Chilli Tofu | Vegan Chilli Paneer

Chilli chicken and Chilli paneer are quite popular in India but my profound love for tofu made me change the main ingredient here.I am sure this dish will have you craving for more.It's perfect for a party or just as a snack. Serve it as a side dish with fried rice or noodles to make a meal complete.

I used :

Firm tofu - 1 block cut into squares
Capsicum- 1 , small, deseeded and cut into small strips
Soya sauce - 1 teaspoon
Spring onion whites - from 1 bunch, sliced
Ginger - 1" piece, minced
Garlic- 2 large cloves , minced
Chilli powder -1 teaspoon
Corn flour -  2 teaspoons mixed in a few teaspoons of water
Salt to taste
Oil for frying



For batter

Corn flour- 1/2 a cup
Maida / Refined flour - 1 tablespoon
Soya sauce - 1 teaspoon
Salt [ Skip this if the soya sauce is salty]

For seasoning

Spring onion greens , chopped [You can also use finely chopped coriander leaves]

1. Take the ingredients for batter in a bowl and mix well.
2. Add water little by little and make a smooth batter of coating consistency.
3. Heat oil for frying.When it is hot, simmer.
4. Dip the tofu pieces one by one in the prepared batter and deep fry till golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and keep aside.
5. In another pan, heat a little oil and saute spring onion whites, garlic and ginger.
6. After a minute add the capsicum and saute for another minute.
7. Put in soya sauce , chilli powder , fried tofu pieces, cornflour mixed in water and salt if required.
8. Mix well and simmer for a couple of minutes for the flavors to blend.Sprinkle a little water if the mixture is too dry. If it is watery cook uncovered for a few minutes till the mixture thickens.
9. Remove from heat and serve hot garnished with spring onion greens / Coriander leaves

Bon appetit...




Catch me cooking @ Seduce Your Tastebuds

Microwave Greenpeas Dhokla

Dhokla,as we know, is the famous dish from the state of Gujarat made with chickpea flour/ besan.A batter is made and it is steamed.After which a seasoning of mustard,asafoetida is poured over.The dhokla is then sliced and then served garnished with grated coconut, coriander leaves.There are several varieties of Dhokla like khamman dhokla, Khatta dhokra, Rasia dhokra, cheese dhokra, etc.

I made dhokla with green peas and besan in the microwave.It was super quick and was very fluffy.The color was very appealing and it tasted great as well.

Here is what you have to do...

Puree 1 cup green peas, 4 green chillies and 1" piece ginger using very little water.

Transfer the puree[for 1 cup peas you will get 1/2 cup puree] into a bowl and add  1/2 a cup besan/ chickpea flour and salt to taste

 

 Mix well and add a little water to get a batter of dropping consistency.

 Add 5grams[1 small sachet] Eno fruit salt and add 1 teaspoon water over it.It will start bubbling.Mix gently.

 Immediately transfer into a greased microwave proof dish and swirl it around so that it spreads evenly. Microwave covered for 5 minutes on high powder.Let it stand for 1 minute inside the microwave.

 Do a tooth prick test.If it comes out out clean the dhokla is ready.Else cover and microwave for a few more minutes till done.

In another microwave proof dish, combine-1 teaspoon oil,1 teaspoon mustard,1 chopped green chilli and microwave for 1 minute.Pour over the dhokla and spread it out with a ladle/ spoon

 Let it cool.Mark squares with a knife.Remove carefully from the plate.

 Serve garnished with grated coconut and coriander leaves.

A mouth watering and nutritious snack ready in minutes...This comes in handy when you want something warm on a cold day but also want to refrain from indulging in fried snacks...

Serve dhokla as such or with a spicy chutney/ dip of your choice.

Note:

• Generally sugar is added when dhokla is prepared but I did not add it since the peas were slightly sweet.In case you have a sweet tooth ,you can add sugar while combining peas puree and besan.
• The cooking time will vary depending on the quantity and the MW oven brand used, voltage.So start checking from the third minute itself.If cooked for too long the taste will not be good and the dhokla will shrink and not be spongy.

Bon Appetit...

Super-easy crunchy spread/dip

Today I want to share this easy spread/dip recipe with you.
It was my breakfast today, with some slices of bread that I made last night.
I used fresh peppers and celery for their crunchiness and health-benefits and also, because they happened to be at home, but you can use any vegetables you like (for example grated carrot!)
If you love spreads like I do, just go wild with the recipe and add or subtract any ingredient you can think of.

You need:


(amount for 1 – 2 people)

Around 100 g of sour-cream, yogurt or cream-cheese
1 red pepper
A bit of white onion (mine was giant, so I used around 1/6)
½ or 1 celery stem
A bit of cheese
Spices to your liking (I used paprika, pepper, nutmeg and sage)
Salt (if you use unsalted sour-cream)

Preparation:


Finely chop the onion, celery and pepper.
Grate the cheese.


Add sour-cream and spices
Mix well and serve as a spread on bread or a dip with “something to dip in” (crackers, chips, carrots or cucumbers cut into long sticks, etc.)


I hope you enjoy it!

Batterd Broccoli

The other day I just seemed to be unable to stop eating. I found myself rather nibbly and that is out of character for me, I am generally not a snacker or in-between meals eater.

I took out the 2 heads of broccoli I had in the fridge and stared at them. I was not enthusiastic about eating it. As you probably know, when you want a snack, you want something in which you can truly indulge. I decided that I was going to batter and fry the broccoli. I ate it very warm with some sour (which it definitely needs).

To be frank with you, I ate it because I had made it and would feel guilty about wasting food. For me, it tasted just okay. I thought that I'd post about it because it might be the kind of thing that someone else would enjoy.

INGREDIENTS

2 large heads of broccoli; florets separated
1/2 cup split-pea powder
1/4 cup corn starch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon table salt
Water
Oil for deep frying

DIRECTIONS

1. Add the split pea powder, corn starch, baking powder, cayenne pepper and salt to a medium bowl and mix thoroughly
2. Add water to make a batter (not as thick as a pancake batter but not as thin as a crepe batter, you're looking for something in-between). Set aside batter
3. Heat oil to 350 degrees in a karahi, wok or deep pot/pan
4. Add florets to batter and toss to coat thoroughly
5. Shake off excess batter from each floret and fry in batches
6. Drain on paper towels
7. Serve very warm with sour or a chutney of your choice

ROCK TOAST

This is a quick toast using cream of wheat/white rava and vegetables.You can have it for breakfast or as a snack.
I have used milk and butter in my recipe. You can use water or soy milk to soak cream of wheat  and any oil in place of butter.

 Ingredients:

Bread slices-6
Cream of wheat(rava)-4 tbsp
Hot milk-4-6 tbsp
Butter-1 tbsp
Onion-1
Tomato-1
Capsicum-1
Cilantro(coriander)leaves-1 tbsp chopped
Lemon juice-1 tsp(optional)
Salt to taste

Directions:

Soak cream of wheat in hot milk for 10 minutes

Peel onion and chop finely
Chop tomato and capsicum finely

 Add butter to the soaked craem of wheat mixture.

 Add chopped vegetables,cilantro,salt an lemon juice.

Mix well to combine all.

 Put one tbsp of the mixture on one side of the bread slice.Don't put more as it wont cook through if the layer is thick.

 Spread evenly.The surface is uneven and so the name Rock toast.

  Heat a flat pan/tawa and toast the slices on both sides with little oil if needed to grease the pan.Thebutter in the spread will be enough to cook it.

Nirmala
ezeecook