Fried Achaari Paneer Sticks

 

Since the festivals are round the corner, here is a very simple and easy vegetarian starter you can make at home. This recipe that I created calls for few ingredients which most of us have at home. This dish can be enjoyed with ketchup and mint mayonnaise dip 

To Marinate the Paneer Sticks

Ingredients

6  Paneer strips - Paneer cut into 3 inches  length and 1 1/2 inches thickness 

4 to 5 tbsp spicy Mango Pickle Masala including the oil of the pickle masala or chilli pickle masala for more spiciness 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Panch Phoran crushed (Equal portion of Nigella seeds, Fennel seeds, Wild Celery seeds or Mustard seed, Cumin seeds and Fenugreek seed)

6 inches 6 Bamboo Skewers

Method

Take a bamboo and insert the paneer strip gently into the stick, till the tip. Take a bowl, add crushed panch phoran , salt and the pickle masala into the bowl, mix all the ingredients together. Apply the masala on the paneer strips and keep it aside to marinate while we make the batter and proof the batter. 

To make the Batter 

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour / Maida

2 tsp Dry Yeast

1 cup and more as required Lukewarm water

Salt to taste

1 tsp Sugar 

Method 

Take a rectangular container, add 1 cup lukewarm water, sugar and yeast. Mix all the ingredients together. Keep it aside until the yeast rises. Now add a cup of flour and salt into the same container, mix the flour into the yeast water, add the remaining flour and mix the ingredients together into a smooth thick batter, while whisking add extra water only if required. Keep the batter aside to rise. 

To make the Paneer Sticks

Ingredients 

Marinated Paneer

Batter

Oil to fry 

Ingredients 

Take a pan, add oil, let the oil heat, reduce the flame. Take a marinated paneer stick, dip the paneer stick into the batter, coat the paneer strips well. Fry the paneer strips until golden brown in colour. Remove the fried paneer strips on the paper towel. Serve the paneer strips with tomato ketchup and mayonnaise dip. 

Grilled Lebanese Chicken with Lebanese Potato Salad, Green Peas Hummus and Pita Bread

Lebanese cuisine is wholesome and healthy, it consists of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, pickled vegetables, fresh fish, meat and olive oil. Most of the fish and meat are grilled and fresh vegetables are eaten in the form of salads. Various types of dish, dips, salad, picked vegetables, fruits and desserts are served in small quantity at a time, it’s known as mezze. On a regular basis a family can make 3 to 4 dish for mezze, but for functions and occasions mezze can consist of more than 25 dishes... 

Information - Net source

We enjoyed some Lebanese dishes at home...

Grilled Lebanese Chicken 

 

Ingredients 

1 kg Whole Chicken 

Juice of 1 Lemon

2 tbsp Olive oil for marination + 1 tbsp Olive oil for grilling 

4 Garlic minced 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Pepper powder 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1/4 tsp Nutmeg powder

1/2 tsp Cinnamon powder 

1/4 tsp Cardamom powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli Flakes 

* 1/2 tsp Coriander powder 

2 Cloves ground

Method 

Take the whole chicken, apply all the above ingredients to the chicken and keep it aside for 4 to 5 hours to marinate. Take a pan, place the chicken and pour the remaining olive oil over the chicken. Grill the chicken in a preheated oven for 15 minutes at 200 degrees celsius on one side, remove the tray and turn the chicken, grill the chicken on the other side for another 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the grilled chicken and serve it with salad. 

Lebanese Potato Salad

  

Ingredients 

2 medium size Potatoes peeled and cut into small cubes 

Juice of  1/2 Lemon 

1 small Onion sliced 

2 tbsp chopped Mint leaves 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Pepper powder 

1 tbsp Olive oil 

Method 

Boil the potato cubes. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the water out and keep it aside for 10 to 15 minutes to cool it down. Take a mixing bowl, all the above ingredients and mix the ingredients well. Serve the salad immediately. 

Green Peas and Mint Hummus 

   

Ingredients 

* 1 cup Frozen Green Peas

1 tbsp Tahini 

1 Garlic Clove

1 tbsp chopped Mint leaves 

1 tbsp Lemon Juice 

Salt to taste 

1/4 tsp Pepper powder 

2 tbsp Olive Oil 

Method 

Thaw the green peas, keep a tsp of green peas aside. Take a food processor, add the green peas, garlic, salt, pepper powder, some chopped mint leaves, tahini, lime juice and 1 1/2 tbsp Olive oil. Blend the ingredients together into a smooth paste. Remove the paste into a bowl, drizzle the remaining olive oil, sprinkle some mint leaves and add some green peas over the hummus. 

