Navratan pulao

I decided to make a vegetarian pulao today. Being a non vegetarian...most of the times when I mix spices in rice...it is usually when there is chicken involved. I decided to give vegetables a chance today......and boy......did I love it. The fragrance that arises from that pulao can drive anyone crazy!


I got this recipe from a website as I browsed through the net in the hunt of vegetable pulao and thought of sharing it with all of you.

Ingredients:
2 Cups Basmati Rice
1 Carrot
1 Potato
100gms Beans
1 Cup shelled Green Peas
Juice of one Lemon
2tbsp Ghee/Clarified Butter
2tbsp Oil
5 elaichi
2 Bay leaves
1/2" cinnamon

For the Masala:
1 Onion
4 Garlic Pods
2 Green Chilies
1-Cup Coriander Leaves


Method:
Soak rice for 30 minutes. Peel and chop Carrots and Potatoes into small pieces, string Beans and chop into small pieces. Grind the ingredients for the masala to a paste.

In a non stick pan, heat Ghee and Oil and add whole garam masala one by one. Stir. Add the masala paste and stir-fry until the moisture evaporates. Add vegetables and rice and stir for a minute. They should look something like this.

Add salt and 4 cups water and close the vessel and cook until done. Remove the lid and add Lemon juice and mix gently. Remove to a serving dish and serve hot.

Tangy Bread Upma

It was late in the afternoon...and I had just finished the laundry. What was that I felt...a headache trying to creep in???? It was then that I looked at the time and realized ...it was way past my lunch time. Now that explains!!!!
There were no leftovers in the fridge...and that headache did not make we want to do any chopping or mixing over the hot plate!
Here is something that I whipped up with the bread sitting in the fridge...and believe me not much chopping at all:)....and the result ..something really yummylacious...and me wondering...why did i not make this often :)


Ingredients

Bread - 4
Onion - 1/2
Rai - 1/2 tsp
Tomato paste - 1 tsp
Turmeric pd - 1/4 tsp
Chili pd - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil

Methods:

Cut the bread into small cubes and keep aside. Heat oil and add rai to it. Let it splutter and add chopped onions and saute till translucent. Add salt, turmeric and chili powder and mix for a minute on low heat. Add tomato paste and mix till the oil starts separating from the mixture. Lower the heat, add bread and fold gently into the spice mixture. Serve hot!

Spicy curried rajma

Rajma has been something that I always loved. But over time I somehow lost the taste for it. Today as I rummaged through the kitchen thinking of something healthy to make, rajma flashed through my mind.

I was skeptical. I tried to wreck my brain trying to figure out "Why didn't like it anymore???" Maybe I had gotten bored of eating it cooked in the same fashion everytime.

Anyways, I decided to burn off my skeptism... So, here goes something that I tried in the kitchen. It is spicy, but you can modify the spice level as needed. The outcome was finger smackingly delicious. And to top it..it just took 15 minutes of cooking and preparation time!

Ingredients:

Rajma - 1 can
Onions- 1 medium sized
Cinnamon stick - 1/2"
Cloves-4
Bay leaves-2
Green Chilly - 1
Green chilly paste- 1/2 tsp
Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
Corriander powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste

Spray the pan with Canolo cooking spray. Add in cloves, bay leaves and cinnamon sticks and saute till they are fragrant. Then add minced onion, ginger garlic paste and green chili paste and saute on medium heat until softened. Add all the masalas and stir on medium heat for a minute. Add water, pureed tomatoes, and salt and stir to mix well. Add kidney beans and stir to coat. Let curry simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until it is thick and creamy. Serve with basmati rice and/or toasted garlic bread.