BOLLY-BITES Indian recipes

Recipes are taken from dishes featured in BUSTED IN BOLLYWOOD.

DAHL



Ingredients


½ cup masoor dal (red lentils)
1 tomato roughly chopped (I use diced tinned tomatoes for speed and convenience)
1 onion, roughly chopped
¼ tspn tumeric
½ tspn ground cumin
½ tspn ground coriander
2 garlic cloves
3 tbspns oil
1 tspn cumin seeds
½ tspn mustard seeds
15 curry leaves
Salt to taste
1 onion finely diced (optional)
1-2 red or green chillies (optional)

Method:


Place the lentils, roughly chopped onion, tomato, tumeric, ground cumin & coriander with 2 cups water in a saucepan and bring to the boil.


Simmer, stir occasionally, until lentils are cooked to a soft mushy consistency, should take about 20 minutes. (if water evaporates before lentils cooked, add ½ cup boiling water.)

Once this is done, time to add the ‘tarka’ (or final seasoning.)


-Heat oil in small saucepan on low heat.
-Add cumin and mustard seeds, cover, the seeds need to pop.
-Add the garlic, finely diced onion and curry leaves and fry until onion browned.

Add the tarka to the cooked lentils, season with salt and cook for another few minutes.

(if you like it spicier, add the optional chillies to the boiling lentil mixture at the start. I also like adding fresh ginger, about an inch cube grated finely.)

Garnish with fresh coriander to serve.

MASALA CHAI



Ingredients (makes 2 cups)

1 cup water
1 cup milk
3 tspns black tea leaves
4 cardamoms
2 cm cinnamon stick
4 peppercorns
2cm-thick slice ginger
Sugar to taste


Method:

Peel the cardamoms. Pound (in mortar and pestle) or grind (electronic gizmo) cardamom pods, cinnamon and peppercorns to a powder.

Place water and milk in a small saucepan. Add the ground spices and ginger. Bring to boil.

Add tea leaves when starts to boil.

Boil 1 minute.

Strain liquid into cups.


Add sugar to taste.

BAIGAN BHARTA



Ingredients

2 medium eggplants
1 finely chopped onion
1 finely chopped tomato
1 chopped green chilli
1 inch fresh ginger grated
2 tspns ground cumin
2 tspns ground coriander
½ tspn garam masala
½ tspn tumeric
8 tbspns oil
Salt to taste
4 tbspns finely chopped coriander
Fresh coriander for garnishing


(Serves 4-6)

Method:

Roast the eggplants by holding them over a medium gas flame or heating under a grill, frequently turning, until skin blackened on all sides.


Wait until cool, peel off charred skin.


Roughly chop/mash the flesh.

Heat oil over medium heat, add onion, ginger and green chilli, fry until onion golden brown. Add spices, stir for a minute, then add tomato and cook until tender.

Add the eggplants, stirring through the spice mixture, and simmer for 10 minutes or until eggplants soft.

Stir through finely chopped coriander, season with salt.

Serve garnished with fresh coriander.

VEGETABLE PAKORAS


Ingredients

2 carrots grated
½ cauliflower chopped finely
2 onions, sliced
Handful baby spinach sliced finely
1 green chilli, finely chopped (optional)
1 tspn ground cumin
1 tspn tumeric
2 cups besan (chickpea) flour
12 curry leaves
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying
(Makes 20)


Method:


Combine the grated/sliced/chopped vegetables. (You can substitute other vegetables or add more)


Mix in the besan flour, tumeric, cumin, curry leaves, chilli, salt.


Add enough water to make a thick batter.

Heat oil (a saucepan about 1/3 full) to 180 degrees C/350 degrees F (a cube of bread will brown in 15 seconds.)


Lower large ladle of vegetable batter slowly into the oil (repeat until several clumps are frying at once.)


Fry until golden, then drain on paper towels.

Serve with your choice of dipping sauce.


ALOO TIKKI



Ingredients


500 g potatoes, cut in pieces
1 cup frozen peas
8 tbspns oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
½ tspn grated ginger
1 tspn ground tumeric
1 tspn ground cumin
1 tspn ground coriander
½ tspn garam masala
3 tbspns besan flour
2 tspn lemon juice
Salt to taste
(Makes 20)

Method:


Cook and mash the potatoes.


Cook the peas, add to the mash.

Use 1 tbspn of the oil in small saucepan, fry the onion, ginger, spices and chilli for 1 minute. Add to potato mix.

Add the besan flour, lemon juice and salt to taste to potato and mix.


Divide potato mix into golf ball size portions, flatten into shape of patties.


Heat remaining oil in non-stick fry pan and cook patties in batches. Fry on each side until golden brown.

Tastes great served with tamarind or mint chutneys (store bought is easiest!)

For kids, I omit the chilli, unless they like it spicy.

CARROT HALWA



Ingredients


1 kg carrots, grated
4 cups milk
100g ghee (clarified butter)
1 cup caster (fine) sugar
1 cup sultanas
½ tspn cardamom seeds, finely ground
3/4 cup slivered almonds (or cashews)
(Serves 8-12)

Method:


Place carrots and milk in a saucepan over low heat & bring to simmer.


Stir until carrot is tender and the milk evaporates. (Do this slowly so mixture doesn’t burn.)


Add ghee & cook until carrots start to brown slightly.

Add sugar, cook until mixture thick & drier.


Add sultanas, cardamom & nuts.

Serve hot with ice-cream, or serve cold after several hours in the fridge.


(Ground cardamom powder can be used as a substitute for the seeds, but you’ll need to use more, 1-2 tspns according to taste. I prefer the taste of cashews in this dish rather than the almonds, personal preference. Normal butter can also be substituted if you don’t have ghee, though ghee gives it a rich flavor.)


KULFI


Ingredients

1 tin sweetened condensed milk
500ml cream
2 tbspns almond meal
4 cardamoms (peeled and pounded to powder)
4 drops kewra essence
Pistachio nuts, chopped, for garnish
(Serves 8)

Method:

Mix all the ingredients (except pistachios, though if you like nutty icecream you can add extra and mix through.)

Place in mould.


Sprinkle chopped pistachios on top.

Freeze.


(Any mould can be used. We use a rectangular casserole dish. Ice cream will be super hard when comes out of freezer to leave out a few minutes before serving to facilitate ease of cutting into portions.


Cardamom powder can be used as a substitute though cardamom pods best.


Kewra essence is available in Asian stores.)

LASSI


(a refreshing yoghurt drink, perfect for cooling down your mouth after a chilli-hot curry.)

INGREDIENTS:

500g yoghurt
1 cup water
2 tablespoons sugar
Few drops rosewater
Few ice cubes


METHOD:


• Combine all the ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth.


• Pour in tall glasses and serve.


HINTS:


• You can increase or decrease the water according to the desired thickness. In summer, I like this as a cooling drink but if you prefer it thicker, decrease the water.


• Rosewater is a strong taste so experiment to your liking.


• Mango lassi is delicious: fresh is best but mango puree or mango in tins can add a lush sweetness to this drink.










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