Mushroom Salad with Yuzu dressing

Ingredients:

White fungus

Shiitake mushrooms (fresh/rehydrated, without stalks)

Milke Mushrooms

Button Mushrooms

Butter

Salt

Sugar

Black pepper

Boil all the mushrooms and white fungus together till cooked. Strain the water out.

Toss the boiled fungi in butter, salt, a little sugar, and little black pepper.

When serving, mix the mushrooms with the yuzu dressing given before and serve

Yuzu Dressing

This is a very tasty lemon flavoured salad dressing, used in a mushroom salad that will follow. Also can be used for other things.

Lemon juice: 4 tbs / 1/4th cup

5 tsp soya sauce

1/2tsp black pepper

1/2-1clove grated garlic

6 tsp olive oil

Yaki Tori

boneless chicken and leek pieces, skewered and grilled.

This is a fairly plain dish, the real flavour is in the sauce in which u dip the chicken and leeks, both before grilling and after

Sauce:

1 apple, halved

1 leek

250 gm honey

200 gm sugar

300 ml mirrin

300 ml cooking sake

a few spoons of potato flour

water as needed

1 whole chicken, cleaned

Boil all of this for 8-10 hours till all the meat and everything just kinda falls off into the sauce.

Strain and use the sauce.

Corn and cheese Krokke(???)

Ingredients:

Jalapenos

Sweet corn off the cob.

Butter

Salt

Boiled and mashed potatoes

Cheese(Preferably standard mozzarella, shredded)

Breadcrumbs

Beaten Egg

Maida/cornflour

(for breadcrumbs, cut bread slices into quarters and grind in a mixer/blender)

Prep:

Remove the seeds from the jalapenos, chop them finely.

Chop up the sweet corn into medium sizes

Mix the jalapenos and corn with a little butter and salt

Mix this with the mashed potatoes, so that the corn and jalapenos are properly mixed.

form small balls of this mixture, a little smaller than golf balls.

Stuff them with a little shredded cheese, and close it up.

Coat lightly with maida

Coat it with the beaten egg lightly, and roll in the breadcrumbs.

Fry till golden brown.

Asparagus in Peanut sauce

Note: I forgot to mention this earlier, but since all these are restaurant recipes, the quantities are not fixed since the ingredients are prepped beforehand and used as needed. So You will need to fix quantities according to your personal taste, and also account for variations in taste of ingredients. Also, taste each ingredient separately beforehand for all dishes, so that you know what needs to be added more or less.

Ingredients:

Asparagus stalks

peanuts

kikkoman soya sauce

hondashi powder

fresh crushed black pepper

cooking sake

mirrin

sesame oil

Prep:

Boil and chill the edible parts of asparagus and break them into inch long pieces

Wash peanuts, roast, chill and grind them.

Put the asparagus into a bowl and add some roasted ground peanuts, a spoon or so of the soya. Add a few pinches of hondashi, sprinkle some black pepper. add a spoor or so each of the sake, mirrin and sesame oil. Mix together well so that the asparagus is properly coated with the mixture. Obviously, u will have to use your judgement on the quantities, but this should give you a basic idea, i hope. Its been a while since i made this.

Mix well and serve.

Sushi Rice

This is the recipe for sushi rice i'd gotten from Tetsuma's. I will be uploading whatever recipes i have from both restaurants one by one. Most don't have specified quantities, its kinda to taste n a judgement call. Whatever you find tastier basically. And some like this one, have gigantic portions that need to be scaled down. Also none of these portions are exact anyway, its still a judgement call from time to time based on how much water a particular variety of rice is soaking up.

Here is sushi rice:

Cook 1 kg rice in an equal quantity of water and let cool slightly, but should still be fairly warm.

Note: Use japanese sticky rice for this, or any other similar short grain rice, as the stickiness is essential and cannot be obtained with basmati and other long grain rice.

Sushi Vinegar: This can be store bought or Made at home

1.5 L rice vinegar

900 grams sugar

230 grams salt

Mix it all together till dissolved.

