Koak Palla Fish

Sindhi's love Palla fish because of its distinctive taste. Though the fish has a lot of bones, the preparation called Koak Palla is a universal favorite for a sunday lunch.Here is how you can make it.

Ingredients:

· 1 palla fish ( washed, cleaned and slit from the centre into two halves
· 2 medium sized onions very finely chopped
· I medium sized tomato very finely chopped
· 2 green chillies finely chopped
· 1 inch piece ginger finely chopped
· 2 tbsps dahi or yoghurt
· ¼ tsp turmeric powder ( Haldi)
· 1 tsp coriander powder
· ¼ tsp red chillie powder
· ¼ tsp amchoor (dry mango) powder
· Few coriander leaves finely chopped
· Salt to taste
· 2 to 3 tbps oil

Procedure:

In a bowl mix dahi and all the chopped and dry spices, add salt, mix well and our topping is ready. Keep aside. Heat oil in a non stick pan and lightly fry the fish on both sides . When done take off from flame, evenly spread out the topping masala on the inner side of the fish. Cover the pan with a fitting lid and allow the fish to steam for a few minutes. When the topping masala is steaming and has seeped in well into the fish, turn off flame. Serve hot in a flat serving dish. Goes well with curry rice,dal rice.

Winter is the time for fresh juicy carrots and for a few days one also sees fresh garlic at select shops in the vegetable markets. The combination of fresh carrots and fresh garlic in a water based carrot pickle makes for a delicious and mildly flavored pickle that goes with rice, roti or even bread and snacks.

Paniwala Gajar Ka Achar 

Ingredients: 

· 2-3 long, juicy carrots ( available in winter) 
· 8 to 10 flakes of fresh garlic (also available in winter) slit into two lengthwise. If fresh garlic not available , use regular garlic 
· ½ tsp red chillie powder 
· ¼ tsp turmeric powder 
· ½ mustard seeds ( coarsely ground) 
· Salt to taste 
· 2 cups water 

Procedure: 

Wash and scrape carrots and cut into 1 cm thick slices. Boil carrots with 2 cups of water in a pan for 5 minutes. Allow to cool. When they are at room temperature , add garlic , spices and salt. Mix well and transfer the contents to a glass jar. Expose jar to sunlight if you can. The pickle will be ready too eat in 2 days. This pickle should be finished in 3 to 4 days as it will get more sour each day. So make enough for 3 to 4 days and enjoy it.

During winter, one sees fresh, crunchy and mild raddish at all vegetable vendors. The winter raddish with brinjal or eggplant makes delicious and out of the ordinary vegetable dish which goes extremely well with hot roti and dahi.

Here is how you can make Mooli Baigan ki Sabzi.

Mooli Baingan ki Sabzi

Ingredients :

·  4 to 5 small brinjals (approx 250 gms) 

· 1 long raddish
· 2 medium sized tomatoes finely chopped
· 2 to 3 green chillies finely chopped
· 2 tsps of finely chopped ginger
· 1 tsp dhania or coriander powder
· ¼ tsp haldi or turmeric powder
· Salt to taste
· 3 to 4tbps oil
· Few coriander leaves finely chopped 

Procedure:
Wash and scrape raddish, cut into small pieces and soak in a bowl of water with a little salt added. Cut brinjals into slightly bigger pieces and soak separately in a bowl of water. Heat oil in a thick kadai. Add ginger and green chillies , sauté for a minute , then remove raddish pieces from water and put into the kadha. Saute for a few minutes till the raddish is partially cooked. Now add the chopped brinjal pieces, sauté for a minute or two. Add coriander& turmeric and mix well . Sauté for a minute or two, then add tomatoes and salt and sauté for a minute or two more. Now add half the coriander leaves , cover the kadhai , lower flame to minimum and cook for a few minutes till both brinjal and raddish are cooked. Serve hot with hot rotis and yoghurt.

