The beauty of fresh honey. No doubt that honey has a lot of good properties, that can also cure a lot of ailments; from external problems to internal problems. It is a natural antiseptic and also a natural sweetener - so it goes perfect with tea, cereal and even toast.

The fresher the better!

The other day some guy was walking around town with a bucket, inside was honey combs dripping in honey; black and gold. We bought a couple of the combs, and we chew on the comb till we eat all the honey and spit out the comb after its drained.

• It can help with burns and cuts. 
• Mixed with hot water and a bit of ginger it can help with sore throats.
• If you struggle with acne and acne scars smear some honey on your face for a couple of hours every day. 
• Great to be mixed with egg whites and applied as a facial. 
• Can be mixed with brown sugar and used as a black-head scrub.

Amongst the many health benefits of honey, what is most impressive to me is that honey can be a powerful immune system booster. It's antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties can help improve digestive system and help you stay healthy and fight disease. Start every brand new day with this cleansing tonic if you want to see this health benefit of honey: before breakfast, mix a spoonful of honey and lemon juice from half a lemon into a cup of warm water and drink it. Also, you can mix apple cider, honey and cinnamon for a morning detox drink.

Honey does not cure cancer but what many people don't think enough of or have overlooked is - honey possesses carcinogen-preventing and anti-tumour properties.

It is all in all amazing for the body. There is much more to say, but this is just a few points. I will say its always a great ingredient to have in the home, organic and fresher the better. I love using honey for beauty purposes, it works perfectly and since its all natural it can't hurt. 

The beauty in its creation and the bees that make the honey is mind blowing! Allah created such beautiful things in this world that one cannot even being to explain or even recreate themselves. 

If you have a special tip for honey and how you use it please feel free to comment and share it with everyone.

Holiday's everywhere, festive season so you can imagine the braai/bbq parties, this is a quick recipe to marinate your chicken with. Served with salad, and/or the side dish recipe posted before this called Creamy Sliced Potato Baked and will be linked here so you can find it easily. Mumsie marinated the chicken I was there watching and taking pictures obviously lol .

So this recipe was actually called a Nandos recipe, but it has no nandos spice or sauce, so I decided to change the name to the not-so-nandos-chicken. My aunty made this the other day, her on holiday means I get new recipes and cooking lessons.. It's a quick and easy recipe, which I hope everyone enjoys. Can be served with roti, naan, paratha or like how we served it with garlic bread.


MARINATE CHICKEN PIECES:

Red chilli powder (bhookie)
Tumeric (araad)
Lemon Juice
Crushed Garlic

• Cook till the chicken is done, can use a bit of water so it doesn't burn out while cooking.
• Next, fry some potato wedges.
• Once the chicken is cooked take a pyrex (baking/oven dish) and mix with ingredients below:

Made by my aunty Fatima, when she made Friday lunch akni + dhay. Its quick to make and goes with all Indian rice dishes. Its spicy mangos and you need achaar masala to make this. I have said previously said that achaar masala is widely found in Southern Africa, if you from other countries you can check at the Indian section in the supermarket or the spice shop, you can look for the recipe online to make it yourself, I don't make it personally never have I will check around for the recipe to share with you all so you can try making it yourself as well.

Measurements are for 5 mangos.

• Cut and peal the mangos.
• In a saucer-pan add: 3 Tb achaar masala, 1 Tb mustard powder and 1/4 cup oil
• Warm up the saucer-pan but DO NOT BOIL.
• Add this to the mangos, toss and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• In the same saucer-pan add: 2 tsp cornflour (mazina), 1/4 cup vinegar, 1 Tb oil
• Bring this mix to a boil till its translucent and add to the mangos.
• Make a vagaar with chopped curry leaves, garlic, mustard seeds and a little oil.
• When it begins to boil (pop) pour over the mangos and toss. 

