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Cricket themed food party, howzzat?

Reading Time: 7 minutes

Hosting a cricket party? Here are some food ideas sure to hit your guests for a six!
backyard cricket
Super bowl parties are old news; we have a new food fiesta in town – Runs and Wickets!
The T20I matches between New Zealand and India are scorching our screens and what better way to enjoy the nail-biting games than with a cricket party. After all, there are two things that Indians are most passionate about – cricket and food!
So, invite your buddies over for the next match and celebrate this cricket weekend deliciously.
Finger-foods and snacks rule the roost at games parties; everyone wants to huddle in front of the television screen, so plan the dishes accordingly. Once you have your guest list ready, plan out your dishes, making sure that you cater to all kinds of taste buds and preferences.
Choose snacks and appetisers that are easy to prep and make ahead of time. Draw up a list of the ingredients and supplies; complete your shopping a couple of days earlier so that you can do the prep and mis en place a day before. After all, no one wants to slave in the kitchen while the game is on!
Here are some delicious game-day recipes to set the mood for your cricket party – finger lickin’ good!
Guptill’s Grilled Chicken Wings
Grilled chicken wings are the perfect party food. Marinate the chicken wings the previous night and on the day of the party, all you need to do is grill to perfection. Sweet, spicy, sticky, finger-licking good!
martin guptill
Ingredients
1 kg chicken wings (you can use just drumlets too)
2 tbsp tomato sauce/passata
2 tbsp red chilli sauce
2 tbsp soya sauce
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp black pepper powder
Salt to season
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
Olive oil – enough to make a gooey marinade.
grilled chicken wings
Method
Make a marinade using ingredients 2-10. Taste and adjust seasonings accordingly. Some like it sweet while others like it spicy.
Pour the marinade over the chicken wings, rub well all over and keep for as long as you can. Overnight will be great but keep for at least 1 hour.
Heat oven to 200°C and place wings on the grill. Cook till the wings are done (takes approximately 45 minutes but this varies, so keep checking). Baste the chicken wings with the remaining marinade at least twice during grilling.
Kane Williamson’s Beef Cutlets
These Kerala-style beef patties with onions, potatoes, spices and aromatics are perfect for your cricket food party. The patties can be made much ahead of time and frozen till the day of your party. On the big day, just fry it up and enjoy with your favourite sauce.
kane williamson
Ingredients
1 kg beef mince (get good quality mince without the rough cartilage bits)
3 large potatoes, boiled and mashed
2 large red onions, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 inch piece ginger, finely chopped
7-8 green chillies, finely chopped (the quantity can be varied according to the type of chilli used)
2 tsp black pepper
Salt to season
1 tsp coriander powder
2-3 eggs
Bread crumbs, enough to coat the cutlets (if store-bought, one packet should be enough but if making at home, make crumbs from half a pack of bread)
1 cup coriander leaves, finely chopped
Vegetable oil, for deep frying
beef cutlet 
Method
In a large wok, heat 2-3 tbsp oil, add the beef mince, onion, garlic, ginger, green chillies, salt, pepper and coriander powder. Saute for about 5 minutes till the rawness of all ingredients is removed.
Transfer to a large bowl; add the mashed potatoes and coriander leaves. Mix thoroughly and form oval shaped patties.
Beat the eggs in a bowl and keep aside.
Spread the breadcrumbs in a large, flat plate and keep aside.
Take each patty or cutlet, dip well in the egg mixture and roll in the breadcrumbs till coated evenly. Do this for all cutlets.
Heat oil in a deep pan and deep fry the cutlets. Serve hot with chutney of choice.
Note: Make sure that the cutlets are coated well with egg and breadcrumbs so that they do not stick to each other.
Benett’s Bay of Plenty Guacamole
