Shrimp & Garlic Tagliatelle With Roasted Cherry Tomatoes & Feta Cheese

Hello boys and girls!

Welcome to cooking with Varun! When I was living in the UK, my roommate, Ms. Popularity, and I would often go out for a movie (or two) followed by dinner on the weekends (when she wasn't out gallivanting with suitors). Traditionally, we'd go out for big juicy burgers or spicy south east Asian food and on some occasions some good old desi fare. Over a period of months, Ms. Popularity, who tends to experiment rather less with her food than I do, got bored of frequenting the usual joints and wanted to go someplace different. Now, I'm not particularly fond of Italian fare; I'll eat a pizza, sure, but pasta has never really floated my boat, and for several months I had been successful at distracting Ms. Popularity from the Italian restaurants that dotted our little town centre. Until that day..

It was a regular weekend, we had just watched a movie and were descending the escalator to go to the toy store downstairs (because, let's face it, toy stores are awesome!) when Ms. Popularity spotted the Italian restaurant across the floor. As her eyes lit up, a sigh escaped my lips. I knew what was coming, so I did what any grown man would do in such a situation; I rushed into the toy store and tried to hide behind the shelf with the action figures and light sabers (would someone please buy me one?). Unfortunately, in my hurry to make myself scarce, it slipped my mind that I had dragged Ms. Popularity into the store a thousand times and that she would know exactly where I'd be. Sure enough, 6 seconds later I was found out, and 5 minutes later, we were seated in the Italian restaurant as I tried my best to hide my sneer behind the menu.

She ordered something with tomatoes (I think) and I ordered something with shrimp and as I was eating, as I often do, I thought, 'I can cook this!' and so, a few weeks later, when my fridge was bare, I found some tagliatelle in the back of the cupboard, a pack of shrimp that would go off in a day, and proceeded to throw together a rare pasta dish. As luck would have it, it turned out pretty good and even won me some brownie points with my roommate.

For my  Shrimp & Garlic Tagliatelle With Roasted Cherry Tomatoes & Feta Cheese, you will need the following:

Tagliatelle (flat noodle pasta)   300 gms
Shrimp/Prawns                      200 gms (try and get the cooked ones)
Garlic                                    5-6 cloves
Parsley                                  handful
Cherry tomatoes                    10
Feta cheese                           medium sized block
Salt                                       to taste
Pepper                                  to taste
Olive oil

Prep:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 C.
2. Slice the garlic.
3. Chop the parsley.
4. Cube the feta as best you can.
5. De-vein the shrimp (if they aren't already).
6. Cut the tomatoes into halves.
7. Lay the tomatoes curved side down on a grease papered oven tray.
8. Sprinkle on a nice big pinch of salt and pepper.
9. Stick the tray in the oven for 8-10 minutes. (Keep checking that they don't burn, to be on the safe side.)

Method:

1. Turn on the gas.
2. Bung a saucepan on.
3. Pour water in until it is about 3/4th full.
4. Pinch in some salt.
5. Splash in some olive oil.
6. Slide in the tagliatelle.
7. Bring the water to a boil.
8. Drop the heat a little and let it simmer.
9. Turn on another burner.
10. Bung a pan on.
11. Splash in some olive oil.
12. Chuck in the garlic.
13. Toss in the shrimp.
14. Throw on the parsley.
15. Cook until the shrimp turn a light pink. (If you're using cooked prawns, only cook for a minute or so or else the shrimp will curl up into a tight ball.)
16. If your pasta is cooked, turn off the burner, drain the water from the saucepan and stick the pasta in with the shrimp.
17. Add in the roasted cherry tomatoes.
18. Mix well.
19. Add salt (and a pinch of pepper) to taste.
20. Add in the cubed feta cheese.
21. Top it with a generous splash of olive oil.
22. Mix well.
23. Serve with a glass of chilled white wine and warm garlic bread.
24. Stuff face.
25. Bask in the glory of your successfully executed dish.

Tip: This is best eaten hot! Once the feta starts to melt and the pasta goes cold, you will be left with a sticky mess that isn't very pleasant.

And remember, overeating is a myth. A full tummy is a happy tummy!

Paneer Wraps

Hello boys and girls,

Welcome to cooking with Varun! Back in 2005, when I first started working, I was (along with a bunch of others) relocated to Bangalore for 3 months for training before we were ready to face the real world. This was the first time that I, the baby bird, was leaving the nest for any length of time so there was a lot of anxiety and fear as to what might lie ahead. Thankfully, since I was a campus recruit, I wasn't alone and I had a few friends going with me which made the transition a little less harrowing.

