Micro dosai/uthappam appetizer

Has this ever happened to you? You make dosai/idli batter and once you’ve used it a few times for breakfast/lunch/dinner, you’re left with one last bit. An amount that won’t make another filling portion for everybody, is a waste to throw away and cannot be mixed with a new batch of batter. Typically I used to make the 1-2 last dosais and put them in the fridge only to certainly throw them away a couple of days later.

This time I decided I wasn’t going to do that. I decided to try something different – micro dosais or uthappams if you will. And here’s a first look.

Micro dosais/uthappams with toppings

Interested? What’re you waiting for? Use up that last bit of batter creatively!

I will leave the toppings bit to each of your creative ideas. Here I’ve gone very plain-jane and I literally used my thaalikara paathram (tadka pan) to make the toppings. I’ve used 1 clove of garlic, 1 green chilli, 1 small onion and 1 small tomato, all chopped and shallow-fried in oil with the usual tempering agents and seasoned with nothing more than salt and turmeric and garnished with chopped coriander. Small is beautiful (excuses!) Once that’s done, it’s just spooning up and serving.

        (Left): Spoonfuls of batter sitting on a hot skillet. (Right) One side browned, the other to go.

And once you make enough of your micro dosais, plate them up and add the toppings!

       (Left)- All of the micro dosais and (Right) with toppings too!

Surely people haven’t haven’t given simpler explanations for simpler things? Anyhoo, the reason I shared is just an exciting idea for left-overs. These bite-sized dosais make for great appetizers and even better conversational pieces (try them and you’ll know what I mean). And if your batter is anything like mine, when the end of it is near, it attains this slight tanginess, pulippu, which only adds to its flavour and taste.

On the other hand, you could also try something innovative like making these little things and making bits of them and try a dish akin to idli upma but only call it dosai upma instead; Because the sizes are little and both sides cook so well, there is no reason that this shouldn’t work! In which case, all you have to do is instead of add the “topping” you made, mix in the bits of dosais to the topping material in the skillet it cooks in. Another breakfast idea!

I leave you with one last look from the Nanoscientist in me – Micro dosais! Bon Appetit! Enjoy!

Spicy bite: Micro dosai topped off with cooked veggies and fresh coriander.

Sweet tooth – Carrot halwa

Ever had guests over and looked for some dessert to make.. something that’s easy yet tasty.. subtly sweet yet light… and definitely drool-worthy? Think carrot halwa! Okay, I admit.. shearing the carrots is the least part of the fun. But once you see past that hurdle, you have this really amazing Indian dessert that wows most people with it’s simplicity and okay – cheap shot… but Vitamin A points?

Bah who cares… sometime's you’ve got to indulge! Here’s a look at today’s recipe (made for S’ birthday 2 weeks ago – see this blog)

Fresh and light – carrot halwa is served.

Okay I admit, that’s the only shot I managed to get before we devoured all that was made. Oops! But here’s what you need to recreate it -

1. Carrots	8-10 large, peeled and shredded (not too fine, mind you) equal to about 4 cups of diced carrot
2. Cashews	a handful, chopped into halves
3. Raisins	1 tbsp
4. Cardomom	a couple of pods
5. Ghee or clarified butter	2 tbsp
6. Milk or cream	I prefer using concentrated milk (like milk maid but unsweetened) – 1 cup
7. Sugar	1/2 – 1 cup – to taste. I prefer my desserts to be only subtly sweet so I use lesser sugar, but really, it’s upto you.

How?

1. So simple! In a heavy bottomed pan, melt your butter/heat your ghee.

2. Toss in the carrots and stir well so as to coat the carrots with all the ghee. Lower the flame, stir occasionally so as to not burn the bottom and cook for about 10 minutes till you think the carrots have cooked.

3. They reduce dramatically in volume. So when you think they’re semi-cooked, which should be about 10 minutes on a low flame, add your milk/concentrated milk to allow the carrots to absorb all of the milk. Stir well and cook till the milk has reduced.

4. Add the sugar little by little.. stirring well and tasting occasionally to make sure you stop at the right level.

5. Cook for another 5 minutes and set aside.

6. For the garnishing – In another small vessel, heat a little butter and shallow fry the cashews, raisins and cardomom.

Once they’re done, top them on the carrot halwa. You’re done!

Personally I prefer eating it piping hot. It reminds me of winters in Delhi where street vendors sell street-made fresh carrot halwa topped with mawa and made with red Delhi carrots. And its the perfect antidote to the biting Delhi winters. However S prefers his halwa chilled.

So go and enjoy this versatile dessert any way it makes you happy. Bon Appetit!

PS: You can add mawa to your halwa as well. Mawa is just reduced milk (khoya) used in many Indian sweets to lend them body. You can check it out here. And reduce the quantity of milk accordingly when you mix in your mawa.

