Armenian narenj palao with Ground lamb stew

The other day I was talking to one of my friends' and we started talking about music. She said she liked a particular Armenian song. It brought to mind my mind my old Armenian neighbors and a co-worker who was of Armenian decent. Both of these ladies were very tall and I used to look like a little kid in front of them. My co-worker was an excellent cook and she also loved to collect cook books.
             Anyway, this conversation motivated me to search for some Armenian recipes and search I did. And I made a whole dinner out of Armenian recipes. I also found out that in Armenian language an Orange is called Narenj like narangi in Hindi, Narenja pandu in Telugu and Naranja in Spanish. I wonder how many other languages have a similar name for Orange!!!

Armenian Narenj Palao (Rice pilaf with orange peel and saffron)

Armenian dinner

Armenian Narenj Palao

Ingredients:

1. 11/2 cup basmati rice
2. 1/2 cup vermicelli
3. 1 teaspoon each of olive oil, butter, pistacho, raisins, orange peel chopped fine
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of fresh ground pepper, salt, saffron
5. 1/2 cup warm milk
6. 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
7. Fresh squeezed lemon juice

Fry the pistachio and raisins in butter, drain and set aside. Add the olive oil to it and fry the vermicelli till they become light brown. Add rice and mix till all the butter coats the rice. Add the rest of the ingredients bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes till rice gets cooked. Add saffron to warm milk and drizzle this milk to the rice and stir to combine. Add the pistachio and raisins and orange peel stir to combine and serve hot with lemon wedges

Ground Lamb Stew (Ground lamb cooked with vegetables)

Ground lamb stew

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb ground lamb
2. 3 big carrots diced
3. 1 turnip diced
4. 1 medium onion diced
5. 2 cloves garlic minced
6. 1 medium small red bell pepper diced
7. 1/4 cup tomato paste
8. 3 tablespoons olive oil
9. 1 teaspoon each of coriander powder, cumin powder
10. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, fresh ground pepper, cayenne pepper
11. 2 bay leaves, 3 cloves , 1 inch cinnamon bark, 1 cardamom
12.  1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt
13. 2 cups water
14. 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or 1/4 cup dried parsley

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the ground lamb until it starts to brown. Add garlic and fry for a couple of minutes. Move it to a side add onions and fry till they become brown. Drain and set aside. Add turnips and carrots, to the same pan, cover and cook for 5-8 minutes. Move it to the sides and add tomato paste and fry for 3-5 minutes. Add all the powders and spices and fry for 3 more minutes. Add the onions and meat back to the pan str to combine and add water and stir again. Add parsley. Simmer for 10 minutes. Give a taste test and adjust seasoning. Enjoy with hot pilaf or couscous

Apple Kheer (Apple cooked in milk with spices)

Apple Kheer

Ingredients:

1. 1 big or 2 small apples grated into a little big pieces (Don't use granny smith)
2. 3 cups milk
3. 1/2 cup sugar
4. 1 cardamom pounded
5. 1 teaspoon each of pistachio or almonds, raisins, butter
6. 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Fry the almonds or pistachio and raisins in butter drain and set aside. Add the apple and cook covered for 5-8 minutes until apple becomes soft. Add milk and sugar and brink to boil. Also add the cardamom. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add dried fruits and nutmegs. Let it cool and refrigerate for 2-3 hours. Serve cold

Ratatouille

This movie Ratatouille which is about a rat who wants to be a chef is in a way cute and in some ways disgusting. But I think it made the dish Ratatouille popular. Well...being from a different part of the world than where  this dish is made I wouldn't have known about it if it was not for the movie
               First thing because it has no meat and next thing because it is supposed to be peasant's food. Another thing because I hardly search for any recipes with the vegetables in this dish. I made it and hubby dear loved it. So here it is

Ratatouille (Very healthy baked vegetable dish)

Ratatoille

Ingredients:
1. 1 medium zucchini, 1 medium yellow squash, 1 Japanese eggplant, 1 small red bell pepper, 1 medium small onion, 2 roma tomatoes
2. 1 small can of tomato puree
3.1 teaspoon thyme
4.1 tablespoon olive oil
5.3 big cloves of garlic minced
6. ½ to ¾ cup roughly chopped fresh basil
7. ½ teaspoon cumin, salt, pepper
8. ¼ cup finely chopped onion
9.2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese (optional)

Cut the vegetables in ingredients (1) to ⅛ inch discs.
In a pan heat the oil and sauté the onions till tender. Add garlic and cumin and fry for a couple of minutes. Now add tomato puree, basil, thyme, salt and pepper and simmer for 5 minutes.
In a baking pan add the above tomato puree and arrange the vegetable discs in a row, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover and bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes. Remove the cover sprinkle with Parmesan (if using) and continue to bake for 10 more minutes. Enjoy over couscous

Aratikaaya Mudda Kura and Khatti Dal

The good old raw banana. When you look at the list of ailments a person has and the list of things they like there will be a direct correlation between the two. if you can tell me what you like, I can tell you what you go to doctor for.
     People who like potato-diabetic
     People who like Plantain-High Cholestrol
     People with a sweet tooth-Obviously Diabetic
     People who don't like drinking plain old water-Kidney Problems (believe me there are such people)

And the list goes on. Anyway I made this particular Plantain curry or fry which is one of my husband's Fav currys'. Now you know what he goes to the doctor for. Anyway, I made khatti dal or my house version of sambar.

