Kheema Macaroni – Spicy Mutton Mince cooked with Macaroni

Kheema Macaroni – Spicy Mutton Mince cooked with Macaroni

Once upon a time Macaroni was sitting on a shelf when suddenly she spied Mince sitting at the counter. She smiled at him, slowly walked towards him and seductively perching herself next to him. They began talking. Soon their talk turned into a harmonious melody, quite like something straight out of a Bollywood movie. After a bit of this and a dash of that (this happened in the 80’s so I can’t go the bold Bollywood route :P ) they came to understand they were made for each other. Soon after, Mince proposed to Macaroni. Macaroni, of course was a clever girl and knew a good thing when she saw one. She accepted the marriage proposal. In a big vessel, amongst great fanfare, they were married in the presence of friends and family. Mr. Onion, Mrs. Tomato, Ms. Cumin and many others attended the wedding to bless the couple. Macaroni and Mince went on to live happily ever after... After all, it was a match made in my kitchen. ;-)

Ingredients:

½ kilo mutton mince

150 grams macaroni

3 large onions, sliced

12 medium-sized tomatoes, pureed in a blender

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste

2½ teaspoons red deghi mirch chili powder

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon coriander-cumin powder

1 teaspoon Parsee Sambhar masala

1 teaspoon garam masala powder

Salt, to taste

4 tablespoons oil

4 tablespoons coriander leaves, chopped

 Method:

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add cumin seeds and allow to splutter.
2. Add the sliced onions and fry to golden brown.
3. Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté well till a nice aroma emerges from the cooker.
4. Add chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander-cumin powder, Parsee Sambhar masala, garam masala powder, salt and sauté for a minute.
5. Add the pureed tomatoes and cook till the raw smell evaporates and the gravy thickens a wee bit.
6. Add the mince and sauté for 5 minutes.
7. Add the macaroni, stir once.
8. Add 5 cups water and pressure cook for one whistle. After the first whistle, lower heat and cook for 3 minutes more and take the cooker off the hob.
9. Allow the built up pressure in the cooker to reduce and when the cooker cools down open and empty the contents into a vessel.
10. Check seasoning. Add the coriander leaves, give it a stir and serve with chapattis or bread.
    
    

Chef Notes:

1. I used ribbed macaroni as I was clicking photographs for my blog but feel free to go with plain macaroni if ribbed macaroni isn't available.
2. I’m a weird Bawi. I do not enjoy ‘al dente’ pasta. I always prefer it a bit on the softer side. The macaroni for this dish has to be cooked soft. Please don’t mistake soft for mushy.
3. The water proportion mentioned for macaroni is for Del Monte brand. The proportion of water may differ with each brand so go by your experience and go by the brand you use regularly.
4. I sometimes make this with beef mince instead of mutton mince. If you prefer a more robust flavor feel free to opt for beef mince instead of lamb/mutton mince. I know I do.
5. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.
   
   

Nalli Nihari

Nalli Nihari

I had been itching to make Nihari ever since I had it at a food stall during Ramadan. The crazy Bawi in me wanted to make this from scratch and did not want to use ready Nihari masala and so began a series of trial and error sessions until I finally got the spice mix right. I hail from a family that used to manufacture masala blends. I knew from experience it was only a matter of time before I got the spice mix perfect. Anu, heaved a sigh of relief when I finally said the recipe was spot on because every time I said, ‘No! This is not perfect’, it meant I was going to make Nihari again and subject them to the same food. Ahh well, if they get to eat the yummy stuff I get right at first shot then they have to endure the experiments too, until I get the dish perfect. It’s only fair. ;-)

Ingredients:

1¼ kg leg of lamb, cut into big pieces
1½ cup onion, sliced
7 tablespoons Nihari Masala (recipe - below)

2 teaspoons garlic paste
3 teaspoons ginger paste

3 tablespoons wheat flour

2 teaspoons Kashmiri chili powder (optional - only if you prefer a spicier Nihari)
a large handful coriander leaves
200 grams clarified butter/ghee

Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons green chilies, diagonally cut for garnish

Method:

1. Heat clarified butter in a large vessel.
2. Add onions and fry till golden brown.
3. Add the mutton pieces, fry till the water evaporates and the mutton begins to turn a shade darker in color.
   