Vegetable puff pastry

Anyone hailing from India surely loves veg./egg puffs! It was something available at every bakery in any street corner and perfect to quench the hunger pangs that struck with renewed fervor especially when one crossed by the bakery. That fresh-baked aroma and the convincing crunch of the puff made it an instant favourite with one and all. Fast-forward to France. Sure we have a Hot Breads at Paris and they make excellent Indian baked goods. But lets be practical. Who’s going to go 10km to eat a puff? Well, we might.. if it wasn’t so easy to make them at home! Here’s a first look. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. It gets dark very soon these days and I had very less enthusiasm to setup the soft box and such. So I used one of our corner lamps as lighting and hence the unfortunate yellowish hue. The picture below though is from one of our exploits at Cincinnati with making puffs (thanks PT, VV and VR).

  Vegetable puff pastries hot off the oven.

Considering I don’t make the pastry sheets and they’re store-bought the entire process of making a filling batch of puffs takes a little over 30 minutes. Which is next to nothing in the grand scheme of things.

If you’re interested, here’s what you need

Ingredients

For the exterior
Store-bought pastry sheets – you can find this in the refrigerated section of your store	1-2 packets, depending on how many puffs you plan to make
For the filling
1. Onions	1 large, finely chopped
2. Potatoes	3-4 medium sized, peeled, boiled and mashed
3. Peas	1/2 cup
4. Carrots	1 medium-sized, finely chopped and preferably boiled. Hint: Put  in the potatoes and carrots together in a pressure cooker to boil.
5. Green chillies	2, slit length-wise
6. Garlic	2 cloves minced
7. Salt	To taste
8. Oil	1 tsp
9. Turmeric and asfoetida	a pinch each

How?

1. Set out the pastry sheets by unwrapping them from the package and let them thaw at room temperature while you get the filling ready.

2. For the filling.. use a heavy bottomed pan and heat the oil.

3. Throw in the asfoetida, followed by the green chillies, garlic, onions and the salt. Allow the onions to cook very well on a low flame.

4. Add the potatoes, carrots, peas and turmeric. Stir well and allow it to cook. If it becomes too “hard”, add a little water to make it’s consistency pasty. Think thick and not watery.

5. Once everything’s cooked, give it a taste test to see if you’d like to add anything to this mixture. I like to add a hint of amchur powder (dry mango powder) and jeera powder to it to enhance the taste. Also, 1/4 tsp of sugar gives it an enormous boost.

There.. you’re done with the filling! Set it aside to cool a bit while you work with everything else.

6. Turn on the oven and set it at approximately 180°C.

7. Get a baking tray ready with aluminium foil to protect the bottom. Spray gently with baking spray or coat with a thin layer of oil.

8. Cut squares from your pastry sheets, large enough to fold into triangles reasonably big enough to stuff with the filling you’ve just made. Think 8cm x 8cm types.

9. Fold it into a triangle and seal 1 side by pressing it together. Stuff some filling on inside the pocket you’ve created and then seal the other side. Note: If you let the sheets thaw too much, you might have a hard time holding shape while filling. It’s better to do it when it still hasn’t defrosted entirely.

10. Repeat 9 for as many puffs as you want to make and lay them on the tray. Shove them in the oven for about 10 minutes. This brown ands hardens the “bottom”.

11. Now you’d want to transfer them to a grilling tray so that you get the nice browning lines evenly everywhere. Alternately, you could do the entire thing on the grilling tray. Note: Place the “top” side of the puff face-down on the grilling tray to get those lines. Bake for another 10-12 minutes.

12. And that’s it! Take them out, allow to cool a bit and serve with ketchup, chai or both!

Bon Appetit! Enjoy!

 Up close: Croissant style vegetable puffs!

PS: Any of the fillings can be altered to suit your taste. Experiment and enjoy!

The really easy vegetable biryani

Owing to popular demand (read on Facebook and GChat), I’ve decided it might be worth my while '(and yours once you see how easy and quick this recipe is) to post this recipe on the blog finally. So here’s another look at this one.

  Vegetable biryani

Ingredients

For tempering
1. Mustard seeds (kadugu)	1 tsp
2. Cumin (jeera)	1 tsp
3. Cloves (lavang)	4-5 pieces
4. Cinnamon (dal-cheeni)	1-2 1-inch pieces
5. Bay leaves	1/2 medium-sized
For garnishing
1. Washed coriander leaves (kothamalli)	1 small bunch
Everything else
1. Veggies	3 mid-large potatoes, 5-6 mid-large carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
2. Basmati rice	1.5-2 cups, well washed and soaked for 1 hour at least
3. Oil/butter	2 tbsp
4. Water	1-2 cups
5. Yogurt	1 cup
6. Salt	to taste
7. Red chilli powder/subji masala	1/2 tsp
8. Turmeric (haldi/manjal podi)	1/4 tsp

How

1. First things first, leave the rice soaking while you do everything else.

2. In a heavy-bottomed pressure cooker (bonus points for using a pressure pan), heat the oil and add the ingredients listed under the “For tempering” title.

