Rajma

Another rajma recipe
Ingredients:

• 1 cup Rajma/Red Kidney Beans (soaked overnight/8 hours)
• ½ cup finely chopped onions
• 1 teaspoon chopped ginger
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
• 1 teaspoon Vegetable/Sunflower Oil
• Salt to taste

Process:
See Cooking Lentils and Legumes/Beans for cooking Rajma.
Heat oil to a sauce pan, add chopped ginger and onions. Sauté until onions are soft and golden brown.
Add chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, cumin powder, garam masala powder and sauté until tomatoes become soft.
Add the cooked rajma , salt, 1 cup water and butter and simmer for 30 minutes. The longer you simmer the more the spices get into the rajma and the tastier it gets. You can alter the consistency of the gravy by adding more water.

Carrot salad

This salad is served almost daily at my grandparents place. Somehow it tastes far better there than when I make it!

Ingredients:

• 4 large carrots: Grated thick
  
• 1/2 lime

Dry Ingredients:

• 1 full red chilli
• 1/2 spoon mustard seeds
• Few Fenugreek seeds
• A pinch of asofetida
• Few curry leaves

Process:

• Add some oil
• When the oil is hot add all the dry ingredients
• When the mustard seeds start sputtering, take off the heat and add it to the grated carrots
• Add salt and lime and you're ready to consume!
  

Aloo Bhindi

Ingredients:

• 20 small okra
• 2 potatoes
• 1 spoon cumin seeds
• Masala: 1 spoon dhania powder, 1/2 spoon chilli powder, 1/4 spoon amchur (mango powder)

Process:
NOTE: Since okra tends to become slimy, I cooked the potatoes and the okra separately initially and then put it all together.

• Wash the okra before cutting. Cut the ends off both sides of each okra
• Cut the potatoes into thin, long pieces (about the same size as the okra)
• Add oil in two separate pans. Add cumin seeds in each
• Once the cumin seeds start sputtering add the okra in one pan and the potato in another
• Salt both veggies
• When the okra and potatoes are about 3/4 cooked, transfer all of them into the same pan
• In the now empty pan add a little oil and all the masala powders
• Now add all the veggies back in and stir it all together
• Close and cook (stirring occasionally) until it's all cooked

Rajma

One more excellent recipe from Gagan!
Ingredients:
1 onion (paste from fresh onions)
5-6 tomatoes (paste from fresh tomatoes)
2-3 cloves of garlic (paste from fresh)
ginger paste (paste from fresh)
1 chopped green chili
1 cinnamon stick
1 Black cardamom
2 tejpata
Jeera
2-3 cloves
Salt: to taste
Turmeric
Red chili powder
Dhaniya powder (1 tea spoons)
1 cup curd
Rajma
Garam masala


How to make:

Boil rajma and keep aside. Don't cook it completely.
Fry ginger garlic paste.
Add onion paste and cinnamon stick, black cardamom, tejpata ,jeera, cloves, green chili. Cook till it leaves oil.
Add the tomatoes paste and salt and cook well till it leaves oil.
Add curd and cook well.
Now, add turmeric, red chilli, and dhaniya powder. Cook for 3-4 mins.
Add rajma and pressure-cook to mix the masala and rajma well.
Add garam-masala.

Shahi Paneer

Thanks to Gagan!

Ingredients:

Finely chopped onions: 1 (big one)
Finely chopped tomatoes: 4 (big ones)
1 chopped green chili
Paneer: 1 packet
Tomato sauce: 1 spoon
Sugar: 1/2 table spoon
Salt: to taste
Turmeric
Red chili powder
Garam masala: 1 table spoon
Heavy Whipping Cream (get at least 2 small cartons)
Dry fruit (10-15 raisins, 3-4 chopped almonds, 10-15 chopped cashews)


How to make:

Fry onions and green chili in a pan.
Add tomatoes and salt and cook well. Make sure there is no water left and the tomatoes are well cooked.
Add turmeric and red chili powder and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add cream, sugar, tomato sauce, and sugar and cook on slow heat.
After 5 minutes, add paneer and cook on slow heat till the gravy thickens. Add more cream if required. If the gravy gets too thick, add some milk, but don't use water.
Add the dry fruit and garam masala and cook for 3-5 minutes.

