|
2 cups sooji or farina 2 tablespoons oil 1 teaspoon mustard seeds 1 teaspoon cumin seeds 1/8 teaspoon asafetida (optional) 1 handful curry leaves (optional) 1 large onion, diced 1/4 teaspoon turmeric Salt 1/4 cup diced carrots 1/4 cup corn 1/4 cup peas 1 1/2 cups water plus 1 cup water Chile, minced to taste (1 should suffice) 1/2 cup freshly grated coconut (optional) Time: 30 minutes Serves 6 Pour the sooji into a skillet and roast over a gentle flame. You want the stove at medium-low to medium so that you don't burn the sooji. The reason for roasting is that it enhances the dimensions of flavor. It's also the only way I know how to make the stuff, because that's how my mother taught me, and I'm not comfortable with trying to use unroasted sooji. Make sure you constantly stir the sooji to avoid burning, and drop down the flame if you notice any smoke coming up from the pan. This should take anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes. When the sooji smells lightly nutty and looks a tan color, remove it from the heat and pour it into a bowl to cool. Rinse out your pan and place it over high heat. When the water evaporates, pour in the oil and wait for it to heat. Add the mustard seeds. In about 30 seconds, they should be exploding. Add the cumin seeds. They should be popping before long. Add the asafetida and wait 5 seconds for it to sizzle. Add the curry leaves and step back, because they will explode! Immediately add the onions and chile. Generously sprinkle in salt to taste and the turmeric powder. Stir the onions around the pan to combine with the oil and the turmeric. When all the pieces are yellow, you've combined enough. Let the onions get softened but not browned. When the onions are soft, add the carrots and corn. Stir to combine all the ingredients. When the carrots are soft, add the peas. Stir everything to evenly coat all the vegetables with the oil and spices. Add the grated coconut, and stir until the coconut is lightly toasted. Pour in the 1 1/2 cups water. It should come up to a full boil very quickly. Start stirring everything together, and make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to release any particles stuck onto the bottom of the pan. While constantly stirring the ingredients in the liquid in the pan, pour the roasted sooji into the pan in a steady stream. If you can't stir and pour simultaneously, ask for help. Everything should start coming together very quickly. If it looks too dry, add a little bit more water, until it's at the consistency of very thick porridge. Keep stirring until the excess water evaporates and you're left with a dry final product.
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2012 02:17
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 10:38 |
|
|
I'm having trouble finding amchoor in town... is tamarind an acceptable substitute? I mean obviously one is a powder and one is a pulp, but flavour-wise are they fairly comparable?
|
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2012 18:25
|
|
|
colonel_korn posted:I'm having trouble finding amchoor in town... is tamarind an acceptable substitute? I mean obviously one is a powder and one is a pulp, but flavour-wise are they fairly comparable?
|
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2012 18:42
|
|
|
Question about the spices. I went to the stores around my place to search for things like Curry leaves and Asafoetida. At the store where I found the Asafoetida the clerk referred to it as Hing powder. Do you know what the Curry leaves might be called in the same language? A lot of the clerks don't speak much English and may not know the English words for the spices and herbs. I'm having trouble finding them and I think it may be because I don't know the word for them in their language. Otherwise you were right about the spices. I can get a pound of Cumin seed for $5.00. The same amount would easily run $80.00 at the Rich White People store. Also do you know where Fenugreek might be used? It was sold like a staple herb in the stores I was in and I'm curious which cuisine it's used in.
|
|
#
?
Nov 24, 2012 22:15
|
|
|
DerpAlert posted:Question about the spices. I went to the stores around my place to search for things like Curry leaves and Asafoetida. At the store where I found the Asafoetida the clerk referred to it as Hing powder. It has a very distinct flavor. You know how there is the stereotype of Indian people having a bodily odor? The odor is generally fenugreek leaf, it's super potent and if you eat it for a week, your sweat will start to take on its scent.
|
|
#
?
