Southern Indian Crab Curry

This is a mildly spicy curry full of flavour. It was really simple to make and luscious to eat!

Southern Indian Crab Curry (from Cook with Jamie - Jamie Oliver)
(Serves 4)

cooking spray
3 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp mustard seeds
5 green cardamom pods, crushed and husks removed
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 thumb-sized piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely sliced
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
1 medium white onion, peeled and finely sliced
2-3 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely sliced
2 heaped tsp turmeric
250g brown crabmeat
400ml light coconut milk
juice 2 lemons
500g picked white crabmeat
1 bunch fresh coriander, leaves picked
salt and pepper

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan and add the fennel seeds, mustard seeds, cardamom pods, cumin seeds, ginger, garlic, onion and chilli. Fry on a medium heat for 4 to 5 mins until lightly golden, then add the turmeric, a couple of sprays of cooking spray and the brown crabmeat. After a min or so, pour in the coconut milk and a tinful of water. Let it simmer for 5 mins. Then add the lemon juice and simmer for another 10 mins, or until the sauce resembles double cream in consistency.

Add the white crabmeat and half the coriander, simmer for 4 more mins. Season carefully with salt and pepper and a little more lemon juice if you think it needs it. Serve sprinkled with the rest of the coriander.

Squash and Lentil Curry

To go with the Saag Paneer I made a Squash and Lentil Curry, it was gently spicy rather than mega spicy but the flavour was delicious.

Squash and Lentil Curry (from Oh She Glows)
(Serves 4-6)

1 tsp oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp curry powder
1l vegetable stock
200g red lentils
1 butternut squash, cooked
fresh grated ginger, to taste
salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion and garlic. Saute for about 5 mins over a low-medium heat.

Stir in the curry powder and cook for another couple of mins. Add the stock and lentils and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 mins.

Stir in the cooked butternut squash and cook over a medium heat for about 5-8 mins. Season with salt, pepper, and add some freshly grated ginger to taste.

Secret Recipe Club: Saag Paneer

It's time for Secret Recipe Club again. I was going to sit this month out as I'm changing groups but then there was a orphan in my new group and I wanted to help.

So this month I got Ellie from The Hobo Kitchen, I could have chosen lots of her recipes but I went for a curry and saag paneer. Partly because it meant that I could do something I have wanted to do for aaaages, make paneer from scratch and I did just that! The recipe was posted a couple of days ago. It was yummy, I served the saag paneer in dosas, which are a kind of Indian pancake and accompanied it with a squash and lentil curry. Yum!

Saag Paneer (from Hobo Kitchen)

(Serves 4)

400g paneer, cubed
200g spinach
1 chilli, deseeded and chopped
2 tbsp oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, grated
1 inch ginger, grated
2 tsp coriander powder
2 1/4 tsp cumin powder
1 1/4 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
3/4 tsp garam masala
salt

Put the spinach and the chilli in a food processor and blitz until pureed.

Put the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and add the paneer. Fry until golden. Then remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel.

Add the onion and grated garlic and ginger to the oil and fry until the mixture is lightly browned. Add all the spices except the garam masala.and stir. Leave the mixture to cook for about 5 mins, stirring occasionally.

Add the spinach to the onion mixtures and stir to combine. Season with salt. Lower the heat to a simmer. Let the mixture simmer for about 5 mins. Stir in the garam masala and the paneer. Leave all the ingredients to simmer for another five mins. Serve.

An InLinkz Link-up

Foodies Read 2016: Rosemary and Crime by Gail Oust

I love a good culinary mystery from Buttercream Bump Off to White House Mysteries, I'm slowly making my way through some of the series that are produced mostly in the States. I have a huge stack of them to read so maybe doing this will make me read more of them!

This is the first in a new series - The Spice Shop Mysteries - by Gail Oust.

This one wasn't the best I've read, the main character owns a spice shop and sleuths out the murderer of a local chef, after she is first a suspect and then cleared of his murder. Some of it doesn't ring true but I liked the depictions of the South and it was at least fairly fast paced. About half way through the book the hunky local vet invites her over for dinner and makes chicken tandoori using a garam masala that she blends for him in her shop, so that's what I decided to make.

