Indian curry

 I was trying to find a new Indian recipe to try for a meal train I'd signed up for. I found one but didn't like it in its entirety, so I improvised. Everyone loved it, so saving it for posterity.

What I had:

• ~ 15 oz whole peeled tomatoes with the juice
• 1 large white onion, chopped coarsely
• 1 cup cashews
• 8 cloves
• 8 small green cardamoms
• 4 green thai chilies
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tbsp garlic paste
• 2 tbsp ginger paste
• 2 tbsp red chili powder (spicy)
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• salt and pepper to taste

What I did:

• Boiled the first 6 ingredients on medium heat till tomatoes start falling apart and the onions look translucent
• Put in Vitamix and blend till smooth - there's some texture to it from the cashews but no chunks of tomatoes or onions should be there
• In the same skillet, heat coconut oil
• Add garlic and ginger pastes, heat till the raw smell is gone (be careful, this splatters so use a cover)
• Pour the blended sauce back in
• Add the dry spices and simmer over medium-low till you don't smell the individual spices

I added paneer to this and let it simmer till paneer was well coated, also needed to add some water to thin the sauce. I think it would taste delicious with chicken as well.

Indian chili chicken

What I had:

• 1.5 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Marinade:

• 4 green chillies
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 4 tsp gluten free soy sauce
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 2 tsp lemon juice

For the chicken:

• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp corn flour

Sauce:

• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium whie onions, sliced thick
• 2 orange bell peppers, sliced thinly
• 6 green and red chillis, cut into small rounds
• 3/4 warm water 
• 1 tbsp corn starch
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup Maggi hot 'n sweet sauce

What I did:

• Ground the garlic and chilies for the marinade.
• Added that to the chicken pieces, along with the soy sauce, vinegar and lemon juice in a small container.
• Left it in the fridge overnight.
• Next evening, added 1 beaten egg to the chicken pieces, coating them completely. Repeated with the corn flour.
• Cooked the chicken pieces in olive oil in a 12 inch deep skillet till lightly browned and cooked through. Pulled them out and put aside.
• Removed all except 2 tbsp oil from the skillet. Added garlic to the pan till fragrant.
• Added onions till soft, then added both peppers.
• Mixed the 3/4 cup warm water with the 2 tbsp corn starch; added to the skillet till it comes to boiling.
• Added the chicken pieces to the pan and heated it well.
• Served it with yogurt to cut the heat and roti.

Slow cooker Indian chick peas and spinach

I have been looking for easy slow cooker recipes for Indian food. I want to make more of it for Oli but don't have time to spend hours in front of the stove for one dish. I read some in The Indian Slow Cooker book, and looked at a few online. I didn't like any in their entirety so I decided to take the plunge and make my own!!!

What I had:

• 2 cups dry chick peas, rinsed and drained
• 8 oz fresh spinach
• 2 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes
• 2 russet potatoes diced into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 inch piece of ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped finely
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• 2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper 
• 2 cups water

What I did:

• Put the chick peas in the slow cooker
• Added the potatoes and tomatoes
• Added the garlic and ginger
• Added all the spices
• Put the spinach on top
• Added 1 cup water
• Started the slow cooker at high for 8 hrs
• After 3 hours, I checked and the spinach seemed to be getting dry on top so I mixed it all up and added another cup of water
• I checked at 5 hrs into cooking and it was done!

You can swerve this with naan, over rice or even over bread slices.

Kheer

What you need:

• Gallon whole milk
• 1 cup white rice
• 1 can condensed milk
• raisins
• blanched almonds
• pressure cooker

What you do:

• Rinse rice really well and place in pressure cooker
• Add about 3/4ths of the milk
• Cover and cook for an hour (or till the pressure cooker starts whistling milk is coming out the top - that's what I wait for)
• Uncover, make sure the rice is cooked. It's probably gotten thicker, so add more milk till the consistency is what you like
• Add the condensed milk, raisins and almonds
• Let it cook on low heat for another 30-45 minutes till the almonds are soft, the raisins are plump and the house smells yummy

If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can use a regular pot, you just have to keep an eye on the rice while it's cooking or you could have a huge mess on your hands. It is important to not use cooked rice and milk. You want the milk to cook the rice so it tastes cohesive and not separate from each other.