Indian Style mince kebab Recipe

Hello Friends,

Its that time of the year again. Ramzan, the month of feasting and fasting. Every year I cook up a few Ramzan specials and serve up an Iftaar party. Just so you can recollect, this is my post from Last year.

This year, I prepared a few dishes too, but today I wish to share with you am Indian style mutton mince Kebab Recipe.  The good thing about this recipe is that I purchased my mutton mince at Meatigo.com an online portal.  Meatigo.com brings you India's best selection of world-class gourmet meat and delicatessen products and delivers it right to your doorstep. Meatigo believes on selling only the highest quality meats from great farms & partners, the using precise preparation methods and a scientific approach in the way meats are cut, packed, stored and delivered. 

Ingredients

For the first Step

500g lamb mince

½ cup soaked Channa Dal

1 tsp ginger garlic paste

1 tsp crushed Cumin seed

3-4 whole red chilies

Dry whole Garam masala Spices

Salt to taste

Second Step - Marinade

1 green chilli, finely chopped

½ tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp garam masala

Handful of chopped Mint leaves,

Handful of chopped coriander leaves

2 eggs 
 Oil for frying

Method

1.      Wash the mince well, but since its meat from Meatigo, it was clean and totally free of fat. Just one wash and mince was ready to be cooked.

2.      Add ingredients from set 1 - ginger garlic, salt, dry whole spices, and cumin seeds and washed channa dal to the washed mince.

3.      Put this in a pan on slow gas and cook until the water evaporates to make a dry paste. This will take 15-20 minutes to dry completely. Switch off the gas and let the mixture cool.

4.      Now add this mixture to a blender and blend till it becomes a fine pasty mixture.

5.      Place the lamb mince in a large bowl and mix together using your hands to ensure all the spices are evenly distributed.

6.      Now add finely chopped onion, green chili, coriander, mint, and beaten eggs.

7.      Make round palm size flat discs of the mince mixture and shallow fry in the pan till brown on both sides.

8.      Serve it hot with mint chutney and onions rings.

Note - You can add a boiled potato instead of channa dal but the taste changes completely.  Cut the spices if you are not used to it. Only garam masala and ginger garlic are enough to flavour your kebabs.

 My Iftaar Table had falooda, Mango cream, vegetable sandwiches, channa masala and of course delicious lamb kebabs. Such an easy yet tasty recipe to do. Do let me know in the comments below how you make your kebabs. 

Soya Chunks Masala Curry

Hello Foodie friends,

Today I come to you with another Vegetarian recipe. It is a medium spicy curry of soyabean chunks. Soya is  an excellent source of protein and is very beneficial for health.
Soya Chunks are generally tasteless but when added to gravy it absorbs the flavours that it is cooked with. But soya needs to be soaked and washed well before adding to the gravy. 

  So lets put our aprons on and get cooking this delicious Soya Chunks Masala Curry.

Ingredients

1 cup Soya chunks
2 big Onions
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp Ginger garlic paste
4  small Tomatoes
1 tbsp cream and curd
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Chilli Powder
1 tsp Coriander powder
1/2 tsp Garam masala powder
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 Bayleaf and few dry spices
1 tbsp Kasturi methi
2 tbsp Coriander leaves
Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Bring one liter water to boil with a little salt. When it starts boiling, add the soya chunks an stir for 4-5 minutes. Switch off the gas and keep it aside for 15 minutes. Later you must drain the water and squeeze out excess water. Cut into halves and keep it aside.

