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Saturday 27 July 2019

Jo’s Homemade Tandoori Chicken



If you have been reading my restaurant reviews, then you know MR R is a big Tandoori chicken fan.
As it is monsoon here in Goa, his favourite restaurant, for what he claims the best tandoori @ Ryan’z Bar, Candolim, Goa, has closed for a while, why the boys take a well-earned break. Consequently he is craving a tandoori fix.
Therefore, today I pulled out my homemade recipe and he was one happy little bunny.


Jo’s Homemade Tandoori Chicken.
Serves 2

GET WHAT YOU NEED
2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

FOR THE MARINADE
3 cloves     
1 Tsp coriander seeds      
1 Tsp cumin seeds      
Seeds from 3 cardamom pods      
1 small onion     
¼ Tsp ginger & garlic paste         
 ¾ Tsp turmeric     
 ½ green chilli seeded      
½ Tsp Garam Masala      
 1 Tsp Kashmiri paprika       
salt & pepper   4 Tbsp. plain yoghurt

NOW MARINATE!

1.     Firstly, score each breast, several times with a sharp knife.
2.     Put the chicken into a freezer/food bag, add the lemon juice. Seal the bag and shake well, so all of the chicken is coated in the juice.
3.     Put the bag into a bowl, and pop into the fridge for 1/2hr.

While you are waiting, now make the spice mix.

1.     Roughly chop onion and put into a processor/grinder with the all the spices, ginger & garlic paste, green chilli, salt and pepper. Blitz for a little while then add the yoghurt. Grind until smooth.
2.     When the ½ hr is up, tip the spiced yoghurt into the bag with the chicken. Seal and shake well.
3.     Put bag back into bowl and into the fridge for a few hours min (You can even leave it in the fridge for 24 hours, if you want to prepare it the day before.)
Why do I keep stressing, about putting the bag back in the bowl? Cross contamination of raw chicken is dangerous.
A.    This means never use anything that has come into contact with raw chicken on cooked foods without washing them thoroughly first. This includes your hands, chopping boards, knives, kitchen cloths, dishes and plates, barbecue tongs, basting brush. 
B.    Never wash chicken. Water or spray-back from the tap is one of the easiest ways of spreading the bacteria.
C.     Cover raw chicken well and store it on the bottom shelf of the fridge to lower the risk of any raw juices potentially dripping on other items in your fridge.
D.    Use an antibacterial sanitiser on any kitchen surface or fridge space that happens to come into contact with raw chicken.
                     Better to be safe than sorry!

NOW COOK
1.     Preheat oven, 200/400/gas 6
2.     Transfer the marinated chicken to a roasting tin, or oven proof dish. Make sure you get all that marinate out of the bag.
3.     Cook for 25-30 minutes. However check the chicken is cooked right through first.
4.      Preheat the grill and place the chicken still in the tin or dish and grill until crispy.
5.     Serve with a cucumber Rita and salad.  You can also serve on a bed of rice or noodles.  Chips, and/or Indian bread.

For the Rita, you can make as much as you want. It’s just yoghurt and shredded cucumber.  I tend to use 6 Tbsps. yoghurt and ½ a shredded cucumber for 2.
Salad: I prefer to shred: cabbage, white radish, carrot, cucumber, beetroot and chopped spring onions mixed together with apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper. 



Wednesday 24 July 2019

Lunchtime review Krishna’s Café - Panjim Goa



I was contacted by Krishna’s Café via Instagram, to sample their Famous Mumbai’s Amul Pav- Bhaji.
On this recommendation, Mr and I scheduled a visit during our shopping trip to Panjim, on Monday.




First Impression
A bit of a Subway vibe going on, with the light wood tables, steel chairs and colourful murals. Downstairs are a four tables, with more seating upstairs. Both areas were clean, tidy and well maintained.



The menu is small, but offering a good selection of snacks, sandwiches, thali, Bhaji, Mocktails, juices, ice cream and hot beverages.
All the staff, very pleasant and attentive.
There is also a toilet and hand wash area upstairs, again clean and looked after.



What We Ordered
Mr R and I decided to share two meals. Krishna’s Veg Thali and as recommended, Mumbai’s Amul Pav-Bhaji.



Mumbai’s Amul Pav-Bhaji Rupees 80/£0.93 /€1.04 /$ 1.16  
A Pav-Bhaji began a fast food lunch for Mumbai’s mill workers in the Mid-eighteen hundreds. Now served in restaurants and street carts around India and aboard.
There are many variations of Pav -Bhaji, but it is essentially a spiced mixture of mashed vegetables in a thick gravy and served hot with a soft white bread roll.

If you worry about your cholesterol, then I suggest to choose the plain Pav-Bhaji. This dish is seriously a butter overdose. A warm bread roll soaked in butter. As I type I can almost feel it dribbling down my chin. The bhaji itself, was very tasty. Not spicy just pure indulgence of a buttery decadence. Combing the accompaniment of chopped onion, really enhanced the flavour for me. 5/5



Full Veg Thali Rupees 110/£1.28/€1.43 /$1.60  
Thali is actually the name of the metal plate it is served on. The idea of this dish is, it combines all the six flavours for a balanced meal. Sweet, salt, bitter, sour, astringent and spicy.