Now there will probably be vinegar left over, even for 1 kg rice, so u can store it n use it again. Dont mix all the vinegar into the rice at once but rather little by little, stirring the vinegar into the rice with a wooden spatula. Keep tasting the rice at regular intervals to keep track of how much more vinegar is needed based on the texture and taste.

Store the excess vinegar for later use.

It seems none of the Khanna's have been cooking in a while ;)

The Other Chole

So these were meant to be made with kaala channa, but I did it with kabuli and they were still yumm!

Kadala Curry, a Keralite dish. The recipe comes from and is inspired by one of my fave veggie bloggers, mahanandi.org. I have adapted this dish using kabuli channa, soaked overnight.

Ingredients

Soak 1 cup channa (kabuli or kaala) overnight

For the Curry
½ cup coconut milk (the original recipe asked for a homemade watery kind, so I used a can of lite curry and watered it down some) 3- 4 medium sized ripe tomatoes (I got away with two and found I liked the lack of acidity, less heartburn n all ;)) 1 medium sized red onion diced fine

For the Masala:
1/2 tsp each of Ginger, Garlic, Cilantro, ground into a paste
1/4 tsp each of Cumin, Coriander seed,Cloves, Cinnamon powder'
½ tsp each of red chilli powder and turmeric
Salt to taste 1/2 " piece of ginger

For the Tadka or as they say in Kerala, the 'popu' 1 tsp of each, mustard seeds, cumin, minced garlic and curry leaves

Add 1/4 tsp of salt and 2 cups of water, 1/2 inch piece of ginger to the soaked and drained channa. Pressure-cook them till they are just tender. Two whistles on a desi cooker, 6 minutes after the first release of steam on a constant release US one. Cooked on medium low with tight fitting lid in regular pot. Drain and keep aside.

Roast tomatoes and onions in half teaspoon of oil. When they cool a bit, grind to smooth paste. Add the first two ingredients on the Masala list ( the paste and the powder combo) and cook together on low flame.

Heat 1 teaspoon of oil, toast tadka ingredients, add the sauce above and red chilly powder & turmeric, and half cup of water. Cover and cook them for about 10 minutes. Stir in channas and coconut milk and simmer them, stirring in between until the curry reaches the thickness you desire or for about 10-15 minutes on medium heat.

It's a dryish prep, so would be perfect with pooris/rotis, but works with rice too. You can always add a little more water for a saucier version.

Nice for a wintery evening meal.

Spicy Tuna with Enoki Mushrooms

Ok, so this is once again i just cooked up for dinner, so ingredients are aplenty, but i have no clue what the quantities of most ingredients are. Mix it up with what feels right

2 small Ahi Tuna steaks. (just in case, these are almost sushi quality tuna, a little hard to find, but they should be a nice red in colour, although that can vary, with good, firm texture.)
Rosemary
2 medium cloves of garlic
1/4th jalapeno pepper, peeled and seeded.
half a handful of enoki mushrooms.
olive oil
salt, pepper
Cooking wine.(for this i used sherry, but any half decent, non drinkable red wine will probably work)

Note: this is a pretty simple and basic dish but its good to have the ingredients prepped beforehand since the cooking time for the tuna is very, very low.

Finely chop the garlic and jalapeno peppers together and set aside. thoroughly clean and wash the tuna steaks, without damaging the texture.

Heat up the olive oil in a metal pan, not non stick, till the oil is hot and fragrant. Once the oil is hot enough, add in the garlic and jalapeno, let it sizzle for about a minute or so, and then add a liberal dose of the sherry.(dont worry, it'll evaporate, or get absorbed by the tuna)

Once the wine starts bubbling, put in the tuna steaks. flip them over so they get nicely seared on all sides. Add in the enoki mushrooms while the tuna is still cooking, preferably cut into small chunks.
Meanwhile, quickly add a dash of salt, a pinch of rosemary and sprinkle fresh ground pepper.
By this time, most of the sherry should have evaporated, and the tuna should be seared on all sides. however, the middle should be just warm, and still blood red, so it should look as if its still raw. This might be scary, but just go for it.
Let the mushrooms simmer for a while, and once the tuna is warm, turn off the heat and serve, preferably with a good bread.