Aratikaaya Mudda Kura (Simple Raw banana fry)

Mauz ka tallan

Ingredients:

1. 2 raw banana (plantain, burro banana) peeled and chopped into pieces
2. 2 tablespoons oil
3. 2cloves of garlic chopped fine
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin, mustard seeds, urad dal, soaked chana dal, turmeric, salt
5. 2 red chillies broken
6. 1 green chilly chopped
7. Few curry leaves
8. Cilantro for garnishing

In a pressure cooker cook the raw banana pieces with turmeric and 1/4 cup of water for 2 whistles. In a pan heat oil in a pan and fry Num #4 items in the oil for a couple of minutes. Add green chilly and red chilly and curry leaves and garlic and fry for 3-4 minutes. Mash the cooked banana a little bit and add salt to it and add it to the pan. Cover and fry for 5 minutes. Stir well and fry for 5 more minutes. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy

Khatti Dal (Lentils with vegetables in Tamarind juice)

Khatti Dal (Sambar)

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup toor dal
2. vegetables of your choice (my choice of veggies are few okra, 1 tomato, 1 indian eggplant, 1/4 chopped onions,1 medium carrot chopped)
3. 3 cups juice from a tamarind the size of a medium sized lemon
4. 1 tablespoon oil
5. 1/4 teaspoon each of cumin, mustard seeds
6. 2 red chillies broken
7. 1 green chilly chopped
8. 1 garlic clove chopped fine (optional)
9. few curry leaves
10. Cilantro for garnishing
11. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
12. 1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt

In a pressure cooker cook the dal for 3-4 whistles with 11/2-2 cups of water and turmeric and chopped tomato. After the steam escapes open the cooker and mash the dal. Add salt and all the vegetables and tamarind juice and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. In a pan heat the oil and fry the cumin, mustard seeds and dried red chilly, garlic if using and curry leaves till they start to splutter. Cut the heat and add the dal to the pan or the tempering to the dal. Bring to boil again and boil for further 5-8 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and check if all the vegetables are cooked else simmer covered for a little bit more. Enjoy with plain rice and any kind of fry

Poori with Aalu palak paneer

Its been ages that I made poori or Puri-the deep fried bread from India. Whenever I made poori before I always made it with Aalu Chooley (Potatoes with Chick Peas) but today I am in no mood for chickpeas. And I have Paneer at hand.
                   So...I started my search for Paneer recipes and I found the same old, same old recipes ever where aka palak paneer, mutter paneer, butter paneer and all. I am soooooooo bored with these recipes. So I kind of combined two recipes and came up with my own paneer recipe and let me tell you, it was finger licking good. Even my 10 month old little guy liked it.

Poori (Deep fried Indian wheat bread)

Puri

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups wheat flower
2. 3/4-1 teaspoon salt
3. water for making dough
4. Oil for deep frying

Sift the flour with salt and mix it into dough with water a little at a time. Add a tablespoon of oil to it, mix well and set aside for 30 minutes. Divide the dough into about 12 equal parts. If you have poori maker or a tortilla maker make pooris in them or roll it the old fashoned way into puris the size of your palm, roughly 6-7 inches in diameter.
                 Heat the oil in a pan and deep fry the pooris one at a time till golden brown. Serve immediately with your favourite potato curry or the Aalu Palak Paneer

Aalu Palak Paneer (Potatos and Cottage Cheese in a Spinach gravy)

Aalu palak paneer

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups 1 cm cubes of paneer
2. 1 medium large potato cubed to the same size as paneer
3. 1/2 cup frozen spinach thawed
4. 1 medium tomato chopped
5. 1 green chilly
6. 1 medium onion chopped
7. 1/4 cup milk
8. 1/2-3/4 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, turmeric
9. 1 inch ginger peeled
10. 3 tablespoons oil divided

Here is how to make Fresh Paneer
Microwave on high the potatos, covered for 3 minutes and set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons oil and fry the paneer pieces till they start changing color. Drain and set aside. Add the potato pieces to the pan and fry till they get a nice golden crust, drain and set aside. Grind the onion along with ginger and green chilly. Add the remaining oil to the pan and fry the onion paste till it starts to become brown. In the mean while grind the spinach, tomato to paste and set aside. When the onion paste become brown add the spinach paste and stir to combine and fry for 5-7 minutes. Add all the rest of the ingredients, add 1/2 cup of water, stir to combine and simmer on a low flame for 10 minutes. Stir ocassionally. Serve hot or at room temparature with Poori or Roti or rice

Yummy Cauliflower fry and Karela Khatta

Cauliflower is one of those vegetables which people either love or hate. I haven't met anybody who is just 'ok' with Cauliflower. Mr. Phool Gobi is truely kind of bland. If you don't cook him right, he will just become mushy and aukky. But if you cook it right, it will become one of the most delicious vegetables you will ever eat.
            Today, the Cauliflower fry I am making is a delicious variation of your regular Cauliflower stirfry. And to go with it, I made Bitter gourd khatta. I know many people hate bitter gourd because...ofcourse, it is bitter. But if you know how to cook it, let me tell you, it tastes great. People who haven't tried it should try this recipe or the Karela Fry which I will post soon

