Indian Cooking Unfolded & Uncomplicated By Raghavan Iyer | Recipes & Book Review

 

Hi!!

While I write this post, I must confess my heart is humming with joy. It is not always that you are sent a copy of your favourite cookbook author for a review and for that I need to thank John from Workman Publishing, New York, who are the publishers of the book.

I have been a proud owner of 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer and ever since then I’ve been an ardent fan of his cooking and teaching style. He is a pro at what he does and his new book is all about that.

Let me first begin with the appearance of the book. The appearance is quite unassuming. It does not have the customary glossy lushness but the book attracts you because of the smiling picture of the mentor, creator of the book Mr Raghavan Iyer, who is seen cooking on the cover page.

 

The book opens with an acknowledgment from the author where he has expressed gratitude by naming all the people who were involved in the making of this book and how their contribution had helped him. Next comes the contents, giving you a fair idea what the book comprises of and how the book has been split.

The book takes you through a culinary voyage of  recipes which are compartmentalized into ten chapters, of which eight are completely devoted to the recipes. The Indian Cooking Unfolded presents Raghavan’s system for learning to cook Indian food through one hundred basic recipes made using ten ingredients or less. Each chapter can be taken as a course of a meal where each recipe teaches a technique; which could be a cooking technique or a way to combine ingredients for exceptional flavours.

This book has been created keeping in mind the people living in USA, who are interested in learning about Indian food. But after trying recipes from the book I realized that it’s a book for anyone who would like to try their hands on Indian Cooking. The highlighted factor of this book is the fact that the author has tried to break the fallacy, that the Indian cooking needs a whole lot of ingredients, spices and condiments. He has created recipes in such a manner that for no ingredient in the book one needs to visit a specialised Indian grocery store and all recipes need, ten or less ingredients.

Each chapter opens with a lesson plan giving a small description of each dish in the chapter. The recipes have been arranged from easiest to complex ones. Each dish starts with an introduction from the author explaining why he likes that particular dish and where he tasted it first.

When I read the book, I realized, there are no major / complex recipes and those which are a bit tricky, the author has expounded them in great details that they appear to be easy. It also seemed that there’s simply no pruning on the illustration of recipes. There are no short cuts taken!!

Even if you do not cook, the book is informative and provides a thoughtful and insightful read. If you are fond of reading in details, this is the book to have. Meticulous research has been done on the history of spices and the extra credits added in each recipe provides a whole lot of information and knowledge; for example one of the extra credits mentions that ‘refined sugar is not vegan, as charcoal is used in the processing, which is derived from bone ash’. The extra credits also provides substitutes for ingredients where ever possible. One can find cooking tips for creating the recipe in this section. Also, in which section of the grocery store one can locate a certain ingredient, has been helpfully mentioned in the extra credits, which also indicates careful observation of the author.

There are seven step by step fold outs in the book. Other than that a few more recipes are explained step by step. Many recipes have pictures and I was happy to see them. Being a visual person, I definitely comprehend  better when a picture is associated with a recipe and if there are step by step pictures…you have won me!!

I decided to try a few recipes to resolve that my observations about the book are correct and I particularly wanted to crosscheck that the explanations are as much flawless, as they appear to be while reading... I decided to try a flatbread, a curry and a sweet.

Since, in India it’s peak festive season, I decided to try the Funnel cake or Jalebis as I’ve been wanting to try them for quite sometime and the recipe’s step by step foldout encouraged me to do so!! I also decided to try the Naan, which is an Indian flatbread. I’ve made Naan many times earlier and posted here too but I had never tried using an egg. The third recipe which intrigued me was the tamatar chana daal aloo, which is a fatless recipe and makes use of only three spices. I was curious to know how a fatless recipe would taste with minimum use of spices..

I decided to follow all the recipes verbatim. I wanted to see how well the directions were given and how precise the measurements are. If anything goes wrong with the recipe using the directions and measurements provided in the book, then I would use my experience and culinary knowledge to set it right..This would give me a fair idea how a novice in Indian cooking, would learn from the cookbook and also where one could go wrong..

