banaras ka khana

Til gud, Tilgul, Til ka laddoo or sesame brittle ....the snack to not mind the portion size...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:39:00 +0000

Yes, this is one sweet treat where you don't have to worry about the portion size at all. The sweetening is so minimal and that too with natural brown sugar or jaggery, that it's just a hint of sweet and you get a rich nutty taste of sesame all the way. A rich taste that satiates big time.

This recipe always brings back memories of my grandmother. She used to make huge quantities of this Til ke laddoo and it used to be the happiest of the times. My mother never made these but I used to watch my grandmother make them perfectly year after years, roasting the sesame, bubbling the jaggery and then mixing them together before binding them into laddoos (balls) which was the toughest task as the hot mixture would hurt the palms and the sticky nature of hot jaggery would make it really difficult to roll the balls. She would wet her hands in cold water n make small balls tirelessly. She was the most happy when she made such treats for us. Worth mentioning that she lived a hundred and six years all because of healthy food, active life and a very positive attitude towards life that she had. Fond memories.

I started making these laddoos as soon as a started missing them in winters. That was just after we got married 13 years ago. The husband loves all types of sesame and jaggery preparations going by the names like Gajak from western UP, Til ki patti from eastern UP, Tilkut from Bihar and Tilgul from Maharshtra and Til-mungfali ki patti found all over the country I guess. He used to bring home all such sesame brittle in large quantities and I would always tell him they were not good as I had tasted better things at home.

As a new homemaker I was a bit apprehensive to try such a difficult looking recipe but my craving for that nostalgic taste and the husband's love for everything Til and Gud made me try this in my own little kitchen. The first attempt was not that great as I could not bind the balls perfectly and almost half of the mixture got cold and had to be eaten like a crumble. The taste was perfect as I have an innate sense of bringing the flavors right. After a little practice I learnt how to bind the balls well and what else to do when want to save time. I started making bars with the mixture.

ingredients...

500 gm white sesame
200-250 gm jaggery (I use 200 gm or even less)
2 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger root
1 tbsp of plain water
ghee to grease the baking tray or plate

procedure...

Dry roast the sesame in a pan on low to medium flame, stirring it all the while. It will be ready in about 10 minutes or as soon as a nutty aroma starts emanating and the color of the white sesame turns a nice golden brown.

Now mix the grated or curled (using a paring knife) jaggery and grated ginger in a heavy pan or kadai. I use a trusted iron kadai of mine.

Heat these ingredients on high flame with just a tbsp of water and watch the melting of jaggery. The jaggery and ginger mix would cook together, first melting to make a syrup and then bubbling to become a frothy mass.
See the picture to get an idea. the mixture gets frothy and smells of caramel and ginger.

This is the time when you have to tip in all the roasted sesame to it and mix quickly so every grain of sesame is coated with the sticky syrup of jaggery. It is quite an easy thing to do as the minute seeds of sesame get mixed really well. This has to be done quickly and then is the time to either wet your hands with chilled water and shape small balls with the medium hot mixture or to make bars with it.

If you find it difficult to shape balls you can always grease a baking tray or plate with ghee and spread this mixture over it evenly. Press the mixture firmly and smoothen it using a cold and greased knife so it becomes smooth.

Cut desired shapes , separate when still warm and smoothen the edges if you wish.

It makes a really tasty and healthy sweet treat even if it doesn't bind well into bars or balls. You can enjoy it like a loose crumble. As it is or sprinkled over your oatmeal or any other porridge breakfast.

These laddoos make a nice snack or a breakfast in hurry when accompanied with a hot glass of milk. The taste of ginger is so very satisfying in the winters.

It is a typical winter delicacy. Made mostly during Makar Sankranti...but can be enjoyed all through winters.

Binding the sesame seeds with minimal quantity if jaggery needs a lot of practice but it's worth practicing this. It is not a very time consuming process if you make a small quantity like this. Took me half an hour to make a dozen balls and nine huge bars this time.

A new learner might need some more time and may be some more jaggery to start with. You can use as much jaggery as you want. Going up to equal to sesame.

I wrap these bars in butter paper if we are travelling during winters as it makes a nice snack while walking and shopping.... peeling off the butter paper and smelling these bars makes one hungry at once.

Posting this recipe while we are still enjoying our winters so you can try if still wanting to get a healthy Calcium and iron boost. This is essentially winter food , rich and nutritious.

Sesame is nourishing food. Include it in curries if you son't do it already. Or make chutneys with it.

baking pans and other baking utensils in Delhi ..

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:06:00 +0000

It's a difficult task for some to attempt baking. Especially in our country. But it becomes all the more difficult if you do not get baking utensils easily in the market. This section of utensils is still an unorganised market even in bigger cities like Delhi. We get a few odd things here and there but finding a one stop shop is still difficult.

Many of us home bakers find it really hard to get something when required . I have myself never found when I search for something. There are very few shops in Delhi where you go and find all types and all sizes of pans, aluminium ones as well as the silicon or the non stick variety.

I have collected my own bake ware by random shopping through the years. Whenever I see a kitchenware shop I can't stop myself from checking it out. Just pick up something or the other and one by one I have collected some functional wares. The silicon pans and muffin pans have still not entered my kitchen as I am quite wary of how safe they are at such high temperature in contact with my food. They definitely look cute in bright colors.

I have seen some unnamed shops in Old Delhi selling good quality bake ware, mostly of he industrial kind but it is a lot of work to go find them again if you need something. Some more shops are there in karol Bagh area, one is Dev Crockery just a few meters from the metro station on the left side if you go to Ajmal khan road. This shop keeps many interesting crockery and bake ware but still lacks the whole spectrum.

Another shop in Karol Bagh area is a cluster of shops named Virmani brothers, passing through the Ajmal Khan road when you reach the Gaffar market area, this cluster of shops will be on your right hand side. The second and the third shop have a good variety of baking wares and other utensils and crockery.

I found this new place in INA market which I had seen once in a disinterested manner, this time I went ahead and inquired about everything and found that they stock quite an impressive collection of things. The place is so convenient as it is just opposite the metro station exit. I can hop on to the metro and go there whenever I wish and wouldn't be disappointed when I need something specific.

The name of he shop is Bharat Crockery Corner and the address is ,
197, Mohan Singh Market, I.N.A. Colony, New Delhi-110 023

Their phone numbers are 011 24617656 and 011 24633108

Have a look on what all they have...

Small tart pans, mini bundt pans and different shapes of mini cake pans too...

And here is a pack of scalloped edge cutters of different sizes for crackers, cookies or pasta etc.

The bigger rectangular and square pans , round and hexagons , pie plates, bread pans and all...

Some more bundt pans, jelly molds and cake pans and jumbo muffin pans...

The brightly colored silicon baking trays and muffin pans...

Many shapes and many colors...

They have synthetic chopping boards in all sizes, even industrial sizes ...

Non stick bread pans in different sizes...you can see a steel steamer in the top left ...

And huge industrial size Teflon baking pans ... good for a large family too..

Details of the size and price...

See some kitchen tools and those colored silicon muffin cups...

Some more tools...

Shaslik sticks and chopsticks...

All types of wooden ladles and spatulas. Balloon whisks of all sizes, very sturdy and even the industrial sizes available...

Some more ladles, all sizes , shapes and wooden handles too. These wooden handle ladles are all industrial sizes...A meat hammer is in the frame too...

It seems like a one stop shop till now. Let's see if I need something specific and do not return empty handed sometime. That is my test for a well stocked store, this one seems to fulfill my criteria. I haven't needed anything that was not there in this store...it would definitely be my shop from now on.

Edited to add : This is not a sponsored post. I keep doing my own surveys and this was one such experience. The address and phone numbers of the shop comes from their business card.

Two recipes with okra... a dahi wali bhindi (okra in a curds tomato gravy) and a ginger okra stir fried ....

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 08:15:00 +0000

Some of my favorite recipes never see the light of the day on this blog unfortunately. My being lazy and sometimes the pictures being unsatisfactory are few of the reasons. But my long time readers and friends would know that I never bother much about the pictures as long as the recipe is represented well and it tastes good. So when Shail Mohan asked for a few okra recipes on facebook I just checked and saw two terrific recipes with okra in my drafts folder , this dahi wali bhindi was written completely and the adraki bhindi or ginger okra stir fried had just a dark picture and the ingredient list.

I have also posted a Kashmiri masale ki sookhi bhindi (okra stir fried with a Kashmir style fennel spice mix)
and a Ghee fried peppery okra on my other blog.

Many times I make some recipe for dinner and take pictures anyways hoping they will turn up good or mediocre or I will brighten them up on picasa. I never bothered about even cropping and brightening my pictures back then, so these pictures come to you straight out of the camera, the recipes are both terrific and all okra lovers will be glad to try these.

The dahi wali bhindi is richer and can be served as a standalone subzi for your dinner chapati , I never tried it with rice but many of you might find it good with rice too. I can eat this subzi on it's own too ...I do that with many vegetables anyways :-)

ingredients...

Bhindi / okra 250 gm (tipped and cut into inch long pieces)
fresh curds 1 cup

fennel powder 2 tsp
black pepper powder 1 tsp
finely chopped ginger 1 tbsp
tomatoes chopped lengthwise 1 cup
green chillies slit lengthwise 2-3 nos.
2 cloves
2-3 petals of star anise
1 small black cardamom or half a fat one

salt to taste
mustard oil 1 tbsp

procedure..

Heat the oil in a kadai or pan and tip in the whole spices , wait till they crackle and then tip in the chopped ginger and green chillies .

Wait for a few seconds till the chillies change color and the ginger is fried , throw in the cut bhindi ( okra ) and fry till the bhindi pieces are slightly browned in the corners..

Add the tomatoes and salt to taste and fry till the tomatoes wilt ..

Whip the curds ( at room temperature ) with powdered spices ( fennel and pepper powders ) and some red chilly powder if you like it hot . Pour this mixture over the cooking bhindi , mix well and allow a gentle boil .

Take off heat and keep covered for a couple of minutes for the flavors to blend.

Serve hot with chapatis or as a side dish ...

The spice level can be adjusted if you like it mild or hot , it is a great blend of sour hot and spicy with dominant aromas of black cardamom , star anise and fennel .... curds and tomatoes as a base are great together .

The okra doesn't get slimy if you fry it well till the surface is almost dry ( so that the juices are sealed in ). There is no turmeric powder used in this curry so the color remains a nice creamy red , although the pictures look yellowish because it was cooked for dinner and clicked in artificial light...

adraki bhindi or ginger okra stir fried...

ingredients...
okra cut in two pieces and slit lengthwise taking care not to slit all the way 400 gm
ginger julienne 2-3 tbsp or more if you like ginger the way I do
5-6 garlic cloves peeled and slit into two halves
turmeric powder 1 tsp (optional)
black pepper powder 2 tsp or more if you like
amchoor powder 1/2 tsp or to taste
salt to taste
mustard oil or any other oil of your choice 2 tbsp

There are no chillies in the recipe as the heat from ginger and black pepper is quite high, you can throw in a few slit green chillies if you like. Sometimes I use the less hot varieties of green chillies for this stir fry as the flavor of the green chillies enhances the overall taste.

procedure...

Heat oil in a kadai and tip in the ginger and garlic first. Let the ginger get a little cooked and almost caremalised , the garlic is cut in bigger chunks so it doesn't get browned before the ginger cooks. The ginger just needs to release some flavor in the oil and get fried.

Add the cut okra and toss to fry . Cooking is done on high heat in this case and you have to keep tossing or stirring with a spatula. Do not brown the okra, just a few brownish specks here and there and about 3/4th done okra is what we are aiming for.

