Karela is the New Kraze!

Food Network seemed to have a Sweet Genius marathon tonight. One of the episodes caught my attention when I saw the Judge introduce Karela, as one of the main ingredients. I dropped what I was doing and sat down to watch it. There's no way, Karela was going to be incorporated into a dessert? This I had to see for myself. For those of you who are not familiar with Karela, it's a bitter tasting gourd/vegetable. Each chef managed to incorporate it into their dish in various forms: toasted and candied, as a relish and even as sprinkles. It was amazing to see their creativity and enthusiasm in making this bitter vegetable tasty.
I got the feeling that some of them weren't very eager to use it. It's pretty bitter! I love it though. And once you acquire the taste, you can't help but eat more of it. I'm happy to see Karela gaining more presence in the international culinary scene. Did I mention that it's good for you too? Oh yes!

Spotted Karela Ras (juice) at the Indian store

It's used as a dietary supplement (not my cup of tea in that form though). Here are some ways I've eaten it: stuffed Karela, cooked in a gravy sauce, and as a Fry (kind of like French fries). The latter is today's specialty.

For close up of Karela Fry, click on picture!

Ingredients:
- 1 lb of Karela, small and firm
- 1 medium Potato
- 1 medium Onion
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced (optional)
- 2 tbsp Dry Coconut Powder
- 1 tsp Chili powder (adjust to your taste)
- 1 tsp Salt (adjust to your taste)
- 3 to 4 tbsp of Vegetable oil

Procedure:
Remove the ends of the Karela and cut into half, lengthwise and then chop into thin slices. Do the same with the potato and onion and set aside. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a non-stick saucepan and add karela and potato. Sprinkle salt and cook on medium heat for 6 to 7 minutes under closed lid. Hint: Mix the vegetables in between to prevent them from sticking to the pan. When both the karela and potato are tender and cooked, remove the lid and add onion. Then add the remaining oil and fry the vegetables (for maybe another 6 to 7 minutes) until the karela is golden brown. Then add chili powder, dry coconut powder and a pinch of salt. Mix well. It's ready to be served and enjoyed!

***Quick Tip:
- Avoid selecting fat karelas because they tend to have lot of seeds and are really bitter. That's a no, no!

For more Karela recipes, check out Indian Vegetarian Recipes blog as well. 

Stuffed Jalapeno Curry

This goes out to all the Heat Seekers!!

I think every family has a network of culinary experts. I know it's true in my own family. One of my aunts is an expert in making spicy curries. Her husband has a high tolerance for spicy dishes. I boast about his tolerance to all my friends. So for this year's Diwali celebration, my mom and I decided to add a spicy dish to the menu. And who better to consult, than my aunt. When I was inquiring about her dishes, she said, "Are you sure you want those recipes?" After some persuasion, she came around to it and sent us the recipe for Stuffed Jalapeno Curry. 

How to prepare the peppers for the stuffing (Gloves may be useful when handling the peppers): Wash and dry 7-8 peppers thoroughly. Slit each pepper with stalk end intact. Carefully pry it open and with the handle of the spoon, scrape out the seeds. This step depends on your spice tolerance. If you are a Hot Head, then leave some in there. However, let it be stated that, We Warned You. Then apply salt to the inner surface of each pepper. Once all of them have been prepped, please keep aside.

Stuffing Ingredients:

- 1 Medium Onion, chopped

- 2 tbsp of Coconut Milk Powder

- ½ bunch of Coriander (Cilantro), chopped

- ¾ tsp of cumin powder, roasted

- 3 to 4 tbsp of Vegetable Oil

- Salt, adjust as per taste

Procedure:

1) Heat one tablespoon of oil in a pan, add the chopped onion and stir fry for a few minutes. Then take it off heat and put aside for cooling.  

2) Blend the following ingredients together: dry coconut powder, stir fried onions, coriander/cilantro, and roasted cumin powder. Pulse the mixture for 3-4 minutes, but do not over grind. Adjust the salt as per your taste. Then stuff the peppers with the mixture and put aside for frying. 
3) Heat two tablespoons oil in the pan and gently place the stuffed peppers into the pan. Cook on low to medium flame. (Please Note: if necessary, add more oil for sauteing the peppers) 

4) Gently flip each pepper over to cook them evenly. When the peppers are more than half done, add the remaining stuffing. (The remaining stuffing amount depends on how much was stuffed into the peppers prior to this step. Don't worry if there isn't any left over)

5) Saute the peppers until they have a brownish tint and are cooked thoroughly.

