Panch Poran (Five Spice)

Panch Poran literally means 5 spice or condiment. This wonderful masala is made up of a blend of whole seeds containing, cumin, fenugreek, fennel, mustard, and black onion seeds. It is excellent for flavoring when used in vegetable dishes, but can be used in dal or fish.

Panch Poran Spice Mix
2 T fenugreek seeds
2 T kalongi or kalogeera (onion seeds)
2 T black mustard seeds
2 T cumin seeds
2 T fennel seeds

Mix all of the above spices together. Save the spice mixture for use in your Bengali dishes. Most recipes call for about a teaspoon of the mixture. Pre mixed Panch Poran can be purchased at your Indian Grocer or online.

BBQ Time!

Now that it's summer everyone is starting to barbeque. American barbeque is very tasty, but can also be very fattening with high sugar and fat content. Try this simple Greek marinade for an incredible barbeque experience. You can also really impress your friends with this one, and it’s so easy!

Easy Kebabs (Souvlaki)

Souvlaki or Souvlakia are grilled, marinated lamb kebabs that are a delicacy in Greece. As you get more comfortable making them, you can vary the amounts of each ingredient, until you have the perfect kebab for your taste. This recipe takes only minutes to prepare and whomever you serve it to will be thoroughly impressed!

1 lb of lamb leg steak or beef steak such as round
wooden or bamboo skewers
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup of red wine or wine vinegar
2 to 3 cloves of garlic crushed
2 bay leaves crushed into little pieces
large bunch of fresh oregano (or 2 teaspoon of dried)
1 teaspoon of dried rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

Trim the meat of any fat and cut into small cubes (you can ask your butcher to do this for you) and carefully thread meat onto approximately 8 skewers. Peel and mince the garlic, juice the lemon straining out any pips and finely chop the fresh oregano. In a bowl place the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, oregano, wine or wine vinegar and salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste.

Place the kebabs in a shallow flat dish and pour the marinade over them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Preheat your grill or barbeque. Place the skewers over a medium heat and cook for around 4 minutes each side for medium rare (cook to temperature accordingly), brush with extra marinade and turn once.

Note: Chicken can also be used in this marinade.

Recipes - Chicken Cacciatore

I just made this dish for a small dinner party which included my parents. The dish was a huge hit with just the right amount of flavors to satisfy anyones palate. Cacciatore [ kah-chuh-TOR-ee ] means hunter in Italian, and this is the Italian version of hunter’s chicken. Like many Italian recipes it varies from region to region. This is a version I have adapted to my taste, you can change the amounts of ingredients each time you make it until you come up with the perfect version for you.

2 lb chicken, skinned and cut into pieces (Use breasts for a lower fat dish)
1 large onion, sliced
1 green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 lb plum tomatoes roughly chopped (canned are fine)
1 12oz can of Tomato Sauce
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (if using dried about 1.5 teaspoons)
1 tbsp fresh basil (1 tsp of dried)
1/2 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 cup of red or white wine (optional) (a good rule of thum to use with wine is put in the wine you would drink with the dinner, you are sure to get a flavor that is not a surprise to you later.)
pepper, to taste
1/4 lb mushrooms, sliced (optional)

Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium to medium high heat, when the oil is hot add the onion sauté it until it begins to turn light brown, then add the green pepper, mushrooms, and garlic, cook for only a few minutes stirring frequently to avoid burning the garlic. Tip: keep some water next to the pan if the anything starts to burn, just add a little water and stir it in. Remove the onion and green pepper mixture and place it in a small dish. Now add a drop of olive oil to the hot pan and place the chicken peices in the pan. Sear the chicken about 4 minutes on each side, the chicken should be slightly browned, this will lock the juices into the chicken.

Once the chicken is cooked you can add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, basil, salt and pepper to pan. Cook over low heat for 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
Add chicken; cover and cook over medium heat 45 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add mushrooms and cook uncovered 20 minutes or until sauce is desired consistency.

Serve with pasta or rice.