Explicable Flavors

A research project carried out by IIT Jodhpur students revealed much about the innate Indian-ness of the now world renowned concept and the new-fangled word in the Oxford dictioanry, "Curry".

http://www.technologyreview.com/view/535451/data-mining-indian-recipes-reveals-new-food-pairing-phenomenon/?utm_campaign=socialsync&utm_medium=social-post&utm_source=facebook
http://arxiv.org/abs/1502.03815: Original Paper

EXCERPT:

The food pairing hypothesis is the idea that ingredients that share the same flavors ought to combine well in recipes. For example, the English chef Heston Blumenthal discovered that white chocolate and caviar share many flavors and turn out to be a good combination. Other unusual combinations that seem to confirm the hypothesis include strawberries and peas, asparagus and butter, and chocolate and blue cheese.

But in recent years researchers have begun to question how well this hypothesis holds in different cuisines. For example, food pairing seems to be common in North American and Western European cuisines but absent in cuisines from southern Europe and East Asia.

Today, Anupam Jain and pals at the Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur say the opposite effect occurs in Indian cuisine. In this part of the world, foods with common flavors are less likely to appear together in the same recipe. And the presence of certain spices make the negative food pairing effect even stronger.

Jain and co began their work by downloading more than 2,500 recipes from an online cooking database called TarlaDalal.com. These recipes come from eight sub-cuisines, including Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, and South Indian, which together span vast geographies, climates, and cultures in the Indian subcontinent.

Together, these recipes contain 194 different ingredients. The average recipe contains seven ingredients but some can contain up to 40. In particular, the Mughlai sub-cuisine has many recipes with exceptionally large numbers of ingredients, probably because of its royal heritage.

Jain and co then created a flavor network in which ingredients are linked if they appear together in the same recipe. The network can then be studied for interesting phenomenon such as clustering effects.

The question that the team set out to answer was to what extent food pairing is positive or negative. In other words, do ingredients sharing flavor compounds occur in the same recipe more often than if the ingredients were chosen at random.

The results make for interesting reading. Jain and co conclude that Indian cuisine is characterized by strong negative food pairing. Not only that, but the strength of this negative correlation is much higher than anything previously reported.

They also found that specific ingredients dramatically effect food pairing. For example, the presence of cayenne pepper strongly biases the flavor sharing pattern of Indian cuisine towards negative pairing. Other ingredients that have a similar effect include green bell pepper, coriander, garam masala, tamarind, ginger, cinnamon and so on.

In other words, spices make the negative food pairing effect more powerful, a phenomenon never seen before. “Our study reveals that spices occupy a unique position in the ingredient composition of Indian cuisine and play a major role in defining its characteristic profile,” say Jain and co.

That result has some interesting corollaries. In many cuisines, spices add flavor but also prevent food spoilage by killing certain types of bacteria. Jain and co say this medicinal role must have had a significant effect on the way recipes evolved since removing these ingredients would have had health impacts. “We conclude that the evolution of cooking driven by medicinal beliefs would have left its signature on traditional Indian recipes,” they say.

The result also has implications for the future of food. In the same way that Western chefs search for unusual ingredients that share the same flavors, negative food pairing may also drive the development of new flavor combinations and recipes in Indian food. “Our study could potentially lead to methods for creating novel Indian signature recipes, healthy recipe alterations and recipe recommender systems,” conclude Jain and co.

Beyond that, this work shows how powerful network science has become in analyzing disparate aspects of everyday life. Treating recipes as networks has turned out to be a powerful tool that is changing the way we think about food and how we consume it.

Green Corn Sweet n Sour

Babushka! This is the first recipe I am posting WHILE I cook it! And yes, this is an experiment. Yes, a super successful one too. The smooth spinach-based gravy flatters and the occasional sour, earthy bite of coriander teases the taste buds!

