MUTTER PANEER CUTLETS

 Delicious and melt-in-mouth vegetarian cutlets, which could be served as evening snack or as a filling for sandwiches for your kids’ tiffin.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Onions, chopped

2 tsp Ginger-garlic paste

3 no.s Green chillies, finely chopped

1 tsp Red chilly powder

1/2 tsp Cumin powder

1 tsp Pepper, crushed

1 and half cups Paneer/Cottage Cheese, grated

1 and half cups Potatoes, boiled & grated

1 cup Green peas, boiled

1 tsp Garam masala

3 tbsp Coriander leaves, finely chopped

1/2 cup flour

Bread crumbs enough to coat

Oil for frying

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and sauté onions till they turn slightly brown in color.


Add ginger-garlic paste and green chilies and sauté till the raw smell disappears.

Throw in all the spices and sauté for a few seconds.

Mix well the paneer and vegetables.

Season with salt and garam masala.

Add coriander leaves to it and mix nicely. Masala is ready. Now, let it cool.

Make balls out of this stuffing and shape it into cutlets; round, oval or heart shape as you wish.

Mix flour in a cup (approximately) of water until no lumps formed.

Dip each cutlet into the flour mixture and then coat well with the breadcrumbs.

Fry these cutlets in oil until it turns dark brown and crisp outside.

Drain on tissue paper and serve hot with mint chutney or ketchup.

TIPS

The potatoes should be boiled perfectly; otherwise the cutlets may absorb too much oil.

You can add 2-3 tbsp of breadcrumbs to the mixture for binding incase if you feel the cutlets are not holding shapes.

Mushroom & Peas Pulao

Mushroom and Peas Pulao is a complete dish and can be eaten as a complete meal on its own. A bowl of your favourite raita, achar and pappad is all you want. I always make it sure to add those vegetables which are my kids' favourite to make sure that they don't complaint. Mushrooms are my son's favourite whereas girls love peas. 

INGREDIENTS:

Courtesy: Shehzad Husain

Serves: 6

Basmati Rice      2 1/2 cups

Mushrooms    100 gm/ 1 1/2 cups

Green peas(fresh or frozen)    1/2 cup

Vegetable oil      2 tbsp

Cinnamon sticks     2"

Black Cardamom       2

Kalonji/ Black Cumin/ Karinjeerakam 1/2 tsp

Garlic cloves     3,chopped

Tomato    1 medium

Water    4 cups

Salt    2 tsp

Method:

1. Wash the rice atleast twice and set aside in a sieve(strainer).

2 In a medium saucepan, heat the oil and add the spices, garlic and salt.

3. Add the sliced tomato and button mushrooms and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. 

4. Now add the rice and peas and gently stir around, making sure you do not break the rice.

5. Add the water and bring the mixture to the boil. lower the heat, cover and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes.

Yam Fries

Yam fry is a  very simple and tasty side dish. These could be made either spicy or non-spicy. Both are good in their own ways. Kids love this more than the spicy ones. They find this similar to their so called friend 'french fries'. And so they call these "kerala fries"  :) 

Ingredients:

Yam     3 cups

Turmeric powder   1 tsp

Salt   1/2 tsp or to taste

Oil to deep fry

Method:

Cut yam into small square chunks(1 cm cubes). Marinate these with turmeric powder and salt and let it stay for at least 15 minutes. Heat oil in a kadai(wok) ,enough to deep fry. Fry these yams in two batches in medium-high flame. The texture should be juicy inside and slightly crisp outside. When you fry in low flame, it will turn hard and in high flame it might turn undercooked inside. So take care of that. 

Sambar using roasted spices

Making sambar using home-made masala is not a hectic job at all. My family love it this way. We hear lots of stories on readymade masalas(spices) like they include animal fats, that they do some sort of adulteration etc. etc. What's the need of readymade ones when we can make it in no time. If spending 5 minutes extra in kitchen can give you peace and health, then it's worth the risk.  It's always better to use home made stuffs as far as we can. It's not that I don't use readymade stuffs at all..but a big NO to masalas .. I make my own garam masala and use a blend of my own spices for chana masala,pav bhaji, tandoori chicken or sambar.  We bring home made red chilli,coriander and pepper powders all the way from India and all thanks to my aunts there who never say 'huff' to our orders. :) I can assure you that this sambar is as tasty as the ones made with store-bought spices. Follow the instructions and recipes to the point and you get to eat delicious sambar in no time.

