Rangin Palak or Colorful Spinach

These days the word ‘bored’ is too frequent in use. This boredom makes us cranky, depressed. The other day one of my friend was saying that she gets depressed after going back home. So she prefers to be at her work place for long hours. Then again she gets bored; After all how long can you occupy yourself with net browsing, online games, shopping and etc etc!!! This depression level was so high that she had to be under medication. So, we were suggesting her why don’t you do something creative.

Yes, I think creativity is something that is missing from most of our life now. With advanced technologies and stressful lifestyle we have bid a goodbye to creativity. Creativity does not mean you have to be a poet or an artist essentially.

Creativity is something where you nurture your finer qualities, your imaginations. I have a friend who is software professional by profession and he spends his free time with any type of machines- be it an advanced non-functioning toy car or a real one or a food processor- makes them function. He gets his resources from his home, friends and neighbors and actually he is better known as a mechanicJ. I never heard him saying that he is bored. Another friend of mine designs photo albums after scanning the photos. In this way she goes back to old days as well as preserves the old photos. The basic thing is this that we need to keep ourselves busy; we need to give time to us.

R is quite choosy when it comes for food. My 2 yrs old do not love repetition of foods. Then I cannot blame her. Like mother like daughterJ. I have done this enough to my mother. In my tiffin she used to give new and unique items regularly and most of the time it was consumed by my dear friends with lot of appreciation.

Anyway I was talking about R’s choice of food. She loves green leafy vegetables and mostly palak or spinach. But I have to alter the recipes frequently. This Sunday I had cooked spinach with coriander, carrots, paneer and green peas. When she saw it on her plate she said ‘Mamma iddhi (Riddhi) ongin (rongin) bhatu khabe (Riddhi will eat the colorful rice)’. So, this dish is named by her.

chopped carrot and green peas

Ingredients

Palak  1 large bunch

2 carrots small

Green peas

1 tomato

Paneer 200 gms

Coriander leaves 1 small bunch

Salt as per taste

Turmeric

Any vegetable oil 1 table soon

panchphoran

1-2  slit green chili

Fresh cream/ milk/butter 1table spoon

Preparation

Roughly chop  palak and  coriander leaves and blanch them

Dice paneer into small medium pieces. In case if you are using frozen paneer boil water with salt and keep  paneer in it for 10-15 minutes.

Chop carrots and the tomato into small pieces

Diced paneer

blanched spinach and coriander 

Cooking                                                                                                                                

Heat a pan with 1 table spoon of oil.

Temper with panch phoran. If you don’t get it you can also use jeera or cumin seeds. I just love the aroma of panch phoran so I prefer it.

Add carrots, tomato and the green peas. When the vegetable gets tender (as they are cut into small pieces it would hardly take 5-7 minutes) add the blanched palak and coriander leaves and simmer the gas. Now add salt and turmeric and cover the lid.

Open the lid after 5-7 minutes. You can see that the vegetables have released water. Stir and check whether all the vegetables are cooked or not. If they are already cooked increase the flame and let the water dry and add the paneer. Don’t overcook the paneer.  As the water dries up add a spoon of fresh cream/milk or butter.

The dish is ready to serve.

 

rangin palak

 Note: You can also add any other vegetables as per your choice.

Doi-roshun-kanchalanka murgi or chicken marinated in curd, garlic and green chili paste

I have surprised my family and friends a lot by starting a cooking blog. :)  This was quite expected. Actually it is quite unusual to me as well. :) :)  But I'm enjoying this new job totally and what  is making me more happy is when my friends are asking me for recipes ;)

These days I really think seriously about what to cook at dinner and way back to home in the evening I'm occupied only with those thoughts- what should it be, it should be of low oil, should be tasty so that S likes it and etc etc.

Last night it was- Doi-roshun-kanchalanka murgi or chicken marinated in curd, garlic and green chili paste. Believe me it was really tasty. 

At midnight when Papia, my friend pinged me and asked about a chicken recipe I thought of giving this one to her. Papia this is exclusively for you. Cook and let me know. Sorry for posting  delay :) and hurriedly i am not able to upload the pic of the cooked dish. But I have a pic while marinating the chicken. Will upload the pic of the final cooked dish soon.

Ingredients

Chicken 1 kg (with bone)

Curd 3-4 table spoon

Garlic clove 12-15

Green chilies 8-10 (or as per your tolerance)

1 Big onion

Salt as per taste

Turmeric

Any vegetable oil 1 table soon

Tejpata 2-3

Methi seeds

Kasauri methi 1 tea spoon/ Tandoori Chicken masala Powder (optional)

Coriander leaves chopped

1 slit green chili

 Preparation

Make a fine paste of the garlic and the green chilies

Chop the onion

Clean the chicken and marinate.