Sprinkle the salt and turmeric powder if using, mix in to cook then sprinkle the black pepper powder and toss well to mix. In these 2 minutes the okra cooks some more. Take off heat.

Sprinkle the amchoor powder , mix well and serve hot. You can choose to sprinkle some chaat masala over it if you like. Its a hot tangy dish and makes a nice side dish for traditional Indian lunch or dinner.

For me it can be a salad too ...Yes, I told you I do that :-)

cheers...

mungodi waala matar ka nimona...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 20:14:00 +0000

A soup like thin gravy made with a paste of fresh green peas, spiced delicately with a few mung dumplings to bite into. It is basically a curried soup made using a coarse paste of green peas. The mung dumplings are made freshly for the nimona but the recipes is not as complicated as it sounds. Just to make 2 different pastes in the grinder and it takes about 30 minutes to cook. Some rice or chapati cooked on the side and a salad or a stir fry can make the meal really special. I made a quick begun bhaja with it , fried slices of brinjal with a melt in the mouth texture. The roti for me was a hearty jowar roti while the husband enjoyed it with plain boiled rice.

I have posted details about Matar ka nimona here and here and this nimona with mung dumplings is another version. A tasty curry with tastier dumplings, soaked with the spiciness from the gravy.

The mung dumplings can be fried in a batch and can be frozen for later use. I make them more easy by frying large sized mungodis (fried mung dumplings), and cutting them in to 3-4 pieces when cooking them in the nimona. This way they are bite sized and soak the juices well.

ingredients and procedure for the mung dumplings....

split mung beans 1 cup soaked for 2 hours
cumin seeds 2 tsp
green chillies 2 or to taste
salt to taste
mustard oil or ghee to deep fry

Drain the soaked mung and make a paste of all the ingredients together without using any water. A coarse paste with specks of green chillies and cumin seeds is expected, so do not make a smooth buttery paste.

Traditionally , this paste is scooped between the fingers and small amounts are dropped in hot oil to make small fried dumplings of a size exactly similar to soaked garbanzo beans. But that is a time consuming process to make that tiny dumplings . I just scoop out spoonfuls and drop them gently into hot oil , these make irregular shaped dumplings but can be chopped to size when being cooked in the curry. My ways to cut short the cooking time so I can enjoy all these traditional fare more frequently. The fried dumplings look like this.

I used only 5-6 of these dumplings and the rest of them were frozen for later use. Makes a lot of sense for me...

ingredients and procedure for the green peas gravy...
green peas 1.5 cups
chopped ginger 1 tbsp
green chillies 1-2
every day curry powder 1 tbsp
garam masala 1/4 tsp Or to taste
whole cumin seeds 1 tsp
asafoetida a pinch
ghee 2 tbsp
1/2 cup of chopped coriander leaves to finish

Make a paste with the first three ingredients , the paste should be coarse and not very smooth and no water should be added while pulsing it.

Heat the ghee in a pan and tip in the cumin seeds and the asafoetida powder. Wait till the cumin crackles and then add the every day curry powder with a sprinkling of water along with it. Pour in the paste immediately and stir fry, the paste becomes lumpy first and then starts getting crumbly and sticks to the base. Cook on low flame till now.

Add the garam masala powder and mix well, stir and cook for a minute before adding about 4 cups of water. Mix well and let it come to boil.

Tip in the cut pieces of the fried mung dumplings, add salt to taste and simmer for about half an hour on very low heat. Add chopped coriander leaves to finish in the last few minutes of cooking and serve hot when the dumplings turn spongy and curry thickens to your desired level. You might like to add some water if you want it thinner. The mungodis absorb a a lot of water making the curry thicker.

Serve with chapatis or rice as I said. Hot curry like this can be nice warming winter meal any time of the day...I served it with a few slices of Begun bhaja, a bengali specialty that goes with any spicy meal. The eggplant slices turn buttery from inside when fried like this , with just a little crispness which dampens within minutes of frying it. Almost sweet and caremalised while frying and balances the meal well.

Egg plants are sliced and marinated with salt , turmeric powder and red chilly powder for about half an hour and then fried in hot oil or shallow fried on a hot griddle.

A warming hearty meal not too high on fat even when it has some fried components. A Jowar roti balances it well. I love such meals and can have loads of vegetables if served like this .... reminds me that I still have those frozen mungodis and might cook it tomorrow for lunch...
.

Who wants to join me for this ?

Motorshuttir kachuri aar alur dom...green peas kachori and aloo dum, bengali style...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 09:55:00 +0000

I remember having a sumptuous meal of this motorshutir kachuri at my friend Mrs. Sinha's home for the very first time.It was some 11 years ago and both of us were just smitten by it's taste. The kachoris were so delicate, thin and soft and so tasteful that overeating didn't feel like offensive. Although it sits heavy on the stomach after an hour or so, the lingering taste would still fool you to believe you did the right thing to eat that much. Mrs. Sinha treated us with this delight many a times and I learnt making it from her.

Later I saw the professional cooks making it and learnt how they make the green peas stuffing perfect every time even when they have to make huge quantities. And then me being me, I altered the cooking process of the peas paste a bit to my convenience, preserving the taste absolutely. Although when I tried making these kachoris with whole wheat flour, the delicate soft texture changed completely and the character of the kachoris changed with it. So now I cook it with all purpose flour (maida), thinking there is so little maida going to be used in the kachoris anyways as we never eat more than two for a meal.

The aloo dum that goes with these kachoris is something to die for. Some of bong friends have been reminded of their mothers when they had it at my place and I realised Mrs. Sinha's recipes was actually a winner. So no change in the recipe . Just the cooking technique of the green peas paste tweaked to make it a little low fat and a little time saving. All those who have been fearing to try this classic and for those who are seeing it for the first time this is the way to start cooking it for yourself.

ingredients and procedure .....

For the kachoris...
green peas 500 gm
green chillies 3-4 or to taste
chopped ginger 1 tbsp
coriander, cumin and black pepper powders 1 tsp each
dash of garam masala powder(optional)
roasted chickpea flour (sattu) 1 tbsp or a bit more if required
salt to taste

maida(all purpose flour) for the pastry and oil or ghee to deep fry

Make a paste of green peas, ginger and green chillies first, without adding any water. The paste should be a little coarse.

Empty the paste into a microwave safe bowl and add the powdered spices and salt, mix well.

Microwave for 2 minutes and mix well again.

Now add the roasted chick pea flour , mix well and microwave for a couple of minutes more. The mixture gets cooked and dehydrated a bit so it becomes drier and can be stuffed inside the kachoris.

Actually this is the tip I learnt from the professional cooks. They add this chickpea flour to make the stuffing bind well without altering the taste. Also the stuffing is fried (bhunoed) in a pan to cook and thicken traditionally, I do it in MW to shorten the process and shave off the oil content.

The mixtures becomes a bit darker in color. Microwave it some more if you feel it is too loose to be stuffed into the kachoris. Although the softer stuffing and equally softer maida dough make really soft kachoris. So dehydrate till it reaches a comfortable level to work with. I had to microwave for 2 minutes 4 times...mixing it well in every break.

Now is the time to make a dough using the maida(APF) and plain water. Make the dough keeping the consistency as close to the stuffing as possible. You need a dough which stretches well and makes a thin even layer over the stuffing. Knead well and make small balls for individual kachoris.

The stuffing has to be like as much as you can stuff inside each of the kachoris. Making sure you do not puncture the kachoris while rolling them... Use ghee or oil instead of dusting flour to roll the kachoris thin and smooth. This is the part where your stuffing skills will play a role....otherwise too you get the taste but miss the perfect texture the perfect thin soft kachori brings.

Fry them in hot ghee or oil til pinkish but not browned. This helps them stay softer again. A nice crisp surface and soft interiors. Much like puran poli but deep fried. And these are large sized kachoris unlike the small khasta kachoris of UP or Rajasthan...more the size and texture of bhatooras.

ingredients and procedure for the aloo dum...
baby potatoes 500 gm (boiled and peeled)
cumin seeds 2 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
mustard oil 2 tbsp

to make a paste..
chopped ginger 2 tbsp
red chilly powder 2 tsp or to taste
curry powder (I use my every day curry powder) 1 tbsp
cloves 3
green cardamom crushed 1
chopped tomatoes 250 gm

salt to taste and chopped coriander leaves to garnish.

Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds, wait till they crackle. Add the boiled and peeled baby potatoes, salt and turmeric powder and fry till they turn pinkish brown.

Add the paste made with all the ingredients suggested in the list. Mix well and fry it all together, keeping the flame low to medium.

Let the spice paste dehydrate and coat the potatoes well, while keeping the flame low and stirring occasionally, mixing well. The potatoes absorb the flavors well this way and the spice paste turns aromatic.

Just as the spices turn aromatic and cooked well, add about a cup of water and chopped coriander leaves, mix well and let it simmer covered for a couple of minutes. The water will be absorbed by the dehydrated fried and slow cooked potatoes and coriander leaves will lend it's flavor too.

Serve hot with the kachoris. The aloo dum stays well in the fridge but not in the freezer. It makes a nice leftover curry and actually improves the next day in taste. Some people like these matar kachoris too the next day more.

We generally have slices of tomatoes, cucumber or radish as salad with such fried stuff too, not at all required on the side as this pairing of kachoris with this rich potato curry is just perfect. The inclusion of a raw salad is just to ensure there is no impulsive overeating. Which is a very strong possibility in this case.

Control your portion size with this meal or else you will be swallowing some antacids after a couple of hours, even if you do not worry about your clogged arteries.

Having said that, this is a meal you would look forward to be made every few days. It can be made with frozen peas too but the green peas in season and the new baby potatoes work best for this recipe. So It is essentially a winter food....a season to indulge in heavier food anyways.

This bengali matar kachori was made after 2 years this time but it has been almost twice every winter meal for us. Or if some guests, especially my siblings request me for it, another UP style kachori has not been made for ages now. A friend of mine has been reminding me of that for a long time.

I will be posting that recipe for UP style matar ki kachri very soon and that would make the difference between these two very very clear. Both use almost the same ingredients but are poles apart in taste and texture both , actually the whole experience of the meal. The only common thing is, Kachoris make a heavy meal...so we never serve any more side dishes with it...just the kachoris to be enjoyed fully...

What are your favorite winter foods?

jhingey posto...ridge guard with poppy seed paste...bengali style...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:57:00 +0000

Have you ever heard a Bengali talking about food , this is one community madly in love with food . Shopping for food , cooking and serving the food takes a better part of their time and when they start
talking about food they forget about time and space and you feel like being transported into the wonderland of sorshe , kalo jeere , mouri and posto bata ...blah blah blah ..... :)

It was during one such blah blah blah that i realized i would like this jhingey posto which was the hot topic during a club meet . I decided to make it and it became a hot favorite at home . I have never tasted this recipe at any of my bong friends as they tend to overload the dining table with all sorts of meat and fish whenever they invite somebody and the humble veggies are given a miss. For me , it is the simple vegetarian fare of bengali cuisine i like the most and i had to train myself to make those to my taste . Yes , this curry may not be a true blue bengali progeny , because i made it as i overheard it and like the way i made and have been cooking it like this since then..............let's see if you like it and the bong friends can point out where a bengali element is missing ........i don't miss anything in this curry and it is a favorite of both the extremes .... vegetable haters and vegetable lovers in the family..... :)

Jhingey is ridge guard and you have to peel it before using it , the taste of this guard is a bit different from the regular smooth sponge guard and this curry uses the ridge guard only .... though alu posto is quite similar and other veggies can also be experimented upon.

