Nutty Makhana Curry

I am having a very busy month and I hope that by the end of this month, things will be a little calmer and quieter. Apologies for not having been following all the delicious recipes floating around the blog world. 

I had made this curry long time back and this recipe was lying in my drafts since then. Its an easy to make curry and tastes great too. Hope you will like it too.

Ingredients

2 pods of garlic, thinly sliced

2 inch piece - ginger, thinly sliced

2/3 cup - yellow pepper, thinly sliced

1/2 cup - onion, thinly sliced

1 cup - makhana (fox nut/euryale ferox seeds)

1 - red chilli, cut into rounds

1 tbsp - ghee (clarified butter)

2 tbsp - sunflower oil

1/2 cup + 1/2 cup - low fat milk (may need more)

1 tsp - garam masala

a generous pinch of dried fenugreek leave (kasuri methi)

a generous pinch of sugar

salt to taste

To be coarsely ground together without using water

2 tsp - pistachio, blanched

2 tsp - melon seeds

4 - 8 pcs - cashew nuts

4 - 8 pcs - almonds, blanched

Method

1. Heat the ghee in a non stick pan, add the makhanas and fry for a couple of minutes or until light brown. Keep aside.
2. Heat the oil in a non stick pan, add the thinly sliced garlic, ginger, chilli, onions and pepper and saute for a minute on medium heat. 
3. Add the coarsely ground nuts and cook for about a minute. Add the 1/2 cup of milk and cook until the milk evaporates.
4. Add the garam masala, salt, sugar and 1/2 cup of milk and bring it to a boil.
5. Lastly, add the fried makhanas and the kasuri methi and mix well. Remove from the heat and serve immediately. 

Euryale ferox seeds are often roasted or fried, which causes them to pop like popcorn. These are then eaten, often with a sprinkling of oil andspices. In Mithila culture of Mithilanchal,Bihar makhana is an auspicious ingredient in offerings to the Lord festivals and is used in cooking, specially to make a porridge/pudding called kheer of makhana or 'makhaanak kheer' or 'makhaanak payasam'. source: wikipedia

Enjoy!