easy diwali mithai : kaddu ka kalakand or pumpkin kalakand recipe

My Diwali greetings to you all with this easy recipe of pumpkin kalakand. May you find more light, fight darkness successfully and lead others towards light too. Diwali brings that kind of vibes if we are open to it. And there is some mithai, some diyas and candles after a mandatory spring cleaning exercise. The woollies will be out soon and we will soon eat some chooda matar with the fresh tender green peas. Every banarasi starts dreaming of chooda matar breakfasts as soon as there is the first sign of winter.

I have been away for quite a long time, was traveling for the good part of it and then got caught up with pending work that had to be finished on priority. Thank you for writing back to me and let me know you all were missing my posts here. I shall try and write more regularly and bring the food we love. Will come back with storied from Mysore too.

I hope you would like this pumpkin kalakand. Kalakand is a soft cheesecake like dessert with granular solids of lightly curdled milk if I have to describe it, but the good thing is that kalakand can be made with many shortcut methods with very minute difference in the resulting taste and texture. Since the milk is reduced first and curdled lightly in the traditional method of making kalakand the texture is richer with the traditional method. But then we make the recipes suitable for a modern lifestyle, to be able to cook them in lesser time, make them healthier etc etc. and try and replicate the original.

This short cut kalakand recipe that also includes some good fiber and carotenes is very close to the texture of original kalakand with added taste of ripe pumpkin and a hint of nutmeg. I had made an apple kalakand (in microwave) last year and many of my friends and readers had made that at home within a couple of days. And I remember how I kept getting requests regarding how the recipe can be adjusted to stove top method and if one could replace the milk powder with something else.

In the last year I have made that apple kalakand several times both in microwave and a heavy bottomed pan and recently I taught that recipe to the volunteer Chefs at ISKON Mysore as well. Even they wanted an alternate recipe of such an easy and tasty mithai so I decided to work on another kalakand recipe that is fairly easy and takes a little more time than the apple kalakand.

Using grated pumpkin was on my mind for some time and I had to do it. I did two trials and found that precooking the grated pumpkin works better. I microwaved a cup of grated pumpkin for 2 minutes before using it for kalakand and used freshly made paneer for it. Minimal sugar to sweeten it as always.

Total time that this recipe takes would be around 30 minutes of grating pumpkin, making paneer (chhena) and cooking again and about an hour of refrigeration to set the kalakand properly.

ingredients
(for 16 regular sized kalakand)

grated pumpkin (use the orange fleshed ripe pumpkin) 1 cup packed
whole milk (6%) 1 kilo
fresh cream 3 tbsp
lime juice 2 tbsp diluted with 2 tbsp water
nutmeg powder 1 pinch
sugar to taste. I used 4 tbsp
chopped pistachios to garnish (or any other nuts)

procedure

Microwave the grated pumpkin for 2 minutes or cook them till they get limp and soft but not mushy. Keep side.

Heat the milk in a large pot till a thin film of fat starts forming on top. Wait till the point where the milk is just about to boil. Add the lime juice 1 tsp at a time at this point and keep stirring the milk. Stop adding the lime juice as soon as you see curdled milk and clear whey.

Line a strainer with muslin and keep it over another pot to collect whey. Pour the milk into the strainer and let the whey separate (the whey can be used to knead bread dough). Collect the milk solids and crumble it using a potato masher nicely.

Now place this crumbled paneer (or chhena) into a pan along with the half cooked grated pumpkin and sugar and cook for about 5 minutes on medium flame. It would release some water and start drying up. Add the fresh cream and nutmeg powder together and cook till it is all dry but moist.

Empty the contents on a greased tray or plate and flatten the mixture using a flat knife. Make the edges smooth and shape it so you can cut uniform pieces. Or just use a suitable square dish to spread the mix. Sprinkle chopped nuts and press them so they stick well.

Refrigerate this plate for an hour or so. Cut pieces and serve as required. This kalakand stays well in the fridge for 4 days easily. Keep it in an airtight container lined with butter paper.

The texture of this kalakand is crumbly as it should be but it binds well and doesn't break into your hands. If it breaks while lifting it means it needs some more cooking so cook it again and let it dry a bit more and let it set again.

You can add any spices of your choice to this kalakand as pumpkin takes spices really well in desserts. You would be surprised at how well it works with this kalakand. A mild hint of nutmeg and a deep rich taste of pumpkin with taste and texture of a regular kalakand. That's how this pumpkin kalakand tastes.

Make this diwali healthier with home made mithai I must add. We never buy any mithai during festivals as there is a lot of spurious stuff added to them during season of high demand.

Ever wonder how much milk production do we do in the country not to disrupt regular milk supply and still convert the world into a big mithai shop during festivals?

easy paneer makhni recipe...