   
   
   
4. Add ginger paste, garlic paste and sauté on medium heat till fragrant.
5. Add the Nihari masala, Kashmiri chili powder (if using - i did) and sauté. Add a wee bit of water and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring intermittently.
   
   
   
   
6. When the water dries up add 2½ cups of water, cover and cook on medium low heat till mutton is tender and the gravy is thick and the added clarified butter is separated. This may take an hour to an hour and a half. (Gently stir the mutton, intermittently, just to ensure it does not stick to the bottom of the vessel. Do not stir it too often as you need the clarified butter (tarri) to float on top when the mutton is cooked)
7. Dissolve wheat flour in 150 mils water and keep aside.
8. When the mutton is cooked, remove the excess red-spicy clarified butter (tarri) from the top of the gravy in a bowl and keep aside.
9. Give the wheat flour mixture a stir and add to the cooked meat. Stir.
10. Add 2 cups water to the gravy and allow it to simmer on low heat for ten minutes.
11. Add the red-spicy clarified butter (tarri) that you had previously removed in a bowl. Mix and simmer for 1-2 minutes.
12. Turn off the heat and garnish the Nihari with chopped coriander and green chilies. Serve with bread naan or steamed rice.
    
    

Nihari Masala:

3 dry red Reshampati chilies

4-5 dry red Kashmiri chilies

½ tablespoon cloves

2 green cardamoms

1 small-sized black cardamom

7-9 black peppercorns

½ bay leaf

¼ blade mace

2 teaspoons dry ginger powder

¼ teaspoon nutmeg powder

¾ tablespoon poppy seeds

1 inch cinnamon stick

1¼ tablespoons fennel seeds

1¼ tablespoons cumin seeds

1½ tablespoon chickpea / chana dal

Method:

1. Dry roast all the Nihari Masala ingredients, individually, till fragrant. Do not roast the powdered ingredients.
2. Cool the roasted ingredients and grind to a fine powder.
3. Add the ready-powdered ingredients to the freshly ground spice mix and give it one more whiz in the grinder to blend well.
4. Sieve the powder and use. 

Chef Notes:

1. You may cook the Nihari in a pressure cooker if you are hard pressed for time, but nothing compares to slow simmered Nihari when it comes to flavor and texture of mutton falling off the bone when you dig your fork through it.
2. I always prefer making Nihari from the leg of the lamb because scooping out the marrow from the bone is like cherry on the cake. We Bawas always have marrow spoons in our cutlery drawer which comes to use for such dishes. My mum, forever the spoiled brat of the house, is always allowed to flick the bones for the marrow, resultantly this brat gets none.
3. If you make Nihari often, feel free to double the quantity of the Nihari masala and store it in an air-tight container. It keeps for 2 weeks.
4. Nihari is a rich dish as quite a bit of clarified butter is used for it but if you are the health conscious type you may lessen the quantity of clarified butter. Also, I have known people to use oil instead of clarified butter but you won’t catch me deviating from the original version. I truly feel some dishes are sacred in terms of originality and aren’t to be tampered with. I’d much rather eat Nihari (clarified butter et al) and walk an extra two kilometers the next day. But of course, only my very near and dear ones know that that’s something I won’t really do because I’m a lazy bum. ;-)
5. If Reshampati chilies aren’t available feel free to increase the amount of dry red Kashmiri chilies to adjust the spice level.
6. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.
   
   

Lakeland lures Punekars... In wonderful way!

