Barva Tomato

Few days back i spent some time with a friend who was cooking Barva Tomato for the Dinner. I really liked the way she made this awesome curry, ever since i wanted to try it for myself with some tweaks. Here is the recipe i tried and it turned out really great. Awesome to treat your friends and family with this delicious recipe



Ingredients

• 6 Tomatoes cut in half (12 pieces)


• 1 cup onions - Chopped


• Some Ginger - Chopped


• 2-3 green chillies - Chopped


• 1 cup Shredded Paneer


• 1/2 cup Peas (Put them in water to soften them)


• Salt to taste (I used 1teaspoons)


• Red Pepper to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)


• Garam Masala to taste (I used 1/2 teaspoon)


• Pinch of Cinnamon Powder


• 1/2 teaspoon Cumin seeds


• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder


• 1 teaspoon coriander powder


• 1 tablespoon Oil

Making the Tomato Filling:

• Empty the tomatoes from inside, take out the pulp and save it in a separate bowl


• Add Paneer, Peas, salt, red pepper and garam masala in the Bowl and mix it to make the filling for tomatoes


• Brush the inside of tomatoes with little butter if you would like or you can miss this step Fill the tomatoes with the Panner and Peas filling that was prepared and keep them aside

Method:

• Heat oil in a pan Add Cumin seeds and onions and Saute the onions till golden brown.


• Add Ginger, Green Chillies and tomato pulp and Saute them with onions


• Add little Salt, Red Pepper, Pinch of Cinnamon, Turmeric, and coriander to the mix and saute them together (Remember you already added salt and pepper in the filling so be careful not to add lot of salt. Also you can add little milk before adding salt)


• Cover the Pan and keep it on low heat for 5 minutes.


• Add very very little water if mix sticks to the Pan, Stir it occasionally


• Add the Filled Tomatoes to the Pan and cover the Pan for 5-10 minutes on a low heat


• Garnish with cilantro Best Served with Paranthas or Rotis

Quantity: good for 6-10 people Making Time: 30 Minutes

Punjabi Chole - Garbanzo Beans

This is one of the easiest recipes which i often make and yet please my friends.
Few days back some of my friends had come visit us and i made Puri Chole for them. They all enjoyed my recipe and asked if i can post it too. So this is for my awesome friends

Ingredients

250 gms white Chole /Garbanzo beans - Soaked Overnight
1 big onion - Chopped
3-4 Tomatoes - Chopped
Some Ginger - Chopped
2-3 green chillies - Chopped
Salt to taste (I used 2 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons Chana Masala
1 teaspoon Amla powder
Red Pepper to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)
Garam Masala to taste (I used 1/2 teaspoon)
Pinch of Cinnamon Powder
1/2 teaspoons Cumin seeds
1 teaspoon corriander powder
1 tablespoon Oil
Oil to Saute

Method:
• For Chole - Clean, wash and soak the Chole Overnight
• Boil Chole in the Pressure Cooker with enough water, Add the salt too (may be for 4-5 whistles)
• Heat oil in a pan and Saute the onions till golden brown.
• Add Ginger, Green Chillies and tomotoes and Saute them with onions.
• Add Chana Masala, Amla Powder, Red Pepper to the mix and saute them together.
• Take out the access water from the Boiled Chana and add Chana to the saute Mix.
• Cover the Pan and keep it on low heat and let the Masala dissolve in Chana properly for about 15-20 minutes. Stir it occassionally.
•Add Garam Masala in the end
•Add few lemon drops (2-3)
• Garnish with coriander or Paneer or Onions.
• Serve with Puri's or Bathura's

Quantity: good for 6-10 people
Making Time: 30 Minutes

Aloo Gobi

Ingredients

1 medium sized cauliflower cut in medium sized pieces
2-3 Potatoes cut in medium sized pieces
2- tbsp cooking oil
2 green chilies, chopped
1 onion chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
2 tsp ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 - 1tsp red chili powder or as per taste
1 tsp Salt or To Taste
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2-inch ginger, chopped
finely chopped coriander leaves


Method:
• Heat oil and sauté onions till golden, then add chopped ginger and green chilies. Sauté for 5 minutes.
• Add tomatoes, coriander, cumin, turmeric and chili powder, sauté over low heat until the oil separates.
• Add chopped Gobi and Aloo, salt (1/2 tsp or to taste), and half of the coriander leaves. Simmer, over low medium heat and cover the cooking pan until the Aloo and Gobi are soft . Also stir in once in a while . Make sure to use flat stirrer and do not over stir it.
• Add a pinch of garam masala, coriander leaves

Quantity: 4-6 people
Making Time: 30 Minutes

Spicy Tangy Fried Eggplant

If you want to cook something simple and less time consuming, it's perfect. The other day i had invited my parents over dinner. I genreally want to cook something dofferent everytime i invite someone and had couple of eggplant lying in my refrigrator. So i decided to go on for this one and it was well appreciated by everyone.

