Another beginning :)

Dear All,
                I am glad to announce that I have gone a step further with my passion for blogging. So, here is my new website http://abhipsakitchenkarma.com/

Now on I will be posting recipes on my new space. Do visit and enrich me with your valuable feedback.

Love,
Abhipsa

Masala baby potatoes roast- My 50th post :)

Till I decided to marry I did not know much about cooking. I was happy, but when I thought about making the “MAN” of my life happy, cooking somehow seemed to be a bright option. Moreover, I was a hardcore foodie. I was reluctant at the beginning but all thanks to my “Mamu”, “Maiin” and “Tutul” (my little cousin brother who was still in school then, but nevertheless he was an amazing cook) who introduced me to the basics of cooking. The image of my cousin teaching me to chop onions using a knife is still so vivid.

Its more than two years now and I have worked really hard to sharpen my cooking skills and managing the kitchen. I discovered about food blogging very late, but had no plans to be part of it. But then things happened gradually, when I started to create dishes and there was an intense need in me to preserve the essence of my learnings. I started writing for myself, then I thought of sharing with my friends and anybody who shares the passion for cooking. I am still to complete a year as a food blogger and here comes my 50^th post that too before this year ends. This year has not been a smooth riding year but somehow I managed to pull it off…all thanks to you!! I want to thank all the dear ones in my life who have endlessly supported, appreciated and encouraged me.

Coming to the recipe, I am sharing a quite delectable recipe with my favorite vegetable and that is “potatoes”. All my childhood I have survived on it, I would not touch any other vegetable and any reason wouldn't make any sense to me. So, here is the recipe with cute little baby potatoes that bursts with lovely flavors. All my sweet readers I will meet u next year with some more exciting recipes. Blessings…blessings and blessings all around.

Masala baby potatoes roast

Serves: 2 to 3 persons

Ingredients:

Baby potatoes- 500 grams (with skin on and washed thoroughly)

Roasted cumin powder- ½ tbsp.

Coriander powder- ½ tbsp.

Chili powder- ½ tbsp.

Turmeric powder- ½ tsp.

Cumin seeds- ¼ tbsp.

Green chilies- 4

Oil- 2-3 tbsp.

Salt to taste

Water as required

Procedure:

Heat oil in a Kadhai, once hot add cumin seeds and green chilies. After it has spluttered add potatoes, roasted cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, chili powder and salt. Mix everything well sprinkle some water, reduce the flame low heat. Cover and cook. Check every now and then, anytime you find the masala sticking to the pan, sprinkle some water and keep on stirring so that all the potatoes are evenly cooked. Cover and cook till done. Depending on the size of the potatoes it may take about from 20-30 minutes.

Notes:

Do not cook over medium or high flame, let it cook slowly on low flame for best results.

Using roasted cumin powder gives this additional punch in terms of flavor.

Dahi vadas cuttacki style

I would be homebound soon and yes I am happy…very happy and super happy. Cuttack is known for its variety of street foods. Being a true “Cuttacki” at heart, I am an ardent fan of all that is served on the streets of Cuttack…be it Chaat, Dahi vada alu dum, Gup chup….well anything and everything under the sky of Cuttack. Interestingly, I know people who would happily survive for days just on Dahi vada alu dum. Coming to the recipe, I would be sharing just the “Dahi vadas cuttacki style”. Hopefully, soon I will share the recipe for both “Ghuguni” and “Alu dum”- So that together we all can enjoy the bliss of home-made Dahi vada alu dum. So here goes the recipe for "Dahi vadas cuttacki style" you all.

Dahi vadas cuttacki style

Serves: 8 to 10 persons

Ingredients:

For Vadas :

Urad dal (split) - 1.5 cup

Ginger- 1’’ inch

Cumin seeds- 2 tsp.

Green chilies (long) - 2 (finely chopped)

Curry leaves- 1 (spring)

Black pepper- ½ tsp.

Water- ¼ cup (approx.)

For Dahi masala :

Curd- 500 gms

Black salt-2 tsp.

Roasted cumin-chili powder- 1 tbsp.

Sugar- ½ tsp.

Coriander leaves- 4 tbsp. (finely chopped)

Water- ½ to 1 cup (approx.)

Salt to taste

Procedure:

For Vadas: Take Urad dal and soak it in water for 4-5 hours. Now grind it into a smooth paste by adding very little water. Now roughly pound cumin and pepper. Then using hands roughly chop the curry leaves and grate the ginger. Now add salt, green chilies, cumin, pepper, ginger and curry leaves to the Urad dal batter. Using a spatula beat the batter well as it would ensure that the added ingredients have mixed well and the batter holds on air. Now heat oil over medium heat to deep fry the vadas. After that in a bowl take some water and every time before you fry the vadas dip your hand in water, bring some batter shape it into flattened balls and slowly leave it into oil. Let it fry in one side and once that side is done it would rise up and then you may turn on the other side to be fired. Fry the all the Vadas this way.

