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Easiest Homemade Dhokla

On By lavinamehraIn Less than 10 minutes Quicker RecipesLeave a comment

SERVES: 4

GLUTEN FREE

Why this recipe? How is it green? How am I contributing to making this earth green by following four steps or less recipes?

Quick to make, great to store, quick to steam in a pressure cooker or in microwave. 

Dhokla is chickpea flour steamed savoury cake. It is one of the most healthy snacks to have at a time when you carve for something savoury but do not want to have some off the shelf that has pastry flour or shortening in abundance.

COOKING TIME- 5-10 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
2 tablespoon oil
100 grams Besan (chickpea flour)
½ cup yogurt
150 ml water
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1 inch frozen or fresh grated ginger
2 teaspoon of sugar
3-4 figs of fresh coriander or parsley
1 tablespoon mustard seeds(for garnish)
2-3 green chillies

You will need a regular vegetable steamer or a microwaveable dish that you can use steam the dhokla.

dhoklaSTEPS
1. Mix oil, yogurt, 50 ml of water, chickpea flour, turmeric powder and salt in a mixing bowl and leave it for 10-15 minutes.
2. This mixture has to be steamed for 8-10 minutes in a regular steamer or 5 minutes in microwave. Just before pouring the mixture in the steamer mould, add antacid powder to the mixture and stir it for a minute, you will see it will start coming up because of the soda in antacid powder.
3. While the steaming is on, take a separate small pan and add 1 teaspoon of oil, mustard seeds and split whole green chillies, once splattering starts, add 100 ml of water and sugar to it. Let it cook for 2 minutes.
4. Let the steamed dhokla cake cool down for 5-10 minutes and then pour this sweetened water mixture on it before you cut it into pieces to serve. Sprinkle fresh coriander or parsley before serving.

HANDY TIPS:
1. Dhokla goes very well with spicy hot and sweet chutneys and home made dips.
2. This snack is considered one of the most healthy and nutritive ones as it is steamed.

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Quick Palak Paneer in less than 10 minutes

On By lavinamehraIn Less than 10 minutes Quicker RecipesLeave a comment


SERVES: 4

Why this recipe? How is it green? How am I contributing to making this earth green by following four steps or less recipes?

Using Pressure Cooker will take 8-10 minutes whereas it will take 25-30 minutes in a regular pan. 

You save: 40% of fuel energy and 10 minutes of your precious time that is about 5 to 8% of the total time you spend in kitchen on an average (assuming you spend a total of 2-3 hours in a day in the kitchen)

COOKING TIME: 8-10 Minutes

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 tablespoon oil
1 cinnamon stick (daal chini)
1 star anise (Chakraphool)
1 brown cardamom (elaichi)
2 bay leaf (tez patta)
½ kilo bag of frozen spinach pellets or
1 kg of fresh spinach leaves
1 large onion – chopped any size
1 large tomato -chopped any size
1 fresh green chilli or 1 inch frozen crushed green chilli
4 cloves of garlic or 2 inch frozen garlic
50 grams freshly grated ginger or 2 inch frozen ginger
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons red chilly powder
2 tablespoons coriander powder
1 teaspoons garam masala (all spice)
1/2 kilo Paneer (cottage cheese)cut to 1 inch pieces
Butter oil for topping (if preferred)

STEP 1. Put all whole spices into heated oil, let them get brown
STEP 2. Add rest of the ingredients and cook for 2 whistles (4-6 minutes) in cooker or in the pan until all tender
STEP 3. Remove whole spices and run the hand grinder for 1-2 minutes right into the cooker/pan to make it smooth. You can then put the whole spices back in if you want to.
STEP 4. Add garam masala and the paneer/tofu pieces and let it simmer for 5 minutes before serving

HANDY TIP:
1. As no oils are needed to prepare the dish, you can add a dollop of butter or butter oil (butter oil) when serving, Spinach is supposed to be dry in nature for body so some healthy grease is advisable.
2. Feel free to replace paneer (cottage cheese) with sautéd Tofu or grilled potatoes.
3. For non vegetarian option replace paneer with boneless chicken tikka.

