Pilau Rice

Pilau rice is a great party dish. Basmati rice is ideal for the recipe; do not substitute it for any other rice. Basmati rice grows on the foothills of Himalayas in Indian. It has a lovely aroma and the grains are elegantly long. Add just over double the amount of water to drained and soaked rice for the perfect results each time.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 cup washed and drained basmati rice

1 ¼ cups of hot water

1 tsp Lime juice

Butter 1 tbsp

1 ½ cumin seeds

1 cinnamon

2 cardamom pods

2 star anise

Salt to taste

½ tsp saffron dissolved in water

METHOD

1.    Rinse the rice in plenty of cold water for at least 2 times. Keep aside for about 30 minutes.

2.    Heat the butter in a pan; add the cumin seeds, cardamom, star anise, cinnamon and salt.

3.    Add hot water, let the mixture come to a boil. When you see little specs bubbling away, reduce the flame to the lowest, cover the pan and cook the rice for about 4 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle the saffron dissolved in water, to create a random colour effect.

4.    Keep the pan covered for 3 more minutes, gently fork though so as not to break the grains before serving.

Cook's Notes:

·        For best results rinse the rice three times in cold running water. Keep the drained rice aside for about 45 minutes for best results.

Chakli

Chakli is traditionally prepared for Diwali. In Maharashtra we prepare chakli by using different pulses known as ‘Bhajani’. As this special Bhajani flour isn’t available here easily, I have prepared this instant chakli, which tastes really good too.  

Chakli © The Spice Angel

 INGREDIENTS

1 cup rice flour

½ cup gram flour

½ cup plain flour

½ flat tsp asafoetida

1 heaped teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

2 teaspoon ajwain

2 teaspoon sesame seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 tsp red chilli powder

1 heaped teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoon warmed Sunflower oil + to deep fry

Lukewarm water as required

Salt to taste

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED

Chakli maker (available in Asian supermarkets)

METHOD

In a bowl, mix all the dry ingredients and the warmed up oil. Bind the mixture into smooth dough (which should be just like your regular chapati dough) using lukewarm water as required. Keep aside for 10 minutes.

Grease the chakli maker with oil. Wet your hands, and stuff the prepared mixture in the chakli maker.

On a baking paper, start making chaklis. Heat sufficient oil for deep frying in a wide pan, add the chaklis one by one in the hot oil, ensuring not to over crowd the pan. Deep fry till golden brown on all sides.

When cool enough fill the chaklis in an airtight plastic container and eat within a month.

Besan Ladoo

Besan Ladoo are delicious sweet balls made across India during festivals such as Diwali and special occasions. Chickpea flour is known as besan in India. Besan Ladoo is made from roasted chickpea flour.

Do not worry if your results aren't great the first time. Keep practising and you will get better at it! Getting the ratio right is very important when preparing these, or the recipe won't work!

I find it the easiest to remember the ratio by using the same bowl to measure all the ingredients. Traditionally these sweets are prepared using ghee, but I have experimented using butter instead, and it works just as good. These will keep fresh without refrigeration for as long as 1 month. But, once these are made, they are so moreish that they may not last for that long!

Roasting the flour until you get a pleasant aroma is crucial or the final product will taste raw. I like to add powders of nuts such as cashew nuts and almonds, I feel it improves the texture and the taste of the dish. Here is the recipe:




Besan Ladoo ©The Spice Angel

 

INGREDIENTS

1 cup chickpea flour (also know as besan)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4th cup icing sugar (Can be used more or less according to your taste)
2 tablespoon roughly chopped de-skinned almonds
1 tsp cardamom powder
Cashewnuts to garnish

METHOD

1. Heat the butter in a heavy based pan. Add the chickpeas flour and keep roasting on a medium heat until golden brown and nice aroma emanates from the mixture.

2. Switch off the gas and add the cardamom powder, chopped almonds and icing sugar. Mix well with a spatula. Wait for 20 minutes or so for the mixture to be cool enough to handle. If you start to form the ladoos when the mixture is still hot, the ladoo will turn out flatter and not round. If this happens, then do not worry, just give them some more time to cool down and try forming ladoos again.

3. You may prepare these sweets as small or as big as you like. As seen in the picture above, that is the sort of shape, colour and size you should ideally aim for. Take a small amount of mixture in your palms and start to press gently to form a round ball.

4. Decorate the rounds with Cashewnuts and serve.

Paneer Tikka

This is a delicious and summery dish with fresh white cheese, the yogurt in the marinade breaks down the paneer and vegetables, allowing them to absorb more flavour. You can even marinate the paneer overnight for extra flavour. Soak the wooden skewers in water for some time, so that they will not burn. Paneer can be easily prepared at home; alternatively, you may use good quality shop bought paneer.

  

Serves 2-3

 INGREDIENTS

1 block of paneer (250 g)

1 pepper (any)

1 red onion

Lime wedges to serve

FOR THE MARINADE

1 tbsp ginger & garlic paste

1 handful of fresh coriander, finely chopped

1 tsp chaat masala

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder

1 tbsp Greek yogurt

 Wooden skewers x 4

METHOD

 Cut paneer into bite size pieces, along with the onion and pepper.

Tip into a large bowl, add the other marinade ingredients and mix well.

Heat an oiled griddle pan Thread each of the skewers with 2 pieces of paneer, 1 piece of onion and 1 piece of pepper and cook till golden brown on both sides. Baste with oil if it looks dry.

Serve with the quartered lime wedges to squeeze over the skewers.

NOTES

Soak the wooden skewers in water for about 10 minutes, this way, they skewers won’t burn while cooking.

Keep the paneer cubes a little big, or they will break when putting on the skewers.

Boondi Raita

Boondi Raita is a fantastic addition to any vegetarian or non-vegetarian dish.
It is cooling, fairly easy to prepare and delicious. It is not uncommon to find it at any Indian wedding or special occasion. It is prepared using chickpea flour which is easily available from Asian stores or supermarkets. It is gluten free too. Here is the recipe..

INGREDIENTS

500 g full fat Greek yogurt
2 tsp chaat masala
few springs of washed and chopped coriander leaves
2 tbsp. gram flour (also known as chickpea flour)
A pinch of turmeric
Sunflower oil for deep frying
1 tbsp. sugar
Salt to taste


METHOD

• Add the chickpea flour in a bowl. Add the salt and turmeric powder and enough water to make a batter which is similar in consistency to a double cream. Keep aside.
• Season the yogurt with the chaat masala, chopped coriander leaves, salt and sugar. Mix well.
• Heat oil for deep frying the boondi, you will need a stainless steel spatula with small round holes. Take the chickpea flour mixture, pouring it over gradually on the spatula, directly into the hot oil. You will see small balls will forming. Cook evenly and remove on a kitchen paper roll to drain the excess oil.
• Immerse these tiny balls into the seasoned yogurt mixture.

NOTES

Chaat masala is a mixture selected mild spices such as cumin powder, ginger powder and amchur powder which is nothing but dried mango powder. It provides a sour note to the recipe. You may make your own if feeling adventurous, or for convenience purchase it from any Asian supermarket. There are some good brands available which are equally good as the home made version such as Badshaah, Eastend etc.