We may get bored with all other vegetables but never feel bore to have POTATO. The love towards potato will never end. And especially we Bengali’s just can’t think any curry without potato. Same for my husband, he also loves potato very much, if I ever ask him what vegetable you want to have with Roti or Chapati his answer always the same any potato curry. That’s why I want to make potato curry in different style.
In Biye Bari or Wedding party a very famous dish is stuffed potato curry and one of my favorite items. Once I tried this at home long time before so I thought to share the recipe with all of you. There are so many recipes in the web but I cooked it in my own process. Potato is something which makes a dish perfect and tasty so you can’t stop yourself to make this dish.
Ingredients:
1.Two large potato.
2.Paneer or Indian cottage cheese: 100 gm.
3.Ten to Twelve chopped cashew nuts.
4.Eight to ten chopped raisin.
5.One table spoon smashed khoya or Milk Powder, One tea spoon corn flour.
6.One large sliced onion.
7.Two to three clove garlic.
8.One inch ginger.
9.Two chopped green chilies.
10.One medium chopped tomato. Chopped coriander leaves: A hands full.
11.Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder, Turmeric Powder, Kashmiri red chili powder (Half tea spoon of each item).
12. Pinch of Garam Masala.
13.One bay leave, Few clove, Few cardamom, Few cumin seeds, One dry red chili.
14.One tea spoon curd.
15.One table spoon fresh cream.
16.Salt and sugar as per taste.
17.Sunflower oil for cooking.
18.Half tea spoon ghee.
Process:
Pill and boil the potatoes. Let it cool now smashed it with your hand and keep it in refrigerator for 30 mints (just to dry the smashed potatoes).
Now in a bowl add the paneer, khoya, chopped raisin and cashew nuts, pinch of salt, pinch of cumin powder and chopped green chilies. Now mix them all and make soft dough.
Now take out the smashed potato from the refrigerator and add pinch of salt and corn flour, and mix well. Now make small balls with the smashed potatoes, in each ball make a hole in the middle and add some paneer mixture on it and join the edges and make a stuffed ball.
Now add Ghee or Sunflower oil in a vessel and fry the stuffed potato balls in high flame till they turn little brown and remove from the heat.
Now for gravy, make a paste with onion, tomato, garlic and ginger with some water.
Now in a vessel and some oil, and slowly add the whole garam masala, now add the onion paste and stir for some time.
Now in a bowl whisked the curd with all the spices powder and mix well with some salt and sugar.
Now add the curd mixture in to the vessel and cook this in medium heat with a lid for 8 to 10 mints or till the oil came out.
Now add some water and chopped coriander leaves and again cook this with a lid for 5 mints.
Now your gravy is almost ready, add the fresh cream and the fried potato balls and sprinkle some ghee and cover with a lid for 3 to 4 mints.
Your Stuffed potato curry is ready. Slowly take out the stuffed balls from the gravy and serve hot with Plain Paratha or NAAN.
While eating out one of our favorite stops is Mediterranean Restaurant. Me my husband we both love to eat Mediterranean food, specially the Pita bread and the lovely sauce they serve with the platter. He always asked me to make some Mediterranean food for him at home, and I am not sure that I can make something like that. But if you never try, you may always feel the same.
Sunday night means something special at home and with a big dilemma I made up a Mediterranean Platter, PITA BREAD, FALAFEL AND TAHINI with some deshi style tandoori chicken. Everything turned out just awesome. Thanks to Google who helped me to find out some easy and delicious recipe but i change few things in my convinient. We had a wonderful dinner with a glass of French wine.
PITA BREAD:
Ingredients:
1.All-purpose flour: 2 cup.
2.Dry yeast: One table spoon.
3.Sugar: One tea spoon.
4.Salt: ¾ spoon.
5.Olive Oil: One tea spoon.
6.Vegetable oil: One Tea spoon.
Process:
Take half cup of warm water now add the sugar and mix well, then add the dry yeast and mix well. Keep it aside for 10 mints or waits till it rises.
