Category: Mains

Saffron Jewelled Rice with Spicy Lamb Shanks

Hello — after a long time, I tried this new dish that I loved very much and thought of sharing the recipe with you. The dish has a jolt of colours and flavours with indigenous ingredients. The spicy lamb shanks and the jewelled rice is a perfect combination like two peas in a pod. Try this out and indulge yourself in opulent piquancy!

—Ingredients—

Saffron Jewelled Rice

2 cups basmati rice
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 pinches of saffron
1 medium carrot, julienned
3 tablespoons clarified butter
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
2 tablespoons golden raisins
2 tablespoons dried cranberries
2 tablespoons pistachios, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons sliced or silvered almonds
4 tablespoons pomegranate arils
2 tablespoons pineapple, finely shopped
salt as needed
Handful of finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
2 tablespoon of warm water

Spicy Lamb Shanks

4 lamb shanks
3 small onions, roughly pulsed without water
2 well ripe tomatoes, roughly pulsed without water
4 cardamom pods
3 cinnamon sticks
5 cloves
2 tablespoons of ginger-garlic paste
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 tablespoon chilli powder
1 tablespoon cumin powder
2 tablespoons coriander powder
1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
4 tablespoon plain yoghurt
1/2 tablespoon of garam masala
5 tablespoon oil
Salt as needed
Handful of finely chopped fresh coriander leaves

—Process—

Saffron Jewelled Rice

1. Rinse the basmati rice, soak it in cool water for 15 to 20 minutes and drain well.
2. In a small bowl add 2 tablespoons of warm water and saffron and set aside.
2. In a pressure cooker, heat the clarified butter; roast the almonds and transfer them to a small bowl.
3. Add the onion and carrots and sauté until they are soft.
4. Soak the cranberries and raisins in a hot water for 2 to 3 minutes and drain well.
5. Add in the salt, cinnamon and cumin powders, ground pepper, stock and soaked rice, cranberries and raisins.
6. Pressure cook them on high flame for 2 whistles.
7. Once the pressure is settled, open the pressure cooker and stir in the orange zest, roasted nuts, pistachios, pomegranate arils, pineapples and coriander leaves.

Spicy Lamb Shanks

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add in the cardamom, cinnamon and cloves and sauté until it leaves the aroma.
2. Add the pulsed onions and cook until they’re golden brown, add in the ginger-garlic paste and sauté until the raw smell goes off.
3. Put in the lamb shanks and cook over high heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
4. Add the turmeric, chilli, cumin, and coriander powders, freshly ground pepper, and salt and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the yoghurt and mix well.
5. Add in the pulsed tomatoes and give it a good stir. Cover the sauce pan and let it cook on a low flame until the oil separates.
6. Add hot water until the shanks are immersed completely, cover and cook in a low flame until the lamb is done.
7. Remove the shanks and let the liquid thickens for 8 to 10 minutes. Add in the shanks and cook for another 10 to 12 minutes.
8. Top it off with garam masala and coriander leaves and serve!

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Broccoli-Cheddar Bread Bowl

The nippy weather calls for some hot soup, and I thoroughly adore a good bowl of broccoli cheese soup — it’s creamy and cozy as ever.

The best part is why eat it out of a regular bowl when you can eat it in a fresh home baked bread bowl. It’s absolutely delicious; nothing less than incredible to house your favorite soups, stews and dips with a crusty wall and super soft crumble inside. More than a bowl, it also acts as an edible cutlery to eat the soup — tear it, dip it and enjoy!

This is BEGINNER FRIENDLY, so anyone can make it.

