Hostel Kitchen Delite

I'm currently staying in a hostel in Bangalore. Ideally we are not allowed to cook in our hostel, but we have an electric heater where we can boil milk/water & cook some easy-to-cook dishes. I thought of trying out a sabzi from whatever was available! All I had was some onions, potatoes & tomatoes....thought of chopping them & tossing in oil, nothing more can be done on an electric coil after all! So poured the oil in my pan & added my chopped veggies. I was all set for a potato stir fry......but alas the current went off & so did my hopes of cooking up a dish for myself! I thought of giving a shot at asking the mess cooks to let me use the gas coz you never know when the current would be back. After a bit of persuading they agreed!

So there I was finally cooking on gas as I use to at home! Besides my pan was milk bubbling away & on the shelf was the red hot chilli powder & chat masala.........thought of using all these & see the outcome! So in went the chilly & the chat with a whole glass of milk......potatoes cooking away till there was just enough gravy left sticking the potatoes with oil oozing out of the sautéed onions & tomatoes!

It tasted yummy........I did not think that potatoes would go so well with milk & that milk in a spicy gravy would add texture & thicken it to perfection! I had it with bread but i think it'll taste good with just about anything or even plain! Enjoyed the creamy gravy, almost landed up licking the vessel!!

Recipe:

Ingredients:

potatoes - 2 medium

onion - 1 large

tomatoes - 2 small

ginger-garlic paste - 2 tbsp

oil - 3 tbsp

chilli powder - 2 tsp

chat masala - 1 tsp

milk - 250 ml

sugar - 1 tsp

salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil in a pan, fry ginger-garlic paste.  Add onions & fry them. Add potatoes & tomatoes, fry for 2/3mins. Add sugar, salt & milk. Cook till potatoes are cooked. Add water if needed. When potatoes are cooked, dry the remaining moisture till oil starts leaving the sides of the vessel. There should be just enough gravy to coat the potatoes. Now simply enjoy the creamilicious dish with bread or just about anything, even plain!

Mumbai in Ramzaan

The holi month of Ramzaan is here again & Im heading out like every year to Mohammed Ali road in south Mumbai. Although its a lil too crowded, one may think of avoiding walking into the crouds but i suggest walking is the best way to sample the delicacies & take in the aromas.

The sidewalks on this road & in the bylanes on both sides,  in the evening after 7pm are filled with road side stalls selling all the lip-smaking Muslim fare from sheek kababs to phirni. 

Some road side delicacies:

Sheek kabab (mutton/beef)

Shammi kabab(mutton/beef)

Firni

Malpoa

Beef curry

Beef samosa

Chicken kababs

Bhaja fry(brain fry)

Kidney fry

Nalli nihari

Paya(soup/stew)

Kalegi masala(liver)

The fully lit Minara masjid is a must watch & the scandalising aromas of the barbeques,smoke from the grills & the burnt flavour of roast chicken are enough reasons for me to resist!

Two distinct Muslim communities reside here i.e.  shia-sunni muslims & bohri muslims who have their Bohra masjid a little ahead of Minara.

Two of the best restaurants to eat out here(dats if you are cleanliness & standard conscious & if you are still hungry after trying out the road-side savouries) are-

Noor mohammadi – try sanju baba chicken & nalli nihari(check if its beef/mutton)

Al-madina - all curries, dry frys,sukha masalas,kababs are good

beef samosas

 malpoa

 sheek kababs

 sheera

 phirni

mutton fry, kalegi sukha, tandori chicken

Try these at home,they are yummy!

Kesari  phirni

Ingredients:

Rice, (basmati) soaked for 1 hour - 5 tablespoons Milk full cream - 1 litre Sugar - 3/4 cup Green cardamom powder  - 1/2 teaspoon Saffron (kesar) soaked in milk - a generous pinch Gulab jal(rose water) - 1 tbsp Almonds, Pistachios blanched, peeled and sliced - 10 - 15

Method:
Drain and grind the rie to a coarse paste. Bring milk to a boil. Add rice paste to milk. Cook till milk thickens to coat back of spoon, stirring constantly. Add sugar and cardamom powder and cook till sugar is completely dissolved. Add saffron,rose water and mix well. Pour into earthenware or china bowls and garnish with dry fruits. Chill in a refrigerator for an hour before serving.