Now take one bowl and pour the flour and salt mix well. Now in the middle add the olive oil and the dry yeast mixture and mix well with a spatula till it become soft dough.
Now knead the dough with your palm in a floury surface still the dough become smooth and soft.
Now keep the dough in a bowl, rub the vegetable oil on it and cover with a plastic sheet and keep this in warm place for 30 mints.
After 30 mints the dough become double in size, now take out the dough and place it in a floury surface and make it flat.
Now with a knife cut it from the middle, then again make some small pieces with dough. Now take each piece and make some round shape balls. Now keep the dough balls in a bowl and cover it with a plastic sheet for 10 mints.
After 10 mints take each ball, make a flat round shape roti with the help of a rolling pin.
Pre heat the oven in 250F.
Place the Pita Breads in an oven proof tray and bake the breads for 5 mints or till they puffed up. Now take out the breads from the oven.
Your Home Made Pita Bread is ready.
FALAFEL:
Ingredients:
1.Chickpeas: 1 cup.
2.One medium sliced onion.
3.Chopped Parsley: A handful.
4.Chopped Coriander: A handful.
5.Few cumin seeds.
6.Pinch of cumin powder, Pinch of coriander powder.
7.One clove garlic.
10.All-purpose flour: one table spoon.
11.Baking powder: 1 tea spoon.
12.Salt as per taste.
13.Sunflower oil for frying.
Process:
Soak the chickpeas overnight, or you can use some canned chickpeas also.
In food processor add the chickpeas, sliced onion, chopped parsley, chopped coriander and garlic and blend till it for 30 seconds.
Now in the food processor add the salt, baking powder, cumin seeds, cumin powder and coriander powder and blend it for 10 seconds.
Now take out the mixture from and add the flour and mix well. Make some flat balls with the mixture and keep them in refrigerator for 30 mints.
Just avoid extra oil I just fry them in a pan with very less oil, but usually you need to deep fry them. Fry till they turn brown all the sides. Remove from pan and soak the extra oil in a paper towel.
Your hot and easy FALAFEL is ready.
TAHINI SAUCE:
Ingredients:
1.Two table spoon sesame seeds paste or Tahini.
2.One table spoon plain yogurt.
3.One clove garlic paste.
4.One tea spoon olive oil.
5.One tea spoon lemon juice.
6.Pinch of salt.
7.Pinch of red chili powder.
8.Pinch of parsley flakes.
Process:
In a bowl whisked together the sesame seeds paste, garlic paste yogurt olive oil. Then add the salt, lemon juice, red chili powder, parsley flakes and mix well nicely.
Now keep this mixture in refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours before serve.
So easily you can make a Lebanese Platter for you and your family.
Making bread is a very good learning process for me. Every time I learnt through my experience. I love to watch cookery shows, there is always something new which makes me excited. Just like today, I learnt a very easy way of making bread, and this bread is not a normal bread. The taste and the look were really awesome. This is the first time I tried making something like that, and they turned out just perfect.
I never thought before that this way also we can make bread. This is just perfect for kid’s lunch box as well as a good breakfast for elders also. My daughter likes it so much so as my husband. Feeling great when my family gives me a big smile and I become charged up for my next venture.
Preparation time: 15 mints.
Baking time: 40 to 45 mints.
Ingredients:
1.All-purpose flour: 1 cup.
2.Sugar: 1 table spoon.
3.Salt: ¾ tea spoon.
4.Baking powder: 1 tea spoon.
5.Baking soda: ½ tea spoon.
6.Coarsely ground black pepper: ½ tea spoon.
7.One egg.
8.Plain yogurt: ½ cup.
9.Canola oil: ¼ cup.
10.Milk: ¼ cup.
11.Spicy brown mustard sauce: 1 tea spoon.
12.Shredded cheddar cheese: ½ cup.
13.Two green onions thinly sliced.
14.Little butter and flour for greasing the loaf pan.
Process:
In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg first, and then add the yogurt, canola oil and mustard sauce and mix well.
Now add the mixture into the dry ingredients mixture and mix well.
