jeera

Healthy Baked White Fish with a mint and spice dressing

January 13, 2014 by manjirichitnis 26 Comments

Ladies this one is to be bookmarked and is perfect for any day when you want to treat your taste buds and yet not load on the calories.

Serves:2 Prep Time:5 Minutes Marination time :20 minutes In the Oven: 15 – 20 Minutes

Ingredients:

Fry Lite or olive oil 4 tsp
2 thick white fish fillets – I use Haddock
2 tbsp mint and coriander dressing
2 heaped tbsp ginger garlic paste
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
2 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp cumin powder
Handful of finely chopped spring onion
Handful of chives finely chopped
Freshly cracked black pepper to garnish
sea salt for garnish
1/2 lemon juice for garnish

Method:

Wash the fillets and place on a large dish to apply the marinade.
Sprinkle the red chilli powder, turmeric,coriander,cumin,salt and along with the ginger garlic paste and mint and coriander dressing mix well and totally coat the fish.
Marinate the fish for 20 minutes to allow the flavours to seep in and develop.
In a baking tray use just 4 sprays of fry lite and spread evenly across the tray, add the chopped spring onion and sprinkle with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
Place the marinated fish on this and sprinkle the finely chopped chives on the top.

Pre heat the oven to 200°C and bake for 15- 20 minutes.
Garnish with a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
Serve with a side of salad leaves and cherry tomatoes and a soft crusty baguette.

I know the photographs here look terrible but honestly by the time I got the fish ready on Sunday it was almost 3pm, had a lazy start to the day and by then the light was gone so even after cleaning up the image it is quite sorry looking and is no way doing justice to this awesome dish! I do hope that I can get better pictures next time!

I do hope you enjoy this recipe and share your thoughts if you make it! Cheers!

Just in the nick of time, I have entered this original recipe creation in the #Cookingwithherbs challenge by Karen Burns-Booth on her blog Lavender and Lovage. The theme for January 2014 is citrusy and herbs, this fish definitely has it all and a citrusy bang! I wonder why I haven’t entered this challenge in the past, most of the dishes use so many herbs especially lime, oh well, here’s to a fresh start!

Upma/Uppit (उप्पीट)- a classic Indian breakfast recipe

October 9, 2013 by manjirichitnis 4 Comments

In Marathi, my mother tongue we call this dish ”Uppit” and in the south of India its called Upma.

It’s a fluffy cooked breakfast made of roasted semolina and spices and can be customized by adding green peas and small carrot bits. I love eating this steaming hot garnished with a generous sprinkling of freshly chopped coriander and some finely grated fresh coconut – umm perfection, can almost feel a strong waft of the aroma swirl around my nose as I sit here and type the recipe 😉

After Kande Pohe this has to be my number one favourite Indian breakfast option. Agreed there’s a lot of ingredients but there’s a lot of flavour too!

In the Matunga area, there are many good Udipi restaurants who do upma on their breakfast menu and it’s so good gobbling fresh hot upma and dowing a cuppa or tow of hot filter coffee before getting to work on a busy weekday morning in Mumbai city. It’s very filling and budget-friendly too:) All you need is some time before rushing for the daily commute to ensure you can squeeze yourself into the restaurant and sit on one of the long wooden benches with complete strangers and hope to God you don’t have coriander stuck in between your front teeth if they smile at you 😉

Upma/Uppit (उप्पीट)- a classic Indian breakfast recipe

Manjiri Chitnis

Aclassic Indian savoury breakfast or tea time dish. There are many versionsnamely the one made in South India and the one made in Maharashtra

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe

Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 5 mins

Total Time 20 mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine Indian

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

1 cup rava approx 100 grams
1/2 tsp urid dal
2 tbsp sunflower oil
A pinch of asafoetida
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 heaped tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder actually 1/2 a tsp for the ones who do not like their Indian food too spicy
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
2 green chillies chopped fine
5-6 fresh curry leaves
2 pods of garlic chopped fine or simply smash them and drop in the saucepan with skin on!
1/2 red onion finely chopped
1/4 th of a juicy red tomato
Salt as per taste
Juice of a quarter lime
A pinch of sugar
Fresh coriander to garnish
Fine grated fresh coconut