Tandoori Chicken (from Good Food Magazine October 2011)
(Serves 4)

juice 1 lemon
2 tsp paprika
8 skinless chicken thighs
vegetable oil, for brushing

For the marinade
150ml Greek yogurt
large piece ginger, grated
2 garlic clove, crushed
¾ tsp garam masala
¾ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp chilli powder
¼ tsp turmeric

Mix the lemon juice with the paprika in a large shallow dish. Slash each chicken thigh three times, then turn them in the juice and set aside for 10 mins.

Mix all of the marinade ingredients together and pour over the chicken. Give everything a good mix, then cover and chill for at least 1 hr. This can be done up to a day in advance.

Heat the grill. Lift the chicken pieces onto a grill rack. Grill for 8 mins on each side or until lightly charred and completely cooked through.

Masala Fishfinger Sandwich

This recipe comes from one of my favourite blogs. This sandwich is also really tasty. I served it in a pitta bread with mango chutney and yoghurt. I never realised that you could use batter without deep frying, so I'm really pleased to have discovered that! I loved the lightness of the batter with the firmness of the fish.

Masala Fish Fingers (from The WW Foodie)
(Serves 2)

2 thick fillets white fish, cod loin or monkfish
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp fennel seeds
100g flour
1 tbsp cornflour 
1 thumb of ginger, finely grated
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
100ml beer or lager

Combine the spices with the cornflour, half the flour, and plenty of salt and pepper. 

Cut the fish into strips.  Toss well in the spicy flour and then set aside.

Put the rest of the flour into a bowl with the ginger, garlic and beer and stir well to make a batter. It should be the consistency of double cream.

Put the floured fish fingers into the batter and coat well. Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the fish for a couple of mins on each side, so that the batter crisps up and the fish cooks through.

Serve in a bun with mango chutney, raita and lettuce.

Goat and Cashew Curry

I made this lovely curry with the last of the goat meat that I got from The Oundle Food Festival in the summer. It was absolutely delicious and I loved the nuttiness of the cashews.

Goat and Cashew Curry (adapted from River Cottage Light and Easy)
(Serves 6)

1kg goat meat, cubed
2 tbsp oil
2-3 tbsp curry paste
1 onion, thinly sliced
10 cardamom pods, lightly bashed
400g tin chopped tomatoes
125g cashew nuts
40ml water
salt and pepper

Put the pieces of goat into a large roasting tin, trickle with the oil and season with a little salt and pepper. Roast the goat uncovered for 20 mins. When the goat is nicely browned, take it out of the oven and lower the temperature to 170C.

Stir the curry paste into the browned goat, then add the sliced onion and cardamom pods. Add the tomatoes to the roasting tin, along with their juice. Combine well, then cover tightly with foil and return to the oven for 1 1/4 hours.

Meanwhile, blitz the cashew nuts in a food processor and add the water until you form a cream.

Remove the goat from the oven. Stir in the cashew cream, along with 3-4 tbsp water if it needs loosening. Return to the oven, uncovered, for a further 10 mins or until heated through, then taste and add a little more salt if you need to. Serve with rice.

Daring Cooks November 2015: Cauliflower Pakora

Vimala was our host for the November daring cooks challenge and she invited us to try our hands at some Indian snacks and treats.

Although not very difficult to make, these were really good. I made them for my Mum and sister for lunch one day with a green salad and some mango chutney. The deep fat frying element is always scary for me so I made sure I had an adult present throughout!

Cauliflower Pakoras

Servings: makes 1 bowl

Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 3-4 mins

Ingredients
Note: you can use any vegetable or meat to make these pakoras.
1 cup / 11oz / 320g cauliflower florets, clean and cut into thin long strips
a pinch salt
a pinch turmeric powder
1/2 cup / 1 1/2oz / 43g gram (chickpea/garbanzo/besan) flour OR powdered yellow cornmeal
2 Tbsp / 1/2oz / 16g cornstarch (maizena, Aust/UK cornflour)
1/2 tsp paprika/ red chili powder
1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/4 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
oil for deep frying

Directions:
Soak the cauliflower florets in a bowl of water with a pinch of salt and turmeric powder for 10 mins. Remove and drain them and cut into thin long strips.