—Ingredients—

Broccoli cheddar soup
1 small carrot, grated
1 small potato, grated
1 cup broccoli, finely chopped
2 cup vegetable/chicken broth
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh corn (optional)
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
salt and pepper, as needed

Bread bowl
1/3 cup warm water
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

—Process—

Broccoli cheddar soup
1. Heat a medium sized pan, add the broth, carrots and potatoes. Cook until the vegetables are tender, approximately 4-5 minutes.
2. Add in the chopped broccoli and fresh corn, cook for a couple of minutes and remove from heat.
3. Heat another pan and add 1 tablespoon of butter. Saute the onion until translucent and add it to the vegetables.
4. In the same pan, add the remaining butter. Once melted, add the flour and mix well to make a roux.
5. Add 1/4 cup of milk and stir continuously in a low flame. Once thickened, add the remaining milk, salt, thyme, pepper and mix well.
6. Add the cooked vegetables and cook for a couple of minutes.
7. Remove from heat and add the cheese, mix until well combined.

Top it off with some grated cheese and serve hot!

Bread bowl
1. In a small bowl, add water, sugar and yeast. Mix until yeast is dissolved and keep it aside, for 5 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, add salt, 2 tablespoons butter, 1 cup flour and the yeast mixture, and mix. Knead (stretch and fold) the dough for 5 – 8 minutes, add the remaining flour (spoon by spoon) until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
3. First rise – apply oil or nonstick spray to sides of the bowl, cover the bowl and let it rise until doubled. It took me 50 minutes, and the time varies from place to place depending on the weather in your place.
4. Deflate the dough gently, but don’t knock out all the air. I prefer to retain some air, though. It gives nice holes in the bread. Form the dough into a round ball.
5. Line a baking sheet with a parchment paper and dust with some flour. Gently place the ball onto the baking sheet, seam side down.
6. Second rise – brush the dough with melted butter, cover with a cling film, really lightly and let it rise until doubled, approximately 45-60 minutes.
7. Bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes, or until it reaches rich golden brown. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely.
8. Once cooled, use a serrated knife to slice off the top. Use a spoon or your fingers to hollow out the centre of the bread bowl. Fill and enjoy!

Storage – Loosely wrap it in a paper and store for a couple of days at room temperature; store them in an airtight container and place it in the freezer for longer storage. Allow it thaw on the counter and reheat in the oven before serving.

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Pumpkin Coconut Stew/Parangikai Koottu

Looking for a departure from the usual koottu recipe? Try this one – a rich, creamy and sweetish kind!

Yellow pumpkin is one of the few vegetables that I cook time and again, and relish all the time. I like the version my mom makes, which has a fine coconut paste grounded with coriander seeds, cumin seeds and a couple of red chillies. Yet, I wanted to try out a different sort other than the one I’m accustomed to.

Last Saturday, I got my hands on the sweetest coconut I’ve ever had, and this is the first recipe that struck in my mind. Bottle gourd tastes best with this recipe. You could also use snake gourd, ash gourd or chayote.

—Ingredients—

1 1/2 cups yellow pumpkin or vegetable of your choice, roughly chopped
3 tablespoons moong dal
1 1/2 cups thin coconut milk
1/2 cup thick coconut milk
2 green chillies
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1 tablespoon coriander powder
1 sprig curry leaves
3-4 shallots
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon coconut oil
Salt as needed

For tempering
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 tablespoon urad dal
2 red chillies
1 sprig curry leaves
a pinch of hing

—Process—

1. Boil the moong dal and grind it to a fine paste along with shallots. In a pan, add a tablespoon of oil, saute the paste for a couple of minutes and keep aside.
2. In another pan, add the cut vegetables, thin coconut milk, green chillies, curry leaves, turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and salt. Close the lid and cook for 10-12 minutes or until the vegetable turns mushy.
3. Add the paste into the boiled vegetables and cook in a medium flame for 3-4 minutes.
4. Pour in the thick coconut milk, give it a stir and switch off the flame in a minute or two.
5. Tempering – In a small pan, add in the coconut oil and mustard seeds. Once the mustard starts spluttering, add the remaining tempering ingredients and pour it atop the curry.

—Tips—

You could pressure cook the moong dal along with rice, by placing it in a small vessel on top of the rice bowl.