Paneer makhni, paneer butter masala or butter paneer masala is more of a restaurant style curry whose roots lie in the dhaba food. Many highway dhabas serve a nice and thick tomato gravy with large chunks of paneer with a generous slathering of butter, served with hot tandoori rotis this Punjabi staple has quenched our hunger many times while traveling. Most of us order paneer makhni and kaali daal or daal makhni on highway dhabas just because these are fast moving items on their menu and good quality and freshness is assured. Same goes with restaurants as well, most of them make nice makhni paneer and makhni daal even if other vegetarian curries are screwed up big time on their menu. 

Makhni paneer is always great at highway dhabas more because they get very good quality raw milk from local sources and make their own paneer fresh. This makes a whole lot of difference to how the fat cubes of paneer behave in a rich curry. 

On second thoughts, the highway dhabas even have access to fresh local tomatoes too while we in the urban jungles depend on roma tomatoes and dry cardboard type tomato varieties most of the times. Good quality fresh tomatoes too would make a difference to the final flavor of this curry. 

Here is how I make this curry at home. This is the most convenient curry as one doesn't need to chop many things and saute or fry anything at all. Just pressure cook a few things together, puree using a hand blender and simmer with added spices and butter. Fresh home made paneer can be done on the other side of the gas stove if you wish. I always do that so it is a melt in your mouth type paneer makhni for us each time it is made. Although I feel the tartness or the creaminess of the gravy differs sometimes if I use different varieties of tomatoes. We get different varieties of tomatoes in different seasons but choose the freshest, deep red, fully ripe tomatoes to get the best flavors possible.

ingredients...

For pressure cooking..
fresh fully ripe tomatoes roughly chopped 300 gm
red onions sliced 100 gm
peeled garlic pods 3-4
ginger root roughly chopped 1 tbsp
dry red kashmiri chilies 5-6 or to taste (you can use kashmiri chilly powder too)
salt to taste

Other ingredients..
freshly home made paneer (or store bought if you wish) 200-250 gm
garam masala 1/2 tsp (special garam masala which doesn't have coriander, cumin and peppers)
dry kasoori methi crushed 1 tbsp or to taste
butter 50 gm or more to taste
fresh cream 50 ml (optional, I didn't use it this time)
sugar 1 tsp to balance the tartness sof tomatoes

I use a homemade tomato paste or sun dried tomatoes mostly to make the curry quicker, otherwise you need to reduce the gravy a bit on the gas stove. Works nicely either ways. Add about 2 tbsp tomato paste or sun dried tomato paste while pressure cooking if using.

procedure...

Pressure cook everything in the first list. Cooking till the first whistle blows is enough. Cool down the pressure cooker and then blend the mixture with the help of an immersion blender or using your food processor. Sieve the liquid if required. I don't sieve it ever.

Return to the pressure cooker pan, the liquid will be cooked without the pressure lid now. Reduce the gravy to a desired consistency and then add the fresh paneer cubes, crushed kasoori methi and garam masala powder. Add cream if using and simmer for about 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning, add sugar if required, add the butter and transfer the curry in the serving bowl.

Serve hot with your choice of flat bread. Roti, naan, kulcha or roomali roti goes well with this curry.

rasse wali paneer bhurji | a curried paneer scramble that can be your dinner soup...

Paneer bhurji is a scramble cooked quickly using paneer and some onion, tomatoes and herbs. I have done Amritsari paneer bhurji from a cookbook and keep scrambling paneer all the time for convenience.

Basically a quick fix meal or a side dish or even a sandwich filling. Every home has it's own recipe of paneer bhurji with additives like bell peppers, spinach, green peas  or sometimes kasoori methi or fresh methi greens thrown in. I myself depend on such combinations many times when I have to stir up a simple and quick lunch box for the husband.

The dry version can be made using regular store bought paneer or homemade fresh paneer that just gets ready while you are chopping and stir frying your onion and tomatoes etc. It is the gravy version of paneer bhurji that requires a little different approach. The paneer in this case, is not sieved like home made paneer, but just collected from the whey and directly put into the cooking bhurji. The result is a perfectly creamy half curdled paneer into a rich and flavorful curry.

Read on, this is a pictorial step by step recipe so you would know how to go about it exactly the way I did...

ingredients...

full cream milk 1 Liter (to make paneer)
yogurt 1 heaped tbsp to curdle the milk

diced red onions 1 cup
sliced ripe tomatoes (preferably desi tomatoes) 2.5 cup
finely chopped garlic 1 tbsp
finely chopped ginger 1 tbsp
finely chopped green chilies to taste
kashmiri red chilly powder 1 tsp or to taste
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
coriander powder 1 tsp
black pepper powder 1/2 tsp
ghee 1.5 tbsp

procedure...

Heat the milk till it reaches just about to the boiling point, add the yogurt and stir. Take the pan off the flame and let it stand. The milk curdles partially and keep curdling till you prep up the other ingredients.