Cauliflower fry (Stir fried Cauliflower with sesame seeds and spices)

Yummy Califlower fry

Ingredients:

1. 1 tablespoon each of poppy seeds, sesame seeds
2. 2 tablespoons cashew
3. 1/2 teaspoon cumin
4. 1 medium head of cauliflower broken into pieces
5. 1 medium small onion chopped fine
6. 1 green chilly chopped
7. 1/2 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
8. 1 teaspoon coriander powder
9. 1/2 teaspoon salt, chilly powder, turmeric
10. 2 tablespoons oil
11. Handful of chopped cilantro

Dry roast the ingredients from 1-3 and grind them to powder without any water and set aside. Microwave on high for 3 minutes the cauliflower pieces and set aside. In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions till they start to turn brown. Add green chillies and ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add drained cauliflower pieces and cover and cook for 5 more minutes. Open the cover and fry for 5 more minutes. Add all the ingredients stir to combine and fry for 5-8 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy

Karela Khatta (Bitter gourd cooked in tamarind juice)

Karele ka khatta

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb light colored bitter gourd scarped and cut into 1/2 cm circles
2. 1/4 cup juice of tamarind
3. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
4. 1 tablespoon oil
5. 1/2 cup chopped onions
6. 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
7. 1/2 teaspoon salt, chilly powder
8. 1 teaspoon sugar
9. 2 cups tamarind juice
10. Cilantro for garnishing

In a pressure cooker add the karela pieces along with 1/4 cup tamarind juice and turmeric and cook for one whistle. Open the cooker and drain the pieces and set aside. Wash the cooker and heat the oil and fry the cumin for 3 minutes. Add onions and fry till they start becoming dark brown. Add all the ingredients except karela pieces, cover and cook for 2 whistles. Let the steam escape, open the cooker, add the karela pieces and cilantro and simmer for 10 minutes. Enjoy with hot white rice

Chicken Biryani

Hyderabadi Biryani is one of the most popular dishes of India. I tried Bombay Biryani and doesn't come anywhere close to the taste of hyderabadi Biryani. Take it from a person who doesn't like any Biryani in the first place
        Biryani is a tasty concoction of half cooked rice mixed with half cooked meat. And when you comebine them and cook them to completion combined then the magic happens and you get the best of both worlds. None-the-less I am not a fan of any rice dish which has meat mixed in it. But the Biryani recipe I am presenting here is a very tasty one and I do eat it, even though the whole world likes it and I don't
            Other than the rice and meat in the biryani, the next most important ingredient here are the fried onions. So, don't be lazy, fry those onions first
Fried Onions

Fried Onions

Ingredients:

1. 1 big red onion sliced thin
2. Oil for deep frying for 2-3 tablespoons oil

People usually deep fry the onions till they turn dark brown and drain them but I just shallow fry them in 2-3 tablespoons of oil, so as to limit the amount of oil these onions absorb. The results are the same either ways. Fry the onions and set aside
Chicken Curry for Biryani

Biryani layers

Ingredients:

1. 1 whole chicken cut into 10-12 pieces
2. 1 medium onion sliced thin
3. 3-4 green chillies sliced
4. 3 tablespoons oil
5. 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
6. 2 tablespoons yogurt (optional)
7. 1 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, coriander, cumin powder
8. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
9. Few cloves, 2 inches cinnamon, 1 elaichi (pounded a few times)

Wash and pat dry the chicken and marinate with all the powders for 20-30 minutes. Add yogurt if using and marinate for atleast 1 more hour. In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the onions till they start turning brown. Add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies and fry for a couple of minutes. Add chicken pieces and fry without moving them for 3-4 minutes . Add 1/4 cup of water and cover the cooker and cook for 2 whistles. Set aside

Biryani

Chicken Biryani

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups of rice cooked till half done
2. 1/3 cup each of chopped cilantro, mint, fresh sqeezed lemon juice
3. 1 tablespoon of finely chopped fresh ginger (optional)
4. 4-6 hard boiled eggs (optional)

In a baking tray 9x12 or larger, layer the half cooked rice, topped with mint and cilantro and half of chicken curry topped with fried onions and ginger pieces. Drizzle half of lemon juice. Repeat all the layers again. Cover and bake for 45-60 minutes at 300 degrees. Enjoy biryani with Dahi Raita and Vinegar Onions

Dahi Raita, Kachumbar

Kachumbar

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup plain yogurt beaten
2. 1 tablespoon frsh squeezed lemon juice
3. 2 tablespoons each of finely chopped onions, cucumber, tomato, cilantro
4. 1 green chilly finely chopped
5. 1/2 teaspoon salt
6. 1/4 cup water

Mix all the ingredients and your Kachambar is ready

Vinegar Onions

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup finely chopped red onions
2. 1/3 cup white vinegar
3. 1 green chilly finely chopped
4. 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients together and enjoy

Amazing Uttapam

Today, being Saturday we have time to eat a good Indian breakfast. I asked hubby dear last night what he wanted to eat for breakfast and he said "anything". So I said "if that is what you want, you can make it for yourself"
                Anyway, I never made Uttapam before and I wanted to try to make it for a long time but since it was weekend, I was out of many of the ingredients. So I woke up and went shopping even before anyone else was awake and got all the ingredients. And believe me it came out yummy

