Dish 5.0

Stuffed Aubergines (serves 2)


The Aubergines are stuffed with a paste, the remaining paste forms the sauce of this curry. When I cooked this dish I used small aubergines, about the same size as a tennis ball. Although larger aubergines can be used for this dish, the smaller the better, apparently the smaller ones taste much better. Traditionally this dish would be served with chapati or paratha and Dal but I'd probably have a biryani or rice.

        Ingredients


                     4 x sm Aubergines
                     2-3 x sm Onion
                     1 x sm cubed Potatoes (uncooked)
                     1 x tsp chopped Onion
                     1-2  x Tomatoes


        Ingredients to make the spice paste

                     In a separate bowl:-

                     4  x tsp Onion paste
                   1/2 x tsp Garlic paste
                   1/2 x tsp Ginger paste
                      1 x tsp red chili powder
                  1/2  x tsp coriander powder
               Pinch - Salt
               Pinch - Turmeric
                   1/4 x tsp Garam Masla

Combine all the above ingredients in a bowl and mix.

Method


Firstly you need to stuff the onions and aubergines with a little of the spice paste, to do this half cut half way through the length of the onions and aubergines. Gently open out the slit and stuff some paste inside. Repeat.

Now take a frying pan/wok and add 2 tbsp of cooking oil. When the oil is hot add the chopped onions. You want the onions to be slightly browned before adding the cubed potatoes, onions and aubergines.

Cook for 2-3 mins then add the remaining paste. Cook for 2 more minutes and then add 1/2 cup of water and mix. Now cover and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook until it softens, stir and serve.

Dish 3.0

Paneer

Paneer is a soft cheese widely used in Indian cooking, as many Indians are vegetarian, paneer is used in place of meat in many dishes, it can be used in curries, as a kebab along with vegetables, fried in a batter (pakora) or simply eaten in salads.

Paneer is made like other cheeses, from milk. Here in India they mainly use buffalo milk to make the cheese but I have been assured that cows milk will work just as well.

The milk is first heated, separated and then drained. Weights are applied to help the cheese drain and set.

I have never tried to make any sort of cheese before and have never even seen anyone making paneer, but it sounds pretty straight forward and i think it is well worth trying. Paneer can be bought back in the UK but I think it is rather expensive, why not try to make a small amount first to see how it goes.


Ingredients and equipment to make a small amount of Paneer

              

                  2  - litre Milk
                   1 - sm Lemon, juiced.
             10kg - Weight
           1m sq - Muslin cloth for draining.
            20cm - String to tie cotton

 Method

Firstly pour the milk into a pan/wok and heat until it starts to bubble, remove from heat and add lemon juice. This should make the milk separate. Once separated remove as much water as possible and collect the remaining liquid in the muslin, gather the ends together to form a ball and hang to drain off the excess liquid. After a few Min's tighten the muslin ball and tie using the string. Place the ball on a hard surface and apply the weight, this will help to remove any excess water and allow the cheese to set. After about 30 Min's the cheese should be ready to use. Paneer can be frozen or kept in the fridge for up to 8 days.

Dish 2.0

Veg Samosa   (6 small)


Veg Samosas are usually served as a snack or starter and vary in size and shape. The filling can be veg, meat or both. Samosa refers to a small turnover of Indian origin filled with vegetables or meat and fried and served hot. There are a huge combination of fillings that could be experimented with but I have chosen to explain how to make a traditional Indian vegetable samosa.

    Ingredients for making the samosa pastry


               100g White Flour (plain)
                Pinch Carvway seeds
                Pinch Salt
                Little Water


Method

In a Bowl combine the flour, carvway seeds and salt and mix. Now add a small amount of water and mix, continue to add a little water at a time until a doughy consistency is obtained. The dough should be firm but not dry, now knead until all lumps are gone, set aside and cover until ready to use.



            Ingredients for the filling


                           1 & 1/2 - Cooked, peeled boiled potatoes
                                    3  x  tsp frozen Green Peas
                                    2  x  tsp chopped onion
                                    2  x  tsp chopped fresh Coriander leaves
                                 1/2  x tsp Coriander powder
                                           Pinch - Turmeric
                                    1  x tsp Garam Masala
                                 1/2  x tsp Salt
                                 1/2  x tsp Ansi seeds
                                 1/2  x tsp Cumin seeds
                                     1 x tsp Red chili powder
                                           Pinch - Lemon salt
                                           Pinch - Hing
                                           Pinch - Carvway seeds
                                    1  x tsp Kastrui Mathi

Method

Firstly combine all of the filling ingredients in a bowl and mix, mash the potatoes into a paste and when well mixed and smooth set aside. Now take a small piece of dough and roll into a ball, using a rolling pin roll out until it is thin and round, use plain flour to prevent the dough from sticking to the rolling pin.

