Foodizer

Paneer - marinade & pan fry

15 large Paneer cubes 250 to 300 grams approx

1 tsp Oil for marination

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp Kashmir Red Chili powder

1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder

1/2 tsp Salt

1 tbsp Water

1 tsp Oil for frying

1 tsp Butter for frying

Temper

4 tbsp Oil

2 tsp Butter optional, substitute with oil or ghee

3 small Bay leaf

1 tsp Cumin seeds

3 small Dry red chili

3 small Green chili slit

Saute

1.5 cup Onion minced

1 tbsp Ginger Garlic paste

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

2 tsp Kashmir red chili powder

1 tbsp Coriander powder

1 tsp Cumin powder

1/2 tsp Black pepper powder

1 tbsp Gram flour / Chickpea flour

2 cups Tomato puree 5 large tomatoes crushed

1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder

1/2 tsp Sugar

1.5 tsp Salt

2 tsp Kasuri methi leaves / Dry fenugreek leaves

1 cup Water

1/4 cup Coriander leaves

Instructions

To marinate

Cut paneer / cottage cheese into big chunks or into big cubes.

Add oil, turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder, salt and water.

Mix well to coat on all sides and let it in the marinade for 20 to 30 minutes.

Temper, Saute & Simmer

Heat oil and some butter in a deep sauce / fry pan.

Temper with bay leaf, cumin seeds, dry red chili & green chili. Let it sizzle in oil for few seconds.

Add minced onions along with a pinch of salt and saute until it turns light golden and translucent. This is an important step to attain smooth gravy consistency, so fry over medium flame until its browns evenly. ( 5 minutes medium flame )

Once it turns light golden, add ginger garlic paste and fry for few minutes to get rid of raw smell.

Start adding turmeric powder, coriander powder, kashmir red chili powder, cumin powder, black pepper powder, gram flour, salt and half of the kasuri methi leaves.

Fry the onion mixture along with all the masala powders until it browns and turns into a dry thick masala.

Now add tomato puree along with garam masala powder, salt and sugar. Add extra green chillies at this stage if preferred and the rest of dry methi leaves. Cover and cook over low flame for 10 minutes.

Once the tomatoes puree cooks and thickens, add green chilies, some kasure methi leaves and some water to adjust gravy consistency.

To pan fry

Heat oil and some butter in a shallow frying pan.

Place the paneer cubes and shallow fry for a couple of minutes and switch off! Set this aside.

Do not fry long as it would make the paneer go rubbery. Just warm it up in the spices to coat and flavor it. Alternatively you can bake / grill or broil for few minutes to give a tandoori effect.

Now add the shallow fried paneer along with the oil in which its fried.

Again, cover and cook this gravy until the oil separates on top. ( 5 minutes)

Finally garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Top it with some fresh malai or cream which is optional, just to make it rich.

Gujiya is a traditional Indian sweet made on the festival of colors – Holi. It is a fried pastry stuffed with khoya (mawa), dry fruits, saffron, coconut, and sugar. I am sharing my family’s tried and tested Gujiya Recipe. 

Ingredients Required

The outer pastry cover for ghujia requires only three ingredients:

Maida

Ghee

Water.

For the stuffing, you need:

khoya (mawa)

Dry fruits (almonds, raisins, pistachio, chironji)

Desiccated Coconut

Powdered Sugar

Essential Equipment: You need a casting mold to shape and seal the ghujia. You can easily pick one online or at the nearest supermarket. You may not require the mold if you are a pro, like my mom, at shaping/sealing the pastry with your fingers.

How To Make

Step 1) First, make the pastry dough and allow it to rest.

Step 2) Second, prepare the sweet khoya (mawa) and dry fruit mixture for the stuffing

Allow it to cool down completely.

Step 3) Third, shape all the ghujia and arrange them in the platter in a single layer.

You can shape them using a readymade casting mold or manually

Step 4) Lastly, deep fry the ghujia in small batches in the hot oil until crisp and lightly golden.

Gujiya Recipe Tried & True Tips

Dough: The pastry dough should be slightly stiff.