Ingredients:
1 medium sized Egg Plant
1 tsp Salt or to Taste
2 tsp ground coriander ½ tsp Red chili powder½ tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Amchur (dried Tamarind)finely chopped coriander leaves
Oil to fry

Method:
· Cut the Egg Plant pieces in fine round pieces
· Heat oil and fry the eggplant pieces till golden
· Arrange the fried Egg plant pieces in a big dish and Sprinkle salt, red chilli powder, Garam Masala, Amchur
· Garnish with coriander leaves and serve it hot

Quantity:- good for 6 people
Making time:- 15 Minutes

Shahi Paneer

I invited my friends to dinner the other day and really short of time. I needed a recipe that's as quick as can be done in 20m minutes. The only thing that came to mind was Shahi Panner and beleive they all liked and appreciated it much.

Here is the recipe for Shahi Panner Ingredients:-

100 grms of Panner, cut into small cubes
1/2 cup chopped onion (chopped in big chunks)
1/4 cup chopped ginger
3 big tomatoes
2 green chilies
1 cup Water
Oil for frying
1 tspn Salt
1tspn red chili powder
1tspn of turmeric powder
1 tspn of garam masala
1 tspn of coriander powder
1 tspn shahi paneer masala (optional)
1 tspn cumin seeds
1 tbspn low fat sour cream
Cilantro for garnishing

Method:-

Take pan and heat oil (may be 1-2 tspns) on medium heat.
Add chopped onions and ginger to the Pan and Sauté on medium heat, once onions and ginger start turning little brown, add chopped tomatoes (cut each tomato in just 4 piece), Sauté it for a while may be 2-3 minutes, but do not over roast it.
Let the Pan contents cool for a while and all the contents to the grinder.
Grind the roasted onions, ginger and tomatoes with 2 green chilies to form the paste.
Take another pan, add 1 tbspn of oil and heat the oil on medium heat.
Add Cumin seeds to the oil. Once the cumin seeds are done, or turn brown, add the grounded paste to the Pan
Add Red chili powder, turmeric powder and let the paste simmer on low medium heat.
Keep stirring in between to make sure the paste does not stick to Pan.
Add sour cream to the pan and mix it finely with the gravy, Add 1 cup of water to make sure that paste do not stick to the Pan and let the gravy simmer it for 5- 10 minutes. Add 1 or 11/2 tea spoon of salt (according to taste) to the pan. You can also shahi paneer masala( 1 tspn optional) . Let the gravy simmer for 5 more minutes or until you see the oil getting separated from the gravy
Add coriander powder, garam masala and add the cut Panner cubes to the gravy. Let the Paneer simmer in gravy for atleast 10-15 minutes on medium or low medium heat.

Shahi Panner is done. Pour it to the serving bowl and garnish it with sour cream and some coriander leaves

Quantity:- 1 Plate good for 4-6 people
Making time: - 20 minutes

Dum Aloo - North indian potato curry

It was Friday evening when i have had enough time to make something that family will cherish for dinner. Friday is my favorite day of the week, like most of us with no stress to getup early next day and prepare for office. Also i wanted to make something tasty and easy so that i can windup my kitchen by 9:00 pm as i literally wait whole week to watch my favorite dance show - Dance India dance. In all i endup deciding on Dum Aloo with rotis and pranthas.

Here is the recipe for Dum Aloo Ingredients:-

• 3 medium sized potatoes, cut into 4 parts


• 1/2 cup chopped onion (chopped in big chunks)


• 1/4 cup chopped ginger


• 3 big tomatoes


• 2 green chilies


• 1 cup Water


• Oil for frying


• 1 tspn Salt


• 1tspn red chili powder


• 1tspn of turmeric powder


• 1 tspn of garam masala


• 1 tspn of coriander powder


• 1 tspn pav bhaji masala (optional)


• 1 tspn cumin seeds


• 1 tbspn low fat sour cream


• Cilantro for garnishing
  
  

Method:-

• Fry the cut potatoes one at a time and keep it aside on the tissue paper to that tissue can soak the excess oil. (Alternatively you can choose to bake the potatoes)


• Take another pan and heat oil (may be 1-2 tspns) on medium heat.


• Add chopped onions and ginger to the Pan and Sauté on medium heat, once onions and ginger start turning little brown, add chopped tomatoes (cut each tomato in just 4 piece), Sauté it for a while may be 2-3 minutes, but do not over roast it.


• Let the Pan contents cool for a while and all the contents to the grinder.


• Grind the roasted onions, ginger and tomatoes with 2 green chilies to form the paste.


• Take another pan, add 1 tbspn of oil and heat the oil on medium heat.


• Add Cumin seeds to the oil. Once the cumin seeds are done, or turn brown, add the grounded paste to the Pan


• Add Red chili powder, turmeric powder and let the paste simmer on low medium heat.


• Keep stirring in between to make sure the paste does not stick to Pan.


• Add sour cream to the pan and mix it finely with the gravy, Add 1 cup of water to make sure that paste do not stick to the Pan and let the gravy simmer it for 5- 10 minutes.
  Add 1 or 11/2 tea spoon of salt (according to taste) to the pan. You can also add dum aloo masala ( 1 tspn optional) or pav bhaji masala (1 tspn optional). Let the gravy simmer for 5 more minutes or until you see the oil getting separated from the gravy


• Add coriander powder, garam masala and add the fried or baked potatoes to the gravy. Let the potatoes simmer in gravy for atleast 10-15 minutes on medium or low medium heat.


• Dum aloo is done. Pour it to the serving bowl and garnish it with sour cream and some coriander leaves

Quantity:- 1 Plate good for 4-6 people

Making time: - 40 minutes