Category Archives: Vegetarian

Cilantro Pesto

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Cilantro Pesto1

This recipe is a delightful version of the classic basil pesto, especially for people like me that are not big fans of basil.

Cilantro pesto can be used in several ways. Use it as a condiment on your sandwich and bruschetta or as dressing on pasta salad. Add lots of shredded cheese to it and use it as a filling in puffs. A tablespoon added to hummus or egg salad creates an extra layer of flavor. Garnish your tomato soup with cilantro pesto to take it to the next level. These are just a few ideas. I am sure you can come up with many more of your own. Until next week, have fun cooking.

Cilantro Pesto
Prep time: 8 minutes
Cooking time: 8 minutes
Makes: About 1 cup

Ingredients:
½ cup slivered almonds
2 cups cilantro, roughly chopped
1 shallot, roughly chopped
1 serrano chilli, chopped and seeded, optional
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup olive oil

Directions:
Place a small pan over medium heat. Add the almonds and roast them until they turn golden and fragrant. Remove and cool.

In the bowl of your food processor add the cooled almonds and pulse until coarsely chopped.

Add cilantro, shallot, serrano, garlic, parmesan cheese, salt, and lemon juice. Pulse until coarsely ground. With the food processor running, slowly drizzle olive oil. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to use.

Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup

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Broccoli Cheddar Soup2

Broccoli and cheddar cheese soup has always been a favorite of mine. It’s a comforting soup with all the creamy richness of cheddar cheese and broccoli. I still remember the first time I ordered it in a restaurant in California. I was hooked and I knew I had to learn how to make it.

You don’t need a whole lot of ingredients and it takes about 30 minutes to make from start to finish. Making the soup begins with a simple roux, like they make in restaurants. I’ve used whole milk, heavy cream, mild cheddar cheese, and vegetable stock. You could switch the mild cheddar for sharp cheddar cheese, if you please.

For a lighter version, you could use oilive oil, evaporated fat-free milk, reduced fat half and half, and reduced fat cheddar cheese. Also, make sure that you use low-sodium vegetable stock or make your stock from scratch using my vegetable stock recipe. I’ve also seen recipes using unsweetened almond or coconut milk instead of milk and heavy cream.

Well, here’s how you make my version of broccoli and cheddar cheese soup. I had it for lunch today, with a piece of whole wheat bread. I really enjoyed it and I hope you will too.

Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4-6

3 tablespoons butter
2 cups finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 cups whole milk
2 cups vegetable stock, (or chicken stock)
½ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 cups broccoli florets, (1 pound; I used some of the tender stems as well)
2 cups grated mild cheddar cheese, (8 ounces; set aside ¼ cup to garnish the soup)

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, until they turn soft. It will take about three minutes. Add garlic, thyme, and flour. Stir constantly and cook for one minute. While whisking, slowly pour in the milk, vegetable stock and heavy cream. Add salt and pepper. Stir constantly and cook until the mixture begins to bubble. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the broccoli. Cook for ten minutes, stirring once in a while, to make sure it is not catching to the bottom of the pan. Off the heat and add cheese. Stir until all the cheese is melted. Garnish each bowl of soup with a little grated cheese.

Note:  You could serve the soup as is or you could puree the soup in a blender, heat it up again, and then serve. I used a potato masher to mash half of the soup and I left the other half chunky. If the soup is too thick you can thin it down with vegetable stock or water.

Kadai Paneer – Paneer, Bell Pepper, and Onion cooked in a Kadai

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Kadai Paneer2

A kadai, sometimes spelled karahi, is a must in every Indian kitchen. In fact, most homes have several. One to cook vegetables in, one to cook sweets in, and one for deep frying. A kadai is a thick, circular, deep cooking vessel, traditionally made from cast iron or copper. It is used in kitchens in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal. It looks like a wok but it has steeper sides with two handles. Dishes typically made in a kadai have Afghan and Persian origins.

Don’t worry if you don’t own a kadai, you can still make this dish in a regular non-stick pot or wok. The paneer I buy is not as fresh and soft as the paneer we get in India. Hence, the extra step of soaking the pieces of paneer in hot water. If you get fresh paneer or if you make your own, you can skip this step. Kasoori methi is dry fenugreek leaves, which you can buy at an Indian grocery store. North Indians like the slight crunch of the kadai spice mix, but if you are not used to that, you can grind the spices to a powder. What makes my Kadai Paneer distinct is the kadai spice mix. Try it out once, and I think you’ll be hooked.

