Tofu Matar: Why Not Try Something New Today?

Tofu Matar

Last week I was here, staying at one of the picturesque places of England. Our little cottage was tucked in between soothing sound of flowing river, breath taking landscape of mountains and miles of green fields. For once we were away from everyday hustle bustle and running around chasing deadlines and never ending word loads and I couldn’t help but feel blessed to be surrounded by Mother Nature in her warm bosom!

Every morning we woke up to tweeting birds and oh yes, braying sheep which was music to our ears compared to deafening alarm clock or noise from traffic. The weather God was unbelievably kind to us during our stay and everyday I felt the warmth of bright sun and his rays dancing on my face. As the puffy marshmallow-ey clouds floated on clear blue sky, puffy and soft bundle of woolly sheep were lazily munching the emerald green grass. And those little, cute lambs hopping and jumping around merrily were the constant reminder of my own childhood days! While buzzing bumble bees were soothing music to ears, the burst of colourful wild flowers were joy to eyes, and even the smell of earth was much better than the aroma of any expensive and exotic perfumes on my dressing table. Nature, free of all man made things, is a soothing balm to ones troubled spirit and heart! It was nothing short of heaven! It’s amazing to see how Mother Nature takes care of all her children, including us, by embracing us in her warm bosom. I, after a long time, felt at peace with my inner self…

Fast forward and I am back to reality of daily routine life! As much as I enjoyed my break; it feels good to be back to some kind of routine! After one week of indulgence in peaceful countryside retreat, I felt good to be back in familiar surrounding and especially to be cooking in my little kitchen. Since our fridge was almost empty except for few herbs, I used the ingredients in hand and prepared this delicious Tofu Matar by giving a twist to much loved Matar Paneer. Creamy tofu and lively and bouncy green peas literally dunked in creamy gravy of onion, tomato, cashew and almonds was match made in heaven! Addition of Kasuri Methi gave that ‘oomph’ factor to the curry and made it all the more enjoyable. Don’t be chuffed off by the list of ingredients as close inspection will show how simple this recipe is. Cook it for your Vegan friends or people like me who are fond of tofu and see them lick their plate clean! :)

Tofu Matar

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Tofu Matar (Tofu and sweet Green Peas cooked in creamy gravy of Almonds & Cashews)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20-30 mins
Serves: 5-6
Recipe Level: Medium
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With any Indian flat breads or with flavoured/steam cooked Rice

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Ingredients:
1 pack Tofu (approx 5X5 inch), cut into 1 inch cubes
1 heaped cup Green Peas, fresh/frozen
3 large Tomatoes or 1 canned Tomato, pureed
1 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Sun dried Fenugreek Leaves (Optional)
1 tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional)
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tbsp Oil
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
Juice of ¼ Lime/Lemon
Salt to taste

For Onion Paste:
1 large Onion, roughly chopped
¾ inch Ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2 large cloves of Garlic
½ inch Cinnamon Stick
2 Green Cardamoms
2 Cloves
½ Star Aniseeds

For Almond-Cashew Paste:
8-10 Almonds, soaked in warm water for 10 mins and peeled
4-6 Cashews, soaked in warm water for 10 mins

Tofu Matar

Method:

Grind all the ingredients listed under onion and almond-cashew paste separately, with out adding any water, to smooth paste and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds to it. When cumin starts to sizzle and turn golden red, add onion paste. Keep stirring for 6-8 mins till onion paste turns light golden brown and becomes one dry mass. Make sure that you cook this onion paste thoroughly or else the gravy will taste bitter.
Mix in sugar and kasuri methi leaves and stir for another minute or two. Next, add pureed tomatoes and mix well. Bring the mixture to gentle boil, about 4-5 mins.
Mix in garam masala, kitchen king masala and salt to taste and add about 1-1½ cups of water.
Reduce the heat to low and add tofu cubes and green peas and cover the lid. Let it cook undisturbed for 5 mins.
Mix in almond and cashew paste and stir well. Increase the heat to medium and let the curry cook uncovered for another 5-7 mins. The gravy will start to thicken at this stage. Adjust the seasoning and add little more water if you prefer little thin gravy.
Switch off the flame and squeeze in lime juice. Serve this delicious Tofu Matar garnished with coriander leaves and enjoy!

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Notes:

Those who don’t like Tofu can simply substitute it with Paneer. Shallow fry Paneer cubes in little ghee till both the sides turn golden red in colour. Keep them in a bowl of warm water till needed and proceed with the recipe.
And if you are not fond of Paneer and Tofu, simply substitute them with boiled, peeled and cubed potatoes.
Green peas can be substituted with black or Kabuli channa or chickpeas.

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Methi Matar Malai: Green & Cream Indulgence

Methi Matar Malai

How many of you agree that curry powder that is sold in supermarkets in colourful plastic/glass container is nothing but much hyped saw dust?
I am really pleased to see most of you nodding your head in agreement :)

Curry powder!!! Not that I want to sue these stores/super markets for selling something that is totally un-Indian but given a chance I am more than willing to blow their heads off! As if it was not enough to pass the vegetables or meat that float in thick red gravy of oil as Indian curries, many a times people are misguided when it comes to ingredients used in Indian cooking. And hear me loud and clear, please be kind to yourself and your taste buds and throw that awful yellow powder into nearest bin and get a packet of fresh Garam Masala (homemade is still better) and few basic spices used in Indian cooking. Once you cook with these spices and spice powders, you will not go near the aisle that displays this saw dust in little containers. Stock up your pantry with little cumin-coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, garam masala and you are ready to cook one pot after another pot of delicious Indian curries.

While we are on the topic of cooking curries, how about keeping that bag of maida/all purpose flour away when you are making curry? I have seen many people use them to thicken the gravy. When we have much better options to try out why not use them instead of using bland, white flour? There are many better options to thicken the gravy like onion paste, fresh cream, yogurt, cashew/almond paste than chocking your palettes with maida. Use one of them or combination of two or three and you will be surprised see how creamy and delicious the curry tastes!

Today, I am determined to demonstrate that we needn’t use any curry powder (not even Garam Masala) or maida to get thick, creamy gravy. What we have today is Methi Matar Malai, a delicious blend of fresh fenugreek leaves (=methi) and sweet green peas (=matar) cooked in, what else, fresh cream (=malai). The ground paste of onions, green chilli and ginger along with whole spices forms the base for delicious gravy. The addition of fresh cream, cashews and ground green peas is what thickens the gravy. Yes, no curry powder nor maida. All we have is some fresh herbs and spices and fresh cream that sure to tickle your taste buds. If you are on diet or watching those calories, simply replace fresh cream with yogurt and you will have low fat version of this creamy curry. Looks can be deceptive! Yes, Methi Matar Malai may look like the recipe that needs you to slave in front of stove for hours after another, but in reality it is one of the simple and quick recipes that you can cook to impress your guests. And what more, you get to enjoy goodness of greens without overpowering taste of spice powder.

