Plantain Chips

I don’t get plantains so often in my city. I will have to drive for an hour to an Asian store to get ‘em. And naturally that doesn’t happen very often. But I had to visit the store this week (You should have guessed it by now. Yes, I was on a jackfruit hunt :-D) and I grabbed a few firm, big plantains.

Even though we are not big fans of deep fried foods, this one is an exception. Even the sight of potato chips is tiring these days. The recipe is fairly simple and doesn’t require double frying. Slicing them paper thin is the only requisite to attain store-bought crunch.

Ingredients

Plantains – 2
Chilli powder – ½ tsp
Asafoetida – ¼ tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Salt – 1 tsp

Method

Slice plantains paper thin using a mandoline. Separate each slice before frying, else they will clump up and not crisp in the oil. Mix dry powders together and keep it handy in a bowl.

Take about 2 cups of oil in a skillet on a medium-high flame. Fry plantains in batches, taking care not to overcrowd the oil. As soon as one batch of chips come out of oil, season them with the above prepared spice mixture, while they are still hot.

Allow them to cool and transfer to an airtight container.

Brown Rice Bowl

I was hesitant to try brown rice in the beginning. I was under the impression that it will be bland and chewy. Boy, I was in for a surprise. It was mildly chewy and nutty, and best of all, I liked it. Now it’s a regular in my house. It’s a one-pot meal, so clean up is a breeze.

I have used carrots and snow peas as I had them on hand. Other suitable candidates would be bell peppers, cabbage, broccoli, if you are not a fan of lightly cooked vegetables, blanch ‘em briefly before adding them to the skillet. Also, you can either marinade the tofu and just season with salt and pepper. The marinade that I used is lime juice, lime zest, dried herbs, salt and pepper.

You can find vegan version of worcestershire sauce (without anchovies) in many supermarkets/organic stores like Wild Oats, Whole Foods, Sprouts Farmer’s Market.

Ingredients

Brown rice – 1 cup
Snow peas – ½ cup
Carrot – ½ cup, cut into thin strips
Tofu – ½ lb, cut into bite sized pieces
Green chillies – 3, slit lengthwise
Ginger – 1 inch piece, grated
Soy sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Pepper
Cilantro
Sesame oil – 1 tbsp

Method

Cook brown rice with 1 ½ cups of water in a pressure cooker. In a skillet, on high heat, start adding ginger, snow peas, carrots, chillies and stir-fry ‘em. Give it a couple of minutes and add soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Add the cooked rice and adjust seasoning. Garnish with cilantro.

Next time I would try adding lemon grass (if I could get them, that is) as found here and peanuts.

Sorasam – Ginger Cordial

In the past, when medical facilities were limited, people sought for home remedies. They developed treatments, temporary or permanent, using simple, natural household ingredients. Not only are they inexpensive, they have no side effects too.

To me home remedies stand synonymous to grandmothers – simple, but wise. What was known to the older generation of India, has been passed down to younger generations, through word of mouth. These practices can still be found in modern households. I learnt this from my MIL and is quite useful in treating common stomach ailments like upset stomach, indigestion etc.

Ingredients

Ginger – 4 inch piece
Coriander seeds – 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 2 tsp
Lemon – 1 or 2
Salt
Sugar

Method:

Grind ginger, coriander seeds and cumin seeds together with 2 cups of water. Strain the liquid and add salt, sugar and lemon juice. Adjust ingredients according to your taste. Refrigerate this for 30 minutes. The top layer of the liquid will be clear while the chalky layer has deposited down under. Carefully strain the clear liquid and discard the murky liquid. I don’t peel the ginger as we strain the pulp.

You can also serve them mixed with sparkling water.

Mango Kulfi

“Kulfeeeeee”, the kulfi man at 10 in the night.

“Appa, appa, kulfi pa, please”- Me

“No no, you will fall sick. Look at the time, its 10” – Dad

But the kulfi man always comes at 10, “No pa, just once, pleaaseeee” - Me

Appa looking at Amma.

‘God! Make Amma give “that’s ok” nod’ – Me

“OK! But this is the last time” – Amma

“Sure Ma!” – Me, certain that this will not be the last time

I still remember the gleam in my eyes when I watched the kulfi man slice the kulfi and handed ‘em to me in a banana leaf. I knew I was sure to fall sick after eating ice cream at 10 in the night, but the temptation was inescapable. The texture, taste and scent – it was appealing to all my senses. Its been years since I had kulfi, and I no longer remember the exact taste and texture to recreate the recipe. But this recipe tastes as good as the one I had in my childhood days (as far as I could remember) and is easy as a snap.

Ingredients

Mango – 1
Condensed milk – 1 can
Elaichi – ¼ tsp, powdered
Saffron – few strands
Pistachios – ¼ cup, chopped coarsely

Method

Puree the mango. If using canned mango, reserve the juice. Mix puree, elaichi, saffron and pistachios. Add only half of the condensed milk. Taste the mixture and continue adding milk (and the juice, if using canned mango) until the desired sweetness is reached. The mixture should taste sweeter than you prefer as it will loose some of the sweetness after its frozen. Pour into popsicle/kulfi molds and freeze overnight.