Now take the flat dough and fold around your fingers creating an envelope, use water to seal the seem, take a small amount of filling and stuff into the envelope. Again using water seal the samosa and repeat. Traditionally samosas are triangular in shape, it can take a while and a lot of practice to master the folding of the dough, so if you are finding it difficult why not try a Cornish pasty styled samosa.

Cooking

Samosas are deep fried in oil, using either a deep fat fryer or a pan, heat the oil until it is hot but not smoking. Take a samosa and carefully drop into the oil. Fry until golden brown, a cooked samosa should float when cooked, remove onto tissue paper to absorb any excess oil and enjoy.

Dish 1.0

Veg Pakora


I have choosen to explain how to make a veg pakora but you can also use the same batter mix to make panneer pakora, onion pakora, meat pakora or anything else you fancy. Pakora simply means a piece of vegatable or meat deep fried in a batter flavored with spices. To make the pakora batter you will need

           Ingradients:-

                           1  x  cup Gram Flour
                        1/2  x  cup of vegetables (any)
                        1/2  x  tsp Red chilli powder
                        1/4  x tsp Coriander powder
                         Pinch - Turmeric
                        1  x tsp Garam Masala
                        1/2  x  tsp Salt
                        1/2  x  tsp Anise seeds
                        1/2  x  tsp Cumin seeds
                         Pinch - Lemon salt
                         Pinch - Hing
                        1/4  x tsp Carvway seeds
                           1  x tsp Kastrui Mathi       

Method

Combine all the ingradients and spices in a bowl and mix, add half cup of water (250ml), mix again, until batter consistancy is obtained.

Cooking

Pakoras are deep fried in oil, using either a deep fat fryer or a pan heat the oil until it is hot but not smoking. Take a small piece of veg/meat or if using onions form a small ball and carefully drop into the oil. Fry until golden brown, remove onto tissue paper to absorb any excess oil and eat. Serve.

Pakora can be eaten as a snack, a starter or as a main meal depending on quantity and size, why not try mixed veg, meat and panneer pakoras accompanied with dips and salad.

Introduction

"Indian cuisine is the general name for the foods of the Indian subcontinent, characterized by the extensive use of various spices, herbs and other vegetables, and sometimes fruits grown in India and also for the widespread practice of vegetarianism in Indian society. Each family of Indian cuisine includes a wide assortment of dishes and cooking techniques. As a consequence, it varies from region to region, reflecting the varied demographics of the ethnically-diverse subcontinent.Hindu beliefs and culture have played an influential role in the evolution of Indian cuisine. However, cuisine across India also evolved as a result of the subcontinent's large-scale cultural interactions with Mongols and Britain making it a unique blend of some various cuisines. The spice trade between India and Europe is often cited as the main catalyst for Europe's Age of Discovery. The colonial period introduced European cooking styles to India, adding to the flexibility and diversity of Indian cuisine. Indian cuisine has influenced cuisines across the world, especially those from Southeast Asia and the Caribbean".


In this Blog I am going to try and share my limited knowledge of Indian cuisine, starting with the basic ingredients and explaining how to make a few dishes that I have learned to make.




Basic Ingredients


Although there are hundreds of different spices used in many different forms in indian cooking I am going to consentrate on the  7 main spices used in Indian cookin. Below is a picture showing these spices:-

There are 3 more very important ingredients used in indian cooking and these are used in paste form. To make a paste you simply mash the ingredient until a smooth texture is obtained. Below is a picture showing the 3 pastes:-

Other important ingredients include:-

Leomon Salt - made with 50% lemon juice and 50% salt, leave till juice has evaporated naturally, then use.
Gram Flour - made from ground yellow lentils. (used in veg/panneer pakora).
Hing (indian)
Kastrui mathi (indian)
Agnomota
Carvway Seed (Rai) (indian)

Note - * Some ingradients will be quite difficult to obtain back in the uk and are not going to stop the dish from tasting    good, so if you can use them do, if not don't worry, it'll still be good.

I am now going to describe how to make a few different dishes, the measurements given are only a rough guide and you will have to adjust things like salt and chilli powder to your own taste, these dishes are medium spiced. Portion size will also have to be adjusted accordingly so I would reccommend trying each using the specified quantities and then adjusting for more or less people, enjoy.