Nov 24, 2012 22:20
|
|
|
Curry leaves are also called "curry paththa". (Literally, curry leaves.) Fenugreek (the fresh stuff, as a herb) is most delicious when added to roti. It's also extremely tasty when added to any kind of dry cooked vegetable. Also goes great in any kind of daal. The dried fenugreek leaves have a stronger smell. It tends to permeate your clothes etc. @Ash: I think that's more from lack of deodorant than anything else. The smell is especially pronounced in folk who come to the USA, and have access to large quantities of meat. Back home, you don't have that same luxury, so you tend not to eat it as much. Most of your diet is vegetables and rice. Meat in Indian cooking tends to be cooked with a lot of garlic and onion, and fairly heavy spices, unlike the veg which tend to be lighter. Why? Because it's so expensive that you want a little bit to go a long way. Take that affinity for strong garlic and onion, then multiply it by the massive quantities you have access to, then pair that with lack of deoderant. It makes for a pretty strong smell. A few shakes of Qasoori Methi isn't really going to give anyone an offensive odour. You'll notice that the strictest Tamil Brahmins don't tend to have that issue. We not only avoid meat, we also avoid garlic and onion. It's why asafoetida is so common in South Indian cooking; they're making up for the lack of garlic and onion. On top of that, because of the religious ceremonies a brahmin has to perform every day, we need to take a bath at least twice a day.  Anything served to the gods during a ceremony may not be cooked with garlic or onion. When you have as many holy days as Hindus do, the Brahmins rarely eat the stuff because most of our food comes from begging, or from the meals that are offered directly to the gods. In other words, there's a bunch of different factors that go into it. I promise you that you'll be fine eating fenugreek leaves.
|
|
#
?
Nov 25, 2012 01:29
|
|
|
Made your North Indian daal tarka tonight. Subbed in chicken breast for the beans, marinated briefly in soy sauce and cornstarch to preserve the texture while cooking in the liquid. Thanks once again for one of the best meals of my life.
|
|
#
?
Nov 25, 2012 02:10
|
|
|
icehewk posted:Made your North Indian daal tarka tonight. Subbed in chicken breast for the beans, marinated briefly in soy sauce and cornstarch to preserve the texture while cooking in the liquid. Thanks once again for one of the best meals of my life. Hahahahaahahaahahaa. Wait, you're serious.
|
|
#
?
Nov 25, 2012 13:27
|
|
|
dino. posted:You'll notice that the strictest Tamil Brahmins don't tend to have that issue. We not only avoid meat, we also avoid garlic and onion. It's why asafoetida is so common in South Indian cooking; they're making up for the lack of garlic and onion. I don't really find it hard to be vegetarian, but don't think I could ever manage without onion and garlic!
|
|
#
?
Nov 25, 2012 14:29
|
|
|
Senor Tron posted:I don't really find it hard to be vegetarian, but don't think I could ever manage without onion and garlic!
|
|
#
?
Nov 25, 2012 16:27
|
|
|
dino. posted:because of the religious ceremonies a brahmin has to perform every day, we need to take a bath at least twice a day. So between this and working in a restaurant do you have prune hands like 24/7? Random moving has cramped my style but I have convinced the woman to try that onion dish and am going to make it next week.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 01:07
|
|
|
dino. posted:Whole urad daal requires longer soaking. It'll mess with the colour. While you're there, just use brown rice for the dosa, and the colour won't matter so much. For whole urad daal, a really tasty recipe is to make Soondal. Soak 2 cups of it overnight in cold water, then drain. Cook in a pressure cooker for 14 minutes. Drain well. Then, toss with the same spices as a sabzi (1 tsp mustard seed, 1 tsp cumin seed, curry leaves [OPTIONAL], asafoetida [OPTIONAL], and lots of grated coconut). Holy balls, it's so delicious. You don't cook it with the curry leaves and spices? Seems like it wouldn't get a lot of flavour...
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 03:06
|
|
|
EVG posted:You don't cook it with the curry leaves and spices? Seems like it wouldn't get a lot of flavour... No no, you just do the steaming part naked. Then, you combine it with the tarka.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 03:52
|
|
|
Oh hello this thread. I was one half of a south Indian food stall this year, and let me tell you how many loving dosa I had to make before I got the technique and consistency right.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 09:59
|
|
|
Turkeybone posted:Oh hello this thread. I was one half of a south Indian food stall this year, and let me tell you how many loving dosa I had to make before I got the technique and consistency right. It would be awesome if you could explain your dosa technique so that I could add it to the OP. Also if you want to talk about some of the sides you served, and how to make them. Maybe it would encourage folk to try it out.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 13:23
|
|
|
I don't have the exact recipes at this time but I can find them eventually. Well, right off the bat, we bought our dosa batter. We tried and failed numerous times to get the thing to rise, and between her full time job and my school, we needed consistency. We used round 10 inch cast iron skillets that were very well seasoned. Typically in India (I guess??) the same little cup that you portion/pour the dosa batter from is the same one you use to shape it. I definitely sucked at this, so I bought a spoodle. http://tinyurl.com/czx475f A spoon/ladle (not a cocker spaniel/poodle mix). I'd say the best thing to compare it to is ladling sauce on a pizza. Dealing with the heat was also a pain -- it should be hot enough that it doesn't stick and that it gets crispy, but not too hot that it burns. I feel this post is going terribly. I should just make a video when I have the time.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 17:02
|
|
|
If your dosa batter isn't rising, you just have to grind 2 TB of cooked rice along with the bater, and it'll rise. My mum tried it and said that her dosa batter puffed like crazy hell, even though she was using brown rice instead of white.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2012 17:45
|
|
|
I made the lemon rice yesterday and it was good! However every time I try to pop mustard seeds, they burn right after they pop. I've tried keeping the oil a little lower but it seems like maybe I need to pull them right off the heat immediately and not put them back on. Am I doing something wrong? Do I have the wrong kind of mustard seeds maybe?