Mushroom and Avocado Salad

Just came across this recipe. Seems good

Ingredients:

12 Italian bread slices, grilled.
6 lettuce leaves.
1 medium avocado.
1 lb white mushrooms.
12 oz red bell pepper, diced.
12 oz green bell pepper, diced.
½ cup of sherry wine vinegar.
½ cup of basil leaves, chopped.
¼ cup of whole grain mustard.
1/8 cup of olive oil.

Preparation Instructions:

In a suitably sized bowl, mix the mustard, vinegar, basil, bell peppers and olive oil, then set aside.

Wash and slice the white mushrooms.

Add the mushrooms to the dressing and marinate for 15 minutes.

Place each salad portion on a lettuce leaf.

Slice the avocado and place on top.

Serve with two slices of grilled Italian bread.

Back to the Avocado Recipes home page.

Avocado Pesto

Haven't tried this one as the cheeses aren't available here and the oil could be reduced.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium Avocado
• ¹/₃ cup virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic
• pepper to taste (cayenne or freshly ground black)
• ¹/₃ cup romano/parmesan cheeses, grated
• 1 Tbsp. fresh basil or 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp. lime juice or undistilled cider vinegar
• water to bring to a cream-like consistency

Instructions:

1. Prepare favorite pasta or rice. Process sauce shortly before serving. Split avocado, remove pit and scoop flesh with a spoon. Place in blender or food processor along with other ingrdients. Puree. Put puree in a large pan and bring up the heat slowly. Add water as needed to give the sauce a cream-like consistency. Before sauce begins to boil add pasta or rice and fold together. Remove from heat and serve immediately on warmed plates.

Guac

The net called it the best ever Guac. I dont know but I enjoyed it with papad and other namkeens.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
• 2 canned jalapeno pappers, finely chopped
• ¹/₄ cup chopped fresh coriander leaves (or 1 1/2 tsps dried or 1/2 tsp ground per 2 avocados)
• 2 ripe California avocados, coarsely mashed
• 1 tomato peeled, seeded and chopped
• sift salt to taste
• 3 tbsp. fresh lime juice

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients together. Serve as a dip with corn chips or fresh vegetables. Also great as a topping for baked potatoes or burgers.

2. N.B. Place an avocado pit in the centre of prepared guacamole to help prevent browning.

3. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Avocado Potato Salad

What follow are some recipes I picked up from the net. I tried this one out with what I could get and it was pretty decent.

ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• ¹/₄ tsp. finely chopped fresh garlic, or more to taste
• 2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 cup diced, cooked red new potatoes
• 3 Tbsp. diced celery
• 3 Tbsp. chopped sweet onion
• 1 ripe, Fresh California Avocado, peeled, seeded and diced
• 1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro, or more to taste
• Cilantro sprigs or celery leaves for garnish, as needed

Instructions:

1. To make dressing, mix lemon juice and garlic; stir in mayonnaise and olive oil; reserve.

2. Combine potatoes, celery, and onion; fold in reserved dressing.

3. Gently fold avocado and cilantro into salad mixture.

4. Garnish with cilantro sprig or celery leaves.

Sooji Halwa

Sooji Halwa

Ingredients:
Rawa 1/2 cup
Sugar 1/2 cup
Ghee 4 tsp
Water 2 cups
Dry fruit

Procedure:

Put the ghee in the pan. Add the rawa. Keep stirring till the rawa turns brown. Keep the gas on slow while roasting the rawa, as the rawa can burn quickly. When the rawa is light brown (fawn colour), add the water. Turn the gas on slow. Cover the pan. After 3 minutes, once the water is absorbed, add the sugar. Keep stirring. In another 3 minutes, the halwa is done. Add dryfruits of choice, and take it off gas.

