Sunday, August 26, 2012

Corn-e-Palak - A delicious Spinach Recipe!

From the first time i watched The Popeye Show, where spinach was popularized so much, i've always sought for yummy palak recipes.

Until recently, Palak Paneer was my only option. But recently i came across this dish which i like to call Corn-e-Palak. It turned out so yummy, it's entered the prestigious list of my favorite healthy food! ;-)




Serves 4 people.



Time needed - 20 min





Ingredients -

1 bunch of palak
1 corn
1 carrot
3 onions
4 green chillies
4-5 tbspn malai (cream)
1 tspn cumin seeds
1/2 tbspn turmeric
1 tbspn garam masala

5 garlic cloves
ginger
vegetable oil
salt

Method - 
  • Clean the palak well and boil it. Strain the boiled palak, and save the water(stock) in a vessel. Put the boiled palak into a mixer to get a thick paste. Keep it aside.
  • Put the finely chopped onions, carrot and the shredded corn into a cooker. Use the palak stock to boil these vegetables. Once the vegetables are boiled keep it aside.
Before boiling
After boiling
  • Make a garlic-ginger-chilly paste.
  • Now take some oil in a pan and let it heat for a while. Then add the cumin seeds to it and let it splutter. Soon after, add the ginger-garlic-chilly paste to the oil and mix well.
  • Add the finely chopped onions, turmeric powder, garam masala to the contents in the pan and mix well till they turn soft.
  • Now add the palak paste to the contents in the pan and mix well. Also add salt now. Let it simmer.
  • Then add the boiled vegetables to the pan and mix well. (Also add the water you boiled the vegetables into the pan if you like your curry liquidy. It's optional. Get your consistency accordingly.)
  • Add the malai (cream) and mix well. Let the contents simmer for about 5 minutes. 
  • Serve with rotis or have it with rice. And make sure you let me know what you think of this healthy, but delightful tasting dish. Also if you have other interesting Palak/Spinach recipes, keep me informed. Enjoy the dish...  feel your muscles growing already??? :P 


Try it out yourself and mail me a picture of your preparation to princesspranita@gmail.com, and i will flaunt it on my blog. Looking forward to your valuable feedback.
 

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Paneer Chataka - For your 'chatpata' cravings!

There are boring evenings, when you have this intense craving for something teekha, something chatpata!!!

If you can resist another 15 minutes, there's this dish called 'Paneer Chataka' that you can prepare in a jiffy. If the name itself hasn't set your mouth watering, let me tell you the taste of this dish is going to linger on your tastebuds for much longer than you would expect! :D 

If i've tempted you enough, read on! ;)


 Serves 3 people.
  

Time needed - 15 min





Ingredients -

300 gms paneer cubes
2 small tomatoes
2 green chillies
1 tspn coriander seeds(dhania)
1/2 tspn fenugreek seeds(methi) 
1 tspn Pav Bhaji Masala
vegetable oil
lemon
salt

Method -
  • Put the coriander seeds and fenugreek seeds into the mixer and get it in (almost) powder form.
  • Use 1 1/2 tomatoes to make a puree and finely chop the remaining half tomato.
  •  Get the green chilli paste.
  • Deep fry the paneer cubes in vegetable oil and keep aside.
  • Add 1 tbspn of oil to the pan and let it heat for a minute. Then add the chilly paste to it. Saute for about half a minute.
  • Add the finely chopped tomatoes to the pan, followed by the coriander and fenugreek powder. Sprinkle about 1 tspn of pav bhaji masala and mix well.
  •  Add the tomato puree and salt to the contents of the pan and mix again. Let it simmer for about 3-5 minutes.
  • Now add the deep fried paneer to the pan and mix. Let it cook for about 3 minutes and then switch off the flame.
  • Sprinkle lemon juice over it and mix again. Serve with toothpicks by the side or a fork maybe. And enjoy the chatpata taste of your Paneer Chataka!!! :)

Try it out yourself and mail me a picture of your preparation to princesspranita@gmail.com, and i will flaunt it on my blog. Looking forward to your valuable feedback.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Kadai Paneer - Super yum!

Kadai Paneer - This is the first Paneer dish i've tried, and i'm in love with myself coz it tasted absolutely delightful! So much that i gobbled up all the leftovers! :D

This is also the recipe for Capsicum Masala if you do not wish to use Paneer! (Though i don't know why you would want to :P )


Serves 4 people.


