Gobi Manchurian

Like kids in school, we share our lunch box at work too. At the stroke of Noon, we sit down for lunch trading anecdotes while sampling each other's lunch box. The day before yesterday, BD had an idea to have a pot luck lunch on Friday and it was a suggestion that all of us happily agreed to. My contribution - Gobi Manchurian and Noodles. K loves this combo and he was more than happy helping me dice, chop and slice all the ingredients. I will be posting the recipe for the Noodles over the weekend.

Gobi Manchurian
Oil for deep frying
1 medium sized cauliflower

For the batter

1/2 cup refined flour
1/4 cup corn flour
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
Salt to taste
Water

For the sauce

2 tbsp oil
2 spring onions chopped fine
2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
1" ginger, chopped fine
2 green chillies, chopped fine
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cup water or vegetable stock
Salt to taste

Wash and cut the cauliflower into florets and set aside.
Combine all the batter ingredients to make a thick batter. The batter should not be too thick.
Heat oil in a pan. Dip the florets into the batter and deep fry till golden brown. Put on paper towel to absorb the oil and keep aside.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan. Add the onion, ginger, garlic and green chillies. Cook for 1 minute and add the stock/water, pepper, soy sauce and salt. Simmer till it begins to boil. Add the cornflour mixed with water and stir continuously. Cook till the sauce becomes thick. Add the cauliflower and mix well. Serve with noodles and/or fried rice. Enjoy !!

Kumhro Saag ( Pumpkin with Greens)

As a kid, I was not too fond of Pumpkin (Kaddu). I would eat it but not with relish. The only thing I loved was the fritters Ma used to make with the Pumpkin flowers. We had a pretty large pumpkin patch and in season I would go with my dad to pick the flowers.
But this dish I always enjoyed. Ma used to cook the pumpkin with Greens and potatoes and the dish was always yummy. In Bihar, where I come from, Pumpkin is called "Kumhro" and any Green Leafy veggie is called "Saag". Hence the name "Kumhro Saag". I have used Spinach and Butternut squash for this recipe.

1 medium sized Butternut squash, peeled and diced into 2" pieces
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced the same size as the pumpkin
1 packet frozen spinach
2 tbsp oil
2 dry red chilli
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
Salt to taste

Heat oil in a pan, add the cumin and turmeric powder . Add the dry red chillies and saute it for a minute. Add the pumpkin and potatoes and cook for 5 mts. Add the cayenne powder, coriander powder and the spinach. Mix well and cook for 5 minutes. Add salt and 1/4th cup water. Cover and cook till the potatoes are done. Serve hot with rice/roti.

Methi Chicken

This one too is courtesy Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe collection. It is such an easy dish to make and has so much of flavor. What I liked was that the curry was without the usual tomato base.

750 grams chicken
3 medium onions, finely chopped
2" ginger, finely chopped
10-12 cloves garlic, chopped, ground to a paste
3 green chillies, chopped fine
1 cup yogurt, whisked till smooth
2 tbsp oil
2 Bay leaves
5 green cardamom
2 black cardamom
3 cloves
1" stick cinnamon
5 Peppercorn
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tbsp coriander powder
2 tbsp kasoori methi
1 tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste
Few sprigs coriander leaves, chopped

Clean and cut Chicken into medium sized pieces.

Heat oil in a pan. Add bay leaves, green cardamoms, black cardamoms, cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns. Saute till peppercorns begin to crackle.
Add onion and cook till light golden brown. Add chooped ginger, garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and chooped green chillies. Saute for a minute.
Add the chicken pieces and yogurt and cook on high heat for 7-8 minutes. Add kasoori methi and 3/4th cup water. Cover the pan, lower the heat and cook for 10 mts. Add garam masala, salt and chopped coriander leaves. Mix well and serve hot with rice/roti.

Lahsooni Tinda

K had been working hard all weekend, finishing a report and he deserved a good Sunday night dinner for all his hard work. Ma had sent Sanjeev Kapoor's cookbook ( an easy to make delicious compilation of recipes)and the recipe for the Chicken Methi and Lahsooni Tinda looked delicious. I had some Tindora from the Indian store and some Chicken left from the last trip to Costco. Needless to say that both dishes were polished off with much relish.

Lahsooni Tinda

Tinda : 2 cups
Garlic : 20-24 cloves
Ginger : 1" piece
Coriander leaves : a few sprigs, chopped
Salt to taste
Cumin seed : 1/4 tsp
Whole red chillies : 4-6
Coriander powder : 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder : 1tsp
Oil : 1 tbsp

Wash the tinda and cut them into quarters lengthwise.

Peel, wash and pat dry the garlic cloves. Peel, wash ginger and gring to a paste with 10 cloves of garlic. Chop the other 10 cloves of garlic.

Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds, whole red chillies broken into two and the ginger-garlic paste. Cook for a minute. Add the remaining garlic cloves and cook for a minute to lightly brown them.

Add the tinda and cook stirring continuously, until they are crisp. Add salt, coriander powder, turmeric powder and mix well. Redusce heat, cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat, garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with Roti.
(We had this with Methi Parathas, and it was delicious. I will be posting the recipe for Methi paratha soon)

Dal Makhni

This recipe is from Aunty M. Every time she visited, we would ask her to make this in a large batch. She would freeze the dal in a couple of Ziploc bags and we would enjoy this dish for the next month or two. This dish and Bhein (Lotus root) were her signature dishes.