Kadai Paneer – Paneer, Bell Pepper, and Onion cooked in a Kadai
Prep time: 8 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves: 6

4 whole dry Kashmiri red chillies
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
4 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole black pepper corns
14 ounces paneer, (400 grams)
3 cups water
3 tablespoons oil
1-inch piece ginger, grated
6 cloves of garlic, grated
8 Roma tomatoes, diced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt
1 small onion, cut into wedges and petals separated
1 green bell pepper, cut into large cubes
1 teaspoon kasoori methi, (dry fenugreek leaves)
1 teaspoon garam masala, (preferably my garam masala)
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 green chillie, finely sliced, (optional)
1 tablespoon cilantro, finely chopped

To make the special kadai spice mix, roast dry Kashmiri red chillies, fennel seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and whole black pepper in a small non-stick frying pan over low heat, until they smell fragrant. Cool and grind to a coarse powder. I use a coffee grinder to do this. You could also use a mortar and pestle.

Cut paneer into pieces. For this recipe, I cut my paneer into small rectangular pieces. Heat three cups of water in a saucepan.  When the water boils, off the heat, and put panner pieces into the hot water. Allow it to soften while you continue with the next step. If you are using fresh or home-made paneer you can skip this step.

Heat oil in a kadai or wok over medium-high heat. When it shimmers, add one teaspoon of cumin seeds and wait until they splutter. Next add the grated ginger and garlic. Sauté for five seconds and then add tomatoes, tomato paste, and salt. Let the tomatoes cook for six to seven minutes or until the oil separates. Drain the paneer pieces and then add them to the dish. Reserve the water. Add one tablespoon of the ground kadai spice mix, capsicum, and onion. Mix well, add quarter cup of the reserved water, and let the vegetables cook for two minutes. You want the bell pepper and onion to have a crunch to them. Add crushed kasoori methi, the rest of the ground kadai spice mix, garam masala, and cream. Stir gently so paneer and vegetables are well coated with the creamy-tangy sauce. Garnish with sliced green chillies and chopped cilantro. Kadai paneer goes well with naan, roti or rice.

Cranberry Sauce

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Cranberry Sauce3

Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers and my Facebook friends. Here is a recipe for cranberry sauce that I make for my family Thanksgiving dinner. This recipe is so easy and delicious that you will never buy another can of cranberry sauce again! It has an Indian spin to it, in that, I add a little dry chilli flakes while cooking the cranberries, but it is totally optional. You can add it if you like. This recipe can be make in advance. Just heat it up and serve.

The recipe is very basic and you can make it your own by adding ingredients, such as, chopped Granny Smith apple, slivered almonds, pecans, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Instead of sugar you can use maple syrup and instead of orange juice you can use cranberry juice. So, once you have the basic recipe, you can dress it up with ingredients that you like.

Enjoy the tangy, sweet, and spicy taste of this super easy cranberry sauce at your thanksgiving table this year.

Cranberry Sauce
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 12 minutes
Serves: 6

1 cup water
¾ cup granulated sugar
12 ounces fresh cranberries, (340 g)
½ cup fresh orange juice
¼ teaspoon dry chilli flakes, (optional)
1 tablespoon orange zest
orange segments for garnish

In a small saucepan bring water to a simmer. Add sugar, fresh cranberries, orange juice, chilli flakes, and zest. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the cranberries begin to pop. It will take about 10-12 minutes.

Remove, dish out into a beautiful bowl, garnish with orange segments, and serve.

Mirchi ka Salan

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Mirch ka Salan

The spicy, tangy and nutty gravy of mirchi ka salan makes it the perfect accompaniment to biriyani. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the famous Hyderabadi biriyani. It goes well with vegetable biriyani, chicken biriyani, egg biriyani and any other biriyani you make. I even enjoy it with plain rice, puris and naan. I hope you will enjoy my version of mirchi ka salan.

