Aloo Matar - Potatoes and Peas in a spicy tomato sauce

I just love Indian food on cold days, infact, I crave it.  It warms up the body, fills you up nicely, and makes your house smell absolutely lovely!  This is one of first recipes I learned, and its one of the easiest.  I made it for my in-laws when they were here and they told me that they felt like they were back in India!  That's right...it's that good!

If you're looking for the creamy, fatty, melt in your mouth type aloo matar you would recieve in a restaurant, you might want to keep looking.  There's no heavy cream.  Not even any half and half.  I didn't even use coconut milk! I cut all that out of this recipe because not only did I think it would taste better without all the milkiness, but it'd be extremely more healthy as well.  I promise, you won't even miss the cream!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. potatoes: peeled, diced & boiled

1 c. green peas (I usually blanch these before using them.)

1 medium red onion, chopped

1 tbsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. ginger paste

1 tsp. garlic paste

2 roma tomatoes, finely chopped

1 pinch of tumeric

1/2 tsp chili powder

1 pinch white sugar

1/2 tsp or more garam masala (I usually use a LOT)

1 tbsp. oil

green chile, chopped- to your taste

salt, to taste

Directions:

1.  Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan or frypan with deep sides.  Add the cumin seeds. 

When the cumin seeds begin to pop, add the onions and green chiles.  Saute until they are translucent.

2.  Add the ginger paste, garlic paste and tomatoes.  Simmer until the tomatoes are cooked are are like a smooth sauce.  Once they begin to break down I usually grab a potatao masher and just mash everything together.  It just helps the tomatoes to break down quicker.  (this photo is before I mashed the heck out of it).

                                                                                   
3.  Add the turmeric powder, chili powder, garam masala, green peas and potatoes and cook for some time.

Add about 1 1/2 cups of water and salt to taste.  Allow it to come to a boil, turn the heat down and let simmer for a good 20 minutes or until the gravy thickens to your liking.  The longer you let the curry simmer, the better it will taste.  Add some finely diced corriander, and you're done!

TIP:  If you think your gravy is too thin or that you added too much water, mash a few pieces of the potatoes into it.  This will thicken it up nicely.

You woudln't need to serve this with rice, infact a chapati or roti would be the better choice.  My husband, being Bengali, LOVES rice and has to eat it at almost every meal.  I also served this with Indian spiced chicken legs.  Basically I just marinated chicken legs with a bunch of spices, and it was wonderful!  I'll post that the next time I make it because really I didn't write down what I threw in the marinade.

Enjoy! 

Tonight we're having Venison, so stay tuned!

Mashed Potatoes with a twist

I love mashed potatoes, a lot.  There's actually not many things that make me happier than a plate full of mashed potatoes.  I love them plain, I love them with bits of potato skin mixed in with the mash, I love them chunky and I love them smooth too.  I don't discriminate when it comes to mashed potatoes.  One day I was inspired though.  I was making mashed potatoes to go along with turkey burgers.  I originally wanted to make baked, spiced fries but earlier that day I got the bright idea to clean my oven.  I didn't even know I could do such a thing without getting on my hands and knees and scrubbing.  I was so excited.  So, I followed the instructions written on my ancient, apartment oven (which I have come to love) and the latch locked and little light turned red. 

This meant I'd have a clean oven soon...but how soon?  Surely it must take only an hour, or  something.  Wrong.  It takes ALL DAY.  I couldn't use my oven all day!  This meant no fresh bread (I had to throw away the last of my broiche dough..grr), no cookies, and definitely no baked fries.  After about 5 hours...is that normal oven cleaning time?  I got bored and impatient and started pushing some of those buttons in that picture above.  Finally, about 7 hours later the red light turned off and it let me open the door!

By this time I was hungry, so I looked in the refridgerator and I was inspired.  Staring back at me was a hunk of goat cheese just begging to be used.  I decided it'd probably taste good in mashed potatoes.  It tastes good in just about everything else, so why not?  So I went for it...and they were good.  Like, real good.

Ingredients:

• 3 medium potatoes
• 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, depending how much you prefer
• about 1 tbsp. butter
• salt, to taste
• milk (whole, soy, heavy cream...doesn't really matter.  Your potatoes will just have a different consistancy depending on what type of milk you use); add a little at a time until you get to your desired consistancy of mashed potato.  It could be a cup of milk, it could be more.  It could be less.  This is partially why I don't like to rely on measurements.
• goat cheese, about 2 ounces --again use your own judgement and taste
• chopped parsley

Directions:
1.  Because I was feeling a little hungry and a lot impatient I pulled out one of those ziploc steamfresh bags.  I really love those things.  Instead of boiling my potatoes like I typically would before mashing them I peel and dice them then toss them in the bag with some chopped garlic (about 2-3 cloves worth), butter and salt to taste.  I steam them in the microwave for about 7 minutes or until the spuds are nice and mashable.

2.  Pour the potatoes into a bowl and start mashing!  After the potatoes are well mashed, grab your handy whisk. Add a little more butter if you feel like it and throw in some milk.  Start with about 1/4 c. and go from there.  Start whisking away, adding more milk as needed.  Once the potatoes begin getting nice and creamy add in the goat cheese.  Continue whisking.  You'll get a nice work out. 

