CornMeal idli

I have been really busy lately and haven' been blogging here. But today I made a point that I will make a dish and blog it.

I was searching for Indian breakfast recipes and I found this recipe for cornmeal idli and since I had soon meal I made it. And I loved them and my little one also liked it. I only difference I did was I had blue cornmeal on hand and not the regular yellow corn meal. This blue corn meal is from a trip to Albuquerque

Corn Meal Idli

Ingredients
Cornmeal - 2 cups
Sour Yogurt - 2 cups
Carrot - 1 (grated)
Cilantro - handful (finely chopped)
Curry Leaves - 1 strand (finely chopped)
Water - as needed for batter
Oil- 2 tblsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Channa dal- 1 tsp

Method
1. Heat oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and channa dal.
2. Add the corn meal to this and roast it for few minutes. This step is optional but gives a nice nutty flavour. If you are in a hurry, skip this step.
3. Swith off and add grated carrot, chopped curry leaves, cilantro, yogurt and required salt.
4. Mix well and let this rest for 10-15 minutes.
5. Add water to bring it to the right consistency for making idlis or dosas.
6. Add a pinch of baking soda to the above batter and mix nicely. Steam them in idli plates for 15 minutes.
 

Mexican marinated Carrots and Radishes

There used to be a Mexican restaurant which was my favorite. Their enchiladas were awesome. And of course the condiment bar was always fresh and super delicious. And one of the items there was the Mexican marinated radishes and carrots. And my hubby dear was crazy about them.

So, today for dinner its grilled fish tacos and the recipe will soon follow. But I am going to serve it along with the other fixing and also the marinated carrots and radishes. And the original recipe said to leave it atleast 2 hours before serving. I made it in the afternoon. I tasted it and its spicy and super delicious. I am pretty happy with it

Mexican Marinated Radishes and carrots

Marinated Carrots and Radishes

Ingredients:

1. 1 large carrot cut into 3-4 mm thick circles
2. 6-8 radishes ashed and cut into same thickness slices
3. 2 large or 3 medium garlic pods crushed
4. 1/2 teaspoon each of sugar, salt, oregano
5. 1 cup each of water, white vinegar (The original recipe calls for white wine vinegar)
6. 1 serrano or jalapeno chili sliced thin
7. Quarter of a large red onion cubed
8. 1/4 cup chopped (big chops) cilantro

Heat the water and vinegar along with salt and sugar. Add the garlic, onions, chili and cilantro and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Don't boil it. Pour it over the carrots and radishes. Let cool and set it in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving. Enjoy with your Mexican meal 

Shepherd's pie

So...it was Sunday and I was looking for something different to serve to the family. I had ground lamb and basically that was my searching point. I planned to make cheese burger pie but I had very little cheese so that was out of question. And when I was searching for the recipes I came across Shepherd's pie. mmm yummy deliciousness. The family loved it.

Since I did not have celery I improvised with Zucchini and nobody noticed any difference and they loved it. And I served it with steamed broccoli. And yummy tummy filling dinner was ready. The photo does not do any justice to the deliciousness of the dish

Shepherd's pie(Ground lamb topped with mashed potato and baked)

Shepherd's pie

Shepherd's pie dinner

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb ground lamb
2. 1 medium zucchini cubed into 1 cm pieces
3. 1 large carrot cubed int 1 cm pices
4. 1 cup chopped onions
5. 2 large or 4 medium garlic pods chopped fine
6. 1 tablespoon oil
7. 1/2 teaspoon each of fresh ground pepper, thyme, rosemary
8. 1 heaped tablespoon flour
9. 1 cup chicken broth
10. 1 teaspoon salt divided
11. 3 large or 5 medium russet potatoes boiled.
12. 1/2 cup milk
13. 2 tbsp+ 1 tablespoon butter
14. 1 cup cheddar cheese

Peel the boiled potatoes and mash them with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper , milk and 1 tbsp butter till they become smooth. Set aside

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions for 5 minutes. Add carrot and zucchini and fry for 5 minutes. Add garlic and fry for a minute. Add ground meat/lamb and fry for 10 minutes or cooked through. Add the rest of the salt and pepper and the spices. Add the flour and stir well. Add the chicken broth and stir to combine. Cut the heat.

