Stir fried Macaroni with vegetables and chicken sausage

The only thing that I do not make with macaroni is the very famous mac and cheese.
The reason? Well ... I do not have any reason.
Maybe because I do not like the white sauce.
Maybe because I do not like cheese.
Maybe. I don't know.
But then ... maybe that is not such a solid reason after all because B loves cheese. And I do cook a lot of things that B likes and I do not.
So there.

But what I do make with macaroni is a variety of other things.
Sometimes a cold salad.
Sometimes add some to a soup. And sometimes the stew.
Sometimes with roasted vegetables.
And at other times, this stir fry that can be eaten as a warm salad too.
It is quick to make and makes for a very filling meal.

It was one of those late evenings when I was dead tired and did not want to cook anything for dinner.
B suggested ordering out but I was not interested in that too.
Suggestions and options went to and fro .... from me stuck on the sofa with my knitting for most of the evening and B, stuck in the chair in front of the idiot box.
I was getting hungry and we were reaching nowhere.
And the noise from the juvenile movie on god-knows-what-kind-species-are-these was getting on my nerves already.

So decided to take matters to my hands ... which was exactly what B knew would come to.

 Walked into the kitchen and made this in 10 minutes flat ... because I had boiled macaroni in the fridge.
And sprouts ready on the counter.
Chopped up a few vegetables and stir fried everything together.
Chopped and fried myself some  chicken sausages too.
And dinner was ready even before those godzilla like creatures on the telly could burn a complete city down.

These photographs are from the phone .... again.
Impromptu meals like these are sometimes so good and flavourful that I am tempted to share it here.
So please do bear with the snaps.

Need :

Boiled Macaroni - 1 cup
Carrots - 1 medium, chopped into very small pieces
Cauliflower - 6 to 7 florets, chopped
Green peas - 5 tbsp
Capsicum - 1 medium, chopped
Moong dal sprouts - 8 tbsp
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Garlic - 5 cloves, chopped
Mixed Italian herbs - 1 tsp
Red chilli flakes - 1 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Black pepper powder - to taste
Salt - to taste
Sugar - a pinch
Cooking oil  - 1 tbsp
Chicken sausages - thawed and chopped 

You can use any vegetables of your choice.
You can use scrambles eggs too.
Or chicken cubes.

How to :

 Heat oil in an open kadahi or wok.

Add the garlic + onions.

Raise heat and add all the vegetables.

Stir fry for a while.

Add the sprouts.

Add the salt + lemon juice + sugar + Italian herbs(crushed) + chilli flakes + pepper powder.

Toss well.

In another pan fry the chopped sausages and add to the macaroni.

Remove from heat and serve hot. 

This was perfect for a rainy night dinner.
After the telly was switched off.

I love to douse this with some ketchup sometimes. Just sometimes.
Else it is good as is.
Do eat it hot ... just off the wok. 
Enjoy!!

Stir Fried Macaroni with Roasted Vegetables & Chicken

( Vegetarians can skip the chicken and go on with the rest of the recipe ... or can use Tofu or Paneer instead. )
This is a very flavourful one pot meal that I often make for dinner and is very close to my heart. The best thing about this dish is it can be had steaming hot on winter evenings .... just add some bread and soup to go with .... or can be served cold as a salad ... on a bed of ice lettuce.

It is real fast to make if all the preparations are made earlier ... so after a rushed day ... or on that lazy weekend .... all you have to do is heat some oil and toss everything. :-)

I prefer to chop up the roasted vegetables as I love the different flavours that fuse into each other.

And instead of chewing on a single piece of veggie or chicken, I prefer to have a mix of everything in every bite. Besides it feels and looks good when the sizes are in sync.




Need : Macaroni, preffered vegetables ( I had capsicum, mushrooms, baby corn, frozen green peas, tomatoes ), chicken cut into small cubes, chopped garlic, preffered Italian seasoning

( I used a mix of dried parsley + thyme + rosemary + a little oregano), some freshly ground black pepper, vinegar, cooking oil / butter, salt and sugar to taste.



If you want you can add a few chilli flakes too ... but I found it clashed with the flavour of black pepper.

How to : Cook the macaroni ... a little al dente .... in salted boiling water. Rinse under cold water and mix a spoonful of cooking oil to it evenly. This will prevent from forming a lump or sticking together.

Cut the vegetables into medium sized pieces and marinate them in vinegar, salt and freshly ground pepper. Keep them for around half an hour ... or till you make the other preparations.




Marinate the chicken cubes the same way.


Roast the vegetables in an oven in a tray sprayed with a little oil or brushed with a little butter. I prefer roasting them till they are a little soft ... and then grilling them for a while on high.




Roast the chicken the same way too.



Chop up the vegetables into bite sized pieces.

Heat oil in a wok / heavy kadhai. Add the garlic and fry ... do not brown them.


Add the macaroni , the vegetables and the chicken. Add the seasonings and dried herbs. Adjust salt and add a little sugar for a balance.Toss well.
Serve hot / cold.


Am so very happy that this is the first time I have successfully blurred the background in a snap .... No I do not have Photoshop. :-)

This plateful goes to Soma who is hosting Hay Hay it's Donna Day with Bron as the facilitator.

With that am off to the coast for the long weekend coming up ... this time it will be a new beach on the Konkan coast that we are heading to. :-)

Macaroni Salad

The best thing about winter is fresh veggies. Even though we do get everything the whole year through, there is something definitely different about veggies in winter. The carrots are juicier, the green peas sweeter, the spring onions look happier ....

And this is the best time to have them raw. Nothing can compare to that fresh juice or that crunch.
I try to put in as much veggies as possible into anything that am cooking. Or have them as a salad.

I like macaronis ... but not the usual way .... messed up in a gooey white sauce (which I do like once in a while) or with lumpy, elastic cheese ( which I positively hate).
So I make them my way .... will post sometime.

And if I have some already boiled macaroni in the fridge .... I make a salad for lunch ( anything to not to cook for only myself ).

And here's my salad. You can add black olives too. I do not like them ... so did not.
And if you like garlic ... can add a very finely chopped clove. Nonveggies can add slivers or cubes of boiled chicken or cubed hard boiled eggs.

I added some toasted bread croutons .... loved that dry crunch with the juicy ones. :-)


Need : Boiled macaroni or any pasta, raw fresh vegetables like carrots, spring onion, green peas, tomatoes, chopped green chillies, lime juice, bread croutons, olive oil, salt and sugar to taste.

How to : Chop the veggies. Shell the peas. Toss everything together with a dash of lime juice and lots of olive oil.

Done ! :-)
Another closer look. :-)