My Recipes 101

I’ve decided to post my recipes online for posterity…at some point, I also want to transfer all the recipes I’ve inherited from my mother online so they’re not lost to eternity… These recipes are just my fav’s – usually stuff that’s very simple & easy to prepare but doesn’t compromise on the taste & flavors. They maybe Indian or not, as the time goes by…just stuff I know is appealing to the refined Indian palette… Feel free to try & also post comments so they can be shared with all (if you try another twist to it or something)…

Usually, you will not find exact proportions to my recipes - they're all made the Indian way...with approximate ingredients based on pallate instinct, sense of taste & also can be tweaked to gear to one's own personal taste or mood! That's why Indian food never tastes the same in different Indian households - it always allows room for every family's whims & fancies or leave room open for experimentation.

If you're a novice to Indian cooking & need help or have questions, please feel free to ping me.

Aanal's Fav Fish (Pan Seared)

Get any fresh fish fillet, whatever you fancy & whatever your fishmonger says is really fresh - quality is key with fish. As my hubby always says, fresh fish does not smell!

I personally love some of the pacific salmon (sockeye, coho etc.), halibut, or more delicate white fish such as flounder, sole.

Prepare the marinade - olive oil, salt to taste, lots of crushed ginger & garlic, red chilli powder & turmeric.

Variations to the marinade:
I usually like to add some sort of rub - whatever i have & something different everytime -to give it a little twist. You can buy use any store-bought fish or meat rub that you like - i've tried different things such as jamaican or moroccan spices. I recommend not using garam masala as it will give it a very 'typical & boring' Indian taste.
Another thing that i've yet to try is adding a little preserved Meyer's lemon to the marinade - i can feel the taste in my mouth so i'm convinced this is going to be yummy...

Rinse the fish just before prep time. Make a few slits across the body. Apply the marinade on all sides & inside the slits abundantly. Heat a flat pan & smear with olive oil. Once moderately heated, lay the fish on the pan. if you have more than one fillet, make sure that they're individually spread out. Let the fish cook through to the center until a nice crust forms. Turn sides & cook until done - you will have a nice darkish crust towards the center on both sides. Fish cooks quickly - this shouldn't take more than 10 or so minutes to prepare...

Remove from the pan & squeeze the juice from a fresh lime on it. Serve immediately.

Bengali Daal/Shak

Masoor Daal

Boil masoor dal in the pressure pan. You may add 1/2 a sliced onion if u'd like or not. When dal is boiled, do a tadka (tempering) of olive oil & panch phoran (equal mix of nigella (onion), fennel, mustard, methi & cumin seeds that can be made at home or store bought). When seeds start popping, add 1/2 sliced onion & saute until lightly browned. Add the tempering to the daal, salt to taste & mix well. Reheat daal slightly to blend well - you may need to add a little water to get the right consistency (to personal taste). Squeeze 1/2 a lemon on top & serve immediately with rice or roti.

Eggplant nu shak

Heat olive oil & add panch phoran. When seeds begin to pop, add chopped eggplant (1/2-3/4 in squares or whatever u fancy). Cook at moderate heat covered. When almost done (beware, American eggplant takes a long time to cook or u'll be stuck with undercooked & chewy eggplant), add salt, red chilli powder & amchur (dried mango powder, available in Indian stores). Also, uncover & cook on slightly high heat so its gets crispy & roasted. When done, add roasted & ground (in coffee grinder) sesame seeds. Stir lightly so eggplant doesn't get mushy & serve.

Note: Bengali's add sugar to this but i eliminated this just to be healthier. You can try both & see what you prefer personally.




Note: Panch phoran is a Bengali five-spice mixture consisting of equal quantities of whole spices mixed together without dry-roasting or grinding.The mixture is used in one of two ways--it may be fried in oil to impart flavor to the oil before adding the main ingredients, or fried in ghee and stirred into cooked dhal or vegetable dishes just before they are served.
If panch phoran is unavailable, replace the 2 t. of the spice in this recipe with 1/2 t. white cumin seeds, 1/2 t. fennel seeds, 1/2 t. fenugreek seeds, 1/2 t. black mustard seeds, and 1/2 t. black onion seeds (kalonji).

Found an interesting link to more bengali recipes for those that want to explore:
http://milonee.net/bengali_recipes/annapurna.html

Asparagus nu shak

Do tadka of cumin seeds with garlic. When garlic is golden brown, add asparagus (cut 1”), turmeric, red chilli powder & salt to taste. Sauté until asparagus is lightly cooked but still crunchy. Serve immediately…

Aanal's Tip: I like to sprinkle sea salt (Maldon or similar) on top right after the asparagus is done instead of adding regular salt during cooking. This will prevent the asparagus from releasing water & also the sea salt makes the flavors burst!

- From an Indian lady in Sunset mag, tested & tried by me, tasted & validated by Dhruv

Spinach Raita

Saute chopped garlic with olive oil & add spinach leaves after garlic is lightly browned. Saute spinach at high heat without adding salt - this way there will be no water released. After spinach is totally cooled down, add to lightly beaten yogurt. Add salt to taste - remember that spinach has some natural salt in it. Chop ginger into thin slices. Heat olive oil & add mustard seeds. Add ginger couple seconds later & add a whole sliced green chilli or two. When the mustard seeds pop & the ginger is lightly browned at the edges (you can go darker if you prefer), add the tempering to the spinach/yogurt mix. Stir lightly before serving.

This is a very simple & healthy way of dealing with leftover spinach leaves.

- I created this recipe & let my imagination fly based on flavors i could taste in my mouth. It turned out to be one of the best experiments & the raita tasted delicious! Yummm...i can still taste this in my mouth :-)