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Paneer Lahori

Paneer – it is believed that Portuguese colonization have introduced paneer/chenna to the eastern parts of India. Eventually it has found its way to south India and became prominent in the urban areas over the last decade. Now it is one of the must have dishes in all the get-together and potluck events, especially for the vegetarians. I can never hold back my hands from picking atleast one piece of paneer, despite seeing chicken and goat. Well, I could say I have a thing for the creamy curries and paneer is a perfect ingredient to make one.

There are a handful of options like paneer butter masala, kadai paneer etc., yet, I’m fond of this particular recipe because of the spices and it pairs well with ghee rice, rotis and chapathis.

—Ingredients for 3 servings—

For grinding
2 medium sized tomatoes
1 medium sized onion
8-10 cashew nuts
2 green chillies
1 inch ginger
6-8 garlic pods

4 cloves
3 green cardamom
1 black cardamom
1 inch cinnamon bark
2 bay leaves
150 grams paneer/cottage cheese, cut into medium sized cubes
1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
1 inch ginger, strips/julienne
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1 tablespoon coriander powder
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1 tablespoon chilli powder
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves/kasuri methi
6 tablespoons butter/clarified butter
1/3 cup curd
3 sprigs fresh coriander leaves
Salt as needed

—Process—

1. In a pan, heat 2 tablespoons of butter and shallow fry the paneer cubes for a couple of minutes and remove the pieces from the pan.
2. Add the onions and sauté until it becomes translucent. Then add the tomatoes, green chillies, garlic, ginger and cashew nuts, sauté for 4-5 minutes in a medium flame.
2. Grind the above into a smooth paste and keep aside.
3. In the same pan, add 2 tablespoons of butter and add the raw spices and sauté for a minute. Add in the onions, once they become translucent, add the ginger and green chillies.
4. Add the ground paste, all the powders except garam masala, curd, salt, 2 tablespoons of butter and a cup of water. Close the lid and cook over a medium flame until the butter separates.
5. Add in the garam masala and paneer pieces, give it a gentle stir and cook for a couple of minutes.
6. Top it off with dried fenugreek leaves/kasuri methi and coriander leaves.

Rating: 0.5 out of 5.
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Avial/Mixed Vegetable Curry

Avial is one of my favorite dishes. I love coconuts and anything that has coconuts are my favorite. This one will be present in all the special occasions in my family; but for some reason, I’ve always given it a miss. We used to gather in my granny’s house for all the special occasions and most of the veggies will be from the backyard she had, especially the gourds, such a huge one… I’ve been a picky eater in my childhood days and have been eating only fries. Ultimately, this has become one of my favorite dishes over a decade now. The version my mom and aunts make is slightly different from the one I prefer. They use sunflower/vegetable oil for tempering and curd instead of raw mango. I prefer coconut oil and use raw mango to achieve the tanginess, being influenced by the Kerala cuisine.

A gravy version of avial pairs well with paruppu adai than rice. I’ll share the adai recipe here in the days to come. If you have a picky eater in home, this is the perfect recipe to make them eat the veggies.

—Ingredients for 4 servings—

3/4 cup yam
1/2 cup snake gourd
1/4 cup beans
1/4 cup carrots
1 drumstick
1 raw banana
1/4 cup ash gourd
1/4 cup pumpkin
1/4 cup malabar cucumber
1/4 cup raw mango or curd
1 sprig curry leaves
4 tablespoons coconut oil
Salt as needed

*Cut all the vegetables into 1 1/2–2 inch strips

For grinding
1 cup grated coconut
3 green chillies
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
4 shallots
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

—Process—

1. Coarsely grind all the ingredients for grinding and keep aside (do not add water while grinding)
2. In a pan, add 1/2 cup of water and the vegetables with yam going first(as it will take sometime to cook), cucumber and pumpkin at the end
3. Add the ground mixture, curry leaves, salt, coconut oil and mix well. Cover the pan and cook until the vegetables become soft, approximately 12-15 minutes. Make sure they doesn’t turn mushy.
4. Add a tablespoon of coconut oil and switch off the flame.

—Tips—

If you’re using curd, do no add raw mango and pour in the curd after switching off the flame.

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