Chicken tomato masala

Serves: 2 Persons

Ingredients:

500gms Boneless Chicken

Fresh tomato puree* of 5 medium tomatoes

2  Paste of two Medium raw  onions

oil

2 Tsp (Heaping) Red chili powder

1 Tsp (Not Heaping) Dhania Powder

1/4 Tsp Haldi Powder

1 Tsp Salt

3 heaping Table spoons Curd

2 Table Spoons Garlic Paste

2 Table spoon Ginger paste

3 Table spoon Cashew Nuts

Method:

* To make fresh tomato puree boil water in a pan and put 5 tomatoes in it after scooping their eyes out and making a plus sign with a knife on the bottom of the tomatoes. after 5 minutes throw out the hot water and rinse  the tomatoes in cold water. Now peel off the skins and blend the tomatoes in a mixer.

Heat some oil in a cooker and add the fresh tomato puree. Cook till oil separates. Add the onion paste cook till oil separates. Add all the dry masalas with some water and cook till oil separates. Add curd and mix it well in hi-flame till oil separates.

Add the chicken pieces and cook on low flame for about 30 minutes.

(Take the specified amount of ginger, garlic and cashew nuts and make a paste in a mixer. Add a little water so that there are no lumps.)

Add this paste to the masala in the cooker and fry well till oil separates and the white color of the cashew paste is gone.

By now the chicken should be done. Serve hot with fresh chapaties.

 

Paneer Masala

Here is a simple recipe to cook Cottage Cheese Masala ( Paneer Masala) for two.

Time Taken : 40 Min.

200 gms Paneer ( Cottage Cheese)

2 Medium Onions Minced

1 Medium Tomato Minced

2 Green Chillies Minced

1 Tea Spoon Garlic Paste ( Heaping)

100 gm Fresh Curd

100 gm Butter

100 gm Fresh  Cream

2 Table Spoon Refined  Soya Oil

1 Tea Spoon Red Chillies Powder ( Heaping)

1/2 Tea Spoon Coriander Powder (Dhania)

1/2 Tea Spoon Salt Or to taste

1/4 Tea Spoon Turmeric Powder

Pour the oil in a Wok and heat it to little short of smoking point and add the onions. Fry the onions on low heat till they are transparent. Add the minced tomato. Fry some more till the tomatoes are cooked. Add the red chillies powder, dhaniya powder, salt,  turmeric powder & some water to cook the mixture. You might have to add some more water once or twice to cook the mixture thoroughly. Add garlic paste & minced green chillies & cook some more. Add the curd and bring the mixture to boil. Making a point to keep string the mixture till it is boiling. Cook the mixture till the whiteness of the curd is gone and redness of the chillies is in the masala. Now stir in the butter. Add the milk cream and cook some more. Now cut the paneer in small pieces and add to the masala.

If you wish you can add a  chicken cube to the masala.

Serve it with crisp plain  parathas cooked in oil or butter-as per your taste & choice.

Chicken Curry

Serves Four

Time Taken to Prepare – about 90 Min

Ingredients

Onions 4 large minced

Oil 1 cup

Red chilli powder 3 tea spoons heaping ( or to taste)

Coriander Powder 2 tea spoons heaping( or same proportion as the red chillies)

Turmeric Powder 1/2 tea Spoon

Salt -One and a half Tea Spoon (Not heaping) or to taste.

Sour Curd 200 gms ( or lesser in proportion to the red chillies as this much curd is needed to take the bite out of the red chillies)

Garlic Paste 2 Table Spoons

Ginger Paste 1 Table Spoons

Green Chillies 2 Minced ( optional as per taste)

Broiler Chicken 900 gms

Method

Heat the oil in a pressure cooker( thick bottom of the cooker prevents the masala from burning easily) and add the minced onions to the oil when the oil starts to smoke and fry the onions on low heat till brown.

Add the red chilli powder, salt, coriander powder & turmeric powder to the oil and the fried onions and add a little water so that the mixture does not burn.

