Thursday, April 24, 2008
walnut and orange buckwheat pancakes (eggless)
Sunday, April 20, 2008
super spicy mushroom curry
we never ate mushrooms growing up. my mom never bought them and i'd never tasted one till i was in my twenties. never having tasted them, i thought they were horrible, nasty, mushy brownish gray things to top pizzas with. i had no idea i was just eating them prepared all wrong.
then after all those wasted years, i had my first portabella burger and that was all she wrote. it was mushroom love after that. i still prefer them lightly sauteed or fresh. more recently however, i had a mushroom curry at an indian wedding and it was outstanding. here is my re-creation of that dish.
spicy mushroom curry
serves 2-3
prep time: 10 min
cook time: 15 min
vips:
- 1 pint. cleaned and quartered button mushrooms
- 1/2 onion diced
- 2 tomatoes diced
- 1/2 cup yogurt, buttermilk or sour cream
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/2" ginger minced
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander-cumin powder
- 2 teaspoons oil
- handful of chopped cilantro
- salt to taste
the play:
- heat oil in nonstick pan
- add onions and saute few minutes until transparent
- add the garlic, ginger and all the spices, saute for a couple more minutes
- add the tomatoes and salt and fry until mushy - about 5 min
- add mushrooms, fry for another 5 min
- stir in yogurt or buttermilk or sourcream until it comes to a simmer
- garnish with cilantro and serve with roti, toasted naan, lavash or steamed rice
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Methi na thepla
- 2 cups of whole wheat flour mix together with:
- 3 tablespoons oil
- salt
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ajwain (caraway seeds)
then add to the flour:
- 1 cup fenugreek leaves, washed & chopped, or if frozen, thaw first
- 3 tablespoons yogurt
- crush together: 3 green chilis, an inch of ginger, 2-3 garlic cloves (optional)
- add enough water to make a soft pliable dough and let rest for at least 30 min
the play:
- after the dough has rested for 30 min, make into 12 small round balls and keep covered
- take one ball of dough and roll out to about 6-8 inches, use extra flour for dusting
- heat a tawa or a flat pan and on medium heat, cook the thepla on one side for a minute or two
- flip thepla over and brush with oil and cook for 1-2 more minutes
- flip again and brush other side with oil
- cook until brown spots appear on both sides and is cooked through (approx 2 min on each side)
Listening to: soft groovy sounds of Stan Getz, 'I'm late, i'm late' off his album, Focus (1997, original recording, 1961).