Jeera Aloo

Jeera aloo is another popular Punjabi dish with potatoes cooked with cumin and other spices. It is a typical tradition dish of North India prepared in every home. This simple dish is a real treat for all potato lovers. It is one of the simplest & easy fasting recipes. This dish can compliment any meal. Cumin has a unique nutty flavor and adds an earthy, strong essence to this dish.
Cooking Time:  15 mins                                                                             Servings: 4
Preparation Time:  10 mins                                                                       Category:  Main-course, Veg 

Jeera Aloo

Ingredients:
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Large sized potatoes - 4
Cumin Seeds - 3 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Vegetable Oil - 2 tbsp
Finely chopped green chillies - 2
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Finely chopped coriander - 2 tsp
Amchur powder - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Lemon juice (optional) - 1 tsp


Preparation Method:
=============

• Pressure cook the potatoes for 3-4 whistles, let them cool and peel of the skin.
• Cut these potatoes in to small cubes.
• Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and add cumin & mustard seeds. When they start to pop, add potatoes.
• Saute the potatoes until they turn light golden brown color.
• Add turmeric, chopped green chillies, amchur powders and salt to taste. Stir all these ingredients well and cook for 5 mins.
• Take it in a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander
• It can either be served with hot Indian breads, rotis, puris or as a side dish with daal

Punjabi Chole Masala

Chole masala is a popular dish in Indian and Pakistani cuisine. It is popular mainly in the Punjab region of northern-India, and also notably in the regions of Gujarat and Rajasthan. It commonly cooked dry, with tangy spices. The main ingredient is chickpeas (called "Kabuli Chana" in India).  Indian food is all about layering of the flavors and spices in a particular order and this recipe teaches you how to do just that.

Though there are many variations of making chole, I've tweaked the punjabi chole masala recipe a little and here is the recipe


Cooking Time:  20 mins                                                                             Servings: 5
Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category:  Main-course, Veg

Ingredients:
=========

Punjabi Chole Masala

Kabuli Chana/Chick peas - 250 gms
Onions - 2
Potato - 1
Tomatoes - 1
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Sliced Green chillies - 4
Salt - to taste
Ginger & garlic paste - 1 tsp
Punjabi Chole Masala - 2 tbsp (ready-made Badshah chole masala powder)
Vegetable or cooking oil - 2 tbsp
Chopped coriander - 1/2 cup (for garnishing) 

Preparation Method:
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• Pressure cook kabuli chana and potato for 3 whistles. When done, keep them aside.
• Peel out the potato skin and mash the potato nicely.
• Cut onions and tomatoes into small pieces and blend them into a paste.
• Heat oil in a vessel and add cumin seeds. When they start to pop, add the boiled kabuli chana  and mix well.
• Saute for about 5 mins and add ginger garlic paste, green chillies and mix well.
• Now add the onions & tomato paste, mashed up potato to this and stir well. Cook for about another 5 mins.
• Add salt, red chilli powder, turmeric, Badshah punjabi chole masala powder and mix thoroughly and cook for another 2 mins.
• Now add a 2 small cups of water, mix well and let the dish come to a boil.
• Take the entire dish into a cooker bowl and pressure cook it for 2 whistles.
• When done, take the dish into a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
• Serve this hot with Batura or Poori or Romali Roti or Phulkas along with sliced onions & lime

Out of the all brands which sell ready-made chole masala powder, I like "Badshah" brand. There are other good ones too like MTR, Everest, MDH etc but nothing beats the Badshah masala. Instead of getting the ready-made masala, we can prepare the same masala at home too and here is its recipe

