Indian

Mai’s Prawn Pulao Green Masala Simply Yummy


Mai’s Prawn Pulao Green Masala

From the Book Mais’s Recipes Page #123

This is such a good recipe from the book ‘Mai’s Recipes’, you will crave for it again and again.  The aroma, the taste, is simply delicious!  Your family, friends, guests are certainly going to shower praises on you for creating such a delicious dish.

Ingredients

2 cups Rice

4 cups hot water

Salt to taste

1 Cup prawns

2 onions, sliced

2 tomatoes, chopped

2 tbsp. ghee or oil

Grind to a paste

1 onion

6 green chilies, or to taste

1 bunch coriander leaves

½ tsp. turmeric

1” pc. Ginger

3 flakes garlic

½ tsp. mustard seeds

½ tsp. cumin seeds

½ tsp. pepper corns

3 cloves

1” pc. Cinnamon

2 cardamoms (optional)

Method

Wash rice and soak in water for ½ hour.  Clean, devein and wash prawns and apply little salt and a pinch of turmeric powder.  Heat ghee in a vessel, add the onions and fry till soft and translucent.  Then add the tomatoes and cook till soft.  Add the ground masala paste and fry till the raw smell of masala disappears.  Add the prawns and cook till water dries up and fat surfaces.  Add rice and mix well but gently till each grain is coated with the masala.  Add water, salt and bring to a boil.  Stir.  Close tightly and reduce to very low flame and cook till all water is absorbed.

Mattar ka Nimona


Mattar Ka Nimona

A delicious potato and peas gravy!

A winter special dish celebrating fresh peas and newly harvested potatoes.  This dish was prepared during the receding winter days but had to delay posting due to other commitments.

Peas and potatoes are a favorite of many but in my family, several members dislike peas.  So this dish is strictly for those who like both peas and potatoes, and for those who love them, I think you can enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, dinner or as snack… essentially whenever your feel like enjoying it!! 

This preparation also doesn’t use any onion or garlic.

Ingredients

2 cups green peas, shelled and boiled

2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled, cut into wedges

1 medium tomato, sliced

2 to 3 tbsp. mustard oil or any suitable oil

1 tsp. cumin seeds

¼ tsp. asafoetida (hing)

2 dried red chillies

¼ tsp. turmeric

½ tsp. coriander seeds powder

½ tsp. garam masala powder

1 tsp. salt or to taste

Grind to a paste:

½ bunch coriander leaves

1” pc. Ginger

2 green chillies

Grind the green masala to a paste.  Mash the green peas into a coarse paste, keep some whole.   Heat a pan, add oil and when hot add the potato wedges and fry till light brown. Frying the potatoes may be avoided, if you wish. Remove the potatoes, and set aside.  To the same oil add the cumin seeds, when they start spluttering, add the whole red chillis and asafoetida.  Saute few seconds and add the green masala, fry till oil surfaces.  Then add the sliced tomato and saute till it softens.  Then add the turmeric and coriander powder and saute for 3 to 4 minutes.  Add salt and mix. Add the green peas and mix well.  Cook till oil separates.  Then add a cup of water or more to adjust consistency of gravy to your liking.  Add potatoes and garam masala powder.  Test salt and add if required.  Mix everything gently and allow to simmer 10 minutes till oil surfaces.  Take off heat.  Remove to a serving dish and squeeze some lemon juice, if desired, before serving.  Serve hot with pulao, steamed rice, rotis or pooris and enjoy this delicious dish!!  Yummy…….

How to Make Instant Recheado Masala for Perfect Marinades


Recheado masala is a basic masala in every Goan kitchen and is used for marinating fish, chicken or red meats for pan frying of stir frying. This is an instant masala, in case your run out of your precious stock of your original rechead masala.

Ingredients

1/2 cup Kashmiri chili powder

1.5 tbsp. Jeerem Meerem powder

2 tbsp. ginger garlic paste

2 tbsp. tomato Ketchup

5 tbsp. vinegar plus more if required

1 tbsp. coriander powder

1 tbsp. sugar (optional) I have skipped the sugar.

As you will notice, salt is not added to the masala. So before applying the masala to marinate the fish, etc. do add salt, as per your taste.

