Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Vegetable Malabar Curry

After the success of my previous recipe, ‘Rogan Josh’, here’s a veggie delight for my vegetarian viewers. I just have one word to express my emotion for this fabulous curry, ‘YUMM…’

Vegetable Malabar Curry is a South Indian dish which is a perfect ‘comfort food’ with high nutritious value. Once you taste it, you would just fall in love with it! This Curry is extremely simple to prepare. It tastes superb with Neer Dosa (Indian rice crepe), Paratha (Indian Flat bread) and Rice. 



Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves:  4

You will need:

Clarified Butter / Ghee – 2 Tablespoons
Mustard Seeds / Sarso – ¼ Teaspoon
Curry Leaves – 1 sprig
Asafoetida / Hing – ½ Teaspoon
Coconut Oil – 1 Tablespoon
Turmeric  Powder  – ½ Teaspoon
Kashmiri Chili Powder – 1 Tablespoon (Kashmiri chilli powder is mild and gives a nice red color to the food.)
Ginger (Finely Grated) – 1 Tablespoon
Onion (Finely Chopped) – 2 (medium size)
Ripe Tomato (Blend to fine puree) – 2 (medium size)
Carrot (Chopped into small pieces) – ½ Cup
French Beans (Chopped into small pieces) - ½ Cup
Cottage Cheese /Paneer (Small Pieces) – ½ cup (Optional)
Sweet Corn Kernels/pieces - 1 Corn
Coconut milk – 300 ml
Warm Water – 1 cup
Cilantro/Coriander – To garnish
Salt –To taste
Sriram's Malabar Curry Powder - 2 Tablespoons (Its a white colored box. Available in the Indian grocery stores. Here's the link. 
http://www.sriramfoods.com/malabarchicken.html 
Any other brand would also do.If you can't find it, make the spice at home by following the whole spice recipe.')

Whole Spices: (Use this only if you don't find the ready made Malabar Curry Spice)
Cinnamon Stick – 2 inches
Cloves – 2
Black Cardamom(Peeled) – 2
Green Cardamom(Peeled) -1

Grind the whole spices to fine powder

Method:

       1. Heat clarified butter in a pan. Once the butter is hot enough, add mustard seeds + curry leaves + asafoetida and let them splutter for a few seconds. Make sure that you don’t burn it or else it will taste bitter. Add chopped onions + grated ginger and fry till they turn soft pink. Then add pureed tomatoes + salt. Mix properly and cover it with a lid for 10 minutes on a low flame.

       2. Once the mixture starts to leave oil from the side of the pan, add red chilli powder + turmeric powder + Malabar ready made spice OR ground whole spices + vegetables and mix well. Add warm water and cover it with lid for 10 minutes or till the vegetables are cooked completely.

       3. Turn off the heat and add coconut milk + cottage cheese. High temperature curdles the coconut milk. Once you have mixed the milk, turn on the heat on low flame and keep stirring the curry for 2 minutes. Add coconut oil and stir again.

     4.  Garnish it with cilantro/coriander and serve hot with lots of love.




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Monday, June 10, 2013

Rogan Josh - A Finger Licking Kashmiri Mutton Curry

I am not a professional chef but I truly believe that anything cooked with LOVE tastes AwesomeIf you are passionate about Cooking, Eating and Feeding people with love, you can make the entire world kiss your fingers. :)

The first recipe on my food blog is the famous Kashmiri 'Roganjosh'. I made it on a lazy Sunday and everyone loved it, especially my father in law who happens to be a die hard fan of this delicious mutton curry. 

Its a foolproof recipe. You can't go wrong with it. So many ingredients might make you think twice but be fearless and try out this simple yet tasty recipe with lots of love!


Rogan Josh with Roomali Roti




Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 45 mins
Serves: 4

You will need: 

Whole Spices:
Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch
Green Cardamom - 3
Brown Cardamom - 1
Bay leaf - 1
Peppercorns - 1/2 teaspoon


Mutton/Lamb - 500 grams, cut into 2 inches pieces. (You may use chicken as well)
Onion (Thinly sliced) - 4 to 5 medium size  (Optional)
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 Tablespoons
Clarified Butter or Ghee - 4 Tablespoons (You may use vegetable oil)
Asafoetida/Hing - 1 and 1/4 Teaspoons
Curry Leaves - 5 to 6 (optional)
Coriander Powder - 2 Tablespoons
Fennel Powder - 3 Tablespoons (Roasted)
Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder - 2 Tablespoons (Kashmiri chilly powder is mild and gives a nice red color to the food.)
Dried Ginger Powder/Soonth - 1 Teaspoon
Set Yogurt - 1 cup (Beaten to smooth paste)
Warm Water - 2 cups
Tomato(Finely chopped) - 1 small (Optional)
Salt - To taste
Rogan Josh Masala(Ready to use spice) - 1 packet (Optional. You may use this to enhance the flavor even further. I used 'Parampara'.)
Coriander Leaves- To garnish


Method: 

1. Heat clarified butter in a pressure cooker or a thick bottomed pan on a medium high flame. Once it is hot, add 'whole spices' + asafoetida + curry leaves. Fry for 30 seconds. Once the spices start to splutter and smell nice, add sliced onions and fry till they turn light brown in color. Don't burn the onions or else they will taste bitter. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for 2 minutes. 

2. Now add mutton pieces + 1 tablespoon chilly powder + Salt and fry till the meat turns brown(10-15 minutes). Add tomato + fennel powder + dried ginger powder + coriander powder + set yogurt + (rogan josh ready-to-eat masala, if you are using) Add warm water and mix well.

3. Pressure cook it for half an hour on medium flame. If you are using a pan then cover it with a lid and cook for an hour on low flame. When you open the lid, you should see oil floating all over your curry. It means your curry has been cooked properly. Check whether the meat is cooked. If not, then cover the lid again and cook it for some more time.


Pressure Cooker
4. Garnish it with coriander leaves and lots of love!

Rogan Josh tastes best with Roomali Roti, Naan and Jeera Rice.

Do try out this recipe and give me your feedback. It will help me in improvising my recipes and blog. 

Bon Appetit!