Green Peas and Fenugreek Leaves for Methi Matar Malai

Ground Paste of Fresh Herbs & Spices for Methi Matar Malai

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Methi-Matar Malai (Fresh Fenugreek leaves and sweet Green Peas cooked in creamy and mildly spiced gravy of Onion, Whole Spices and Fresh Cream)
Prep time: 5-10 mins
Cooking Time: 15-20 mins
Serves: 4-5
Recipe Level: Easy/Beginner to Medium
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With any Indian flat bread or flavoured/steam cooked rice

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Ingredients:
1½ packed cups Fresh Fenugreek Leaves (Or use frozen)
1 cup Green Peas, fresh/frozen
1 large Potato, peeled, cut into ½ inch pieces and cooked
¼ - ½ cup Fresh Cream (I used low fat single cream. If using cashews ¼ cup is more than enough)
1 tsp Sugar (Optional but recommended, to mellow the bitter taste of fenugreek leaves)
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1-2 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Grind to Smooth Paste:
1 medium Onion
3-4 Green Chillies (Adjust acc to taste)
½ inch Ginger, peeled
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 inch Cinnamon Stick
3 Cloves
2 Green Cardamoms
4-6 Cashews
3-4 tbsp Green Peas, fresh/frozen (for creamy gravy)

Methi Matar Malai

Method:

Heat oil and add cumin seeds to it. When it sizzles and turns golden red, add ground paste and keep stirring till the raw smell of onions disappears. It takes usually 5-6 minutes for the paste to turn light golden brown and the paste should become little dry. Be patient, or else the gravy will taste bitter.
Once you have cooked the paste, add fenugreek leaves and cook until the leaves are wilted, about 2 mins. Add cooked potato cubes, green peas, sugar, turmeric powder, and salt to taste and cook for 2 minutes.
Now add fresh cream, ½ cup of water and mix well. Simmer the heat and bring the gravy to gentle boil. Add little water if you think the gravy is too thick for your taste. Cook for another 2 minutes.
Transfer Methi-Matar Malai to serving dish and drizzle little cream on top if desired and serve hot with any Indian bread or flavoured Rice and enjoy.

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Notes:

For low fat version of this Methi Matar Malai, replace fresh cream with yogurt. You can also avoid using cashews or replace it with almonds to get thick gravy. Or simply add ¼ cup of ground green peas that will simply thicken the gravy. But please avoid adding maida which will simply ruin the taste.
You can also add ½ tsp of Garam Masala if needed. I prefer it without any overpowering taste of spice powder.
Addition of sugar is optional. I add it to gently mellow the bitter taste of fresh fenugreek leaves.

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Malai Kofta: Temptress, Seductress and Highly Addictive!

Malai Kofta

“The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”.

Do you know the origin of this theory? It is said that the American statesman John Adams wrote in a letter some where in early 19th century, “The shortest road to men's hearts is down their throats” and that's how this theory or statement was originated. So my question is how many of you believe in this theory? Does this statement hold true in your life?

When I think of 19th century I get these black and white images of that era flashing in front of my eyes where many men looked for good wife who would be a good mother to his children and take care of his family affairs. The fact that she could cook well was a good indication to her role of being a nurturer. Unlike our time where we have an option of marrying a person whom we know and eventually fall in love with them, it may have been the best way to please his stomach and work your way up in winning his heart in that period of time! Steaming pot of delicious food may make someone feel cared for by triggering their childhood memories of food served by their loving mother. I wonder if this feeling of satisfaction after been served a good food is mistaken for love!

Cooking is not just chopping, grinding or mashing and throwing everything into a pot and stirring. Any good cook will be able to tell you how much work is involved when it comes to cooking food for someone you care. The person who cooks for you at home knows what food you like, how you like it and when you like to have it. When I cook for someone I make sure that they will remember the food I cooked for long time, a very long time indeed! I choose the best of ingredients with care and use them in such a way that they leave lasting impression. Even everyday simple food served to my man is cooked with utmost care and love. There are no food games in my kitchen as the food should not only taste good it should also be good for you. Well, don’t we all agree that the food cooked with care and love not only will taste good, it will also make them feel cared for and make them feel at home?

We can also argue that food alone is not enough in making the relationship work between two individuals who think differently and have different opinions. There are few restaurants that serve the best food I have ever tasted. Does that mean I will fall in love with chefs just because he/she cooked one of the best meals I have had? I know for sure that the food is prepared with utmost care and to a very high standard. After all I am paying very high price for that plate of meal. In an end it is my man who cooks simple everyday Rasam and Dal whom I love. He may not be the best cook around but he has many qualities that made me fall in ultimate love trap :) It’s definitely not our cooking skills that made us love each other. Any relationship to go strong needs many other qualities in each other and not just our cooking skill. But yeah, we can’t rule out the fact that ability to cook good food will definitely help in nurturing the relationship. Remember, it’s just one of the things that can take you close to man’s heart! Not the ultimate one…

Malai Kofta

This is a good topic for discussion/debate and I have participated in many such discussions. Sometimes I agree with this theory and there are times when I have gone against it. We will continue to argue on this topic as long as there are people who love to cook and eat good food. So I can’t just come to a conclusion as whether I agree with it or not. But it would be great to hear from you as what do you think of it? So let’s hear from you guys…

While we are on this topic, let me share one of the ultimate food seductions. We have Malai Kofta in our menu today. Spicy dumpling of Indian Cottage cheese that is deep fried and served in delicious, creamy and spicy gravy of fresh cream and onion-tomato paste is nothing short of sinful indulgence. Try cooking it once and see your taste buds falling head over heels in love with this tempting Malai Kofta. Yes, Malai Kofta is a temptress, a seductress and highly addictive! ;) I am sending this to Lavi who is guest hosting this month's RCI-Lucknow, a wonderful event started by dear Lakshmi of Veggie Cuisine.

Koftas, Before & After Deep Frying

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Malai Kofta (Deep fried spiced Indian Cottage Cheese dumplings in creamy Onion & Tomato gravy)
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 45-60 mins
Serves: 6-8
Recipe Level: Intermediate to Difficult
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With any Indian flat bread or flavoured/steam cooked rice

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Ingredients:
For Kofta:
1½ cups Grated Paneer
2 large Potatoes, cooked, peeled and well mashed
1 medium Onion, very finely chopped
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, very finely chopped
2-3 Green Chillies, very finely chopped (Optional, adjust acc to taste)
1½-2 tbsp Gulab Jamun Mix/Milk Powder (Optional but recommend)
¼ cup Bread Crumbs
2-3 tbsp Corn Flour (Acts as a binding agent while deep frying)
1 tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Amchur/Dry Mango Powder (Optional, for little tangy flavour)
6-8 Cashew Nuts, cut into small pieces (Optional but recommend)
1-2 tbsp Raisins (Optional but recommend)
Salt to taste
Oil for Deep Frying

For Gravy:
For Onion Paste:
2 large Onions, peeled and quartered
1 inch Ginger, peeled
3-4 cloves Garlic
1 inch Cinnamon Stick
3 cloves
3 Green Cardamoms

Other Ingredients for Gravy:
4-5 large Tomatoes, pureed
1 tbsp Cashew/Almond Paste
¼-1/2 cup Fresh Cream (I used low fat single cream)
1-2 tsp Garam Masala (Adjust acc to taste)
1 tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional)
½ tsp Turmeric
½-1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli Powder (Optional)
1 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Sun dried Fenugreek Leaves
½ tbsp Sugar
1 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
A pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
Salt to taste

Malai Kofta

Method:

For Gravy:
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds and hing. Add onion paste that you had prepared just when cumin starts to sizzle and turn golden red. Stir it continuously for 5-7 minutes till the paste turn golden brown and the raw smell of onion disappears. This is the very important step as you don’t want to rush and end up having bitter tasting gravy. So be patient!
Once the onion paste is cooked thoroughly add kasuri methi and sugar. Saute for a minute or two. Next add tomato puree and stir well. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes.
Next add garam masala, kitchen king masala, turmeric powder, Kashmiri chilli powder and salt to taste and mix well. Bring this whole gravy to gentle boil, about 5 minutes.
Mix in cashew/almond paste, fresh cream and ½-1 cup of water (depending how thick you prefer the gravy) and cook for another 5-7 minutes on low flame.
Adjust the seasoning and add little more water if the gravy is too thick and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Switch off the flame and mix in finely chopped coriander leaves.