Onion Uttapam ( Sour Indian Pancakes with onions)

Uttapam

Ingredients for Uttapam batter:

1. 2-1/2 cups all purpose flour
2. 1 cup plain sour yogurt
3. 1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt
4. 1/2-1 cup water
5. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda(optional)

Ingredients for mixing in Uttapam

1. 1 medium onion finely chopped
2. 2-3 green chillies finely chopped
3. 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
4. 2 teaspoons cumin
5. oil for frying
6. 1 big tomato finely chopped
7. 1/4 cup green onions finely chopped (optional)
8. 1 inch fresh ginger very finely chopped (don't mince it)
9. 2 tablespoons chopped cashew

Mix all the ingredients for Uttapam batter the night before you intend to eat them. If you feel the yogurt you are using is not sour, using baking soda. Mix well and leave it on the counter to ferment overnight or inside you oven with the light on, if the night is cold.

In the morning get all the ingredients to mix in the uttapam ready. In a pan heat a little bit of oil and fry cumin for couple of minutes. Add cashew and fry for a minute. Add ginger and onionsand green chillies and fry for few minutes. Add tomato and fry for a couple of minutes. Add cilantro and stir well. Add about 1/2 cup of batter over all these fried items, cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Flip the Uttapam carefully, cover and cook for 3-4 minutes. Uncover and keep cooking for a couple of more minutes. Serve hot as is or any of the Chutneys . I will add some new chutney recipe soon.

Chana Dal Aam and Aalu Turai

I went to the Indian stores the other day and got some vegetables. One of the vegetables I definitely get is Turai, Beera Kaaya, Chinese Okra or Ridge Gourd. There used to be a little Ranch type farmer's shop near the place I used to live when I came to the US of A. In those beginner's days I didn't have a licence and no friends. After 6 months I discovered this place and I loved to walkt to this place which used to be about 1 mile from home. This reminded me of the local vegetable markets back home in India. Oh! how I used to miss those shopping trips...even now so.
             Then, during one of my visits to this shop, I discovered that even orientals eat this vegetable. One day as I was picking up some Turai, a lady in front of me (was a Chinese lady) said "Oh! so, even Indian's eat this vegetable Huh! I love the soup we make with it" . Ofcourse we in India cook it till all the water evaporates.
              Anyway, I also got some raw mango or Kairi, Keri or green mango from the Indian store and I made Chana Dal (Split peas) Aam (mango) . And as I forgot to mention above, I made ridge gourd with potato and served these with plain hot rice

Aalu Turai (Ridge gourd with Potato curry)



Aalu Turai

 Ingredients:

1. 2 medium sized ridge gourd peeled, tasted and sliced into 1/2 cm pieces
2. 1 big or 2 medium potatos, peeled and cut into 1 or 11/2 inch cubes
3. 1/2 cup sliced onion
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, turmeric, red chilly powder, cumin, mustard seeds, coriander powder
5. 2 tablespoons oil
6. 1 green chilly slit
7. Coriander for garnishing

Tasting the turai for bitterness is very important. Otherwise the bitterness will just ruin your curry. After you peel the ridge gourd, cut a small piece of it and chew it (yes raw piece) and if it is bitter cut about an inch and discard it. Repeat the process until you can eat it without getting a bitter taste. I know some people, who don't know how to do it or don't have the patience to do it. Believe me, this step will make your curry taste awesome

In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the cumin and mustard seeds till they start to crackle. Add onions and fry till they become tender. Add green chillies and fry for a minute. Add all the powders and stir once. Add the rest of the ingredients, a little bit of water and cover and cook for either 20 minutes or for 2 whistles in the cooker. After the steam escapes, open the cooker and simmer till most of the water escapes or the curry reaches a consistency of your choise. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy

Chana Dal Aam (Mango with Yellow Split peas)

Chana Dal Aam

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup yellow split peas (Chana Dal) soaked in water for 20 minutes
2. 1 medium raw mango peeled and cut into pieces (If you like eating the flesh off the seed, leave some flesh on it and cook it also)
3. 1/2 teaspoon cumin, mustard seeds
4. Few curry leaves, red chillies broken
5. 1/2 cup sliced onions
6. 2 green chillies sliced
7. 1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt
8. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
9. 2 tablespoons oil divided

In a pressure cooker heat one tablespoon oil and fry the onions till tender. Add sliced red chillies and dal and mango pieces and cook for 2 whistles with 2 cups of water and turmeric. After the steam escapes open the cooker. In a pan heat the oil and fry the mustard seeds and cumin for a couple of minutes. Add red chillies and curry leaves and fry for 3-4 minutes. Add this to the cooked mango dal and add salt and stir to combine. Simmer for 5 minutes, garnish with cilantro, cook for a couple of more minutes and enjoy



PS: The Turai with potato curry photo does not do justice to its taste. The photo is not very colorful mainly because I have no cilantro in it and also you can't see any cumin and mustard seeds :(  . But the curry is delicious

Warm Tortellini

After my kid started eating mac and cheese I started looking at pasta in a whole new different way. Plain old mac and cheese was just that for me-Plain old. I started searching for ways to jazz it up a bit and then I discovered Tortellini and Ravioli. And the best Tortellini I found was at Trader Joe's. Their Tri-Color mini Tortellini is just perfect for a quick meal for a hungry toddler.

