Homemade Pav and Bhaji

Homemade Pav and Bhaji

You know where you can get the best Pav Bhaji? On the roadside stalls!!

Yes they might not be the posh outlets but their food has a very real, earthy tone. Living in Nasik for two years, my husband and I would try and sample from all the myriad stalls serving Pav Bhaji. It was fun siting on wooden benches with steaming hot plates in our hands.

Form Nasik to Leh is a long journey and I don’t just mean as the crow flies. At this altitude fresh food is not available almost 7 months in the year. So what do you do when you simply have to have Pav bhaji? You make it! Even the Pav!!! And it really is not that difficult once you start making the pavs.

So here is my homemade Pav with bhaji!!

Ingredients

3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 ½ tbsp yeast

½ cup water

½ cup milk

3 tbsp milk (additional)

3 tbsp butter

Sift together flour and salt.

Heat the water and sugar to lukewarm and add the yeast. Cover and keep aside to froth.

Heat the milk and butter till the butter melts.

Add the butter-milk mix to yeast mix.

Slowly add this mix to the flour and knead. If you feel the dough is too dry add the 3 tbsp milk but not at one go. Keep adding 1 tsp at a time. You might not need the whole 3 tbsp.

Knead for 10 minutes. The dough must feel silky. Try out the windowpane method to see if you have kneaded enough. Take a small ball of the dough and slowly start stretching. If the stretched dough seems transparent against the window light then it means you have done a good job kneading.

Apply oil all over the dough and place in a  large bowl. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and keep in a warm place. Since I live in a cold clime I have to take extra special care of my dough. I wrap the whole bowl in a thick towel and place it near the heater. The towel keeps it insulated from the atmospheric cold.

Leave the dough to double. It will take about 2-3 hours.

Once the dough has doubled you can start on the pavs. First dust your working surface/kitchen slab with some flour so that the dough does not stick. Punch down the dough a bit. Make 12 balls.

Grease a baking pan with oil. Place the balls in the pan leaving gaps in between. 

Cover and keep again in a warm place again for ½ to 1 hour. The balls will double in size. Apply some milk wash as this will give a glaze to the pavs.

Preheat the oven at 175 degrees Celsius. Bake the pavs for 25-30 minutes.

Bhaji

Ingredients

1 cup chopped French beans

1 cup chopped carrots

1 cup chopped cauliflower

3 potatoes, boiled and mashed

2 onions, chopped

1” ginger, chopped

1 capsicum, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

½ cup green coriander, chopped

½ lemon

2 tbsp pav bhaji masala

1 ½ tsp salt

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

3 tbsp butter

Heat some oil. Add the chopped ginger and chopped onions. Saute till the onion turns translucent.

 Add chopped tomatoes. Add the veggies and saute. Cover and cook on low heat till the veggies are cooked. 

Add all the masalas and check the salt. 

Add the mashed potatoes and mix well. 

Now add a cup of water. Bring to a boil. 

Using a flat spatula try to mash up the bhaji. 

Simmer for 10 minutes. 

Add juice of ½ lemon and chopped coriander. 

Murg-e-taaus

Murg-e-taaus

Another Mughlai Dish!

When the Mughals came to India they brought with them the culinary cultures of the countries they had been to such as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, etc. 

As a result the food culture that evolved was a combination of Indian, Persian and Middle Eastern cuisine. Nuts, raisins and saffron were liberally used to make the dishes exotic and suitable for the Royal palette.

Murg-e-taaus means Royal Chicken. However the word in Urdu has a more romantic and exotic tinge to it. Just like the dish itself! There are very few masalas used in the dish and the richness comes from the use of dry fruits.

Ingredients

For the marinade

1 chicken, cut into pieces

1 cup yogurt

Salt to taste

Khada masala

2 green cardamoms

2 black cardamoms

4 cloves

1 “cinnamon

For paste

½ cup almonds

¼ cup poppy seeds

3 tbsp char magaz/melon seeds

2 onions. Chopped

1” ginger, chopped

1 tsp white pepper powder

½ tsp turmeric

Few strands soaked in 2 tbsp milk

¼ tsp cardamom powder

¼ tsp mace/javitri powder

Marinate the chicken with yogurt and salt for about 2-3 hours.

