Thai Red Vegetable Curry and off to Thailand for 2 weeks!!!

I am about to leave for our much awaited holiday to Thailand. What better than sharing a curry recipe from that region to kick off the vacation? This recipe is also from my drafts treasure...

Well, this is my take on the traditional Red Thai Curry. I have made this curry a number of times and have never been dissapointed. Hope you like it too.

I am looking forward to this trip and hoping to have wonderful culinary experiences, which I promise to share with you guys. 

Ingredients

For the paste 
2 piece - dry red whole chillies, deseeded
4 inch piece - ginger, peeled and chopped
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp - olive oil and very little water

To be boiled together
1 - carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
1/3 cup - french beans, thinly sliced
1/3 cup - babycorn, thinly sliced

Rest of the ingredients for the curry
1/2 cup - red or orange bell pepper
1/3 cup - pineapple, cut into small pieces
2-3 kaffir lime leaves
1 lemongrass, thinly sliced, (see here how to use lemongrass)
zest of a lemon
350 ml - coconut milk
salt to taste
3 tbsp - palm fat or any oil
1/4 cup - roasted peanuts
handfull of coriander leaves, finely chopped 


To garnish
coriander leaves and chives, finely chopped

Serve the curry with rice. I added the remaining lemongrass (upper stalk) to the rice while cooking and removed just before serving. It gives a very nice lemony flavour to the rice.

Method

1. Heat the palm fat in a non-stick pan and add the paste to the pan and saute on medium heat until the raw smell vanishes.
2. Add the peppers and lemongrass and cook again for a couple of minutes on medium heat. 
3. Add the boiled veggies and mix. 
4. Add the coconut milk, lime leaves, salt, lemon zest, 1/8 cup of the roasted peanuts and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionaly. 
5. Add the pineapples and coriander leaves and mix. 
6. Remove the curry from the heat, garnish it with the rest of the roasted peanuts, chives, coriander leaves and serve with rice.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Cucumber Curry

Have you ever had a writer's block? Well, I am facing this right now...I am sitting in front of my computer screen, wanting to write something special, a thousand ideas running through the brain, but somehow not able to write anything. Words do not seem to come to mind and I am just aimlessly looking at the screen, waiting for my brain to convert the ideas to words that I can put together into a meaningful sentence...but I still go on looking at the screen (this could be a long evening.....!)

Well, now, I'm giving up for the day and just jumping to today's recipe. 

Ingredients

1 - long cucumber

For the stuffing 

2 tbsp - gram flour (besan) 
1 - green chilli, chopped 
2 inch piece - ginger, peeled and finely chopped 
1/4 tsp - red chilli powder (more or less)
1/4 tsp - garam masala 
2 1/2 tbsp - sunflower oil 
1/4 tsp - dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) 
1/4 tsp - whole coriander seeds, roughly broken 
1 tbsp - lemon juice 
4 tbsp - fenugreek leaves (methi), chopped 
1 tbsp - coriander leaves, chopped 
salt to taste

For tempering 

2-3 tbsp - sunflower oil 
1/4 tsp - panch phoran ( a mix of fenugreek, cumin, fennel, mustard and nigella seeds)
a generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)

Method

1. Peel the cucumber. Cut a 2cm wide "window" into the cucumber with a margin of around 2 cms at both ends as well as the bottom (see photo) Remove the cut out part. 
2. Rub some salt onto the cucumber all around.
3. Add all the ingredients of the stuffing to a bowl and mix well.
4. Fill in the stuffing into the cucumber Cut the cucumber into approx 5 cm long pieces. 
5. Heat the oil in a pan, add the panch phoran and hing. When the seeds start to splutter, add the stuffed, cut cucumber pieces and cook on a low heat, turning the pieces carefully every couple of minutes until they are brown from all the sides. (the cooked cucumber should not be too soft)
6. Serve hot with rice or rotis, or even as a starter!

Enjoy!

Remembering Maa with her favourite Fenugreek Raisin Apple Curry and Okra Curry

It's been 2 years today since she left us and I still can't believe it. Maa, my grandma in law, to whom I was really really close. Unfortunately, both my hubby and I were the only one who couldn't meet her when she was taking her last breaths and we miss her dearly.

For 8 years, on every India visit, for those few days, I always spent a lot of time with her in the kitchen - that was the place where we not only cooked together, but also shared and talked about a lot of things. That obviously included food and she taught me a lot of traditional recipes.

She was a great cook and it's hard to replicate the dishes she made. Even her simple and easy to make dishes don't taste the same when we make them. One example is this bhindi ki sabji (okra curry), which is our as well as was her favourite vegetable, one which she would always make multiple times when we were visiting. 

Another thing she loved was cooking veggies with a sweet touch - or even fruits in curries! And my hubby (and to some extent me) have picked up this taste as well. 

