The word “shorba” is of Persian origin and almost a dozen variations of the word exist. It is traditionally prepared by simmering meat or vegetables in boiling water along with salt and flavored with aromatic curry spices and herbs.
Carrot shorba
My recipe is an oldie but a goodie from the Indian chef Sanjeev Kapoor who has been the celebrity chef on one of the longest running food shows of its kind Khana Khazana. (In fact the show has been running since 2010 and has over 500 million viewers.) I remember watching this show on my visits to India. I have simplified the recipe so it is easier and you don’t have so many dishes to wash up!
This is a great soup to serve as a starter for a dinner party and I assure you will have your guests wanting more and the recipe.
INGREDIENTS
500g carrots, peeled and cut into 2 centimetre chunks
A few weeks back Eva Longoria posted her take on Bobby Flay’s recipe of Eggplant Milanese. I had to put my own signature on the dish and the result is spectacular even though I say so myself. There is textural as well as taste contrast and I would make it again in a heartbeat. Milanese style is a fancier way of saying crumbed!
My tip choose even shaped eggplants – shouldn’t be too narrow around the neck and bulbous at the bottom. You can cut eggplants lengthwise but I prefer the rounds.
Eggplant Milanese
INGREDIENTS
2 large eggplants, cut into ½ to 1 cm thick rounds
Indians have a love affair with Chaat. Be it Lucknow or Mumbai Chowpatty or anywhere else on the sub-continent, everyone loves chaat. Taking basic and humble ingredients and with judicious uses of condiments and garnishes, chaat becomes memorable. The street vendors generally specialize in one chaat and it is a pleasure watching them pile the mouthwatering delicacy onto your plate.
Growing up in Visakhapatnam, by the Bay of Bengal, (they were plenty of street vendors on the beach mostly unregistered and unlicensed) we were never permitted to have Bhel puri or Pani puri at the street stalls even though we yearned for it. When older cousins visited for summer holidays, we would indulge, and it would be our little secret!
Depending on what chaat you can make, it can be an entrée or a starter or you can plan the entire menu around chaat. Whatever you wish to serve, I reckon it will become a family favourite.
Ragda Patties colloquially referred to as Ragda Pattice is made from potatoes and dried peas. Of course, top with tamarind and date chutney, coriander chutney, and garnish with chopped onion, coriander and sev.
What is the origin of the pattice?
It is suggested that Indian chicken and Mutton Pattice also called Pattie and puffs is a ‘desi’ variant of the Cornish Pasty introduced to the colonies by the British. It is not hard to imagine how the word Pasties evolved into Pattice in the subcontinent.
For the pea stew, you can use tinned chick peas I suppose or even split chick peas could work. I used dried white peas you get in an Indian store.
FOR THE RAGDA
INGREDIENTS
200 grams dried white peas (safed vatana)
a couple of pinches of turmeric powder
Salt to taste
METHOD:
Soak the dried white peas overnight. Discard the soaking liquid, rinse. If you are using a pressure cooker, put the peas in the pressure cooker, add two cups water and cook for 15 minutes on low heat after the first whistle.
If you are using stove top method, put the peas in a heavy bottomed saucepan and pour 3 cups of water. Bring it up to the boil and allow to simmer and cook for 45 minutes to an hour.
In a saucepan, boil a cup of water. Add the cooked peas into the water. Mix in the salt and turmeric powder and keep it at a gentle simmer.
FOR THE PATTICE
INGREDIENTS
400g boiled potatoes, finely grated
½ teaspoon hot chilli powder
½ teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons corn flour
Salt to taste
1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil to pan fry
METHOD
Combine all ingredients for pattice and knead a little to make a smooth mixture. Divide potato mixture into 12 equal portions. Shape into patties about 6 centimetres in diameter. Rest patties in refrigerator for half an hour.
Heat a fry pan and working in batches, fry the patties a few at a time. Keep warm.
FOR THE CHILLI CHUTNEY
INGREDIENTS
¼ cup tomato ketchup
¼ cup Sriracha sauce
1-2 tablespoons malt vinegar
METHOD
Mix all ingredients for the chilli chutney. Taste and adjust according to personal preference.
FOR THE TAMARIND SAUCE
INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons store bought tamarind puree
2 tablespoon date puree
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon hot chilli powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
150ml water
Salt to taste
METHOD
Put all ingredients except salt in a saucepan and bring it to a gentle boil. Add salt and simmer for five minutes. Taste to adjust seasoning.