***Quick Tip:

- This curry can be enjoyed on its own or with some hot rice (plain or brown) or quinoa.

Ended Summer With A BANG-AN!

I can’t believe summer has come to end. One of my favorite memories this past summer was going fruit picking at a local farm with my family.  Even my grandmother had fun; she especially enjoyed the hayride around the orchard.  We were so famished from picking “all day” that we stayed at the farm for some grub.

The staff served up free samples of dishes cooked with the fresh produce. It was such a delight! My favorite was the Charred eggplant, zucchini and red bell peppers. It closely resembled a dish we prepare called Baigan Bharta; baigan means eggplant in Hindi. We don't grill that often so it was nice trying the dishes at the farm.

Over  Labor Day weekend, we finally set up the grill and had ourselves a mini barbecue with corn on the cob and Baigan bharta sandwiches. I brushed the corn on the cob with a little bit of lemon juice, chili powder and salt and it delicious. The sandwiches came out so well, I thought I would share the wealth.

Below is the recipe for the filling and it is good enough for 6-7 sandwiches.

Ingredients:

Main Ingredients

- 1 medium sized Eggplant, peeled and chopped into small cubes

- ½ cup of Crushed Tomato (use equivalent amount blending fresh tomatoes)

- 1 medium sized Onion (red or regular), chopped finely

- ½ cup of Coriander, chopped

- 1 tsp of Chili powder
- ½ tsp of Turmeric
- ½ tsp of Mustard Seeds
- ½ tsp of Whole Cumin seeds

- 1 tsp of Salt (Adjust to taste)

- 2 tbsp of Vegetable oil

- 2 to 3 tbsp of BBQ sauce (preferably Smoky flavored)*  

Procedure:           

1)  In a skillet heat oil and season with mustard and cumin seeds, when they start to splatter, add a pinch of hing (optional), turmeric and chili powder. Then mix well.

2) Add onions and stir until transparent, add tomato and cook well. Add chopped eggplant and salt, cook well under covered lid mixing intermittently.

3) When the eggplant is cooked well and blended into tomato, remove the lid and add chopped coriander and mix. Lastly, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the Smoky flavored bbq sauce.

Baigan bharta can be served as a side dish for any meal. It can be also be served with roti, naan or rice. For our sandwiches, we toasted whole wheat bread and topped the bharta with Monterrey Jack (love the spicy kick). It was like eating sandwiches hot off the grill; especially with the addition of the smoky barbecue sauce in the recipe and the hot gooey cheese.

***Quick Tip: We used the smoky flavored BBQ sauce to add the charred flavor to the dish; similar to making it with roasted or grilled eggplant.

Check out the review of this dish on Wanderlust Wednesday. Have some feedback about our dishes, please feel free to post your comments and/or send us an email. 

Is Chinese Okra, Okra's Distant Cousin?

If you read our post about Sweet and Sour Toast, then you will know the vegetable I will be cooking with today. Ah, yes...the infamous Chinese Okra.

In some ways, I believe Okra and Chinese Okra are related. If you look at them closely, they both have similar ridges on the surface. Do they have anything else in common?

I did some digging to find out what else they have in common. Unfortunately, my research only took me so far. Here are my results: they both have the word okra in their name and they have ridges. To further my disappointment, I found many recipes from various cultures for okra and not a lot for the other one. I thought because it is called Chinese Okra, it must be popular in China. However, my East Asian friends told me that it's not so. Even in India, this vegetable is not commonly found in the North; it's mostly available in South.

Man, this vegetable is so unappreciated.  😡 What a pity!  Lucky for us, we are South Indian and we know how to use this vegetable for its potential.

We have come up with 4 recipes and are excited to share them with you. We shared the first recipe with you back in September: Chinese Okra Chutney. Don't forget to read about it, if you haven't already.

The second one is quite interesting since it is made from the skin of the vegetable. You heard it correctly, I said SKIN and this recipe is mainly popular in Andhra Pradesh. So give it a try!

