Red Lady with Walnuts (A refreshing salad for the summer heat)

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  Ingredients
  1 cup red cabbage shredded fine
  Juliennes of 1/4 red pepper and 1/4 yellow pepper
  a few slices of zuccini cut very fine
  peeled segments of 1/2 an orange
  10 mint leaves chopped fine
  finely chopped ginger ( optional)
  2 walnuts broken into quarters

  Seasoning
  2tb sps malt vinegar
  1 t sp powdered jaggery or brown sugar
  salt to taste


  Method
  Mix all the ingredients in a salad bowl and refrigerate. add the seasoning just before serving.
  A very refreshing accompaniment with shammi kebabs, tangri kebabs cutlets or hard boiled eggs.

Paneer/Tofu bhurji

     Ingredients
     200 gms paneer/ tofu cumbled up
     100 gms coarsely chopped onions
     2 large tomaotoes skinned and chopped roughly
     2-3 green chillies
     freshly chopped coriander/cilantro leaves 3/4 t sp cumin seeds
     11/2 tb sp cooking oil
     salt and red chilli powder to taste


      Method

• Heat oil in a kadai/ fry pan.
• Add cumin but do not let it brown.
• Add chopped onions and fry on high flame till golden brown.
• Add chopped tomatoes and cookon medium flame till soft.
• Add salt and chilli powder to taste.
• Add the crumbled paneer/tofu and mix well.
• Add green chillies broken into two.
• Cook for 3-4 minutes and switch off the flame.
• Do not over cook or the paneer will become hard.
• Transfer to a dish and garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve with hot roties or on toasted bread.
• Enjoy with lime pickle.

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Masi's Pepper Chicken

  Ingredients
  2 breasts of chicken
  3 tb sps onion paste
  1 t sp ginger paste
  1 t sp garlic paste
  3 cloves of fresh garlic crushed
  2 t sp crushed black pepper
  salt to taste
  1 tb sp yogurt
  1 1/2 tb sp cooking oil
  coriander leaves for garnish


    Method

• Wash the chicken breast and pat dry with a kitchen towel.
• Poke the chicken all over with a fork for the marinade to soak in.
• Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients except oil and coriander leaves and let it soak for as long as possible. You could do it over night and leave it in the fridge.
• Heat oil in a frypan or kadai till smoking. Lower heat , place the chicken pieces flat in the frypan and cook for a minute or so to seal . Turn and do the same to the other side.
• Add any extra marinade and cover. Cook on a very low flame, turning the chicken once or twice.
• Check to see if the chicken is cooked through.Dry out any extra liquid.It should be just coated with the masala.
• Sprinkle fresh coriander leaves and serve with a salad and mashed potatoes.

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Shahi Paneer/Tofu

  Ingredients
  200 gms paneer/tofu
  7 cahews
  1/2 cup milk
  jeera/cumin powder
  1/4 t sp haldi / turmeric
  red chilli powder to taste
  salt to taste
  kasturi methi(dry fenugeric leaves)
  1tb sp cooking oil
  1 tb sp ghee/ butter
  1/2 t sp of sugar


       
     Method

• Soak the cashew nuts in milk till soft. Grind and make a paste and keep aside.
• Cut the paneer into large triangles.
• Heat oil in a kadai. Turn the heat off and now add jeera and haldi powder.Quickly add the paneer pieces  and stir so that the masalas do not discolour.
• Turn on the heat and cook for 1 minute.
• Add the salt and chilli powder and stir it gently.
• Add the cashew paste and stir to coat the paneer.Add the sugar and cook to melt it. 
• Add the kasturi methi and cook for 3 minutes.
• Serve with hot rotis or pulao.

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    Note: Adjust the amount of the cashew paste to your liking.

Chatpatti Gajar( carrot)

 
  Ingredients
  2 long red or orange carrots
  1 t sp. finely chopped ginger
  1 tb sp. finely chopped coriander leaves
  juice of 1/2 alime or lemon
  3/4th t sp. roasted ground jeera(cumin powder)
  chilli flakes to taste
  salt to taste
  cayene pepper to taste
  olive oil


  Method

• Scrape, wash and cut the carrots  into 1/2" thick slices.
• Put carrots into boiling water for 1 minute and turn off the heat.Let them be in the water for another minute or so. It should be crunchy.
• Drain and add all the ingredients and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Mix well and chill in the fridge.
• Serve as short eats with cocktails or enjoy it as a side dish with an omelette, or grilled fish.
• Takes not more than ten minutes for the entire process. an excellent healthy snack when you are short of time annd hungry.