Vegan | Dairy Free

The first thing I decided to try was the Jalebi or Funnel Cake in saffron Syrup, as the recipe asked for a resting time of 1-2hrs for the batter to ferment. I followed the procedure verbatim. On mixing the batter using the amount of water mentioned in the book, the batter appeared watery but I overlooked my doubt at that point of time, thinking that the batter might thicken after fermenting and it did but not as much. I was extremely doubtful of how to squeeze out a perfect shaped funnel cake using such a watery batter…

At that point, where I felt that the measurements provided in the book failed, I used presence of mind and added more APF to the mix and kept it aside for ten more minutes and then used it..I had seen the halwai’s in India piping out hot jalebis many times and had also noticed that the batter was thick, that observation helped me solve my problem but I did realize that the book needs to mention the consistency of batter and also to indicate that the water needs to be added gradually to get a thick consistency, as the absorption capacity varies from flour to flour..

 

The temperature mentioned for frying in the book is apt and yields crisp Jalebis. I made the first batch exactly following Raghavan’s instruction and in the second batch I followed how the halwai’s do, so fried the Jalebis first on a low flame till half done and then increased the flame to a medium high and fried till done. I realised the second batch tasted better than the first.

Squeezing out perfect jalebis is an art which comes out of practice, fortunately after one or two wrong shapes I managed decently later on. Another thing that one should take care while making jalebi and is not mentioned in the book, is to keep mixing the batter after every batch. On resting, the batter froths up and air pockets are formed, which needs to be removed before squeezing out the jalebi. If one squeezes out without removing the trapped air, the jalebis will have small air holes on it.

Recipe for Funnel Cake in Saffron Syrup (Jalebi)

For Funnel Cake

1/2cup APF/ maida

1tsp chickpea flour/besan

1/2tsp active dry yeast

1tsp warm water

1/2tsp sugar

1/2tsp refined oil

1/4cup– 1/2 cup water

For Saffron Syrup

1cup refined sugar

1/2cup water

1tbsp lemon juice

1/2tsp cardamom powder

1/2tsp saffron threads

Oil for deep frying

Special equipment required

a squirt bottle/ ketch up bottle

flat fry pan

Method  For Jalebi

Activate the yeast using warm water and sugar and add it to APF and chickpea flour mix. Add water gradually to make a thick, lump free batter, if required add more water. Let the batter rest for 1-2hrs and then mix again. Fill in the squirt bottle or a disposable plastic bag cone (cut it at the end).

Using all the ingredients of the syrup make a one string consistency syrup. A drop of syrup when pressed between thumb and finger should produce a string. At this stage remove it from fire. Warm the syrup just before adding fried jalebi.

Heat the oil in a flat pan (2inches of depth) to a temperature such that if a drop of batter is added it should gradually float to the top. Reduce the flame to the lowest mark and squeeze out jalebis, 3-4 at a time. Fry on low flame till half done and then fry on medium-high flame till done.( the book mentions to fry at 275F). Remove them using slotted spoon and transfer them in saffron syrup.

Completely coat them with the syrup and then transfer them to a cooling rack. Keep a plate under the rack to collect the extra syrup.

The jalebi can also be fried in clarified butter/ ghee but then it will not be dairy free or vegan.

Serve hot.

Naan –Tamatar Chana Daal

The chana daal aloo curry turned out awesome and I never missed the fat in it. The aroma of the roasted spices gives  a nice smoky flavour to the curry. My only input to the curry when I cook it the next time will be, to soak the lentils for an hour before cooking,  as it fastens the cooking procedure and reduces consumption of LPG. I was surprised that the book doesn’t ask for soaking the lentils in fact it says that does not require pre soaking..

I made the Naan in the tandoor and slightly overdid my first Naan as I was removing the jalebis that time. Anyhow, the Naan turned out flawless and was soft, the only flaw was in the procedure. The procedure asks to divide the dough into 4 parts. The pictures in the cookbook show small sized naan, whereas if the dough is divided into 4 parts, it makes 4 big naan of about 12”-15” size. Also, the book says roll naan to 3”-5” diameter but does not speak about the thickness of the flatbread. For a novice, it is very important to know the thickness of the flatbread as on cooking it can turn chewy, if it’s too thin. And if it’s too thick, it takes longer time to cook and doesn’t look like a Naan.

