Sarson Paneer (Paneer in Mustard)

Ingredients:

100 gms Paneer, diced into 1" cube

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 green chilli

1/4 tsp kalonji (nigella seeds)

1" ginger

1/4 tsp haldi

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp jeera powder(cumin powder)

1 1/2 tsp dahi

2 tsp oil

salt to taste

to garnish

pinch of cinnamon powder

pinch of cardamom powder

Method:

• Soak mustard seeds and green chilli in 2 tsp of water. Drain and grind it into a fine paste. Keep it aside.
• In a bowl add 1 tsp of water to dahi and whisk, keep it aside.
• In a bowl add the ginger paste, jeera powder, haldi powder and sugar. Mix well adding 1 tsp of water and keep aside.
• Heat a kadai on a medium low flame and add 2 tsp of oil, add the paneer pieces and shallow fry it till light golden brown.
• In the same kadai, add 1/2 tsp of oil, heat it on medium low flame. Add kalonji and let it crackle.
• After the kalonji crackles, add the ginger mixture and stir well. Add 1 tsp of water and cook till the ginger is cooked.
• Add the dahi and cook on a low heat for a minute. Add the mustard paste and let the mixture cook well for another minute.
• Add 3/4 cup of water and bring it to boil on a high flame, add the paneer pieces and salt and bring it to boil on a low flame.
• Switch off the gas after one boil. Garnish with cardamom powder and cinnamon powder and serve!

Tips:

• This is a Bengali preparation. You could add radhuni in this preparation.
• You can also use mustard oil, I have however, used refined oil.
• Paneer can also e deep fried.
• Increase the amount of green chilli if you need more spice.
• The consistency of this gravy is extremely thin, almost watery.
• This gravy tastes good with plain rice.

Anda Paratha (Egg Paratha)

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1 medium sized onion, finely chopped

1 green chilli finely chopped

1/4 tsp haldi

1/4 tsp red chilli powder

pinch of jeera powder

pinch of coriander powder

1 tsp coriander leaves, finely chopped(optional)

salt to taste

1 tsp oil

for the dough

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

salt (optional)

water as required

Method:

• Knead the dough to a very smooth and soft texture. Use water as required.
• Beat the egg and add salt, red chilli powder, onion, green chilli, coriander powder, jeera powder and coriander leaves(optional) and whisk well.
• Place a tawa on the flame and heat it on a low flame.
• Make two balls of the dough to make two parathas.
• With the help of a rolling pin, roll one ball to make a big roti. Apply oil and little dry flour and fold the sides to make a square. Now, roll the square to get a bigger square.
• Put it on the tawa on low flame.
• Once the bubbles appear turn the paratha.
• Once the paratha has been slightly cooked on both the sides, open one of the folded side with the help of a fork and knife and add the whisked egg inside the paratha and gently evenly spread the egg inside the paratha. Let the paratha cook on low flame so that the heat is enough to cook the egg inside the paratha.
• Once the egg is almost solid turn the paratha, apply oil on all the side and cook the paratha and the egg. Press from above to ensure that the egg is perfectly cooked.
• Repeat the process for second paratha.

Tips:

• You can also make a round paratha (chappati as referred in Maharashtra, Goa) or a triangular paratha.
• You can add chat masala once the paratha is done.
• You can add ghee on the paratha, but since this paratha is anyway heavy I try to avoid it.
• When you are rolling the paratha use dry flour to make rolling easy.
• You can add salt to the dough.
• The paratha should only be cooked to the minimum when before the egg is added as the paratha would be on the flame till the egg is done hence if you cook the paratha before adding the egg then the paratha has to be kept on the flame till the egg is cooked and you will end up burning the paratha.
• However, if you like a slightly half fried egg, you can semi cook the egg inside the paratha.
• For other tips on paratha making please refer to the recipe of Matar Paratha.

Kathal Tarkari (Jackfruit Vegetable)

Ingredients:

300 gms kathal

1 1/2 tsp dahi

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp jeera powder

1/2 tsp haldi powder

1/8th tsp chilli powder

1 1/2 tsp oil

1 medium sise onion, finely chopped

1 medium sized tomato, grated.

5 cloves of garlic, finely grated

1' ginger, grated.

2 cloves

1 dalchini

1 green cardamom

Cardamom, cinnamon powder and coriender leaves for garnish.

Method:

• Clean the kathal and cut the fruit and seeds into medium sized pieces.
• In a vessel add water, salt and haldi powder and the kathal pieces and boil.
• After the kathal has been almost 90% boiled, drain and keep it aside.
• In a kadai, add 1 1/2 tsp of oil, add the kathal pieces and fry till the kathal is totally cooked, remove it from the kadai and keep it aside
• Add 1 tsp of oil in the same kadai, heat it on a medium low flame, when the oil is hot, add green cardamom, dalchini and cloves, when they crackle, add the ginger, garlic and fry, add the onion, stir fry and cook till the onion turn pink in colour, add the tomato puree and mix well.
• Mix dahi in 2 tbsp of water.
• Add dahi in to the onion and mix well. Add jeera powder, coriander powder, haldi and red chilli powder, mix well. Cover the kadai with a lid and let the masala cook well.
• Add salt and sugar and mix well.
• Once the masala is cooked, add the fried kathal pieces and mix well. Add 3 tbsp of water and mix well till the masala coats the vegetable.
• Once done switch off the gas.
• Sprinkle cinnamon powder and cardamom powder.
• mix well and transfer to a serving plate and garnish with coriander.

