Saturday Morning Snack - Poha

Poha is a very popular dish of western India. It is made from flattened rice, and is an extremely easy-to-cook, nutritious breakfast for us Indians. I add a little extra zing to Poha by adding tomatoes to it! Sounds odd as an ingredient for Poha.. well it is.. until you try it out for yourself!!




Main Ingredients

1. Poha - Thin flattened Rice - 500 gms
2. 3 medium sized potatoes (cut into small equal sized wedges)
3. 1 medium size tomato - finely chopped
4. 1 medium sized Onion - finely chopped
5. Handful of Skinless roasted Peanuts
6. Handful of green peas ( if you can't get fresh ones - frozen should do)

For the Tadka

1. 3 Tablespoons Sunflower Oil
2. 2 green chillies - slit across along their length
3. 1 teaspoon Black Mustard seeds
4. 1 teaspoon Cummin seeds
5. 1 pinch of Hing ( Asafoetida )

Masala:

1. 1 teaspoon of Turmeric
2. 1 teaspoon of Red chilly powder
3. Salt to Taste ( 1 table spoon )
4. 1 Teaspoon Sugar

Garnish

1. Finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
2. Ratlami Thick Bhujia sev
3. Lemon wedges 

To Do:

 

Wash the poha in a strainer and let it sit with some water in the strainer. It will become a little fluffy after about 5 min. Sprinkle the sugar and salt evenly on this and mix it well.

 

Heat a skillet with sunflower oil and put the tadka ingredients in the same order as listed above one after the another. Add the onions, potatoes, peanuts and peas in the skillet and let it cook for 5 min with closed lid. Keep stirring in between to avoid the charring at the bottom. Then add tomatoes and cook for another 5 min without covering it.

Add turmeric and chilly powder and then add the poha from the strainer and mix it carefully. Sprinkle some water over the poha and cover and let it cook for another 2-3 min on low heat covered.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice/wedge . Add Ratlami thick Bhujia sev on it to get an added spice! Enjoy with tea on a lazy Saturday morning!


Happy Times...
Pallavi

Out of this world Paneer Makhani

My love for paneer has inspired me to make many recipes of paneer at home.This is my all time favourite which I had to share with you all. The preparation is really simple and is yum to eat with naan / kulcha or Roti (Indian Bread).

Ingredients

1. 500 gms of Paneer cut into small cubes 
2. 2 medim size Onions thinly sliced
3. 1/3 cup Tomato Puree
4. 5 tablespoons of whipped Cream
5. 1 cup Milk - Half and Half ( thickened non sweet milk)
6. 3 tablespoons of subnflower oil
7. 1/2 stick of salted butter

Dry Indian masala

1. 2 teaspoons Garam Masala
2. 2 teaspoons Paneer tikka masala
3. 2 teaspoons Salt 
4. 1 teaspoons kashmiri red chilly powder

Cut Paneer in bite sizes, chop the onions, green pepper and tomoatoes and put it aside. In a non stick pan pour the butter and let it just melt down. Add the sunflower oil and saute the onions till light brown. Add finely chopped tomato cubes and green pepper. Add the paneer cubes and saute all of them for 5minutes.Add 2 tablespoons of tomato puree and  dry masala in the skillet and fry for 2-3 minutes.
(Note : you can also first shallow fry the Paneer till a golden brown crust forms and then use in the above)
Pour the milk and 2 tablespoons of cream. Check the consistency and add water if needed to get the desired consistency. (Note : After cooking it will get a little thick) When done, take it out in a serving bowl and grate paneer on top and garnish with coriander leaves. It is indeed a veggie delight!

From my kitchen to yours....
-Pallavi

Chinese Soya Chunks

I just love the fusion of Indian and Chinese food... there is so much texture and taste in this fusion recipe...
A few Indian chinese sauces from the grocery store is all we need for this. Three cheers to the Indian groceries in Chicago...

I had some friends over for dinner yesterday and they loved it....why don'y you try out this super simple and healthy recipe when you get a chance!




