Achaar: Bell Pepper and Radish

inspired by two recipes by Sunil Vijakar from Fresh Indian

1 pound bell peppers, deseeded and cut into narrow strips lengthwise
1/2 pound radishes cut into 1/2 inch cubes (or left whole if tiny)
1 tablespoon red chili powder
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 tablespoons mustard oil
3 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tablespoons coarse salt
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1/8 cup white vinegar
1/8 cup (more) mustard oil

Boil the vegetables.

In a small skillet, heat the spices in the mustard oil. Add garlic cloves and sautee quickly. (Don't brown too much.)

Add drained vegetables. Toss everything vigorously.

Add vinegar. Cook on low for 10 minutes.

Pour into a clean glass jar and top off with the oil.

Refigerate and serve the next day. Lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge.

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Beet and Chocolate Nankhatai

Mix:
1 tsp cardamom powder
½ tsp garam masala
1 tsp rose water
½ tsp vanilla
½ cup clarified butter
2 T olive oil

Add dry ingredients:
3/4 cup flour
¼ cup cocoa powder
½ cup sugar
1/2 cup grated beets
1 tsp baking powder

Make a stiff dough. (you might need a bit more oil depending)

Use teaspoons to make ovals of dough and then shape into a petal to shape like a lamp. Use a sliver of almond to look like the flame. Decorate with sanding sugar, dragees, sprinkles

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Chicken Curry

Sprinkle 4 Chicken thighs with salt and turmeric.

Add 2 T Olive oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Sautee chicken skin side down until brown. Remove chicken from the pan.

To the chicken drippings, add:
4 cups roughly chopped onions
4 t minced garlic
3 t minced ginger
2.5 t ground cumin
1.5 t turmeric
2 t ground coriander
¼ t ground black pepper
¼ t cinnamon
¼ t ground ginger
2 t salt

Sautee onion mixture on medium for 30-35 minutes (until decreased in volume by almost half.) Onions should be slightly caramelized but not super brown.

Add 1 T tomato paste. Sautee 3 minutes.

Also, add 18 ounces canned chopped tomatoes plus 1 cup water OR fresh tomatoes in season plus 1.5 cups water. (If you were my mother, you would haul out the blender and blend the onion/tomato mixture until smooth. But I am lazy, and I just accept the texture as is.) Simmer for 3 hours.

Return chicken to the masala. Add 3 hard boiled eggs (peeled) and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add 1 handful cilantro chopped roughly.

Serve warm with rice and flatbread. I like it with paratha.

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Chaat Masala

Combine and grind in a coffee grinder
1.5 teaspoon cumin seed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon ajwain seed
1 teaspoon black salt
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon ground asafetida
2 teaspoon amchur
1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
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Dosa

Soak overnight in two separate bowls:
2 cups urad daal
1 cup rice

Blend until you get a thick batter. (I did this by blending each separately and then mixing the two in a bowl.) Add
1 T salt.

Ferment over night. (I placed the bowl on a chair over the heater vent.) Read more!

Fig Samosa

Sautee until oils release
1 scant T cumin
2 t coriander
1 t ginger powder
1 T fresh grated ginger

Simmer on medium until tender
3 large carrots, grated
2 small onions, diced extremely finely

Add
8 dried figs, diced very finely
salt and white pepper, to taste

Cool the mixture

Melt
1 stick butter

Butter together 3-4 sheets filo. Cut into 12 rectangles. Put a tiny dollop of the filling in and then seal the edges with butter.

Bake at 375 for about 8 minutes, until golden brown.

Serve with raita

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Lamb Curry

Sautee on medium:
2 large yellow onions, sliced in half rings
2 t turmeric
1/2 t ground ginger
½ t ground coriander
½ t fennel seeds
½ t cayenne

In a slowcooker, add:
Sauteed onions
18 ounces tomato diced (with Italian seasoning.)
2 heaping T Major Grey’s Mango Chutney
2 t salt
2 t fresh cilantro leaves coarsely chopped or 1 t dried

Brown 1 lb grass-fed lamb stew meat. Add meat and any dripping to slowcooker.