Perform a texture test, press two fingers into the dough, the perfect dough should be a little tough to push and should not stick to your fingers.

Cover the dough with a moist muslin cloth, and allow it to rest at room temperature while preparing the stuffing.

Stuffing: Allow the khoya mixture to cool completely before stuffing it inside the pastry. Taste while preparing the stuffing and adjust the amount of sugar accordingly.

Feel free to use a combination of dry fruits, semolina (rava), desiccated coconut, and nuts, along with khoya, to make the stuffing.

Sealing/Shaping: Do not overstuff the pastry layer with the khoya mixture. Else, ghujia might tear while frying.

After stuffing, make sure gujiya are sealed tightly. Apply little water to seal and secure the edges. If not sealed tightly, the stuffing will spill into the oil while frying.

Cover all the shaped ghujia with a moist cloth before frying, or the outer dough layer will become dry.

Frying: Always fry ghujia in medium-hot oil over low heat. Keep on moderating the heat while frying. But never fry ghujia on high heat. They might burn and remain uncooked from inside.

Fry ghujiya in small batches. Do not overcrowd the pan.

Storing: Transfer fried/baked gujiya to a metal colander or a wire rack. Allow to cool down completely. It should not be hot or warm to touch while storing.

Ingredients for Kofta curry

1/2 cup grated Lauki

1/2 cup Besan

1/4 tsp Red Chilli Powder

1 tsp crushed dry corainder seeds

1 chopped Green Chilli

1/2 tsp chopped Coriander Leaves

Salt to taste

For the gravy:

1 medium Onion

2 medium Tomato

1/2 inch Ginger

4 Cloves

2 Cardamom

1 inch Cinnamon

1 Bayleaf

1 tsp Red Chilli Powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder

1 tsp Coriander Powder

1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/3 cup Curd

1 tsp Kasuri Methi

1/2 tsp Garam Masala

2 tblsp Ghee

Method

Squeeze the water from the grated lauki. Keep the water for further use. Now mix all the ingredients under koftas. Mix properly. Do not add any extra water. Now make kofta balls.

Fry the koftas in oil on medium flame. Do not fry on high flame otherwise the koftas will be uncooked and gooey from inside.Note: If the koftas are not taking round ball shape then roll them in maida before deep frying or add some more besan.

In a blender add onion,tomato & ginger. Make a fine paste.

Heat ghee. Add cloves, cumin seeds, cardamom, cinnamon & bayleaf. Once the spices release the aroma add the ground onion paste & saute for some time.

Once paste gets brown evenly add the red chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt. Again fry till all the

masalas are nicely cooked.

Now add curd and let it cook the gravy releases oil.

Add the lauki water and make the gravy of desired consistency.

Boil the gravy.Finally add crushed kasuri methi and garam masala and again cook for 2-3 minute.

Finally add the fried koftas.Cover & cook for another 4-5 minute.

Garnish with slit green chillies and fresh finely chopped corander.

INGREDIENTS OF INDIAN STYLE VEGETABLE MACARONI

4 Servings

1 1/2 cup pasta macaroni

1/4 cup finely chopped carrot

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon red chilli powder

1 tablespoon salt

3 tablespoon refined oil

2 tablespoon tomato ketchup

2 pinches mustard seeds

1 pinch powdered asafoetida

1/2 handful coriander leaves

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped tomato

1/4 cup chopped capsicum ( green pepper)

30 grams baby corn

For Garnishing

3 tablespoon spring onions

HOW TO MAKE INDIAN STYLE VEGETABLE MACARONI

Step 1 / 3

Heat a pan of salted water over medium flame. Allow it to boil for 5 minutes. Now add the macaroni pasta in the boiling water and cook until aldente. Once the macaroni pasta is cooked, drain well and keep the macaroni aside. Allow it to cool for few minutes.

Step 2 / 3

Heat oil in a pan over medium flame. Fry the mustard seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida powder for 30 seconds.

