Rogan Josh

Rogan Josh
Thank you again, Rose–time for you to start a food blog!

• 4 Tbsp ghee
• 1/4 tsp asafetida
• ~2-3 lb lamb (I used the sirloin portion of the leg. Use a moderately quick cooking cut, like shoulder/neck)
• Spice blend
  • 10 dried Kashmir chilies (roughly 3 Tbsp Kashmir Chili Powder if you don’t have whole)
  • 4 green cardamom pods
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 6 cloves
  • 4 black peppercorns
  • 3/4 tsp turmeric
• 8 cloves garlic
• 1 inch piece ginger
• 2 black cardamom pods
• 2 Tbsp ground coriander
• 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1.5 cups yogurt
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp salt
• Optional: 1/4-1/2 tsp saffron threads

Begin by preparing the spices. You’ll cook some of them whole, so set those aside. The others should go right into a coffee/spice grinder and be ground down to powder. Set this aside.

Then, peel the garlic and ginger. Grind these down to a paste as well, adding a very sparse amount of water if needed to facilitate blending. Set this aside.

Now, on to the lamb. Trim off any excess fat, remove the bone(s) if necessary, and cut the meat into 1-2 inch cubes. In a large pan, warm up about 1 Tbsp of ghee over medium high heat. Throw a pinch of asafetida into the hot ghee (a little goes a long way, so be conservative) for a minute and then add some of the lamb pieces (don’t overcrowd the pan–work in batches if you need to). Brown the lamb for roughly 2 minutes per side and then remove from the pan and set aside.

In a bowl (or since my food processor was already dirty from making the garlic/ginger paste…), add the yogurt and whip it vigorously for a few seconds to lighten it up a bit. Add it slowly, roughly one spoon at a time to the pan, and stir constantly for roughly 30 seconds to prevent the yogurt from curdling when it first meets the heat. Blend well with the paste and spices and continue to fry this for roughly 3-4 minutes further.

Now, add the warm/hot water and salt into the pot and raise to a boil, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan to dislodge any browned bits. Return the lamb to the pot, cover, and drop the heat to low, simmering until the meat is tender (roughly an hour). Stir periodically to prevent the gravy from sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot. If the gravy is too thick you can add ~1/4 cup of thinned yogurt at a time until it is more to your liking.

Once done cooking, you’ll probably have a bit of fat settled on the surface. Skim it off as best you can before you start serving. If you’ve decided to include saffron, crumble the threads in a small amount of hot water a few minutes before you expect to be done cooking. Once you’ve skimmed off the fat, add the saffron mixture into the curry and give it a good stir.

Meatballs with saffron sunset sauce

Meatballs with saffron sunset sauce

Serves 8 (made 41 meatballs using a rounded 1 tablespoon measure)

- 2 lbs ground beef, or mix of ground beef and ground turkey. Do not bother using lean meat - you will drain the fat off when roasting in oven.
- 2 eggs, lightly beated
- ½ C dried bread crumbs or matzah meal
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 t saffron threads, crushed and infused and ½ C hot water
- ¼ C olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped (1 C or 2 large handfuls)
- 1 t sweet (Hungarian) paprika
- 1 t ground turmeric
- 1 t powdered chicken stock, or 1 bouillon cube crushed or ½ C chicken stock
- ½ C water (or 1 C if using powdered chicken stock or bouillon cube)
- Steamed rice for serving (optional)

Preheat oven to 375ºF.

Make saffron infusion by crushing 1 t saffron threads in ½ C hot (not boiling) water - allow to infuse for ~10-15 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the meats and eggs; add bread crumbs or matzah meal, salt, pepper, and ¼ C of saffron infusion. Knead well with hands to mix.

Form into walnut-sized meatballs and set aside. I used a tablespoon to keep the balls relatively uniform. Do not make the meatballs too compact or they will be tough when cooked.

Pre-roast the meatballs on parchment- or foil-covered baking sheet for 10-15 minutes to release and drain off some of the fat. This is what will remain when you remove the half-done meatballs to add to the sauce. NOTE, this step can be skipped if you are in a rush and want fewer dishes to wash, but I found that the pre-roasted meatballs tasted better and are probably a bit healthier.

While meatballs are roasting in the oven, in a large sauté pan or skillet, heat oil and add garlic, fresh cilantro, spices, powdered chicken stock/bouillon/stock, and 2 T saffron infusion. Cook until sauce turns yellow and then add additional water (total liquid added should be 1 C). The sauce is what gives the dish its sunset name.

Add the meatballs to the sauce in a single layer and simmer until cooked through, about 10-15 additional minutes. Meatballs should cook for a total of 25-30 minutes between the oven and stovetop (or on stovetop only if you skip the pre-roasting step).

Add remaining saffron infusion and heat through.

Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Serve hot with or without rice. If serving with rice, considering doubling the sauce recipe.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka Massala

Some of my closest friends in high school were Indian, introducing me to wonderful things like naan, chicken masala, samosas, and numerous other foods whose names I can’t pronounce. Usually if we ate out at an Indian restaurant, my friends would help me order, moving past the Americanized chicken-satay-on-a-skewer to more authentic dishes. Birthday parties and graduation parties hosted by these girls centered around lively Bollywood-type music, intricate dance steps, lively conversation, and of course, tons and tons of delicious Indian food. Maybe that’s why, all these years later, I still get cravings for Indian food.

