Dahi Ke Kebab (Curd cutlet)

 Dahi ke Kebab (Curd Cutlet)

Dahi ke Kebabs are a starter that we have all grown up with. They are a luxury present only on days where the entire family would go out to have a lavish dinner, be it when I was a kid or a mother, the tradition remained the same. The contrasting light sweetness of hung curd and crispy taste of its outer layer has always made me want to attempt this recipe. I was suddenly reminded of this sweet childhood aspiration when I went to Chennai six months back. We decided to have dinner at Chennai's J W Marriot to enjoy a relaxing night. During a pleasant conversation with the staff, it was revealed to the chef that I am a food blogger and he decided to offer two of his signature dishes, one of which were Dahi ke Kebab. The Kebabs were extremely light, soft and creamy from the inside, while the outer layer. managed to retain its crispiness. He was delighted to share his recipe for the Kebabs, which led to the invention of today's recipe. This recipe is therefore a mixture of our acquired recipes and brings in flavours from various states.  I hope you enjoy this recipe with friends and family during a party night and manage to bring the feeling of a lavish restaurant home.

Preparation Time :  30 min

Cooking time : 20 min

Resting Time : 8 to 10 hours

Ingredients : 

• Hung curd 200 gm
• Paneer 100 gm
• Roasted channa dal 2 tablespoon
• Bread crumbs 1/2 cup
• Cornflakes crushed 2 tablespoon
• Ginger grated 1 teaspoon
• Green chilly chopped 1 teaspoon
• Cheswnuts roasted and crushed 2 tablespoon
• Raisins 1 tablespoon
• Chat masala powder 1/2 tablespoon
• Red chilly powder according to taste
• Salt according to taste
• Fresh coriander chopped 1 tablespoon
• Oil for deep frying

Procedure : 

• First of all, let's take 500g curd and we will tie it in a muslin cloth for around 8-10 hours to remove any excess moisture form the curd. This would give us our hung curd.
• Once we are ready with our hung curd, we move to chopping green chillies, ginger and coriander. 

• Then we move on to dry roasting and chopping our cashew nuts and keep them aside for a while.

• After that we prepare our Kebab filing by grating Paneer and adding chopped cashews, raisins, grated ginger, chopped coriander, chat masala, red chilli powder and salt. We mix these ingredients to have our filling ready. 

• We then move on to prepare our Kebab coating by taking hung curd and adding a teaspoon of chat masala and roasted Chana Dal powder. After mixing these ingredients together, we find our coating ready to be used.
• Since we have both the filling and coating ready, it's time to add a crisp layer to our Kebabs. This can be done by taking a plate filled with a mixture of bread crumbs and cornflakes powder. Blended Dry Poha can also be used as a substitute for cornflakes powder. 
• We then proceed to wet our palms with water, take a small portion of hung curd mixture on your palms, spread it evenly, add a tablespoon of our previously prepared filling, cover it nicely with the hung curd mixture in the shape of a boll, roll it in the mixture of bread crumbs and cornflakes powder and repeat the same with the leftover mixture. 

• Once all the Kebabs are ready, take a Kadhai for deep frying the Kebabs on a medium flame till it is golden brown from both the sides. 

• When the Kebab is ready, take them out on a tissue paper so that the excess oil is removed. 
• Your Kebabs are now ready. Serve them with a warm cup of tea.

About the Group : 

Another reason for choosing Dahi ke Kebabs for this month's blog has to do with the group of passionate food bloggers that I have recently joined. The group is called "Shh! Cooking Secretly" and they manage to create a healthy environment for creativity and growth through their idea of pairing up the members and asking them to give each other a secret ingredient that aligns with the theme of the month. This month's them was "Different Types of Kebabs", suggested by Sujata Roy . She is a supremely talented blogger who loves experimenting with vegetarian foods and eggless baking. Since I am also a vegetarian and often experience a limitation to my choices for food. Sujata Chilly Rasgulla recipe  is a dessert that has always intrigued me. With the contrasting flavours of spice and sweet,  manages to introduce a delicious dessert.

For this month my partner is Sasmita Sahoo Samanta .She is an avid food blogger who excels in vegetarian and vegan recipes. Her Baked Masala peanut are a true delight to have as an evening snack and adds to a fluent conversation and scenic evening. Following the system that our group follows,  chose cornflakes powder and cashew nuts as the secret ingredients that I had to work with. Her choice for the ingredients led me straight to Dahi ke Kebabs and motivated me to share this recipe. Similarly, I chose green chilli and peanuts as her secret ingredients, which she skilfully included in Her Sago Kebab recipe. Got to learn so many variety of Kebabs this month. 

Tips : 

• If you feel that mixture is too sticky add Chana Dal powder 1 tablespoon extra
• I case if Corn flakes powder is not available use poha. Just take 2 tablespoon od dry poha and blend this in a mixer jar for a minute or two.

