If you are a young cook and you love cooking, then you know that the kitchen is your wonderland where you play with dough, experiment with flavor, roast, flame and cook recipes that have been passed down to you from generations and have been tested by professional chefs in their cookbooks. But often, it so happens that we want to push the boundary. Make something extra special or just different to make a dish which is unconventional and totally untested. The best part is, it tastes delicious and that is what I also do in my kitchen. For me, trying new recipes is a much more exciting venture than simply following old recipes. Some of my new and unconventional recipes have also been tested by my friends and they have all turned out to be simply DELICIOUS!!
Let me share some of my favorite recipes with you:
Pizza Maggi:
No there’s no pizza dough involved in this recipe, but it sure tastes like pizza when it’s done.
Ingredients:
Maggi Noodles – 2 packets
Onion – 1
Tomato – 1
Green chilli – 1
Carrot (optional) – 1
Cucumber – 0.5
Green bell pepper
Vinegar
Soya sauce
Chilli sauce
Salt (to taste)
Chilli flakes
Black sesame seeds
Instructions:
Put 4 cups of water to boil for the noodles.
Slice the onion and chilli and soak them in the vinegar.
Slice your carrots, green bell pepper and cucumber in a desired shape and toss them in a hot frying pan with chilli sauce and chilli flakes.
Slice a tomato in circular slices and heat a frying pan. Arrange the tomato slices in the frying pan and just when they start to sizzle, add soya sauce until the slices are immersed in it. Keep turning the slices until the soya sauce dries and caramelizes.
Add the noodles and the taste maker to boiling water and wait for them to cook. It will take ten to fifteen minutes.
Once done, put them in a bowl.
Layer the onion and chilli marinade over the noodles, followed by carrot, bell pepper and cucumber and top with soya sauce tomato slices. Garnish with black sesame seeds.
It tastes amazing and has almost zero calories.
Porridge Sweet and Sour:
Usually we eat porridge with milk and sugar and many people don’t like that flavour so try a new twist on this staple food to keep fit.
Ingredients:
Porridge – 1 cup
Onion – 1
Tomato – 1
Cucumber – 1
Green bell pepper – 1
Mushrooms – 3 pieces
Salt (to taste)
Pepper
Chilli flakes
Vinegar – 1 tablespoon
Soya Sauce – 1 tablespoon
Chilli Sauce – 1 tablespoon
Honey – 1.5 tablespoon
Italian herbs – 1.5 teaspoon
Instructions:
Put one cup of porridge in two cups of water and let it boil.
Meanwhile, dice the vegetables finely and put into a non-stick frying pan.
Add the sauces to the pan and mix.
Add honey and mix well.
Taste and add salt, pepper and chilli flakes according to taste.
The porridge should be cooked be now. It should be soft and fluffy.
Add the porridge to the frying pan and mix well.
Top with Italian herbs and turn the stove off.
The savoury taste of the porridge is definitely going to take you on a flavoursome ride.
Salty Pancakes:
Do you like your pancakes sticky and sweet? If no, then there is another way to make them and it does not involve sugar.
Ingredients:
Flour – 1 cup
Egg – 1
Milk – 1/5 cup
Baking powder – 1 teaspoon
Salt – a pinch
Instructions:
Put flour and baking powder in a bowl.
Add egg and whisk well.
Add milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth and flowing.
Heat a frying pan and add half a teaspoon of oil. Spread it across the pan.
Pour a little mixture in the middle of the pan and then spread it around till the edges by holding its handle.
Let it cook until the edges easily rise and with a spatula, flip it over. You will have a nice golden color.
Cook on the other side until golden and then put it on the plate.
You can make these pancakes anytime. You can use them as sandwich breads or as a base for a great topping. It is your shortcut to pita bread and pizza crust.
Enjoy!!
Contributed by: Aamnah Jawaad.