After a 17 hour long train journey, we stepped off the train and on to the platform in Bangalore where we all split up to go our temporary sleeping arrangements (my place was actually really good since I was crashing with my best friend's brother for a bit). A few days later, I moved into a (very crowded) paying guest accommodation at the National Games Village where I was pleasantly surprised to find among all the South Indian tenants, 2 guys from Punjab and a Delhiite, and we immediately hit it off. Of the boys from Punjab, one was long and lanky and the other was buff and hairy; the Delhiite, my roommate, was tall, broad and a fervent admirer of the Indian armed forces. One evening, a few weeks in, after I had grudgingly finished yet another mystery dinner that the cook had made, I found the boys in the kitchen attempting to boil milk. I'm not entirely sure what events transpired (perhaps the milk was old) but they had managed to get the milk to start curdling. Long & Lanky was looking frustrated while Buff & Hairy was giving him a dressing down (Army Lover was watching with an amused expression). With a pained expression Long & Lanky turned the gas off to pour the curdled milk down the drain when inspiration struck me. I instructed Long & Lanky to put the milk patila (saucepan) on the shelf and told Buff & Hairy to find his cleanest handkerchief. I then boiled a fresh packet of milk and squeezed in a lemon to curdle it and poured the curdled milk through the hanky to make paneer. Then using a recipé I had seen my mum use countless times, I proceeded to cook my first ever dish (instant noodles don't count), paneer bhurji. Army Lover then assisted the others in making parathas that the 3 of them wolfed down in record time and all was well with the world again.

This recipé, is also a paneer recipé and while it takes a little more effort, it makes for a pretty nifty alternative to regular dinner. Plus the kids love it! (I'm assuming. I don't have kids yet but I'll be sure to ask them when I do.)

For Paneer Wraps, you will need the following:

Paneer                                    300 gms
Onion                                      1 1/2 large
Tomato                                   1 medium
Green pepper (capsicum)            1/2 of a large one
Red chilli powder                       2-3 tsp
Dhaniya (coriander) powder         2-3 tsp
Jeera (cumin) powder                1 tsp
Amchoor (dry mango) powder     1 tsp
Ginger garlic paste                    1 tsp
Green chillies                            1-2 
Lemon                                     1
Salt                                         to taste
Oil

Prep:

1. Cut your store bought paneer into cubes.
2. Grab a bowl.
3. Dump the cubed paneer in.
4. Fill with hot water until the paneer is submerged.
5. Leave to soften.
6. Mince one onion.
7. Slice the remaining onion.
8. Blitz the tomato.
9. Chop the chillies.
10. Cube the green pepper.

Method:

Filling:

1. Turn on the gas.
2. Bung a pan on.
3. Splash in some oil.
4. Count to 20.
5. Add in the minced onion.
6. Duck.
7. Straighten up.
8. Cook the onion until light brown.
9. Pop in the ginger garlic paste.
10. Cook until the onion gets a nice dark brown (don't burn it!).
11. Sprinkle in the red chilli, dhaniya, jeera, and amchoor powders.
12. Mix well.
13. Pour in the tomato. (You can stick in some pureé if you have some. It will give it a lovely dark colour.)
14. Cook until the oil separates from the mixture.
15. Drain the paneer.
16. Pop in the cubed paneer and green pepper.
17. Mix until they are coated well with the masalas.
18. Add salt to taste.
19. Splash in some water. (Some, not a lot. You want it dryish but not too dry.)
20. Slap on a lid.
21. Leave to cook for a few minutes.
22. Take the lid off.
23. Adjust the consistency as required.
24. Turn the gas off.
25. Set aside.

Wrap:

Traditionally this would be a maida based roti, but the pre-cooked or frozen laccha parathas work just as well.

Plating:

1. Grab a roti.
2. Spread it out.
3. Spoon in the filling along the diameter.
4. Throw on some sliced onion.
5. Add in a couple pieces of the chopped chilli.
6. Squeeze on some lime juice.
7. Sprinkle on some amchoor (or chaat masala).
8. Roll.
9. Serve with green chutney.
10. Stuff face.
11. Bask in the glory of your successfully executed dish.

Tip: Eat/serve these as you roll them. Don't be polite and wait. They don't taste nearly as good when they're soggy!

And remember, overeating is a myth. A full tummy is a happy tummy!