Cheela/Pooda/Pesarattu

Call it 'Cheela' in Rajasthan or, 'Pooda' in Haryana or, 'Pesarattu' in Andhra or, whatever! It is my newly discovered favorite breakfast item, which is loaded with fiber and protein. Here is my twist to the classic recipe:

Ingredients: (Makes 3 crepes)

1/2 cup besan (chick pea flour)

1/2 onion, finely chopped

2 chilli peppers, finely cut

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

cilantro leaves, finely chopped

1/2 tsp black pepper

salt to taste

milk to make thick batter

butter stick to grease

Procedure

1. Add milk to besan and make a thick batter using an egg whisker. Make sure there are no lumps.
2. Add onions, chilli peppers, cumin seeds, black pepper, cilantro, and salt. Whisk again.
3. Heat the tava or pan to medium and grease with butter stick.
4. Pour 2 ladles of the above batter and cook for 2 mins, turn it over and cook for an additional 2 mins or till its brown.
5. Serve hot (goes great with peanut chutney or pudina chutney)!

Happy Pongal everyone!

Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 40 min

Ingredients:

2 lbs Chicken
2 cups Basmathi Rice
1 tbsp Ginger-garlic paste
1 pinch Turmeric
3-4 tbsp yoghurt
2 tbsp fried onions
4-6 cloves
1-2 small cinnamon sticks
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp lime juice
2-3 green chillies
1 tbsp red chilli powder
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp vegetable oil
15-20 cashews
3-4 bay leaves
Mint leaves
Corriander leaves
2 egg whites
Red food color

Method:

1. Soak rice in water for about 1 hour.
2. Cut chicken into medium sized pieces. Add mint leaves, green chillies, ginger garlic paste, corrainder leaves, cumin seeds, chilli powder, turmeric, salt, cumin powder, corriander powder, green cardamom, fried onions, cinnamon sticks, cloves, bay leaves, oil, butter, lime juice, egg white and yoghurt. Mix thoroughly and keep it aside for about 15 min.
3. Roast cashews in butter and keep aside.
   
4. Boil water in another container. Add salt to taste and oil to the water. Half cook the soaked rice in this boiling water.
5. Layer the chicken mix at the bottom of a deep dish. Cover this with a layer of half cooked rice. Add few corrainder leaves, mint leaves, roasted cashews and food color. Put another layer of rice.
6. Steam cook for about 5 minutes on high flame, 15 minutes on medium flame and 10 minutes on a low flame.
   
7. Serve hot.
   

Parmannam

Preparation Time: 15 min
Cooking Time: 25 min
Servings: 12

Ingredients:

Rice 3/8 cup
Milk 1 cup
Jaggery 75g
Cashews 1/8 cup
Raisins 1/8 cup
Cardamom 3 pods
Butter 1 1/2 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash and soak rice in two cups of water for about fifteen minutes.
2. In a small sauce pan, bring to boil half a cup of water and crushed jaggery. Lower heat and slowly simmer until the syrup is sticky (if a drop is taken between the thumb and fore finger, it should feel sticky but not stretch out like a thread). Remove from heat and keep aside.
3. In another sauce pan, bring milk to a boil. Drain water from the rice and add to the milk. Lower heat to medium and cook until the rice is done and the mixture looks thick.
4. Remove the sauce pan and allow to cool for a minute or two. And now add the cooled jaggery syrup from the smaller sauce pan. Stir well. Keep aside.
   
5. Now, in a small skillet heat clarified butter/ghee and when hot, add cashew nuts. Fry for a minute or two until the nuts change color to pale brown. Add raisins and stir for a minute.
6. Remove from heat and pour the contents of the above skillet into the sauce pan containing rice mixture. Also, stir in cardamom powder. Keep covered for two minutes.
   

Nacho 'Cheese' Dip

I borrowed this recipe from my friend, Jessica who turned vegan recently. This is a cool 'hot dip' thats cheesy enough to be a healthy nutritious cheese dip! And it takes just fifteen minutes to make. I modified the recipe to the likes of Indian taste buds.

Ingredients (Makes enough to last you through a football game)
1/2 cup Nutritional Yeast Flakes
2 tbsp Flour
1/4 tsp Mustard Powder
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 cup Margarine (or butter)
1/4 tsp Ginger paste
2 cups Water
2 tbsp Vegetable oil
1/4 tsp Cumin seeds

Method
1. Combine all dry ingredients. Whisk them with ginger paste and water
2. Transfer the contents to a saucepan. Add margarine.
3. Cook over medium heat until thickened, about 10 minutes.
4. Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds, and curry leaves.
5. Pour the oil over the dip and serve it with tortilla chips

PONGAL

Ingredients: (serves 2)
1 cup Rice
1/4 cup Moong dal
3 tsp Pepper corns
2 tsp Cumin seeds
4tsp Butter
1/4 cup Cashews
4-5 Curry leaves
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Coarse grind the pepper corns
2. Heat a pan, roast rice and moong dal till they turn brown
3. Cook rice and dal with 2 1/2 cups of water and salt in a rice cooker
4. Heat butter in a pan, add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and the cashews
5. Garnish the cooked rice and dal with the above
6. Serve with plain yogurt

OMELETTE

Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 small finely chopped onion
2 finely chopped green chillies
1/4 cup milk
Small bunch coriander leaves
1 pinch garam masala
1/2 tsp ginger paste
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat frying pan. Add vegetable oil.
2. Mix eggs together with a whisk or fork in a bowl.
3. Add milk and remaining ingredients. Mix again.
4. Pour mixture into the hot frying pan and cook until the omelette has puffed.
5. Serve with toasted bread slices.

MASALA CHAI (Tea)

Ingredients:
2 cups regular 8% milk
2 cups water
2 pods cardamom
1 small piece cinnamon stick
1 dollar-sized freshly ground ginger
4 whole cloves
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp black tea (Brooke Bond Red Label)

Method:
1. Crush the cardamom, cinnamon and cloves.
2. Transfer the crushed spices to a saucepan, add water, ginger and pepper and bring to boil.
3. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer for ~10 min.
4. Add milk and sugar and bring to boil.
5. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer for ~3 min.
6. Add tea leaves, cover the pan and turn of the heat.
7. After ~2 min, strain the tea into tea cups and serve immediately with Ritz salted crackers.