Spicy Chilli Garlic Prawns

This dish is my dad's spin on the popular Indo-Chinese dish called Chilly Chicken. And full marks to my dad! It is exactly like what we get in Chinese restaurants. And its so deliciously addictive, I can polish off a bowlful at the blink of an eye.



Serves 4

1/4kg prawns that have been cleaned and de-veined
1 whole bulb of garlic, finely chopped
1 large onion, cubed
2 large bell peppers, de-seeded and cubed
4 large green chillies de-seeded and cubed
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
1/2 white pepper powder
Whites of two eggs, whisked
4 tbsp light soy
1 tsp corn flour
1 tsp chilli sauce
Spring onions to garnish
salt to taste



Whisk the egg whites in a big bowl till fluffy. Add in a pinch of salt and cornflour. Mix in the prawns and set aside for an hour. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the prawns till golden and set aside. In the same pan fry the cubed onion, peppers & chillies for approx.3-5 mins and set aside.

In another pan, heat some sesame oil. Add all the chopped garlic and lightly toast. Add the sugar, vinegar, soy and chilli sauce. Sprinkle cornflour to thicken. Toss in the prawns, peppers, onion and chillies. Add salt to taste.

Garnish with spring onions

You can obviously substitute prawns with anything. Chicken or pork would work well. If you are vegetarian, opt for paneer.

You can eat it as is or serve with some egg noodles.

Baba Ganoush

Baba Ganoush is a mashed eggplant dish that is spiced with various middle eastern spices. I know your first thought when I said 'mashed eggplant' was eeek. It is an acquired taste, I agree. But give it a chance, and the subtle flavours might surprise you. So keep the boring old hummus aside and turn your pita in the baba ganoush direction.

I usually serve baba ganoush as a dip though you can use it in other dishes. It makes a fabulous and fuss free starter served with something crunchy on the side (see below for serving suggestions). 

Serves 4:

1 large eggplant

1/4 cup tahini* paste

Juice of 1 lemon

3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp Paprika or chili powder

1/2 cup olive oil

Salt to taste

*Tahini is made from ground sesame seeds and olive oil. It is also a crucial ingredient for that other famous middle easter dip - Hummus. I bought my tahini paste from a store, but incase it isn't available, you can easily prepare it at home. Just follow this recipe.

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius 

Char the outside of the eggplant by placing it directly on top of your stove or gas burner. Keep turning the eggplant till the skin uniformly chars on the outside. I like my baba ganoush to be super smoky and tend to leave my eggplant on the flame for a good ten minutes. You can roast the eggplant for five minutes for a fairly good char, but smokiness is what defines this dish. Now cut the eggplant lenghtwise, and place on a baking tray. Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake for 20 mins or until they are completely soft. 

Remove from oven and cool. Peel off the skin (which should come off easily) and add the pulp in a blender. Add in all other ingredients except olive oil. Blend the ingredients. Drizzle in olive oil while the ingredients are being blended. The mix should be smooth and creamy. 

Garnish with some paprika, olive oil and some herbs like mint, parsley or cilantro. You can add ground cumin which really compliments the eggplant and tahini. My fiancée, the chef, suggests adding yoghurt to balance out the richness and make the baba ganoush more palatable for first timers.

I served my baba ganoush with some rusk whose dry, hard texture I feel is a perfect compliment to the soft and moist baba ganoush. Traditionally it is served with toasted pita, but I've used crackers, chips and even papad to surprisingly good results. As long as its crunchy, I think anything can  work.

Note: My recipe calls for a generous amount of tahini which is why my baba ganoush is silky smooth and tastes a lot like hummus. You can add as little as you like, or skip the ingredient completely.

No Bake Peanut Butter Pie

This is the last of my Vegan dessert recipes. Only two weeks to go (yay!). And peanut butter had to be it. After all, it is the world's most famous vegan ingredient. Also, a bite of this pie will make you believe that life outside chocolate truly does exist.



This pie is rich and creamy, and trust me its a real crowd pleaser. The filling has an almost ice cream like texture while the crust is crunchy like biscotti. And I'd like to think its one of the healthier desserts out there. Its vegetarian, vegan AND gluten free. I mean what more can you ask for?



Look how gooeyly delicious it looks!

Serves 8

Ingredients:

4 bananas (preferably the long green variety)
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp soy milk (or regular milk if you aren't vegan)

For the base
1 large pack or approx. 20 oreos
1 cup cashew nuts
3 tbsp Hershey's chocolate syrup
A pinch of salt

In a food processor, add all ingredients for the base and blitz. Blending time depends on the kind of crust you want. If you like really fine oreo and cashew bits, obviously it will take longer to blend in the processor. The mixture will form a 'dough' like appearance. You should be able to make a rough ball out of this mixture  i.e: it will hold together very well. Press this evenly in your pie dish to form the crust, and set aside.



To make the filling, blend all the other ingredients in food processor or hand mixer. All ingredients should be mixed and there should be no lumps. Pour this mixture into the pie dish. Refrigerate till set. Freeze for 4-6 hours or until firm.

Allow it to sit for 3-5 mins before serving.

Drizzle with Hershey's chocolate syrup or chopped up nuts to serve

Oreo & Peanut Butter Banana Pops

I did a ton of reading around Vegan desserts and most of them revolve around the humble banana. Its surprising what you can make out of one fruit and how diverse it is.

I got the inspiration for this recipe from BuzzFeed where I stumbled upon a video of someone rolling bananas in granola and chocolate for a tasty breakfast treat. So I thought to myself, why not combine my favourite vegan ingredients?

Serves 1 (Who wants to share?)

1 ripe green banana, chilled (not frozen)
1/2 cup melted dark chocolate
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp soy milk or regular milk if not vegan (optional)
1 pack or 12 oreos crushed as fine or chunky as you prefer
a pinch of salt

You will also need wooden skewers. I trimmed mine down as I cut my bananas in thumb-sized chunks. If using whole or half portioned bananas cut skewers accordingly.

In a bowl mix melted chocolate with peanut butter. Add a dash of soy milk if too thick. You can also add in a neutral tasting oil instead to dilute the mixture. But lets make this dish 'healthy' with soy milk alright? Add a pinch of salt. Salt actually make chocolate taste sweeter!

Place crushed oreos in another bowl. Peel and cut bananas according to preference. I cut my bananas into smaller portions but you can cut it in half or use whole if you prefer. Dip bananas first in the chocolate mix and then roll it in the oreos. Now get ready to dirty your hands. Pick up the banana and insert skewer in the middle.

Eat as is or chill in fridge before devouring!