Punjabi Cuisine - Jeera Rice & Shahi Paneer

Regional Cuisines of India : Punjabi Cuisine - Jeera Rice & Shahi Paneer

These recipes had been posted for a cooking contest, for the community "Indian women in Singapore" - Regional Cuisines of India, Punjab!!!


Jeera rice

Ingredients:
Long grain Rice(Basmati rice) - 2 cups
Cumin seeds - 2 teaspoons
Bay leaf - 1
Cinnamon stick - 1
Cardamom - 1
Ghee - 2 tablespoons or Oil - 2 tablespoons
Salt - To taste

Method:
Wash rice, drain and keep aside.

In a pan, heat ghee or oil. Add bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin seeds. Fry for a minute, add washed rice, salt to taste and mix well. Add 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Stir slowly and reduce the flame. Cook it until water drains and rice gets cooked.

Serve hot with Shahi Paneer.

Cooking time : 30 minutes
Serves 4 persons

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Shahi Paneer

Ingredients:
Cottage Cheese (Paneer) - 150 gms
Butter - 2 tablespoons or Ghee - 2 tablespoons
Onion - 1 medium sized, finely chopped
Tomatoes - 3-4 medium sized, finely chopped
Ginger - 1 inch size
Garlic - 2 cloves
Green chillies - 2 small sized
Cashew nut - 6-7, soaked in water for 15 minutes
Cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Yoghurt (curd) - 1/2 cup
Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Garam Masala - 1/2 teaspoon
Milk - 1/4
Fresh Cream - 2 tablespoons
Coriander leaves - few
Salt to taste

Method:
Grind ginger, garlic, green chillies, cashew nuts to a fine paste.

Heat a pan, add butter. Once it starts melting, add chopped onions and fry for 3-4 minutes. Add the grinded paste and fry until onions turn golden brown.

Add tomatoes, red chilli powder, garam masala, cardamom powder and cook it covered until it becomes very soft.

Smash the tomatoes with a laddle and fry until the water dries out.

Lower the flame, add yoghurt and mix well. Add 1/2 cup of water, stir it well and cook it in a low flame until the gravy gets thickened.

Cut paneer into small pieces and shallow fry the pieces in a flat pan, with few drops of oil or ghee. Turn the sides, so that all sides turn pale brown colour.

Add fried paneer pieces into the gravy, add milk, salt and cook until the gravy is thick.

Garnish with chopped coriander and fresh cream.

Cooking time: 45-60 minutes
Serves 4 persons.

Coconut Rice (Thengai Sadam)

Ingredients:

Cooked Rice - 4 cups

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Black gram (Urad Dal / Uzhunthu) - 1 tablespoon

Split chickpeas (Kadalai paruppu/Chana dal) - 1 tablespoon

Onions - 2, medium sized, finely chopped

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon

Green chillies - 3-4

Curry leaves - few

Asafoetida powder - a pinch

Oil - 1 tablespoon

Ghee - 1 tablespoon

Fried Cashew nuts - few for garnishing (optional)

Coriander leaves - few chopped for garnishing (optional)

Salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil, ghee in a big pan, when it is hot, add mustard seeds. Once it starts splitter, add urad dal, channa dal, asafoetida powder and fry until the dals turn brown.

Add onions, green chillies, curry leaves and fry until onions are golden brown. Add grated coconut and fry for a minute.

Then add cooked rice, salt and keep stirring for few minutes until all gets mixed well.

Lower the flame and cook it covered with a lid for 10-15 minutes or can be cooked in microwave for 4-5 minutes so that it gets more flavoured.

Garnish with fried cashew nuts and coriander leaves and serve hot.

