monicasawhney

October 13, 2015May 24, 2020

Punjabi Chickpea Curry – CHANNA MASALA

So for the next 9 days I am vegetarian. It’s a Hindu thing.

Okay I’ll elaborate. The Hindu festival of “Navratri” takes place over the next nine days. It’s referred to by the elders as an “auspicious occasion” and one that symbolises the triumph of good over evil! It’s also a time where celebrations are expressed in the form of colour, family reunions, force feeding of Indian sweets by random aunties, dancing and eating (very possibly followed by more dancing and eating). Although the “eating” comes in the form of vegetarian food, it’s not really a problem for me as:

a) I’m not a huge carnivore anyway
b) I was a vegetarian for 3 of my teen years (I gave up when I moved to America-damn the USA with their tasty junk food that looks awful but tastes so darned good. I’m looking at you Mr pancakes topped with crispy bacon & maple syrup!
c) There is no shortage of delish Indian vegetarian dishes

It is slightly more of an issue for my other half however, as his dreams of kick-starting the week with Murgh Masala Monday & Tandoori Chicken Tuesday, sadly no longer exist. It is for this reason that I have decided to cook up some vegetarian dishes this week that deliver an extra portion of dishoom – hopefully easing the burn of the lack of “meatiness” in the kitchen.

Today’s recipe is spicy, filling, comforting and moreish – I don’t know how many more adjectives I need to list about this dish before it screams out MAKE ME! Enjoy and do let me know your thoughts. Oh and p.s . Happy National Curry Week!

Punjabi Chickpea Curry

2015-10-13 13:24:02

Serves 4

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Ingredients

1 cup chickpeas, raw
pinch of baking soda
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
3” cinnamon stick (optional)
2 cloves (optional)
3 peppercorns (optional)
2 bay leaves (optional)
1 black cardamom (optional)
1 large onion, peeled
1 birds eye chilli (optional)
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2" ginger, washed
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp amchur (mango powder)
2 plum tomatoes & 2 tbsp juice
handful fresh coriander

Instructions

Soak chickpeas and baking soda in water overnight
Wash and rinse thoroughly
Place chickpeas in a pressure cooker. Cover with water until the water level is 1 1/2" above the chickpeas. Add 1 tsp of salt and place lid on carefully. Cook for 12 minutes after the first whistle. Turn off heat. Allow to de-pressurise naturally before removing lid.
If you do not have a pressure cooker, place chickpeas with salt in a pan of water (same water level as above) and bring to boil. Now reduce the heat and allow to simmer until tender and cooked all the way through. This can take between 35-45 minutes. (If the water reduces before they have cooked, add more boiling water to the pan).
To make the masala, coarsely grind onions in a processor and place in a bowl. Now coarsely grind the chilli, ginger and garlic.
Heat oil in a non stick pan. Once hot add the cumin alongside the cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf and black cardamom.
When they begin to splatter in the oil, add the ground onions. Add 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 4 minutes, stirring continuously.
When they turn slightly translucent, add the ground chilli, ginger and garlic mixture. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the masala turns completely golden.
Now reduce the heat and add the remaining salt, garam masala, paprika, turmeric and amchur powder and mix well. Now add the plum tomatoes and juice and mash into the masala. When the oil begins to separate from the masala, add the chickpeas and 1 cup of water and bring to boil and cook for 5-6 minutes on high heat.
Check for salt and adjust accordingly. Serve with hot chapatis, naan or basmati rice!

Notes

You can add or reduce water depending on how dry or wet you would like the dish to be. Some like it to be wetter if serving with rice or drier if serving with breads.

By Monica

Monica's Spice Diary - Indian Food Blog https://spicediary.com/

October 6, 2015January 21, 2021

Spicy Sweet Potato Aloo Tikki

It’s autumn. It’s time to bid farewell to flip flops and open toe sandals and dust off your wellies and fleece (or sheep skin for those who are that way inclined)-lined knee-high boots. Although I am not a big fan of cold, I have a dear admiration for the autumnal months… the red trees that line the avenues, the crisp crunch of fallen leaves underfoot, and the hypnotic patter of welcome rain… are but a few of the sensory pleasures that put a smile on my face.

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Nevertheless my body invariably switches to hibernation mode – that’s “collect carbs and go to sleep” mode in case you were wondering. And that doesn’t even account for the gastronomic adventures of Christmas!!! So I usually make a conscious effort to stay in shape. I do not “diet”. I enjoy food too much. So I see myself as more of a “conscious eater”. It’s probably a phrase I have made up (I do that a lot according to my husband), but it means I just stay aware of what I put in, rather than how much per se.

One of the great boons of Indian home cooking is that we use a lot of spices… which inherently have medicinal and health-promoting properties. Even now, Indian mothers often treat their children’s cuts and grazes with turmeric paste in preference to any shop-bought antiseptic creams. It just works! What I’m trying to say is that Indian food is healthy… or at least it should be, but it may need a little tweak to get it there. So there is no need to feel guilty when you are making yourself an Indian snack! I don’t and neither does my other half… who crosses the line between well-meaning appreciation and gluttony with child-like abandon far too often! For example, try swapping out regular basmati for brown basmati rice or replacing white flour with wholemeal or millet flour.