Ingredients:

1. 500 gms soya chunks

2. 3 medium onions chopped thinly

3. Spring Onion leaves - 1 bunch finely chopped
4. 1 medium Tomoato - finely chopped
5. 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds

Sauces :
1. Tomoato Ketchup

2. Green chilly sauce

3. All in One Stir fry sauce

4. Hot and Sour Sauce

5. Soya sauce

6. Chillie garlic sauce

Preperation : 

Boil water in a pan, put 2 teaspoons salt and put the soya chunks it the boiling water.

   

Let it cook for 15 min. Then drain out the water and rinse the soya chunks with cold water.

In a skillet, pour sunflower oil and crackle some cummin seeds. Fry the onions till golden brown and add tomoatoes and spring onion leaves.

After 2 min add all the sauces  and soya chunks and mix thoroughly. Let it cook for another 5-7 minutes and let it cool off.

Place it in a serving bowl and garnish with chopped spring onion leaves. Enjoy the YUM indo-chinese preparation!! I'm sure you will love this healthy melt in your mouths! ENJOY!!!

Keep smiling....

Pallavi 

26 Jan Special -Tiranga Rice

Today is India's 61st Republic day - a special day which commemorates the date on which our current constitution came into force. To celebrate this occasion I decided to make Tiranga special Rice.





Ingredients

1. Long grained Basmati Rice 3 cups
2. 1 small Lemon / 2-3 Teaspoons Lemon Juice
3. 1 bunch Spinach cleaned
4. 5 medium size Carrot - Finely shredded
5. 1 medium sized Onion - thinly sliced
6. Salt to Taste
7. 2 teaspoons of Garam Masala powder
8. A handful of Green Pea
9. Non sweet Coconut flakes (optional)

Tadka

1. 4 Tablespoons of Cummin
2. 3 Tablespoons Indian Ghee / sunflower oil
3. 4 cloves
4. 1 black cardamom
5. 1 Cinnamon wood stick
6. 3 Bayleaves

Saffron White Rice :


Take 2 cups of basmati rice in a bowl and wash it in warm running water. Keep aside the 1 cup for later.

Fill a meduim sized Pan with 2 spoons of Indian Ghee (Sunflower oil can be also substituted here for figure healthy ideas) Put the cumin seeds and when they start to crackle, take out half of these for garnishing later on the rice.Add the thinly sliced onions. Fry them until light brown.

When done take out in a dish 2-3 spoonfuls of this mixture to be used for the other portion of rice which we are not cooking here. Add the 2 cups of washed rice and fry on low flame for 4-5 minutes. Then fill it up with 4 cups of water, add the lemon juice and cover with a lid. Let it cook for 20 min on low flame. Do not stir in between.

When the water has evaporated from the rice we have our aromatic rice ready for more....Slighly fluff the rice with a fork so that it does not stick together.





Saffron colored Rice :

Fry the shreded carrots 2-3 tablespoons of oil , Add salt to taste. Take out half of the rice cooked above and fry with the mixture.. this will change the appearance of the White rice to saffron rice. Fry for 5 min and then set aside.

Note : I have used Saffron food color at times when carrots are not available but this is a more healthy recipe.

Now for the extra yummy and healthy green Rice :

Very carefully clean the spinach ( can use frozen Spinach if you have less time ). Chop the spinatch and in a blender pour the cut spinach. Add salt to taste and water just enough to let it blend. Pour about 2 cup of water and blend it well. Put 2 teaspoons of Garam Masala and blend it well.

 
Now we use the earlier set aside mixture of Oil, cummin seeds and fried Onions and heat them in a skillet. Pour the spinach mix and cook for 2 min.




 Place the remaining 1 cup of basmati rice in the vessel to cook rice, and carefully measure the spinach water to be 2 cups only

Pour this blended spinatch mix in rice. Add some Lemon juice for flavouring. Mix the greenpeas and cover with a lid. Let it cook for 15 min on low flame. Do not stir in between.


When the water has evaporated from the rice we have our aromatic rice Slighly fluff the rice with a fork so that it does not stick together.


For the presentation

In a flat base serving dish carefully place rice in order of the color Saffron, White and green mimicing the Indian flag colors. The green rice can be garnished with finely chopped Coriander leaves and the on the white rice carefully sprinkle the fried cummin seeds to make the circle as shown. Shredd some coconut flakes on white rice, and some carrots on the the saffron rice.


