Bharwa Karela

Iam so happy to be back and writing on my blog again. After the not so positive returning post,let get's to my first recipe of the year.

Iam very fond of karela.For those of you not familiar with the Karela, its also called bitter gourd(yes,its bitter but there are ways to do away with that.)From what I know, the bitter gourd has excellent medicinal virtues and one of its multiple medicinal uses if for diabetic patients to lower their sugar.Iam sure its got a ton of other uses(let's save that for another day.)I can tell you that as a child, I did not deal well with this weird looking, oh-my-god-bitter vegetable(but then kids are famous for not eating their veggies.My mom was very persistent though and with time I have come to love this humble looking green colored vegetable.



Before you even ask me, I want to tell you how to remove the bitterness. Once its peeled,karela is rubbed with salt and then left alone for a while.The juice that oozes from this process this process is drained and voila,you are now ready to make "stuffed bitter gourd" a.k.a bharwa karela or any other preparation that you may want.Let's start,shall we?:))

You need:

8 long Bitter Gourds
5 grated Onions(I use the box grater)
2 teaspoons Ginger paste
2 teaspoons garlic paste
2 teaspoons Amchur(Dried Mango Powder)
1 teaspoon Red Chili Powder
2 teaspoon Coriander Powder
2 tablespoons canola oil to pan fry(you can use any other oil)
1.5 teaspoon to cook the stuffing
salt to taste

This is how you make it:

Wash and peel the bittergourds. Slit them in the Center keeping the end intact. Sprinkle salt on the peeled bittergourds(eye ball it)and let them sit for half and hour.Fry the grated onions till they turn brown,then add ginger and garlic and stir.Add dried mango powder,red chilly powder,coriander powder and cook.Take it off after its cooked and let the mixture cool. Now pan fry the bittergourds carefully till they turn brown in color.keep them aside and let them cool.Your stuffing and bittergourds are now ready for the next step.Stuff the bittergourds with the mixture carefully, leave a spoon or two for later.Now arrange them in a pan, add the mixture, remaining oil and a little bit of water, the remaining mixture and cover the pan.Now cook on low heat for about 10-15 minutes. Serve hot with rotis/paratha.



I dedicate this recipe to my friend "V" who loves it:) Enjoy!!

Holi Hai !!!

Hope you all had a wonderful holi .I had not one but two holi parties, both super fun.

Party Number 1..we played paint ball(messy but fun game) and followed it up with punjabi food( makke ki roti, sarson ka sag, paranthas, chole bature etc), played impromptu holi outside the restaurant and had some more fun later


Party No 1..in the restaurant, everyone's clean!!!


everyone after playing holi

party Number 2 ..very fun as well, this was a pot luck party for which I cooked tomato paneer, Paneer and raisin pulao and gulabjamun.We played with colors and danced and played card games..

clean one moment


Unrecognisable the next


The group Mug shot(do we have any colors left?)

Fantastic way to end the week, I say bring more such celebrations...

Here are pictures of what I cooked. Recipes coming soon:)

What I cooked for the Holi potluck


Tomato Paneer


Paneer and Raisin pulao


The wonderful, the evergreen Gulabjamun:)


ENJOY & HOLI MUBARAK !!!

Soyabean Matar Pulao with Basmati Rice

Alright, alright -I admit to to being spoilt .After eating long grained , fragrant and beautiful basmati rice which literally melts in your mouth, all my life ..I find it difficult to adjust to coarser, thicker rice .Eating freshly cooked basmati rice is like eating fluffy ,little white peices of heaven .I will also admit that with passage of time I have come to understand the virtues of different varieties of rice..

Did you know that the word ‘basmati’ means fragrant, and refers to the nutlike flavor and aroma of this small, but long grained rice. It has been used in India and Pakistan for thousands of years and is excellent with curries. Several varieties are now grown in the U.S., such as Texmati and Kasmati, and all are growing in popularity. (One U.S. company has made an effort to patent Basmati rice and trademark the name). Their flavor is very good, but not quite up to real imported Basmati. (www.foodreference.com)

The other main ingredients of my pulao which are soyabean and peas are rife with proteins .I make matar pulao often but soyabeans make this dish much more protein packed and give it a twist .I love it and think you all should try it .

