Matar Kachori with Dum Aloo

Matar Kachori is maida puri stuffed with Green Peas masala.  And Dum Aloo is a cooked using small baby potatoes which is simmered in a gravy of Curd and Tomato.  Dum Aloo is serves a best combo for all sort of rotis, parathas and puris.

This month Sonali of Sonali's Kitchen from the Northern Team had challenged the Southern Team with Matar Kachori and Dum Aloo. For more about the SNC challenge visit Divya Pramil's space You Too Can Cook - Indian Food.

Matar Kachori

Ingredients

For the Filling
Matar / Green Peas - 4 cups  (I used frozen peas)
Green Chillies - 6 to 7
Ginger - 1" piece (peeled and washed)
Roasted Jeera (Cumin) Powder - 1 t.sp
Salt - as required
Oil / Ghee - 1 tb.sp
Sugar - 1/2 t.sp
Besan (Bengal Gram Flour) - 1 - 11/2 tb.sp


For the dough
Maida / All purpose flour - 3 cups
Salt
Oil - 2 to 3 tb.sp and more for frying the Kachoris.

Method

1)  Clean and drain the Green Peas.

2)  In a mixer grind together the ginger, green peas, green chillies.  Add little water only if required.

3) Heat oil / ghee in a Kadai.  Add the roasted jeera powder.  Do not allow it to burn.  Immediately add the grinded paste.

4)Add the salt and sugar and mix well.

5) Stir till you feel the raw smell of the peas has gone.  Add the besan and mix well.  This will help in binding.

6) Transfer it to plate let it cool.

7) In a bowl, combine the ingredients for the dough.  Knead using warm water.  Knead till you get a soft pliable dough.

8) Make into small balls and keep closed.

9) Make the Green Peas masala also into small balls and keep covered.

10) Heat oil in a Kadai, for frying the puris.

11) Dust the working surface with some flour and place the dough on it and flat it a little with the help of a rolling pin.

12) Stuff with the green peas rounds and close. Now roll into thin puris as much as possible, taking care not to tear the puris.

13) Fry it in the oil.  Cook on both sides till golden colour and drain and remove the Kachoris. Place it on a tissue paper so as to take away the extra oil.

14) Fry all the Kachoris in the same manner.

Dum Aloo Recipe

Use small baby potatoes as far as possible for this recipe.  I couldn't get the small baby potatoes and hence brought small potatoes, peeled them and cut them into half.

Baby potatoes - 1/2 Kg
Cumin Seeds - 1 t.sp
Fennel Seeds - 1 t.sp
Asafoetida / Hing - a pinch
Green peas - 1/2 cup
Turmeric powder - 1/4 t.sp
Tomato - 3 to 4 medium
Cumin Powder - 1/2 t.sp
Coriander Powdr - 1 t.sp
Kashmiri Mirchi Powder / Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder - 1 tb.sp
Sugar - 1/2 t.sp
Garam Masala - 1/2 t.sp (optional)
Curd / Yougurt - 3/4 cup
Ginger - 1" piece
Fresh Cream - 1/4 cup
Clove - 1 to 2
Green Cardamom - 1
Cinnamon Stick - 1" piece
Oil - 4 -5 tb.sp

Method

1) Peel the skin of the potatoes. Prick it with a fork here and there, all around.  Soak the potatoes in salt water for about 2 to 3 hours.  Remove and drain them on an absorbent paper.  Let them dry for about 15 to 20 min. Heat some oil in a non-stick pan and fry the potatoes till golden in colour. Remove and drain.

In a mixer, grind together the tomatoes, ginger, cloves, green cardamom and cinnamon stick. Grind to a very fine paste.

2) In a bowl mix together beaten curd, cumin powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala and sugar.

3) Heat oil in a kadai.  Add the Cumin Seeds and Fennel Seeds.

4) Add the green peas. Saute for a minute.  Add the curd mixture and the potatoes.

5) Cook till the mixture starts just to boil. Simmer and close the kadai.

6) Let it cook till you start seeing some signs of oil on the top. Keep stirring in between.

