India: Jaipuri Cashew Curry, Kaali Daal, Cummin Seed Rice & Banana Raita

India, officially the Republic of India is located in South Asia. It is bounded by the Arabian Sea to the southwest, the Bay of Bengal to the south east, the Indian Ocean to the south. Near neighbours in the Indian Ocean include Sri Lanka & the Maldives. India shares land borders with Myanmar (Burma) and Bangladesh to the east, China, Nepal and Bhutan to the northeast, and Pakistan to the west. In addition, India's outlying Andaman and Nicobar Islands share maritime borders with Indonesia and Thailand.

It  was a beautiful night & a magical walk down memory lane as we cooked several dishes that 

 I first tasted in Jaipur  when we visited India  in 2011. We had a wonderful food experience in India. We chose to go vegetarian whilst we were there and the food choices were extensive. Even their airlines offer great vegetarian food. No need to make a special dietary request on book-in like you would in Australia! If you are visiting Delhi I recommend you take a guided tour of the  Old Delhi Spice markets with Jyoti Agarwal, or take one of her ‘Gourmet Desire’ cooking classes. Jyoti is a lovely lady with a real enthusiasm for food. When we met her she was working as a social worker running a food program for the beggar children of Delhi. http://www.gourmetdesire.com/index.htm

Our Indian menu included:

Jaipuri Cashew Curry, 
Kaali Daal,   
Cummin Seed Rice 
&  Banana Raita

Which we served with  
lime pickles,  mango chutney & candy Fennel seeds

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JAIPURI VEGETABLE CURRY

INGREDIENTS

Curry Paste

·      1 tbsp  Cumin Seeds

·      1 tbsp Coriander Seeds 

·      10-12 Cashew Nuts

·       2 Onion – chopped

·      2 Tomato – chopped

·      2 tbs water

Other Ingredients

·      3 cups Mixed Vegetables – chopped

(we used  carrots, green beans, corn and cauliflower, however, there is no hard rule & you can use any blend of vegetables you like or have on hand)

·      1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

·      1 tsp Red Chilli Powder 

·      3-4 Cloves

·      Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch piece

·      Salt - as per taste

·      1 tbsp Ghee 

·      Cilantro (fresh Coriander) – few fresh sprigs

METHOD:

1.     Dry Roast coriander seeds and cumin seeds and then grind  to a paste along with other ingredients listed under curry paste.

2.     Take a large pan, add oil to it, & gently heat.

3.     Add cinnamon stick and cloves to the oil and fry till it gives off a fragrant aroma.

4.     Add chopped vegetables and salt, and saute for 5 minutes.

5.     Now, add ground paste, tumeric powder, red chilli powder, 1 cup water and mix well.

6.     Cover, reduce the heat and cook till vegetables are cooked well, about 20 minutes.

Recipe adapted from original found at:

http://mharorajasthanrecipes.blogspot.com.au/2010/06/sabz-jaipuri-vegetable-jaipuri.html

KAALI  DAAL

INGREDIENTS:

·      1 cup split urad daal (black lentils)

·      2 large onions - sliced thin

·      2 green chillies – left whole

·      Salt to taste

·      A pinch of asafoetida

·      2 large tomatoes - chopped into cubes

·      2" piece of ginger - sliced in thin julienne (match stick)

·      1 tbs garlic - minced

·      2 tsp coriander powder

·      1 tsp cumin powder

·      1/2 tsp red chilli powder

·      1/2 cup thickened/ double/ heavy cream, whisked

·      2 tbs sunflower cooking oil

·      2 tbs ghee

·      1 tsp cumin seeds

METHOD:

1.     rinse  daal in water, discard the water then place daal in a bowl, cover with fresh water & soak overnight.

2.     Place the soaked daal in a pot with 3 cups of water (including the soaking water), 1 sliced onion, green chillies & asafoetida 

3.     Bring to the boil & turn down to low so the liquid is just simmering. Put a lid on the daal leaving a small gap so the daal doesn’t boil over.

4.     Check on the daal occasionally during the cooking process & if you find any froth/scum has risen to the surface use a spoon to skim it off  & discard

5.     Cook until daal is very tender (approximately 1 hour) 

6.     When daal is cooked add the  salt to taste  (don’t be tempted to add the salt earlier as according to Megan the addition of salt at the beginning interferes with the softening process of the legumes)

7.     In a separate pan, heat the oil and fry the other onion till soft. Add the ginger and garlic and fry for a minute.

8.     Add the tomatoes, coriander, cumin and red chilli powders and fry for another 5 minutes.

9.     Add the boiled lentils and enough water to make a thick gravy-like consistency and mix well. Simmer for 10 minutes.

10.  Pour in the whisked cream and mix well. Turn off the fire.

11.  In another small pan, heat the ghee and when hot add the cumin seeds and cook till they stop spluttering.

12.  Pour this into the lentils (it will all sizzle) and mix well.

Recipe adapted from original found at:

http://indianfood.about.com/od/vegetarianrecipes/r/kaalidaal.htm

CUMMIN SEED RICE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 ½  cups  Basmati rice           

• 2 tsp            Cumin seeds            

• 1 ½ tbs Ghee            

• 1 Bay leaf            

• 1 tsp Black cardamom

• 2 Cinnamon stick (2 x two inch)

•  1 tsp Salt            

METHOD

1.     Wash rice thoroughly and soak in water for half an hour. Drain.

2.     Heat ghee in a medium sized pot.

3.     Add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cardamom and cinnamon.

4.     When cumin seeds crackle add the rice & salt 

5.     Stir till rice is coated with ghee and looks glossy.

6.     Add three cups of water & bring to the boil. 

7.     Stir to make sure the rice is not stuck to the bottom of the pan.

8.      Reduce heat to minimum and cover the pan with a lid.

9.     Don’t take the lid off again until you are ready to serve the rice.

10.   Cook rice on low for 10 minutes.

11.  Turn heat off & leave the pot on the cooling element for 10 minutes.

12.  The rice can sit like this for some time & stay hot as long as you don’t take the lid off

13.  When you are ready to serve the rice use a fork to gently separate & fluff the rice so that each grain is separated then turn it out into a serving dish

Recipe adapted from original found at:

http://www.sanjeevkapoor.com/jeera--rice.aspx

BANANA RAITA WITH COCONUT & MINT

INGREDIENTS

·      2 large ripe bananas

·      2tbs  lemon juice

·      1 cup yoghurt

·      1 pinch salt

·      2 tbs mint – chopped (save a little to sprinkle on top when finished)

·      4 tablespoons freshly grated coconut

·      1 tbs unsalted butter/ghee

·      1 teaspoon black mustard seeds

METHOD

1.     Slice the bananas and sprinkle with lemon juice.

2.     Add yoghurt, mint, and salt folding together gently

3.      Toast coconut in a dry skillet on medium to low heat for 2 -3 minutes until just  

       golden brown; shake the pan once or twice to prevent the coconut from burning.

5.     Turn the coconut onto a plate to cool

6.     add butter to the skillet & melt keeping heat at medium-low.

7.     Add mustard seeds to the skillet, cover and cook for 2 minutes; shake the pan, until  all the mustard seeds pop open.

8.     Remove the skillet from the heat, add the browned coconut & mix

9.     Allow coconut mix to cool then gently add this to the banana yoghurt mixture

10.  chill and serve.

Recipe adapted by Q Zine from two found at:

http://www.indianmirror.com/cuisine/Raita.html

http://www.ifood.tv/recipe/minted-banana-coconut-raita