yeh hai Pakistan meri jaan...

Thoughts, Duas, Prayers, and so much more... for flood victims and everyone affected by this disastrous reality.

BBQ

On the menu today: barbecued burgers and tikka boti. The tikka botis were supposed to be shish kebabs, but we misplaced our skewers when we were moving into our new home. The entire menu was for four people only, so keep that in mind if using the recipe.

I marinated both the meats a day before so they would be tender and ready for the grill. So the first thing I did today, as my brother started up the grill, was to create what I call 'pickle envy'. Last year, when I was testing a new knife, I accidentally created this awesome tongue screamer which is not for the faint hearted. You gotta have pickle love for this condiment, and it's the best topping for a barbecued burger I've ever eaten.

Take a dozen banana peppers, a dozen jalapenos, one dill pickle, three slices of pickled turnips, and a dozen green olives. Chop them together into tiny cubes, you don't want any big pieces in your burger. The end result will taste sweet, sour, and spicy. This condiment has a long shelf life, so store it away in your fridge and you can keep reusing it with many kinds of sandwiches.

Mushroom, Onions, Cheese

Then I chopped one medium onion and one large portobello mushroom, put them together on aluminum foil and lay that on a grill. I cooked them halfway, just enough to soften them but not loose their flavor, and then put American cheese on to melt. Swiss cheese and provolone is also a good choice, but I stuck with this one. By the way, I did the mushrooms and onions when the burgers were almost done, since this goes on top of the burger, but I wanted to type this up before I got to the meat.

Beef Botis

I marinated the meat a day before. Take about a pound and half of zabiha halal beef, cut it into small squares. Put one tablespoon of pureed ginger, and two tablespoons of pureed garlic.Then mix in an entire packet of Shan's Tandoori Chicken. I know I know... I used a chicken recipe to make beef botis... but trust me. Also add two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Make sure to seal it in a tight container and put it away in the fridge. Next day, just throw the botis straight on the grill, or use aluminum foil if the botis are too small and might fall into the fire below.

BBQ Burgers

Just like the beef botis, marinate the burger meat a day before as well. Take a pound and half of zabiha halal lean ground beef... ground thick like sausage meat. Add a spoon of pureed ginger and two spoons of pureed garlic and mix it really well with your hand. Add one teaspoon salt and one teaspoon black pepper. And two tablespoons of olive oil. Nothing else. Mix very well, seal it tight, and put it away in the fridge. Take it out next day, break one egg in it, and start making patties. But make small round ones, because you want to make sure the grill cooks the meat thoroughly.

The only thing left then is to put together the burger and eat! Set all the sides down so people can make their own burgers. And serve the beef botis with green chutney. Which you can make by blending one cilantro bunch, two green chillies, one teaspoon salt, two tablespoons of lemon juice, one tablespoon vegetable oil, and half teaspoon of fresh garlic. Just put all that in a blender, add a little water if you have to, but that should do it.

Bon Appetit!

Chicken & Rice

Originally we were going to barbecue on Memorial Day weekend, but broke the usual by having a different kind of dinner. The original recipe was supposed to be Barefoot Contessa’s stuffed chicken but when I got a hold of it, it changed a few times, from chicken with Irish potatoes and Minnesota wild rice to… in the end, chicken with fried potato stuffing and basmati rice cooked Arabic style. Not too much of a difference, I mean… scientists say that Minnesota wild rice is a close cousin of Basmati rice… divided by only seven thousand miles of land and water. :) Also, what dinner would be complete without something sweet in the end? It’s sunnah, and oh-so-satisfying. I made a two-tiered double chocolate fudge cake with German chocolate icing. Yeah… kinda on the heavy side…but again, oh-so-satisfying.

First I’m going to give you the recipe of the desert, because although chefs always show they make it last, it is not true. Desert should always be made first and stored in the fridge so you can get on with the heavy hot cooking.

MJ’s Double Chocolate Fudge Cake with German Chocolate Icing (serves 10, or 3 guys)

Take a large bowl, whisk in 2 cups of sugar and one cup of corn oil. Add ½ cup of sour cream and keep whisking. Then one at a time, add four eggs and keep whisking. Then add 5 ounces of melted chocolate. I used Cadburys, but you can use any kind. Then mix in 1 ½ cups of flour, ½ cup of cocoa, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Mix in well. Then slowly add 1 cup of strong black coffee, cooled to room temperature.

