Lentejas con Jamón (Lentils with Ham)

Being Indian, Bengali specially, I have this love affair with lentils. Back home we call it 'masur dal'. Anyway was quite surprised when one of my Spanish friends suggested this recipe, which seems to be a very popular dish both in Spain and Latin America. If you are interested you could check out this one with ham or this one with chorizo. Anyway, my version is a simpler one- love cooking but hate spending hours cooking. This one's with bacon, but tastes as great if you want to skip the bacon and just make a vegetarian version.

Ingredients (Serves 2):

• Lentils- 1 cup
• Carrots- 2 finely chopped
• Zucchini- 1 finely chopped
• Leek- 1 chopped (my recipe omits it as leeks are right now pretty expensive in Muscat)
• Onion- 1 large finely chopped
• Tomato- 1/2 pureed
• Bacon- 3 slices
• Bay leaves (laurel)- 4
• Turmeric- 1/4 tsp; this is totally optional, but as I was adding bacon without frying just put it in to be safe
• Olive oil- 1 tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Preparation (40 mins):

Heat the oil in a deep saucepan. Add onions, carrots, zucchini and fry on low heat.  









Wash the lentils, add into saucepan. Add water to cover the lentils and just a finger more. If you want, you could add a little turmeric like I did, but its not necessarily.








Turn down stove to medium-low. Cook for twenty mins. Now add in chopped bacon, tomato pulp and the bay leaves. Cook for 10 mins and your lentils are ready.

Tips :

• You could pair this with a small portion of rice, but the lentils by themselves are a complete meal.

Shutki Chingri with Eggplant (Sun Dried Prawns with Eggplants)

This recipe comes from Bangladesh. Specifically the southern coastal part. I feel Bengali cuisine today, as it is known, has diverged into three sub-families. There is the typical West Bengal cuisine, typified by aloo-posto, biuli/ arhar/ masur daal's, and other delicacies. I would class the center of gravity of this genre to the Rarh region, then there is the fusion cuisine of the Bengali's who migrated from East Bengal- the Bangal's, reminiscent of a lost homeland. Similar to West Bengal cuisine, over time this  is slowly morphing into the other Bengal (much like my family). And then there is Bangladeshi cuisine. Though having similarities in roots with the Bangal cuisine, it has over time developed into an independent form, with it's own nuances and characteristic tastes, spices and usage of vegetables and fish. When talking of Bengali food, like culture and society, people often gloss over the fact that food in Bangladesh is a category distinct from Bengali food in India.

This recipe is a recreation of a dried prawn side dish that my maid used to make back in Dhaka. Disclaimer-Best efforts aside, it's not as good as her version.


Ingredients (Serves 4):

• Shutki chingri (Sun dried prawns)- 250 gm
• Egglants- 2 (Chopped into small slivers)
• Onion- 1 large, chopped
• Garlic- 5 large cloves, chopped
• Ginger- 1/2 inch, chopped
• Red Chilli- 2
• Green chilli- 4, chopped
• Turmeric- 1 tsp
• Cayenne - tsp
• Salt- To taste (Add a little more than you normally do as the eggplant tends to bland down the dish and 
• Mustard Oil- 5 tbsp (I substituted with olive oil as I ran out)

Preparation (30 mins):

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a deep saucepan, throw in onions, garlic, ginger and the dried fish. Keep on high and continue turning over continuously till onions start becoming translucent.














In a separate container, mix chopped eggplants, turmeric, salt and cayene. Once the fish is near about done, sprinkle 2 tbsp oil and add the eggplants and red chilli's to the mix. Cook on high for 5 mins while constantly turning over.


















Throw in chopped green chilli's add remaining oil. Mix thoroughly and cover. Turn heat to low-medium. Cook for 15 mins or till you feel it's done.






Serve hot with rice.

Tips:

• This is a pretty strong flavoured dish. The eggplants in the mix not only add body to the dish but also tone down the strong fishy flavour. If you want to you could increase the proportion of eggplants in the dish.
• Another way to mask the strong fishy flavour is to use more onion and garlic. 

