Matar Paneer

Matar paneer is a famous south Indian curry made with green peas and Indian cheese-Paneer. I have mentioned even in my earlier paneer posts that my family loves paneer dishes....if there is anything my family loves after non-veg it has to be paneer. And thus I keep trying various dishes to see those happy smiles.

And after I learned making this curry, it has become our favourite paneer dish . Specially my 4 year old son loves this curry and I still remember that day when I cooked this for the first time and my son came to me after dinner, hugged me and said ''I love you sooo much mommy and I love your cooking. Thank you for cooking this yummy paneer for me.'' Now, that was the best ever compliment I had got from my little boy. At first I thought it was because of the conversation he had with his friend that evening, which I overheard from the kitchen :)
My son : '' what did you eat for dinner today?''
His friend: ''I had soup''.
Son: ''Soup? Again? ''
Friend: ''Yes..why ?''
Son: ''Every time I ask you, you always say soup or bread and chocolate spread. You know...my mommy cooks yummy dinner everyday.''

But then, I was wrong. He really liked this even the next time and keeps asking for this dish ever time he sees paneer in our refrigerator.

And now coming to the recipe, this is a very easy recipe which will give you the same restaurant taste at home. I have made this countless times and it has never failed to impress my family and my guests. So go ahead and give it a try.



MATAR PANEER
Recipe source : vahrevah.com
Serves-5

Ingredients:
250 grams Paneer -cut into cubes,
1 1/2 cup Green peas,
6-7 cashew nuts,
2 medium Onions- finely chopped,
4-5 large Tomatoes,
1 tbsp ginger paste,
1 tbsp garlic paste,
1/2 cup of cooking oil,
1 tbsp of red chilli powder,
1 tsp coriander powder,
1/4 tsp turmeric powder,
1 tsp cumin powder,
1 tsp kasuri methi/dry fenugreek seeds,
2 cloves,
1 bay leaf,
2-3 cardamom pods,
1 cinnamon stick,
1/2 tsp cumin seeds,
salt to taste,
fresh coriander leaves and
cream for garnishing (optional)



Method:
Heat 1/4 cup of oil in a wok/ kadai, add the cashew nuts and saute till light brown, add finely chopped onions and around 1 tsp of salt. Cook till the onions turn light brown in colour, now add the turmeric powder, ginger paste and garlic paste and saute for 1-2 minutes and add finely chopped tomatoes. Cover and cook till the Tomatoes become soft -around 10-15 minutes. Blend this whole mixture to a smooth paste and keep aside.

Now heat the remaining 1/4 cup of oil in the same kadai add cumin seeds, when they splutter, add the whole garam masala - bay leaf, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon and saute for 1 minute. Add the grinded smooth paste back to the kadai and add chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and mix well. Add 1/2 cup of water and bring to a boil and cook on medium flame for 10-15 minutes - until the sauce thickens a little bit. Now add kasuri methi (dry fenugreek seeds), Paneer cubes and green peas and cook on low flame for further 10 minutes and switch off. Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves and cream with hot and fresh rotis or naan.

Notes:
One can use either fresh shelled green peas or frozen green peas for this recipe. If using fresh add them before adding paneer and cook for 5 minutes because thay need more time to cook. I used frozen peas for this recipe.
If you don't like whole garam masala in you curry, you can skip it and add 1/2 tsp of garam masala powder instead to the gravy.

Sending this to Priya's event CWS- Peas .

Stuffed tomatoes

Want to try something new with tomatoes? Then here is a yummy recipe for you all... these delicious tomatoes- stuffed with vegetables can be served as a side dish with rice or chapathi or can be served as an appetizer . One can serve these stuffed tomatoes with the gravy or can just completely skip the gravy if serving as an appetizer. Here goes the recipe for these yummilicious Stuffed tomatoes...

