Yumm Recipies

MCDONALD’S BIG MAC COPYCAT RECIPE:

Ingredients:

2 uncut bakery buns (with sesame seeds for authenticity)

butter

1/2 pound ground beef

1 slice cheddar cheese or 2 thin slices (don’t bother with the American stuff, not even for authenticity)

1/4 cup shredded lettuce

1 dill pickle, thinly sliced 

3 tablespoons diced onions

1/4 cup thousand island dressing

Method:

Light the grill. Cut the bakery buns into thirds and butter the cut sides. Split the ground beef into four equal parts (1/8th pound each) and pat each portion into a thin circle, larger than the size of the bun to allow for shrinkage. Place the patties on the 400-degree grill and grill four minutes. Flip and cover with cheese slices. Grill an additional 4 minutes or to desired doneness.

Remove patties from grill and allow to rest while you lightly toast the buns. This will help them support the stacking that comes with building a Big Mac.

Build your Big Mac: bottom bun > patty covered with cheese > lettuce > thousand island dressing on bottom of the middle bun > patty (covered with cheese) > onions > pickles > more lettuce > thousand island dressing on the top bun.

Makes 2 large, 1/3-pound burgers.

Italian Grilled Steak:

Ingredients:

Boneless Chicken breast 2

Black pepper 1/2 tsp

Salt 1/2 tsp

Garlic Paste 1/2 tsp

Tomato paste 1 tsp

Ketchup 1 tsp

Sliced Mushrooms 3

Sliced black Olives 3

Grated Cheddar cheese 2 tbsp

Oil 1 tbsp

For Spicy Italian Sauce:

Butter 1 tbsp

Garlic paste 1/2 tsp

Salt 1/4 tsp

Black pepper powder 1/4 tsp

Red Chili powder 1/4 tsp

Tomato Paste 1 tbsp

Oregano leaves 1/2 tsp

Ketchup 1 tbsp

Cream 2 tbsp

Method:

To make sauce: pour oil and butter in a sauce pan.

Add garlic paste, tomato paste, ketchup, salt, black pepper, red chili, oregano leaves, and cream.

Remove from heat when ready.

To make Steaks:

flatten boneless chicken breast pieces with a kitchen hammer.

Marinate chicken by applying salt, black pepper, garlic paste, tomato paste, ketchup and oil and keep aside for an hour.

Grill chicken steaks in butter.

Add sauce and cook for 2 more minutes.

Remove from heat and add olives, mushrooms, and Cheddar cheese.

Grill again till the cheese melts.

Serve with french fries and sauce and enjoy its finger licking taste !

My Mom's Desi Biryaani Recipie:

Ingredints:

7-8 Onions (very thinly sliced and deep fried until light brown)

10-15 Cashews (fried in a little desi ghee/clarified butter)

1 Kg Chicken on the bone cut into 12 pieces

1 cup yogurt

2 Tsp Garlic paste

salt to taste

500 gm Basmati Rice (washed and soaked in salted water for at least half an hour)

3-4 Tbsp oil

Oil for frying the onions

6-7 cloves

2 (1 inch) Cinnamon

4 green Cardamoms

3 Bay leaves

1/4 Tsp Caraway seeds (shahi jeera/black cumin seeds)

4 large Tomatoes (chopped finely)

1/4 Tsp of mace powder

1/4 Tsp of grated Nutmeg

1 Tsp Coriander powder

1 Tsp red Chili powder (to taste)

1/2 Tsp Turmeric powder

2-3 green Chilies (to taste, chopped)

1 Tbsp Ginger (chopped)

1 Tbsp Garlic (chopped)

6-7 dried, pitted prunes

1/2 cup of milk

a few strands of Saffron (kesar)

3-4 Tbsp Desi ghee (clarified butter)

2 cups of fresh green Coriander (chopped)

STEP 1

Marination

Marinate the chicken pieces in 1 cup yogurt, 2 Tsp garlic paste and little salt, for a good 8 hours.

STEP 2

Making Barista (fried onions) for chicken biryani

Slice the onions very thinly (almost paper thin) using a sharp knife. Heat oil in a pan or kadai.
Separate the sliced onions using your finger tips. Put the onions in the oil and reduce the heat to medium-low.

Keep stirring the onions, so that they get evenly browned. The trick is to evenly and slowly brown the onions. If the flame is very high the onions will burn on the outside and remain watery on the inside.

Once a uniform color is obtained, drain on thick layer of kitchen paper, so that maximum oil is soaked. Keep these aside. 
As they cool down, the onions will become crispy.

STEP 3

Boiling the rice

Boil the rice. For this take a BIG vessel (deep and wide), put lots of water in it, tip in the soaked rice along with 1 stick cinnamon, 3-4 cloves, 2 green cardamom, 1/4 tsp of Shahi jeera (caraway seeds) and more salt.

Remember that you should boil the rice in lots of water and salt (pretty much like a pasta). The rice should absorb the salt otherwise the biryani will be tasteless. Boil on a high flame and let the it boil vigorously on high flame for about 5-7 minutes.

You have to par cook the rice (meaning 3/4 cooked and rest will get cooked later). Do not over boil the rice. To check if the rice is done you can take a grain of rice out and press in between your thumb and forefinger. If the grain breaks into 3 parts, it means your rice is cooked just right. Now strain the rice and spread it out on a flat tray or surface, so that it cools faster.

STEP 4

Preparing the chicken

Heat oil in a deep pan, add the remaining bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon and green cardamoms. When they crackle, add the ginger, garlic and chilies. Saute for a minute and add the marinated chicken, along with the marinade. Cook on a medium heat till all the water dries up (water from the chicken and yogurt).

Add the tomatoes, 1/3 of the fried onions, all the powdered spices, salt and cook till all the water from the tomatoes dries up. If the chicken is cooking too quickly then either cook on a high flame to fasten the evaporation or remove the chicken pieces aside.

The chicken should be just cooked and dry (because it will get 
cooked further in the final step and if any water is left in it the rice will become soggy).

Once done, sneak a taste, adjust the seasoning. Mix in the dried prunes.

STEP 5

Make saffron milk

In 1/2 cup of warm milk crush a pinch of saffron strands and put some whole strands. Wait till it turns yellow. Keep on one side.

Final STEP Assembling the chicken biryani

Use a deep heavy bottom pan with a lid.

First spread some desi ghee at the bottom of the pan.
Second a layer of rice, followed by a layer of chicken. Now sprinkle a generous handful of chopped coriander and fried onions.

Repeat the layers with rice being the top most layer. Sprinkle the leftover onions and all the cashews.

Pour the milk and saffron on the top using a spoon, evenly covering the whole area.

Once all layers are set, take melted desi ghee and with a spoon pour it around the rim of the vessel and a little on the rice.
Close the lid and seal.

There are 2 ways to seal the lid in order to prevent the steam from escaping.

1) Take a large foil, cover the pot/vessel with it and place the lid on top.

2) Take some dough made from whole wheat flour. Roll it into a thin strip and stick it going around the rim of the pan half on the lid and half on the pan in order to seal the whole pan.

Keep this pot on a very low heat for 45 minutes. Place this pan on top of a cast iron tawa (on which chapatis are made) or another heavy bottom pan in order to prevent the bottom layer of rice from getting burnt.

After 45 minutes turn off the heat. Let it stand for 5 minutes and open.

Enjoy the delicious chicken biryani!!!

Note:- Please don't eat the bay leaves and the other whole spices. They are used to add flavor. You can remove them to one side.