3. Wait for the mustard/jeera combo to sputter and then add the carrots and potatoes and give it a good toss.

4. Add salt, turmeric, and subji masala/red chilli powder and then give it another good stir.

5. Allow everything to semi-cook for about 5 minutes on an open pan, making sure the flame is on “simmer” so as to not burn the contents at the bottom of the pan.

6. Once all the vegetables are coated well and have semi-cooked, add the yogurt, cook for a minute after stirring and then toss in the soaked basmati rice (after draining of course) and give it another good stir.

7. Add the water, close the lid and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

That’s it! Once the cooker has de-pressurized, open the cooker, give everything another toss and add the coriander on top as garnishing. That’s it! Its easy, simple and very very tasty.

One more shot of the vegetable biryani.

Serve hot with raita or daal or good old chips! Bon Appetit! Enjoy..

The foodie birthday

In honour of the husband’s birthday, I cooked. A lot. Here’s only a glimpse of 3 of the dishes.

The starter…

Baby corn crispies.

The main course

Vegetable dum biryani.

The dessert

 Hot and creamy – Carrot halwa.

And there’s always room for cake! Presenting one of the best renderings of black forrest that I’ve had. Ever. Period. And before you all freak out that I bake it, I will go on to credit the nearby boulangerie for their flawless effort. Light yet creamy.. sweet yet subtle, it was the perfect cake for the occasion.

 The chocolatey perfection – Black forrest cake.

Happy Birthday S! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed doing it for you. :)

PS: For recipes for any of the above (except cake), drop me a line and we can revisit them!

Mini rava idlis

I confess… for time immemorial, I’ve cribbed about how I don’t like idlis. Indeed, I followed on my brother’s and his friends’ adage of expanding IDLI as I-Don’t-Like-It. And as is usual in such cases, I am a big dosai fan. Which then evokes the surprise that now I not only like idlis, but I make them regularly too. But that is in keeping with the fact that I hated brinjals back in India but now have many a mean recipe to contend them with. So.. its a pattern of having the convenience not to eat something versus wanting to. Even then, rava idlis tempted my palate more than the traditional ones. Okay.. now that that’s all cleared up, let’s take a first look at today’s goodies – the mini rava idlis.

Just off the idli stand – mini rava idlis.

The best part about rava idlis is their lack of need of preparation time or fermentation time and such. Overall to make a batch of these goodies, takes 45 minutes, tops. And for how delicious and refreshingly different from ordinary idlis they are, it is indeed worth investing this time and effort into it. Like ‘em? Let’s get started then!

Ingredients

Coarse rava (semolina)	2 cups
Yogurt (not too thick)	2 cups
Water	1-1.5 cups
Oil	1 tbsp
Curry leaves	10-15, well washed
Kadugu (mustard seeds)	1 tsp
Channa dal (kadalai paruppu or yellow gram dal)	1 tsp
Green chillies	2, finely chopped
Salt	to taste
Additional veggies – carrot (if you want – I skipped this)	Grated
Coriander leaves (kothamali) or cilantro	1 sprig, well washed
Kaju (cashew nuts)	about 10 halves
Baking soda	1/2 tsp

How?

It’s as simple as it gets really.

1. On a heavy-bottomed pan, dry roast your 2 cups of rava till they brown a little without burning them. Once it seems like it has browned a bit, set aside and shift to your batter container and let it sit (if you leave it on the pan, it will likely burn in some places and give an unpleasant taste in the end).

2. Meanwhile, prepare the ganishings! On a small pan/kadai, heat the 1 tbsp of oil. Add the mustard seeds, channa dal, green chillies, curry leaves, cashew nuts and let them “fry” till the mustard seeds pop, the cashews brown and the channa dal darkens. Set aside.

3. Mix in the curd and the water along with the roasted rava to form a smooth batter with no lumps. The batter consistency should be similar to regular idli batter. (Hint: Try “pouring” it from a height of about 15cm. It should pour down in a steady but thick stream. If it’s too watery, you may need to add more rava. If it clumps and doesn’t fall steadily, you’ll need to add more water.)

4. Stir in the garnishings.. the fried ingredients and the carrot and cilantro. Blend in the baking soda

There! Your batter is ready!

5. Let it sit for 30 minutes while you prepare something to go with the idlis.

After 30 minutes, load up the idli stand!