I would suggest to divide dough into 8-10 parts and then roll out 3-5 inch diameter naan of 3-4mm thickness.

For Smoky Yellow Split Peas/  Tamatar Chana daal aloo

1cup Yellow Split peas/ Bengal gram/ Chana daal

5 medium sized potatoes

1/4tsp turmeric powder

4dry red chillies

1tbsp coriander seeds

1tsp cumin seeds

1 medium sized tomato

salt to taste

1tbsp chopped cilantro

Method For tamatar Chana Daal

Wash the lentils 3-4 times and add 4cups of water to it. Transfer in a thick bottom pan, bring it to a boil, remove the froth. Add turmeric and potatoes and mix it thoroughly. Cook covered for 20-25mins (on a medium-low flame) or till the potatoes are done and lentils are cooked. Stir in between.

Meanwhile roast the red chillies, coriander seeds and cumin seeds in a fry pan on a low flame till it produces an aroma. Cool and grind them together. Now add tomatoes and grind to a paste.

Add the tomato melange and salt to taste, to the curry and mix. Cook for 10-12mins or till the sauce thickens. If required, one can crush a few potatoes by pressing the backside of the ladle. Mix the cilantro. Serve hot with rice or phulka. I served  it with naan.

For Naan

3cupsAPF

2tsp baking powder

1tsp salt

1 egg,  lightly beaten

oil, for brushing the dough

butter or ghee, for the finished naan

1 cup warm water

Method For NaaN

Take APF in a bowl and  add  salt and baking powder. Mix it thoroughly.

Make a well in the centre and put the egg and quickly mix it. You may feel the flour dry with a few wet spots.

Using the warm water knead a soft dough which might feel sticky but still manageable. Knead for a few minutes to make a smooth, soft ball.

If you want big Naan, then break the dough into 4parts and lightly grease them with oil. Keep covered with a damp cloth. Rest it for 30mins.

Lightly flour the work area and roll out the Naan and cook it in a tandoor or even on a griddle. Smear some butter or ghee and serve hot.

Smoky Yellow Split Peas- Vegan | Gluten Free | Dairy Free; Naan- Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian

 

After trying the recipes my opinion about the book swayed a bit, as I realized that the procedures and measurements had flaws here and there but the recipes are really good and worth trying. What matters is the flavour and that’s uncompromised.

I am still amazed at the meticulous and detailed work Mr Raghavan Iyer has put up. As a teacher he knows where the students go wrong and has explained procedures in great details to avoid complications and failures. But as the teacher would say, there’s always some scope of improvement..

After reading the book, I’ve become knowledgeable in terms of spices and their use. I can also proudly say now, that I’ve learnt the eight ways of using a spice. Yes, you heard it right, eight ways…read the book to believe it!!

I liked this book for one more reason. It is a book which has a plenty of vegetarian options to try and I’m so looking forward to try the Cardamom scented Cheese with Peppers, The Cashew-Pistachio Burfi and the Sweet scented Pilaf of the many recipes..

I loved the last section of the book as much. This section is devoted to Menus for Great Indian Meals. There are menus for various occasions for example, menu for picnic,  a winter menu, Indian soul food, Gluten Free gala or a Vegan table.

I appreciate the fact that each recipe has been categorised into Vegan/ Lacto-OvoVegetarian/ Gluten Free etc. This is a deciding factor for many to choose recipes.

All in all, I would just conclude that it is a good book to learn basic Indian cuisine. It will hold a special place in my heart for not only the recipes but also the immense knowledge that I attained by reading the book.

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Bhawanee Singh’s Madhra | Himachal Pradesh Cuisine | Jain Recipe | Gluten Free | Shravan Special

 

Hi All!!

I love watching cookery shows, I can spend hours watching them if I have free time in hand. I love watching Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Rachael Ray..and the list goes on. Each and every cook has their favorite ingredient, own way of presentation, food styling and I learn a lot from their expertise and knowledge. I pick up so many handy tips. Out of the so many recipes that I must have watched, some get inscribed in my brain and two preparations which had left an impression on me were from NDTV good times, from the state of Himachal Pradesh…The name of the dishes and their location had got imprinted in my brain. I clearly remembered they were was called Madra and  Babroo , both were the preparations from Himachal Pradesh. The Madra/ Madhra is  a recipe famous in Chamba.