Punjabi Kadhi

Kadhi, is a typical North Indian Punjabi dish for hot summer days. Going south, you find regional variations across the arid, dusty deserts of Mewar, Rajputana to the salt plains in the Rann of Katch. Typical to local cuisine which developed over ages, it is slightly tangy and made from yogurt gone sour and locally vailable chickpeas. Incorporation of ginger, pepper and cumin not only add a twist to the dish, but are traditional spices and condiments which help the body cool down and rehydrate. The chickpea flour is not only a good source of protein but traditionally is used in cooling drinks in India during summer time.

Ingredients (Serves 4):

• Sour Yogurt - 250 ml(I normally use Laban/ Aryan to substitute
• Besan( Chickpea flour)- 100 gm
• Ginger- 2 inch piece; shredded
• Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
• Cinnamon- 1/4 inch stick, crushed
• Turmeric- 1 tsp
• Cayene powder- 1/2 tsp (for colour)
•  Pepper- 1 tsp whole
• Red Chilli- 3
• Salt- To taste
• Sunflower oil- 1/2 tbsp

 Preparation (30 mins):

Whisk the yougurt with 1/2 a cup of water in a large bowl. Gently fold in the chickpea flour, whisking constantly so that there are no lumps left. Add the turmeric to the mixture and continue blending.

Saute the ginger, add cumin, cinnamon and red chilis to the mix. Once it starts to pop add cayene, a dash of salt and pour in the yogurt mix.



Cook on low heat for 15 mins while stirring continuously. Add a little water if required.
Just before finishing, throw in the pepper corns, cover and let it simmer for 5 mins.

Cool and serve.

Tips:

• Kadhi leftover from dinnermakes for a great lunch with rice- especially if you have one of those marathon siestas planned.

Spinach Cream with Arteisan Indian Cheese Cubes

Ok, Let's call this as how it's called back home in India- "Palak Paneer". But I kinda liked the new name- more exotic. Palak (spinach) was seasonal, before the advent of hypermarkets and frozen veggies. Winter meant new potatoes, carrots, beets, raddish, turnips, spinach, mustard, and new rice. And 'Palak Paneer' was a seasonal treat. Here's a quick recipe that evolved while trying to conjure a part of that wintry evening magic for a guest of mine.

Ingredients (Serves 2):

• Cottage Cheese (Paneer)- 200 gm cut into 1 inch sticks.If you are unable to locate paneer, you could try with whatever local option's available. Maybe a haloumi?
• Spinach- 500 gm
• Onion- 1 medium, finely chopped
• Garam Masala- 1/2  tsp
• Red Chilli's- 2 large
• Ghee (clarified butter)- 3 tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Preparation (45 mins):

Wash and puree the spinach. On low heat fry the paneer pieces, taking care that they do not break, till one side is golden brown. Remove the paneer from the pan and add the onions. Saute till translucent, add red chillis and turn up heat. In a minute or so add garam masala and stir.

Add the blended spinach, paneer. Cover and let simmer for 10 mins.

 

Serve hot with rice or roti


Tips:

• If you prefer a mellower rather than a spinachy flavour, you could cook for another ten minutes or so, but mind you, you will be loosing all the vitamin boost that comes from fresh veggies. ;)
• For a creamier taste stir in a couple of spoonfuls of fresh cream just before taking it off the stove.
• If you are adventurous, you could substitute the spinach with mustard leaves for a drier, pungent dish- a recipe common to North Indian Punjabi kitchens in winter.

Chicken Reshmi Kebabs

Going camping to Dimaniyat Islands off the Batinah coast of Oman over the weekend. If you are ever this side it's highly recommended. Great snorkel and dive spot, it's a protected sanctuary- nesting site for Hawksbill & Green Turtles besides being among the few places left in Oman where you can spot the rare Sooty Falcon. You can get permits to camp on the islands can be obtained from the Ministry of Tourism.

It's going to be a full moon night and we are camping on Police Island and the plan is to have a barbecue on the island. For my contribution I thought of doing a quick Reshmi Kebab. Here's the recipe, and will update on the final version and the trip once I am back. And, oh yes, this recipe is a tribute to one of the best kebab places from my home town- Shiraaz

Ingredients (Serves 4- as main course):

• Chicken breasts- 1kg
• Onion- 1 large
• Garlic- 4 large cloves
• Ginger- 1/2 inch
• Pepper- 1 tsp
• Red Chilli- 1large (for colour)
• Garam Masala- 1/2 tsp
• Lemon- 1/2 large
• Oil- 1 tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Preparation (Marination- Overnight, cooking time- 15 mins):

Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. Grind chilli, pepper into fine powder. Chop onion, garlic, ginger- add to pepper chilli powder and blend into fine paste.














