Anjali's Food Kaleidoscope: vegetables

Showing posts with label vegetables. Show all posts

Lauki Biryani / Bottlegourd Biryani
serves three- four

I admit , it’s a quick fix meal , nothing exotic but tastes pretty good and not much effort in cooking if grating the “Lauki / Bottlegourd “is not a big deal for you.

Here is how you can make “Lauki / Bottlegourd Biryani “ in a matter of minutes.

Ingredients for Lauki/ Bottlegourd Biryani:

1. 2 cups grated and squeezed lauki ( reserve the water to cook the rice)

2. One cup freshly blended tomato puree

3. One large onion sliced thin

4. One heaped teaspoon ginger garlic paste

5. ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

6. One level teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder

7. Salt to taste or two level teaspoons

8. 4-6 tablespoons refined oil

9. A few mixed spices like cumin seeds , cloves , cinnamon and black cardamom
10. one cup long grain rice

Method for Lauki Biryani:

1. Soak one cup of long grain rice for atleast half an hour.

2. Coarsely grate the Lauki / Bottlegourd , squeeze out the water and keep it aside.

3. Warm the oil and add the spices keeping the flame on medium , and as soon as the spices change colour , add the onions.

4. Stir fry the onions till they turn golden brown , add the ginger garlic paste and cook for another two minutes.

5. Add the turmeric and red chilli powder , stir for a few seconds and follow by the tomato puree.

6. Measure the reserved water of the lauki and add more water to make one cup of water and add to the pan.

7. Add the grated Lauki followed by the rice and the salt , cover and cook on low flame till done.

8. Serve with raita or just plain yogurt.

Quick fixes· rice· vegetables

Lauki Biryani / Bottlegourd Biryani
serves three- four

I admit , it’s a quick fix meal , nothing exotic but tastes pretty good and not much effort in cooking if grating the “Lauki / Bottlegourd “is not a big deal for you.

Here is how you can make “Lauki / Bottlegourd Biryani “ in a matter of minutes.

Ingredients for Lauki/ Bottlegourd Biryani:

1. 2 cups grated and squeezed lauki ( reserve the water to cook the rice)

2. One cup freshly blended tomato puree

3. One large onion sliced thin

4. One heaped teaspoon ginger garlic paste

5. ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

6. One level teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder

7. Salt to taste or two level teaspoons

8. 4-6 tablespoons refined oil

9. A few mixed spices like cumin seeds , cloves , cinnamon and black cardamom
10. one cup long grain rice

Method for Lauki Biryani:

1. Soak one cup of long grain rice for atleast half an hour.

2. Coarsely grate the Lauki / Bottlegourd , squeeze out the water and keep it aside.

3. Warm the oil and add the spices keeping the flame on medium , and as soon as the spices change colour , add the onions.

4. Stir fry the onions till they turn golden brown , add the ginger garlic paste and cook for another two minutes.

5. Add the turmeric and red chilli powder , stir for a few seconds and follow by the tomato puree.

6. Measure the reserved water of the lauki and add more water to make one cup of water and add to the pan.

7. Add the grated Lauki followed by the rice and the salt , cover and cook on low flame till done.

8. Serve with raita or just plain yogurt.

Nutty sesame cauliflower stir fry

This cauliflower preparation is with a bit of a twist. Along with the regular masalas there are some peanuts and sesame seeds as well, which jointly impart a rich flavor to this simple stir fried recipe .

Ingredients:

1. One medium cauliflower about 500 grams

2. Two medium onions sliced long

3. Quarter cup peanuts

4. Two tablespoons sesame seeds toasted

5. One teaspoon ginger garlic paste

6. ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
7. one eighth cup water

8. ½ teaspoon red chilli powder

9. 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

10. 3-4 cloves

11. 4 -5 tablespoons oil

Method:

1. Make walnut sized florets of the cauliflower.

2. Toast the peanuts , pound them to small pieces and remove the husk and then powder them.

3. Toast the sesame seeds in the same pan and keep aside.

4. Take oil in a heavy bottomed pan and when it gets warm , add the cumin seeds and cloves.

5. The moment they change colour in a few seconds add the sliced onions and stir fry till just turning golden brown.

6. Add the ginger garlic paste , stir for two – three minutes .

7. Add the peanut powder and give a stir and follow with the turmeric and the red chilli powders , stir a bit and then tumble in the cauliflorets.

8. Add about one eight cup of water and sprinkle the salt, toss the vegetables so that they get evenly coated with the masala and cover.

