India (8.5.19)
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Recipes contributed by Gauri Shevatekar.
Gauri treated us to another night of delicious Indian home cooking. Don't be daunted by the long list of ingredients -- the processes aren't too complicated, and the result is well worth it! Click here to download these recipes. Want to try more Indian recipes? Click here for the archive from our program in 2010. Click here for the archive from our program in 2012. Click here for the archive from our program in 2013. Click here for the archive from our program in 2015. Click here for the archive from our program in 2018. Click here for the archive from our program in Feb 2023. Click here for the archive from our program in Oct 2023. |
Chana Masala
From https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/punjabi-chole-chickpeas-in-a-spicy-gravy/
Ingredients
For pressure cooking chole or chana
• 1 cup dried white chickpeas OR 200 grams white chickpeas (garbanzo beans, kabuli chana or safed chole)
• 2.5 to 3 cups water for pressure cooking the chickpeas
• 2 to 3 dried amla OR indian gooseberry or 1 black tea bag, optional
• ½ teaspoon salt or add as required
For cooking chana in a pot, rather than a pressure-cooker:
1. For 1.5 to 2 cups of soaked & drained chole, use about 5-6 cups of water.
2. Adding a pinch of baking soda in the water along with salt helps in the cooking process and the chana becomes really soft.
3. You can add about 1 tsp of salt. A little less salt is also alright.
4. Cover the pot and cook the chana. If the water starts to become frothy, then remove the lid and cook chana for some minutes. Remove the scum if there is any while cooking the chana.
Ingredients for chana masala gravy
• 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium sized tomato, finely chopped
• 2 to 3 small garlic cloves + ½ inch ginger, crushed to a paste in a mortar-pestle or ½ tsp ginger-garlic paste
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
• ½ teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch powder)
• ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder optional
• ¾ to 1 teaspoon amchur powder (dry mango powder), optional and only to be added when you do not have dry pomegranate seeds
• 2 to 3 green chilies slit
• 1 to 1.25 cups water or the stock in which the chickpeas were cooked
• 1.5 to 2 tablespoon oil
• salt as required
Spices for chana masala
• 2 black cardamoms (elaichi)
• 1 inch cinnamon (dalchini)
• 3 to 4 black peppers (sabut kali mirch)
• 2 cloves (lavang)
• 1 medium sized tej patta (indian bay leaf) or 2 small tej patta
• ¼ teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds (dhania)
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
• ½ teaspoon dry pomegranate seeds (anardana)
• 1 to 2 kashmiri dry red chilies (sookhi kashmiri lal mirch)
For garnishing chana masala
• some chopped coriander leaves (dhania patta)
• ½ inch ginger (adrak) julienne
• 1 medium onion sliced or chopped
• 1 medium tomato sliced or chopped
• 1 lime (nimbu) sliced or quartered
Notes
1. If you don't have amchur or dried pomegranate seeds, add lime or lemon juice toward the end.
2. You can also use canned chickpeas and add them once the tomatoes are sautéed.
Instructions
Soaking and cooking chana
1. Rinse and soak the chole (chickpeas) in enough water overnight. Add enough water as the chole increase in size after soaking. Rinse the soaked chickpeas.
2. To give a dark color and faint sourness to the chana, traditionally dried amla (indian gooseberries) are added. If you do not have dried amla, then add 1 black tea bag.
3. In a pressure cooker add the chole along with the 3 to 4 dried amla pieces or a tea bag. Taj tea bags work very well. Then add water.
4. Season with salt and pressure cook the chana for 12 to 15 whistles. The chana should be cooked well, and soft when mashed with a spoon.
Roasting spices for making chana masala
1. In a pan, take all the whole spices for the chole masala mentioned above and on a low heat begin to roast them.
2. Stir often and roast the spices till they get extra browned. Don't burn them, but you have to keep roasting them even after they become fragrant and they get more browned than what is the norm.
3. Let the roasted spices cool and then grind them finely in a coffee grinder or in a dry grinder.
4. By now the chana will be cooked. You will see a darker brown shade in the safed (white chana). Remove the amla pieces which would have softened by now (or the tea bag).
5. Drain the chana, but reserve the stock.
Making chana masala
1. Heat oil in a pan or kadai. add ginger-garlic paste and sauté till their raw aroma goes away.
2. Add chopped onions and sauté till the onions turn translucent or light brown.
3. Add tomatoes & sauté them till they soften and the oil starts to leave the sides of the masala.
4. Add the powdered chole masala that we ground, along with the red chili powder, turmeric powder & garam masala powder (optional).
5. Stir the dry masala and then add slit green chilies.
6. Add the cooked chole. stir well.
7. Add salt. Then add about 1 to 1.25 cups of the stock in which the chana was boiled. You can also add water instead.
8. Stir and cover the chana.
Cooking chana masala
1. Simmer chole masala on a low to medium flame. You can also cook without the lid.
2. The chole masala gravy will thicken and reduce. Mash a few chana. This will help thicken the chana masala gravy.
3. Simmer till you get the consistency you prefer. The chana masala consistency is not thin, but medium consistency or dry.