Methi Dosa Menthya Dosa Fenugreek Dosa


Methi or fenugreek seeds have good nutritional values and are excellent for diabetics, good digestion and for lactating mothers.

Ingredients

2 cups Dosa rice or basmati rice

2 tbsp. Fenugreek seeds methi seeds

1 cup coconut

½ cup jaggery, or to taste (optional)

Salt, as per taste

Ghee / oil, to make dosas

Making Batter

Wash and soak rice and methi seeds separately, for minimum 5 to 6 hours.

First grind the methi seeds along with water till smooth and fluffy.  Remove to a large vessel. 

Grind the rice in 2 batches.  Add half the rice to the ginder alongwith half  the coconut and grind to a smooth paste. Add to the vessel with the methi batter.

When grinding is complete, mix the batter well and leave to ferment overninght or for atleast 8 to 10 hours.  No fermenting agent has been added, so the batter will take longer to ferment.  Fenugreek by itself acts as a fermenting agent.

Making Dosas

After batter has fermented, mix well and add water if required to adjust the consistency.

Heat a dosa pan, preferably.  If not any frying pan may be used.  When hot, sprinkle some water.  Water will sizzle if pan is hot and at the same time helps in reducing the temperature of the pan.  This is necessary, otherwise the batter will not spread smoothly and evenly but is likely to separate from the pan when spreading.

Using a rounded ladle, pour some batter as required for thin or thick dosas and using the back of the ladle, spread in circular direction to make them as thin as possible.  If thick dosa is required, pour the batter and tilt the pan to spread the batter or spread it very lightly.

When the dosa is fully set and cooked, drizzle ghee in the centre and the sides of the dosa.  Remove and serve immediately for crisp dosas (or else it will loose its crispiness).  Thick dosas may be served hot or at room temperature.

To make sweet dosas, add the jaggery powder to the fermented batter and mix well.  Fry as above.

I have divided the batter into 2 batches and added jaggery to one half of the batter.

Serve with coconut chutney, idli podi, butter or ghee.

Undhiyu vegetables bhaji, but it is not Undhiyu!


Winter vegetables have hit the markets in India, which means they are ‘in season’ now. It is always best to align your meals according to nature by consuming what is in season. This ensures your are ingesting food that is absolutely fresh and at its peak and this also goes a long way in supporting farmers and reducing our carbon footprints.

A traditional Gujarati preparation made in winters is the Undhiyu because most of the vegetables used in this dish are available only in winters as they are in season during the Indian winters. However, I love these seasonal vegetables and have made a simple and quick bhaji using the main veggies used in Undhiyu but it is not Undhiyu!!

Ingredients
1 Cup Surti Papdi
1 Cup Fresh Toovar (fresh Pegeon Peas)
1 Cup Papdi (flat broad beans)
1.5 cups Kand (Purple yam) cubes
5 to 6 small brinjals
1 small bunch fresh garlic
1 cup fresh coriander leaves
½ tsp. chilli powder
½ tsp. turmeric powder
½ tsp. cumin powder
½ tsp. coriander powder
½ tsp. garam masala powder
½ tsp. cumin seeds
1 tbsp. ghee
½ tsp salt or to taste

String the head and tail of the surti papdi and keep whole.  Shell the fresh toovar.  String the papdi and split it open and break into pieces.  Peel the purple yam and chop into cubes.  Cut the brinjal into four quarters.  Immerse the yam and brinjals in water till required.  Cut the roots of the fresh garlic, wash, drain the water.  Chop and keep aside.  Wash the coriander leaves and chop.

Heat a kadai, add the ghee, when hot add the cumin seeds and when it splutters, add the chopped yam and saute for 2 minutes till slightly brown.  Then add the spice powders from chilli to coriander powder, a little water to avoid burning the spices and mix.  Then add all the vegetables, chopped fresh garlic, salt, give it a mix and cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.  Then reduce the flame and cook till the veggies are soft.  Stir in between and add a little water to prevent the veggies sticking to the bottom of the kadai and burning. Once the veggies are done, add the garam masala powder, mix and cook further 2 minutes.  Then add the chopped fresh coriander and mix well.  Cover and cook 2 minutes more.  Take off heat.  Serve hot with rotis or pooris.  Enjoy!