             I discovered that pasta or tortellini or ravioli if made properly can me made for a cold winter night or for a hot summer evening.  And both kind of nights can be filled with warm and fuzzy feelings.

Tortellini with Artichokes and Olives

Tortellini with Artichoke hearts and chicken

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups cheese filled dried tortellini or your faviorite tortellini cooked according to package directions
2. 1 cup or more cooked and chopped chicken
3. 1 bottle marinated hearts of artichokes drained and chopped rough
4. 1/2 can chopped or whole black olives drained
5. 2 tablespoons olive oil
6. 1/2 cup chopped onions
7. 2 garlic cloves minced (leave it, if you are making it for a hot evening)
8. 1/2 teaspoon salt and fesh ground pepper
9. 1 cup marinara sauce (optional)
10. 2 tablespoons Alfredo sauce or Philadelphia Cooking Creme or Sour cream or milk (Optional)

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions till tender. Add garlic if using and fry for a coupld of minutes. Add cubed zucchini and fry for five minutes. Add chicken and fry for a few minutes. Add artichokes and olives and  and salt and pepper and stir well. If you want a little gravy in the Tortellini add the marinara sauce and the alfredo sauce (or its substitutes) and stir to combine and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the Tortellini to a bowl and add this mixture over the tortellini. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve warm. Your creamy Tortellini dinner is ready

Plain Poha

Poha or Chudwa or as it is called in Urdu is Flattened rice. There are quite a number of dishes you can make with these flattened rice. This "Flattened rice" are literall what it is. Rice which is flattened. When I was a little girl, myself and my neighbor girls would play kitchen with either this poha or "murmure", this is puffed rice. We would mix these in water and then mix some sugar in it and make balls out of it and eat it as if it were cooked rice. Those were good 'ol summer time afternoon games without waking up the slumbering adults.
          This weekend I went to one of my cousin's house and she made this breakfast recipe with Poha. I have eaten poha at a couple of more friends' places but none was as tasty as this one. It was yummy. Anyway, here is the recipe, the way my cousin made it

Plain Poha (Breakfast with flattened rice)

Plain Poha

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups poha washed under running water and set aside in a sieve to drain
2. 2 tablespoons each of oil, fresh sqeezed lemon juice
3. 1 tablespoon peanuts (with skin is also fine)
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin, mustard seeds, urad dal, turmeric, salt
5. 1/4 cup sliced red onions
6. 2 green chillies split
7. 2-3 dried red chillies broken
8. Few curry leaves
9. Coriander for garnishing

In a pan heat the oil and fry the peanuts for a couple of minutes. Now fry cumin, mustard seeds and urad dal for a couple of minutes. Add red chillies and green chillies and curry leaves and fry for a couple of minutes more. Add turmeric and fry for a minute. Add onions and fry till the raw smell goes away. Add poha and salt and stir well to combine, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add lemon juice and coriander stir to combine and serve hot

Kaleji Maghaz Masala with Roghni Roti

OK if you are here then that means you probably eat the organs of lamb and goat. I know, I know some people might get grossed out but if you know how to cook it, these things will be the most delicious things you will ever eat
            I wanted to make Naan along with this liver-brains curry. But instead I made roti for the same with a little difference and it turned out to be great

Kaleji Maghaz masala (Goat liver and brains cooked in spiced yogurt gravy)

Kaleji Maghaz Masala

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 lb goat Kaleji cut into 1 inch cubes
2. 2 tablespoons ginger juice
3. 1/2 teaspoon salt, turmeric, cumin, fennel seeds, poppy seeds
4. 3 tablespoons oil
5. 1 medium onion ground to paste
6. 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
7. 3 green chillies slit
8. 1 inch cinnamon stick and few cloves
9. 2 brains (may be 1/4-1/3 lb)

Ingredients for Marinade:

1. 1/2 cup plain yogurt
2. 1 tablespoons each of corainder, ginger-garlic paste
3. 1/2 teaspoon each of  cumin powder, salt, fresh ground black pepper, turmeric

If you have frozen kaleji marinate it with ginger-juice for about 20 minutes. After 20 wash the liver pieces until the water runs clear. This step some cook informs me removes the odor you get when you cook liver.
            Marinade the liver pieces with all the ingredients in the marinade and set it aside for 30-60 minutes. Dry roast cumin, poppy seeds and fennel and let it cool. Grind them together along with onions to a paste. heat the oil in a pan and fry the onions till the paste starts turning dark brown. Add cinnamon and cloves and fry for a minute. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add slit green chillies and the liover pieces and fry for 10 minutes. Add 2 cups of water and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile boil water with salt and turmeric. Put the brains in this water and boil for 10 minutes. Drain and cut into big chunks. Add these pieces to the curry and simmer for 5 more minutes stirring occasionally. Garnish with Cilantro and enjoy with Roghni Roti

Roghni Roti (Roti made with milk and yogurt)

