Showing posts with label indian starters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label indian starters. Show all posts

Thursday, 1 December 2011

Palak Paneer

Well i would like you people to know that, on this Sunday i had celebrated my birthday, it was not much of an hush affair though just a little family gathering but being the foodie i am the food was obviously the star of the show , later this Thursday when i was lost , so as too what to post on my blog my son recommended this dish , as according to him this was the show stopper
.So i took his advice and have posted this dish , read on i hope you really enjoy it as well.





























Ingredients:
  • Spinach or palak
  • Coriander
  • mint
  • green chilies
  • paneer (south Asian unsalted white cheese)
  • Garam masala (an indian combination of spices)
  • oil or clarified butter
  • Red chili powder
  • salt to taste
  • Sajeera or caraway seeds
  • Tejpatha or bay leaf

Method:
Paneer is readily found in many Indian markets however for people who cannot find paneer in there locality , here how to make it:
The ingredients required would be

  • 2 ltr full fat milk
  • 200-250g plain yoghurt or 3-4 tbs. lemon juice
This would make about 250gms of paneer.The following is method to make the paneer.
Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy-based saucepan. Once the milk starts to boil and rise up, stir in 200ml of the yoghurt or 3 tbs. lemon juice. Stir the milk gently to help it curdle, it should only take a minute or so. If it does not separate add the rest of the yoghurt/lemon juice and keep stirring. The curds will coagulate and separate from the watery whey. Remove from the heat.
Line a large sieve with muslin or cheesecloth and place over a large bowl or saucepan. Strain the cheese into the sieve and run some cold water through it. Wrap the cheese in the cloth and hang it off the tap over the sink to allow the excess water to drain for 20 minutes. Then, keeping it fairly tight place on your work surface and place a heavy weight on top, we refill the same saucepan with the whey or water and place it on top for 30-40 minutes or until it is flattened into a firm block. Then cut into cubes or crumble, depending on how you want to use it.
Store any unused pieces in the refrigerator in water and cover. You can also freeze the paneer in an airtight container. Defrost thoroughly before use.


The Dish
Wash & chop the spinach , now add coriander ,mint , caraway seeds and green chilies to the spinach and put it in a pressure cooking for about 2-3 whistle's , the whole mixture should become a paste like substance and's that's only when you can proceed further .After the required consistency has been reached , take it off the flame and let it cool and then put it in a mixture grinder and make a even finer paste . Now take a frying pan and heat some oil or butter in it , while this is happening , cut the paneer or cheese into smaller pieces .Once the oil or butter is all heated up put the paneer into it and fry them until there color becomes golden brown. Once the all the paneer pieces have been fried put them all into Luke warm water , this is because it makes them smoother and also takes the oil off the pieces of paneer , now to the same oil or butter add Garam masala , bay leaf and now add the the green vegetable paste that we have made earlier . And keep cooking the paste until it reaches a boiling phase , once this phase is reached add the pieces of paneer to it , now add red chili powder and salt to taste as well now cook for about 2-5 minutes until the oil or fat is seen coming out from the sides of the dish . Now the dish is totally cooked and you can take it off the flame but before doing this i would recommend adding about a spoon full of butter to it , this will make it even more delicious .

The dish is ready to be served now.


Healthy Facts:

Spinach

The good

This food is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Niacin and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.

The bad
This food is high in Sodium hence the use of salt should be highly moderated.


Paneer

Energy
292 kcal
protein 13.4 g
Fat 23 g
minerals 1.6 g
carbohydrates 7.9 g
calcium 480 mg

phosphorous
277 mg






Saturday, 19 November 2011

Methi ke Gatte

I know , I know U guys must be mad at me cause i just had Stopped Bloging for so many days but things , back home became to hectic and i just could'nt find enough time for it .But things calmed down and i have come back to my passion blogging about food , so today i am going to present a rajathani delicacies called Methi ke Gatte , as you all know that i am passionate about healthy food and this is a Traditional Dish that can't get healthier , so read on to know more :-






















Ingredients

  • Fenugreek or methi
  • Asafoetida or Hing
  • Garam masala
  • Salt (to taste)
  • chilli powder (to taste)
  • Baesan or gram flour
  • Turmeric
  • Corriander
  • oil
  • Cummin seeds or jeera
  • Curry leaves
  • Strained Curd (for wet variety only)