Make a paste of the dry fruits using a little water.

Heat some ghee. Add the khada masala. Add the onion and ginger and saute. 

Once the onions become translucent then add the chicken pieces and fry on high heat. 

Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add the dry fruits paste, turmeric powder and white pepper powder. 

Check the seasoning. Add ½ cup water, cover and simmer till the chicken is cooked. 

Add the soaked saffron, cardamom powder and javitri powder.

Coleslaw Sandwich

Coleslaw Sandwich

Sandwiches are wholesome food. They are best for late night snacking. Whenever I get those midnight hunger pangs I just sneak over to the fridge, take out few cold cuts, slices of tomatoes or onions, select some spread and Voila!!

Ingredients

1 cup shredded chicken ( you can boil and shred some chicken or you can use some left over kababs)

you can use a vegetarian version like paneer or cheese

½ cup shredded cabbage/lettuce

½ cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped capsicum

4 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp tomato ketchup

1 tsp mustard

Salt to taste

½ tsp black pepper powder

1 packet whole wheat bread

Mix together cabbage, onions, capsicum, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, salt and black pepper powder.

Trim the edges of the bread slices. Place filling in between and make sandwiches.

You can have them as it is without grilling. However if you want to grill them then apply a little butter on top of the bread slices and grill the sandwiches. 

Stuffed Aloo Kulche

Stuffed Aloo Kulche

Living in Jalandhar our favourite Sunday thing was to have lunch in Haveli. Though there are a chain of Haveli restaurants all along NH1 from Jammu to Delhi, yet the one in Jalandhar is the original one. For a family of die hard non vegetarians the vegetarian fare at Haveli was a much awaited affair. And there can be no better testament of the quality of food there.

The one thing we ordered every time was the stuffed Kulcha. The dough is kneaded with yogurt and fermented for a few hours. Then they are rolled out, stuffed with filling and baked in a  tandoor. Compared to parathas they are healthier as they are not fried in ghee or oil. When making at home we don’t usually have access to tandoors. You can bake it in the oven. Or you can make it on the tava using very little oil.

Ingredients

3 cups flour

1/3 tsp baking soda

A pinch of baking powder

1 tbsp oil

Salt to taste

Yogurt to knead the flour

For the filling

3 potatoes, boiled and mashed

1 tsp chopped green chillies

2 tbsp chopped green coriander

Salt to taste

½ tsp chaat masala

For garnish

Chopped coriander

Nigella seeds/kalonji

Mix together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Add the oil and mix well. Knead using yogurt. Cover with a clingfilm and leave for about 2-3 hours.

Mix together boiled and mashed potatoes, green chillies, green coriander, chaat masala and salt.

Heat the tava. Make balls of the dough. Roll out the balls. Place potato filling in the middle and make a potli.

 Pat it down and slowly roll out the kulcha. Sprinkle some chopped coriander and Nigella seeds on top and press down well so that they don’t fall off.

 Put on tava. Roast both sides.

 Add some oil and fry till evenly browned.

Badshahi Magaz Murg

Badshahi Magaz Murg

The Mughals sure knew how to cook. The Khansamas or chefs would conjure up new and innovative dishes to please their lords and masters. They were famous for using dry fruits and cream to make their dishes rich because nothing was rich enough for the emperors.

The Badshahi Magaz Murg is an adaptation of the techniques used by the chefs of yore. I didn’t quite want to make it like a korma and hence the gravy has more elements than a chicken korma. The khada masalas give it a subtle flavour and the richness of the dish comes from the use of cashews, magaz and cream. Compared to cashews the char magaz has a nuttier taste  and so I have named this dish after the magaz.