It is a quick recipe once the peeling and grinding has been done. Cooking time is irresistibly low, especially if you like the vegetable almost half cooked like me.

ingredients...
(2-4 servings depending on what side dishes it is served with)
Ridge guards 400 gm
slit green chillies 2-3 (you would like the heat to be mild in this curry so use less green chillies if you otherwise avoid much heat or use the less hot ones)
nigella seeds 1 tsp
mustard oil 1 tbsp
turmeric powder 1/4 tsp (optional, omit if you want a white gravy)
salt to taste

Paste of poppy seeds 3/4-1 cup ....this is white Indian poppy seeds called posto or posta ...
(wash about 1/2 cup poppy seeds through a sieve, let it drain and then make a paste in mixie using some water)

procedure...

Peel the ridge guards first of all. You might like to lightly scrape them if they are tender but the bigger ones need the ridges to be removed using a peeler and most of the skin too. You can retain some of the skin if you like but i usually peel off the skin altogether. Cut about 1.5 inch long pieces first and then slice them in batons lengthwise, making 6-8 long batons out of each piece.

I would like to mention that the cut of the guards makes a lot of difference in the taste and texture of the finished dish.If you cut round and thin slices it releases more water and the vegetable gets very mushy. I have seldom cut a ridge guard in thin slices. For a chana daal or mung daal cooked with this guard, i cut it into dices and that works perfectly well for that. So it is thick (1 cm) batons for this recipe.

Heat the oil in a pan, mustard oil for the authentic bengali thing, and throw in the nigella seeds and wait till they crackle a little. Add the slit green chillies and let them fry and release the heat in oil, just for a few seconds though.

Tip in the chopped ridge guard , add salt, turmeric if using and toss them all. Cover and cook on medium flame till the slices get wilted and release some juices. 5 to 7 minutes to be precise.

This is the time to add the poppy seeds paste , mix well and cook till a gentle boil. The poppy seed paste is added when the ridge guard is almost done. I like the ridge guard 3/4 done , or till there is still some bite in the pieces and they are not really mushy so the cooking time is about 5 minutes covered before adding the paste. You can always cook the guard longer if you like them mushy.

The curry looks a nice and creamy thing when finished. No garnish is required for such a stunning looking jheengey posto..

The pictures here are not doing any justice to this stunning looking dish. The reason is, i always make it for quick dinners with chapatis as this is a very light curry and fits the bill for summer dinners very well. Pictures clicked in artificial lights, especially when you are hungry and waiting to dig in your favorite thing are always pathetic...or may be it's only with me that happens.

Serve hot with chapatis or rice. It taste great with both and doesn't really need any side dishes if you really like it. Jheengey posto could be your quick fix meal in that case, some rice made in microwave and jheengey posto prepared in a pan in the meantime...that's it.

Making a smooth paste of poppy seeds is quite a challenge as the seeds are very tiny and some of them always remain whole if we do it in the mixie jars. People who make the paste using the flat stone mortar and pestle(sil batta) vouch for the smooth paste that results. That kind of work out has become outdated in our modern kitchens...I still possess 3 types of mortar and pestle and yet I seldom use them. Time saving gadgets are the call of the day.

Difficulty in making a smooth paste of poppy seeds has led to some experiments in my kitchen and i have used some additives in the paste time to time. Got very good results with melon seeds and almonds. Poppy seeds and either melon seeds or almonds in 2:1 ratio work really well for the dish. You can always reduce the amount of melon seeds or almonds if you want that grainy posto in your curry.

I like the curry so much that i even deviated from using a posto paste ....Now you know i love the ridge guard as a vegetable just too much. I always store a powder made with almonds,poppy seeds and black peppercorns (in 1:1:1 ratio) in my fridge to have it with milk whenever i have my headaches (migraines to be precise, it works really well if you take in the beginning)....

Sometimes i use that powder for instant jheengey posto with the heat of some kaali mirch instead of hari mirch. And since i use a powder, i usually cut the guards in semi roundels so it release more water and does some justice to a powdered instant solution.....

The taste in this case is great too but definitely different when a fresh paste is used. Make a fresh paste when you are trying it for the first time . The powder version is for those who have migraines :-)

The recipe was lying in the drafts for about two years now , half written and neglected. A picture of nicely cut ridge guard by Shail Mohan on facebook got me talking about jheengey posto and she wanted the recipe. And this was a cue for my fingers to work but i am frustrated at the end of it as there is no ridge guard in Delhi markets right now and i really want to have it for my dinner. Facebook can be really unfair at times.

bajre ka maleeda ... a rustic dessert made with pearl millet flour...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:10:00 +0000

A thick roti made with pearl millet flour , crushed to bits while still hot , then drizzled with ghee and mixed with jaggery. That is all you have to do whenever you want a dessert heavier than your meal or a dessert meal all alone to savour in leisure. This used to be a regular dessert at the end of the day during winters when we were growing up. It was always made in large quantities and the leftovers were great for breakfast too..

I made two varieties of this bajre ka maleeda or bajre ka choorma as some people call it, for breakfast today. It is a great breakfast option as mornings are better time for heavy meals.

Which one you want?

This version with bits of bajra roti sprinkled with some brown shakkar (unrefined loose jaggery) would be great if you want to crush a piece if bajra roti into melting ghee and then smother with some shakkar before popping in your mouth. And then getting transported to heaven.

Or this one with the bajra roti smashed and doused with meting ghee and topped again with curls of caked jaggery. Mashing it all together and shaping the mixture into balls before popping them into your mouth. And then getting transported to heaven.

Heaven is guaranteed both ways. Your heaven might be more or less ghee ridden for that matter.

Jaggery unlimited . Do not worry about your arteries and waist line for once. Good food is for the soul and real, whole, desi food doesn't harm anyone. Could never harm my grandmother so it would definitely spare you.

Just go get some pearl millet flour or bajre ka atta and have a sweet meal any time of the day. Although i would like to have it for breakfast always, the reason being you just cannot stop eating it till you feel full to the brim. So serving this maleeda as a dessert is out of question at my place. It is always a meal , preferably a breakfast or weekend brunch.

Let's see how to make this maleeda.

Making the bajra roti is the only step which needs some skill , although anyone can do it as you do not need to make a perfectly round roti or evenly thick roti for that matter. The only condition is that the roti must be cooked properly, being grilled slowly on the gas flame after roasting it both sides on the iron griddle..

Knead a dough using bajre ka atta (pearl millet flour) and some warm water. Kneading small portions of the flour, just enough for one roti is convenient as the dough remains warm for flattening it by patting it under both your palms. So pour some warm water in about half a cup of flour first, mix and knead, then make a ball and rub some more between your palms, smoothen and then pat between both your palms to flatten it. The roti can be anywhere between 1-1.5 cm thick.

Pat the roti on hot griddle , let it brown slightly both sides and then grill slowly on the gas flame till cooked. It will puff up as a sign of being cooked and will break easily .

Alternatively the roti can be baked in an oven, laid on a greased baking tray , for about 15 minutes at 180C. The roti gets a nice thick and hard crust in both the cases, the insides remain softer but crumble easily.

The roti should break easily into to halves when folded and that is a test of being cooked. Also, the inner parts should not be gooey if you check.

Repeat to make more rotis and keep them wrapped in a cotton napkin till mashed or broken to make maleeda.

Just break the roti into small bits of you want the first version of maleeda.

And drizzle some molten of softened ghee over the warm pieces of roti. Top it with powdered jaggery or shakkar(unrefined brown sugar in this case) and enjoy the maleeda crushing each piece for every bite you take.

Or crumble a warm roti using your fingers and gather it on the plate like this...

Then drizzle the ghee and jaggery curls. Use a knife to make curls like you do with chocolates, scraping it against the cake jaggery .....

And then mix it all up using your hands , feeling the warmth to make a smooth sticky gooey mixture...

Then shape laddoos (baals) with it . These are just so delicious when warm. Some people like it at room temperature also and they could make great snack during the day. It stays well for 2-3 days at room temperature in winters in my part of the world.

What??

You don't have access to pearl millet flour?

Use corn meal or coarse whole wheat flour or powder either daliya (broken wheat), or burgul or even couscous or a mix of all these flours. You get different taste with all these flours but every time it is equally scrummy yummy. This maleeda is made with many millet flours, each having it's own taste and if we do not have access to millet flours we resort to coarse whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour mixed with semolina and some bran, with great results.

have you had maleeda before?
Try this simple dessert/snack/meal and toss that muffin you are munching..

And if you have witnessed all your childhood winters sinking your teeth is such delights, come on...make it again.

December 10 is being celebrated as Terra Madre day as i got to know after reading it at A Perfect Bite . For me every day is such as i enjoy my real , unprocessed and unspoiled food every single day. I would like to link this desi recipe made with millets to the wonderful article written by Rushina, celebrating local, whole unprocessed food.

Every day. Be it gooler, millets, local greens or local seeds like cannabis seeds flax seeds or black or white sesame. Using them for better sustainable health for myself and sustainable agriculture for the farmers and small scale marketers.

What do you think?

keema wala gobi musallam...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:08:00 +0000

A whole head of cauliflower cooked covered with a keema masala dry curry. This recipe can be baked if using a bigger cauliflower or you need many cauliflower heads to serve a gathering. This was a small head and was just enough for two servings so i cooked it in a deep pan so all the steps of cooking can be done in a single utensil and it saves time too. So this is kadai cooked gobi musallam covered with mutton mince(keema). Cauliflower acquires a new dimension of taste in this recipe as the juices from mutton mince get absorbed really well . This is one dish which remains always in demand and doesn't demand much work to be done, although slow cooking is the best way to get a great tasting gobi musallam. Slow cooking will not be a problem if you keep on working on the next steps of the recipe while frying the cauliflower and then working on the side dishes later when it takes it's time on the stove top.

You can always cook broken florets of cauliflowers with the keema masala following the same recipe if you find it difficult to wrap the masala around cauliflower , or to core the cauliflower the way it is done here. The taste of the small florets remains the same if you cook them the same way but a musallam packs in a surprise element. The keema masala covers the cauliflower completely and it doesn't look like a vegetable hiding under the spicy looking rich masala. It's only when you cut through it like a pie when the cauliflower is revealed...

And don't worry about the oil/fat content of the recipe. The picture is the proof, there is no oil on the plate can you see...

ingredients...
(2 large servings)

mutton mince or keema 200 gm
one medium sized cauliflower (this one was 400 gm)
one large onion (half of it diced finely and half cut in bigger chunks for the paste)
garlic cloves 5-6 fat ones
ginger peeled and diced 1-2 tbsp(to suit your taste)
dry red chillies 3-4 or to taste
every day curry powder 2 tsp
special garam masala 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
freshly made tomato paste1/2 cup
salt to taste
mustard oil 3 tbsp or any other oil you use

procedure...

Core the cauliflower as shown in the picture, removing the hard stalk so a cavity is formed through the flower to let it absorb all the flavors.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a deep pan, tip in a tsp of salt in the oil directly to avoid any splattering of oil and fry the cauliflower turning it all the sides to make it brown like this.

Keeping the flame medium low and turning the cauliflower every few minutes is the key to even browning but do not worry if it brown unevenly. Just that it should be browned all around.

Make a paste of the onion,garlic,ginger and red chillies till the cauliflower is frying. After that, pour in the remaining oil into the same kadai and tip in the onion paste. Add salt to taste and keep frying the paste till it looks glazed. If you use more oil it will release the oil when fried, using less oil needs patient frying (bhunoing) of the masala paste.

Now add all the powdered spices and 2 tbsp of water to make them into a paste and bhuno again for a couple of minutes or till the spices get nicely aromatic.

Add the ground meat or keema and keep stirring till it gets cooked , takes about 8-10 minutes on low flame. You can cook it covered after mixing it nicely , but check for the water content to prevent burning in the bottom.