2. Heat oil in a kadai, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, dry spices and let it splutter.

3. Now add finely chopped onions and saute until it turns translucent.

4. Now add the ginger-garlic paste and saute for a few more minutes until the raw flavor of the paste goes.

5. Add chopped tomatoes and all the dry spices.

6. Let the mixture cool and transfer to the mixer, blend the gravy.

7. Transfer it back to a Kadai,  add one cup water and let the gravy boil.

8. Add the soya chunks and let it cook for 2 -3 minutes.

9. Now add curd/cream mixture and crushed Kasturi methi to this gravy and cook on low flame stirring from time to time.

10. Cook on low heat stirring from time to time, so that the soya chunks will absorb the masala well.

11. Add salt to taste and lastly season with coriander leaves.

12.  Serve hot with jeera rice or rotisserie. This dish will taste delicious with naan or bread too.

Masoor Biryani Recipe - Akkha Masoor ki Biryani

Masoor Biryani Recipe

Have you tried making a Masoor Biryani Recipe instead of the usual Vegetable one? This whole Masoor Biryani was an interesting vegetarian option to try. This can be cooked if vegetables are not available at home.

Bring rice and fiber-rich masoor together to create a low-cholesterol and delicious biryani. Use some aromatic special masala and spices and with the step by step recipe below this masoor biryani will be complete in no time.  You will love the outcome.

Ingredients

1 cup of the whole masoor (soaked for two hours)
1&1/2 cup long grain Basmati Rice (wash and keep aside to cook)
2  big  sliced onion
2 medium-sized tomatoes
1 Cup Fresh Coriander leaves
3 slit Green Chilies
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
2 bay leaves
½ tsp. Black Peppercorn
1 inch Cinnamon stick
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli powder
2 tsp garam masala
4-5 Cloves
3 tbsp ghee
Salt to taste
1/4 cup milk
Mint leaves for garnish

Directions

1) Take a deep bottom pan, add ghee to it. Put it on medium flame, add to it sliced onion saute till brown.

2. Add slit green chilies, ginger garlic paste and saute for two minutes. Now add the turmeric powder and soaked red lentils saute for 2/3 minutes.

3. Add the chopped tomatoes, red chili powder, garam masala,  coriander powder, and salt and stir well. Now add one cup of water. Cook till oil comes out from edges of the pan and masoor dal is 3/4 cooked. ( on pressing with the finger the daal should not mask easily yet be cooked)

4. For the rice
Heat 3 cups of water in a deep non-stick kadhai, add the bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, rice, and salt, mix well and cover and cook on a medium flame for 10 to 15 minutes while stirring occasionally. Keep aside.

5. For the layering
Take one portion of the rice and spread it evenly. Add some coriander leaves and garam masala. Now put the masoor mixture on it and spread it evenly. Finally, add the remaining rice on the top. Add a bit of ghee and milk.

6. Cover the pot with a heavy lid so air doesn't escape. Now place the pot on a tava and place it on low gas for just ten minutes.

7. Serve while scooping it out as a layer onto the dish. Garnish with mint leaves and crushed fried onions before serving.

8. This masoor biryani can be served with papad, achaar, salad and raita.

Notes

• For this biryani recipe, soaking the masoor for at least 1 hour is a must.
• Use a good quality long grain basmati rice 
• Together with the dal you can add mince, kheema masoor biryani is a very famous Muslim delicacy.
• Use hot water to reduce cooking time.
• Don’t use oil instead of ghee.
• You can also use a pressure cooker to cook the masoor daal.

Kerela Style mix vegetable - Beans Thoran Recipe

           Kerela Style mix vegetable Thoran   

My recent trip to Kerala was nothing less than a culinary treat for me. The best part was learning how to cook up a Kerala style mixed vegetable thoran. It was prepared by the sous chef of Greenwoods Resorts. In his live demo, he prepared it in less than ten minutes.

It can be prepared with a variety of vegetables. I have made it with cabbage, carrot, and french beans. You can also use peas, cauliflower, and capsicum. All you need to remember is to chop them, check the video to see how finely chef can chop.

This is that simple, healthy and gluten-free dish that can be stirred up 15 minutes before dinner time and served piping hot on a dinner table.

