Dum Aloo

    I tried a different version of Dum Aloo for my daughter's birthday get together a few weeks ago and it came really well. Due to my friends' positive appreciation, I was overwhelmed to post this recipe.

Ingredients:

15 baby potatoes
2 medium onions
3 large tomatoes
1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
Handful of cashew nuts
1 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder
2 tsp of coriander powder
1 tsp of cumin powder
1 tsp of amchur powder/ dry mango powder
1 tsp of fennel seeds 
2 cloves
1 cardamom
1/2 cup of yogurt
1 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves
oil as required
salt as required

Seasoning:
 
2 bay leaves
2 small pieces of cinnamon stick
2 broken red chillies

Preparation:

1.Pressure cook (2 whistles) the baby potatoes and peel the skin. Poke them with fork.

2.Shallow fry the potatoes to golden brown on the pan with little oil . Keep it aside.

3.Fry the onions translucent and grind them along with cashews, fennel, cloves, and cardamom in to a paste. Add 2 tbsp of oil to the preheated skillet and add cinnamon, red chillies and bay leaves. 
4.As nice aroma comes, add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste. Saute well till raw smell disappears. Fine chop the tomatoes and add them to the pan along with the remaining spices.
5.Saute in medium flame till the tomatoes become mushy. Add salt and the potatoes and beaten yogurt. As the gravy starts bubbling, add amchur powder.
6.Stir for 2 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with roti/ naan or puri.

Baingan Bharta (Mashed Roasted Eggplant)

   Baingan bharta is a North Indian specialty made with roasted eggplant(brinjal) and a blend of exotic spices. This delicacy is made by my hubby who always impresses me with his North Indian dishes.

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant 
2 medium tomatoes 
1 large onion
3 green chilies
1/4  inch piece of ginger 
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp oil
1/4  tsp turmeric 

1/2  tsp of baingan bharta masala
1/2 tsp of tandoori masala
 coriander for garnish

Preparation:

1.Fire roast the whole eggplant till the skin turns black and easy to peel.

2.Allow them to cool and mash them/ cut in to pieces.  

3.Fine chop the onion, tomatoes, garlic and ginger. Heat the oil in a skillet on medium high and add add garlic, green chillies and ginger to the skillet and saute well till the raw smell disappears.

4.Add onions and saute well. Now add the tomatoes, turmeric and salt, and saute till they are mushy. 

5.Transfer the eggplant, mix well and close the lid. Allow it to cook in medium flame for 10 minutes.

6.Now add the bharta masala and tandoori masala and cook for 5 more minutes. Switch off the flame and add coriander leaves. Baingan bharta is ready and serve hot with roti/ paratha. You can always garnish with chopped cilantro to make it more appetizing!

Dum aloo/ Baby potaotes masala

     Dum aloo belongs to Kashmiri cuisine. The masala sauce for this dish is flavored with garam masala. I did not complicate it with too much spices. A fork can be used to poke holes in the cooked potatoes so that the spices would permeate in the vegetable.

Serves up to 3-4 people
Preparation time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

16-18 baby potatoes
2 large onions
2 large tomatoes
1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
1 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder
1/2  tsp of ground black pepper
2 tsp of cumin powder
2-3 tbsp of heavy cream
2 small pieces of cinnamon stick
2 cloves
2 cardamom
olive oil
1 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves
salt as required

Preparation:

1.Pressure cook the baby potatoes and peel the skin. Poke them with fork.

2.Grind the onions in to a paste. Add 1 tsp of oil to the preheated skillet and add cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. As nice aroma comes, add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste. Saute well till raw smell disappears.

3.Grind the tomatoes separately. Add tomato paste and little salt.

4.Saute in simmer flame for 30 minutes and then add red chilli powder, cumin powder, black pepper powder and remaining salt. Add the cooked baby potatoes and close the lid for 15 minutes.
5.Add heavy cream and stir for 2 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with roti/ puri.

kadai paneer

           Dear friends, Thanks for your continued support. I just returned back after my vacation in India. While in India, I had a chance to learn and improvise my style and hope to share with them in the coming blogs.

I always enjoyed the taste of kadai paneer in Indian cuisines. Today, I wanted to bring the flavors of this dish to my kitchen. Several people think kadai paneer is a dry form of paneer butter masala, but I respectfully disagree. I would love to hear your comments on this.


So here I present my first recipe after my three month hiatus.

