Palak Onion Pakoda

When you have a bunch of Palak left over and if you are wondering what to do, try and make this North Indian style snack - Palak Pakoda. I love the crisp texture and flavors that go into its making.The green chillies and ginger are the main ingredients that set everything off.

It is a monsoon snack that is super easy,quick to make and a definite crowd-puller :) 

Time:Making Time (20 mins)

Difficulty level:Easy

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of chopped Spinach leaves(Palak/Methi)
• 1 cup finely chopped Onions
• 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups Besan/Chick pea flour
• 2 1/2 tbsp Rice Flour
• 1/2 tap Red Chili Powder
• 1/2 tsp Roasted Cumin Powder
• 1/2 tsp Garam Masala Powder
• 2-3 finely chopped Green Chilies (adjust)
• 1 tsp Ginger-Garlic paste
• 10-12 Mint(Pudina) leaves finely chopped - Optional
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
• 2 tbsp Hot oil
• Water as required
• Salt to taste
• Oil for deep frying

Preparation:

1. Mix all the above ingredients adding salt as required and 2 tablespoons Hot oil. 
2. Add very little water and mix well.The batter should just coat the palak leaves and it should not be a flowing batter but a stiff batter. [Start with few tbsps of water and keep adding till the batter just coats the spinach leaves]
3. Heat oil in a deep frying or heavy bottomed vessel. Once the oil is piping hot, reduce flame to medium and drop a little mixture of the batter to form fritters. Deep the pakodas to a golden brown color. Do not over crowd the vessel.
4. Serve crispy hot Palak Pakodas  with a cup of Masala chai or Coffee :) 
5. The pakodas can be stored in an air tight container for 2-3 days.

Chef's Tip - Before mixing the ingredients together, add a spoon of ghee with a pinch of baking soda(Optional) and coat the vessel. This helps in making the pakodas more crispy.

Palak Pulav

Everytime we think about Palak,we get reminded of either Palak Paneer or Palak Dhal.Most of us are not very fond of Palak and hence dont experiment much with it.Palak can be used to make interesting and tasty recipes.This recipe of Palak Pulav was shared by a friend of mine. It tastes great with raita :)

Time:Making Time (30 mins)

Difficulty level:Medium

Ingredients:

• Basmati Rice - 2 cups
• Palak - 1 bunch
• Green Peas - 1 cup (Optional)
• Onions - 1 medium sized finely chopped
• Tomatoes - 2 medium sized finely chopped
• Ginger,Garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Green Chilli - 3-4
• Jeera - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil/Butter - 4 tbsp
• Bay leaf - 1
• Cinnamon - 1 piece

Preparation:

1. Cook the finely chopped Palak in water with a little salt.Once cooked,drain the water and keep it aside.
2. Now add the Palak,Ginger-Garlic,little chopped onions and green chillies and grind them into a fine paste with enough water.(You can use the same water used to cook the palak)
3. Soak the basmati rice in water for 10-15 mins,drain the water and keep aside.
4. In a pressure pan, add 2 tbsp Butter/Oil,Jeera seeds,Cinnamon and Bay leaf and allow it to splutter.
5. Now add the chopped Onions and Tomatoes and saute until its cooked.
6. To this,add the ground paste, green peas and rice and mix well.
7. Add salt to taste,enough water  and pressure cook until the rice is well cooked.
8. Garnish it with fried onions and a dash of lemon juice
9. Serve with Raita or plain curd

Chef's Tip - I usually add 1.5 cups of water for 1 cup of Basmati rice. If you add more vegetables, add water appropriately.

Mutter Paneer

Green Peas is something thats healthy and also easy to cook.This recipe - Mutter Paneer is a delicious curry of Peas and Paneer.This is really easy to make and is extremely tasty when served with Rice or Roti :)

Time:Making Time (20 mins)

Difficulty level:Easy

Ingredients:

• Green Peas - 1 cup
• Paneer cubes - 1 cup
• Onions - 2 medium sized
• Tomatoes - 3-4 medium sized
• Ginger,Garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Green Chilli - 3-4
• Garam Masala - 2 tsp
• Red Chilli Powder - 2 tsp
• Jeera Powder - 2 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Coriander to garnish
• Jeera(Cumin) seeds - 1 tsp
• Oil/Butter - 4 tbsp
• Turmeric Powder - a pinch
• Curd - 2 tbsp (Optional)