So let's get cracking

You need :
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 black cardamom seeds
6 whole black peppercorns
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1 cup cooked soyabeans (boiled in salted water)
2 cups uncooked basmati rice, rinsed and drained
4 cups water
salt to taste

This is how you make it :
Heat the oil in a deep heavy skillet over low heat. Add thecumin, cardamom seeds and peppercorns .Cook for a few minutes to bring out the aroma of the spices. Add the green peas to the pan, cover and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 4 cups of water and rice to the pan. Season with salt. Bring to a boil, then cover, and cook for about 10 minutes. Then add the cooked soyabean and cook until the rice is tender and the water has been absorbed.

Cover the skillet and let the rice sit for a while .S erve when its fluffy with cool cucumber raita and pickle .

Tilapia with wild rice

Fish and rice are wonderful ...I love fish and always look to making fish in different ways -baked, broiled, poached, fried , cooked in foil ...different herbs, marinades etc .Ofcourse there's always so many different kinds of fish availabe to choose from-salmon, tilapia, sea bass, catfish, mahi mahi, snapper, cod ..the list goes on and on .

This time I chose Tilapia..which is a fresh water fish and takes on new flavors easily .Tilapia species are native to Africa and the Levant (for example the sea of Galilee, where according to legend Jesus used it to feed the 5000, resulting in the nickname St. Peter's fish).

Wild rice also called Indian Rice, Water Rice, or Water Oats is considered a delicacy, has long been an important food of North American Indians and wild rice is not related to, related to rice (Oryza sativa). I once ate cornish hen with wild rice and was inspired to cook it more often or atleast try it a couple of times . So without further ado , lets start cooking .

You need
2 tilapia fillets !
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil for marinade
Olive oil to pan fry
black pepper
salt to taste
chopped corriander

1 cup wild rice
3 cups water or chicken broth
salt to taste
seasoning to taste (Maggi Chicken Flavored Bouillon )

This is how you make it
Marinate the tilapia fillets in olive oil and lemon juice. Add salt ,black pepper , chopped corriander and set aside for 15-20 minutes.

Cooking the rice
Wash 1 cup uncooked wild rice thoroughly. Add to 3 cups boiling water or chicken stock(I use chicken stock for extra flavor) , salted and seasoned to taste(add maggi chicken seasoning according to taste), in a saucepan. Return water to boil and stir. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 50-60 minutes or just until kernals puff open. Uncover and fluff with table fork. This will give you 3-4 cups of cooked wild rice.

Now , heat some olive oil or any other oil in the pan and pan fry the fish so that the it turns brown on both sides and flaky .Take care not to move the fish in the pan or it will break .

Your tilapia is now ready. Serve it on top of a bed of fragrant wild rice. Add salsa for that extra zing and enjoy .

Kesar Pulao

I had posted a picture of this back in December 2005 but did not share the recipe back at that time. I am doing that today .

I have always wondered what is the difference between pulao and biryani and here's what I found .

Before biryanis became Mughlai food, they were part of Persian culture in the royal courts of Delhi during the medieval period. The word biryani comes from the Persian "birian", which means "fried" or "roasted". The Persians had a major rice dish in their pulao.

There is a subtle difference between the biryani and the pulao.

In a biryani, the parboiled rice is layered twice or more between the spices and the meat, and they are all cooked together. In a pulao, the stock of meat forms the base and the rice is cooked with the spices so that it absorbs the flavor of the spices. A pulao is like an assembly of cooked rice and meat.

Some of the other differences would be:
Pulao is made by the absorption method of cooking rice. Biryani is made by the draining method of cooking rice.In pulao the base ingredient is mixed with the rice, while in biryani the main ingredient is at the base of the vessel. In biryani lot of aromatic masala is used. Pulaos are relatively less spiced (www.uppercrustindia.com)

Talking of Kesar Pulao , it is a special rice dish that is usually made in North Indian or Muslim weddings or for other important functions. It is a very aromatic dish and has a wonderful blend of spices and Kesar (saffron).

