Aloo achari recipe (Kashmiri)

One of my favorite recipes. This is supposed to be a Kashmiri recipe, although I am not very sure of its origins.
The dish takes around an hour to make if you have to start from scratch.

• Potatoes (2 big, or half kg baby potatoes): If you have big ones, slice them into one inch strips as you see in potato wedges. If you have small, baby, potatoes, peel them. The peeling is optional. Cook the potatoes in a pressure cooker for three whistles. Deep fry the cooked potatoes till they are golden brown. Keep aside.
• Masala: Coarsely grind the following together: Red chilli (to taste), Mustard seeds (1/2 tsp), Fennel (1 tsp), Fenugreek/methi seeds (5-6 grains), Kasuri methi (1 tsp), coriander seeds (1-2 tsp)
• Vegetables: Cut onions and garlic very fine. Grate 1" ginger. Puree 2 tomatoes in a blender (grinder).
• Other spices: Cumin/Jeera (1 tsp), Kalonji/Onion seeds (1 tsp) - optional
• Water - 2 cups
• Salt- To taste

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a kadai till smoking hot, and lower the flame
2. Add zeera and kalonji
3. When zeera stops spluttering, add the masala and fry for around a minute
4. Raise the flame, and add onions
5. Fry onions till golden brown, and add ginger and garlic
6. Saute on high flame for around 30 seconds
7. Add tomato puree
8. Cook till the tomato paste separates from the oil
9. Add potatoes, water, and salt
10. Cover, and simmer for ten minutes
11. If you like your curry slightly thicker, make a paste of 1 tablespoon bean (chickpea flour) and add it to the curry before you let it simmer

Goes well with both rotis and rice.

Ratatouille - French vegetarian recipe

This dish is very simple to make provided you have the right ingredients. Ratatouille can be eaten with rice, pasta, or rotis (bread).

Ingredients

• Brinjal (aubergine, eggplant) - 2 numbers, sliced into thin circles
• Capsicum (1 yellow, 1 green) - Sliced horizontally into strips
• Zucchini (2) - Sliced horizontally into circular strips
• Onions - 1 big, sliced fine
• Garlic - 4 pods crushed
• Tomato paste (puree) - equivalent to 3 to 4 tomatoes
• Olive oil
• Herb mixture (Basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley) - Fresh/dried
• Salt

Procedure

1. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a flat bottomed pan.
2. When the oil is hot, add onions, and stir fry for a minute on medium flame
3. Add garlic paste and tomato puree, and cook for about a minute.
4. Add the eggplant slices, and cook for ten minutes
5. Add the other vegetables, herbs, and salt
6. Add around half a cup of water
7. Cook for 20 minutes on a low flame, mixing intermittently. Add water if the mixture dries up.
8. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and mix

Sundal (Boiled and seasoned chickpeas) - South indian recipe

This dish is best served as a snack along with tea/coffee.

Ingredients

• Bengal gram (Kabuli Chenna) (Chick pea) 250 grams
• Mustard - 1 tea spoon
• Coconut scraping - 1 cup
• Black gram dal - 1 tea spoon
• Green chillies - To taste
• Asafoetida powder (Hing) - pinch
• Salt to taste
• Curry leaves

Procedure

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight.
2. In a pressure cooker, cook the chickpeas for 7 whistles, or until done
3. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wok (kadai)
4. Add mustard seeds
5. After the seeds stop spluttering, add black gram, and wait till it turns a shade of brown
6. Add asafetida. You can substitute this with 1/2 tsp of garlic paste
7. Add the green chillies and curry leaves
8. Add salt
9. Add coconut scrapings. You can substitute this with coconut powder (but it is not really the same thing)

Mix well, and remove from fire. Serve hot.

Cabbage muthia (Gujrati snack)

I am not a big cabbage fan, and this is one of the few cabbage dishes that I really like. The seasoning is optional. If you are on a diet, skip the seasoning.

Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon citric acid /1 tsp lemon juice
• 4 cups very fine shredded cabbage
• 1 cup gram flour (besan)
• 2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons chopped fenugreek leaves (can be substitute with 2 tablespoons of dry fenugreek leaves or kastoori mathi)
• 2 chopped green chili (adjust to taste)
• 1 teaspoon cumin seed (jeera)
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
• 2 tablespoons oil

Procedure

• Combine gram flour, whole-wheat flour, fenugreek, cumin seed, turmeric, green chili, sugar, citric acid, oil, and salt in a bowl.
• Add the cabbage to the flour mixture and mix well. Mixture should be like a very soft dough.
• Divide the mixture with greased fingers into about 14 pieces and drop them on steamer slowly and steam them covered for 18 to 20 minutes. Check them if muthias are ready put a knife through and it should come out clean.
• Let the muthias cool off and then slice them in two pieces.
• For seasoning heat the oil in frying pan on medium high. Add mustard seeds after they crack add sesame seeds and red chili and stir-fry for few seconds.
• Add muthias and stir-fry them for three to four minutes until they are light brown.
• Garnish them with chopped cilantro.
  