Mix in everything very well and then pour into two pans which have already been greased. Preheat oven to 350F, and let them back for about 30 minutes. Check the middle of the cake with a clean toothpick. If it comes out dry, you’re done. Pull them out, let them cool.

To make the German chocolate icing, take a medium bowl. Add 10 ounces of melted chocolate. I chose German chocolate. Whisk in 1/3 cup of sour cream and one table spoon of butter. Mix in 1 cup of powdered sugar, and keep adding milk one teaspoon at a time until the frosting reaches desired consistency. Before finished up the frosting, I added ¼ cup of Nutella. My brothers love it and I wanted to add a hit of that.

Put it in the fridge to cool it more. Then spread it over the first half of the cake, and then put the other cake on top and ice that one. Refrigerate again.

Arabic Rice

This rice was made without beef stock. It was completely vegetarian.

Take 3 cups of basmati rice, and soak it in room temperature water. Put it to the side. Put a pot or pan on the stove and drop in 4 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat. Chop up one medium sized onion into small cubes and drop it in the pot

After the onions are golden, add 1 tablespoon of freshly chopped garlic. Stir in 1 teaspoon ground cardamom and 1 leveled tablespoon of salt. Measure 6 cups of water and pour it in. Add a little black pepper and a dozen whole cardamoms, give or take. Put the temperature on high and bring the water to boil. Take the rice that has been soaking for at least thirty minutes now, strain it and dump it in the pot. Cover and cook on low for fifteen minutes.

Take a small pan and add four tablespoons of oil on medium heat. Chop some carrots, thin and long and add them to the oil to fry. When the carrots turn a bit on the golden side, add ¼ cup of sugar and caramelize it. After the sugar has almost disappeared becoming more of a syrup, add ¼ cup of raisins. Shut off the heat after one minute because the raisins don’t take long to plump up.

Add this mixture to the rice. Mix it in carefully, you don’t want the basmati to become mangled. Every grain should be by itself, not stuck to something. That is the trick of Basmati.

Chicken with Fried Potato Stuffing

Okay, this chicken took me forever. But it was worth it. I had marinated it 24 hours before it had to be cooked so it was oozing with flavors.

To marinate, start with a whole zabiha halal fresh chicken, and wash and clean thoroughly. Put it in a bowl or pot which is the size of the chicken itself so the chicken has nowhere to run, seriously. Make a couple of cuts here and there. Not too deep. First lather it with 1 table spoon of ginger and 2 tablespoons of garlic. Massage it in really well. Now add 1 ½ teaspoon of red pepper, 1 ½ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of turmeric, ½ teaspoon of black pepper, ½ teaspoon of lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Why so much of the spices? Because you’re marinating it, in 24 hours the spices will lose their ‘hit’ and blend in really well with the other ingredients. Make sure you also rub them into the inside of the chicken where the stuffing will go. Cover the bowl now with aluminum foil or a plastic bag really well and refrigerate for a day.

The next day, which was today for me, start with taking a large pan, put two tablespoons of oil in it on medium heat. Chop four large potatoes into small cubes and throw them in the pan. Fry them until deep golden. Take out and spread on a large paper towel to soak out all the oil.

Now take a large onion, chop into small cubes and drop them in the same pan that is already on the stove with the remaining oil. Fry till golden brown and spread over another paper towel.

Take two carrots, chop them into small cubes and fry them until golden in the same pan. Add more oil if you have to. Take out and spread them out too.

The reason for doing everything separate is to keep them from ‘mushing’ together, and to keep their geometrical shapes and have that ‘fried’ taste.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 350F. Get a shallow pan to cook the chicken in. I chose shallow because I wanted the chicken to be moist but not liquidy. With a deep pan, you can create a great gravy or curry, but I already had a great stuffing.

Grease the pan with olive oil. Put the chicken in the middle. The chicken is probably all juiced up with the marinade from the day before. Then take a bowl and mix in the fried potatoes, onions, and carrots. Stuff the chicken with this mixture. I would have used celery and bell peppers as well, but I didn’t have any today. Tie up the legs of the chicken so the stuffing stays inside.

Grease the pan with olive oil. Put the chicken in the middle. The chicken is probably all juiced up with the marinade from the day before. Then take a bowl and mix in the fried potatoes, onions, and carrots. Stuff the chicken with this mixture. I would have used celery and bell peppers as well, but I didn’t have any today.

