Here is the second installment from Traditional Week – Vegetarian…
6) Shruti Gandhi : Lasaniya Bataka /Garlic flavored Baby Potatoes
Shruti says that Lasaniya Bataka is a famous dish from her native Saurashtra. Whenever she visited she never missed going out to have authentic Kathiyawadi food. Years passed and the visits became less and she started making her own at home and today enjoys it more than the original.
Ingredients:
10 Baby Potatoes
1 Tbsp Minced Garlic
1/2 Cup Chopped Onion
1 Tsp Chopped Green Chillies
1/2 Cup Tomato Puree
1/2 Cup Full Cream
1 Tsp Coriander Powder
1/2 Tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 Tsp Garam Masala
1/4 Tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 Tsp Cumin Seeds
Salt to taste
2 Tbsp Cooking Oil
Method :
Boil the baby potatoes and peel them. Prick all over with a fork. Put them in a bowl and add all the dry spices. Add full cream too and toss it well. Cover with a cling wrap and keep in the fridge for an hour.
Heat oil in a vessel and add cumin seeds. Once they crackle, add chopped green chillies, onions and garlic into it. Sauté it till onions are translucent. Add tomato puree and cook it for a min. Mix marinated baby potatoes into it and coat each potato nicely with a thick gravy. Cook it covered for 4-5 mins. and turn off the heat. Transfer into a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with Phulka/ Roti.
7) Anil Jundia : Rajasthani Dal Bati with Hari Mirch
A very traditional dish, cooked for auspicious occasions as well as a regular dish in homes in Rajasthan.
Ingredients for Bati:
300 gms Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup Desi Ghee
Salt to taste
80 to 100 ml Water to knead the dough
Method : Make a dough with the above ingredients. It should be slightly harder then the Roti dough. Make equal sized balls and bake in a Pre-warmed Bati Maker or Tandoor, changing sides till done. The batis need to start cracking for them to be fully cooked. Remove, dip in a bowl of Desi Ghee and serve.
Ingredients for Dal :
1 1/2 cup of Green Moong Dal
Salt to taste
2 Tsp Chilli powder or as per taste
1Tsp Turmeric powder
4 to 5 Cups of water
Tadka/Tempering:
3 Tbsp oil or Ghee
2 Green Chilli finely chopped
2 Bay Leaves
1Tsp Cumin seeds
2/3 Cloves
A Pinch of Asafoetida /Hing
1 Tsp Red Chilli powder
Green Coriander for Garnish.
Method :
Pressure cook the dal till soft with water, salt, turmeric powder and chili powder.
Heat oil and add cumin seeds, cloves, asafoetida and bay leaves. Add green chilli after a few seconds & turn off the heat. Add the red chilli powder and pour over the dal and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped green coriander and serve.
Ingredients for Hari Mirch:
100 gms Green Chillies – roughly cut with stalks
2 Tbsp oil
1 Cumin seeds
1 Tsp Saunf /Fennel seeds
1/2 Tsp Rai/Mustard seeds
1/2 Amchur powder or u can use grated lemon skin
1/2 tsp Red chilli Powder(optional)
2 Tsp Coriander Powder
Salt to taste
Method :
Heat oil in a kadahi and add cumin seeds, saunf, rai and let it crackle.
Add the green chillies and saute, add turmeric, salt and saute for 2 to 3 minute on a low flame. Add chilli powder, amchur/grated lemon skin, coriander powder and cook till they become slightly soft, don’t overcook.
Dal Bati is ready to be served.
8) Namita Tickare : Hirvi Mirchi cha Thecha ( Maharashtrian Green Chilli Chutney)
Namita learnt this from her mother and says, “For all those who love chillies, this is an authentic Maharashtrian Hirvi Mirchi cha Thecha. It is served with the authentic Maharashtrian thali all over. It is also more popular in Kolhapur and is known as Kharda. In villages, farmers have it with Jowar roti for lunch in their fields.”
Ingredients :
12 Green chillies (take it as per your taste, if you want you can take the mild hot ones also)
15 Garlic Cloves
3 Tbsp of Roasted Groundnut Powder (coarsely grounded)
Salt to taste
2 Tsp of Oil
1 Tsp of Turmeric Powder
½ Tsp of Asafoetida/Hing
Method :
Wash the green chilies and remove the stem. Pat them dry. In a mixer grinder coarsely grind the green chilies and garlic. Heat oil in a kadhai. When the oil is warm add the turmeric powder and hing and then add the chilli paste, salt and stir continuously for 2-3 mins till the chillies fry nicely and you get the garlic smell.