9. Toss the florets in between the cooking so that they get evenly cooked.

10. When the florets are completely cooked, sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds, give another toss and serve with rotis or plain paranthas.

cauliflower· peanuts· sesame seeds· stir fry· vegetables

Nutty sesame cauliflower stir fry

Ingredients:

1. One medium cauliflower about 500 grams

2. Two medium onions sliced long

3. Quarter cup peanuts

4. Two tablespoons sesame seeds toasted

5. One teaspoon ginger garlic paste

6. ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
7. one eighth cup water

8. ½ teaspoon red chilli powder

9. 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

10. 3-4 cloves

11. 4 -5 tablespoons oil

Method:

1. Make walnut sized florets of the cauliflower.

2. Toast the peanuts , pound them to small pieces and remove the husk and then powder them.

3. Toast the sesame seeds in the same pan and keep aside.

4. Take oil in a heavy bottomed pan and when it gets warm , add the cumin seeds and cloves.

5. The moment they change colour in a few seconds add the sliced onions and stir fry till just turning golden brown.

6. Add the ginger garlic paste , stir for two – three minutes .

7. Add the peanut powder and give a stir and follow with the turmeric and the red chilli powders , stir a bit and then tumble in the cauliflorets.

8. Add about one eight cup of water and sprinkle the salt, toss the vegetables so that they get evenly coated with the masala and cover.

9. Toss the florets in between the cooking so that they get evenly cooked.

10. When the florets are completely cooked, sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds, give another toss and serve with rotis or plain paranthas.

Gobi keema matar / Minced cauliflower stir fried with peas

This recipe though quite a common one appeals to me as I can skillfully disguise the cauliflower into a beautiful mince because my son just hates cauliflower, he removes the florets from any vegetable or pulao that I make and obviously I have not yet revealed to him that this mince is of cauliflower.

But besides catering to my surreptitious cooking method it is also an excellent dish for a main course if you have guests for dinner. Yes it takes a little more time than the usual aloo gobi and the whole process needs constant monitoring unlike some prepartions where in you can tumble in the chopped vegetables, cover with a lid, give an occassional toss and the sabzee is done.

I have added some stir fried cashews to make the recipe more glamouros , but they can be skipped in case you haven’t any right now with you or want to give it a miss because of the calories they have.

Ingredients:

1. One medium cauliflower about 400 to 500 grams

2. One marge onion

3. Two medium tomatoes

4. ½ teaspoon turmeric powder

5. ¾ teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder

6. 1 teaspoon coriander powder

7. ½ teaspoon garam masala

8. A few cashews ( I have used quarter of a cup)

9. Half a teaspoon kasoori methi powder ( you could garnish \with fresh coriander leaves chopped fine or parsley)

10. Mixed spices – a few cloves, one star anise ( optional), two black cardamons and one inch cinnamon stick

11. Pure ghee / clarified butter about five to six tablespoons ( you could even use vegetable oil instead)
12. half a cup frozen peas or you could boil the fresh ones till soft
13. one teaspoon ginger garlic paste

Method:

1. Grate the cauliflower and stir fry with two tablespoons desi ghee / pure ghee on medium flame till slightly browned.This would take you about ten to fifteen minutes. I prepared the rest of the ingredients while giving a stir to the mince in between to save on time. Honestly, I am not too convinced of grating the cauliflower in the food processor for this recipe as we dont need too fine a mince, but if that’s convenient for you , go ahead and do it.

2. Stir fry the cashews in a tablespoon of ghee till golden brown.

3. Remove the cashews and in the same pan add two tablespoons more of the ghee and the whole spices.

4. The moment they change colour , add the finely chopped onions and stir fry till golden brown.

5. Puree the tomatoes in a blender and add to the browned onions along with a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste.

6. Stir fry the mixture on medium flame till it begins to leave oil on the sides.

7. Add the coriander , turmeric and red chilli powders, give a stir to let the masalas cook for a few seconds.

8. Tumble in the cauliflower mince along with the frozen or boiled fresh peas toss them to mix them well.

9. Sprinkle some salt and garam masala , turn the gas off and then season with any seasoning of your choice ( I have used kasoorui methi) and give another gentle toss .

10. Tumble in the stir fried cashews and serve hot with pooris, plain paranthas or simply rotis. Dal and boondi raita will go well with this dry preparation.

cauliflower· peas· stir fry· vegetables