INGREDIENTS

Shallots                       6 tbsp

Tomatoes                      3/4 cup

Green chilly                          2

Masoor Dal              1/4cup/ 6 tbsp

Turmeric powder              1/2 tsp

Tamarind(with seed)**    10 gm/ lemon sized 
Vegetable               500gms/ 1/2kg

To Grind:

Coconut oil         2tbsp
Fenugreek                   1/2 tsp

Cumin                         1 tsp

Garlic                          2

Asafoetida                   a generous pinch

Coconut                       3/4 cup

Curry leaves                3

Red chilli powder       1 tbsp

Coriander powder       1 tbsp

Tadka:
Coconut oil     4-5 tbsp
Mustard seeds    1 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves    8-10
Dried red chilli      3

METHOD:

1. Soak tamarind in hot water and squeeze to take pulp. 

2. Pressure cook dal alongwith turmeric powder, onion, tomatoes and tamarind pulp.

3. After one whistle, open the pressure cooker and add vegetables except brinjal/eggplant and ladyfingers. These cook really fast and so it's safer to add later. Close the lid and turn off the flame after one whistle. Open the lid immediately. Add eggplants and lady fingers to this. Keep it aside.

4. Heat oil in another pan and dry roast coconut with cumin, fenugreek and curry leaves till the coconut turns dark brown. Switch off the flame and add asafoetida,  red chilli and coriander powders to it. Saute for a few seconds till the raw smell goes. Let it cool.

5. Make a paste of this roasted coconut and spice mix using water enough to blend.

6. Pour this paste to the cooked gravy and simmer for about 5-6 minutes. Turn off the flame.

7. Heat 4-5 tbsp of coconut oil in another pan and splutter mustard seeds in it. Throw in red chillies and curry leaves. Pour this tadka over the gravy and close the lid. Let it remain closed for a minimum of 5 minutes.

** Adding tamarind at first gives a nice flavor to the vegetables and thus the sambar

Pumpkin Erissery /Mathanga erissery

Onam is near and these days people go crazy searching for recipes for vegetable side dishes and you can see lots and lots of recipes online or on screen. We don't celebrate Onam, but still never forget to order Sadya from restaurants as this is the only time we get to eat 14-16 types of curries with our Choru (rice) and 2 types of payasams too. ..yumm!! Otherwise who cares to cook so many side dishes. Cooking is not that tough compared to chopping. I always felt that's the most difficuilt and time consuming task while preparing Sadya. Ofcourse grating coconut, if you are in India, could be more difficuilt ; but here, that's a blessing when you have a Lulu or Manama (supermarkets) near ;) where you get grated coconuts any time of the year.

Ingredients:

(Reference:Marias Menu) though made my own variations

Mathanga/Pumpkin     500gms ( 3cups)

Turmeric                      1/2 tsp

Water                           1 cup

Red chilly powder       1/4tsp

Coconut                       4 tbsp (to garnish)

Oil                                1 tbsp

To Grind

Coconut                       1/2 cup

Cumin/Jeera                 1/4tsp

Green chilly                 2 or more

Pepper powder            1/4 tsp

To temper

Coconut oil                  2 tbsp

Mustard                        1/2 tsp

Curry leaves                 few

Shallots                         4

 Method:

1. Cook pumpkins with water, turmeric powder, salt and red chilly powder till it is done. Mash nicely and keep it aside.

2. Grind 1/2 cup coconut with jeera, pepper and red chilly powder. Add this to pumpkin. Let it boil and simmer for about 5-6 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and roast coconut (kept for garnishing) till it turns brown and crispy texture. Remove it on a plate. Heat oil in the same pan for tempering. Crackle mustard seeds in it and throw in curry leaves and shallots immediately. Fry till the onion turns brown. Pour this over mathanga. Mix well. Serve with roasted coconut garnished on top. 

Variations:

Try with cowpeas/ vanpayar added to mathanga. ie; 250gms mathanga and 1/2 cup cowpeas for this same recipe.

