Aloo Bhindi / Potato Okra Dry Sabzi

Fact: Okra is slimy

Another fact: Potatoes are delicious

Fact 3: When delicious and slimy get together, it creates a pretty great dish. 

When I go to the nearby supermarket, I run out of vegetables to buy. There are about 5 rows of green leafy vegetables which I can't bother with over weeknights, and there are the usual suspects like beans and carrot and broccoli and capsicum. I just have to reach for the okra packet on those nights. 

Aloo Bhindi Sukhi Sabzi Recipe

Adapted from: Sailus Food

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 potato, cut into small cubes
10 okra, cut into 1/2" discs
1 tbsp tamarind water (add a small piece of tamarind to 1 tbsp water. Extract juice, discard pulp)
~ alternatively, use freshly squeezed lemon juice or a generous pinch of amchoor / dry mango powder

1 tbsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
A generous pinch of hing / asafoetida / perungaayam
1/2 tsp jeera / cumin seeds
1-2 tsp dhania / malli / coriander powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
1/2 tsp garam masala or curry powder (whatever you have in hand)
A pinch of ginger powder (optional)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
A few curry leaves
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When they pop, add the rest of the ingredients below in the order given.

2. Once the masalas have been fried for about a minute, add the cut vegetables and the tamarind water. Mix well until all the ingredients are well incorporated.

3. Cook covered, stirring frequently, until the potatoes are tender and the okra is cooked, non-slimy, and has learnt a thing or two from the potatoes. 

Serve hot with steamed rice and gravy of choice. 

Aloo Paratha Step by Step Recipe

I have posted Aloo Paratha before. But since then, I'd like to believe that I have perfected my technique to dish out a very decent aloo paratha, especially for a South Indian!



Potatoes have the property to inherently make aloo parathas soft so that makes our job that much easier.



Aloo Paratha Recipe
Makes 8

Ingredients:

For Dough:-
2 cups atta / whole wheat flour
Just over 1/2 cup water
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
A few drops of oil

For Aloo Filling:-
2 medium sized potatoes
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp jeera / cumin powder
1/4 tsp ajwain / omam / carom seeds
1/2 tsp chaat masala (or garam masala)
1/2 tsp salt
A handful of coriander leaves, chopped fine

How I Made It:

1. Make the dough first. (I use my Kitchenaid now for making chapati dough and its a breeze, will share details in a later post). Mix the atta and salt well together. Add a few drops of oil and mix with fingertips. Add water little at a time and keep kneading into a soft dough. Knead for 3-4 mins and coat with some more oil (don't overdo the oil bit, very few drops will do). Set aside while making the filling.

2. Boil and grate the potatoes. I used to mash them but that leaves small lumps here and there making it harder to roll out the aloo parathas smoothly. Grating is a better method to ensure a smooth filling. 

3. Mix all ingredients for the filling together, making sure they are well incorporated.

The spices you add to the filling also make a large difference to the taste of your aloo parathas. There are tons of different versions here. Since I visited TH's aunt in Mumbai and watched her Marathi maid make aloo parathas (in awe, I must add!), I use her recipe for the aloo filling.

4. Divide the dough into 8 equal parts and roll into smooth balls. Do the same with the filling. I like to make the size of the filling slightly smaller than the dough balls but you can make them into equal sizes if you wish.

5. Flour the surface you are going to use to roll the parathas. Take one dough ball, place it on the floured surface and flatten with fingertips into a small round. I find that doing this with my fingertips makes it easier to get the surface equally thick than rolling with a rolling pin. The Vahrevah Chef agrees.

6. Place a filling ball in the centre of the flattened dough ball.

7. Gather the dough ball around the filling, sealing it gently on top.

8. Make it into a momo-like ball, making sure that the dough covers the filling ball completely.

9. You can pinch off the extra bit of dough on top. I sometimes just flatten it against the top and continue.

10. Again, using your fingertips, gently press the filled dough ball into a small circle, making sure the thickness is equal on all sides.

In case you are wondering, there was no tripod used in any of the pics. I clicked with my left hand. The things food blogging teaches you -  mind-boggling!

11. Then use your rolling pin to flatten it out to as thick or thin as you want. I keep it slightly thicker than chapatis. And before you ask, I still can't make a perfectly round chapati / paratha, so help me God. Oh, you weren't going to ask..

Ok moving on.

12. Transfer rolled paratha to a hot griddle. Make sure you tap out the excess flour used in rolling. I didn't take enough for this paratha so ignore the excessive white patches.