For Marination

Now in a large bowl put the chicken and add one by one

Curd 3-4 table spoon heaped

Salt as per taste (This is one time that I add salt to this dish)

Chili Garlic paste

Turmeric 1/2 teaspoon

Refrigerate the marinated chicken for 30 minutes.

Chicken to marinate

Cooking                                                                                                                               

Heat a pan with 1 table spoon of oil.

Temper with tejpata and methi seeds

Add the chopped onion. As it is light brown add the chicken, simmer the gas and cover the pan.

After 15 minutes open the lid and stir. The chicken has released lot of water by now. Continue to cook the chicken at simmer with frequent stirring; by 15-20 minutes the chicken will be cooked. If you see the water quantity is still more then increase the flame and let the water dry. This gravy will be medium dry. Add 1 tea spoon kasuri methi or tandoori chicken masala powder now. Once the gravy reaches its expected consistency, switch off the gas.

Garnish with slit green chilies and chopped coriander leave.

Serve with roti or paratha

Paneer aar Alu Parwal/Parval/Patoler Dalna (Paneer with Potato and Pointed Gourd)

Patol/Parwal/Parval/Pointed Gourd is one very common summer vegetable. As a result in my childhood I have seen this vegetable almost everyday at least for one meal.  It would range from a simple bhaja (fried patol with salt and turmeric) to alu patoler tarkari (gravy with alu and patol) or it would be patol posto (patol made with poppy seed paste), patol chacchari (patol in mustard paste) and so many to name a few. The gravy version of patol also had so many variations.

Here, we do not get such fresh patols as that of Kolkata's but I try to bring it every week. So, this time to bring a variety I added some Paneer to the traditional Alu Patoler Dalna. It was simple and all of us loved it.

Ingredients:

Patol/ Parwal:  10-12
Potato:  2 medium
Paneer: 200 gms
1 tomato  medium
vegetable oil 3-4 table spoons
2 slit green chilies
1 tea spoon garam masala

For tempering:

1 tea spoonwhole jeera
2-3 tejpata
2 lal mirch (whole)
2-3 cloves
2-3 cardamoms
3-4 black pepper

For Spice paste

Ginger paste 1 table spoon
salt as per
turmeric
jeera powder
red chili powder
1/2 tea spoon sugar

Preparation

Cut the parwals from both the ends and then scrape the skin. Breadthwise chop the parwals into half.

scraped parwals

Peel the potatoes. First make it half lengthwise then give another cut lengthwise. Now cut into small pieces keeping a size and shape similarity with the parwals.
Cut the paneer into pieces. Boil water and a little milk. Keep paneer in this solution for 10 minutes.
Chop tomatoes in small pieces

Method

Take a deep Fry Pan. Heat 3 table spoons of oil. Add parwals with a pinch of salt and turmeric. Reduce the flame and cover the pan; Let the parwals get fried nicely.
After 5 minutes open the lid and add the potatoes and stir; cover again. It will take  8-10 minutes for frying both parwal and potato and you will have to reduce and increase the flame time to time.
Once fried nicely remove alu and parwal from the pan and keep aside.

Temper the oil with 1 tea spoonwhole jeera, 2-3 tejpata, 2 lal mirch (whole), 2-3 cloves, 2-3 cardamoms and 3-4 black pepper

When the spices starts to splatter add the chopped tomato.Let it be cooked for 2-3 minutes.
In the meantime prepare the spice paste.: In a small bowl take 1 tea spoon of ginger paste, 1 table spoon of jeera powder, 1/2 tea spoon of  turmeric, salt to taste, 1/2 tea spoon of sugar; to this add some water and make a smooth paste.
After the tomato is cooked add this paste and stir. When you see that oil is coming out from the spices add the potatoes and the parwals. Mix them well in the spice for 5 minutes.

Now add water (the quantity is as per the curry you want).  I have added 1 and half medium glass of water. Remember the curry will neither be too runny nor too dry. Now cover the pan and you can rest for 10 minutes. :)

After the 10 minutes come back and open the lid. Add the paneer.

After 2-3 minutes switch off the gas and add the slit green chilies and 1 tea spoon of garam masala.

paneer alu patol-er dalna

Your  Paneer alu patoler dalna is ready. Close the lid and keep it for sometime then serve with roti, chawal, daliya whatever.