One of Our Favorite Indian Dinners
CHAPATIS
(Indian bread)
(N.B. -- for owners of gas stoves only! If you have an electric stove, you will have to settle for oven-warmed pita bread. Gas stove owners seeking a short cut are free to choose this option as well.)
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup water (you may not need all of it)
Place flour in a bowl. Slowly add as much of the 1/2 cup water as will give you an elastic, kneadable dough. If you are unable to free your hands from it, the dough is too sticky and you will have to add a little more flour. If it fails to hold together, cautiously add a bit more water. Knead the dough for 7 to 8 minutes, then roll into a ball, place in a sealed plastic bag, and refrigerate for one half to three hours, or overnight.
The next steps are as follows: dessert, condiments, and main course.
FIRNEE
(Indian rice pudding)
5 tsps. rice flour
3 tbsps. plus 2 cups milk (you may use 2% lowfat, but not skim or 1%)
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom seeds
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp. chopped pistachios (optional)
Put rice flour in a 1 qt. bowl or measuring cup. Slowly add the 3 tbsps. milk and mix to a smooth paste.
Place the 2 cups milk in a heavy 2 qt. saucepan. Add sugar and cardamom, and place on stove, over a medium-low flame or heat setting. Stir occasionally. As soon as the mixture begins to boil and rise, remove it from the stove. Stir the rice flour paste to mix, then slowly add the hot milk, whisking as you do so. Now pour the mixture back into the pot and place over low flame/heat and bring to a simmer. Whisk frequently and simmer gently for about 15 minutes. Pour into four shallow bowls and refrigerate. Sprinkle pistachios over before serving, if desired. This pudding, even when set, will be somewhat liquid.
CUCUMBER RAITA
1 cucumber, peeled and grated
16 oz. plain yogurt
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. roasted ground cumin seeds
1/8 tsp. red pepper (cayenne) -- optional
1/8 tsp. paprika
Place whole cumin seeds in a small fry pan over medium flame/heat and cook until slightly darkened but not black. Crush in a mortar or electric spice grinder.
Empty yogurt into a serving bowl and beat with a fork until it is smooth and pastelike. Add grated cucumber, salt, black pepper, cumin, cayenne, and paprika. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
MINT AND FRUIT CHUTNEY
1/3 - 1/2 well-packed cup washed fresh mint leaves
4 tbsps. lemon juice (reconstituted is o.k.)
2 fresh hot green chilies --
(they are quite small, 1 - 2 inches long, and bright green in color. If unavaiable, substitute:
1/8 tsp. cayenne and half a green bell pepper)
1 medium Granny Smith or other tart apple, peeled and cored
1 orange, peeled and seeded
1 tsp. salt
Cut fruit into chunks and place in blender or food processor. Trim and remove seeds from peppers, cut into several pieces, and toss in with fruit. Add remaining ingredients and process at high speed until you have a smooth paste. Pour into jar or serving dish, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
ONION RELISH
1 cup minced onions
4 tsps. lemon or lime juice (reconstituted is o.k.)
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. cayenne
salt to taste (start with 1/2 tsp.)
Combine all ingredients, pour into a jar, seal well, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
VEGETABLE BIRYANI
1-1/2 cups long grain brown rice, or Basmati rice
(Basmati rice is avaiable at some supermarkets for a ridiculous price, or at any Indian market for much less, in unmarked 5 lb. plastic bags. I can't say enough good things about Basmati rice. It's really unique -- aromatic and tasty, but I don't always have it on hand. Brown rice is an acceptable substitute, but do try Basmati sometime. You won't be disappointed.)
1 tbsp. butter or margarine
one generous pinch of saffron (I rarely use this -- too expensive to keep in, but if you have some, the recipe does call for it)
one pinch of turmeric
1/2 tsp. salt
2-1/4 cups boiling water
Adjust burner to medium flame/heat. In a heavy saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, briefly saute rice in the butter or margarine, stirring to coat each grain. Crumble in saffron, if you're using it, then add turmeric, salt, and the boiling water. Rice will come back up to a boil almost instantly. Stir, cover pan, and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 30-35 minutes. Now prepare vegetables.
1 cup chopped onions
2 tsps. fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 medium red or green pepper, diced
1 lg. tomato, diced
2 cups small cauliflower florets
2 or 3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1/2 cup green peas, fresh or frozen
1/3 cup raisins
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
a generous handful of chopped fresh coriander leaves (cilantro), if you can find it at the market
(delicious, but avaiable rather sporadically throughout the year. Buy in quantity when you find it, then wash it, chop it, and freeze it. Not as good as fresh, but it will do nicely in a pinch.)
1-1/2 tsps. ground cumin
1-1/2 tsps. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cayenne
Using an over-sized skillet with a tight-fitting lid, saute onions in 2 tbsps. oil for 5 minutes. Mix in ginger and all dry spices and cook for a minute, stirring occasionally. Add 1/2 cup water, potatoes, carrots, and cauliflower. Cover pan and cook on medium-low flame/heat for 3 or 4 minutes. Stir in bell pepper, tomato, peas, raisins, chickpeas, and coriander. Cover and continue simmerinbg until vegetables are barely tender, about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally and add a little water to prevent sticking, if necessary. Add salt to taste. (Begin with 1 tsp.) In the meantime, forget not thy rice! It will be done before your vegetables!
Grease a straight-sided 3 qt. casserole bowl and spread half the rice in an even layer on the bottom. When vegetables are done, pour them over this bottom layer, then top with the remaining rice and smooth it out neatly. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake at 350° for 30-45 minutes.
Now, to finish the Chapatis!
Get the dough out of the fridge, then dampen your hands slightly and knead the dough until it is soft enough to divide into 8 roughly equal balls. Keep them covered with a damp cloth untiol you're readfy to roll them out. Flour your rolling surface well and roll each ball until quite thin. Heat an ungreased, heavy skillet over medium flame until quite hot. Place the chapti in it. Within half a minute, bubbles will begin to rise. Flip the chapati with tongs. Let the other side cook for an equal amount of time. Now turn a second burner to medium flame and drop the grilled chapati directly on to it. As soon as it puffs up, flip it with the tongs, leave for a few seconds, then remove from heat. Taking care not to get burned by the release of the steam, flatten the chapati, butter both sides, and place in a covered, ovenproof dish. (A foil-covered layer cake pan works nicely.) When all the chapatis are done in this manner, remove the casserole from the oven and put the chapatis in to heat for 5 minutes or so. They must be served warm! Should they begin to cool in the course of dinner, a very quick zap in the microwave will fix them. The chapati recipe is easily doubled, and the dough will keep for a good 24 hours.
As I mentioned before, hot pita breads are a decent substitute if chapatis sound like too much work. It is not necessary to do dessert, either, or all of the relishes. Onion chutney, for example, is very strong and not one of my personal favorites. A little goes a long, long way. You can halve the recipe, or omit it entirely. In place of dessert, a pot of Darjeeling tea with added cinnamon stick, cardamom seeds, and hot milk is easier to make, and is a delightful finishing touch.
Happy cooking!