If you live in Delhi and you have not visited Ambience mall in Gurgaon, do visit. There’s a Reliance Time Out store there and I loved their collection of books. They even had books which are rarely seen in the market. Other than the  books which are famous world wide, I love reading books which are based on a local cuisine. These books give you an insight to what the cuisine is about and the intricacies and variety of the recipes in the cuisine.

One such book that I loved reading was Bhawanee Singh’s Classic Recipes From Himachal Pradesh, I loved reading the book and the recipes in it. Most of them I had never heard or tasted. For me it was a completely new cuisine and I realized the richness of the recipes while reading them. While turning the pages, my eyes hit on the title which said Madra and immediately the name rang bells in my head. I was now even more curious to read the recipe. I had a faint memory that the dish I had seen on TV had raisins and dry fruits in it but this particular recipe had none, nevertheless, I found the recipe and book interesting but I did not buy the book that time. Finally, just before we left Delhi for good, I bought this book fearing that I won’t get it in the new city and I’m glad that I bought it, as the book is very rarely seen these days..

I decided to try the Madra recipe from the book as the author has lived in Chamba and the recipe is from that region. I read the recipe thoroughly  and soaked the required quantity of Kidney beans overnight, also made yogurt in large quantity. This  is a ginger, garlic and onion free recipe, so even the Jain’s can enjoy and boy..it’s a rich recipe too..laden with clarified butter. The sourness comes from the large quantity of yogurt used in the recipe.

While reading the recipe I also realized that it had no chilies in it, but I could not imagine my curry without the chilies so I did that change and added chili powder. There are recipes which use dry fruits and raisins but I’ve avoided them since this particular recipe didn’t ask for. The madra can be made using the chickpeas/ kidney beans/ black eyed beans but I’ve used kidney beans.

This is a tricky preparation as it needs cooking of the yogurt and if that curdles, the entire dish gets spoilt. So, one needs to be extremely careful while making this dish. When the dish was cooked and I tasted it, I wasn’t too happy as I had not added the chili powder till then and I found it low on salt too. After adding a little more salt to the curry, I liked it to an extent and thought Oh! So much of hard work for not so wow dish, but  I was wrong here, after a few hours when I tasted the curry again, it was great and it tasted awesome the next day. I felt good that the hard work paid off.. The kid loved it so much that he took it in his lunch box too and thought of sharing with his Jain friends in school.

Soaking Time: Overnight | Preparation Time: 10mins | Cooking Time: 1hr30mins | Serves:4-6 | Difficulty Level: Needs Skill

Ingredients

250gms Red kidney beans ( rajmah, I used the small Kashmiri variety)

1tsp turmeric powder

1kg fresh yogurt (this comes to about 750ml milk used to make yogurt), do not use the sour yogurt

1-1/2cups ghee/ clarified butter ( the original recipe asks for 2-1/4 cups)

2sticks dalchini/ cinnamon of 2”each

1/2tsp fenugreek/ methi seeds powdered ( I fried and powdered it)

5-6 green cardamom

4-5 black cardamom

1tsp garam masala

4-5 cloves/ loung

salt to taste

3tsp red chili powder (the original recipe does not use it)

Method

Pressure cook the beans with salt till tender. Drain the water.

Whisk the yogurt till smooth.

Heat a thick bottom pan and melt the ghee, add all whole spices and let them crackle (I read some recipes of Madra online, suggesting use of Mustard Oil).

Remove from flame and add turmeric, followed by addition of smooth yogurt.

Put the pan back on fire, keep on medium flame and continuously stir till the yogurt comes to a boil, this prevents curdling of the yogurt. Even if you feel that the yogurt is curdling, keep stirring, it turns out fine at the end. Else you can add 2tsp rice flour dissolved in water to the yogurt, this prevents curdling ( I did not add any rice flour).

Once the yogurt starts boiling, keep scraping the bottom and sides. One can add a tablespoon of water at intervals to prevent scathing. In about 40mins the yogurt thickens, the color changes to brown and the ghee separates. At this point add salt and chili powder. Mix.

Tip in the kidney beans and mix thoroughly. Also add the fenugreek powder. Pour a little warm water and keep the pan on low heat till the water evaporates.