 Ready to be steamed: Rava idli batter loaded up on the idli stand.

Now just steam it regularly in the pressure cooker! This typically takes 13 minutes with a closed lid (NO WEIGHT/WHISTLE please!!) on medium-high with the water inside the cooker already boiling.

And voilà

 You are served. Steaming hot, ready-to-eat mini rava idlis.

And this was off to RK’s birthday. And they were soft, supple and very tasty if I say so myself! So, bon appetit!

Packaged and out. Mini idlis go to party!

Aloo parathas

It’s comfort food. But a lot of people I know are turned off by assuming that there’s a lot of effort involved. That it takes too long. That its hard to roll. But guess what? Its none of that. Aloo parathas are a great variety of Indian bread and you can just as easily replace the aloo (potato) with any other filling of your choice (think onions, garlic, cabbage or cauliflower). Here’s a first look.

Aloo parathas, fresh from the griddle.

How?

Well, I am not going to go into the details. The method is pretty similar to most Indian bread varieties. But the way my mom makes this is by boiling potatoes separately, seasoning them separately and then individually rolling a small ball of the potato filling into each ball of paratha dough. I find this method tedious and have as usual found a shortcut. I boil the potatoes, mash them and then mix them directly into the dough and blend everything with adequate amount of salt and spice, turmeric and other seasoning that I want. I then let it sit for about 2 hours to soak in all the flavour. And then when I roll them, they roll out as easy as anything else and then it’s just about adding a wee bit of oil on the griddle and cooking both sides as required. Easy-peasy!

Serve hot with chutney, pickle or daal or good old' raita. Anything works!

And so there you have it.. easy, simple, tasty and very filling – aloo parathas. Bon Appetit!

The promised recipes

Ok so there were 2 recipes that were pledged to appear on MindBlogging. True to my word, here they are.

“Pudhu Vidha kozhambu”

Amma’s nomenclature. It literally means kozhambu made a new way. Don’t ask me why or how or where from. All I know is that she discovered this some place and once I tasted it, she shared the knowledge with me and now I share it with you. Here’s a shot though, in case you need some motivation.

PS: The shot doesn’t do justice to the actual flavour/taste of the kozhambu.

“Pudhu vidha kozhambu”.

Ingredients

For the grinding
1. Onion	1 large, coarsely chopped
2. Tomato	1 Medium-sized, coarsely chopped
3. Fresh grated coconut	1/2 cup – 2/3 cup
4. Dried red chillies	2 medium sized
5. Jeera	1 tsp
6. Oil (preferably gingelly oil)	1 tsp
For the rest of the kozhambu
1. Chinna vengayam (if available)	1/4kg or 2 medium-sized onions, finely chopped
2. Tamarind	1 small piece, squeezed out to 1 large cup of juice
3. Oil (preferably gingelly oil)	1 tbsp
For seasoning
1. Curry leaves	10-15 well washed
2. Sambar powder	1 tbsp
3. Salt	To taste
For tempering
1. Mustard seeds / Kadugu	1 tsp
2. Cumin/ Jeera	1/2 tsp
3. Asfoetida	a pinch

How

1. Lightly roast/fry all the ingredients under the “For the grinding” heading in the teaspoon of oil on a pan and set aside to be ground. (Grind when the ingredients cool down a bit)

2. Meanwhile in a heavy-bottomed vessel allow the 1 tablespoon of oil to heat up.

3. Temper with the kadugu/jeera and asfoetida when the oil is hot.

4. Once the mustard seeds sputter, add the chinna vengayam to the oil and allow it to cook well whilst releasing it’s juices.

5. Add in the sambar powder and allow it to cook well in the oil as well.

6. Add the tamarind juice and bring to a boil.

7. When the mixture is boiling, add the ground mixture from Step 1 and bring to a boil again.

8. Season with fresh curry leaves and serve hot with steamed rice and any side dish of your choice.

Recipe 2- Kadai Subji

So here’s another look at what we’re recreating..

Steaming hot “Kadai subji” ready to be served.

Ingredients

For the gravy
Tomatoes	2 – medium sized, finely chopped
Tomato purée	1 tbsp
Onion	1 large, finely chopped (I didn’t add onions because it was Vijayadasami yesterday)
Garlic	2 cloves, finely minced (again I didn’t add any because of Vijayadasami)
Dhaniya-Jeera powder	2 tbsp
Garam masala	1/2 tsp
Turmeric	a pinch
Salt	to taste
Oil	1 tbsp
Everything else
Veggies	1 large carrot, 1 large potato and 1 large capsicum, all cut to mid-sized pieces
Cream/concentrated milk	1 tbsp
Tempering
Kadugu	1/2 tsp
Jeera	1/2 tsp
Garnishing
Fresh coriander	1 sprig, finely chopped and washed

How

1. Fry all the ingredients listed under the “For the gravy” part in this order – Heated Oil, Garlic, Onions, Tomatoes, tomato purée, turmeric, dhaniya-jeera powder, garam masala, salt, etc and make a fine gravy, adding water as required to get the desired consistency.

