season - Travels for Taste

Smoked Spanish Peppers and Zingy Mushrooms in a creamy sauce

June 24, 2014 by manjirichitnis 12 Comments

My love for using smoked sweet red peppers is taking over my recipes for now , I made these zingy mushrooms for a friend who popped in for brunch about 2 months ago but I have been very lazy and this recipe is finally seeing daylight. I guess the electric atmosphere of the yellow jersey clad stadium full of Brazil fans and the super tight match going on with Camroon is giving me a much needed rush of happy hormones ,add to that the frenzy of the Wimbledon matches , the air in Wimbledon is heavy with anticipation, huge posters , fluorescent tennis ball props in all windows , the traditional colours of the Wimbledon ribbons and balloons galore, the bus service from the station to the venue with hyperexcited people , everything is screaming tennis here!

Lamuyo Peppers are great for roasting as they are bigger and sweeter than their cousins the hot variety. They are juicy and crunchy and go well with garlic,basil,oregano,taste fab with cheese , think stuffed peppers grilled , just perfect for summer !

The recipe was given to me by P aunty , shes a fab cook as I have mentioned in my past posts too and her recipes are innovative, delicious and easy to make, I love pestering her to keep sending me more recipes everytime we talk 😉 .So I decided to amp up this recipe with some madness my style and use up the handsome red pepper staring at me from my fridge 😉

Ingredients:

1 large pack Chestnut Mushrooms sliced
1 large red Lamuyo sweet pepper
8 cloves Garlic- bash and chop fine
1/2 red onionchopped very fine
2 chillies- (more or less acc to your taste) – chop fine
3 heaped tbs flavoured soft cheese, I love using the herby Philadelphia
2 tbsp Olive Oil
Sea Salt to taste
Parsley- a handful -chopped finely

Method:

Roast the pepper on gas flame till the skin chars and begins to peel off, I use tongs to hold it by the stem so it can char even at the top.
While the pepper cools just enough to allow you to peel and reveal the smoked juicy flesh, you can use the time to wash and slice the chestnut mushrooms
While taking off the charred skin off the smoked pepper remember to place a dish below as it will release lots of juice which we don’t want to loose as it is one powerhouse of smoky peppery sweet flavour!
Heat oil in a sauce pan and saute the garlic till it turns brown and the familiar aroma of fabulous garlic begins to waft and assault your nostrils.
Then add the very finely chopped red onion and cook on a low flame stirring regularly till the onion is thoroughly crispy and reduces in quantity, do not let it burn.
Then toss in the mushrooms and the chopped smoked pepper and cook for about 2 minutes on a low flame ,stirring and making sure it does not stick to the pan or overcook
Then add the soft cheese ,sea salt and finely chopped parsley,mix well and cook with lid for about 1 to 1 1/2 minute.
Serve with garlic bread smothered in butter – eat guilt free;)

What I love about this dish , its creamy , its a bit sweet a bit more zingy and has an underlying deep smoked flavour that is robust without being overpowering ,I’d say its a new comfort food for me , what with all the moorish soft cheese in there!

Hot and Spicy Lamb chops in Apple sauce

October 12, 2013 by manjirichitnis 2 Comments

We all crave comfort food and at times the need is so great nothing else will do. Since I have been making variations of rice dishes in the past few days I didn’t want to do anymore rice but wanted a light yet rich in taste and spicy one pot meal for dinner.

I also wanted to cook a savoury dish with red meat and use apples as an ingredient to enter the recipe competition for the best apple recipe hosted by Gourmandize Uk and Ireland and making a sweet preparation was not what I wanted at all.

Still taking a leaf from the sweet preparations from apple , I think cinnamon and apple go very well with each other. It’s these well paired fellas that can spice up even the most drab foods.

So I decided to get some lean lamb shanks and marinate them overnight in a hot Indian marinade.

I have tried to tone down the amount of spice here so as to cater to taste buds that don’t take kindly to overpowering spices and yes ”heat” in food shouldn’t mask the other subtle flavours should it? But if your palate is used to heat feel free to AMP you the volume 🙂 I have mentioned by how much the heat can go in the ingredient list to stay with acceptable levels of taste.

Serves:2

For the marinade:

1 green chilli hot (2 green chillies if you handle spice well)
1/2 a bunch of coriander
salt to taste
red chilli powder 1 heaped tsp (2 -3 heaped tsp if you can handle the heat!)
freshly ground black pepper to dust onto the lamp chops

Wash and clean the lamb chops and marinate for atleast 2 hours, preferably overnight with salt,red chilli powder,black pepper freshly ground and a puree of half a bunch of coriander and one green chilli. Smear the chops well and cover the dish with plastic and leave in the fridge overnight for the flavours to really sink into the meat.

For the sauce

2 cinnamon rolls, the light brown tightly curled ones, not the thick bark variety – more on the difference between the two in a different blog post!
2 Bay leaves
1 apple sweet
half a juicy tomato
half a bunch of coriander
1/2 red onion sliced lengthwise
2 bunches of spring onions finely chopped

Method:

In a saucepan add 2 large tbsp of sunflower oil or vegetable oil, saute’ the finely chopped spring onions,red onion chopped lengthwise with the bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and cloves till the red onion turns pink and reduces.
Now add the half an apple chopped into bite sized chunks.
Saute’ on a low flame for about 1 min and then add a puree of half a bunch or coriander,half a tomato and half an apple.
Ensure you do not waste any of the purée and scoop out every last precious drop from the mixer by adding water and pour all of this into the saucepan,stir continuously and as it begins to bubble add the marinated lamb chops.
The tomato in the puree and the apple in the puree and the bits in the saucepan should all work to now offset the otherwise hot spices – red chilli powder,black pepper and cloves.

