Shahi Paneer

Shahi paneer is a mainstay of Indian cuisine, mainly North India. This dish is made by cooking paneer in a thick gravy made up of cream/milk, tomatoes and spices. It is mainly eaten with roti, chappati or other Indian breads. Paneer is the Indian word for cottage cheese, and shahi is the Indo-Persian term for royal (in reference to the Mughal court).

Cooking Time:  30                                                                                     Servings: 5

Preparation Time: 10 mins                                                                        Category: Main course, Veg

Ingredients:
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Paneer (cottge cheese) - 250 gms

Shahi-Paneer

Ghee or butter - 3 TBsp
Onions finely chopped - 2
Finely chopped Ginger - 1/2" piece
Green chillies chopped fine - 4
Tomatoes finely chopped - 4 (remove seeds)
Crushed Cardamoms - 2
Curd/Yougurt - 1/2 cup
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Milk - 1/2 cup
Kasuri Methi - 2 tsp



Preparation Method:
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• Cut paneer into 1" cubes. Lightly fry them in ghee and keep aside.
• Heat half the ghee in a wok. Add onion,ginger, green chilli and cardamom. Saute them for 3-4 minutes.
• Add tomatoes and cook for about 10 minutes, covered with lid.
• Crush kasuri methi and add it to the dish. Mix well.
• Add curd and cook for 5 minutes and then add 1/2 cup water, mix well and turn off the stove.
• Blend this in a mixie till smooth.
• Heat remaining ghee, add the blended smoothie and remaining ingredients except milk and paneer. Boil to get a very thick gravy.
• Just before serving, heat gravy, add milk and paneer fingers and boil for 3-4 minutes.
• Garnish with chopped coriander and grated paneer (optional)

Palak Paneer

Cooking Time:  30                                                                                     Servings: 5

Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category: Main course, Veg

Palak paneer is an Indian and Pakistani dish consisting of spinach and paneer. This traditional greens based vegetarian dish is a rich, smooth, creamy curry where paneer cubes are cooked in a onion-tomato-pureed spinach based gravy which is moderately spiced with Indian spices. It is a popular vegetarian dish. Palak paneer is one type of saag, which can also be made with mustard leaves. Palak paneer may be somewhat more watery than saag paneer. This dish is mainly served with roti or naan. Palak paneer may be accompanied by lassi, a Punjabi yogurt drink. This dish is nutritious and usually eaten in Punjab of India and Pakistan. Dhaba restaurants specialise in palak paneer. Its creamy, its rich and a delight to eat.



Ingredients

Palak Paneer

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Paneer - 250 gms  (cut them into cubes)
Spinach (discard the coarse stems) – 3 big bunches. 
Ghee/butter - 2 Tbsps
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Onions - 2 (make them to a paste)
Green chillis - 2, slit length wise
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Cream/Malai - 1 tbsp
Kasuri methi - 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Tomatoes - 2 
Salt to taste



Preparation Method
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• Blanch spinach in hot water for 3-4 minutes and make a paste of it. Keep this aside.
• Similarly blanch tomatoes in hot water for couple of minutes. Peel the skin out of them and make a puree of the tomatoes.
• Heat ghee/butter in a vessel. Fry paneer untill they turn light brown. Take them out and keep aside.
• Add cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add green chillies and onions paste and saute them till brown.
• Add red chilli powder, ginger garlic paste, coriander powder, salt to taste and mix well.
• Now add the tomato puree and cook for 5 minutes on a medium flame. 
• Then add palak paste/puree, mix well and cook for another 5-10 mins. Add the paneer cubes and mix gently. 
• Add the water in which palak and tomatoes were blanced, cover the vessel with a lid and cook for another 10 mins.
• Now add garam masala, kasuri methi and mix well. Turn of the heat.
• Garnish with cream/malai and top it with few slices of ginger.
• Server hot with rotis, naan or flavored rice.

Aachari Murgh

Cooking Time:  45 mins                                                                            Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category: Main course, Non-Veg


Aachari Murgh is a popular chicken dish of sub-continent region. Chicken is cooked with pickling spices. "Aachar" means "pickle" and "Murgh" is "chicken". Well am Sharing the way I made it. Its more kind of a main course with thick gravy...it's easy, simple, spicy!

Ingredients

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Chicken - 500 gms (with bone and mixed pieces)

Onions - 2

Ginger - 1"

Garlic - 2 cloves

Aachari Murgh

Fenugreek seeds (methi seeds) - 1/4 tsps.

Black Mustard seeds - 3/4 tsps.

Cumin seeds (jeera) - 3/4 tsps.

Fennel seeds (saunf) - 1/2 tsps.

Carom seeds (ajwain) - 1/2 tsp.

Nigella seeds (kalongi) - 3/4 tsps.

Garam Masala powder - 1 tsps.