|
|
#
?
Dec 12, 2012 15:34
|
|
|
Plus_Infinity posted:I made the lemon rice yesterday and it was good! However every time I try to pop mustard seeds, they burn right after they pop. I've tried keeping the oil a little lower but it seems like maybe I need to pull them right off the heat immediately and not put them back on. Am I doing something wrong? Do I have the wrong kind of mustard seeds maybe? As soon as the mustard seeds pop, lift the pot off the heat, and swirl it around. That'll prevent the burning. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 12, 2012 16:26
|
|
|
I have a pound of kala chana. Do you recommend anything specific or should I just use them in whatever recipe catches my eye?
|
|
#
?
Dec 15, 2012 10:25
|
|
|
UltimoDragonQuest posted:I have a pound of kala chana. Do you recommend anything specific or should I just use them in whatever recipe catches my eye? Kala Chana begs to be made into soondal. Mustard seed, cumin seed, asafetida, grated coconut. loving ace.
|
|
#
?
Dec 15, 2012 17:46
|
|
|
Love the thread, bookmarking it. Here's a question, is Aloo Gobi northern or southern Indian? The missus and I love making that particular curry, since it can me a main or a side. Edit: Oh, guess it's northern, seeing as how it's Pakistani/Nepali as well. SpannerX fucked around with this message at 16:45 on Dec 16, 2012 |
|
#
?
Dec 16, 2012 16:40
|
|
|
Any suggestions on popping mustard and cumin seeds and NOT having it go everywhere? I already learned to not do it shirtless, or with my beer nearby, or when you do it the first time with a lady friend over. I have ran myself out of my closet kitchen so many times. Chilies, mustard, cumin, garlic makes for dangerous fumes when they burn. Do you just use a splatter screen or suck it up and clean later?
|
|
#
?
Dec 16, 2012 19:41
|
|
|
DontAskKant posted:Any suggestions on popping mustard and cumin seeds and NOT having it go everywhere?... Do you just use a splatter screen?
|
|
#
?
Dec 16, 2012 21:51
|
|
|
DontAskKant posted:Any suggestions on popping mustard and cumin seeds and NOT having it go everywhere? I already learned to not do it shirtless, or with my beer nearby, or when you do it the first time with a lady friend over. I have ran myself out of my closet kitchen so many times. Chilies, mustard, cumin, garlic makes for dangerous fumes when they burn. Do you just use a splatter screen or suck it up and clean later? Lift the pan and tilt it so that the fat pools and submerges the seeds completely. I personally just clean later.
|
|
#
?
Dec 17, 2012 01:16
|
|
|
Drats, I was hoping for a sophisticated way of doing it. Oh well, scalding oil for everyone.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2012 00:46
|
|
|
^^^ I'm glad you brought up mustard and cumin seeds, because you just saved my shirt/skin that I'd inevitably destroy in the process of cooking some Daal Tarka as per the op/this recipe. Speaking of which, does "2 cups beans, cooked" mean 2 cups of cooked beans, or cooking 2 cups of beans? I'm interpreting this as the latter, but it's quite a shitload of beans so I'm double checking before I mess up this simple dish 
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2012 20:48
|
|
|
mobby_6kl posted:^^^ It is the latter. Basically, you want a fuckoff hueg amount of beans.