3.  Chop the parsley and add to the spuds.  Check the salt, make sure there is enough...and Enjoy!!!

My favorite thing about these potatoes is the tanginess the goat cheese adds.  It just really blends well with the smoothness of the potatoes.  mmm, Ultimate American comfort food!!!

Aloo Posto & Prawn Malai Curry

(Potatoes with Poppyseeds and Creamy Shrimp Curry)

This meal was delightful!  The shrimp curry was really awesome---believe me!  I don't even like shrimp and this has quickly become one of my favorite curries to make.  This meal is traditionally Bengali, or so I have been told.  India is much like the United States in the fact that cuisine varies from region to region.  For example, if you order pizza in Chicago it won't be the same as pizza in Texas, or New York.  It's the same in India.  If you order a dish in the east, chances are very likely it won't be anything like the dishes in the south. 

Most Americans are used to eatting North Indian Dishes; dishes like Chicken Tikka Masala (which is actually British, although I guess this may be argued), Rogan Josh, Mutter Paneer and Chicken Briyani.  My husband was raised in Mumbai, so I'm sure there will be a few Maharashtrian dishes such as Pohe and Pav Bhaji making appearances on my blog. 

Aloo Posto

• 4 Tablespoons Indian Poppyseeds (these are white in color)
• 3 large potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2" cubes
• 2 tbsps vegetable/ canola/ sunflower/olive cooking oil (I usually use much less, use what you are comfortable with)
• 2 green chillies slit lengthwise and deseeded ---This will just give the dish flavor and not much heat.  I usually leave the seeds in and chop the chiles up.
• Salt to taste.

Directions

1. Put the poppyseeds (postu) in a bowl and add enough warm water to cover it completely. Soak for 5 minutes. Now grind in a food processor or with a stick blender to get a smooth paste. You can also use a mortar and pestle as it is done traditionally but it takes time and effort! Keep postu paste aside for late use. This step is hard.  I actually recommend using a coffee or spice grinder.  Keep some water in with the seeds though so that your end product is a paste.

2.  Meanwhile, boil the diced potatoes until they are almost cooked.  You don't want to cook them all the way, because you will be frying them later.  You could also steam the potatoes if you'd like, although this won't yeild a traditional aloo postu, or so my husband said when he realized I decided to steam them.  They turn out just fine though! :-)

3. Heat the cooking oil in a pan on medium heat. When hot, add the slit green chillies. To make the dish hotter you can grind the green chillies to a paste. If using whole green chillies, wait for the spluttering to stop after adding them to the hot oil. When this happens, add the diced potatoes to the pan. Stir fry until fully cooked. Add salt to taste. You might need to sprinkle some water over them as they cook, to prevent burning or sticking to the pan.
 
4. When the potato is cooked (soft), turn off the heat and add the postu paste and stir well. Spoon into a dish and serve.

This is really an easy dish to make.  It doesn't really strike me as something I would make when someone requests Indian food, but let me tell you....it packs a lot of flavor.  I'm sure if you tried it, you'd like it!
 

Shrimp Malai Curry

• 1 lb. large shrimp
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons oil, or to your judgement
• 3/4 onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 2 inch piece of cinnamon stick
• 5 whole cloves (I grind mine before throwing them in, but you can leave them whole)
• 7 cardamom pods
• 5 Indian bay leaves (I have used regular bay leaves, and those work fine as well)
• 3/4 inch piece of ginger, grated or about 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped or about 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon chili powder - be careful with this.  I put this in to taste.
• 3/4 cup lite coconut milk - skim the "cream" off the top and use that, preferably.  It will make the dish taste more authentic.

Directions

1. Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails intact.  Or, be lazy like me...go to Sam's Club and buy a giant bag of precooked shrimp where all that work is already done for you.  Put them in a bowl, add the lemon juice, then toss them together and leave them sit for around 5 minutes.  Rinse the Shrimp under cold water and pat dry.

2. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan and fry the onion until lightly browned.  Add the turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, ginger and garlic and fry until fragrant.  About one minute, or so.  Add the chili powder, coconut milk and salt to taste and slowly bring to a boil. 

3. Reduce the heat and simmer for around 2 minutes.  Add the shrimpies and return to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the shrimp are cooked through and the sauce is thick.  

Usually after I have added my shrimp I let it simmer for around 15-20 minutes and just kind of forget about it.  It needs some time for the flavors to blend and for the sauce or "gravy" to thicken.  This curry is wonderful.  I honestly don't like shrimp.  I am 25 years old, so it has taken me a quarter of a century to find a recipe that makes shrimp taste yummy to me.  I promise, you'll LOVE this curry! 

One of the most important tips I've learned about cooking Indian food is that you really have to taste your food as you cook it.  The levels of spices can either make or break a recipe and what tastes good to one person can be overwhelming to the next.  Be careful when adding chili powder, salt and yogurt to recipes.  Those are the three ingredients that tend to mess with my food on occasion. 

I hope some of you enjoy these recipes as much as I did!  Let me know if you try them and how they turned out, I'd love to hear if you tried anything differently or if you have your own take on these recipes!