Hi, there! I'm Marina Helene, but you can just call me Helene! I started MasalaHerb.com in 2011 when I was getting to know Goa in India. My husband, Paul, and his Goan food heritage had a hand in this too and it is thanks to his continues support, that this website has been an invaluable resource. The purpose of the website was to document my experience and to share … [Read more...]
Search Results for: taste
Dal Makhani Recipe - Indian Butter Lentil
Dal Makhani is a North Indian spiced and creamy lentil dish. This recipe is a budget-friendly, one-pot, vegetarian and gluten-free dish. 📕 What is Dal Makhani? Dal Makhani means butter lentils. Dal are the lentils, and butter is called Makhan in Hindi. It's a creamy north Indian dish, which originated in Punjab, a northern region known for its rich use of … [Read more...]
+20 Asian Noodle Recipes
Here you will find a selection of easy Asian noodle recipes to help you get inspired in your kitchen. Below are noodle stir fries and noodle soups, prepared with various noodle varieties. Bring takeout food home! Asian noodle dishes seem daunting, they are actually worth gold in your meal planning repertoire. They are as easy as A to prepare from scratch and … [Read more...]
Salmon White Wine Sauce Pasta Recipe
You should make this salmon white wine sauce pasta recipe on a weeknight when you are craving something different but utterly delicious. This Pasta dish is quickly recreated in 30 minutes and best enjoyed, of course, with a glass of white wine or even rosé wine. My recent obsession has been, admittedly, this Pan-Fried Salmon in White Wine Sauce with … [Read more...]
Moringa Pod Curry
This flavorful Moringa pod curry is prepared with the pods of the moringa tree. This is a vegan, gluten free and low carb moringa pod vegetable curry gravy with coconut recipe. Prepare this original curry from Goa with the basic curry paste. Yes, Moringa is a vegetable. In this world, there is a tree known as Moringa, and it produces elongated, thin seed … [Read more...]
Goan Guar Beans Recipe
Goan Guar Beans are an Indian side dish, commonly served with rice and curry. You can serve this side dish with most Indian Thali-style rice and curry meals. 📕 What are Guar Beans? Guar or Cluster beans look just like green beans, but they are more bright green and they are flatter. In India, it is a very common vegetable, and in the last decades, this bean … [Read more...]
Kidney Bean Salad with Vinaigrette Dressing
Kidney bean salad is a lovely nourishing and delicious high protein bean salad, which I prepare with a homemade vinaigrette dressing. Red Kidney beans are a wonderful healthy source of protein which you shouldn't miss incorporating into your diet. Learn how to make this vegan bean salad from scratch further below and get the recipe + video! 📕 What are Kidney … [Read more...]
French Banana Jam Recipe
Banana Jam is easy to make at home, and it tastes ravishingly exciting on a slice of freshly baked bread for breakfast with coffee or tea. The banana jam recipe is an original from the French Caribbeans, and it's completely without pectin. The banana is possibly one of the most versatile fruits of all time. Sure, it’s super tasty to eat as is (and so … [Read more...]
Goan Shrimp Curry Recipe
Goan Shrimp Curry is a well-known delicacy and if you have visited Goa in the past, you will have had this curry most probably while enjoying the sunset in a beach shack. The quick and easy Goan Shrimp Curry can be prepared in less than 25 minutes from scratch with fresh ingredients and the basic Goan curry paste. Curries from Goa have a notorious good name in … [Read more...]
Golden Baked Chicken Drumsticks
I absolutely adore golden crisp baked chicken drumsticks with corn flakes and this recipe, which includes coconut and chili flakes, was featured in a magazine in Europe in spring 2014. The chicken drumsticks are perfectly cooked and the chili and coconut give it a slight Indian touch to the baked chicken drumsticks with corn flakes. Best enjoyed with the sweet and … [Read more...]
Creamy Mixed Vegetable Korma with Yogurt
Vegetable Korma is a creamy, lightly spiced curry with green cardamom and yogurt as the main star ingredients. This simple to prepare nut-free, vegetable mixed Korma (aka Kurma) comes together rather easily since you can use fresh vegetable fridge leftovers or frozen veggies. What is Korma or Kurma? Korma is a North Indian dish, in fact, it's a remnant from the … [Read more...]
French Crème Caramel Flan Recipe
A French Flan is a Vanilla-flavored Crème caramel pudding, and it is prepared from start to finish with common pantry ingredients. I am not a sweet tooth, but a homemade custard is my ultimate weakness, and so I perfected an easy to prepare flan, and you can do this too! Oven Info The recipe is based on what we were taught in culinary school in Europe. Therefore, … [Read more...]
Tibetan Thukpa Noodle Soup Recipe
The Tibetan Thukpa Recipe is prepared with various delicious ingredients. This soup will lighten up your mood and help you find inner peace after a long day. 📕 What is Thukpa? Thukpa is a Tibetan soup made of noodles, vegetables and occasionally a protein. The soup is a wholesome meal in itself. Tibetans eat it to keep them self warm. The … [Read more...]