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2012 21:44
|
|
|
My only resolution for 2013 is to cook more South Indian food. I do a kickass channa daal, and I've just about perfected my dosa technique, but I need to expand my repertoire
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2012 18:45
|
|
|
How do you make your channa daal? It's something I make pretty often so let's compare.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2012 15:58
|
|
|
It's basically Dino's recipe from the book, but I put extra garlic and chiles in the tarka. Soak the daal for 3 hours, then drain and cook it. Do the tarka as Dino describes. Black mustard seeds first, then your cumin and so forth. The thing I add is a bunch of chopped fresh chiles (if I can get them), garlic, and onions that I sweat in the hot oil before taking it off the heat and tossing curry leaves in. And then it all gets stirred into the daal and served over rice and oh so deliciously spicy and aaaaa I need to make this again.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2012 16:29
|
|
|
Dino, I just made your Keerai Kootu recipe and I was amazed! I didn't know it was that easy to make kale taste good. I also didn't know how violently the seeds would pop, so my kitchen is now covered in popped seeds. No harm done, though; the kitchen needed a good cleaning anyway.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2013 02:23
|
|
|
There was an Indian place I used to go to on the regular called "Anmol". There's like 80 different "Amnol" restaurants according to Google and I don't know if it was south Indian or not but anyway they made the BEST onion chutney I've ever had in my life. This stuff was insanely good. It was bold and a little spicy and the onions didn't seem to really be cooked at all but I'm not sure. Anyway this Anmol went out of business and I'm willing to do anything to taste that delicious onion chutney again. The Indian places around me don't even have onion chutney, so I don't know if it's a regional thing or not. I'm just looking for a great onion chutney recipe. The ones on Google do not compare at all. Can anyone help?
LiterallyAnything fucked around with this message at 22:14 on Jan 10, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2013 22:11
|
|
|
That is a decidedly South Indian thing. You're looking for Onion Gotsu (or Gojju). 1/4 cup peanut oil 1 tsp mustard seed 4 green chiles, sliced lenthwise 6 large Spanish onions, sliced lengthwise 1 TB tamarind concentrate, dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water Pinch of salt In a large shallow skillet, add the oil. Add the mustard seeds, and let them pop. Add the green chiles and onions, and stir to combine into the oil and spices. Cook on high heat for about three minutes. Add the tamarind + water, and the salt. Let it come to a boil. Drop down the heat to medium low, and continue to cook until the onions soften, and get browned. You don't want them to get browned and dessicated, but rather browned and juicy. This is why you drop down the heat to medium. Continue cooking over that low heat until the onions are cooked through, and the water is evaporated off. Serve!
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2013 17:55
|
|
|
That's awesome, thank you! I'll try to make it tomorrow and see how it compares.
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2013 02:44
|
|
|
First of all, thanks for the thread. It has been an interesting read. I just started getting into Indian cooking and I'm feeling a little hampered by my lack of a food processor. Does anyone have a recommendation for a good one?
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2013 22:48
|
|
|
slothzilla posted:First of all, thanks for the thread. It has been an interesting read. Kitchen Aid or Cuisinart. I have a kitchen aid, and it's excellent for making a decent curry paste. I've been using the pastes from Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution [yeah yeah, I know, not authentic, but drat if it isn't better than anything I've had in North America]. Not sure what model, but it wasn't expensive, less than $150. I've heard that the Cuisinart ones, for a home user, are pretty much as good. That having been said, the one I use is actually too large for one thing, grinding the toasted spices. Yeah, I could go with a mortar, but I'd honestly like to avoid having something large and heavy hanging around in my kitchen, I've got enough crap there.
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2013 23:51
|
|
|
I'm winging some collard greens and thought i'd see if you had any thoughts. So far I've got the following spices lined up: brown and yellow mustard seeds, cumin, ginger, whole fenugreek, madras curry powder, and ground coriander. One bunch of greens (Stems too!), 1 onion, 2-3 serrano chiles, and maybe some carrots before they go limp. Any suggestions or deletions? (it'll be going with some naan and korma)
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2013 00:07
|
|
|
toplitzin posted:I'm winging some collard greens and thought i'd see if you had any thoughts. Skip the curry powder, and use turmeric. It'll clash with the wonderful whole spices you've got going there. Go REALLY easy on the fenugreek. Fucker can get bitter, and fast. So like for a pound of greens, go with like 12 - 15 fenugreek seeds. That's really all you need. Otherwise, you're going great.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2013 22:53
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 10:38 |
|
|
Back again, the greens were tasty. I used the curry powder, since i couldn't find any turmeric in my pantry. I'm making tandoori-ish chicken tonight, but i want to make some crispy potato pancakes. I usually make them pretty plain, ala smitten kitchen: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/12/potato-pancakes-even-better/ Any thoughts on "indian-ing them up a bit?" I'm thinking add a Serrano chile or two, and some of the spices from above, oh and a zucchini or two for fiber/flavor. Edit: toast the spices and add them to the latkes, or fry the spices and use the oil to fry the latkes? toplitzin fucked around with this message at 18:24 on Jan 15, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2013 17:27
|
|