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FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD….

“For me, the cooking life has been a long love affair, with moments both sublime and ridiculous.”
Anthony Bourdain

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Rice Noodles with Stir-fried Chicken & Veggies…& a mild chili sauce!

And my search goes on, carrying me further into the far-east in search of pan-asian cuisine. Thanks to Andaliman I’ve figured out that there are many more sauces than I ever thought there existed. AB from HomemeadeS gave me some more direction, & I made a chunky chili sauce from her blog. I’m getting there….this meal tasted really nice & with a lot of flavour! Me thinks it was the sauce that did the magic!

IMG 2635A sauce full of flavour…Not too hot & spicy too!

Sambal (chili sauce), is one of Indonesia’s traditional food seasonings. Almost every region in Indonesia has its own special chili sauce with different taste and ingredients.Sambal is thicker and richer tasting than Mexican salsa. It ranges in spiciness. There are a number of varieties which are popular in Indonesia. IMG 2623

I adapted AB’s sweet chili sauce recipe with shallots, garlic, tomatoes, red chilli flakes & tamarind that figured in its long list of ingredients. I used whatever I could find easily & made a chili sauce which wasn’t sweet but turned out really nice.

Chili Sauce from HomemadeS. Recipe link HERE.

Only changes were red onions (iso shallots), lime leaves (iso kafir), demerera sugar (iso palm sugar/reduced too), & no galangal (since its available here in special stores only & I didn’t have time to go).

Ingredients for the main meal:

Chicken – 3 breasts /cut into bite sized pieces
Garlic – 5-6 cloves (chopped fine)
Button mushrooms – 200gms / quartered
Baby corn – 100gms / sliced
Brocolli -1 small head/ divided into florets
Bok choy – 2 heads /chopped
Bell peppers – 1 red/1 yellow/1 green/ diced
Spring Onions – 4-5 / chopped with greens
Cashewnuts – a handful/ dry roasted
Prepared Noodles (with a little love!)

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All chopped up & ready to go…check out the heart!!

Method:

  • Steam brocolli & baby corn separately till crisp tender. Keep aside.
  • Heat oil in a wok & stir fry mushrooms on high till they release their liquid & become dry. Remove from oil & reserve.
  • Add chopped garlic, saute for a minute & add chicken pieces; saute till nicely done.
  • Add 2-3 generous tbsps of chili sauce & lime leaves & give it a good stir.
  • Put back the mushrooms, & also all the remaining vegetables except the spring onions & bok choy. Stir well on high for about 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning.
  • Heat some oil in a big pan & add a tbsp of chili sauce (its not very hot at all), followed by the prepared noodles & stir well.
  • Now add the chicken & veggies to this, & also the spring onions, greens & bok choy. Stir well
  • Top with roasted cashewnuts & serve hot with sauce on the side.

kitchen%2Bof%2BLove%2BLogo

The ‘Kitchen of Love’ invites entries for quote… “an appetizer, dinner dish, or side item that includes at least one food considered an aphrodisiac. As February quickly draws near, so does Valentine’s Day. While commercialism causes the adverse effect for many, Valentine’s Day remains a day for love, etching a small moment for adornment and thoughtfulness into our busy lives. And so, I have decided to host an event that celebrates Valentine’s Day and many food aphrodisiacs that offer endless possibilities to this affectionate day.”…unquote.

collage 1This is my entry for the loverly event…& to wrap it up with dessert, do head to Zorra’s site!

About me: I am a freelance food writer, recipe developer and photographer. Food is my passion - baking, cooking, developing recipes, making recipes healthier, using fresh seasonal produce and local products, keeping a check on my carbon footprint and being a responsible foodie! I enjoy food styling, food photography, recipe development and product reviews. I express this through my food photographs which I style and the recipes I blog. My strength lies in 'Doing Food From Scratch'; it must taste as good as it looks, and be healthy too. Baking in India, often my biggest challenge is the non-availability of baking ingredients, and this has now become a platform to get creative on. I enjoy cooking immensely as well.

11 Comments

  • Andaliman

    hiiii, finally you made your own sambal.. You got a recipe from mbak Arfi of Homamades, she is one of the most talented food blogger I’ve known

  • Chris

    This looks beautiful! All the colors are lovely and i can imagine how tasty it is. And, I love that you got the recipe from Arfi. I am a huge fan of hers! Thanks for participating in Kitchen of Love!

  • Purnima

    Whoaaaaaaaaaa Deeba, thats a lovely looking sambar 😀 ok ok sambal..and your pics are awesome,crockery glamorous, the pic singles out each ingredient in the end product, leaving me to drool for hours together!!!

  • Susan from Food Blogga

    You’ve done a great job, Deeba. Not only does this sambal sound wonderfully tempting but it’s also photographed so enticingly.

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