Vegetable pilaf

From Sangita Desai

Ingredients

1 cup basmati rice
2 ½ to 3 cups water
4 tablespoons oil or ghee (clarified butter) – Sangita says you can use as little or much as you’d like
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
½ cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves
1 black cardamom pod
1 ½ teaspoon salt (I thought 1 teaspoon was better)
1 cup of mixed vegetables (frozen or fresh)
1 medium onion, sliced
1 medium potato, sliced
½ teaspoon minced garlic
½ teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 ½ teaspoon chopped green chilies
2 teaspoons chopped cilantro for garnish
pinch garam masala and chili powder (optional)

Method

1. Soak rice in water for 30 minutes. Drain and keep it aside.
2. Fry onion and potato until golden brown. Keep aside.
3. In a nonstick pan, heat oil on medium heat.
4. Add cumin seeds and all the whole spices and stir until they start sputtering.
5. Add ginger and garlic and green chilies and stir for a minute.
6. Add the veggies and mix well for some time.
7. Add the rice. Mix well and continue to stir for some time.
8. Add water and salt, mix well.
9. Cover the pan and let cook until rice gets tender. (15-20 minutes)
10. Garnish with fried onion, potato and cilantro.
11. Serve with any vegetable curry, buttermilk, or itself.

Tip

1. You can also add a couple of finely chopped tomatoes to add extra zest to the dish.
2. You can also add beans, raisins, and dry nuts like cashews, almonds, etc.

Chole (chickpea curry)

Also known as Chana Masala
From Sangita Desai

Ingredients

16 ounce can chick peas (garbanzo beans)
1 tablespoon oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large tomato, crushed
1 teaspoon garlic, minced or crushed
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced or grated
1 hot pepper (seeds included for extra heat)
2 tablespoons coriander powder
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon red chili powder
¼ teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon chole masala powder (MDH brand Chana spice mixture)
kosher salt, to taste
1 cup water
2 teaspoons fresh cilantro, for garnish


Method

1. Drain the water out of the chickpeas. Rinse well and let drain.
2. Heat oil in a heavy saucepan.
3. Add cumin seeds and heat until they crack.
4. Add tomato, onion, pepper and other spices. Cook for 5-7 minutes on medium heat.
5. The mixture will start leaving the oil. Add chickpeas.
6. Add water, cover the pan and let cook for about 15-20 minutes on medium heat.
7. Add cilantro and cook for a minute or 2.
8. Serve hot with Indian bread or rice.

Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry

2 medium potatoes, diced

Paste:

1/2 cup shredded coconut - unsweetened

1 Tbs mustard seeds

3 cloves garlic

1 1/2 Tbs ginger

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cloves or allspice

2 Tbs toasted cumin seeds

2 Tbs toasted sesame seeds

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 cups onions chopped

oil

1 tsp salt

1 large cauliflower, broken in to small pieces

1 med carrot, sliced

1 can chickpeas

3-4 Tbs lemon juice

Boil potatoes until tender and set aside. Put paste ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Heat the oil in a large pan or dutch oven. Add onion and cook about 5 minutes. Add cauliflower and carrot. Cook, covered 10 minutes. Add the paste and mix well. Cook covered over low heat until cauliflower is soft. Add more water if needed. Add potatoes and chickpeas. Mix well and cook a few minutes to season everything. Add chick peas and then taste for salt. Add lemon juice and salt if need be.

Cucumber Mint Raita

1 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 pickling cuke

1 Tbs honey

1/2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/2 Tbs mint

pinch of salt

chopped peanuts

Peel cuke and shred or chop. Mix everything together and taste. Add more salt if needed. Serve with spicy Indian dishes.