Quickest Shahi Paneer ever- with a vegan option- No Ghee- No Butter

On By lavinamehraIn Less than 10 minutes Quicker RecipesLeave a comment

This is the easiest and a quick recipe for a complicated sounding yet most popular Indian delicacy. People in love with aroma of spices appreciate this preparation the most. Read through handy tips at the end of the recipe to try out vegan and no fat options. 

SERVES: 4

Why this recipe? How is it green? How am I contributing to making this earth green by following four steps or less recipes?

Using Pressure Cooker will take 5-7 minutes whereas it will take 20-25 minutes in a regular pan. 

You save: 40% of fuel energy and 20 minutes of your precious time that may be about 20 to 30% of the total time you spend in kitchen on an average (assuming you spend a total of 1-2 hours in a day in the kitchen)

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoons oil
1 cinnamon stick (small)
1 star Anise
1 brown cardamom
5 pieces of cloves
1 teaspoon of tandoori masala
3 medium tomatoes cut very small (preferable pureed)
½ kilo paneer (cottage cheese, feel free to replace it with Tofu, I love it)
1 inch frozen garlic or 2 crushed cloves
2 inch frozen or 25 grams fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon red chilly powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
20 cashews or almonds (powdered)
200ml full cream milk (I usually make it with low fat milk)

STEP 1. Put all whole spices into heated oil, sauté until brown, should take about a minute or less.
STEP 2. Add small cut tomato/puree, red chilli and sugar and cover pot, let simmer for 3-4 minutes before you add powdered nuts with ¼ glass of water and put pressure cooker lid. Cook for 3-5 minutes in Pressure Cooker until pressure builds up. In an regular pot with lid it will take about 15-20 minutes.
STEP 3. Remove whole spices and run the hand grinder for 1 to 2 minutes right into the pan to make gravy smooth.
STEP 4. Add paneer pieces and half cup of cream/milk to curry as it becomes thick. Let it boil for 5 minutes before you serve.

HANDY TIPS:
1. You can replace cashew nuts/almonds with peanuts or other nuts as per your taste.
2. You may want to garnish it with cut fresh coriander leaves and if you don’t care about making it lean (fat free), feel free to add a tablespoon of fresh cream or butter while serving. For vegan options replace milk with soy milk, coconut milk or almond milk and paneer with Tofu.

Overnight healthy yogurt oats

On By lavinamehraIn Less than 10 minutes Quicker RecipesLeave a comment

 

SERVES: 1

Why this recipe? 

GLUTEN FREE

This is quick to make, needs no special ingredient, is healthy and requires no cooking or heating. You can store it in refrigerator and have it for breakfast, snack or dessert. You can make it in bulk and store to save time for the next time you have a craving for something sweet yet healthy.

PREPARATION TIME6F28846A-A37F-42B7-BAE2-8D0388ADC26D
5-10 minutes
Refrigeration time : 3-4 hours

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoon oats
1 tablespoon low fat yogurt
1 ripe peach or 2 strawberries
half handful of pecans/walnut/sliced almonds
1 teaspoon maple syrup or honey
1 passion fruit (pulp)-optional

3A12B43F-8228-4AF2-998E-82382B81E748STEPS
STEP 1. Blend fruits, yogurt and maple syrup/honey in blender.
STEP 2. Pour this mixture and nuts on top of oats in the container and mix well.
STEP 3. Leave it for a minimum 3-4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
STEP 4. Add passion fruit pulp on top before eating/serving.

