Author: sujatanz

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CREAMY PUMPKIN SOUP (with no cream)

I hadn’t heard of pumpkin soup until I came to this country. In the late 80’s, sometimes pumpkins were given free and even now, thirty years later they are still wallet friendly and have loads of goodness in them.

I didn’t have a clue how to cut a pumpkin and had an accident on my first effort. I still have a scar on my left thumb to remind me how not to do it. If you are pumpkin challenged and you are preparing for soup, stick the piece in the microwave for a couple of minutes to soften the skin. This way peeling is safer!

There are several variations of pumpkin soup and this is a simple one using 4 ingredients and some spices.

Pumpkin soup

INGREDIENTS

1 – 1.2kg crown pumpkin, peeled, seeds removed and cut into 3-4cm chunks

200g onions, chopped

5-6 cloves garlic, peeled

75g red lentils, rinsed (one third cup)

Freshly grated nutmeg

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PRAWN SAMBAL

A little tangy, a little spicy and a little sweet is how I would describe a prawn sambal. The ready to use sambal pastes you get in the supermarket are a bland version of this Malaysian dish packed with punchy flavours. The recipe is straightforward and because the prawns don’t need a whole lot of time to cook, the dish comes together in 45 minutes.

Prawn Sambal

INGREDIENTS

For the sambal paste

30g tamarind pulp or 2 tablespoons tamarind puree

10 shallots

6-10 red chillies

5-6 (30g) garlic cloves

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BEETROOT CURED SALMON

It has been nearly ten years now, but I have a great food memory of eating beetroot cured salmon in a pub in St Albans, England. It was delicious and always thought it to be complicated. Here is a step by step guide to preparing cured salmon and you realise it is so easy. You have to plan in advance as it takes 2 days to cure – you can serve it as a cold main on a hot summer’s day or as an appetizer on rye bread with some pickles. I serve it with radish pickles and potato chokta.

Beetroot Cured Salmon with pickled radish

1kg boneless salmon fillet preferably the loin part

150g sea salt

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

2 teaspoons coriander seeds

2 teaspoons juniper berries

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

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BAINGAN BHARTA

I suppose this is India’s answer to baba ganoush. There are several versions but one common factor is charring the egg plants on open direct flame. This gives a unique smoky flavour. This is great with flat breads.

Baingan Bharta

INGREDIENTS

600g egg plants

100g onions, finely chopped

75g tomatoes, skinned and finely chopped

2tbsps tomato paste

1 generous handful of coriander leaves and stems, finely chopped

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FLAT BREADS

Flat Breads

I realized I love baking bread. Something about working with the dough, proving it and so much excitement when it doubles in size. For me, it is a childlike wonder reflecting on the discovery of yeast or other leavening agents. I have only just started on my bread baking adventure and I hope to keep doing so I can perfect the art.

I adapted this recipe from Duncan Glendinning and Patrick Ryan’s “Bread Revolution – Rise Up & Bake” cook book. I wanted to give a naan feel so I used nigella seeds, salt and garlic flakes but you can use any combinations you fancy. Special bread flour or 00 or high grade flour has a higher protein (gluten) content which is a staple in bread making. This is one recipe where it pays to weigh out all the ingredients precisely.

I made slightly small ones and I got 12 flat breads.

INGREDIENTS

500g Strong white bread flour (high grade flour)

10g fine sea salt

50g unsalted butter, softened

10g instant yeast

200ml milk

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HEALTHYISH LADDUS

Laddu is the term used for a sweet shaped to a ball. I have fond memories of my mum making Rava Laddus (Semolina balls). My sister-in-law Sandhya, makes these healthyish laddus and I built my recipe on that. Most of the ingredients are your standard pantry variety and it is a guilt free snack.

Oats laddu

INGREDIENTS

3 cups rolled oats, toasted

1 cup desiccated coconut, toasted lightly

10g sliced almonds, toasted

40g cashew pieces, toasted

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BEET GREENS AND LENTILS

For as long as I remember, after breakfast, my mother or grandmother would forage for greens in our garden or the neighbourhood. We always had to have greens on the menu at lunch time. It is only natural that any edible greens were treated as a bonus and among unusual things my mum cooked, remember radish greens or moringa (drumstick) greens. In the same tradition, I have started using the beet greens – sometimes I cook on their own and smother it with roasted peanuts. This variation is spicy, nourishing (incidentally beet greens are high in iron and other essential vitamins and minerals) and so easy to make.

Beet Greens

INGREDIENTS

125g lentils, rinsed

250g beet greens

150g onions, sliced thinly

4-5 garlic, peeled and crushed

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MALABARI POTATO ISTEW

This dish brings back lots of childhood memories for me. My parents were good friends with a couple from Kerala who were closer to my grandparent’s age. We would all go to their place occasionally for the odd treat. On one such occasion, we were treated to homemade idiyappam and this potato istew. My mother got the recipe and made it a few times. This recipe is based from that memory. The idiyappam requires special equipment to make so I have just used store bought rice vermicelli making this fairly simple and easy to prepare.

Malabari Potato Istew

INGREDIENTS FOR THE ISTEW

600g waxy potatoes

200g onion, thinly sliced

3tbsps coconut oil

1tsp mustard seeds

½-1tsp turmeric powder

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MALABARI CHICKEN ISTEW

In several parts of the Indian subcontinent, the word ‘stew’ has been adopted in to the mainstream vernacular as istew or ishtu. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the istew is served with appam (rice pancakes) or idiyappam (rice noodles or string hoppers). My version is adapted from Camellia Panjabi’s 50 Great Curries of India book.

Malabari chicken istew

INGREDIENTS

800g boneless thigh fillets, cut into bite size pieces

2tbsp vegetable oil

1tbsp ghee

200g onions

5cms piece of ginger

1 teaspoon peppercorns

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

2-3 green chillies

400mls coconut milk

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