INGREDIENTS:

Oil
Cumin Seeds------------------------------------1 teaspoon
Whole Coriander Seeds-----------------------1/2 teaspoon
Fennel Seeds------------------------------------1/2 teaspoon
Onion (Chopped finely)-----------------------1 small
Butter--------------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Bay Leaf------------------------------------------1
Sweet Corn (boiled or softened)-------------2-3 cups
Ginger-garlic paste-----------------------------1 tablespoon
Tomato (Chopped finely)---------------------1 small
Spinach leaves----------------------------------100 gms
Green Chillies (Chopped finely)--------------2-3
Capsicum (Chopped finely)-------------------1/2 (Optional-for the added tang!)
Sour Cream--------------------------------------2 tablespoons
Sugar----------------------------------------------1.5 teaspoons
Red Chilly Powder-------------------------------1 teaspoon
Garam Masala Powder---------------------------1 teaspoon
Turmeric-------------------------------------------1/4 teaspoon
Water-----------------------------------------------1.5 cups
Salt

METHOD:

Soak the washed spinach leaves in water and salt mixture and boil it. Blanch it (After the spinach boils, immediately transfer them to cold running water in a perforated bowl). Let it cool. Transfer the strained spinach without squeezing all the water from it in a blender. Add the chopped green chillies and capsicum in the blender and grind to make a smooth green paste. Keep aside.
Heat oil in a skillet and add the bay leaf, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and coriander seeds. Wait for the seeds to sputter. Then add the chopped onions and fry them till they start browning. Add the ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell of ginger is gone. Then add the chopped tomatoes. Add salt, turmeric and red chilly powder. Fry them till the tomatoes soften. Now add the green paste from the blender and cook on low heat. Once the green mixture starts sputtering, add one and a half cups of water to the skillet. Keep cooking on low heat. Add the Garam Masala Powder, sugar and sour cream. Let it cook without raising the temperature. Now, as the mixture slowly starts leaving oil, add the boiled corn kernels into the green gravy. Let it cook for another five minutes on low heat. Transfer the curry in a vessel and add a dollop of butter for the oomph factor!

Quick Creamy Mushroom Masala (Not an intentional tongue-twister)

This entire recipe was the result of an intuitional 15 minute break between two classes and went on to feature regularly on my Saturday lunch menus! It's that simple, yummy and imperfect!

INGREDIENTS:
Onions (Chopped)--------------------------------1 medium
Tomatoes (Fionely chopped)-------------------1 small
Cumin seeds--------------------------------------1 teaspoon
Whole Coriander Seeds (Sabut Dhania)------1/2 teaspoon
Mushrooms (Chopped)-------------------------3 large portobello size
Yogurt---------------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Sour Cream---------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Garam Masala------------------------------------1 teaspoon
Ginger-Garlic Paste------------------------------1 tablespoon
Sugar----------------------------------------------2 teaspoons
Cumin Powder----------------------------------1/2 teaspoon
Coriander Powder-------------------------------1 teaspoon
Turmeric (a pinch)
Salt (To taste)
Oil (to cook)

METHOD:

Heat the oil in a pan, and add the cumin seeds and the whole coriander seeds. When they crackle, add in the onions, salt and the unboiled chopped mushrooms. Fry till the mushrooms begin to wilt and/or the onions began to brown on high heat. Next, add the ginger garlic paste, tomatoes and all the dry masala powders followed by yogurt. Fry on high heat till all the tomatoes become mushed. Add in the sugar and sour cream together and give it a quick stir. Lower thehat and fry till the curry begins to dissipate oil.

Sesame Egg Sandwich

INGREDIENTS:

Egg------------1
Hummus------1 tablespoon
Butter----------1/4 teaspoon
Bread slices--2
Cheese (Goat)
Salt and Pepper

METHOD:

Crack the egg and fry it in a pan for 15 seconds without any oil. Then add in the cheese and hummus and fry until the egg is properly cooked. Throw in the salt and pepper. Take it off the heat and keep aside. Toast the bread slices with the butter, apply the egg spread on your toast and call it a sandwich!