In a clean bowl, add gram flour/ powdered cornmeal, cornstarch, paprika/red chili powder, cumin powder, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala and salt, and mix well.

Add cauliflower and mix with your hands to coat it well.

Add a little water and mix it with your hands until the mixture is moistened and the powder combines well with the cauliflower. Note: The mixture should not be watery and the consistency should be sticky.

Set aside for 5 mins and add enough oil to a frying pan that it’s about a quarter full, and heat till it reaches 200°F / 93°C. Now reduce the heat and put the battered cauliflower into oil and fry them till golden brown.

Guglee, Finchley Road

On Friday night I went to see Mr Foote's Other Leg at Hampstead Theatre with my father. We went to Guglee on Finchley Road for dinner before the theatre. We started off with Poppadums with raita, spicy pickle, mango chutney and tamarind-date chutney. There were two types of poppadum, one spicy and one plain. The sauces were delicious.

We then had Aloo Chaat for starter, these were crispy potato cakes topped with yogurt and chutneys, the flavours were similar to those of the chutneys served with the poppadums but there was the lovely crunchy potato cake underneath.

Formy  main course I had goa fish curry, which is what let the whole meal down. In terms of flavour all I got was chilli heat rather than any nice spiciness. The fish was perfectly cooked but the flavour was disappointing.

I also had a garlic naan, which was super, really garlicy and lovely and crispy but soft, the perfect naan.

So all in all this was a good meal but the main course really let it down. I would come back but definitely choose a different main.

Indian Potato and Spinach Filo Pie

A little while ago I was desperately trying to use up some filo pastry and made lots of pies, this was one of the pies I made. It was wonderfully fragrant and lovely served with a dollop of mango chutney or raita and salad.

Indian Potato and Spinach Filo Pie (from Good Food Magazine August 2011)
(Serves 8)

1¼kg large waxy potatoes such as Charlotte, halved
85g butter
2 onions, chopped
1 tbsp cumin seed
1 tbsp mustard seed
2 tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 red chillies, halved, deseeded and sliced
3 tbsp curry paste
400g bag fresh spinach
4 tomatoes, chopped
small bunch coriander, chopped

For the pastry
270g pack filo pastry (6 large sheets)
50g melted butter
1 tsp black mustard seed

Heat the oven to 190C. To make the filling, heat a pan of salted water. When boiling, add the potatoes and boil for 15 mins until tender. Melt the butter then fry the onions for a few mins. Add the cumin, mustard seeds, ginger and chillies and fry, stirring occasionally, for about 7 mins until soft. Stir in curry paste.

Cook the spinach in the microwave on high for 5 mins. Drain and squeeze out as much liquid as you can, then chop it. Drain the potatoes and tip them into the spice mixture. Crush lightly to break them up into chunks rather than mash. Toss in the spice mixture with plenty of salt to coat them, then add the spinach, tomatoes and coriander.

Carefully unroll the pastry and brush 2 x 20cm loose-bottomed sandwich tins with some butter. Brush the first sheet of pastry and lay it in and across the tin so that it hangs over the side. Do the same with another sheet of pastry to cover the other side of the tin (so the two form a cross), butter and fold the final sheet in half and lay it in the base of the tin to create a firm base. Do the same with the other tin and remaining pastry.

Spoon the filling into the tin and fold up the pastry that is overhanging so that it covers the filling. Brush generously with the remaining butter and sprinkle with seeds. Bake for 35 mins until golden and crisp.

Daring Cooks September 2015: Modaks

For the month of September, Rutvika the talented lady behind sizzleanddrizzle.com challenged us to make modaks: a delicate preparation of coconut and jiggery filled in a tender rice flour covering that is later steamed to produce a delicacy that is usually served in the Ganesha festival in India.

So I don't like coconut so I went for a savoury filling for my Modaks. I really enjoyed the flavour of these dumplings but I was a bit rubbish with my shaping, but I loved having a go! My second lot turned out better than the first. I ended up with loads more dough than mixture so I made double filling and used up all the dough and froze the leftovers.