Add the groundnut powder and stir for 1 min and remove from gas. Keep aside to cool.
Serve with rotis. It can also be mixed with curds and given as a dip.
This chutney can be stored for 8-10 days in the refrigerator. And used as and when required.
9)Vandana msb : Urad dal Kachori & Panchporan Kashifal
Vandana says “In our home on festivals kadhai has to be on the stove. No festival is considered complete till poori or kachori is made. It is the same till date back home and I do it as well every festival – one tradition I know that I will pass on to my girls as well.”
Ingredients for Urad Dal Kachori :-
2 Cups Whole Wheat flour
½ Cup White Urad Dal
1/2Tsp Asafoetida/Hing
½ Tsp Fennel/Saunf Powder
Salt to taste
Method:
Soak the dal overnight and grind into a coarse paste with minimal water.Add the hing, saunf and salt to the ground dal.
Make a soft dough with the flour.
Heat oil in a kadhai for deep frying.
Roll out small pooris filled with filling and deep fry.
Ingredients for Panchphoran Kashifal:
1 Cup Finely diced Kashifal/Pumpkin
1 Cup diced Eggplant
1 Cup diced Potatoes
1 pinch Asafoetida/Hing
4-5 Whole Red Chillies
3 Green Chillies chopped
1 Tsp Sugar
1 Tsp Amchoor
3 – 4 Tbsp Oil
2 Bay Leaves
½ Tsp PanchPoran
½ Tsp Red chilli powder
½ Turmeric powder
Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add hing, panchphoran, bay leaves, crushed red chillies.
Then add all the masalas and the cut vegetables.
Add half a cup of water and cook till tender.
Mash coarsely and then add sugar and amchoor.
Serve with urad dal kachoris.
10) Manini Lalbhai Badlani : Baked Semolina and Cheese Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce
Manini says,”this is what I would call a real family recipe for me because both my parents were involved in passing it down to me. They liked to serve non Gujarati food to their friends. Have passed it down to my daughter too.”
Ingredients for Gnocchi :
250 gms Semolina
1 litre Milk
100 Gms Grated Parmesan Cheese
100 Gms Grated Cheddar Cheese
100 Gms Unsalted Butter
1/2 Tsp Grated Nutmeg
1 1/2 Tsp Powdered Black Pepper
Salt to taste
Method :
Bring the milk to a boil, and gradually stir in the semolina, stirring constantly to prevent lumps and to keep the mixture from sticking to the pot. The mixture will become quite thick, continue cooking and stirring for about 20 minutes, and remove the pot from the fire. Add the cheese, solid butter, nutmeg, pepper and a pinch of salt to the semolina mixture. Mix well and spread the mixture a little less than half an inch thick (1 cm) on your work surface. Let the semolina cool for 2 hours, and cut it into squares/diamonds. Butter a pan and layer the squares in it, spreading a little more grated cheese between the layers (there should be 3-4 layers). When all is used up, sprinkle the melted butter over the gnocchi, slowly, to allow it to penetrate. Bake the gnocchi 15 minutes in a hot (400 F or 200 C) oven, until golden and serve at once.
Ingredients for Tomato Sauce :
1 1/4 kg Fresh Tomatoes
1 Tbsp of Garlic chopped coarsely (optional)
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
50 Gms Green Pepper (not capsicum but the ones which when dried become black pepper)
1 Tsp Black Pepper coarsely ground
2 Tsps Sugar
Salt to taste
2 Tbsps Malt Vinegar
3 Tbsps Olive Oil
Method :
Blanch, peel, deseed and coarsely chop the tomatoes (retain the juices while doing so). Put oil in a pan and when hot but not steaming add the garlic. Saute for a 2 mins and add everything else to it including the juices. Bring to a boil and the let it simmer covered on very low heat for about 30 mins. Do not keep stirring and add water if needed so it does not become a paste. The tomatoes should have a watery juice in it so that when served with the Gnocchi, the Gnocchi can soak in the liquid.
Serve it hot with the Gnocchi in a separate dish and add some grated Parmesan. If you like, you can also serve it garnished with parsley and/or olives too.
– Compiled by Sandipa Nitin Tombat