Kumror Chakka

Kumror chakka is a traditional bengali way of cooking pumpkin and I must say that this is one of my most favorite veg dish.My mother used to make it really simple without any spices and she used to make this dish little sweetish.And man, I just love the aroma of this dish!ummm..sharing the simple yet delicious recipe here..

Ingredients:

1. pumpkin - 500 gm cut into small pieces
2. potato - 250 gm cut into small pieces
3. black chana - 1 cup(soaked in water overnight)
4. grated coconut - 1 cup
5. paanch foron ( this is a mixture of 5 spices named fenugreek seed, nigella seed,cumin seed,black mustard seed and fennel seed ) - 1tsp
6. dry red chilies - 2-3
7. mustard oil - 4 tbsp
8. ghee - 1 tbsp
9. salt and sugar to taste

Method:

1. Heat oil in a skillet.Add paanch foron and dry red chilies.
2. Fry the potatoes in the oil for 3-4 mins.
3. Then add pumpkin and black chana and fry for 2-3 mins more.
4. Add salt and cover and cook in slow flame for 20 mins till the potatoes and pumpkin cooked properly.Do not add any water.It will be cooked by its own water which will remove after adding salt.Stir in between so that the vegetables should not stick at the bottom.
5. Add grated coconut and sugar(i love it to be little sweetish, so i add 2 tbsp of sugar).
6. Add ghee before switchin off the flame.cover the lid and give standing time for 10-15 mins.

Now serve it with roti or luchi.

Kumror Chakka

Kumror Chakka

Glass Painting

Glass painting is one of my favorite hobby.I am always attracted to bright colors.So I am attracted to crayons,acrylic and glass paints.There are many sites in internet which provides free glass painting patterns.So I did little bit of googling to find out images.I found this website very useful.Then drew them in the same size paper as glass size.Then trace them.Outdrew with glass liner(I used camel liner) and that's all.I have used camlin and hobby ideas.Below are images of some of my glass painting.

Prawn Masala

Ingredients:

1. Prawn - 250 gm (washed,cleaned and devained)
2. Onion - 2 sliced
3. Green Chilly - 5-6 slit
4. pepper corns - 10
5. Curd - 1 cup beaten
6. Curry leaves - 15
7. Red chilly powder - 1 tsp
8. Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
9. Ginger garlic chopped - 1tsp each
10. Lemon juice - 1 tsp
11. Mustard seed - 1/2 tsp
12. salt to taste
13. sugar - 1/2 tsp

Method:

Masala Prawn

1. Mix salt and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder with prawn.Shallow fry prawns in refined oil for 3-4 mins.Do not over fry the prawns as the prawns get cooked very fast and over frying will make them hard.
2. Remove the prawns and keep them aside
3. In the same oil add the Mustard seeds.Let them crackle.If needed then add some more oil and then add the onions and sugar.Fry till it becomes transparent.
4. Now add curry leaves,green chilly,pepper corns(crushed) and chopped ginger garlic.Fry for 2 mins.
5. Add 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and chilly powder.Fry for another 1 min.
6. Add beaten curd.Mix well.Then add 1 cup of water and salt.
7. Add the prawns when the gravy is boiling.Cover and cook in low flame for 10 mins.
8. Before switching off the flame, add lemon juice.Serve hot with hot steamed rice.

Tomato Soup

Winter is upcoming and I can not think anything else other than hot tomato soup with brown bread.This is my favorite breakfast/snacks recipe.Sometime I feed myself this one at dinner too.This one is extremely healthy,easy to cook and tasty too.Here goes the recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Tomatoes - 5 pureed
2. Pepper corn - 10-12(freshly crushed)
3. Corn flour - 1 tsp(mix in little water.It should not make lump)
4. Garlic paste - 2 tsp
5. Butter - 1 tsp
6. Mint leaves - 1/2 cup(optional)
7. Sugar - 2 tbsp
8. salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat 1 tbsp butter till it melts.Add garlic paste and fry for 1 min.
2. Sieve the tomato puree and add it.Fry for 4-5 mins.
3. Add 3 cups of water, salt and sugar.
4. Add mint leaves when the gravy is boiling.
5. Add corn flour.Boil for 5-6 mins.
6. Add freshly crushed pepper corns.
7. Serve hot with a dollop of butter(optional if you are health conscious).It goes great with brown bread toast.