4. If you did not add dry pomegranate seeds while roasting the spices, then you need to add amchur powder (dry mango powder) now. Stir the gravy well.
5. Garnish chole masala with coriander leaves & ginger julienne.
6. Serve the punjabi chole recipe with kulchas, bhaturas, pooris, rotis, along with sliced onions, tomatoes and lime.
7. This chickpea curry also tastes good with steamed rice or jeera rice.
Ingredients
For pressure cooking chole or chana
• 1 cup dried white chickpeas OR 200 grams white chickpeas (garbanzo beans, kabuli chana or safed chole)
• 2.5 to 3 cups water for pressure cooking the chickpeas
• 2 to 3 dried amla OR indian gooseberry or 1 black tea bag, optional
• ½ teaspoon salt or add as required
For cooking chana in a pot, rather than a pressure-cooker:
1. For 1.5 to 2 cups of soaked & drained chole, use about 5-6 cups of water.
2. Adding a pinch of baking soda in the water along with salt helps in the cooking process and the chana becomes really soft.
3. You can add about 1 tsp of salt. A little less salt is also alright.
4. Cover the pot and cook the chana. If the water starts to become frothy, then remove the lid and cook chana for some minutes. Remove the scum if there is any while cooking the chana.
Ingredients for chana masala gravy
• 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium sized tomato, finely chopped
• 2 to 3 small garlic cloves + ½ inch ginger, crushed to a paste in a mortar-pestle or ½ tsp ginger-garlic paste
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
• ½ teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch powder)
• ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder optional
• ¾ to 1 teaspoon amchur powder (dry mango powder), optional and only to be added when you do not have dry pomegranate seeds
• 2 to 3 green chilies slit
• 1 to 1.25 cups water or the stock in which the chickpeas were cooked
• 1.5 to 2 tablespoon oil
• salt as required
Spices for chana masala
• 2 black cardamoms (elaichi)
• 1 inch cinnamon (dalchini)
• 3 to 4 black peppers (sabut kali mirch)
• 2 cloves (lavang)
• 1 medium sized tej patta (indian bay leaf) or 2 small tej patta
• ¼ teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds (dhania)
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
• ½ teaspoon dry pomegranate seeds (anardana)
• 1 to 2 kashmiri dry red chilies (sookhi kashmiri lal mirch)
For garnishing chana masala
• some chopped coriander leaves (dhania patta)
• ½ inch ginger (adrak) julienne
• 1 medium onion sliced or chopped
• 1 medium tomato sliced or chopped
• 1 lime (nimbu) sliced or quartered
Notes
1. If you don't have amchur or dried pomegranate seeds, add lime or lemon juice toward the end.
2. You can also use canned chickpeas and add them once the tomatoes are sautéed.
Instructions
Soaking and cooking chana
1. Rinse and soak the chole (chickpeas) in enough water overnight. Add enough water as the chole increase in size after soaking. Rinse the soaked chickpeas.
2. To give a dark color and faint sourness to the chana, traditionally dried amla (indian gooseberries) are added. If you do not have dried amla, then add 1 black tea bag.
3. In a pressure cooker add the chole along with the 3 to 4 dried amla pieces or a tea bag. Taj tea bags work very well. Then add water.
4. Season with salt and pressure cook the chana for 12 to 15 whistles. The chana should be cooked well, and soft when mashed with a spoon.
Roasting spices for making chana masala
1. In a pan, take all the whole spices for the chole masala mentioned above and on a low heat begin to roast them.
2. Stir often and roast the spices till they get extra browned. Don't burn them, but you have to keep roasting them even after they become fragrant and they get more browned than what is the norm.
3. Let the roasted spices cool and then grind them finely in a coffee grinder or in a dry grinder.
4. By now the chana will be cooked. You will see a darker brown shade in the safed (white chana). Remove the amla pieces which would have softened by now (or the tea bag).
5. Drain the chana, but reserve the stock.
Making chana masala
1. Heat oil in a pan or kadai. add ginger-garlic paste and sauté till their raw aroma goes away.
2. Add chopped onions and sauté till the onions turn translucent or light brown.
3. Add tomatoes & sauté them till they soften and the oil starts to leave the sides of the masala.
4. Add the powdered chole masala that we ground, along with the red chili powder, turmeric powder & garam masala powder (optional).
5. Stir the dry masala and then add slit green chilies.
6. Add the cooked chole. stir well.
7. Add salt. Then add about 1 to 1.25 cups of the stock in which the chana was boiled. You can also add water instead.
8. Stir and cover the chana.
Cooking chana masala
1. Simmer chole masala on a low to medium flame. You can also cook without the lid.
2. The chole masala gravy will thicken and reduce. Mash a few chana. This will help thicken the chana masala gravy.
3. Simmer till you get the consistency you prefer. The chana masala consistency is not thin, but medium consistency or dry.
4. If you did not add dry pomegranate seeds while roasting the spices, then you need to add amchur powder (dry mango powder) now. Stir the gravy well.