Add the tomato paste, mix and cook for a couple more minutes.

Now, using your spatula, shift all the fried masala paste to one side of the pan and place the fried cauliflower in the center of the pan. And scoop all the masala paste all over the cauliflower to cover it completely.

There will be some watery fluid around the cauliflower due to the tomatoes , add some water if the tomatoes have dried up. Cook covered on very low flame so the cauliflower soaks up all the flavors while cooking together. All the fluids are dried up when cooking is complete. Otherwise cook without lid for a while so it becomes dry.

Transfer carefully to a platter and garnish with onion rings and coriander greens if you wish.

Use a pie spatula to cut through the cauliflower and to serve it . I actually thought there would be some leftovers but the two of us polished it off with plain whole wheat chapatis.

Onion rings are great with a spicy dish like this, although pickled onions or onions rings doused with lime juice will be better if you make the gobi musallam hot and spicy. This recipe made a very mild spicy musallam and the kick provided by the red onions was a great accompaniment to it.

A raita can be served as a side with chapatis and/or rice with it . We like it so much i never make a side dish with it if i am making it just for the two of us. A much repeated recipe during winter months, we eat seasonal vegetables only and eat minimal meats during summer months.

I have another recipe of keema with a summer vegetable which is our favorite too and i make it whenever our plain simple meals of summer need a kick. Stay tuned in for the summer keema special.

This gobi musallam doesn't promise a quick meal but it's worth all the time it takes by slow cooking it for about 30 minutes. You can always make your chapatis, any other kind of breads or rice to go with it on the side as slow cooking gives quite some space to multitask.

How about a slice of a tree vegetable loaded with some meat ? And no , there are no vegetarian versions of this musallam.

Gobi musallam with just the spices is another thing....may be i make that soon take pictures and post it here :-)

After all that version is a childhood favorite while this one is something i improvised...to my taste...and it has won hearts. What about you?

puran poli made easy ...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:22:00 +0000

A sweet stuffed flat bread that gives the cinnamon roll a run for its' money.

Stuffed with a delicate mixture of chickpea and jaggery and lightly spiced with cardamom , rolled out to make a flaky crust encasing a melting goodness of a uniquely sweet filling. As simple as that.

This sweet stuffing is so tasty that it defies the fact that it is made using a simple and cheap ingredient. Actually when i made it for my MIL when i was a newly wed, she guessed it to be khoya and jaggery. The texture of the chickpea cooked with jaggery or sugar becomes almost like khoya and given the fact that a certain khoya paratha was a family favorite there , this sweet puran poli fell in the same category too....

I like my puran poli stuffed with a melt in the mouth kind of filling and not a dry crumbling type which makes it tough to swallow the poli without a slug of milk. I have a similar reservation about a certain daal ki puri too which is made with a savory stuffing of chickpea. This melt in the mouth kind of filling is not that tough to make my dear friends. Actually a lot easier than the dry filling. Let's see....

ingredients...
(makes about 10-12 puran polis)
for the filling..
chana daal (split chickpea) 1 cup
jaggery powdered 3/4 cup (i used unrefined brown sugar)
green cardamom 2 nos.
water 2 cups
for the pastry..
whole wheat flour 1.5 cup approximately (depends upon how much filling you can stuff in each poli, it is a skill to stuff more filling in a small ball of dough)
pinch of salt
water to knead a dough

procedure for the filling...

Boil the split chickpea in pressure cooker along with the water indicated.
Cook for 7-8 minutes after the first whistle, lowering the flame after the first whistle.
Let the cooker cool down, open the lid and add the jaggery to the cooked daal.

Now cook the daal along with jaggery till the mixture gets a bit thick ( about 5 minutes).

It's time to blend the mixture now. A hand held stick blender is a useful device for such things and helps in blending the mixture right inside the pot. I used the stick blender but the mixture can be transferred to the food processor to be blended smooth.

Return the mixture back to the cooker, if doing it in a food processor and continue to cook for about 5 more minutes to condense the mixture. Transfer to a bowl . The mixture still looks a little loose consistency to make a chapati filling. But the secret to a melt in the mouth kind of filling is this consistency of the filling mixture.

It has to be kept in the fridge so it gets a little harder when cold. It will be easier to stuff inside the poli after this, but when the poli is roasted on the pan the filling will again become soft and melting kind. Look how it looks after a half an hour rest in the fridge. It is a small portion and needs lesser time in the fridge. For large quantities you will need to keep it longer refrigeration time.

As i said, stuffing the mixture inside the poli is a skill but a few pointers can work wonders if you follow them carefully. I am not uploading any pictures of the stuffing process as the instructions will be enough to understand and also because the hands get really messy and clicking pictures during stuffing is not a possibility.

Just follow the instructions and note the pointers.

procedure for the pastry...

Knead a dough exactly when required. Refrigerated dough does not behave well with a meting type filling.

The consistency of the dough should be exactly like the filling , so if the filling is soft, the dough should be as soft...or just a bit harder than that.

Use finer dusting flour to roll the poli , using maida for dusting is a good option as whole wheat flour does not stretch as much as maida.

Also, if you are making puran poli for the first time, use maida instead of whole wheat flour to make the dough as it will be easier to roll with such a tricky filling.

Pinch a small portion of the dough, make a ball and then make a depression in the middle to shape it like a bowl. Now spoon out a bigger portion of filling and place inside the dough bowl , stretch the edges and seal the bowl to make a ball again.

Use some dusting and flatten the ball with your fingers on the rolling board first before rolling it with the help of rolling pin. Some of the filling mixture may look like being exposed and it enhances the taste but take care not to let the filling leak out of the pastry. A thin even layer of pastry over a rich filling is what you have to work for.

Carefully lift the poli and flip it over the hot pan. Roast both sides till pinkish brown patches are formed and the poli is cooked through. Apply little ghee after taking the poli off the heat.

Repeat to make more polis and keep them in a butter paper lined container. Serve hot .

See how the filling is exposed and yet held up together inside thin layer of pastry. A right consistency of the dough makes it possible and rolling it with soft even hands is also critical. The taste will anyways be great with such a flavorful filling but if the poli is rolled perfectly it will make the effort worth.

Such a dark color of the filling is due to the dark brown colored unrefined sugar i used . This king of filling makes a really nice and soft puran poli whose puran doesn't get crumbly ans scatter in the plate. It stickls to the pastry and melts in the mouth when you take a bite.

Use of whole wheat for the pastry and a dark brown colored filling makes a rustic looking puran poli. We have always liked it this way, the way we were introduced to this dish in younger times. Puran poli had come to our house through a marathi friend of my younger sister and this is the way they used to make it. We adopted it and it stayed with us the same way.

Leftovers polis reheated in the microwave are great for breakfast with a glass of milk or as a meal with a bowl of fresh yogurt Although it goes well with some sweet and sour kind of pumpkin curry too, we always try and have it in more than one ways whenever i make it....

The puran (filling) keeps well in the fridge and a freshly made dough is all needed to make fresh polis anytime.

Have you tried any flat bread with a sweet filling?

daal bati chokha anyone ???

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 08:17:00 +0000

This kind of meal comes under the most favorite types in my household. A hearty meal with all the rustic flavors to appease the hunger, the taste buds and olfactory nerves all at once. Not to mention the fun cooking process.

For many people it has been an extensive work and a dreaded kind of meal because of long cooking time it is supposed to involve. Let me make it simple for you. I have been cooking baati and litti using my microwave and gas stove and it gets ready within minutes. Actually it is more convenient than making chapatis as it doesn't involve rolling and baking on the griddle. Daal and chokha are cooked conveniently too. Chopping some more garlic than usual would be well worth if you are anticipating daal baati chokha for dinner or for a weekend lunch.

Recently, during my Banaras visit i prepared daal baati chokha twice for extended family and friends and it was a baati masterclass for a few people out there ... I have taught many people to make litti and baati this way and it has become the only way to make it in many families around me since then. Very few of my real family and friends know about a litti post i did long time back on this blog, they get live demonstrations so they don't value written words on these pages...i don't mind that though :)

We wanted another round of daal baati chokha after coming home too, this is an addictive kind of meal believe me. The more you have it, the more you want.

The pictures are not very god because it was made for dinner and artificial light does make it look dull and lifeless, so do not go by the looks here as the taste is legendary. Time tested, tradition evolved and loved by all. For me, if a particular kind of dish is made in many regions of the country, it is a testimony to it's being really good. This recipe is different from Rajasthani baati and more close to Bihari litti chokha , daal baati chokha of UP has a different identity of it's own. I have loved daal bafla of MP too, but that is also quite different from this.

Talking about the difficulty level of this recipe, you just need to concentrate over the daal and chokha and both of them are regular kind of recipes.

Daal is a mix of many lentils cooked conveniently in pressure cooker and tempered with chopped garlic, onion and tomatoes. Simple.

Chokha involves fire roasting the eggplants and tomatoes over gas flame but that can be done in an oven conveniently too. I somehow find it more convenient on gas stove as it is quicker and fun. Just some peeling the burnt skin and mashing with some chopped onion and the chokha is done. Simple.

The whole process of cooking the 3 of these for 2 people takes about 30 minutes. Including roasting , chopping , kneading the dough and assembling everything together.

ingredients and procedure for the baati....

Whole wheat flour without any shortening is what i normally use but you can go for a 1 tsp ghee shortening per cup of flour. Knead the flour using water and a little salt making a medium stiff dough. Make balls and flatten the balls to make about 1 cm thick batis , these ones are 5-6 cm diameter , you can make smaller or a bit bigger.

Now grease a MW safe plate with ghee and arrange 6-7 baatis in it and microwave on high for 5 minutes. I made 4 baatis and cooked for 3 minutes.

Place a wire rack on the gas stove and cook the baatis directly over the gas stove immediately after taking them out from the MW. This step has been posted with pictures here.

This flame roasting is to ensure those burnt spots on the surface and it gets a nice crust after this , while the insides are soft and crumbly. You can stuff 1/2 tsp ghee in each of the baati to make it softer and more flavorful too.

Smear ghee, keep them in a covered bowl and serve hot.

Cooking the baati should be the last step in assembling this meal but i wrote it first so you would know how easy and quick it becomes with this technique. Otherwise, making baati is the most tedious job, once this process is made easy you can now think of doing it happily. All the steps of making baati can be handled while cooking the daal and chokha simultaneously.

ingredients and procedure to make the daal...
(2 servings)
toor daal (arhar daal) 1 tbsp
mung daal 1 tbsp
masoor daal(red lentil) 1 tbsp
urad daal (skinned and split black lentil) 1 tbsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
salt to taste
for tempering...
ghee 1 tbsp
asafoetida powder a pinch
cumin seeds 1 tsp
minced (not paste) garlic 1 tsp
diced onion 2 tbsp
diced tomatoes 1/2 cup
red chilly powder 1 tsp or to taste
chopped green coriander to garnish
minced ginger 2 tsp

Wash, drain and cook the daals in pressure cooker with salt, turmeric and 4 times water by volume. Cooking time should be 5 minutes after the first whistle.

Heat ghee and add the asafoetida and cumin and wait till the cumin splutters. Tip in the minced garlic and let it brown lightly.

Now add the onion and fry till translucent. Add the tomatoes and a lil salt and cook till the tomatoes are pulped. Add red chilly powder and let it cook for a dew seconds and pour all of this to the cooked daal, let it simmer for a minute, add the minced ginger and chopped coriander, mix well and serve.

ingredients and procedure for the chokha...
(2-3 servings)
one eggplant round variety (approx 200 gm)
2 tomatoes
one medium sized potato
finely diced onion3-4 tbsp
minced garlic 1-2 tsp
minced ginger 2 tsp
minced green chillies to taste
salt to taste mustard oil 1-2 tsp
chopped green coriander as per taste

Roast the eggplant and tomatoes over gas flame or in the oven till cooked.
Keep covered for 10 minutes so the skin can be removed conveniently.
Remove skin and mash both eggplant and tomatoes with cooked potato and mix with all the other ingredients.
Serve hot or warm or cold .