Recipe 2: Steamed vegetable modaks

Servings: Makes 12 steamed vegetable modaks
Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Cooling time: to be served hot

Ingredients


For the filling

• 2 tablespoon oil
• ½ teaspoon green chilli paste (or cayenne pepper)
• ½ cup or 50 grams cabbage , finely chopped (I used the purple cabbage which has a milder flavor)
• ½ cup or 50 gms onion, finely chopped
• ½ cup or 35 grams green stalks of spring onions
• ½ cup or 50 grams French beans, finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce

For the covering / shell

• 1 heaped cup of Basmati rice flour, sifted (310 grams)
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• ¾ cup water (180 m)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 35 grams unsalted butter

Directions:

Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a wok. Add the chilli paste in the oil and let it sizzle for a minute.

Add all the vegetables and stir fry it for a couple of minutes over low heat. Add the salt and sugar. Cover it with a lid and steam the vegetables till just softened, but still crisp.

Add the soy sauce, mix well.

Take it off the heat and let it cool down completely.

To make the covering, sift the rice flour and 1 tablespoon all purpose flour with the smallest sieve twice so that it is very smooth. The all purpose flour is used to make the rice flour more sticky.

In a thick bottomed vessel, take the water and add butter and salt to it. Let it come to a boil.

Once water starts to boil, add the flour mixture all at once. Take it off heat and mix it together with a spoon.

Then put it back on heat and sprinkle 2 tablespoon water. Cover and let it steam for 1 minute over low heat.

Take it off heat and let it stay in a corner covered for 10 minutes, It will get softened.

Once it has considerably cooled down, pulse it in a food processor for a minute, take it out and knead with hands to bring it together to form a smooth dough.

Prepare the steamer. Fill a large vessel with water covering the bottom of the steamer. Place steamer on top and keep it ready. We place the modaks on a banana leaf for steaming, but you can use a plain tea towel instead.

Make 12 equal balls of the dough.

With a little water, flatten each ball into a thin disk with your hands or in a non-electric roti maker, about 4 inches in diameter. Then take it into the palm of your hand. Stuff it with some mixture leaving ½ inch on all sides. Start pinching the corners into petals with the use of your index finger and thumb and middle finger on each side. Make several such petals all around the edge of the disk

Then start getting all the petals together by pressing it closer with your fingers. Seal the top and keep it covered with a damp towel till a few are ready to be steamed.

Immerse each modak in water before placing it in the steamer filled with boiling water. Steam for 15-20 minutes.

Serve with some pickle or ketchup.

Cheat's Chicken Makhani

This was dinner on Friday. This is such a cheat's recipe as it uses pre packed chicken tikka pieces but it totally works. The flavours were lovely and it was so quick to whip up, prefect when I got home from work knackered on Friday. I added some spinach into the pan for the last 2-3 mins of cooking time for no extra points. I served it with 50g brown rice (5) and 1 tbsp mango chutney (2).

Cheat's Chicken Makhani (from WW Seasonally Sensational)
(Serves 2)
(6 WW ProPoints per serving)

230g can chopped tomatoes
1 tsp tomato puree
1 tsp grated root ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp chilli powder
200ml chicken stock
15g ground almonds
1 tsp caster sugar
225g chicken tikka breast pieces
1 tbsp low fat spread
1/2 tsp garam masala

Put the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, ginger, garlic, chilli powder and chicken stock in a saucepan and simmer briskly for 10 mins to reduce.

Stir in the ground almonds, sugar and chicken tikka pieces. Gently heat through for 7 mins and then stir in the low fat spread and garam masala. Serve.

Indian Spiced Barley

This salad wasn't as flavourful as I was expecting. The original ingredient is millet rather than barley and I forgot to put the curry leaves in the water! So I'm not sure if that was why it was lacking in flavour.

Indian Spiced Barley (from WeightWatchers Weekend)

(Serves 2)

(9 WW ProPoints per serving)

100g barley

chicken stock

4 curry leaves

1 egg

1 small red onion, chopped

1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced

2 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp garam masala

50g spinach, roughly shredded 

1 chicken breast, cut into bite seized pieces

Bring a pan of water to the boil and add the chicken stock cube, barley and curry leaves, cook according to packet instructions.