Now add the cheese and green onions and mix all slowly.
Now pre heat the oven in 350 degree F.
Grease one loaf pan with little butter and flour, now pour the mixture into the pan.
Bake it for 40 to 45 mints or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool it for 10 mints, then take out the bread from the pan and place it in a cool rack.
Your easy cheesy bread is ready, serve with a cup of coffee and enjoy.
It’s a busy middle of the week, most of the afternoon’s I spend with my daughter in her play school. Same as today, it’s a kind of exercise for me just running behind her all the day. While coming from her play school I and one of her friend's mother - we both went to a new grocery store in our locality. And I found some nice sliced CHICKEN FILLET exactly perfect for CUTLET. So I just grabbed few chicken fillets from the store and made some KOLKATA STYLE CHICKEN CUTLET.
Today while making the CUTLETS I went to my college days when we all friends used to go to a special shop in COLLEGE STREET just to have the CHICKEN CUTLETS.
Ingredients:
1.Chicken fillets: 4 pieces.
2.Onion juice: 3 table spoon.
3.Ginger juice: 1 tea spoon.
4.Garlic juice: 1 tea spoon.
5.Lemon juice: 1 tea spoon.
6.Pinch of Black pepper powder.
7.Pinch of Red chili powder.
8.Pinch of Chaat masala.
9.One grated green chili.
10.Salt as per taste.
11.One beaten egg.
12.One table spoon all-purpose flour.
13.Two table spoon bread crumb.
Process:
Marinate the chicken fillets with the ingredients no 2 to 10 for 4 to 5 hours.
Now take each fillets rub some flour on them, next dip the fillets into the beaten eggs and finally roll them into the bread crumbs.
Now keep the fillets in refrigerator for 30 mints.
Now fry them in medium heat till both the side turn golden brown. Remove from heat and soak the extra oil in a paper towel.
The CHICKEN CUTLET’S are ready, serve hot with Salad, Mustard sauce and tomato ketchup. Enjoy your CHICKEN CUTLETS.
From today morning I felt like to have some sweets, because it’s being a long time I didn't prepare any sweet dish. But didn’t want to make some cottage cheese sweet. So I thought to make some Bhaja Misti. While entering the kitchen my husband asked me did you ever try KHAJA exactly like PURI BEACH (ORISSA). And I thought let’s give a try because KHAJA is one of my favorite sweets too. I went PURI 5 to 6 times and every time we ate as well as bought for home lots of KHAJA.
And while making them I just went back to my childhood days. Previously I thought making KHAJA will be a very tough job, but it was not that tough at all. I never thought they will turn out that good. Recipe courtesy my grand maa but my Maa actually described me the full procedure over phone. Thanks is not the enough words for that.
Preparation time: 15 mints.
Cooking time: 20 mints.
Ingredients:
1.All-purpose flour: 1 cup.
2.Samolina or Suji: one table spoon.
3.Baking powder: one tea spoon.
4.Pinch of salt.
5.Ghee: Four table spoon.
6.Sugar: Two cup.
7.Water: Two cup.
8.Rice Flour: one table spoon.
9.Cardamom: Two.
10.sunflower oil.
Process:
Take a big bowl and slowly add the flour, semolina, baking powder, salt and three table spoon ghee (for moyam), now make soft and shiny dough with some water.
Now divide the flour dough into 4 equal size balls. Now use a rolling pin and make four round shape roti with the flour dough and keep it aside.
Now add one table spoon ghee and rice flour in a bowl and mix it well.
Now place one roti first and spread some ghee and rice flour mixture on top, now place one more roti on top and spread the rice flour and ghee mixture on top this way place all four roti one after one.
Now fold them together from one corner and fold it on the same side then flip it and do the same and repeat the same till it fold completely like the photo.
Now with a knife cut it from the middle and from each side make some small pieces.
Now take one piece and join the edges, and flat the pieces with a rolling pin. Repeat the same with all the pieces.
Now deep fry the KHAJA’s till both the side turn golden, soak the extra oil in a paper towel.