Take a big bowl with water at room temperature. Now after straining the fried vadas leave them in the bowl of water. Let it remain in water for ½-1 hour. Then drain out the excess water by gently pressing the Vadas in between your palms.  While the Vadas are soaking in water prepare the masla dahi.

For Masala Dahi and final Dahi vadas –Take curd in a big bowl and beat it well along with water. After that add salt, sugar, black salt and roasted cumin-chili powder. Now take the water soaked Vadas and dip it in the curd masala mix. Let the vadas stand immersed in curd for 30 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves, sev and serve.

Notes: 

For another authentic version you may add a tadka of cumin seeds and curry leaves.

This is “Cuttacki” version of Dahi Vadas where we use curd that is of very thin in consistency.

I ran out of sev, so couldn’t garnish with the same in this picture. But, yes if you have it add lot of it to the Dahi vadas.

Finally, I have created the dish from my own understanding of what I have grown eating up all these years.

Shahi Rajma masala

 As a child I rarely could get my hands over “rajma”, simple because in Odisa “rajma” was rarely seen as hero curry. However, I remembered seeing an advertisement of “Rajma masala” on T.V and yes it did caught my imagination. I wanted to have it the exact way- the luscious looking gravy with the very attractive red beans. So my Mom, as I remember made it once but she didn’t let me eat with rice as it was a semi-dry gravy. Moreover, we “Odia” people are in need of an elaborate lunch so just “rajma-chawal” could never be visualized as an option.

When I moved to Delhi for higher studies, it did take me some time to appreciate the elegance of simple lunch duos like “rajma chawal”, “chole-chawal” or even “kadi chawal”. Now they all are my favorite and “rajma-chawal” tops the list. Frankly speaking, I have never seen anybody cooking “rajma”, so I took a long time to experiment and zero on some of the very lovable recipes. One of the recipe that is close to my heart is “Shahi Rajma masala”- It looks like a regal rajma gravy and is indeed very impressive in terms of taste. So, here is my recipe that I am sure you would love it.

Shahi Rajma masala

Serves: 3 to 4 persons

Ingredients:

Rajma- 1 ½ cup

Onion (medium) - 3 (chopped)

Tomato (medium) - 2 (chopped)

Garlic cloves- 15

Ginger- ½’’ inch

Green cardamom-3

Black cardamom-1

Cloves-6

Cinnamon – 1’’ inch stick

Cumin seeds- ½ tsp

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp.

Chili powder- 2 tsp.

Cream- 1 tbsp. + 2 tsp for garnishing

Oil- 1 ½ tbsp.

Butter- ½ tbsp.

Water as required

Salt to taste

Procedure:

Soak rajma for 6-8 hours. Then pressure cook rajma with salted water till done. Meanwhile, roughly pound the whole garam masalas, ginger and garlic separately. Heat oil in Kadhai, once hot add the pounded garam masalas, followed by garlic and ginger. Fry it well till slightly browned, then add onions. Sauté well till translucent, after that add tomatoes, coriander powder, chili powder and salt. Drizzle the pan with some water. Cook the masala well, till the raw smell of the powdered spices vanishes. Do add water if the masala sticks to the Kadhai. Once the masala is cooked well, take it off the flame. It may take about 20-25 minutes. Cool the masala and grind it into a smooth paste with some water. 

Put the pan back on flame, add butter and after it melts add the cumin seeds. After they splutter, add the grounded masala and water as per your desired gravy consistency. Bring it to a boil and then simmer the gravy, cook for 5 minutes and then add rajam. Reserve about 2 tbsp. of rajma, mash and add it to the gravy. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Check for the spice and salt level in the gravy. Finally add cream and give it a final stir. Before serving garnish it with cream.

Shahi Rajma masala tastes best with steamed rice or zeera rice. 

Notes:

Instead of cream, you may add 1/4^th cup of milk to the gravy and cook for another 5-8 minutes.

This is a spicy gravy, if prefer a lighter version then do consider reducing the amount of garam masalas and chili powder used.

Adding mashed rajma will give additional flavor and thickness to the gravy.

Tomato Khatta with raisins

Tomato Khatta is a prominent side-dish in almost every Odia household during winters as tomatoes are galore. Odia people prefer their chutneys to be high on a sweeter side. So though we call it “Khatta” which means “sour”, we actually make it more of sweet and less of sour. However, there is another version of Tomato Khatta which is actually sour as no sugar is added to it. But in respect to popularity, the "Sweet Tomato khatta" is a real heart winner. To give the "Tomato Khatta" more of sweetness punch, dates or raisins are added. Today I will be sharing the recipe of Tomato Khatta with raisins.

Tomato Khatta with raisins

Serves: 4 persons

Ingredients:

Tomato (medium) - 6

Raisins -1 tbsp.

Panch phoron - 1 tsp.

Curry leaves - 7-8

Dry red chilies-2

Ginger- 1 inch (crushed)

Sugar- 6 tbsp.

