Saturday, March 6
Garlic Butter Naan - Simply delicious
NAAN' , a leavened Indian flatbread, is made with yeast and all purpose flour with/without flavorings and is made in tandoor. It bears a resemblance to pita, but is softer in texture. In Persia the word 'Naan' literally means "Bread".
Though i wanted to post this recipe for a long time, but as i could never click the step by step pictures, so couldn't post it till now. This time too ; its not all perfect but still better. First time before making these delicious garlic naan's ,I browsed the net a lot for all the possible ways of cooking them; in tandoor, oven or stove top. Tandoor one is obviously the best and the correct way, but that couldn't be done at home. And out of the other two, i felt that stove top one gave better results, more softer and more tandoor like cooked. So i made these naan over the stove and believe me, they come out perfect everytime.
I sticked to yeast as I simply love the dough getting double in volume and the aroma of yeast that fills the whole house. Also i wanted to make it as perfect as possible, we don't make them often at home , so whenever we make it should be a treat, all perfect... isin't it.
Ingredients:
All purpose flour 3 cups
Active dry yeast 1 tsp
Warm water 2/3 cup
Sugar 1/2 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves(cilantro)
1/2 tsp Kalonji (onion seeds)
Salt to taste
Garlic-butter topping:
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp minced garlic
Method:
Take warm water; mix yeast, salt and sugar in it until the yeast has dissolved. Set aside for 10mins till the yeast gets activated(forms a froth).
Sift the flour and add coriander leaves , mix well.
Make a well in the center and add the yeast mixture.
Mix well to make a soft dough. Add more warm water if required.
Knead for 3-4mins. Cover with a cloth or plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place for about 2 to 3 hrs till the dough doubles in volume.
Now punch the dough again for 2- 3 more minutes .
Make balls from the dough and roll them. Roll them into a oblong with a rolling pin dusting with flour.
Sprinkle kalonji over it, press a bit.(optional)
Cooking over stove top:
Heat the pan on high.
Apply a little water on one side of the naan (uncooked naan only) .
Put the naan on the tava(avoid non stick pan), with the wet side down. Press it slighly with a cloth or a napkin, so as to stick it on the pan.
Within seconds , you can see small bubbles, turn the pan upside down, so as the naan is over the direct fire.
Cook it rotating the pan a bit , so as to cook the naan uniformally all over.
Check for brown spots. The naan starts to fall down by its own when cooked.
Turn the pan again and apply garlic butter mixture over the charred cooked side.
Serve hot with any curry of your choice.
Tips:
Do not make them too thick as they puff up when baked.
For oblong shape, roll it circular and while putting on the hot griddle pull it from one side to get the shape.
If using oven, set to broiler and place the Naan on a baking sheet, top the naan with some butter and put it inside the broiler. Check for dark spots, turn and repeat the procedure.
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Friday, March 27
Onion Kulcha
Kulcha, its a type of Indian bread quite similar in looks and appearance to a naan(another very famous indian bread), just without the elongated shape and are much softer. It can be made on a tawa or griddle, as opposed to naan, which is better baked in a hot tandoor or oven only ,to get the desired effect. And as now i have neither, i prefer making Kulcha's only, whenever there's need to cook something special. Also they come out more soft when made by stove top method as compared to baking.
Ingredients:
1 heaped tsp. dry yeast
About 200 ml warm water.
2 tsp sugar
For Dough:
500 gm all purpose flour or maida
1/2 cup natural yoghurt or dahi
1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. ghee or vegetable oil
Salt to taste
For Stuffing:
1 sweet onion, minced
few coriander/mint leaves chopped
1/4 tsp chilli pwd.
salt to taste
Method:
Place warm water in a bowl and add yeast and sugar over the water. Leave aside for 5-10 minutes, until it becomes frothy (activated).
Now sift flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl.
Make well in the centre. Add curd and oil in the well.
Then make a soft non sticky dough with the yeast water.
Cover and leave aside for 2-4 hours in a warm place, until it doubles in size.
Mix all the ingredients for stuffing.
Punch the dough down, and make tennis size balls out of it.
Heat a griddle or tawa or a frying pan.
Roll the balls out to a circle of approx. 3-4 inches in diameter. Put the stuffing (about 1-2 tbsp) in it, fold and agian roll out into 6-8 inches in diameter and 2-3 mm. thick circle . Don't make it too thick, because it swells up a little when cooking.
Place it on the heated griddle/tawa. When a few bubbles appear, turn it over. cook on both sides,and finally apply butter/ghee on one side, take it off the griddle.
Best serve kulchas immediately or else can also stack them one on top of other and then wrap them in a foil. Just before serving reheat in a grill or oven.
Serve with Chole or any other rich curry, like i served them with Malai Kofta's.
Tips:
Once the packet of yeast is opened ,it shouldn't be kept for long, unless its in the freezer.
Kulchas can be made in advance and reheated. They can be frozen too. Defrost fully, re-heat and serve.