Generally Rajma (kidney beans) is added to the dal makhni but Aunty M would make it only with Sabut (Whole) urad dal. Without further ado, here is the recipe.

Ingredients

1 cup sabut urad dal, washed, picked and soaked overnight
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1/2 chopped garlic
1/2 tsp finely chopped ginger
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp tomato paste/puree
1 tbsp ghee
Salt to taste
Milk (if using 2 cups water to cook the dal, use 1 1/2 cup milk)
1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves

In a pressure cooker, add urad dal, onion, garlic, ginger, powders: cumin, cayenne, coriander, garam masala, tomato paste, salt, ghee and 2 cups water. Cook till dal is done. Remove from heat, stir the dal well, set aside and let it cool.



Once the dal mixture has cooled, add 1 1/2 cups of milk (do not use Fat free milk). cook the dal for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly till the dal thickens. Add the coriander leaves, cook for a minute and remove from heat. Serve hot with Rice/ Roti or Paratha. Enjoy !!

Baingan (Eggplant) Bharta

My friend T had come from India to visit and she gave me this recipe for Baingan Bharta. At home, we would add garlic, tomatoes and peas to make the "masala" Bharta, but T made this with lots of ginger. The end result was absolutely yummy.

Ingredients

1 large eggplant
2 onions, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, diced
2" ginger, chopped fine/grated
1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (adjust acc. to taste)
Salt to taste
Oil



Roast the oven on the stove or in an oven. When it cools down, remove the skin, mash the pulp and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan, add onions and cook till onions are golden brown. Add the grated/chopped ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add salt, cayenne pepper and cook till tomotoes become mushy and the spices are well mixed.

Add the roasted eggplant and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chopped coriander leaves, cook for a minute and serve hot with roti/paratha. Enjoy

Aloo Tikki

I had made Aloo Tikki's when J came over for lunch yesterday. She liked the dish and asked for the recipe. So this one is for J.

Ingredients
1 lb potatoes
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)-available at any Indian store
Salt to taste
1 cup bread crumb
Cooking spray

To Garnish
1 small onion chopped fine
1/4 cup chopped cilantro/parsley
Tamarind-Data Chutney (Available at any Indian store)
Sev (Available at any Indian store)

Boil the potatoes till tender. Peel the skin. Mash the potatoes adding salt, cayenne pepper, amchoor, coriander powder, cumin powder, 1/4 cup bread crumb.

Heat a griddle / flat bottomed pan. Spray lightly with the cooking spray. Take a palmful of the potator mixture and roll it between your palms and flatten it. Roll the Tikka on the bread crumbs and put it on the griddle/pan. Cook till the side is light golden brown, a couple of minutes. Flip it over and cook till the other side is golden brown.

Serve the Tikka on a bed of chopped coriander leaves. Sprinkle with Sev and serve it hot with the date-tamarind chutney.

Stuffed Karela (Bitter gourd)

This was and still is among my comfort food. Karela was a staple in our house. Surprisingly, I never had to be coaxed into eating this veggie, I would eat any version of it with relish. The way Ma would make it, it would retain some of its bitterness, but what taste !!! Absolutely yummy.

Everyone has their signature way of preparing this dish. This is the way Ma makes it.

Ingredients

3 karelas, washed and skin scraped off
2 small onions or 1 large onion, chopped fine
1" ginger, finely chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 green chillies, minced
1 tsp panch phoran
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1/4th tsp cayenne pepper (you can increase the quantity if you like heat)
1 tsp dried mango powder (amchoor) or juice of 1/2 lime
1/4th cup chopped coriander powder
Salt to taste
Pinch of asafoetida (hing)
Oil, Non stick cooking spray

Make a lengthwise slit on the karelas. Sprinkle / rub salt generously and keep aside for an hour.

In the mean time, heat oil in a pan. Add a pinch of hing, panch phoran and the minced green chillies. When the green chillies turn light brown add chopped onion, minced garlic and chopped ginger. Cook till the onion turns a light golden brown.

Scrape the seeds out of the karela and grind it coarsely in the grinder / food processor.

Now add the powders - cumin, coriander, cayenne, turmeric, garam masala. Cook for a few seconds and then add salt and the coarsely ground seeds. Mix well and cook on medium low heat till all the masala has blended. (Keep sprinkling water, if the masal sticks to the bottom of the pan). Now add the amchoor and chooped coriander leaves. Mix well and remove from heat.

Wash the karelas and pat dry with a paper towel. Put the masala inside the karela and tie it with thread. Heat a pan, add non stick cooking spray. Cook the karelas till brown. Remove the thread and enjoy it with roti and cool cucumber raita.

New to the food blog world

Hi All,

Some people eat to live, and I live to eat. Inspired by many others before me, I have started this little blog to share recipes that I have learnt from my mom, dad, sisters and friends ... different kitchens and cuisines but one common ingredient - lots of love.

I will be posting my recipes shortly. See you !!