Sago Khichdi

INGREDIENTS:

Sago pearls(Sabudana, soaked overnight)------2 cups
Cumin Seeds (Jeera)------------------------------1.5 teaspoons
Peanuts(Whole or crushed)-----------------------2 tablespoons
Fennel Seeds (Saunf)-----------------------------1/2 teaspoons
Curry Leaves---------------------------------------1 teaspoon
Red Chilly Powder--------------------------------1/2 teaspoon
Dried Mango Powder(Amchoor)----------------1/2 teaspoon
Cumin Powder-------------------------------------1/2 teaspoon
Sugar-------------------------------------------------2 teaspoons
Salt (To taste)
Oil

METHOD:
Heat a little oil and add the peanuts, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and curry leaves. Fry until the cumin seeds start to crackle. Then add salt, turmeric, red chilly powder, dry mango powder and sago pearls. Fry on low heat for a while and then finally add the sugar! Serve immediately :D

Puliogare Rice

Credits of converting this dish from a mere Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR) fix to one of the tangiest dish on the party table again goes to the incredibly talented Deepanshi!

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

MTR Puliogare Powder----------------3/4 cup

Black Mustard Seeds (Rai)------------1.5 teaspoons

Whole Red Chillies----------------------2

Curry leaves-----------------------------8-10

Split Black lentils(Urad dal)----------1-2 teaspoons

Peanuts-----------------------------------2-3 tablespoons

Onions(Large and finely chopped)----1

Baby Carrots(Finely chopped)---------8-10

Cooked Rice------------------------------5-6 cups

Red Chilly Powder-----------------------1 teaspoon

Lemon Juice-------------------------------1 tablespoon

Coconut Milk-----------------------------1-2 tablespoons

Turmeric 

Salt

Oil

 

METHOD:

 

Heat oil in a karahi and add the black mustard seeds, whole red chillies, curry leaves, peanuts and urad daal. Wait for the daal to start changing colour. Now add the chopped onions, baby carrots and salt and fry on medium heat till the onions begin to turn pink.

 

 

Add the MTR Puliogare Powder and stir vigorously till the whole mixture starts takes an angry orange color! Immediately add the lemon juice, turmeric, red chilly powder and coconut milk. Keep stirring so that the puliogare powder doesn't stick to the bottom of the vessel. Add the cooked rice to the masala mixture and mix thoroughly.

 

  

 

Serve with fruity curd or smoothie and olives for a balanced palette! :)

Gryffindor Smoothie

It's almost twelve in the night. Posting all my quick-fixes in a row now.

INGREDIENTS:
Gelatinous or low fat yogurt------------1.5-2 cups
Strawberry or strawberry jam----------1 tablespoon
Pineapple (cubed)------------------------5-6 cubes
Honey-------------------------------------2-3 tablespoons

METHOD: Blend all the ingredients together. Period.

Spring Onion Creamy Dip

A versatile dip, goes with anything! Another one of my Frick-Tomorrow-This-Frozen-Vegetable-Schmush-Expires inventions!

INGREDIENTS:
Sour Cream: As much as you like, inversely proportionate to the amount of health-nuts featuring on your daily food-timetable
Green Spring Onions-As much as you can dig out of your fridge in order to salvage the dying greens on the sinking ship of soon-to-be-expired vegetables
Salt
Black Pepper

METHOD: Blend all the ingredients in a blender. Period.

Hummus Cheese Sandwich!

This recipe has made into my daily lunch timetable with the addition of one of the many kinds of lentil patties mentioned before, courtesy Deepanshi, who hosted me with opulent gusto in this strange land of thick-crusted pizzas!

INGREDIENTS:
Bread slices (The kind and the number depends upon your physiological bend of mind)
Cheese (If using goat cheese, go with the five-herb type, if using feta, try using garlic, if using any other, trust your instincts! :D )
Hummus (Any flavour under the sun will turn out to be just fine!)
Butter/Margarine

METHOD:
Toast the bread lightly in a little smidgen of butter/margarine. In the same pan, pour a generous helping of hummus and a miserly little droplet of cheese. Mix the two together until it starts sticking at the bottom of the pan. Spread on the toast, help yourself and feel a little less sorry at yourself for not waking up to mamma's morning poha for the next couple of hours!