There we have our tiranga special rice !! Enjoy this with boondi Raita.

God Bless India...Jai Hind from one Indian to Another...
Pallavi

Sambhar...... just the way I like it

Sambar or sambhar or Sambaaru is a dish common in southern part of India, It essentially is a vegetable stew or chowder based on a broth made with Tamarind and Tuhar Dal.( sometimes also called as Toor dal)

Base of Sambhar

1.  1/2 cup Tuhar ( Toor ) dal- soaked in warm water for 20 min

Dry Ingredients :

1. 2 Teaspoon Turmeric powder 
2. 2 Teaspoons Tamarind soaked in warm water for 10 min
3. 2 Teaspoons salt (to taste)
4. 1 Tablespoon ginger garlic paste (  conversion 1 Teaspoon = 1/3 Tablespoon)
5. 3 Teaspoons Sambhar Powder
6. 2 Bay leaves

For the Desi Tadka

1. 8-10 Curry leaves 
2. 1/4 teaspoon asafoetida powder 
3. 2 tablespoons of Sunflower Oil 
4. 1 1/2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
5. 2-3 whole dried red chillies
6. 3 Teaspoons Red chilly powder
7. 2-3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

Veggie delights: ( This is what makes it awesome and healthy) 

1. 3 medium onions finely chopped
2. 2 medium size tomatoes
3. 1 stem of drumstick cut
4. 1/3 cup cut eggplant / brinjol
5. 1/3 cup cut bottleguard
6. 1/3 cup shredded Carrots
7. 1/3 cup cut okra

Important reminder : we will certainly need fresh Coriander leaves finely chopped to garnish!


 

Fry the onions in a pressure cooker heated with the oil in it. when they turn golden brown add the ginger garlic paste. Add all the veggies and fry for about 5 min on high flame, keep stirring it constantly to avoid charring at the bottom of the pan. Add dry ingredients and mix it well.

Add drained Tuhar dal and and warm water to cover the mix properly. Cook for 15 min, till 2-3 whistles. Let the pressure come down on its own. Once the pressure is released, open the cooker and pour it to the serving vessel.

 

Prepare the Tadka and pour it on the sambhar. Do you hear a sizzle....this is what makes it so aromatic and heavenly. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.







Server it to your near and dear ones with Dosa, Idli or Medu Wada.

See you soon... all set for Tiranga special day tomorrow to celebrate Indian republic day!

-Take care and Stay warm Chicago
  Pallavi

Tangy Chutney (Dip) to go with Dosa / Idli

Finally here comes the recipe for my tangy chutney with a twist, it is a little non traditional... but I'm sure a little variation is what you can experiment with!

Ingredients: 1/2 cup of split Chana Dal soaked in water for 15 min and then slightly roasted 1/2 Cup of skinless Roasted Peanuts 1/2 Cup of Grated fresh Coconut Tamarind Paste - 1/2 teaspoon Handful of finely chopped coriander leaves (Optional)

Seasoning: Sugar - 2 teaspoons 1 small Lemon / 4 teaspoons of Lemon Juice Salt - 2-3 teaspoons to taste 1 teaspoon Pepper Flakes

For the Indian Tadka: Black Mustard seeds - 3 teaspoons Indian Curry leaves One pinch of Hing 1 teaspoon of Kasmiri Mirch powder (any other red chilli powder will also do) 2 Dry Red chilly Finely chopped Garlic (Optional)

Note :
Cup of grated fresh coconut can be substituted with store bought non-sweet coconut flakes.Handful of finely chopped coriander leaves can be mixed in the mixer to give it a green earthy flavour. Sometimes I also put a spoon of tangy yogurt in the mix to make it more smooth.

Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl and transfer to a mixer/blender. Pour 2 cups of water (Adjust according to the consistency of the Chutney you want).
Mix for 10-15 minutes till it is finely blended and then carefully take it out in a serving bowl.

In a small Tadka Kadai put 3-4 tea-spoon of Sunflower Oil. When the Oil is hot , put all the tadka ingredents and pull the kadai off heat. Pour this over the Chutney and mix it well.