Instructions

I usually roast the whole packet of 1 kilo of semolina I buy on a flat pan on a very low flame stirring constantly and then allow it to cool down completely.
Then store the roasted semolina in tins ready to use when I need to make this dish or the sweet version called Gooda Sheera/ Sooji Halwa which is a popular Maharashtrian sweet dish and especially important during festivals as we serve it as Prasad to Lord Ganesh or during Satyanarayan Pooja
In a saucepan add the oil and as it starts to heat, add the asafoetida, mustard cumin seeds and urid dal. The urid dal brown very quickly so stir this around a bit
When the mustard seeds begin to pop add the curry leaves, green chillies and garlic and chopped red onion.
When the garlic begins to turn a toasty brown and the onion reduces add the tomato and give this mixture a proper stir
Now add the turmeric, red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and salt and mix well
Then add double the amount of water as compared to the quantity of rava/semolina, cover the saucepan with a lid and let the water come to a boil
If you wish to add green peas and carrots finely chopped for an extra burst of taste do it just when the water begins to boil and let it cook in the hot water
Now slowly stir in the semolina ensuring that it does not form lumps
Add the juice of a quarter of a lime, sprinkle a pinch of sugar
Cover the saucepan with a lid and cook on a low flame for 2-3 minutes stirring occasionally to prevent lumps forming or the mixture becoming too dry, if it is very lumpy sprinkle water and mix well

Serve hot garnished with chopped coriander and freshly grated coconut.

I am just beginning to experiment with photos taken using my new 50mm f1.8 Canon lens – A’s gift to me for my birthday this year, I quite like the steady pattern of gifts coming in, starting with my first DSLR for my birthday last year. Just need to figure ways to wiggle out other gifts *evil laugh follows* 😉

C.K.P Valache Birdhe (वालाचे बिरडे) – Field bean curry

September 22, 2013 by manjirichitnis 19 Comments

Valache Birdhe or field beans curry – a Regional delicacy from the state of Maharashtra, West coast of India

Valache Birdhe or field beans curry, is an extremely popular bean gravy and has helped soothe many aching hearts and settle ruffled feathers after long gruelling work days.I managed to procure a few packets of these beautiful field beans with brown skin after a lot of searching!Hubs goes completely mental at the mere mention of this dish and insisted on me uploading the recipe and help all the other hungry hubbies out there..ahem ..so without further ado ladies and gents I present to you yummyscrummy recipe.

Valache Birdhe or field beans curry

वालाचे बिरडे

ThisValache Birdhe or field beans curry recipe is a typical C.K.P way of making a rather traditional legume curry. Vaal or kadve vaal (kadve meaning bitter in Marathi) are generically referred to as Field Beans in English.

Traditional regional cuisine and a beautiful heirloom C.K.P recipe

Valache Birdhe or field beans curry

Manjiri Chitnis

Hieloom recipe from the CKP community from the western coast of Maharashtra, India

5 from 1 vote

Print Recipe

Prep Time 2 d

Cook Time 20 mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Servings 2 people

Equipment

Pan to cook the curry
Blender to make a paste from the garted coconut
Kitchen cloth to tie up beans for sporuting

Ingredients

1.5 Cup Vaal/ Field Beans – soaked, sprouted and skin removed – takes a few days
3 -4 Cloves Lasun/Garlic with skin
1 pinch Hing/Asafoetida
1 Kanda/Red onion – one small finely chopped for the pan
2 -3 tsp Dried Kokum 2 pieces or Tamarind (Chinch/ Imli) -tamarind paste OR dried tamarind soaked in water -remove the pips and use the gooey thick bits
1/2 tsp Jaggery
1 tiny pinch Mohri/Mustard Seeds
1 Pinch Cumin/Jeera
1.5 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Laal Mirchi / Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Halad / Turmeric powder
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp Jeere/Cumin powder
1/2 fistful Fresh Coriander finely chopped to garnish
3 – 4 tbsp Grated coconut paste * see notes
Salt as per taste

Instructions

Soak the Vaal overnight, change the water in the morning and by evening if they appear puffed then wrap them in a damp cloth and set aside in a vessel with a lid to create an environment warm enough to allow them to sprout
Remove sprouted vaal into a bowl and pour like warm water on them, stir with your palms to loosen the skin and many will float to the top, decant the water and remove all the rest of the skins and discard
Heat the oil in a saucepan and dust some asafoetida and throw in the mustard and cumin.
When the cumin seeds begin to pop, throw in the garlic with their skin on and smashed to flatten them and as they turn colour and release their aroma, add the chopped onion.
When the onion turns a delicate pink add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and then add the vaal/field beans.
Now add the turmeric, red chilli, coriander and cumin powders and quickly stir in enough water to cover the beans
On a low flame cook with lid
When the vaal is almost done, add the jiggery, coconut paste and the tamarind paste or the water from the dried tamarind which has been soaked or dried kokum soaked in water and when the vaal are done add salt and garnish with finely chopped coriander.
Valache Birdhe or field beans curry is best enjoyed with steaming hot rice

Keyword Vaal

Vaalache Birdhe with text resized — Valache Birdhe or field beans curry

Food pairing

This Valache Birdhe or field beans curry is a delicacy pairs best with a portion of pressure-cooked rice of the Ambemohar variety, Basmati will do too. Always remember, a generous dollop of home-made sajuk tup or pure ghee is a must.