For Koftas:
First, mix paneer with mashed potatoes, onions, coriander leaves and chillies. Make sure that the paneer and potatoes as lump free as possible. Then add gulab jamun mix/milk powder, salt to taste, garam masala, amchur powder, broken cashews, raisins, bread crumbs and corn flour to the vegetable-paneer mix and mix them well. Use hands when mixing all these ingredients and make sure that all the ingredients are mixed properly. The consistency whole mixture should be as that of chapatti dough and you should be able to make lemon sized balls without breaking them.
Next heat oil for deep frying and reduce the heat to medium to low flame. Make small lemon/golf sized balls and deep fry them in batches of 3-4 balls at time. If the koftas start to break, add 1-2 tbsp of corn flour to the mixture, mix them well and make small lemon sized balls. Fry them till they turn golden brown and crisp and place them in a bowl lined with kitchen towel to absorb excess oil.
Alternatively you can bake them in an oven at 175 deg centigrade for about 20-30 minutes or fry them in Appam Pan with little oil till they turn golden brown.

To Assemble and Serve:
Heat the gravy for few minutes and then transfer it to serving dish. Arrange the koftas in gravy and top it with finely chopped coriander levaes. Malai Kofta tastes best when served with any Indian flat bread (I prefer Naan) or flavoured rice like Saffron rice or Jeera Rice with slices of Onion and lemon wedges.

Malai Kofta

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Notes:

When you deep fry the koftas, first make sure that the oil is hot enough before you place them for deep frying.
Place one kofta at a time in a pan when deep frying. If the Kofta starts to break or crumble add about 1-2 tbsp of corn flour and mix well. Corn flour acts as the binding agent and will prevent the koftas from breaking when deep frying.
Always fry the koftas in low-medium flame so that they are cooked well and get lovely golden brown colour.

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Creamy Aloo-Capsicum Curry: A Delicious Beginning

Creamy Aloo-Capsicum Curry

Happy new year everybody! I know I am albeit late in wishing and replying to all those lovely wishes through emails and comments but I guess it’s better late than never. So how did you all celebrate your new year?

I am sure your New Year celebration must have been much better than ours. You see waiting to board flight in airport and sitting in those not-so-comfortable metal chairs is not exactly the best way to say good bye to 2008 and welcome 2009. But that is life… Once in a while it is fine to accept the fact that things may not go the way you want them to be!

Actually it was not that bad as much as I want to portray it. The last day of 2008 was spent doing the things I love the most, with my family eating Gol Gappas and delicious Chaats on the streets of Namma Bengaluru. Is there a better way to say good bye to 2008? Nah… And we welcomed 2009 in a lovely café cum restaurant in all new and spunky Bengaluru International Airport by enjoying delicious bowl of Plum Tomato Soup and Grilled Mediterranean Vegetable Sandwich.

Coming to cooking part, I have not been cooking lately as much as I would like to due to lack of interest in cooking. I am blaming my mom and mom-in-law for spoiling me with delicious food everyday of our most enjoyable holiday. I am feeling kind of lost in my own kitchen here after 35 days of pampering. And coming back from 30+ degrees of glorious sunshine to -8 degrees of cold waves is not exactly lifting my mood. I would have gone hibernating happily for few more days if not for some threatening mails and messages from some of you to spam my mailbox and comment section which are already suffocating with overdose of spam messages! Nada, no chance of spamming me anymore :P

Although my blog draft is overflowing with last year’s recipes, I decided against posting them. Common, it’s New Year and I didn’t want to serve leftovers for my readers. So I cooked this delicious, creamy Aloo and Capsicum Curry following my Amma’s recipe which she had cooked for us when we were in India. The ingredients are the common ones that is used in almost all the curry recipes but the cooking technique is little different. And taste-wise it is totally different from the usual curries that I make often. Crunchy, sweet peppers and all time favourite spuds cooked in creamy gravy is a delight in every way and was perfect balm with Cumin/Jeera Rice to sooth my homesickness.

Creamy Aloo-Capsicum Curry

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Creamy Aloo-Capsicum Curry (Delicious, creamy and colourful curry of Potatoes and coloured Peppers)

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 25-30 mins
Serves: 4-6
Recipe Source: Amma

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Ingredients:
3 medium Potatoes, cooked, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
2-3 medium Peppers/Capsicums of any colour, cut into 1 inch squares
1 large/2 medium Onions, finely chopped
1 can chopped Tomatoes or 3 large and juicy Tomatoes, cubed
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
½ cup Coriander Leaves (including stems)
2 Green Chillies (Adjust acc to taste)
6-8 Cashew Nuts
1 tsp Garam Masala (Adjust acc to taste)
½ tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional but recommended)
1 tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango Powder or 1 tbsp Lemon Juice (Adjust acc to taste)
1 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Optional but recommended)
1 tsp Sugar
1½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Creamy Aloo-Capsicum Curry

Method:

Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds to it. When it starts to sizzle and turn reddish brown, add finely chopped onions and sauté till it turns golden brown, about 3 minutes. Switch off the flame and let it cool slightly.
Grind half of sautéed onions, cubed tomatoes, coriander leaves, green chillies and cashew nuts to a smooth paste without adding any water.
Switch on the gas and add ginger garlic paste and kasuri methi to half of sautéed onions. Cook it for another 1-2 minutes till raw smell of the paste disappears.
Now add ground paste and cook on medium heat till oil separates from the paste and it becomes little dry, about 5-6 mins. Add garam masala, kitchen king masala, sugar and salt to taste and mix well.
Mix in 1½ cups of water along with chopped peppers and boiled and cubed potatoes. Reduce the heat and cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the lid and adjust the seasonings and add little more water if needed.
Add finely chopped coriander leaves and cook for another 2-3 minutes till all the flavours blend well. Remember not to over cook the peppers and it tastes best when it just half cooked and retains its crunch.
Serve it hot with any flavoured rice or Indian flat breads and enjoy this creamy delight.

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Aloo Palak: Green Indulgence

Aloo Palak

Ever since we came back from our adventurous trip to north Wales (more of it in coming posts, hopefully!), we have hardly been entering our kitchen except for heating the food in microwave. Simple Dal and Rasams is all we managed to cook when it became too agonising to even lift a spoon after all those adventurous sports. Well, all that climbing, biking, and walking seemed like a good way of relaxing at that time, but at present I can’t help but think that we may have overdone it when I try to walk without limping with back and leg pain!

