Monday, September 27, 2021

SINDHI DEGI CHANA PULAO / FLAVOURFUL CHICKPEA PILAF


 Here is a recipe of very delicious Sindhi Degi Chana Pulao. It is cooked with aromatic spices and chana or chickpeas. You can relish it with a simple raita and papad. You don't need any side dish to serve with this pulao. It is as flavourful as any non veg biriyani. It makes a great party dish and a treat for vegetarians.

Ingredients:
Basmati rice ..... 2 cups or as needed
Boiled chana or chickpeas .... 1 & 1/4 cups
Birista (crispy fried onions)..... 1/2 cup
Tomatoes ................... 2-3
Green chillies ............ 4-5
Mint leaves ................. handful
Garlic (crushed) ........... 1 tbsp
Ginger (crushed) ........ 1 tbsp
Lemon ........................ 1 (cut into thin slices)
Dried plums (aloo Bukhara) .... 5
Yogurt ........................ 2 tbsps
Cinnamon ................. 2 sticks of 1''
Black cardamom ....... 1
Green cardamoms ..... 5
Cloves ......................... 5
Black pepper corns .....12
Bay leaves ................ 2
Crushed coriander seeds .. 1 tbsp
Crushed cumin seeds ....... 1/2 tbsp
Sindhi Biriyani masala ...... 1/2 tbsp
Kewra essence ................. 2 drops diluted in 2 tbsps of water
Ghee / clarified butter ....... 2-3 tbsps
Oil ................................... 4-5 tbsps
Salt ............................ to taste

Method:
1. Soak the rice with sufficient water for at least 30 mins or more.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices.
3. When they give out a nice aroma add the crushed coriander and cumin seeds.
4. Next add the ginger and garlic. Saute a bit and add the green chillies and tomatoes.
5. Add little salt and simmer until the tomatoes are cooked.
6. Now add the boiled chana, lemon slices,Aloo bukhara (dried plums) and cook for a minute.
7. Add 4 cups of hot water for 2 cups of rice. Bring it to a boil.
8. Now add the rice, little salt, mint leaves and 3/4 th of birista saving some for garnishing.
9. Cook on medium flame until three-fourth done.
10. Now stir in the diluted kewra essence, give a gentle stir and spoon the ghee on top.
11. Wrap the lid with a clean cloth, place it on the pan with some heavy weight on it.
12. Place it for dum on low flame for 10 minutes.
13. Pulao should be perfectly done now.
14. Serve it in a platter and garnish with some mint leaves, birista and some boiled chana.

Note: Birista is easily available these days. If you don't have it fry 2 large onions to a nice brown colour and use them instead.

Check out the video



Pin for later



About the group:
Shhhhh Cooking Secretly is a monthly challenge in a facebook group where we are paired with a different partner every month. Two secret ingredients are  chosen by each partner for the other one and we prepare any dish with those ingredients based on the selected theme of the month which was " Exotic Biriyanis & Pulaos " suggested by Swaty Malik. She is an amazing cook. Check out her Zafrani Pulao 
This month I was paired with Priya Vijayakrishnan. She chose GREEN CHILLIES and BIRIYANI MASALA as my secret ingredients. I made this flavourful "Sindhi Degi Chana Pulao" using them.
I gave her GHEE and FRESH COCONUT as her secret ingredients and the dish she prepared is a flavourful Coconut Veg Pulao Do check it out. 


Tuesday, September 7, 2021

CHUKANDAR KE PARATHE / BEETROOT PARATHAS / INDIAN FLATBREADS STUFFED WITH BEETROOT AND SPICES

 Make and enjoy these simple and healthy beetroot parathas. Beetrrot is loaded with nutrition and this is a nice way to consume it apart from the salads. You can simply relish them with some pickle of your choice and yogurt. 

Ingredients:
Wheat flour ....... 2 cups or as needed
Ajwain / carom seeds ..... 1/2 tsp
Salt .................. to taste
Oil or ghee ....... 1 tbsp (for the dough)
More oil or ghee as needed for making the parathas 

For the stuffing:
Grated beetroot ........... 1 cup
Coriander or fenugreek leaves .... handful
Gram flour / besan ... 1 tbsp (use dry roasted one)
Turmeric powder ..... 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder .... 1/2 tsp (or more as you like it)
Cumin powder ...... 1 tsp
Coriander powder .... 1 tsp
Amchoor powder / dry mango powder ... 1/2 tsp (optional)
Salt .................. to taste

Method:
1. Mix all the ingredients for stuffing and set aside.
2. Knead the dough adding ajwain, salt, ghee or oil and water as needed. Rest it for 5-10 minutes.
3. Roll out a small portion and spoon the stuffing.
4. Gather the edges sealing them and make a small pouch.
5. Flatten it and roll out gently.
6. Roast the paratha on a heated griddle spooning a little ghee or oil.
7. Repeat the same with all the parathas.
Serve them with a pickle of your choice and yogurt.

