Vegetable Biryani

Ingredients:

1. Basmati Rice - 2 cups
2. Mix vegetables - 1 cup (carrot,beans,peas,cauliflower,potato) chopped length wise
3. Onions - 3 medium finely sliced
4. Tomatoes - 2 finely chopped
5. Garlic - 7-8
6. Ginger - 1/2 inch/small piece
7. Green chilli - 1
8. Coriander leaves - handful/1 cup+ some for garnish
9. Mint leaves/pudina - 1/2 cup
10. Curd - 4-5 tbsp
11. Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
12. Haldi powder - 1 tsp
13. Everest Biryani masala - 2 tsp
14. Cloves - 3-4
15. Peppercorns - 3-4
16. Cinnamon stick - 1 small piece
17. Cardamon - 2
18. Bay leaf - 1
19. Shahi jeera - 1/4 tsp
20. Salt as per taste
21. Water as required
22. Oil - 5-6 tbsp
23. Atta Dough for sealing

Method:

• Grind pudina,coriander, ginger, garlic and green chillies to a fine thick paste.
• Heat 2 tbsp oil in a kadai, fry sliced onions till crispy brown in colour remove it in a bowl(Sprinkle little salt to speed up the process of frying).
• Keep some onions for garnish and mix curd to remaining onions to form a thick paste.
• Soak Basmati Rice for half an hour.
• Take a big deep wide mouth vessel, add lots of water and bring it to a boil.
• Add salt, cloves, pepper, cinnamon stick, cardamon.
• Add soaked rice and cook for 10-12 mins. Strain the rice and spread it on a plate. The rice needs to be 3/4th cooked. The rest of it gets cooked on dum.
• In the same kadai(in which onions were fried) add remaining oil, add bay leaf, shahi jeera.
• Then add green paste(step 1) fry till raw smell disappears.
• Now add onion curd paste(step 3)fry for 2-3 mins.
• Add finely chopped tomatoes fry for few seconds.
• Add all spice powders chilli powder, haldi powder, everest shahi Biryani masala, little salt(salt is already added to rice) fry for 3-4 mins.
• Add vegetables, mix nicely and allow it to cook on medium flame till vegetables are half cooked.
• Now add parboiled rice(Don't mix just spread it), garnish with fried onions and chopped coriander leaves.
• Close the kadai with a lid and seal the same with atta dough.
• Allow it to cook on dum for 10-15 mins on low flame.
• Let it cool for 10 mins.
• Mix nicely and serve with raita.

**You can also use paneer but instead of adding in gravy fry it and garnish on top of rice before sealing the kadai.

Chicken do pyaza

Ingredients:

1. Chicken - 500gms
2. Onion - 3 medium(2 finely chopped and 1 cut into cubes)
3. Tomatoes - 3 medium
4. Capsicum - 1 medium cut into cubes
5. Ginger-garlic paste - 2 tbsp
6. Green chilli - 2
7. Coriander-pudina - 1 small cup finely chopped
8. Curd - 2 tbsp
9. Red chilli pd - 1 1/2 tsp
10. Haldi pd - 1 1/2 tsp
11. Salt - as per taste
12. Oil - 3 tbsp
13. Butter - 1 tsp
14. Water - as required

For Garam masala:

1. Coriander seeds - 1 tsp
2. Cumin - 1/2 tsp
3. Cloves - 5-6
4. Peppercorn - 7-8
5. Cinnamon - 1 small stick
6. Star annise - 1
7. Green cardamon - 2
8. Black cardamon - 1

Method:

• Dry roast all ingredients under garam masala, cool it and make powder.(instead you can also use chicken masala or any garam masala)
• Clean and wash chicken pieces.
• Marinate chicken with 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste, 1 tsp red chilli pd, 1 tsp haldi pd, 1 tsp garam masala pd(freshly ground),curd and salt. Mix all this and rest it for 1 hour.
• Blanch tomatoes and make puree.
• Heat oil and butter in a pan.
• Add green chilli, finely chopped onions and fry till translucent.
• Add remaining ginger-garlic paste and fry till raw smell disappears.
• Add tomato puree, fry for few seconds till oil seperates from sides.
• Add little salt(already added in marination), 1/2 tsp red chilli pd, 1/2 tsp haldi pd. Fry for few seconds.
• Add marinated chicken. Mix well. Cover with a lid and cook for 5-7 mins.
• Add chopped coriander-pudina, 1 1/2 tsp garam masala, onion and capsicum(cut into cubes).
• Add water as per consistency of gravy required.
• Cover and cook until chiken is soft and done.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve with Roti, paratha.

Non deep fried Dahi Vada

Ingredients:

1. Urad dal - 1 cup
2. Moong dal - 1/2 cup
3. Ginger - 1/2 tsp grated
4. Green chilli - 1 no
5. Thick curd - as required
6. Sweet tamarind chutney - for garnish
7. Red chilli pd - for garnish
8. Roasted jeera pd - for garnish
9. Sugar - as required
10. Salt - as per taste
11. Coriander leaves - chopped for garnish
12. Oil - 2 tbsp
13. Water -  to soak vadas

Method:

• Soak urad dal and moong dal for 4-5 hours.
• Then drain water from the dal and by adding ginger and green chilli grind to a smooth paste. If required just sprinkle some water just 1 spoon.
• Take ground batter in a bowl, add salt and beat nicely.
• Heat appe pan, put little oil in each mould, add a spoonful of batter in each mould.
• Cover with a lid and allow it to cook for 7-8 mins on low flame.
• Once done on one side flip it with the help of spoon and cook on other side till done.
• Remove it and add in a bowl of water. Keep for few seconds. Then take each vada press between your palms to remove excess water.
• Place vadas in serving bowl. Whisk curd till smooth, add sugar and salt as per taste.
• Pour curd over vadas, sprinkle red chilli pd, jeera pd, sweet chutney, garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Coconut jaggery stuffed spicy Paratha

Ingredients:

1. Coconut - 1 cup scrapped
2. Jaggery - 1/4 cup grated
3. Red chilli pd - 1/2 tsp
4. Cardamon/elaichi pd - 1/2 tsp

For the dough:

1. Wheat flour/Atta - 1 1/2 cup+ for dusting
2. Salt - as required
3. Oil - 1 tbsp
4. Water - as required
5. Ghee - 2-3 tbsp to apply while roasting.

Method:

• In a pan add scrapped coconut and jaggery and mix well.
• Add red chilli pd and cook till jaggery melts and the mixture is nice dry.
• Add Elaichi pd, mix and allow it to cool.
• To make dough take atta in a bowl, add salt, oil and by adding water knead to a soft dough(like chapati dough). Keep aside for 20 mins.
• Make equal sized balls of the dough and mixture.
• Take one portion of the dough stuff coconut jaggery mixture,and roll it flat. Don't roll it too thin keep it slightly thick.
• Heat a non stick pan, add few drops of ghee and roast it on both sides till done.