Roast coconut a little more time if you prefer it that way.

Thai Chilli Sweet Potato -Potluck Party

28th of the month is usually booked for the second stage of Potluck Party- ie; to recreate the dish posted by one other participant on 10th of this month. The food I got to experiment is Rachna's Thai Chilli Sweet potato.  I don't know whether you all have noticed that I never posted any Thai recipes till now. Yes, you are right. I'm not a fan of Thai food and I hate their jasmine rice, sweety, spicy, coconuty curries and everything. I tried it once or twice before and I hated it. But when I got this as an assignment and I read her post, I thought I would give it a chance. After all, it's my kitchen and I can play around with spices na?, shhh!! ;)

But believe me guys, I didn't have to change much. This was delicious and all thanks to both Rachna & Jagruti because of whom I tried something new in my kitchen.  I made it dry as I was having it with pasta; but you can make it with gravy by adding coconut milk to pair with rice/roti. 

This recipe is versatile- it can be cooked as a starter or a main-dish. I think you can make this with potato too.

Makes for 2-3 people
Ingredients:
1 medium sized sweet potato, about 250-300g 
1 tsp palm sugar / brown sugar
1/4 cup Thai chilli sauce
2-3 tbsp shredded coconut
1 medium sized onion, roughly chopped.
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp lemon juice / 1-2 kaffir lime leaves
5-6 basil leaves, roughly chopped 
1cup coconut milk- optional
1 tsp chilli flakes / ground red chillies
3 tbsp oil
salt to taste 

Recipe:
1. Peel the sweet potato and make medium sized cubes. Wash them and pat them dry.
2. Heat oil in a deep pan and stir in the potato cubes. Add salt and mix well.
3. Cover the pan and cook on medium to slow heat. Add 1-2 tbsp water if required.
4. In the meantime, mix shredded coconut, Thai chilli sauce and chopped onions and grind them into a paste in a mixer.
5. Once the potato are golden and cooked, add the paste and mix thoroughly.
6. Now add chilli flakes or ground red chillies and mix well.
7. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add chopped basil leaves and mix.
8. Remove from heat and serve hot.

9. If serving with rice as a main dish, add the coconut milk. Serve hot with steaming basmati rice.

Achari Gobi(Pickled Cauliflower)-Potluck Party

Few days ago, I came across a Gobi recipe that was so good in appearance, spicy and the recipe was also fantastic. I decided to try it soon and what happend next was I forgot about its whereabouts and the blog where I had seen that . I searched and searched everywhere, but there was no much time as kids would reach anytime soon. So decided to  google for the recipe. When I don't have time I stick to Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe which gives me a bit of confidence and then adjust the recipe to my taste buds.This time I had to add chilli and coriander powder which was not there in his recipe. The dish was overall finger licking good and now I got a dish which I could serve to my dad. He always complain us that we fry cauliflower everytime. lol. whether it was Cauliflower Delight, Manchurian,Bajji or Aloo Gobi. He is a health freak.

I'm taking this dish to Potluck Party-Cyber Style hosted by Jagruti this time. I have been on this group since a few months ago -a naughty member I must say. I participated in just 2 or 3 events cos of  ups and downs in my personal life. But from hereon I'm planning to participate everymonth and for that I'm scheduling this post a few days prior to the event. I don't want to miss it.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower      1 medium

Onion               1 medium

Mustard oil        2 tbsp

Mustard seed     1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds      1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds/Methi dana/uluva  1/4 tsp

Fennel seeds/saunf/perumjeerakam  1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds,roasted & crushed       1tsp

Onion seeds/kalonji                          1/4tsp

Asafoetida/ kaayam/hing                  1/4tsp

Turmeric powder                              1/2tsp

Salt                                                    1tsp or to taste

Green chillies                                    2 or more

Ginger paste                                      1 tsp

Garlic paste                                       1tsp

Yogurt                                              3/4 cup

Red Chilli powder                            1tsp

Coriander powder                            1tsp

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

1. Heat mustard oil a non-stick pan upto its smoking point. Take it out of flame, cool slightly and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, fennel seeds, crushed cumin seeds, onion seeds and asafoetida and bring it back to flame. Saute till the seeds splutter. 