2. I pressure cooked the veggies in a cooker for 2 whistles so that I wouldn’t have to “fry” them. Hint: If you’re adding a dal to the meal, cook the dal in the same go.

3. Add the pressure-cooked veggies to the gravy and toss them well, coating them with the gravy well.

4. Once the gravy starts bubbling a bit, blend in the cream. This is what gives it the colour and richness of taste.

5. Check for salt, spice, etc and add whatever as required.

6. Temper with mustard seeds and jeera.

7. Garnish with fresh coriander and serve steaming hot with steamed white rice or chapathis or any other Indian bread variety.

Bon Appetit! Enjoy :)

Happy Vijayadasami!

Happy Dussera or Vijayadasami to you all! And the main reason I am reviving the blog today is the belief amongst South Indians at least, that whatever you do on this day.. you will continue to do the rest of the year. Vijayadasami falls on the day after Saraswati Pooja (the day we are supposed to pray Saraswati- the Goddess of knowledge) and hence honor her by not studying anything. However the day after, i.e. today signifies the day that the Hindu God Ram triuphed over his nemesis, Ravan and returned to his hometown of Ayodhya. But as it happens, over the years, in addition to the golu and the yummy food on this day, it is typical for one to do “everything” they wish to do the whole year. So people study a bit, classes for arts (singing, dancing etc commence on this day as the first day of the year), they do whatever else that they enjoy in the hope that it’ll last.

However, it being Paris and it being Sunday, the festivities stand reduced a bit. Yes, we did poojai yesterday and today. We kept our books in prayer yesterday and “studied” a bit today (thanks to me doing PhD, it makes a lot more sense than otherwise), I sang a bit and then… settled for a cookathon. I’ve only just exited the kitchen after 2 long hours where I cooked away to glory. With Friends playing ont he mini-DVD player installed atop one of the counters, it barely felt like “work” at all. And here are the results -

 Bottom-up: 50+ theplas, Kadai Subji and Dal tadka.

And here’s a closer look at the dishes. Should you need any recipes, drop me a line; The theplas of course are an old favourite and you can find the recipe here.

                                Theplas. Serve with dal or any subji, pickles or good old chai!

                   Kadai subji or Subji Mughalai – Tomato based- gravy stewed with mixed vegetables. 

Dal Tadka. Cooked yellow dal (moong) garnished with split green chillies, curry leaves and tempered with mustard seeds and jeera. 

 

So, Bon Appetit and Happy Vijayadasami!

PS: I owe a huge bunch of posts on Barcelona and my recent trip there. Postcards and anecdotes to follow.

Signature dish – Baked idlis

How I love surprising myself! Who knew one could “bake” idlis in a traditional oven? I for one didn’t. Haunted by the excess batter sitting in the fridge (in spite of making idlis 2 times and dosais – masal dosai included,  three times), I decided I was going to exhaust it or waste it trying. Fair enough? Now, since it turned out to be a pretty unexpectedly great-tasting treat, I am going to raise my own collar for my innovation. Here’s the first sneak peek..

 Baked idli cake. Garnished with fresh carrot, coriander, curry leaves and tempered with mustard seeds, sesame and urad dal.

So? Whad’ya think? Different? Interested? Intrigued? Go on…

Recipe

  Left over idli/dosai batter                                   +                         Seasoning (carrots, green chillies, salt)

That’s it!

1. Preheat your oven for 5 minutes at 175°C.

2. Grease your baking dish with oil and pour the mixed batter contents into it.

3. dump the dish into the oven for ~17 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, prepare the tempering and the seasoning. In a teaspoon of oil, allow 1 teaspoon of mustard seeds, 1/2 each of sesame and urad dal to sputter. Mix in some fresh curry leaves.

5. Garnish with freshly grated carrot and fresh coriander along with the tempering.

And you have yourself a sumptuous yet refreshingly different rice cake -

 Baked idli rice cake – ready to be served.

And serve with any chutney or pickle of your choice! Frankly, it’s delicious all by itself as well!

 You are served.

Bon Appetit! Enjoy :)

Sunday brunch: Mini Idlis

I know what y’all are thinking. She’s got nothing to write… and so she just shares recipes (more like pictures) and keeps the blog ticking. Guilty as charged. However, these idlis were so delicious and yet so simple that it’s sinful if I don’t show-off. And so -

Piping hot idlis, just off the cooker.

