Tag Archives: Recipe

Recipes: Sweet Corn and Capsicum Curry

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Over the weekend, I brought some frozen sweet corn without realising that I already had some at home. So earlier this week, I decided to try a dry sweet corn curry. This was really simple and took me less than 15 minutes to make, start to finish.

Sweet Corn and Capsicum Curry

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup frozen sweet corn
  • 1 large green capsicum
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1/4 tsp garam masala powder
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp dried fenugreek powder (optional)
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • Salt to taste
  • Chopped coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

  • Cook the sweet corn in the microwave until it becomes soft. Then drain the water and keep aside.
  • Chop the capsicum into small pieces and keep aside.
  • Heat oil and when it warms up, add the cumin and fennel seeds one at a time and give it a good stir.
  • Then add the chopped capsicum and stir for a few minutes till it starts to soften.
  • Then add the defrosted corn and stir for a while. Add in the spices – salt, red chilli powder and cumin powder and let the capsicum and corn, cook. When it is almost cooked, add in 1/4 tsp garam masala and let the spices mix well.
  • Crush the fenugreek leaves in the palm of your hand and sprinkle it over the corn and capsicum. Switch off the gas, add a dash of lemon juice and some coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or a flatbread.

Notes:

  • I made this version a no onion, no garlic one since Navratri is almost here.
  • You can make this with onions and ginger and garlic by adding grated or minced ginger and garlic in the initial stage when you add the cumin seeds and onions after that but before the capsicum.
  • You can also use dried mango powder or amchoor powder instead of lemon juice. If using amchoor powder, add it when you add the spices. You can also use a combination of both, but adjust depending on how sour you need the dish to be.

 

Recipes: Palak Paneer

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I had been craving for some Palak Paneer for a few weeks now when I chanced upon this recipe on Facebook from Chef Sanjyot Keer of Your Food Lab. The recipe was intriguing enough to tempt me and when I chanced upon some spinach over the weekend, I knew it was time to try this recipe. This is very different from the usual recipe that I make which is inspired by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor’s recipe which is very simple. This one is slightly more complicated, but was super delicious and was a hit at home!

Palak Paneer

Ingredients:

  • 2 big bunches spinach or palak, chopped
  • 1 big cup frozen paneer (soaked in hot water for 30 minutes)
  • 1 big pod of garlic, grated or chopped finely
  • 1 large onion, cut in half and then sliced vertically
  • 4-5 green chillies
  • 1 bunch of coriander leaves
  • 1/2 cup beaten yoghurt
  • 2 tbsp ghee or oil
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala powder
  • 1 tsp whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp black or pink salt
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Method:

  • Take a large pan and boil water in it. When the water is boiling, blanch the spinach in it for 2-3 minutes and remove. Soak it in a large bowl of iced water for a  few minutes before removing and draining the water. This preserves the lovely green colour of the spinach.
  • When the spinach is cool, blend it with the green chillies and coriander leaves into a smooth paste and keep aside.
  • In another pan, heat the ghee and when warm, add the cumin seeds and let it splutter.
  • Then add the chopped or grated garlic and let it saute for a few minutes.
  • Next, add the sliced onions and let the onions slightly brown.
  • When the onions start to brown, add the cumin powder, turmeric powder and red chilli powder and mix well. Then add the black or pink salt and season with salt.
  • Now add the beaten yoghurt and mix well. Let the masala cook well and the ghee start to leave the sides of the pan.
  • Then add the spinach puree and let the palak cook well. When the spinach starts to bubble, add the paneer pieces and let it cook for a few more minutes.
  • Now gently sprinkle the wholewheat flour a bit by bit and let it get absorbed into the gravy. This is to thicken the gravy.
  • Lastly, sprinkle the garam masala and the lemon juice and switch off the gas. Serve hot with Indian flatbreads or jeera rice.
  • You can also add fresh cream as the last step before adding the garam masala and the lemon juice as well as a  garnish. I didn’t have cream at home and omitted this step.

 

Recipes: Sweet Sour Potatoes

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When I was in college, I used to make a potato recipe in a tamarind sauce a lot. That was a signature dish I had discovered in a magazine, most likely Women’s Era and had written it down. I did not bring that notebook with me when I moved to Singapore and now that recipe is lost.

The other day I suddenly started thinking of that recipe and turned to Google to see if I can find it somewhere in the world wide web. Unfortunately, I could not remember most of the ingredients and hence could not verify if any of the recipes were the same.

I did read a recipe from Sanjeev Kapoor which I felt was the closest to what I remembered and so adapted this recipe to my own. So here’s my version of tangy and sweet-sour potatoes.