I found this great recipe for chicken tikka masala on allrecipes.com. What I love about this recipe, besides the fact that the finished product is delish, is that its very straightforward. It does take a while to make due to the marinating and cooking time, but work-wise, its very easy, leaving ample time to prepare the rest of the meal. I’ve modified it slightly to cook it entirely on the stove-top as I’m too lazy to bust out the grill. Be warned, this dish does have some kick. If you don’t like spicy food, you may want to either leave out the jalapeno or decrease the amount of cayenne pepper used. I left it as is, and the dish had a nice kick to it. Hubby gave this meal a 9/10, high praise!

Chicken Tikka Masala, adapted from allrecipes.com

1 c. plain low-fat yogurt
1 T. lemon juice
4 t. ground cumin, divided
1 t. ground cinnamon
2 t. cayenne pepper
2 t. coarse ground black pepper
1 t. ground ginger
4 t. kosher salt, divided
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 T. butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large jalapeno pepper, finely chopped (be sure to discard the seeds and white inner membrane!)
2 t. paprika
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

In a large bowl, blend together 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger and 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Mix in the yogurt and lemon juice until spices are well incorporated. Add the chicken and mix well, so that the chicken is well-covered with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

In a medium-sized skillet, melt the butter over medium-heat. Add the garlic and jalapeno, stir-frying until the garlic is lightly toasted. Season with the remaining 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika and 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Stir in the tomato sauce and cream. Add in the chicken, along with the marinade*, mixing thoroughly to ensure all ingredients are well incorporated. Simmer over low heat for approximately 25 minutes, until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Stir in the chopped cilantro, reserving a small amount of chopped cilantro for garnish, and simmer an additional 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with the remaining cilantro, and serve over steamed rice.

Serves 4.

Onion Kulchas- like Naan

Onion Kulchas- like Naan

It tastes and looks like Naan, but it is not nor does it take that much time and effort. Its like a breeze. So what am I talking about? Yup, you are right. Talking about Kulchas. Kulchas are North Indian flat breads - originated from Punjab
So what exactly is the difference between Naan and Kulcha? The ones that I know of is the obvious ones that

- Naan is made of yeast while Kulcha make use of only baking powder and baking soda for its preparation.

- Naans are usually oblong in shape while Kulchas are round.

Both are made in Tandoor (earthern clay oven which enhances the taste of the bread) but Kulchas can be made on the stove top too. When you dont have Tandoor at home, you can make both Naan and kulchas in the oven. I made my Kulchas in the broiler but I have also shown how to make them in the stove top too.

Ingredients


• 3 cups Maida (all purpose flour)
  
  
• 1/2 tsp Baking powder
  
  
• 1/8th tsp Baking Soda
  
  
• 1 tbsp sugar
  
  
• salt to taste (approx 1 tsp)
  
  
• 1/4 cup oil
  
  
• 1/2 cup Yogurt
  
  
• 1 tbsp Ghee
  

For the Filling


• 1 large onion, chopped very finely
  
  
• 2-3 chillies, slices thinly (or as per taste)
  
  
• 1/4 tsp Ajwain (oregano)
  
  
• 1/2 tsp ginger,grated
  
  
• 1/4 tsp cumin
  
  
• salt to taste
  

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients for the filling in a bowl until blended and set aside.
2.Mix all the ingredients for the dough, add water if needed to make it into a soft dough.Set aside for at least 1-2 hours. Then divide the dough into small pieces and make rounds of each them. Roll it out into a small circle with the help of a rolling pin, just like you would do with Roti's or Parathas.
3.Now place little filling in the center of the rolled out dough and bring all the sides up to enclose the filling. Press it down. Refer here for directions
4.Now roll it down softly into a circle.
Set the setting of your oven to broiler. once hot, place this rolled out Kulcha into a baking pan and push it into the broiler for 2-3 min until the top is browned.
5.Now turn the kulcha and broil for additional 2 min. Serve hot.
6. For Stove top method : This follows the normal method just the same way you would do for your roti's. Heat a pan in your stove in med-high flame and place the Kulcha. Pour down little ghee/butter/oil on all the sides of the Kulcha and cook for 3-4 min.
7.Turn when brown spots start appearing on the surface of the bottom end. Do the same for the other side.

Serve hot with butter melting on top and Choley at the side. Yum!:)

Curry Coconut Chicken

Curry Coconut Chicken

If you love Indian flavors, you will love this dish. Curry chicken with a hint of coconut, served over a bed of aromatic Basmati rice, - it's just a great combination. This recipe comes together quickly and is a great dish to serve during the week.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lbs. chicken tenders, cut into 1" pieces
• 3 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbs. curry powder
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 2 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1 (14 oz.) can coconut milk
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can stewed diced tomatoes
• 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 4 Tbs. sugar
• Salt & Pepper, to taste

• Basmati rice, cooked according to package directions

Directions

1. Heat oil and curry in a large skillet over medium high heat for 2 minutes - stirring frequently. Add in the onions and garlic and sauté for one minute. Add in chicken, stirring to coat all the pieces with the curry oil. Lower heat to medium and cook for about 8 minutes, until the chicken is almost done.
2. Add coconut milk, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, sugar, lime & lemon juice. Stir thoroughly to combine all ingredients. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. During the last 5 minutes add in frozen peas. Serve over Basmati rice.

Serves 5

• For a more spicier dish, cook the curry for longer then 2 minutes. The longer you cook it, the spicier it becomes.
• If your sauce hasn't thickened enough, remove the cover and simmer for a little longer. Or consider adding a corn starch and water mixture to thicken it up.

Mango Lassi

Mango Lassi
Serves 2

1 cup sliced or diced mango (I used the frozen cubes from Trader Joe's)
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 cup water
1 tsp agave nectar (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp grated ginger

Add mango, grated ginger, buttermilk, water, and agave to blender. Blend until smooth. Add more water if mixture is too thick.

Taste and add more agave (up to 1 tbsp) as needed.