Stages of Vaal sprouting in photos

Notes:

Grated coconut paste: made by running fresh grated coconut or frozen grated coconut through a mixer/blender. Add 1 green chilli and 1 clove of garlic. My Aai (mum in Marathi) also prefers to also add 1/2 a finely chopped red onion which has been tossed on a pan with the coconut and green chilli – must admit it lends a toasty warmth to the gravy but I skip this step simply because the I compensate for it by using the onion in the pan!
Making Chinche cha kool ( usually, a block of tamarind is available packaged in any well-stocked Indian grocery store here in London, if not major spice brands now do tamarind paste in a bottle, find these online or any leading supermarket) – remove some in a bowl – add lukewarm water and gently ease the flesh of the tamarind loose from the seed. Use this thick mix to add to the curry. If you have fussy eater then maybe you want to strain this before adding into the curry. I would avoid straining as the gara – the thick flesh of the tamarind – is flavour packed so embrace it – fibres and all. 🙂

I do know this process for cooking Valache Birdhe or field beans curry, sounds rather labor-intensive and complex but believe you me, its easy-peasy, and the main bit of hard work is only getting rid of the field bean skins.

Do leave me a comment of you make this dish and also any variations to the recipe that you may have heard of, any anecdotes, happy memories are always welcome. And if you do cook to my recipe do snap a picture of your creations and use the hashtag #travelsfortasteblogrecipe and share it to Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook and I will re-post it.

Bon Appe’tit !

P.S: coming soon a Valachi Khichadi ( Field Beans Pulav) recipe that’s another firm family fav!

Learn how to cook western coastal Indian cuisine from the C.K.P community with my easy to follow recipes.

Find below a list of Indian recipes on my blog, some traditional, some fusion, and many regional favourites!

Shahi Khichadi

April 9, 2012 by manjirichitnis 9 Comments

I have decided to finally upload some of the recipes which received a lot of comments on my Facebook food album and I ended up sending out the recipe by email to many of contacts . Here is one of the easier and more popular ones . When I was a kid when my mother said ”khaichadi” in response to what’s for dinner ? it usually meant that one of us feverish and needed something gentle on the tummy or one of us was trying to recover from an upset tummy .Of course the taste of the boiled rice and green gram halved and with skin on or the yellow version without skin , is ultimately satisfying a great comfort food when served piping hot with a dollop of ghee and some warm milk ,a good night’s sleep guaranteed !

But my version is spicy ,with a tasty twist and a lot of fun to cook and even more fun to eat .

I adopted this recipe from the way my mother makes khichadi and also from how my pal S of www.jainfoodie.com makes Jain Dal Khichadi . I choose to call it Shahi meaning Regal or Royal here because it is rather a posh version of the humble boiled version. Khichadi meaning an Indian for a slurpalicious RICE and lentil dish cooked like a pulav /pulao/pilau /pilaf.

Ingredients (enough to serve 2 with second and maybe a third helping !)

Rice 1 cup
A Mix of the following in equalish parts in the same cup used to measure the rice – Massor Dal also called Red Lentils-split and skinless, Moong Dal also called Green Gram yellow we will use the spilt skinless variety and the split green moong dal with green skin on , Urid Dal also called Black Gram halved with skin ,some Toor Dal also called pigeon peas – yellow spilt and skinless .
1 large red Onion
1 medium tomato
2-3 Bay leaves
Bits of Cinnamon bark
2 cloves of garlic smashed with skin on
2 green chillies
Jeera / Cumin
Hing / Asafoetida
Salt to taste
Red Chilli Powder
Turmeric Powder
2 small potatoes
Few Curry leaves
Few Cloves
Few black whole peppercorns
18. Oil for sauteing
Some Ghee – maybe 2 spoons – Clarified Butter

Method :

Wash the rice and lentils and place them in a pressure cooker ,add 4 cups (use same cup as the one used to measure the rice and the dals) of water and another to make it a little softer than regular rice ,pressure cook till 4 whistles are done.
Once the steam slowly releases from the cooker , you can open the lid and it will look like the picture below but a bit different in colour because when I made this I was short on red lentils so didn’t add them . Actually even you make this dish with rice and only yellow moong dal it will taste just as good 🙂

