Recipe: Creamy Cottage Cheese prepared in a Wok

Recipe: Creamy Cottage Cheese prepared in a Wok

Ingredients

1 Onion

1 Green Chilli

1/2 Green bell pepper

1/2 Red bell pepper

3 cloves of garlic

1 inch piece of fresh ginger/ 1 tsp ginger powder

1 Tomato

Indian Cottage Cheese

Canola Oil

1/2 tsp butter

Spices:

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp cayenne powder

1 tsp coriander seeds

2 tsp dried fenugreek leaves

Preparation:

1) Chop onion, bell peppers, ginger and garlic roughly.

2) Grind onions, green chilli, garlic and ginger together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3) Heat a pan with oil. Add cumin seeds, turmeric,

cayenne, coriander powder and salt to taste.

4) Transfer the ground onion-chilli-garlic-ginger mixture

to the above pan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5) Mix so that the spices blend with the

mixture and cook for 3 minutes.

6) Puree the fresh tomato

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7) Transfer the tomato puree to the pan.

8) Mix and cook for another 3-4 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9) Using mortar and pestle, grind the

fresh coriander seeds.

10) Transfer the ground coriander seeds to the

pan and mix with the peppers and onions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

11) Now is the time add my favorite Indian herb,

dried fenugreek leaves!

12) Using the palm of your hand, crush the leaves

and add it to the pan and mix well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

13) Now carefully transfer the mixture of onions, peppers,

crushed coriander seeds and fenugreek leaves onto the pan

that has the previously cooked onion tomato paste mixture.

14) Mix everything together gently.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15) Now cut the cottage cheese into medium

sized cubes

16) Take another pan. Now this is the only time I would ask you to use the 1/2 teaspoon butter. Trust me!

Follow my recipe and you can prepare restaurant quality curry at home 🙂

Add the butter and toss the cubed cottage cheese till they turn brown.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

17) TIME TO PLATEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Recipe: Tomato Chutney

Recipe: Tomato Chutney

Ingredients

1 large Onion

2 Tomatoes

1 tsp tomato puree

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 inch piece ginger/ 1 tsp ginger powder

3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp cayenne powder

Salt to taste

Sesame Oil(best) or if you cannot find it Canola oil is fine.

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

Curry leaves -2/3

Preparation

Chop onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic. Heat a pan with sesame oil and add the chopped garlic, ginger and onions.

Add salt, cayenne, cumin coriander powder and saute for about 5 minutes till the onions are light brown. Add the chopped tomatoes and saute till the tomatoes also take in all the flavors of the spices and are well cooked. Then transfer to a blender and blend well till smooth.

For garnish, add sesame oil to the pan and add mustard seeds and curry leaves till you hear them splutter!!!!

Transfer the blended chutney paste to the pan with garnish and mix well. Enjoy!!!

Recipe: Masala Scrambled Eggs for Easter

Recipe: Masala Scrambled Eggs for Easter

Ingredients
4 eggs
1 onion
1 tomato
2 cloves of garlic
Ginger, about an inch
Pinch of Turmeric
1 tsp cumin seeds
Salt to taste
Crushed Black peppercorn preferably Tellicherry grade
A tablespoon of Garam masala

Preparation

Crack open 4 eggs into a bowl. Add salt and crushed black pepper. Chop onion, ginger and garlic and tomatoes finely. Heat a pan with oil. Add the chopped ginger, garlic and onions and sauté for 3 minutes or so. Now add salt, turmeric, Garam masala and sauté for another minute or two. Transfer the chopped tomato and sprinkle some water and mix well. Cook till water evaporates and you get a nice onion tomato paste like consistency. Now add the eggs from the bowl and mix well on low heat. Enjoy this masala scrambled eggs with any kind of bread/ pita/ even tortilla!

 

Nutrition Facts

Eggs:

One egg is considered to be the equivalent (for protein) to one ounce of meat. One of the egg’s most important nutritional benefits is that it is the best source of a B vitamin called choline. Eggs are a good food source of certain vitamins and minerals essential for good health. Eggs are rich in riboflavin (vitamin B2). Eggs are a good source of minerals like phosphorous and selenium. Egg yolks provide rich source of lutein which is one of the carotenoids that acts as an important antioxidant.

Recipe: Curried Cabbage with Green Peas

Recipe: Curried Cabbage with Green Peas

Ingredients
1/4 head of cabbage
1/4 cup snow peas (if frozen, thawed)
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Lemon Pepper
1 tsp Curry Blend
Pinch of Turmeric
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

Preparation

Chop the cabbage very finely and evenly. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. Wait till it splutters. Then add salt, turmeric, lemon pepper and my curry blend. Make sure not burn the mixture. Transfer the chopped cabbage and sauté for 2 minutes, transfer the thawed snow peas and mix well. Now sprinkle some water, reduce the gas and keep covered. Keep checking in between and mix to avoid burning of the cabbage. Once its cooked completely the cabbage would be soft. Now to retain the crunch of cabbage, remove the lid and cook for 2 more minutes till all water evaporates. Now transfer to a plate and enjoyyyyy!

Pic 1: Chop cabbage very fine Pic 2: Add mustard seeds and all spices to oil

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Pic 3: Transfer the cabbage Pic 4: Transfer Snow Peas and mix

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Pic 5: Keep covered till it cooks

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Nutrition Facts

Cabbage is a vegetable rich in Vitamin C. It also contains large amounts of glutamine, anamino acid that has anti-inflammatory properties. Cabbage is a low-calorie food.