Mirch ka Salan

Prep time: 8 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
10 large (mild) green chillies
2 tablespoons desiccated coconut
2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
2 tablespoon unsalted roasted peanuts
1 cup roughly chopped onion
2 tablespoons roughly chopped ginger
2 tablespoons roughly chopped garlic
¼ cup sesame oil/vegetable oil
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon nigella seeds
3 fenugreek seeds, (optional)
1 sprig curry leaves
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
3 teaspoons coriander powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
2½ cups water
Salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 teaspoons tamarind extract

Directions:
Wash, dry, and slit green chillies lengthwise without cutting the chillies into two. You can remove the seeds or leave them in depending on the amount of heat you prefer. In a large, non-stick frying pan add one tablespoon of oil. Shallow fry the chillies until the skin of the chillies blister. Set aside.

In a small non-stick frying pan, over medium heat, roast desiccated coconut until light brown. Remove and set aside. Next, roast white sesame seeds until lightly toasted. Put it along with the coconut. Cool completely. Add the roasted peanuts to the toasted coconut and sesame and grind all three to a smooth paste with three tablespoons of water. Set aside.

Next, grind the onion, ginger and garlic with two tablespoons of water. Set aside.

Place a heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Add three tablespoons of oil and when it shimmers, add the mustard, cumin, nigella, and fenugreek seeds. When the mustard seeds splutter, add the curry leaves and the ground onion, ginger, and garlic paste. Cook until it turns light brown and the raw smell of garlic disappears. Then add the ground desiccated coconut, sesame, and peanut along with the turmeric, coriander, cumin and chilli powder. Cook for two minutes. Add water, salt, brown sugar, tamarind extract, and bring to a boil. As soon as the gravy begins to boil, turn the heat to low. Add the green chillies and simmer for eight minutes or until the gravy thickens. Serve hot with biriyani, puris or naan.

Honey and Spice Roasted Almonds

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Honey & Spice Roasted Almonds4

WARNING – These Honey and Spice Roasted Almonds are highly addictive!

I’ve tried different spice mixes and I think I finally found the winning combination for these honey and spice roasted almonds. The fusion of sweet, salty, spicy, smoky flavors and, of course, the crunch makes these nuts the perfect snack. At least that is my opinion. Let me know what you think, once you’ve tried them yourself.

Honey and Spice Roasted Almonds
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 10

3 cups whole raw almonds with skins on
2 tablespoons Turbinado sugar, (raw sugar)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons chilli powder, (depending on heat and your preference)
½ teaspoon smoked paprika, (optional)
½ teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon coriander powder
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons peanut oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread almonds onto a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for eight minutes, rotate the pan, and bake for another eight minutes.

While almonds are toasting, combine sugar, salt, chilli, paprika, cumin, and coriander powder in a small bowl and set aside.

In a wide-bottomed saucepan bring honey, water, and oil to a boil, over medium-high heat. You will see small bubbles appear on the surface. Immediately stir in toasted almonds and cook until the nuts are all coated and the liquid is absorbed. Turn off the heat. Sprinkle the sugar, salt, and spice mix over the almonds. Toss well to coat all the almonds.

Spread nuts back onto the foil lined baking sheet in a single layer. Cool completely and break the almonds apart. The honey and spice roasted almonds can be stored in an air-tight container for a month. But, I bet they won’t last that long!

Stir-Fried Chinese Broccoli and Carrots

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Stir-Fried Chinese Broccoli and Carrots

I saw bunches of fresh Chinese broccoli or Kai-lan, as they called it in my local Chinese grocery store. I was curious, so bought two bunches and looked it up in Wikipedia. It comes from the same family as regular broccoli, but it has a much stronger taste.

How do you pick fresh Chinese broccoli? You select a bunch that has dark green leaves and you look at the end of the stalk. The middle of the stalk should be one color, a creamy translucent color. Old Chinese broccoli stems will be dried up, with a hard, white opaque center. So, don’t pick those.

This quick and easy stir-fry took less than 15 minutes to make. If you’ve tried cooking a new vegetable that you found in your grocery store, tell us about it in the comments section.