You need :
3 cups basmati rice
6 cups water
7 in number cardamom (elaichi)
7 cloves
1 cup mixed dry nuts (cashews, almonds, raisins)
1 tbsp saffron water (put 1/2 tsp of saffron in 1 tbsp of hot water and dissolve)
3 tbsps ghee (clarified butter)1 tbsp.
salt to taste
green boiled peas , 1 tomato and chopped coriander to garnish

This is how you make it
Wash and soak the basmati rice for about 1 hour.(always preferable as this makes the rice cook faster and look better)
Add 2 tbsp ghee to the pan and put in the cloves, cardamom and half the nuts (you can use oil too, just that ghee has better aroma)
Fry the nuts for till they start to turn golden and the raisins start to swell up .
Add the rice and water , salt to taste and the add in the saffron water.(If you want to just add strands of saffron, that should be fine .The more saffron you put , the deeper the color.)
Cover the pot or pan you are cooking in ,When the rice is done .Fry the remaining dry fruits in the remaining butter and sprinkle on the top of the cooked rice .
Garnish with boiled peas, chopped coriander and a tomato floret.

Serve hot with other delectable curries (veg or non veg) and enjoy

Upma

Sorry folks ..No post for almost 2 weeks . I was busy and then I was sick .Now Iam feeling much better and raring to go . For those of you , who cared to ask , thanks a ton :)

The recipe I post today was something I was hoping to enter into Meenakshi's " From my rasoi - breakfast series" but could not because I was sick last week and couldnt make the deadline on time . Meenakshi of "Hooked on Heat" fame has been doing a great job and I hope to enter her feb series .

Today's recipe is Upma .Like all dishes upma, has a history behind it .It originated in the South of India and is mighty popular there .Called "Upma" in tamil ,"Uppindi" in Telugu and "Uppittu" in Kannada , its basically a wholesome indian dish made of Wheat Rava or sooji(also called semolina) .There are so many different ways to prepare Upma.

Indeed, every south Indian woman will impart a small difference in flavour when making her Upma. This variation is obtained by varying or emphasising some particular spice, thereby making for variation. Apart from rava,upma is widely made with vermicelli and cous-cous also. These dishes are sometimes not regarded as being Upma, and are known in many regions by other names.

Upma used to be one of the many sunday breakfast items my ma used to make when I was back in India .Sunday breakfasts were always special and elaborate.recently I made upma and my mind jsut went back to those good ole times when I used to watch my ma fiddling with her pots and pans , spices ...........a bit of this , a bit of that ..some stirr and whoosh ....recipe upon delicious recipe appeared in front of me.She made it effortless , as simple as brushing your teeth and unknowingly instilled a love of cooking in me . Let me start with the recipe before I go mushy on you guys and start uttering gibberish :-)

You need
Sooji - upma Rava 1 Cup
Ginger 1 " inch piece chopped
finelyChilies red or Green 2 Nos
Onion medium size 1 chopped
Boiled peas- 1/2 cup
Chopped carrots -1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Oil 4 tbsp.
Water 2 Cups

For Seasoning
Mustard Seeds 1 tsp
Urad dal 1 tsp
Channa dal 1 tsp
Hing 1 pinch
dry red chillies 2
Curry leaves few.

This is how you cook it
Dry roast sooji in 2 tablespoon oil for few minutes & keep aside.Take care not to brown it .
Heat oil in the same pan & add the seasoning.
Add chilies, ginger & Onion ,fry till translucent.Then add chopped carrots and boiled peas .Cover the pan with a lid for atleast 5-10 minutes while the carrots soften and cook
Add salt,water & let it come to boil at whichpoint add the sooji gradually.
Keep stirring& take care as not to form lumps.
Simmer the stove,cover & let it cook for 5 minutes.
Switch off the stove. Your upma is ready .& Serve hot with a steaming cup of tea or coffee.

What a delicious beginning to a day .Try it .

Aloo Tikki

The ubitquitous potato.There's nothing one can not make with it .Everything from appetisers to desserts can be made with this humble looking, brown, oblong ,smooth and sometimes rough skinned vegetable.

