Food-istaan!

A Culinary artist, amateur photographer, an avid learner and a passionate foodie! :)

[foodistaan]

Pancake What you need : Flour (maida) - 1.5 cups Salt - 1 TSP Sugar - 3 tablespoons Nutmeg - 1/2 TSP Milk - 1 1/4 cups Eggs - 2 Vanilla essence - 1 TSP Fruits / dry fruits- finely chopped How do you make it: Take a bowl and mix flour, sugar, salt and nutmeg together. In another bowl, beat eggs, milk and essence together. Mix the two bowls to form a thick batter. Take a non stick pan on the flame and put a ladle of this batter onto it. The moment bubbles erupt on its surface, add the finely chopped fruits / nuts on it and flip it. Slightly cook the other side to avoid the toppings from getting burnt. Serve this with either maple sauce, honey or whatever you think you'd like it with best! It goes with absolutely everything! :) Happy cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

Shaami kebab What you need: Mutton keema - 500 gms Chana daal - 1 tablespoon (soaked) Onion - 2 medium Garlic - 5-6 cloves Red chilly - 2 Jeera - 1 TSP Salt - to taste Mint leaves - ¼ cup Coriander leaves - ½ cup Ghee How you make it: In a non stick pan take a spoon of ghee and add shahi jeera, red chillies and garlic to it. Add keema, soaked chana dal and salt and cover the lid to cook it on medium heat. While the keema and daal cook together, fry the sliced onions till brown and keep aside. The keema and the daal should be done in 15-20/mins and the water should be dried up. Blend mint leaves, coriander leaves, fried onions and cooked keema together. Then make flat tikkis. On a greased pan, cook he flattened tikkis well. When done on both sides, serve with coriander and mint chutney. This is a quick to make and an awesome starter for any party! Enjoy cooking :)

[sumimadhukar]

Tried the Andhra spicy chicken last weekend. Turned out awesum. Mouth watering recipe foodistaan.

[foodistaan]

Such nice words encourage me to experiment more :) thanks a bunch!

[foodistaan]

Thukpa What you need: Chicken - 200 gms Onion - 1 Carrot- 1 Ginger - 5 cms Spring onions- 6 -7 Green chilies- 3 Coriander leaves Cloves of garlic - 4-5 Salt Lemon-1/2 Water Honey - 1tsp Soy sauce Olive oil Noodles - handful How you make it: Take a wok with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and shallow fry the chicken pieces till golden brown. Now add ginger Julienne along with Chopped spring onions and halved 3 green chilies. Finely chop 4-5 garlic cloves and add to it along with the sliced carrot. Sprinkle salt, pepper and some fresh coriander leaves and saute. Add 200 ml of water and let it simmer for about 2-3 minutes. Squeeze in 1/2 lemon and add 1 tsp of soya sauce and 1 tsp of honey. Stir the broth gently and cover it. Let it simmer away for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the broth and shred it. Add handful of boiled noodles in the broth and cook for 5 minutes. Now add the shredded chicken back in the broth and let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Garnish with some spring onions, green chili and fresh coriander and serve hot! Thukpa goes best with fries, rolls, momoes or dumplings as accompaniments. Enjoy this healthy delicious wholesome dish and happy cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                           Arbi (Colocasia) Masala 

What you need :

Arbi - 500 gms

Onion - 3-4 medium (chopped)

Tomatoes - 2-3 Medium (chopped)

Garlic - 5-6 cloves (crushed)

Green chilles - 1-2 (chopped)

Oil

Hing - 1 tsp

Salt -- to taste

Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Red Chilly powder - 1-2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1-2 tsp

Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp

Aamchoor - 1 tsp

How you make it:

Boil the arbi in an open vessel or pressure cook it till tender (not too tender though). Once done, peel off the skin (similar to potatoes ) and cut it into halves. This root vegetable by nature is slimy and sticky in texture, so in order to lessen / remove this we shallow fry the arbi pieces in a wok and keep it aside on a tissue paper to drain excess oil.