Cook the mixture on low heat till the oil starts bubbling and the masala is cooked.Add some more water and cook some more till the oil starts bubbling again.

While adding the curd ensure to stir the mixture on high flame till the masala comes to a boil.Keep the flame on low heat and keep frying the curry till it takes the color of deep oily red chillies.

Add the Garlic paste and the ginger paste to the curry and cook some more.

Wash the Chicken and add to the curry and add enough water to cover the Chicken and cook on low heat till the chicken turns tender.

Add the green chillies to the prepared Chicken and serve with chapaties or tandoorie rotis.

A Recipe To Cook ‘Khichari’

Rice & Green Moong Lentil

To Serve: 1  OR 2 Persons

Time Taken: About 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Green Moon Dal( This is moong lentils with the green covering unlike the yellow moong dal): 4 heaping Table Spoons.

Rice: 4 heaping Table Spoons.

Turmeric Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon

Salt: To Taste

Water: 400 ml.

Some Sugar & a Little Clarified Butter and Milk  OR  200 gm Fresh Curd. As per choice.

Mix the lentil and rice together and clean and wash the mixture in water and let it soak in water for 10-15 minutes.

Throw away the water used to soak the lentils & rice mixture and put the mixture in a pressure cooker. Add about 400 ml of water with the salt and  the turmeric powder.

Pressure cook at high flame till the cooker whistles once then lower the flame to simmer for 10 minutes. Switch off the flame after 10 minutes. Let the cooker cool down on its own for 5-10 minutes.

The ‘khichari’ is ready to be served.

It can be eaten with salt as it is Or with milk and sugar and clarified butter Or with fresh curd and salt or sugar Or with only sugar.

It is very light on the stomach and is generally made when somebody is recuperating from an illness.

The 50:50 ratio of the rice and green moong dal can be varied according to a persons  choice.

If you are in a hurry and do not have the time or inclination to soak the rice and green moong dal mixture in water before pressure cooking the mixture  just wash the rice and dal  thoroughly in water  and add 100 ml extra water to the mixture and cook for the stipulated time.

Khichari

Spicy Egg Curry

Serves: 2 persons
Time Taken :30 minutes
Ingredients :
4 Hard Boiled Eggs
2 Medium Onions Minced
2 Tomatoes Minced
4 Green Chillies Minced
2 Tea Spoons of Garlic Paste
2 Tea Spoons of Ginger Paste

2 Tea Spoon of Red Chillies

1 Tea Spoon of Coriander Powder

1/2 Tea Spoon Turmeric Powder
Some minced green coriander leaves for garnishing
1/2 tea Spoon of Roasted Cumin (Jeera) Powder
200 gms Curd
1 Cube of Maggi Chicken Stock
1/2 Tea Spoon Salt OR to taste (Remember there is some salt and pepper in the chicken cube too)
6 Table Spoons Of Soya Oil

METHOD:
A simple curry for the eggetarians & the non-vegetarians among us.It does not take much time to prepare.But is a delicious substitute to a non vegetarian dish.
Put the four eggs to boil in a pot of water for 15 minutes.
Heat up the oil in a wok and fry the onions in it on low heat till the onions are a little brown.Add the minced tomatoes in the Wok and fry some more.Now add the garlic and the ginger paste and fry some more.Add the Red chillies,Coriander powder, Roasted Cumin Powder,turmeric powder and Salt with a cup of water to the mixture and cook it till the oil starts to bubble.Stir in the curd.Keep stirring the mixture  on high flame till the mixture starts to boil.Add the chicken cube.See that it dissolves in the mixture.
Add the green chillies.Cook the mixture on low heat till it is oily red in color.
Cut the 4  boiled eggs in 2 halves each  and add to the curry.
Garnish with minced green coriander leaves and serve with hot chapatis.