Mushroom White Pasta

This recipe might have taken a non-negotiable fraction of Vrashank Bhaia (aka Daddy Cool)'s  stint here at Evanston (that's some suburb in Illinois he comes to visit every fortnight, denouncing the silver spoon for not being shiny enough) but he swears he wrote this effortlessly suave piece in under ten minutes!

 

Step 1: Go to Whole Foods with a lot of money and enthusiasm to spend the next hour or so cooking.

Ingredients to buy:

1. 100gms of All Purpose Wheat Flour (Maida. I know its not good for your stomach, but neither is )

2. Salted Butter (Coz buying unsalted for same price and adding salt doesnt make marwari sense)

3. Mushroom (diced would be nice. if you buy whole, you'll  have to dice them. I mean duh. )

4. Mozarrella cheese (but the one on discount - do I need to be telling you all this? God. Keep up!)

5. One Onion (One, not two. They're huge. You dont need more than a half for this.)

6. Green Chillies (no, you can't take them for free with Dhania here you gotta pay for this shit)

7. One Capsisum (Again, just the one. They come real big here for some reason.)

8. Olive Oil (You could just use Sunfoil that you got from India, but then you're making pasta, not palak. Go full Italian dude! 365 Whole Foods Olive Oil is nice)

9. Milk (2% fat. I am just kidding! buy whatever % you get man who cares!)

10. Pasta (365 Whole Foods Pasta is a good choice. Rigate will work, so will any other pasta so eeny meeny miny mo, catch a pasta enough lets go)

Step 2: Walk to your Kitchen

Step 3, and this is the most important one: Keep your phone aside. There will come a time for photos. Now is not the time.

Step 4: Chop capsicum however you want. Chop onions however you want. Chop the chillies if you want.

Step 5: Boil 3 cups of milk, then keep for cooling. Why? I'm gonna go all Oogway on you and say Everything is done for a reason.

Step 6: In a pan, heat olive oil for 20 seconds, then put the stuff you just chopped and fry. Add a spoon of butter. Then while its cooking, shove your face over the upcoming steam and inhale that breath of heaven. If thats what terrorists were promised in return for suicide missions, it'd make sense.

Step 7: In another pan, boil 3 glasses of water. Then put pasta (half the box for 2 people should be MORE than enough) and sprinkle salt. Boil it for 10 minutes and check if it has become moist. Here's the clever part (you'll thank me for it): If the pasta is soft, but you can still see the textured lines on it, TAKE IT OFF THE GAS RIGHT NOW!

Step 8: Now, comes the hard part. Alright you ready? Pull that sleeve up a little bit. Wipe the nonexistent sweat off your forehead to look prepared. Take a long breath and listen carefully.

Put 5 spoons of butter in a pan. Get it?

5 spoons. Five. Now, heat it. It becomes ghee right? Excellent! Now, put 2 tablespoons of the flour. While you're doing this, KEEP STIRRING. Oh man, I cant emphasize this enough. KEEP STIRRING. now you've put the flour and butter. Keep stirring till the edges of the pan become brown and slowly the brownish tinge comes into the center. Thats it! Thats the moment! Now, pour that milk! Just keep stirring just keep stirring, just keep stirring stirring stirring (Like Dory from Finding Nemo? No? Fine.). In a minute, this is going to become thicker and thicker till you're like "arre thick ho gaya!". Then you shut the gas.

Now, you have stirred vegetables. Boiled pasta. And White sauce.

Put everything together, add a glass of water, add salt and pepper. Now watch the magic come to life. The mushroom and butter is gong to combine with the milk and create that part of life called Happiness. This part right here - its called "achievement unlocked!".

What's left?

A photo and three hungry souls! All the best! Thank my friend who told me all of this

And This!

 

 

Black Chanas Cutlets

These patties either serve as a quick evening snack with spring onions dip or save precious morning minutes by sandwiching themselves within my hummus cheese spread toasts (Recipe for this lip-smacking quickmeal coming up next!) and turning my sorry breakfast into a sumptuous affair! An improvisation on my mom's Kebabs, I sometimes take the liberty to call them a vegan replacement to Shammi Kebabs, which although sounds slightly blasphemous but, essentially captures its, well, essence!