It is called Skintastic gourd with Lentils and the ingredients and procedure are listed below:

• 3-4 medium Chinese okra (also known as Ridged gourd/Tori)
• 1 big, chopped finely Onion
• ½ cup Gram dal / channa dal
• 2 Tbsp Grated coconut (dried)
• ½ tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Red chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 Tbsp Vegetable oil

 Let's see how it's made


1) Wash squash thoroughly and cut the end and peel the ridges to remove strings (shown in video below). 

2) Now peel the green skin. The actual flesh inside can be saved and used for making another curry or chutney (shown in video below).

Cut the peel into 1-2 inch pieces and place them in the chopper and chop them coarsely.

OR

3) Transfer the coarse peel into a pressure cooker, add 2 cups of water, channa dal, turmeric powder and salt. Mix well and pressure cook for 5-6 minutes. (Please Note: it can also be cooked in a saucepan on stove top until the dal is cooked but firm, might take 10 – 15 minutes.)

4) After pressure is relieved, open the lid and immediately strain the contents using a fine mesh strainer. Use a paper towel in the colander if fine mesh strainer is not available.

5) In a saucepan heat the oil on medium heat. Add mustard and cumin and allow them to crackle, then add onions and sauté them until transparent. Add chili powder and mix well. Now add the drained squash and channa dal and mix well. Place a lid and cook for few minutes (approx. 5 minutes).

6) Add coconut powder and mix well.Then you are ready to remove from the stove. Serve it hot with rice or rotis.

Everything Stew with an Indian Touch!

You've heard of the Everything Bagel, right?

It has different kinds of seeds, onions, salt and other ingredients on it. Well, we have something in the same line but it's a stew. It's called the Everything Stew! It's like a Minestrone Soup. 

It has all the vegetables that were in our vegetable drawer plus beans, grains, different kinds of spices and sauces.

I always believe that the best recipes are the ones that you make up on a whim. Everything Stew is just that. My mom started making the stew this way when we were running out of ideas for lunch and needed to make something healthy and hearty. At first, I was not excited about it, I was like, stew? Come on mom.

But you know what, as usual I was wrong. I think my mom knows I'll change my mind once I taste it (I'm the Official Taste Tester in the family). Kind of like how back in the Kings and Queens era, they had peons and servants taste their food before they ate it. It was to ensure that the food was not poisoned or spoiled. In my case, I tell her whether the food requires more or less of a certain ingredient.

I know, it might seem like I'm being biased to my mom's cooking. Everyone would say their mom's cooking is the best. You just have to try it. I would recommend making this when you want to spice up cooking regime. I like to eat it with potato chips, toasted bread or pita chips.

This recipe makes 6-8 servings and you know what....in just 4 steps you have The Everything Stew!!

Click image to enlarge

Ingredients:
- 1 cup or 1 packet of Brown rice/ Uncle Ben’s rice (cooked)
- 1 bunch of Celery, finely chopped
- 1 medium Onion, chopped
- 1 can (14.75oz/418g) of Sweet Corn, regular or cream style
- 1 medium size can of Beans (any variety), wash and drain well
- 1½ cup of Crushed Tomato
- 2 tsp of Ginger garlic paste
- 1 tsp of Red chili pd / paste
- 2 Red/green/yellow peppers, cut into ½” pieces
- 1 tbsp of Smoked barbeque sauce (optional)
- 2 tbsp of Olive oil or any cooking oil
- 1 tsp of Marjoram (Italian spice)
- ½ tbsp of Salt

Procedure:
1) In a heavy bottomed pan (casserole), preferably of 4 Qtz size heat oil and sauté onions and ginger garlic paste. (Indian Touch)

2) Add celery and peppers until celery is soft and firm. When celery is cooked, add chili paste and tomato pulp for 1-2min.

3) Then add corn, beans, cooked rice, marjoram and salt & cook well (add water to bring the stew to a thick soup consistency).

4) Serve it in a bowl along with veggie sticks or garlic bread or toast. It makes a very satisfying healthy lunch. Can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-week.

Quick Tips: 
- Barley/ Cracked wheat (dalia) or regular rice can be substituted for brown rice. Any variety of vegetables like carrots, zucchini, cabbage, cauliflower, beans or spinach can be used.

- If available, frozen mixed vegetable packets are convenient and save time in chopping and cooking.