Monday 3 July 2017

Shami Kabab...


Shami kebabs are popularly eaten as snack or appetizer throughout India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. It is made from beef, chicken or lamb. It is made by boiling the meat,dal, whole spices, onion, ginger and garlic, salt and turmeric powder till the meat has cooked. Then it is ground into a smooth paste. Coriander leaves, mint leaves and green chillies are added to the paste. It's given a shape of a patti and it's shallow fried in oil. 
It's garnished with onion,lime and mint leaves. It is served with green chutney made out of coriander and mint leaves.

Ingredients
250 grams boneless Mutton pieces
1/4 cup Split Bengal Grams / Chana dal soaked for an hour
1 Onion chopped
4 to 6 Garlic cloves
1 small piece of Ginger
2 to 3 or more Green Chillies chopped as per requirement 
2 tbsp Mint Leaves chopped
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves chopped
1 Black Cardomom
1 Green Cardomom
2 Cloves
1 small piece of Cinnamon
6 to 8 Pepper corn 
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/2 tsp Coriander seeds
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1 Egg
Oil for Frying





Method
Take a pressure cooker, add the mutton pieces, chana dal, onions, garlic, ginger, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon, black cardomom, green cardomom, Cloves, pepper, salt, turmeric powder and 1 1/2 cup water into the pressure cooker. Close the lid and let it whistle 4 times or till the mutton has cooked. Let the pressure release, open the cooker and if any water is remaining, dry it up. Let it cool down completely. Then add the meat and the dal into a food processor, add egg and blend it until it turns into a smooth paste. Add the coriander leaves, mint leaves  and green chillies. Add salt and chillies if required. Blend it once more. Take a tray, grease the tray with oil. Apply oil on your palm. Take a lime size ball from the mixture. Roll it and flatten it a bit. Place it on the tray. Keep it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Take a fry pan. Add oil. Shallow fry the kababs very gently till golden brown on both the sides. Remove them on a paper towel. Serve them hot with green chutney, onions, lime and mint leaves.

Saturday 1 July 2017

Achari Machli Bhappa...


This is a fish preparation, very easy to make, spicy and scrumptious. You can serve this dish as a starter or have it as a side dish with hot steaming rice. The fish is marinated in fresh homemade achari masala. We all have left over oil from the pickle, and we discard them, but I use it up in creating other dishes, so here I have used achari oil from the pickle which gives extra punch to the dish. 

Ingredients
1 medium size around 500 grams whole Fish - Indian Salmon / Rawas,  Barramundi / Bhetki or Snapper / Rani Machli
2 tbsp Garlic and Green Chilli paste (4 Garlic and 3 Green Chillies)
6 Garlic cloves crushed
Juice of 1 Lime
1 small Tomato for Garnishing
Few Coriander Leaves chopped
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Coriander seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
1/2 tsp Carom seeds
1/4 tsp Fenugreek seeds
6 Red Chillies
1 1/2 tsp  Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Pickle Oil


 

Method
Clean the fish well, the fish has to remain in 1 piece. Give 3 slits on the fish. Keep the fish on a foil paper. Apply salt and 1tsp turmeric powder on the fish and keep it aside for 10 minutes. Meanwhile add mustard seeds, coriander seed, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, carom seeds, fenugreek seeds 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and 4 red chillies into a grinder and grind the seeds into a powder. That makes our achari powder. In a small mixing bowl add the achari powder, lime juice, garlic - chilli paste and oil, mix it and let it stand for 5 minutes, apply the achari paste properly all over the fish, push the crushed garlic into the cuts of the fish and add 2 dry chillies. Cover the fish with the foil paper. Leave it to marinate for 30 minutes to an hour. Steam the fish in a preheated oven for 20 minutes at 200 degrees celsius or you can steam it in a steamer till the fish is cooked. Garnish it with coriander leaves and tomato. Serve it hot.

Wednesday 28 June 2017

Dhuska

Since it's raining continuously here for last 2 days, I was craving for something fried, but at the same time, lazy me wanted to be a couch potato. So here is a simple recipe to satisfy my soul....
It's a traditional dish of Jharkhand. It's made during festivals and can be had for breakfast and snacks. It's a fried savoury pancake. Easy to make with few ingredients. Rice and lentils are soaked in water and made into a smooth batter with garlic and ginger.  Cumin seeds, chopped chillies, green peas, coriander leaves, salt and turmeric powder are added to the batter and it is deep fried. It's serve with ghugni or aloo rassa. 