So from the vast array of possible appetisers ,sides, main course dishes and desserts ,I decided to make aloo tikki the other day .Aloo tikki is one of the items from amongst a collection of hot and spicy snacks that is called chaat.(Others being golgappa, bhalle, papdi etc) .Each of these items are particularly spicy and induce a "kick" into a boring day:)

I used to visit the local ‘chaat walla (street hawker) to eat aloo tikki and chaat when I visited the local market with ma and dad .His shop would be abuzz with customers at any given time and his tikkis and chaat always sold like hot cakes . He fried fresh aloo tikkies on a hot griddle or tava .The wonderfully aroma was often enough to set my stomach churning with hunger .
Standing in the line always paid off in the end because the taste made up for everything .

The best part is , one can always make them at home , they are very easy ,delicious and serve as a wonderful appetiser. Let's get started .

You need:
7-8 potatoes boiled, peeled, mashed
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
3 green chillies grouned1/2 tsp.
garam masala
1/2 cup bread crumbs
salt to taste
chilli flakes/powder to taste
oil for shallow frying

This is how you cook it
Mix all the ingredients thoroughly
Press gently into rounded flattish patties.
Shallow fry on a griddle, drizzling oil to crispen crust.
Serve hot with tamarind chutney and green chutney. or with tomato ketchup

(you can do an optional filling with boiled chana dal or paneer& peas .This mixture is made with mixing either chana or paneer& peas with ginger, corriander seeds , cumin seed powder, salt and chilli .Take a tbspful of potato mixture, spread on palm and place a tspful of dal mixture in centre.Roll so as to keep dal mixture inside and potato out. Press gently into rounded flattish patties)

Sabut Masoor Dal

I am of the humble opinion that good food belongs to two different categories...simple , wholesome , easy to make, yet delicious .This is food one can make daily and make sure the body and soul are both satisfied. The second category is food that requires a whole bunch of ingredients, time , finesse .The end product is delicious too but also exotic and mostly a visual stunner.Fulfilling for the eyes too.

I like to dwell in both the categories. Depends on my mood, time and the occassion . On a daily basis I really like to keep it short and simple .Coming to which "DAL", is simple .

Dal is known by many names...lentils, legumes and pulses.And then there are tonnes of different kind of daals . Pulses have been around and used as food for thousands of years. The lentil was probably one of the first plants ever to be domesticated by humans. Most pulses prefer warm climates but there are varieties which grow in temperate regions.The awesome thing is that they are rich in proteins and vegetarians dont need to worry too much if they just eat their dals.

The various dals I know of are moong dal(dhuli and sabut), arhar(toor or tuvar dal), chane ki daal, ma ki dal, masoor dal (sabut and dhuli) and urad dal . When a dal is "dhuli"it simply means that the skin has been taken away and the seed is split and exposed and when its "sabut " it means that the whole seed in intact in its covering .

I recently made sabut masoor dal .Masoor dal is also called "Egyptian lentils" and is dark brown in color.Its difficult to look at those dark ,non-descript seeds and beleive that they could turn into such a delicious lentil soup.(if you decide to cook sabut daal ,please remember these seeds take longer to cook because they are whole. )

Alright, lets get started without much ado.

You need :
250 g. sabut masoor dal

For Tempering/baghar/tadka
(this is basically just seasoning the dal by with spices and other ingredients )
1 tsp. ginger paste
1 tsp. garlic paste/crushed garlic
2 tbs. (vegatble/sunflower/canola)
1 large onion finely chopped
1 large tomato finely chopped
1 level tsp. chili powder/flakes
1\2 level tsp. ground coriander-
salt to taste
1 level tsp. garam masala
2-3 tbs. finely chopped fresh coriander leaves for garnish

This is how you cook it
Pressure cook the dal , using approximately a half a litre of water .(You can add the salt right now or later after the dal is cooked.Usually it takes about 15-20 minutes in a pressure cooker. You may have to add more water if the lentil is not tender yet and cook for further 8 to 10 minutes). Let the pressure whistle blow about 3-4 times on medium to high heat

Take the dal of the stove and take a pan .Heat the oil and add the ginger paste, garlic, onions and fry them till they become transparent .Then add the tomatoes and fry them till they start losing their moisture and become soft.Now add the dal (if the dal is not dilute enough , you can add more water to get a consistency you want).Add salt, dhania powder and chilli flakes /powder.Stir and cook for few more minutes.

