Iftar dinner 2

Last week we hosted an Iftar dinner for our friend Sunish and family. I prepared a simple dinner with ulunthu vadai as starter. Chicken biriyani, egg curry , chicken 65 and fish fry were for main course and carrot halwa, homemade kulfi icecream for dessert. I thoroughly enjoyed shopping and cooking for this day. While myself and Shaila were chatting and finishing up the frying processes and organizing the dinner, the men and the kids watched Jungle book and Trolls. It was a beautiful evening filled with laughter and happiness. I took a few 'food picture's only, as I always start enjoying the moments and miss the photo session part :) . Anyways here is some snaps from our Ifar dinner party.  Have a glance and enjoy :)

Starters - Ulunthu vadai, coconut chutney, green chutney, dates, watermelon, banana,  chikkis, mango lassi, coconut water

Iftar dinner - chicken biriyani, egg curry, chicken 65, kingfish fry, raitha

Dhum biriyani

Chicken dhum biriyani

Mango lassi

Preparing Carrot halwa 

My kitchen planner - Iftar dinner menu

Here is how I organized this dinner:

*I prepared urid dal batter for ulunthu vadai on the day before party, but added the onions and curry leaf before frying the vadai.

*Mango lassi and carrot halwa were also made the day before.

*I made the kulfi ice cream two days before the party.

*Chicken and fish were bought on the morning and marinated for preparing in the early evening. 

*The ginger garlic paste, green chutney, cilantro mint paste , curd fermentation, can be don 2 days before. This speeds up the briyani process.

*coconut chutney should be made as fresh as possible.

*I couldn't finish setting the table on time and it is a point to remember for any party before.

*Halal meat shopping can be tricky as my favorite shop was closed for the fasting days. So we have to plan it earlier.

*Chicken 65 can be marinated and kept refrigerated. But should be fried before serving for a better taste. Otherwise fried ones can be kept moist by folding in aluminum foil.

*King fish fry needs less than an hour of marination only.

*Here is my usual egg curry recipe and it's like a kuruma for briyani.

*I prepared everything in the 'least spice level' and it made me extremely happy find that it was a kid friendly food too. 

Hope you all like my post!

Enjoy cooking and I will come up again with another yummy post and sweet stories soon !

Iftar dinner 1

 Iftar dinner is a meal (a grand dinner) that is traditionally prepared by Muslims during the Ramadan month. Last weekend we were invited by our friend Mr. Sunsih to have Iftar dinner along with friends and family. Kids started playing and we all sat and had some interesting conversations. We could get an understanding of this festival and the way fasting is observed.  We were all  amazed at his wife's dedication on cooking that elaborate meal even while fasting. Each and every dish tasted perfect (It's really a big mystery how Mrs. Shaila had managed to prepare everything without tasting).  I am sure it is her concentration and love for cooking  that  has made this elaborate feast a success. Here is the list of dishes she has prepared for the Iftar dinner (noting them down, as far as I remember....). That's a vast menu and we enjoyed it totally !

Iftar dinner

Mutton Biriyani in North Kerala style

On the Iftar table :
Variety of fruits like date, pineapple, watermelon, grapes.
Channa salad
Mango milkshake
Veg cutlet
Chicken cutlet
Pathiri
puttu
Mutton biriyani
White rice
King fish fry
Shrimp curry
chicken curry
Vegetable kuruma
Paneer masala
Onion raitha
A flavorful milk tea
Payaasam


Thanks to Mr and Mrs Sunish we all had a wonderful evening !
Happy Ramadan all !