Now add 2 cup of water, 2 cup of sugar, few cardamom and make a thick sugar syrup. The syrup should be that thick like liquid gum.
Now add the fried KHAJA’S into the sugar syrup and soak it for few mints. Now remove the KHAJA’S from the sugar syrup.
Enjoy the KHAJA with your family member; my husband couldn't believe his eyes that actually I made this for him.
One of my favorite cuisines is Thai. What I love about THAI food is the sweet and spicy taste. They don’t add lots of spices but they do have so many different sauces. In weekends some time we love to have outside food, and most of the time we choose to have Thai food. When I really don't get any idea for dinner or lunch sometime I call him and ask what he wants to have, and every time I get the same answer 'something different'.
So I thought to make some simple CHICKEN PAD THAI for dinner which I never tried before and his one of the favorite dishes. I made it in a very simple way going through various websites. This one can be a great dish for your guests.
Preparation time: 10 mints.
Cooking time: 20 mints.
Ingredients:
For Sauce:
1.Two table spoon fish sauce.
2.One clove chopped garlic.
3.One small piece of palm sugar (or patali).
4.Pinch of red chili flakes.
5. Tamarind concentrate: One tea spoon.
6.One tea spoon lemon juice.
7.Few drop of sunflower oil.
For Pad Thai:
1.One medium packet of Pad Thai noodles.
2.One medium sliced red onion.
3.One medium finely sliced carrots.
4.One clove chopped garlic.
5.Boneless Chicken bites: 200 gm.
6.Pinch of black pepper powder.
7.One tea spoon soya sauce.
8.Salt as per taste.
9.Green onion chopped.
10.Chopped and toasted peanuts (fry the peanuts in few drop of oil before chopping) for garnishing.
11.Sunflower oil for cooking.
Process:
For Sauce: Add few drop of oil in a vessel, after it become hot add the chopped garlic then slowly add all the mentioned ingredients for sauce and cook it in medium heat till the palm sugar dissolve.
Your homemade Pad Thai sauce is ready (it’s quite hot, spicy and tangy) now remove from heat and keep it aside.
Boil the noodles in some salty water, after it boil drain the hot water and rinse it in cold water and keep it aside.
Now take another vessel and add some oil, let it become hot then add the boneless chicken pieces with some salt and cook till the chicken pieces are tender. Now add the black pepper powder and mix well. Now remove from heat and keep it aside.
Now on the same vessel and some more oil and after it become hot add the chopped garlic and saute for some time. Now add the sliced onion and carrots and saute for some time (don’t cook for so long).
Now add the cooked chicken pieces and mix well. Now time to add the noodles and the sauce. Mix well nicely. Now add the soya sauce and some salt, mix nicely. If you want spicier then add the red chili flakes. Cook for another 1 mint.
Now remove from heat and garnish your PAD THAI with chopped green onion and chopped toasted peanuts.
My 22 month old daughter loves fruits very much instead of vegetables. So I love to give her all kinds of fruits. In every month I bake at least two cakes because my husband and my daughter love cake very much. Today I planned to make a nice cake but wanted to add something which I never added in cakes before. Few days before I saw a nice Fruit cake in one of my blogger friends Chitrangada’s page, and after that it’s difficult to resist. But instead of adding one fruit I added all the fresh summer fruits like Blueberry, Strawberry, Raspberry, Cherry. And with all the fresh fruits my cake turned out a super hit.
With the smell of all fruits the cake becomes nice and melts in mouth. If you love berries then this cake is a perfect summer dessert for you.
Preparation time: 20 mints.
Backing time: 45 mints.
Ingredients:
1.All purpose flour: 3 cup.
2.Sugar: 3 cup.
3.Eggs: 5.
4.Butter: 1 cup (softened)
5.Baking powder: 1 tea spoon.
6.Salt: ½ tea spoon.
7.One table spoon sour cream.
8.One table spoon fruit essence.
9.Fresh Strawberry: 4 to 5 chopped.
10.Fresh blueberry’s: 15 to 18.
11.Fresh Raspberry: 8 to 10 chopped.
