

The one thing that I always order in a Bengali restaurant (apart from their gorgeous desserts) is Chingri Malai Curry. Chingri means Prawns and Coconut is used as the base in this curry to give it the quintessential creaminess. This is the mecca of what a curry should taste like for me – Rich, spicy-sweet and comforting. There is this little Bengali restaurant in Indiranagar that serves this curry in a Tender Coconut with the tail of the Prawn sticking out. Just seeing it makes my heat beat faster! The curry also has pieces of tender coconut in it that I love nibbling on. Though I don’t think that’s really the authentic way – but when it’s that yummy who cares right?  

I found this recipe on Hamaree Rasoi. And I know Deepashri Deb can only turn out an authentic curry - being Bengali and all… ;) I increased the amount of coconut milk and added a chilli for a bit of heat. Also please use fresh pressed coconut milk. The Dabur Homemade one just dosen’t cut it here. The flavor with fresh pressed coconut milk elevates this dish to the status it truly deserves. So here’s some Chingri Malai Curry for you. Eat it with some hot fluffy rice to find yourself floating in food heaven!

Launching 'The FoodPorn Diaries'

After pondering over many moons, I've decided to separate my recipe and restaurant reviews.

Food for Swaps has always been about documenting the recipes that are dear to me and work in my kitchen. Or the ones that have failed miserably and I never want to try again. Photographing my escapades in the kitchen and sharing them with you, so that you can have tried and tested recipes to fall back on! And i'd like to keep it that way. Fair? ... I think so  :P

So I'm moving all my restaurant reviews to my other blog - 'The FoodPorn Diaries'. This will be an exclusive place to share my experiences of eating out - whether they be in Bangalore or outside. I'm on a quest for lust worthy food! 

And to give you a preview of what’s in store, here’s an excerpt from the latest entry:

Conversations over Coffee

When The Serai invited eight bloggers to celebrate Woman’s Day at their lovely resort in Chickmagalur I did a double take. Really? I was swamped with work that week. I quickly asked for the names of the rest of the bloggers. I didn’t know anybody. (My interest was fading). They wanted me to come and spend two days getting fawned over and pampered. (Interest awakened). Have a look at the website, they insisted. I peeked into it reluctantly. (Wow, Desire generated). They called me back. There was a spa treatment involved, Will I be able to make it? (Resolve weakened). I cancelled my meeting. I was going to the Serai!

We met at the Café Coffee Day Square on Lavelle road. (Serai and CCD are owned by the same parent company). After introducing ourselves and tucking into the breakfast at CCD, we got ourselves into a minivan and drove out of the city. It’s amazing how ten women who have never met before can talk till their jaws drop. No need for introductions, thank you very much!

If that peaked your interest and you want to read more…here's the link to the new blog. Bless it by visiting it! :)

http://thefoodporndiaries.blogspot.in/

You can also ‘Like’ the Facebook page to get regular updates on What's hot ... in the food world obviously!

http://www.facebook.com/#!/thefoodporndiaries

Thanks for stopping by … love as always ... FoodforSwaps J

What does Masterchef Australia and The Whitefield Baking Company have in common? - Kate Bracks!!!

Masterchef Australia can be credited with starting a revolution that completely altered that way that anyone approaches food. It has within the span of three years turned the nation (and I mean India here) into a completely food obsessed one. Not that we were not connoisseurs of the good stuff already, but the appreciation and knowledge of a variety of cuisines and techniques definitely stems from there. The regular dal-chawal eating home was now attempting to get a perfect crust on their pie!  Dinner time (the holy thread that bonds us in an Indian family) was moved to an hour earlier, so that we could all sit down to watch Masterchef at 9:00 PM. Who ever heard of a food show being given a prime time slot?

Masterchef Australia Season 3 was one of my favorite seasons.  I don’t think I missed even one episode. I knew each and every contestant by name and followed their escapades in the kitchen closely.  And Kate Bracks - Dessert Queen and  mother of three, took home the title with a sweet flourish! For people like me who live and breathe food – these are our celebrities! So do you think I missed a chance to meet Kate when she came down to Bangalore – no freaking way!!

Smoke House DELI in Bangalore! (Indiranagar, Bangalore)

I don’t want to be biased…no I really don’t. But I couldn’t help doing cartwheels when Smoke House Deli finally opened in Bangalore a week ago. I remember driving down 100ft road and doing a double take in Feb, when I saw the huge glass façade with the black and white writing that said ‘Smoke Hou’ (the rest of it was covered, but I knew in my heart, that it was Smoke House Deli). For all practical purposes we are going to refer to it as SHD in the rest of the post!.

“Smoke House Deli is an all-day café and delicatessen. This award winning brand serves everything from pancakes to noshes, pasta to burgers and dessert to cocktails.” - SHD

After wowing patrons in Mumbai and Delhi SHD decided to grace Bangalore!! I was invited for a Bloggers Table a day after it opened (yes, I have some perks) and boy was I raring to go, even though it was a Wednesday night. And what a night it turned out to be –chatting with the owners Riyaaz and Kiran, being lavished with an awesome menu from chef Glyston Gracios, gossiping with my fellow bloggers and downing cocktails like there was no tomorrow. (Unfortunatley there was a tomorrow… and a hangover crashed the party as well, but that’s a story unfit for a food blog!)

Baked Pesto Chicken

It’s already March and I still haven’t put up a pesto recipe! That’s Pesto Blasphemy in my books. You all know my heart skips a beat when I talk about Pesto. Every time I see good basil leaves in the market, I’m rushing home to make pesto. Because of my obsession with it, my friend even ribs me and asks me when I’m making pesto ice cream?! The flak I receive for my addiction, has led me restrain myself from spamming the blog with all things Pesto! BUT this recipe from Kalyn’s Kitchen is so easy and so brilliant and tastes so Ah-maze-ing that I had to share.

This recipe requires no prepping or marinating and it’s ready in under 40 minutes. It’s also way healthier than a sauté/ pan fried option. The olive oil in the pesto is all you need to moisten and bake this baby. I must have made this innumerable times just because it looks so impressive when you plate up. I’ve bookmarked this one, to churn out something fabulous when guests arrive unannounced. Yes, we all want to be Domestic Goddesses with a sexy British twang ‘a la Nigella’ at the end of the day!