Tomato Soup

Spicy Chilly Chicken

For easy chilly chicken recipe click here.The below one is another way to have indo chinese chilly chicken with lots of green chilies.

Ingredients:

1. Chicken - 250 gms
2. Onion - 2 cut into small cubes
3. Capsicum - 1 cut same as onion
4. Green Chilies - 10 (you can devein and deseed them if you want less spicy)
5. Spring onion - 1/2 cup chopped
6. Garlic - 2 tbsp chopped,1 tbsp paste
7. Ginger - 1/2 tsp chopped,1 tsp paste
8. Soy sauce - 2 tbsp
9. Chilly powder - 1 tsp
10. Pepper powder - 1 tsp
11. Egg - 1 beaten
12. Tomato sauce - 1/2 cup
13. Chilly sauce - 2 tbsp
14. Corn flour - 4 tsp
15. Salt to tastse
16. Oil for frying

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken with salt,ginger garlic paste,1 tbsp soy sauce,chilly powder,pepper powder,corn flour and beaten egg.Deep fry the chicken in oil and keep them aside.
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a bottom heavy pan because the cooking should be done in high flame. Add Onion,chopped ginger and garlic.Fry for sometime till the onion becomes transparent.Add Capsicum and green chilly.Fry for some more time till the capsicum becomes soft.
3. Now add tomato sauce,chilly sauce and soy sauce.Fry for 1 min.Then add 1 cup of water and let the gravy boil.Add salt if required.
4. Mix 2 tsp of corn flour in little water so that no lump forms.Add it to the gravy when it starts boiling.Add chicken into it.Boil for 4-5 mins till chicken is well cooked.
5. Before switching off the flame, add the chopped spring onion.Serve hot with fried rice.

Spicy Chilly Chicken

Egg Biriyani

Ingredients:

1. Boiled Eggs - 10
2. Basmati Rice - 3 cups
3. Alu - 4 boiled and cut into halves
4. Onion - 4 sliced
5. Curd - 1 cup beaten
6. Cashew nuts - 10-12
7. raisin - 10
8. Cardamom - 4
9. Cinnamon - 2"
10. cloves - 6
11. Bay leaf - 2
12. turmeric powder - 2 tsp
13. chilly powder - 2 tsp
14. Ghee
15. Oil
16. Salt and sugar to taste
17. For Biriyani Masala - Grind cardamom(15),cinnamon(6" stick),clove(15)s,nutmeg(1/4th),star anise(4-5),javitri(2 tb sp),pepper corns(10) together and keep in an air tight container.It can be used next time also.

Method:

1. Take a pressure cooker and soak the basmati rice in it with 6 cups of water for 30 mins.Then add cardamom(3),cinnamon(1"),cloves(3),1 tsp of ghee and bay leaves and boil it in pressure cook till 1 whistle comes.Switch off the flame and let it cool for sometime so that you can open the pressure cooker lid normally.Spread the rice on a plate.Mix 2 tbsp ghee with rice and let it cool.
2. Mix salt,turmeric powder (1 tsp) and chilly powder(1 tsp) with Boiled eggs and alu. Fry the Eggs in 2 tbsp oil till it has the brownish hue.In the same oil fry the alu for 4-5 mins and keep the fried alus and eggs aside.
3. Fry half of the onion slices in 2 tbsp of oil with salt till it becomes brown in color.You can add little sugar to get the color fast.
4. Heat 2 tbsp of ghee.Add remaining cinnamon,cardamom and cloves in it.Then add the remaining half onion slices.Add salt and little sugar.Fry till the onion becomes golden brown.Add turmeric powder and chilly powder.Fry for 2 more mins.Add biriyani masala and fry for 1 min.Add the beaten curd and slower the heat.cook for 5 mins in slow heat.Keep the gravy aside.
5. Fry the cashew nuts and raisin in 1 tsp of ghee and keep them aside.
6. Now take a micro safe bowl.Grease it with ghee.Spread 1/3 of the rice.Then add half of the fried potatoes,half of the fried eggs,1tsp of ghee and half of the gravy.Then spread one more level of rice,remaining potatoes and eggs,1 tsp ghee and remaining gravy.Then add the remaining rice.Cover it with 1 tsp of ghee,fried onion and cashew and raisin.Cover and cook in micro oven medium for 10 mins.
7. Before serving mix it well and then serve.