Now heat the ghee in a deep pan (kadhai) and tip in the chopped ginger, garlic, green chilies and red onions ...

Stir fry these till the onions get translucent, add the powder spices and salt to taste and mix well for about a minute. Then add the sliced tomatoes ..

Cook till the mixture looks like this...

Now sieve the curdled paneer and add to the cooking mixture, without waiting for the whey to drip, this way some of the whey is also added to the curry ..

The curry turns a little watery, mix well and simmer till it reaches the consistency you like...

Garnish with freshly chopped coriander greens...

Serve hot with chapati and some salad...We had this mooli ka acchar with this meal...

This rasse wali bhurji makes a truly soulful food, it can be served with plain parathas or like a hearty soup if you wish. I would love some garlic bread with this bhurji as well.

It makes a good curry for a large crowd too, in that case you would like to use freshly made regular paneer, crumbled nicely and added to the curry along with some fresh milk to make it soft while it cooks further.

Add some green peas if you have them fresh and nice. No frozen peas please.
You could add some kasoori methi as well if you love it that way.
It is the melt in the mouth type paneer that makes this recipe special  seasoning and other flavors can be adjusted to suit your taste.

Amritsari Paneer bhurjee ...

This recipe is supposed to be from the book Chakh Le India by Aditya Bal who hosts the TV show by the same name. The book was sent to us so we can read and try something from it before we meet the author and the host of the TV show. I tried this Amritsari Paneer bhurji the first thing form the book and was planning on Malabar prawns.

Paneer bhurji is a recipe which cannot go wrong and any one staying in a hostel can make it for a quick meal. Toss anything that you like with Paneer and a nice bhurji that you love would be ready in a few minutes.

Still we look out for more variations so there is a recipe for every mood and requirement. That's how we enjoy the same food a renewed interest every time. You don't expect to go wrong with a simple recipe right?

I realised when I started assembling things for the bhurji, having made my paneer freshly., the ingredient list looked just sufficient for my 200 gms of paneer while it was listed for 400 gm. Was proven right later.

The recipe...

ingredients..
200 gm fresh paneer
1 tbsp butter ( Aditya's recipe uses 1 tsp refined oil too, I omitted)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/4" cassia bark (daalchini)
1/2 cup of finely chopped onion( his recipe says1 medium sized onion)
1/2: ginger chopped fine
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp everyday curry powder (his recipe says coriander powder)
salt to taste
1 large ripe tomato chopped fine
1/4 tsp sugar
2 green chillies chopped
1/2 tsp dried mango powder or Amchoor
(I omitted)

To finish the dish...juice of 1/2 lime, 3 tsp chopped coriander greens ( I didn't have) and 1 tbsp butter.

procedure...

Crumble the paneer and set aside.

Heat butter in a pan and add cumin seeds,dalchini and chopped onions all at once. Fry till onions gets golden brown. Add the chopped ginger too. Cook for a minute with the powdered spices added at this step.

Add salt and sprinkle water and bhuno the masala while scraping the pan from sides. Add chopped tomatoes and cook them till they turn mushy. Add sugar to balance the sourness  and keep cooking till a glaze appears.

Add the green chillies, crumbled paneer and the amchoor powder (if using). Mix well to combine. Mash the paneer with the back of the ladle if you wish.

Finish with some more butter, lime juice if required and chopped coriander greens if using.

Served with plain chapatis or parathas this paneer bhurji is great as all of us know :-)

The recipe was tweaked at some places like using my own spice blend and using only butter instead of a little refined oil in the original recipe too. The amount of paneer reduced to half and the dish was actually yummy.

The recipe as written in the book would have left the freshly made paneer (a valuable commodity as I had worked on it) bland and under seasoned.

Did I forget about telling you all about Malabar Prawn curry that I was about to try from this book? When I saw the recipe and the ingredient list, I got worried about the future of the frozen Prawns I had bought thinking of making a yummy dinner for ourselves.  I made this Cashew and Prawns stir fry instead. Couldn't afford to risk a packet of precious Prawns and even pricier Coconut milk.

And then we all at Cal blogger's table went to Veda at CP. To chat with the TV show host and the author of this book. What happened there will be posted just next. Stay tuned in...

A cheat's version of matar paneer | a quick and low fat matar paneer recipe

A quick matar paneer recipe, a cheat's version.

Not only to save time but to make the dish low on fats too. I used butter and ghee to make this matar paneer and if that can be done in the lowest possible amount and the results are nice and aromatic, you would prefer this cheat's version whenever you want to cook matar paneer. Note that I usually don't cook low fat but if a curry is being served with paratha or other fatty sides, it makes sense to lower the fats in the curry.