Since I am dedicating this post to her, I have taken the liberty to use loads of oil compared to my usual standards - which was the way she cooked. In fact she actually used to almost deep fry the okra, then squueze out the extra oil and then tell me, "dekho, saara tel nikal gaya, ab isme jyada tel nahi hai" translated into english, "look, I have squeezed out the extra oil from the okra and now it's not that oily"... and I would just smile. And, believe me when I say that her okra curry was simply yummy and the best I've had.

This platter has all her favourite dishes and am sure, this would have made her really happy. 

Fenugreek Raisin Apple curry

Ingredients

2 tbsp - raisins, soaked overnight

1 - dried red whole chill, soaked overnight

1 tbsp - fenugreek seeds (methi), 

1 - apple, peeled and chopped into small pieces

3 tbsp - sunflower oil

1/8 tsp - fennel seeds and nigella seeds 

a generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)

1/8 tsp - turmeric powder + a pinch

1/4 tsp - coriander powder

1/4 tsp - dried mango powder (amchur)

salt to taste

red chilli powder (optional)

2 tsp - sugar

Method

1. Soak the fenugreek seeds overnight in some boiling water with a pinch of turmeric powder and a pinch of salt. Cover the lid.
2. Remove the water from the soaked fenugreek seeds, chilli and raisins the next day. Cut the chilli into small pieces.
3. Heat up the oil in a non stick pan and add the fennel, nigella seeds and hing. Add the apple, fenugreek seeds and raisins. Cook for a couple of minutes.
4. Add the rest of the spices and mix lightly and cook for another couple of minutes or until the apples are slightly soft.
5. Add the sugar and mix. Cook for a half a minute and remove from the heat.
6. Serve hot.

Okra curry (bhindi ki sabji)

Ingredients

500 grams - okra, cut into small pieces

6 - 7 tbsp - sunflower oil

1/4 tsp - turmeric powder

1 tsp - red chilli powder

2 tsp - coriander powder

1 tbsp - raw mango, grated

1 tbsp - coconut, grated (i used dessicated coconut but fresh tastes better)

salt to taste

corainder leaves to garnish

Method

1. Heat the oil in a non stick pan and add the okra. Cook on a medium heat until the okra gets a little darker / brownish in colour. 
2. Remove from the heat and add the spices, grated raw mango and coconut. Mix well.
3. Place the pan back on the heat and cook again for a couple of minutes.
4. Add chopped coriander leaves and serve.

Missing you Maa...wish you were here with us.

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!

Crumbled Cottage Cheese Spinach Curry!

When I was a child I would never touch Spinach. With a lot of hard work done by my mom on me, I started eating it and now I love it :-)

My husband and I tried a curry similar to this one in an Indian restaurant in Frankfurt, and loved it. The very next day, I tried a variation on the curry at home and since then it features quite regularly on our dining table. Its a very simple and easy to make dish and delicious too.

This recipe goes to Preeti's  Green Gourmet Event. 

Ingredients

2 cup - spinach, shredded 

1/2 cup - onion, chopped

1/2 cup - yellow bell pepper

1 - green chilli, finely chopped (more or less)

1 tsp - ginger, thinly sliced

4 tbsp - low fat milk/cream

2 tsp - sunflower oil

1/4 tsp - cumin seeds

1 /4 tsp - cinnamon powder

1/4 tsp - clove powder

1/4 tsp - cardamom powder

salt to taste

a generous pinch of sugar

2 tbsp - tomato, chopped (to garnish)

For the crumbled cottage cheese

2 cup - low fat milk (For the recipe, please follow the link here)

Method

1. Blanch the spinach in salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Refresh in chilled water and squeeze out excess water.
2. Heat oil in a non stick pan, add cumin seeds and when the seeds start to splutter add the green chillies, onions and bell pepper and cook for a minute. 
3. Add the blanched spinach, crumbled cottage cheese and cook again for a minute stirring lightly. Add the spices and the milk/cream and cook again for a minute.
4. Garnish with finely chopped tomatoes and serve hot. 

Enjoy!

Tulip fields and Paneer Curry!

After an amazing weekend in Holland travelling around the tulip fields in bloom, I wanted to make something which reflected the mood of the weekend. Both my husband and I are big tulip fans and take the opportunity every couple of years to visit the Netherlands during spring - the tulip growing season.

 The multitude of colours, the fresh air and (luckily this year) lots of sun and good weather made the weekend a perfect one. 

Back home, the red of the tulips kept playing through my mind and I decided on this paneer gravy with a red sauce. The almonds and cashews lend the gravy a rich flavour and balance the sour tomatoes well. The yogurt rounds off the taste perfectly, making the gravy mild and creamy without using cream or butter.