Amla Chutney


Indian Gooseberry Sweet and Spicy Chutney

A powerhouse of Vitamin C, Amlas or Indian Gooseberry is a winter favorite as it’s a perfect immunity booster in the cold winter months!

Ingredients
6 Amlas or approx. 250 gms
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 to 2 green chillies, chopped
1″ pc ginger, chopped
3 tbsp. Mustard oil (preferably)
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. methi seeds (fenugreek)
1 tbs. Fennel seeds (saunf)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper prowder
1 tbsp. cumin powder
2 tsp. Kashmiri chilli powder
Pinch of Hing (Asafoetida)
3 tbsp. Jaggery
3 tbsp, White Vinegar
1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
1/2 tsp. garam masala powder

Wash and boil the amlas till soft.  Deseed and crush the flesh lightly.
Heat oil in pan, temper with mustards seeds, fenugreek and fennel seeds.  Add the curshed amlas with the green chilli, ginger and garlic and saute few minutes.Add the dry masala powders and salt.  Mix ell.  Then add jaggery, vinegar and cook on low heat till jaggery melts and oil surfaces.
Then add cardamom powder and garam masala powder and simmer 2 minutes.  Take off heat and serve with meals for a healthy and delicious accompaniment.

Palak Paneer


Main ingredient being Spinach, it would be worthwhile noting that spinach has a high nutritional value, especially when fresh, frozen, steamed, or quickly boiled. It is a rich source of vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, and folate, with an especially high content of vitamin K. Spinach is a moderate source of the B vitamins, riboflavin and  vitamin B6, vitamin E,  potassium, iron, manganese, and dietary fibre.

Ingredients

200 gms. Paneer, cut into desired cubes

2 bunches palak (spinach)

1 large onion, chopped

1 large tomato, blanched and chopped

1 green chilli, or to taste

1” pc ginger

5 flakes garlic

½ tsp. turmeric (optional)

½ cup milk

2 tbsp. cream

½ tsp. salt or to taste

2 tbsp. ghee or oil

Clean and wash spinach leaves, immersing in plenty of salted water.

Steam the leaves for 3 to 4 minutes, cool and grind to a paste.  Set aside.

Grind the chilli, garlic and ginger to a paste. 

Heat the ghee/oil and fry the chopped onion till soft and translucent.  Add the ground paste and saute till ghee separates, about 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the chopped tomato and cook till soft.  Add turmeric (if using), salt and palak paste and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add milk, stir and let it come to a simmer.  Then add the paneer stir and remove from flame.  It’s best not to overcook and to use minimum spices to avoid diluting the taste of the palak and ruin the texture of the paneer.  Just before serving garnish with cream.  Serve hot with rotis, pulao or jeera rice.

Mutton Palak


A delicious and light meat dish that can be served as a main course with rotis, pulao or steamed rice. Made with simple ingredients and minimal spices, the dish turns out rather light and tasty!! Spinach contains several essential vitamins. So enjoy this dish packed with nutrients.

Ingredients

½ kg. mutton

2 to 3 bunches Palak (Spinach)

4 green chillies

1” piece ginger

10 flakes garlic

½ bunch (small) coriander leaves

½ tsp. mustard seeds

½ tsp. methi (fenugreek) seeds

1 tsp salt or to taste

2 to 3 tbsp. ghee or oil

Clean and cut into desired cubes.  Wash and set aside.  Clean the palak, immerse in salted water and leave for 10 to 15 minutes to dislodge any dirt and kill insects. If any.  Wash in several changes of water, drain and chop finely.

Grind the ingredients from green chillies to methi seeds to a smooth paste.  Forgot to add coriander leaves in the video. Slice the onion and chop tomato.

Heat the oil/ghee and fry the onions till translucent and soft.  Add the ground paste and saute for 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the mutton, stir and cook till fat separates.  Then add the spinach and tomato and 1/2 cup water if required and cook till meat is tender and done.  Serve hot with rotis, steamed rice or a pulao.