Preparation:

1. In a pan, add 1 tbsp Butter/Oil and saute the Paneer cubes till they turn golden brown.Keep aside.
2. Now add the Ginger-Garlic paste,Green chillies,chopped Onions,Tomatoes and saute.
3. Allow it to cool and grind the above ingredients into a fine paste by adding enough water.
4. Now add 2 tbsp of Butter/Oil, add Jeera(Cumin) seeds to it and allow it to splutter.
5. To this, add the ground paste and allow it to cook with enough water.(based on the desired consistency)
6. Add the Green Peas,all the masala powders to it and enough salt to taste.To this add 2 tbspn of beaten curd (Optional).
7. Allow it to simmer until the Grean peas is cooked.
8. Now add the fried Paneer Pieces and cook till they become soft.
9. Garnish it with Coriander leaves.
10. Serve with Rice or Roti

Alternate Method -
I like the curry to be a smooth gravy,hence i grind the Onions and Tomatoes together into a fine paste.
If you dont want to grind them, just saute the ingredients together and add the masala powders to it and allow it to cook with the required amount of water.

Chef's Tip - I add the curd to the recipe to give a good consistency and richness to the taste. This is optional. It tastes good enough without the Curd.

Mixed Vegetable Soup

Most of us prefer to start off with an appetizer,whenever we dine out.Soups are the best appetizers to start with.There is nothing like having a hot bowl of soup on a rainy day with some snacks to go along with it ;)
This particular recipe is for my favorite Vegetable soup.

Time: Making Time (15 mins)

Difficulty level: Easy

Ingredients:

• Finely chopped mixed veggies - 1 cup (Carrots,Cauliflower,Green peas,Beans,Potato)
• Onion - 1 finely chopped
• Garlic - 2 or 3 flakes (Optional)
• Milk - 1 medium-sized cup
• Butter - 2 tsp
• Maida - 1 tbsp
• Water - 1 cup
• Salt - to taste
• Pepper - to taste
• Mint leaves - to garnish

Preparation:

1. Boil the vegetables in water until they are cooked. Add a pinch of salt to it, as it helps cook faster.
2. In a pan,heat the butter and fry the chopped onions until it turns pink. If you like the flavor of garlic,add 2-3 crushed flakes to the onions and fry.
3. Now make a fine paste with the maida flour and a little milk. 
4. Add this paste and rest of the milk to the fried onions along with the other cooked veggies.
5. Mix well and simmer until the raw smell disappears.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Garnish with a little cream and Mint leaves.Serve hot

Chef's tip - The water used to boil the veggies can be used to make the soup. Adding maida helps in giving the creamy texture to the soup,skip it if you dont like.

   

   

Carrot Halwa

Carrot Halwa has always been one of my favorite desserts.Its fairly easy and quick to make.This can be eaten Hot or Cold. However, I love the combination of Hot Carrot Halwa served with a scoop of Vanilla Ice cream....yum!

Time:Making Time (40 mins)

Difficulty level:Easy

Ingredients:

• Finely Grated Carrots - 2 medium-sized cups
• Milk - 1 medium-sized cup
• Condensed Milk - 3 tbsp (Optional)
• Sugar -1 1/2 cups (varies according to taste)
• Elaichi Powder - 1 tsp
• Ghee - 1 small cup ( ~ 4 tbsp)
• Honey - 1 tsp
• Cashews & Raisins  - 50 g
• Almonds - 4-5
• Saffron - few strands (Optional)

Preparation:

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, add the grated carrots and milk together and allow it to cook until the milk starts to boil.
2. Now add 1 1/2 cups of sugar,stir and allow it to cook on sim until the mixture starts to thicken.
3. Add Elaichi powder and Honey and mix well.Cook for about 10 more mins.
4. Add the required quantity of Ghee and stir continuously to avoid sticking to the bottom of the pan.
5. Once the mixture starts to leave the sides of the pan, switch off the flame.
6. In a tbspn of Ghee, fry the Cashew nuts and Raisins until golden brown.
7. Add this to the Carrot mixture.Also you can grate few almonds to sprinkle on the Halwa and your 'Carrot Halwa' is ready to be served.... :)

    Chef's tip - I add a little of Honey to this, because it adds a unique flavor to this.