 



Clean chicken, add salt, oil, lemon juice, garam masala, and the blended onion-garlic-ginger-chilli-pepper paste. Mix well. Leave overnight to marinate.

 
When cooking just skewer on bamboo sticks, or alternately seal in double layer of aluminum foil and place over barbecue fire. If you are going the skewer way, you know it's done when the chicken starts to glaze over. You can use a spare skewer to see if the meat comes cleanly off- then it's done. Alternatively, just wrap in foil and toss in the fire for 10 mins. It will be done.

Will post photo's of the final product if I can over the weekend. Till then m'salama.

Added later: Setting the barbecue pit right

Added later: And cooking away to glory. With a proper fire the meat gets done in 20 mins.  

Tips:

• If you are doing this at home sans a barbecue fire, just place in a baking dish, cover with foil and cook in oven for 20 mins at 150C. One other thing, I would recommend adding a little more garam masala, a pinch of turmeric and a pinch of cayenne pepper to the marinade. You will have a nice sauce to accompany your kebab-curry
• While barbecuing you will know that the meat is done when it starts glazing over slightly. Poke with a spare skewer to see it comes out cleanly or not. 

Irish Stew

The second one in the stews. soup series from the weekend. Not exactly what purists would call an Irish stew, but inspired from it.


Ingredients (Serves 3):

• Mutton- 200 gm (I actually was buying mutton for a kebab recipe, when I chanced upon the idea to do a stew with the bony parts. So dressed the meat away from the bone for kekab's and used the remainder for the stew)
• Carrot- 1 large, diced
  
• Potato- 1 large, diced
• Raddish- 150 gm
• Onions- 1 large, chopped
• Garlic- 4 large cloves, chopped
• Pepper- 2 tsp 
• Parsley- 1 handful, chopped
• Salt- To Taste

Preparation ( 1.5 hrs):

Cut mutton into small pieces. For the bony pieces, leave a little meat around the bones while dressing. In a large sauce pan, add  mutton, potatoes, onions, pepper, garlic and salt. Boil on high for 1 hr.











Add in raddish and chopped carrots. You could use turnips (didn't get them at the supermarket, hence used raddish). Simmer on medium heat for 1/2 hour. Throw in parsley for flavour and your stew is ready to serve.

Pumpkin and Mushroom Stew

Tis' the season for warm stews and soups. This post and the next one are stews done over the weekend. As usual, my recipes are not for purists, but just everyday take on good food inspired by eating out, reading or just a flight of fantasy. Don't follow strict recipes, but cook with what's at hand, trying to recreate flavours with what I have, can be done easily, is cost-effective. This one was inspired by a lovely Pumpkin Soup with Truffle Oil from the al Nahda Resort last month. Unable to locate truffle oil in Muscat, I substituted with sesame oil. Not a bad outcome, I would say.

Ingredients (Serves 1):

• Pumpkin- 150 gm, diced
  
• Mushrooms- 4 large, chopped
• White Onion- 1/4 chopped
• Pepper- 1 tsp
• Salt- to taste
• Sesame Oil- 1 tsp

Preparation (25 mins):

Microwave chopped pumpkin, white onions in 3cups of water at a high setting for 10  mins. Add pepper, salt, chopped mushrooms. Microwave for 5 mins on high. Add in sesame oil and microwave for a further 5 mins.

Serve hot with bread rolls. If you want you could add a dollop of butter for taste. (Was so hungry that I started eating before I realized I had to take a pic of the finished stew. :) )

Veggie Bake

Quick dinner recipe for the nights you really don't feel like something heavy.