French Veal Ragout Stew Recipe
Veal stew is a favorite winter dish at home that we usually make on cold days to warm up. Only fresh ingredients are used in this flavorful stew, and this is why it's such an all-time dinner hit! What is this stew? Veal is stewed and tender cooked with root vegetables, fresh herbs and spices. This meat cut cooks better and is more likely to please even the most … [Read more...]
Goan Pork Sorpotel Recipe - Indian Pork Curry
Goan Pork Sorpotel is an essential Indian pork Curry from the former Portuguese colony and the west Indian state of Goa. Sorpotel is a spicy favorite during Christmastime, but recently, it has often while appeared at weddings and other festivities in Goa. During Christmastime, it is a tradition in each Goan house to cook the delicious Pork Sorpotel curry. I … [Read more...]
62 Indian Food Recipes you should try!
I believe, we can never have enough Indian Food Recipes! Indian food is so versatile, the topic is so broad and there are so many dishes, that it would be a pity to miss out on any of those wonderfully prepared dishes. Because, finally, Indian food has turned into a thing worldwide, and not just in the UK. I decided it was about time to bring you the most … [Read more...]
Breakfast Semolina Porridge with Banana and Cashews
A homemade semolina porridge, inspired by the Indian Suji ka Halwa. This recipe is best suited as a wholesome breakfast idea with banana and cashew, but of course, you can enjoy it too as a fulfilling dessert. You know, I like to have and discover different breakfast ideas, and obviously, they need to be tasty, or you will still see me sleeping at unspeakable times … [Read more...]
French Madeleine Recipe
![Best Madeleine Recipe [French]](https://www.masalaherb.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Best-Madeleine-Recipe-gog-1-150x150.jpg)
French Madeleine's that are small, soft, fluffy shell-shaped cakes. Perfect and most delicious when enjoyed freshly baked and still warm! These are originally from the Lorraine region in France, where a part of my family emigrated from during WWII. I have prepared a quick how-to video for you further below so that you can prepare these wonderful little French cakes … [Read more...]
Kodaikanal Tamil Nadu South India and my honest experience
Some time around 2007 in Goa, I met a few very nice and friendly Russian freelance internet pioneers. They had made Goa their base during the winter months, but they would travel to their liking around the South Indian States, from Pondicherry, Mysore to Kodaikanal, Munnar and Alappuzha. I had not traveled the Southern Indian States at that point and was mesmerized by … [Read more...]
German Cold Cuts: A Practical Guide
German Cold Cuts or deli meats are super delicious, and I bet this is why you are here! In this post, you will learn about the varieties of cold cuts enjoyed in Germany and Austria. I help you understand the choices. ❤️ Cold Cuts in German-speaking Countries There are countless different cold meats and German sausages displayed in grocery shops everywhere in … [Read more...]
French Mayonnaise Recipe
Making french mayonnaise is easy! I mean, it looks daunting but if you have a healthy wrist movement then you can whisk up a smooth sauce in ease. You can hardly end up making a mistake in this recipe, and I will show you how, in the quick mayo recipe further down. TL;DR Mayonnaise is omnipresent in Europe! I remember those kids in Switzerland living on a … [Read more...]
Blueberry Tart with Custard Recipe
Fruity creamy dessert, as dark as the night, come to me I will treat you well and savor each slice, each layer and every single bite. Oh so blue and scrumptious, still fresh and hot, we ate you completely, so that there was nothing left. This is what happened with the blueberry tart with custard in the picture. Impatient as I am around food classics, I couldn't … [Read more...]
How to pick wild Bilberries (European Blueberry)
This guide will show you how we collect bilberries in Europe in the wild. We call them blueberries or “moss” berries, so they are sometimes also known as European blueberries. Before we start, just to be clear: Only pick wild berries if you are certain that they are edible! I will be describing and sharing pictures further down that will help you to get around … [Read more...]
Red Cabbage Juice with Grapes and Mandarin
Red cabbage juice is not your usual juice, which you get from your favorite juice bar. Heck, most of us wouldn't even consider juicing red cabbage. Yet, there is something to this healthy vegetable which makes it great juicing material together with other delicious raw produce! Are you a raw food fan? Lately, I have been noticing a certain food trend … [Read more...]
Spicy Tomato Sauce Recipe for Pasta and Pizza
A Spicy Tomato Sauce Recipe to use as a Marinara Pizza topping or as a Pasta Sauce or even in baked Lasagna. Homemade and freshly prepared from scratch! A Spicy Tomato Sauce Recipe in all its glory. Yes, that's what we need, don't you think so? This is a revamped Italian style Tomato Marinara with spicy hot vibes. I add fresh chili peppers to pep up this … [Read more...]
Goan Beef Croquettes
I shared a New Year's Eve Appetizer collection, rounding up the best treats made by my food blogger friends. I also shared the fact that I usually don't make those appetizers but that I was an avid fan of homemade colorful, creative and above all tasty canapé. However, sometimes I like to make a batch and surprise visiting friends and I do have some goodie recipes in my … [Read more...]