13. Cook until both sides are golden brown. When done, brush with some ghee / butter or oil and transfer to a plate. I use my olive oil spray while making chapatis / parathas. You can spray on the oil at the end and it creates zero mess. Of course if you want to use ghee, then the mess doesn't matter, only the flavour does!

That's it! Serve hot with a pat of butter on top, some curd and pickles. 

Aloo Channa / Pressure Cooker Potato Chickpeas Curry Recipe

This is a one-pot, or rather, one-pressure-cooker side dish that can be put together in a jiffy. Its a weeknight dish for me and the nights I make any kind of side dish using just the pressure cooker, my entire cooking gets done in less than 30 mins.

The only preparation you need to do in advance is to wash and soak the chickpeas either overnight or before you leave for work so that its all soaked and ready when you get back and need to make dinner.

Confession: on some nights, I get lazy on the way back in the train and drag TH to have dinner outside. On those nights, I come back, drain the soaked chickpeas and stick it in the fridge. It can be stored like that for a week until you are ready to make what you want with it.

Go ahead, I promise the chickpeas won't feel bad or anything.



Aloo Channa in the Pressure Cooker - One Pot Dish
Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 cup soaked chickpeas
1 large potato, cubed
1 onion, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1 tsp tomato paste (optional but gives depth to the gravy)
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp jeera / cumin
1 tsp coriander powder / dhania powder / malli podi
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp red chilli powder
A pinch of turmeric powder
A pinch of amchoor / dry mango powder (optional)
2 tsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
A few curry leaves
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker pan and add the mustard seeds and curry leaves. When the seeds pop, add the jeera and sliced onions. Fry until transparent.

2. Next add all the powders - red chilli powder, coriander, turmeric, garam masala and amchoor if using, and fry for 30 seconds.

3. Top it off with the ginger garlic paste and fry for another 30 seconds. Then add the chopped tomatoes and stir around until well combined.

4. Throw in the cubed potatoes, chickpeas, about 1.5 cups water and some salt and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. The idea is to cook it until the potatoes are mushy and the chickpeas are cooked well. Open up the pan and if you find that the curry is too watery (which shouldn't be the case normally), boil it for a while until the curry is thick enough. Check salt and remove from fire.



Serve hot with rotis. Goes well with pulao and even plain rice.

Aloo Capsicum Pulao / Potato Capsicum Pulao Recipe

A quick rice recipe from Mallika Badrinath's 100 Rice Delights. The addition of capsicum gives the rice dish a very different flavour - we loved it!

Please excuse the very mediocre picture

Potato Capsicum Pulao

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1 cup basmati rice

1 large potato or 2 medium to small ones

1 large capsicum, diced

2 medium-sized onions, diced

1 cup pureed tomato (about 2 tomatoes)

1 cup water

1/4 tsp garam masala

1 tbsp ghee (or oil)

Salt to taste

Grind together without water:

3 tbsp grated coconut

5 dry red chillies

1 small onion (or 6 shallots)

1 tbsp roasted channa dal / Bengal gram

2 flakes garlic

1 tsp coriander seeds (or 1 tsp coriander powder)

1 medium-sized tomato

How I Made It:

1. Soak rice for 30 mins. Pressure cook the potatoes for 1 whistle, peel, and set aside. 

2. Heat ghee or oil in the pressure cooker pan and fry the garam masala for 10 seconds. Then add the onions and fry until pink and transparent. 

3. Next add the capsicum and fry until it becomes soft. Add peeled, cubed potatoes and the ground coconut paste. Fry for about 2-3 mins and then add the pureed tomato and water. Add salt and bring to boil. 

4. Add rice to the boiling mixture, mix well and close the lid. Pressure cook for 2 whistles (about 5-6 mins). 

Serve hot garnished with chopped coriander or mint leaves. 

----------------------

On another note, TH has started to write on his most favourite sport and a huge passion of this - Tennis! There will be articles and most importantly, live ball by ball updates (like Cricinfo, but for tennis) when there's a match going on. Do pass on to your tennis-loving friends and family - The Chair Umpire. 

Heavenly Sesame Potatoes in Hot n Sweet Tomato Sauce

This recipe has probably spent the maximum number of days in my bookmarks. At the time I read this, I had just  moved to Singapore and didn't have a kitchen, let alone sesame oil and the rest of the ingredients this recipe requires. I finally made it a few weeks back and it was as yummy as I had imagined. Thank you Rajani for a keeper of a potato recipe that's both easy and delicious.

