Paneer Makhani

Have you had your kids give you a list of food that they want when they come home for break or ask you to bring when you go to see them? Well I visited my son in college over the weekend. Sure enough he had a list of his favorite food that he wanted me to bring. It was a beautiful weekend. Had a nice visit. I even got to see the cheery blossom festival (my first time). They were in full bloom and so beautiful. So among other things I made Paneer Makhani for him. This is his all time favorite paneer dish. It is paneer cubes cooked in onion tomato gravy. It is creamy and little sweet!

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon oil

1 Tablespoon ghee

1 cardamom

1/2 inch piece of cinnamon

1 clove

1 large onion, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon kitchen king masala

1/4 teaspoon sugar

salt to taste

1/4 cup cream or milk

2 cups cubed paneer

1/2 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

Method:

1. Heat oil and ghee in a large saucepan. Add the whole spices. Add onion and saute till translucent. Add tomato and saute for a few minutes. Stir in turmeric powder, chili powder, sugar and salt. Allow to cool.

2. Remove the whole spices. Puree onion-tomato mixture. Put it back in the saucepan. Place the pan on medium heat. Add Kitchen King masala. Cook the pureed base for 10 minutes. Stir in milk or cream.

3. Gently fold in paneer cubes. Cook for 5 minutes. Garnish with kasuri methi.

4. Serve warm with roti, paratha or rice. My son prefers to have it with rice.

Note: The onion tomato base is used in many North Indian curry dishes. You can make ahead and freeze if desired. 

Bittergourd (Chinese Okra) chips

One thing I like about my Air Fryer is I can make all these fried food without the guilt. My husband has come around to like it too. Yesterday I made these delicious bitter gourd (Karela) chips for snack. I used to get them hot and fresh from Hot Chips when I was in India. They are crispy, spicy and slightly bitter. Your mouth just explodes with all these flavors at once. I made the healthier air fryer version. My husband suggested that I should use more chick pea flour next time. 

Ingredients:

8 Indian bitter gourd, washed and sliced into thin rounds and seeds removed.

Lemon size tamarind soaked in water and pulp extracted ( about 1 cup)

1+1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 teaspoons red chili powder (adjust to taste)

1 teaspoon asafoetida

1/2 cup chick pea flour (besan)

salt to taste

1 tablespoon oil

oil spray for air fryer

Method:

1. Place the sliced karela in a large bowl. Marinate with tamarind extract, 1 teaspoon turmeric powder and some salt for 10 minutes.

2. Drain karela and rinse. Add the dry ingredients and oil. Mix well.

3. Spray the air fryer basket with oil. Fry karela in batches at  370 for 10 minutes, tossing in between.

4. Serve when cooled.

Paneer Paratha

I cant wait for the day to end..want to know why? I am going to visit my son tomorrow. I haven't seen him since he left for school after winter break. Guess what.. he's given me a long list of food that he wants 😄. I have been cooking since Thursday. This morning I made paneer makhani for him. I had some left over paneer that I used to make myself some paneer paratha.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup whole wheat flour to make the dough for paratha

1/2 cup grated paneer

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1 tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro

2 green chili, chopped

salt to taste

a pinch garam masala

ghee for paratha

Method:

1. Add water to the flour and make a soft dough. Cover and set aside for few minutes. 

2. Divide dough into 5 balls. Set aside.

3. Meantime take grated paneer in a small bowl. Add cilantro, green chili and spices. Mix gently.

4. Flatten a ball of dough on a floured flat surface.

5. Place a tablespoon of paneer stuffing in the center. Fold the edges tightly over the filling.

6. Dust both sides with flour. Gently flatten it with a rolling pin. Make sure the edges are even.

7. Place paratha on a hot griddle. Cook on both sides until golden.

8. Apply some ghee and cook on both sides for couple minutes. Reduce heat if needed.

9. Serve hot with pickle and yogurt or curry. I had mine with Paneer Makhani.

Falafel mix

Falafel is a popular Middle Eastern dish. It is basically deep fried balls made from fava beans and chick peas. Falafel mix can be found in grocery stores (Indian grocer or any Middle Eastern grocer). I learned to make the mix from a friend and tried it for the first time yesterday. It sure tasted better when made fresh.

Ingredients:

1 cup fava beans, soaked overnight

1/2 cup chick peas, soaked overnight

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

2-3 black peppercorn

2-3 dried red chili

1 small onion, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

salt to taste

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Method:

1. Drain the beans. Pulse all the ingredients except sesame seeds in a food processor to a coarse mixture without adding water.