This dish, rocked my world. Three Sabzi (vegetable curries and pickle)
The paneer (Firm cottage cheese) and mutter (pea) was awesome. A good portion of paneer and peas, in a superb, thick gravy.  Pepper sabzi was scrummy.
Two potato fritters, in a light batter. Just right for dipping!
A good size portion of rice, 2 chapatti, 2 poppadum’s and yoghurt. The sweet custard and fruit was very good.
On a negative point the dal was wishy, washy. In fact it wasn’t nice at all, and skimpy salad. Nevertheless because I loved everything else, the flavours and value for money, I am still going to give the thali 5/5



THE SCORES:
FIRST IMPRESSIONS 4/5  STAFF  (I give this only because, in the downstairs eating area was an electric fly catcher on the floor. It put me off a little hearing it cissing. Although I noticed it had been removed as we were leaving. )
SERVICE 5/5
HYGIENE 4/5  (Again the fly catcher. )
FOOD 5/5 5/5   







     OVERALL SCORE 4.6 Red Hot chillies 










Would I go again? Oh yes, will certainly be back. Great food, good service and my favourite- value for money.
Thank you Krishna’s Café for inviting us.










Krishna’s café
18th June Road Panjim
Next to HDFC Bank, opp Yes Bank
Instagram @Kirshnascafe.panjim




Saturday 20 July 2019

MOREISH MONSOON TREATS- Jo’s Cumin and Coriander Cheese Scones.


I was actually going to make a batch of herb scones for tea today, when I realised I’d forgotten to buy mixed herbs. It was then inspiration struck. At Christmas I bought some cumin biscuits to accompany the other crackers for my cheese board. The combination worked well, so I thought what the heck, let’s try it. The addition of the fresh coriander, came while I was weighing out my ingredients.


Jo’s Cumin, Coriander and Cheese Scones
Makes 8
Get what you need
225g plain flour      ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda      ½ tsp salt      40g margarine      2tsp cumin seeds      2 tbsp fresh chopped coriander      75g grated cheese      150ml milk      ½ tsp lemon juice      1tbsp tomato puree      milk for brushing
NOW COOK!
1.     Preheat oven to 200 C/gas 6/400 F
2.     Put the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt in a bowl, and rub in the margarine until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3.     Mix in the cumin seeds and fresh coriander, and half the cheese.
4.     In a jug or bowl, combine the milk, lemon juice and tomato puree.
5.     Pour over the flour mixture and mix to form a firm dough.
6.     Roll out to approx. 2cm thickness, and with a 5cm pastry cutter cut out round in the dough. Repeat with left over dough.
7.     Place scones on a baking sheet, lightly brush with milk, and sprinkle remaining cheese over the top of each.
8.     Bake for 20 minutes, or until well risen and springy.

I served these with peppery cream cheese and a sprinkling of dried chilli flakes.

Thursday 18 July 2019

I have another new blog.


JoTalks-Food Books Travel Lifestyle
Follow my love of writing, food, travel, restaurant reviews and showcases. Places of interest, and people I meet along the way.

So if you a following both my Author Blog and my Goa and Beyond blog, rather than flitting from one blog to another please try my new blog.
Please note I will still be posting on here and my other blog as well.
Thanks Jo 😍 📚🍲👤👪👫

Thursday 11 July 2019

Fun Day Out for All – CBT Go Karting, Moira, Derbyshire.


The summer holidays are approaching fast, and that means thinking of new, fun and exciting things to do with the kids. Well look no further than CBT Go Karting. A fun morning/afternoon not just for the kids, but something for the whole family to enjoy.
But you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy Go Karting, adults are welcome too!


So head on down to Moira Furnace and experience the drive of your life.
There are three brilliant routes you can enjoy:





Along the Canal to Donisthorpe










Follow the old train line to Conkers














Take in the beautiful views and scenery of Sarah’s Woods.




Karts for All:

Children’s karts available for ages 4-8 (Booking early for these karts are advised as only
a limited amount available.)
Adult Karts 8 years to adult
Price per Kart £6 per hour of pure fun.
Group booking available but please pre book.

Where to find us






CBT is not just about Go Karts



CBT Coalville Ltd

Specialise in repair and refurbishment of all makes and models of carbon fibre bikes. We also offer full re-sprays and touch ups. So, if your frame is looking a little tired or you just fancy a new look, give us a call or pop in for a chat. Alongside repairs and paintwork, we also offer full bike services to any make or model of bicycle not just carbon. We have 3 price options to cover all budgets from just a check over and re-set of brakes and gears to a full complete strip and re-build with new cables. A Plus side to having qualified Mechanics is that you can bring in a full bike for a repair and we will happily strip, repair, paint and re-build so you can ride it out the door again without having to send your bike to your local bike shop and then to us. We can do it all! Let me now introduce our amazing team: Julie looks after the office and mans the telephones and basically keeps us all organised and up to date with all your questions and requests. Then we would like to introduce Neil ........ Neil is THE MAN He does all the carbon repairs and makes your frames safe and fit for purpose again! He is also our wonderfully talented painter who turns your bike back to its former Glory or has the vision to help you decide something completely new if you fancy a change. Neil is also our Mechanic and looks after all the technical needs of your pride and glory.

So, we would all like to say thank you for your business and look out for the posts on Facebook. Twitter and Instagram of all the repairs we are doing to show the before and after picture

We are always at the end of the phone and happy to give advice anytime
Follow
Twitter @cbt_ltd