Tired of eating same dal and rasams with rice for last few days, we set out into making something of a treat to ourselves to cheer our taste buds. With few sad looking potatoes in a pantry and a bag of wilted baby spinach on the verge of committing suicide if it was not used in a day or two, I decided to cook much loved Punjabi dish called Aloo Palak. Aloo Palak, delicious gravy of spinach with tender potatoes doesn’t need any introduction. For me Aloo Palak is a dish which serves as a benchmark for many good cooks/chefs at home and restaurants. Like many other recipes in India, Aloo Palak can also be cooked in many ways using as little as 5 ingredients to as many as dozens of ingredients. Sometime you will be served Aloo Palak in a gravy form or simple stir fried form. But whatever way it’s been cooked or served, it remains to be one of the most loved Indian foods among many foodies.

I have been cooking this dish for around 3 years and at last I can say that we have found the recipe which we love the most. The base gravy is little thick due to addition of cashews which not only thickens the gravy but gives it little nutty and wonderful taste. With cashews, I add wee bit of dried fenugreek leaves which gives it very pleasant bitter taste along with extraordinary aroma and flavour it imparts. Both these ingredients are optional, and I don’t think they are used in a traditional recipe of Aloo Palak. But at the same time, these two ingredients add that oomph factor to my recipe of Aloo Palak. So try this recipe when you want to cook little different Aloo Palak and enjoy the whole goodness of greens this winter.

Baby Spinach and Potatoes for Aloo Palak

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Aloo Palak (Potatoes in delicious Spinach Gravy)

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20-30 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
5-6 packed cups of Spinach, washed, drained and roughly chopped
3 medium Potatoes, scrubbed, peeled, chopped and cooked with salt
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2-3 Tomatoes, finely chopped
1 tbsp Mint Leaves, roughly chopped (Optional)
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
5-7 Cashew Nuts
3-5 Green Chillies (Adjust acc to taste)
1 inch Cinnamon Stick
2 Green Cardamoms
2 Cloves
1 tsp Sugar
½ tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango Powder or 1 tbsp Lime Juice
½ tbsp Kauri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Optional)
1+½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1+½ tbsp Oil/Ghee
Salt to taste

Aloo Palak

Method:

Heat about ½ tbsp of oil in a pan and add cinnamon, green cardamom and cloves. Sauté it for few seconds and add ½ tsp of cumin seeds. When cumin seeds start to sizzle and turn golden red, add cashews and green chillies. Sauté it on medium flame till cashews turn light golden brown in colour.
Mix in roughly chopped spinach, sugar and cover the lid. Cook this spinach cover for few minutes on a medium heat till it is wilted. If needed sprinkle little water in between to avoid them sticking to the pan. Cool the mixture and grind it to smooth paste with mint leaves adding as little water as possible. Keep aside this mixture till required.
Heat ½ tbsp of oil in the same pan and remaining cumin seeds. When it starts to sizzle, add finely chopped onion and sauté it for a minute. Now add ginger-garlic paste and sauté it till the raw smell disappears, about a minute. Mix in chopped tomatoes and sauté till it becomes pulpy.
Add kitchen king masala, garam masala and kasuri methi and keep stirring till nice aroma of masala fills the kitchen, about a minute. Mix in ground spinach paste and add about 1- 1½ cups of water and salt to taste. Let it cook on a low to medium flame for about ten minutes.
Add cooked potato pieces and amchur powder to spinach gravy and mix well. Cook for another 5-10 minutes so that potato absorbs all the flavours. Serve this Aloo Palak with any Indian bread of your choice and enjoy.

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Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala: Recipes from Your Kitchen to Mine

Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala

There are many advantages of cooking from food blogs than cook books. One you get introduced to new cuisines with simple as well exotic ingredients. Second you get to see how the actual dish looks with drool worthy photos posted along the recipes. For me the best part is you can easily contact the blogger and clear all your doubts/queries which otherwise is not possible with cookbook authors. And not to forget, you get all these services without costing you a penny. Yup, the buzz word is FREE.

Since two years of blogging, I have tried many recipes following the recipes posted in blogs. Sometime the end result ended up in garbage but many a times it was licked clean from plates, spoons and even the serving bowl. When I think of those recipes which have become my family favourites, I realised I haven’t posted most of them. So with this new mission of mine, I will be posting at least one recipe per month which I had tried and tested from bloggers. So please look forward to many more delicious recipes cooked in our kitchen tried from other kitchens in a new series called Recipes from Your Kitchen to Mine.

First recipe in this series is from lovely, sweet and chatter box (sorry couldn’t help it;) Swati who rants at Chatkhor. Few days back she had posted her aunt’s recipe for Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala. Being big time Okra lovers, it didn’t take too long for us try it. I was curious as how creamy the yogurt gravy looked as most of the times when yogurt added in a curry ended up curdling with unpleasant texture and taste. My only solution to this problem was to add yogurt just before you switch off the flame. But here in Swati’s recipe she used a paste made using cashews soaked in milk and coconut and Bingo, I got fool proof recipe for getting creamy yogurt gravy without curdling it. Both cashews and coconut are used in many recipes to thicken the gravy, giving it a creamy texture and also to enhance its taste. The amount of cashew and coconut used in this gravy is comparatively quite small without overpowering the actual yogurt based gravy. This cashew-coconut paste is just enough to give creamy gravy without you worrying too much about the calorie. Another intersecting tip was sprinkle little salt on okra pieces and marinate for few minutes before frying. I was not sure about the reason behind it till I decided to give it a try and realised it actually helps in reducing the sliminess of okra. The spices itself used are very little, giving it right flavour. While curry leaves in tadka imparts wonderful aroma to the dish, the pleasantly bitter kasuri methi enhances its flavour. With few modifications to suit our taste, this recipe is a keeper and I will be trying it again very shortly. Thanks dear Swati for sharing this delicious recipe with us which has become one of our favourite yogurt based curry.

Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala

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Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala (Fried Okra in creamy Cashew-Coconut-Yogurt gravy)

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 15 mins
Serves: 3-4
Recipe Source: Chatkhor

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Ingredients:
3-4 cups Bhindi/Okra, washed, dried and cut into 1 cm pieces
1 large Onion, finely chopped
2 large Tomatoes, finely chopped
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
1 tbsp Tomato Paste (Optional)
1 tsp Sugar (Optional, to balance the sour taste of amchur and yogurt)
1 cup Yogurt, beaten
1 tbsp Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen
6-8 Cashew Nuts, soaked in warm milk for at least 10 mins
½ -1 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves
1 tsp Garam Masala/Kitchen King Masala
½ -1 tsp Red Chilli Powder (Adjust acc to taste)
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
½ -1 tsp Amchur/Dry Mango Powder
½ tsp Coriander Powder
1-2 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

For Tadka/Tempering:
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Urad Dal/Split Black Lentils
2-3 Dry Red Chillies, halved
A Pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
Few Curry Leaves
1 tbsp Oil

Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala

Method:

Sprinkle little salt to okra pieces and mix well. Keep it aside for half an hour. This helps in reducing the sliminess while frying the okra. This step is optional.
Heat 1-2 tbsp of oil in a pan and add okra pieces to it. Fry them continuously at high flame till they turn brown retaining their crispiness, about 7-10 mins. Alternatively you can also deep fry them but I prefer pan frying for healthy option. Transfer these fried okras to a plate lined with kitchen/paper towel and keep them aside till needed.
Grind soaked cashews and coconut to smooth paste adding the milk used for soaking. Keep it aside till needed.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds to it. When mustard starts to pop and splutter, add cumin seeds, urad dal, dry red chillies, hing and curry leaves and sauté it for a minute till cumin seeds and dal turns golden brown in colour.
Now add finely chopped onions and fry till they turn light golden. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for another minute till their raw smell disappears and onion turns golden brown. Now add all the dry masalas (garam/kitchen king masala, red chilli powder, amchur, turmeric and coriander powder) along with Kasuri Methi and fry for a minute in low heat.
Mix in finely chopped tomatoes and sauté till they turn pulpy and release their juice, about 2 minutes. Now add ground cashew-coconut paste and mix well. Keep stirring for a minute.
Add yogurt, sugar and salt to taste and stir well. Depending on the consistency of gravy required, add ½-1 cup of water and mix well. Simmer the gravy and let it cook uncovered for another 5 minutes.
Mix in fried okra and adjust the seasonings. Add little more water if you think the gravy is too thick and simmer for another 3-5 minutes. Serve this delicious gravy of Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala with any roties or flavoured Basmati rice and enjoy.

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Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala for Second Blog Anniversary Celebration

Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala

Yes, tomorrow it will be 2 years since I created this blog and I did pinch myself to make sure I was not dreaming. For someone who loves changes and new adventures in life I have impressed and surprised myself by sticking to this blog for last 2 years. What a fabulous journey it had been…

Were you aware of the fact that I created this blog out of boredom?! Yup, that’s me; totally unpredictable and bit wacky ;) Moving to complete new and different country with new challenges to face upon, I had no idea what I wanted to do. From being a centre of attention among family and friends, I was pushed to face the new world filled with strangers on one of the peak winter days and for a tough shelled Cancerian it was not really an exciting prospect. I hid myself in a tough shell to protect myself from bitter cold days and I would have been hibernating there for very long time if not for this golden sunshine in the form of Blog world. That was when I started my personal blog Crabby Bites, expressing each and every emotions of daily life. It was just few weeks later I started writing few recipes learnt from my Amma, Ajji, Atte and aunts, a personal copy of recipes which served as reference while cooking. Soon I realised I needed new space dedicated to recipes and hence Spice Corner, now known as Monsoon Spice, was born.

It was my space, my corner where I started posting recipes for myself. Few days after that I received a very first comment from someone I didn’t know. That is when I realised there was someone out there who didn’t know me, but still they were moved enough to reach out and leave their trail. Today, even after 2 years of blogging whenever someone leaves their small notes I can’t help but get the same thrill I got it for the first time. Strange world we live in! I feel connected with most of you whom I have never seen or met before. Through blogging I have met hundreds of thousands of wonderful people- bloggers, bakers, food photographers, writes, chefs, readers, and even virtual world strangers who have become real world friends. So thank you, thank you and thank you to all you wonderful people (both friends and strangers) who have left their mark in my small world. It was truly an amazing journey with you people who have injected more spice into my already spiced life ;) Once again, a heartfelt thank you to everyone who have left your trail here on Monsoon Spice!

Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala

A birthday celebration is not complete without delicious food. Being a spice lover I couldn’t convince myself to make any sweets or dessert and yup, opted for something which my darling guinea pig/lab rat loves ;) What he loves, he always gets and he loves Paneer Makhani or Paneer Butter Masala. This was my way of saying big Thank you to my much better half who patiently waits till I finish cooking and clicking without any complaints :) We rarely use Paneer in our kitchen but whenever we use it we make sure that it gets full credit. Paneer Makhani or Paneer Butter Masala is one such dish which is very rich and flavoursome. Use of cashews, poppy seeds and fresh cream makes this quite fattening but remember, this is once in a while indulgence. My recipe is very simple and straight forward. I use two different, flavourful pastes made using onions and tomatoes ground with few spices. Addition of Kasuri Methi and fresh cream simply jazzes up this already creamy delight. Make this curry when you want to celebrate some special occasions or indulge when you want to uplift your moods and I can guarantee that it will be one meal to that everyone will remember for very long time. Off this goes to Ruth who is guest hosting this month's MM-Sensational Sides, started by gorgeous Meeta.

Ingredients for Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala: Paneer, Kasuri Methi, Onion & Tomato Paste

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Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala (Fried Indian Cottage Cheese in a delicious Onion-Tomato Gravy)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 25-30 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
1 block Paneer, cut into 1 inch cubes (approx 2-3 cups, I used store bought)
2-3 tbsp fresh Cream (I used single cream)
1 tsp Sugar (Optional but recommended)
1 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves
1 tbsp+1 tbsp Oil/Ghee
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
Salt to taste

Ground to Fine Paste:
For Onion Paste:
1 large or 2 medium Onions
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 inch Cinnamon
3 Cloves
3 Green Cardamoms
1 Bay Leaf
½ tbsp Khus-Khus/White Poppy Seeds
3 cloves of Garlic
1 inch Ginger

For Tomato Paste:
1 can chopped Tomato/3 Large Juicy Tomatoes
10 Cashews
1 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional but recommended)
¼-½ tsp Amchur/Dry Mango Powder (Adjust acc to taste)
½ Turmeric Powder
½ -1 tsp Kashmiri/Deghi Chilli Powder (gives lovely bright red colour)

Paneer Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala

Method:

Heat 1 tbsp oil or ghee in a pan and add paneer blocks. Fry these pieces on both the sides till they turn golden, about 3-5 mins, and place them in a bowl of water for about 15 mins. It’s best to fry them in batches if you can’t fit them in a pan in single layer.
Grind onion and tomato paste with all the ingredients listed above to smooth consistency separately and keep it aside till required.
Heat another tbsp of oil in a same pan and add cumin seeds. When it starts to sizzle and turn light brown in colour, mix in onion paste. Keep stirring at medium heat till onion paste turns light brown in colour and becomes little dry, about 6-8 minutes. This is an important step as if the paste is not fried well it will make the gravy bitter. Make sure that you continously stir the paste and it doesn’t stick to the pan.
Now add kasuri methi and sugar and stir for another minute.
Mix tomato paste and stir well. Simmer the heat and let it cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring in between to make sure it doesn’t stick to the pan.
Increase the heat to medium and add a cup of water, salt to taste and mix well. Cover and cook for another 5 minutes. Open the lid and adjust the seasonings.
If you find the gravy too thick, add about another ¼-½ cup of water. Drain water and mix in fried paneer pieces and cream. Simmer the gravy and let it cook uncovered for another 5-7 minutes.
Switch off the flame and mix finely chopped coriander leaves. Serve it hot with any Roti or Jeera/Saffron Rice and enjoy. It tastes better the next day.