Before taking the pan off stove, mix in the garam masala and cover with a lid.

Before serving, heat a tablespoon ghee and add a pinch of chili powder and pour immediately on the curry (This was my contribution to the curry).

Serve hot with rice or paratha.

Sending it to my event ‘Only’- Cooking From Cookbooks guest hosted by Gauri.

Tips

1. This recipe needs skill as it’s a yogurt based gravy and needs continuous stirring through the cooking.
2. It is advisable to add salt after the yogurt has boiled without curdling as salt can cause curdling.
3. As it’s a curd based gravy, it needs more salt to taste.
4. Adding rice flour to the curds, prevents curdling and also thickens the curry.
5. This recipe asks for more ghee but I’ve reduced the ghee quantity.
6. Addition of chili powder was my choice which can be completely skipped.

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Akka Panaji’s Thalipeeth For Fasting Version I, Step Wise/ Upavasache Thalipeeth

 

Nine days of fasting, the ‘Navaratra’ have recently got over. Many people fasted through all the nine days and a few on selected days. I wanted to post fasting recipes that time but things at home kept me away from active blogging. But this week again has few fasting days which also includes Hanuman Jayanti falling on the 25th, so thought of posting this fasting food, which I loved and now my family likes it too..

I’m posting today a recipe I grew up with, this is my great grand mother’s recipe. Whenever she used to fast, she would make thalipeeths of various kinds and we would eye her as we used to get a bite to taste. I must confess, I’ve never eaten a better thalipeeth than what she made.

 

Telling you more about her and her fond memories….She was an excellent cook but at the same time well educated too. By education, I do not mean that she went to college and all but she had the urge and desire to learn new, she was hungry for knowledge. My great grand father was a freedom fighter, while he was in Vellore Jail my great grand mother who was a follower of Vinoba Bhave would lead the rally of ‘Prabhat Pheri’ every morning.

I still remember in my childhood, during our visits to our hometown, my day would start hearing shlokas and bhajans which my great grand mother would sing early in the morning while she worked on the stone mill (jaata). She was very hard working and at the same time a strict disciplinarian. At the age of 82 too, whenever we would have guests at home, she would sit on the floor  to make ‘ghadi chi poli’ which was her specialty. Till she was alive, she had a strong influence on the kitchen and all the three generations after her were benefitted by her skill.

This thalipeeth not only makes a tasty fasting food but it is great as breakfast item, for lunch box and even for snacking.

Upavasache Thalipeeth

Soaking Time:4hrs

Preparation Time: 30mins

Cooking Time: 5mins per Thalipeeth

Makes: 8

Serves: 3-4

Difficulty Level: Moderately Easy

 

Ingredients

3medium sized potatoes boiled and peeled

2-1/2cups soaked sabudana/sago

4-5 green chilies, finely chopped

2-3tbsp sour yogurt

2tsp cumin seeds

3/4cup coarsely pounded roasted peanuts

6-7tbsp rajgira flour/ amaranth grain flour

sendha namak/ rock salt

1/2tsp sugar

2-3tbsp chopped coriander

water for mixing

ghee/oil for cooking

Method

Wash and remove all water from the Sago and let it soak for 4-5hrs. Separate the grains of sago using finger tips.

To the sago add grated, boiled potato, finely chopped green chilies, pounded peanuts, cumin seeds, sugar.

Now add the sendha namak/rock salt.

Add yogurt and chopped coriander.

Finally add the rajira flour and mix thoroughly. Use some water and bring it to a consistency that can spread easily on patting (soft dough consistency).

Smear the griddle with ghee or oil (I used ghee for an authentic taste) and then pat a large lemon size thalipeeth dough to an 8inch circle using hand, if required, wet the hand while spreading. Make a hole in the center for oil to spread evenly. Cook on medium flame covered till one side is nicely cooked and roasted. Flip to the other side, smear some more ghee and cook open till done. Cool the griddle and repeat the process for the entire dough. If one wants to cook on hot griddle continuously, one can spread the thalipeeth on a greased banana leaf and then transfer it on to the griddle. Usually one thalipeeth needs about 2tsp oil or ghee but one can make it in very low oil or oil free too, if using a non stick pan.