Before sharing the recipe I have to share an exciting thing with you all. I am counting down the last few days before my biking expedition. A group of 100 women is biking through the most grueling passes in the Himalayas to reach the highest motorable road to Khardung La. I am a part of this wonderful group and will be cycling with them, starting from Kullu, going up to Khardung La and then back to Leh. It is a 600km ride to be covered in 17 days. I just can't wait to be at the base camp at Kullu to start this ride of my life time.

Now you must understand the reason for a quick curry to be posted quickly too.

The usual fare of Banaras ka khana will be back after a break of about 3 weeks. This matar paneer was made in huge quantity and was frozen to last a few days in my absence. You understand that :-)


ingredients...
( 4-6 servings)
paneer 400 gm
green peas 250 gm ( i used frozen)
red ripe tomatoes 500 gm
onion 200 gm
garlic pods 4-5 nos.
ginger 1 inch piece chopped roughly
red chilly powder 2 tsp
cinnamon 2 pieces on an inch each
bay leaves 2-3 nos.
black cardamom 1 large
everyday curry powder 1 tbsp
turmeric powder 2 tsp
salt to taste
butter 2 tsp
ghee 2 tsp
freshly milled black pepper as per taste
fresh cream or malai to finish

procedure...

In a pressure cooker boil the roughly chopped tomatoes, onions, garlic pods, roughly chopped ginger, red chilly powder, cinnamon and thrashed black cardamom. Boil these ingredients just till the whistle blows and then let the cooker cool down and release the pressure.

I do this step in microwave and cook all the ingredients covered for 8-10 minutes and proceed after cooling them a bit so they are safe to handle. They are going to be pureed.

Remove the bay leaves,whole cinnamon and black cardamom and bland everything fine, like a soup. The skin of tomatoes can be removed before blending.

Meanwhile cook the peas in microwave too for 3 minutes. If not doing this add the peas in the pan after powdered spices and cook them with a sprinkling of water before adding the puree.

Now heat the ghee and butter in a pan and tip in the powders of  turmeric and everyday curry powder. Just let it get roasted and get aromatic, taking utmost care not to burn the powders. It will be wise to remove the pan from heat after heating the ghee n butter and then add the powders.

Pour in the pureed mixture, tip in the paneer cubes, the cooked peas and give it a good boil.

Add a tbsp of fresh cream or malai to finish .

It actually took more time to write the recipe than cooking it. The pictures are night time snapshots and I could not take any pictures of the leftovers too as the extra curry was promptly frozen.

This is one curry which you would love to cook for it's easy foolproof procedure and the ease of making a creamy looking curry without much cream and butter.

Which one would you like? A rich matar paneer or the cheat's version?

malai paalak paneer ...

It's no ordinary paalak paneer so don't be disillusioned by the name . It is a malai (fresh cream) paneer paalak where the paneer plays the protagonist adorned with malai . Paalak remains in the background , giving subtle hints of a greeny freshness infused with garlic .

Sinful is the word . Paalak ( spinach) is not just for cosmetic purpose in this silken stir fry and it will be great of you get some baby spinach or the very tender variety of spinach ...leaves only. The garlic infused spinach has it's own charm , a mild sweetness brought by the sauteed onions. And there is just enough heat brought in by chopped green chillies and some red chilly flakes thrown in .

Fresh paneer has it's own charm and i would suggest using as fresh as you can . If using the packaged paneer , it better to let it boil submerged in water first and then use for this curry .

ingredients...
(for 3-4 servings depending on weather it is served as a main or side dish)
paneer cubed 200 gm

baby spinach or tender spinach leaves 2 cups (i used fresh from my garden)
sliced onions 1 cup
finely chopped garlic 2 tsp
chopped green chillies 1 tsp
red chilly flakes 1 tsp
freshly grated nutmeg 1/5 tsp
ghee or butter 1 tbsp
whole cumin seeds 1 tsp
freshly milled peppercorns 1 tsp
salt to taste
fresh cream 2 tbsp

preparation...

There is no paste to be made and no extensive peeling chopping done , so the dish gets ready within 15 minutes once the ingredients are ready .

Heat ghee or butter in a pan and thrown in the cumin seeds first and then the garlic . Let the garlic brown and then add the sliced onions and green chillies.
Add salt and freshly milled pepper and saute the onions just enough to make them sweat.

Add the paneer and roughly chopped spinach , mix well to coat and let the spinach wilt . Add red chilly powder and keep stirring to let the flavors seep in . Keep the flame low after adding paneer as it may stick to the base .

Add the cream and grated nutmeg , mix well and cook covered on very low flame for about 2-3 minutes.

Serve hot with chapatis or naan..

This dish is a creamy satiny curry with very soft and fresh paneer . The sauce is just enough to coat the paneer cubes and the vegetables bits are soft cooked but not gooey . The onion and spinach both retain their individuality and yet mingle with the subtle spicing .