Tie up the legs of the chicken so the stuffing stays inside. Chop two extra potatoes in large cubes and throw them around the chicken. Also take a medium onion, cut it circularly and put it in the pan as well. If you have some stuffing left, put it in a nicer bowl so you can serve it on the side. Drizzle some oil over everything and put it in the oven for about 45 minutes. Drizzle some oil over everything and put it in the oven for about 45 minutes. When it’s done, garnish it with cilantro.

Baked Asparagus

Take about a dozen asparagus sticks, and throw them in a pan. Put a pinch of garlic salt, a pinch of black pepper, some olive oil and bake it for fifteen minutes.

Garlic Sauce

Mix one tablespoon of freshly puréed garlic into one cup of yogurt. Add in half teaspoon of salt, and one teaspoon of mayo. Also, add two tablespoons of milk to get the desired consistency.

I wish I could have included a picture of the entire display of all the dishes, but unfortunately the hunger took over and I forgot. It was only after we had pillaged the cake that I remembered. :)

Bon Appetit!

The Best Beef Burger You'll Ever Eat

My brother Bilal and I always argue on which one of us makes the best burgers in our family. We are always trying new recipes and challenging each other to use new ingredients. You'll be amazed at how many wacky creations we've had. A couple of months ago, I made the awesomest burger ever and I want to share it with you guys.

The original recipe belongs to one of my favorite chefs, Bobby Flay. But I made it my own by adding to it....by putting that South Asian punch in it.

This is the only time I'll ask you to be liberal.... so don't be cheap and try to make the biggest baddest burgers ... I promise you'll sleep happy with a full tummy.

10 for 10

Steps:

1. Get 3 pounds of “zabiha halal” ground beef – preferably ground thick and with fat – don't be afraid of the fat.....let the fat be your friend. Make sure it's completely thawed if you pulled it out of the freezer, drained of any water, then put it in a very large bowl. Rule of thumb is that before you start cooking, your meat should always be at room temperature.

2. Chop two medium onions. They don't have to finely chopped, just enough not to stick out of your patties. Add to the ground beef in the bowl.

3. Chop two medium green bell peppers, don't have to be fine either. Add to the bowl.

4. Chop half a bundle of cilantro. Add to the bowl.

5. Break one egg into the bowl.

6. Add two tablespoons of fresh garlic paste, and one tablespoon of fresh ginger paste. (Not from the store).

7. Add between 2-3 leveled teaspoons of salt, according to your taste. But don't be stingy, let the salt be your friend...don't be afraid of the salt.

8. Add 1 teaspoon of black pepper.

9. Add 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.

10. Mix everything in the bowl with you hand. And then add 3 tablespoons of oil, any kind. Mix again.

11. Now comes the most essential part. You need to grab as much meat as your two hands can hold between them in a ball, and make a round patty. Don't worry, they seem big but after cooking them real well, you'll understand why. This recipe will let you make ten patties, hopefully all the same size.

12. Line your beef patties to the side and start up your frying pan. My brother likes to grill his burgers, but I found if you want to get that mouth-watering taste, then you need to fry them. Throw some oil in, get your pan to medium heat, put a couple of a patties in and put a cover on the pan so that the burger can fry and be well done from the inside at the same time.

13. While that is happening, you know what to do. Chop some more onions, tomatoes, get some lettuce, slice some pickles, bring out the banana peppers and jalapenos. Have your extra large burger buns ready, with mayo on one side and garlic chilli sauce on the other...or you could use ranch dressing if you're not into spicy.

14. When the beef patties are cooked thoroughly, lay American cheese on them so it melts. I don't recommend Swiss. You can use two slices if you want. Don't be afraid of the cheese...let the cheese be your friend.

15. Now just add everything together. Doesn't matter which way you layer. I know someone people are picky about what comes first or second, and I just want to punch them in the face...because it's all about how you enjoy your burger, not what is the etiquette. So layer at will. Also, butter the top of your burger and stick a toothpick all the way in, to keep everything in place. If your beef patties are too thick and coming out of the bun, if the pile up of all the extra things has made your burger the size of the Empire, and if your burger looks completely disproportionate, and if you think you have to attack it with a knife in order to eat it, then you have followed my instructions correctly and you are now about to eat one of the world's best burgers. So don't be afraid of that bad monster...let it be your friend.

Don't forget to make french fries on the side, but Lays originals are good too. And of course some diet-Pepsi!

Bismillah!

Yeh Hai Karachi Meri Jaan

Tariq Road, May 2010

View from Auto Riksha