Stewed Rice

 

One of our favourite dish is hot stewed rice with loads of vegetables and chicken or prawns. Easy and quick to make, the dish has to be eaten with steamed rice and has to be steaming hot.. 

Vegetables like bok choy, mushrooms, capsicum, zucchini, carrot, broccoli, baby corn etc can be added.. I have added vegetables that was available in my kitchen.. 

Ingredients 

1/2 cup cleaned medium size Prawns 

1 big bowl of cut vegetables - Few  Spinach leaves, capsicum, carrot, mushroom and broccoli and onion cut into cubes 

1 tbsp chopped Garlic 

1 tsp chopped Ginger 

2  Green Chillies slit

Few chopped Spring Onion leaves 

1 Vegetable stock cube

2 tbsp light Soya sauce 

1 tbsp Fish Sauce 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Pepper powder 

1 1/2 tbsp Corn flour 

2 cups Water

2 tbsp Sesame Oil 

Method 

Take 2 cups of hot water, add the vegetable stock cube and stir well until the vegetable cube has dissolved in water, add the soya sauce, fish sauce, salt and  pepper powder in the water and keep it aside. In another small bowl mix the corn flour and water. Take a wok, add 1 tbsp oil, let the oil heat, add prawns and stir fry until the prawns changes its colour, remove the prawns and keep it aside. Now add the remaining oil, add the chopped Ginger and garlic, sauté for few seconds, add the onion and carrot, stir for few seconds, add the broccoli and spinach continue to stir for few seconds, add the mushrooms and capsicum, stir for another few minutes, add the prawns and the vegetable stock water. Cover and let the stew cook until the vegetables are half cooked, add the corn flour water and cook on high flame until the gravy becomes thick. Sprinkle spring onions and serve the stew with steamed rice. 

Drumstick - Potatoes and Mung Dal fritters cooked in Mustard and Poppy seed paste gravy

 

Munger Daler Bora diye Alu ar Shosnerdata r shorshe - posto r Jhal / Drumstick - Potatoes and Mung Dal fritters cooked in Mustard and Poppy seed paste gravy. 

This dish comes under Niramish ranna / vegetarian cooking where no onion and garlic is used. 

The look of the dish may not be fancy, but this is a rustic regional dish from Bengal. These kind of dishes are still made in rural villages or in the state of Bengal, but are gradually losing its identity outside the state, as now a days many don’t cook or don’t prefer to eat … specially our next generations to come. I remember my mother use to make it often, but now we too rarely make it.. as we avoid mustard paste for health reasons.. once in a way it’s good to enjoy with hot steamed rice. This dish is eaten during lunch. 

For the Mung dal fritters 

Ingredients 

1/2 cup Mung dal washed and soaked in water

1 small piece of Ginger 

1 Green Chilli 

Salt to taste

Mustard Oil to fry 

Method 

Coarsely grind the mung dal, ginger, green chilli and salt together without adding much water as we need a thick paste. Remove and keep the paste aside for 15 minutes. Beat the paste well. Take a pan, add oil, let the oil heat, add very small quantity of the paste into the oil, with the help of a tsp, repeat the process until the pan is filled, shallow fry the fritters until golden brown in colour from both the sides. Remove and keep the fritters aside. 

For the Mustard Poppy Seed paste 

Ingredients 

2 tbsp Poppy seeds 

1 tbsp Mustard seeds

1 Green Chilli

Method 

Add all the above ingredients into a grinder and grind all the ingredients into a smooth paste adding little water at a time. 

For the Gravy 

2 Drumsticks cut into 1 1/2 inches pieces 

1 Big Size Potato cut into cubes 

1 small size Tomato cut into cubes 

2 Green Chillies slit

Few Coriander leaves chopped 

Mung Dal fritters 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds

Mustard - Poppy seed paste 

2 tbsp Mustard oil 

Method 

Take a iron skillet, best cooked in iron skillet, add 1 1/2 tbsp oil, once the oil heats up, reduce the flame, add the Nigella seeds, let the seeds crackle, add the tomato, let the tomato sauté for a minute, add the potato cubes and the drumsticks, continue to sauté for a minute, add salt to taste and turmeric powder, stir and continue to cook for another minute, now add the mustard - poppy seed paste, stir and cook for few seconds, add 1 cup of water, on low flame, cover and let the gravy cook until the drumsticks and potato cubes are cooked, add the fritters and continue to cook, if the gravy has dried up then only add little water, the gravy shouldn’t be too watery or too dry. Once done drizzle the remaining oil and sprinkle some coriander leaves before serving .

Dried Mix Fruit Cake with leftover bread served with Custard

 

If you have left over bread at home and don’t know what you want to make… here is a easy recipe of a Cake with leftover Bread that you can easily prepare at home… it’s delicious.. the ingredient measurement are taken in measuring cups and spoons. Please follow the proper recipe. Here I have made 2  cakes in 2 different methods. One is on the gas in a heavy bottom vessel and another cake in the oven.. 

Ingredients 

10 slices of Brown Bread 

2 cups of Toned Milk in room temperature 

100 grams of Butter

2 tbsp Curd

1/4 tsp Vanilla Essence 

3/4 cup of Caster Sugar 

3/4 cup Dried Mix Fruits chopped and chopped Nuts - Cranberries, Raisins, Apricot, Kiwi, Almond, Cashews etc. 