Red chilly flakes , green chillies and black peppercorns make the dish quite hot too which hits the palate instantly . The heat becomes lesser when the dish is consumed the next day . It reheats very well in the microwave and freezes well too .

Adjust heat to your preference and add lesser red chilly flakes if you want it mild and if you are serving it immediately after cooking. If serving the next day you could go liberal with chilly or peppercorns...

Roomali roti or thin chapatis are the best accompaniments . A greens salad could make a great meal along with it...

Enjoy...

mung ke cheeley or mung ka cheela | UP wala paneer stuffed mung ka cheela

Food can be nostalgia inducing. Very much so. Sometimes people stop eating their favorite foods when an unpleasant experience gets attached with it. Even when the most pleasant memories are attached with a particular food you can feel like not having it again as the memories it brings can be pain inducing. This mung ka cheela has been one such recipe. 

A cheela is a savory crepe to make you acquainted with this term.

A couple of weeks back I was at a wedding party (In Lucknow) and mung ka cheela was being served as a part of a huge range of appetizers. I told an Oriya friend of mine to take her kids to that counter as kids like it very much. They were tasting mung ka cheela for the first time and this friend was intrigued enough to ask me how did I know that her kids would love it more than the other fancier and exotic looking things around. I chuckled in my mind.

The reason why I knew it was, Mithi loved it too. I remembered the time when other kids used to play with Mithi and this mung ka cheela used to be a hot favorite with all of them whenever they were together in my home. Probably it is the mildly favored slightly chewy nature of this cheela that kids find great to munch on, not that we adults find it like baby food.

It is a great breakfast dish but more popular as an appetizer in wedding parties I guess. The rolled up cheela sliced in 2 - 3 small portions seems to be very popular as I have witnessed. I am talking about the wedding parties in UP .

So I didn't make this particular cheela for a long time. Some 8 years to be precise, the time since Mithi stopped taking solid food. And I never felt like cooking her favorite foods ever again.

When I saw these small kids enjoying this cheela I realy felt good and when we came back home I soaked mung daal and made cheelas with freshly made paneer. Nostalgic I was but in a good way.  Now that her proud momma has learned to remember her good healthy days with a smile the nostalgia is good.

The cheela feels complex by it's looks but actually gets ready within 30 minutes at leisurely pace...when you start from soaked mung daal and cold skimmed milk from the fridge ...enjoying the process while making it.

ingredients...

skimmed milk 500 ml
2-3 tsp of white synthetic vinegar or lemon juice to curdle the milk
soaked mung daal withou skin 2 cups
turmeric powder (optional) 1 tsp
chopped onions 3/4 cup
chopped green chillies as per taste
salt to taste
black pepper powder 1 tsp for the stuffing
ghee to make the cheelas 1 tsp per cheela

preparation....

Heat the milk in a saucepan and grind the soaked mung daal while the milk comes to boiling temperature.

Mung daal paste is quick to make as the daal is quite soft. Add salt to taste and turmeric if using, adjust consistency to make thin pancakes or crepes.

Add the vinegar or lemon juice as soon as the milk reaches boiling temperature. Slowly adding the curdling agent helps in getting softer paneer or chhenna as it is called in some parts of UP. Strain the curdled milk as soon as you see the clear whey separating from the curdled milk.The solid part is panner also called cottage cheese. The whey can be used to knead chapati dough .

Add chopped onions, green chillies, salt and pepper to the paneer and mash to make a soft crumbly mixture .
Make thin crepes on hot griddle using very little ghee, it is usually cooked on one side as mung daal cooks quickly. Other side can be cooked if you feel like.

Spread the mixture over the crepe then fold the sides overlapping each other, pressing to flatten the rolled up cheela so the paneer stuffing sticks well to the moist inner layer of cheela.

Serve hot with any chutney of your choice, it can be served with a raita of your choice if you are having it for a meal.

A green coriander chutney goes well with it when it is served as a snack. The cheela can be roasted deep brown or light brown.

The browning has little difference on the final taste, browned ones are crispier though. But both get soft when cool and taste equally good at room temperature too and that makes it a good tiffin box option too. Those who are avoiding or minimizing carbohydrates in their diet  will find this recipe great.

 Mithi used to like this cheela any time of the day and it was a great distraction for her too. I could keep her occupied by giving her this cheela broken into small bits ( sometimes little paneer with just salt as a stuffing and sometimes plain cheela) as she used to pick up every bit with care using her thumb and index finger, popping the bits in her mouth immaculately, neatly. Those are happy memories ...

Make this cheela if you haven't had it already and let me know if it becomes your favorite....I made another version with tofu and i am sure you would like that too...

