Korean Barbecue Chicken

I got this recipe from a korean friend while I was working at HGS (Human Genome Sciences) in Maryland. Once a month we would have cuisine from a different part of the world and it was a great way to taste new dishes and exchange recipes.

INGREDIENTS:

sesame seeds 3 tbsp heaped. Roast these seeds on a dry skillet till brown as seen in picture on right. Mash them roughly in a mortar. Keep half aside.

ginger 1" thinly sliced
soy sauce 1/2 cup
shallots 1sliced thinly into circles
scallion 1 bunch thinly sliced

chicken 2 lbs thinly sliced against the grain as seen in picture

20 8" bamboo skewers

Mix all the ingredients with chicken and marinate for 2 hrs at room temperature or overnight in refrigerator. Skewer the chicken. Broil on high for 5 min and then turn and broil for another 5 mins. This can also be microwaved on a plate, covered with wax paper for 5 mins on high heat. Barbecue on the grill in summer.

Sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds on chicken and serve with wild rice (cooked per directions on packet) and fruit salad.

Bajji or Fritters (vaamu aku, Paneer or any cheese or vegetable)

Today is a great day to start a food journal I have been thinking of doing for a while. My mom dropped in for a surprise visit driving 5 hrs. This calls for a special dish, nice hot bajjis with hot tea.
Vaamu aku is a leaf that smells like oregano(picture below). My mom managed to get a little piece of this stem from a friend and passed it on to me. Over the years it has become a big plant. Everyone in my family love these bajjis and the plant grows rapidly so we can make these atleast twice a month.




INGREDIENTS:
15 vammu aku or 15 slices of onion, potatoes or eggplant/aubergine sliced into thin circles
paneer 1/2 block sliced thin or any cheese (mozarella, cheddar, provolone )
6 jalapeno peppers slit into half and sliced into 2 pieces

1 tsp cummin seeds
5 garlic pods
1/2 tsp asafoetida powder (bottle shown in picture)
1 tsp cayenne pepper

Chick pea flour or besan 3/4 cup
Rice flour 1 cup
salt and pepper to taste
water 1 1/2 cups
METHOD: Heat oil in a vessel. Meanwhile smash the garlic and cummin in a mortar. Mix all the ingredients except water. Slowly add water and stir with fork to get a mixture of consistency shown in below picture.

Wash and pat the leaves dry with a paper towel. Check if the oil is hot by adding a little drop of batter in it. It should fry immediately into a brown color. Dip the leaves, vegetables or cheese pieces individually in the batter and fry at medium heat till brown on both sides.

Fry the bajjis or fritters till brown on both sides. Take them out and dry on paper towels. These can be served in several ways.

1) Served with chutney (recipe another day) or any dip or ketchup.

2) Thinly chop 1 onion, a small bunch of cilantro and mix with lemon juice, salt and cayenne pepper. Make bean curry (recipe soon to follow). Slit the bajjis into half lengthwise. Stuff with a small spoonful of bean curry and onions. Squeeze extra lime juice on top and serve. Bajji in center is stuffed.