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Cauliflower Vadai
Cauliflower Vadai
Vadai are fritters made out of cauliflower, much like pakora, but with a multitude of ingredients like curry leaves, cilantro, green chilies, mint, cashews, onions, ginger, and white poppy seeds added to the mix. Unlike pakora, the Vadai are shallow pan fried instead of deep fried, using significantly less oil.
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower broken into florets
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 liters water
- 4 green chilies finely chopped
- 6 sprigs mint finely chopped
- 4 sprigs cilantro finely chopped
- 3 sprigs curry leaves finely chopped
- 1 tbsp ginger finely minced
- 1/2 cup yellow onion finely chopped
- 1 tsp ground fennel
- 1 1/2 tbsp white poppy seeds
- 10 whole cashews finely chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup chickpea flour
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to boil. Add in the turmeric, salt, and cauliflower florets. Simmer for 8 minutes. Remove from the pot and let cool.
- In a large bowl, mix together the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the cauliflower to the bowl. Using a potato masher, mash the cauliflower into very small pieces.
- Mix the cauliflower into the rest of the ingredients.
- Form the dough into small patties; about 1/4 cup per patty.
- Heat up 1/4” deep of vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the patties into the pan, making sure to not overcrowd.
- Fry for 4-5 minutes a side until crispy. Drain on paper towels.
Blackened Grilled Shrimp
Blackened Grilled Shrimp
Blackened seasoning was made popular in the 1980’s by the godfather of Cajun and Creole cooking, Paul Prudhomme. The seasoning was used to mimic open-fire grilling, but on cast iron in a commercial restaurant kitchen; creating a blackened crust. Blackened seasoning is great on chicken, fish, seafood, and vegetables; giving a nice smokey flavor.
Equipment
- metal skewers
- chimney starter
- charcoal
- charcoal grill
Ingredients
- 1 lb 16-20 ct. shrimp peeled and deveined
Blackened Seasoning
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp thyme
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Mix together the blackened seasoning.
- Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Toss the shrimp with the blackened seasoning.
- Add 5-6 shrimp on each skewer.
- Let the charcoal turn gray in a chimney starter. Pour the charcoal into the grill in a single layer and place on the grill grate. Place the skewers directly over the charcoal.
- Grill for 3-4 minutes a side until the shrimp are cooked through.
Mexican-Style Grilled Chicken Hearts
Mexican-Style Grilled Chicken Hearts
Chicken hearts are such an underrated organ. They’re quite tender and fairly inexpensive. They might be hard to find in regular grocery stores. The best place to find them is at Mexican or Arabic ethnic markets. These hearts are citrusy in flavor with a little heat from the ancho chili powder. They grill up in about 10 minutes and are great as the protein on tacos.
Equipment
- metal skewers
- chimney starter
- charcoal
- charcoal grill
Ingredients
- 1/2 orange juiced and zested
- 1/2 lemon juiced and zested
- 1 lime juiced and zested
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp vinegar
- 1 tsp ancho chili powder
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 lb chicken hearts
Chicken Heart Tacos
- corn tortillas
- cilantro chopped
- white onion finely chopped
- you favorite hot sauce
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together.
- Marinate the chicken hearts for 4 hours.
- Place 10 chicken hearts on each skewer(you get about 40 hearts per lb).
- Start the charcoal in a chimney starter until they turn gray. Pour into the grill in a single layer and place on the grill grate. Place the skewers directly over the charcoal.
- Grill the hearts for 5-6 minutes a side.