Note : some readers have indicated that this mung ka cheela could be similar to Andhra pesarettu. I have posted pesarttu earlier. The only similarity between this cheela (crepe) and pesarettu is the ingredient mung daal but the similarity ends there. This is an interesting example of how an ingredient behaves differently in it's different forms. In pesarettu the mung daal used is with skin and the texture and taste of the dosa is very different. Here the husked mung results into a mild flavor and an almost glutinous texture. I have indicated that the roll sticks by itself and stays in shape, that is because if the slightly sticky nature of the mung crepe here. The flavor of the yellow mung is so delicate that another version of mung ka cheela , which includes some seasoning in the batter, tastes very different from this one.

khoya matar makhana or khoya matar paneer paneer : Banaras special curry

Khoya matar makhana is a special curry and we were introduced to this exotic sounding curry when we shifted to Banaras after my dad's transfer from Chandigarh. Somehow my mother never made this khoya matar makhana but she would often make a version of matar paneer that was close to the original khoya matar. In fact many Banaras families make their matar paneer with khoya in it because it gives them the pleasure of both.

Khoya matar makhana is a wonderfully rich and yet subtle flavoured curry. Very creamy in a different way and sweetish spicy, so much different from the usual Punjabi curries we had grown accustomed to. I am not very sure if this curry belongs to Banaras but that was the place we had it for the first time and till date I have never tasted it anywhere else.

That Banaras loves it's khoya and milk products so much I am pretty sure in my heart that khoya matar makhana evolved in Banaras, taking makhana from the neighboring state Bihar.

Yes the reason why I believe this curry belongs to Banaras is that the people of this city are obsessed with khoya, there is a whole market dedicated to khoya named khoya gali near chowk area, and that's not all, there is one kachori gali too and you know how famous is banarasi kachori ....

Like many other banaras special curries, khoya matar does not use any onion garlic and can be a fasting curry too during navratras. I will post a navratra version of this curry sometime.....

Coming back to the recipe, this curry is a creamy rich looking special kinda curry but surprisingly it is not high on fat like those those shahi sounding creamy buttery curries.

Yes, milk powder has very low fat content if you use skimmed milk powder and this khoya is made from that. Also as I have used paneer for this recipe that too has fat in it but overall this curry is lower on fat than the other creamy buttery paneer curries. Nevertheless, this curry is medium rich when fat level is considered although I find it topping the scale of deliciousness.

ingredients....

khoya 1 teacup loosely packed ( I used home made khoya )
green peas (I used frozen this time) 1 cup ( 2.5 cups when not using paneer )
paneer chopped into small cubes 1 cup ( optional as the original recipe is khoya matar makhana)
Use a cup and half of shallow fried makhana if not using paneer
raw tomato puree 1 cup freshly made with raw tomatoes (this is not part of the original recipe, do not use if making khoya matar makhana)
bay leaf 1 no.
salt to taste
ghee 1 tbsp
milk 1 cup (optional, I used water instead )
  
to be made into a paste...
ginger 1 inch piece
green cardamoms 2 nos.
black cardamom 1 no.
cinnamon 1 inch piece
cloves 4 nos.
cumin seeds 1 tsp
black pepper corns 1 tsp
red chilly powder 1-2 tsp

preparation....

Make a paste of the ingredients listed for paste with little water..

Pour ghee in a kadai and add the fresh tomato puree if using, bay leaf, the masala paste and salt to taste.

Now heat the mixture over medium flame and stir to bhuno it a bit....ghee will be separated within a couple of minutes.

Now add the khoya in it. In the meantime I microwaved the peas for 2 minutes, they can be boiled on gas stove too.

Bhuno is the process of dry roasting such a mixture especially a masala paste, so bhuno again till the khoya masala mix bubbles a bit...

Add a cup of water or milk ( adding milk will result in a whiter curry but a bit more rich ) or water , the cooked peas and cubes paneer ...

and let it boil covered till the ghee floats on top...the whole cooking process takes less than 10 minutes...

Serve hot with naan or chapati. The curry is creamy in a different way and the granular texture of khoya makes a surprising gravy. A little sweet and a little spicy and it tastes very good with any plain roti, naan, rumali roti or kulcha.....

Enjoy this quick yet rich curry and think of the ghats of Banaras. Khoya matar makhana or khoya matar paneer both will become your favourite ways to indulge in Indian khana.

paneer pasanda step by step

Paneer pasanda is as exotic as pasanda kababs or sooley kababs for the vegetarians.......... pasanda is a dish where the meat or paneer is cut in big flat pieces , it is then grilled or shallow fried and then is served like a dry starter or dunked into a rich gravy......

I am not an expert of food nomenclature but i think any kind of paneer cubes cooked in a rich cashew nut gravy is not paneer pasanda ....thin slices of paneer sandwiching a rich stuffing in between is the essence of paneer pasanda.......and this posts intends to describe the assembling of the paneer pasanda , i have taken step by step pictures and the prepared pasanda can be frozen for future use or can be made with different types of gravies.

