Recipe : Moroccan Cumin Spiced Chickpeas - Vegan

These spiced Chickpeas (channa / chhole) are often sold as street food in newspaper cones, the way jhalmuri / charmuri used to be served in India. Its very easy to make and can be served as a starter with drinks, an evening snack or a side with rotis.

If you would like them crisper, then use more oil and fry them crisp and drain on paper towels. I use less oil in this recipe, than is normally used in Morocco.

Ingredients:
1 cup cooked & drained White Chickpeas (safed channa / chhole) - see tips below
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh coriander (dhaniya) - finely chopped
1/2- 1 tbsp cumin (jeera) powder
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a wide frying pan.
On low heat, add the chickpeas, coriander and cumin and toss well to coat. Toss, rather than stir, to prevent breakage or smashing of the chickpeas.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

Kim's Tips:
- If you have dried channa, soak them for 8 hours or overnight and then pressure cook them for 3-4 whistles.
- Adding a pinch of soda bicarb while cooking the channa, makes it fluffier and softer, but it also increases the feeling of fullness when eating. Too much soda bicarb will ruin the taste, so be judicious in its use.
- I like to add 1/2 tsp methi (fenugreek) seeds and a pinch of hing (asafoetida) while pressure cooking the chhole to reduce the gassy side effects of chhanna.
- If you are using a peppermill to grind the pepper, don't hold the pepper mill directly above a hot cooking pan/pot, the steam will introduce moisture into your mill and cause clumping. Grind the pepper into a cold plate and then add it to your cooking pot.

Recipe : Malaysian One Pot Sticky Wings

I adapted this recipe from Food & Wine's Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures. My adaptations have more to do with availability of ingredients in Ahmedabad, rather than for taste and the final result was good, something I will make again.

Ingredients :
1 kg prepped chicken wings/drumettes (with skin will yield a better glaze & stickiness, but skinless will work too)
2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
4 whole dried red chillies (or break in half for spicier flavour)
2 star anise (keep them whole, so they can be easily removed at the end before serving, or crush them for a stronger flavour)
6"cinnamon stick (keep whole, so it can be easily removed at the end before serving, or crush for a stronger flavour)
1/3 cup (80ml)soy sauce
1/3 cup (80ml)sake (rice wine / white wine / a sweetish white vinegar can be substituted, a fruit vinegar can be used if your diet restricts alcohol)
1/3 cup (80ml)water
3 tbsp oyster sauce (fish sauce or thick soya sauce can be substituted, but you may need to use less to manage the overall flavour and salt content)
3 tbsp mirin (sweet wine or sake + a tsp of sugar)
3 tbsp brown sugar (can use normal sugar too)
2 spring onions, thinly sliced

Method:
In a large nonstick pan (or in batches - each wing needs to be in contact with the pan), cook the wings over moderate heat, turning once, until golden on both sides (about 8 minutes).
When all the wings have been browned, put them all back in pan (if you have been frying in batches), add the ginger, chillies, star anise and cinnamon and cook over moderately low heat, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the soy sauce, sake, oyster sauce, mirin, sugar and water and bring to a simmer over moderate heat.
Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Uncover and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until the wings are cooked through and the sauce has reduced to a thick glaze.
Discard the chillies, star anise and cinnamon before serving.
Transfer the chicken wings to a platter, scatter the spring onions on top and serve with lime wedges.

Check out the original recipe on Food & Wine, where these wings were 1 of 20 featured Chicken Wings Recipes.