Very subtly different from the Biryani is a Pilaf/Pulao. While Biryani is a rich, exotic delicacy created & served with a regal fervor; redolent with beautiful spices & packed the wonderful & unforgettable flavors, lip smacking goodness & heart warming memories – the Pilaf/Pulao is a more simple version of this royal dish.
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What a strange sounding Translation! Anyway…
India has a large repertoire of sweets. Some sweets are consumed all over the country whereas some are only typical to a region. Traditionally, a lot of Indian sweets are prepared with milk, sugar & flour. In India sweets play a very important role in the culture. Every happy occasion, every ceremony, & festival is marked by distribution of sweets. Just like a box of chocolate, or a bottle of wine is brought in as a gift, a regular form of gift in India is a box of sweets.
And a Sweet Little Incident… Here it goes:
The other day we were going out for dinner. For once there was some peace in the car. The 2 kids were not fighting, each of them busy doing thier own things. I noticed that my 2 year old had been looking out of the window for quite sometime, when she cried out ”the moon, the moon! mama the moon is broken. Someone broke the moon…” She was definitely very upset about it. A few days back she had seen an enormous orange full moon, and now all of a sudden it was just a slice. I wish I had an as imaginative an explaination as her beautiful mind. Later on she herself figured that the cloud must have bitten a piece out of it, since the cloud is the only thing that can reach it!!
Chicken Tikka makes regular appearance in all Indian restaurants. The Malai kabab is little different from the usual orange hued chicken tikka that you see in the appetizer section of the restaurant’s menu. These are irresistible tender succulent pieces of chicken that melts in your mouth as they are marinated in thick yogurt, creme (malai), cheese, herbs & spices and grilled to perfection. This makes great appetizers or have it as a main meal with grilled vegetables and your choice of rice, or couscous.
Jeera Rice
Ingredients:
1 cup of uncooked basmati rice
2 small green cardamoms
1″ stick of cinnamon
1 clove
1 tablespoon ghee
1.5 teaspoon cumin seeds
salt to taste
Preparation:
Wash the rice till the water runs clear. Soak the rice in cold water for 1/2 an hour and drain.
Heat Ghee, and add cardamom, cinnamon and clove. When they start to sizzle and splutter add the rice. Stir for sometime till the ghee coats the rice.
Now add the Cumin seeds. Make sure not to add the Cumin seeds directly in the ghee, as this will darken the cumin and give a different flavor. Add salt and fry for some more time, about 5 more minutes.
Increase the heat. Add 2 cups of water and let the water boil. When you see no water over the surface of the rice, cover it and immediately switch off the heat. Be very careful during this time as more heat or delay may burn the rice at the bottom of the pan. Let it stay covered for another 10-15 minutes.
Serve hot.
Ghee is Clarified butter.
It is used extensively in India in a lots of recipes including desserts. It is made by boiling unsalted butter, till all the moisture is gone and it turns a light golden yellow.
This form of butter has a lot of benefits over traditional butter. It has high smoking point, so it does not burn while cooking. Also while clarifying the butter the solid milk proteins are removed. As a result it becomes lactose free – a more tolerable product for lactose intolerant people.
Ingredients:
Preparation:
Heat the unsalted butter in low flame. It will slowly melt and start bubbling and boiling. If you are making this is a deep pot you will not need to worry about spilling over.
Do not stir. This might take upto an hour. Gradually you will see the foam forming on the top, the solids depositing at the bottom of the pan and the butter getting transparent.
Be careful not to burn the solids at the bottom of the pot. They should remain at a dark yellow color with tinges of brown in them.
The foam at the top will slowly clear up and get deposited at the bottom.
You will know if its done once the liquid is transparent light golden color. The deposit should be dark yellow. Do not stir. Strain the clarified butter, and discard the brownish deposit.
Note: Ghee at room temperature looks semi-solid. Ghee does not need to be refrigerated. Always use a clean utensil to scoop out ghee for use.
Chingri Maacher Malaikari is an old Bengali Classics. I have grown up in this East Indian State (West Bengal), having to eat (and loving every bite and moment of it) this simply marvelous dish in every special occasions, be it be a birthday, or a houseful evening guests. My dad would have to go to the Sunderbans for work, and we all waited till late night knowing that he would get the fresh jumbo prawns/shrimps and next day would be the grandiose Chingri maacher malaikari.
This is cooked with coconut milk, which is very easily available here in cans making the process much more easy and faster.
Here I am sharing with you the way my mom always cooked chingri maacher malaikari.
Ingredients:
Preparation:
Shell the Shrimps and baste with ¾ spoon of turmeric, little bit of salt and half the amount of red chili powder. Let it sit for about 20 minutes.
Heat about the oil and lightly sauté the shrimps till they are almost done.
Heat the Ghee. Add the cracked cardamoms, bay leaves and cinnamon sticks. Once they start sizzling, add Cumin, the green hot peppers and the ginger paste.
Fry for sometimes till the ghee leaves the sides of the pan. Be careful and see that the paste does not burn and turn dark brown.
Add the sautéed Shrimps, sugar, salt, and the rest of the chili powder and turmeric and the coconut milk & the shredded coconut. Boil this till the coconut milk start getting creamy. You will see little bubbles coming up.
Gently stir for some more time and when the gravy coats the spoon you will know that its done.
Serve with white basmati rice.
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