The best guacamole in town! Search for single clove garlic on your next shopping trip (these sit right next to your regular Indian garlic). And no hassles if you can’t find it, just use regular garlic. The sweet and fiery jalapenos lend the right heat to the soft succulent avocadoes making it the best dip for your party. And instead of nachos, go desi with roasted masala pappad or potato wafers that you can easily pick up in any Indian food store.
hamish bennettIngredients
5 fresh jalapeno peppers
2 single clove garlic
1 tsp olive oil
2 ripe avocados, sliced
Juice of ½ lemon
Salt, to season
Corn chips/nachos/potato wafers/masala pappad, to serve
guacamole
Method
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Char the jalapenos over a naked flame till blackened and blistered. Cover with a cloth or plastic bag to sweat a little so that removing the skin becomes easier.
Place the garlic in a foil, drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes till soft.
Remove the jalapeno skins and chop up the rest; I included the seeds too for the extra kick of heat. But you can remove the seeds if you wish.
Squeeze out the garlic into the mortar along with the jalapenos. Add the avocados, lemon juice and salt. Crush lightly using the pestle.
Guacamole is best served slightly chunky than pasty so crush just enough to mix through.
Serve with corn chips.
Mohammed Shami’s Malai Kebab (Minced Chicken Patties Cooked in Spices, Aromatics and Cream)
Delicious, succulent, creamy and indulgent; these malai kebabs could even distract your attention from the big screen. Be warned!
mohammed ShamiIngredients
250 gm chicken mince
1 slice white bread, soaked in milk
½ onion, finely chopped
2 green chillies, finely chopped
½ tsp red chilli powder
½ tsp garam masala
1 tsp coriander powder
½ egg
1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
½ inch ginger, finely chopped
Salt, to season
Plain flour, optional
Ghee/clarified butter, for shallow frying the patties/kebabs
150ml sour cream
¼ tsp garam masala
½ tsp red chilli powder
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
Note: With the above proportions, this dish is medium spicy; so adjust the quantity of spices and chillies to suit individual taste.
malai kebab 
Method
Mix the first 11 ingredients and knead the mince well till combined. Divide into equal parts and shape the mince into roundish, flat cakes and keep aside. The mixture will be slightly wet and if shaping is an issue, dust the cakes in plain flour. But this is optional; I did not use the flour.
Heat ghee in a flat non-stick pan and shallow fry the kebabs till browned on either side. Make sure to turn over only after one side is done well to prevent breaking. Drain on kitchen paper.
In the same pan, add the sour cream, garam masala and red chilli powder. Place the kebabs carefully back in the pan and cook covered on low heat for about 6-8 minutes, turning once in between. Season with salt if necessary.
Remove from heat and garnish with chopped green chillies and coriander just before serving.
Eat this hot!
Kohli’s Karari Aloo Tikki (Potato Croquettes)
And of course, we cannot leave out the vegetarians. Here’s an all-time favourite for them that’s simple to prepare. These can be made and stored ahead of time, only to be shallow fried on the day. No onions or garlic, these aloo tikkis (potato croquettes) are resplendent with the Indian spices and a perfect accompaniment to a cricket match starring India.
virat kohliIngredients
400gm potatoes, boiled and mashed
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ginger, chopped
4 green chillies, finely chopped (reduce quantity for less heat)
Pinch hing/asafoetida
½ tsp cumin powder
2 tsp chat masala
Salt to season
½ bunch coriander leaves, finely chopped
100 gm corn flour
Vegetable oil to shallow fry the patties
Mint coriander chutney for garnish
Chilli jam for garnish
aloo tikkiMethod
Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a pan and lightly roast cumin seeds, ginger, chillies and asafoetida. Make sure this is done on low heat or the spices will turn bitter.
Take off the heat and add cumin powder and chat masala.
Combine this with the mashed potatoes, season with salt and add coriander leaves; mix well to combine evenly.
Shape the mixture into patties and lightly coat on both sides with cornflour.
Shallow fry in vegetable oil till golden brown.
Serve with mint coriander chutney.
Enjoy the cricket!
Image courtesy: stuff.co.nz, newindianexpress, cricketaustralia, dawn.com, 99images.com

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