Channa

Thanks to Gagan!
Ingredients:

Channe
Onions 2 (cut lengthwise)
Tomatoes: 4 (finely chopped)
Garlic
Ginger
1 chopped green chili
1 cinnamon stick
1 Black cardamom
2 tejpata
Jeera
2-3 cloves
Salt: to taste
Turmeric
Red chili powder
Dhaniya powder (3 tea spoons)
Tamarind water (cook tamarind in some water for 10-15 minutes. Add some sugar or jaggary.)

How to make:

Boil channa and keep aside.
Fry onions and keep aside.
In a pan heat some oil, add cinnamon stick, black cardamom, tejpata , jeera, cloves, chopped garlic, ginger, and green chili and fry. Now, add turmeric powder, chili powder, and dhaniya powder and fry well. You will know it is done from the aroma of cooked dhaniya powder. Remove the cooked masala from the pan. (you can add it on top of the onions you cooked earlier)
In the same pan cook the tomatoes.
Now, mix the onions and masalas to the tomatoes and cook some more.
Add the channa to the mix and pressure cook, if required. At this time you can add the tamarind water to the channa.
Enjoy :)

Coconut rice

1. Fully cook 2 cups of rice.
2. Add a few peanuts or cashew in the oil - remove when light brown.
3. Add south indian tadka - mustard seeds, some asofetida, fenugreek seeds, 1/2 handful of channa dal, curry leaves
4. When they start sputtering add 1/2 cup of shredded coconut + salt
5. Keep stirring until brownish (coconut burns very quickly - so be careful here)
6. Add rice and mix everything together.
7. Finally add the cashews.

Lime rice

1. Fully cook 2 cups of rice.
2. Add a few peanuts or cashew in the oil - remove when light brown.
3. Add south indian tadka - mustard seeds, some asofetida, fenugreek seeds, 1/2 handful of channa dal, curry leaves
4. When they start sputtering add little bit of turmeric and immediately add the rice
5. Add salt and stir everything together
6. Squeeze a few limes to taste and mix all together.
7. Finally add the cashews or peanuts

Veggie fried rice

Handful of beans - french cut
1/2 - 3/4 an onion - thinly sliced (pink onion works best)
1/2 green pepper thinly sliced
1/2 red/yellow pepper - thinly sliced
handful of snowpeas
Peas
(all of these are optional).

1. Boil about 2 cups of rice
2. When about 90% cooked - put in peas for a few seconds
3. Strain out excess water.

In the meantime:
4. Add oil
5. Add cashews, raisins, almonds -- quickly fry till slightly brown -- take out and keep aside.
6. Then Add tej patha, 1 big elaichi, few cloves, 1 stick cinnamon
7. Add onion - fry till light brown. Then add remaining vegetables + salt.
8. Fry till almost fully cooked.
9. Add 1/2 spoon of garam masala + chilli powder
10. Fry quickly.
11. Then add the rice and mix it all together.

Variation 1:
With eggs
1. Boil 3 eggs.
2. In the oil, put jeera also (and no big elaichi) (step 6 above)
3. In the end mix 2 tsp yogurt with jeera powder, chilli powder and very little garam masala (step 9)
4. Add it and cook for few minutes
After adding the rice and mixing everything --
5. Now add the eggs - sliced in quarters (lengthwise)

Variation 2:
With Paneer & tomatoes
When using paneer - follow the Variation 1.
Except in step 7 - after all veggies are cooked - also add tomatoes.
Then when all is cooked -- add the paneer (before rice)

(It is better if the paneer is broiled or fried first - otherwise it may fall apart)

Aloo

Peal and cut 3 potatoes - medium size pieces
Boil the potatoes

In the meantime dry fry 1 tsp cumin seeds.
Grind with 1/2 tsp whole black pepper
1 tsp coriander seeds.