And as many of you might be aware of ........i am not a stickler of authenticity either......taste and convenience is a bigger priority for me............so while traditionally this pasanda is made with a white cashew gravy , i sometimes change the gravy .....so here it is in a tomato gravy and that too a rustic one.....no boiling-pureeing-straining of the gravy .......when i am cooking for just the two of us i don't have the heart to waste the precious fiber away and i like the texture of the gravy with bits of tomato n onions .......you can always go ahead and strain the gravy after finishing it and then simmer the prepared pasanda in it......

Ingredients for the pasanda......

paneer 200 gm ( a cuboid block of paneer is needed to make slices )
cashew nuts chopped finely 50 gm
mint leaves 1 cup loosely packed
green chillies 3-4 nos.
ginger grated 2 tsp
black peppercorns 2 tsp
salt to taste
cornflour 1 tbsp dissolved in 1 tbsp of water

procedure for assembling the pasanda....

Firstly prepare the stuffing of the pasanda...chop the mint leaves and green chilies very finely and crush the peppercorns , mix together everything ( except cornflour solution as it will be used to seal the sandwiches) ....i add about a tbsp of crumbled paneer to the stuffing to make it easier to stuff and to prevent the paneer pasanda from opening up while frying .....you get a few bits of scrapings of paneer when you cut it into neat slices as it is done here , so it's like using the scrapings too......it should be a loosely binding mixture...

Make neat and thin slices of paneer , preferably triangular ....as thin as you can handle to make a sandwich with a coarse filling....stuff the filling with care , stick a spoonful of the mixture to one slice of paneer first , press to make it flat and then cover with another slice of paneer , seal the edges with cornflour solution and press to secure the filling .............repeat with all the slices and keep aside ....

Dip the pasanda in diluted cornflour solution quickly and shallow fry till lightly browned on both sides , it will be easier to do it in batches ........ drain on kitchen tissue.......

It can be fried like an open sandwich too as i have done here with one of them , whatever way you like it n whatever way it is easier to handle for you........

Keep aside and proceed for the gravy......

ingredients for the gravy..
tomatoes 250 gm
onions 150 gm or 2 large onions
2 fat cloves of garlic
4 cinnamon sticks about an inch long
whole coriander seeds 2 tsp
whole black peppercorns 1 tsp
red chilly powder 2 tsp or as hot you want
salt to taste
tomato ketchup 1 tbsp
butter 1 tbsp
fresh cream 1 tbsp


procedure for the gravy

Make a coarse paste of tomatoes and keep aside ... i used my chopper for this.

Make a coarse paste of onion and garlic separately and keep aside.

Heat the butter in a pan and add the coriander seeds, peppercorns and cinnamon stick and wait till they pop.

Add the onion and garlic paste at once with salt , stir to cook till the paste becomes translucent and shiny.

Add the red chilly powder and tomato paste and cook on medium heat till it becomes a thick sauce....stirring occasionally.

Add the tomato ketchup and the fresh cream to finish , bring to a bubbling boil , add some water if the sauce has thickened to your taste or requirement.

Add the prepared paneer triangles and cover for just a minute .

Serve immediately ...........if you need to serve the dish after a while it will be convenient to dunk the paneer pasanda triangles in the sauce just before serving ....after bringing the sauce to a quick boil .....

The paneer pieces may separate to expose the filling if the sauce is boiled too hard after adding them , so it is advisable to prepare the sauce and the pasanda triangles ahead of time and keep them separately until it is time to serve.

Serve immediately with rotis , naans or parathas........i cooked this dish for dinner so the pictures are not very good , it doesn't matter to me much as the procedure n recipe has to be clear and the pictures are just demonstrative.........better pictures are always welcome but it should not deter me from posting a recipe i think......what say??

Taste wise , you get a strong whiff of mint while taking the first bite into the pasanda , more so if it is made in white gravy...so if you wish to have a mint cashew predominance stick to the white gravy ......this gravy has a cinnamon sweetness combined with sourish hot tomato slush and i like it .........the pasanda tringles are a different burst of flavors with mint-cashew as first notes and ginger and pepper hitting the tongue after a while.....leaving a tingling sensation n i love it....

The gravy is hot with peppers and red chilly so it is essentially a hot dish for me , many people like it blander ...that is cashew and mint being the core players and keeping everything else subtle........it can always be adjusted to your taste and preference  .........i would suggest the white gravy paneer pasanda if you like it blander with cashew as a main flavor and especially if it is being served for a party ........it is essentially a party dish unless you feel like having a feast just for yourself n don't mind spending some extra time on the kitchen platform.........i make an easier version of paneer with essentially the same ingredients n flavors but that doesn't qualify to be called a pasanda ......will post that recipe soon..