Cook on low for 7 hours. Serve with rice.
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Masala Confetti Style for Dosas

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Saute
½ small onion, diced
1 t cumin
1 t turmeric
1 tiny pinch chili powder

When this is browned, add and saute for a few minutes
1 carrot diced (ideally maroon)
2 small red potatoes

After 2-3 minutes, add
1/4 cup water
¼ cup baby lima beads
¼ cup soy beans

Saute until everything is tender.
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Nankhatai

Mix:
1 tsp cardamom powder
1 tsp rose water
½ tsp vanilla
½ cup clarified butter OR ½ cup oil if you want them vegan

Add dry ingredients:
3/4 cup flour
¼ cup almond flour or pistachio flour (or use 1 cup flour)
½ cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder

Make a stiff dough.

Use teaspoons to make ovals of dough and then shape into a petal to shape like a lamp. Use a sliver of almond to look like the flame. Decorate with sanding sugar, dragees, sprinkles.

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Orange Carrot Parathas

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Mix 1 cup of wheat flour with salt and water until it turns into a dough. Add water slowly.
Let rest while you make the filling.

While the dough rests, shred or grate 1 carrot. (I used 1/2 white carrot and 1/2 orange carrot)

Add:
1 t orange zest
1 t powdered ginger
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t powdered cardamom

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, add a dollop of filling and roll out. Read more!

Spicy Orange Pickle/ Achar

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Wash and then dice
4 medium oranges (leaving the skin on)

In a heavy bottom pan, sautee in olive oil for 2 minutes
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp black onion seeds
6 whole dried red chili pods
1 tsp asafetida powder
¼ cup chili powder
½ tsp haldi (turmeric) powder

Add and simmer for 15 minutes
cut oranges
4 green chilies
1 inch piece of ginger in long slender slivers
½ cup salt
2 cups waters

Once the mixture is cooked down and slightly cooled, add
¾ cup canola or mustard oil

Add the mixture to canning jars and then sterilize. Read more!

Pav Bhaji Rolls

Pav Bhaji

Boil or microwave:
3 large potatoes, cut into large chunks

Sautee:
1 small onion chopped finely
1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste

Add:
Cooked potatoes
1/2 bell pepper, diced
½ small carrot, diced
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
1 tsp. chili powder
1 T pav bhaji masala
salt to taste
1 T tomato paste
1 large fresh ripe tomato chopped roughly

Once everything is cooked (simmered), add:
1/2 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
½ cup corn

White Rolls: (Laadi Pav)
In a stand mixer, put in
1 cup AP flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
¾ cup warm water & 1 T milk
1.5 tsp yeast

Once combined add:
1.5 t melted butter

Knead for 10 minutes. Rise for 1 hour.

Shape into balls. Flatten to be about palm sized. Fill with a tsp or so of bhaji and then ball up.


Place in balls in a floured pie dish so that they barely touch. Let rise for 1 more hour. Baste with butter.

Bake at 350 until golden brown.
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Parathas with Potatoes and Arugula Flowers

To make dough, mix in a shallow, flat bowl or pan:
1 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

Drop by drop add warm water until you get a sticky bread-like dough

Cover and set aside.

To make the stuffing, boil, peel, and mash:
1 large potatoes

Add:
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1 t cumin/coriander powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoons fresh arugula flowers

In the palm of your hand, create small balls, flatten them, and then fill with a small amount of the filling. Gather up all the dough and then roll it out.

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Pathrado

Soak in water overnight
1/2 cup rice
1/2 cup dal

Drain the water and then use a blender to create a very thick paste of the rice, dal, with
the flesh of one coconut
5-10 chillis (dry roasted)
1 tsp asofoetida
1 tsp tamarind
2 tsp salt
(Add water slowly to keep it moist.)

Wash the leaves and remove the stalks of
25 Large flat leaves (Taro/Colacasia leaves, Swiss Chard, Collard Leaves

Spread the paste onto one leaf so that it is covered with about 1/4 of an inch of masala, cover with another leaf and repeat. Do this until you have 5 leaves on top of each other. and then roll up like a jelly roll. Tie with string.