Heavenly Sesame Potatoes in Sweet Tomato Sauce
Adapted from: Rajani's EatWriteThink


Ingredients:
Serves: 2

2 large potatoes, cut into wedges (I used russet potatoes)
1 large onion, chopped fine
2 tomatoes, sliced into small pieces
1 small capsicum (or half of one), chopped fine
2 tsp soya sauce
1/2 tsp brown sugar (white sugar is also fine)
1 tsp crushed garlic (or 1/2 tsp garlic paste)
1 tsp red chilly powder
2 tbsp gingelly / sesame oil (must use this oil)
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves or spring onions, for garnish

How I Made It:

1. Shallow fry the potato wedges in oil until golden brown. Set aside to drain on a kitchen napkin.

2. In the remaining oil, add the onions and garlic and fry until golden brown. Then add the chilly powder and fry for a minute. Then add the tomatoes and saute until soft and mushy.

3. Turn heat to high and add the soya sauce and sugar. Fry on high for a minute and lower to medium heat. Add the capsicum and salt and mix well. Remove from fire after about 3-5 minutes.

4. Spoon this sauce over the potatoes and serve warm with garnish.

Aloo Posto - Bengali Aloo / Potato Recipe

Reema sent me this recipe for Bengali Aloo Posto ages ago (over a year back, to be precise). I had to first get some poppy seeds from India because apparently they are not available (aka banned) in Singapore. Poppy seeds are said to induce a high and generally make you sleepy if you take it in large quantities. Although this aloo posto disappoints in that regard, there's a payasam / payash they make in Karnataka that is said to have this effect, and that's next in my agenda ;)

Poppy Seeds

Poppy seeds are also used in Kerala cooking, although sparingly. It is a good substitute for coconut (definitely not in flavour but in consistency) and I used to make this chicken curry with poppy seeds / khus khus that was such a hit that each time we bought chicken at home, which was rarely, I would insist on making this dish with some of it. 

Soaking is necessary to get the seeds rolling. Always soak in warm water for 15-20 mins before proceeding with the rest of the recipe. 

Kalonji

Meet kalonji. It looks a lot like black sesame seeds but kalonji is actually Nigella, or black caraway or popularly known in Bengal as Kala Jeera (black jeera). I have no relationship with these seeds, mind you. I am using them for the first time in this dish and they give a nice crunch to the aloo posto. Ah, the joys of experimenting. 

Bengali Aloo Posto (Potato in Poppy Seed Paste) Recipe

Ingredients:

3 medium potatoes, cut into 1" cubes

2-3 tbsp khus-khus / posto / poppy seeds

1 tbsp mustard oil (I used normal cooking oil)

1 tbsp kalonji / kala jeera / nigella seeds

2 Green chillies, slit (I used 3 dry red chillies since I was out of green chillies)

1 tsp ghee

A pinch of sugar

Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Soak the poppy seeds in 1 cup warm water for 15 to 20 minutes. Drain (use a tea strainer, the seeds will stick to your fingers and generally annoy you) and grind to a smooth paste. Add water by the tsp while grinding if it gets too thick. 

2. Heat the oil in a pan and add the kalonji. Fry for about 2 mins. Then add the potatoes and cook for 5 mins, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Make sure that your flame is kept to medium. 

3. Now add the poppy seed paste and the red chillies, broken into halves (or the green chillies which is what you should actually be using).  Fry for 3 mins and then top off with about a cup of water and cook covered for 10-12 mins until the potatoes are cooked through. 

4 .Stir in salt and sugar. The mixture should be thick and the poppy seeds paste should be sticking to the potato pieces by now. 

5. Remove from fire, stir in the ghee and serve warm with rice. 

The flavour was like nothing I had ever tasted. We immensely enjoyed this simple dish although next time I think I would make sure I add green chillies or maybe throw in a couple more red chillies. 

Cheddar Cheese Soup Recipe

This is from Nita Mehta's Soups, Salads and Starters. I was slightly skeptical when I read the name of the soup but since I had some cheddar cheese lying around and really wanted to use it up. The soup was a pleasant surprise, not as heavy as I expected but quite filling and creamy.

Cheddar Cheese Soup

Source : Nita Mehta's Soups, Salads and Starters

Serves : 5-6

What I Used:

2 onions, chopped

3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped

25gm (1 cube Amul cheese) cheddar cheese, grated

2 tbsp butter

1 cup milk (I used low fat 'cuz that's all I had)

5 cups water

1/2 cup sour cream (I didn't use this)

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp salt

To Garnish:

Croutons

25gm (1 cube Amul cheese) cheddar cheese, grated

Fresh coriander leaves (optional)

How I Made It:

1. In a pressure cooker pan, add the butter and brown the onions lightly.

2. Add potatoes and saute for 1-2 mins. Then add the water and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. Remove from fire.