Sweet Sour Potatoes

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup potatoes, scrubbed well and cut into long fingers with the jacket on
  • 1 lemon-sized ball of tamarind, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and pulped and make it into 2 cups of tamarind water (or if you are using tamarind paste, use 2-3 tsp of the same)
  • 2 tbsp (more or less) Jaggery (you can alternate this with brown sugar if you don’t have access to jaggery)
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • 3-4 dried red chillies
  • 1/8 tsp asafoetida
  • 1 tsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
  • 1 tsp oil
  • Salt to taste

Method:

  • In a dry pan, dry roast the cumin seeds, fennel seeds, coriander seeds and chillies separately till they start to emit a nice aroma. Make sure you don’t burn the spices. Keep aside, cool and blend into a fine powder.
  • Heat oil in a largish pan and when the oil heats up, add the mustard seeds and let them pop. When they pop, add the asafoetida and stir for a couple of seconds. Then add in the powdered spice mix and stir for a couple of seconds.
  • Then pour in the tamarind water and jaggery and some salt and let it come to a nice rolling boil.
  • After about five minutes, when the raw smell of the tamarind goes away, add the potatoes and let them cook. Cook the potatoes till a knife pierced through one, goes in cleanly. Don’t overcook them. Check for salt at this point and add more if needed.
  • Finish off with taking the kasuri methi in the palms of your hands and crush it to release the oils and aroma and sprinkle it over the potatoes and gravy.
  • Switch off the gas and garnish with chopped coriander. Serve with rice or rotis (Indian flatbreads)

    • Recipes: Dried Red Chilli & Raisin Chutney

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    I made dosai (a South Indian crepe) earlier this week and wanted a chutney to go with it. I was not in the mood for a coconut based chutney which is what is traditionally made with dosai, so I thought of a dried red chilli one and whipped this up in less than 20 minutes, including prep time. It also has a total of five ingredients, including spices. So let’s go.

    Dried Red Chilli and Raisin Chutney

    Ingredients:

    • 12-15 dried red Kashmiri chillies
    • 2 tbsp raisins
    • 8-10 cloves garlic
    • 1 tbsp lemon juice (or to taste)
    • Salt to taste

    Method:

    • Soak the red chillies and raisins separately in hot water for 10-15 minutes until soft.
    • Drain the water and reserve it to blend.
    • Then blend all the ingredients with reserved water to a fine paste. Check for seasoning (salt and lemon juice) and adjust accordingly.

    This was wonderful with the dosai and was also very good as a spicy dip and I have also eaten this with bread and wraps and it was yummy. Enjoy and let me know how you liked it.

    Recipes: Vegetable Makhanwala

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    One weekend, I was wondering what to cook and neither S nor the children were being helpful. When asked what do you want to eat, they’d say “Anything”. So when I searched online, I found a couple of recipes for Butten chicken and also for Paneer Makhanwala. So I decided to play around with these recipes and came up with this Vegetable Makhanwala recipe.

    Makhanwala means with butter and true to its name, this recipe is not for the faint of heart, it needs loads of butter, ghee and oil, not to mention cholesterol inducing items like cream and dry fruits like almonds and cashew nuts. If you are making this for a special occasion, please go full steam ahead and don’t hold back.

    Vegetable Makhanwala

    Ingredients:

    • 2 cups mixed vegetables, chopped into slightly larger than bite-sized pieces (I used cauliflower, green capsicum, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, french beans and frozen corn. You can also add peas and broccoli to this mix)
    •  1cup frozen paneer, refreshed in hot water for 20 minutes to soften it
    • 2 medium-sized onions, chopped
    • 4 medium-sized tomatoes, chopped
    • 1-inch piece of ginger
    • 6-7 cloves of garlic
    • 4-5 dried red chillies
    • 4 fresh red chillies
    • 7-8 cashew nuts
    • 7-8 almonds
    • 3-4 cardamom pods
    • 3-4 cloves
    • 1 tsp cumin seeds
    • 1 tsp fennel seeds
    • 4 tbsp butter
    • 2 tbsp ghee
    • 2 tbsp oil
    • 2 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
    • 1 tsp cumin powder
    • 1 tsp coriander powder
    • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
    • 1-2 tsp garam masala powder
    •  2 tsp kasuri methi
    • 200 ml cup cooking cream
    • Salt to taste
    • Coriander

    Method:

    • In a pan, heat 2 tbsp butter, 1 tsp oil and 1 tsp ghee and when the ghee and butter melts, add the cumin seeds and fennel seeds.
    • When the seeds splutter, add the garlic and let it stir for a few seconds. Then add in the ginger, fresh and dried chillies and stir for a few seconds. Next, add the onions and let it stir until it becomes translucent. Then add the almonds and cashew nuts and give it a good stir. Lastly, add the tomatoes and a tsp of salt to allow the tomatoes to start disintegrating.
    • When the tomatoes and mushy and cooked, remove from the flame, cool down and blend to a very fine paste.
    • In the same pan, heat up the remaining ghee, oil and butter and add the chopped vegetables in it. Add the dry spices – turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and some salt and cover and cook till the vegetables are three quarters done.
    • When the vegetables are almost done, pour in the blended paste and add water if needed to make the gravy to the consistency you require. Check for salt and add if needed. Also, add in the paneer, kasuri methi and garam masala and let it come to a rolling boil.
    • After about 5-7 minutes at a rolling boil, reduce the flame and add in the cooking cream. Let it come to a gentle boil and switch off the fire, garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with any rice or Indian flatbread.

    Notes:

    • Kasuri Methi is dried fenugreek leaves which can be omitted if you don’t have them.
    • If you don’t have access to either fresh or dried red chillies, just substitute one for the other. Kashmiri red chillies give you the best colour without the spice factor.
    • If you are not eating immediately after cooking, omit the last step until you are ready to serve the dish. This is because cooking cream may curdle when you heat it time and again. When you are ready to serve, heat it in a pan and when it comes to a gentle roll, lower the flame and add the cream and finally the coriander. You can omit the cream totally if you want, it tastes very good even without it.