Indian quick and easy recipes
Batata Poha
Flattened rice (Poha) is a dehusked rice which is flattened into flat light dry flakes.This easily digestible form of raw rice is very popular across India.
In Maharashtra, poha is cooked with lightly frying mustard seeds, turmeric, chili powder, finely chopped onions and then moistened poha is added to the spicy mix and steamed for a few minutes.Lets check this yummy recipe from my mom’s kitchen,one of my favourite at breakfast.
Ingredients
2 cups poha, thick (flattened or parched rice)
½ tsp turmeric powder
2 or 3 green chilies/hari mirch, chopped
2 tbsp peanuts/Sheng
1 medium potato/aloo, chopped into small cubes
1 medium onion/pyaaz, finely chopped
¾th tsp mustard seeds/rai
8 to 9 curry leaves/kadi patta
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
2 tbsp oil
lemon to garnish
Salt as required
Directions || How to prepare Poha
Pick the poha first. rinse the poha in clean running water in a strainer.
Make sure that you do not rinse it too much or else it breaks and gets mushy. while rinsing, the poha absorbs enough water and it becomes soft.
Its very important that the poha must become soft but remain intact, whole and separate.
Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker or microven and keep it aside to cool.
Heat a oil in a pan.
Add mustard seed to the hot oil and when they splutter , add peanuts and saute them till turn crunchy and dark red in color
Next add curry leaves and the onions and a pinch of salt,saute the onions till they become translucent and soften.Dn’t let the onion over cook or burn.
Now add the green chillies, saute it for a min.
Add the boil potatoes and then the poha. mix gently with the rest of the mixture.
Saute the entire poha mixture for 2-3 minutes on a low flame, stirring gently in between. taste the poha and if required add more salt.
Switch off the flame and cover the pan tightly with a lid for the poha to get steamed for a few minutes.
Remove the lid and garnish the poha with chopped coriander/cilantro leaves.
Serve Kanda batata poha hot with chopped lemon pieces. the lemon juice has to be squeezed on to the poha before eating it.
Tip : While rinsing the poha,if the poha does not become soft, sprinkle few drops of water on the poha in the strainer till they get softened.
Paneer kathi roll
Paneer Kathi Roll is a delicious tangy and spicy snack prepared by Indian Cottage Cheese i.e. Paneer along with few more vegetables like cabbage,tomatoes,capsicum and onions
Yummy paneer is rolled in to healthy fresh home made whole wheat chapati.
What an amazing roll this is! Check and try this recipe ,it will never fail.
Preparation Time: 20 mins
Cooking Time: 5 mins
Makes 4 rolls
Ingredients
for the Paneer filling
1 cup paneer (cottage cheese) crumbled.
1/2 cup capsicum finely chopped into slices.
1/2 cup cabbage finely chopped shredded
1 tsp chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
3/4 tsp chaat masala
1/2 tsp corainder leaves finely chopped
3/4 tsp garam masala
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil for greasing and cooking
for making Paneer wraps
1 cup onion rings
chaat masala to taste
1/4 cup cheese spread
1 lemon(to squeeze)
1 chopped tomato
4 rotis
Direction || How to make paneer filling
Heat a oil in the pan.Add the crumbled paneer,capsicum,cabbage and ginger-garlic paste and toss it gently for 2 minutes.
Add red chilli powder , turmeric powder ,garam masala and chaat masala and cook it for 1 minute.
Add the chopped coriander,turn off the flame and Keep the filling aside.
Direction || How to make Paneer wraps.
Combine the onions rings with chaat masala in a bowl, mix well and keep aside.
Place a roti on a clean dry surface apply cheese spread all over and put 1/4th portion of the paneer filling on each roti.
Arrange few onion slices,tomato pieces over it,Squeeze few drops of lemon over it and roll it up gently.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make 3 more wraps.
Serve it hot with ketchup or green chutney.
Tips
You can cut the wraps into two pieces to serve it to your kids as it will be comfortable for them to hold it.
Palak (spinach) chicken curry
Spinach (Palak) along with other green leafy vegetables is rich in iron.Lets try out this iron rich recipe with chicken.