HANDY TIPS:
1. Add milk to make the mix more liquid or to replace yogurt with milk as per your liking.
2. You can make this with any fruit like banana, berries, mango or apple.
3. Be creative, add cocoa powder, other nuts to your liking, replace maple syrup with jam or sugar or garnish with a layer of nutella instead of or under passion fruit pulp. (passion fruit gives it a crunchy feel)

 

Invigorating Lamb-नशीली गोश्त करी

On By lavinamehraIn 10 minutes or more recipes1 Comment

SERVES: 4

Why this recipe? How is it green? How am I contributing to making this earth green by following four steps or less recipes?

Using Pressure Cooker for this recipe will take 10-15 minutes for the meat to cook whereas it will take 30-45 minutes in a regular pan. 

This recipe saves you : more than 70% of fuel energy and 30 minutes of your precious time that is about 16 to 20% of the total time you spend in kitchen on an average (assuming you spend a total of 2-3 hours in a day in the kitchen)

Allows you to explore your creative side. For vegetarian options, substitute lamb with baby potatoes, baby pumpkins, cottage cheese or other veggies.

TOTAL COOKING TIME: 25-30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon oil
1 daal chini (cinnamon stick)
1 chakraphool (star anise)
1 brown elaichi (cardamom)
2 green elaichi (cardamom)
50 grams of khus khus (poppy seeds)
2 tez patta (bay leaf)
6 palm sized pureed or finely chopped onion
2 medium sized pureed tomatoes
1 inch frozen ginger
2 inch frozen garlic
2 teaspoons meat masala/ curry powder
1 kilo lamb shoulder cut to small pieces
1 teaspoon red chilli (if you like it hot)
1 inch frozen green chilli or 2 fresh green chilies
1 teaspoon garam masala (All spice)
2 teaspoons salt

STEP 1. Put daal chini (cinnamon), chakraphool (star anise), elaichi (cardamoms) and tez patta (bay leaf) in heated oil, after 30 seconds to a minute add pre sautéed onion and poppy seeds or if using freshly chopped onion, sauté until onion are light brown.
STEP 2. Add lamb and meat masala , Stir for 2-3 minutes, add frozen ginger, frozen garlic, green chilli, salt and red chilli powder .
STEP 3. Sauté for 5-7 minutes and then add pureed tomato, and stir it well, add half a glass of water before you close the lid of the pressure cooker.
STEP 4. Cook on low heat for 10-12 minutes (or for three whistles) in pressure cooker or for 30-45 minutes in pan with lid on and add garam masala before serving.

HANDY TIPS:lambcurry

  1. You can replace lamb with pork, chicken, beef and baby potatoes or vegetables for vegetarian option.
  2.  Always wait for the steam in pressure cooker to release by itself. This is a safety precaution as well as retains all flavour of the food.
  3. Add a few drops of Kewra essence (a floral essence) to get that unique rich muglai flavour.

Is your freezer empty? Save energy- fill it up!

On By lavinamehraIn TipsLeave a comment

Did the title surprise you? I am sure it did, but it is a fact that it is more economical and energy efficient to have a full freezer. Getting rid of empty space ensures that the cold air doesn’t need to circulate as much, so less power is needed and consumed!

Consider filling up all this free space with anything you can freeze. Everyday items such as frozen herbs/vegetables or breads are good options, as well as course chopped garlic, ginger and green chillies. If you do not have much to freeze though, you can also fill plastic bottles half full of water and use them to fill gaps.

It may sounds crazy, but a third option is to fill the freezer with your unwashed jeans! They would need to be properly wrapped in plastic covering, with all the air released from the plastic bag. This is actually the latest method of washing jeans that Levi’s CEO Chip Bergh advises. Freeze your jeans to kill the germs that make them smelly! People are getting on board with this whacky technique, and you can too!

Whether it’s everyday food items, space fillers or unwashed jeans, get that freezer filled up and save on energy!

