Murgh Niyoza
Chicken with pine nuts
Ingredients:
3 tbsps sunflower oil
2 dried red Kashmiri chillies
2 tbsps ginger-garlic paste
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tbsp garam masala powder
1 tbsp turmeric powder
Salt
600 gm cooked chicken, shredded
2 tbsps dry-roasted pine nuts
2 tbsps black raisins
Handful of mint leaves, chopped
Procedure:
Heat the oil and drop in the chillies, then add the ginger-garlic paste. Stir.
Mix in the onions and fry until translucent. Add the garam masala, turmeric and salt. Blend.
Stir in the shredded chicken and heat through.
Serve hot, sprinkled with the pine nuts, raisins and chopped mint, to accompany rotis.
Baida Malabar
Eggs in coconut curry
Ingredients:
1 tbsp coriander seeds
4 cloves
1/2 tbsp cardamom seeds
4 tbsps desiccated coconut
3 tbsps coconut oil (or sunflower, if you prefer)
1 tbsp mustard seeds
10 curry leaves
1/2 tbsp chilli powder
Salt
300 ml coconut milk
4 eggs, hard-boiled, shelled, halved
Procedure:
Heat a pan and dry-roast the coriander seeds, cloves and cardamom seeds until they darken. Add the coconut, and brown. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, then grind to a fine paste in a blender, with a little water.
Heat the oil and add mustard seeds. As they pop, add the curry leaves, chilli powder, salt, then the coconut mixture. Pour in the coconut milk.
Bring to a gentle bubble. Place the eggs in the curry and finish with a couple of twists from a peppermill over the top, if desired.
Tisrya Sukke
Clams with dry coconut
Ingredients:
3 tbsps sunflower oil, 3 onions, chopped finely
2 green chillies, slit lenghtwise, 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 medium tomato, chopped, 1 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder, 150 gm desiccated coconut
300 gm cooked clams (the shelled ones sold in tins or jars are suitable)
Salt
Procedure:
Heat the oil in a saucepan and fry the onions until golden. Add chillies, ginger-garlic paste and tomato and stir until mushy.
Tip in the garam masala, turmeric and coconut and mix thoroughly.
Gently stir in the clams, season with salt and serve hot with rotis.
Vatana Usal
Green peas stir-fry
Ingredients:
2 tbsps sunflower oil
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
300 gm frozen garden peas
A pinch of sugar
Salt
3 tbsps desiccated coconut
Procedure:
Heat the oil in a wok and add the cumin seeds.
As they darken, tip in the garden peas and stir.
Pour in a little water, add the sugar and salt and cook without a lid until the peas are cooked through.
Remove from the heat, stir in the coconut and serve.
Phalon Ki Bahar
Mangoes and lychees with saffron cream
Ingredients:
120 ml yogurt
150 ml double cream
Caster sugar to taste
1/4 tsp saffron strands, soaked in 1 tsp milk
Pinch cardamom powder
150 gm mango, peeled and diced
150 gm canned lychees, drained
Procedure:
Mix together the yogurt, cream, sugar, saffron, milk and cardamom, then add the mango and lychees. Serve chilled, decorated with fine slices of starfruit if desired.
Macchi Lahsuni
Salmon with garlic crumb
Ingredients:
4 salmon steaks, seasoned with salt
2 tbsps sunflower oil
100 gm breadcrumbs
1/4 tsp garlic paste
2 tbsps broken cashew nuts
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Onion salt
Procedure:
Brush the salmon with a little of the oil, season and grill for about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile heat the remaining oil in a frying pan, add the breadcrumbs, garlic paste, nuts, turmeric powder and onion salt. Cook until deep golden, stirring continuously.
Spoon over the fish and serve immediately.
Dhodak Cucumber pancakes
Ingredients:
150 gm coarse semolina
150 gm desiccated coconut
150 gm cucumber, peeled and grated
1 tbsp soft brown sugar
Salt, Sunflower oil to dot the pan
Procedure:
Combine all the ingredients except the oil and blend, adding a little water until you get a batter of dropping consistency.
Heat a frying pan and dot with a little oil. Ladle a spoonful of batter and flatten with the back of the spoon into a 10 cm (four-inch) diameter disc. After about 2-3 minutes, flip over and cook on the other side.
Continue similarly for the rest of the pancakes and serve hot with a spicy meat dish and a raita.
Kele Ki Puri
Ingredients:
300 gm whole wheat flour
1 tbsp sunflower oil
150 ml warm water
1 medium, ripe banana, mashed
Sunflower oil for deep-frying
Procedure:
Knead the flour, oil, water and banana into a stiff dough. (You may need a little less or more water than the quantity given, depending on the quality of flour).
Divide the dough into equal-sized balls, the size of a large cherry. Smear your palms with oil and smooth each ball.
Heat the oil in a wok or a large, heavy-based frying pan. Roll each ball out into a flat disc 2.5 cm (one-inch) in diameter, flouring the board as necessary.
Gently place the disc into the hot oil, pressing it down with the back of a slotted spoon until puffy and golden. Turn over and fry for one minute. It will puff up only if the oil is hot enough and the disc has been submerged.
Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.
Proceed similarly for all the puries, adjusting the heat so that the puries, do not brown excessively.
Danedar Dal
Lentils with peanuts
Ingredients:
300 gm yellow split mung beans
2 tbsps sunflower oil,
1/2 tsp mustard seeds, 6 curry leaves
1 fresh green chilli,
slit down the middle
2 tbsps tamarind pulp
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
3 tsps dark brown sugar
Salt
2 tbsps salted peanuts
Handful of coriander, chopped
Procedure:
Pour enough boiling water over the mung beans to cover them. Cook, adding more water, if necessary, until soft and mushy. Add in more hot water to obtain a thin pouring consistency. Reserve.
In a wok, heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. As they begin to pop, add the curry leaves and the chilli.
Stir in the tamarind pulp, turmeric, sugar and a little water and bring to a boil.
Add salt and the peanuts, allow to simmer for two minutes and serve hot, sprinkled with coriander.
Dhania Chutney
Green coriander and
peanut chutney
Ingredients:
Large handful of coriander leaves
2 tbsps roasted peanuts
2 green chillies
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 tbsp sugar
Salt, 1 tbsp lemon juice
Procedure:
Grind everything in a blender with some water, to a fine paste.
Adjust seasoning and serve.