Apple Kachoomar

Mango Achaar

Credit goes to my aunty Fatima for making Friday lunch for us, loved it. This is another traditional Indian rice dish, with many different ways to make and serve it. I will show how this one was made, I will also posting 2 kachoomar dishes (small side dishes that goes with the rice) and also a mango achaar recipe (pickled mangos).
Those recipes, will be posted separately, but also linked on this post after-ward.

Low quality pictures for this one, I am sorry about that, when I try making this next time around I will update the post with better pictures.

• Soak a pinch of saffron in boiling water for a while.
• Braise chopped onions in ghee/oil with; cardamom (elachi), cinnamon stick (taj), clove (lavang) and whole green chilli. 
• When the onions are golden, add the chicken and the saffron with the water.
• Also add chopped carrots and peas. 
• Cut up some potatoes and fry them.
• Add liquidised tomatoes, the fried potatoes and fresh green coriander to the chicken.
• IMMEDIATELY after adding the above ingredients add your half way boiled rice to the pot. 
• Seal the pot shut with some foil and put the temperature on high till it starts boiling. 
• When it starts to boil put the temperature on low and leave to steam till the tomatoes have cooked.  
• Serve with dhay, kachoomar and mango achaar. 

Okay let's be honest, summer or winter if you're in Southern Africa the braai/bbq stand is always out, regardless of the season.

Masala Dabba, there is no Indian house-hold that does not have one. This is known as an Indian Spice Box, it can be found sold in local spice shops, spices not included.

Now this is a handy little thing that helps with storing your main spices neatly, usually most Indian spices are bought in bulk or plastic packets and so to keep using from that packet will cause an unwanted mess, makes clean up such a hassle and lets be honest its not good on the eyes either. With this tin box, you can keep topping up spices that finish, also its easy to store, use and you will never forget a spice.

It can be found it a whole different range of sizes, so if you tend to cook Indian cuisine once in a blue moon or every day you can choose to your liking. There are small differences when it comes to what spices to store from house-hold to house-hold, there are some staples that must always be in your spice box, but the rest can be what dry spices you usually add or prefer.

In my masala dabba/spice box I find the spices stored in are staples, and are the base in literally every Indian recipe.


WHAT MY MASALA DABBA HAS:

Turmeric (yellow colouring)
Paprika (fresher the better)
Salt
Ground cumin
Ground coriander seeds
Taj/Indian Bay leaf - if you see pictures of this they look like sticks - I would say checking your spice shop for them instead of using just a normal bay leaf
Whole cardamom
Whole Pepper
Cloves

You must be thinking how big is your tin, there are times one spice is replaced by another in the tin, ideally that is how it usually is.
Also, most people mix their ground cumin and ground coriander together and store it as one.

Now I know some people also put gharam masala (combination of all dry spices freshly ground together) or even cinnamon that's entirely up to one-self and what your taste buds like.
If you are a beginner to Indian food, or you think its time to learn how to cook I would say take a good look and even smell these spices because you will be using them quite often!

It takes practice but as you learn to cook and when you start making marinades you will learn to use your instincts when it comes to measurements of the spices. I would say in the start make your marinade first than taste when you feel it tastes fine than add your meat, because it was save you from making an error and trust me we have all been there.

This is just a quick post explaining what a masala dabba/spice box is and what are the main spices stored in it.
I do plan to post once a week a new Indian spice, the low-down on it, what it looks like, what it smells and tastes like and what its mainly used for,
Any questions or comments, and if you feel I have missed any key points in this post let me know. Feel free to like, share and subscribe to this website for personalised emails on all updates.

Made by my lovely mummy and I plated it, cause you know that is what I do ehm
So anyway hope you like this recipe, any tikka recipe feel free to head over to the blog facebook group and share with everyone. Also check out the other social sites on the home page, please like, share, comment, pin, hashtag, tag, subscribe and try the recipe out. Don't forget to check out previous recipes and send me your comments and opinions (:
This was served with the sliced baked potatoes, check previous recipes I have posted of preggo chicken showing a detailed explanation for the slicked baked potatoes.