Indian Butter Chicken Recipe (Murgh Makhani)
Butter Chicken is definitely the most known and popular North Indian dish in the world. Most probably you will have come across this dish abroad and if you are in India then of course you couldn't have missed it. I, personally, don't remember when I tasted my first easy Butter Chicken recipe but one thing is sure, it must have been in this marvelous big colorful … [Read more...]
Homemade Coconut Milk
Back in Europe, I always regarded Coconut milk as something super fancy and difficult to come bye Honestly, 10 years ago, you would literally have to hunt down a can of coconut milk and the best place to find a lonely can of coconut milk would be in an Asian grocery shop. Those are still rather a rarity in the Austrian alpine villages, but at least some … [Read more...]
Chicken with Mushroom White Wine Cream Sauce
📕 Take on Hunter's Schnitzel This recipe was inspired by one of our more traditional recipes in Austria, the hunter's schnitzel (Jägerschnitzel). This is a natural unbreaded schnitzel cooked in a creamy paprika mushroom sauce. Schnitzel in all its forms in Austria or Germany is always either pork or beef. So if it is to be compared to the Israeli schnitzel, which … [Read more...]
Tropical Garden Goa India Part II
The last days have been super hot in the small Indian Coastline state Goa and the retrieving rains seem to be over. Yet the heat is dragging along and I am starting to turn into a raisin. I am looking for water and I am yearning for cooling sights. I remember the days when plump water drops would fall on the broad Elephant Ears in my tropical garden Goa. I … [Read more...]
Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame
Saturday's used to be house cleaning days in my younger years. This would be the most annoying day and the best day at the same time in the week. My mum would make sure that my siblings and I would be up early mornings to attack the day. Yet, her plans rarely worked out and I must say I was very stubborn and cleaning the house was something I hated, but I was … [Read more...]
Goan Para Fish - Marinated Fish Pickle
Something that I thought I would never eat back in 2007, ended up being one of my most favorite Goan dishes. Dried Fish curing in fiery red marination is definitely unusual for a European, but when I was introduced to the fried Goan Para fish served with a mountain of rice and a good dose of Dal, I was instantly hooked by the flavor tango on my tongue. At the … [Read more...]
Sweet and Sour Papaya Sauce
Hello orange Season, welcome back! I have been seeing oranges lately, not in a bad way of course, no I am talking about the change of seasons and the time when orange-colored vegetables and fruits appear more frequently in the market. It might be Europe, the Americas or India, every September you'll notice warmer colored produce. While the old wives summer (also … [Read more...]
Mushroom Duxelles Pasta Sauce
More then a year ago I had introduced you to Mushroom Duxelles, a mixture of finely chopped Mushrooms shallots and herbs. Back then I had shared my stuffed Tomatoes a la Duxelles at Cafe Terra blog, so a recipe was never shared here at Masala Herb. Mushroom Duxelles is usually used for stuffing's and the most known dish stuffed with Duxelles is Beef Wellington. … [Read more...]
Kohlrabi Potato Purée
The other day I came across a vegetable that I hadn’t seen for a while in my little neighborhood market here. As you must have guessed it from the title, I am talking about the humble Kohlrabi, a plump, whitish and roundish looking leafy bulb vegetable. Personally, I am very familiar with the taste of the bulb and I blame my mother for that. She had the habit to … [Read more...]
Chicken Tikka Recipe
To get a hand on a perfect tasty chicken tikka recipe is one challenge and then to even master the “technique” is another. It doesn't mean that only you, the home cook, is facing this famous challenge alone. In fact, in a place such as Goa, even though a popular tourist destination in India, you'll have a hard time hunting down a moist and flavorsome Chicken Tikka. … [Read more...]
Rice Patties Recipe with Carrots
Rice Patties are a great addition to your weekly meal plan to switch up things. These pan-fried savory rice cakes with carrots are prepared with leftover rice and are vegetarian and gluten-free. I created these rice patty cakes to celebrate rice in all its forms and shapes. Just FYI, rice patties are at times also known as rice cakes. 🔪 How to make rice … [Read more...]
Ridge Gourd Casserole Recipe
Ridge Gourd Bake Casserole is a delicious Week night dinner idea. The Ridge Gourd is a gourd vegetable growing in the tropical regions of this world, and most particularly on the Indian subcontinent. Learn how to use this healthy vegetable in this ridge gourd bake casserole with the step-by-step recipe further below: My all-time favorite vegetable on the … [Read more...]
Tropical Fruit Garden India
I thought it was about time to show you all our Tropical Fruit Garden here in Goa, India. This is the best season for me to show off with all the wondrous fruit treats growing in our garden. We have many more trees, but they are still pretty young. In fact, most of them were planted a year ago, but more about that later on. Of course, we do have some … [Read more...]
Austrian Jagertee Recipe
The alpine skiing slopes are famous all over the world. Why? Mostly because of the tipsy making hot beverages, such as the heart-warming Jagertee. 📕 What is a Jagertee? Jagertee, Jägertee or Jagatee means Hunter's tea and Jaga is the local Tyrolean (regional Austrian German) word for Jäger in German. My conclusion is that in the old times, Hunter's used … [Read more...]