Rangeela Omelette

Serves: One Person

Time Taken : Ten Minutes

Ingredients:

2 Eggs

1 Small green chillies Minced

1 Small tomato Minced

1 Small Onion Minced

2 pinch of salt

2 pinch of red chillies or black pepper

Some oil

Method:

Break the eggs in a small bowl and beat them with a fork for a couple of minutes. Add the salt and the red chillies or black pepper as per your taste. Add onions, tomatoes and green chillies as per your taste. Beat the mixture some more.

Heat some oil in a non stick pan till it is smoking. Lower the flame  and pour the egg  mixture in the pan. Wait till it is brown on the frying side and turn it and fry the other side till all the egg is cooked to golden brown. If you like your omelette half done then you will have to take it off the heat sooner.

Serve with butter toast and tea.

Soya Chunks In Manchurian Sauce

If you are a novice in the kitchen and know enough cooking to boil water this recipe is for you. We are just going to assemble a few processed goodies and some vegetables and rice to make a wonderful meal.

Time Taken : About 40 Minutes

Serves: 2 Persons

Ingredients:
1 packet Chinese Manchurian Knorr make a meal
1 cube Maggi Chicken concentrate OR 1 cube Maggi Vegetable concentrate
2 Cups of Soya Chunks
1 small onion
1 small carrot
1/2 a  small  cabbage
1 small capsicum OR 2 Big green Chilies
2 spring onions
Some red OR green chili sauce
Some vinegar and green  chili  sauce
1 cup rice
salt
ghee

Method:

Wash the rice in cold water. Soak the rice for 20 minutes in cold water.Throw away the water used to soak the water.  Take 2 cups of water in a pan add the soaked  rice,  a pinch of  salt and a little ghee and cover the pan with a lid and boil the rice on Simmer setting of your gas burner till the rice is tender.( Do not stir the rice while it is cooking.The rice will be cooked by the time all the water is used up. )

Grate all the vegetables and mince the spring onions. Put the spring onions aside.Take a wok add a little ghee and sauté the vegetables for 5 minutes. Add 3 cups of water to the vegetables. Add the chinese Knorr Manchurian make a meal mixture and bring to boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Set aside.
In a little water boil the chicken cube or the vegetable cube ( as per your taste) and set aside.
Boil 4 cups of water in a pan add 1/4 tea-spoon salt and add 2 cups of Soya chunks and boil for 10 minutes. Use a strainer to get rid of the water used to boil the Soya chunks and to wash them in cold fresh water. Squeeze out the excess water.Put some ghee in a wok and fry the Soya chunks till they are a little brown. Add the boiled chicken or vegetable concentrate to the wok and bring to boil till the chunks absorb the concentrate a little and add the mixture of Soya chunks and concentrate to the Manchurian sauce.Garnish with the minced spring onions.

Your meal is ready. Use the chili  sauce as per your taste.

COOK IT UP A RECIPE WEB SITE

A Recipe To Cook Lentils

Lentils

In this guest post Ms.Ratna Singh,a house wife in Jaipur, shares with us  how to cook lentils the way her husband likes. Nature has blessed us with a big variety of lentils and man in his wisdom and to add spice to life has come up with numerous ways to cook them. The following simple recipe shows us how to cook  chana and washed moong lentiles.

To Serve: 2 Persons.

Time taken :  About 1 hour.

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Washed Moong Lentils

1/2 Cup Chana Lentiles

Clean the lentils & soak  the lentils in some water for 1/2 hour.Wash the lentils in the water used to soak the lentils  and throw away the so used water.Put the lentils in a pressure cooker and add the following items.

1/4 Tea Spoon Turmeric Powder

A little Salt

4 Cups Water to pressure Cook the lentils.

Pressure cook the lentils on high flame  till the cooker gives 2 whistles.Turn off the flame and let the cooker cool off.

Now take a wok and put in a table spoon of butter or desi ghee and 1/4 Tea Spoon of Jeera(cumin)  and fry it on low flame till it changes color now add 1 tea spoon of Ginger & Garlic paste and Saute for some time then add 2 pinch of heeng . Now add 3/4 tea spoon of red chillies ,3/4 tea spoon of coriander powder, 1/4 tea spoon of turmeric and salt to taste with some water to the mixture in the wok.If you like you can also add one minced green chilly. Cook on low flame till the oil separates.