Ripe Mango Curry


Monsoon Cooking- Monsoon recipes

Mangalorean style Ripe Mango Curry – Sweet, Sour, Spicy delicious mango curry

Ingredients

6 ripe mangoes, small round juicy and fiborous variety

1 mendium onion, chopped

1 sprig curry leaves

1 tsp. mustard seeds

2 tbsp. Oil

1 tsp. Jaggery

1 tsp. salt or to taste


For masala paste
Roast and grind to a paste with 1/2 inch ginger
6 red chillies
2 tbsp. Coriander seeds
1 tsp. Cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. Fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp. Turmeric powder
2 tbsp. Coconut
6 flakes garlic

Choose mangoes that are small and round and typical for curry.  They are usually the chewing mangoes which are full of fibre.  Wash and peel the mangoes.

Press to squeeze the mangoes to loosen the flesh and extract some juice.

Roast all the ingredients for the masala paste, except ginger.  Grind to a smooth paste with water.

Place the mangoes and the juice in a pan.  Add 3 cups water and bring to a boil.

Then add the masala paste and salt and cook till curry appears glossy and the mangoes are cooked.  Add jaggery, stir and simmer 5 minutes.  Take off heat.

Take a pan, heat the oil.  Add mustard seeds, when they splutter add the curry leaves and the chopped onion and fry till light brown.  Immediately pour over the curry and serve hot with steamed rice.   Have the rice with the curry and chew the mango till nothing is left on the seed.  Super delicious!

Jowar Sorghum Gluten free Rotis


Gluten free rotis

Jowar (Sorghum or Great Millet) Rotis

Jowar is the finest substitute for wheat and rice when it comes to nutrition because it has high levels of thiamine, niacin, riboflavin, and folate.  It is  rich in minerals like phosphorus, potassium and zinc.

commonly called jwaarie, jowar, jola, or jondhalaa

1 cup Jowar Flour

1 cup water

½ tsp. salt

Ghee as required.

Sieve the jowar flour and keep aside.  Place a pan on heat and add 1 cup water and salt.  When the water starts boiling add the flour and stir and mix well so the flour gets partially cooked.  When the flour comes together and water is absorbed, remove from flame.  Transfer to a wide plate and leave to cool till comfortable to handle but still warm.  Knead to a soft, pliable dough.  Set aside for 15 minutes.

To prepares the rotis, divide the dough into 4 portions.  Dust one portion generously with flour and press flat while rotating the dough  between your palm and fingers to form a palm sized disc.  Then place on a rolling surface and roll as thin as possible dusting with flour as required.

Roast on a heated tawa/pan on medium low heat till brown spots appear on both side.  Smear with ghee.  Transfer to a casserole or a steel box to keep warm until served.

Hare Chane Ki Chaat


Hare Chane Ki Chaat

Healthy snacking…

Hare Chane or Green Chana, also known as Chholia in hindi are a winter speciality as the fresh chana are available during the winter season in India. It is full of nutrients. You will find the chana sometimes in bunches with the stems and leaves and the chana and it is quite common to see people walking around with a bunch of the chana, plucking them directly, peeling off the shell and popping the chana in the mouth and munching on them.

This is a simple chaat recipe

Ingredients

2 cups Green chana (Shelled)

1 large Onion, chopped

2 Tomatoes, chopped

Small bunch fresh coriander, chopped

1 tsp. Red chilli powder

1 tsp. Chaat masala, or to taste

1 Lemon, juice

Boil the Chane with salt.  Drain and mix with the onion, tomato, coriander leaves, red chilli powder, chaat masala and lemon juice.  Serve in individual bowls and top with a lemon wedge.

To add some crunch, sprinkle with sev or potato salli.  Enjoy this tasty and healthy chaat as a snack, appetizer or an accompaniment to a main meal.

Dill Leaves Dal


Dill Leaves dal

Shepu/Suva

In India, dill is prepared in the manner of yellow ‘moong dal’, as a main-course dish. It is considered to have very good antiflatulent properties, so it is used as ‘mukhwas’, or an after-meal digestive. Traditionally, it is given to mothers immediately after childbirth. Source Wikipedia

Ingredients

1 cup Tur dal

1 large Onion, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

4 to 5 flakes garlic,

chopped 2 green chillies, slit

2 cups dill leaves, cleaned and roughly chopped

1/2 tsp. turmeric powder

1 tsp. salt or to taste

Tempering

2 tbsp. Coconut oil

1 tsp. mustard seeds

3 to 4 flakes garlic, crushed

1 sprig curry leaves

5 to 6 button red chillies or 2 whole kashmiri chillies

Pick and wwash dal, drain and add 2 to 3 cups water and add to a pressure cooker alongwith chopped onion, tomatoes, green chillies, garlic, turmeric powder and salt.  Cook on 5 minute setting in a nutripot.  Transfer the cooked dal to a norml essel and bring to a boil. 