Egg Biriyani

Egg Biriyani

Palak Paneer

I have always loved the way my mother cooked palak paneer. It is very tasty and looks great.So I took the recipe from my mother and prepared it on this diwali. Enjoy food and have a very nice diwali.

Happy Diwali to all my readers and friends.

Ingredients:

1. Paneer - 200 gms cut into small cubes
2. Palak - 3 bunches
3. Green Chilly - 3 chopped
4. Tomato - 1 pureed
5. Garlic - 8-10 chopped
6. Ginger paste - 1 tsp
7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Chilly powder - 1 tsp
9. Oil - 2 tbsp
10. Butter - 2 tbsp
11. Fresh Cream - 2 tbsp(optional)
12. Sugar - 2 tsp
13. Salt to taste

Method:

1. Soak the paneer into salt water for 15 mins.If the paneer is fresh then no need to fry them.Otherwise fry it in little oil so that the smell goes off.Do not over fry the paneer.
2. Wash Palak and cut into pieces.
3. Boil water in a pan, add palak and salt.Boil for 4-5 mins in open pan.
4. Now switch off the flame and drain the excess water.Immediately wash the palak in cold running water.This way the palak will retail its dark green color.
5. Now make a paste of palak and green chilly in a mixer.
6. Heat oil in a kadai. Add chopped garlic and ginger.Fry for 1/2 min.
7. Then add tomato and fry for some more time till oil separates.
8. Add turmeric powder and chilly powder.Fry for 1 min.
9. Now add the palak paste and 1 1/2 tbsp butter.Fry for 3-4 mins and then add 1 cup of water,salt and sugar.
10. Let the gravy boil for 5 mins.Add the paneer pieces and boil for 2-3 mins more.
11. Now slower the flame and add 1 tbsp cream(this is optional).cook for 2 mins.
12. Now  garnish with 1/2 tbsp butter and  1tbsp cream(optional) and serve hot.

Tips

Do the entire cooking process without using any cover.

Then the color will be very nice dark green.

Palak Paneer

Dal Makhani

I was hibernating for more than one month.I was on a long vacation and after that I was just relaxing and taking rest.So its a post coming after a long time.I just saw my last post was naan roti. So I thought of posting something which goes absolutely well with naan roti. Here goes the recipe of dal makhani.

Ingredients

1. Black urad dal - 250 gm
2. Rajma - 2 1/2 tbsp
3. Tomato - 5 pureed
4. cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp 
5. Cardamom - 3-4
6. Cinnamon stick - 1"
7. cloves - 5-6
8. ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp each
9. chilly powder - 2 tsp
10. turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
11. coriander powder - 1tbsp
12. kasuri methi 
13. butter -3 tbsp
14. fresh cream - 1/4 cup
15. salt to taste

Method

1. Soak the urad dal and rajma overnight. Boil the dal in pressure cooker with little salt. The dal should be boiled nicely and it should be mushy.Keep the boiled water from dal aside.Do not drain it.It will be needed later.
2. heat 1 tsp of butter.Add cumin seeds.When it splutters add cardamom,cinnamon and cloves.
3. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for 1/2 min.
4. Add the tomato puree and slower the heat.
5. When it starts boiling add chilly powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt.
6. Then add 2 tbsp butter.Cover and cook for sometimes till the butter melts in the gravy.
7. Then add the excess water from boiled dal. If the water is very less then add some more plain water.
8. Now add boiled dal and kasuri methi and then cover and cook in slow flame for 30 mins.Stir often so that it does not stick at the bottom.
9. Now add cream and cook for another 5 mins in very slow flame.
10. Garnish with 1 tsp butter and little bit cream.

Dal Makhani

I am linking it with Flavors of cuisines event hosted by shruti and organized by Julie