Corn Kebab Air Fried

 Corn Kebab Air Fried

 

The sound of drizzle, the humid air and the scent of earth after a good shower all act as the telltale sign of monsoon weather and our romantic cravings that accompany them. One such craving of mine are corns. Corn is an ingredient that offers a wide range of snacks including Sweet corn with butter that offers a warm and sweet taste on a breezy night, crispy corns that are crispy and crunchy and make for a great midnight snack, corn fitters that accompany rich spices and compliment the scenic view a rainy evening has to offer with a warm cup of tea and Makke ki Kees that are sweet to taste and soft to eat and thus make for the perfect breakfast to have on a cold day. The wide range of corn therefore made me want to experiment with the ingredient and inspired me to try making kebabs out of corns and the dish did not disappoint, to say the least.

With the rich taste of such fried snacks comes the worry of a healthy diet and to address that, I decided to make these kebabs in an air frier which is a healthier and safer option. Deep frying usually leads to minor mishaps where the Kebab might burst and waste your efforts, air frying therefore requires less worry and helps us have a healthier diet. Another advantage of these Kebabs are the liberty they offer in shape. Kebabs can be moulded in whichever way you want to present. I opted for Seekh shaped Kebabs as I had few guests over and wanted to replicate the presentation offered in restaurants. The result turned out to be extremely satisfying, beautiful and delicious. I hope this recipe would encourage you to cook on a romantic rainy day and would add to an already wonderful day with your loved ones.

Serves : 4 

Preparation time : 20 Min

Cooking time : 10 min plus 12 to 15 minutes for Air frying

Ingredients : 

• 
  Sweet corns blanched and coarsely grind 1 cup
• Potato boiled and grated 2 medium size
• Besan (gram flour) 1 tablespoon dry roast
• Salt according to taste
• Ginger grated 1 teaspoon
• Cumin seeds  1/2 teaspoon
• Roasted Cumin powder 1/2 teaspoon
• Chat masala powder 1 Teaspoon
• Green chilly chopped 2
• Coriander leaves chopped 1 tablespoon
• Pinch of hing
• Red chilly powder according to taste
• lemon juice 1 tablespoon
• Oil 2 tablespoon and little bit for air frying

Procedure : 

• Take frozen corns, blanch them and coarsely grind them in a mixer with ginger and green chilly.
• Take boiled potatoes, grate them and keep aside.
• Now take a pan or kadhai and add two tablespoon of oil. Once the oil is warm, add pinch of asafoetida and cumin seeds.
• On the other side, dry roast your besan and keep aside
• In a kadhai, now add corns mixture and sauté this for 5 to 7 minutes or till it is dry and nicely cooked
• Now add red chilly powder, salt, roasted cumin powder and chat masala. Now again cook this for 2 to 3 minutes

• Add besan to this and mix it well. 
• After that, add boiled and mashed potatoes and mix it well 
• Now switch off the gas, add chopped coriander and lemon juice to this. Now your kebab mixture is ready, allow it to cool down little bit, so that you can easily shape them

• I Have given them a seekh kebab shape. So I used a bamboo stick 
• Take a small portion of kebab mixture, spread it on bamboo stick with the help of your palm and repeat the same with rest of the kebab mixture

• Now Air fry them on 180 degree for around 10 to 12 minutes or till it is golden brown from all sides.
• Serve with onion and Chutney .....

The inspiration behind the dish wasn't limited to my love for corn in the monsoon weather but also included the group that I recently joined. As you all are already aware that I recently joined SHHHH Cooking Secretly Challenge , a group of food bloggers that motivate each other into sharing delicious recipes through an interactive and fun mechanism, and like every month, we were all assigned a theme for our blogs this month. 

July's suggestion was made by Shobha, a food blogger who is extremely talented and dedicated towards her love for cooking as she covers various platforms, ranging from written blogs to her YouTube channel. Her recipes are exquisite and her Begun Bhaja  is a recipe that has been on my to-do list for a long while now. Her suggestion was 'Monsoon Treats', a theme that couldn't have been more apt for the dynamic month that July has been.

 With this opportunistic suggestion came the secret ingredients provided by my partner Renu was Green chilly and salt. Renu is a versatile food blogger who provides a wide range of options for recipes to her readers and can be checked out on Cook With Renu . Her dishes vary from sweet and healthy sugar-free jams to exotic and warm Vegan Pad Thai. Her vegan recipes are the highlight of her blog for me and are always a delight to refer to. She gave me salt and green chilli as the secret ingredients which were both smart and easy to use in my dish. They helped me in adding a nice flavour of spice to the dish.

Tips :

I used frozen corns you can use normal corns too .