As for the “recipe”, it’s the usual, soak-grind-ferment drill. I soaked a 1:3 ratio (1 urad dal : 3 puzhungal arusi – the idli rice) overnight and together with generous amounts of vendhiyam  and ground it into a fine paste on my mixi the next morning and let it ferment the rest of the day. And it was super perfect. And if you’re wondering what has happened to the quality of my pictures, well, the SLR ran out of charge. And the lazy bum that I am, I haven’t gotten around to charging it. I will get there soon.

Coming back to the mini-idlis, the idli platter I bought this time was so good. Tiny yet deep producing perfectly fluffy-white malligai poo idlis. Bon Appetit!

Hot idlis to be served. Serve hot with sambar/chutney/molagai podi or all!

Hello Saturday – Steaming dhoklas

To my own greatest surprise, ever since getting back from India, I haven’t been reluctant to cook. Rather the past week has been filled with a wide variety of cooking exploits… ranging from good old dosai to exotic palak paneer. From sundakkai vathakozhambu (which was awesome by the way – recipe to follow) to theplas. However when I woke up today, I had a distinct craving for dhoklas. Those yummy, fluffy Gujju delights that are so comforting. What better to do than to make them?

Dhoklas, uncut sitting in the baking dish.

I followed a variation of Priya’s recipe with whatever ingredients I had. I  didn’t have the Eno salt and so I skipped that part. However I did add a French-based levure (a basic baking risening agent) instead. The results were pretty good. Also I didn’t make it in the pressure cooker. Instead I baked it in the oven for 12 minutes at the highest setting. This worked out great too. Not only did they rise sufficiently, they were porous and fluffy as well. And taste was pretty great. As Priya said, it’s all about the tempering. :)

 Dhoklas.

Unfortunately I have no pictures with them cut and served. They smelled so good that no sooner did I cut them, they vanished into our tummies. So, bon weekend and bon appetit!

Lipsmacking – Samosa channa chaat

So the other day I had time on my hands... Hence, dinner was served. Piping hot and all from scratch. Enough said. You’ve already gotten the channa recipe. And the samosas? Separate blog to follow.

 Crispy hot samosas. Serve piping hot with ketchup/chutney. We’ve saved these to serve with channa as chaat.

And here’s a shot of the full dish as served…

 Served with freshly chopped onions and tomatoes and a hint of yogurt. Add samosas to channa only just before serving.

Bon Appétit!

Last of the tofu: Tofu masala puris

I didn’t plan on this one. I actually wanted to make tofu ice cream but S discouraged me of the idea in such a manner that I was a bit apprehensive to try. And so? Tofu puris.

Crispy soft tofu masala puris.

Interested enough? You should be. Of all the 3 tofu dishes I’ve made over the past week, this was hands-down my favourite. It was crispy yet soft, flavorful yet subtle. The perfect dish to conclude the long weekend. So here’s what you need -

Ingredients	Quantity
1. Tofu	300 g, finely crumbled with your hands
2. Atta	400 g or 2.5 cups
3. Oil	2 cups for deep frying and 1 tablespoon for mixing into the dough
4. Water	Enough to make dough of the right consistency, approximately 1 cup
5. Dry spices	Salt to taste, 1 tsp of dhaniya-jeera powder, 1 tsp of red chilli powder, 1/2 tsp of sugar, a pinch of turmeric

Serve with any hot subji and you’ve got yourself a killer combination.

How? Just mix all the ingredients to make a consistent dough like chapathis or parathas. Let it sit for at least an hour. Use some fresh atta  to make small balls from the doiugh and roll them out into puris of the size you desire. Heat the oil for deep frying sufficiently before frying your puris. Test with a bit of dough. Do not keep the flame too high or the puri will cook only externally but not all over in addition to “drinking in the oil”. Next.. just deep fry and drain the excess oil on a paper towel before serving piping hot with the subji of choice. Bon Appétit!

Served with Mughalai Subji (Holler if you want a recipe).

One thing’s for sure though… I bet all of you are as done with tofu as I am. Whoosh! Here’s hoping for wider ingredients to feature here soon. :D

Beat the heat: Strawberries ’n cream

Ah Paris has dived into summer, skipping Spring entirely. The temperatures are in the late 20s-early 30s, and believe me when I say that it is hot. Sure, a lot of you are wondering if I am not from Chennai, where I’ve faced only 3 seasons – hot, hotter and hottest. But there’s something about the Parisian air.. the humidity perhaps, the sheer intensity of summer is just as cold as the winter  is, the temperatures never telling the true story. Here’s one of the sure-fire ways to beat the heat. Dessert.

 Serve in a chilled wine glass for that extra oomph.

This time it’s the Wimbledon favorite – Strawberries and fresh cream. There’s really no great secret to this one right. You just can’t go wrong when you mix two amazing ingredients to create a dish, better still a dessert. However, some tips might go a long way in enhancing the experience.