INGREDIENTS:

Black lentils (Kala Chana, soaked overnight, then boiled in a pressure cooker until just soft enough to be mashed)---------------------------------------------------2 cups
Gram Flour (Besan)-----------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Onions (small, chopped finely)----------------------------2
Green chillies (chopped finely)----------------------------2
Ginger-garlic paste------------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Dried Mango Powder (Amchoor) or Chat Masala------1 teaspoon
Garam Masala Powder--------------------------------------1 teaspoon
Red Chilly Powder-------------------------------------------1/2 teaspoon
Salt(To taste)
Oil (To shallow fry)

METHOD:

Mix and knead all the ingredients except the oil together (avoid adding water), make flat patties and shallow fry them in oil at medium heat!

 

Palak Tofu Kofta in Creamy Sauce

This one is an anglicized version of the famous palak-paneer kofta! Paneer is hard to come by in this little townling, so I made my own sketch of this party-recipe! Also, fresh cream is replaced by sour cream mixed with a little sugar, which, I discovered, improvises reasonably well.

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

For the Koftas:

 

Extra firm Tofu(Crumbled and mashed)-----250 gms

Spinach(Chopped finely)-----------------------1.5 cups

Onion(Chopped finely)-------------------------1 medium

Gram flour (Besan)------------------------------1 tablespoon

Garam Masala powder--------------------------1 teaspoon

Cumin seeds--------------------------------------1/2 teaspoons

Paprika or red chilly powder-------------------1/2 teaspoon (optional)

Green chillies(Finely chopped)----------------2

Salt(To taste)

Oil

 

For the gravy:

 

Onions(Large)---------------------------------------1.5

Tomatoes(medium)----------------------------------3

Whole coriander seeds(Sabut dhania)------------1 teaspoon

Cumin seeds-----------------------------------------1/2 teaspoon

Cashew Nuts(Preferably, soaked)----------------1/2 cup

Yogurt------------------------------------------------1/2 cup

Sour Cream-------------------------------------------1/2 cup

Sugar--------------------------------------------------1 teaspoon

Bay leaves--------------------------------------------1 large
Dried Mango Powder (Amchoor)-----------------1/2 teaspoon

Dried fenugreek leaves(Kasuri Methi)------------1.5 teaspoons

Red chilly Powder-----------------------------------1 teaspoon

Cumin Powder---------------------------------------1/2 teaspoon

Coriander Powder-----------------------------------1 teaspoon

Kitchen King Masala-------------------------------1 teaspoon

Turmeric----------------------------------------------1/4 teaspoon

Ginger-Garlic Paste---------------------------------1 tablespoon

Water

Salt(To taste)

Oil

 

METHOD:

 

Koftas:

 

Heat the oil and add the cumin seeds. When they start crackling, add the chopped onions. Saute them on medium heat until they start to brown. Add the chopped spinach, paprika, salt, garam masala and chopped green chillies. Fry the mixture till the spinach wilts and starts dissipating water. At this point, take the contents off the heat and place them in a mixing bowl. Add the gram flour and tofu, and knead all the ingredients together until they are firm enough to form dumplings. Shape them into little spheres. If the mixture starts crumbling, add a little more gram flour. Place the dumplings on a greased baking dish and microwave them for 90 seconds. You can also shallow fry them in low-fat oil. Koftas are ready.

 

Gravy:

 

First, blanch the tomatoes by placing them in boiling water for a minute. Take them out and immediately place them under cold running water. Let them cool, then blend them with the soaked cashew nuts to make a smooth paste. Keep aside.

Make a paste of the onions separately. Keep aside.

