Sri Lanka Deviled Cashew and Sweet and Spicy Ikan Bilis Peanuts
Guess who made a surprise appearance on the set of Love On a Plate this week? You asked what's better than cooking for all of you? Well, the answer is simple: cooking with Divya Tolath of course! As we head towards Diwali celebrations, we will be bringing together snacks, sweets and other goodies to give away during the festivity.
Today, Divya and I will be cooking Sri Lanka deviled cashew and sweet and spicy ikan bilis peanuts.
Here are the ingredients and steps:
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Sri Lanka Deviled Cashew: • 200g Cashew Nuts • 5 Asian shallot, finely sliced • 1 tsp. red Chilli Powder • 1 tsp. Ground Coriander • 1 tsp. Ground Cumin • 1 tsp. Turmeric Powder • 1 tsp. Mustard Seeds • ½ tsp. Garlic Powder • 10–15 Curry Leaves • Pinch of Salt and Pepper • 2 tsp. Coconut Oil • Juice of 1 Lime Steps: 1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. 2. Place a large, oven proof dish over a medium high heat and add the Coconut Oil. Once hot, add the Mustard Seeds and the Sliced Shallot and fry for 2-3 minutes, until the Onions are starting to colour. 3. Add the spices and Curry Leaves to the pan and cook off for 1 minute before adding the Cashew Nuts. Mix together to ensure the nuts are evenly covered with spice mix and then transfer to the oven. 4. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes until the nuts are colder brown and the onions are crispy. 5. Remove from the oven and squeeze over the lime juice. Mix together and allow to cool. 6. Enjoy these devilled cashews as a snack or try topping on curries. These should keep for a few days when placed in a sealed container, not that you’re likely to have any leftover! NOTE: We absolutely love roasted cashews, as they’re not only delicious but seem to take one well the flavour we add to them. However, feel free to try this with other nuts like almonds, walnuts or hazelnuts.
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Sweet and Spicy Ikan Bilis Peanuts: • 2 cups peanuts, shelled • 250g (2 cups) ikan bilis (dried anchovies), cleaned, rinsed and drained • Salt to taste • Coconut oil for shallow-frying • 50g (1/4 cup) sugar • 1 tsp hing • 1-2 tsp chilli powder and turmeric powder • 10–15 Curry Leaves • 3 garlic cloves Steps: 1. Heat oil in a deep saucepan or kadai until hot. 2. Drop ½ cup full of peanuts in the hot oil; you will see a lot of bubbles; reduce heat to medium high. (Check out our cooking hack shorts!) 3. As soon as the bubbles start to subside, indicating the peanuts are fried, remove and drain in a colander or over absorbent paper towels. 4. Once again, increase heat to high, drop another ½ cup full and continue frying the same way. 5. As soon as the peanuts are out of the pan and are drained of excess oil, sprinkle salt, red chili powder and hing over them while still hot, toss well and keep aside to cool. 6. You can either spice up the fried peanuts batch wise or altogether in the end; but make sure the peanuts are still warm or hot when you add the salt and spices. 7. Add ikan bilis to the remaining oil and fry until golden brown. 8. After the last batch of ikan bilis are fried, drop curry leaves into the hot oil. As soon as you drop them, the oil will splutter, so immediately, place a cover over the hot oil so as not to splatter hot oil all over! 9. Curry leaves get fried and crisp fast, so immediately remove them and drain well. 10. Mix ikan bilis with the fried and spiced peanuts, toss and serve when cool. Enjoy spicy, crispy ikan bilis peanuts with a cup of chai/coffee, as a bar snack, as an appetizer at any party etc.