My write-up for Lakeland comes to you a bit delayed, but for a store as impressive as Lakeland, better late than never. I’m a home cook who loves to try new recipes. The more complex the recipe, the happier I am to try it. Knowing my passion for kitchen knives and all things culinary, a friend at a food forum on Facebook asked me if I had visited the newly opened Lakeland. I told him I hadn’t, and forgot all about the incident. A week later, on a visit to Phoenix Market City, I happened to pass the very store and I couldn’t resist the urge to peek in and check out the shelves. I ended up buying some lovely silicon basting brushes which had been on my ‘to-buy’ list for ever so long. Little did I know that a month later I would be invited by Roxanne Bamboat (The Tiny Taster) to the official launch of this very store. 

Roxanne hosting the event

Lakeland is a U.K based company that specializes in premium quality bake ware and cooking equipment. The store is a treasure trove of gadgets that make working in the kitchen that much more pleasurable. Egg poachers, salt, pepper and spice mills, chopping boards, glass jars, baking and roasting trays, recipe books, colorful tagines, chocolate molds, deco spoons, kitchen thermometers, waffle makers, sandwich makers, mixers, pasta makers, grinders, whisks and much more, are all available here. 

They stock both, small and big kitchen items, which are of utmost help in the kitchen and makes your time in the kitchen easy, and an absolute pleasure. They have electric cake pop and cupcake makers which enable you make the items without the use of an oven. The mini candy floss machine was an absolute delight and most of us tried our hand at making candy floss. Parents, your kids are going to love having this at their next birthday party. Take my word for it!

 Also at the launch was Chef Shahzad Variava (Dessert King) of Master Chef India, Season 2. He is patience and humility personified. He gave us a demo for icing and decorating cupcakes and cake pops. We all happily tried our hand at it and munched on the goodies we decorated.

Chef Shahzad Variava

Lakeland also carries a superb collection of kitchen knives and knife sets. It is a well known brand name which is why their products aren’t cheap but they aren’t unaffordable either. If cooking and baking is something that piques your interest then this is the store for you. It’s a store where there’s something for everyone. As a home cook and a hardcore food blogger I plan to return to this place time and time again for their goodies.

My beautiful new baby - Robert Welch Signature - Chef's Knife

Heartfelt thanks to Roxy (my tiny taster) and to Lakeland for hosting such a fun event for foodies and food bloggers.

Address: Ground floor, Phoenix Market City, Viman Nagar, Pune.
Tel no: 020-66890364 / 020-66890365

The foodie trio

Rupika prettily poses with a cupcake decorated by her

Aditi smiles that gorgeous smile for the camera

MoroccanTagines

Drool-worthy kitchenware

Spicy Chicken in Mixed Greens

Spicy Chicken in Mixed Greens

Friends who really, really know me are going to balk at the fact that I'm posting yet another recipe that contains green leafy vegetables. They know I’m a hardcore carnivore but this is one recipe where I couldn't get enough of the leafy vegetables. For once, chicken took second place. I have to admit though, the chicken did infuse superb flavor to the leafy vegetables. The soft leafy vegetables with melted butter does not make for very good photographs but, as for flavor, take it from a carnivore (moi), it was classic!! The final combination and taste was absolutely mind blowing! Go for it!!

Ingredients:

900 grams chicken, cut into pieces
Juice of 1 lime
1 bunch fenugreek leaves, coarsely chopped
1 bunches spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
1 bunch Indian Green Sorrel leaves, coarsely chopped
1 bunch fresh coriander, coarsely chopped
8 spring onions, chopped
2 onions, finely sliced
5 green chilies, finely chopped
2 fresh red chilies, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, halve and grate, discard skin
½ inch cinnamon
1 tablespoon ginger/garlic paste
9 black pepper corns
1 bay leaf
a pinch of turmeric powder
1 teaspoon red deghi mirch chili powder
3 tablespoons oil
Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons melted butter

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken in salt, ginger garlic paste and lime juice for 1 hour. 
2. Heat oil in the pressure cooker. Add the bay leaves, peppercorns, cinnamon, green chilies, red chilies, garlic and sliced onions, fry until brown. 
   