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This brings me to today’s recipe. Aloo Tikkis are a street food favourite in India! You will often see locals chowing down on these fried potato spiced potato cakes served with chutneys and salad, on the roadsides in India because they’re so damned moreish! Unfortunately, although they taste amazing they’re probably not the kindest to your waistline. In my recipe I have used exactly the same traditional spices but simply swapped out regular potato for sweet potato, baked instead of fried and served with a kachumber salad. I made a batch of 12 of these and my hubby inhaled them within minutes. I’d like to think that was a testament to the taste and not to his hunger!

Sweet Potato Aloo Tikki

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Ingredients

3 medium sweet potatoes 500g
3 cms ginger grated
2 cloves garlic grated
1-2 chillies finely chopped
12 stems fresh coriander chopped
1/2 cup soya granules optional
1 tbsp gram flour
1 1/2 – 2 tsp salt according to taste
2 tbsp whole coriander seeds coarsely crushed
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp amchur/mango powder or 1 tbsp of lime juice
1/2 tsp chilli powder/flakes optional
Oil for greasing

Instructions

Pre-heat oven at 200C and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper (I also brushed it with a little oil).
Place the potatoes inside a microwave safe bag and tie a knot. Pierce a hole with your finger and cook in a microwave for approximately 12 minutes. (The exact time may vary depending on your microwave and size of potatoes so cook until you can easily place a knife through them). You can also boil until tender.
Allow to cool, then peel the skin off (you can easily peel with your fingers) and cut into rough chunks. Place in a bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl. Using your hand, combine all of the ingredients together until they are well mix and incorporated. Taste for salt/chilli and adjust accordingly.
Now, very lightly grease your hands with a very small amount of oil. Now get a walnut size amount of the sweet potato mixture. Roll into a ball and press down slightly so a patty forms. The width should be about 3-4″ wide. Place on the baking tray and repeat with the remaining mixture.
If you find the mixture is difficult to roll into a smooth patty, you can add a little more gram flour to help with binding.
Bake for 10 minutes then turn over and cook for a remaining 10 minutes. Enjoy!

September 8, 2015October 13, 2017

Sukha Chicken Curry

I really dislike the C word…

…Curry!

It conjures up images of bright orange, gloopy dishes being served at neon signed restaurants with names such as “The Royal Balti” (which for your kind information, translates as “the royal bucket”).

If it is not already obvious – I am Indian. That being the case, I grew up eating Indian food and lots of it. Lots of different types of dishes, all with unique names, ingredients, flavours and aromas. Consequently, I had absolutely zero notion of the concept of “curry”. I remember an incident in primary school when a friend approached me and said “Monica, you’re Indian. Does that mean you have curry every day for tea?” (For any British readers based south of the Watford Gap, the word “tea” is northern for dinner). The blank expression on my face was my response. Needless to say I went home very confused after school that day and had a good chat with Mum to clarify!

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Today’s recipe is one of the few dishes that although has the word “curry” in its name, is nothing like the stereotypical, lifeless, fluorescent aberrations I described earlier! This is the type of dish that made us constantly ask as kids – is it ready yet? How about now? This recipe is just so good. I’m talking lip smacking, forehead-sweating, nose slightly running, hyper ventilating-ly good… you know what I mean!

That’s right, the winner winner chicken dinner that is…Chicken Curry! This specific recipe is a twist on the classic in that it is not as “wet” as the original. Mopped up with hot and fresh chapattis, the drier masala works a treat. Hence the word “sukha” in the dish’s name, which means dry. See what I do? Teach hindi AND share recipes simultaneously…true value here people! I hope you enjoy this dish as much as I do. Post your thoughts below. Oh and pleased to say that the lovely people at Net Flights have featured this recipe in their latest magazine! Even more of a reason to try!

Sukha Chicken Curry

2015-09-08 10:06:50

Serves 4

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Ingredients

1kg chicken thighs & legs, skinnless & on the bone
2 potatoes, washed and quartered
2 medium onions, chopped roughly
2 green chillis
3 garlic cloves,
3" ginger, washed
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
3” cinnamon stick
2 cloves
3 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1 black cardamom
2 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric powder
3 plum tomatoes & 3 tbsp juice
handful fresh coriander

Instructions

Using a knife, place some slits in the chicken pieces.
To make the masala, coarsely grind onions in a processor and place in a bowl. Now coarsely grind the chilli, ginger and garlic.
Heat oil in a non stick pan. Once hot add the cumin alongside the cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf and black cardamom.
When they begin to sizzle in the oil, add the ground onions. Add 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring continuously.
When they turn slightly translucent, add the ground chilli, ginger and garlic mixture. Cook for 3-4 minutes until everything turns a deep golden shade.
Now reduce the heat and add the remaining salt, garam masala, paprika and turmeric powder and mix well. Now add the plum tomatoes and juice and mash into the masala. When the oil begins to separate from the masala sauce, add the chicken and potatoes and mix together.
Add 1/4 cup of water and cook on high heat stirring every couple of minutes. After 5 minutes, reduce heat to medium and place lid on pan. Allow chicken to cook for 20 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes.
Cut through a piece chicken to ensure it is white all the way through. Place a knife through the potatoes to make sure they are also fully cooked. Sprinkle on fresh coriander and mix.
Check for salt and adjust accordingly. If you would like the gravy of dish to be a little "drier", increase the heat to high and cook until the gravy is of the desired consistency.

Notes