Steam for about 20 minutes.

Slice and serve warm. Or pan fry them in olive oil and serve.

Blogged at: http://feedingmaybelle.blogspot.com/2008/03/soakng-swiss-chard.html
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Potato Salad, Chaat Style

Combine in a large bowl
2 T finely diced onion
2 T brown curry sauce
3 T vinegar
pinch of salt
¼ cup red pepper diced
1 T & 1 t chaat masala
1-2 t Major Grey’s Chutney
2 T Coriander Chutney
2-3 large baking potatoes, cooked (Ideally still warm)

After everything is combined, let the mixture rest a room temperature for at least 1/2 hour to let the flavors mix. Serve topped with sev (available at Indian grocery stores.)

Blog Post: http://feedingmaybelle.blogspot.com/2008/02/chaat-potato-salad-husband-style.html
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Shevai (handmade Indian rice noodles)

Shevai
3 cups rice
1/2 cup coconut milk or less
water, if necessary

Soak 3 cups of idli rice in ample water. Accept that this will make less shevai than if you just boiled the rice itself.

Drain the water but reserve.

Grind in a blender (or Vitamix) with coconut milk. I added the rice in three parts and scant tablespoons of coconut milk as I went. It only took about 3-4 tablespoons.

The result should be a thick paste not unlike spackle.

Oil a wok and then pour in the mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly. The mixture will dry out but not stick to the sides of the pan. Once the mass congeals to be the texture of playdough, then roll into 2-3 inch balls. When still fingerprint searing hot, put into a chakri press or a ricer and extrude noodles.

You can pile up the shevai in a towel lined plate, but make sure to serve warm otherwise the noodles dry out.
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Sambar

(My husband and I followed my mom when she cooked and transcribed her recipe.)

Cook 2/3 cup toor dal in a pressure cooker. (For the pressure cooker novices like me, my mother says when it whistles turn down to simmer for 10 minutes and turn off.)

In another pot, boil 2 cups vegetables. In my mind, pearl onions, potatoes, and eggplant are requisite. Radishes, eggplants, zucchini and carrots can be added. If you are lucky enough to have fresh drumsticks, be happy and add them too.

Add cooked dal and its water to the boiled vegetables that have been drained of all but ½ cup water.

In a cast iron skillet, fry:
one small onion diced.

Add onions to the dal/veg mixture.

In small bowl, combine:
1 tsp tamarind
½ cup water

In the same cast iron skillet, brown:
3 T sambar powder (homemade or store bought)
Pinch asofoetida

Once the sambar powder smells cooked and delicious, add tamarind and water. Put whole mixture into the dal.

Add a small handful of fresh coriander leaves that have been roughly chopped.

Serve with rice and papad or with idli.

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Tandoori Tofu

Marinate the following for 1 hour
1 cup soy yogurt
1 block tofu, sliced into triangles
1 T cider vinegar
1 T garlic paste
1 T ginger paste
1 T ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
¼ t cayenne pepper (or more)
¼ t turmeric
1/8 t ground cloves

Use a spoon to brush off some of the yogurt from the tofu. Bake or pan fry. Read more!

Vaali Ambat

Cook until tender
1/8 cup toor daal
1 lb spinach

Blend
1/4 cup coconut
3 roasted chillis
1/8 tsp tamarind paste.

Add paste to the spinach/dal mixture.

Sautee 1 diced small onion in oil and then use this to top the ambat.

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Vadouvan

Slice into thin long slivers:
3 small onions
3 small leeks
12 small shallots
15 garlic cloves (peeled but whole)

Toss with olive oil and roast at 250 until caramelized and lovely

In a skillet, toast:
2 T split black lentils (urid/urad)
2 T cumin
1 T coriander
4 t mustard seeds
2 t fenugreek
10 curry leaves
1 t ground cardamom
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 red chilli peppers
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Whirl roasted spices until a thick powder. Combine with the alliums ground spices and form into balls. Refigerate or use immediately.

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