Hotter Than Hell!

The other day I was puttering around the kitchen, trying to figure out what to cook for dinner.  I dug through my pantry and fridge and found a bottle of simmer sauce I picked up from Cost Plus World Market during one of my visits there.  It was a Vindaloo sauce, very low in calories, and I thought I'd whip up a tasty, quick dinner.

I swirled a tiny bit of oil in my skillet and added some cubed up pieces of chicken breast.  I let that cook then added onions, zucchini, and mushrooms.  Once everything was cooked nicely I poured in the Vindaloo sauce.  It was beautiful!  It smelled amazing and looked good.  I let the sauce, chicken and veggies cook together so the sauce thickened up a tad.  I couldn't wait to eat!

I put a bed of rice in the center of my plate, topped it with the Chicken and Veggie Vindaloo and sat down to eat.  I took one bite and WOW!  I thought my head was going to explode.  It was insanely hot!

What I failed to notice on the bottle of Vindaloo sauce were those three evil little peppers.  Now, I can handle some spice, but this?  It was way too much!  I sucked down a forkful of rice and tried a few more bites of my meal.  Big mistake!  My mouth was on fire and the heat seemed to intensify as I sat there and tried to eat.  Out of desperation, I gulped down a glass of milk to cool things off. 

My poor husband can't tolerate spicy foods well (he's a big baby), so I put the remaining rice and Chicken and Veggie Vindaloo in a tupperware container and gave it to the only person I know who would eat it: My sister.  Turns out that was a good move--she loved it and thought it was spicy but not too hot to eat.  Apparently she inherited some sort of asbestos tastebuds or something.

Overall: this Vindaloo sauce was a huge disappointment.  I wish it had been a few degrees cooler because it looked, smelled and tasted so good.  Maybe I could have stirred in some yogurt to cool it off...who knows.  Oh well...you can't win them all!

Side Dishes

So on Monday I told you about a super easy and delicious marinade for flat iron steak, today I have 2 really yummy side dishes that I served with the steak (although they would be good with many other meals too).

First up is cauliflower with onion and tomato (phool gobi ki bhaji) - yes an Indian take on cauliflower.

Phool gobi ki bhaji
This picture does not do this dish justice!

My friend recommended this dish when she gave me the Indian Cooking cookbook and I am really glad that she did - it is delicious!

Ingredients:
2 medium sized cauliflowers
1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
7 tablespoons water
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic, peeled and very finely chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 small tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 - 1 fresh, hot green chili, finely chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garam masala

• Break up the cauliflower into florets that are about 1 1/2 inches across at the head and 1 1/2-2 inches in length.

• Let them soak in a bowl of water for 30 minutes; drain.

• Put the onion and ginger into a food processor along with 4 tablespoons of the water. Blend until a paste forms.

• Put the oil in a wide pot and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the garlic. Stir and fry until the pieces turn a medium-brown color. Add the cauliflower and stir and fry for about 2 minutes or until the cauliflower pieces pick up a few brown spots. Remove the cauliflower with a slotted spoon and put in a bowl. Add the onion-ginger mixture into the same pan. Stir and fry it for a minute. Now add the cumin, coriander, and tomatoes. Stir and fry this mixture until it turns a medium-brown color. If it starts to burn, turn the heat down slightly and sprinkle in a tablespoon of water. Add the turmeric, cayenne, green chili, lemon juice, and salt. Stir well and turn the heat to low. Add back the cauliflower and any juices with it. Stir gently to mix. Add 3 tablespoons water, stir again and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook on low heat, stirring now and then, for 5-10 minutes or until the cauliflower is done. Remove lid and sprinkle garam masala over the top. Stir to mix.

Next up are Aidan's Potatoes - this is a simple dish and a sure fire winner (in my son's eyes) whenever it is served.


Ingredients:
Fingerling potatoes
olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika

• Heat oven to 400 degrees.

• Cut the potatoes in to quarters and place in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Mix well.

• Pour the potato mixture on to a cookie sheet and cook for 45 minutes. Stir the potatoes every 15 minutes.
  

Kashmiri Chicken

Another Indian dish from Greta - this dish is really easy, doesn't have a lot of ingredients and you could really use any kind of meat in it and it would turn out to be delicious! I found this in the same cookbook that has Kheer or rice pudding (see post from 01/13/10) in it, Complete Indian Cooking - thank you Lydia!