Enjoy this pasanda till then......

paneer safeda | white paneer curry in a cashewnut gravy

Paneer is the only special treat for vegetarians or one of the few protein rich foods for them. At least it is perceived like this here in India. And a whole lot of paneer recipes are made in Indian homes, mostly because it blends well with all types of flavors, just like eggs and potatoes.  But strangely enough I have not posted many recipes of paneer here although I keep cooking with paneer quite often due to the ease of cooking a quick curry it provides. But when I made this safeda paneer or paneer safeda, which is actually paneer in a white gravy, I could not stop myself from posting it here almost immediately, well that is within 5 days after making it. Can't get quicker than this :-)

Paneer safeda is made in many versions using different types of nuts for their subtle flavors and the taste differs in each of those versions. This recipe is a simple and quick one, like all my recipes which is good for everyday cooking and the flavors are so exotic that it is fit for a formal dinner as a main course dish. Actually last time when I made this dish for a large family get together of 20 people I choose this dish because a few extended family members did not eat garlic and onion. And I had to cook a no fuss recipe because there were many more dishes to be taken care of for a 7 course meal for 20. No need to tell that this dish became the talking point at the table. Simple delicate flavours and rich tasting curry. Many of them asked for the recipe and when I told how simple it is, they were surprised.

This paneer safeda is a Jain recipe (without onion and garlic) but a few other versions make use of onions and a bit of garlic too. Some call it Doodhiya paneer or Chandni paneer with minimal variations like using chopped almonds and saffron as a garnish or finely chopped green chillies and minced ginger as a garnish.

We prefer paneer safeda in it's pure white form. Just like this one.

As I mentioned, paneer safeda is a special recipe meant for formal dinners, more because it is a bit rich tasting due to the use of nut paste. Also because it presents delicately flavored aroma of spices that is appreciated well in most Banaras homes. And paneer safeda goes well with butter naan or roomali roti, more reason to be erved for such north Indian meals.

This time I served it with thin whole wheat chapatis which complemented the dish very well. Note that this recipe is certainly rich because it uses cashew nuts, but it is not a fatty paneer curry which gives you those guilt pangs after a cozy dinner. The amount of cashews per serving is very low, that is about cashews and the amount of fat (I used fresh cream as a cooking medium) is also low, that is 1/2 tbsp of fresh cream per serving. Yeah I calculated the amounts carefully this time and now you know how a rich gravy can be healthy too. Read on...

ingredients..
( serves 4)
paneer 250 gm
cashews 20 nos.
fresh cream (I used fresh malai from whole milk) 2 tbsp
salt to taste

masala made in to a paste
black pepper corns 20 nos. (white peppercorns are better but i didn't have)
green cardamom 3 nos.
black cardamom 1 no.
cinnamon stick 1 inch long
cloves 5 nos.
fresh ginger root 1 inch piece
bay leaf 2 nos. ( scissor cut into fine shreds)

all these ingredients are to be made into a paste with some water in a spice grinder .

procedure..

Cube the paneer into rectangular pieces and keep aside.

Make a fine paste of cashews with some water and keep aside. Cashews can be soaked for a few hours for making fine paste but do it instantly most of the times. You just have to run the grinder for a few more minutes if you are grinding dry cashews along with the spices.

Now pour the fresh cream into the pan (I used a steel kadhai) and filter the masala paste right into the kadhai. Place a sieve on top of the kadhai and pour the masala paste into it and let all the masala extract pour into the kadhai. Reserve the masala  solids to flavor some daal etc., I usually make some sabut masoor daal too with this curry and the same masala gets used in the daal. Sometimes I add the masala solids to kali daal or chane ki daal.

Coming back to the white gravy, now keep the kadhai on flame and let the mixture come to a soft boil.

Now pour in the cashew paste and let it simmer again. It just takes 5-6 minutes....

I took all these pictures because this is an unconventional way of making a gravy and I wanted the procedure to be more clear....

Now add salt and the paneer pieces and let it simmer again, just for 2 minutes more. Cover the kadhai, put off the flame and let it rest for 5 minutes so that the flavors get seeped in..

Serve hot with any kind of flat bread....we did not have any side dish this time as it was meant to be a light but special dinner It truly was so. You would agree when you try this paneer safeda at home.

Enjoy the curry that is often called Chandni subzi or Chandni paneer, doodhiya paneer. Most common name known in Banaras is paneer safeda.

If you don't filter the masala paste for this curry its not a problem. Only that the curry will not be as white and smooth as the picture above. I cooked paneer safeda again sometime back for a dinner and there was quite a lot of leftover curry. This time I did not filter the masala paste and the curry was a bit grainy and a little darker as seen in the picture below. But that taste was unmistakably the same.

Incidentally I cooked sabut masoor ki daal too even though there was no masala solids after filtration. Some foods become such an inseparable pairing in families that they keep repeating together always.
I hope you would like paneer safeda the way we do. Try it and let me know.

Cheers.