12.Fresh Seedless Cherry’s: 4 to 5 chopped.
13.Butter Milk: 1 cup.
14.Some extra butter and flour for greasing.
Process:
Preheat the oven in 175 C.
In a big bowl add the sugar and butter mix till it light and fluffy about 5 mints.
Now add eggs one at a time and beating well after each addition.
Now add the sour cream and the fruit essence and mix well.
In a separate bowl mix the flour, salt and baking powder nicely.
Now slowly add the flour mixture into the creamed mixture alternately with milk. Beat just until combined.
Now whisked the blueberries with some flour, and in a separate bowl add the chopped raspberries, chopped cherry’s, chopped strawberries. Sprinkle some flour into the chopped berries also.
Now divide the cake mixture into two different bowls, and in one add the blueberry’s And add the chopped berries into the other bowl mix them slowly.
Now flour and grease one cake pan and pour blueberry’s mixture into the bottom of the pan, then add the other mixture in top of that. And bake it for 45 to 50 mints or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool it for 10 mints, then take out the cake form the pan and place it in a cool rack.
Enjoy your oven fresh FRUIT CAKE with a cup of coffee.
Every day I search new recipes, because as a foodie my love towards food will never become less. So I keep searching new recipes, ideas and ingredients. Some time with all the old stuffs you can make something new. My fridge is almost empty because its end of month and middle of the week. I thought to make some DHOKAR DALNA. While soaking the dal I remember some where I read about CHINGRI MACH DIYE DHOKAR DALNA. I didn't remember the full recipe but what I remembered is prawns cooked with the dhokar dalna in a little different and unusual way.
Prawn is very favorite to us and prawns can make any dish a special one. So same thing happened with this dish also because I usually cooked the normal DHOKAR DALNA but with prawns it became something different and tasty.
Preparation time: 30 mints.
Cooking time: 30 mints.
Ingredients:
1.Cholar dal or Chana dal: 1 cup.
2.Medium size prawns: 12 to 14.
3.One medium size sliced onion.
4.One medium size chopped tomato.
5.Three clove chopped garlic.
6.One inch chopped ginger.
7.Two to three slit green chilies.
8.One medium size potato: cut into small pieces.
8.Turemric powder, Red chili powder, Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder( half tea spoon of each item).
9.Pinch of garam masala.
10.Two cardamom, One bay leave, Few cumin seeds, One dry red chili.
11.Salt and sugar as per taste.
12.Sunflower oil for cooking.
Process:
Soak the chana dal overnight. Now in a grinder make a smooth paste with the soaked Chana dal, ginger, green chili and some salt.
Now wash and clean the prawns, now make a smooth paste with prawns. Now add the prawns paste into the chanda dal mixture and mix well.
Now add oil in a vessel and add some cumin seeds let them starts smelling then add whole chana dal and prawns mixture and cook till it dry completely.
Now grease one plate with some oil and add the all dry chana dal and prawn mixture and spread across the plate proportionately.
Keep the plate in fridge for 10 mints. Now with a knife cut the Prawn Dhoka’s in some Rhombus size.
Now deep fry the Prawn Dhoka’s (few at a time) and soak the extra oil in pepper towel.
Now fry the potato pieces till it become golden and keep it aside.
Now add one tea spoon oil in a heavy bottomed vessel and add the sliced onion, tomato, chopped garlic and chopped ginger and fry till the onions are transparent allow it to cool, then make a fine paste with some water.
Now put some oil in a heavy bottomed vessel and add the cumin seeds, bay leaves, cardamom, dry red chili after few seconds add the onion tomato paste with all the spices powder (except garam masala) with some salt and cook this in medium flame till the oil comes out from the gravy.
Then add little water, the slit green chilies, some sugar, fried potato pieces and the garam masala powder and cook this in slow flame with a lid for 5 to 8 mints.
Now remove the lid. Add enough water for gravy and add the fried prawn dhoka’s and cook for 5 mints in medium flame with a lid.
Your prawn dhoka is ready serve hot with plain rice.