Prepare tempering:  Heat oil in a pan, when hot add 1 tsp. mustard seeds.  When they splutter add 1 tsp. cumin seeds, 4 to 5 whole garlic crushed,  to 6 button chillies or 2 kashmiri chillies broken in pieces and curry leaves.  When light brown and aromatic, immediately add to the dal and cover with a lid to trap the falvors.  Serve hot with rice or any bread of your choice.

Feijoada in a Nutricook


Feijoada

Feijoada is a  stew of beans with beef and pork.  The name feijoada is derived from feijão, ‘bean’ in Portuguese. It is widely prepared in the Portuguese-speaking world with slight variations.

The basic ingredients of feijoada are beans and fresh pork or beef.

In Goa Feijoada is usually prepared with red beans (alsone) or red kidney beans and pork sausages.  Usually the long sausages are used in Feijoada.  I have not added any additional spice powders as I feel Goa sausages are spicy enough which is quite sufficient for our liking.  Hence this Feijoada dish is very easy and simple to make. 

Ingredients

1 cup Alsone/Red Kidney beans

15 Goa Pork sausages, the long ones

2 large Onions

2 large tomatoes

1 tbsp. ginger garlic paste

1 tsp. Salt or to taste

Method

Wash the red beans and soak overnight in plenty of water.  Drain and pick the beans to remove any that have not swelled or the bad ones.

Remove the string and casing from the sausages.  Chop the onions and the tomatoes. 

Add the bean, sausages, onion and tomatoes to the nutripot dish.  You can use a cooker also to make this dish. Add 2 cups water or as much gravy as required.  Add salt and ginger garlic paste.  Give a good stir.  Cover the nutripot, switch on and set on “BEAN” for 15 minutes.  Hit START.

After the pot assesses the ingredients, the cooking timer will start from 15 counting down to O.   Switch off.  You may leave the pot till pressure reduces or you may use the vent to release the pressure if you are short of time. 

You can also use the “Keep warm” button and open the pot when ready to serve.

Serve hot with plain steamed rice or any rice preparation like sannas, etc. Goes well with the Goan bread Poee.  Enjoy!

Jowar Khichidi Sorghum Khichidi


Jowar is an ancient grain and is now increasingly making a come back due to its high nutritive values and being gluten free. Called Sorghum in english, it is a nutritious food, rich in protein, dietry fibre, B Vitamins and minerals. All sorghums contain mixed polyphenols, such as phenolic acids and flavonoids. Sorghum grains are one of the highest food sources of proanthocyanidins. Source: Wikipedia

Besan Ladoos


Try these super easy and simple Besan ladoos. Whether called Ladoo, Laddu, Laadoo … they taste just Yum, melt in your mouth. Do try!!

Besan Ladoo

Makes 12 ladoos

Ingredients
2 cups besan
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup ghee

¼ tsp. turmeric

¼ cup cashewnuts, chopped fine
2 tbsps. Almonds/Pistas peeled, sliced
½  tsp. cardamom powder

¼ tsp. powdered nutmeg

Method

Begin roasting besan over a low flame, adding ghee 1 tbsp. at a time. Add the turmeric. Roasting will take approx  20 to 30 mins. The colour should turn deep, almost light brown. Add more ghee if required.  The besan should not look too dry.  If it is too dry add a tbsp of ghee.  If too wet add additional sugar later.

Add the sliced nuts, (reserve some for garnish) and roast 5 minutes on very low.  Take off flame. Leave aside to cool a little.  When mixture is still warm add sugar, cardamom and nutmeg powder.  Form into ladoos while still warm. Garnish with pista and almond slices.  I used melon seeds and saffron strands to give it an exotic twist!! 😉

1 2 … 12
Website Powered by WordPress.com.