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Other Paneer recipes blogged so far,

• Matar Paneer
• Paneer Koftas in Creamy Saffron Gravy

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Food from Heaven: Pongal

Pongal

Some foods are comforting. Some are nutritious. And some are simply divine. Pongal is one such dish which is comforting, nutritious and also divine. Just the thought of ‘Pongal’ conjures up sweet memories of my Doddappa and Doddamma performing the Puja daily in their estate temple. Growing up in a joint family for first 6 years of my tender life, I remember spending most of my time with my Doddappa (Dad’s elder brother) and Doddamma (Dad’s SIL). For me they were another set of loving grandparents as my Appa was just one year old when Doddamma stepped into our large joint family as a first daughter-in-law, taking huge responsibility on her very young shoulder. No wonder my Appa felt so close to his ANNa (brother) and Attige (SIL) and involved them in almost all the major decisions he took.

I was one of those spoiled little brats who was born in a large joint family when almost all other kids were in their early teens. Yes, I was the only baby in our big family and was never short of love, affection and undivided attention from everyone. I grew up being a centre of attention and attraction for two happy years of my life till my little sister decided to pop all of sudden and spoil it for me ;) Grudgingly I had to share spot light with my sister and soon with my cousin brother. I remember asking my Dodda’s whom they loved the most. And every time they would hold me close to their heart and whisper it was me and it will always be me.

It was no surprise I spent most of my time playing in my Doddappa’s clinic which was attached to the main house, than playing with my sister and other cousins. I was his little helper. It was while counting the tablets for his patients I got my first lessons of mathematics. It was while picking the herbs from his herb garden for medicines where I leant the basics of Ayurveda. It was while helping the people to cure their disease and relive them from pain where I learnt about empathy and the art of being a good listener. And above all these I learnt how to be kind, generous and a good human being from my Doddas.

After moving to different city for education, I and my sister would eagerly look forward to our Navarathri and summer holidays where we would spend one full week at our Doddas estate. Every morning I would wake up the waft of sandalwood, heady smell of Agarbatti and Dhupa and the fast rhythmic chanting of my Doddappa sitting on floor in lotus position in Devara Kone (God’s room). While Doddappa was busy performing the Puja, Doddamma was busy with her daughters-in-law preparing Neivedyam which was offered to God. One day it would be just plain steamed rice, other day it would be Rice Payasam. But it would always be Pongal for special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries and festivals. Rice and lentils cooked with few spices till they fall apart and become little mushy, a lovely medley offered to God. While green chilli and black pepper corns give it small dose of spiciness, tadka and ginger gives it a wonderful flavour. This Neivedyam was taken to the small temple in our estate where it was first offered to God and then given to us in a small bowl made using Jackfruit leaves as Prasad (blessed food). Oh!!! Fond memories of childhood and the people who made it so much special and wonderful….

My favourite way of making Pongal is with good spoonfuls of Thuppa or Ghee, just the way Doddamma made it. Whenever I make it here I can almost hear her saying

“Make sure you don’t insult Pongal by using just a spoonful of Thuppa. Be generous with Thuppa when you make Pongal because it is God’s food. If you can’t make Pongal with lots of love and Ghee then it is not fit for you, your family and your God.”

I try to remember my Doddamma’s pearls of wisdom like these while cooking. Some foods are just divine and they are meant to be cooked that way. This post is very dear to me and it is dedicated to two people who are very close to my heart. In two days it will be the first death anniversary of my Doddappa. It will be a grand celebration because he believed in celebrating life and death, which was just the beginning of new life. Doddappa and Doddamma, I miss you. I am sending thsi food from heaven to Susan of the Well Seasoned Cook, who is hosting My Legume Love Affair-Second Helping.

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Pongal (Rice & Lentils Medley)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Serves: 2-4
Recipe Source: My Doddamma

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Ingredients:
1½ cups Rice (preferably Sona Masuri or you can use Basmati as I have used here)
1 cup Yellow Moong Dal/Split Green Gram
½ cup Cashews
8 cups Milk+Water (I used 1 cup Milk+7 cups Water)
2-3 Green Chillies, slit (Optional)
1 inch Ginger
1 tsp Black Pepper Corns, lightly crushed or used as whole
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
Few Curry Leaves
3-4 tbsp Thuppa/Ghee/Clarified Butter
Salt to taste

Rice, Moong Dal & Cashews for Pongal

Method:

Heat a pan and add yellow moong dal. Roast it on medium flame, sautéing continuously, till it turns golden yellow, about 3-4 mins. Let it cool completely.
In a same pan add ½ tbsp of ghee and add cashews. Roast it on medium to low heat till they turn golden. Keep it aside.
Mix roasted moon dal and rice and wash it in cold water 3-4 times till the water turns clear. Drain all the water and keep it aside.
Heat 2 tbsp of Ghee in a thick bottomed pan or pressure cooker. Add jeera, pepper corns and curry leaves. When jeera starts to sizzle, add slit green chillies, ginger, rice and dal and mix well till every grain is coated with ghee, about 1-2 mins.
Now add milk, water and salt to taste and mix well. Cover the pressure cooker lid with weight and cook it on medium-high flame for 15-20 mins. Let it the pressure be released completely before opening the lid, about 5 mins.
If using thick bottomed pan, cover the lid and let it cook undisturbed for 10-12 mins on high flame. By this time water will start to bubble and pour from vessel. Remove the lid; mix the rice and lentils properly. Again cover the vessel with lid, leaving little gap to escape the steam. Let it cook this way for another 5-10 mins till the rice and dal is plumped and doubled in volume. Remove the vessal from gas.
Mix in roasted cashews with ghee, 1-2 tbsp of ghee. Cover and let it sit for another 10 mins for the flavours to blend. Serve this hot with any chutney, lightly spiced curry/Kurma or with my favourite, Raita or plain curds.

Pongal served with Mango & Yogurt : My Divine Food

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Note:

The consistency of Pongal can vary depending on your preference. Some people prefer it very mushy like porridge and add more water while making it. So please adjust the water and milk quantity according to your preference.

Related Posts:

• Cooking with Love: Huli-Menasina Kodhel
• Akki Shavige with Rasayana & Menthe Chutney
• Recipes from Ajji's Kitchen- Brahmi Tambli
  

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Reminder for JFI-Soya:

I invite you all to celebrate Jihva for Ingredients with this month’s theme JFI-Soya. Choice of Soya products, the recipe, ingredients, method etc is entirely left to you. I would greatly appreciate if you can send me any Vegan or Vegetarian recipes but I leave it to your choice. Soya foods include tofu, tempeh, textured vegetable protein (chunks, mince etc), miso, soya sauces, soya oil and margarine, and soya dairy alternatives.

Deadline: 31st August, 2008

Please go through the guidelines and include all the required information in your post and also in your e-mail while sending your entry. Don't forget to add Your Name, Your Blog Name, Name of the Dish, Type of Dish and Perm Link of the entry along with the gorgeous Photo of final dish.

Click Here or on the logo to find out more information on this event.
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Puffy & Creamy: Phool Makhani Curry

Phool Makhani Curry

Blogging has its own advantage. I was used to cooking same food with same ingredients before I started blogging. I must admit that the time I am referring goes back to the era of me being a novice cook and I was not in a position to identify and differentiate one ingredient from other, especially when it came to lentils and flours. There were times when I mistook channa dal for toor dal and ended up using fine rice flour in place of maida to make Naan. And horrors of horror when I ended up using all that expensive Basmati rice in preparing Dosa batter, fit for one small army to feed, back in India. It’s a different story that I use Basmati rice quite often to make Dosa batter as they are much cheaper than Idli and Dosa rice we get here.