If you want to do it within 30 minutes you should start with placing the eggplant and tomatoes on flame the very first thing. It needs to be turned and rotated every few minutes but you can do the daal preparations side by side. Kneading the dough for 2 servings and assembling the baati is a 10 minute job which requires your hands' involvement constantly.

I hope you found a simple way to enjoy a daal baati chokha whenever you want. A few friends have been asking for a recipe and although it is there on this blog since ages, i wanted to put a fresh post about the beauty of this meal.

Enjoy...

the famous lassi of banaras.....pehelwan ki lassi...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 18:32:00 +0000

Banarasi lassi is very different from Punjabi lassi. While Punjabi lassi is a frothy drink with a blob of fresh white butter floating on top, banarasi lassi is more like a dessert drink.

I remember having a frothy fresh punjabi lassi served in huge metal glasses when i was a kid . That lassi used to be lightly sweetened and a little thinner too. I liked the kachhi lassi (which is actually fresh buttermilk) more as i like all things savory. In punjab villages lassi, seet or savory is always served with some fresh white butter floating on top.

Lassi of banaras is poles apart from that refreshing drink of punjab. It is more a filling meal in itself, a dessert meal in fact. Thick and sweetened with a topping of malai on top and a generous blob of rabdi over it. How much more sinful it could get? The mithai loving people of Banaras have reinterpreted the lassi for sure.

The curd for this lassi is made with reduced milk so the lassi gets a nice creamy texture . The curd is set in to wide vessels called parat as seen in the picture here so it gets a larger layer of malai on top.

Look how the shop owner is pouring lassi straight from the matka in which he jut churned the lassi using a wooden mathani (an Indian whisk) . I remeber in olden days these parats were not used to set the curds and there used to be nice earthen vessels of the same shape and size. I am not sure if the milk is boiled in the same vessels as when the milk cools down all the fat floats on top and makes a nice and thick layer of malai . The same malai is scooped off to top the lassi when served in earthen kulhads.

Yes, these kulhads make this lassi even more special.I am so glad these kulhads and dried leaf plates and bowls are still used in some of our cities. Look at the dried leaf bowls they use to serve those syrup dripping lavag-lata . Lavang-lata is a very sweet fried pastry stuffed with clove flavored khoya( reduced milk) and dipped in a very thick sugar syrup. A bengali version of this sweet is lavang-latika which is smaller in size and delicate in folding pattern, the bengali version includes some coconut too in the stuffing. This particular place is famous for it's lavang-lata too and you can see there stock is almost over by afternoon.

And now is the time to introduce you to the special place where you can get this treat. This is pehelwan ki lassi situated at Lanka crossing. This area is close to the Banaras Hindu University and if you are coming from the university side you can spot this shop on the right side of the crossing, flanked by a hardware shop.

The lassi here is one of the best in Banaras , a few places in chowk and Ramnagar make great lassi too but it's very easy to get duped for a glass of lassi in banaras. Banaras is known for it's thugs too you must remember so you need to spot the right place to try the famous and talked about specialties of the city. Many of my friends in the past have had lassi from nondescript places and have got upset stomachs as many of the shops use synthetic milk and yogurt so beware. When something is famous from a place, there are more chances of imitations or cheaper versions available to dupe the tourists. Same goes for Banaras silk but i am not talking about that right now.

This lassi would surely make you want to come back to this shop several times during your visit i am sure. There are other nice places for good lassi too and i would share those places whenever i get an opportunity.

Oh the lassi...did i describe the taste for you?

It is actually better than any ice cream of the world. That granular looking rabdi is unsweetened to balance the intensely sweet lassi below and that piece of malai should be devoured slowly. One because it is so laden with fat that it fills your palate and two because it is so yummy you would want it to last till the lassi lasts in your kulhad....so have a spoonful of rabdi and take a sip of the lassi then take a spoonful of malai and take a sip of the lassi...and do not laugh at the way i am describing it as i have learnt it the hard way how to eat and drink this lassi at the same time....when you try to drink it straight away those edibles block your sip and you get confused what to do.... those small wooden spatulas are there for a purpose.

Some foods are served attractively but feel a little weird on how to eat or drink them....watch the way how the locals do it or invent your own way .....

Go to Banaras or recreate it ...lassi is a natural healthy drink , often a meal in a drink for me. Try the bada kulhad (a large portion) here and see what i mean. This one was a chhota kulhad ( smaller one) which cost us 15 Re each....can you believe it?

Enjoy...

pizzeria of banaras....one of the best pizzas of the world..

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:55:00 +0000

And i am not the only one to say that. Yummiest of pizzas , pastas and unforgettable apple pie served in the most unpretentious way. Head towards pizzeria vatika (what a nice fusion name, meaning garden of pizza :)) at Asi ghat amidst greenery and chirpy birds. You are blessed if you choose the time of sunset.

If you are fascinated by the idea of an open air eatery overlooking a beautiful river this is for you. A peaceful place to sit and relax under lush green trees of Neem and Amda , dry leaves fallen on the floor and a few flies for company. Lots of house sparrows and parrots would make an evening musical for you.

Supernatural surroundings , great ambiance , touching the soul of a city known for it's wanderer spirit. Yes i was in Banaras for almost three hectic weeks. I am glad i could squeeze some time to visit some of my favorite places around town.

This is pizzeria of Banaras offering authentic pizzas and pasta dishes . Some freshly baked cookies , challahs, cinnamon rolls, apple pies and brownies are enticingly delicious and the secret is, fresh ingredients and a wood fired oven. Can it get any better?

Displayed in a very basic looking glass window these goodies might look very ordinary but they are fresh and delicious and quite cheap when compared to big city bakeries. This pizza oven was set up by a group of enthusiastic Italian students of music who used to sit on the ghats of ganges ( assi ghat to be precise) for their musical jams.The restaurant was run by a Gopal Krishna Shukla, serving mostly to the students as assi ghat is frequented by university students all the time. So these Italian students requested this restaurant owner to let them set up a wood fired oven for a weekend and bake some pizzas for a friend's birthday party . The pizza fever caught on since then.

The owner learnt it from them and started baking pizzas on his own too and soon the pizza substituted samosas and kachoris at Asi ghat .... much before the pizza hut and dominos reached this sleepy ancient city.

This wood fired oven looks as basic as a dhaba oven , flanked by platforms on both sides and a huge pizza spatula , the inner compartment of the oven looks like a small room.

Having chosen our table, i found a bunch of these fruits dangling on the branches as i looked up to find some birds.These fruits are used to make chutneys and pickles, called amda in Hindi and probably Carribean plums in English.

While we were entertaining our niece of 2 years by making boats and rockets with pink tissue papers the pizzas arrived. We had ordered a Margarita, a Mushroom and an Onion and mushroom pizza for 4 people . These 9" thin crust pizzas were enough for 4 adults with a kid nibbling small bits too .

Well balance flavors of the toppings and a right blend of herbs . I needed a sprinkling of red chilly flakes over it but for all the others it was great as it is.

No overwhelming amount of cheese dripping and making my hands messy and tongue scalded was my point of a big plus. You can always order for extra cheese or toppings if you like it that way but for a thin crusty base with smokiness of a wood fired oven, you wouldn't like to spoil it with overwhelming cheesy flavors.

But if no amount of cheese is too much for you, go ahead and order for an extra cheese pizza. I wanted to try the aubergine pizza there but as no one else was interested in aubergine, and no way i could have finished one whole pizza by myself, i went by other's choices.

This onion and mushroom was a favorite of majority while i loved the margarita most . Unspoiled taste of a great pizza . I am actually drooling talking about it now and i know i will end up making one tomorrow or day after. Pizza dinners are very common during winters at my place (if it's not a huge bowl of soup with a home baked bread) as the oven is comforting in my tiny kitchen and the bread aroma comforts more than anything else in the world.Winters are loved for more than one reasons :)

We wanted to have a slice of apple pie too, which is also the much talked about thing there but we didn't have any scope for solids so we just had huge mugs of espresso watching the flowing Ganges beyond those palm fronds...

It's a nice place to sit if you are not bothered by a few flies here and there.
It's anyways hard to find an open air space around the lanes of any Indian city without the omnipresent houseflies , wherever there is food being served or handled i mean.

If you think beyond that, this is the place for a quite evening with friends or alone.
Many foreigners sitting alone with a book or a kulhad of chai around this place is a testimony to what i say. There are several nice book shops around this place too...a place with a good promise.
Absolutely.

sama ki khichdi : Barnyard millet now i know...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 15:32:00 +0000

The name was told by an anonymous reader on my sama ke chawal ki idli post . It was only then i got to know it's botanical name too, it is Echinochloa colona now that i know, thanks to my well informed readers.

I have been overwhelmed seeing the hits on my blog since the last week or so. The vrat ka khana recipes are getting great numbers of hits and many readers are interested in knowing whether sama/samak and buckwheat are healthy options. Yes these are very healthy grains and our fasting days are an excuse to make ourselves educated about these super foods.
As i have mentioned earlier buckwheat is also a very nutritious grain and should be consumed frequently , not only during the navratri fasting.

A tomato based soup with buckwheat groats can be a great fasting food too, if sendha namak is used instead of table salt.

Fritters or savory pancakes made with buckwheat flour are great fasting options too , made healthy wth vegetables they are perfect healthy food..

Motivated by the flurry of hits to my vrat ka khana recipes, i made a sama ki khichdi today so that my readers can get all the variety to the fasting menu. That was all i needed when i used to fast few couple of years ago. Variety. Sama ka chawal, singhare ka atta and kuttu ka atta and whole kuttu or kuttu ka daliya used to be my staple those days. Saboodana is crime (read empty carbohydrates and that to the most refined type) during fasting and otherwise too , although saboodana khichdi is what most people prefer when cooking for fasting food.

Saboodana khichdi is very common and there are many recipes available on the internet for that. But we should be aware that sago pearls are refined carbs and should not be used abundantly.Saboodana is crime (read empty carbohydrates and that to the most refined type) during fasting and otherwise too , although saboodana khichdi is what most people prefer when cooking for fasting food.

These sama ke chawal is a whole grain full of complex carbs and fiber too and can be used for daily cooking . I have made dosas, idlies , kheer and khichdis with sama and all of them taste great.

ingredients...

sama ke chawal soaked overnight 1 cup (it gets doubled after soaking)
chopped tomatoes 1 cup
a few springs of curry patta
chopped green chillies and ginger as per taste
salt n pepper to taste (use sendha namak or lahori namak, called rock salt in English)
ghee 1-2 tbsp
cumin seeds 2 tsp

procedure...

Heat the ghee in a pan ( i use my iron kadai) and throw in the cumin seeds, wait till they splutter.

Add the ginger, green chillies and curry patta let them fry for 30 seconds or so. Add the chopped tomatoes and salt and fry till the tomatoes are mushy.

Add the soaked and drained sama ke chawal , 1/4 cup of water and cover the pan. Lower the flame and cook covered for about 5 minutes.

Check if you want it softer , add a tbsp or two of more water if required n cook again. Otherwise fluff up and serve immediately.

This khichdi , although i would like to call it a tahiri or tomato rice, keeps well in the fridge for a couple of days and tastes great after reheating in the microwave with a sprinkling of water.