INGREDIENTS 

• Salt/Pepper
• Paprika (red powder chillies)
• Ground red chillies (chilli paste)
• Tumeric
• Crushed cumin
• Crushed coriander 
• Lemon juice 
• Yellow/Red colouring 
• Yoghurt 
• Little ghram masala (mix of all indian spices please check local spice shop)
• Olive oil 

Preparation:

• Marinate the chicken, make sure its saucy and cook with a little water on low till done. 
• Serve with the baked sliced potatoes.
• For the green chutney mix; yoghurt and ground green chillies with a pinch of salt. 
• Garnish with fresh coriander. 

I got this recipe from the Cosmopolitan Cuisine VI recipe book, as you can see instead of using full chicken fillet, it was cut up into strips. This can be served with rice and Chinese noodles; but this time it was done with baby veg side dish CLICK HERE to view.

Ingredients:
1 kg chicken fillet [cut into strips]
1/2 cup mint leaves
1 1/2 cup plain thick yoghurt
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground green chillies
2 Tb olive oil
1/2 cup coriander leaves
1 tsp garlic paste [ground garlic]
2 tsp crushed cumin
1 tsp pepper
3 Tb lemon juice 

• Liquidise mint, coriander, garlic paste, pepper and 1/2 cup yoghurt.
• Add remaining spices, lemon juice and marinate the chicken.
• Add the 1 cup yoghurt and cook in a pot, if you want you can even braai/bbq this chicken and keep basting it with the marinade. 
• Garnish with spring onions and serve.

Best I would say is use ready cleaned baby prawns. Perfect Sunday lunch especially since summer has kicked into my side of the wall, I served it with a passion fruit drink which just freshed up the whole meal.

PRAWNS MARINADE

• Freshly ground:
• coriander
• green chillies 
• garlic
• Lemon Juice
• Peri-Peri mild sauce
• Mayo
• Butter (be generous) 

If you have a prawns rub you can use it too or which ever you usually prefer to use for extra taste.Also, green chilies is always up to your heat preferably. Make sure its saucy, put in a grill pan, drizzle with some olive oil and put in the grill at around 200 degrees and half way through put it at lower.

CHICKEN STRIPS

Marinate in:

• Tandoori Powder
• Lemon Juice
• Ground Black Powder
• Ground garlic
• Vinegar 
• Fine red chillies (red chilli paste)
• Turmeric 
• Cumin
• Ground coriander

***Cook the chicken till dry.

SAUCE

Depending on how much chicken strips are being cooked, the sauce ingredients can be adjusted. I will give you enough sauce that serves up to 6 with a bit of leftovers.

• 2 cups water
• 125g butter (butter can be adjusted for those looking to be healthier)
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 Tb vinegar
• 1/4 tsp red colouring
• 2 Tb hot sauce
• 2 tsp ground garlic
• 3 Tb soya sauce
• 3 Tb tomato sauce
• 3 Tb sugar
• 3 Tb mazina (cornflour)
• Alot of chopped spring onions 

Bring all the sauce ingredients to a boil, till glossy and thick. Constantly stirring it till you feel its ready.
Add the cooked chicken and simmer for 15 minutes on a low heat.

If you have a sizzler pan (big one) continue to the next steps, if you have small ones like I do, than do the next steps in a big frying pan and heat up the sizzler pans  with a little olive oil and just serve it in there. If you have no sizzler pan just continue with a big frying pan or fish pan and serve on it.

1. Heat the pan with some olive oil until REALLY HOT.
2. Put sliced peppers (personally I suggest staying away from red peppers because the dish itself is very red) and a green chilli and toss till peppers are soft.
3. Finally pour the saucy chicken onto the HOT PAN top with sesame seeds and coriander and serve quickly.
4. Can be served with naan or spaghetti.