From the archives: I had posted this way back, but recently when a reader (Vidya Devan) requested this dish, I thought I will repost it once again

So many times, it happens that we cook something “classic” from some other unknown region thinking that we have that one authentic recipe. Most often than not its authentic alright – but only problem is that its not classic to that region at all – in fact people from that region weren’t even aware of such a famous dish from their country!!! Take Mango Lassi and Saag Paneer for example! For having grown up in India my entire life these were never in my menu nor have I ever seen in any restaurants. Of course, now that its famous worldwide, they might be freely available everywhere. The classic instead was and is – sweet and salt lassi and Sarson ka Saag / Palak Paneer! I think Saag Paneer is the Americanized version of Palak Paneer cos the Sag is always made of Spinach! So that’s Indian Palak Paneer for you Its also saddening to note that I am yet to get that classic taste in any Sarson Ka saag I have tasted in any of the restaurant. I taste only butter and cream. The original classic is not supposed to taste of butter and cream at all! It has this earthy taste where you get to enjoy the Mustard leaves and spinach in full form!

Why make a dish with Mustard leaves and Spinach, if all you want is douse its taste with butter and cream? The farmers in Punjab ate rich food – agreed. They did it cos they had to rely on their brute force strength to do all that back wrenching hard work. They needed sufficient fats which came by way (...)
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Post tags: chillies, cornmeal, ghee, ginger, maize flour, mustard greens, onions, spinach

Its been raining cats and dogs, literally! OK agreed that the cat jumped down from a roof to the ground to escape the pouring rain and the neighbor’s dog jumped up and down seeing the cat – its still rain, cat and dog in the same picture. If you can welcome Modern Art, you should be able to digest my abstraction of this scene too!! Anyways, coming back to the rain part. I LOVE RAIN. Period. I sort’a blossom with every pitter-patter of droplets of water falling down from the dark jacket adorned clouds above! So all this excitement had to wear me out now, right? Hence was in the mood for some crunchy fried snack. Now, now how do I cheat my ‘dratted’ sub conscious of mine promptly directing my eyes to the weighing machine? (thinking..)(thinking….) OK too much thinking only makes me more hungry! Just went into my kitchen and collected ingredients, whatever caught my fancy.

Panko Bread crumbs, Oil, Salt, Garam Masala, mmmm………., Oh yes, Potatoes, spring onions, little cilantro and mint. That felt good. I placed a pan for shallow frying (see, no deep frying! Good girl, me). Then my eyes fell on my bamboo steamer which I use for sprouting and I saw some fresh sprouted Ragi…mmm…

(thinking to myself – “OK you plan to enjoy frying, so while you are at it, why not add some healthy ingredients? You wont feel bad now, would you?”)

..Ragi it is. But now that we are starting on the healthy route

*burrowing deeper into pantry and finding..*

Aha..Black eyed Peas. mmm..lets cook black eyed peas (it does not need pre soaking and cooks fairly quickly), Pressure cooker comes up and the peas are cooked in 10 minutes flat. Mushy works fine in this case since I am going to mash them anyway. Steam Potatoes on the side…I am all excited now! – Another Sprouted Ragi recipe goes into my repertoire. of course you can deep fry, shallow fry or bake them. Whatever strikes your fancy. This is protein rich and delicious snack. If your kids dont like sprouted ‘anything’ leave alone ragi, this is one good way to hide it dress it up along with black eyed peas.

Without further ado, lets go to the recipe shall we? I basically eyeballed everything and hence I have given you approximate measurements. Use your discretion while making them.

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Ragi Related Posts: Sprouted Ragi Dosa, How to Make Ragi Flour,How to Sprout Ragi, Thalipeeth

Patties and Croquette recipes: Baked Quinoa and mixed bean Croquettes,  Baked Falafel Burgers, Falafel, Brown Rice Patties, Soy Burger, Zucchini Patties,  Tempeh Cutlets(...)
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Post tags: Black eyed peas, cilantro, finger millet, mint, onions, potatoes, ragi, soy flour

This is another rice recipe loved by all. Its not only easy to make and quick but it extremely appetizing not only to the palate but for presentation too. Sudden guests?  Whip this up in matter of minutes. Lazy Sunday? Don’t feel like cooking anything elaborate yet want to please the family – this needs no major prep. work. The Paneer as I always repeat on and oft in my blog is a staple and which I just add to enhance the dish.