Ingredients (Serves 2):

• Eggplant- 3 small, tender, thinly sliced
• Zucchini- 4 small, thinly sliced
• Pumpkin- 100 gm, thinly sliced
• Mushrooms- 6 button mushrooms, sliced
• Olive oil- 2 tbsp
• Basil- 1 tsp
• Black pepper- 1/2 tsp, coarsely crushed
• Oregano- 1 tsp
• Salt- to taste

Preparation ( 1 hr 10 mins):

Layer veggies in a baking dish starting with eggplants on bottom, followed by zucchini, pumpkin and mushrooms. Sprinkle salt, basil, oregano, pepper and olive oil. Wrap dish in foil. Pop into pre-heated oven at 135 C for 1 hr.














 

 Serve hot.
 

Tips:

•  If you want to make it a bit more savory you could crumble in a little Roquefort into the mix.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Baked Potato with Cream of Anchovies

Quick one when you really don't feel like cooking. Just want some comfort food to curl up on the sofa.

Ingredients (Serves 1):

•  Potato- 1 medium sized baked
• Anchovies in oil- 50 gms
• Cream Cheese- 100 gm
• Parsley, Cilantro, Black pepper for a twist.
• Salt to taste

Preparation (35 mins):

Wrap potato in foil bake at 180 C for 25 mins. Mash, keep aside. Shred anchovies, fold in cheese, microwave at  180 C for 5 mins. Mix anchovy sauce thoroughly, add onto potatos. Add a twist of parsley/ cilantro, black pepper. Add salt. Turn around. And you are ready to go.

Tips:

• You could also add in mushrooms to the sauce. Forgot to buy them myself.
  

Veggie Tajine

It's winter again. Slow warm afternoons rolling into peaceful evenings rolling into cool nights. Time for slow food. Nothing like a heartwarming smoky 'tajine'. A Berber chef I am not, but here's my adventure this evening. This one's dedicated to Sting and Cheb Mami- Gonna do this one while I listen to Desert Rose :)


 


 
Ingredients (Serves 1):

• Baby aubergines- 3 diced
  
• Tomato- 2 diced
• Bell pepper, green- 1diced
• Onion- 1 large, diced
• Garlic- 2 large cloves, shredded 
• Ginger- 1/2 inch, shredded
• Bay leaf-2 
• Thyme- 1 tsp
• Cumin- 2 tsp
• Turmeric- 1 tsp
• Cayenne pepper- 2 tsp
• Olive oil- 2 tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Preparation (105 mins):


Place aubergines in a baking dish, layer with onions, bell peppers & tomato's. Add ginger, garlic, salt, cayenne, thyme, cumin and bay leaves. Pour olive oil on top.



Wrap in foil. Pop into oven at 125 C for 90 mins.

 

Once done, open foil. Stir the mixture so that the flavours get mixed. 

Serve hot with unleavened Arabic or pita bread. Buen provecho.


Tips:

• Sit back and enjoy. :)
  
  
   

Salmon Blinchiki with Cream Cheese and Spinach

What to do with a odd piece of salmon. too small to grill for a standalone meal, and too large to throw away without a pang of guilty conscious. And what about cleaning out the fridge before going on long holiday.

Perforce tonight's dinner options were scrambled eggs (eggs and milk leftover), cereals with milk, bread and cream cheese, pancakes (leftover mix from yesterday's brunch), salmon something, honey with (strawberries, papaya, watermelon) and boiled spinach. And as it goes after an inventory of perishables and long and deep soul searching came this delight.

Ingredients (For 4 Blinchiki's ):

• Enough batter- I had half a bottle leftover from yesterday.
• Enough salmon- OK, I had about 100 gm salmon marinated since last evening)
• Enough Spinach- I had to finish the better part of a 400 gm bag
• Cream cheese- 2 tbsp (Alas, this could not be finished)

Preparation (30 mins or less):


 Ok, I had the salmon ready (rebel without a cause). Had marinated the diced salmon with 1 tsp olive oil, salt, 2 tsp malt vinegar, and a pinch each of thyme, rosemary and coarse black pepper last night. Though I would stir fry and eat with bread and cream cheese. Discovering half finished (very expensive) pancake butter and 1/2 pack of spinach (equally expensive), tried this recipe.

Stir fry the salmon with as little oil as possible.

Microwave spinach at medium for 90 secs. Make pancake. 







