Panneer Potato Cutlets

Living in a developed country means "HUGE". Almost nothing is under a kilogram at most supermarkets. Further, this is how one feels one is getting the bang for the dollar being spent. Like I felt when I picked up milk 2 weeks ago. Yes, 2 weeks ago. Coming from India where the milk would not last more than a day, here milk lasts for weeks. It is on my to do list to find out what it is that they add to make the milk last this long.(A friend clarified that the milk sold here is boiled and packed and therefore lasts longer. Thanks) So, I knew we would not consume all of the milk before the "best by" date and so I made some home made panneer. I use my blog as my recipe journal as well, which means, I revisit my own blog to check the recipe of dishes I have tried. Mom's panneer fingers are not on this as it is a business secret for C-store. So obviously, I don't have any written record of the recipe. Being in different time zones from your mother doesn't help either especially when she is definitely going to be fast asleep at the time that you are cooking up your meal.

So I just put together things that would make a good cutlet and it was good. 

Ingredients (makes about 25 cutlets, each of about 1.5cm in diameter) :

For the panneer :

1. Milk (Full fat works best and avoid UHT/long life milk) - 1 .25 litres
2. Curd/Yoghurt - 4 tbsp
3. Vinegar - 1/2 tsp

For the cutlet :

1. Panneer - from the above or about 3/4 cup of shredded/grated/minced panneer
2. Potatoes - 1 large boiled, peeled and mashed
3. Green Chilly - 2 sliced thinly or chopped
4. Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
6. Bread crumbs - about 1/4 cup + more for dusting - see tips
7. Salt to taste
8. Oil for frying

How I made it :

1. Pour the milk into a pan and bring to a boil.
2. Just as the milk boils lower the heat and put in the curd and vinegar. 
3. Mix well till you see the milk curdle and the fat separate. 
4. Turn of heat. Drain the water to get fresh soft homemade panneer. Squeeze out as much water as you can from the panneer. This water can be retained and stored to be added to dough to make softer rotis or make naan.
5. Now, add the panneer to the potato, green chillies, red chilly powder, garam masala powder. 
6. Adjust the salt. 
7. This may be a bit sticky so add the bread crumbs to make a dough that is not too sticky. Alternately, put into airtight container and leave in fridge overnight. 
8. Heat oil in a kadai - sufficient to deep fry.
9. Spread more bread crumbs on a paper or flat plate.
10. Make small discs out of the dough. Dunk in more bread crumbs and press in those bread crumbs. Keep aside.
11. Once oil is hot, deep fry the discs on both sides until golden brown.

Serve hot with pudina chutney or tomato sauce or mustard sauce

Tips :

• You can make bread crumbs from fresh bread. Just put it into a mixie jar and use the pulse option.
• If you want aired out bread crumbs, you could use dried toast or bread dried in the sun. These serve well to form that crust on the cutlets.

Aloo Bathua - ready in a jiffy

My colleague often mentioned Bathua leaves to me. He is an excellent cook and a perfectionist in almost everything he takes up. When I found these at the local vendor, I picked them up. The vendor gave me some 5 different names for the same and bathua was the only one that got my ears pricked up.

In a recent article, The Hindu had a recipe based on Bathua leaves and I adapted the same. It was so delicious that it was gone in minutes and I could not take a photograph.

Ingredients(Serves 2 as a side dish) :

1. 1 large bunch of bathua leaves
2. 4 medium potatoes
3. 2 tsp oil
4. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
5. 1 tsp red chilli powder
6. 1/2 tsp coriander powder
7. 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
8. A pinch of turmeric
9. Salt to taste

How I made it :

1. Boil the potatoes till 3/4 done. About 1 whistle on high and 3-4 minutes on sim in a pressure cooker.
2. Clean the bathua leaves. In a different pressure cooker, give 1 whistle on high for the leaves.
3. Cut boiled potatoes into small cubes
4. Roughly chop the boiled bathua leaves. Drain the water and reserve so that it can be used diluted for making rotis.
5. Heat oil in a pan.
6. Throw in the cumin seeds.
7. Once the cumin seeds crackle or change colour, put in the red chilli powder, turmeric powder and coriander powder.
8. Swirl it all around for 15 seconds.
9. Throw in the chopped potato cubes.
10. Fry on sim for about 5 minutes.
11. Add the chopped bathua leaves.
12. Adjust salt. Add the garam masala.
13. Serve hot with rotis.

Potato and cauliflower stew

I love appams with stew. When I was a kid, mom used to make appams with sweetened coconut milk. So, I love my appams with anything that has coconut milk or a hot spicy coconut chutney.
I made this stew with appams for breakfast 2 days back and Pras said it was just perfect.  I use the ready to mix Palappam Mix from Double Horse for the appams. A 10 minute mixing job and after an hour, you get great appams. I use my regular kadai to make the appams.