Paneer is not really mandatory for this dish. You can skip it and make this dish as it is. I like to lightly shallow fry the paneer first since it helps to add color to the otherwise plain looking rice dish. Few roasted cashews help to make this simple dish special. Instead of just cilantro for garnish, I add few mint for that fresh taste and aroma.

You might also be interested in :
Indian Rice Recipes: South Indian Kadambam, Bisi Bela Bath, Hyderabadi Biryani, Ven Pongal
Paneer Recipes: Muttar Paneer Paratha, Barley Paneer Soup, Paneer Bhurji, Muttar Paneer
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Post tags: Basmati rice, bay leaf, cardamom, cashews, chillies, cilantro, cloves, cumin, garlic, mint, onions, Paneer, peas

I am always on the lookout for rice recipes – well can’t think of a meal without some rice. We may reduce the quantity but are yet to completely eliminate it from our diet what so ever!! Its sometimes hard to think that what we grew up with would be bad for us. Just because we don’t get enough exercise is not the fault of rice now is there? I hate working out but if I had to choose between cutting out rice and exercise, I would prefer even living inside the gym! Anyways, rice is such a handy item for lunches and in of those google searches I got to know of Middle Eastern Mujaddara. Its a lentil rice and it fit my need like a glove. Protein with rice – Perfect!.

It is also known moujadara, mejadra or mudardara. I checked out many versions of this recipe and have put together as per my needs and preferences. All of them predominantly make use of Brown/Green lentils. I always have green lentils for its firm texture. I like that it does not break down while cooking and retains its shape making the dish more hearty. Lots of caramelized onions as a topping completes this dish.

You might be interested in: Arroz Amarillo (Yellow rice), Chipotle style Cilantro Lime rice, African Jollof Rice, Mixed Rice Pilaf, Kashmiri Pulao, Zafrani Pulao
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Post tags: cinnamon, cumin, fennel seeds, green lentils, onions

Indian Paratha is famous – for good reason. Fluffy flatbreads with delicious fillings. Creativity is the name of the game – almost anything and everything goes for filling up these paratha. There are of course famous versions just like in any type of dish. Most known variety includes Gobi Paratha where “Gobi” in Hindi means Cauliflower. Fresh Cauliflower grated and mixed with aromatic spices are used as a filling in this type. Paneer is a star in my household – we enjoy it with so many variations that its become a staple. I add grated paneer to this mix to make Gobi Paneer Paratha. Its optional of course and you can skip it for this recipe to make the traditional favorite. But adding paneer never spoiled a dish in my kitchen – it only makes anything taste all the more better

There is nothing to talk or sing praises with – the dish says it all Lets go to the recipe shall we?

You might be interested in:

Other Indian flatbreads: Muttar Paneer Paratha, Coriander Cilantro Naan, Peshawari Naan, Sweet Potato Roti, Butter Naan, Onion Kulcha, Aloo Paratha
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Post tags: cauliflower, chillies, cumin, ghee, milk, onions, Paneer, wheat flour

It all started out with a “Cottage Pie“, then slowly just like it happens for almost everything, it sprouted branches by way of variations. Shepherd Pie came into existence and so did many others like cowboy pie, Pâté chinois, hachis Parmentier, Siniyet Batata, etc. Of course each boasts of a distinct ingredient which is different from the others although sometimes used interchangeably. With beefs and lambs playing the main role in these variations, can the humble legumes and soy be left far behind? I may not be right, but I have an inkling that the shepherd’s in India at least cant really afford to have choicest cuts of the meat for their meal. They rather would sell them, make money out of it while eating frugal themselves. so sadly poor that they are!

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Post tags: carrots, chickpeas, heavy cream, mushrooms, onions, peas, potatoes, seitan, tomatoes

During one of our vacation spots, we landed up in a place which was nearly anti-vegetarian. It was actually even worse for me since I don’t even eat eggs. If you can cheat me by hiding its taste, appearance and smell into something, then I am ready to be cheated, otherwise you will be treated to free ‘throwing up’ sessions! Which is what I pretty much did during that trip since no one could even contemplate from which planet we landed from and could not customize recipes! I think few people probably wondered secretly how I could look the way I did when I was practically eating ‘Nothing’ Vegetables are supposedly not food in their dictionary.