Ingredients

1 chicken, boneless

2 onions, cubed

2 tomatoes, cubed

3 green chillies

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

2 black cardamoms

2 green cardamoms

1” cinnamon

1 bay leaf

2 tbsp cashews, soaked in warm water

2 tbsp char magaz

1 cup yogurt, whisked

½ cup cream

2 tbsp chicken masala

1 tsp garam masala

Salt to taste

½ tsp turmeric powder

Apply some salt to the boneless chicken and keep aside.

Put the onions, tomatoes and green chillies in a pan of water and boil for 10 minutes. 

Drain, cool and then blend into a paste.

Blend the soaked cashews and char magaz into a fine paste.

Heat some ghee. Add the green cardamoms, black cardamoms, cinnamon and bay leaf. 

Add the ginger and garlic paste and saute. Now add the onion tomato paste and cook. 

Once the oil starts leaving the sides add the chicken masala and garam masala. Saute till the masalas are well fried. Now add the cashew-char magaz paste and fry some more. Add the chicken pieces and cook on sim for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then. The idea is to incorporate the masalas into the chicken. 

Add the whisked yogurt, salt and turmeric. Bring to a boil, lower heat, cover and cook till the chicken is done. 

Add the cream and switch off the heat. 

Garnish with chopped cashews. 

Eggless Date and Walnut Choco Mocha Tea Cake

Eggless Date and Walnut Choco Mocha Tea Cake

I love collecting muffins liners. I have a cupboard full of beautiful and decorative liners of all shapes and sizes. I open the cupboard once everyday and feel happy. Nowadays I look at my collection and then start thinking what to bake in them. What cake would best suit these beauties? Weird much??

So today I took out these rectangular cases. They are perfect for a birthday party because they look so festive. Unfortunately no birthdays or anniversaries are coming up. Where to use them? Then I thought they will work perfectly for high tea. So here are my little tea cakes in festive liners.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups flour

½ tsp baking powder

1 ½ cups sugar

½ cup cocoa powder

2 tbsp coffee powder

½ cup dates, chopped

¼ cup walnuts, chopped

1 cup yogurt

½ tsp baking soda

1 cup oil

¾ cup milk

Few almonds, slivered

Heat the milk. Add the cocoa powder and coffee powder and mix well so that no lumps remain.

Sift the flour and baking powder. Mix in the chopped walnuts and dates so that they are well coated in the flour. This will prevent them from sinking to the bottom while baking.

Mix the yogurt and baking soda and keep aside.

Whisk together the oil and sugar. Add the milk-cocoa-coffee mix. Mix well. Now gently fold in the flour. Add the yogurt and mix.

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Pour the batter into square cases. Garnish with few slivered almonds.  Bake for 25- 30 minutes.

Banana Pineapple Muffins

Banana Pineapple Muffins

Fruits and cakes always go together. Moreover they are an excellent way to sneak in some healthy fruits into your child’s food. 

Bananas are a very temperamental batch. Leave them on the counter for 2-3 days and they start going black. Though it has been proved that the blacker the bananas the healthier they are.

 Bananas have anti oxidants that help fight cancer cells. And the spottier they are the more anti cancer properties they have. But I bet you can’t make a kid eat black, spotty bananas. No way!! Mine wont touch a banana if it has a single spot or is slightly mushy.

These Banana Pineapple Muffins are absolutely delish!! Adding fruits make it softer and tastier too. I have added raisins. You can add walnuts or almonds to make them healthier.

 Though you use fresh bananas yet it is never advisable to use fresh pineapples in desserts. Pineapples have an enzyme called Bromelain that gives it a slightly bitter taste when you cook them.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup sugar

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon powder

½ cup raisins/nuts

2 eggs

¾ cup oil

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup pineapple, pureed ( Always use tinned pineapple in desserts)

Mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and sugar. 

Blend together oil and eggs. Add the mashed bananas and crushed pineapples. 

Now fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Pour the batter into muffin cases.

 Bake for 20-25 minutes at 170 degrees.

 Check with a toothpick to see if they are done.