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons vegetable oil3 large onions, finely sliced
10 peppercorns
10 cardamom pods
2-inch piece of cinnamon stick
2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons paprika
3 pounds chicken pieces, skinned
1 cup plain yogurt
salt (to taste)

• Heat the oil in a deep, lidded pot. Add the onions, peppercorns, cardamoms, and cinnamon and cook until the onions are golden. Add the ginger, garlic, chili powder, paprika, and salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Add the chicken pieces and fry until browned.
  

• Gradually add the yogurt , stirring constantly. Cover and cook gently for about 30 minutes.

Serves 6

Notes:
I used chicken breasts and cut them up into bite sized pieces. I also allowed this to cook all day (with the exception of adding the yogurt - I did that toward the end). I also added about 1/2 cup of water to the dish, since I was letting it simmer for about 4 hours. When I served this dish, the chicken melted in your mouth; everything was tender and spiced well. I served this dish with steamed broccoli and basmati rice that was cooked with raisins and toasted almonds.

The family loved this meal! My mother said that this was her favorite Indian dish to date. She really enjoyed the spices (it was seasoned and not hot) and the way the chicken melted in her mouth. The family has already asked me to cook this one again and since it is so easy and yummy, I will be happy to comply!

Chicken With Cream

To continue with the Indian theme of 2010, I made another recipe from Madhur Jaffrey's cookbook, Indian Cooking - Malai wali murghi or chicken with cream. This dish was super easy to make, was full of flavor, and everyone loved it!
Here is the recipe from Madhur Jaffrey's book:
Ingredients:

1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepperfreshly ground black pepper
3 pounds chicken pieces, skinned
6-7 cloves garlic, peeled
1 inch cube fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups water
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 medium tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
4 tablespoons plain yogurt
1 teaspoon garam masala
6 tablespoons heavy cream

• Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, 1 teaspoon of the cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of the coriander, 1/4 teaspoon of the turmeric, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, and some black pepper on the chicken pieces. Mix well and set aside for at least 1 hour.

• Put the garlic and ginger into the container of a food processor. Add 1/2 cup of the water and blend until fairly smooth.

• Put the oil in a wide, nonstick pot and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in as many chicken pieces as the pot will hold easily in a single layer and brown lightly on both sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside in a bowl. Brown all the chicken pieces the same way.

• Put the chopped onion into the remaining oil. Stir and fry until the pieces turn a medium-brown color. Add the garlic-ginger paste. Stir and fry until all the water from the paste evaporates and you see the oil again. Put in the remaining 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon coriander, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne. Stir and fry for about 20 seconds. Now put in the chopped tomatoes. Turn the heat down to medium-low. Stir and cook the spice paste for 3-4 minutes, mashing the tomato pieces with the back of a slotted spoon. Add the yogurt, a tablespoon at a time, incorporating it into the sauce each time before adding more. Put in the chicken pieces and any accumulated juices, the remaining 1 cup water and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Take off the cover. Add the garam masala and cream. Mix gently.

• Turn the heat up to medium high and cook, stirring gently every now and then, until the sauce has reduced somewhat and has turned fairly thick.

Serves 6

Notes:

I used canned diced tomatoes and I marinated the chicken for about 3 hours. I followed the directions up to adding the cream and garam masala - instead, I cooked the dish slowly all afternoon and then completed the dish with the cream and garam masala as directed. I served this with rice and naan and think that some fresh string beans would also go well with the meal.

This was definitely another successful dish from Madhur Jaffrey's cookbook! I have yet to make something that I didn't like or that did not turn out well. If you like Indian food at all and want to try to cook some at home, i would recommend this book whole heartedly!

Thanks again Andrea for such a nice gift!!!

Indian Comfort Food

The other night I decided to make dinner for the family. I wanted something relatively easy, something everyone would eat, and something that would not take all day to make. I started looking through all my cookbooks and I ended up looking at my favorite Indian cookbook by Madhur Jaffrey and found chicken with tomatoes and garam masala (Timatar murghi). This dish fit the bill for everything, plus I had almost all of the ingredients that I would need to make this!

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 inch cinnamon stick
6 cardamon pods
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon peppercorns
2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
6-7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped1 inch cube fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
6 medium tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
3 lbs chicken pieces, skinned
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon garam masala

Put the oil in a large, wide pot and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamon pods, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Stir once and then put in the onions, garlic, and ginger. Stir this mixture until the onions pick up brown specks. Now out in the tomatoes, chicken pieces, salt, and cayenne pepper. Stir to mix and bring to a boil. Cover tightly, turn heat to low, and simmer for 25 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Stir a few times during this cooking period. Remove cover and turn up heat to medium.
Sprinkle in the garam masala and cook, stirring gently, for about 5 minutes in order to reduce the liquid in the pot somewhat.