Roghni Roti

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups of wheat flour
2. 1 cup of milk
3. 1 teaspoon each of salt(or to taste), sugar
4. 1/2 cup yogurt
5. Pinch of saffron
6. 1/2 cup or so water
7. oil or ghee for frying the roti

Mix the saffron in warm water and set aside for 5 minutes. Add salt and sugar to the flour and sift. Add the milk and beaten yogurt to the flour and make dough. Add water as needed . Apply some oil to your palm and roll the dough ball around. Cover and set aside for 20-30 minutes. Make 6-9 parts of the dough and roll into roti. Fry with ghee or canola oil. Enjoy with Kaleji maghaz masala

Gobi Gosht and Masala Dal

I opened my fridge and found nothing but a white head'o cauliflower and some lamb meat known as mutton in India. So...I was stumped as to what should be for dinner tonight. Me and mui husband love cauliflower but lately it seems to be very bland to me no matter how I cook it. SO I searched the web and found a Pakistani recipe for Cauliflower with lamb meat. And I made some masala dal with it. Here are the recipes

Gobi Gosht (Cauliflower with lamb meat)

Ingredients:

1. 1 medium cauliflower cut into florets
2. 1 lb boneless lamb meat cut into bite sized pieces
3. 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
4. 1 medium onion sliced into half circles
5. 2 tablespoons oil
6. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric
7. 1 big green chilly
8. 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the onions till tender. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of more minutes. Add mutton and all the ingredients except cauliflower along with a cup of water and cook for 2 whistles. Let all the steam escape, open the cooker and add cauliflower. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes covered. Add roughly chopped green chilly and cilantro. Simmer for some more time till the gravy thicken a bit. Serve with steamed rice.

Masala dal (Lentils cooked with Indian spices)

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup each of toor dal and masoor dal
2. 1 cup water
3. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, turmeric, chilly powder, coriander powder, cumin, mustard seeds, citric acid, grated ginger
4. 1 teaspoon oil
5. 2 dried red chillies
6. few curry leaves
7. 1/4 cup each of finely chopped onions, tomato
8. cilantro for garnishing

Soak both the dal in a cup of water for 30 minutes. Boil the same for 30 minutes or until the dal becomes soft. In a pan heat the oil and add cumin, mustard seems, red chillies and curry leaves and fry till they start to splutter. Add grated ginger and onions and fry till they become tender. Add tomatoes and fry till they become pulpy. Add all the spices and mix well. Add the boiled dal and a cup of water and simmer for 5 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with white rice or roti

Spinach Shrimp and Tomato Kut

Last week, when I went grocery shopping the spinach looked soooooo fresh and appetizing. So...what do we shoppers do...I got it and intended to cook it very very soon. But now almost a week passed and it was about to get spoiled. I wanted to make Spinach with lamb but changed my mind and I made Spinach and Shrimp. I turned out great.
          And as I already told you guys, on my blog I will not only post recipes but will post the whole dinner idea. You know a curry, another side dish and then rice or bread/ roti or something else. So I made Tomato kut with this. This is one of those famous Hyderabadi dishes. And I served these with the old faithful Indian white steamed rice. So here comes the recipes

Spinach Shrimp (Shrimp cooked with Spinach and Indian spices)

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 lb shrimp peeled and deveined
2. 1 bunch fresh spinach or 2 cups frozen thawed spinach chopped
3. 1 big green chiily or 2 small chillies chopped
4. 2 tablespoons oil
5. 1/4 cup red onion chopped fine
6. 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
7. 1/2 teaspoon each of  salt, chilly powder, cumin powder, coriander powder turmeric divided
8. 1/2 cup plain yogurt beaten (Greek yogurt tastes better)

Wash the spinach if using fresh and pressure cook it (even if it is frozen) for 2 whistles. In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions till they start to change color. Add chopped chilly and ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of more minutes. Add the shrimp and fry till they turn pink. Now add the spinach and all the spices except the yogurt. Mix to combine and simmer till most of the liquid evaporates. Add the yogurt and simmer till the gravy becomes a bit thick. Serve hot

Tomato Kut (Tomatoes cooked in Indian spices)

Ingredients:

1. 1 can petite cut tomatoes
2. 1 teaspoon each of cumin powder, finely chopped garlic (not paste)
3. 2 teaspoons coriander powder
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt red chilly powder, mustard seeds, cumin seeds
5. 1 big or 2 small green chillies chopped
6. 2 red chillies cut into pieces
7. few curry leaves (optional)

In a pan heat oil and fry the cumin and mustard seeds till they start to splutter. Now add chillies and garlic and and curry leaves if using and fry for a couple of minutes. Add all the spices except salt and fry for a couple of more minutes. Add tomatoes with juice and cover and took till they become pulp. Simmer till it becomes thick. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy steaming hot

Breakfast Bowl

I am bored of eating the same old breakfast everyday. I used to try so many different things before I had kids but from the time I was pregnant my staple breakfast has been peanut butter-jelly sandwich or sandwich with Orange Marmalade. But today I wanted to eat Chick-fil-A's breakfast sandwich but its so cold outside and I didn't feel like going out. So I decided on making myself a breakfast bowl
        I never ate any of those breakfast bowl's you get in those fast food restaurant chains. Mainly because we don't eat pork and almost all of them have bacon in it as an ingredient. And ofcourse to go to Chick-fil-A is to have thier yummy lemonade. I had some lemon tea cans at hand so no coffee today