Ingredients:
=========
Dry Red chillies - 3
Cumin Seeds (Jeera)  - 1 tbsp
Coriander Seeds - 1 tbsp
Shahi-Jeera(caraway seeds) - 2 tsp
Black pepper corns - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Sesame seeds (til) - 2 tsp
Cloves - 8
Cinnamon - 5 sticks
Bay Leaf (Tejpatta) - 2
Green Cardamom - 8
Black Cardamom - 4
Dry Ginger powder - 2 tsp
Dry Mango Powder (Amchur powder) - 2 tsp
Rock Salt (Kala Namak) - 1/2 tbsp
Nutmeg powder - 1/2 tsp

Preparation Method:
===============

• Dry roast all ingredients one by one and allow them cool. No need to roast powder ingredients
• When all these ingredients are cool, grind them into smooth powder and store in air tight container.
• The shelf life of this powder is 3-4 months when stored in cool area.

Besan Jhunka (Pitla)

Junka is a dish prepared mostly in North Karnataka and Maharashtra region. It is also known as "Pitla". Its chief ingredient, gram flour (besan), is mixed with water to form a semi-liquid paste. It is then sauteed in oil with other ingredients and served with roti or more traditionally with Jolada roti or Bhaakri. The combo-dish is also referred to as Junka bhaakar. This combo is a daily diet of people staying in rural areas of Maharashtra.

Known as poor man’s food, Jhunka bhaakari is definitely not poor when it comes to tingling the taste buds. This dish is an example of how common ingredients can be turned into a filling meal, something which you can eat every other day. Also, this traditional, quick and simple recipe comes in handy when you have  unannounced guests at home and you are running short of time, vegetables and ideas.

Since my ancestors hail from Maharashtra, Jhunka is one of the most common dishes at my home. This dish can be prepared in many ways but in this post, I'll share the one which I learnt from my Mom and generally prepare it with a twist of my own.


 Cooking Time:  20 mins                                                                             Servings: 4 
Preparation Time: 10 mins                                                                        Category:  Main-course, Veg 
 
Ingredients
=========

Besan Jhunka (Pitla)

Gram flour (Besan/Chickpea flour) - 1 cup
Onions - 2 chopped
Garlic Cloves - 4, crushed
Ginger flakes - 1 tsp
Green Chillies - 1 sliced
Whole Red Chillies - 2
Red Chilli powder - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Cumin seeds/jeera - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds/Rai 1 tsp
Cooking Oil - 2-3 tablespoon
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Water - 4 cups
Ajwain (Carom) seeds - 1 tsp
Mint leaves - 1/2 tablespoon finely chopped.
Curry leaves - 8-10
Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing - 1 tablespoon chopped


Preparation Method
==============

• Heat oil in a kadai and add cumin, mustard seeds, saute them for 20 seconds.
• Add curry leaves, crushed garlic, ginger flakes, red chillies, chopped onions, green chillies and saute them for 5 minutes.
• Now add ajwain seeds and cook for 1-2 minutes. Then add red chilli, turmeric powders and salt to taste, chopped mint leaves and mix well.
  Add 2 cups of water, mix well and simmer it to boil.
• Meanwhile, take the besan in a bowl and add 2 cups of water, coriander powder and mix well to a semi-liquid consistency.
• Add this mix to the boil and keep stirring the whole time to avoid lump formation of the besan mix.
• Keep stirring constantly until the besan is cooked properly.
• Turn off the stove and garnish the dish with chopped coriander.
• Serve hot with Bhaakri or chapathis or polkas along with chopped onions, lime and green chillies.

Chicken Lajawaab

Chicken Lajawaab, as the name suggests it truly is a special dish with rich ingredients. There is no one particular recipe as such for this dish. Depending on the region and the traditional background all across India, the recipe has been tweaked and twisted. However, the main essence and most of the ingredients are same. The recipe am going to share here is a twist of that followed in Hyderabad without missing the main essence and taste of the dish......

