Monday, August 17, 2009

Naan (Khaliya, Khalia, Qalia) (Aurangabad Special)

Naan Qalia is a dish that originated from Aurangabad in India. It is a concoction of mutton and a variety of spices. Naan is the bread made in tandoor (Hot furnace) while Qalia is a mixture of mutton and various spices.

History:

When Mohammad Tughlaq shifted his capital from Delhi to Daulatabad, there was a mass exodus of people from Delhi to Daulatabad. On the way to Daulatabad, the huge army of Tughlaq was exhausted. It was an uphill task to provide such a big army with food. But the smart Bawarchis (cooks) came up with a dish that could suffice the imposing army. They conceived the dish we call today as Naan Qalia. They dug a hot furnace and rolled out thusands of golden colored naan. Meanwhile Qalia was prepared by cooking mutton and adding number of spices in the huge cauldron.



Ingredients:
1. Mutton 1 kg
2. Khuskhus 45 gms
3. Dried Coconut 45 gms
4. Yogurt 200 gms
5. Onions 3 medium
6. Ginger and Garlic Paste
7. Coriander Powder 2 tsp
8. Bhilawe Ki Chironji(i dont know any other name for this ingredient) 40-45 gms
9. Turmeric Powder 1/2 tsp
10. Red Chilli Powder 3-4 tsp or as per your need
11. Mint Leaves 1 cup
12. Coriander Leaves 1 cup
13. Bay leaves 1-2
14. Patthar Ka Phool 2-3
15. Cloves 4-5
16. Cinnamon Sticks 3-4
17. Shah Zeera 1 tsp
18. Salt to taste
19. Oil 1/2 cup or according to your need
20. Green Chillies

Method:
(Preparing Dry Masala)

1. In a pan dry roast the coconut pieces or shreds on medium heat until they are light brown.
2. Soak khuskhus in water for 10-15 mins. Drain khuskhus in a strainer and roast it on a pan on medium heat till it is light and changes colour.
3. In the same way dry roast the bhilawe ki chironji till it releases nice aroma and changes colour.
4. Dry roast the bay leaves and patthar ka phool together on medium heat untill it changes colour

(Grinding Masala)
1. In a mixer add all the dry roasted bhilawe ki chironji and grind it without adding water to a fine powder. Set aside
2. Finely crush the bay leaves and patthar ka phool. In a blender add the roasted coconut, khuskhus and coriander powder and grind it to a fine powder. Now add the finely crushed bay leaves and patthar ka phool into this mixture with a little water and blend it into a very fine paste.

Main Masala:
1. In a pressure cooker add mutton pieces, ginger and garlic paste, salt, turmeric powder, yogurt, shah zeera, cloves, cinnamon sticks,and onions, half of coriander and mint leaves.
2. Pressure cook this mutton till it is 70 percent cooked.( The rest 30 percent will be cooked afterwards). Do not add any water while pressure cooking meat. It will cook in its own water
3. In a wide open vessel add oil, once it is ready add vertically slitted green chillies, and a little ginger garlic paste to it, saute it for a few seconds and add the grounded coconut,khuskhus paste and saute this mixture on medium flame for 10-15 minutes.
4. After that add red chilli powder to this mixture and remaining mint and coriander leaves.
5. Saute until the mixture oozes oil out of it and it doesnt release any raw smell of masalas.
6. At this stage add the 70 percent cooked mutton mixture and let it cook on high heat.Keep on stirring so that the masala doesnt stick on the vessel base.
7. Keep on doing this untill oil oozes out.
8. Add water to this mixture according to the consistency you want. Generally the consistency of the khaliya is quite thin.


9. Now cover the vessel half with the help of a lid and let it cook on medium heat untill the meat is fully cooked.
10. In the mean time take the grounded bhilawe ki chironji and add a little water to it. Dissolve chironji nicely into it so that no lumps are formed.
11. When you think the khaliya is done, add the bhilawe ki chironji paste to this and stir continously for a good 5 mins, let the khaliya come to a boil and serve really hot with Aurangabadi special Naan


Saturday, August 8, 2009

Sabudana vada (Ramdan Special)

Ingredients:

1. Potato 1
2. Sabudana 1/2 cup
3. Green Chillies 5-6 or as per ur need
4. Chopped coriander 2 tbsp
5. Curry Leaves 3-4
6. Red Chilli Powder 1/2 tsp
7. Salt as per your taste
8. Onions 1 small finely chopped
9. Chaat Masala 1/4 tsp or as per taste
10. Rice Flour 2 tbsp

Method:

1. Soak the sabudana in water for 2-3 hours.
2. Wash and peel the potato and then grate it with the help of a grater
3. Squeeze out excess moisture from it and put it in a bowl
4. Add chopped chillies, chopped coriander leaves, chopped curry leaves, red chilli powder, chopped onions and salt to the grated potaotes. Mix well
5. Squeeze out excees moisture from soaked sabudana and add to the potato mixture.
6. Add rice flour and chaat masala powder and knead like a dough.
7. Make equal sized balls out of this mixture and them flatten them like tikki(keep it a little thin as it will become crispier)
8. Deep fry them in hot oil untill golden brown and serve hot with curd, tamarind and date chutney

Mutton Curry/ Aloo Gosht


Ingredients:

1. Mutton 500 gms
2. Onions 2 large 1 small
3. Tomatoes 2 large
4. Turmeric Powder 1/2 tsp
5. Coriander Powder 2 tsp
6. Ginger Garlic Paste 2 tbsp
7. Salt as per taste
8. Oil 2-3 tbsp
9. Green Chilli slit lengthwise 5-6
10. Garam Masala Powder
(5 Cardamoms, 4 cloves small stick of cinnamon, shah zeera,crush them to a coarse powder and use as garam masala)
11. Green Coriander chopped as 1/2 cup
12. Potatoes 3-4 medium cut in 4 pieces

Method:

1. In a pressure cooker add washed mutton, sliced onions, chopped tomatoes, salt, little oil, ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder and pressure cook till mutton is done.
2. In a big vessel add the potatoes and fry them a little, set aside
3. To the same oil add the green chillies and fry them a little, add a little ginger garlic paste, and then immediately transfer all the contents of the mixtue.
4. Cook the mixture on medium high flame, and after 5-7 mins add the coriander powder.
5. Add the fried potatoes to the gravy, sprinkle little chopped coriander, cover the vessel and cook untill the oil floats on top and the potaotes are done.
6. Now add the garam masala powder and cook for another 5 mins. Taste the salt and adjust as per your need
7. Garnish with coriander leaves
8. Serve hot with boiled rice



Note:
There are many ways to cook this particular gravy, but i like to lessen my work by pressure cooking meat with onions and tomatoes. It a very tiring job to fry onions and then pressure cooking thm and the saute again with tomatoes in it. This way everything gets cooked at one time

Chicken Mayo Sandwich


Ingredients:

1. Chicken breast as per requirement
2. Mayonnaise as per requirement
3. Salt to taste
4. Bread slices 4-6 or as per ur requirement
5. Black Pepper Powder 1/2 tsp
6. Oil 2 tbsp
7. Butter as per requirement

Method:

1. Cut the chicken breast into desired size, preferably small
2. In a pan add oil and put the chicken pieces in it
3. Add salt and pepper with a few drops of water to it, cover and let it cook untill there is no water. Cook on low medium flame
4. Once the chicken pieces are done remove them from flame, once it cools shred the chicken pieces. Set aside
5. Now mix the mayonnaise with the shredded chicken
6. Apply butter on the bread pieces and grill the bread slices on a grill pan or normal pan. It should be slightly crispy.
7. Repeat the process for all the slices.
8. Now spread the chicen mayo mixture on the bread evenly, form such multiple layers of bread slices.
9. Once done serve with wafers and sauce of your choice.

Note:
Do not grill the sandwich after spreading the chicken mayo mixture. otherwise the bread will become soggy.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Cheese Sausages



Ingredients:

1. Boiled Potatoes 2 nos
2. Peanuts crushed coarsely 1 cup
3. Grated carrots 1/2 cup
4. Grated capsicum 1/2 cup
5. Onion 1 small
6. Egg 1 nos
7. Black Pepper 3-4 pinches
8. Salt as per required
9. Bread crumbs as per required
10. Green chillies 2-3 finely chopped
11. Oil for frying
12. Mixed Cheese as per need


Method:

1. Mash the boil potaotes and add black pepper and salt to it.
2. In a pan add 2 tbsp oil and add the finely sliced onions and saute until transparent
3. Now add grated carrots, capsicum and sauteed onions to the mashed potaotes and check the salt at this stage.
4. Make equal sized balls
5. Take a ball, faltten it a little bit and add the cheese. Close the edges and press them with your palms to give it a sausage shape. Similarly make all the sausages
6. Whisk an egg and dip these sausages into the egg mixture, and roll them on the bread crumbs.
7. Repeat the same procedure for all the sausages
8. Now Again dip these sausages in the whisked eggs and roll them onto roughly crushed peanuts


9. Repeat the same for all the sausages.
10. Once all the sauges are done refrigerate it for atleast 5-6 hours, so that the sausages becomes firm and it doesnt break while frying
11. Heat oil in a vessel on medium flame and fry these sausages untill golden brown.
12. Serve hot with any sauce of your choice

Cheddar Cheese on Foodista

Baigan Ka bharta

Ingredients:
1. Bharta Baigan 1
2. Onion roughly chopped 1
3. Green chilllies as per your taste
4. Garlic cloves 3-4
5. Cumin seeds 1 tbsp
6. Oil 2 tbsp
7. Turmeric Powder 1/2 tsp
8. Salt as per taste
Method:
1. Apply a little oil on raw baigan and put it on medium flame. Turn sides as it gets softer. Keep doing it untill the whole baigan soften and water oozes out of it. As shown in picture

2. To check whether it is done or not u can pierce a toothpick and if it pierces easily that means the baigan is done.
3. Now try to remove its skin as much as possible,if the baigan is done completly the skin will come out very easily, take care as it will be very hot. Once that is done try to chop it or mash it
4. Roughly grind the green chillies, garlic cloves and cumin seeds.
5. In a pan add oil and add the roughly chopped onions to it saute untill it becomes transparent.
Now add the green chilli-garlic and cumin seed paste to it and saute for a few seconds untill it releases a nice aroma.
6. Now add the turmeric powder, mix it well and add the mashed baigan to this. Mix very well and add salt accordingly and let it cook on low flame for 10-15 mins.
7. Once that is done serve with hot phulkas

Vegetable Biryani


Ingredients:
1. Paneer 250 gms
2. Broccoli florets 1 cup
3. Carrots chopped 1 cup
4. Capsicum finely sliced 1 cup
5. Potatoes 2 french fry cut 1 cup
6. Fresh Peas 1/2 cup
7. Onions 2 medium finely sliced
8. Tomatoes 3
9. Yogurt 1/4 cup
10. Whole Garam Masala as per requirement
11. Green Chillies slit vertically 5-6
12. Red Chilli Powder 1 tsp
13. Rice 3 cups washed and soaked
14. Yellow Food Colour
15. Green Coriander leaves as per need
16. Oil as per requirement
17. Salt as per need
18. Milk 1/4 cup

Method:
1. Take sufficient oil in a vessel and fry the onions until crisp and golden brown, set aside and let it cool. Now similarly fry all the chopped veggies lightly for a minute or two and then set aside on a plate to cool. Lastly fry the paneer pieces untill it changes colour slightly.
2. In the same pan add whole garam masala and let it splutter. Once that is done add the chopped tomatoes and a little salt and saute it for a few mintues. Cover the vessel and let the tomatoes cook until it softens and becomes a pulp. When that is done add the yogurt and saute it again untill oil floats on top
3. Now add the green chillies and red chillies and saute it on medium flame for a few mintues.
4. Set this gravy aside for further use
5. Boil water with a few mint leaves, and whole garam masala and once it satarts boiling add soaked rice to it and cook untill it is 85 percent done. Drain rice and set aside
6. Now in a cooker or a vessel put a little oil to grease it and add little rice
7. After that add the tomatoes gravy and fried veggies and paneer and garnish it witha little fried onions
8. Arrange another layer of rice on this gravy. Repeat the same procedure again.
9. Finally add rice and garnish it with fried onions and chopped coriander leaves.
10. Take 1/4 cup milk and dissolve colour in it and garnish it on biryani on circular motions.
11. Cover the vessel and let it cook on high flame for a few mintues intially untill the rice on the top layer has started heating up. or steam is formed.
12. After that lower the flame and let it cook on dum for 20-25 minutes.
13. Serve hot with any raita or gravy of your choice