3. When cooled, blend the pressure cooked onions and potatoes in a mixer to a puree, along with the water used for cooking them.

4. Strain the puree (I didn't do this) and set aside.

5. Boil the milk separately. Bring the strained pureed soup separately to boil and add the milk, stirring continuously. Simmer for 2-3 mins on low flame.

6. Add grated cheese, salt and pepper.

7. Finally add the sour cream, if using, keeping the soup on very low flame and stirring continuously. Remove from fire.

8. To serve, grate top off with some grated cheese and toasted croutons with coriander leaves if using. Serve hot.

This goes to Monthly Mingle - Soups, conceptualized by Meeta and hosted this month by Sunshinemon. Thanks for reminding me, Sonia :)

Vegetable Cutlets : Step-by-Step Recipe

Vegetable cutlets have never really interested me as a child. Back then, I used to eat red meat and if a certain dish was available in both vegetarian and non vegetarian options, I go for the latter usually. Since then, things have changed a lot and I only cook vegetarian now, keeping TH in mind. Since anything fried get a thumbs-up from him, vegetable cutlets were no exception!

*Disclaimer*- the pictures in this post are going to be less than nice. I made these on a whim one night and all pics were taken in the kitchen (yes, the same one I keep cribbing about for lack of windows or good light).

Except for the first picture. This one was taken on the bright spot near the living room window right after I steamed the vegetables - 1 potato, 2 cups of mixed vegetables like peas, carrot, beans and sweet corn and one onion sliced long. Steam until the vegetables are cooked through yet not mushy. You can alternately pressure cook them 1 whistle.

I know I said step by step recipe for vegetable cutlet but the patties are very straight forward. You can scroll down for the recipe to make the patties. The assembly is what I wanted to focus on in this post.

First, we need bread crumbs. If you live in a fancy place, you will get to buy bread crumbs but that's too silly for me (don't ask me why), so I made my own. Here's what you do.

Heat a skillet until just hot and place a bread slice on it. Don't use any butter, oil, etc. Just dry-toast the bread slice on both sides until lightly browned.

Powder it in your blender or mixer and voila, bread crumbs!

Now we need a sticky coating that comes between the vegetable patties and the bread crumbs so that the bread crumbs will stick to the patties. The most common one is egg whites and that's what my mom uses. I have made this recipe completely vegetarian so here's what you can use instead of eggs whites in to coat the vegetable cutlets.

Take 3 tbsp maida / all purpose flour.

Add about the same amount of water.

Mix well to form a thick-ish paste.

Make patties of desired size (make sure its not too thick, about 1/2" thick patties are best) and place them gently on the maida paste.

Coat both sides well.

Place this on the prepared bread crumbs.

Coat both sides well. Just drizzle bread crumbs on the patty so that you can avoid turning it around too much and breaking it.

Repeat with the rest of the vegetable mixture. I got about 12 cutlets with the amount of vegetables mentioned above.

I refrigerated the patties for an hour just to firm them up. This is optional. After that, pour enough oil in the skillet to drown the cutlets half way. Heat it up until just below smoking point and lay the cutlets carefully in the oil. Make sure the heat is just medium so that the outside doesn't burn and inside remains undercooked.

Flip over when one side is nice and brown. Cook both sides until crisp.

Drain on a kitchen towel and serve with ketchup, mashed lightly in a wrap, with curd rice - there are tons of options!

Oh God, this picture is killing me! I really should stop taking pics in the night.

Here's the recipe, all in one place.

Vegetable Cutlets Recipe

Makes: 12

What I Used:

For the patties:

1 potato

2 cups mixed vegetables cut into small pieces

1 small onion, chopped fine

2 green chillies, chopped fine

1/2 tsp red chilli powder (adjust according to heat level desired)

1 tsp chaat masala (or garam masala for a different taste)

A pinch of amchur / dried mango powder

1/4 tsp coriander powder / malli podi

1/4 tsp roasted jeera powder / cumin seeds

A handful of finely chopped fresh coriander leaves / kothamalli (optional)

Salt to taste

2 tsp oil

For the coating:

3 tbsp maida mixed into a paste with 3 tbsp water (approx.)

2 slices of bread, toasted dry on a skilled and powdered

Oil to shallow fry

How I Made It:

1. First, make the patties. Steam cook or pressure cook the vegetables until soft yet firm. Heat oil for patties and add the onions. Fry until soft and transparent. Then add the chilly powder, jeera, coriander, amchur, chat masala and green chillies. Mix well for 30 seconds.