Pre heat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray non stick cooking spray in a rectangle pan. Add the meat mixture to it. Top it with the mashed potato and smooth it out. Sprinkle cheddar cheese and dot with butter. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Set aside for 10 minutes before serving

Kaleji Shorbadaar

Kaleji or goat liver is not one of my favorite currys'. But the one I made this time was super delicious. I served it with Sambar and white rice but it will be great with any Indian Bread

Kaleji ShorbaDaar(Liver in Tomato gravy)

Julienned liver in Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb goat liver cut into thin strips1-2 cms long
2. 1 can tomato sauce
3. 1 medium red onion sliced thin
4. 2 tablespoons oil
5. 2 cloves and 1 inch cinnamon stick
6. 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, red chilli powder, turmeric
7. 1 heaped teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
8. 1 tablespoons fresh juice from lemon

Wash the liver well till the water runs clear. Drain it and marinate it with salt, chilli powder, turmeric and lemon juice for 30-60 minutes.

In a pan heat 1 tablespoon oil and fry the onions till they turn dark brown (alternatively, you an deep fry the onions till crunchy...but I am avoiding too much oil here). Drain and set aside.

In the same pan add the remaining oil and fry the cinnamon and cloves for a minute. Add the marinated liver and ginger garlic paste and fry on high heat for 5-7 minutes. Add the tomato sauce stir well and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add the fried onions and mix well and garnish with cilantro and serve with roti or rice

Maharastrian shrimp curry

So after a long gap I am back on the blogspot and today I made a yummy shrimp curry from the central part of India, specifically from Maharastra. Maharastra has a coast line on the west bordered by the Arabian Sea. This is a curry with a coconut and tomato based spicy gravy. I made Maharastrian rice to serve my curry with Maharastrian rice with my own twist on it
The actual curry is from the IndiaWest website

Maharastrian shrimp curry( shrimp in a tomato and coconut gravy)
Ingredients

1 pound shrimp/ prawns peeled

1 large onion chopped

2 medium tomatoes chopped

1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste

1 teaspoon red chilli powder

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon tamarind paste

salt to taste

chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

half cup coconut milk

Combine the shrimp, ginger-garlic paste, red chillie powder, turmeric powder, tamarind paste, salt and allow it to marinate for 20 - 30 minutes. In a shallow bottom non - stick pan, heat oil. Once hot, add two crushed garlic cloves. Wait for a minute until it becomes fragrant. Next, add the onions and saute until the onions becomes transluscent. Add the tomatoes, stir for approximately 5 minutes. At this point add the marinated prawns and stir until they lose the grey color and turn pink. Add 1 cup water and let the curry come to boil. Then, add half cup coconut milk and the chopped coriander leaves. Taste and add salt if necessary. Cook further for a couple of minutes. Serve hot with Maharastrian Rice

Maharastrian Style Rice (Rice cooked with Potato and eggplants)

Maharastrian Potato Eggplant rice

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups basmati rice washed 
2. 2 medium potatoes peeled and cubed small
3. 3 medium small Indian eggplants washed and cubed
4. 1/2 cup onions chopped
5. 1 serrano chilli chopped
6. 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
7. 1 tablespoon oil
8. 3/4 teaspoon salt
9. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions till they start changing colors. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry for 30 seconds. Add the chillies, potato and eggplant and fry for 5-7 minutes. Add salt and turmeric and mix well. Add 4 cups water and bring it to boil. Add rice and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until rice is done. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy hot hot