Once potatoes are boiled:
Add little oil in a sauce pan.
Add a bit of cumin seeds
When cumin seeds start to sputter - add the potatoes.
Add salt at this point.
Once potatoes are browned - add the mixture made above - don't add all of it -- add to taste.
Also add some amchur + chilli powder to taste.

Once everything is fully cooked:
Add juice of 1/2 lime + handful of finely chopped coriander

Palak Paneer

Boil 2 cups of water.
Add 1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
2 tomatoes
2 green chillies
3 packets of spinach
salt to taste

In the meantime - cut 1 packet of paneer and broil with very little oil

Once the spinach is fully cooked - wait for it to cool and blend it.

Chop 1 onion

Add oil
2 small pieces of cinnamon stick
2 - 3 cloves
Add the chopped onion

When the onion is cooked - add the blended spinach
Also add in a handful of kasoori methi.

Cook till the spinach is a little dried up, then add the paneer and cook a little while longer

Sprout salad

• 1 cup sprouts
• 1 mango finely chopped
• little bit of onion finely chopped
• 1 green chilli finely chopped

Mix all of the above with mint-cilantro chutney.

Chole salad

1 big can of garbanzo beans.
Chop the following ingredients (finely):

• 1 onion
• 1 tomato
• 1 mango
  
• 1 green chili
• lots of cilantro
• 1 yellow/green pepper
  

Mix all the above together with the following ingredients:

• Juice of 2 limes
• salt
• Chat masala
• Tamarind sauce
  

Paneer with kasoori methi

Chop 1 onion - finely.
Add oil. When oil is hot add cardamom, clove, black pepper (full) and cumin.
When cumin starts sputtering - add the chopped onions.
When onions are cooked add 1 chopped tomato.
Mix 2 tbsp of yogurt with chilli powder, turmeric, jira powder and dhania powder.
Add yogurt mixture when the tomato has cooked down and oil has started coming out.
Once it was all cooked add some water.
In the meantime cut and broil the paneer (both sides) and soak handful of kasoori methi in hot water.
When curry is fully cooked, added kasoori methi and the paneer.

Okra & onion

Wash Okra -Then slice it length wise -- cut each okra into 3 long slices
Then slice 1/2 an onion, also length wise.
Add oil. Add cumin seeds when oil is hot.
When cumin starts sputtering - add sliced onion.
When onion is translucent - add sliced okra. Add salt to tast.
Cook on high heat - constantly shaking the pan.
When okra is cooked 3/4 add black pepper powder, chilli powder and a little bit of turmeric.

Plantain Kofta Curry

From: http://www.bawarchi.com/contribution/contrib2015.html
For KOFTAS:
Green Plantains - 4
Besan - 1/2 cup (basically enough to bind the green plantain together when frying the koftas)
Bread - 2 slices
Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp
Red Chilli Powder to taste
Salt to taste

For GRAVY:
Oil - 4 tbsp
Ginger - 2 inches long piece
Garlic - 4-5 cloves
Onion - 1 1/2 cups finely chopped
Tomatoes - 1 1/2 cups finely chopped
Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp
Cinnamon - 1 inch long
Cardamom - 3-4
Clove - 5-6
Bay leaves - 2
Cumin Powder - 2 tbsp
Corriander Powder - 2 tbsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1 tbsp
Amchur - 1/2 tbsp
Red Chilli Powder & Salt to taste

Method:

For KOFTAS:
Boil the plantains with in salt water. Peel and mash to fine paste.
Add cumin seeds, 'besan', crumbled bread slices (i think they add to the crispness of the kofta), salt and chilli powder. The consistency should be such that the mix can retain a firm shape when dropped into the oil to deep fry. Let this mix set for maybe an hour or more.
Heat oil (like the way you would do to fry 'pakodas'). And then with a tbsp, scoop mix into the boiling oil and fry it into koftas.