It’s since I started posting recipes in my blog that I learnt numerous recipes from different part of the world and discovered new ingredients which were unheard of while growing up. My Amma is an exceptional cook who even today fascinates me with her innovative recipes using rarest of ingredients. Fortunately I am like her when it comes to experimenting with ingredients and learning new recipes., just moving little away from comfort zone. Food blog world is one such place where you get to see and learn something unique every single day. Everyday I go through fascinating and adventurous journey of innovation in cooking with rare ingredients and I must say I am enjoying it thoroughly.

But there are sometimes when I get recipe requests from readers of Monsoon Spice with few ingredients which I have never tried or tasted. Some time back I received a recipe request from one of the readers to post Phool Makahni aka Puffed Lotus Seeds recipe. Till then I was not that familier with lotus seeds and I had no idea that there was puffed lotus seeds just like puffed rice or pop corns. Yes, they do look like pop corns and I felt to some extent they did taste like one especially when they are deep fried. Before I knew, I ended up eating half a cup of fried phool makhani sprinkled with little chilli powder and salt and had to fry little more for the curry. I had to stop myself from popping few more puffed lotus seeds and proceed into making this delicious Phool Makhani Curry.

This is a recipe I put together from various recipes found all over the web world. Most of the recipes had three things in common, coconut, cashews and poppy seeds. And all the recipes asked I deep fry these Phool Makhani before adding it to base gravy. But next time I am going to pan fry these puffed lotus seeds with little oil till they turn golden to reduce little amount of fat and calorie. And one more thing lesson I learnt is to buy extra pack of these puffed lotus seeds just to eat with little sprinkle of salt and pepper ;) In the end we had this delicious tasting bowl of curry which was creamy from addition of coconut, poppy seeds and cashews with touch of little spice notes to it from aromatic whole spices and spice powder used. Fried Phool Makhani, which is quite crisp when deep fried, transforms into melt-in-mouth creamy delight when added to the base gravy is one whole new experience we really enjoyed. This is my entry for Kayln's WHB guest hosted by Joanna.

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Phool Makhani Curry (Puffed Lotus Seeds Cooked in a Spiced and Creamy Coconut Gravy)

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:

2-3 cups Phool Makhani/Puffed Lotus Seeds
1 large Onion, finely chopped
2 large Tomatoes, finely chopped
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional)
1-2 tbsp Sugar (Adjust acc to taste)
Small bunch of Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
1 tbsp Oil + Oil for Deep Frying
Salt to taste

Ground to Smooth Paste:
½-¾ cup Coconut, fresh/frozen
1 tbsp Cashews
1 tbsp Poppy Seeds/Khus-Khus, dry roasted till light golden
1 inch Cinnamon Stick
3 Cloves
3 Green Cardamoms
1 inch Ginger, peeled

Phool Makhani/Puffed Lotus Seeds

Method:

Deep fry phool makhani in heated oil till it turns light golden brown in colour and place them on paper towel to drain excess oil.
Grind cashews, roasted poppy seeds, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and coconut to smooth paste adding little water at time.
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When they start to sizzle, add finely chopped onion and sauté till they turn golden brown.
Mix in ground paste and keep stirring for about 4-5 minutes till the masala paste turns light brown in colour and becomes dry.
Now add finely chopped tomatoes, garam malasa, kitchen king masala, sugar and give it a good stir till tomatoes turn pulpy, about 2-3 minutes.
Add around 1½-2 cups of water and mix in salt to taste. Cook this gravy on medium-low heat for about 10 mins, stirring in between.
Now add fried phool makhani and mix well. You can add little more water if needed depending on required consistency of the gravy. Cook on low heat for another 3-5 minutes. Mix in finely chopped coriander leaves and serve this delicious Phool Makhani Curry with roti, chapatti or rice of your choice.

Phool Makhani Curry

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Notes:

Phool Makhani takes very few minutes to absorb all that gravy and turns into creamy delight. So add it to the gravy just five minutes before you switch off the gravy.
Although this time I deep fried these puffed lotus seeds I would suggest you to try pan frying them in batches with very little oil till it turns light golden if you want to restrict fat and calorie content.
You can also serve these fried Puffed lotus seeds with little sprinkle of salt and chilli powder.

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Reminder (Just 6 more days remaining):

MBP-Street Food ends on 24th of June, 2008. Start patrolling the blogs and cook your favourite Street Food that your tummy begs and heart desires and spread link love.

Deadline: 24th June, 2008

Please go through the guidelines and include all the required information in your post and mail when sending me your entry. Don't forget to add Your Name, Your Blog Name, Name of the Dish you cooked, Perm Link of the entry, Perm Link of original recipe along with the gorgeous Photo of final dish.

Click Here or on the logo to find out more information on this event.

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Cooking with Babies: Baby Corn & Carrot Masala

Baby Corn & Carrot Masala with Aloo Parathas

Every time I come back from India I kind of go under emotional roller coaster ride. There you are, surrounded by your loved ones at any odd time of the day or night sipping a cup of filter Kaapi and talking about everything under this sky and it feels like time just flies without you knowing. And here you are, with only your partner to talk to (that to when he is not busy giving bubble bath to love of his life Lajjo Rani (don’t fret, its our car I am referring to) or jumping up and down like crazy guy while stuck to idiot box watching football or cricket (I call it kiri-kiri meaning irritating)). There you are, eating all wonderful food cooked by every other person other than you and hardly required to move your big fat ass. Here you are, fretting over what to cook everyday and arguing whose turn to empty the waste bin. There you are, just required to walk few steps to eat your heart’s content and yet pay few pennies. Here you are, travel miles together to eat at reasonably good restaurant and end up lightening your wallet and half full stomach. Ah!!! Some pleasures of staying away from home!!!!!!

While still recovering from jet lag (I blame my Boss for making me go to office very next day we landed here and now you know why I’ve not been able to blog hop these days. Bhohoo) all we have been eating is Ganji with Ghee and Pickle or just plain Curd Rice. Well, I am not really complaining here. All we wanted after eating the food served on flight was just simple ones as our taste buds were not ready to volunteer as a guinea pig in anymore of laboratory testing. So it was only during weekend after sleeping till noon that we finally managed to eat something other than simple Comfort Food. With big batch of Aloo Parathas I had cooked and tucked in the freezer before leaving to India, we had to just worry about some simple curry to serve. Well, not exactly simple when it comes to taste department. This delicious Baby Corn-Carrot Masala in creamy gravy of onion, tomato and cashews is what we enjoyed with Aloo Parathas. Very tender Baby Corn and Baby Carrots from Farmer’s Market are the highlights of this yummilicious Curry which simply retains is crunchiness and sweet taste even when cooked with spices. And another addition to this gravy is my ever favourite Kitchen King Masala and Kasuri Methi (Dried Fenugreek Leaves) which enhances its taste. Do try this Curry of Tender Baby Corns and Baby Carrot fingers simmered in rich gravy of sweet onions, tangy tomatoes and flavourful cashews and well balanced spices which is sure to awaken all your senses.

