dinner – Indian Culinary Center, NYC

Meat Pulao (rice casserole) with leftovers and a Raita

July 25, 20171 Comment

A couple of weeks ago I made a beef curry which was wonderfully delicious.

https://indianculinarycenternyc.wordpress.com/2017/07/10/sunday-beef-curry-with-potatoes/

What was leftover was not enough to feed 3 people – the number of people in my household and so I repurposed it into a pulao (rice casserole). This was enough to happily feed 3 people and it was also a new dish from leftovers.

I like to cook this way and following are the instructions to make the rice.

I have several recipes for rice on the blog and as most of my recipes, these are suggestions and feel free to use what you have.

Saute an onion and a tsp. of cumin in a tsp of oil. Cook for about five minutes and then add the leftover beef curry (or any curry you may have on hand). Heat through and add frozen peas if you like. Now add a cup of basmati rice (more if you have a lot of leftovers). Stir well and brown the rice a little. Next add 2 cups of water (a little less if there is a lot of sauce in the curry) and bring to a boil uncovered. Taste the water for seasoning – add some salt if you need it.

When the water comes to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer and cover for about 15-20 or until all the water has been soaked up.

Let stand for a few minutes.

In the meantime I made a raita (a yogurt dish with various ingredients like cucumber, onions, tomatoes or herbs).

I had a boiled potato that I diced, a tomato and sliced a red onion. Mixed in plain yogurt. Seasoned with salt, cumin powder and dried mint.

Now serve the rice with the raita.

You have a new and delicious dinner.

Until I cook again!

Let’s Talk about Lamb Baby or Baby Lamb :)

March 31, 2017Leave a comment

This is the time of the year when people think of lamb. I love eating lamb all year round.
Spring lamb is tender and flavorful. I enjoy most cuts of lamb and here we have a simple meal of chops.
This can be a weeknight meal or a great option to entertain with.

I like to get a rack that is preferably ‘frenched’ by the butcher which just means that the meat has been removed from the bones. This makes for a prettier presentation.
Season generously with salt and pepper. Here I rubbed some dijon mustard and fresh thyme.

But one of the reasons that I am writing this post is to remind myself to change the seasonings to an Indian inspired palette.
I plan to do that by substituting the mustard with tamarind paste, the black pepper to cayenne and the thyme to dried mint (preferably Turkish mint which is so much more flavorful).

Sear meat side down on medium high heat for about 5 minutes and then turn over – no that is not burnt – I promise you.
Finish cooking the lamb in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes or till the meat registers 140 degrees.

I served the chops over mushroom pilaf.
You can create a pan sauce by adding some broth or wine to the pan you cooked the lamb in.
Use the sauce to drizzle over the chops or use it to make the pilaf.

When I do the Indian inspired meal – I think I will serve it over spicy chickpeas or lentils.

I will be sure to share the results when I make it.

In the meantime I really hope that you add lamb to your repertoire. It is a great option over all the chicken and beef we may be eating.

Until I cook again!

Quick Spicy Potato Curry

January 18, 2017September 5, 2017Leave a comment

This is my first post using my phone. Good luck to me. Sometimes Indian food gets a bad rap that it takes too long to cook. While that may be true for some dishes, this dish is an example that you can have dinner in 10 minutes. Yes you read me right – 10 minutes.

Last night we had an unexpected guest who stayed longer than I anticipated.

When he left, my choices were order pizza or make this dish.

Granted, I had the potatoes boiled – but you get my point- this is a damn quick cook, yet a wonderfully delicious and healthy recipe.

3 boiled idaho potatoes, diced

1 tbs black mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/4 tsp ajwain seeds (carom) – optional – maybe hard to find

1/2 tsp nigella seeds (not to be confused with onion or sesame seeds, even though they might be nice here)

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

2 dry chilies

5-6 curry leaves

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup yogurt, whipped

1 tbs vegetable oil

Heat the oil in a pot and add the whole spices and cover. In a couple minutes or less the mustard seeds will pop – hence the cover.
Add the potatoes, salt, turmeric, cayenne and curry leaves.