I used 2 cans of diced tomatoes (it is what I had on hand) and I also simmered this all day long. I wanted all of the flavors to meld together. The chicken melted in your mouth and everyone really like this. It was super easy and extremely delicious. I served this over plain rice and also got some naan from Trader Joes - it was a wonderful meal and I will make it again!

Vindaloo, Wine and Kheer - Oh My!

In keeping with my Indian theme, I made goan-style hot and sour pork (Vindaloo) this weekend. It was a bit more time consuming than the other dishes, but it turned out deliciously!

To make this meal, I ended up biting the bullet and buying a spice grinder and I also made a trek to Central Market (and their bulk spice isle) to find 2 key ingredients for this dish - fenugreek and brown mustard seeds. You start by taking all your spices (cumin seeds, dried chilies, peppercorns, cardamon seeds, a cinnamon stick, mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds) and grinding them up, then you add vinegar, salt, and brown sugar to make the start of the vindaloo paste. After that, you brown 2 onions in lots of oil and then transfer them to a food processor, add some water and make an onion paste - this gets added to the spices and you have vindaloo paste. Once the paste is made, the rest of the meal is pretty easy - cut up and brown your meat (I used pork), make a garlic & ginger paste and add that, add turmeric & coriander and the vindaloo and let it simmer for at least an hour.

I made plain rice to go with the pork vindaloo (I thought that the dish itself had enough seasoning and plain rice would go better than a seasoned rice) and served garlic naan (from Treader Joe's), broccoli and a delicious Dry Riesling from Chateau Ste. Michelle.

I discovered the Dry Riesling in talking to the "wine lady" at Safeway - I wanted a white wine that went well with spicy food and she recommend the Dry Riesling. It is very drinkable and goes perfectly with anything spicy - it has quickly become one of my favorite wines! It also helps that I can buy it right at the grocery store and it is under $7.00 a bottle!!

For dessert, I made Kheer again (see my post from 01/13/10 for the recipe), but I changed it up a bit from the original recipe. I used coconut milk, vanilla and toasted coconut in the recipe - along with the raisins, milk and cream. The addition of vanilla and coconut added dimensions to the flavor that were exceptional! Since the dish was a bit spicy, the creamy rice pudding put an exclamation point on the dinner - I love the Kheer!

If you make this meal at home, give yourself lots of time for prep and to chill the Kheer!! I had been running around and didn't start cooking until 2:00 pm - I served dinner at 6:15, but I was "running" around the kitchen all afternoon! It was worth it and there were enough leftovers for dinner tomorrow night too!! I also love my new spice grinder, I can't believe that it has taken me so long to fork out the $20.00 to buy one - it is a must have!

Kheer

Since Lydia knows of my new passion for Indian cooking (and eating), she dug through her vast collection of cookbooks and found one for me: Complete Indian Cooking by Sterling Publishing Co, Inc. It has photos to go with each recipe and a nice introduction that describes the spices and cooking tools need to prepare the dishes in the book. It was in this book that I found a recipe for Kheer or rice pudding to complete the meal I made on Saturday night (see Monday's blog).

kheer with candied almonds

Kheer Recipe

1/3 cup long-grain rice
7 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup golden raisins
sugar to taste
5 ozs cream

• Put the ice and 4 1/2 cups milk in a heavy-bottom pan. Cook for 45-60 minutes until most of the milk has been absorbed - use low to medium heat and stir often.
• Add the remaining milk and the raisins. Increase heat until the milk is at a very low boil and constantly stir. Once the milk starts to thicken, reduce heat to low-simmer; stir often.
• Once the milk has thickened and is creamy, remove from heat and add sugar to taste (I think I added about 1/4 cup).
• Transfer pudding to a glass bowl and allow to cool. Stir occasionally to prevent a skin from forming.
• Stir in the cream and transfer to serving dishes. Serve cold and sprinkle with almonds, pistachios or other nuts.
  