Sama or samak ka chawal or Echinochloa is the quinoa of India. Doesn't it look inviting?

This kind of khichdi or tahiri can be made using any vegetables and any flavors you like. Keeping some soaked grains in your fridge will help you to assemble it quickly.

I had promised a friend to post a singhade ke atte ki roti (water chestnut flour flatbread) , that i am planning to do tomorrow . I have told this recipe on phone , on facebook chats and even like a story telling too .... you must be aware i like talking about food ...and many of my friends have tried this recipe with great satisfaction. This singhare ke atte ki roti is a soft and hearty chapati made with water chestnut flour and can be a great option for gluten intolerant people, specially those who crave for chapatis.

Stay tuned in....Enjoy navratri fasting....Or an excuse to eat some healthy grains right now....

jeere wali gobi ...cauliflowers infused with cumin ...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 17:44:00 +0000

This is how the simplest of flavors can make a vegetable worth on your table. Cauliflowers are great healing foods and if made in a low oil stir fry it can be a nice side dish or a meal in itself. I used to have a large bowl of this stir fry during navratri fasting as i wanted to have more and more vegetables for my meals. Vegetables and fruits are allowed and some grains like sama and kuttu or rajgeera too. So this jeere wali gobi makes a nice vrat ka khana (fasting food) during navratri or a stand alone dinner for you any time...

And if it comes together in 15 minutes flat, you would go for it without any second thoughts. I like it more with chapati , wrapped in a chapati or otherwise....i am one of those people who can eat dry stir fried well with chapatis too... And of course as a stand alone meal too i prefer such crunchy and slow roasted vegetables...I can't get enough of it...

ingredients....

cauliflower florets 3-4 cups
new potato one medium sized
finely chopped ginger 2 tbsp
chopped green chillies 2 tsp
whole cumin seeds 1 tbsp
cumin powder 1 tsp
black pepper powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
chopped coriander leaves with stems1/2 cup
ghee 2 tbsp

procedure ....

Microwave the potato in the covered bowl without water , then cube the potato in 8 pieces or more...Or use the potato raw , you would fry it for some more time in that case...

Heat the ghee and tip in the cumin seeds , wait till they crackle.

Throw in the chopped green chillies and ginger , let them fry for some seconds and then add the cubed potatoes , salt and turmeric powder , stir to coat them all well.

Add the cauliflower florets too , along with the cumin and pepper powders , toss and stir to coat all the florets well . Flash fry for a few seconds and then lower the flame and cover the pan for about 5 minutes or so.

Open the lid , check if you want the florets to be more tender , they are a bit crunchy in my recipe....fry (bhuno) a bit more stirring frequently.

The florets are not browned but still have a well roasted flavor and you would notice a few reddish spots here n there...

Sprinkle chopped coriander , take the pan off heat and serve immediately. A total of 10 minutes cooking time is all this stir fry needs.

I use unpeeled potatoes for it and that makes any bhuni subzi (vegetables stir fried this way) much more flavorful...

Ginger , cumin and fresh green coriander make the flavoring really interesting i like it a bit hot . Ginger , pepper and green chillies have enough heat to make it too hot for some people , so use these ingredients according to your taste and tolerance.

This stir fry can be a nice navratri fasting one pot meal when vegetables are allowed. Adding sendha namak (rock salt) instead of regular table salt will make this stir fry suitable for fasting days too.

Otherwise it makes a nice stuffing for grilled sandwiches or just with plain chapatis as i said earlier...

shami kabab awadhi style...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:43:00 +0000

Kabab is minced meat patty spiced delicately to bring up an aromatic finesse to a melt in your mouth texture of meat . I cannot come up with any other fitting description for this simple looking food. It has transcended generations and has perfected it's form over time . Some variations of kabab have come to the point of perfection and have stopped 'getting perfected' ...... shami kababs and galouti kababs of Lucknow come in the same category. Eating kababs in any of the old Luckow eateries can give you a taste of how a centuries old recipe can take you to heaven , talk of the famous Tundey ke kabab or any other joint around the place....

We sometimes try and touch a fraction of that tradition and thank ourselves to be able to feel the heavens with eyes closed...kababs are such food.....served as starters , main course or even snacks you can't deny when a platter has a possibility of hitting your table any time of the day...

For a meal these kababs are served with ulte tawe ka paratha ( a thin layered flatbread baked on an inverted round bottom pan and smeared with ghee while being baked , pressing it all the while) , along with some green chutney and slices of onion.....if you are eating at Tundey ke kabab or any other joint in old Lucknow...

At home we like it with thin chapatis , rolled with some sliced onions with a dash of lime juice...

The kababs are out of this world anyways , just the minced meat mixture should be perfect. Lightly spiced so the meat flavors are not overpowered by other elements and still some aromatic spicing to enhance the delicate meat. Chana daal works as a binder which is almost neutral in taste when boiled along with the minced meat ...

I normally boil the minced meat with chana daal and grind it beforehand so the making of kabab when required is convenient . The boiled mixture is ground to paste and kept inside the fridge so it gets a bit thicker in consistency, to be able to shape into patties. So if you plan to make it for dinner , do the boiling and grinding in the morning and if you like it as a weekend brunch, like we had it, do the preparation in the previous night. The ground paste can stay in the fridge for a couple of days so you can use it accordingly.

ingredients....
( makes about a dozen kababs)
minced meat (goat meat) 300gm
chana daal(split chickpeas) 2 heaped tbsp
salt to taste

To be ground with boiled meat...
black cardamom 1 medium sized
green cardamom 2
cloves 4 nos
cinnamon stick 1/2 inch pc.
shahi jeera(caraway seeds) a generous pinch
black peppercorns 15 nos.

To be mixed with the paste...
finely diced onions 1/3 cup
finely dices green chillies 1 tbsp
finely chopped ginger 1 tbsp or more if you like
finely chopped green coriander leaves 2 tbsp
finely chopped mint leaves a pinch

ghee to fry the kabas(3-4 tbsp will be enough for these many kababs)

procedure....

First of all wash the chana daal and dunk it in the pressure cooker along with minced meat and salt to taste. Add 3/4 cup of water and pressure cook for 5 minutes after the whistle blows, turning to low heat after the whistle. Let the pressure release, open the lid and cook without the lid till all the water evaporates...

The ground or minced meat can be cooked in a covered pan too, it will take more time to cook in that case and you might need to check it in between and add water if required.

Now, grind the cooked mixture with the spices listed for grinding with the paste.

It's time to tell you my little secret , normally people do it the way i told but i boil all the whole spices listed here along with the minced meat and chana daal and that makes the kababs much more delicate. This way the spices are just perfectly mild and aromatic and blended well with the base...

Empty the paste into a mixing bowl and keep in the fridge so that it gets a bit thicker in consistency ... It should hold it's shape when scooped with a spoon...

You need the chopped onions, green chillies, ginger and coriander and mint leaves not at the time of shaping and frying the kababs .. you can use lesser onions if you like but chopped green chillies and ginger add a lot to the final taste . As does the green coriander and a hint of mint.

Add these chopped bits to the paste , shape into small flat patties and shallow fry using ghee.
No other oil should be used for kababs as it makes a lot of difference in final taste. Commercial joints use hydrogenated oils to get the crisp texture , beware of that....at home ghee is the best bet...

Turn when the kababs get browned on one side ....shallow fry both sides till they get a nice brown crust , a crisp crust and well set but softer interior makes a great kabab...you may want t turn them 2-3 times both sides for repeated slow browning....medium heat is a must...

Serve with lots of onion rings and lemon wedges...with parathas or plain chapatis...

A green chutney made with coriander leaves, mint , green chillies and some garlic is an optional dip served with kababs we like it just with a squeeze of lime and lots of onion rings ....

Wrapped in a chapati, it makes a nice kathi roll ...... we had a nice and warm mug of thin tomato soup to go with it....

Kababs are not a realm of non vegetarians only. You can make kababs with soy granules or with zamikand or yam (elephant yam) if you are a vegetarian , other mixed vegetable kababs do not come close to it. Only the brown pulp of zamikand makes a nice vegetarian kabab if it is not soy granules . Although that is strictly my own opinion.....many people like kababs made with cauliflowers and other vegetables also.

Hara bhara kabab or hariyali kabab is another vegetarian kabab i like which is made with boiled green peas and a generous helping of steamed spinach leaves...that reminds me it's been ages since i made a nice hara bhara kabab ...come winters i am game for a hara bhara (all green) season :)

What kind of kababs do you like?

When two desserts from Hyderabad meet .... they explode with flavors...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 07:16:00 +0000

I have never been to Hyderabad and have never tasted an authentic Double ka meetha which is a ghee fried slice of bread soaked in sugar syrup and topped with fresh cream...an Indian version of bread and butter pudding , called shahi tukda in the north of India ..

Khubani ka meetha (stewed apricots in sugar syrup) comes in a ready to eat pack so i have had no complaints about that . The comparative ease to make this khubani ka meetha is another positive point .

About this Double ka meetha i knew so little i realized a few days back, till then i just thought it is our very own shahi tukda as we call it in the northern parts of the country ....and it is so in real technical terms too. But recently someone from Hyderabad enlightened me that this dessert is mostly served in the form of a bread halwa there. So the recipe becomes more complex as there is mashing to be done and frying will require some accuracy of a different kind. I prefer my own shahi tukda over this halwa version but i would still love to call it Double ka meetha as and when i please as some of my Hyderabad friends identified it as a DKM when i posted about it long back...

On my table both these desserts can be served on top of each other . Why not ?

The stewed apricots are so fridge friendly and bread slices can be 'fried' and sugared any time making a double sweet treat ... topped with the good old home made malai of course...

Now i come to the real reason of posting this double dessert .

I have been getting a lot of queries since i posted shahi tukda about how to shallow fry the bread slices without them getting all soggy in the syrup . The problem is , when you deep fry the bread , it soaks huge quantity of ghee and when you shallow fry it on a flat base pan it retains some of it's moisture and gets soggy and mushy when served . The texture of the fried bread plays a critical role in it's taste too as a crisp and a lil' chewy texture make the bread taste really different , it complements the topping of a rabri or malai too . A soggy bread just tastes plain sweet and that kills this dessert.

I apologize for being so late in coming with a reply , I do not make such rich desserts very often and was kinda forgetful too . This time i had half a can of sugar syrup to be used , leftover sugar syrup from a can of Amul gulab jamun. This consistency of sugar syrup is just perfect for a shahi tukda and i decided to make it instantly one Sunday morning as a rich breakfast for us.... Shallow frying the bread this time...

So the trick is to press the bread slices (edges removed and cut into triangles) on the frying pan while frying them....smear ghee on both sides of the cut bread slice , place on a medium hot flat base frying pan ( i use an iron tawa) and keep pressing and letting it brown on a medium low flame. The idea is to let the bread slice dehydrate while it gets crisp with ghee. You use a little ghee , about 2 tsp per triangle of bread this way . Toast the bread both the sides till it gets crisp and hard but do not let it become brittle like a rusk , the bread should resist to break and should fold a bit too....

You do not have control over the quantity of ghee being soaked when you deep fry the bread and that is the reason why many people detest this simple and quick desert. I use brown bread for shahi tukda always and that makes the shallow fried slices a bit more chewy , the way we like it.

Another thing to keep in mind is , do not soak the slices and keep them for long , especially if the syrup is a bit thin....using a dense syrup works better as this leftover gulab jamun syrup... Hot toasted/shallow fried bread and cold syrup works best, assembled at the time of serving....

Place the shallow fried slices on a plate , drizzle the cold syrup over it . Spoon the apricot jam or coulis or khubani ka meetha (or any other fruit preserve) over it , top it with fresh homemade malai or rabri or whipped cream and serve immediately...