Prep time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
To Marinate chicken
1/2 kg of boneless Chicken cut into 12 pieces
2 teaspoons Ginger Garlic chopped
1/2 cup Dahi
To prepare gravy
1 bunch of fresh spinach leaves (palak) chopped
1 large size Onion finely chopped
1 small size tomato finely chopped
1 small Green chillies finely chopped
1 teaspoon of Red chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon Garam masala powder
1/2 turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon Coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon Cumin powder
1 cinnamom stick
2 to 3 green cardamoms
1 to 2 cloves
1 large size bay leaf
Salt to taste
oil for cooking
Direction || How to prepare Palak(Spinach) chicken curry
Marinate the chicken with Salt , ginger garlic paste and Dahi and keep it aside for some time.
Meanwhile boil the chopped palak in the hot water.Keep it aside to cool.
To make the gravy, heat oil in a non-stick pan.
Add bay leaf,cinnamon, green cardamoms and cloves and sauté till fragrant.
Add onions and saute till golden brown and then add chopped tomatoes fry it for few seconds.
Add red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder,garam masala powder and boiled palak and mix well.
Transfer the mixture into a mixer jar and let it cool slightly.
Add a little water and grind into a purée. Transfer the puree into a bowl and set aside.
Again add a little oil in a non-stick pan and mix the puree and marinated chicken.
Cook both the puree and chicken well till the chicken is tender.
Serve it hot with any green salad or carrots or chopped Onions.
Tip.
Don’t over boil the palak ,the longer you cook dark, leafy vegetables, the more nutrient loss they experience.
Chicken Patties
One more flavorful snacks or a side dish to a main menu, Chicken Patties cooked with meat (mutton or chicken) stuffing that is fried with a batter/covering.
This is one of my kid’s favourite and i discover that she loves having it so i made some addition to the patties and added Green Peas(Matar) to this recipe.
We can also add more veggies to it,specially its good for kids who loves chicken and hate having veggies,this will add nutritional value to the patties.
Please leave any comments or feedback if any.
Prep time: 30-40 mins
Cooking time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
250 grams of boiled Shredded Chicken
1 cup boiled green peas(Matar)
1 boiled potato
1 tsp of Ginger garlic paste
1 tsp of Red Chilli powder
1 tsp of Garam Masala powder
1 tsp of Tomato Ketchup
1 egg
1 cup of Bread Crumbs(optional)
Salt to taste
Oil for frying.
Directions | How to make Chicken-Green Peas Patties
In a bowl mix all the ingredients (shredded chicken,green peas,potato,ginger-garlic paste,red chilli,garam masala and tomato ketchup)
and knead lightly to form a soft dough.
Divide the mixture into equal portions. Shape each portion into a round and flatten slightly.
Whip the egg in a bowl and dip each patty into the egg beaten and then roll it in the bread crumb
Deep-fry the patties in hot oil until they are golden brown in colour and drain on absorbent paper.
Fry it for about 10 minutes and serve hot with tomato-garlic sauce or any chutney of your choice.
Tips
You can any veggies of your choice like shredded cabbage or carrots.
Chicken Momos Desi style
Momos are the famous fast food Himalayan origins. It’s a traditional delicacy in Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim and Northeast India.Momo(dumpling) are made with a simple flour-and-water dough—white flour is generally preferred ,it can be either steamed or fry.You can do Chicken/Meat or Vegeatable stuffing in it. I tried chicken as my husband is fond of chicken and i gave little desi tadka to it hence fried it.
I am coming up with new recipe how to prepare the fried momos indo-chinese style which is similar to the Chinese Baozi.Please send me your feedback or any questions if any.
Prep time: 30-40 mins
Cooking time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
For stuffing
250 grams of Chicken mince
1 boiled potato
1 tsp of Ginger garlic paste
1 tsp of Red Chilli powder
1 tsp of Garam Masala powder
1 tsp of chilli sauce
1 tsp of oil
salt to taste
For Dough
2 cups of Refined flour (maida)/Wheat flour
pinch of Baking soda
Salt to taste
Oil for frying.
Directions | How to make Chicken momos
In a frying pan add 1 tsp of oil,add chicken mince in it and saute it for 5 minutes,add all the remaining ingredients to it.
Let it cook for around 5-7 mins , please do not use any water as we need the filling to be completely dry to stuff.
Once cooked keep it aside.
Knead the refined flour, baking powder and salt together into firm dough. Cover and keep aside for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough into very thin 4-5 inch rounds.
Take each round piece and place some prepared filling in the center.
Bring the edges together and twist to seal it.
Fry it for about 10 minutes and serve hot with tomato-garlic sauce.
Tips
You can also steam the momos in steamer or 10 mins for healthy reasons.
Also can used shredded carrots/cabbage for stuffing.
KomalFiesta 