Crushed Black pepper - 1/2 tsps.

Green Chillies - 2

Dry red chillies - 3

Red chilli powder - 1 Tbsps.

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsps.

Coriander powder - 1 tsps.

Ginger garlic paste - 1 Tbsps.

Salt - to taste

Mustard Oil/Cooking oil - 2 Tbsps.

Curd - 1 cup

Preparation Method

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• Wash and pat dry chicken pieces.
• Marinade chicken with ginger garlic paste, turmeric, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt. Keep aside
• Crush garlic cloves, chop ginger into thin 1 inch slices and keep aside.
• Finely slice onions and blend it into a paste adding little water.
• Head 1 Tbsp of oil in a vessel and add the onion paste. Cook it until it starts changing to light golden colour.
• Now add the marinated chicken, crushed black pepper, stir well and cook for 10 mins.
• Whisk the curd and add it to the dish and stir well again.
• Turn the stove to medium, close the vessel with a lid and let it simmer until the dish oozes out the oil (usually takes about 15-20 mins). This means chicken and all the masalas are cooked well. Now remove the lid and  stir gently.
• For tempering (or tadka), heat remaining oil in a kadai and add crushed garlic cloves, ginger slices, cumin, fennel, carom, fenugreek, nigella & mustard seeds.
• Once they start to splutter, add green and red chillies and sauté them for 2 mins on medium flame.
• Add this tempering to the dish and let it simmer for 5 mins.
• Garnish with freshly chopped coriander (optional). Turn off the stove and serve hot with Indian breads, chapathi or phulkas.

Sabudana Kichchidi

Cooking Time:  20 mins                                                                             Servings: 4

Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category: Snacks, Veg

Sabudana khichchidi is an Indian dish made from soaked Sabudana (Tapioca Sago). It is usually prepared in western parts of India especially in Gujarat & Maharashtra. In the major towns of Maharashtra like Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, it is available as street food and is widely enjoyed by everyone throughout the year. It is the dish of choice when somebody is observing a fast during Navratri.

Ingredients

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Sabudana Kichchidi

Sabudana (Tapioca Sago) - 500 gms

Crushed roasted peanuts - 100 gms

Cooking Oil - 2 Tbsps

Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Potato - 2

Curry Leaves - 10

Green chillies - 3

Salt - to taste

Chopped coriander as needed.

Preparation Method

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• Soak sabudana in water for 30 mins. Drain out the water and keep it aside for 4-5 hrs
• Peel off potato skin. Cut potatoes in small cubes.
• Heat Oil in a kadai and sauté cumin seeds and when they start to splutter add the potatoes.
• Fry until they turn brown. Now add finely chopped green chillies and cook them for couple of mins
• Add crushed roasted peanuts, salt per taste and soaked sabudana.
• Mix all the ingredients well, sprinkle some water and cook for another 10 mins on low flame until the sabuna becomes soft. Keep mixing it constantly.
• Turn off the stove, garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot with peanut chutney.

For the chutney - Take 4 Tbsps curd and to it add salt (to taste), red chilli
powder, 1/4 tsp sugar, 2 tsp crushed roasted peanuts. Mix everything very well and the chutney is ready.  

Kheema Mutter

Cooking Time:  45 mins to 1 Hr                                                                 Servings: 4

Preparation Time: 20 mins                                                                        Category: Main course, Non-Veg


Meat mince is commonly known as Kheema in India. Kheema Mutter and is one of the most relished and most sought after dishes of all non-veg lovers in Hyderabad. Theorigin of this dish comes from Mughalai cuisine and it is evenly popular all across India and the main ingredients remain same which ever part you visit.



Kheema Mutter

Ingredients
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Kheema - 500 gms
Mutter (fresh green peas) - 100 gms
Ginger paste - 1 tsp
Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Finely chopped Onions - 5
Chilly powder - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste
Dhaniya powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Green chillies, sliced - 4
Garam Masala powder - 1 tsp
Ground nut oil - 4 tbsp
Coriander, finely chopped - 2 sticks




Preparation Method

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• Wash the kheema in warm water thorougly. Drain out the water and keep it in a bowl.
• To it, add chilly powder, salt, dhaniya powder, turmeric, ginger & garlic paste, 1/2 tsp garam masala. Mix well and let it marinade for half an hour.
• Heat oil in a kadai and add onions. Saute it until they turn light golden in color. Now add mutter (peas) and cook for 5 mins.
• Add the marinated kheema to it, mix well and cook on high flame with a closed lid. Keep stirring so that meat wont be over cooked and charred.
• When all the water from meat oozes out and let it simmer until the meat is completely cooked.
• When done all the remaining garam masala and mix well.
• Garnish with coriander, server hot with plain rice, poori or tandoori roti.

Note: Mutter can also be replaced with Alu or methi leaves