2. Mash the potato well and add with the other vegetables. Let the mixture cook until well incorporated (about 2-3 mins). Add the coriander leaves, if using, and mix well. Add salt just before shaping into patties, otherwise the mixture will sweat and loosen up, making it hard to form the shapes.

3. Place each patty in the flour-water mixture and coat well. Then place on the bread crumbs and coat well.

4. Shallow fry until golden brown on both sides. Serve hot with ketchup, curd rice or mashed up in a wrap or sandwich.

Potatoes in Red Coriander Sauce Recipe

This is a quick and easy Potato Recipe from Complete Indian Cooking by Mridula Baljekar, et al. I have tried quite a few recipes from this book with good success and this one was a must-try for two reasons.

1. Its the simplest recipe in the book!

2. It has the least number of ingredients and still looks so good.

Actually, there's one more reason: I love coriander. I hardly ever use coriander seeds in anything other than vatha kozhambu and the like but this recipe calls for whole coriander seeds. The flavour was delightful.

Potatoes in Red Coriander Sauce

Serves: 2

Preparation time: 15-20 mins

Source: Complete Indian Cooking by Mridula Baljekar, et al.

What I Used:

A dozen baby potatoes (or 3 potatoes, cubed)

1.5 tsp coriander seeds / malli

1.5 tsp cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam

4 garlic cloves

3 tbsp thick tamarind juice (or 1 tbsp readymade tamarind paste)

1 pureed tomato (or chopped fine)

A few curry leaves

1/2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp oil

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves / kothamalli to garnish

How I Made It:

1. Boil the potatoes in water until they are cooked yet not mushy. You can pressure cook for 1 whistle to make the job easier.

2. Grind the coriander seeds with the cumin seeds and garlic cloves to a coarse paste using a pestle and mortar or your small mixie jar.

3. Heat oil in a pan and add the ground paste with the tamarind juice, tomato puree, curry leaves, salt and sugar. Lower fire to medium-low and cook until the oil separates (about 7-10 mins)

4. Add the potatoes and stir well until coated with the sauce. Cover and simmer for about 5 mins. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot.

Note

- Instead of using whole coriander and cumin seeds, their powders can also be used. This will help you avoid the grinding, although the flavour will change a bit. It still tastes good, I have tried it both ways :)

Its been ages since I sent entries to any events so I am glad this fits in perfectly with Sunita's Think Spice event hosted by Priya, this month featuring coriander seeds.

Quick Potato Patties / Aloo Tikki Recipe

Since I posted my entry for Click - Stacks, a bunch of you asked for the recipe which I wanted to post immediately but kinda couldn't :D

Anyway, like I had mentioned, naps make me hungry. The reason why I don't like napping in the afternoon is precisely that. And the fact that I take much longer to sleep off in the night and wake up cranky the next day morning. So not worth it.

Anyway, on this particular Saturday, the heat was unbearable and TH and I had exhausted the movie CDs we borrowed. With no inclination to go out whatsoever, we decided to nap, something we hardly ever do. I woke up 2 hours later feeling oh-my-god-I-am-hungry and of course, there were no snacks at home that I could immediately bite into.
Without thinking much, I grabbed 2 potatoes, grated them, threw in some this and that which I hoped would balance the taste and shallow fried into patties. The measurements are all eyeballed so adjust and add according to your taste.

They were good. Sinfully good.

Quick Potato Patties / Aloo Tikkis
Preparation time: 15 mins Makes: 8 - 10 patties

What I Used:

2 medium potatoes, grated
A bunch of fresh coriander leaves, chopped
1 tsp jeera / jeerakam
2 green chillies, chopped
1 generous pinch asafoetida / hing / perungayam
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 to 2 tbsp besan / bengal gram powder / kadala mavu
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

Grate the potatoes and add the other ingredients in. Mix welll. Make into flat patty shapes on palm of hand and shallow fry in a wide pan until golden brown on both sides.

Serve hot with ketchup. Tastes best when really hungry!

Variations

- If you have more time in hand, then add chopped onions and some minced ginger. I haven't tried that but something tells me that would taste even better.

- If you try this recipe with any differences or variations, please do come back and leave your version in the comment section. Would appreciate that.


Note:- I am working on the roundup for Monthly Mingle - Ravishing Rice. Please bear with me while I sort through some 100+ ravishing entries over the next week or so :)

Entry For Click - Stacks

I was actually going to post the recipe for these super simple aloo tikkis/patties that I made last weekend when I was ravenous after a 2-hour nap. Sure sign that 2-hour naps are probably not a good idea.

Anyway, while editing and uploading pics, I realised this can go to Click - Stacks this month. So the recipe will have to wait, I guess.

Stack it up and bite!