This is my entry for Barbara’s A Taste Of Yellow. Thanks Jai and Bee for letting me know about this event. This is also my entry for A Fruit A Month – Mango by Deepa of Recipes and More.

Leek Stuffed Kulcha

I had other plans for the ‘3’ in 1-in-3 – Leeks series, something like a tart. Instead I decided something Indian. Originally these kulchas are stuffed with red onions, so not buying leeks shouldn’t stop you from trying this recipe.

One thing to be noted in this recipe is that the filling should be dry and not soggy. So if your paneer is wet, squeeze the liquid with a cheese cloth and use the liquid to make the dough. Also, try using cottage cheese instead of paneer. Same rule though – drain the cheese well. With cottage cheese you get so much liquid that I find adding curd to the dough unnecessary.

Ingredients

Dough

Wheat flour – 1 cup
All purpose flour/ Maida – 1 cup
Curd – ¼ cup
Water – as needed
Baking soda – ¼ tsp
Salt
Oil

Filling

Leek - 1
Paneer – 1 cup grated
Green chillies – 2
Ginger – ½ inch piece, grated
Cilantro – A handful
Salt



Method

Make the dough by mixing all of the ingredients. Oil the surface of the dough and keep it covered with a damp towel for at least an hour.

Cut the leeks into small pieces, wash and dry a little bit. Mix with other ingredients.

Take a lemon sized ball from the dough. Roll into thick puris. Place a tsp of the filling. Seal and cover fully. Roll again.

Cook on a tawa over low flame on both the sides. Kulcha is done when it slightly puffs up with brown spots on both sides.

Leek-stuffed kulcha with avakkai (mango pickle) and very-berry smoothie

Leek-Potato Soup

“This is potato soup, but there is something else in it, other than potato, with a subtle flavour” – G, my husband’s reaction when I served this soup for the first time. That is exactly how I will describe this soup too. The delicate flavour of leek turns this otherwise plain soup, into a delectable one. With its velvety texture and creamy taste, this soup is worth trying.

Ingredients

Leek – 1
Potato – 3, small
Oil – 2 tbsp
Flour – 1 tbsp
Milk – 1 cup
Salt
Pepper
Tortilla chips – for garnish

Method

Boil the potatoes until soft and keep aside.

Heat oil in a soup pot. Sauté leeks in medium flame until softened. Reduce the flame and add the flour. The flour will change colour and release a nutty aroma once it is cooked. Now add the milk and bring it to a boil. Add the cooked potatoes and allow the flavours to blend together. Season with salt and pepper. With a hand blender, blend the soup leaving small chunks of potato. Adjust the thickness of the soup by adding more milk. Recheck the seasoning and serve with tortilla chips for crunch.

Psst!! If you want a more divine soup, omit flour + milk and substitute with cream. And, that is ‘Creamy Leek – Potato Soup’. Did somebody say something about calories??

Leek-Tofu Quiche

Leeks - This week's 1-in-3

The first time I bought leeks, I neither knew what they were nor how to cook them. Well, most of the times, I buy vegetables without knowing how to cook them. This comes out of frustration of mundane use of the usual vegetables – cauliflower, carrot, cabbage. Sporadic availability of the Indian vegetables is also part of the reason.

Since I learnt that they belong to the onion family, I decided to substitute them for onions in a soup. Even while I was sautéing, I knew I will love this vegetable. And I did. Though it wouldn’t hurt substituting leeks for onions in most of the recipes, their subtle, but sweet flavour will stand out without overpowering the other flavours. Leeks are more apt for people who hate the strong taste of onions. More about cleaning leeks here.

Leek-Tofu Quiche

The moment I laid my eyes on this recipe in Vegetarian Times, I knew I had to try it. I did tweak the recipe a little bit. But one bite was enough to win over my heart. This one is a keeper.

Ingredients

Crust

All purpose flour – 1 cup
Egg – 1
Soymilk – ¼ cup
Dried thyme leaves – ¼ tsp
Baking powder – ¼ tsp
Salt – ¼ tsp
Pepper
Olive oil – 2 tbsp

Filling

Leek – 1, cleaned and chopped
Firm or extra-firm tofu – ½ lb.
Garlic – 2 cloves
Green chillies - 2
Sun-dried tomato – 4
Walnuts – few, roasted and chopped
Bread crumbs – 1 cup
Juice of 1 lemon
Cilantro, chopped
Olive oil – 1 tbsp
Salt

Method

Preheat oven to 350⁰F.

Make the crust by mixing all the ingredients together and pressing down into a springform pan. I used two 4.5 inch mini springform pans. Bake them for 8 mins.

Reconstitute sun-dried tomatoes in hot water, if they are not packed in oil.

To make the filling, heat oil in a pan, sauté leeks, garlic and chillies until softened. Mash tofu with a fork in a separate bowl. Add salt, sun-dried tomatoes, bread crumbs, walnuts, cilantro, lime juice and sautéed leeks. Spoon the filling into the crust and bake ‘em for 40 mins. Cool and serve with a side salad.

Leek-Tofu quiche with garden salad and mango lemonade

Vegan-friendly tip: For the crust, use 1/3 cup of soymilk and omit the egg.