Topping

1/4 cup raw almonds
1 tablespoon butter
honey or sugar

• In a small, non-stick pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
• Chop the almonds and add them to the butter.
• Constantly stir the almonds until they start to brown.
• Lightly drizzle with honey or sugar and mix well.
• Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Comments

When I made this, the original recipe just called for simmering the milk - I ended up cooking my pudding for an extra hour before I turned up the heat. I also made sure to stir this well and use whole milk - I was worried about scalding the milk and having a skin form (neither of these things happened). I also think that it would be tasty to add some type of extract while the milk is thickening, like vanilla, orange or almond. Additionally, I think that you could also sweeten this with honey, but the sugar was good too. I really think that the candied almonds made this dish - it was a really nice end to all of the rich flavors and spices of the lamb dish. Please try it out and let me know what you added!

Saturday Delights

Saturday Night Lamb Dinner

In keeping with my New Year's Resolution to use my Indian cookbooks and make at least 3 dishes a month, I decided to make Royal Lamb with Creamy Almond Sauce (Rogan josh), Rice Flavored with Cumin Seeds and Kheer (rice pudding).

Royal Lamb
I went to CostCo to buy my boneless leg of lamb - it was the best price and I had the largest selection of lamb. It took me about 45 minutes to trim all the fat and cube it in to the right size to cook, but it was completely worth it! Once the onions were all diced and the spices measured, it did not take long to cook the dish; the longest cook time was to allow the dish to simmer for an hour. The Royal Lamb melted in my mouth and the sauce was creamy and seasoned perfectly. The next night we had the leftovers and those were even better since the lamb marinated in all the spices for an extra day. Definitely serve this dish with rice and naan!

Ok, so I cheated again when it came to the naan and samosas. Instead of Safeway, this time I went to Trader Joe's and checked out their freezer section. I ended up purchasing frozen vegetable samosas and frozen plain naan (I also got some fresh garlic naan from the bakery isle for Sunday's dinner). The vegetable samosas took 15 minutes to cook and were delicious. They were crispy and not oily and the mashed potatoes inside held the seasoning - they were easy and tasty! The naan (both frozen and fresh) was also quick and yummy! I melted some butter, added some parsley and brushed the naan with it. I am still planning on making my own naan in the future.

Basmati RiceI stuck with the same rice that I made before, but this time I had all the right spices and I also modified the recipe slightly. By the way, this rice is incredibly easy and very forgiving - I am a big fan of this recipe!

2 cups water
18 ozs (2.25 cups) basmati rice
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 whole cloves
4 cardamon pods
2 bay leafs
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 teaspoon salt

1. Wash the rice in several changes of warm water and let it drain in a colander for at least 20 minutes.
2. In a large pan, heat the oil and add the cloves, cardamon pods, bay leafs and cumin seeds. Cook until the cumin seeds begin to crackle.
3. Add the rice to pan and toast it until the oil coats all the grains (a minute or two).
4. Add the salt and water; stir well and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to simmer, stir again and cover. Allow to simmer until all the water is completely absorbed (about 10 minutes).

Serve and enjoy - it is that easy! It also reheats well to go with any other leftovers.

Please see my post on Wednesday for my write up on Kheer!

A Night Out

My friend, Andrea and I were looking for something fun to do together - without the kids, away from work and without a designated driver. I was flipping through a Sur La Table catalog and came across their cooking class; they were offering Indian, Dish By Dish (Andrea was also the friend that gave me the super delicious Indian cookbook for my birthday). This seemed like a perfect match for us!

So last night, Andrea and I and about 13 other people assembled at the Kirkland, WA Sur La Table for some instruction, socialization and good food. The class started at 06:30 PM and we left around 09:00 PM - in between, we cooked Curried Beef Samosas with Mango-Papaya Chutney, Savory Semolina, Coconut-Vegetable Curry, and Yogurt-Braised Chicken with Cashews and Raisins.

I enjoyed the class - it was a nice mix of people, both young and old and all seemed to have fun. The instructor was knowledgeable and he explained everything very well - he seemed to really like teaching people and the 3 Sur La Table helpers were wonderful too! The instructor broke us up in to groups of 5 and we all did the prep for a specific dish (Andrea & I worked on the Coconut-Vegetable Curry). The chicken was cooked ahead of time and so was the ground beef for the samosas, so we added spices, veggies and various sauces to the meat dishes to complete them. Everyone made their own samosa (some made a few more than others). The instructor and assistants finished the cooking while we were on a short shopping break (we all got 15% off of any purchase that evening). Then we came back and ate all the food.