STUFFED TOMATOES

Ingredients:
6-7 large tomatoes,
3 potatoes- boiled and mashed,2 cubes of Paneer- finely chopped,
1 small cup of green peas-boiled,
1/2 tsp of cumin powder,
1/2 tsp of coriander powder,
1/4 tsp of amchur(dry mango) powder,1/4 tsp of garam masala powder
1/2 cup of grated cheese andsalt to taste.
For gravy:
4 tomatoes-finely chopped,
2 onions-finely chopped,
1 tbsp ginger paste,1 tbsp garlic paste,
1 tsp red chilli powder,1 tsp garam masala powder,1 tsp coriander powder,
2 tbsp of vegetable oil,
1/4 cup of finely chopped coriander leaves and
salt to taste.

Method:Slice the top of each tomatoes and carefully scoop out the flesh. Reserve the scooped out flesh for the gravy. Mix together boiled and mashed Potatoes, finely chopped paneer and boiled peas. Mix in salt to taste, coriander powder, cumin powder, amchur powder(dry mango powder) and garam masala powder. Stuff this into the tomatoes, top with some grated cheese and bake in a pre heated oven at 350 F or 175 C until done- approximately 20 -25 minutes or microwave until done. Or those who don't have access to either of them can cook on the stove top- Heat a non stick pan and add 2-3 tbsp of oil to the pan and place the tomatoes and cook covered on low heat until done.For the gravy:
Heat oil and fry the onions until transparent, add ginger-garlic paste , salt, coriander powder, red chilli powder and garam masala powder. Stir well for few minutes and now add the chopped tomatoes and the reserved pulp and cook for about 5-10 minutes. Add a cup of water and cook till the gravy thicken and oil separates from the pan, garnish with coriander leaves and serve the stuffed tomatoes along with this gravy. Can be enjoyed with rice or roti .

Goan Lamb Vindaloo

Hi Friends,
I am Back :) We had a wonderful time in Sunny India. It was really a memorable trip.... visited many people, ate lots of yummy food( specially which I don't get to eat here) attended so many parties and also went sightseeing :D
And the one who enjoyed the most was my little Ammar. He would get so excited and happy seeing the things he never got to see here...like auto rickshaw, dogs on the streets, Indian train, two wheelers and not to forget the lizards and cockroaches ;-) and yeah , he has also learned to sell things like the roadside vendors (YES !! He shouts exactly like them :D) And he learned little bit of Urdu and a very lil of Malayalam too. But all in all he had a very good time with his grandparents and his cousin brothers.
And me ? I enjoyed cooking for my family and relatives. Everyone wanted me(the food blogger) to cook something special for them from my blog and I was more than happy to cook for my dear and near ones....But finding the ingredients in India can take days ;-) So, all I could cook was Achari gosht, Trifle, Pizza, Gobi Manchurian, Haleem and also Lamb Vindaloo (which I am posting now)
Okay Okay...I know everyone is bored now ...so without much ado,lets move on to today's recipe- The fiery spicy Lamb Vindaloo from Goa :) My Family loved the taste of this gravy..it has an unique and delicious taste which everyone will fall in love with. So, here goes the recipe for lamb Vindaloo...

GOAN LAMB VINDALOO

Ingredients:
500 grams of lamb,
1/2 tsp of salt,
1/4 tsp of meat tenderizer or
papaya paste,
4-5 dry red chilles,
3-4 pieces of cloves,
2 cardamom pods,
1 small cinnamon stick,1/2 tsp of cumin seeds,1/2 tsp of mustard seeds,
1/2 tsp of black peppercorns,
1/2 tsp of sugar,
6-7 cloves of garlic,
a small piece of ginger,
1/2 cup of white vinegar,
1 cup coconut milk,2 tbsp of oil and1 small onion-finely chopped.

Method:
Add salt and Meat tenderizer to the meat and mix well and marinate for 1 hour. In a bowl take the red chilles, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, garlic, ginger, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, peppercorns, and sugar and add the vinegar and coconut milk to the dry ingredients and soak for 30- 40 minutes. Now grind the soaked ingredients to a fine paste and add this paste to the marinated lamb and marinate again for 3-4 hours.
Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a non-stick vessel and add the above marinated lamb to it. Saute on medium flame for 5 -10 minutes and add the finely chopped onion to it. Cover and cook on medium heat till the meat becomes tender and oil separates from the pan. Serve hot with roti or naan.

Notes:
Use meat tenderizer only if the meat is not tender,its optional.
Traditionally feni liquor or wine is used to soak the spices, but those who don't consume either of them(like me) can use coconut milk.
More water can be added to the sauce while cooking to prevent it from burning.