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Baby Corn & Carrot Masala (Veggies cooked in Creamy Gravy of Onion, Tomato and Cashew)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
15-20 tender Baby Corn, cut into fingers
10-12 Baby Carrots/ 2-3 medium Carrots
1 medium Onion, finely chopped
2-3 Green Chillies, slit (Adjust acc to taste)
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
½ tbsp Kasuri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves
1 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
½ tbsp Oil/Ghee

Baby Corn & Baby Carrots

For Ground Masala:
1 small Onion, quartered
3 large Tomatoes, blanched in hot water and peeled/1 canned Chopped Tomato
2-3 cloves of Garlic
¾ -1 inch Ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2-3 Dry Red Chilli (I used Byadagi for Colour, adjust acc to taste)
¾ -1 tsp Garam Masala
½-1 tsp Kitchen King Masala
½ tsp Amchur/Dried Mango Powder (Optional)
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Coriander Seeds
1 tsp Sugar
10-12 Cashews

Baby Corn & Carrot Masala

Method:

Grind all the ingredients listed above from onion to cashews to smooth paste without adding any water and keep it aside.
Cook Baby Corn and Baby Carrots with turmeric powder and salt to taste in enough water for about 5-6 minutes till they are fork tender. Drain and reserve the water.
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds to it. When cumin starts to sizzle, add finely chopped onion and slit chillies and sauté on medium flame till it turns golden brown.
Now add ground paste, Kasuri Methi and sauté it continuously for about 2-3 minutes on medium to low flame till raw smell of masala disappears.
Mix cooked Baby Corn and Carrots. Add reserved water as and when required to get required gravy consistency. Simmer and cook for another ten minutes for all the flavours to blend well.
Mix finely chopped coriander leaves before serving it with Chapatti, Roti or Paratha of your choice and enjoy this creamy goodness.

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A Twist in the Tale: Palak Tofu

Palak Tofu/Saag Tofu

Me: Eiks… What’s that ugly green thing Amma?
Mom: Its spinach. I am making spinach curry for tonight’s dinner.
Me: Eww… Don’t bother! I had rather eat plain rice than eating that yucky green thing!
Mom: Why don't you taste little and see if you like it.
Me: I don’t want to taste it because I know I won’t like it. So why tasting it when I already know I am not gonna like it?
Mom: Because it’s good for you. You’ll become strong if you eat it. Remember Popeye? He is strong because he eats spinach.
Me: oh yes! Popeye eats spinach and gets lots of energy and then he beats Bluto. That means even I’ll get lots of energy to beat that bad boy in my class who pulls my hair everyday during school assembly!!! Mmm…
Mom: ~rolls her eyes~

Sounds familiar right? It’s still unknown as why kids preferred to get their tongues burnt than eat greens. I too grew up hating green leafy vegetables with passion and there was no way my Amma could make me eat them. Like many mothers all around the globe Amma tricked me by mixing it with Paratha, Dosa, Poories, deep fried goodies which we kids would eat happily without knowing it had greens which we hated. There was one exceptional green leafy vegetable which I grudgingly ate and yes, it’s Spinach or Palak. Reason for eating it was of course my childhood super hero Popeye, the sailor.

But there was one dish which I wouldn’t have shared even with Popeye. I would happily eat it without anyone holding a gun on my temple! It is classic Punjabi dish Saag Paneer or Palak Paneer. Soft paneer cubes dunked in creamy, lightly spiced spinach gravy has to be one of the most liked side dish in Indian restaurants. It is mildly spiced and hence loved by people of all age groups from 8 to 80. As Paneer is little heavy on tummy and waist, I substituted it with Tofu to make it guilt free indulgence. Addition of cashews gives very creamy consistency for Palak gravy and makes it stand apart from usual Saag Paneer dish (Tip picked from Indira's Palak Paneer recipe where she says she learnt it from her Punjabi neighbor Deviji). We enjoyed this creamy Palak Tofu/Saag Tofu with Mooli Parathas (recipe will be posted soon).

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Palak-Tofu/Saag-Tofu (Lightly Fried Tofu in Spiced Spinach Gravy)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
1 big bunch of Spinach (Approx. 6-8 packed cups, here I used Baby Spinach)
2 cups firm Tofu, squeezed to remove excess water and cubed into ¾ inch pieces
1 medium Onion, finely chopped
2 medium Tomatoes, finely chopped
6-8 Cashew Nuts
3-4 Green Chillies (adjust acc to taste)
1 tbsp Coriander Leaves
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1+ ½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
½ inch Cinnamon Stick
2-3 Green Cardamom
2-3 Cloves
¼ tsp Coriander Powder
½ tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional)
½ tsp Garam Masala
1 tbsp Kasuri Methi (Optional)
1 tsp Sugar
2 tbsp Sour Cream (Optional)
½ + ½ tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Spinach & Tofu for Saag

Method:
Heat about ½ tbsp of oil in a pan and add cinnamon, green cardamom and cloves. Sauté it for few seconds and add ½ tsp of cumin seeds.
When cumin seeds start to crackle add cashews and green chillies. Sauté it on medium flame till cashews turn light golden brown in colour.
Mix in roughly chopped spinach, sugar and cover the lid. Cook this spinach cover for few minutes on a medium heat till it is wilted. If needed sprinkle little water in between to avoid them sticking to the pan.
Cool the mixture and grind it to smooth paste with coriander leaves adding as little water as possible. Keep aside this mixture till required.
Heat ½ tbsp of oil in the same pan and remaining cumin seeds. When it starts to sizzle, add finely chopped onion and sauté it for a minute.
Now add ginger-garlic paste and sauté it till the raw smell disappears, about a minute. Mix in chopped tomatoes and sauté till it becomes pulpy.
Add coriander powder, kitchen king masala, garam masala and kasuri methi and keep stirring till nice aroma of masala fills the kitchen, about a minute time.
Mix in ground spinach paste and add about 1- 1½ cups of water and salt to taste. Let it cook on a low to medium flame for about ten minutes.
While the spinach gravy is cooking heat little oil in a pan and placed cubed tofu pieces. Pan fry both the sides of tofu till they turn golden brown. This step is optional and can be omitted if you don’t prefer to fry tofu pieces.
Add lightly fried tofu and sour cream, if using, to spinach gravy and mix well. Cook for another 5 minutes so that tofu absorbs all the flavours. Serve this Palak-Tofu/Saag-Tofu with any Indian bread of your choice and enjoy.

Palak Tofu/Saag Tofu

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Note:
Replace Tofu with Paneer to make wholesome Palak-Paneer or Saag-Paneer.
Addition of cashew is optional. I have added it to give creamy texture to the gravy.

Other Tofu Recipes posted in Monsoon Spice:

• Tofu Stuffed Kulcha
• Thai Veg and Tofu Green Curry
• Thai Tome Yum Soup with Mushroom & Tofu

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Final Call for an 'Ode to Potato'! One more Day to Go...

An Ode to Potato ends on 15th of March (GMT Time). Send in your entry before the deadline and join us in the singing. Bake, boil, mash, fry, sauté, grill, stuff, cook... The choice is endless.

Deadline: 15th March, 2008

Please go through the guidelines and include all the required information in your post and mail when sending me your entry. Don't forget to add Your Name, Your Blog Name, Name of the Dish you cooked, Perm Link of the entry along with the gorgeous Photo of Potato dish.

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