You can make any type of filling for it , like onion or potatoes or even plain kulcha. I made all the three varities, for the three guys in my house with entirely different taste buds... :)
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Sending these Kulche's to RCI: Lucknow started by Lakshmi
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Thursday, May 29
Khakhara, gujrati snack
Long back, when some of my relatives came from india, they brought the khakharas (readymade ones) along with them. That was the first time i had them, and liked them so much, that i was drooling to have them more...., And nowadays, whenever i see my one of favorite serial, Baa Bahoo n Baby, hearing them say khakhara, thepla, dhokla and all, my temptation to eat grew very much. So finally i searched the net, and found out these. The recipe sounded simple(but i think, its actually no so simple), so finally made them.
The taste was not as good as the readymade ones, but it sure is a yummy and healthy snack, as i read in the various sites , its a good food for diebatic people. Khakharas are very wholesome, nourishing and great item for breakfast. The sugar content is very low and active carbohydrates are easy on stomach.
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
3 tbsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
½ tsp caraway seeds (ajwain/ omam)
1 tsp black sesame seeds
1 tsp chilli powder
½ tsp cumin powder
salt to taste
Method:
Mix all the ingredients and enough water into a softish but elastic dough similar to dough for making chapathi.Cover and keep aside for 30 minutes. Pinch off a ball of dough the size of a small lemon/ lime and roll out into as thin a circle as possible(wafer thin is good). Dust lightly, if necessary, with whole wheat flour while rolling out the dough to prevent it from sticking.
Heat a cast iron griddle. Put the rolled out dough on it and cook, over low to medium heat on both sides till faint brown spots start appearing.Now take a thick kitchen towel, fold it and roll it up into a size fills your palm. Holding the rolled up towel press down on the cooked dough circle, a little at a time till every part of the circle has been pressed down. This ensures that it cooks and crisps out evenly. Now turn the khakhra over and repeat with the other side. The khakhra would now have a light brown colouring on both sides and would have become crisp.(this step requires time and patience) If you would like, the khakhra can be brushed with butter or ghee at this point. Cool on a cookie rack. Finish the rest of the dough in this manner.When cool, store in an airtight container.
Khakharas are best enjoyed with Khakhara powder. We had it with chat masala powder. Just sprinkle chat masala over the khakhara, and eat it.Can also have it plain, with tea, or served with a variety of dips or salsas, sweet and sour chutneys or even curries.
I'm sending this to SWC:Gujrati cuisine , hosted by notyet100 of Asan Khana. And i request all my readers(specially gujju), if they have a better recipe, do tell me too, as they were not as nice as readymade ones....:)
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Wednesday, May 7
Missi Roti
Yesterday, when i made shahi gatte, along with it i made missi roti too. As i goes as a ideal comination along with pickel, onions(salad) and papad. In the rajasthani food we don't have much greens, which is a consequence of the climatic conditions of rajasthan ,and also its not as spicy as it looks.
So now can enjoy this missi roti.., for the recipe ,here it goes.....
Ingredients:
150 gms Wheat flour
250 gms gram flour(Besan)
1 tsp Red chilly powder
1 tsp Dhaniya Powder (coriander)
3 tbsp Ghee (clarified butter)
1/2 tsp Jeera (cumin seeds)
1/2 tsp Kaala jeera(/ Kalaunji)or Nigella Seed
1/2 tsp Ajwain (carom seeds)
Salt to taste
Method:
Mix the wheat flour and besan together. Add oil, salt, red chilly powder, dhaniya, jeera, kala jeera and ajwain.
Mix well, make a stiff dough. Set aside for atleast 15 minutes.
Roll into small and thick rotis and roast as we do our normal rotis,but as its thick n meant to be crisp, roast over direct flame (low) for a longer duration.
Brush missi roti with melted ghee(lavishly).
Serve hot with Shahi Gatte.
Note: These rotis better to be eaten hot only, as once cold becomes a bit hard.
Also, i have seen that these rotis are made smaller in size like puris..
And also the missi roti is my 2nd entry for the event RCI rajasthan .
And now,
Wondering.. why this again ,
I'm reposting my Spinach paratha, so that it along with Missi roti ,goes as my entry for the roti mela event hosted by srivalli of cooking4allseasons.
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Monday, April 14
Spinach paratha
Every week atleast twice I make these parathas for my younger one, who doen't like to eat curry atall.. so this is for all picky eater kids...
Doesn't make a lot of difference in taste, but looks attractive....
And in the same terms we can add grated beetroot too to it, instead of spinach, and it gives nice red parath's.
Ingredients:
2 cups of Wheat flour
milk (for making dough)
Spinach (washed)
Ajwain - 1/2 tsp
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Green Chillies 3-4 (you may add more if you want to make it spicy)
Salt to taste
Method:
Cut Spinach, grind it in mixie with Chillies and add very little milk to make a paste.
Add this paste to Wheat flour with salt, ajwain, jeera and make a dough.
Make small balls out of dough and roll them into the parathas.(keep them a bit thick only)
Put it on hot tawa or frying pan and cook applying ghee on both the sides & serve hot with any gravy or chutney.
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