 

This thalipeeth has a large portion of peanuts which are leguminous plants, hence sending it to my event ‘Only’ Cooking With Legumes hosted by Nalini.

Tip:

This thalipeeth needs gentle handling especially while flipping. Flip only when one side is cooked and roasted thoroughly.

Thalipeeth tastes better if the green chilies are spicy and have good flavor.

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Barley-Hyacinth Bean Upma/ Javaa-Avarekaalu Uppittu

 

Hello again!

I have mentioned several times that my family is a huge fan of avarekaalu/hyacinth beans/field beans/mochai. Come season and I’m ready to peel the tender pods and extract the beautiful seeds, fresh and green. These days we are getting fresh beans and to my delight it has a good flavor too.

Recently on my visit to a gourmet store here, I picked some barley dalia or barley’s coarse meal. I wanted to use it in an innovative way, especially since I was cooking the barley dalia for the first time. I was super excited with the preparation I wanted to try and at the same time apprehensive too. I thought for the first time I was getting a bit ambitious since I did not know how much time it would take to cook but I had used pearl barley in my cooking earlier, so that helped me. .. I realized while cooking, that’s what the foodie in me wanted, some adrenalin rush and then a hopefully a decent foodie treat at the end…

Before I elaborate more about the preparation, I do want to emphasize on the importance and health benefits of this grain. For me, Barley is a powerhouse of nutrition. This centuries-old grain is packed with fiber, contains important vitamins and minerals, is slim on fat, and, like all plant products, cholesterol-free. It is also low on GI (glycemic index) making it useful for diabetics. Since it is an excellent source of dietary fiber, especially the  beta-glucan soluble fiber. Research shows that barley beta-glucan soluble fiber promotes healthy blood sugar by slowing glucose absorption and thus helping the diabetics. Barley is also a good diuretic and helps in cleansing the urinary system. With so many  health benefits it is a grain to be eaten frequently and that’s what I’m going to do now..eat healthy and stay fit!!

Coming back to the recipe.. I did not take a risk and soaked the barley meal  and kept checking the grain every 15mins and realized it soaks faster as compared to pearl barley, the grain had soaked well in an hour. I had the hyacinth beans peeled and stored in the fridge and also had freshly grated coconut. I walked on similar lines of  the Avarekaalu Uppittu that my family loves. Fortunately, the cooking procedure was not at all daunting and the daliya/upma was ready in 20mins. I guess, the soaking helped and it reduced the cooking time too.. I ate a small portion of the upma and realized that the grain is very filling and the upma tasted good with the addition of the beans which also adds nice flavor. I also felt that I should have added more green chilies since the grain by itself is nutty and sticky. A spicy upma would have tasted better for my palate, sadly I’m not able to get hold of spicy green chilies these days… Next time I make this, it will definitely have more chilies!!!

Soaking Time:1hour

Preparation Time:5mins

Cooking Time:20-25mins

Serves:4

 

 

Ingredients

3cups of soaked barley dalia/ coarse meal

1cup avarekaalu/ hyacinth/field beans/mochai

6-7 green chilies, finely chopped (use spicy ones)

3tbsp chopped coriander leaves and stem

2tbsp chopped curry leaves/ kadhi patta

1tsp mustard seeds

5-6tbsp refined oil

salt to taste

2tbsp urad-chana dal mix

3-4 cups,boiling water

Method

Wash and soak the barley dalia for an hour.

Boil the avarekaalu/hyacinth beans with some salt to taste in a pan.

Heat oil in a heavy bottom non stick pan. Add the mustard, let it splutter.

Add the urad chana dal mix and fry it light golden.

Add the green chilies, curry leaves and sauté.

Add the coriander too and mix. This adds a nice flavor to the upma.

Tip in the soaked barley meal/dalia. In my case the grains had absorbed all the water. Mix it properly in oil and add salt to taste. Roast it in the oil for 2-3mins.

Add the cooked avarekaalu and give a good stir.

Add the coconut and mix.

Finally, using a measuring cup add 2cups of boiling water (remember avarkaalu also has water).  I felt that 1cup boiling water to 1cup soaked barley was the ratio I followed. Once the mixture boils, put the lid and simmer the flame, cook till done. If required add more boiling water.

