Master chef: Quick recipes for a restaurant-like Iftar

Some easy recipes to break monotony of cooking at home

ISLAMABAD:

Every Ramazan high-end restaurants serve Iftar for staggering prices. Include the taxes, and you end up paying Rs2,000 for pakoras, samosas, namak paaray and jalebis — items you can easily make for a quarter of the same price at home.

Although restaurant deals are tempting, and having the same food at home can get monotonous, one can add a bit of flavour to their usual Iftar by tampering with the ingredients a little here and there.

You do not need to be a master chef to prepare these recipes as having a unique yet delicious Iftar is much simpler than you would think.

It is also important to have something light that you could easily gulp in without feeling heavy. So here are some easy Iftar ideas to enjoy this Ramazan.

Chicken peri-peri bites

Ingredients: green chilies + chicken + cheese + egg + flour + bread crumbs Lengthwise, cut green chilies and remove all the seeds from the inside. Stuff the chilies with shredded and seasoned chicken and cheese. Roll the chilies with a thread and dip them in beaten egg and then in flour and bread crumbs. Fry them and unroll the thread. You have a mouthwatering treat!

Golden stuffed chicken

Ingredients: Boneless chicken + cheese + bread crumbs + egg + salt + pepper Beat boneless chicken till it becomes large and flat. Season it with salt and pepper,

place cheese and green onions in its centre. Roll the chicken and seal it with toothpicks. Dip the chicken in beaten egg and bread crumbs and fry it. You have a tantalising treat for your taste buds. Watch the stuffing melt, when you cut the stuffed chicken with a knife and a fork.

Potato pizza cubes

Ingredients: Potato + green chili + red chilli + toast + salt + gram flour Cut boiled potatoes in halves and mash them a bit. Mix green chili, salt and red chili with potatoes. Apply the mixture on toast. Dip the toast in egg and then in gram flour and water. Fry the toast and cut it in cubes.

Cheese and spinach pakoras

Ingredients: Cheese + spinach + gram flour + water + salt + mirch

Mix gram flour and water together. Add salt, pepper and chili to the mixture.
Roll together spinach  and cheese into balls and dip it in the gram flour mix. Fry it till its golden brown. This is a delicious rendition to conventional aalu pakoras!

Minced beef pita rolls

Ingredients: Minced beef + pita bread + garlic mayo + chili flakes

Mix salt and red chili flakes in minced beef and fry it, add a little water so it does not stick to the pan. Take a piece of pita bread and apply garlic mayo on it, add minced beef into this and roll it. Cut it into small portions and you have a treat!

Apple and peanut butter delight

Ingredients: Apples + peanut butter Cut apples in quarters and apply peanut butter on them. Super easy, healthy and it tastes better than any chocolate!

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23^rd, 2015.