Do not blame me for all the sugar cravings you get at this hour :) .....

A tale of mishti doi cravings and a consumer complaint being responded...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 13:14:00 +0000

A ready pack of mishti doi from Mother Dairy is almost a constant presence in my fridge . Although i make my own mishti doi whenever i fancy but something available so easily just across the lane makes it so much more convenient to just go get a tub of mishti doi whenever you feel like. One such day when both of us wanted a spoonful of this luscious creamy sweetened yogurt , and as i picked it up from inside the fridge , i noticed the pack was puffed . I was aghast as we just had bought the pack the previous day and it had never happened before , the acrid smell of the yogurt crashed our mishti doi craving in no time.

We just thought of lodging a complaint online and see what happens. We were not hoping any response from Mother Dairy as a common consumer in our country is never compensated , or so we thought. I just wanted to inform so they could check the same lot for any contamination and just a plain simple thought that they should decide on expiry dates more seriously.

I was surprised to get a call from them the next day to confirm our address and to my delight a fresh pack of mishti doi was delivered at my doorstep the very next day of the call. Surprisingly, the mother dairy people were very polite and convincing and never sounded like doubting our complaint , i just needed to tell the manufacturing date of the pack and the person who delivered the fresh pack wanted to see the cover flap, though he was not particular about it.The person on phone said they checked the lot and there was no irregularity, i was happy they did this.

A lesson learnt .... you should always complaint in case of food being putrid as it might be a case of the whole lot being contaminated , or even some loopholes in the distribution system as some of the vendors might not be taking care to store the product at prescribed temperature. And you should wait for a replacement of the product too if the manufacturers are prompt in their action. Mother Dairy was.

And see what i did with the mishti doi this time....

With home made apricot jam .... a chunky jam with juicy halves of apricots turned into a sweet bliss...

Mixed lightly with mishti doi any homemade fruit jam is a bliss as a dessert.....or as a healthy snack when you want something sweet .
Although for healthy snacking i prefer freshly cut fruit in my mishti doi...see how it does magic with mangoes...

Do you use your rights as a consumer ever ?

Wait for another apricot jam dessert on these pages .... see you soon :)

khubaani ka meetha ..an apricot dessert from Hyderabad..

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 18:02:00 +0000

Made with fresh juicy apricots . Yes , I am back from my cycling expedition with a Hyderabad special dessert made using the freshest of apricots i picked up from Leh .

Sounds like a perfect North South connect ?

Yes it is. I used to wonder how this khubaani (apricot) reached Hyderabad to please the taste buds of the navabs . How stupid i was to forget the fact that the mughal rulers entered India passing through the same terrains where this wonderful little fruit grows. The Himalayas. And true foodies they were to enjoy the apricots in the form of khubaani ka meetha , made from dried apricots too .

I have tried this dessert with fresh and dried apricots both in the past years , dried apricots result in the same consistent taste every time but fresh apricots taste different depending of what variety they are. I saw many types of apricots for the first time growing fresh on the trees , fallen from the trees and in the markets too , fresh and dried both. I was reminded of an apricot tree our neighbors had in their backyard when i was growing up in Chandigarh , i used to climb that tree to pluck apricots , usually unripe because ripened ones fall off the tree anyways. But we had no patience as any other children :)

If using dried apricots , you need to soak them overnight and cook with sugar to sweeten till soft . It is cooked to a jam consistency and is usually served with fresh cream or home made malai.

I usually prefer fresh apricots whenever in season for a fresh flavor and nice color too. Apricots do not keep well for long and have to be used up within a week even when refrigerated, so it's always a good idea to stew them with some sugar and keep for longer duration in the fridge , especially when you have had your fill of the fresh ones...

This time i halved them to remove the stones....

A knife is not required to do this , just press along the groove and split the fruit in two, remove the seed and keep the flesh for stewing...

Add some sugar ... For 2 cups of halved fresh apricots i used 3/4 cup of sugar . You can use more if you want it very sweet , the Hyderabad version is too sweet for me.

I placed everything in a ceramic bowl and microwaved it for 3+3 minutes and that's it. You can always cook on gas stove to stew it slowly for 15 minutes or so. To the consistency you like.

A shiny look on the cooked apricots is an indication it is yummy cooked to be called khubaani ka meetha. I used half of the apricots to make a thick jam too . I like it sometimes as a topping on ice creams or trifles . Home made chunky jams are so versatile you know.

Now is the time to serve the Khubaani ka meetha with fresh malai . You can go for whipped cream too but i always like my good old home made malai for this....

Out of this world flavors..best served at room temperature.... small servings are wiser you know...just one tablespoonful of stewed apricots and 3/4 tablespoonful of malai . The flavors are so intense you wouldn't need more to get high on it.

Getting high on the fruit of the highlands....I am sharing a picture from my cycling expedition before i leave ...

This was the first day of our cycling from Kullu . It was drizzling and a great start to a wonderful journey ahead. We ate many fresh apricots, apples and soft pears directly from the trees in kullu and finally i bought these golden apricots with rosy cheeks from a Leh market to take back home. I am happy i did bring these beauties home as they made a nice start to my home cooking after a long crazy trip.....

Apricots from Delhi markets also make good Khubani ka meetha and jam . I have posted an apricot compote stewed with orange juice long time back and that was made using the apricots available in Delhi....

Fresh apricots can be versatile you see...stew them the way you like and enjoy !!

A cheat's version of matar paneer .... cheating to save time..

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 17:26:00 +0000

Not only to save time , but to make the dish low on fats too.I used butter and ghee to make this matar paneer and if that can be done in the lowest possible amount and the results are nice and aromatic , you would prefer this cheat's version whenever you want to cook matar paneer.

Before sharing the recipe i have to share an exciting thing with you all. I am counting down the last few days before my biking expedition.A group of 100 women is biking through the most grueling passes in the Himalayas to reach the highest motorable road to Khardung La. I am a part of this wonderful group and will be cycling with them , starting from Kullu , going up to Khardung La and then back to Leh. It is a 600km ride to be covered in 17 days. I just can't wait to be at the base camp at Kullu to start this ride of my life time.
Now you must understand the reason for a quick curry to be posted quickly too.

The usual fare of Banaras ka khana will be back after a break of about 3 weeks . This matar paneer was made in huge quantity and was frozen to last a few days in my absence . You understand that :-)

ingredients...
( 4-6 servings)
paneer 400 gm
green peas 250 gm ( i used frozen)
red ripe tomatoes 500 gm
onion 200 gm
garlic pods 4-5 nos.
ginger 1 inch piece chopped roughly
red chilly powder 2 tsp
cinnamon 2 pieces on an inch each
bay leaves 2-3 nos.
black cardamom 1 large
everyday curry powder 1 tbsp
turmeric powder 2 tsp
salt to taste
butter 2 tsp
ghee 2 tsp
freshly milled black pepper as per taste
fresh cream or malai to finish

procedure...
In a pressure cooker boil the roughly chopped tomatoes , onions , garlic pods , roughly chopped ginger , red chilly powder, cinnamon and thrashed black cardamom. Boil these ingredients just till the whistle blows and then let the cooker cool down and release the pressure.

I do this step in microwave and cook all the ingredients covered for 8-10 minutes and proceed after cooling them a bit so they are safe to handle. They are going to be pureed.

Remove the bay leaves ,whole cinnamon and black cardamom and bland everything fine , like a soup . The skin of tomatoes can be removed before blending.

Mean while cook the peas in microwave too for 3 minutes. If not doing this add the peas in the pan after powdered spices and cook them with a sprinkling of water before adding the puree.

Now heat the ghee and butter in a pan and tip in the powders of turmeric and everyday curry powder . Just let it get roasted and get aromatic , taking utmost care not to burn the powders. It will be wise to remove the pan from heat after heating the ghee n butter and then add the powders.

Pour in the pureed mixture ,tip in the paneer cubes, the cooked peas and give it a good boil.
Add a tbsp of fresh cream or malai to finish .

It actually took more time to write the recipe than cooking it. The pictures are night time snapshots and i could not take any pictures of the leftovers too as the extra curry was promptly frozen.

This is one curry which you would love to cook for it's easy foolproof procedure and the ease of making a creamy looking curry without much cream and butter.

Which one would you like ...a rich matar paneer or the cheat's version?

one step mutton stew...ishtoo made in a jiffy...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 14:23:00 +0000

Another meat recipe on a largely vegetarian blog . But the good thing is , this recipe can be adapted with just potatoes , paneer or even cauliflowers or bottle guard. Try this quick one step cooking procedure to make any vegetable look like a queen just after a whistle ...the whistle of a pressure cooker that is :-)

The blog has become dormant as a lot of my time and attention is diverted to an exiting event i am preparing for. I am going on a cycling tour from Kullu to Khardung la and back to Leh , it will be 19 days of grueling routine but great fun to remember for a long time to come. I hope you all would excuse me for irregular postings and lack of my trade mark detailed recipes with step wise instructions....i am posting only quick recipes which are quick to post too :-)

Ingredients are many , the procedure is quick ...just whiz some wet ingredients into a mixie jar to make a paste and dunk into the pressure cooker pan with some whole spices and meat or vegetable , and start laying the table ....your meal will be ready within minutes (cooking time for mutton is 25-30 minutes in pressure cooker but vegetables cook in just 3 minutes after the first whistle) ... chapatis or naan you need to bake or order if you don't want to work in the heat....a crusty bread can solve your dilemma in such times ...

ingredients....
(2-4 servings)
mutton, curry cut, on bone 300 gm
cinnamon stick 2 inches long
black cardamom 2 nos.
green cardamom 4 nos.
cloves 6-7 nos.
shahi jeera 1 tsp
cumin seeds 1 tsp
black pepper corns 2 tsp
bay leaves 2 nos.
whole dry red chillies 3 nos. or more if you like
salt to taste

to be made into a paste ..
fresh curds 1 cup
onion chopped roughly 1.5 cups
ginger chopped roughly 2 tbsp
garlic cloves 5-10 depending on how much garlic you like
melon seeds ( magaz) 1 tbsp.

fresh cream 2 tbsp to finish...

procedure ...

Make a coarse paste of the ingredients listed for it. You can make a very smooth paste if you like your gravy more creamy and smooth.

Dunk in everything except fresh cream into the pressure cooker pan , no need to add water , add salt to taste.

Cover , fit the lid and pressure cook for 25-30 minutes after the first whistle.

Wait till the pressure releases and the pan can be opened on it's own . Add the fresh cream, mix well and serve hot . Your kitchen is aromatic when you do this and the family members will follow you wherever you go ... Or everybody will be on the dining table pronto...

Remove the bay leaves and red chillies before serving and watch the dish being polished off fast , in silence.

There is not added fat into the stew , the fats from the meat and fresh cream make it rich enough and you get a mellow and hot spicy merging of flavors . The meat stays very succulent in this stew.

I normally marinate the meat in ginger garlic paste and 2-3 tbsp of curds and salt n pepper and freeze till it is used , this makes the meat even more flavorful and succulent . Adjust the ingredients accordingly when you marinade the meat like i did...

You can follow the recipe with unprocessed meat too....this is the one for the time when you want spicy hot but light curry ..in a hurry !!!

nenua chana daal ...sponge guard and split chickpea , another traditional fair...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 17:21:00 +0000

Another desi subzi for the summers. Sponge guard is a watery summer vegetable with a sweetish taste that combines very well with chickpeas and mild spicing. The guards have so much water that you don't need to add any additional water to get a gravy if you use fresh guards .

ingredients...
( 2-4 servings depending on serving size)
sponge guards 400 gm
onion 200 gm
split chickpeas (chana daal) 100-150 gm
green chillies 3-4 or as much you like
finely chopped ginger 2 tsp(optional)
cumin seeds 2 tsp
turmeric powder 2 tsp
salt to taste
mustard oil 1 tbsp

procedure...