In the same oil, add pinch of jeera, hing powder, green chillies and crushed garlic. When the spices begin to splutter, add onions and saute till translucent pink. Now add the tomatoes and all the spices except aamchoor. Cover this with lid till the masala is done and it leaves oil. To this add the fried arbis and mix well. Add the aamchoor powder and garnish with coriander leaves.

Goes best with all Indian breads!

Happy Cooking! :)

Tip - This vegetable tastes best when made in mustard oil.

[foodistaan]

                  Khatta- Meetha Petha (Sweet n sour Pumpkin)

What you need:

Ripe Pumpkin - 250 gms

Sugar - 1-2 teaspoons

Salt - to taste

Oil

Whole Red chillies - 1-2

Pounded Combination of Fennel seeds, Jeera, Methi Dana - 1 teaspoon

Red Chilly powder - 1 teaspoon

Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric - 1/2 teaspoon

Aamchoor - 1-2 teaspoon

How you make it:

Take some oil in a wok and add whole red chillies and the pounded masala once the oil heats up. Once the spices begin to splutter, add the cubed pumpkin and saute it till it looks glazed. Add the other spices and sugar and cover it to cook on low heat. Once the cubes turn tender, add amchooor powder and turn off the heat. 

Goes best with Paranthas when served hot for breakfast! 

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                           Chicken Burger!

 Chicken Patties

What you need-

Chicken (Minced) – 500 gms

Onion (Chopped) – 1

Cream – 1 table spoon

Garlic (chopped) – 1 tablespoon

Salt

Pepper Powder – 1-2 tea spoon

Oregano – 1-2 tea spoon (optional)

Chilly Flakes – 2 tea spoons

Lime Juice – 2 teaspoons (optional)

Oil

Bread crumbs (Optional)

  How you make it-

Take the minced chicken nicely washed and the excess water drained. Take a non stick pan with a tea spoon of butter and saute the chopped onion in it till transparent. Add this to the chicken along with cream, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, chilly flakes and lime juice. Mix well and make equally proportioned balls.  Roll it in bread crumbs lightly and cook these balls on a non stick lightly oiled pan.  Flatten it lightly as you cook. When the patties turn a nice warm golden colour on both sides, take off the heat.

Burger

What you need-

Burger Buns

Butter

Cucumber (sliced)

Tomatoes (sliced)

Onions (sliced)

Tomato Ketchup

Chilly Sauce

Mustard Sauce

Mayonnaise

Cheese Slices 

How you make –

Take the buns and slit it into half horizontally. Apply butter on all sides and lightly roast this on a non stick pan. Now place lower level bun on a plate and place onion rings, sliced tomatoes, chicken patty, sliced cucumber, slice of cheese and the sauces. Cover it up with the other side of the bun and pin it with a toothpick in the centre.

Serve this Hot and enjoy fresh!

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                         Pav-Bhaaji  

Pav (Buns)

What you need:

 Maida /All purpose Flour - 500 gms 

Yeast - 1 tblspn

Butter - 4 tblspn melted + for brushing on top

Sugar -1 tblspn

Salt - 2 tsp

Warm Milk - as needed to make the dough

 How you make it:

 Add yeast and sugar to warm milk and mix well. Let it stand for 5-10 mins until it becomes foamy. Take flour in a mixing bowl and add salt. Mix this together and now pour the milk into it to form a very soft dough. Pour melted butter over this and mix well. Cover it with a damp cloth and let it rest for 1-1/2 hour till it doubles in size.

 Now punch the air out and divide into equal portions. Put these portions in a baking pan and arrange this balls equally spaced. Now cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 mins till it doubles in size. In a preheated oven( 200 Degree C / 400 Degree F) bake the dough for 15-20 mins until the top turns golden and cooked. Remove it from the oven and brush it with butter. The buns are ready to be served with bhaaji or accompaniments of your choice.