Kheema Pav

Ingredients:

1. 250 gms. Mince meat (kheema)
2. 2 medium sized onions finely chopped
3. ½ tsp. Garam masala powder
4. 2 large tomatoes grated
5. 8 to 10 flakes garlic
6. 1 inch piece ginger
7. 2 green chillies
8. 1 tsp. Coriander powder
9. ¼ tsp. turmeric powder
10. 1/2 tsp red chillie powder
11. 5 to 7 Bay leaves or Tej patta
12. 3 tbsps. oil
13. A few coriander leaves chopped
14. 1 small onion cut into rings
15. 1 lemon
16. Salt to taste
17. 3 loaves of fresh Pav bread

Procedure:

Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Coarsely grind green chillies, ginger-garlic in a mortar and pestle and add to the hot oil. Stir for a minute or two. Add chopped onions and brown on low flame till light brown. Now add Kheema that has been washed well. Add dry spices and chopped tomatoes, salt and half the coriander leaves. Cook on medium flame while stirring now and again, till the mixture is golden brown and tomatoes are blended. Add one mug of boiling water, close the pressure cooker and cook for 10 minutes on low flame.
Serve hot garnished with onion rings, balance coriander leaves and lemon slices along with fresh bread.

Potatoes or Aalu are a universal favourite in most homes. But Aalu when cooked with Methi and other spices has a very distinctive flavour. Methi Aalu goes well with roti and Dal chawal too.


METHI ALOO
Ingredients:

· 6 medium sized potatoes (boiled, peeled and cut into small pieces)
· 1 small bunch of Methi leaves washed and finely chopped
· 2 small tomatoes finely chopped
· 2 green chillies finely chopped
· 8 flakes garlic and 1inch piece ginger ground together
· ½ tsp red chillie powder
· 1 tsp coriander powder
· ¼ tsp turmeric
· Salt to taste
· 3 tbsps oil

Procedure:

Heat oil in a thick kadai and add ginger- garlic and green chillies. Saute for a minute or two till ginger- garlic is golden in colour. Now add methi leaves and turn around for a minute or two. Next add tomatoes, mix well and cook for a couple of minutes. Then add the dry spices , mix well cover kadai and cook on low flame till tomatoes are soft and well blended. With a wooden hand blender, blend the tomatoes and methi to a smooth paste. Then add the potatoes and salt and mix well Cover kadai once again and cook for 5 to seven minutes till the potatoes are steaming. Serve hot with roti, puri or dal rice.

Masala Puri

Winter and weekends are times for Big breakfasts and Big meals.... Masala Puri is an extremely simple to make, quick and delicious breakfast or meal accompaniment.... .

Ingredients:

I small bowl wheat flour
½ tsp pepper powder
1/tsp jeera powder
Salt to taste
4 tsps oil for the dough
Oil for frying

Procedure:

Put the flour in a large plate or bowl. Add all ingredients and knead into a soft dough with water. Make small balls of the dough . Roll out each into a round puri. You can roll out a few puris and place them on a sheet of paper. Now heat oil in a kadai. It should fill about one third of the kadai. When the oil is really hot, gently put in one puri. Allow it to drown in the oil. It will swell up like a balloon, Turn it over . Let both sides be golden brown. Drain out oil , remove puri and place on tissue to remove any excess oil. Fry all puris in this way. Serve hot with aloo bhaji, dahi, pickle and papad.

Red Chicken Curry

All of us tend  to entertain more in winter, have richer and more elaborate meals and more of non vegetarian food. Chicken Curry and rice is a universal favourite for a Sunday lunch or to serve to guests. Here's my recipe  of Red Chicken Curry... simple and tasty.

Ingredients:
• 2 chicken legs (each cut into 2)
• 2 chicken breasts (each cut into 2) In all 8 pieces
• 4 medium sized onions finely chopped
• 1 tbsp. ginger garlic paste or 1 piece ginger and 8 to 10 flakes of garlic finely chopped
• 3 large tomatoes
• 2 green chillies finely chopped
• 2 tsps. coriander powder
• 1 tsp. garam masala
• ¼ tsp. turmeric powder
• ½ tsp. cummin seed powder (optional)
• ½ tsp. red chillie powder
• Salt to taste
• Few coriander leaves
• 5-6 tbsps oil

Procedure:

Clean and wash chicken pieces. Apply chilli powder, turmeric and cummin seed and keep aside. Heat oil in pressure cooker. Add ginger garlic. Cook for a minute. When it changes its colour reduce flame and add onions. For a few minutes cook onions till golden brown on low flame. Now add chicken pieces, coriander powder and garam masala. Mix well and stir for a minute or two. Now chop tomatoes finely and put them in the cooker, add salt and cook on low flame turning chicken pieces till tomatoes are soft and blended and the chicken has a reddish brown colour. Add salt, coriander leaves and 2 cups of hot water. Close cooker and cook for 10 minutes after first whistle. Serve hot with chapattis, bread or rice.