Vegetable Kohlapuri

Vegetable Kohlapuri

I first had this dish at my friend D’s house and remember being completely blown away by the flavors of this dish. Its spicy, hearty and delicious. It originates from a place called Kolapur in Maharashtra, India. They have a lot of unique flavors and actually this dish is made from Kohlapuri chillies.

Some versions of this recipe uses coconut and sesame seeds too in the gravy, but this is my take on it!

Ingredients

Veggies

Carrots	1-2 medium sized
Cauliflower florets	10
Beans	7-8
Potatoes	1 medium sized
Capsicum/Bell Pepper	1 medium sized
Onions	1 medium sized
Green Peas	1 cup

Gravy

Brown onion paste	1 cup ( 1 medium sized onion)
Tomatoes (pureed)	4
Ginger Garlic Paste	1 Tbsp
Green chilly Paste	1 Tbsp
Red chilly powder	1 tsp
Coriander Powder	1 tsp
Cumin powder	½ tsp
Salt	To Taste
Fenugreek Leaves	1 tsp, Crushed
Garam Masala Powder	½ tsp
Whole Garam Masala	1 inch cinnamon stick, 1 bay leaf, 3 cloves, 3 cardamom pods
Oil	3 Tbsp
Butter	1 Tbsp (Skip if you want to make this vegan)
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Minced Ginger, Garlic and Green Chillies	1 tsp each
Oil	For deep frying
Kitchen King Masala	1 tsp

Method

Cut the carrots, potatoes and beans into long strips. Also cut one capsicum and onion into cube sized pieces. Now deep fry the carrots, beans, cauliflower and the potatoes. Drain them in a paper towel. Add the Kitchen King Masala and fenugreek leaves and let it sit for a while.

In a heated pan, add oil and whole spices. Now sautee onions in till they turn deep brown in color. Add and cook the ginger garlic paste. Let it cool and grind it with 2 Tbsp of yoghurt. Puree the tomatoes.

Now add the brown onion paste.  Add the tomato puree. Once the mix comes to a boil add salt, turmeric powder and red chilly powder. Add the green chilly paste and cumin/coriander powders. Add little water and let the mix cook. Once oil starts oozing from the sides the gravy is all cooked.

 In a separate pan, add some oil, and the minced ginger, garlic and green chillies. Now add the cubed capsicum and onions.

Saute for a minute and add the cooked gravy. Add all the vegetables and a cup of cooked green peas. I added frozen green peas so cooked in in the gravy for 5 minutes. Add a little water to combine all the ingredients and let it simmer for 3 minutes. Finally add some butter and serve piping hot.

There’s something about a red fiery piping hot gravy that is absolutely awesome! Enjoy as a side for chapatis, rotis naan kulcha or even pulao!

Tips

·      Once I wanted this gravy and had no patience to individually deep fry all the veggies. I sautéed them for 15 minutes until they were completely cooked and used them for the gravy, it tastes just fine.

·      Though the ingredient list looks long and intimidating, they all serve an individual purpose that comes together and makes awesome gravy.

Quick Fix Paneer Makhni (Restaurant Style)

Quick Fix Paneer Makhni

This is one of those recipes that I absolutely love! Want to know why? Its because it is not only delicious but can be made quick. Just need a couple of ingredients that generally are my pantry essentials and you’re good to go! Its no surprise that this is one of the top selling dishes at restaurants because its so great and even kids just love it. 

Makhan in Hindi means butter, this gravy is buttery, smooth and delicious that just melts in your mouth literally! Its basically a tomato based gravy with paneer in it. You can also use this gravy as a base for Vegetable Makhni but more on that later! This makes a great dish for a potluck dinner too! You can make it in bulk, just double or even triple the recipe! Plus its perfect for busy weeknights after a long hard work day!

Ingredients

Tomato Sauce	1 can,
Paneer	200 g
Salt	To taste
Red chilly powder	1 tsp
Ginger Garlic Paste	1 Tbsp
Butter	3 Tbsp
Garam Masala Powder	1 tsp
Coriander Powder	1 tsp
Turmeric Powder	¼ tsp
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Green chillies	2, Julienne
Ginger	1 inch piece, Julienne
Kasoori Methi	1 tsp
Honey	1 Tbsp
Heavy cream	2 Tbsp/ ¼  cup
Whole Garam Masala	3 cloves, I bay leaf, 3 green cardamom pods

Method

Heat a pan and add some butter in it. Keep the flame low and add in the cumin seeds once the butter starts melting. Add the Whole garam Masala once the cumin seeds start crackling.

Add the ginger garlic paste now. Cook it until the raw smell goes away. Add the full can of tomato sauce. Now add salt, turmeric powder, red chilly powder and coriander powder. Add in less salt as the sauce already has some salt in it.