Stir-Fried Chinese Broccoli and Carrots
Adapted from Spicetrekkers
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 6 minutes
Serves: 4

15 stalks Chinese broccoli, washed and dried
2 carrots, peeled
2 tablespoons peanut oil
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
4 garlic cloves, peeled
½ cup sliced red onion
1 tablespoon minced ginger
½ teaspoon chilli flakes, (depending on heat and your preference)
Salt

Cut the Chinese broccoli into leaves and stalks. Trim and discard the very bottom of the stalks. Slice the stalks thinly at a sharp angle. Keep them in a bowl. Slice the carrots thinly at a sharp angle and put them in the bowl along with the stalks. Cut the leaves into bite size pieces and keep in a separate bowl.

Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat the sides of the wok. When the oil is hot, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the whole garlic cloves and stir-fry for five seconds. Add the onion and ginger and stir-fry for another five seconds. Then add the carrots and the sliced stalk. Stir-fry for two minutes. Add salt and the broccoli leaves. Continue stir-frying until the leaves are just wilted. Make sure that the vegetables are tender but somewhat crunchy. This dish goes well with rotis or parathas.

Kacha Aam ka Achar – Raw Mango Pickle

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Kacha Aam ka Achar7

This is a quick and easy recipe with ingredients that most Indian families have in their pantry. Recently, my local Asian grocery store has been selling raw mangoes. I am sure, like me, many of my Indian readers had mango trees growing in their gardens. As children, we could not wait for the tiny raw mangoes to grow large enough so we could pick them from the tree and eat them with chilli powder and salt. I wonder how many mouths are watering while you reminisce plucking raw mangoes from your mango trees or from your neighbor’s mango trees! I would love to hear your stories.

This is not a traditional mango pickle recipe that uses a lot of oil, salt or preservatives. I usually make this with one or two small raw mangoes and the pickle doesn’t last for more than two or three days. If you make this pickle just for yourself, then refrigerate it after a day.

Kacha Aam ka Achar – Raw Mango Pickle
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 3 minutes
Serves: 6-8

2 small raw mangoes, (about 4 cups, cut into small cubes)
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2-3 teaspoons chilli powder, (depending on heat and your preference)
3 teaspoons salt

Place a small non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add oil and when it shimmers and gets hot, add the mustard seeds. It will splutter all over the place, so quickly cover with a lid and turn off the heat. (Clarification – don’t turn the heat back on, but leave the pan on the burner.) When it stops spluttering, remove the lid, and add the garlic slices. Sauté in the oil for three seconds. Add chilli powder, salt, and the mango. Mix well so that all the mango pieces are well coated with the mustard, garlic, chilli, and salt spiced oil. Set aside to cool. In a couple of hours the spices and mango will meld, making this simple pickle a great accompaniment to any rice and curry meal.

Avial – Mixed Vegetables in a Lightly Spiced Creamy Sauce

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Avial2

Avial, sometimes spelled Aviyal, is a curry made with several different types of vegetables, yoghurt, and coconut. It is seasoned with coconut oil, curry leaves, and dry whole red chillies. Feasts in Kerala are incomplete with this wholesome, creamy, lightly-spiced dish.

The beauty of this dish lies in the uniformly cut, colorful, medley of vegetables cooked to al dente. There are different methods that can be used in cooking the vegetables. You could steam them, adding tougher vegetables that take longer to cook, first, and then adding the rest according the the time it will take to cook them. Or you could microwave the vegetables that take the longest to cook for a few minutes, to give them a head start, and then add them to the rest of the vegetables and cook them on the stove top, like I did in this recipe.

Vegetables that are most commonly used for avial are elephant yam, raw plantain, different types of pumpkin, French beans, cucumber, drumstick, bottle gourd, carrots, eggplant, and peas. It is difficult to find fresh drumstick where I live, so I’ve used frozen drumstick that I found at the Indian grocery store. You can substitute green raw mango or tamarind pulp for the yoghurt.

The secret of adding flavor and aroma to avial is the final step of seasoning the dish. So follow the steps carefully and I am sure will enjoy this simple but unusual vegetarian dish from Kerala.