   
3. Add the grated tomato puree and fry until the oil separates. 
4. Add the turmeric powder, red deghi mirch chili powder and sauté for a few seconds. 
   
   
   
   
5. Add the chicken and sauté it till it gets a bit of color on it. 
6. Add the fenugreek leaves, spring onion leaves, spinach leaves, coriander leaves. 
   
   
   
   
7. Mix well, cover lightly with a lid and cook till the vegetables wilt. (Do NOT add any water as the leafy veggies and chicken will cook in the water they release.) Lock on the lid of the pressure cook and cook for one whistle. Then turn down the stove to low and cook for 5 more minutes and take the pressure cooker off the hob. 
8. When the cooker cools down, open it and dry up the extra water if any. 
9. Remove the chicken to a serving dish and pour the melted butter over it. Serve hot with rotis, paratha or naan.
   

Chef Notes:

1. The base recipe belongs to my friend Zarina Cama Clowsley.
2. Indian Green Sorrel leaves are also known as khatti palak or ambat chukka. 
3. The original recipe had dill leaves but when I think of dill the word that comes to mind is ‘urghh’. You get my drift, right? That’s why I replaced the ‘urghh’ ingredient with a ‘yumm’ ingredient and opted for Indian Green Sorrel leaves. 
4. I've also changed proportions of most ingredients from the original recipe and built it up to suit my tastes. 
5. The yellowish gravy you see on the sides of the serving dish in the pictures is not gravy, it is melted butter. Added at the end of the recipe it takes the dish to a new high so I would definitely advise you to add it. 
6. Adjust the consistency of the dish so that the leafy vegetables coat the chicken. Do not over dry it though.
7. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.
   
   

Methi ni Bhaji – Spicy Fenugreek leaves

Methi ni Bhaji – Spicy Fenugreek leaves

Does anyone remember the movie, ‘Herbie goes Bananas’?? Well at my residence the story goes like this… Anu goes anemic, because of which we have to eat more greens and resultantly, Kenzy goes bananas. :P As if I wasn't crazy enough just being a Bawi, I'm now going bat-shit crazy because I have to eat green leafy vegetables nearly every day. Jeez! Luckily, of all the green leafy stuff Fenugreek and Spinach happen to be my favorite. Here’s the recipe to how we cook Fenugreek leaves at home for a regular simple menu. No fuss, no special ingredients. We just let the vegetable do all the talking… on the plate. :-)

Ingredients:

3 bunches fenugreek leaves, pick them off the stem and wash in a colander

12-14 green chilies, cut into 1 inch pieces

4 onions, chopped

Salt to taste

6 tablespoons oil

Method:

1. Heat oil in a wok. Add green chilies and onions. Sauté till onions turn translucent.
   
   
   
   
2. Press the chilies with the spoon to infuse the spiciness into the onions and cook for 30 seconds.
3. Add salt and give it a stir.
4. Add the fenugreek leaves and immediately cover the wok without stirring.
   
   
   
   
5. Allow the fenugreek leaves to wilt and when they wilt and settle to the bottom stir the fenugreek with the onions and chilies simmering at the bottom.
   
   
   
   
6. Lower heat, cover once again and cook till the fenugreek leaves are cooked. If there is any excess water in the vegetable after it is cooked, increase heat and dry the excess water. (The vegetable should be dry but not bone dry.) Serve with dal and roti of your choice.
   
   

Chef Notes: 

1. I love that wee taste of bitterness in fenugreek leaves but if you're someone who doesn't enjoy that tinge of bitterness then sprinkle a bit of salt over the leaves. Leave it aside for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, beat the fenugreek leaves with a wooden spoon and squeeze out the water and continue to cook as directed.
2. Increase or decrease the green chilies to suit your taste but for 3 bunches of fenugreek, this amount was spot on.
3. The end product of this recipe is on the dry side. It’s not a gravy dish so please be mindful of that when you cook it, but, as mentioned above, do not cook it bone dry.
4. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.