The humble grains of semolina are widely used in Indian cooking. And I'm always fascinated by how versatile they can be. Sometimes sweet, sometimes savory, sometimes the crunchy coating on a simple fried fish, semolina has many wonderful avatars, including this breakfast dish. More
The Mangalorean Catholic community of India is famed for some delicious meat preparations. Being half Manglorean myself, some of the popular dishes find their way to my dinner table every other week. This Mangalorean mutton gravy and its aromatic masala brings back memories of the old stone and the how wonderful the air would smell as each spice was pounded on it. More
Mildly spiced and brightly colored, cabbage thoran is one of those dishes that retains the delicate taste of the vegetable without drowning it in a host of spices and strong flavors. Each thoran uses the same basic ingredients and tastes nothing like the other. From jackfruit and raw papaya to green gram and banana stem, thorans are high on exotic charm and absolutely delicious. More
With plenty of rice at hand, I thought there's no better way to say farewell to the last harvest of fresh peas than with Mutter Pulao (rice cooked with peas). The subtle, fragrant spices coat the rice, and the peas add a wonderful sweet burst to the dish. More
What French fries or mashed potatoes are to the west, potato bhaaji is to India. This quintessential potato dish can be found across tables in India. But unlike the west, where fries are homogenous, the Indian potato bhaji, like the many Indian dialects, takes on a new twist every few miles. More
In Indian cuisine, scrambled eggs take on a very different avatar. The dish isn't the familiar yellow, mild, homogenized egg preparation you find on breakfast tables around the world. Scrambled eggs, or the Indian Anda Bhurji is just the opposite. It's a riotous mix of colors, spice, and flavors laden with butter and character. More
Okra, sometimes called lady's fingers, are hated by many because of their slimy texture. But this recipe, does away with that and brings out the mellow flavor of the vegetable and the subtle heat of the spices. More
Gavthi, or village chicken curry, uses lean chicken that's bathed in a delicious mix of spices and chilli. The bony nature of the bird imparts a rich, gamy taste to the gravy. More
Hi everyone...
Let me clarify what I meant. "Indian" is not a specific language I am referring to. If you read the sentence closely, you will understand that what I meant was that in India, dialects of various Indian languages change rapidly as one travels within and across regions. So it could be Hindi, Marathi, Bengali etc. and each one will have small alterations in the manner in which they are spoken.
As far as the word "bhaaji" goes, let me clarify some more. The word "bhaaji" in Hindi literally translates to "vegetable." In everyday food parlance, it refers to a vegetable dish, which could be absolutely any vegetable that is served with the main meal.
The spelling- "bhaaji" and "bhaji" are used interchangeably here.
The fried slices of potato that charm city cupcake has referred to as "bhaji" is I think what we call pakoras. The other word for them is which is quite similar to the words being discussed in this post, is "bhajiya." These are dipped in batter and fried and can be made with a variety of vegetables.
@Emmarke- check salt and season accordingly.
@John Levon- you can add a squeeze of lemon anyway to this recipe, just after adding the spices and salt.
@marynn- well, the authentic version leaves the chicken skin on. They don't fuss about it. But even if you skip the skin, it won't affect the taste too much.
@mwainer- Chicken thigh or breast pieces bought from a supermarket will work just fine.
@ Leo_G- The Kashmiri chillies are ground to a paste. The slit green chillies are added with the curry leaves to the heated oil.
@ asterik- one fresh medium coconut, scraped is equal to 200 gms in weight.
@ joycenoon64...Well, nothing quite compares to the taste of asafoetida. But you can omit it and use a teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste.
Hi @ Tom M, well you can cook the lentils in a pot outside. It would increase the cooking time by an hour. 400 ml of water to about 100 gms of lentils, a teaspoon of clarified butter, salt to taste and a pinch of turmeric. Most of the water will be absorbed by the lentils as they cook, so you can add more water if you find the mixture too thick.
@dinaofdoom- they are about 2-21/2 inches in length.
@Peace Love and Snacks- You can squeeze a bit of lemon juice after the eggplant is done to replicate the slight sourness of the amchur.
Very interesting post. Thanks Max.
@Flyingpiggs- the coconut holds the relish together and mellows the bite of the chilli. You can omit it if you'd like, but I'd urge you to give it a go because it won't overpower the flavour of the dish. You could also use a teaspoon of thick coconut milk. If you're not using coconut, dry grind the cummin and then add the rest of the ingredients to be ground. Petal and clove are one and the same :)
@WhatKatyAteNext, if you don't get mackerel, you can use the same marinade on the prawns that you get locally. Just dust the prawns in rice flour lightly before frying, so it gets a crisp coat on the outside.
hi @rolando74, If you're not using a pressure cooker, you can cook the lentils separately and add them with the rice when it is being put into the dish.The lentil water can also be added. THe rice should cook in about ten. You can check doneness by biting into a potato since it is the more robust ingredient,
This is a really simple recipe. And it looks delicious.
Hello and thanks for the encouraging comments :)
@ gingerngin- well, according to some stories, Kedgeree takes its inspiration from Khichdi. As the story goes, the British colonials liked the subtle flavours of this dish and took it back to the UK. There it took on local flavours, ingredients like smoked fish, and some new alphabets :)... and khichdi became kedgeree!
[Photographs: Donna Currie] You can use this shaping method with the bread of your choice, but it can't be too wet—it needs to hold its shape. And you don't want something that will have a massive amount of oven spring... More
The potato gets a good workout in Indian cuisine. Our kitchens will always have a steady supply of them. It's part of the grocery list: milk, bread, and a kilo of potatoes. There are tons of dishes we make out of the humble spud; this is one of my favorite potato sides. More
I've shared my opinion on pizza toppings here already but the real question is, what does resident tasting expert and Serious Eats Puppy-At-Large Hambone like on his pies? More
Basic Indian fried fish is very simple to make and totally delicious. There are variations from region to region, but one I personally enjoy is this simple Bangda (mackerel) Fry. It employs just five ingredients and gives great results each time. Even if you don't have to haggle with the fishmonger. More
Yes, it's the moment you've all been waiting for: PUPPY TIME. Please welcome three-month-old, shar-pei/pug mix (shar-pug!) Hambone Nugget Mondongo Altez to the Serious Eats family. If you ever sense a lack of attention being paid to the site, it's probably because Hambone is distracting us with his soft rolls of fuzzly skin and nonstop-wagging tail and meltingly warm eyes. Some other stuff happened...maybe...[stares at Hambone]...wait, what?...yeah. More
If you've only ever known mayonnaise in the form of the quivering jellyish stuff that comes in the jars with the blue lid, you're doing yourself a disservice. Like switching from briefs to boxers or walking to Mordor, trying homemade mayonnaise is the kind of thing that will forever change your life (or at the very least, your sandwiches). Today, we do it in 2 minutes or less, with a 100% success rate. More
If Indian food is just chicken tikka and biryani to you, then please keep reading. In India, food varies from region to region, home to home, and religion to religion. And it's not all spicy and complicated. Most Indian food is surprisingly simple to make and very, very rewarding to eat. In this new Indian cooking column, I'd like to introduce you to the real food we cook and eat at home. For starters, khichdi, a sort of one-pot comfort meal of rice, lentils and vegetables. More
@Adagio - no these were not drained on paper towels. The oil is flavored by the time the dish is done, so it keeps the potatoes moist.