My favorite dish was the Coconut-Vegetable Curry (it was also Andrea's). I will admit that if I made it at home, I would meat to it and serve it with rice. The samosas were ok - we used wonton wrappers and I thought that took away from the "Indian" flavor a bit. When I have meat samosas out, they always are spiced well and the dough is more flavorful. The chutney that went with the samosas though was delicious and I really enjoyed it to my surprise (I don't really like mangos much, but paired with vinegar and curry spices it was awesome). The chicken had a really good flavor and was very tender - the sauce that went with it broke and was not the most pleasing to the eye. My least favorite dish was the semolina - it reminded me of mashed potatoes (don't get me wrong, I like mashed potatoes - I would have rather had rice or naan instead).

Mango-Papaya Chutney

Overall, I had a good time and had a fun night with my friend! We both enjoyed making the food, meeting new people and using our 15% discount. I would definitely take another class at Sur La Table; I think that I would do well with a basic knife skills class!

My New Year's Resolution

As I have gotten older and exposed to different cuisines, I have found that the sauces, meats, spices and breads at Indian restaurants to be craveable and extremely delicious. So when it came time to make my birthday and Christmas lists, I found that Indian cookbooks were at the top. I also thought that focusing on one type of cuisine might also give me focus and motivation for the blog.

So my friends and family came through with the cookbooks and I got 2 different Indian cookbooks: Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey and Complete Indian Cooking by Meena Pathak. After looking through both, I got inspired to learn how to cook these meals at home.


The first thing I did was to raid my spices and make a list of everything that I would need. I then headed out to Cost Plus Word Market and stocked up on cardamom pods & powder, coriander, cumin, turmeric, and anything else that sounded good - I even found Kadhai to serve my creations in!

Then the hard part, what to make first? I decided to go with something relatively easy and not super spicy. The winner was Mughlai Chicken with Almonds and Raisins (page 96 of Madhur Jaffrey's book) and Jeer pulav, rice flavored with cumin seeds (page 97 of Meena Pathak's book). I did cheat and buy already prepared naan (which was so-so) - I will attempt homemade naan in the future.

The sauce in the chicken was creamy and had a slight smokey flavor from the almonds and spices and the rice was extremely easy to make and very forgiving too. I did a lot of the prep work ahead of time - chopping the chicken and onions, measuring the spices and making an almond paste. Both dishes were complete successes! They were restaurant quality and super yummy!! I would definitely make these again and serve them for guests.

So here is my New Year's resolution: "To make at least 3 dishes a month and blog about them".

Here is to a new flavor adventure in the new year!

Indian Adventure

Very poor iPhone photo.

Whenever someone in the family has a birthday, they get to pick the cuisine and restaurant for the celebration. This year for my family birthday dinner out, I chose the Clay Pit Cuisine of Indian at Mill Creek Town Center - super yummy Indian food! All day I looked forward to the rich sauces, spices and tender meats. My sister and I made the menu selections (Lydia and I often go to the Clay Pit for dinner together) and shared all the entrees - I was not disappointed by the meal!

For appetizers, we started with meat Samosas (golden fried flaky pastry stuffed with marinated ground beef with 3 cheeses) and Vegetable Pakoras (chickpea and cumin battered fritters). My favorite were the cauliflower pakoras with their crunchy batter - they are mouth watering. My son that hates most food even loved the pakoras!

The main dishes were Plain Naan (leavened bread baked in a clay pit), Puri (unleavened whole wheat bread), Lamb Kasturi Curry (lamb curried and finished in a creamy saffron and kasturi sauce), Chicken Tikka Masala (tomato based butter cream sauce seasoned with herbs and spices), Tandoori Chicken Tikedar (chunks of boneless breast of chicken marinated in yogurt and spice paste), Boti Kebob (lamb marinated in spices), and Malai Kofta (vegetable and paneer stuffed chickpea rounds in a saffron curry, finished with a nut puree). Everything was accompanied with their delicious basmati rice.

Finally, we ended the meal with Chai Tea, Kheer (rice pudding), Gulab Jamun (special dough golden brown in cardamon syrup), and Coconut Ice Cream. This was the first time that I had ever had dessert at an Indian restaurant and I am really happy that we decided to give it a try! I have had rice pudding and coconut ice cream before, but I have never had anything like Gulab Jamun - it was warm and sweet and very delicious!

The stars of the night for me were the Lamb Katsuri Curry, Malai Kota and the Gulab Jamun. Everyone left very full, even the picky 7 year old - he gave the evening a 3 out of 5 stars, I gave it 5 of 5!