Meanwhile put the egg into a pan and bring to the boil, cook for 8-10 mins. Drain and plunge into cold water.

Spray and frying pan with cooking spray and add the mustard seeds, cook until popping then add the onion, chilli and garam masala and cook for 3-5 mins. 

Put the barley, onion mixture, spinach and chicken into a bowl and mix together. Transfer into a lunch box and top with half an egg each.

Tikka Cod with Chickpea Curry

This wasn't spicy enough for me. It could have done with a stronger flavoured curry paste. The dish as whole was a nice combination though and I liked the chickpeas, spinach and coconut cream.

Tikka Cod with Chickpea Curry (from Waitrose Weekend)

(Serves 2)

70g tikka paste

2 cod fillets

1 tbsp oil

1 onion, chopped

250g spinach

400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

160ml can coconut cream

Preheat the oven to 200C. Spread 1 tsp of the tikka paste over each cod fillet, place on a baking tray and bake for 10 mins.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for 3-4 mins until tranluscent. Add the remaining tikka paste, chickpeas, spinach and coconut cream, stir well, cover and cook for 3 mins. Season.

Serve the cod on top of the chickpea curry.

Barley Khichdi

I had a hankering for something really filling involving barley and lentils a little while ago and Google led me to this recipe. It was really lovely and wholesome. I meant to add kale and for some reason it turned itself into peas. My brain works in mysterious ways sometimes. Still it was delicious, not hot spicy but flavourful spicy just the way I like it.

Barley Khichdi (from Veggie Belly)
(Serves 2)

1 tbsp oil
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/8 tsp asafoetida
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 small tomato, finely chopped
1/2 tsp tumeric powder
100g cup pearl barley
50g cup red lentils
salt
50g frozen peas
squeeze lemon juice
1 tbsp coriander, chopped

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add the cumin seeds. When they start to sizzle, add the asafoetida and stir for 30 secs.

Then add the onions and fry on a medium heat till the onions are soft but not brown. Add the tomatoes, and cook until they are soft.  Add the turmeric, barley and lentils, stir for a few seconds and then add 750ml of water and a little salt.

Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, put a lid on the pan, and let it simmer until the barley is cooked, 20-25 mins. During cooking, if the mixture dries up, add water as needed, a little at a time.

Add in the peas 3-4 mins before the end of the cooking time and stir to mix them into the mixture. Once everything is cooked turn off heat, and add a squeeze of lemon juice. To serve, sprinkle over the coriander and add a blob of yoghurt on top.

Fish Biryani

I actually tried two of last months Daring Cooks recipes. The first was the lamb biryani which I posted about earlier and I also made a fish biryani later on. I liked this fish one much better. It was much creamier and a better flavour. I used smoked fish which improved the flavour even more. It was also much easier to make with less steps than the lamb biryani.

Fish Biryani (from Daring Cooks)
(Serves 4)

3 tomatoes, skinned and chopped
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 green chillies
4 cloves garlic
1 onion
3 tablespoon (60 ml) (2 oz) (60 gm) ghee
2 cups (500 ml) (370 gm) (13 oz) basmati rice, soaked for 30 minutes and drained
3 cups (750 ml) coconut milk
1 lb (500g) white fish fillets, cut into 1 inch (2½ cm) pieces
Salt

1. Blend the tomatoes, turmeric, cumin, chillies, garlic, and half of the onion to a smooth paste.

2. Thinly slice the remaining onion and fry it in the ghee over medium high heat until lightly browned. Stir in the rice and fry for 2 minutes. Add the coconut milk and enough water to bring the liquid about 1 inch (2½ cm) above the rice. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes until the rice is half cooked.

3. Add the paste, fish, and salt. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes or until the rice is dry.

Daring Cooks August 2013: Lamb Biriani

Grace, one of our talented non-blogging Daring Kitchen members, was our Daring Cooks’ August hostess who shared with us some of her family’s tried and true Bengali Biryani recipes – all of them delicious and all of them prepared fresh from our own kitchens!