Cooking Time:  30 mins                                                                             Servings: 4 
Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category:  Main-course, Non-Veg

Ingredients
Boneless Chicken - 250 gms

Chicken Lajawaab

Onion paste - 2 cups (4-5 onions)
Cumin seeds - 2 tsps
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Pepper corns - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red Chillies - 4-5 
Yogurt - 1 cup
Cashew Nut paste - 1/2 cup
Garam Masala powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Ghee - 2 Tbsps.
Salt to taste
Ginger flakes & finely chopped coriander - for garnish


Preparation Method 

• Wash the chicken pieces thoroughly and soak it in water for about half an hour.
• Heat ghee in a pan and add cumin, mustard seeds and pepper corns. Saute it for couple of mins. Add red chillies and saute for another 2 mins.
• Now add onion paste and saute until it starts turning golden brown in color.
• Add the cashew nut paste and mix well.
• After 2 mins, remove the chicken pieces from water and add them to this paste. Mix well and let it cook for 5 mins.
• Add red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to taste and mix well.
• When the dish starts to ooze out ghee, add yogurt and the chicken stock (water in which chicken was soaked). Mix well and let it simmer for 15 mins.
• Lower the flame, add garam masala powder and mix the dish well.
• Turn of the stove, take the dish into a serving bowl and garnish it with ginger flakes and chopped coriander.
• Serve hot with Indian bread, naan, romali roti or steam rice, pulav etc.

Mutton Chops/Cutlets

A cutlet specifically refers to cooked meat (mutton/chicken) stuffing that is fried with a batter or covering. The meat itself is cooked with spices and then dipped in an egg mix and then in breadcrumbs or flour and fried in ghee or vegetable oil. Breadcrumbs are generally used for binding the meat and spices together. In the recipe, I've used besan i.e. channa atta (bengal gram flour).
The vegetarian version has no meat in it, instead the filling is a combination of mashed potatoes or mixed vegetables with spices and cooked for a bit together. This version is more popular with the vegetarians in India.

There are many ways of preparing mutton cutlet but what amuses me is the one I regularly have at King & Cardinal Bakery (http://www.zomato.com/hyderabad/king-and-cardinal-bakery-himayath-nagar). I visit K&C bakery especially for its Mutton Chops (that what is mentioned in the menu), the burger and chicken 65. If you haven't visited K&C yet, you are missing delicious NV snacks.

In this recipe, I've tried to recreate K&C bakery style mutton chops or cutlets. So here we go with the recipe:
 
Cooking Time:  40 mins                                                                             Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category: Starters/Snacks, Non-Veg

Mutton Chops/Cutlets (K&C style)

Ingredients
Mutton mince - 250 gms
Channa atta/besan - 1 cup
Ginger garlic paste - 1 Tbsp
Finely chopped mint leaves - 1/4 cup
Finely chopped coriander - 1/3 cup
Finely chopped Green chillies - 4
Finely chopped onions - 1/2 cup
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Breadcrumbs/corn flour - 1 cup (optional)
Egg - 1
Cooking/vegetable oil/ghee - 3 Tbsp

 

Preparation Method 

• Wash the meat mince nicely and remove the excess water. Keep in a bowl.
• In a cooker, heat 1 Tbsp oil and then add chopped onions. Once they turn golden brown, add mutton mince and cook for 10 mins on medium flame.
• When the meat oozes out water, add another cup of water to it. Now add salt, mix well and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles.
• Remove the excess water from the mince mix, allow it to cool and pat it dry. Then add cumin, turmeric, red chilli powder, garam masala powders, chopped green chillies and ginger garlic paste.
• Now add besan and mix everything well. Blend this mixture into a thick batter.
• Make small tikkis or round shaped cutlets and keep them aside.
• Beat the egg well in a small vessel and heat a pan/tawa & add some oil.
• Now dip each cutlet in the egg beat and shallow fry them on the pan. You may dip these tikkis in breadcrumbs or corn flour first and then in egg as you like.
• We need to shallow fry on both sides so that the meat is cooked properly.
• When done, serve it hot with chopped onions, a slice of lime and mint chutney.