This recipe is made for the event - A-Z Recipe Challenge. 
Season 1 - We hace completed the first season making the recipes alphabetically with ingredients with English names. ( eg. A - Apple, Artichoke, Asparagus ..)
Season 2 - We decided to make the recipes alphabetically with Hindi names. ( A - Anar, Adrak Aloo ... )
This month the Alphabet is C and I chose Chukandar ( Beetroot )



Pin for later



Recipe List of A-Z Challenge (Season 2)


A - Adraki Aloo  (baby Potatoes with ginger and spice powders)
B - Begun Bhaja  ( Bengali style fried Brinjals)
C - Chukandar Ke Parathe  (Stuffed Beetroot Parathas)
D - Dahi Chawal  (Farali) (Barnyard Millet Curd Rice)
E - Elaichi Cup Cakes - (Cardamom Flavoured Cup Cakes )
F - False ke Biscuit ( Lemon Currant Cookies )
G - Gud Wale Pohe ( Sweet Flattened Rice flakes with Jaggery)
H - Hare Dhaniye ki Sabzi ( Fresh Coriander Stir fry)
I - Imli Gosht ( Tangy Mutton Curry )
J - Jowar ke Phulke (Sorghum Flour Flatbreads)
- Karele ki Bhurji ( Diced Bitter Gourd Stir fry)
L - Lehsun Ka Achar ( Garlic Pickle)
M - Moong Dal with Sarson ka Saag ( Moong dal with Mustard Greens)
N - Neembu Gud ki Shikanji (Indian summer drink with herbs and spices)

You may also like:















Saturday, September 4, 2021

MAWA AND DRY FRUIT MODAKS ( with milk powder ) / GANESH CHATURTHI SPECIAL


We have a variety of modaks made during the Ganpati festival as an offering to God. Some are made with rice flour dough stuffed with coconut and jaggery mixture, or mawa and dry fruit mixture and steamed or deep fried.  We also have chocolate modaks, Boondi modaks and many more.
This is a very easy recipe of making modaks using milk powder along with powdered dry fruits and dessicated coconut. Use full cream milk powder like Nido, Nestle or Amulya. You can shape the modaks using a mould which is easily available everywhere these days. 

About Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi is a 10 day long festival celebrated throughout India. It comemmorates the birth of Lord Ganesha, the famouus Hindu elephant headed God known for his ability to remove obstacles and bring good fortune. The festival is held every year in the Hindu month of Bhadra, which falls between mid-August and mid-September. Offerings from the daily prayers are distributed among friends and relatives which include sweets such as modaks  as it is believed to be a favourite of Lord Ganesh.  On the final day of the festival, Anant Chaturdasi, the Ganesha statues are paraded through the streets. During the parade, people gather to sing and dance, and the Ganesha statue is usually immersed in a body of water such as the ocean or a river.



Ingredients:
Full cream milk powder...... 1 cup
Coarsely powdered cashew nuts ..... 1/4 cup
Coarsely powdered pistachios ......... 1/4 cup
Coarsely powdered almonds   ......... 1/4 cup 
Fine dessicated dry coconut    .......... 1/4 cup
Sugar ............................................... 3/4 cup
Cardamom powder .......................... 1/2 tsp
Saffron ........................................... 2-3 pinches
Milk ( for soaking saffron ) ............ 2 tbsps
Ghee or clarified butter ................  2 tbsps
Silver Varq for garnishing ............. optional 

Method:
1. Take a thick bottomed pan and transfer the sugar into it.
2. Add 1 and 1/4 cups of water, cover the lid and bring to a boil.
3. Add the cardamom powder followed by saffron soaked in little milk.
4. When the syrup reduces to one cup stir in the milk powder.
5. Start mixing immediately with a spatula or a baloon whisk to break the lumps.
6. Continue to stir it adding the ghee little by little in between. You will see that the mixture is getting thicker.
7. Tip in the powdered dry fruits and the dessicated coconut. 
8. Continue to stir until the mixture starts leaving the sides and has thickened like a dough.
9. Remove it into a larger bowl for cooling.
10. Grease the modak moulds and put some mixture into them. Close it and remove the excess from the sides. This way make all the modaks.
11. When they are ready you can garnish them with silver varq if you wish. 

 

Watch the video of Modaks




Pin for later


You may also like:
















Print Recipe