I love Indian food and was really excited about this challenge. I made this for my Mum when I went home for a week and instead of using the recipes in the post she found a recipe in her 1969 Cordon Bleu Cookery Course, well I had to try that! Despite some slightly dodgy spelling and the need for damp muslin (we used a damp tea towel instead), the dish was distinctly underwhelming! We did use much less chilli than was in the recipe, as both of us have difficulties with chilli, but I assume that that is where most of the heat comes from, as the dish was only really lightly spicy. It was an interesting experience, especially with the addition of potatoes which made the dish a bit carb heavy! But hey obviously this is 1960s Cordon Bleu's idea of Biriyani.

Lamb Biriani (from Cordon Bleu Cookery Course)
(Serves 6)

2lb leg of lamb
4 green chillies (seeded)
1 clove garlic (crushed with salt)
2-3 sprays coriander or mint, leaves
2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 carton (5fl oz) plain yoghourt
4 medium-sized onions (thinly sliced)
5 1/2 oz butter
3/4 pint water
1 dsp salt
1lb potatoes (boiled and quartered)
pinch saffron
1/3 pint hot milk
1lb long grain Busmatti or Patna rice
1 1/2oz shredded almonds (unblanched)
2oz sultanas (washed)

Remove the meat from the bone and cut off some of the fat. Cut the meat into 2-inch squares. Chop chillies very finely, then mix with the garlic, coriander and spices and add the yoghourt. Add the diced meat to yoghourt mixture. Mix well and marinate for 1 hour.

Fry the onions in 4oz butter until brown. Remove from the pan, add the meat to the pan and fry for about 5 mins, turning well so that it does not stick to the pan. Add 3/4 pint water and 1 dessertspoon of salt, cover and cook gently.

When the meat is almost tender (about 45-50 mins), add the potatoes and more salt if necessary.

Leave the saffron to infuse in the hot milk for 10 mins. Boil the rice for 10 mins or until just barely cooked, then drain. When the meat is tender, remove it with its sauce, reduce if necessary, mix with half the onions and a quarter of the rice, moisten with 2-3 tbsp of the saffron milk. Lay this on the bottom of an ovenproof casserole together with the potatoes.

Cover the top with the remaining rice and sprinkle the rest of the saffron milk on top. Cover with a dampened muslin to keep rice moist. Put on a lid and continue cooking in the oven at 350F (180C) for 30 mins.

Meanwhile fry the almonds to a pale gold in the remaining butter, add the sultanas and fry them for a minute longer to plump them.

Serve the biryani with the rest of the onions sprinkled over it and the almonds and sultanas on top.

Chickpea Flour and Mooli Stir Fry

This year for the first time I have grown both radishes and mooli in the garden. The radishes are easy and delicious in salads, the mooli required a little more searching for recipes, most of the recipes I turned up were Indian and I was especially intrigued by a mooli paratha, but with the first batch I picked I didn't have enough to make paratha but instead went for a dry mooli and greens curry with chickpea flour. Especially as I've had half a bag of chickpea flour sat in my cupboard since Christmas with no real idea of what to do with it! This was perfect, although I have halved the quantity of the flour involved as a lot of it did not cook and tasted a bit grim raw. So make sure that the flour changes colour and goes darker.

Chickpea Flour and Mooli Stir Fry (from Spusht)
(Serves 2-3)

½ cup radish whites, chopped small

3 cups finely chopped radish greens (which are radish leaves, or use spinach)
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
⅛ tsp asafoetida
½ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 cup chickpea flour/gram flour
salt to taste

Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat.  When hot, add the mustard seeds and wait for them to pop.  Add the asafoetida and radish whites, sauté for 2 minutes, then cover for 2 mins. Add radish greens and sauté for a minute more.  Cover for 2 more mins, stirring once in to avoid scorching.

Add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander, cumin, chickpea flour and salt.  Mix well so that chickpea flour roasts well in oil to get rid of its raw flavour.  Then cover the pan and cook on low heat for another 2-3 minutes.  Serve as a side dish or with an Indian bread.

