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. 

Coriander chutney

           Coriander chutney is popularly known as green chutney made in Southern style. But this is the way my mom makes for Idly.

Preparation time:10 minutes
Serves up to 3 people

Ingredients:
 
1 bunch of coriander leaves
1/4 cup of urad dhal
2 tbsp of coriander seeds
5 red chillies
1 tbsp of grated coconut*
2 tsp of oil
1/4 tsp of mustard
salt as required


Preparation:

1.Heat a tsp of oil, add urad dhal, coriander seeds and red chillies. Roast till they turn golden brown. Allow them to cool. 
2.Grind urad dhal, coriander seeds, red chillies along with coriander leaves, coconut and salt in to a paste.
3.Heat oil in the pan and add mustard. As the mustard sputters, transfer to  the chutney.
*optional

Groundnut podi

      Groundnut podi is really tasty and delicious. Try with little ghee/ sesame oil.

Ingredients:                              

1 cup of groundnuts/ peanuts
5 red chillies(~spice level)
4 cloves of garlic
salt as required



Preparation:

1.Dry roast peanuts and red chillies till they turn brown in medium flame. Transfer to a plate and allow them to cool.
2.Grind them along with garlic and salt. Groundnut podi is ready. Serve with rice, idly/ dosai.