For GRAVY:
Heat oil in deep pan.
Mildly fry bay leaves, cumin seeds, and crushed mix of the cinnamon, cloves & cardamom.
Add finely chopped ginger & garlic (or ginger garlic paste, which you can prepare in blender) to the oil. Once this turns brown, add chopped onions and cook till they turn transparent or brown.
Then add the tomatoes, cumin powder, corriander powder, garam masala powder, amchur, chilli powder and salt. And let cook till the tomatoes are tender.
Add 2 cups of water to this mix and let it cook for a while till everything blends well together. Adjust the spices at this time if you feel something is less or more.
Once the gravy is cooked, drop the koftas into it, and let them soak it in for atleast 2 hours.
Garnish with cilantro & serve hot.
You can make koftas substituting the plantain with grated 'lauki' or assorted vegetables (like boiled potatoes & peas), etc.
Serve hot with 'rotis' or rice.

Lauki with Coconut Milk

From Debarati!
1 onion slices
2 tomatoes chopped
1 lauki peeled + cut into thin, long strips

(Adjust tomatoes and onions depending on the size of the lauki!)

Add oil, then add some whole jeera and the onions
Fry onions till light brown then add tomatoes.
Cook until oil comes out
then add jeera pwder, chilli powder, turmeric and salt.
Add some water and the lauki; cover andcook till almost fully cooked
Add a little bit of cocunut milk and boil a few minutes

Shahi Paneer

Ingredients
1 block of paneer, grated
Blend to a paste, the following
2 medium onions
1" ginger piece
4 flakes garlic
2 green chillies

Powder together, the following
2" cinnamon stick
2-3 cardammoms
2-3 cloves
1 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp cashewnuts(or almonds)

2 tomatoes pureed
2 tsp red-chilli pwd
A pinch of turmeric
2 tsp coriander pwd
1 tsp cumin pwd
1 cup of cream
Salt to taste
2 tbsp cooking oil

Method
Heat a little oil and fry the onion paste till it begins
to brown.
Mix in the poppy-cashew powder and the other dry powders.
Fry for a minute and then add the pureed tomatoes.
Add some water and bring to a boil.
Add salt to taste.
Add the cream and mix well.
Add the grated paneer,heat through and eat it hot
with chapathi/naan.

Cilantro Pesto Pasta

Cilantro Pesto
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 1/2 cups cilantro leaves
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 Tbs. fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Onion Mixture
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 cup chopped sweet onion, such as Vidalia
1 cup diced red bell pepper
4 1/2 oz. can mild green chilies
1/2 oz. dried orecchiette, gnocchi or medium shell pasta
1 cup grated Pepper Jack cheese (3 oz.)

Directions:
1. Bring large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, make pesto: In small dry skillet, toast almonds over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until light golden and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes.Transfer to small bowl and let cool.

3. In food processor, combine almonds, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, salt and pepper; process until finely chopped. With motor running, add 2 Tbs. oil and lime juice through the feed tube, processing until mixture forms paste and stopping to scrape down sides of work bowl as necessary. Transfer mixture to small bowl.

4. Add pasta to boiling water; stir to prevent sticking. Cook, stirring often, until just tender, 8 to 12 minutes. While pasta is cooking, in large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tsp. oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell
pepper; cook, stirring often, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add green chilies and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

5. Just before pasta is cooked, scoop out 13 cup of pasta cooking water and add to pesto, stirring well. Drain pasta and transfer to large, warm bowl.Add onion mixture and cheese; toss to coat well. Serve immediately.

Orange, Mint and Asparagus Salad

Modified from vegetarian times
SERVES 8
1 lb. asparagus, trimmed
3 large navel oranges
1 cup chopped scallions
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint
1 Tbs. white wine or cider vinegar
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:


Bring large pot of water to a rolling boil. Drop asparagus in water, return to a boil and remove from heat. Let asparagus stand in water 1 minute, then drain and rinse under cold water. Cut asparagus on diagonal into 1-inch pieces.

Put in large bowl with asparagus, scallions and chopped mint. Toss well.

3. Juice one navel orange. Whisk together 2 Tbs. orange juice, vinegar, oil, salt and pepper in small bowl. Stir dressing into asparagus mixture.

Cut the remaining oranges and add it to the mixture. Gently toss to combine. Chill one hour, or overnight. Retoss before serving.