Cooking time : 15-20 minutes

Serves 2-3 persons

Winter Melon(Neer Pusanikkai) Kootu

Ingredients:
Winter melon - 200 gms
Mung bean (Green Gram/Pacha paruppu) - 2 tablespoons
Lentils (Tur dal) - 1 tablespoon
Split chickpeas (Kadalai paruppu/Chana dal) - 1 tablespoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Red chilli - 2
Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Grated coconut - 2 tablespoons
Black gram (Uzhundhu) - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Coriander leaves - few
Raw rice - 1 tablespoon
Onion - 1 medium sized
Salt to taste
Oil - 1 tablespoon

Method:
Wash raw rice and soak in 1/4 cup of warm water for 15-20 minutes.

Wash mung bean, Lentils, split chickpeas, add 1-2 cups of water, turmeric powder and cook, until the dals are soft. Mash it and keep aside.

Cut winter melon into small pieces. Peel off the skin and discard the seeds. Cook it in a pan or microwave with little water, until they become soft and transparent. Drain the water and keep aside, you can add it at the end if the gravy is too thick.

Grind coconut, cumin seeds, soaked raw rice with little water to a thick paste.

Heat a pan with oil. Add mustard seeds, once it starts splitter, add urad dal, red chillies, curry leaves and fry for a minute. Add chopped onions and fry until onions become golden color. Add cooked winter melon, mashed dal and coconut paste and mix well. Add salt to taste and little water can be added if it is too thick. Keep stirring for 10 minutes and put off the flame.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Cooking time : 45-60 minutes
Serves 4 persons

PIT Photo Contest - April 2008

PIT புகைப்படப் போட்டி- ஏப்ரல் 2008
Theme : தனிமை (Lonliness)

போட்டிக்கான படம்:
வெள்ளை புலி, தனிமையை முகத்தில் கொண்டிருக்கிறது!!!



இரவு வந்தாலே தனிமை!!!

தனியாக தவழ்ந்து வரும் நிலவு!!!

ஜோடி இல்லாமல் கருப்பு புறா!!!

More Rangoli(Kolam) designs

More Rangoli(Kolam) designs




The above designs ae also available at the below location:
http://picasaweb.google.com/illatharasi/RangoliKolamSet3

French Beans Poriyal

Ingredients:
French beans - 1/4 kg
Onions - 1, medium sized
Red chillies - 2-4
Grated Coconut - 1/4 cup
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Black gram (Urad Dal / Uzhunthu) - 1 tablespoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Oil - 2 tablespoons

Method:
Remove the top and tail of beans, cut into thin pieces.

Add oil in a pan and allow the mustard seeds to splitter. Add urad dal and fry until they are light brown. Add cumin seeds, red chillies, chopped onions, curry leaves and fry until onions are soft. Add the cut french beans and fry well. Close the pan with a lid and allow the beans to cook for 10-15 minutes on a low flame.

If the vegetables are not cooked, you can sprinkle water, close lid and cook again for 10 minutes. Once they are cooked, add salt and mix well. Let it cook for 5 minutes and put off hte falme. Garnish with grated coconut and serve hot with rice.

Cooking time : 20-30 minutes
Serves 4-5 persons

Chicken Fry

Ingredients:
Chicken - 1/4 kg
Small Onions - 5 nos
Tomato - 1 medium sized
Garlic - 4-5 cloves, medium sized
Ginger - 1.5 inch long
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Chilli powder - 2-3 tablespoons
Coriander powder - 1-2 tablespoon
Clove - 1
Cinnamon - a small stick
Curry leaves - few
Yoghurt - 2 tablespoons
Salt - To taste
Coriander leaves or Spring onions - few for garnishing
Oil - 3-4 tablespoons

Method:
Wash Chicken and drain water. Add turmeric powder and curd and marinate it well.
Grind small onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic, clove, cinnamon into a fine paste without water.
Add the paste, chilli powder, coriander powder, salt to the chicken and mix well. Let it marinate for 1-2 hours.
Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add oil. Put each piece of chicken and fry on a low flame.
Add curry leaves. Turn the pieces so that all sides are cooked.
Once they are cooked, garnish with coriander leaves or spring onions.
Serve hot with rice.

Cooking time : 30 minutes
Serves - 4 persons