While the cooker is cooling down ,chop the potatoes into longish strips and stir fry them in hot oil till they turn brown, add some salt, sprinkled over them just as they get done, these potato fries are our garnishing to add that REAL REGAL or SHAHI touch to the dish . Once done keep them aside and STOP yourself from munching on them before your dish is ready , my husband managed to gobble quite a few ,pretending he was helping me ”stir” the onions while I clicked pictures ..grrrrr

Now Lets prepare the tadka /tarka or the tempering. First slice the onion and the tomato vertically into thinish slices .
Add oil about 2 large tablespoons into a pan and one teaspoon of ghee just for flavour and aroma , when this mix is hot add some hing , then add the jeera and the crushed garlic and the 2 green chillies spilt along the middle lengthwise as it opens them up and allows the pungent seeds to spread through the tempering , one kick ass way to add that hotttt KICK to the dish ,trust me this one is explosive spicy HOTT as it has all the ingredients to help the taste explode in your mouth, saute till the garlic is brown and the garlic’s skin starts to crackle , then add the cloves, the whole black peppercorns , bits of the barks of Cinnamon ,curry leaves, bay leaves and keep stiring this mixture to prevent charring or over heating ,it will look like in the picture below :

Then add the chopped onion, It should look like the picture below:

Then after a while when the onion has begun to turn a lovely pinkish ,brownish colour and looks the picture below it’s time to add the tomato .

Now add the vertically sliced tomato slices , I can assure you that now the potent aroma of all those lovely spices and the onion are stirring up quite an appetite inside you and making you hungrier every passing minute .

I dislike chunky bits of tomato floating in my mouth while I gobble up the khichadi so I jus a flat wooden spatula and gently ensure that the tomatoes are totally mashed in a way that allows the mixture to become one entity, it should look like in the picture below :

Add just a bit of red chilli powder and some turmeric powder to the mixture above and add salt to taste ,Now add the cooked rice and lentil mixture to the above tempered mix of spices ,onions and tomatoes ,mix well stirring well, add salt again enough to flavour the rice and lentil mix .

It’s almost done , just keep this on a low flame for about a minute or two to allow the flavours of the spices to penetrate deep inside the rice and lentils .

The SHAHI KHICHADI is now ready to be garnished! Yay 🙂

WOW now doesn’t that look awesome ? I am quite proud about this creative production from my kitchen , hope you relish it as much as I did errr we did , hubby had to agree 🙂
If you fear that all the spices may be a bit too much for your sensitive palate prepare a quick cooling cucumber and curd accompaniment . Beat 2 spoons of set yogurt or thick flowing yogurt and add tiny square bits of fresh cucumber , season with a bit of salt ,some sugar and some jeera powder to taste .

Enjoy !

Masoorachi Aamti or Red Lentil Curry

January 23, 2012 by manjirichitnis 10 Comments

Masoorachi Aamti or Red Lentil Curry – Recipe adaptation from Mother, Mother in Law and a close CKP friend – Saai who loves to stir up some spicy CKP fare and generally succeeds at it 🙂

Ingredients:

2 measures of Masoor Dal (Red Lentil) with their brown covers intact and whole
Mustard Seeds
2-3 Garlic Cloves
Green chillies 2- 3
Curry leaves about 5-6
Jeera (Cumin Seeds) – tiny spoonful
Freshly grated soft white coconut
Goda Masala – mommy made is so much better than the one from the shops but well

(**This is a mix of various spices readily available in Asian Grocery stores it’s basically a mixture of dry coconut roasted with a mixture of at least 10 different spices, best of all it’s available to buy online at Red Rickshaw – previously called itadka.com

Refrigerate this pack to increase shelf life ,yayay so many tips from me, don’t YOU just LOVE me , if u better don’t just READ this make n slurp it all ALONE, drop me A LINE and thank meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee)

Coriander Powder
Ginger Garlic Paste

(Coriander and Chilli paste – 2 small sized bunches of coriander pureed with 2-3 green chillies – freeze and use on demand, handy and 1 of my 5 “save your face” purees for unwanted guests popping in at odd hours – the other 4 are listed at the end of this recipe)

3 medium sized onion red – chopped fine
Asafoetida(Hing or Heeng)
Turmeric
Red Chilli Powder
Dhania Powder
Jaggery

Aamsul 2-3 soaked in lukewarm water to release it’s juices trapped inside the gorgeous maroon folds – Amsul – also called kokum or Garcinia indica, a plant in the mangosteen family (Clusiaceae)