Pita Bread 

Please click on the link below 

http://suskitchenbysumitra.blogspot.com/2016/06/pita-bread.html

Ajwaini Amritsari Fish Pakora

 

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• It’s Saturday night... time to spend some quality time with family... at the dinner table. Adda (formal or informal conversation) and food with some mocktails and cocktails to go with the flow.. very much required to bond with the family... 
• This is a popular punjabi starter.... best is ravas or telapia or basa... or any boneless fish can be used. Fish is marinated and kept for at least an hour. It’s then deep fried and sprinkled with chaat masala and served hot with onion, lime and chutney. 
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• Ingredients 

500 grams Telapia or any boneless fish pieces  

1 tsp Garlic paste 

1/2 tsp Ginger paste

1 tbsp Lime juice 

1 tsp Carom seeds / Ajwain 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Soda bicarbonate or eno for crispiness  - optional 

1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder

1/2 cup Hung Curd

3 to 4 tbsp Chickpea flour / Besan 

Oil to deep fry

For garnishing - sliced onion, lime pieces and chutney

Method 

Take a mixing bowl, add in the curd, ginger - garlic paste, lime juice, carom seeds, salt, Kashmiri chilli powder and besan. Whisk all the ingredients into a smooth batter. Add the fish pieces, mix well and keep it aside for at least an hour. Add the soda bicarbonate, mix the ingredients together. Heat oil to fry, once the oil is hot, add the fish pieces into the hot oil and on a medium flame until golden brown in colour. Remove the fish from the oil and keep it on a paper towel. Sprinkle some chaat masala. Serve the fried fish with sliced  onion, lime and chutney .

Batter Fried Golden Prawns

 

This dish is ideal for serving as a starter, it’s crispy and flavourful. It’s very easy to make with all the ingredients available in the kitchen. You can add fresh minced garlic or ginger or coriander or other herbs for the flavour. After the prawns are marinated it’s then dipped in the batter and deep fried. It’s has to be served hot with chilli or any sauce of your choice. 

For Marinating the Prawns

Ingredients 

12 medium size Prawns - clean the prawns keeping only the tail portion intact. Devine the prawns.

1 Green Chilli minced 

4 Garlic cloves minced

Salt to taste 

Method 

Take a prawn and with the blunt side of the knife, flatten the prawns by hitting the prawns gently, repeat the process for all the prawns. 

Add salt, garlic and chilli. Mix all the ingredients together. Keep the prawns aside till we make the batter. 

To Fry the Prawns 

Ingredients 

Marinated Prawns 

1 Egg

1/2 cup Refine / All Purpose Flour 

1/4 cup Corn Flour 

1/2 tsp Baking Powder 

Salt to taste 

Oil to fry 

Method 

Take a bowl, add the AP flour, corn flour, salt and baking powder. Mix all the ingredients together. Add the egg and little water at a time. Whisk and make a thick dropping consistency batter, keep the batter aside for 5 minutes. Meanwhile take a wok, add oil and heat the oil. Once the oil becomes hot, take a piece of prawns and dip the prawn in the batter. Repeat the process and fry the prawns until golden brown in colour. Remove the prawns on a paper towel. Serve the prawns with any sauce of your choice. 

Daab Chingri

This dish is one of the delicacy of Bengal.... The Prawns are cooked in the coconut shell. It’s generally made on occasions. The ingredients used in this recipe are almost same as prawn paturi or prawn bhappa... only difference here is, the coconut water and the coconut meat are added in this recipe and the cooked prawn gravy is filled into the coconut shell and grilled in the oven. 

There are different ways of making it.. many people add onion paste and  ginger paste while cooking the gravy... but I haven’t added these ingredients... Many a times after grinding the mustard, the dish taste bitter, to avoid bitterness, please strain the mustard paste. If you don’t have oven, it can be made in the pressure cooker. 

Ingredients 

500 grams big size Prawns, cleaned and deveined 

4 Green Chillies slit

1 Garlic clove

3 tbsp Tender Coconut Meat (Malai)

3 tbsp Mustard seeds 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1 cup Coconut Water

3 tbsp Mustard Oil 

Method 

Take a grinder and add coconut meat, 2 green chillies, garlic, mustard seeds, salt, 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and 3/4 cup coconut water to make a fine paste. Take a strainer and strain the paste and add remaining coconut water into the paste. Take a wok, add mustard oil and let it heat up. Meanwhile add salt and remaining turmeric powder on prawns and mix the ingredients together. Add the prawns into the hot oil, let the prawns cook until it changes its colour, add the remaining 2 green chillies and continue to cook for few seconds, pour the paste and continue to cook for a minute. Switch off the flame, take the coconut shell, add the cooked prawn gravy into the coconut shell, cover the top part of the coconut shell with foil, grill the daab chingri at 180 degrees celsius for 15 to 20 minutes in a preheated oven. Once done let the coconut shell cool down a bit in the oven, remove the coconut shell from the oven, remove the foil and serve the daab chingri with steamed rice. 

Incase Otg is not available, the coconut shell can be steamed in the pressure until 2 whistles.