Cook on a low flame for 25-30 minutes or until the lamb chops are cooked well,add just enough water to ensure the sauce is not going dry as we want a thick rich gravy and open the lid in between and give the whole thing a stir to ensure it does not go dry or stick to the saucepan.
You now have the most tender and well cooked lamb chops with a thick, well flavoured tasty green sauce.I loved biting into the bits of apple now then which had gone soft and yum during the process of cooking , what an absolute delight!

Serve with warm bread, better still smear some butter and top it off with some finely diced bits of garlic ,pop it in a pre-heated for about 5 minutes and it’s just so good to polish off that thick sauce after you have savoured the lamb ummm !

What I love about this dish is that the recipe is 100% original, it was deeply satisfying experimenting with flavours and reaching a successful outcome and because I cooked it for my birthday lunch for hubs n me it was rather special too. The powerful spice was beautifully balanced by the sweet apple and as they cooked with the meat they lent a unique richness of flavour. It is wonderful to see how we can marry polar opposites in flavours and create something unexpectedly delightful – an absolute pleasure for the taste buds.

Now all I need is a whole lot of luck to win the very coveted prize of a Kenwood Stand Mixer!

Well the contest is now done, though I didn’t win * sad face* am happy I made something yummy and original 🙂

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

Cook Time 20

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!

Masoorachi Aamti or Red Lentil Curry

January 23, 2012 by manjirichitnis 10 Comments

Akkhe Masoor or whole red lentils

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

Masoorachi Aamti or Red Lentil Curry

Delicious, easy and quick recipe for using whole red lentils with skin on

Print Recipe

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4 portions

Equipment

1 Pan with lid
1 Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Spatula

Ingredients

300 Grams MasoorDal (Red Lentil) with their brown covers intact and whole
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
3 cloves Garlic with skin on
5-6 Curry leaves
2-3 Green Chillies
1 tsp Cumin
1.5 tbsp freshly grated soft white coconut
1.5 tbsp Goda Masala
2 tbsp Coriander Powder
1.5 tbsp Ginger – Garlic Paste
3 mediumsized Red onions, chopped fine
1/2 tsp Asafoetida
1.5 tsp Turmeric powder
2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
Jaggery to taste
Salt to taste
2 – 3 petals Garcinia Indica – wet, salt preserved
Fresh leaves of Coriander chopped fine for dressing
2 tbsp Sunflower Oil

Instructions

Soak the washed lentils in luke warm water for about 20 minutes. You can par-boil the lentils too, to save time. t
Heat two large generous tablespoons of oil in a wok, no weight loss tip this, huh? Indeed!
Add mustard seeds and wait for them to pop.
To this hot oil, dd Asafoetida, crushed garlic cloves , let the skin remian attached.
When the garlic is starting to brown add the curry leaves, green chillies, cumin and then the fresh grated coconut.
Now stir in the Goda masala, coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, ginger garlic paste and coriander chilli paste and mix well.
Now add the chopped onion and cook them on a low heat until they begin to break down and caramelise.
Drain excess water from the lentils and add them into this spice and oil mix. Stir well. Cover and cook on medium to low heat until almost done. Check occasionally and stir as so to ensure it does not burn.
Add the soaked Garcinia Indica alongwith the water it was soaking in. Mix well. Cook without the lid on low heat until fully cooked.
Season with finely chopped fresh as ever coriander andserve piping hot with phulkas dripping with ghee (clarified butter) or the plain old boiled white rice.

Keyword Masoor

Recipe Notes

Goda Masala – 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) Better still make your own, recipe coming soon – watch this space!
Aamsul / Amsul – also known as Kokum or Garcinia Indica, is a plant belonging to the mangosteen family (Clusiaceae). This is one of those revered ingredients that is commonly used in Indian cooking especially in Maharashtra, along the coast. Much like my beloved coconut this fruit has multiple applications and is very versatile, besides it is such a good-looking gorgeous and delicious tropical fruit.
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.
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? – a few onions 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.
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.

Key

This is the key to a mystical tropical paradise…. errrr… sorry but it is not, it is simply the key to some important words that you will encounter pretty often while reading my posts or watching my videos. I am after all a student of Chemistry and treat my kitchen like my personal laboratory where I create my own kitchen experiments! This is why the word ‘Key’ reminds me of my Chemistry textbook in my 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!
Daal is used to loosely to refer to the uncooked Lentil and AAMTI is a Marathi word meaning cooked curry.
Coriander for my friends from across the pond is Cilantro.
Phodni – Marathi for tempering, also one of my favourite words to say. Follow my hashtag on Instagram #phodnitales , please pretty please? 🙂
Kadhai – The Marathi pronunciation sounds like it ends in ‘ee’, while the Hindi pronunciation stretches the first ‘a’ following the ‘K’ to sound like ‘aaa’ , 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 and many, many calories 🙂

EXPLORE MORE RECIPES FROM MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Valache Birdhe – C.K.P style recipe -वालाचे बिरडे
Konkani Pompfret Fish Curry पापलेटचं कलवण
Prawn Khichadi – कोळंबीची खिचडी
C.K.P Style King Fish Curry – सुरमई चे कालवण
C.K.P Style Prawn Curry

Random Thoughts

I would totally rechristen the word ‘Method’ in a recipe post with the name ‘Process ‘ Why, well once a Chemistry student and a retail employee I guess some things just stay with you forever. Also, instead of “PREPARATION” I choose the word ”Process” which is drilled into a Retail Managers brain like young parents making their kids rote learn alphabets)

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 is GODA masala