Step 3 / 3

Once the mustard seeds start to splutter, add the carrots, onions, spring onions, tomato, capsicum, baby corn, macaroni, tomato sauce and red chilli powder. Stir well and cook the macaroni for a minute or two. Remove from flame and add lemon juice. Mix well and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve at once.

Ingredients of Chicken Masala

1 Kg chicken (broiler) (skinned and cut into pieces)

2 tsp ginger (ground with garlic), chopped

1 tsp garlic, chopped

3 cups onions, finely chopped

2 cups tomatoes, finely chopped

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp garam masala

1 Bay leaf

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp coriander seeds, powdered

1/2 tsp red pepper, powdered

1/4 cup oil

2 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped

2 tbsp cream (for garnish)

How to Make Chicken Masala

1.

Heat oil and add cumin seeds.

2.

When they splutter, add onion mixture and sauté over high heat till light brown.

3.

Add the tomatoes, and sauté till fat separates.

4.

Add the garam masala, salt, turmeric, coriander powder and the red pepper and mix well.

5.

Keeping the heat high, add the chicken pieces and turn around till they are completely coated with the mixture.

6.

Add 1/2 cup water, bring to a boil.

7.

Lower the heat and cook covered till chicken is cooked through and is soft and tender.

8.

Serve hot garnished with the cream and coriander leaves.

Besan Ladoo is popular Indian sweet made with gram flour (besan), ghee and sugar! It's often made for festivals and special occasions!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup besan gram flour, sifted, 125 grams (measured after sifting the flour)

1/4 cup ghee clarified butter, 60 ml, not melted

1/2 cup powdered sugar 65 grams, also known as confectioners sugar, you can add more to taste

1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder

2 teaspoons chopped nuts like almonds, cashews optional

Method

Before you start, sift the besan and then measure it. It should come to 1 cup (125 grams). Keep it aside.

1- To a heavy bottom pan, add the ghee and let it melt on low heat.

2- Once the ghee melts, add the sifted besan to the pan. Heat should be low at all times.

3- Mix the besan and the ghee together, at first it will form a clump.

4- Don’t worry and keep stirring, it will start to loosen up a bit. This is how it looks like 7 to 8 minutes after adding besan.

5 & 6- Keep stirring continuously on low heat. Besan will continue to loosen up and after around 15 minutes (picture 6), it will turn into a smooth paste like consistency.

7- I roasted the besan for around 25 minutes on low heat until it had a nice golden-ish color. Your kitchen will also be filled with a aroma by then.

8- Remove pan from heat. If you want transfer the besan to another container so that it doesn’t cook further and doesn’t burn.

I didn’t transfer it. So after removing pan from heat, I kept stirring for 2 to 3 minutes until it cooled down a little.

Then add the cardamom powder and mix and now let the besan cool down for at least 15 to 20 minutes. Do not add sugar to hot besan else the sugar will melt and then you won’t be able to bind the ladoos.

8- Remove pan from heat. If you want transfer the besan to another container so that it doesn’t cook further and doesn’t burn.

I didn’t transfer it. So after removing pan from heat, I kept stirring for 2 to 3 minutes until it cooled down a little.

Then add the cardamom powder and mix and now let the besan cool down for at least 15 to 20 minutes. Do not add sugar to hot besan else the sugar will melt and then you won’t be able to bind the ladoos.

8- Remove pan from heat. If you want transfer the besan to another container so that it doesn’t cook further and doesn’t burn.

I didn’t transfer it. So after removing pan from heat, I kept stirring for 2 to 3 minutes until it cooled down a little.

9- After 15 to 20 minutes, the besan would cool down and be easy to touch. Add in the sugar and nuts/raisins (if using).

10- Mix everything together until the sugar and nuts are well combined.

11- You will get a smooth besan dough.

12- Now, pinch a small bowl from the dough. Press and roll between your palm to form a round shape. Repeat with the remaining dough.

You would get 8 to 10 ladoos. Don’t worry if they don’t look perfectly round.

Once you shape them, let them sit for 5 to 10 minutes and then shape again if they don’t look perfect. Just don’t wait for too long else it will set and then it will be difficult to change the shape.