Paneer curry - the way I make it

Paneer is almost the king of dishes in a vegetarian cuisine. With it chewy mouthfeel, lovely texture and an ability to take on various flavours...maybe it deserves to be just that.
Be it a festival, a party or a wedding, paneer dishes are served everywhere in India. The best part is that it can be used without any cooking in salads too!
Here is a regular paneer dish that I usually make when I feel like making something nice for dinner.

Ingredients

• Paneer- 200 gm approximately ( I make at home, but you can use store bought ones)-cubed
• Onion- 1, chopped
• Garlic- 2, chopped
• Tomatoes- 1 big or 2 small ones
• Green chillies- 1 ( you can increase the amount
• Ginger- 1" piece
• Oil- 1 Tbsp ( you can use butter also)
• Milk-1/2 cup
• Haldi (turmeric powder)-1/4 tsp
• Dhaniya (coriander seed powder)-  1tsp
• Salt to taste
• Red chilli powder- 1/4 tsp
• Garam masala- 1/2 tsp

Method

1. Make puree of tomatoes, garlic, green chillies and ginger.
2. Heat oil in a Kadhai/ wok.
3. Add chopped onions and fry till they are browned at the edges.
4. Now add the tomato puree mix and stir in all the spices.
5. Cook till the oil leaves the sides.
6. Now add 1/2 cup of milk and keep mixing. If it dries up too much i.e. its ticking to the bottom then add 1 tbsp of water.
7. Add the cubed paneer and add 1/2 cup water. Mix well and simmer for a few minutes.
8. Serve hot with chapati,naan or bread even!

Serves 2

Kaali masoor dal- Whole brown lentils

Dal- roti are the back bone of Indian home cooking. This dal spells 'comfort food' for me. It goes well with chapati and/or rice and is one of the family's favorite.

Ingredients
Kaali masoor dal- 1/2 katori
Ginger- 1' piece, grated
Onion- 1, chopped
Tomato- 1 , small , chopped
Garlic- 2 cloves, chopped
Whole red chilli-1
Salt to taste
Ghee- 1 tsp
Haldi (turmeric powder)- 1/4 tsp

How to make:
Wash the daal thoroughly.

Boil the dal in a pressure cooker with 1 and 1/2 katori water. Please add salt, haldi and grated ginger before boiling.

In the meantime, prepare the tadka (tempering). Heat Ghee in a small Kadhai. Add chopped Onions and fry till pink.

Add finely chopped Garlic and fry for a few minutes. Add red chilli.

Add the chopped tomatoes and cook till they are mushy.

Now add the boiled dal to it. Dal should be soft but not mushy. Adjust for salt.
If your dal is still not cooked (it happens with mine), add the tadka into the pressure cooker and let it cook some more. Usually after 2-3 more whistles , it is done.

Garnish with coriander leaves (optional)

Weekend dinner and Rice pulao

I don't really like the weekends to end. Who does?
Sunday nights are like those nights when you leave your laziness and steel yourself to face another week of organized mayhem instead of lazing around in PJs and reading books/watching TV and let the baby eat loads of popcorn.
Sunday dinners are special cos we rarely have them....we finish our meal as an early supper.
Here is the comforting recipe which was passed to me by MIL.

You need:
Rice- 1 cup
Onions- 1 medium, chopped finely
Garlic- 2-3 cloves, chopped finely
Green chillies- 2
Ginger-1" piece
Tomatoes- 2
Potatoes- 2, cut in wedges
Peas- 1/2 cup
Oil- 1tbsp
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Dhaniya powder-1 tsp
red chilly powder- 1 pinch
Garam Masala-1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste

How  to make:
1. Wash rice thoroughly. Soak in drinking water for 15-20 min.
2. Grind tomatoes, ginger, garlic and green chillies together into a coarse paste.
3. Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Saute onions in it till they turn golden brown.
4. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Now add the spices , mix and let it cook till the oil leaves side. Add water if the gravy is sticking to the sides.
5. Add Potatoes and cook for a minute or so. Then add peas and rice.
6. Add more water if required. Cover the cooker and put the whistle.
7. After two whistles, reduce the flame and let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat and wait for the cooker to cool.
8. Enjoy your pulao with curd or raita.

Tamatar ka salan (Blanched tomatoes in creamy cashew gravy)

When you are bored stiff of cooking the same things again and again..and again..what do you do?


I try a new recipe!


Fortunately, this one came out to be very tasty and for the keeps. The aroma of the curry cooking on the stove was mouth watering.


My hubby had 3 second helpings ;P
And now you know why I dont have pics of this one. I'll click them next time...promise.


Tamatar ka salan 
For blanching tomatoes
Take 2 firm tomatoes and immerse them in boiling water. Remove from flame when the skin cracks. Drain water and remove the skin. Let it cool a bit. Keeping them joint at the base, make 2 cuts crossing each other.


For the gravy
You'll need:
1. Tomato-1
2. Cashews- 1 Tbsp, Steeped in water for 30 min.
3. Green chillies- 1
4. Ginger- 1" piece
5. Whole white pepper (Safed mirch)-5-6
6. Cloves (Lavang/laung)-2
7. Cinnamon (dalchini)- 1/2" piece
8. Black cardamom (badi elaichi)- 1
9. Musturd seeds (rai) -1/4 tsp
10. Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 1/4 tsp
11.Asafoetida (Heeng)- 1 pinch
12. Red chilli (Lal mirch) powder-1/4 tsp
13. Coriander (dhaniya) powder- 1/2 tsp
14. Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
15. Salt- 1/2 tsp or as per taste
16. Oil- 1 Tbsp
17. Milk (I used full cream)- 1 Tbsp


Let's start cooking:

1. Cut tomatoes, green chillies and ginger and grind it to a paste in a blender.
2. Take a wok/kadhai and dry roast white pepper,rai, jeera, cinnamon and cloves.
3. Drain the cashews, mix them with the roasted spice mix and black cardamom. Blend them with about 1 spoon of water.
4. Pour oil/ghee in the wok/kadhai. Add Heeng and jeera. When jeera crackles and rises, stir in the tomato paste and cook in moderate flame for about a minute. Lower the flame a little and cook till the oil seperates on the sides.
5. Now add the cashew spice mix and milk. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add water (as per your preferance) to adjust for the consistancy of the gravy and let it boil.
6. Now add the blanched tomatoes and let it cook for 1 min. Don't overcook as they might become soggy. Just let the flavors seep in.
7. Serve hot with roti, rice or any favorite bread.

You can use black pepper instead of the white ones. 
Makes for 2 hungry people.
 Tasty tips
1. Instead of using blanched tomatoes, you can use boiled potatoes, paneer or even tofu !
2. For a richer gravy, use cream instead of milk.
3. Perfect for a party, people will be marvelling at your cooking for days.