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Serves up to 3 people

Ingredients:

150 grams of paneer
1 green bell pepper/ capsicum
1 onion
1 small cup of canned tomato sauce
2 green chillies
1 tbsp of minced ginger
pinch of turmeric
1 tsp of red chilly powder
1 tbsp of coriander powder
1/2 tsp of cumin powder
pinch of dried fenugreek leaves( kasoori methi)
1 1/2 tbsp of butter
salt as required


Preparation:

1.Cut the onion, capsicum and paneer in to small cubes. Heat 1/2 tbsp of butter in the skillet and add onions. Saute till the onion becomes translucent. Transfer to a plate. 
2.Then add the capsicum to the skillet and saute for 3-4 minutes and transfer to a plate. Follow this procedure to maintain the crunchiness of the vegetables.
3.Heat remaining butter in the skillet and add the tomato sauce. As the moisture evaporates, add a tbsp of water. Then add the spices(turmeric, red chilly powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt). Now add the onion and capsicum and saute well for 5 minutes. 
4.Check whether the raw smell of the tomato disappears. Add the pinch of dried fenugreek powder. Now add the fresh paneer and saute for a minute.
5.Kadai paneer is ready. Serve with roti/naan. 

Peas masala/ Mattar masala

  Peas masala is a Punjabi dish made with peas in a creamy sauce. I tried yogurt instead of heavy cream. Believe me the taste is heavenly!

Serves up to 3-4 people
Preparation time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup of  sweet peas
1 green bell pepper (capsicum)
2 large onions
3 medium sized tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic
1 inch of ginger
1 tsp of red chilly powder(~spice level)
1 tsp of garam masala (MTR brand) 
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1/4 cup of yogurt
2 tbsp of butter
coriander for garnish
salt as required

Preparation:

1.Heat 1 tbsp of butter in the pan. To the melted butter, add roughly chopped onions, garlic, ginger and saute for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and saute till the tomatoes are wilted.
2.Allow them to cool and grind them in to a paste. Heat 1 tbsp of butter in the skillet and add the chopped green bell pepper and saute for 2 minutes. I added green bell pepper to give some crunchiness to the masala. 
3.Then add the peas, turmeric, red chilly powder and garam masala. 
Saute for a minute and add the ground paste and half cup of water. Close the lid and allow it to cook for 15-20 minutes.
4.Switch off the flame and mix the yogurt. Add coriander for garnish. Serve with roti.

Aloo gobhi curry/ Potato cauliflower dry curry

     Aloo gobhi is very simple and easy stir-fry curry. Potato and cauliflower are the vegetables that compliments each other when it is well roasted.

Serves up to 3 people
Preparation time: 30 minutes


Ingredients:

2 medium sized potatoes
150 grams of cauliflower
5 stalks of scallions
1 tsp of red chilly powder
1 tsp of tandoori masala
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 tsp of melted butter
salt as required


Seasoning:

1/2 tsp of cumin seeds
1/2 tsp of fennel seeds
1 tbsp of grated ginger 


Preparation:

1.Cut the potatoes in to small cubes and cut the cauliflower in to small florets. Heat oil in the skillet and add the seasoning. 
2.As the cumin seeds crackles, add the potatoes and cauliflower and saute for 5 minutes. 
3.Add the spices( turmeric, red chilly powder ,tandoori masala, and salt) to the skillet. Close with the lid and allow to cook for 15 minutes.
4.Add the chopped scallions and close the lid. Add the butter  to add flavor to the vegetables. Check whether the potato is cooked. 5.Aloo gobhi dry curry is ready. Serve with rice/ roti and a cup of yogurt.

Mattar paneer masala/ Peas paneer masala

   Mattar Paneer Masala is a very popular North Indian food. This curry is prepared with vine ripened tomatoes and  green peas. The paneer cheese cubes are added for stir frying.

Serves up to 3 people
Preparation time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

150 grams of paneer
1 fistful of sweet peas
1 tsp of red chilly powder
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 tsp of coriander powder
1 tsp of garam masala (MTR brand)
250 grams of crushed tomatoes can/ 3 large tomatoes
1 1/2 tbsp of butter
salt as required

Grinding:

10 cashew nuts
1 inch of ginger
3 cloves of garlic
2 green chillies

Preparation:

1.Cut the paneer in to small cubes. Grind cashews, ginger, garlic and green chilly together in to a paste. 
2.In a skillet, add butter. Once the butter is melted, add the ground paste and saute for 2-3 minutes. Now add the crushed tomatoes and cook in high flame. Stir well for 15 minutes. 
3.Add the spices (turmeric, red chilly powder, coriander powder and garam masala) to the skillet. Saute for 5 minutes. 
4.Add the peas and paneer and cook in low flame. Bring it to boil. Serve with roti/ naan.