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Baking Soda 

1/4 tsp Soda Bicarbonate 

1 tsp Wheat flour 

Method- 

Take a bowl, cut the bread pieces into small pieces, add 2 cups of Milk, let the milk soak into the bread. In another bowl, take butter, sugar, salt, curd and vanilla essence. Beat the ingredients together until creamy and sugar has mixed well with the ingredients. Add the soaked bread, continue to beat until all the ingredients have combined together and there are no  bread pieces seen. The batter may look curdled but it’s ok. Now keep half of the dried chopped fruits and nuts aside. Add the wheat flour into one portion of the chopped dried fruits and nuts, mix well, add this into the batter, also add the soda bicarbonate and baking powder, beat once more. The batter should be of thick dropping consistency. Don’t over beat. Now take 2 moulds, grease both the moulds with butter. So here I have taken one normal mould and one bundt ring cake mould. Pour the batter in both the moulds, up to 3/4 of the containers. In the normal Cake mould, after pouring the batter, sprinkle some chopped dried fruits and nuts. Rest of the dried fruits and nuts keep aside. 

To cook on the gas - Take a heavy bottom pot, place a ring at the bottom of the container so that the cake tin doesn’t come in direct contact with the pot. Cover the pot and on medium flame let the container heat for 2 to 3 minutes until the pot becomes hot. Remove the lid and keep the cake container over the ring, cover and let it bake for 20 minutes. After that insert a tooth pick to check. Switch off the flame and let the cake cool down. 

To make it in a oven - 

Preheat the oven at 180 degrees celsius. Bake the cake for 20 minutes, check the cake after 20 minutes by inserting a stick. Once done remove the cake from the oven and let it cool. 

To make the Custard 

Ingredients 

2 cups of Milk

2 tbsps Custard Powder 

1 1/2 tbsp Sugar

The remaining chopped dried fruits and nuts 

Method 

Take a cup, add 1/2 cup milk, add the custard powder. Mix the custard powder well with the milk. Keep the rest of the milk to boil, add sugar, let the milk simmer for a 2 minutes, add the custard powder milk and on a low flame keep stirring the custard, so that no lumps are formed. Cook the custard until the custard has thickened up and has reduced half in quantity. Switch off the flame. Let the custard cool a bit. Add the chopped dried fruits and nuts. Stir and mix well. Let the custard cool down completely. Keep the custard in the fridge to chill. 

To serve the cake - 

Before serving the ring bundt cake, pour the chilled custard into the centre cavity, garnish with dried mix fruits and nuts. 

To 

Oats Uttapam

 

Oats Uttapam - A quick, tasty and instant snack / breakfast that is also very healthy….. 

its easy to make and I am sure children will love it.. Serve this with chutney of your choice. 

Here is how I make it at home …

 

For the Veg Masala Spread - 

Ingredients 

4 tbsp chopped Onion 

4 tbsp chopped Tomato 

1 chopped Green Chilli 

2 tbsp chopped Coriander 

Few chopped Curry leaves 

2 tbsp Grated Coconut 

1 tsp Sambar powder 

Salt to taste 

Method- 

Mix all the above ingredients together and keep it aside 

For the Batter- 

Ingredients 

3/4 cup Oats 

1/4 cup Semolina 

2 tbsp Curd 

Salt to taste 

Method 

Take a blender jar, add the above ingredients and add 1/2 cup water, mix and keep it for 10 minutes, now add little water at a time and blend all the ingredients together, the batter should be thick dropping consistency. Let the batter rest for another 15 minutes. 

To make the Uttapam- 

Ingredients 

Batter

Veg Masala spread 

Ghee 

Method 

Take a skillet, once the skillet is hot, reduce the flame to medium low, pour a big ladle spoon of batter on the skillet, spread the batter a bit, spread the veg masala spread over the batter. Drizzle little ghee. Cover the uttapam and let it cook for a minute, open the cover and check, turn the uttapam and let it cook for another minute. Serve the uttapam with Chutney of your choice.

Caponata

Its a classic Sicilian starter or a side dish. 

The sweet and sour dish is eaten with bruschetta,  meat or fish, rice or pasta. It’s a type of vegetarian relish, some add fish to the dish. It’s made with egg plants , bell peppers, celery, tomatoes, zucchini, onions, olives, capers etc. Apart from the vegetables white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar is added for the tanginess and honey, raisins or sugar is added to the dish for sweetness. Some time pine nuts are also added. Each house has their own variant of making Caponata. This dish is eaten when warm, room temperature or cold .. this dish can be cooked a day prior and refrigerated and eaten the next day. 

Ingredients 

3 Long Eggplant cut into cubes 

1 Yellow Zucchini cut into cubes 

1 small Red Bell Pepper cut into half and sliced 

1 Onion cut into half and sliced 

1 Celery stalk sliced 

5 to 6 crushed Garlic 

4 tbsp Green Olives sliced 

Few fresh Parsley for garnishing 

2 tbsp Capers or Pickled Green Peppercorn 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Pepper corn crushed 

4 tbsp White wine vinegar or Red wine vinegar 

3 tbsp Tomato sauce 

1 tbsp Honey 

2 tbsp Olive Oil 

Method 

Sprinkle little salt and drizzle little oil on the egg plants and zucchini, grill the vegetables at 180 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes. Keep them aside. Take a pan, add the olive oil, add the onion, garlic,  bell pepper, and celery, sauté until the onions are lightly browned. Add the olives, capers or pickled pepper corn, tomato sauce, white wine or red wine vinegar, honey, salt and crushed pepper. Stir and sauté for few seconds, add the grilled egg plants and zucchini. Stir and cook for another minute. Sprinkle fresh parsley. Let the dish come to a room temperature, serve the dish with bruschetta.