Spinach and Chick Pea Curry

• 2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked over night
  
• 8 cups baby spinach leaves
• 2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 cup coconut milk

Heat oil in large pan.
Add coriander, cumin, garam masala and turmeric. Toast for 1-2 minutes.
Add chick peas. Coat with spices, stir 1-2 minutes.
Add tomatoes and salt and pepper, simmer 2-3 minutes.
Stir in coconut milk, return to simmer 2-3 minutes.
Add spinach (in batches, if needed) and cover.
Simmer 10-15 minutes.
Add cilantro, squeeze with lemon before serving over rice.

Adapted from Epicurious, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Chickpea-and-Spinach-Curry-237287#ixzz1RqPn67Za

Vegetable Curry (vegan)

From Cook’s Illustrated, changed slightly
Serves 4-6 as a main course

2 tablespoons sweet or mild curry powder
1 ½ teaspoons garam masala
¼ cup vegetable oil (divided)
2 medium onions, chopped fine (about 2 cups)
12 ounces red bliss potatoes, scrubbed and cut into ½-inch pieces (I used 1 lb)
3 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press
1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
1 jalepeno pepper, minced (include seeds if you want more heat)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
½ medium head cauliflower, trimmed, cored, and cut into 1-inch florets
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, including liquid
1 ¼ cups water
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
table salt
1 cup frozen peas
¼ cup coconut milk

TAKE CARE NOT TO BURN! Toast curry powder and garam masala in small skillet over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until spices darken slightly and become fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove spices from skillet and set aside.

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large pot over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions and potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are caramelized and potatoes are golden brown on edges, about 10 minutes. (Reduce heat to medium if onions darken too quickly.)

Reduce heat to medium. Clear center of pan and add remaining tablespoon oil, garlic, ginger, pepper, and tomato paste; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add toasted spices and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute longer. Add cauliflower and cook, stirring constantly, until spices coat florets, about 2 minutes longer.

Add tomatoes, water, chickpeas, and1 teaspoon salt; increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to boil, scraping bottom of pan with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Simmer briskly, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in peas and coconut milk; continue to cook until heated through, about 2 minutes longer. Adjust seasoning with salt and serve immediately. Serve with rice.

CAMBODIAN VEGETABLE CURRY

Adapted from the Elephant Walk recipe
Makes 6-8 servings

For Paste:
2 stalks Lemongrass – outer part removed – use white inner part (could not find, so used 1 T. lemongrass paste from Price Chopper)
1 large jalepeno, roughly chopped, including seeds
2 shallots, roughly chopped
1 inch of ginger, peeled and grated (I use a zester)
10 garlic cloves
zest from 2 limes
½ teaspoon turmeric
¾ cup water

Blend all ingredients in a food processor except water – I pulse a few times. Gradually add the water until blended. (It won’t be completely smooth. I assume a blender would work also, and maybe it would be smoother, but it doesn’t matter for the final sauce.)

For Sauce:
¼ cup vegetable oil
all of paste
2 cans coconut milk (I used one light and one regular)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp salt

Heat oil in large pot or wok. Add the paste and cook about a minute over medium heat. Add the coconut milk, sugar and salt and bring to a boil while stirring regularly. I boil for maybe 5 minutes to thicken the sauce a little. Set aside.

Vegetables:
1 large onion, chopped
10 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 half butternut squash, peeled and chopped (I par-boiled the chunks, but you could slice it thinly and not par-boil)
1 can diced tomatoes, thoroughly drained
6 ounces baby spinach

Start rice boiling.

In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and stir fry the onions and mushrooms for a few minutes (depends how soft you like them). If using raw squash, add at this time also.
Add all the curry sauce and tomatoes. (Add the cooked squash at this time.) Bring to a boil. Turn off heat and stir in the spinach. Serve over jasmine rice.
To make less spicy, don’t include jalepeno seeds.

Ideas for different vegetables:
Eggplant, thinly sliced
Baby bok choy, washed and sliced sideways
Green tomatoes, sliced
Green beans, trimmed at both ends
Zucchini, sliced
Green papaya, julienned
(This is also good with chicken or shrimp)