Tag: North Indian

Turai | Ridge gourd gravy

Easy ridge gourd/turai/heerekayi side dish for rotis/phulkas
07/30/2016 4:47:50 PM vindhyadesai

A simple gravy made with turai/ridge gourd/heerekayi. There is something about turai, I love the earthy smell and taste of turai. Here’s a simple North Indian style gravy to highlight the simplicity and taste of turai. I had tried this recipe from ‘Everyday cooking from Nita Mehta’ years ago and I love this recipe everytime I make it. An easy lunch box idea with rotis/phulkas or chapathis. ... “Turai | Ridge gourd gravy”

Doodh Pedha | Milk Pedha | Doodh ke Pedhe | How to make soft milk pedhas | Doodh pedhas without condensed milk

A mouthful of milky fudgy goodness, soft doodh pedha
07/22/2016 8:05:28 PM vindhyadesai

A small thing of joy is to eat a doodh pedha. It is one of the most popular sweets sold in sweet shops. Imagine a big line of pedhas lined up on the other side of the counter. There are so many versions of this pedha, kesar-elaichi, elaichi, pista-kesar and so on. The ones that you get in Nandini (a milk brand in Karnataka) are pure milk pedhas. The marking on them makes the pedhas even more inviting. Try making these soft doodh pedhas at home, roll them up into small balls or pedhas/pedhe or even try and make the Nandini replicas. I used a fork to create a Nandini shop/bakery like pedha with a fork. It is actually a reverse of their shape (complementary shape). I love them nonetheless, they are milk  pedhas after all.
Here are I have used only milk and there is also a short-cut recipe with condensed milk which I will post soon. I have flavoured them with elaichi/cardamom, I wanted to make them plain this time. I sometimes add kesar/saffron or pista or both but elaichi/cardamom is something that I always add to the pedhas/pedhe. I have added a lot of pictures stepwise to show consistency in each step. ... “Doodh Pedha | Milk Pedha | Doodh ke Pedhe | How to make soft milk pedhas | Doodh pedhas without condensed milk”

Dal Fry

Lightly spiced and comforting dal fry served with phulkas or rice
06/18/2016 9:37:21 PM vindhyadesai

Homemade dal fry, sounds comforting? Whatever new type of food or dishes we crave for, we always go back to homemade food like saaru (rasam), dal tadka, dal fry, some steamed rice and chapathis/rotis and sabzi/palya. Dal fry is the first dish I always make when I cook North Indian food, served along side paneer(dry or gravy), phulkas and some hot steamed rice or jeera rice. I make a big pot of dal, serve it with phulkas for one meal and then with rice for another meal. My menu is sorted on a busy day. I always use toor dal/arhar dal/pigeon pea dal/togari bele to make dal fry.
Masoor dal/red lentils can also be used. Toor dal gives the creamiest texture and the right thickness to dal fry. Dal fry is made by cooking dal and adding sauteed tomato masala to it and I also add tadka on top for extra flavour. Dal tadka is made by cooking dal and masala together in a big pot or cooker and then tadka is added to it and is thinner in consistency compared to dal fry. ... “Dal Fry”

Tamatar Kaju Paneer

Lightly toasted paneer pieces in a thick creamy tomato cashew gravy
05/01/2016 12:34:59 PM vindhyadesai

A thick and creamy gravy made from tomatoes with lightly toasted soft paneer pieces to accompany rotis or naans. Tomatoes form a base for most gravies and generally never get highlighted. Thick, red, tangy and juicy, tomatoes add body and volume to any gravy. Here I have exclusively used tomatoes for the paneer pieces to float in and absorb all the flavour and tanginess. ... “Tamatar Kaju Paneer”

Rajma Masala

Cream and smooth rajma in rich tomato gravy. Goes well with rotis, steamed or jeera rice
04/05/2016 11:00:51 PM vindhyadesai

One of my favourite comfort foods. I make this for a Sunday afternoon with rice and we also eat it for dinner with rotis. The gravy is tangy because of the tomatoes yet creamy because of the butter and cream. Sounds quite rich. But one can even skip adding the butter and cream, they’re totally optional.
Rajma or red kidney beans are originally from Mexico. They use it to make Mexican chilli dishes. Rajma is very popular in North India especially in Jammu and Kashmir which forms a staple part of their food. Rajma is very high in protein. The most important thing to remember while cooking rajma is to soak them for atleast 10-12 hours. I usually soak them for 24 hours to reduce cooking time. You can pressure cook them or boil them in water till done. ... “Rajma Masala”