Heat a generous amount of oil and add bay leaves, cumin seeds and whole coriander seeds. Once they begin to crackle, add the ginger garlic paste. After stirring for 15-20 seconds, add the onion paste and green chillies. Wait for the mixture to turn aromatic. (But do not wait for it to turn into a cyclic organic compound!) Then add the tomato-cashew nuts paste, alongwith salt, red chilly powder, turmeric, coriander powder, dried mango powder, cumin powder and kitchen king masala,  and cook on medium flame until the mixture starts dissipating oil at the sides of the cooking vessel. At this point, whisk the yogurt and add into the mixture. Again wait for it to get absorbed and leave oil. Add water to the gravy until the desired consistency is reached. Mix the sugar with the sour cream and add into the mixture alongwith the dried fenugreek leaves. Place the koftas in the gravy and serve hot with rumali rotis or tawa chapattis! :)

UPMA

This is my savior for all those early Monday morning 8 O'clock classes! Super quick and a cakewalk to make! The special thing about upma is that almost all the ingredients are optional and it's always open to improvisation and spice-libbing! :D

INGREDIENTS:

Semolina (sooji)-------------------------------1 cup
Peanuts------------------------------------------2 tablespoons
Split Black Gram Lentils (Urad daal)-------1 teaspoon
Black Mustard (Rai)--------------------------1 tablespoon
Curry leaves------------------------------------1 tablespoon
Onions(Chopped)------------------------------1/2 cup

(You can try adding baby carrots, chopped parsley, celery, green chillies, potatoes, tomatoes-almost everything is just about right! This is my version of a quick morning breakfast!)

Red Chilly Powder----------------------------1 teaspoon
Turmeric (A pinch)
Salt (To taste)
Water--------------------------------------------1.75 cups
Oil

METHOD:
Heat oil in a pan/skillet and add the black mustard seeds, split black gram lentils, peanuts and curry leaves. Wait for them to crackle and then add the chopped onions and salt. As the onions start turning pink/brown (depending upon your choice of vessel), add the semolina, turmeric and red chilly powder. Fry until the semolina absorbs all the oil (about 30 seconds) and then add water. Turn off the heat to minimum and cover the vessel.
Take the vessel off the stove in about 3-4 minutes and till the desired consistency is reached.

Mushroom Stir Fry

Oriental bend took over one fine evening!

INGREDIENTS:
Mushrooms (Thinly sliced)-----------------2 cups
Soya Sauce------------------------------------1.5 teaspoons
Red Wine Vinegar---------------------------1.5 teaspoons
Honey------------------------------------------2 tablespoons
Sugar-------------------------------------------1.5 teaspoons
Ginger-Garlic Paste--------------------------3 teaspoons
Salt (To taste)
Oil (Sesame/Olive)---------------------------2 tablespoons

 

METHOD:
Mix the vinegar, soya sauce, honey and sugar in a bowl. Let it stand.
Heat the oil in a pan on high and wait for it to grow really hot! Then add the ginger-garlic paste and fry it on high, till a slightly burnt smell starts emanating. Add the unboiled mushrooms with the salt and fry until the mushrooms start leaving water and begin to wilt. Then add the vinegar mixture and keep frying until the desired consistency is reached. Serve hot with egg fried rice or rice noodles! :D

Black eyed Peas (Lobia) Cutlets

INGREDIENTS:

Black Eyed Beans (Lobia)--------1.5 cups

Gram Flour (Besan)----------------1 tablespoon

Salt (To taste)

Kitchen King Masala-------------- 1 teaspoon

Onion(Chopped)--------------------1 cup

Green Chillies(Chopped)----------2

Coriander Leaves(Chopped)------1 tablespoon

Oil (For shallow frying)

METHOD:

Soak the black eyed beans in water overnight. Then boil it in 3-4 cups of water. After it's boiled, mix all the ingredients in a blender and blend it for ten seconds. Do not blend it for long as then the dough will be too slurry to be made into cutlets. Make patties out of them and shallow fry in oil

Carrot Cutlets

This is a dish born purely out of my desire to use up baby carrots which were about to go bad the next day. It's a quickie!

INGREDIENTS:
Baby carrots (Ground in a blender)----1.5 cups
Gram Flour (Besan)----------------------1.5 teaspoons
Carom Seeds (Ajwain)-------------------0.5 teaspoons
Fennel Seeds (Saunf)---------------------0.5 teaspoons
Salt (To taste)
Oil (For frying)

Method:
Mix and knead all the ingredients except the oil and make a dough as shown in the picture. Don't add water or excessive besan or the dough will lose its consistency and instead of cutlets you will be making pakoras!