[foodistaan]

                                      Sankraant / Lohri special 

Makke Ki Roti 

What you need:

Cornmeal (Makai ka aata) 

Wheat Flour 

Salt

Ajwain- 1 tsp

Raddish - 1 (grated)

Coriander Leaves - chopped

Green Chilly - 1 chopped

How you Make it:

Take the cornmeal and wheat flour in a 1:3 ratio and add all the ingredients to it. Knead in into a dough using warm water. The dough should not be too soft. Cover this dough with a wet cloth 30 mins before you plan to make it. 

Whan making rotis, take a ball of this dough and on your greased palm start flattening it by clapping both your hands together till the roti is of desired thickness and size. If its difficult for you to do it this way, you can keep the ball between the muslin cloth and use a rolling pin to flatten it. Though a hand made roti, comes out much better. On the tawa cook this using oil till its well done on both sides. Cook on medium heat as the rotis are slightly thicker than usual, hence take time. Serve with butter on top!

Sarson Ka Saag

WHat you need:

Sarson Saag

Palak Saag 

Garlic Cloves - 5-6

Green Chillies - 1-2

Makai ka Aata (Cornmeal) - 2 tablespoons

Onions - 1 Big (finely cut)

Tomato - 2 Medium

How do you make it-

Boil the palak and sarson saag (2:1 ratio) with garlic cloves in it. When done, grind it coarsely with 2 tablespoons of makai ka aata. 

In a wok take some oil, add whole red chilly and onions, saute it till onions is done. Add tomatoes and green chillies and cook till the tomatoes are done too. Cool this and run it in a mixer for a coarse consistency. Put this mixture back into the wok, now and the saag and mix well. Add salt and red chilly as per taste.  Serve this piping hot with a dollop of butter on top for best taste. 

Peanut Balls in Jaggery

What you need -

Peanuts - 1 cup roasted and de-skinned

Jaggery - 1/2 cup

Ghee - 1 tablespoon

How you make it -

Heat ghee in a pan and add grated jaggery and half a cup of water to it. Stir well till it reaches a syrupy consistency. Add peanut to it mix well. Spread this evenly on a greased flat plate and let it cool down a bit. Now take small portions of this mixture and roll into small balls. Trying rolling it when the mixture is still bearably warm.

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                           Punjabi Kadhi

[foodistaan]

                                               Dahi Murgh

What you need:

Chicken - 1/2 kg boneless chicken (cut as you like it)

Curd - 2 1/2 cups 

Cumin Powder - 1 tsp cumin 

Garlic Paste - 1 tsp

Red Chilly Powder - 1/2 tsp

Kashmiri Red Chilly - 1/2 tsp (for colour)

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp

Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

Green Chillies - 2-3 Slit

Onions - 2 onions, chopped

Tomato - 1 tomato, chopped

Coriander Leaves - to garnish

Oil - 2 tsp 

Salt - to taste

How you make it :

In a bowl take the curd and mix in the cumin powder, garlic paste,garam masala, haldi and red chilli powder. Put chicken into this and add slit chillies. Keep aside for 30 minutes. In a wok take 2 tsp oil and saute onions till translucent and pink. Add the tomatoes and cook for a minute and add all the chicken and marinade. Keep cooking till gravy reaches the desired consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot. Goes best with all Indian breads and Rice. 

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                Fresh Beans - Carrot Pickle

What you need:

Beans - 250 gms

Carrot - 300 gms

Mustard Oil 

Red Chilly Powder - 1 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Mustard seeds (red) - 2 Tbsp

Haldi - a pinch

How do you make it :

Cut the carrot and beans in one finger long pieces and keep aside. Boil water  in a vessel and put these veggies in it for 5 minutes. Strain and cool on a plate. While the veggies cool, we prepare the masala for the pickle. Take the mustard seeds and coarsely grind it in a grinder. In a large bowl, add all the spices and oil and the veggies and mix well. The oil and the masala should be enough to coat the veggies. Put this in a clean and dry air-tight container. Keep this out in the sun for a day, next day onwards it ready to eat!