Sheek kabab

Ingredients:

500 gms Lamb Mince(Keema)
Brown Color
3/4 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Garlic (Lasun) paste
1 tblsp Raw Papaya Paste
1 tsp Ginger (Adrak) Paste
2 tblsp Cashewnut (Kaju)
2 tsp thick Cream (Malai)
2 Onion (Pyaj)
2 tsp Carom Seeds / Thyme (Ajwain)
2 tsp Dried Mango Powder (Amchoor)
2 tblsp Rock Salt (Kala Namak)
3 tblsp Cumin Seed (Jeera)
1 tblsp Dry Ginger (Saunth)
1 tsp Black Pepper (Kali Mirch)
1/2 tsp Nutmeg Powder(Jaiphal)

Method:

• Wash the keema and put in a strainer and gently press to squeezeout all the water.
• Mix all the ingredients to the keema and knead well.
• Keep aside for 1 hour.
• Heat a gas oven or an electric oven with the skewers.
• Take a big ball of the keema mixture and hold a hot skewer carefully in the other hand.
• Press the mince on to a hot skewer.
• The keema will immediately stick to the hot skewer.
• Repeat with left over mince on all the other skewers.
• Place the skewers in the oven.
• Keep rotating the skewers occasionally.
• When cooked, gently remove the kababs from the skewers with the help of a napkin.
• Shallow fry the kababs on a nonstick pans in 1 tablespoon oil.
• To serve sprinkle some chat masala and lemon juice on the kababs.

Cab Must Magic

Cabbage is a tasteless vegetable & as a sole ingredient in a dish would be a complete flop....but here is a recipe which makes this boring veggie a spicy side dish!

Ingredients:

2 cups cabbage

1 green chilly, chopped

1/2 cup coriander, chopped

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

pinch of pepper

1 tsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard paste

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil in wok. Put mustard seeds, let them crackle. Put pepper powder, chilly. Switch off the gas, put the ramaining ingredients & mix well. Your salad is all ready to eat!

Puffed Rice Bhel

Puffed rice (poha/avalakki) is usually cooked with a tadka of  mustard seeds,curry leaves,turmeric, chilly & onion & peas. This bhel is uncooked, a snack I made in my hostel as we were not allowed to cook. Some simple ingredients can together make an awesome dish, I discovered!

Ingredients:

2 cups puffed rice

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 green chillies, finely chopped

1 tsp ginger, finely chopped

1/2 cup coriander, finely chopped

2 tbsp sugar

salt to taste

Method:

Soak puffed rice in water & drain. Mix all ingredients together & you have a  ZERO OIL & filling, healthy dish all ready in no time!

Garlic Veggie

Healthy & tasty food is a rare but much needed combo. The goodness of mushrooms,mayo, corn combined with the awesome taste of garlic,pepper & italian herbs all stuffed into crisp butter toasted bread.....& there you have a sumptious brunch option!

Ingredients:

4 slices bread (whole wheat for the health consious)

4 tbsp mayo

1/2 tsp oregano

pinch of pepper

6 boiled mushrooms, finely chopped

4 tbsp capsicum,  finely chopped

4 tbsp  spring onion, finely chopped

4 tbsp boiled corn

1 tbsp garlic,  finely chopped

salt to taste

Method:

Mix all ingredients except bread. Apply butter to bread(optional) spread the mixture on bread & grill the sandwich. If grill is not available toast bread slices & stuff the filling inside & njoy!

Chicken Shawarma made at home!

Chicken Shawarma is a popular Middle Eastern dish. Marinated chicken chunks are mounted on a large rotating skewer and then roasted slowly to perfection against a gas burning grill & stuffed into bread along with french fries, onion & tomatos.

Ingredients:

• 200gm thinly cut skinless boneless chicken breast
• 2 tsp  of lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of crushed/powder oregano (or thyme)
• 1 teaspoon of paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon of ginger powder (optional)
• 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce
• 4 tablespoons of plain yogurt
• 1 tsp of white vinegar
• 4 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
•  Salt to taste

Method:

Marinate chicken with yoghurt, paprika,oregano,ketchup,vinegar & salt for 6-8 hours or overnight in the fridge. Grill the marinated chicken using a BBQ grill.You can fry/roast  the chicken on a frypan.  Once cooked, shred the chicken thinly. Make paste of garlic,oil,lemon juice. Spread on a pita bread/sandwich bread this paste ,add the shredded chicken, vinegar marignated cucumber,onion,French fries & tomatoes and enjoy!