Heat oil in a pan and make the patties! :)

Gatte ki Sabzi

This is my version of the regular and very famous Gatte ki Sabzi, a pure Rajasthani Preparation. This goes well with ghee-laden rotis!!

 

INGREDIENTS:

Serves: 6

 

For the Gatte:

Gram Flour (Besan)---------------------------------1.5 cups

Yogurt (Dahi)----------------------------------------3/4th cup

Red chilly powder (or 1.5 times Paprika)-------3/4th tablespoon

Carom Seeds (Ajwain)------------------------------1 full teaspoon

Fennel Seeds (Saunf)--------------------------------1 teaspoon

Whole Coriander Seeds (Sabut Dhania)----------1.5 teaspoons

Salt (To taste)

Oil (Enough to grease your palms and make a dough)

Turmeric (Haldi)..................................................a pinch

 

For the Curry:

Yogurt (Dahi-whisked)-------------------------------1.5 cups

Onions(large-chopped)--------------------------------2

Cumin Seeds (jeera)-----------------------------------1 teaspoon

Green chillies(chopped)-------------------------------4

Ginger-Garlic Paste------------------------------------1.5 tablespoons

Garam Masala/Kitchen King Masala(For an irregular taste)----1 teaspoon

Turmeric (A pinch)

Red Chilly Powder-------------------------------------1.5 teaspoons

Coriander Powder--------------------------------------2 teaspoons

Salt (To taste)

Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Kasuri Methi)-----------1 teaspoon

Black Cumin seeds and ghee (Optional)

Oil

 

METHOD:
For the Gatte:

Knead all the ingredients together to form a fairly solid dough like the one shown below:

 

                                    

Don't mind the overtly reddish tendency of the pictures as the paprika found in the Indian Supermarket in Ames is a little too red to be normal!

 

Next, make long, cylindrical tubes about 8 inches long from the kneaded gram flour dough for the gatte. Grease your palms with oil if the dough sticks to them. Place the cylindrical shaped dough in boiling water and boil them until they are thoroughly cooked. To check if they are thoroughly cooked, stick a knife or fork into one of them. If the fork comes out clean, the dough is cooked. Keep the boiled water for use in the curry. Take the cylinders out of the water and cut them into small sizes (These are the sizes you would like each gatta to be of!)

Gattas are ready.

 

For the curry:

Heat the oil and add cumin seeds to it. After they brown and crackle, add the chopped(or ground into a paste) onions in it and fry till he onions turn pink. Add the garlic-ginger paste and the green chillies and fry them till the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes away. Add all the dry masalas except fenugreek leaves. Then add the whisked curd. Boil the gravy till it starts leaving oil at the sides of your vessel. Then add the boiled water from the gatta and boil it again till it starts leaving oil.

 

 

 

You might want to cover the vessel as the gravy may start to sputter. Add the dried fenugreek leaves. Add the cooked gattas into the gravy and serve hot!

For a stash of added spice, you might want to temper the gravy with a teaspoon of ghee, black cumin seeds (Shaheezeera) and red chilly powder!

Garlic Chutney

The garlic chutney is an indispensable side dish in my kitchen! Although a lot of versions for preparing this are prevalent, the following way stays longest without compromising the taste and is super easy and quick to make!

INGREDIENTS:
Garlic Paste (Readymade or freshly peeled and ground)------1 cup
Lemon Juice---------------------------------------------------------2 teaspoons
Fennel Seeds (Saunf)-----------------------------------------------1/2 tablespoon
Whole Coriander Seeds (Sabut Dhania)--------------------------1 tablespoon
Red Chilly Powder---------------------------------------------------1.5 tablespoons (or paprika-2 tablespoons)
Salt (To taste)

To serve: Ghee(Clarified butter).

Procedure:
Mix all the ingredients except ghee in a blender and blend until the desired consistency is reached. Store it in an air tight container in a refrigerator.
While serving, heat 1 part of ghee for three parts of the chutney and serve red hot.

This usually goes well with Daal-baati or kadhi or Gatte ki Sabzi!