Paneer in tomato-almond-cashew gravy

Ingredients

100 grams - paneer cubes, 

1 tbsp - sunflower oil/ghee

1/2 tsp - cumin seeds

1 - bayleaf

1 - onion medium size, finely chopped

1/2 tsp - garam masala

1 tsp - chaat masala

1/2 tsp - dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

2/3 cup - water 

2 tbsp - yogurt, well beaten

salt to taste

coriander leaves - to garnish

to be ground together in a paste

2 - tomatoes, roughly chopped

2 - green chilli (adjust according to your taste)

2 inch piece - ginger, peeled

2 cloves of - garlic

8 - 10 - almonds, blanched

4-5 - cashew

Method

1. Heat oil/ghee in a pan, add the cumin seeds and bayleaf. When the seeds splutter, add the onions and saute for 2-3 minutes on a medium heat.
2. Now add the ground paste and cook for 5-7 minutes on a medium heat, stirring occasionaly. 
3. Add the garam masala, chaat masala,kasuri methi and water and cook again for 3-4 minutes.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes. Add the yogurt and paneer and mix well.
5. Cook again for a minute, stirring lightly.
6. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with  naan bread/rice. (correct the consisitency of the gravy by adding some water, if required)

Enjoy!

Avatar Aubergines

It was just coincidence that all the right coloured ingredients for this recipe came together the day after we had watched Avatar. My husband wanted something with a green curry. It might have been something subliminal. Or not. So, in keeping with his good taste in food and bad taste in names, christened these Avatar Aubergines. 


The first time I had aubergine curry was at my best friend Sweta's place. The colours looked more "normal" at her place, and the taste was amazing. So I'm thinking of her and of all the number of times I had yummy aubergine curry at her place and hope you enjoy it as much as I did. 

Ingredients 


6 - baby aubergines
1 tsp - sunflower oil + 1/4 tsp salt + 1/4 tsp turmeric powder, to be mixed together


1/2 tbsp - sunflower oil, (you may increase the amount of oil/ghee)
1/4 cup - coconut milk
1/2 cup - water , (may need more)
1/2 tsp - garam masala powder
1/4 tsp - cumin seeds
a pinch of sugar
salt to taste


To be coarsely ground together 


1 1/2 tbsp heaped - fenugreek leaves
3 1/2 tbsp heaped - coriander leaves
1 - green chilli (adjust according to your taste)
1 tbsp - roasted peanuts
1 medium size - onion, roughly chopped
1/2 tbsp - dessicated coconut
1 tbsp - ginger, roughly chopped
2 - 3 cloves - garlic


Method 

1. Wash baby aubergines and make slits along the length taking care that they are held together at the stem.
2. Preheat the oven to 200 degree C
3. Apply oil, salt and turmeric to the slit aubergines and place them on a baking tray.
4. Place the baking tray in the center of the preheated oven and bake the aubergines for apprx 30 minutes.
5. Add oil in a non stick pan, add the cumin seeds and when the seeds splutter, add the ground paste and cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Add the coconut milk, water and cook again for a couple of minutes. Add the baked brinjals, salt, garam masala and sugar and cook again for a couple of minutes. 
7. Serve hot. (Correct the consistency of the gravy by adding a little water if required )

Dont judge a book by its cover - or a curry by its colour. Just have it - and then you'll know what I mean.

This goes to Yasmeen's Bitter Better Health Event and Anita's Kitchen- Vegetable Marathon- Eggplant

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Paneer In Almond-Poppy Seeds Gravy

My husband wanted to call this recipe Paneer-e-Khas-Khas (he has a very good taste in food but a bad taste in names - but he still loves nomenclature almost as much as he loves eating). This dish was especially made for him...

Ingredients 

12-15 pieces - almonds, blanched

1 tbsp - white poppy seeds (khus-khus) 

1 medium size - onion, chopped

1 - green chilli (adjust according to your taste)

1 inch piece - ginger

50 gram - paneer cubes

1/4 tsp - cinnamon powder, cardamom powder and clove powder

a generous pinch of sugar

a generous pinch of dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

salt to taste

1 tsp - sunflower oil/ clarified butter (ghee)

1/2 cup - low fat milk

1/4 cup - water

Method

1. Boil the poppy seeds in a very little water for 5 minutes. Remove the water and keep it aside.
2. Combine blanched almonds, boiled poppy seeds, onions, green chilli and ginger and grind to a paste using very little water.
3. Heat oil/ghee in a non stick pan, add the ground paste and fry for 5-6 minutes or until it emits a nice aroma.
4. Add the milk, water, sugar and salt and continue to simmer on a low heat for 10-12 minutes or until the gravy is thick.
5. Add the paneer cubes and kasuri methi and cook further for a minute.
6. Serve hot. (Correct the consistency by adding a little milk if required)

"The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" is an often quoted proverb... and is so very true :)

Enjoy!