Beans Aloo

Beans Aloo

Serves 2:
Ingredients:

Beans 250 gm
Potato 1
Ginger ½ inch
Garlic 2 pods
Salt/Dhaniya Powder/Haldi/Pepper or Chilli Powder
Hing

Put some oil in a pan and fry the chopped or ground ginger-garlic. Add hing. Then add the potato and the beans. Add the dry masalas, stir and cover with a lid.

In all the dry vegetable recipes, sprinkle a little water before covering with the lid, to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Makki ki roti and Sarson ka saag

This is the version i got from dadi


Saag:
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Sarson 1 bundle
Palak 1/4 bundle
Onion 1/2 small
Tomato 1
Ginger ½ inch
Garlic 2 pods
Salt/Dhaniya Powder/Pepper or Chilli Powder
Sugar ½ tsp

Procedure:
Wash the sarson and palak thoroughly. Cook in a pan with a 1 glass water. Sarson is ideally cooked in a pressure cooker. Else it will take 20-30 mins to cook. Once cooked, cool the mixture. Grind in the mixer to a coarse consistency.

Fry the crushed ginger-garlic. Add onions and fry till they are transcluscent. Then add chopped tomatoes. Once tomatoes are cooked, add the dry masalas. Then add the leafy mixture. Add a little bit of the makai atta to get a smooth consistency. Let it cook for 15 minutes. Add the sugar.
Toss some butter or ghee before eating.


Roti:

Serves 2
Ingredients:

Makai Atta ¼ kg
Salt
Mooli/Gajar grated (Optional)

Procedure:

Knead the dough with some water. Don’t make it too patla. Take a ball of dough and pat it with the hands into a roti on the backside of a thali or on the kitchen platform. Then put the roti on the tawa and cook on slow fire on both sides. Keep adding a little oil on both sides. Once the roti is well roasted apply some butter and eat with makai roti.

Making this roti is a little dicey, as the dough is crumbly and not smooth like roti ka atta.

Guacamole

Here's the recipe for guacamole i got from my friend Chris

People Served: 2-3 (very well fed 2-3 people)

The recipe starts with what I call the "base". This consists of:
3 big or 4 small avocados
2 limes
Salt

Core the avocados and place in a bowl. Squeeze 1 lime into the avocados. Mash up the avocados with a potato masher or less preferably a fork. The potato masher works very well for making the avocados creamy. Add the other lime and the salt after the avocados are mashed. Add the salt according to taste (until you can barely taste the salt). Now you add the other parts.

1 roma tomato (diced)

Pick 2 of the following:
1 green onion (sliced very thin)
1/4 cup white onion (diced very small)
1/4 cup red onion (diced very small)

1 clove garlic

Pick 1 of the following:
1 Jalapeno pepper (diced fine) -- spicy
1 Serrano pepper (diced fine) -- very spicy

Handful of cilantro leaves (diced fine)

The finer the chopping the better because of the fact that it is a creamy dip :) Chill and Enjoy!

Water Chestnuts & Mushrooms in Garlic butter

Water Chestnuts & Mushrooms in Garlic butter

About 18-20 water chestnuts, peeled and washed
1 packet Mushrooms 12-15
Garlic, Ginger - Finely chopped, very little
Butter,
Salt, pepper, red Chilli powder


Destem the mushrooms if the stem is dry, or you can use them with the stem.
This depends on your judgement
Halve the mushrooms and keep aside
Make sure that the water chestnuts are properly peeled and no traces of the covering remain since it is tricky to get right

Heat some butter in a non stick pan till it melts completely.
Add the water chestnuts to the pan, and let them roast a little bit, till they start colouring up.
Add a little bit of the chopped ginger and garlic to the butter, along with the mushrooms.
Cover the pan and let it cook for a while. Make sure not to stir the mushrooms until they turn a proper brown or they will release all their water n shrink.
Once the mushrooms are cooked, add salt, pepper and red chilli powder to taste.
Garnish with Coriander
Serve hot/warm.