2. Remove the mixture in a bowl. Gently fold 1 tablespoon sesame seeds.

3. Take 1 tablespoon mixture and roll into a ball and flatten into a disc or keep as is. Make balls with the remaining mixture and place on a plate.

4. Place the falafel in the air fryer basket that has been sprayed. Spray the falafel and cook at 370 for 10 minutes, flipping once.

5. You can deep fry the falafel instead of air frying. Serve warm on pita bread or with hummus and tahini sauce

Sambhar for Idly

When you say sambhar, there is so many ways to make it. Sambhar for rice, sambhar with one vegetable or more, with different kinds of lentils. My 1 st grade English teacher Mrs. Hawkins made this easy one pot sambhar for idly when we visited her in London many years ago. I always think of Aachi whenever I make this at home. This sambhar has 3 kinds of dal and can be cooked in a pressure pan or instant pot. I made this last week for idly in my instant pot.

Ingredients:
 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
3 curry leaves
1/2 onion, chopped
5-6 pink pearl onions, peeled
1 tablespoon chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons diced pumpkin
2 green chili, slit
1 small tomato, diced
1 tablespoon sambhar powder
1/4 cup toor dal
1/4 cup masoor dal
1/4 cup mung dal
1 small lemon size tamarind soaked in 1 cup water
salt to taste

Method:

1. Have the instant pot on saute mode. When it is hot add oil and temper with mustard and fenugreek. Add green chili and curry leaves. Saute onion for 3 minutes.
2. Add vegetables and saute for couple minutes.
3.Add sambhar powder. Mix well.
4. Get tamarind extract and discard tamarind. Stir in the tamarind extract.
5. Stir in the dry dal. Add 3 cups water. Add salt to taste. Close instant pot with the lid.
6. Turn the setting to pressure cook on high for 14 minutes with seal.
7. Open lid when pressure releases. Add more water if required. You can garnish with mustard and curry leaves tempered in ghee and also chopped fresh cilantro.

8. Serve hot with hot idly or dosa or pongal.

Note:
This sambhar can be made in pressure cooker by following the same method.
This sambhar can be made with just onion and tomatoes as well.

Bisebele Bath

                                             

Sambhar is a staple dish in the southern states in India. Each region has a different name to it and has slight variation in preparation. Bisebele bath is the name given to sambar rice given in Karnataka. It is a mélange of vegetables cooked with rice and toor dal in tamarind water with homemade spice. It is a nutritional one pot dish with plenty of vegetables. My mom usually cooks the vegetables in tamarind water, and add cooked rice and dal to the sambhar. I made Bisebele bath over the weekend in my Instant Pot. 

Ingredients:

1 cup rice, washed

1/2 cup toor dal, cooked

lemon sized tamarind, soaked in 1 cup water

3 tablespoon sesame oil

1 table spoon peanuts

10 pink pearl onions, peeled

1 small potato, peeled and diced

1 small carrot, peeled and diced

6 green beans, diced

10 cluster beans, diced

1 tablespoon diced pumpkin

10 flat beans, diced

1 table spoon peeled and diced plantain

salt to taste

4-5 cups water

For tempering:

1 table spoon ghee

2 teaspoons mustard seeds

5-6 curry leaves

For Masala:

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

10 red chili (adjust to taste)

1 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds

1/4 teaspoon fenugreek

1 teaspoon black gram dal (urad)

1 1/4 teaspoon Bengal gram dal (channa)

1/2 inch cinnamon 

1 clove

1 1/2 tablespoon grated dry coconut (copra)

Method:

1. Dry roast poppy seeds and dry coconut in a pan. Remove from pan.

2. Next heat 1 teaspoon oil in the same pan and dry roast the remaining ingredients for masala. Allow to cool and powder in a blender. Set aside.

3. Set Instant Pot on saute mode. Heat oil. Sauté peanuts and onion.

4. Add the diced vegetables and sauté for 5 minutes.

 

                                                   

5. Add tamarind water and 5 cups of water to the vegetables.

6. Stir in the rice and dal. Add salt as needed.

  

                                   

7. Stir in the powdered masala as per taste. Close the pot with the lid. Change setting to pressure cook for 14 minutes on high pressure with sealed vent. Open the lid when pressure is  released.

8. Heat ghee in the pan. Temper mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon asafoetida and curry leaves. Garnish Bisebele bath with it. Serve hot with chips or papad.

                                 

Notes:

Bisebele bath can be made in pressure cooker over stove in stead of instant pot.