2. Add onion and sauté till translucent. 

3. Add cauliflower florets, turmeric powder and salt. 

4. Chop green chilies and add. Sprinkle some water and toss to mix well. 

5. Cover and cook on medium heat for a minute. 

6. Add ginger paste, garlic paste and yogurt. Add red chilli powder and coriander powder (if using) now. Mix well. Cover and cook till cauliflower is done. Cauliflower should be dry and covered well in masalas and hence, the flavor. 

7. Serve hot, garnished with coriander sprigs.

Linking this to Motions & Emotions originally hosted by Gayathri

Valentine Event

Naan on Tawa-No yeast No egg

Dark and cloudy mornings, temperature below 15C (Europeans,please don't laugh), a deep silence in the air, we peeping through the window every five minutes to check whether it's raining and then it drizzles by evening and we call it rain !  I blog too much about climate.Don't I? Sometimes I think we Middle easterners are crazy; trying to capture clouds almost everyday, updating in social media, going to kitchen for some coffee or mugcakes early morning, spicy chaats in everning-- this climate is going to make me fat. Help!! I can't stop eating!!. Fasting is the best way out or a temporary escape ; but the thought of no coffee mornings keeps me away from fasting. I shall wake up early for that or ready to face +2 kgs this season :(

Naan need no introduction and is one of the most liked Indian bread worldwide. Different varieties depending on the toppings used are available these days . Kalonji(onion seeds), garlic, butter, mint, italian herbs, cheese etc. are a few among them. You can see varieties like Peshawari Naan, Afghani Naan etc. outside India . This is Zebi Zubair's recipe.Naans are usually cooked in Tandoor, but could be baked in oven or even Tawa too. It takes its own time in Tawa as we could cook only one at a time; but believe me gals, it's worth it! There's no compromise in taste. 

Ingredients:

Maida/All purpose flour    4 cups
Baking Powder                 2tsp
Salt                                    1tsp
Sugar                                 1tbsp
Ghee                                  4tbsp
Yogurt                               1 cup
Milk (warm)                       3/4cup
Kalonji/Onion seeds          2 tbsp
Coriander leaves                few
Butter for brushing on top
Dry mint leaves (optional) 2tbsp

Method:

1. Mix curd, milk and sugar together.

2. Sift flour ,baking powder and salt together. Make a well in the centre and pour the milk mixture to it.

3. Incorporate well and make a dough adding ghee in between. You can add more milk or water if needed, but little at a time. Take care as maida requires little water than whole meal flour.

4. Let it rest for 2-4 hours. It will rise, but won't double as no yeast is used here.

5. Punch down the dough and make balls out of it. You can make balls of your required size.

6. Now roll into thick paranthas . Usually Naans are rolled into sort of balloon or oval shape. Stretch from one side after rolling, to give the shape.

7. Immerse your fingers in a bowl of water and imprint on the rolled naan as shown in the picture.

8. Place Naan on a hot tawa, water side down.

9. Sprinkle kalonji,garlic or dry mint (choose your favourite or a mix of all three) and press mildly on top to fix it there.

for the first time, I made a mistake to sprinkle kalonji as soon as I rolled, which was a mistake ,as then it would be impossible to place water side down on the pan.

10. Now either

     -you could wait till bubbles appear on the pan and then, transfer into a wire rack(wired spatula or the like) upside down and cook on fire.

OR 

     - after few seconds transfer to the wire racks and let the bubbles appear there on the direct fire.
I found the second option better as more bubbles appeared that way.

I used my microwave grill. You can use grilled spatulas or anything similar to this which can do the same purpose.

11. Cook neatly and carefully turning both sides . Let not burn too much. Check frequently and keep those sides on fire which is not browned. Grill on medium flame as too much flame might brown naans on top but uncooked inside. Use tong spatulas for that. You can master within 1 or 2 naans ;)

12. Brush with oil or butter on top and sprinkle coriander leaves. Serve hot .

Notes:

You can either mix the toppings like kalonji or dry mint while preparing dough or sprinkle on top.

Linking this to Motions & Emotions originally hosted by Gayathri

Valentine Event

Recipe of the week