Source:vahrevah.com

Chettinad pepper chicken

Chettinad is a region of Tamilnadu state in India. Chettinad cuisine is one of the spiciest and the most aromatic in India. It is famous for its use of a variety of spices used in preparing mainly non-vegetarian food (wiki) This Chettinad chicken is a very spicy gravy with many spices in it. But, one can reduce the spiciness according to one's own taste.

CHETTINAD PEPPER CHICKEN

Ingredients:
1 lbs chicken,
1 big onion-finely chopped,
3 tomatoes-finely chopped,
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste,
2 green chillies-chopped,
2 cardamoms,
3 sticks of cinnamon,
3 cloves,
1/2 tsp mustard seeds,
1/2 tsp cumin seeds,
1 1/2 tsp coriander powder,
1 tsp cumin powder,
1 tsp red chilli powder,
1/4 tsp turmeric powder,
1 tsp crushed peppercorns,
2 sprigs of curry leaves,
2 tbsp of oil,
coriander leaves for garnishing and
salt to taste.

Method:
Heat oil in a heavy bottemed pan, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When they splutter, add the garam masala-cardamoms, cinnamon and cloves and fry well. Now add the chopped onions, add some salt and cook till they turn light brown in colour. Add the turmeric powder, ginger-garlic paste, green chillies and curry leaves and saute for a while. Now add the chopped tomatoes, red chilli powder, coriander powder and cumin powder, mix well and cook till the tomatoes become soft and all the moisture evaporates. At this stage add the chicken to the pan and mix well. Cover and cook till the chicken is cooked through.When the chicken is almost done, add the crushed peppercorns/pepper powder and finish by adding chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with Chapathi/ roti/ naan.

Source: vahrevah.com

Bangalore Phaal

Phaal/Phall is a well know dish in Bangalore, India. It can be made both with meat/ poultry. But, I prefer using chicken, because it is less oily and cooks very fast. I got this yummy
recipe from my Mommy dear.

PHAAL

Ingredients:
1 kg chicken,
1 large onion,
1 medium tomato,
2-3 green chillies,
3-4 cloves of Garlic,
1 cup chopped cilantro,
1 tbsp of peppercorns,
1 dry bay leaf ,
1 tsp of oil and
salt to taste.

Method :
In a blender / food processor blend Onion, tomato, green chilli, cilantro, peppercorns and garlic with some salt to make a smooth paste. In a kadai heat the oil , add bay leaf and after 30 seconds add the above paste to it and cook for 5 minutes. Now add the chicken and some more salt if needed keeping in mind that some salt has already been added to the paste.Cook till the chicken is done and the gravy thickens. Serve hot with rotis or Naan.

Tips: This curry can also be cooked in a pressure cooker . But, one should not cook this chicken for too long in a pressure cooker,because chicken gets cooked really fast. After closing the pressure cooker , it should be cooked just for4-5 minutes and then open the cooker and cook for some more time, till the gravy gets thick.

Palak Gosht / mutton curry with Spinach

PALAK GOSHT

Ingredients:
1 kg Mutton,
2 bunches of Spinach,
1 big onion-thinly sliced,
3 big tomatoes chopped,
3 green chillies,
1 tbsp ginger paste,
1 tbsp garlic paste,
1 1/2 tsp red chilli powder,
2 tsp coriander powder,
1/4 tsp turmeric powder,
2 tbsp yogurt,
2 tbsp oil and
salt to taste.

Method:
Wash, drain and chop the spinach. Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, add onions and cook till they turn brown in colour. Add ginger paste, garlic paste, all the dry spices and salt cook in the oil, until the smell of ginger- garlic is gone. Now add the mutton, green chillies and yogurt and mix well. After 5-10 minutes add the chopped tomatoes and spinach and mix again. Pressure cook on high for around 15-20 minutes.
After opening the pressure cooker, if u see water in the curry, cook again (this time without covering it) till the water evaporates and the oil separates in the cooker.Serve hot with rotis or naan.

Tips:
No water needs to be added to this curry, because the spinach and tomatoes will have enough water to cook the meat.