Avial
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 6-8

1 raw banana
6-8 pieces of drumsticks, (frozen)
¼ cup water + 3 tablespoons
2 small red potatoes
2 small carrots
10-12 French beans
1 small bottle gourd
½ cup shelled green peas, (fresh or frozen)
1 cup grated coconut
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon crushed red chillies, (depending on heat and your preference)
3 green chillies, roughly chopped (depending on heat and your preference)
Salt to taste
1 cup yoghurt
3 tablespoons + ½ teaspoon coconut oil
1 sprig curry leaves
2 whole dry red chillies

Cut the ends of the raw banana and cut it in half. If you have fresh drumstick, peel and cut into 2 inch pieces or use frozen drumstick. Put these two vegetables in a microwave safe bowl with quarter cup of water and cook for eight minutes. Set aside to cool.

Cut the rest of the vegetables uniformly, lengthwise, into two-inch long pieces. Peel and cut the banana into two inch long pieces.

In a blender or food processor coarsely grind grated coconut, turmeric powder, cumin seeds, crushed red chillies, and green chillies.

In a large saucepan, over medium-high heat, add half a teaspoon of coconut oil. Add all the vegetables and sauté for five minutes. Add three tablespoons of water, salt to taste and turn the heat to low, cover with a lid, and let the vegetables cook for another five minutes.

Add the coarsely ground coconut and cover the vegetables with it. Turn the heat to medium-high and let the vegetables and coconut cook until you see steam coming through the ground coconut. About three minutes. Do not over cook the vegetables. Remove from heat.

Beat yoghurt with a fork until smooth. Add it to the vegetables and coconut mix. Stir gently with the handle of a wooden spoon.

In a small pan, over medium-high heat, add three tablespoons of coconut oil. When the oil is hot, add curry leaves and whole dry red chillis. Turn off the heat.  Pour this seasoning over the avial. Cover the dish with a lid and let it rest until time to serve. This dish goes well with steaming hot rice or as a side dish to any grand feast!

Cauliflower Manchurian

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Cauliflower Manchurian5

A few years ago, Cauliflower Manchurian (Gobi Manchurian in Hindi), was a dish that I always ordered when I went to a restaurant in India. It was so popular that every home cook wanted to learn how to make it, including me. So, I searched for recipes, learned some tips from my brother-in-law, and also asked restaurant chefs for their secrets to making this slightly crunchy, sweet and sour, spicy and garlicky delicacy.

Chinese seasoning and cooking techniques are used in making this dish. All the ingredients can be purchased at Indian grocery stores. You may even find them in the ethnic aisle of your major grocery store.  So, follow the recipe carefully and I am sure you will be pleased with the result. Cauliflower Manchurian is great as an appetizer or as a side dish with rotis or rice.

Cauliflower Manchurian
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6-8

For the Cauliflower Manchurian
1 cauliflower (2 pounds), cut into florets
½ cup corn starch
½ cup all purpose flour
2 tablespoons rice flour, (optional)
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
1 teaspoon pepper powder
1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons water + 2 tablespoons of water
Oil for deep frying

Microwave the cauliflower florets in two tablespoons of water for three minutes. Let stand for five minutes then drain and cool. Make a smooth batter with corn starch, flour, rice flour, chilli, pepper, salt, and six tablespoons of water. The batter should not be too thick or too thin, but it should be able to lightly coat the back of a spoon. Add a little more water if needed.

Heat a wok with enough oil for deep frying, about three inches. The oil is ready, when a very small dollop of batter that is put into the hot oil, comes up in a few seconds. Dip five or six cauliflower florets into the batter and fry until golden brown. Drain on a paper-towel lined tray.

For the Sauce
3 tablespoons sesame seed oil or canola oil
½ cup finely chopped shallots
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped green chilli, (depending on heat and your preference)
6 tablespoons chilli garlic sauce, (depending on your preference)
6 tablespoons tomato ketchup
2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
3 teaspoons Kashmiri chilli powder
¼ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons diagonally sliced spring onions, (green parts only)
2 teaspoons toasted white sesame seeds

In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, add oil. When the oil is shimmering, add shallots and fry until translucent. Add garlic and green chilli and sauté for two minutes. Add chilli garlic sauce, tomato ketchup, dark soy sauce, chilli powder, salt, and water.  Stir for a few seconds. Remove from heat.

Add the cauliflower manchurian to the sauce, five minutes before serving. This will keep them crisp. Garnish with spring onions and sesame seeds. Your slightly crunchy, sweet and sour, spicy and garlicky appetizer is ready to be served.