( If you think at any stage that the mixture might burn because of too much heat and not enough masala , just switch off the gas, add everything and then start cooking again.)

Now stir in the boiled lentils with the water in the cooker to the wok and bring to boil.

You can garnish the dish with Lemon Juice to taste and with  green coriander leaves.

Prepadred Dish of Chana & Washed Moong Dal

A Quick Bite To Eat In Jaipur

Times Food Guide-First Jaipur Edition

This post is about best of the snacks Jaipur has to offer to its residents.You will share my feelings when I say that these shops etc. are world famous in Jaipur.But however hard I might try to list them all I am bound to miss your favourite shop selling the finger licking delicacy to eat.So feel free to list the eating joint in the comments section.I will try to put them in the main post later.

Let us start with some of the more famous and obvious ones.

Lassiwalla, on M.I.Road, right next to the Charmica Co-Operative Leather goods shop. They open early and offer lassi in earthen kullhars.In the summer months a kullhar of Lassi is a welcome thirst quencher.

In the galli next to the Zeiss Optical Shop there are two shops selling Indian snacks made of gram flour just 25 steps from the lassiwalla. Not a bad idea to have some thing hot and spicy to eat before the lassi.

LMB in Johri Bazaar,Sury Mahal on M.I.Road, Bistro,Near Panchwati Circle,Raja Park,Chawalas in Raja Park all offer Chaat in hygienic conditions. At  the Bistro you can mix your own Paani Puri.LMB offers a legendary Allo Ki Tikiya & Dahi Baras besides Achars & Sherbets & Mangoris & ghewars & phini you can buy to take home.Their forte is stuff made in desi ghee ( All joints above are full fledged vegetarian restaurants also).

Bakeries

Cake Town,G-1,V-Jai City Point, Ahimsa Circle, Ashok Marg, C-Scheme, Jaipur-1, M.96609 96609

Hot Breads,on Sarojani Marg,Bake Hut,On M.I.Road,Bakewell in Raja park.They offer Top of the line baked goods.Venus Bakery on Subash marg,one of the older bakeries,is also good.

National Handloom  offer snacks in their stores it self.Gaurav Tower in Malviya Nagar has its own open air Chaat Bazaar.

On station Road there  is Rawat Misthan Bhandar and Kanji sweets shops.Try Rawat’s Mawa Ki Kachori, Pyaz Ki Kachori, Mirchi Bara and Ras Mali (Indrani).Try Kanji’s Dal Ki Kachori.They offer lot of other snacks and sweets too.

Try Pandit Ji’s Kulfi in the Gangori Bazaar. It is very good.

Milky Way, off Bhagwan Das Road offers numerous flavours of Shakes and other snacks.

Vijay Store on Chaupar , for namkins ( especially salted peanuts and masala chana).

Samrat Restaurant in Kishan Pole Bazaar for Dal Ki Kachori And Samosas and Gazak in a near by shop. Near by Bhagat Mishtan Bhandar for Thal Ki Barfi & Boondi Kae Laadoo.

If you decide to see a hindi pot boiler in the Golcha Cinema hall Complex be sure to have some samosas.

Chawala Sweets on Mooti Doongri Road offers some great mouth watering Kesar Barfi. And their paneer is so good people eat it there and then with salt and pepper masala.

Off Tonk Road,Near Kuttons Show room Shankar Misthan Bhandar Offers some great khasta dal ki kachories.

On Subash Marg, Williams Juice bar offer great Papaya Shake.

On the link Road on Nehru Bazaar you can have Sugar Cane Juice all the year round.

On Chatoriyon ka churaha on Bapu Bazaar link Road You can have great Paani Puri.

Where To Shop When In Jaipur

Jaipur A Fun Place Even By Night

Karan’s Guesthouse