Quantity: as required

Method:-

Dry
Chopp the methi or fenugreek , & add it to the Baesan or Gram flour, now mix it well & add salt , turmeric ,chilli powder, corriander & make a dough out of this mixture once the dough made and is set make long cigar like structures from it these are called Gatte , now Boil some water and let these cigar like structures steam on them , after they have been cooked on the steam a nice aroma tarts coming out this is signalling that they have been cooked now remove the cigars from the steam and cut the cigars into smaller pieces get creative while doing this to make the food even more good looking.Now we must prepare for the process of

Tadka:
Heat some oil in the pan , now take some cummins seeds , Curry leaves and add it to the oil after they start making spluttering sound add the gatte to it and fry them for ome time now serve with garnishing .

Wet
Add red chilli powder, salt, coriander powder and haldi to the strained curd.Mix it well.Now add cooked besan pieces to this mixture.Heat the oil.Put cumin seeds and curd mixture.Cook till it comes to boil.Cook it over medium flame for 5 minutes.Gatte ki Sabzi is ready.

Healthy Facts :
  • Gram flour


    This food is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber, Magnesium and Copper, and a very good source of Folate and Manganese.

    Read More http://www.best-home-remedies.com/herbal_medicine/grains&pulses/bengal_gram.htm
  • curd
    Consumption of yogurt or curd has been associated with strengthening of the immune system.
    One serving of yogurt per day is said to be beneficial for those suffering from osteoporosis.
    Low-fat or skim curd is good for people who are suffering from higher levels of cholesterol.
    Even those who are lactose-intolerant can consume yogurt, as bacteria present in it breaks down the lactose before it enters your body.
    The bacteria in curd can help digest food and thus, alleviate the problem of stomach infection.
    Those suffering from vaginal infection have also been found to have benefited from yogurt.
    Studies have suggested that consumption of curd might help reduce the risk of high blood pressure.
    The active culture of yogurt has been found to be beneficial in case of constipation and colon cancer.
    Read More:http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/benefits-of-curd-1906.html

  • Fenugreek
    Read More:http://www.myhealthyfoods.com/herbs/health-benefits-of-fenugreek/

  • Asafoetida
    Read More:http://allfoodsnatural.com/condiments/spices/313-asafoetida.html

Sunday, 31 July 2011

Mirchi bhajji

Hi, guys i am back and today i ll be bringing to you a snack that has been the heart of the long lost of Telganian cuisine (Telangana is region in the Andhra Pradesh in India also my home town)  any Hyderabadi would know about it and is common part of the Hyderabadi street food , its really a quick dish easy to make and easy to eat , so lets go on & make it , then ...


category: snacks



Ingredients:
***************

  • gram flour-1/4kgs
  •  coriander  powder-1cup
  •  salt -to taste
  •  carom seeds-1tsp
  •  oil
  •  ginger-garlic paste-1tbsp
  •  baking soda-couple of pinches
  •  big fresh green chili - 10 to 15



    • Method: 
      ************** Take a bowl and pour the gram flour and some water and make a thick paste, add carom seeds ,baking soda , ginger garlic paste and salt , let the mixture rest , now take the green chilies , slit it longitudinally and deseed it , now mix salt and coriander powder and fill the chilies with this mixture, now take a pan and heat some oil , when the oil is ready dip the chili in the paste made before and deep fry it ,when the color changes and starts becoming brownish red , take it out , put it on a tissue paper and drain the excess oil , sprinkle some chat masala on top the dish and garnish with some onions 
      now the dish is  ready to be served .
      Nutritional value:
  • The Bad
    The only disadvantage of this dish is that it has been deep fried , deep fried dishes are not good for health as they are tough to digest and contain a lot of oil or fat , also all the healthy contents of the dish are removed from its ingredients

Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Suran-Tava Fry

Hello everyone   , today is the second day of my blogging adventure and i have decided to change the style of my blogging , from today my blog's gona be more inform (go to hell with the formality's yaar) , i have also decide to include a nutritional segment in order to make my reader more aware of the nutritional value of dishes , they are reading about .