One conversation at a breakfast joint

Me: Can I have a vegetarian Burrito pls?
Waiter: Do you mean with lots of vegetables?
Me: Yes – no meat..
Waiter: Oh! No sausages then. Is Bacon ok ?
Me: (#$!#) No no Bacon, its meat too….
Waiter: Oh ok sorry about that – so trying to eat healthy ah? (winks!) Its always good! I know ppl trying to eat lots of fish nowdays. You know we have the best salmon here….
Me: umm…well no fish too – we don’t eat fish either..
Waiter: (looks shocked) No bacon, No fish! That’s really sad! What do you want us to put in there instead?????????
Me: Potatoes would be great!
Waiter: (scratching head) Oh ok! 2 ‘plain’ burritos coming up
Me: aah! One second – I have one more request..I cant eat eggs – can you skip that too for one of the burritos?
Waiter: (scratching head some more) Without eggs?????? Sorry then there is nothing on the burritos.
Me: but.. but there are vegetables in there. That’s what I want..
Waiter: Sorry we dont know how to make it without eggs…
(few more suggestions, no’s, arguments follows without any success for me ….)
The Husband: Its alright – just get us 2 burritos. We are starving!
Me: (grumble)(mumble)
(and we traveled happily after, with me throwing up of course!)
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Post tags: garlic, heavy cream, onions

The Caribbean cuisine is as vibrant as its culture and land. There is such a healthy blend of so many other regional cuisines in its food like African, French, Spanish and even Indian. How about that? It seems to have taken exotic flavors from all these countries and made its own version from it.

So, don’t be surprised to find recipes which look and sound familiar to some other dish you know which you enjoyed in some other setting. Although its inevitable that it has lots of meat based dishes, its great to know that its cuisine has many vegetarian dishes included too. I didn’t have to search for options to make anything vegetarian at least as long as I have about 10-12 famous vegetarian dishes before that to try out.

This is a simple dish made with Achiote, otherwise called as Annatto Seeds which gives this dish its beautiful yellow color (or should I say orangish yellow?) Its a staple in the Caribbean thanks to its beautiful color and flavor. I read somewhere that this dish is served with a garnish of Pimentos. Use them if you can get hold of the red beauties. If you want a meat version then add Cooked chicken to make the famous ‘Arroz con Pollo’ . I have put together this recipe gathered from various different ones from the internet

You might be interested in:

Annatto : Know more about Annatto seeds here

Simple Rice Recipes : Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice, African Jollof Rice, South Indian Kadambam Rice
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Post tags: annatto, Basmati rice, bell peppers, cilantro, onions

Alton Brown says that these are the “Best Ever Green Bean Casserole“.Sure, I agree. These indeed are the Best. I say it cos the hater in the house actually took 3 extra helpings of this recipe. But I would be damned to know how the heck the food network photographer/cameraman managed to take such a beautiful picture of this! I simply failed to capture the deliciousness of the dish with this photograph. Well it was 9 pm, was hungry, no time to take photo , blah, blah and blah some more. But the essence is, pls don’t go by the picture. Make it! Its good!

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Post tags: green beans, half and half, mushrooms, onions, panko, soy flour

There is something to be said for combining Spinach with feta and ricotta cheese! The sensation that it creates is amazing! The Greek do know how to eat! The creaminess of the ricotta, the saltiness of feta combine with earthy spinach to create a wholesome taste. Spanakopita is a Greek savory pastry belonging to the Burek family ( may be that’s where borekas come from??!!) enjoyed either by way of Pie or cut into triangles.

According to Wikipedia “Spanakopita is similar to torta pasqualina, a traditional dish from Liguria, that is very common in Argentina and Uruguay.” The world gets closer and closer in so many ways than just internet! Since I was planning to make it for a get together potluck, I thought of making it into triangles which makes it a great appetizer. Somehow making it into a pie gives me a main course feel! But if you want to make the pie version see this video (thanks to you tube) below.
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Post tags: dill, feta cheese, nutmeg, onions, Parmesan, parsley, phyllo, Ricotta, spinach