Indian fish fry and mango mousse

The Drink Amruth
Serves 4

Amruth means "nectar from the God". Once you taste this drink you will realize why Komali came up with this name. Aromatic cardamom and fragrant saffron complement this drink.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups mango nectar
  
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
  
• ¼ cup saffron-cardamom syrup (see below)
  

1. Place all the ingredients in the blender.
   
   
2. Blend for few seconds to combine.
   
   
3. Serve over ice cubes.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
  
• 2 cups water
  
• ½ teaspoon green cardamom seed powder
  
• 1 teaspoon loosely packed saffron
  

1. In a small stockpot, boil sugar and water over medium heat.
   
   
2. Stir until sugar dissolves and boil for an another two minutes.
   
   
3. Add cardamom powder and saffron.
   
   
4. Turn off the heat and let it steep for ½ an hour.
   
   
5. You can store this syrup in the refrigerator for a month.

Fish Fry:

Marinade

Ingredients:

• 1 medium red onion, finely minced
  
• 5 cloves garlic, finely minced
  
• ½ tablespoon salt
  
• 1 tablespoon paprika
  
• ½-1 teaspoon cayenne or to taste
  
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  
• ½ teaspoon dry roasted cumin powder
  
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  
• 1 ½ pounds salmon, cut into 2 inch pieces
  
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro for garnishing
  

1. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl.
   
   
2. Add fish pieces to the marinade and gently toss to coat the fish pieces with marinade.
   
   
3. Cover with plastic wrap and let it marinate for 2-4 hours in the refrigerator.
   
   
4. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok or skillet over medium high heat. When oil is hot, add fish with marinade.
   
   
5. Fry until the fish is cooked thoroughly, while stirring occasionally. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Mango Mousse
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups canned mango puree
  
• ½ cup + 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
  
• 1 envelope unflavored gelatin (1/4 ounce)
  
• ¼ cup water
  
• 1 cup sour cream
  
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  

1. In a bowl, stir together mango puree and ½ cup of sugar until sugar dissolves. Sprinkle gelatin over water in a heat-proof bowl.
   
   
2. Let it stand for 5-10 minutes for gelatin to soften.
   
   
3. Place gelatin bowl over a pan of simmering water and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved.
   
   
4. Remove gelatin from the heat, stir into the mango puree mixture and let it cool for 5 minutes.
   
   
5. Add sour cream. Stir with a whisk until sour cream is completely incorporated into the pure.
   
   
6. Using an electric mixer with a balloon whisk, beat cream with 2 tablespoons of sugar until soft peaks form.
   
   
7. Stir 2 tablespoons of whipped cream into mango puree mixture to lighten. Fold in remaining whipped cream.
   
   
8. Transfer mousse into a serving dish and refrigerate until set.
   
   
9. Alternately, you can spoon mousse into individual desert bowls. Let it chill in the refrigerator, before serving.

Komali Nunna:

Komali Nunna was born in Southern India and moved to the United States after she got married. She lives in Southern California with her husband, Mal, and two kids. She is a chemist by profession and has an enduring passion for cooking gardening and entertaining.

She learned the basic elements of entertaining prevalent in the United States and embellished them with vibrant fabrics and an aromatic Indian cuisine to form a unique, eclectic style. Her style is a fusion of Eastern philosophy and Western style.

She feels inspired to entertain non-Indian guests with Indian food and décor to give them a glimpse of Indian culture and a taste of Indian food.

As part of her repertoire, Komali has taught Indian cooking lessons for Indians as well as non-Indians. A local newspaper wrote articles about her as the Indian Martha Stewart.

After 25 years of enthusiastically entertaining her guests, inspired by the zeal to introduce Indian food, culture, traditions and the art of entertaining with an Indian theme to worldwide audiences, she has ventured to share her time-tested sumptuous recipes and her ideas on the finer aspects of entertaining.

It is not just a cook book, it is an entertaining book and a coffee table book as well. "Entertaining From an Ethnic Indian Kitchen" is a reflection of how Komali Nunna carries her ethnic Indian pride to a global platform.

For more information, visit www.komalinunna.com

>> Buy this book on Amazon: Entertaining from an Ethnic Indian Kitchen