7) Add cream, mix well. Cover and cook, till it leaves out the oil.

Serve with hot Matar Kachoris.

Kaju Katli

Kaju Katli, is basically a North Indian sweet, but now popular throughout India. There is no sweet shop in India which does not keep Kaju Katli.  Kaju Katli is like a sort of burfi made using Kajus i.e. Cashewnuts.  My children luv them a lot whenever I used to buy it for some guests I used to get one for them also a small box, otherwise they will not allow me to gift it.  But again Kaju Katli is one of the most expensive sweets in the shop, so I wanted to find out a way to make it at home so that it is not so expensive and at the same time more good than the store bought ones. 

So then I found out a recipe at last which gives the same texture and taste like the store bought ones. My children loved them, I never got a chance to photograph it, though I have been making them for years now.  This recipe I got from Raks Kitchen.  So I thought of posting it now, since this month its Raks Kitchen who is being "Tried and Tasted". It is a sure shot recipe and a never let down recipe. So go ahead and try it.

Making Kaju Katli is very simple, infact the simplest of most of the sweets. And gets ready in very less time and does not involve laborious work.  So ahead and make these Kaju Katlis in your kitchen itself, rather than buying it from the shop. The total cooking time is just about 10 to 15 minutes, depending upon the quantity of the Cashews. The ingredients are very very minimal just Cashews and Sugar, thats it nothing else.

Ingredients

Kaju (Cashews) powered - 3 cups
Sugar - 1 & 1/2 cup
Ghee - for greasing your hands

Method

Powder the Cashews in a dry mixer.  Grind it to a smooth powder at a stretch and not at intervals. Do not keep it coarse.  If during the process of fine grinding, the cashew powder sticks to the wall of the mixer it is ok.

In a non-stick pan put in the sugar and add just enough water, so that the sugar gets immersed in it. Boil it.  The sugar gets dissolved and then starts forming a thick syrup.  Keep a small bowl of water nearby to check for the consistency of the sugar syrup.





The sugar syrup should be 1 string consistency or when you pour a little sugar syrup in the bowl of water it should stay in the water and should not get dissolved.



At this stage add the cashew powder and keep stirring. Slowly the mixture starts boiling and thickening.  Switch of the flame. To test whether it is ready for the Katlis, wet your fingers with water, pinch a small piece of the dough and try to roll it between yours fingers. If you are able to roll a ball without getting your fingers sticky, then it is done. If you feel its not done then put on the stove again and start stirring.




When it is done, put off the stove and still keep stirring in the same pan itself, till the mixture forms like a dough.  Then when it is still warm transfer it to a working board and clean working platform and start kneading the dough.




At this stage the dough will have a grainy texture. Smear your hands with ghee and keep on kneading till you get a smooth dough.

Roll the dough into a thin layer and cut it diagonally.  First just draw the lines ligthly on the dough with the knife and then cut it. This helps you in getting even size pieces.

I used about 3 cups of the powder and it gave me about 40 to 45 whole pieces.  So I said making Kaju Katlis at home is very easy and light on our pockets too.

Note :
Try to choose good quality Cashews. It creates a lot of difference in the taste and texture.

Never use the cashews directly from the fridge or freezer. Bring it to room temperature and then grind it.

The consistency of the sugar is very important, if it doesn't reach the right consistency then the dough will remain sticky.

If the consistency of the sugar has more farther than the one string consistency then add some water let it reach again the required consistency.

After transferring to the counter keep on kneading and kneading till you reach smooth textured dough.

Sending this Kaju Katlis to Sowmya of Nivedhanams who is hosting Tried and Tasted this month.  Dear Friends, I am also looking for future hosts for Tried and Tasted Event. Interested Bloggers please contact me at venkateshlakshmi7(at)gmail(dot)com. For further details about the event and host list on Tried and Tasted, see here.

Manasi of A Cook @ Heart is holding a event called "I Must Make That" and she also has a giveaway. And after seeing her announcement I realized that the CupoNationIndia is catching up faster. And so sending this entry to her.