1. Keep the strawberries refrigerated until the last minute before you dunk the cream on them. There’s no need to cut it. Just remove the stem, rinse them well and go.

2. Pre-chill the wine glass/dessert bowl in the freezer for a couple of minutes so that the cream doesn’t “melt” right away.

Serve chilled, indulge and enjoy. Bon Appétit!

  Wimbledon’s favorite dessert served chilled.

Saturday Brunch: Bread Upma

So it’s typical… you get up late on a Saturday morning. In a short while after a tea/coffee your stomach starts signaling to you that it’s about time to break its fast. But you are just not in the mood to make anything elaborate. And something like cereal or toast just seems boring. Bread upma is perfect for those days… minimal effort, mildly spiced, the perfect, warm, carb-fest to kick start your senses for the weekend.

Getting started. Bread slices broken into bite-sized pieces.

I am sure every house has a “different” recipe for this dish. My house has a minimalistic delicious one. What do you need? Of course you need about 6 slices of bread broken into small bite-sized pieces. Additionally,

Veggies: Just one small onion and tomato, finely chopped.

Spices: Salt to taste and red chilli powder. I’ve also used a pinch of turmeric.

Seasoning: 1/2 tsp each of mustard seeds and channa dal.

Garnishing: 1/2 a sprig of fresh coriander.

And how to? Please, I am sure you know how. Heat 1/2 tsp of oil, add the seasonings, fry the veggies, add the dry spices and finally the bread. The bread should not get soaked by the masala, it should remain dryish and just get coated with all of the spices and the veggies. Turn of the gas once the bread gets “heated” and garnish with coriander.

So there you go.. under 10 minutes you have a simple, sumptuous and tasty breakfast/brunch. Serve piping hot. Bon Appétit!

Pictured here garnished with curry leaves.

Exotic: Tofu koftas

Didn’t I say there would be more tofu recipes following? So here it is, as promised – something different yet something reasonably healthy for what it is – tofu koftas. Here’s a first look -

And if I say so myself, you’ve got to try this. So here goes -

Ingredients for the kofta	Quantity
1. Tofu	300g, finely mashed
2. Dry spices	1tsp of dhaniya-jeera powder, 1/2 tsp of turmeric, salt to taste, 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder and 1/4 tsp of sugar
3. Oil	1 teaspoon
4. Corn flour	2 tablespoons
5. Rice flour	1/2 teaspoon
Ingredients for the gravy	Quantity
1. Onions	2 medium-large, finely chopped
2. Tomatoes	1, medium, finely chopped
3. Tomato paste	1/2 tablespoon
4. Ginger garlic paste	Make fresh equal to 1 tablespoon or use store-bought.
5. Fresh cream	1 tablespoon
6. Green chilli	1, finely chopped
Other	Quantity
1. Oil	For deep frying
2. Coriander	1 sprig for garnishing
3. Jeera	1 tablespoon

The Koftas.

1. Mix all the ingredients for the kofta and knead well with your fingers. Bare in mind that the “dough” should be roughly the consistency of any chapathi dough and not wet at all. If your tofu is refrigerated, I would suggest letting it sit outside for a while to come down to room temperature.

2. Once you’re done, make balls roughly the size of a lemon and coat with corn flour and set aside. Make dumplings from all of the “dough”.

3. Deep fry in oil till golden brown.

So here’s the transformation - Dumplings of tofu set aside for deep frying

 Tofu dumplings after deep frying

I admit it was very tempting to stop here, nuke them with ketchup and just pop them in, piping hot as a snack. Maybe some other time. :)
The Gravy.

1. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and allow the jeera to sputter once hot.

2. Add the green chillis and the ginger garlic paste to it after lowering the flame (so as to avoid them from sputtering and burning you), whilst stirring constantly.

3. Once the garlic has browned and ginger has cooked, add the onions and stir them in. Add sufficient salt to allow the onion to release its juices and cook well.

4. Once the onions are translucent add the tomatoes and the tomato paste and stir in well. You want the tomatoes to cook well and so let it cook for about 7 minutes while the pieces lose shape and the tomato lets the oil float up.

5. Add some water if the gravy is thickening too much. Now add the dry spices and stir well. Close the lid of the saucepan and allow it to simmer for a while.

6. After about 5 minutes of simmering, open the lid and add in the cream, give it a quick stir and turn off the gas.

Add the koftas to the gravy just before serving. This keeps their crunch intact.

 Pictured here with phulkas.

Serve with hot rotis/parathas/phulkas or good old steamed rice. It’s positively yummy and you won't regret the brief effort you put into it. So, all I have to say is Bon Appétit!