Take off the stove .The dal is now ready .As a finishing touch add the garam masala and garnish with the chopped corriander .

its Yummy :)

Paneer bhurji

I love paneer in all shapes, forms and dishes ..For those of you who read my blog and don't know what paneer/cottage cheese is (Its a dairy product.Paneer can be prepared at home or bought at the market .I buy mine at the local Indian store .The easiest way to make Paneer is to squeeze a lemon in hot milk and let it separate .Take the white residue and tie it up in a muslin cloth and let all the water drip .What remains is, paneer.You can crumble this or cut it up in cubes....)

Paneer is pretty versatile .There a tonnes of recipes out there and the ones that come to my mind are pudina paneer, handi paneer, paneer in coriander garlic sauce, matar paneer, saag paneer, achari paneer, paneer palak bhujia/bhurji, kesari paneer, goan paneer pea curry , mughlai paneer, kaju paneer masala, paneer kebabs, and paneer pasanda..I plan to try them all soon and Iam sure they are just minor variations in all the recipes .

Paneer bhurji is simple easy to make and takes almost no time .And It tastes delicious. I usually have it either some kind of dal , chappati and raita .I will put up the daal that I cooked with the Paneer bhurji in my next blog entry ...

Till then enjoy this one :-)

You need :
200 gms paneer - crumbled
1 large onion chopped finely
2 green chillies chopped finely
oil - 1 tablespoon
salt to taste
1 teaspoon turmeric
chilli powder/flakes to taste
corriander to garnish

This is how you cook it :
Heat the oil and fry the onions till they become transparent .Add diced green chillies and saute them for a while .Then addthe paneer, followed by turmeric, salt and chilli flakes.Mix thoroughly and add just a little water to the mixture .Be sure not to add too much water .Wait for water to evaporate and then take off the stove.Paneer Bhurji is ready to serve. Garnish with chopped corriander.

If you feel like adding finely chopped tomatoes along with the onions at the onset , feel free to do so.That's just another variation to the recipe and tastes great as well.

Simple yet Complete

After a hectic day at work most people come home and grab the nearest and the easiest thing to eat .Calories and vows to work towards a better body are forgotten ..All that matters is taking care of the hunger thats poking holes in your stomach ....

I often try to live up to my vow(pun intended ,wink!!) There are few days when I dont care for anything but boiled eggs (atleast they are healthy) and other days when I am capable (and thats mostly the situation) when I cook up a 2-3 course , healthy meal ...

The picture represents just that...boiled or steamed rice , yellow lentil soup(in india its called toor or arhar dal ), minced mea(called keema in india) with vegetables ,yogurt and some fresh salad ..A meal like this mostly takes care of my body , soul and my hunger and gets rave reviews..

Bon appetit :-)

Durga Puja fare

I become extremely nostalgic when Durga Puja is around the corner and miss home ..The pandals ,the endless fun, the camaraderie and the food...Since I no longer get that food I decided to make it myself and fill the void.For those of you who dont know what Durga Pooja is,Well, it is a prominent festival amongst bengalis in India .

My menu had the quintessential Khichudi(a mixture of rice, lentils ,veggies and spices),cabbage with peas,Labda(a funny name but dont get mislead by it )a delicious,aromatic& sweet-salty mix of vegetables like squash, aubergines and potatoes,seasoned with five spices and cooked in mustard oil),tomato chutney(I also added dates,rasins and cherries to the mix), Begun bhaja(sliced aubergines marinated in turmeric and salt and panfried in mustard oil) and the dessert was khejur gud paish (rice pudding cooked in palm sugar)...

Shubho Bijoya everyone !!



khichudi


Labda (yeah say that again ..its a funny name):-)


cabbage and peas


begun bhaja (aubergines pan fried in mustard oil)


tomato chutney


khejur gud paish(rice pudding made with palm sugar)