Hyderabadi Lamb Shank

I was a little disappointed with this recipe. It promised much, but didn't really deliver on flavour, it may possibly be a bit more flavourful cooked in stock rather than water. The meat was lovely and tender however; although I had to adjust the cooking time from 1 to 2 hours as my lamb shank was rather large and didn't look cooked enough after 1 hour. I served it with boiled rice and Indian spiced cabbage, fennel and green beans.

Hyderabadi Lamb Shank (from Great British Chefs)
(Serves 4)

4 tbsp vegetable oil

4 cinnamon sticks

4 cardamom pods

6 cloves

3 small onions, peeled and finely sliced

4 lamb shanks

1 1/2 tbsp of ginger paste

1 1/2 tbsp of garlic paste

1 tsp of ground turmeric

1 tsp of chilli powder

2 tsp of ground cumin

2 tbsp of ground coriander

4 tbsp of plain yoghurt

3 large ripe tomatoes

 

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves and sauté for half a minute. Add the sliced onions and sauté over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown

 

Add the lamb shanks and cook over high heat for five minutes, stirring constantly

 

Add ginger and garlic paste, stir well for a couple of minutes and then add the turmeric, chilli, cumin and coriander powders and salt. Sauté for a further five minutes. Add the yoghurt and sauté for a further 5 minutes over high heat

 

Add the chopped tomato, stir and allow to simmer for 5 minutes or until the oil separates from the masala

 

Add enough hot water to cover the shanks and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid, simmer and cook until the lamb is done, approximately 2 hours or until the meat just starts to come away from the bone

 

Remove from the flame and allow the lamb shanks to cool in the liquid. Remove the shanks using a pair of tongs and strain the cooking liquid into a clean pot

 

Cook the strained liquid for a further 10 minutes or until reduced to the desired consistency and season to taste with salt

 

To finish, add the cooked shanks back into the sauce, cover and simmer for a further 15 minutes.

Spiced Potato and Lentil Soup

I really liked this soup although mine turned into more of a dahl than a soup but I loved the warmth of the spices in the dish wich went pefectly with the lentils and potatoes.

Spiced Potato and Lentil Soup (from Tinned Tomatoes)
(Serves 4)

tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1cm piece ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
a good pinch of chilli powder
4 medium potatoes, chopped into chunks (1 cm approx)
200g red lentils
1.2l vegetable stock
handful of fresh coriander, chopped
salt and pepper

Saute the onion, garlic and fresh ginger until the onion is soft and translucent.

Add the spices and mix well. Add a splosh of water to prevent the spiced onions from sticking to the pan.

Add the potatoes and lentils, then pour in the stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes until the potatoes and lentils are tender.

Season with salt and pepper, then add the fresh coriander and serve.

Spiced Salmon with Coriander Mash

This wasn't the most successful dish. As you can see I burnt the salmon, but that is the skin you can see and it was lovely and just undercooked inside. I've added the instruction to turn it over for the last 2-3 mins to the recipe below as I think it would be nice to brown the top as well. t also wasn't all that flavourful. I think I need a spicier curry paste. I used tikka masala paste and even for me, who has problems with chilli, this wasn't hot enough.

I served the dish with aubergines sprinkled with a tsp of garam masala and fried. They were delicious as was the coriander mash. I really should try adding things to my mash more often.

Spiced Salmon with Coriander Mash (adapted from Good Food Magazine November 2003)
(Serves 4)

1kg potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tsp tikka paste or tandoori paste
200g tub Greek yoghurt
4 salmon fillets
25g low fat spread
1 pack fresh coriander, chopped (a large handful)
4 tbsp or so milk

Boil the potatoes for about 12 minutes until tender. Turn on the grill. Stir the spice paste into 4 tbsp of the yogurt and smear the mixture all over the salmon. Put the salmon in a large heatproof dish, skin side up, and grill for 10 minutes turning over for the last 2-3 mins to brown the top of the salmon.

Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Add the remaining yogurt with the spread, coriander and milk. Now mash the ingredients together or use an electric hand whisk to beat the mash to a really creamy texture, adding extra milk if necessary.

Pile on plates, serve with the salmon and drizzle with the cooking juices.