All posts tagged: Indian cuisine

Methi Chicken with Coconut Rice

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I always hated all the weird green leafy things that my mom religiously included in atleast one meal of the day. It din’t matter if the greens were all different and tasted unique, just the fact that it was greens, was enough to make us wring our faces in disgust. We gave it a combined names of ‘Soppu’ which literally means ‘Greens’ in Kannada and left it at that. Methi or Fenugreek leaves was maybe the general of the green army. The fact that it was bitter elevated it to the hate list pretty quickly. Yes, it’s healthy and a fantastic source of Iron, but try getting that into our little brains. Now that my brain is slightly bigger (Ok, my head got bigger, fine?) I may have developed a taste for it….Gasp! (Don’t tell my mom!). Actually aging has a strange effect on the palate. You tend to appreciate other tastes apart from the sugar buzz that got you through high school! (Not saying that sweet somethings don’t get me all woozy brained and …

Paneer Butter Masala

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Growing up in a South Indian household, Paneer was as exotic a dish to us as Polenta. Tandoor on M.G. Road was one of the first places I had a Paneer Makhni. Dada took us there with his business partner and family, when I was in junior school. The setting was formal and royal (ok, the waiters were dressed up in a turban!) and I was in awe of all the golden chandeliers. And there I tasted it…rich and creamy and tomatoey and cheesy. I was hooked…have been ever since. After that, it was something I religiously ordered whenever we dined out in a ‘North Indian restaurant’. (Ok, I still do!) The dish of course has moved from being exotic to completely local, with every Darshini across the corner serving ‘Paneer Butter Masala’! It’s almost staple in a North Indian Thali ordered in Bangalore. We never cooked paneer at home, because sourcing good paneer was difficult in the earlier days and mom’s home made paneer was at best – tough. Thankfully we have now come …

Lamb Chintamani – The Three Ingredient Wonder

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This one is a revelation. I came across the recipe at Spices and Aroma and was instantly intrigued. A lamb main course using just three ingredients? Now that must be either really simple or really a joke. I had to satisfy my curiosity. So I immediately bookmarked the page to try it and asked the co-resident to go meat shopping. (He knows this awesome butcher near my mom-in-law’s house, rest assured we always get the freshest and best cut of meat). The recipe says Lamb but I like to use Goat Meat. It’s less fatty and somehow so much more flavorsome. The recipe is an authentic Kongunadu (Salem, Erode and Coimbatore) recipe using lamb and onions in equal quantities with some many fiery dried red chillies to liven it up! The result is an almost pickle like consistency that you serve with some hot white rice and loads of ghee. Now, most people add ghee to their sambhar and curries to reduce the heat, but the purpose of serving ghee with this dish is to …

Onion Pakodas – For the Rains!

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Monsoons! You either love it or hate it. I belong to the latter category. I know poems have been written about the rains and how it raises the spirits and blah blah blah. But clearly this is the work of someone sitting in the comfort of their homes and blabbing about the elements without experiencing its fury! For the ordinary man/woman who rides a bike to work or who needs to walk to a bus stop the monsoons are nothing but havoc to their plans and clothes and shoes might I add! I am always game for the occasional bout of rain, but five whole months of it??? Spare me the romanticism. Give me one person in Cherrapunji who’s waxed eloquently about it. Comon, think. No? There, I rest my case. Familiarity breeds contempt! It’s only freaking fantastic if you are a farmer looking for the rains for a good crop or someone in a really hot place who needs the spell of rain to cool the temperature down. Bangalore clearly does not need five …

Chili Chicken – Indian Chinese Style

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This recipe might not be understood by everyone. I say that with confidence, because to understand this recipe, you needed to have eaten Indian-Chinese Cuisine. You probably won’t find it listed even if you look hard in the dictionary. Fact is, its not got much of Chinese in it other than the soy sauce and stir fry technique. But as a nation we love this so much, that we’ve given it a top three slot in our hearts. 80% of our everyday restaurants will list themselves as, ”Serving Indian, Mughlai and Chinese”! And that my friends, is the ONLY way to stay in business! The most popular dish of this marvelous collaboration is of course the ubiquitous Chicken Manchurian. (And its vegetarian cousins – Gobi Manchurian and Paneer Manchurian). However another post shall sing its glory, but for today it’s the Chilli Chicken’s place in the sun! Chilli Chicken – Indian Chinese Style Cooking time: 25 mins Marination time: 2 hrs Serves: 4 What you need: 500 gms of Boneless Chicken cubes For the marinade: …

Ghee Rice Mummy Style

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My mum is a fantastic cook. So is my mom-in-law. Whatever I make falls two spots short of whatever they churn out, by just chucking random ingredients into the pan. Life’s not fair is it?! I always console myself thinking that they had 8 hours a day for the last 30 years to practice their art while I’ve just had weekends. Score settled. Anyway, they’ve always been more than willing to share their gems of wisdom with me, which I reverently jot down in a little notebook to ‘try’ replicating at home. Alas, it’s always a not quite. Am sure the wily women are not disclosing the magic ingredient! How else would they get me to come home often? So here is my mum’s Ghee Rice. It’s the most amazing accompaniment to any curry/ gravy. And don’t worry, even without her secret ingredient (shall we be soppy and say ‘love’) it still rocks my boat! Ghee Rice Prep time: 20 mins Cooking time: 10 mins Serves: 4-6 What you need: 3 cups Jeera Rice (or …

Lemon Rice (Chitranna)

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This post is for ‘someone’ who asked me recently, whether I had locked my kitchen up as he dint see any new posts on the blog 😛 Considering that ‘someone’ is also a Vegetarian and South Indian … this recipe should appeal to him. Lemon Rice is something that mom made in a jiffy for breakfast IF – she was out of time or there was rice leftover from last night’s dinner. So as a teenager I used to ho and hum when I saw lemon rice on my plate. But now I completely understand the lemon rice logic – it’s a healthy, simple, no wastage dish. Not to mention for all the ho-ing and hum-ing it was and is delicious! Lemon Rice Prep time: 15 minsServes: 4 What you need:1 ½ cups Rice (uncooked) / 2 ½ cups cooked Rice1 Onion sliced1 Lemon (Juice of)3-4 green Chilies½ tsp Channa Dal½ tsp Urd Dal½ tsp Turmeric½ tsp Ginger paste½ tsp Mustard seeds4 tsps Oil6-7 Curry leavesSalt to tasteHandful of peanutsGrated coconut to Garnish What to …

Panchamrutam – The five Nectars

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South Indian festivals are an excuse to indulge in food of the sweet and heavy kind. One of the staples is ‘Panchamrutam’ which means the five nectars. This is prepared as a festive offering and is a medley of all things sweet! It’s a sugar high to say the least and considering this is what we offer our Gods they must be getting off on the sugar buzz! Anyway there are no fixed five ingredients though Milk, Curd, Honey, Ghee, Fruits (esp bananas), Coconut and Sugar are interchangeable. My recipe is almost a fruit salad, but with a holy twist! Bless you… Panchamrutam Prep time: 10 mins Serves: 10 -12 What you need: 2 Bananas 1 Apple 2 Guava 1 Sweet Lime (peeled and segmented) Handful of Black Grapes Half a Pomegranate (peeled and separated) 500 gms Thick Curd 250ml Milk 2 Tbsp Ghee 1 Tbsp Honey 5 Tbsp Granulated Sugar What to do: Wash and dice the apples, guava and Bananas. Peel the Sweet lime and segment it. Remove seeds and transparent layer as …