Breakfast Bowl (Scrambled eggs with veggies and meat)

Breakfast Bowl

Ingredients:

1. 2 eggs beaten
2. 2 tablespoons finely chopped onions
3. 1 big or 2 small mushrooms chopped
4. 1 small tomato chopped (I am using Sun-dried tomato 1 piece)
5. 1/4 of red or green capsicum finely chopped (I am using fire roasted red pepper)
6. 1 teaspoon finely chopped cilantro
7. 2 slices of deli cut turkey or chicken chopped (optional)
8. 1 teaspoon shredded cheese of your choice (I am using mozzarella)
9. 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
10. 1 tablespoon each of water and oil

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions and mushrooms till the raw smell disappears and they get tender. In the mean time in a bowl add the water and salt and pepper and mix well (This step is to ensure at salt gets dissolved and gets distributed evenly throughout the egg). Add the eggs and beat them. Add this to the pan on medium heat and let it cook for a couplr of minutes. Add capcicum, tomato and turkey and stir to scamble the egg. Cook for 2 more minutes. Cut the heat and add cheese and cilantro and stir one more time. Serve hot

Lemon Tea

Ambada dal and Arvi Besan salan

Arvi to Taro Roots or Colocasia or Arbi or Chama Dumpa is one of my favourite roots after ppotato ofcourse. So the other day I got some of those and today I finally got to the point of making something out of it.
       If you were following my blog then you would know that I found Thothakura or Amaranth Leaves and I had a few of those left over. So I made Khatti dal with those leaves

Arvi Besan Salan (Taro root cooked with Chickpea flour and yogurt)


Arvi Besan Sallan

 Ingredients:

1. 1 lb arvi boiled for 2 whistles and peeled
2. 1/2 cup onions finely chopped
3. 1/2 cup yogurt beaten
4. 1/4 cup besan or chickpea flour
5. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (optional)
6. 1 teaspoon or less of salt
7. 1/2 teaspoon chilly powder, turmeric, cumin and kalongi (onion seeds -optional)
8. 2 tablespoons oil

Cut the boiled arvi into 1/2 inch discs and set aside. In a pan heat the oil and fry the cumin and kalongi (if using ) for 2-3 minutes. Add onions and fry till they become tender. Mix together besan and yogurt with 1 cup of water and set aside. Add the arvi to the pan and fry for 5 minutes. Stir once. Add all the powder ingredients and stir to combine. Add the yogurt-besan mix stir to combine, cover and simmer on low for 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and lemon juice (is using) and serve hot with Chapati or Rice and dal

Ambada (Khatti Bhaji) dal (Lentils with Amaranth leaves)

Bhaji Khatti Dal

Ingredients

1. 1 cup toor dal
2. 1/2-3/4 cup Amaranth leaves chopped and washed
3. 1 medium tomato chopped
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin, mustard seeds, turmeric, salt
5. 1 green chilly chopped
6. 2 dried red chillies broken
7. few curry leaves
8. 1/2 teaspoon citric acid or 2 tablespoons lemon juice ( as per taste)
9. 1 clove garlic minced

In the pressure cooker, cook the dal, tomato and Amaranth leaves with 2 cups of water and turmeric for 4 whistles. Let all the steam escape, open the cooker and mash the dal. Add the salt, green chilly pieces and citric acid if you are using it. If you are using Lemon juice hold it. Bring it to a boil and simmer for 5-8 minutes. In a pan heat the oil and fry cumin and mustard seeds for a minute. Add garlic, red chilly pieces and curry leaves and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add this tempering to the dal and bring it to boil again and boil for 5 minutes. Cut the heat and add lemon juice if you are using it and garnish with cilantro and enjoy

Aalu bonda

Today is Sunday and as usual one of the few days of the week when actual breakfast is made. And I am bored with all those regular indian breakfasts i.e Idli, Dosa, wada etc. So I planned to make this Aalu bonda. It has been quite some time that I made this
                 This particular dish can be eaten as a breakfast or as an evening snack with Tea.
The curry I made to make bonda out of can be used as a side dish and served with with rice and dal

Dry Aalo curry (Potato fry curry with Indian spices)

Dry potato curry

Ingredients :

1. 3 medium sized potatoes boiled, peeled and cut into pieces
2. 1/2 cup thin sliced onions
3. 1/2 teaspoon salt, chilly powder, turmeric, cumin
4. 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
5. 2 tablespoons oil

In a pan heat the oil and fry the cumin till they start to splutter. Add the onions and fry till they become tender.  Add the boiled potato pieces along with all the other ingredients and 2 tablespoons oil except lemon juice, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Stir to combine once. Cut the heat and add the lemon juice and some chopped cilantro, stir to combine and serve  with rice or dosa or roti

Aalu Bonda (Potato curry dipped in Chickpea flour and deep fried)

Aalu Bonda

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup besan (chickpea flour)
2. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, turmeric and Ajwan and baking soda
3. Oil for deep frying
4. Above made aalu curry filling made into 15-18 balls

Mix the besan with all the ingredients except potato with 1/2-1 cup of water into thick pancake batter. Set aside 5 minutes. Heat the oil in a deep frying pan. Dip the potato balls in the batter and fry till golden brown. Drain on a paper towel and serve with chutney or ketchup

Thotakura Poopu and Maamidi Rasam

The one thing I missed a lot after coming to the US were the green leafy vegetables we used to eat in India. I am from a small town In Southern India from the state of Andhra Pradesh. When I was little, we used to get such fresh leafy vegetables and I loved them. And one of my neighbors actually used to go to the nearby fields and buy these leafys from the farmers. And sometimes they used to take me with them. So they were that fresh.
              I used to miss the Thotakura (Amaranth leaves) and Gongura (Sorrel leaves). After almost 4 years I found Sorrel leaves in one of the Indian stores heres and imagine the look on my face. Oh man, there was genuine pleasure on my face.

