
Tag Archives: recipe
Macaroni served with Olives & Onions on Ciabatta bread
I picked up the recipe from a book full of barbecue recipes Pinaki had. Ciabatta bread was easy to find at Geantt. Just had to caramelize some onions in brown sugar, chop olives and toast the bread.
Recipe: Pita Pan Pizza (15 mins only)

Dubai is all about options & variety. But in this abundance, I’ve struggled to find freshly baked pizza bases. You will find the frozen ones, but I’m not a fan. In the bakery section, what came closest was the flat, Egyptian pita bread. My only worry was if it would stand another round of baking or end up like a crisp tortilla. But how would I know without trying?
Ingredients:
- Pita bread (pack of 4)
- Tandoori or Shredded chicken (or leftover tikkas or other meat)
- Mozzarella cheese
- Tomato ketchup
- Sliced onions, capsicum & tomatoes
- Oregaon, Salt & Pepper to taste
- Butter
Preparation:
- Apply butter to both sides of the pita bread. Continue reading Recipe: Pita Pan Pizza (15 mins only)
Recipe: Grilled Chicken Salsa Sandwich
This is probably the laziest sandwiches I’ve ever made. Honestly, typing & formatting the entire recipe will take longer than it takes to make it.

Preparation:
- Shredded some left over grill chicken, and mixed it with mayo, salsa and black pepper.
- Sliced some lettuce & half an onion.
- Buttered brown bread on both sides, and assembled as shown. You can add more veggies and cheese as you’d like
- Put it into the griller for 6-8 mins until it toasted
- Voila!
Recipe: Chicken Mayo Sandwich
Preparation:
- Slice some lettuce & tomatoes
- Mix together mayo, milk (to reduce the fat footprint), shredded chicken & black pepper
- Assemble on bread or finger rolls

Recipe: Chicken or Paneer Tacos
- Taco shells
- Lettuce leaves
- Chopped capsicum, olives, onions
- Baked beans
- Salsa dip
- Chicken/Paneer
- Mozzarella cheese
- Salt, pepper, oregano
Preparation:
- Warm taco shells for about 30 sec (for 3 shells)
- Lay lettuce at the bottom, and layer it with baked beans and salsa
- To save time, I premix baked beans, salsa, Tabasco (if you like it spicy)
- Add chopped veggies, and chicken/paneer
- Sprinkle some salt, pepper and oregano
- Grate cheese on the top, and microwave another 30 sec for the cheese to melt
Recipe: Dahi Sev Puri
I love my sev puri crunchy. The trick I learned from my regular bhaiya was to add a layer of sev right after the potatoes so keep the base crunchy, and avoid sogginess once the chutney’s are added. Hope you enjoy it. Takes no more than 15 minutes to prepare.
Ingredients:
- Papdi puri
- Mashed potatoes (I literally use instant mashed potato)
- Nylon sev
- Chopped onions, tomatoes, corriander
- Chana dal
- Tamarind chutney
- Chili chutney (or Maggi Hot & Sweet sauce)
- Yoghurt (whipped, sweetened)
- Chat masala, salt

Procedure:
- Lay the puris on a flat plate and top up ingredients in the mentioned order
- Garnish with nylon sev and corriander
Recipe: Baked chapatti rolls with chicken & veggies

Every relation demands trade-off & adjustment. It is nearly impossible to find harmony in all choices. Aditi & I also took a hit on compatibility in some areas – food was one. I am a complete foodie, and she’s a great cook. I love chicken & chapattis, while she loves fish & rice. But when I cook, I try to make things that will go past her choices. Like all kids who hate plain chapattis, she loved the variation of baked rolls with chicken, cheese & veggies.
Ingredients:
- 2 onions, sliced
- 1 green capsicum, chopped
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- Tomato ketchup
- Chilli powder
- Oregano
- Chat masala
- Salt, to taste
- Butter
- 6 Chicken tandoori kebabs (or shredded chicken) – or replace with cottage cheese (paneer) for a veggie version
- 4 chapattis
- Cheese – grated mozzarella & slices for topping
Procedure:
Vegetable stuffing
- Heat some butter in a pan, and place garlic cloves
- Add all vegetables, tomato ketchup and salt to taste
- Saute vegetables until cooked

Assembling the rolls
- Butter both sides of each chapatti
- Place the vegetable stuffing at the center, and top with chicken or paneer
- Grate mozzarella cheese, sprinkle oregano/chat masala to taste
- Roll ’em up, and place cheese slices on top for an extra cheesy taste
Continue reading Recipe: Baked chapatti rolls with chicken & veggies
Recipe: Baked chicken sandwich
Continuing with recipes using shredded chicken as the key ingredient, here is another one that I was keen on trying.
Ingredients:

- 8 slices of Multi-grain/Whole-wheat bread
- 2 Tomatoes, sliced
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1 Garlic clove
- 1 Egg, whipped
- 2 tbsp Milk
- 4 Cheese slices
- Olive Oil (or butter)
- Shredded chicken
- Barbecue sauce
- Mustard sauce
- Pepper
- Chili flakes
- Lemon juice
- Thyme (optional)
- Red wine (optional)
Procedure:

- Add Barbecue sauce, Mustard sauce, Pepper, Chili flakes, Lemon juice, and if available Red wine & Thyme to the shredded chicken. Leave it to marinate for an hour
- Heat some butter in a saucepan to saute the onions with garlic. Once cooked, add the chicken and mix well.
- Grease the baking tray and lay bread slices.
- Layer the chicken, tomato slices, cheese and sprinkle salt/pepper to taste. Cover the top with a slice.
- Add some milk, and beat the egg. Pour this over the top slice.
- Place the tray in an oven, and bake at 375′ for 30 mins.
Serve hot!
Recipe: Shredded Chicken

In an earlier recipe, I mentioned my plans to write a cookbook, exclusive to recipes using shredded chicken as the key ingredient. This post is chapter 1: “Preparing your key ingredient“. As simple as it sounds, boiling chicken is an art. The trick is to cook the chicken without leaving it too dry. And here is how:
Procedure:
- Take enough water in a large vessel to fit the chicken pieces and bring it to boil – WITHOUT the chicken
- Cut the chicken breasts (or other pieces) into sizable chunks
- Once the water is boiling, reduce the flame & drop the chicken pieces into the vessel
- While the chicken boils, keep skimming the foamy protein that floats on the top (as shown below)