Tips:

• Kathal is to be 90% cooked when it is boiled.
• If you cook the kathal completely when its boiled you can avoid frying the kathal...its healthy too!
• You can also deep fry the kathal, in such an case, you can avoid boiling the kathal.
• You can increase the quantity of dahi in this recipe.
• This recipe is a dry preparation.
• When cleaning the kathal apply oil to your hands and the knife it makes the task easier.
• For this recipe, I normally retain only the seed and the flesh of the fruit and not the periphery, however in some preparations I do use most of the fruit (will post it shortly).
• you can also use canned jackfruit.
• you can also add green peas to this preparation.

Tendli Vangi Masala Bhat (Gherkin and Eggplant Masala Rice)

Ingredients:

1 cup rice

3 baby brinjal (egg plant/ baigan)

6 tendli (kundru/gherkin)

3 baby potatoes

1/2 cup green peas

1 medium onion, sliced

1 tsp jeera powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

1/2 tsp haldi

1/4 tsp red chilli powder

1/3 cup grated coconut

2 tbsp coriender leaves finely chopped

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp ghee

2 tsp oil

salt to taste

Method:

• Wash rice and soak it in water.
• Slit the brinjal, baby potato and tendli into two keeping the stem (or eye) intact, so that the coconut stuffing can be filled in the slits.
• For the stuffing, to the grated coconut, add coriander powder, jeera powder, haldi, red chilli powder, garam masala, salt, sugar and coriander leaves.
• Stuff the coconut stuffing in the brinjal, baby potatoes and tendli.
• In case there is excess of the stuffing, keep it aside.
• Place a presure cooker on a medium high flame, add the oil and ghee. When the oil and ghee is heated, add the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds begin to crackle, add the onion and mix well and cook for a minute. Place the stuffed brinjal, baby potato and tendli and stir fry gently on medium high flame. Add the green peas and remaining coconut stuffing and gently stir fry.
• Drain the rice and add to the vegetables and mix very gently. Add water and salt, give one good gentle stir and cover the lid of the cooker. Cook on high till one whistle. Turn the gas off. Let the pressure drop by itself.
• Once the pressure drops transfer the rice in a serving dish and serve immediately!
  
  

Tips:

• This rice preparation is a traditional Maharashtrian rice. You can also add peanuts to this recipe. You can also replace green peas with peanuts.
• You can make this preparation as only tendli bhat or even only brinjal bhat.
• You can add hing if you like the taste.
• I do not keep any vessel in the cooker i just cook the rice directly in the cooker hence i give only one whistle on high, which is normally sufficient and makes the rice cook to perfection.
• Mix the stuffed vegetables and rice with a gentle hand otherwise the stuffing may leave the slits and spread and the rice may break.
• You can use only ghee or oil, I prefer to use a combination as ghee gives taste and oil gives the gloss to the food.
• Ghee also has less resistance to heat hence the addition of oil increases its resistance.
• If you do not have baby potatoes, you can use normal potatoes, cut them into thick slices and then slit each slice so as to add the stuffing in the slit.
• You can make this rice preparation for any fasting, avoid onion in that case.
• Serve this rice with curd or have it just like that,it tastes divine!

Basundi

Ingredients:

2 litres milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp elaichi powder

dry fruits for garnishing

Method:

• Cook milk in a heavy bottom pan on a slow flame, till it is reduced to half and has a thick consistency. Keep stirring the milk while it is on the flame.
• When the milk is reduced to the desired consistency, add the elaichi powder and stir. Add sugar and boil the milk till the sugar dissolves completely.
• Add the dry fruits (reserve some for garnishing)and cook for a minute. Turn the gas off and pour the milk in the serving bowl.
• Garnish with the remaining dry fruits and serve hot with puris.

Tips:

• Keep stirring the milk at regular intervals or else the cream will keep forming on the milk.
• I do not like bits of cream while i eat the basundi. What I however do is before adding the sugar I pass the milk, which has been reduced, through a steel sieve, and press the cream really hard through the seive, this way the basundi gets a smooth texture(which some may not like...in such a case you can skip this).
• It is extremely important to use a heavy bottom vessel while cooking milk, or else the milk will stick to the bottom and get brunt. Milk easily absorbs any flavour including burn, so be careful.
• Basundi should always be prepared on a slow flame.
• I normally add pistas and badam, you can add any other dry fruits of your choice. However, blanch the badam and pista before you add them.
• To blanch the badam/pista take a microwave safe bowl, add the pistas, badam and water and microwave covered for 1 1/2 minute. Let it cool. You can then easily peel off the skin, cut them and add to any recipe.
• Blanching of pista is very important as its only after blanching that you get to see that lovely pista colour.
• You may add saffron if you so desire.
• The quantity of sugar can be adjusted to suit ones taste.
• Basundi tastes equally good if had chilled.