Pour the seasoning on the mixed chutney and mix it well. Taste a small amount to get a flavour of the chutney for seasoning. Ajust according to your flavour.

This tastes awesome with my favourites Idli / Dosa . See you all with my next recipe - Sambhar !

Enjoy this and keep smiling :-)

-Pallavi

South Indian Savouries....... DOSA.... Yummy in the tummy.. :-)

I belong to Bokaro Steel City ( which now is in the state Jharkhad) so you must be wondering ... Pallavi & South Indian dishes... how's that!!!  Well here's the answer for those who need more information - I did my B.E. in Bangalore and apart from a lot of other things i loved which are worth mentioning.... loved the yummy South Indian specialities served there.

Most of us have very fond memories of our college & hostel days.. well mine is a little more *special*.... During our initial college days I met my husband Bhavesh and being great foodies that we are, we went around a lot of local eat outs to try out south Indian delicacies...

Once we moved to Mumbai our love for the south Indian dishes remained and I simply cannot thank God enough that Chicago is flodded with Indian restaurants....it's indeed a home away from home.

A special mention to my South Indian friends Kavitha, Remya, Roopa and Padma whose expert advises resulted in an awesome recipe which I can share with you all.

DOSA : To prepare Batter

1. 1 cup skinless split urad daal (skinless black gram)
2. Salt to taste
3. 1/2 teaspoon Methi Seeds ( Fenugreek)
4. 3 Cups of Rice flour / Soaked Sona Masoori Rice
5. Pinch of Yeast  ( Optional )

Soak the urad dal in warm water for 2 hours and then blend finely. Pour the mix in a big bowl and mix the remaining ingredents. Mix enough water in the bowl to cover them about 2" deep and soak overnight till it raises up. My advise : add a pinch of Yeast to make the fermentation faster if you have less time.

Mix  the batter thoroughly. Heat a non stick pan with a little sunflower oil , with a big serving spoon scoop and pour the batter on the pan. Slowly spread the batter in a circular motion and try to even the dosa on tha pan. if you are trying for the first time, the first ones migh not come out  as expected.. don't panik and get disheartened! Try some more times and Yippie... you will get it right... well.. it did for me!!


Drizzle a little oil on top of the batter and with a flat spatulla  try to remove it from the pan, it should come out pretty easily. Flip it around for getting the other side cooked... Well the smell of the dosa will be filling the kitchen by now.... How cool is that!


After 2 minutes take the dosa out carefully and put it on a serving plate... Serve it with the Tangy Chutney and Sambhar.

If you wish to make a masala dosa, that is super simple too...

Please visit my blogs for Masala Dosa, Tangy Chutney and Sambhar ... keep watching this space and enjoy the delicious South Indian savouries...... Hail India!!!

see ya with my next recipe...
Love Life....
Pallavi..

Microwave Kalakand Recipe

 Microwaveable Recipe for Kalakand - Fast and easy... I got hold of this recipe at a friends house and was amazed at how easy it was to prepare one of the best mouthwatering desserts of India...
I made it for new year and everyone loved it!!

 




INGREDIENTS:

• Ricotta Cheese 14oz / 400g
• 1 stick unsalted butter 4 oz / 115g
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk 14oz / 400g ( Non Fat preferred) 
• Dry milk 1 pouch (Not Fat preferred) 3.2 oz / 90g
• 1 spoon yogurt ( with a little tang)
 

My family likes less sweet hence the above ingredients will do, if you like more sweet add 4-5 teaspoon of finely grained sugar.

Mix all the above in a bowl & microwave for total time of 20 min. However, after every 5 min take it out from the microwave and mix it properly. Once done, pour out on a flat pan and let it cool for about 10 minutes.

Cut squares of equal size and sprinkle chopped almonds, cashews and pistachios and then refrigerate it. 
This can be stored for 3-4 days to be savored after Lunch & Dinners.

Remember always serve to your near and dear ones with a smile...

Enjoy Life! Stay healthy!

I tried the mango version of the kalakand and it came out really well.
 I added about 1 cup of sweetened mango pulp and 1 tablespoon of mango essence in the mix and extended the time for microwave by 5 more minutes.







Pallavi