  Ingredients

1 cup chopped cabbage
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped french beans
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup grated coconut
1 tsp chopped garlic
2 chopped green chilies
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
3 tsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1 sprig curry leaves
1/2 tsp cumin powder
Salt to taste

 Method

1. Preparation before cooking is very important. It eases the process of cooking. We need to finely chop all vegetables.

2. Heat 3 tsp coconut oil in a nonstick pan. Once the oil is hot add  mustard seeds and let them splutter.

3. Now add chopped onion, garlic and curry leaves. Saute for one minute till onions are translucent.

4. Now add turmeric powder and saute for a few minutes on low flame.

5. Add the chopped cabbage, French beans and carrot. Saute for 2 minutes more.

6. Add half little water, cook the pan and cover for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally and don't let the vegetables burn at the bottom.

7. Next, add the grated coconut and cumin powder. Combine everything together.

8. Cover the pan and cook on low flame, stirring occasionally.

9. Finally, when the dish is done, serve it piping hot with Malabari style Kerala Paratha.

Vegertarian food can be enjoyable too. 

how to cook whole Grouper. Tomato Grouper With Tomato Gravy

Hello foodie friends

Today I tried my hands on cooking up a seasonal fish - Tomato Grouper. Prepared a really simple keto recipe that involves no starch or complex carbohydrates.

Tomato contains plenty of antioxidants, in particular, lycopene, that may prevent a number of diseases, including cancer and heart disease. Fish gives the body protein for building and repair as well as omega 3 that is anti-inflammatory to the body and is needed for heart and brain health.

Tomato really adds good flavours with fish hence I am doing a simple tangy gravy along with it.

Ingredients

500 gms tomato grouper fish
250 ml tomato puree
1 red onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 Capsicum
2 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp red chilly powder
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
2 tbsp Italian herb mix
Zest from 1 lemon

Method

1. Clean the fish well, remove the guts and fins. Use a sharp knife to take the scales off. I got my fish cleaned at Cambay Tiger. For this recipe, I used a Tomato Grouper.

2. Now add salt, pepper, turmeric powder and a dash of chilly powder to the grouper. Marinate for half an hour.

3. Now take a frying pan and add 1 tbsp cooking oil. Add the diced onion, capsicum and chopped garlic.  Sauté for two minutes.

4. Add tomato puree and ketchup and cook till it becomes thick.

5. Season with Italian herb mix and lemon zest.

6. Now cook the grouper in a pan with little oil sauteing on both sides. You can even cook the grouper in the oven at 220 °C for 15 minutes.

7. Now place the tomato grouper in a big dish. Top it with the tomato gravy and garnish it with coriander leaves or parsley.

8. Enjoy with green vegetables or mixed salad.

Note

Fish cooks easily unlike chicken or meat so don't overcook it for a long time.

The tomato grouper has Fish bones so be careful while eating. You can cook the fish as fillets too, while deboning it from the middle.

Cambay Tiger

Shopping for fish at Cambay Tiger is always a pleasant experience. The store smells fresh. They stock up on fresh catch. The staff assists you with cleaning too. The fish is packed well, sometimes even pre marinating can be asked for.
The tomato Grouper is a seasonal fish available for a brief time. Got the entire big fish for INR 375. It was cleaned scaled and completely ready for cooking.

Best Indian Mixed Vegetable Rice Pulao Recipe

Hello foodies,

Put on your aprons and lets cook with Sweetannu today. Stirring up a really easy Mixed Vegetable Pulao (Veg Pulav) for lunch. This spicy rice dish needs no introduction at all.  This is prepared by cooking rice with various vegetables and spices. In this recipe, I have made my work really easy by using Kitchen aid ready powders in this recipe. You can use regular vegetables instead.

 It's the spices that add the real flavour and taste to the Vegetable  Pulav. You can make it in a pressure cooker or then cook the rice separately and then add to your vegetable mixture. I prefer taking little more efforts to cook my rice separately as it gives the best results. The grains of rice does not stick together unlike when you use the pressure cooker.