Soak the chana daal for 15 minutes or till you clean and chop the vegetables.

Slice the onions and the green chillies ...

Peel and slice the sponge guard too.

Heat oil in a kadai and throw in the cumin seeds. Wait till the cumin splutters and then add the chopped ginger (if using) , the green chillies and as soon as the green chilly wriggles, tip in the sliced onions too....

In the meanwhile microwave the soaked chana daal for 5 minutes or boil in a pan on the other burner.

Fry the onions till they turn lightly pink and a bit shiny...adding salt makes it quicker.

Now add the partly cooked chana daal...

Mix well and add the turmeric powder and salt to taste ...

Add the sliced sponge guards too and mix well .

Cover and cook on low flame till the sponge guards release water and the slices becomes limp and mushy. The chana daal will be done by this time too.

Some people like the sponge guard completely mushed up and the soupy gravy dried up too , but i like the sponge guard greenish and holding their shape . They retain their unique flavor better this way .

This curry is very mildly hot as the green chillies and ginger just give a hint of heat to the otherwise sweetish curry. Sponge guards and onions both lend a nice sweet taste to this curry. The chana daal complements the sweetness well and makes the curry suitable plain boiled rice....recipe for a simple frugal meal.

The curry will be liked with chapatis or parathas too and i usually make a kadai full of this curry so that i can enjoy it with rice and roti both.

How many of you have grown up eating this tori chana daal ki subzi or nenua chana daal ki subzi as it is called in the eastern parts of Uttar pradesh.

mirchi gosht .... mutton cooked with a chilly garlic seasoning

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 06:53:00 +0000

A mutton recipe when you have to make do with frugality . When you need minimal ingredients and minimal cooking . And when you are not dying of heart attack to hear about ghee and some more ghee. I like this recipe for it's minimalistic , almost frugal ingredient list , preparation and cooking time. It doesn't mean this mutton recipe is not yummy . It suits you when your idea of mutton yummines is not garam masala and onion and everything else that a rich gravy involves.

At the same time it is a very hot mutton curry , to be served with a cooling raita and a nice and light spiced pulao with some cubes of potatoes... potatoes sound quirky in a pulao but you would know what they actually taste like when you eat .

So the only ingredients in this mutton curry is lots of green chillies and lots of garlic and well , lots of ghee .

I cooked 250 gm of mutton and used this much garlic and green chillies . These are hot chillies and the garlic id the pungent Indian variety.

Both these are liquidized to make a smooth paste first of all.

3 tbsp ghee and the paste of garlic green chillies is mixed with the mutton pieces along with salt to taste . Using a pressure cooker pan for cooking the mixture is stir fried for 5 minutes.

Then a cup of water is added and the contents are pressure cooked for 25 minutes .

It looks like this when you open the pressure cooker lid. Bubbling ghee and a hot sniff from the chillies. Garlic gives a pungency to the sniff too but the real garlic flavor is prominent when you taste the curry.

Empty the contents of the pressure cooker pan into the serving dish . Taking care to scrape every little bit of burnt or stuck material . You can't afford to waste tasty bits of the curry made with such frugal ingredients...

The mutton pieces are melt in your mouth soft and the hot gravy sticking to the meat is something you can't resist , even if you are drinking water to quench your irritated palate again and again...

As i said the rice served with it serves as a nice aromatic balancing dish . Soaked basmati rice is cooked with some whole spices and potatoes fried in minimal ghee and cooked with enough water till done.

To make this mildly spiced pulao with potatoes you need to dunk in lots of cumin seeds in some ghee in a kadai . Add crushed peppercorns , lightly crushed black cardamom , a green cardamom, a cinnamon stick and a few cloves . Then add some cubed potatoes and fry everything together for 3-4 minutes . Add the soaked rice , mix well and add enough water to cook and salt to taste . Cook till done and serve hot with this mirchi gosht.

I used 3 tbsp of rice and one medium sized potato for 2 servings. A large bowl of cucumber and raw onion raita feels like heaven with this hot gosht.
You would love it if you like hot curries and love garlic. And if you do not intend to die of a heart attack. Ghee is not the one to blame. Garlic is healing and so is the green chilly. Did you know that?

All the ghee in this curry gets separated when cooked . The leftover ghee can be used in a very innovative manner along with some of the leftover pieces... I made a nice mutton dalcha with the ghee and the leftover mutton pieces . You would love that too.

enjoy...

liver masala fry with curry patta ...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 15:47:00 +0000

A dry spicy curry with goat liver. North Indian masala and curry patta make a nice combination , this is what this goat liver fry taught me.

Goat liver is a regular on my table for supplementing my otherwise low fat and fiber rich food . At least once a week . And i need variety in my food so it is inevitable to keep trying different seasonings and spice mixes...to top it all my cooking needs to be time saving most of the times.

ingredients ...
(4 servings)
goat liver 300 gm
finely chopped onion 1 cup
finely chopped tomatoes 1 cup
finely chopped curry patta 1 cup tightly packed
ginger garlic and green chillies paste 2 tbsp
cumin seeds 1 tsp
cloves 3-4 nos.
black cardamom 1 no. crushed lightly
cinnamon stick 1 inch piece
everyday curry powder 1 tbsp
(or a powder made with coriander, cumin n peppercorns in 2:1:1 ratio with some bay leaves thrown in)
turmeric powder 2 tsp
salt to taste
mustard oil 1 tbsp

procedure...

Since everything needs to be chopped really fine , it is better to use a food processor or a chopper gadget , or trust your knife with your fingers...

Heat oil in a kadai and throw in the cumin seeds and whole spices in that order. Immediately add the chopped onion , chopped curry patta and salt and stir fry on high heat for a while . The onion paste should get translucent but not pink or brown.

Add the powder spices , mix well to get them cooked and aromatic.

Now add the tomato paste , mix well and cook for a while . Add the goat liver pieces and keep frying for a couple of minutes. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes . There is enough moisture in onion and tomatoes to cook the liver , but you can sprinkle some water in between to prevent burning the cooking mixture...

Stir fry some more after uncovering the pan , till the liver pieces are done and the spice mix sticks to the pieces well .

Serve hot with chapatis or as a side dish for a full course meal. It makes a nice starter too as many people like the liver pieces all by themselves. My favorite way to have them is with chapatis.

tori chana ...nenua chana ki subzi...

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:05:00 +0000

I decided to introduce you to one of the purist recipes of Banaras today . Eastern UP to be precise . And i choose to cook only the quick ones you know .

This is an everyday subzi during summer days as the guards are considered cooling for the system and they are available in plenty . Seasonal gifts of nature. I enjoy all seasonal vegetables and use them in all the ways possible. This one , sponge guard is one vegetable liked by the husband quite dearly , all it's variations . One of the variations i have posted earlier and more will be coming in future as this a regular vegetable and i have many pictures in my drafts.

The subzi is called 'nenua chana ki subzi' or 'tori chana ki subzi' and although this is a quick recipe it needs some precision ...as it is with all simple recipes.

I like the guard slices well done but not disintegrating and the chickpeas well done and soft . This is difficult to achieve as the chickpeas take a long time to get done and the sponge guard cooks faster. Many times people don't mind hard chickpeas in the subzi or completely mushy slices of the guard in the subzi but i will do an extra step happily to get the perfect consistency i want....

So i pressure cook the chickpeas separately and then add it to the curry in the second stage of cooking. Works very well to get the right balance. Otherwise you can always add the chickpeas first to the pan and after some 10 minutes of cooking add the guards and cook further .... My version is the way i like it...

ingredients...
(3-4 servings)
black chickpeas soaked overnight 1 cup or a bit more
sponge guards 500 gm
onions sliced 200 gm
green chillied chopped to taste (i use about 4)
whole cumin seeds 2 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
mustard oil 1 tbsp

preparation...

Boil the chickpeas in pressure cooker or in a pan with enough water and salt to taste. Do the pan coking of the vegetables in the meantime.

Heat mustard oil in a pan , I use my cast iron kadai hence the dark color of the curry. Throw in the cumin seeds and green chillies , in that order . The cumin seeds should get browned and green chillies just blistered...

Add the sliced onions and salt to taste . Fry the onions till they start sweating . Do not brown the onions. Add the turmeric powder and mix well.

Add the sliced sponge guards , mix well to coat and cover to cook . Enough water is released from the sponge guards to be cooked , just keep the flame low so it cooks slowly . Slow cooking makes this curry very flavorful .

Add the boiled chickpeas as soon as they get ready . If they are cooking simultaneously , they get ready by the time sponge guards start releasing water . This is the best time to add the boiled chickpeas . Slow cooking of the chick peas and sponge guards together brings the best flavors as i said .

The contrast in the texture and flavors of the guard and chickpea makes this curry very interesting . I like the way chickpeas give a nice bite with the soft slices of guard . The sponge guard has a nice sweetness to it , enhanced well by the onions . You would like the hit provided by the green chillies too , do not substitute them with red chillies or any other peppers . Actually do not substitute anything in the recipe as the ingredient list is already frugal .

Try the recipe if you are not familiar with it already . I know many people have grown up eating this. We like it with chapatis or even with rice . A bowl of fresh curds is all i need with it .

Enjoy...

apple and pumpkin spiced cake

noreply@blogger.com (sangeeta) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 17:53:00 +0000

I had never intended to share any baking on this blog of mine as the purpose of Banras Ka Khana is to revive all the desi traditional recipes . Time to time i am tempted to write about the odd cake or brownie the way i like them . There are millions of cake recipes on the internet and there are blogs and websites dedicated to baking . I always look up to these blogs and websites when i want to make the best chocolate cake or an angel cake . I don't wish to post those recipes here but whenever i make something unusual and am pleased by the results , i feel like sharing it here.

This cake was one such baking experiment i found worth sharing here. Just look at the different colors of fruity goodness in the slices...

ingredients...

maida ( APF ) 500 gm
eggs 6 nos.
vegetable oil 200 ml
sugar 150 gm
pumpkin grated 2 cups
apples grated or cut in small pieces 3 cups
apple sauce 1 cup
baking powder 3 tsp
baking soda 1/2 tsp
nutmeg powder 1 tsp
cinnamon powder 1tsp
dry ginger powder 2 tsp
salt 1/2 tsp

Procedure...

Mix the dry ingredients and keep aside after sieving them all together to aerate the mixture..

Pour oil a large mixing bowl , add sugar and then the eggs . Whip the mixture well till everything is homogenized . Add the applesauce and mix lightly . The applesauce i used was quite thick and i spooned it into the batter so some chunks of applesauce are there in the baked cake.

Add the grated pumpkin and apple , mix well and then add the flour mixture and fold in lightly . Do not whip after mixing the flour mixture.

Pour the batter in greased and dusted tins and bake in preheated oven . 180 degree C for 45 minutes .

Check with the help of a skewer and cook a bit more if needed.

Cool down the cake and enjoy . The cake keeps well in the fridge and ages well too. The spices make this cake very special by the passing days ...if it lasts ...

This cake accompanied many of our teas and coffee...

I had made some muffins with the same batter in my ceramic teacups ...

And those muffins were gobbled down for breakfasts ... They were refrigerated after covering them with foil and it was easy to remove the foil and just microwave them for 30 seconds for a hearty breakfast...The husband loves sweet treats for breakfast...

And i like something handy to serve... something rich , moist and sweet .

Rich sweet breakfast is not always a bad idea ... my glass of milk is hot while the husband likes it lukewarm ... but sometimes we like similar things too :)