FOR THE CORIANDER CHUTNEY
1 cup coriander stems, roots and leaves washed and roughly chopped
3 -4 green chillies, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
½ teaspoon cumin seed powder
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 -2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
Puree all the ingredients except the lime or lemon juice. Then add the juice and stir well. Will keep in fridge for a day or two.
ASSEMBLE IN INDIVIDUAL BOWLS
In a shallow bowl, spoon the ragda. Arrange the potato patties. Spoon the tamarind and chilli chutney. Dot the coriander chutney. Ideas for additional garnishes could be finely chopped onion or sev (from Indian store) and serve. Serves 4.
A lot of people say they don’t like tofu. Ten years back that was me. The thing about tofu is that it has no flavour of its own and happily take on whatever flavour you throw at it. There are several types of tofu – silken, soft, firm, extra firm, marinated, etc.
For this dish, I took inspiration from Adam Liaw’s recipe. This is simple, easy and you can put it together in ten minutes.
Silken tofu
INGREDIENTS
300g silken tofu
75g onion, finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic finely chopped
3tbsps vegetable oil
1tsp sesame oil
2tsps soy sauce
Pinch of sugar
Finely chopped spring onion for garnish
METHOD
Invert the silken tofu onto two or three layers of kitchen paper while you work on the next step.
Put the vegetable oil on medium low heat in a small saucepan. Add the onions and garlic and fry on medium heat for 10 minutes until lightly browned. Mix in the soy sauce and pinch of sugar along with the sesame oil.
Discard the kitchen paper and unmould by inverting the silken tofu onto a serving platter. Spoon the onion mixture on top of the tofu and drizzle the liquid evenly onto the tofu. Garnish with the spring onions and serve at room temperature.
I don’t have much of a sweet tooth – I prefer savoury stuff any day and these are perfect with a cup of coffee and great to take on a picnic.
You can use pesto or Branston pickles instead of tomato relish.
Tomato & cheese scrolls
INGREDIENTS
DOUGH
400g strong bread flour
8g salt
7g instant dry yeast (contents of one packet)
15g olive oil
250ml water
Additional flour for dusting
FILLING
5-6 tbsps tomato relish
150g tasty or any sharp tasting cheese, grated
Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing
METHOD
Place flour, salt, yeast and oil in a large bowl and mix together. Add the water and using a wooden spoon, combine to form a dough mass. Tip dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 -15 minutes, resting it for 1 minute every 2-3 minutes, until dough is smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp tea towel and leave in a warm place for approximately 45 minutes, until almost double in size.
Tip dough onto the work surface and gently deflate by folding it a few times. Return it to the bowl, cover and let rest again for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 220 degrees C. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Divide the dough into two equal portions. Tip one portion onto a well-floured work surface and roll out to about 30cm x 25cm.
Spread the tomato relish up to half way through your rolled out dough. Sprinkle the cheese to cover the relish. Gently roll the dough like you would roll a carpet. Using a sharp knife, cut cross-ways about 3 centimetre wide scrolls. You should get between 8 -10 scrolls. Lay them on the baking tray and cover with the kitchen towel. Let them prove for another 30 minutes. Repeat with the other portion.
Bake for 15-18 minutes. Remove from the oven, brush immediately with olive oil and place on a wire rack to cool.
I reckon every household in Andhra makes a variation of this dish. The word “Pulusu” denotes a sauce made with tamarind. Thiyya pulusu is mixed vegetables in a sweet and sour sauce. In Andhra Pradesh, it is served alongside plain dhal and rice. You can use any seasonal vegetables of your choice but the classic combination always includes pumpkin, kumara (sweet potato) and drumstick. You can use choko, eggplant, okra, beans, cooking melon, etc.
This is a simple potato salad that really packs a punch with strong mustard flavour. My sister in law Sandhya prepared this when I visited them. It is a lovely side dish and we particularly like it with cured salmon.
This is a refreshing cold soup to have on a hot day. I was
rummaging my refrigerator and had bits or this and that along with stale sour
dough all of which got converted to this soup.
INGREDIENTS
100g Fennel, diced (white portion only)
75g Hungarian green pepper, seeds discarded and diced
Hyderabad is an epitome of India’s unity in diversity culture. Very few cities in India have the privilege of having a distinctive cuisine. The Nizams governed this city for over two hundred years until 1948 and one of their princely legacies was establishing a Hyderabadi cuisine. This is a famous Hyderabadi vegetarian dish, the combination of spices representative of both Northern and Southern regions of India.