Today we are gona make another south Indian starter made out of a vegetable which is extremely healthy but is getting lost to the modern age cooking practices, so read on guys




CATEGORY:Starter



INGREDINETS
***********************


  1. suran or elephant foot yam-1/2kg

  2. turmeric-1tsp

  3. salt-to taste

  4. red chili powder-to taste

  5. oil-1 cup

  6. ginger-garlic paste-1tbsp

  7. besan ka atta or bengal gram flour-1 cup


METHOD
**********************
Peel the yam first , cut the yam into small piecese preferrably square shaped now take a vessel and put the yam and water in it & heat it for 7-8 minutes , until the water boils. after the water boils drain the water & let the yam pieces cool, now add turmeric powder , salt & chili powder to taste with some ginger garlic paste , mixture them well. now take some Bengal gram flour and dip the yam pieces into it , such that they are fully covered in it , now , heat some oil in a pan & shallow fry these pieces in it , until the color becomes golden brown. Take the done yam pieces out & soak the excess oil in a tissue paper garnish and serve.




NUTRITIONAL VALUES
********************************

  1. Besan or Bengal Gram Flour


    Besan is exceptionally rich in proteins and very low in calories. It is a non-gluttonous flour unlike
    wheat and other flours. Carbohydrate content is also very low in besan recipes. Even after having all these nutritive ,values, besan or besan dishes should be consumed in moderation as it contains more fat as compared to wheat flour.


  2. Elephant Yam Health Benefits:

    • The trace minerals and key minerals present in elephant yam include copper, zinc, selenium, phosphorus, magnesium and potassium.
    • The fiber content in elephant yam is naturally high and therefore, it is usually considered a slimming food, as it promotes weight loss and reduces the levels of cholesterol in the body.
    • It has a cooling effect on the body, which is why it is good for people who suffer from hypertension.
    • Elephant yams are very high in omega 3 fatty acids; they help reduce the bad cholesterol in the body and increase the good cholesterol instead.
    • People who are undergoing treatment for piles are usually advised to eat high amounts of elephant yam.
    • The anti-coagulating properties present in yam can prevent the blood from clotting.
    • The glycemic index of yams is on the lower side, which is why it is good for people who are suffering from diabetes.
    • The consumption of elephant yams is good for women, as it increases the estrogen levels in their body, thereby, helping them to maintain their hormonal balance. Since yams are high in Vitamin B6, it can provide relief from pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS) too.
    • Elephant yams can help reduce irregular bowel movements & cure constipation.


    People suffering from sinus infections, asthma or chronic colds should avoid eating elephant yam, as it has a cooling effect on the body. Also women who are pregnant or a breast feeding should get an approval from the doctor, before consuming any amount of elephant yam.
  3. Health Benefits TurmericIt is a powerful medicine that has long been used in the Chinese and Indian systems of medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent to treat a wide variety of conditions.




Tuesday, 12 July 2011

Chegodi

CATEGORYStarter



INGREDIENTS
**************************

  • Moong daal or mung beans-100gms 
  • Rice flour-150gms
  • turmeric powder-1/2tsp
  • oil
  • salt-to taste
  • cumin seeds or jeera-1tsp





METHOD
**************************


Soak the moong daal in cold water  for an hour , before the cooking process starts,
now boil some water in a vessel, after the water comes to a boil take it out and add rice flour  , turmeric powder & cumin seeds , also add the soaked moong daal or mung beans , & make a dough of this mixture
.Now roll the dough into a dough molder and make small circular rings (chegodi) out of it , let the rings dry for sometime say about 5-10 minutes , during this time heat oil in a pan , once the oil has been heated deep fry the rings made earlier , fry till the rings have become golden brown in color . once the color become brown take them out & soak the excess oil in a tissue paper .

the chegodi are now ready to be served




VEG DRUM-STICK FRY

CATEGORY : Starter



INGREDIENTS
********************

  • Chopped drumsticks:-8 pieces
    (make 3 pieces of a full grown drum stick fruit)
  • Sesame (til) -100gms
  • Turmeric-1tsp
  • Salt-to taste
  • Red chili powder-to taste
  • oil





METHOD:-
******************

Filling


Now roast the sesame seeds , now after the sesame seeds cool down a bit put them in a mixture jar with turmeric powder , salt chili powder  & then grind them until they become a fine powder , take this powder out in to a plate.



Drumsticks


Boil the drumstick pieces & keep them aside ,Now take the just boiled drumsticks and slit them , now fill them with the powder, shallow fry the drumsticks in a pan on low heat by covering them with a lid , after 5 mins when the bottom side becomes brown roll the drumsticks to the other sides . After the drumsticks becomes  brown on all sides consistently take them out, soak the excess oil in a tissue .

The  dish is now ready to be served