 

Tandoori Roti in Toaster

On By lavinamehraIn Less than 10 minutes Quicker Recipes1 Comment

SERVES: 3-4

Quick Light Fresh Baked Bread

COOKING TIME: 5-7 minutes

INGREDIENTS: 
400 grams whole wheat flour
200 ml water
5-10 drops of oil

STEPS:
STEP 1.  Add water to the flour, make dough soft enough that is not sticking to your hands. Take oil on your hand and roll the dough with greased palm to finish. Rest the dough for at least 15-20 minutes before making roti.
STEP 2.  Make balls of dough for the size and thickness that you want the roti to be. Roll the balls to make roti.
STEP 3.  Place rolled roti on to heated non-stick pan, turn it around when you see brown dots on one side.
Step 4.  Once both sides of the roti have been on the heated pan once, move the roti into the toaster on high setting. Fluffed and crisp tandoori roti will pop out of the toaster.

HANDY TIPS:
1. Add water cautiously to the flour not to make dough too soft. Dough should be hard enough to easily roll the ball with a rolling pin. You can add more dry flour to the dough or give the balls a pat of dry flour on either side before and during rolling it.
2.Keep rolling the dough balls into Roti while one is cooking on the pan so that next one is ready as soon as you move the first one into the toaster.
3.Depending on the size of the the slot of your toaster you may want to cut the roti in half before sliding it into the toaster so that all of it bakes well.

Facts to know with freezing and thawing cooked food

On By lavinamehraIn Tips2 Comments
  1. Always discard any items in the freezer that have come into contact with raw meat juices.
  2. Do not leave cooked food at room temperature for too long before freezing. Remember, we freeze food because bacteria develops when its left at room temperature.
  3. Thawing completely and then refreezing food not only loses taste, texture, and nutrients but could also result in the development of bacteria due to frequent temperature changes.
  4. Never taste food to determine whether it is safe to eat. You also should not rely too heavily on appearance to determine whether the food is safe. If in doubt, throw it out.

Also check- How do I manage excess cooked food? Freeze or not? and How best to thaw frozen food?

SPICY COCONUT DIP-नारियल की चटनी

On By lavinamehraIn Dips to lift your spirits up!, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Gluten Free, quick and nutritious

It is a complete food rich in calories, vitamins, and minerals.

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
For Dip:
200 grams frozen shredded coconut
50 grams of dry roasted chickpea or peanuts
2 fresh green chilli or 1 inch of frozen crushed green chilli
100 ml milk
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
2 inch of frozen grated ginger

For Garnish:
1 teaspoon of oil
1 tablespoon of black mustard seeds
10 fresh or frozen curry leaves
2 whole dried red chilli

STEPS:
STEP 1. Put all ingredients for coconut dip in a food processor/grinder until it forms a smooth paste, keep adding milk if needed and let it grind for a minute or two for shredded coconut to get smooth.
STEP 2. For garnish, heat oil in a small ladle, add mustard seeds, red chilli and curry leaves until lightly roasted.
STEP 3. Add this to the dip, mix well, let it sit for 15-20 minutes for flavour of garnish to permeate.

IMG_1612HANDY TIPS:

  1. You can use fresh or frozen shredded coconut, the taste of the dip will be the same.
  2. roasted chickpeas can be replaced with peanuts or almonds, they will give the same smoothness and a different flavour to the dip.

Healthy Water-पुदीना पानी

On By lavinamehraIn TipsLeave a comment

mint water

All of us know drinking enough water is good for general health. And what if you can drink some healthy water every time you take a sip.  Mint has one of the highest antioxidant capacities of any food.

Mint has a natural acid which has been studied for its effectiveness in relieving seasonal allergy symptoms. Mint is known to be a natural treatment for common cold, indigestion, pain relief, heart burns, gastric ulcers, skin and oral health.

Every time you fill up a pitcher of water for yourself, family or the guests, add a few mint leaves. Squeeze or crush them with clean hands before putting them in water. Add a few pieces of lime or lemon to help cleanse your digestive system. Lemon and lime also help to control fat and grease in your body.

Enjoy this healthy yet simple concoction every day.