Ingredients

1 cup Basmati Rice
1 medium Onion,
2 small Tomatoes
1/4 cup Green Peas
1/4 cup French beans
1/4 cup Carrot
2 slit green chilies
4 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup cauliflower
1 tbsp ghee
1 small Bay leaf
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Red Chilli powder
1-inch piece of Cinnamon
Chopped coriander leaves
2 tablespoons Oil
2 cups Water
Salt to taste

Method

1. Wash rice and soak it in water for 15-20 minutes. Drain and keep aside until needed.

3. Heat oil in a pan. Add bay leaf, cinnamon, clove, and sauté for 30 seconds. Add onion and garlic sauté for  2 minutes until it emits a nice aroma. ( substituted onion garlic with kitchen Dlite powders in proper proportion)

3 Add chopped tomatoes and green chilies and sauté on low flame for one minute.

4. Now add green peas, french beans,  carrot, and cauliflower.

5. Now sir-fry all the vegetables for approx 2 minutes. Also, add dry spices at this stage.

6. Parboil the rice, with one tsp ghee and a little salt.

7. Now strain the rice and add to the vegetable mixture. Stir-fry them for approx. 2 minutes.

8. Add 1 cup water and mix well.

9. Close the lid and cook over medium flame till water dries up. Do not keep mixing at this stage.

10. Let it cool at room temperature.  Open the lid carefully and fluff the rice with a fork. Transfer it to a serving bowl and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

11. Serve this with raita or dahi curry, pickle, and papad.

Note

1. For this recipe, I substituted onion, tomatoes, green chilies and garlic. With Kitchen D'lite -Ready to use powders. The cooking procedure got easier. No chopping or hassles of peeling onions and garlic.

2. You can prepare it in a large quantity in a larger pressure cooker. Just use rice and water in 1:2 ratios. i.e. for every one cup of rice, two cups water should be added.

HOW TO MAKE PARSI STYLE RAVO/SEMOLINA

HOW TO MAKE  PARSI STYLE RAVO/SEMOLINA 

Happy occasions call for sweet preparations being made at home. Parsi style Ravo is definitely one of the dishes made in our household.  dessert recipe at home. Parsi Style Ravo is prepared with semolina, milk and dry fruits.
I remember my grandmother telling me that she used to add an egg while cooking the rava with milk.

This sweet dish needs to be cooked on slow flame while constantly stirring it. It has a creamy texture and looks like porridge. Garnish lavishly with nuts and raisins and its set to get served.  Also, use a very fine grain of Semolina to enhance the texture.

Ingredients - Makes 6 helpings

1 cup semolina (rawa)
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup butter/ ghee
3 cups of milk
2 cups of water
Few strands of saffron
2 tbsp Rose water
1/2 cup charoli/ raisins/ nuts


Method

1. Soak the saffron in a little water before you start preparing.

2. Take a heavy bottom pan or kadai. Add the ghee leaving one teaspoon for roasting the nuts. Heat the ghee on low flame.

3. Now add semolina and stir it well. Roast the Ravo till it lightly changes colour and emits a nice nutty aroma.

4. Now, pour water in it along with sugar and stir the mixture continuously. Cook until mixture becomes thick.

5. Add saffron and rose water at this stage.

6. Now add the milk stirring continuously on medium flame.

7. Cook the mixture until ravo thickens like a soup consistency. Turn off the gas. The mixture will further thicken on cooling.

8. In another frying pan, take one teaspoon ghee and roast the raisins and nuts.

9. Now serve Parsi Style Ravo garnished lavishly with charoli and kismish.

Note

Do not add Cardamom to this dish or it will taste like Sheera. Too many ingredients spoil the taste. Rose water and saffron are just perfect for Parsi Ravo recipe. You can add vanilla essence instead of rose water.

This is my grandmother's recipe and I am happily sharing it with you all.