Serve hot.

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Chana Dal Pilaf/ Khichadi; Winner Of Only Cooking From Royal Kitchen

Hi All!

There are always days when you are not in a mood to cook an elaborate meal and what one is looking forward, is to have a one pot meal which is healthy and filling. I was also in such a mood today. For an unknown reason my right leg muscle has got pulled and I am not able to walk properly, so wanted to cook something very quick without straining the leg. S, was also going to come home for lunch as he has to travel on work for a few days, so I had to cook, there was no option of escaping..

I postponed cooking as much as possible and then finally I pushed myself into the kitchen a little before the noon. I was still undecided. S, had told me that he would eat khichadi but I was in no mood to eat the regular moong dal khichadi. I wanted to eat something different and yet simple…

I rummaged through my containers to see if anything excited me.. in this process I spent another 15mins and my leg started talking to me. I had to think fast and cook quickly too..Finally I landed myself on the chana dal (Bengal Gram) and decided to make a rice preparation with it which could be called a khichadi or a pilaf. I guess I had read this recipe somewhere while surfing cookbooks at landmark and the recipe got imprinted in my brain for it’s simplicity. I do not remember whether the preparation was a pilaf or khichadi but for me the thought of cooking Pilaf satisfied me..I was not going to have khichadi. What  I was cooking  was a kind of  khichadi made pilaf style..basically I was cooking with rice and lentils but the taste and texture had to be of the pilaf.

I did not add any turmeric to my preparation as I wanted the yellow grains of the Bengal Gram to shine through the white grains of the rice. I also added very less spices and concentrated more on the aroma and flavors. I wanted it to have subtle taste which would just play lightly on my palate and to my delight I achieved it too..the khichadi/pilaf was an unusual combination for me with light flavors and a beautiful aroma, I loved the preparation to the core and so did S..I know, I’ve run into one jackpot recipe which is also a one pot meal ..it’s a simple preparation which most of the people would like to eat and cook!!

I served it with a quickly made, tomato cucumber raita and jackfruit pickle.

Chana Dal Pilaf/ Khichadi

      Serves:3

   Soaking Time: 1hour

Preparation Time: 10mins

     Cooking Time: 15mins

Ingredients

1cup Bengal gram (soak for an hour)

1cup rice (soak for half an hour), I used small grain rice

5-6pepper corns (add more if you like spicy)

2-3cloves

a small pinch of asafetida mixed with water

about 4 to 5cups of water ( as per your rice quality)

salt to taste

For Tempering

1-2bay leaves

2tbsp oil

2tbsp ghee/ clarified butter

one onion sliced

1/2tsp cumin

Method

Soak the rice and dal for the mentioned time. Do not add excess water for soaking, it should just enough to dip the lentil and rice.

In a pan heat oil and ghee (one can use only ghee or only oil, choice is yours).

Add the cumin and let it splutter.

Add the bay leaf.

Tip in the onions.

Crush the pepper and cloves together and add to the onions, mix.

Add salt to taste, mix.

Once the onions are cooked, add the rice and lentil and saute for a few minutes. Also add the asafetida mixed in water.

Add boiling water the rice-lentil mix. Cook covered till done. (Give quick stirs while cooking). Ensure, that you have not added excess water unless you prefer your rice mushy..

Serve hot with raita and pickle. If you, like you can also add a little ghee on the top of the pilaf.

Coming to the winner of ‘Only’ Cooking from the Royal Kitchens, out of the 58 Indian entries sent to Divya, I’ve picked the winner. I’ve followed my principle of picking a winner who is also a follower of my blog Publically and not picked from those who do not follow my blog publically.

The random number that I got who is also a follower of my space is no.26, which was a post on Khajur pak posted by Sanoli Ghosh. Congrats Sanoli, you will receive a book on Punjabi Subzis from www.tarladalal.com, who are the sponsors of the event giveaway. Please mail me your address with a landmark, pin code and also your landline/cell number to cookingoodfood@gmail.com within two days. In case Sanoli is not able to claim her win, I’ll pick another winner after two days.

I hope you enjoy reading my posts, your feedback is always awaited!!! Will meet you all in my next post, till then see you..

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