Tag: Indian Recipes

Chicken Curry with Roasted Onion and Garlic

This is a very different way of making a curry- usually, the onion, ginger, garlic and tomato and cooked to death to achieve a deep, deep flavor. I like to cook simple food that doesn’t take me forever to cook… but I want to get the cooked to death flavor- so I roasted the onions and garlic…. it created an amazing, amazing flavors…

1 large yellow onion, cut in half with skin on
3 garlic cloves, intact
2 inch piece of ginger
1 14 ounce can of fire roasted tomatoes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Wrap the garlic and ginger in a piece of aluminum foil. Place the onion and the aluminum packet on a lined cookie sheet and roast in the oven for 40 minutes. Take out and let cool and transfer to a blender. Add the canned tomatoes and blend till a smooth sauce is formed. Keep aside.

2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
2 tablespoons butter or ghee
2 pounds chicken thighs, skinless and boneless and cut into 2 inch pieces
Sprinkle with salt
2 teaspoons black cumin or regular cumin
1 cinnamon stick- 3 inches
3 cloves

Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt. In the meantime, heat a heavy saucepan with the oil and butter/ghee. Brown the chicken pieces on both sides on a medium high heat. Take out of pan and keep aside. Add the cumin, cinnamon and cloves. Saute for 30 seconds on medium heat. Add the onion and tomato sauce and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the chicken pieces, a cup of water and bring to a boil. Simmer on low heat covered with a lid for 30 minutes. Take the lid off and adjust seasoning as desired. Serve with rice or roti.

Rajma with Cilantro and Dill (Red Kidney Beans Stew)

2 cups dry red kidney beans
6 cups water
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 inches ginger, chopped
1 14.5 oz can chopped tomatoes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons coriander powder
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons butter or ghee
½ cup fresh dill, chopped
1 cup fresh cilantro, divided in 2 bunches and chopped
2 teaspoons garam masala

For this recipe you either need a pressure cooker or a slow cooker.

In a pressure cooker add the kidney beans, water, onion, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, salt, turmeric, cumin seeds, coriander powder, cayenne pepper, butter, dill and ½ cup cilantro. Place the lid on top and cook on high heat till the pressure cooker gives out steam. Lower the heat and cook for 2-3 hours. Turn the heat off and open the lid. Evaporate the water till the dish reaches a thick soup consistency while smashing some of the beans with the back of a ladle. Add the remaining cilantro and garam masala. Check for seasonings and serve with rice.

Pepper Chicken Curry

Spice Mix

2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
4 cloves
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
½ inch cinnamon stick

Roast the spices and grind, keep aside.

1 tablespoon oil
2 inch fresh ginger, grated
5 garlic cloves, grated
2 teaspoons salt
2 pounds chicken thighs, skin off with bone

Mix the spices, oil, ginger, garlic and salt. Mix well and rub all over the chicken pieces and marinate for 2 to 3 hours.

2 tablespoons ghee or butter
1 large yellow onion, sliced
10 to 15 curry leaves, chopped
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups chicken broth
½ cup cilantro, chopped

Heat a heavy saucepan with the ghee. Brown the chicken pieces on both sides on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes each. Take the pieces out and add the onion and curry leaves. Add the turmeric and sauté on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken pieces and broth. Bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer and cover with lid. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes and take the lid off to check if chicken is done. Increase the heat to cook any excess liquid in the pan. Check for seasonings and garnish with cilantro.

Cauliflower and Spinach (Gobi Palak)

cauliflower-and-spinach

1 head cauliflower- cut into florets
1 cup frozen chopped spinach
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 cup onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 inch piece ginger, minced
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons coriander powder
2 teaspoons salt- or to taste
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

In a large and deep pan, heat the olive oil. Add the cumin seeds and cook for a minute on medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger. Saute on medium heat for 5-7 minutes, till golden brown. Add the crushed tomatoes and cook on medium heat for another 5 minutes. Add the coriander powder, salt and turmeric- mix well. Add the spinach and sauté with the onion and tomato mixture on medium high heat- to evaporate the water from the spinach, for at least 5 minutes. Next add the cauliflower florets and mix well. Lower the heat and cover the pan. Cook for about 15 minutes or till the cauliflower is tender and cooked. Take lid off; turn the heat up to medium high and sauté for about 5 minutes- again, to evaporate the water. Top it off with the garam masala and cilantro.