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Mangalore Prawn/ Fish /veg. curry

  Ingredients
  200 gms prawns or your favourite fish cut into cubes
  1/2 cup chopped onions
  2 cloves of garlic
  small piece ginger
  2 medium size tomatoes chopped roughly
  3/4 dhania (coriander powder)
  1/2 t sp jeera (cumin) powder
  chilli powder to taste
  salt to taste
  2-3 green chillies slit and cut into half
  1 tb sp cooking oil
  1/4 piece of fresh coconut or 2 tbsps of coconut powder/dessicated coconut


      Method

• Heat oil in a frypan, add chopped oniond and fry till golden brown .
• Add chopped ginger, garlic, dhania powder and jeera powder and fry till the raw smell goes.
• Add chopped tomaoes and salt and cook till soft.Remove from heat, cool and grind to a paste along with the coconut.
• Put the ground  masala back in the fry pan. add the slit green chillies,and ginger julliens and cook for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water if the masala is too thick and bring to a boil.
•  Now add the prawns/ fish and cook till  tender. Do not over cook the prawns or they'll turn hard.
• Serve with boiled rice.

                                                    
  Vegetarian option
  Replace the fish with mushrooms or fried cubes of brinjal(egg plant) or try any of your favourite vegetable    that you feel  will taste good with this strong  robust masala.I repeat, use your imagination.

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  Note:
A quicker version is to grind the raw ingredients, fry for 5 minutes, add the fish/ prawns and cook till done.
Tamrind pulp can be added before adding the prawns to give it a slightly sour taste.
A really satisfying  quick dish for a cold winter evening . 
 
 

Dum Biryani

  Ingredients

  3/4th cups black channa(Bengal Gram) soaked overnight
  2 cups Basmati rice
  3 tb sps chopped onions
  1t sp ginger paste
  11/2 t sp garlic paste
  2 tomatoes chopped or 2tb sps tomato puree


  Whole masalas for the rice
  5-7 green cardmoms
  5 cloves
  3 1" sticks of cinamon
  11 pepper corns
  3 bay leaves

  Dry masalas for the channa
  1 tb sp dhania(coriander) powder
  1/2 t sp chilli powder
  1/2 t sp haldi (turmeric) powder
  1 t sp garam masala made with coarsely ground (3green cardmoms, 1" stick cinamon, 3 cloves 5 peppercorns)

  Msalas for the layers
  1 large onion sliced fine and fried crisp.
  1 cup fresh chopped mint  and coriander leaves and 3 green chillies


  2 tb sps cooking oil
  2 tb sps pure ghee (clarified butter)
  a good pinch of saffron strands soaked in 1 tb sp milk
  1/2 - 1 t sp kewra essence for the aroma

 

  Method

• Wash and soak the rice for 1/2 an hour.
• Boil 8 cups of water in a large saucepan with 2 t sps of salt and all the whole masalas. Add the washed rice and boil till its almost cooked.
• Drain the excess water and spread the rice in a platter so that the grains stay separate.
• Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, fry the chopped onions till golden brown.
• Add the ginger garlic pastes and fry till the raw smell goes.
• Add the dry masalas with a little bit of water and fry for 3 minutes.
• Now add the channa that has been soaked over night.
• Add the tomatoes/tomato puree and cook for a further 5 minutes.
• Add the coarsely ground garam masala and mix well.
• Add 21/2 cups of water, close the lid and pressure cook on high heat till high pressure is reached.Lower heat and cook for 10 minutes.
• Let the cooker cool down , open the lid and dry out the excess water if any.It should be moist with thick masala but no curry.
• Now you are ready to put the biryani together.
• Take an over proof dish and spread the ghee at the bottom.
• Divide the rice into 3 portions and spread 1 part in the dish.
• Layer the rice with the fried onion, green mint , coriander and green chillies.
• Add a layer of 1/2 the cooked channa and top with a layer of rice.
• Repeat another layer similarly and top with the 3rd portion of rice.You are ready to add the flavours.
• With your finger ,make holes in the layers of rice . Pour a few drops of the saffron milk into each hole along with a few drops of Kewra essence (optinal).
• Cover and seal with aluminium foil .Cook in a pre heated oven for about 20 minutes.Alternately cook on an indirect low flame (on dum).
• Open the foil just before serving.
• Serve with raita of your choice.

          
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