Laukee / Lauki ki sabzi

I don't know too many people who live Lauki (doodhi/bottle gourd), and just in case you are one, try this recipe out. For starters, you might want to add aloo (potatoes) to be on the safer side.

I learnt this recipe from a friend of mine from Uttar Pradesh. However, I am not sure if this is something exclusive to that state.

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium sized laukee. Peel the skin, and cut into small chunks
• 3 tomatoes pureed. If you are too lazy, just blend the tomatoes in a mixer.
• 2 onions (medium sized)
• Ginger garlic paste
• Coriander
• Cumin seeds (Jeera)
• Turmeric
• Coriander Powder
• Cumin (Jeera) Powder
• Red chilli powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp Sugar

Procedure

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker
2. Add jeera.
3. When jeera stops spluttering, add onions and ginger garlic paste
4. Fry the onions till golden brown
5. Add turmeric
6. Add the tomato paste, and cook till the tomato paste separates from the oil
7. Add laukee pieces
8. Add a cup of water, salt, red chilli powder, sugar
9. Mix, and close the lid of pressure cooker
10. Add the stopper to the lid
11. Cook for around three whistles
12. After the pressure cooker cools, remove lid, and taste the sauce. Adjust ingredients accordingly.

Aloo poshto, posto (Bengali dish)

Aloo posto (poshto) is a bengali dish. It has a very subtle flavor, and if you are looking for something real spicy, this dish will not suit your requirements. On a day when you feel like eating a filling, uncomplicated dish, try out Aloo Poshto. You can eat it with rice/rotis. I am sure the Bengalis eat it with rice, but I prefer rotis.

Ingredients

• 5-6 medium sized Potato (1 inch cubes)
• 4 tbsps Poppy seeds (khus khus)
• 5-6 broken cashewnuts
• 2 tbsps Mustard oil 1/2 tsp. Use any vegetable oil if you don't have mustard oil. However, the authentic flavor of this dish comes from Mustard oil.
• Onion seeds (kalonji) - Optional
• Salt to taste
• 2 Green chilli (slit)

Procedure

1. Soak poppy seeds in one-cup warm water for fifteen to twenty minutes. Drain and grind to a smooth paste.
2. Heat mustard oil in a pan till it just reaches smoking point. Remove, cool and heat the oil again on medium heat.
3. Add cashewnuts and onion seeds (kalonji) stir-fry briefly.
4. Add potato pieces and cook on medium heat for five minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Add poppy seeds paste. Stir and add half a cup of water.
6. Cover and cook on low heat till the potatoes are almost done.
7. Remove the lid, add salt, and slit green chillies. Continue to cook for a minute more or till potatoes are completely cooked.
8. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves

Dal pakwan recipe (Sindhi snack item)

Dal ingredients

• 250 gm chana dal(adjust the quantity of dal and other ingredients according to your requirement)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 5-6 of curry leaves(karipatta)
• one small tomato(optional)
• 5 green chillies
• 3 cups water
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• Salt to taste
• 1-2 tspn oil

Pakwan (Ingredients)

• 3 cups All purpose flour (Maida)
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds/Ajwain (caraway)seeds
• 2-3 tspn oil
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp Red chilly powder
• Sufficient water to make a dough
• Oil for deep frying

Procedure for dal

• Wash dal and soak it for an hour
• Pour 1-2 tspn oil in a cooker and allow it to heat.
• Add cumin seeds, curry leaves and green chillies and fry for a couple of minutes.
• Add grated tomato(optional)and fry it till cooked
• Add dal, turmeric powder and salt
• Add little water and close the lid of cooker
• Wait for one whistle
• Open the lid,check the dal, it should be tender but not mushy
• While serving ,sprinkle mango powder(Amchoor), chilly powder, coriander leaves and tamarind chutney and/or coriander chutney,and chopped onions(optional)
• Serve hot with crisp pakwans

Procedure for Pakwan

• Sieve the flour
• Mix the flour with the cumin seeds/Ajwain, oil, salt and sufficient water and make a dough. Dough should not be too hard nor too soft
• Let the dough rest for 15 min. Later,divide the dough into small portions.
• Roll out a portion like a chapati
• Prick the surface with fork/ knife,so that it don’t puff out(don’t forget to do this)
• Heat the oil till smoking point ,Slide in the Pakwan and carefully fry it,on medium or low flame till it turns crisp and golden in color.
• Serve with hot dal

Procedure for the coriander chutney

Grind cut onions, dhania (coriander leaves), green chillies, salt, sugar, and ginger in a mixer.

Procedure for imli chutney

1. Boil Imli+water+jaggery till the raw smell of jaggery goes away
2. Add chat masala, kala namak, garam masala, and red chilli powder
3. Roast jeera powder and add

When serving mix the dal with coriander and imli chutney, and serve.