Roasted cumin- chili powder- 4 tsp.

Salt to taste

Procedure: 

Chop the tomatoes and heat up the pan. Pour in oil, once hot add the panch phoron, dry red chilies, curry leaves and ginger. Let it sputter for few seconds and when you can smell the nice aroma, then add the chopped tomatoes along with salt. Let it cook for five minutes and when the tomatoes turn mushy, add sugar and raisins. Cover and cook for 10 more minutes.  Taste for the sweetness, if you want it sweeter you may add more of sugar. Finally, add the roasted cumin-chili powder and turn off the gas after giving it a final stir.

Notes:

You can substitute raisins with chopped dates.

You may increase or decrease the sweetness level as per your preference.

This can be stored for about 4-5 days in a refrigerator.

Soyabean aloo kasha

I was going through my blog and I realized that last 8 posts have been about non-vegetarian recipes. So thought of sharing a vegetarian recipe. It is not that I cook less of vegetarian food but I think I am somewhat more excited to share successful trials with non-vegetarian food. From next time on I will work towards creating a balance, so that all my readers can have a look at both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food. Now coming to the recipe, Soyabean aloo kasha involves soya and aloo with a special Odia treatment to it. So here goes the recipe for you all.

Soyabean aloo kasha

Serves: 3 to 4 persons

Ingredients:

Soya bean- 1 cup (small variety)

Potato (large) - 1 (boiled, peeled and cubed)

Onion (medium)-2 (cut into thin slices) and 1 (chopped)

Tomato (medium) - 3 (chopped)

Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp.

Turmeric powder- ½ tsp.

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp.

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Red chili powder - ½ tbsp.

Kashmiri chili powder- 1 tsp.

Cinnamon- ½’’ inch stick

Cardamom- 2

Cloves-6

Oil- 2 tbsp.

Sugar- 1 tsp.

Coriander leaves- 2 tbsp.

Salt to taste

Procedure:

Cook the soya bean as per the packaging instructions in salted water. Now heat oil in a pan, add sugar and let it melt. Once done add onions and sauté it well till translucent. Now take chopped onion, tomato, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, Kashmiri chili powder in a grinder and ground it into a smooth paste using little water.

After the onion have turned translucent, add ginger-garlic paste and fry it till the raw smell disappears. Then add the grounded masala, salt and do scrape out the remaining masala with some water. Cover and cook the masala well, till the masala leaves oil from it sides. This process takes about 15-20 minutes. Whenever you find the masala sticking to the bottom of the pan, add little water and continue cooking. When the masala is well cooked add potatoes and soya beans. Fry it well and then cover and cook for another 5- 8 minutes.  Finally garnish it with coriander leaves and serve.

Soya bean and aloo kasha goes well with zeera rice or rotis.

Notes:

If the curry will taste sour you may consider some more sugar to balance the taste.

Frying the soyabean in oil after they have been cooked in salted water will give more flavor to the recipe.

If you want you can avoid adding potatoes to this recipe.

Dailywala anda aloo curry

Well Sunday ho ya Moday roz khao Ande!! So here I get the recipe of “Dailywala anda aloo curry” for you this Monday. After a long time today- A Monday...This Monday has been so relaxing and rejuvenating. I didn’t cook since morning, but planning to cook for dinner. So before I enter my Kingdom, I thought of sharing this egg curry recipe that could be seen as a viable option for that quick Monday cooking that brings together both health and taste. “Dailywala anda aloo curry” is simple and spicy gravy made with the regular masalas for that super-fast cooking session.

Dailywala anda aloo curry

Serves: 2 persons

Ingredients:

Eggs- 4 (boiled and peeled)

Potatoes (small) - 2 (cut into thin slices)

Onion (small) - 2 (finely chopped)

Tomato (small) - 2 (finely chopped)

Ginger-garlic paste- ½ tbsp

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp

Cumin powder- 3 tsp

Chili powder- 1 tbsp + ½ tbsp

Turmeric powder- ½ tsp

Salt to taste

Oil- 1 tbsp

Ghee- 2 tsp.

Water as required

Procedure:

Heat ghee in a pan and fry the boiled eggs till golden brown on all the sides.  Strain and keep it aside. Then take ½ tbsp. oil and fry the potatoes well till done and the keep it aside. Then heat 1 tbsp. oil in the pan, add onions and cook till they turn translucent. After that add ginger-garlic paste and sauté it well till the raw smell disappears.

 Then add tomatoes, coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder and chili powder. Fry it well, drizzle the pan with some water, cover and cook the masalas till oil oozes from the sides of the masala. Add salt and water (do use hot water) as per your desired gravy consistency. Give it a boil, then reduce the flame and continue cooking for another 5-8 minutes. Finally add the fried eggs and potatoes. Simmer it for another 2 minutes and it is ready to be served.

Dailywala anda aloo curry tastes best with rotis or Khichidi.

Notes:

Frying the eggs is optional.

Frying the eggs with ghee gives it a nice flavor.