Ingredients
1 cup Rice 
1/2 cup Split Black Gram / Urid dal 
1/4 cup Split Bengal Gram / Chana dal
2 tbsp Green Peas - optional 
2 Green Chillies chopped 
1 tbsp Coriander Leaves Chopped 
2 to 3 Garlic cloves 
1 small piece of Ginger 
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 
1/4 tsp Cumin seeds
Oil to fry 




Method 
Wash and soak the rice and the lentils separately for 5 to 6 hours or overnight. Grind the rice and the lentils along with the garlic and ginger in a grinder into a smooth batter. The batter should be of thick dropping consistency. Add the salt, turmeric powder, cumin seeds, chopped chillies and coriander leaves. Mix the batter well, for the air to incorporate well, let is stand for 10 minutes. Heat oil in a pan, add a ladle of batter and fry it till golden brown on both the sides. Serve it hot with Aloo Rassa..

Incase if you don’t want to fry, add little oil on the skillet and pour the batter on the skillet. Spread it a little and cook it until done.

Aloo Rassa...

Aloo Rassa


Aloo Rassa
It’s had with dhuska, puri or Paratha. It’s one of the vegetarian dishes from Jharkhand 

Ingredients 
4 medium size Potatoes boiled and crumbled
1 large tomato chopped
1/2 tsp Ginger paste
¼ tsp Fenugreek seeds 
Salt to taste
¼ tsp Turmeric powder 
½ tsp Red chilli powder
1/2 tsp  Cumin powder 
1 tsp Coriander powder 
1 tsp Fennel powder 
1/2 tsp Dried Mango powder 
1/2 tsp Garam masala powder 
Pinch of Asafoetida
2 tbsp Mustard Oil



Method 
Take a wok, add oil. Add the fenugreek seeds, sauté for few seconds. Add coriander powder, cumin powder, fennel powder, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and asafoetida. On a low flame stir for few seconds. Add little water and keep stirring, or else the masala will burn. Add the ginger paste and tomatoes. Sauté it till the tomatoes become mushy. In between keep adding little water. Once the tomato are mushy, add the potatoes, stir add salt and add a cup of water and let it simmer for some time, add garam masala powder and dried mango powder. Stir and let the curry simmer for sometime until it thickens. Once the curry thickens add Coriander leaves. Serve it hot with pooris or paratha.

Sunday 25 June 2017

Aish El Saraya...

Eid Mubarak to all...
May you be blessed with joy, peace and happiness.

Aish El Saraya...
It means bread of the royal palace. It's a Lebanese dish. Aish El-Saraya is made on special occasions.
Sweet sugar syrup is drizzled over the toasted bread and covered with thick cream on top. It is garnished with chopped pistachios and rose petals. It is served chilled. 
With love from my kitchen....

For the Syrup
Ingredients
1/2 cup Sugar
1 tsp Lime juice
2 tsp Rosewater

Method
Add sugar, lime juice and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan. Stir and let it cook on low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and bring it to a boil and switch of the flame. Stir in rosewater. Cool for 10 minutes.

To make Aish El Saraya
Ingredients
8 slices White Bread,sides cut and toasted
1 1/2 cups of Milk
1/3 cup  Sugar
1 cup Fresh Cream
3 tbsp Cornflour
1 tsp Rosewater
Sugar Syrup
1/4 cup chopped Pistachios
Few dried Rose petals

Method
Take a baking dish. Place 4 slices of toasted bread slices into the dish in a way that no gap should remain. Pour 1/2 of the syrup on the bread. Top with remaining bread. Drizzle with remaining syrup. Keep it aside. Add milk, cream, sugar and cornflour in a  sauce pan. Stir it till the cornflour has mixed well. Cook, stirring it constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Switch of the flame. Stir in rosewater.Pour over the bread in the dish. Sprinkle with pistachio. Set aside to cool. Refrigerate until it sets. Serve.