Fill with cheese, spinach and salmon. 

Dinner's ready.

 

Tips:

   

• Not to forget the half a bowl of leftover strawberries. With a drop of lime they made wonderful 'postres'

Buckwheat Porridge

Buckwheat porridge or 'Kasha' is a common breakfast food in Slavic Europe. While great for breakfast with milk or just plain boiled, I concocted this hybridized version- Slavic buckwheat meets Indian Khicdi  for a quick dinner last evening.

All you health food aficionados, give this a try. High in fiber, contains all eight essential amino acids and gluten-free. Best of all cooks quickly with minimal interference.

Ingredients (Serves 1):

Buckwheat: 1/4 cup

Did not have cream, hence substituted with leftover cheese powder from Pizza Hut

Egg: 1 boiled
Butter: 1 tbsp
Cream: 2 tbsp
Garlic: 1 clove, chopped finely
Green chilli: 1 small, shredded
Green coriander:  1 tbsp, chopped
Pepper: 1 tsp
Salt: To taste



 

Preparation (Cooking time 25 mins):

Roast buckwheat with salt for 5 mins in microwave at medium setting. You can skip this step, but I feel it enhances the texture and flavour. 

Add 1 cup water to the roasted buckwheat, garlic, chilli and microwave at medium setting for 15 mins.

Fluff the mixture, the buckwheat should be breaking out of their shell. Add 1/4 cup water. Stir in butter, cream/ cheese, pepper and cook at low setting for 5 mins. 




 
 


Fluff mixture again and leave for 5 mins so that excess water is soaked up. Garnish with egg and coriander. Serve hot.

Summer Dacha Salad

Ok, this salad has nothing to do with a 'dacha', but I was introduced to a variant of this by a friend while we were discussing Russian summers. Hence my Marketing twist- Summer "Dacha" Salad.

It's a quick nifty one, barely takes five mins to throw together. Extremely healthy, and high in fibre, protein and water. So here's to a quick recipe for summers- in Russia or anywhere else. 



Ingredients (Serves 2):
 
Cucumbers- 3 medium
Tomato- 2 large
Dill- 1 handful
Corriander- 1 handful
Boiled eggs- 3 (Soft)
Sour Cream- 250 gm
Salt- To taste



Preparation (5 mins):

Shell eggs, mash with sour cream (Its easier this way than the way I did which was mixing cream at the last). Chop vegetables, add to the mashed eggs. Add salt to taste. Whisk and serve. If you want you could add any other herbs that you feel like, I had dill and coriander left over from the previous two nights cooking.

приятного аппетита!

Baked Herb Salmon

Quick one for those days when you come back from work, too tired to whip up something elaborate yet feeling hungry and guilty enough for a proper home cooked healthy meal. This one takes less than half an hour (if you have the stuff ready). Just pop in the oven and by the time you are back from a jog/ swim/ long shower, it's ready-Herby and healthy. Mmmmm


Ingredients (Serves 4):

Salmon fillet: 4 - 150 gms each (I prefer the tail, as they are thinner and one of the leaner cuts, which cook fast)
Olive oil: 2 tbsp
Vinegar: 1 tbsp
Honey: 1 tbsp
Oregano: 1 tsp
Rosemary: 1 tsp
Pepper: 3 tsp, coarsely ground
Dill: 4 sprigs for garnish
Salt to taste




Preparation (Time: 5+ 25 mins):



Set oven to pre-heat at 200 C. Clean fish, set aside to dry.

Mix vinegar, honey, olive oil in a small shot glass. Throw in a pinch of salt. Keep aside for glazing.

Now baste the fillets with a small portion of the glaze, sprinkle with salt, rosemary, oregano and of course, crushed pepper. Wrap in foil and pop into oven (at 180 C) for 15 mins. Turn over, and bake for another 10 mins at 150 C. You will know the fish is done when it becomes opaque and flakes off on a fork.

Garnish with a few sprigs of dill. Serve hot with mustardsauce.

Tips:

Guessing that you would not want wine on a week night. Accompany with a chilled glass of water with a quarter of a lemon and a couple of sprigs of mint. No sugar, no salt. The ice-cold water will open up your palate to the herby flavor of the baked fish.