Category Archives: Recipes-Healthy Appetizer

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Chicken Tikka (Low Carb Indian Recipes)

Category:Indian Dietitian Online,Recipes-Healthy Appetizer Tags : 

 An excellent source of protein, cooked chicken offers a wide range of nutritional benefits. Besides protein, it also contains vitamin B12, B6 & niacin and minerals like Zinc, Magnesium and Selenium.

For those on a low carb diet, you can pair this Chicken Tikka with a bowl of salad and some grilled veggies.

Ingredients for Chicken Tikka:

Chicken thighs: 1 kg ( cut into 2″ pieces)

Ginger garlic paste : 2 tbsp

Kashmiri chili powder:4 tsp.

Lemon juice: Juice of 1 lemon

Oil/ Butter/Ghee: 3 Tbsp

Besan:  2 Tbsp

Turmeric powder :¼ tsp

Yogurt : ½ cup

Black salt : ¼ tsp

Garam Masala powder:  1½ tsp

Chat masala : ½ tsp

Salt: to taste

Method:

  1. Roast the besan in a kadai till you get the cooked aroma. Let it cool.
  2. Make the marinade for the Chicken tikka with all the ingredients mentioned. Taste the marinade for salt/seasonings.
  3. Add the cut and cleaned chicken pieces into the marinade and mix well to coat all the pieces.
  4. Let it marinade overnight (or at least for 3-4 hours)
  5. Preheat the oven to 180C.
  6. Place the chicken on a tray and bake for about 20 mins.
  7. Take the tray out, brush the drippings all over the pieces. Turn them over, brush again with the drippings and some butter and bake for another 8-10 mins.
  8. Remove from oven and brush it with some butter.
  9. Before serving, sprinkle some black salt, chaat masala over the pieces.
  10. Serve with some mint chutney and some onions, lemon wedges and salad.


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Fish Cutlets/Fish Patties(Indian Style)

Category:Indian Dietitian Online,Online Dietician India,Recipes-Healthy Appetizer,Recipes-Snacks/Dips Tags : 

Here’s one more reason to increase your “oily” fish intake-the omega-3-fatty acids found in fish have shown to halt and slow down the age-related macular degeneration (AMD), in lay-man’s terms: AMD basically is a medical condition which is mostly seen in older adults and results in the loss of vision in the center of the visual field.
The research and findings conducted by Dr Elaine Chong at the University of Melbourne,Australia, involved 90,000 participants and showed that a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids could cut the risk of developing AMD by 38%.
Experts suggest eating oily fish like salmons,mackerel,tuna,shellfish and herring about twice a week to get the benefits of omega-3!
Sources:

Now a simple and tasty way of including fish into your diet: fish cakes or “cutlets” as they are called in India. This is my mom’s method of making cutlets.
Mom would first steam mackerel,then take out the bones and mix it with mashed potatoes and coat them in rava/ semolina instead of using bread crumbs. Rava absorbs much less oil and tastes equally nice. I used canned tuna,but it tastes great with just about any fish you fancy.
Ingredients for Fish Cutlets:

  • Tuna: 1 can (5 oz)
  • Potatoes: 1 medium size (boiled)
  • Onions: 1/2 (finely chopped)
  • Cilantro: 2-3 tablespoons (finely chopped)
  • Giner+garlic paste: 1 teaspoon
  • Green chillies: 1-2 (finely chopped)
  • Rava/Semolina: to coat the cutlets
  • Salt: to taste
  • Oil: for shallow frying

Method:

  1. In a bowl coarsely mash the potatoes.
  2. Drain the water from the tuna and add the tuna,chopped onions,cilantro,chillies,ginger +garlic paste and salt to the mashed potatoes and mix well.
  3. Shape into cutlets and shallow fry till the cutlets turn golden brown.
  4. Serve hot with chutney or tomato sauce.

Here are other Healthy Snack Ideas:

  1. Baked Sweet Potato Fries/snack
  2. Baked Carrot Fries/snack
  3. Fruit Chaat/ Fruit Salsa 
  4. Khaman Dhokla
  5. Handvo 
  6. Crispy Kale Chips

 


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Hariyali Chicken Tangdi/ Kebab

Category:Healthy Indian Recipes,Indian Dietitian Online,Recipes-Healthy Appetizer Tags : 

If you love chicken kebabs, then this is one finger-licking recipe! I love the taste of coriander leaves with ginger+garlic and green chilies and combined with chicken it just tastes yummy.

As a dietitian I love this as this makes a healthy recipe considering:

  1. there is very little oil
  2. the addition of greens (coriander and mint) increases the iron, fibre and antioxidant content of the dish.
  3. it’s a protein dish (and hence tends to keep you full for a longer period) and makes for a great appetizer.

Ingredients for Hariyali Chicken Tangdi: Serves 4

  • Chicken drumsticks: 8 nos.
  • Coriander leaves (cilantro):1 big bunch
  • Mint leaves (optional): 6-8nos.
  • Garlic: 8-10 cloves
  • Green chilies: 2-3 nos. (add more if you like it hot)
  • Salt: to taste
  • Curd/yogurt: 3-4tbsp
  • Ginger+garlic paste: 2tsp
  • Red chili powder: 2tsp (add more if you like it hot)
  • Coriander powder: 1 tbsp
  • Cumin powder: 1tsp
  • Garam masala: 1tsp
  • Oil: 2tsp
  • Lemon juice: 3tsp

Method:

  1. Remove the skin from the drumsticks, make horizontal slits with a sharp knife.
  2. Make a first marinade with ginger+garlic paste, salt, lemon juice, and the spice powders(red chili, cumin, coriander, garam masala). Taste for salt.
  3. Work the marinade well into the drumsticks and leave aside while you make the second marinade ready.
  4. Put the yogurt, salt,coriander leaves, mint leaves, garlic and green chilies and grind to a fine paste (do not add any water if possible). Check for salt.
  5. Add the second marinade and the oil to the drumsticks. Rub it well into the slits.
  6. Let it marinade in the fridge preferably overnight or for at least 2-3 hours.
  7. Preheat the oven to 180C (350F).
  8. Place the drumsticks on a baking tray and bake for 30-35 mins turning once halfway through.
  9. Remove from the oven. You can sprinkle a little chaat masala (optional)
  10. Serve with mint chutney (or mint-yogurt dip), raw onions and lemon slices.

Note:

  • You can make kebabs with breast pieces if you wish. Vegetarians can use paneer instead of chicken.
  • If you like it mild-you can reduce the green chilis.
  • If you want a darker green colour-then you can add some palak(spinach leaves) along with the coriander and mint leaves (when making the second marinade).