Protein powerhouse: Tofu parathas

As vegetarians in France, we have to grab the olive branch to any decent ingredient out there, which is out of the ordinary. And tofu is definitely one of those ingredients we are going to pick up only outside of India. I mean when paneer is so vastly available, who’s going to pick tofu? Well, not me. But I chanced upon this really fresh, home-made tofu supplied to us by our cafeteria manager lady (she is Vietnamese) and I took a kilo (that means you are likely to be receiving tofu recipes for a few days).  And so, I made a dish I’ve made many times in the past but have only been lazy to blog about – Tofu parathas.

Pictured here with Aloo Matar.

The other reason I like making tofu parathas  is that I face the perpetual problem of making the really bland ingredient taste interesting. And I came up with a couple of recipes before. You can see them here. As for this recipe, because it’s so ordinary, I am not making any hue and cry of it.

Stated simply, knead in the tofu (about 300g) with your hands to about 2.5 cups of atta. Make a smooth dough, adding 1 tablespoon of oil, salt-to-taste, a pinch of turmeric powder, red chili powder and dhania-jeera powder and sufficient water to knead into a soft, non-sticky dough (similar to chapathi dough). Let it sit for about an hour and roll out like chapathis but tava-fry them like parathas (without exposing to the naked flame). And this is a particularly good dish because the blandness of the tofu is masked by the typical blandness associated with the savoury Indian bread varieties and the side-dish is what spices it up. Plus, all that protein! So, no waiting.. Bon Appétit!

PS: The Aloo Matar was truly divine. If anyone needs a recipe, holler!

Indulgence: Channa Batthura

If you’re Indian, you’ve sure as hell had this delicious treat at any of the numerous chaat places strewn across our fabulous country or at one of the numerous Indian restaurants that fulfill our needs when we our out of the country. But if you’re not Indian, then you’ve missed out on something BIG if you’ve not had this yet. Ok, without further ado, presenting one of the titans of the Indian chaat world - Channa Batthura.

Ah… bliss.. Now instead of flaunting my own “skill”, let me give the credit for the batthura (the fluffy soft yet crisp Indian bread) to where it’s due. It was Vahchef’s recipe. As for the channa/chole, it was my own improvisation. And the combination is simply perfect. If you want to taste the channa for yourself, here’s what you need -

Ingredients	Quantity
Chole/Channa/Chickpeas	If using fresh, it needs to be soaked for about 6-8hrs or overnight. If using canned, use one small can (for 2-3 persons). Make sure to wash the chickpeas thoroughly in water (it’ll bubble and foam and you want the water to run clear after washing).
Onions	2 medium-large, finely chopped for the gravy and 1 small in ringlets for the side garnish.
Tomato paste	2 tablespoons
Green chilli	1 large, slit in 1” piece
Ginger garlic paste	Make afresh if possible totaling to 1 tablespoon or use the store-bought paste of the equivalent quantity.
Lemon juice	1 teaspoon
Channa masala	2 tablespoons
Salt	to taste
Oil	1 tablespoon
For seasoning	1/2 teaspoon jeera 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds A pinch of turmeric
For garnishing	1/4 piece of lemon, a few ringlets of fresh onion and a sprig of fresh coriander.

And how?

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, heat the 1 tbsp of oil till it’s hot.

2. Sputter mustard seeds and jeera seeds in the hot oil. Lower the heat a little and add the ginger-garlic paste and green chillies. Keep stirring to avoid the burning of any ingredient.

3. Once the garlic turned golden brown and the ginger has cooked, add the onions. Allow them to bind with all the other ingredients and go ahead and add the required amount of salt to make sure that the onion releases its own juices.

4. Once the onions have become translucent bordering on browning, add the tomato paste. The tomatoes/tomato paste needs to cook very well such that it starts separating from the oil. The raw taste of tomatoes is awful so try to cook on a low flame for about 10-15 minutes with occasional stirring.

5. Add the channa masala to this mixture now. And that smell, that delightful wonderful smell is what makes the difference between an ordinary chickpea subji and the rocking channa masala. I attribute it to the amchur powder in it.

6. Stir in the masala and allow it to cook well. At this stage, you can add the chickpeas into the mixture and close the pan with a lid and allow it to cook well for about 10 minutes.

7. After about 10 minutes, check the subji for consistency. All the ingredients should be fairly dry and cling to the chickpeas. You can use your ladle to press down and crush a few of the chickpeas into a paste which adds to the consistency of the subji. Add the lemon juice and stir it in.

8. Finally, turn off the gas and garnish with coriander and serve the onions and lemon on the side.

Et voilà…

And like I said, the combination, one without the other is just wrong. So go ahead… make it a day of indulgence, make the batthura and enjoy this sumptous meal – channa batthura. Bon Appétit!!