Vegetable With Rice Flakes

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola oil
12 curry leaves, roughly torn
1/2 teaspoon black muster seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 dried red chile
1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced 1½ teaspoons salt
1 medium sweet potato, chopped into ½-inch pieces
1/3 cup roasted and salted peanuts, roughly chopped
1/4 cup unsweetened large-flake dried coconut
1 serrano pepper, finely chopped
2 cups rice flakes, rinsed under cold water and drained
2 tablespoons waters
Juice of 1 lime, plus 1 lime cut into wedges
1/2cup roughly chopped cilantro, divided

Method:

1. In a large skillet or wok set over medium-high heat, add the oil, curry leaves, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, red chile and asafetida and cook, stirring often, until the cumin seeds are golden brown, about 2 minutes (be careful--the mustard seeds will pop).

2. Stir in the onion and ½ teaspoon of salt, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, 3 to 4 minutes (if the onions begin to brown, reduce the heat). Stir in the sweet potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are cooked around the edges, 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in the peanuts, coconut and serrano pepper, cooking until the sweet potatoes are tender and stirring only once or twice to allow the coconut and peanuts to toast, about 7 minutes

3. Add the poha and remaining 1 teaspoon of salt. Gently stir the poha into the sweet potato-onion mixture to incorporate it without breaking the delicate rice flakes. Drizzle the water around the sides of the skillet, cover and reduce the heat to low. Cook the poha until it is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove the cover and add the lime juice and half of the cilantro, using a fork to fluff the mixture and combine. Taste and adjust the salt if needed. Serve sprinkled with the remaining cilantro and with the lime wedges on the side.

Mixed Vegtable Rice

Ingredients:

2 cups basmati rice

 1 cup green beans topped, tailed spilt in half 

1 cup cauliflower buds

 1 cups diced carrots

 1 tomato diced

 2 tbs ghee or butter

 1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger 

1/2 tsp turmeric

 2 bay leaves

 4 cups filtered water, salted with 1 tsp of sea salt 

Method:

1.Rinse the rice in a fine sieve and soak for 20 minutes. Set aside.

 2. Wash and trim the vegetables. Steam them in batches, adding them to a medium sized bowl: carrots for 2 minutes, cauliflower for 1 minute,  green beans for 1 minute. Set the the bowl of steamed vegetables aside.

 3. Heat the ghee or butter and saute the ginger for one minute then add the spices, cooking for another 2 minutes. Add the vegetables, except the tomatoes, and cook for 2 minutes. Drain the rice and add to the pan of vegetables, stirring once or twice. Gently pour in the salted water. Stir again and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and cook for 20 to 30 minutes, until the water is absorbed 

Vegetable Kofta Curry

Ingredients:

For the koftas:

1 cup minced cauliflower ( chopped it in food proccessor)

1/2 cup spinach (finely chopped)

1-2 tbsp chickpeas flour( as required for binding)

2 tsp ginger & garlic paste

2 tsp red chilli powder ( to taste)

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

2 tbsp coriander leaves (finely chopped )

1 tsp garam masala 

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

For the gravy:

1/4 cup finely chopped onions

1 cup pureed  tomatoes

2 gloves garlic finely grated

1 tbsp red chili powder 

1.5 tsp dry coriander powder

4 green chili

2 tbsp oil 

1 tbsp plain yogurt

2/3 cup water ( or less if you want thick gravy)

Salt to taste

Method:

Koftas:

Mix all the ingredients for koftas in a bowl except salt. Add more besan for  binding the mixture together . If you plan to make the koftas later then set the mixture aside.

Heat the oil in a pan at a till u start seeing ripples on the surface.Do not over heat the oil else when u put the koftas, they will cook from outside and will remain raw from inside.

Add the salt to the mixture whenever you are ready to fry and make small koftas.Fry these from all sides in the heated oil till golden brown.About 3-4 minutes overall.

Drain on a paper towel & set aside to cool.

Curry:

In the cooking vessel add the oil and heat it up till the oil starts smoking slightly.

Add the finely chopped onion and cook it till golden brown.After this add the grated garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Next add the tomato puree along with chili powder, coriander powder and salt.Cook this spice mix on low heat till the oil starts separating from the mix along the sides of the vessel.

On low heat, add  plain yogurt & water, cover and let the curry come to a boil.Once the curry has come to a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 8-10 minutes.You can add more water depending on the consistency required.

Remove from heat and while the curry is still hot, add the koftas  and green chili to the curry and put on the lid. Do not stir or mix the curry too much after adding koftas else they  ll break.

Serve with rice or flatbread and a salad.

Potato Bites

Ingredients:

Large size potatoes

Chicken boiled 1/2 cup

Capsicum 1 medium

Salt to taste

Black pepper 1/4 tsp

Oregano 1/4 tsp

Pizza sauces as needed

Cheese as needed

Oil for brushing

Method:

Peel off potatoes and make slices crosswise. Slices should not be thin.

Give them a boil of 5 minutes only and then spread on a tray.

Brush your baking tray with oil and place slices on tray.

I sprinkled salt and black pepper on slices also but this step is completely optional.

Mix chicken, capsicum thinly cubed salt, pepper and mix all ( you can use mushrooms, carrot, peas anything you like)

Spread pizza sauce on slice and then add spoonful of mixture.

Sprinkle shredded cheese and oregano.

Bake at 170c till fork tender and well cooked.

Grilled Chicken Kebabs With Lemon, Chili And Mint

Ingredients:

4 skinless free-range chicken breasts

Marinade:

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup lightly packed mint leaves

2T roughly chopped fresh oregano

1 red chilli, de-seeded and chopped

2 – 3 cloves garlic

zest of a lemon

juice of half a lemon (reserve the other half for spritzing the kebabs after they are grilled)

Method:

Slightly flatten the chicken breast with the palm of your hand and then cut into 3 strips down the length of the breast. Cut these strips in half. Thread the chicken strips onto a skewer until you have the size you want.

Place all your marinade ingredients into a food processor or liquidiser and whizz up until you have a thick sauce. Pour this over the chicken kebabs ensuring they are well coated, cover and refrigerate for an hour, the day or even over night.

Now grill your kebabs on all sides turning as you go, and until they are cooked through. Serve with fresh mint, chopped chilli  and lemon wedges to further spritz over after cooking.