Chur Chur Naan on Tawa

 Chur Chur Naan On Tawa 

Indian breads prove to be an exquisite component of Indian cuisine. A true Indian meal feels incomplete in their absence while also managing to be a complete meal in themselves.What's even more appealing about these breads are the range of variety they offer - from dosas that make up for a delicious breakfast to heavy Naan's that make up the pride of Punjab. While International breads like pizza and focaccia bread offer a decent amount of range India's range in bread remains unbeatable with breads from South, North, east and West contributing to this collection brings in different flavours and stories. Today's recipe is one such naan - Chur Chur Naan and is a mix of all things rich and heavy.

I usually share recipes that are healthy and simple to make. While the process isn't complicated, It does lean more towards unhealthy then healthy but its delicious taste makes it easier for us to make an exception for our otherwise healthy eating habits.This recipe is usually made with the help of an oven or a tandoor which isn't usually readily available in everyone's home. So we would attempt to make church Chur Naan on a tawa that is easily available and doesn't prove to be much of a hassle. This recipe, though fulfilling in itself, can be served with rich Amritsati Whole and raita. I hope this recipe would remind you of the flavours Punjab offers and would act as a substitute for that craving of travelling that you feel during the pandemic.

Serves : 2

Preparation time : 30 Min

Resting Time : 2 to 3 hours

Ingredients : 

For Dough : 

• Maida or all purpose flour 2 cup
• Curd 1/2 cup
• Baking Soda 1 Teaspoon
• Salt according to taste
• Ghee 2 Tablespoon + 1 Tablespoon
• Sugar 1 Teaspoon
• Water as required

For Stuffing : 

• Paneer grated 100 gm
• Potato boil and grated 2 medium size
• Onion chopped 1 medium
• Ginger grated 1 Teaspoon
• Green chilly chopped 2
• Cumin seeds 1 teaspoon
• Dry mango powder 1 teaspoon
• Garam Masala Powder 1 teaspoon
• Salt according to taste
• Red chilly powder according to taste
• Coriander chopped 1 Tablespoon

For Garnishing ; 

• Butter 2 tablespoon
• Coriander chopped 2 tablespoon

Procedure : 

• Finish all cutting and chopping.
• For stuffing in a bowl add all the ingredients mix them well and keep aside 
• 
  
  
  
  

• Now let's make a dough. In a bowl, add Maida, Sugar. baking soda, salt and ghee, and mix them. Now add curd and water as needed. kneed it into a soft dough. Keep aside for two hours
• 
  
  
  
  
• Now take a Dough spread it into a flat bread with the help of rolling pin. Then apply a layer of ghee to this spread some dry maida on it so that you get nice layers and crisp taste in your naan.
• From one end start rolling the flat bread you will get a round cylinder Sharpe. With the help of cookie cutter, divide the dough into 6 equal portions. Now keep this in refrigerator for 20 minutes or you can use directly also.

• Now switch on the gas and place Tawa on it. Take one portion, flat it little bit like a chapati, add stuffing to this, close all the ends and you will get a round ball.
• Sprinkle some chopped coriander and green chillies on it and with the help of your fingers spread it and make it round
• Now transfer this on hot tawa and apply little bit of water on back side so that it sticks to the tawa.

• Cook it from both sides, apply butter and enjoy with Amritsati chilly and raita ..

Pomegranate Lemonade

Pomegranate Lemonade 

With valentine's and boards near we need to strike a balance between comfort and scoldings. This recipe manages to achieve exactly that. A drink that brings the family together; its red colour represents the brewing romance between a husband and a wife. Its main ingredient embraces the worry of a mother for her children. This is not just a recipe, it is a break from reality, an excuse to talk to your family and laugh about all the scoldings of this week. So use this drink to bond as a family and remember life is about the love you share with your family.

Serves : 2

Preparation Time : 10 -15 Min

Cooking Time : 0 min.

Video :  

Ingredients : 

• Pomegranate Juice 200 ml
• Orange juice 200 ml
• Pomegranate seeds 1 Tablespoon
• Honey 2 Tablespoon or according to taste
• Lemon juice 1 Tablespoon 
• Soda 100 ml 
• 1/2 Lemon cut into tit bits
• Mint Leaves 10 to 15
• For garnishing Few mint leaves and pomegranate seeds

Procedure :  

• Take out fresh juice of Pomegranate and orange
• In a jar take mint leaves, honey, lemon-juice, Pomegranate seeds and lemon tit bits. Crush them with the help of muddle 

• Now add orange juice, pomegranate juice and mix all 

• take a glass coat the edges with salt and sugar mixture.

• Pour the lemonade mixture in glasses top up with chilled soda to give a fizz to your drink

• Garnish with lemon slices and mint leaves ....

Tips :  

• In place of Honey you can use sugar also