Feast for the deshi palate
SHAHI MUTTON
Ingredients
1 kg medium sized potatoes
1 cup ghee
1 cup onions, blended to a paste
1 kg boneless mutton
2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tbsp coriander powder
20g green chillies, finely chopped
1 tbsp salt or to taste
1¼ cup yoghurt
50g fried onions
500 ml chicken stock
A pinch of saffron
Juice of one lemon
100g whole wheat flour
The garam masala –
12 cloves
12 green cardamoms
3 cinnamon sticks
2 mace strands
3 bay leaves
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp fennel seeds
Method
First heat ghee and fry the peeled potatoes, keep aside. Take the whole garam masala, and tie them up in a Muslin cloth. Now take a copper or aluminium pot, pour half the ghee that was used to fry the potatoes and heat. Toss in the masala sachet. Fry for about 1 minute then add onion paste and fry for further 5 minutes. Toss in the mutton pieces and brown them for a couple of minutes. Add ginger-garlic paste and red chilli powder and coriander powder along with the green chillies. Add salt and cook for an hour on low flame.
After an hour when the mutton is tender, add the yoghurt and fried onions. Now put in the fried potatoes. Mix well. Pour in the chicken stock. Stir to mix for 10 minutes. Now seal the mouth of the pan with the kneaded dough.
Place the lid on top and press down with your fist place the pan on top of a flat 'tawa' and cook for another 30 minutes on a low flame. Remove masala sachet before serving.
CHAT-PATA TAMARIND RICE
Ingredients
1½ cups of basmati rice soaked
2 tbsp of tamarind sauce
3 tbsp of roasted white sesame seeds
3 tbsp of oil for deep frying
1 medium size onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
¼ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves
Method
Cook the rice and set aside. Heat oil and deep fry sliced onions. Keep aside. Now heat 3 tbsp oil again and add ginger-garlic paste for one minute. Add turmeric and chilli powder, and stir fry for one minute. Add the tamarind sauce and mix well. Add salt to taste. Add rice and mix thoroughly. Add sesame seeds and cook for another 2 minutes.
Garnish with fried onions and coriander leaves. Serve hot.
EGGPLANT WONDER
Ingredients
3 egg plants, cut into thick slices
½ tsp salt, or to taste
1 ½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp lemon juice
2 cups oil
2 tbsp corn flour, to dust
5 tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 tbsp cumin powder
1 tbsp garam masala powder
1 tsp red chilli power
50g yoghurt
MINT, TO GARNISH
Method
Marinate the eggplants with salt, turmeric, and lemon juice. Keep aside for 20 minutes. Heat oil. Dust the eggplants with corn flour and deep fry. Keep aside. For the sauce, boil water, put in the whole tomatoes. After 2 minutes, take them out and put them in cold water, peel and finely chop them. Heat 1 tbsp of oil, add chopped onions, sauté for 2 minutes, add ginger-garlic paste and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add powdered spices and sauté 1 minute. Add tomatoes and cook for 6-7 minutes, until oil separates. Taste for salt. Arrange the eggplants on a platter and top them with the tomato sauce individually. Place a dollop of yoghurt on each eggplant and garnish with a sprig of mint. Serve immediately. Always a hit!
TILAPIA WITH CORIANDER AND CHILLI
Ingredients
1 kg tilapia or any other white fish
1 cup of fresh coriander roughly chopped
2 red and 2 green chillies chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin powder (optional)
Salt to taste
Juice of two limes
Dressing:
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp fish sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
Method
Pre heat over to 180c. Gas mark 4. Clean fish thoroughly and pat dry. With a sharp knife gently score the fish with 3-4 diagonal cuts on both sides. Stuff the cuts with coriander. Mix chillies, cumin, olive oil and salt. Rub this mixture all over the fish. Place on a tray and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes. Check if the fish is cooked opaque.
Meanwhile whisk together the dressing ingredients. Once the fish is cooked, drizzle dressing over the fish and serve hot.
Photo: Collected
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