Sindhi Bhindi Aloo

Long time ago, my father used to have a colleague who was Sindhi. He invited us for dinner one time, I was too little to remember what was on the table, but I sure do remember it was very different than the day to day meals my mom used to make.
               So, I was feeling a little nostalgic and I was searching for Sindhi recipes mainly Shrimp recipes. But I ended up finding a recipe with Okra and Potatoes and it looked super yummy and very different and that is what I made for dinner. But I made a few changes to the actual recipe
               The original recipe called for whole okra, sliced and the masala filled into it. Since I didn't find any fresh Okra I improvised with frozen cut okra. The curry was delicious but I am sure the original recipe would have tasted a bit different. And then I made rice and Sambar

Sindhi Bhindi Aloo (Dry curry made of Okra and Potatoes)

Sindhi Bhindi Aloo

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb Okra fresh ends off and slit (or 12 oz frozen okra thawed)
2. 2 medium small russet potatoes peeled 
3. 1 large or two medium small tomatoes chopped into 1 inch pieces
4. 1/2 teaspoon salt
5. 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
6. 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
7. 2 tablespoons oil

For Green Masala

1. 1 Serrano green chillie (if you prefer less hot, seeds removed)
2. 1 cup chopped cilantro
3. 1/2 cup chopped red onions
4. 2 big or 4 small garlic pods
5. 1 inch ginger
6. 1/4 teaspoon salt

Grind the items under Green Masala and set aside.

Cut the potatoes into 1 inch circles and slit them half way into two circles. 

Fill the green masala into the potato slits and okra slits if using whole okra.

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the green masala stuffed potato pieces 2-3 minutes on each side. If using whole okra drop them now to the pan. If using cut okra add them to the pan and give it a stir and fry for 3 minutes. 

Add the green masala over the cut okra or if using whole okra add the remaining masala to the pan.

FROM HERE THE STEPS FOR CUT AND WHOLE OKRA ARE THE SAME.

Add the remaining salt, turmeric and coriander powder and give it a good stir. Add tomato pieces, cover and cook for 10 minute on medium low flame. Remove cover and cook till any extra water evaporates and the curry becomes a dry one. Serve with rice or roti

Turkey pot pie

Turkey Pot Pie

                                                          

Pie crust

Ingredients

1. 2 cups all purpose flour
2. 1 teaspoon salt
3. 3/4 cup butter chilled
4. 4-8 tablespoons of ice cold water

Cut the butter into the flour mixed with salt. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until the dough comes together. Divide into 2 parts cover with a plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes

Pot pie filling

Ingredients

1. 1/2 tablespoon each of olive oil and butter
2. 3 garlic cloves minced
3. 1/2 cup each of fresh green peas, cubed carrots, spinach, chopped onions, cubed zucchini, cubed potatoes
4. 1/2 teaspoon or more of each chopped fresh rosemary and thyme
5. 2 tablespoons flour
6. 11/2 cups chicken broth
7. 1/2 cup milk
8. 1 teaspoon or less of salt
9. 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
10. 2-21/2 cups cooked chopped turkey or chicken

In a pan heat the oil and butter and fry the onions till they become translucent. Add garlic and fry for a minute. Add all the vegetables and sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon salt and pepper And cover and cook for 7-8 minutes. Move them to one side of the pan. Reduce heat to medium low and add flour and stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add milk and broth which have been warmed a little. Stir to combine. Simmer for 5- 8 minutes. Make sure it's not too thick because it will further get cooked in the oven. If it is too thick add 1/2 cup chicken broth and stir to combine

Roll one part of the prepared dough to fit into a 9 inch pie pan or in my case I used 5 rankings to make personal pies. Press it into the bottom and sides. Divide the pie filling into the rankings or add the whole thing to the 9 inch pie. Roll the other half of the dough and cover the pie. Pole some holes in the pies . Bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees and 15-20 degrees at 300 degrees. Set aside for 5 minutes before serving

Serve with salad on the side

Simple Salad