5. Garnish chole masala with coriander leaves & ginger julienne.
6. Serve the punjabi chole recipe with kulchas, bhaturas, pooris, rotis, along with sliced onions, tomatoes and lime.
7. This chickpea curry also tastes good with steamed rice or jeera rice.
Cauliflower Pulao
From https://blogexplore.com/food/rice-dishes/cauliflower-pulao-recipe-gobi-pulao/
Ingredients
for preparing cauliflower
• 1 1/2 cups small cauliflower florets / gobi
• A pinch of turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tbsp oil
• Salt to taste
other ingredients
• Coriander leaves for garnishing
• Salt to taste
for preparing rice pulao
• 1 cup basmati rice / long-grained rice
• 1 onion medium-sized
• 1-2 green chillies
• 1 tsp finely chopped garlic
• 1/2 tsp shahi jeera / black cumin seeds
• 1 bay leaf / tejpatta
• 2 green cardamom pods / elaichi
• 1 inch piece cinnamon / dalchini
• 2 cloves
• 1 tbsp oil
Instructions
Prepare rice:
Wash basmati rice 4-5 times with water. Then soak the rinsed basmati rice in enough water for around 30 minutes.
Prepare cauliflower
1. Separate cauliflower into small florets and rinse the florets.
2. Bring 2 1/2 cups water to boil in a pot. Add the cauliflower florets along with salt and pinch of turmeric powder. Let it boil for 4-5 minutes. Drain the water and set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadai or pan and add the parboiled cauliflower florets. Saute for 2-3 min.
4. Add red chilli powder and garam masala powder.
5. Let the cauliflower florets cook on a medium-low flame till they are browned. Check for salt and add required quantity if needed. Keep stirring occasionally to ensure even browning. Remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare cauliflower pulao
1. While the cauliflower is being fried, thinly slice the onion. Finely chop the peeled garlic.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pressure cooker. Add the whole spices – bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom pods and cloves. Saute for a few seconds.
3. Then add shahi jeera and once it changes color slightly, add the sliced onions and finely chopped garlic.
4. Fry till the onions turn almost golden brown in color. Now add the slit green chilies, pinch of turmeric powder and salt. Mix well.
5. Drain water from the soaked rice and add this soaked rice to the cooker. Mix gently and fry for a minute. Add 1 and 3/4 cups water and mix well.
6. Close the pressure cooker and pressure cook the rice for 2 whistles on a medium-high flame. Then remove from heat and set aside.
Assemble cauliflower pulao
1. Once the pressure has released from the cooker by itself, open the lid of the cooker and gently fluff the rice with a fork.
2. Add the fried cauliflower florets to the rice and gently mix. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves. Gobi pulao is now ready to be served.
Ingredients
for preparing cauliflower
• 1 1/2 cups small cauliflower florets / gobi
• A pinch of turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tbsp oil
• Salt to taste
other ingredients
• Coriander leaves for garnishing
• Salt to taste
for preparing rice pulao
• 1 cup basmati rice / long-grained rice
• 1 onion medium-sized
• 1-2 green chillies
• 1 tsp finely chopped garlic
• 1/2 tsp shahi jeera / black cumin seeds
• 1 bay leaf / tejpatta
• 2 green cardamom pods / elaichi
• 1 inch piece cinnamon / dalchini
• 2 cloves
• 1 tbsp oil
Instructions
Prepare rice:
Wash basmati rice 4-5 times with water. Then soak the rinsed basmati rice in enough water for around 30 minutes.
Prepare cauliflower
1. Separate cauliflower into small florets and rinse the florets.
2. Bring 2 1/2 cups water to boil in a pot. Add the cauliflower florets along with salt and pinch of turmeric powder. Let it boil for 4-5 minutes. Drain the water and set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadai or pan and add the parboiled cauliflower florets. Saute for 2-3 min.
4. Add red chilli powder and garam masala powder.
5. Let the cauliflower florets cook on a medium-low flame till they are browned. Check for salt and add required quantity if needed. Keep stirring occasionally to ensure even browning. Remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare cauliflower pulao
1. While the cauliflower is being fried, thinly slice the onion. Finely chop the peeled garlic.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pressure cooker. Add the whole spices – bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom pods and cloves. Saute for a few seconds.
3. Then add shahi jeera and once it changes color slightly, add the sliced onions and finely chopped garlic.
4. Fry till the onions turn almost golden brown in color. Now add the slit green chilies, pinch of turmeric powder and salt. Mix well.
5. Drain water from the soaked rice and add this soaked rice to the cooker. Mix gently and fry for a minute. Add 1 and 3/4 cups water and mix well.
6. Close the pressure cooker and pressure cook the rice for 2 whistles on a medium-high flame. Then remove from heat and set aside.
Assemble cauliflower pulao
1. Once the pressure has released from the cooker by itself, open the lid of the cooker and gently fluff the rice with a fork.
2. Add the fried cauliflower florets to the rice and gently mix. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves. Gobi pulao is now ready to be served.