Time needed - 30 minutes.



Check out my post on the ever-prevailing debate of Love Marriage Vs Arranged Marriage in India. And if you like what you read, please vote for me Here. Thank you! :)
 
 Ingredients -

200 gm paneer
3 tomatoes
4 onions
3 capsicum
2 green chillies
2 cloves of garlic
red chilli powder
1 tbspn coriander seeds
1/2 tspn turmeric powder
1/2 tspn fenugreek powder
1/2 tspn cumin 
4-5 cloves
cinnamon
ginger
pepper
vegetable oil
ghee
salt

Method -
  • Blend 3 tomatoes to get a puree. Keep it aside.
  • Mince the onions, garlic cloves, green chillies and garlic in the mixer.
  • Make little cubes out of the paneer and wash it with clean water. Chop the capsicum into long pieces.
  • Put the cloves, cinnamon, coriander, pepper into the mixer to get it minced/powdered.
  • Add about 3 tbspn of oil and 1 tbpsn ghee to a heating pan on low flame. Heat the oil for a while and then add the cumin seeds to it. Once the popping starts, add the spice mixture to the pan and mix.
  • Once the spices are fried, add the onion+garlic+green chillies+ginger paste to the pan with a bit of turmeric powder and mix well. Add enough chilli powder to the contents.
  • Add the tomato puree and salt, once the contents are fried enough and let it simmer.
  • Then add the chopped capsicum and mix. Let it cook well enough before you add the paneer. (If you wish to make Capsicum Masala. Do not add paneer. Switch the flame off once the capsicum is cooked.)
  •  When the capsicum is cooked, add the paneer to it and mix. Paneer takes very less time to cook. So add it when everything else in the pan is cooked enough. If you add it at an early stage, you wont get the nice cubes when your dish is ready to be served!
  • Let the paneer cook for about 5 minutes, switch off the flame and your Kadai Paneer is ready to be served. Have it with chapatis, rotis, paranthas or maybe rice. Take your pick and relish!

Try it out yourself and mail me a picture of your preparation to princesspranita@gmail.com, and i will flaunt it on my blog. Looking forward to your valuable feedback.
 

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Tori Ghashi / Pigeon Peas Curry

Yet another delicious and one of my all-time favorite dishes. This is a south indian cuisine. And we Konkanis call it - 'Tori Ghashi'.

Tori = Pigeon peas
Ghashi = Thick Gravy/Masala/Curry

I didn't know until today how easy it really is! Try it out and i promise you'll lick your fingers clean! (Esp if you're a south-indian, cos you're gonna wanna eat this with your hand and not a spoon, i'm telling you!!!)




Check out my post on the ever-prevailing debate of Love Marriage Vs Arranged Marriage in India. And if you like what you read, please vote for me Here. Thank you! :)
 
Serves 3-4 persons.

Time needed - About 30 minutes.

Ingredients -

1 cup tori (pigeon peas)
Small piece of soornu (Elephant foot yam)
1 cup Grated coconut
Dried red chillies
Tamarind
6-8 garlic cloves
Vegetable oil
Salt

Method -
  •  Soak about 1 cup of tori (pigeon peas) in water overnight (6-7 hours). 

  •  This is how the soornu ( elephant foot yam) looks like.
  •  Shallow fry the red chillies in a little bit of oil.
  •  Blend the grated coconut, tamarind and the fried red chillies in a mixer to get a fine paste and keep it aside.
  • Transfer the peas into a cooker along with the water it was soaked in. (Make sure you wash the peas well and soak in fresh water). Add more water and keep it on the stove. Cover with the lid and place the whistle on it when it starts to blow steam. After a whistle, keep it on low flame for a minute and then switch it off.
  • Add the chopped pieced of the yam to the cooker once you are able to open the lid. Place it on the stove again on medium flame. Let the yam simmer well. 
Yam just added!
After simmering!


  • Now add the coconut-chilly-tamarind paste to the cooker and mix well and bring it to a good boil. Then switch the flame off.
  • Fry some garlic cloves in a little oil till they turn a little golden brown and then add to the contents of the cooker immediately and stir.
  • Your 'Tori Ghashi' (Pigeon peas curry) is ready to be served. Best had with rice. Can also be relished with chapatis.

Try it out yourself and mail me a picture of your preparation to princesspranita@gmail.com, and i will flaunt it on my blog. Looking forward to your valuable feedback.