Tag: mustard oil
Kashimiri Koftas (Indian Style Meatballs in a Yogurt Gravy)
My mom has been making these meatballs ever since I can remember. A friend from Kashmir taught her these a long time ago. Since then the dish has been tweaked to perfection. Technically speaking- it is not a typical Kashmiri dish. My mom has changed it over the years by adding more onions to the gravy, etc- she has made it her own.
I had never made these before. I would usually wait for my Mom to visit and make this delicious dish. I finally decided to write down the recipe and try it on my own. It is a bit laborious- but definitely worth all the work.
It is a bit different than the rest of Indian dishes I have posted- the dish does not have any tomatoes or garlic. The main flavorings in the meat are ground fennel and ginger powder. The gravy includes whole cinnamon and cloves. The most interesting flavor comes from asafetida. It has a very distinct flavor. If you can’t find it, no worries- just eliminate it. The dish will be good even without this spice.
Serve it with naans or rotis. I would highly recommend this dish- try it and it will part of your repertoire…
read more …
Top Ten Oils In My Pantry…
Have the right lipids in your pantry is extremely important. The list below are the ones I have in my kitchen and I use each one for different purposes. I realize not everyone has the space nor the inclination to keep so many different oils but they do all have their own uses.
If you want to have just a few- extra virgin olive oil , extra light olive oil and one really good extra olive oil for drizzling on top.
Have a look at my list and let me know if I am missing anything. One oil I usually have on hand but was out when I was doing this list is walnut oil. I love having it on hand for making salad dressings. Another one I have heard a lot about is avocado oil- it is supposed to be very healthy to cook with. I will definitely buy it and get back to you on it.
Here is my list…
- Extra light olive oil- I do all my cooking with this oil. Most Indians are very surprised since I use this lipid for cooking Indian food as well. It has no flavor and has the goodness of olive oil. It is great for frying as well.
- Extra virgin olive oil- What can I say about this oil. I love having it around all the time. It sits right next to my cook top. I use it for Italian dishes and a quick salad dressing.
- Sesame oil- All my chinese stir fries, etc get a drizzle of this oil while cooking. It provides a great nuttiness to the dish. Store it in the fridge to avoid rancidity.
- Peanut oil- This oil has a very high cooking point. I don’t fry very often, but when I do, I use peanut oil.
- Truffle oil- Great to drizzle on top of pastas and other Italian dishes. It has a delicious, earthy flavor. I love having it on hand.
- Mustard oil- Mustard oil is very popular in Indian cooking. It has a very distinct mustardy flavor.
- Meyer lemon olive oil- It is nice to have some super fancy olive oil on had for salad dressings or for drizzling on top of pasta dishes.
- Grapeseed oil– I use this oil for making homemade granola. It is high in antioxidants and vitamin E.
- Sportoletti extra virgin olive oil- I got this from Spello, Italy this past summer. I have not opened it as yet. I would use it purely for drizzling. It is super fresh and I can’t wait.
- Altomena extra virgin olive oil- Another fancy oil in my pantry. I love having a variety of these lipids to choose from.