Low Calorie Mashed aubergine dip

Low Calorie Mashed aubergine dip 

Sometimes you will be amazed by how much similarity we have throughout this wide wide world. Take the case of the simple roasted aubergine. In India there is spicy robust Punjabi 'Baingan Da bharta' then there is a simpler Bengali version where you just add chopped onions, roasted spices, fresh coriander and it has a fresh taste . Much later in life I learnt to make Baba ghanoush and fell in love with this Middle Eastern delight. Then I discovered a light soupy dish made with roast eggplants from the South of India. There is also a version from Eastern Europe.

Anyway other than the culinary connection roast aubergine can be a delightfully healthy dish and the best part is it makes for a super healthy dip. Now with all the World Cup Madness I realized one thing snacking is not an option when the football field is on fire. Well here is a thought ditch the chips, ditch the nachos , well you can always have baked potatoes but then it doesn't have than thin crispy crunch so here is something which is unusual yet makes for a delightfully healthy snack. Mashed aubergine with dry roasted stale chapatis which makes for an addictive snacks and its healthy low on calorie and utterly delicious.

Serves 2

2 medium sized aubergine
3 to 4 stale chapatis
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp  extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds
3 large cloves of garlic
Salt as per taste
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp lemon juice
Half a large tomato chopped into tiny pieces


Simply roast the eggplants over gas stove and then when cool enough to handle mash with a fork and take off the skin and then blend the garlic, sesame, cumin, 1 tbsp olive oil  and add the mashed aubergine and blend away some more to create a smooth dip. Now take a girdle and heat it and then turn the gas flame to low and cut triangular shaped crisps from stale chapatis and dry roast till crispy. The flame must always be on low else you shall burn them. Once completely crisp drizzle the extra virgin olive oil on the crispy chapati triangles and enjoy with the dip.

Sesame Chili Grilled Chicken

Sesame Chili Grilled Chicken 

The truth is I get these strange cravings at times. I mean I literally can taste the imagined taste that I crave in my mind and then until I satisfy my taste bud's cravings I feel very uncomfortable. So last evening, I had this particular craving for something spicy. Well, coming from the land of spices one might be confused when I further say that for me its more so a craving for hot food and not just any hot food but succulent juicy chicken with a dominant flavour of red chili.

So at 8 in the evening I went to marinate some chicken and what followed amused me. I was going to make my favourite marination where I basically throw in Garlic, apple cider vinegar, whole red chilies and olive oil when the jar of sesame seeds caught my attention. You see I have this incredible love for sesame and what I particularly fondly remember is my favourite blogger from Lebanon writing about a marination for a kebab where out of many ingredients sesame seeds and cumin were my favourite and the ones readily available to me. So ultimately this is what happened , I created this dish which can be part of no cuisine yet has its inspiration from the Middle East but writing down the recipe is for the lovely people I interact with on Chef at Large. You see when I posted the pictures for my chicken I seriously did not expect that some love members would want the recipe for my chicken where I threw in things would which isn't part of any cuisine. Well these indeed are the small yet delightful joys of life.

What you need for the recipe

200gm chicken with bones - I prefer the legs and wings

For the marination

4 large cloves of garlic
1 tsp cumin seeds
3 tbsp sesame seeds
4 whole red chilies (The spiciest variety you can find)
I used my homemade hot sauce but in case you don't have homemade hot sauce increase the number of whole red chilies to 8
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt as per taste

Simply blend everything from the marination to a smooth paste and marinate the chicken for at least 2 hours or overnight and grill it. I use a Convection Oven from Samsung in India and I grilled it in the grill mode for 20 minutes on one side and 11 minutes on the other. My chicken was soft succulent, juicy and melt in the mouth .

P.S. When blending everything a few sesame seeds might refuse to become part of the marination , don't worry about it simply marinate the chicken with everything