Sending this to Sumee's culinary Bites where she is hosting Bon Vivant - Quixotic Fixes.

and to the Sweet Luv - CJ#4 hosted by Cooks Joy

Rajasthani Ghevar with Kesar Rabdi

It was Divya of You too Can Cook Indian Food who is the hosting the South North Challenge (SNC).  And in SNC this month the South Team was challenged to prepare the Rajasthani Ghevar with Rabdi.  I think I am the last in the group to post it.

The recipe for Rajasthani Mini Ghevar is from Desi Fiesta.  She has given a detailed instruction on how to cook the Ghevars.  There is also a nice video by Nisha Madhulika on how to cook Ghevars which will be helpful.

And so here is my Rajasthani Ghevar with Kesar Radi.  It was very tasty and delicious. I want to put down the recipe on my own but for now please refer to DesiFiesta for the recipe.

Also sending it to the Sweet Luv - CJ#4 hosted by Cooks Joy

Aval Upma / Poha

Poha, a very common breakfast in North India. Mostly in Maharashtra, Gujarat etc, you mostly get only Pohas for breakfast in most of the hotels. Poha is Beaten Rice in English. Its very easy and very simple and mostly liked by many. Many a times I make it for night dinner also.

Here is a Wikipedia explanation for Poha alias Aval in Tamil.

Flattened rice (also called beaten rice) is a dehusked rice which is flattened into flat light dry flakes. These flakes of rice swell when added to liquid, whether hot or cold, as they absorb water, milk or any other liquids. The thicknesses of these flakes vary between almost translucently thin (the more expensive varieties) to nearly four times thicker than a normal rice grain.

This easily digestible form of raw rice is very popular across Nepal, North East India and Bangladesh, and is normally used to prepare snacks or light and easy fast food in a variety of Indian cuisine styles, some even for long-term consumption of a week or more. It is known by a variety of names: Poha or Pauwa in Hindi, Baji in Newari, Pohe in Marathi, Aval in Tamil,Chindé in Bengali, Chira in Assamese, Phovu in Konkani, Chudaa in Oriya, Avalakki in Kannada, Atukula Poni in Telugu, Pauaa/Paunva(પૌંઆ) in Gujarati, and Chiura (चिउरा) in Nepali, Bhojpuri and Chhattisgarhi.

It is a very versatile dish, add or remove the ingredients according to your tastebuds.

Ingredients

Poha - 3 cups (Choose a little thick Poha and not the very thin ones)

Onion - 1 small

Halved Green Chillies - 2 to 3 

Tomato - 1 big

Grated Carrot - 1/4 cup

Grated Potato - 1/4 cup (wash it in water after grating it)

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 t.sp

Mustard - 1//4 t.sp

Urad dal - 1/2 t.sp

Channa dal - 1/2 t.sp

Peanuts - about 1/2 a handful 

Curry Leaves - 4 to 5 leaves

Oil

Salt to taste

Coriander Leaves for Garnishing

Lemon Juice - from 1 lemon

Sugar - 1 t.sp

Method

Cut all the veggies as required.  Keep all the things ready. 

Wash lightly the Poha in a colander by showing it under running water for a few seconds only.  Don't  over do it. Keep it aside, let the excess water drain off. 

Heat oil in a kadai, add in the mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal, Peanuts, turmeric powder. Fry for about 1/2 a minute. 

Toss in the onion and green chillies. 

Once the onion becomes translucent toss in tomatoes. Stir a little and add some salt. Cook in medium flame. 

After the tomato has let out its juice and is fully cooked add in the veggies. Keep stirring till the veggies are almost cooked. 

Adjust the salt, according to your taste. 

Add the sugar and stir for a minute. 

Separate the washed and drained Poha with your hands and add them to the kadai. Mix well in slow flame. 

Add the lemon juice and mix well. 

Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with coriander leaves.

You can also use veggies like Peas, Cauliflower, but cook them in salt water before using them. In the end if you like you can also add fresh grated coconut for garnishing.