Happy Cooking! :)

Tip - Seasonal veggies like cauliflower and turnips can also be added to this pickle. 

[foodistaan]

Besan ke Laddoo

What you need -

Besan (Bengal gram flour) - 3/4 cup (100 grams) powdered sugar - 3/4 cup (100 grams)  ghee - 1/3 cup (60 grams)  cardamom (elaichi) powder - 1/4 tsp saffron colour - 2 to 3 drops 

How you make it

Mix together the sugar and saffron colour (optional) and keep aside.  Melt the ghee in a kadhai / wok, add the gram flour and cook over a low flame stirring continuously till it is golden brown in colour. Add the cardamom powder and mix well. Remove from the fire and pour onto a plate (thali). Cool completely. Mix together the gram flour mixture and sugar. Divide into 7 equal portions and shape into ladoos.

Enjoy this delicacy after every meal :)

[foodistaan]

                                             YAKHNI PULAO

What you need:

•Chicken - 600 grams

•Basmati rice,soaked -1 1/2 cups

•Oil - 2 tablespoons

  •Cloves - 4-5

•Black cardamoms - 4

•Star anise - 1

•Green cardamoms - 4-5

•Cinnamon - 2 one-inch sticks

•Bay leaves - 4

•Black peppercorns - 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon

•Deep fried onions - 1/2 cup

•Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tablespoon

•Coriander seeds - 2 tablespoons

•Fennel seeds (saunf) - 1 tablespoon

•Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon

•Chicken stock cubes - 2

•Yogurt - 1/2 cup

•Salt - to taste

How you make it:

Heat oil in a deep non stick pan. Add cloves, black cardamoms, star anise, green cardamoms, cinnamon and sauté till fragrant.  Add 2 bay leaves and 1 tbsp black peppercorns and sauté for a minute. Add chicken, cover and cook for 7-8 minutes. Add deep-fried onions, ginger-garlic paste and sauté. Add approximately 4 cups of hot water and mix.  Tie coriander seeds, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, 2 bay leaves and remaining black peppercorns in a muslin cloth and add it to the chicken. Add chicken stock cubes, yogurt, salt and rice and mix well. Cover and cook for 10-12 minutes or till both rice and chicken are cooked. Transfer into a serving bowl and serve hot with raita / plain curd.

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                          South Indian Breakfast

Masala Dosai

Idli

Sambhar

Coconut-peanut and Bengal gram chutney

[foodistaan]

                                                Saag Paneer!

What you need- 

Paneer - 250 gms (cubed)

Spinach - a bunch (boiled)

Tomato- 2 medium

Onion - 1 medium

Garlic - 3-4 cloves

Oil

Salt - to taste

Turmeric powder

Red Chilly Powder

Jeera (whole) - 1/2 tsp

Red Chillies - 1-2 (whole)

Green Chillies - 1-2 

How you make it-

In a wok take some oil and add the jeera and whole red chillies , when they begin to splutter, add the finely cut onions and saute till pink. (Tip - always add a bit of salt when cooking the onions, this will not only make it cook well but also a bit faster) While the onions are getting done, coarsely blend the boiled spinach, garlic cloves, green chillies and tomatoes. Add the mixture to the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add a pinch of turmeric, red chilly powder and adjust the salt. Now add the paneer to it and take it off heat in a few minutes. (Tip - I add 3/4ths of the paneer as cubed pieces and 1/4th of it grated. This adds texture to the dish and a twist in the taste in the otherwise bland spinach)

This dish goes best with all kinds of Indian Breads!

Happy Cooking! :)

[foodistaan]

                                        Friday Dinner - English Menu!

Chilly Chicken Pasta

Onion and Chives flavoured Hot-dogs

Cheese Corn Balls

Pomegranate Fruit Custard