Cauliflower with Ginger and Onion Seeds

kalonji-gobi

1 cauliflower head, cut into florets
3 to 4 potatoes cut into 3 inch pieces
2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
Salt

Place the cauliflower florets and potatoes on a lined cookie sheet. Drizzle oil and sprinkle salt all over. Broil till golden brown, about 10 to 15 minutes. Take out and keep aside.

1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon onion (kalonji) seeds
1 medium white onion, sliced
One 3 inch piece of ginger, sliced thin
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons garam masala

In a wok like saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the cumin, fennel and onion seeds. Saute for a minute on medium heat till the sees begin to sizzle. Add the onion and ginger. Saute for 4-5 minutes stirring constantly. Add the broiled cauliflower and potatoes. Add the salt, turmeric and cayenne pepper. Mix well and cover with lid. Cook for 10-15 minutes or till the potatoes are soft. Uncover and increase the heat. Add the garam masala and stir well. Check for seasonings.

Palak Paneer (Spinach and Indian Cheese)

This is the basic palak paneer recipe. I changed it up a bit by adding cilantro and dill to the spinach mixture. It gives it an amazing earthy flavor…

Palak Paneer is cooked in several different ways. Restaurants tend to make it quite rich with lots of butter and cream. In the homemade versions the paneer is fried. I have tried to make mine as simple and healthy as possible. I don’t think there is any need to fry the paneer, soaking it in water makes it very soft and spongy and it absorbs the spinach flavor well. It is a little time consuming but the result is worth the extra work. I grew up with this dish in Delhi, having all different versions of it. I like my mom’s the best and this is very close to hers.
I like eating Palak Paneer with some dal (check out the masoor dal recipe) and roti/naan. Beer goes nicely with Indian food, but since I am more of a wine drinker, I go for a crisp Riesling, Savignon Blanc, Rose or Champagne!

12 ounces Paneer- store bought Indian cheese
1 pound chopped frozen spinach-thawed in the package
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, smashed
2 inches ginger, small pieces
1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1 cup crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon coriander powder
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons salt- or to taste
¼ cup half-and-half

Cut the paneer into two inches squares and place in a medium bowl with water to cover the cheese. Let the paneer soak in the water for at least 2 hours. This makes the cheese nice and soft for consumption.
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil with the cumin seeds. In the mean time blend the onion, garlic, ginger and cilantro into a paste- don’t wash the blender, we will re-use it for the spinach. Once the cumin begins to sizzle, add the onion mixture. Saute this mixture on medium heat for 10 minutes stirring consistently. Then add the crushed tomatoes, coriander powder, garam masala, turmeric and cayenne pepper. Saute for another 10 minutes stirring well. On the side, blend the thawed spinach in the same blender. Add the blended spinach to the tomato mixture and cook on medium heat for at least 15 minutes or till the water (from the spinach) has evaporated. Add the half and half and the drained paneer. Cook for another 10 minutes on low heat with the lid on. Adjust seasoning and serve.

Masala Chai (Tea)

masalachai
Improve your morning cup of tea!
As you can imagine every Indian has their own idea and recipe for ‘masala chai’. The word ‘chai’ has become very popular with Starbucks introducing many different varieties of it. I have never enjoyed the coffee shop version of it, just never reminded me of the chai I grew up with. Now, like I said, there are as many versions of this as there are Indians.. (that’s a whole lot). This version has been tweaked over the years, thanks to my husband who is a self proclaimed tea connoisseur. I have combined fennel seeds and green cardamom. The key is to crush them either in a mortar and pestle or with anything heavy (a bottle of wine will do!). Of course fresh spices make a big difference! Also good quality loose black tea is important.. now I don’t want you to break the bank and buy very expensive tea. The dry spices in the tea will dominate the flavor so you don’t want something very delicate like a darjeeling tea. A reasonably priced Assam tea or even English Breakfast will do. The other key to a great cup of masala chai is cooking the milk and sugar with the water, spices and the loose tea in the same pan. I always have one percent milk at home, I use that with a splash of half and half (it gives it a richness that is very much needed!) The chai creates a very earthy, nostalgic aroma for me- great on a weekend morning.

1 cup filtered water
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
1 green cardamom, crushed
1 heaping teaspoon loose black tea
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon half and half

In a shallow pan add the water, crushed fennel seeds, cardamom and sugar. Heat on a high flame. Once the water comes to a boil, add the tea leaves. Then add the milk and the half and half. Let it come to another boil and lower the flame. Cook for a minute or two stirring it as needed and ensuring the sugar has dissolved. Pour into a cup through a small strainer.

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