Add some water and dissolve the spice powders in it and let it cook in medium flame covered. Keep a watch and stir it occasionally. Once the oil oozes out from the sides, the mix would have cooked well with all the spices.

Add the kasoori methi leaves. Crush them with your palm to start getting the flavor out of them. Also add the garam masala powder and honey now. 

Add the paneer cubes now. I tend to just shallow fry the paneer just because I like the texture that way but you can add fresh paneer. Just add some water to thin it out to the consistency of the gravy as you like it. Let the mix simmer a little in  low flame to incorporate everything together and for the paneer to absorb all the flavors together. Stir it gently to not break the paneer.

                         

Add in fresh cream or heavy cream and give it a mix with light hands. The paneer is really soft to the touch and might break off easily.

Slit a piece of ginger into juliennes and also slit the green chillies. Heat up 1 tsp of butter and sautee the ginger and green chillies for just a minute until they soften up and add this into the gravy. Since we add the green chillies now, adjust the quantity of red chilly powder in the gravy to suit your taste. This gravy tends to be on the sweeter side generally with minimal heat.

Serve piping hot with chapatis or rotis or even any rice varieties. It goes great with some peas pulao or jeera pulao!!

Tips

• The original recipe for paneer makhni involves cooking tomatoes, making a puree. The sauce is a perfect substitute. You can alternatively use tomato puree instead or even diluted tomato paste. 
• Substitute mixed veggies like carrots, beans, potatoes, cauliflower and peas for the paneer and make it a vegetable makhni!
• Want to Make a healthy low fat version? Substitute oil in place of butter and milk for cream and you’re all set!

Baingan Bartha with Green Peas

Baingan Bartha

I know its been a while since my last post, but I dint have the time to take good photos, hence the delay in posting a recipe.

I haven’t had this subzi much to be honest because I am not a fan of eggplant. Eggplant (Baingan) is probably one of the veggies I don’t cook often either especially as a North Indian side dish. Recently though, I have started making this often since my husband V is really fond of this. Plus the smell of roasting eggplant puts me off. But instead of roasting it in the stove, (which somehow fills the house with the aroma of roasting eggplant) I have started roasting the eggplant in the oven. This way, it makes clean up easier and the aroma doesnt fill up the entire house! The big fresh eggplants are available pretty much all year round, so it makes for a lovely side dish to go along with chapatis. It also tastes great with plain steamed Basmati rice or jeera rice/pulao.

Here's what you will need.

Ingredients

Large Eggplant	1
Onion	1 Large
Tomato	2
Green chillies	2
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Red chilly powder	½ tsp
Garam Masala	1 tsp
Salt	To taste
Turmeric Powder	¼ tsp
Oil	2 Tbsp
Green Peas	¼ cup
Fresh coriander Leaves/Cilantro	Handful
Ginger Garlic paste	1 Tbsp

Method

Pick a ripe eggplant, where the skin is smooth and without cracks. Brush the eggplant with oil and poke the surface with holes. Place it on the stovetop or on a baking tray in the oven lined with aluminium foil and broil/ grill it on high setting Alternatively you can place it on the stovetop and roast it too.

The roasting is done when the skin is completely wrinkled and the juices have started flowing out of the eggplant. Let it cool by setting it aside. The holes ensure that the skin comes off easily and the eggplant doesn’t burst. Also ensure that the oven is open while grilling the eggplant or for that matter grilling anything!

While the eggplant Is roasting, chop the veggies required for the curry. Once the eggplant is cool to the touch, you can easily pry open the skin from it. Discard the skin and start shredding the cooked eggplant with a fork.

Heat a pan and add oil and the onions. Saute them in the oil with a pinch of salt until they turn translucent. Once that’s done add in the ginger garlic paste and cook it until the raw smell disappears. 

Add in the tomatoes and let it cook. It will start oozing out water. Add in the salt, chilly powder and turmeric powder and give it a mix. Let it cook well and form a gravy. Add the shredded eggplant and give it a mix. It will be a little thick so you can add water to thin it out. I like to add green peas to this gravy, so I add frozen green peas at this stage before adding the water.

Bring it to a boil and add in the garam masala. Cook for 2 minutes. Finally add some fresh chopped cilantro/coriander leaves and serve piping hot with chapatis or rice!

I actually made this without the onion for my husband. It essentially is the same procedure just minus the onions and garlic. 

Tips

1. After roasting the eggplant almost halves in volume, so if you would like the dish to comfortably feed around 4 people, then double the recipe.
2. You can also make this without the green peas, I just love to add green peas in just about everything I can.
3. The onions can probably be added raw to the steaming hot gravy, the heat is just enough to warm the onions a little without cooking them and it makes for a very interesting taste.
4. Btw, this subzi makes for a wonderful stuffing for a panini, go ahead try it!