Green Peas are one of the most nutritious leguminous vegetable, rich in phyto-nutrients, minerals, vitamins and anti-oxidants. Peas are relatively low in calories and contain good amount of soluble and insoluble fiber but contains no cholesterol. They are excellent source of folic acid and folic acid helps prevent neural tube defects in the newborn babies. Fresh green peas are very good in ascorbic acid (vitamin C). Peas contain phytosterols especially ß-sitosterol. that help lower cholesterol levels in the body. They are also good in vitamin K and contain adequate amounts of anti-oxidants flavonoids such as carotenes, lutein and zeaxanthin as well as vitamin-A.

Vegetable fritters in a spicy yogurt sauce

Vegetable fritters in a spicy yogurt sauce

For vegetable fritters:

Gram flour (besan) 3/4 cup
Onion, finely chopped 1 medium
Bell pepper, finely chopped
Dried Fenugreek leaves (methi) 1/2 cup
Freshly ground coriander seeds
Ginger,grated 1 inch piece
Cayenne powder 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Canola or Vegetable oil to deep fry
2 teaspoons buttermilk

For Spicy yogurt sauce (called Kadhi)

Yogurt 1 cup
Gram flour (besan) 1/4 cup
Turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Canola/ Vegetable Oil 2 tablespoons
Fenugreek seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Dried red chillies for garnish
Black peppercorns 4-5
Onion ,chopped 1 medium
Ginger,chopped 1/2 inch piece
Cayenne powder 1 teaspoon

Preparation of Vegetable Fritters: Take a big bowl and mix gram flour, salt, turmeric, dried fenugreek leaves, freshly ground coriander seeds and cayenne pepper. Mix in the chopped onions & bell peppers. Add about 1/4 a cup of water and mix well.

NANDINI s TIP: Add 2 teaspoons of buttermilk.

Cover the bowl and let it rest for 30 minutes. This allows all the flavors to blend well with the onions and peppers.

Heat sufficient oil in a pan, drop small portions of the mixture and deep fry till golden brown. Drain and place on an absorbent paper and set aside.

Preparation of Spicy Yogurt Sauce:
Take a bowl and whisk yogurt and gram flour well.

NANDINI s TIP: Sift the flour into the yoghurt while whisking in order to avoid forming lumps.

Blend thoroughly. Add turmeric powder, salt and three cups of water. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a pan Add fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorns and red chillies. Stir-fry for half a minute. Add onions, ginger and stir-fry for a minute. Add yogurt mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer on low heat for about fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cayenne powder.

Bringing together the dish:
Transfer the crunchy golden brown vegetable fritters to the yoghurt sauce and simmer for four to five minutes.

Picture 1: Spices required        Picture 2: Preparation of fritters

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Picture 3: Cumin, Coriander, Red Chillies &Tumeric

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Picture 4:Transfer ginger-garlic         Picture 5: Mix gram flour with yogurt

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Picture 6: Transfer gram flour mix to the pan- Spicy yogurt Sauce

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Picture 7: Fry the fritters           Picture 8: Transfer fritters to a plate

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Picture 9: Add the fritters to the spicy yogurt sauce

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Green Beans, Cauliflower and Carrots sauteed with scallions, garlic, cumin, mustard seeds and garnished with fresh coconut.

Green Beans, Cauliflower and Carrots sauteed with scallions, garlic, cumin, mustard seeds and garnished with fresh coconut.

Green Beans
Baby Carrots
Cauliflower
2-3 Scallions
3 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
Shredded coconut

Chop scallions and garlic finely. Then chop green beans and baby carrots very small and even. Break the cauliflower florets into smaller florets. Heat a pan and add sesame oil, then add a teaspoon of cumin seeds, mustard seeds and wait till you hear the sputtering. Now add the finely chopped garlic and scallions, salt to taste, a pinch of lemon pepper and some coriander powder. Saute till they turn golden brown. Add the beans, broken cauliflower florets and carrots. Sprinkle some water and keep covered with a lid till it cooks completely. If you run a knife through any of the veggies and it goes through or is soft then you know that it is cooked completely.
Now shred some fresh coconut and use to garnish on top.

 

Nutrition Facts:

Green beans

They are very low in calories and contain no saturated fat; but are very good source of vitamins, minerals, and plant derived micronutrients. They are very rich source of dietary fiber. Green beans contain excellent levels of vitamin A, and many health promoting flavonoid poly phenolic antioxidants such as lutein, zeaxanthin and ß-carotene in good amounts. They are good source of folates. They also contain good amounts of vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), thiamin (vitamin B-1), and vitamin-C. In addition, beans contain healthy amounts of minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and potassium, which are very essential for body metabolism.

Cauliflower

They are very low in calorie and is very low in fat and contains no cholesterol. Its florets contain about 2 g of dietary fiber per 100 g; providing about 5% of recommended value. Cauliflower contains several anti cancer phyto-chemicals like sulforaphane and plant sterols such asindole-3-carbinol. Fresh cauliflower is excellent source of vitamin C and many essential B-complex group of vitamins such as folates, pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and thiamin (vitamin B1), niacin (B3) as well as vitamin K. It is also good source of minerals such as manganese, copper, iron, calcium and potassium.

Carrots

They are rich in anti-oxidants, vitamins and dietary fiber; are exceptionally rich source of carotenes and vitamin-A. Studies have found that flavonoid compounds in carrots help protect from skin, lung and oral cavity cancers. Beta-carotene is the major carotene that is present in these roots and is one of the powerful natural anti-oxidant. Carrots are rich in poly-acetylene anti-oxidant falcarinol. They are also good in vitamin C. This root vegetable is especially contain good amounts of many B-complex group of vitamins such as folic acid, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin, pantothenic acid, etc that acts as co-factors to enzymes during substrate metabolism in the body. It also has healthy levels of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium, manganese and phosphorus.