Ingredients (Serves 2) :

1. 2 medium to large potatoes cut into smallish 1 cm cubes
2. 10 florets of cauliflower - make smaller florets out of them.
3. 100ml thick coconut milk
4. 1 small onion chopped
5. 2 green chillies slit through
6. 1 tsp mustard seeds
7. 1 sprig of curry leaves
8. Water
9. Salt to taste
10. 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
11. 1 tbsp coconut oil
12. 2 cloves
13. 1/4 tsp garam masala (optional - I did not use)

How I made it :

1. In a biggish vessel, heat water with turmeric powder and put in the cauliflower florets. Boil for about 2 minutes and drain. Keep aside. This helps ensure that any worms float up.
2. Heat oil in a pressure cooker.
3. Add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. You could loosely place the lid over the cooker to prevent the mustard seeds from going into those hard to clean places in your kitchen.
4. Once the spluttering has stopped, put in the curry leaves and green chillies.
5. After a minute, put in the cloves.
6. When you get the aroma of the cloves, put the onions and fry till they turn translucent and pink.
7. Add the potatoes and fry for about 4-5 minutes on low.
8. Add the cauliflower florets. Mix well.
9. Add just enough water to cover the veggies.
10. Add salt.
11. Give one whistle on high.
12. When the pressure releases, turn on heat.
13. Pour in the coconut milk.
14. Adjust salt.
15. Add a little more water to get the consistency required. Stew should be a little viscous and not too watery. If you get too much water in, you could smash a few potatoes to thicken the stew.
16. Optionally you could add 1/4 tsp garam masala
17. Serve hot with appams.

Tips :

1. If the stew becomes watery, smash a few of the potatoes to thicken the stew

Aloo Gobi Sabji

Whilst in school, I did not have to carry lunch. We were provided nutritious meals at school. When I moved to college, I had to carry my own dabba. My aunt would wake up at 5 every morning and prepare yummy dishes for the dabba. One of my favorites was this aloo gobhi sabji. My aunt would pack 2 dabbas when she made this, as my classmates would not spare me a morsel. Trust me, it was truly delicious. I had seen her making it a few times but not in entirety. Here's what I remember and how I make it.

Ingredients (serves 2) :

1. 1 medium sized cauliflower - with about 20 florets - don't split them yet.
2. 12 baby potatoes with skin on - you can use 2 medium potatoes
3. 2 large onions chopped finely
4. 1 inch piece ginger
5. 6 cloves of garlic
6. 1 green chilli
7. 1/4 capsicum chopped - optional
8. 2 large tomatoes finely chopped
9. 1/2+1/4 tsp turmeric powder
10. 3/4 tsp red chilli powder
11. 3/4 tsp coriander powder
12. 3/4 tsp cumin/jeera powder
13. 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
14. 1/4 tsp amchoor powder
15. 1 tbsp + 1 cup of oil 
16. 1tsp cumin seeds
17. Salt to taste
18. Coriander leaves to garnish

How I made it :

1. Wash and boil the potatoes in salted water. Ensure that they don't get over boiled. They need to retain their shape. One whistle on high and one on low should do.
2. In an open pot of hot boiling water, immerse the whole cauliflower upside down. Add 1/2 tsp turmeric powder. Turn off after 3 minutes and drain. Split the florets.
3. In a wok, heat 1 cup of oil. When hot, put in the potatoes. Cover and let them fry. If you have put them in with the skin, you will know when they are done based on the crumples on the skin.
4. Remove the potatoes and drain on a kitchen towel.
5. In the same oil, put the cauliflower and fry them till the edges of the florets brown. Remove and drain on kitchen towel or piece of newspaper. 
6. In another pan, heat 1 tbsp oil.
7. Put in the cumin seeds.
8. After 30 seconds, put in the onions. 
9. Mince the ginger and garlic. When the onion start to turn light golden brown, put in the ginger garlic paste. 
10. Keep frying till the onions continue to brown. You could put in some more oil from the frying if you want to. 
11. Put in the green chillies and capsicum.
12. Fry for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes.
13. Fry for 3 minutes and add all the dry powders. 
14.  Fry till fat separates. 
15. Add salt and put in the potatoes and cauliflower.
16. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes.
17. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with rotis.

Tip :

I usually use the oil in which I've fried stuff once, to make my chapatti/roti dough. Or, I top my rotis with this oil. Sometimes, I also use it in the curries as the oil need not be heated up to smoking point for curries.