Amarnath leaves

              This time around I found these Amaranth (Thotakura) leaves in one of those Chinese grocery stores. So I found out our neighbors, the Chinese, also use them. Anyway I got them yesterday, but they were monsters compared to what we used to get back in India. But still I love them and I made the Poopu or Poriyal with these leaves and Rasam with dried mango instead of Tamarind

Thotakura Poopu (Amaranth leaves tempered)

Thotakura Poopu

Ingredients:

1. About 3-4 cups of Amarnath leaves cleaned and chopped (along with the stems)
2. 2 tablespoons oil
3. 1/2 teaspoon each of turmeric, mustard seeds, cumin, chana dal(soaked in water for 10 minutes)
4. 1 teaspoon urad dal, salt
5. 4 dried red chillies broken into pieces
6. few curry leaves
7. 2 ginger cloves chopped

In a pressure cooker, cook the washed chopped Amaranth leaves with 1/4 cup of water and turmeric for 2 whistles (Skip this step if the stems were not that think )
In a pan heat the oil and fry the mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal and cumin for a couple of minutes. Now add garlic, red chillies and curry leaves and fry for 5 minutes. Add the leaves either from cooker or washed and stir to combine. Cover and cook till the leaves are cooked (for about 10-20 minutes) and all the excess water has evaporated. Serve with hot rice, dal or rasam

Mamidi rasam(Dried mango powder soup)

Mamidi Rasam

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup dried mango pieces soaked in a cup of water for 1 hour
2. 1 teaspoon salt (or less), rasam powder
3. 1 green chilly sliced
4. 2 red chillies broken
5. 1 tablespoon oil
6. 1/2 teaspoon asafoetida, cumin, mustard seeds, turmeric

Grind the soaked dried mango pieces (or if you have fresh sour mango, grind it into paste) to a paste and boil it with 3 cups of water and turmeric and green chilly for about 15 minutes. In a pan heat the oil and fry the cumin and mustard seeds for 3 minutes. Add asafoetida, red chillies and curry leaves and fry for few more minutes. Add this tempering to the mango liquid and the rasam powder and bring to a boil. garnish with cilantro and let it boil for 5 more minutes. Serve

Aalo Posto and Kaccha khatta

I am always on the look out for some new recipes with potato. Because it is one of those vegetables, my mom taught me, always to keep on hand. Because Potato has a long shelf life and anyway here in the US of A potatos can be bought almost only in sack sizes. Hence I found this recipe called Potato Posto and I had all the ingredients, on hand, it called for. And to go with it, I made one of my absolute favourite sides. Its called Kaccha Khatta and it literally means something which is not cooked. And yes, this is a tamarind soup which is not cooked at all. I hope you will enjoy this meal as much as I enjoyed

Aalu Posto (Potato shallow fried with onion seeds)

aalu posta

Ingredients:

1. 2 large or 3 medium potatos peeled and 2 cm cubes
2. 1 teaspoon kalonji or onion seeds
3. 2 tablespoons mustard oil (this you can get in any Indian store) else use any vegetable oil
4. 1 teaspoon poppy seeds soaked for 20-30 minutes in 1/4 cup of water and ground to paste
5. 1/2 teaspoon salt, chilly powder, turmeric

In a pan heat the oil to smoking hot (only if you are using mustard oil)and then reduce the heat and add kalonji and fry for 5 minutes. Add the potato pieces and cover and fry till they get cooked half way through. Add salt, chilly powder and turmeric and stir to combine. Add the poppy paste and fry uncovered for further 10 minutes or until the curry starts getting golden brown. Enjoy with hot rice and kaccha khatta

Kaccha Khatta (Raw tamarind juice with ground sesame and spices)

Kaccha Khatta

Ingredients:

1.  3 cups juice from a lemon sized tamarind
2. 1 teaspoon or to taste salt,
3. 1 or 2 jalapenos roasted
4. 1/2 teaspoon sugar
5. 1 heaped teaspoon sesame seeds roasted and ground to powder
6. 1 tablespoon red onions chopped fine
7. 1 teaspoon cilantro chopped fine

Roast the green chillies and let them cool. After they have cooled enough to handle, mash them with hand or if you are squirmish use the back of a teaspoon and add it to the tamarind juice. Ground the sesame seeds which are dry roasted and mix it to the juice. Stir the rest of the ingredients to the juice and enjoy immediately or to enhance the flavors a bit more set it aside for 30-45 minutes. Its amazingly delicious. Once you taste it, it will become a regular item in your house hold