Fresh leaves of Coriander chopped fine for dressing

Process ( Once a Chemistry student and a retail employee stay that way forever , instead of “PREPARTION” I choose the word ”Process” which is drilled into a Retail Managers brain like young parents making their kids rote learn alphabets)

The masoor dal can be done 2 ways for stage 1 of this process, 1^st is the short cut which I love as I suddenly get an urge mid evening to cook this typical CKP recipe to appease my urges to run to Heathrow n take the next flight to my parents home in Pune ,hummmmm, so we soak the masoor dal 2 measures feeds 2 adults with a ravenous appetite and leaves some to spare.

Then soak it in water for about 20 minutes , the traditional route is to soak the masoor for about 10 minutes and pressure cook with 1 or 2 whistles so that it doesn’t go too soft as it will not absorb the marvellous flavours of all the spices we are to add in the kadhai.

Heat 2 large generous tablespoons of oil in a wok, no weight watchers tip this huh? Indeed!

Add mustard seeds and wait for them to pop but please be carefull not to burn them, one classic error here is that there are 2 types of mustard seeds, one variety is slightly big and the other one is smaller n more packed with flavour according to my mother , I dare not disagree , the only reason I use the smaller variety is that it gives me an ego boost each time I do a phodni and don’t burn them.

Then add Asafoetida, crushed garlic cloves in their skin as the skin turns a tasty caramelised brown adding to the visual delight of the process of tempering a curry or dal! then when the garlic is starting to brown add the curry leaves , green chillies , jeera and then a generous spoonful of the fresh grated coconut (fresh from froizen is fine by me too) then , stir in the goda masala – 2 generous teaspoons, coriander powder ,turmeric , a big blob of ginger garlic paste and coriander chilli paste and stir this wonderfully aromatic mixture till it starts to brown , then add the chopped onion and stir it now n then , let the oil work its magic in the onion allowing it to brown so that it secrets it juices and adds the typical flavour that a powerfull pungent red onion has pack3ed inside each leaf ,umm , mouth salivating isn’t it by now reading this , it should that’s the whole point my friend .

Now when this mixture is nice and ready, drain the water from the soaked or boiled par-masoor dal and toss it into the kadhai, stir in enough water to cover the lentil n then some and cook it till it almost done, when your almost done pour in the water of the soaked amsool and the dunk the amsool in along with salt to taste and bring to boil.

Season with finely chopped fresh as ever coriander and serve piping hot with phulkas dripping with ghee (clarified butter) or the plain old boiled white rice.

As you lick your fingers n the plate don’t forget to thank your daddy for giving you an internet connection which allowed you to see my divine blog n stir up this delightfull dish !aww come on now did u really buy your laptop and your internet connection on your own ! Atta girl!

Key (reminds me of my Chemistry textbook in school years)

*C.K.P stands for Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu a sub section of the Maharashtrian community in India and they generally hail from the coastal regions and hence are rather partial to freshly grated coconut and amsool in their food, not to mention their love for fresh fish and mutton, oh yeah!

*Dal used loosely to refer to the uncooked Lentil and AMTI a Marathi word meaning cooked curry.

*Coriander = Cilantro

*Jeera – Cumin (what were you thinking?)

*Aamsul / Garcinia Indica – this is typical to the Konkan region in Maharashtra

*Phodni – Marathi for tempering

*Kadhai – Hindi and Marathi for Wok, easy or what?!

*Phulkas – Also called chapattis or the delightful Indian Bread soft and fluffy and fresh off the pan has ghee smeared on it to pack some punch a many many calories 🙂

The other 4 SAVE ME NOW pastes are:

* a garlic ginger coarse paste,

* Finely grated fresh white coconut paste,

* Tomato red onion puree -1:3,

*And the best one for last aye? – few onion chopped lengthwise n lightly roasted in a kadhai (wok) with fresh white coconut finely grated till they turn slightly brown , then churned into a paste in the mixer )

Pic 1 :The saucepan contains oil heated and then the asafoetida, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, then the garlic , chopped green chillies and curry leaves and last but the best one GODA masala

Pic 2 :Chopped red onion added to the mix

Pic 3: That’s the dal cooking

Pic 4 & 5: All done , the AROMA is filling my senses and transporting me into my MIL’s kitchen , I want to HUG her nowwwwwwwwwww

P.S: Will post pictures to compare the 2 sizes of Mustard seeds at a later date , I am now going to be too busy slurping my amti (dal) off the plate 🙂