Paneer Masala and a Year of Blogging!!!

A year of blogging and this is my 101th post..Whew!!!! Never thought I'd blog for a year..always thought that it would be just a passing fascination and I was sure I wouldn't blog for more than a couple of months. But as I ventured deeper into this...I kept going until today...And I'm celebrating this with my most favourite dish that has won me a couple of accolades.

This dish is awesome in appearance and the taste! Whether it is a small get-together of family or friends or if I want to pamper myself..this is what I make.... A Paneer/Cottage Cheese Masala.



What you need are:

Paneer/Cottage Cheese-200 g
Ghee-2 tbsp
Tomatoes-2 (blanched, peeled and pureed)
Cream-1/2 cup
Salt as per taste

For Grinding

Red Whole Chillies-6
Onion-2
Ginger/Garlic Paste-2 tsp
Whole Pepper corns-about 10
Cloves-3
Cinnamon Powder-1tsp
Cummin-2tsp
Coriander Powder-2 tsp
Cashewnuts-100g
Chilli Powder-1 tsp

Grind the above and set aside. Fry the paneer in ghee and set aside. Heat more ghee and fry the ground paste. Follow this by adding the pureed tomatoes and when the ghee separates,.add in the cream and the paneer and cook until a desired consistency is met... Serve hot!

Biriyani in no Time

Yesterday, being a Sunday, I was in no mood to cook forget even entering the kitchen..After a late breakfast, A suggested we either go out or order in lunch from any restaurant..the choice was left to me... An hour later, there was such a heavy downpour and the roads were flooded..sigh!!

Ultimately, it was destined for me to make lunch...A suggested I make biriyani...

The toil that goes into making a nice delicious biriyani is too much to handle especially on a day like this...That is when I decided on why not use a pressure cooker to make biriyani!

Apart from the usual chopping, this is a quicker way..and tastes as good too!




What you need is:
Chicken pieces-1/2 kg/or vegetables
Basmati Rice-2 Cups
Ghee-1/2 Cup
Onions-3 medium (chopped)
Tomatoes-3 (chopped)
Green Chillies-4 slit lengthwise(add more for spiciness)
Curd-1/2 Cup
Turmeric Powder-1/2tsp
Ginger/Garlic paste-4tsps

Spices
Cardamom-4
Cloves-4
Cinnamon-2" pieces
Bay Leaves-2

Leaves
Coriander (Cilantro)Leaves- 1 bunch (Chopped)
Mint Leaves-1/2 a bunch otherwise the flavour would dominate

For Grinding
Cashewnut-6 or 7 (grind to a paste)
Khus Khus (Poppy seeds)-to make 1tbsp of paste

Salt-according to taste
Water-3 cups
Fry the washed rice in 1 tbsp of ghee and leave aside. In a pressure cooker, add the remaining ghee and fry the onions till they turn a golden brown. Add the whole spices now and fry until you see the cardamoms bloat..This is when a nice aroma emanates from the cooker....Next, add in the tomatoes and fry until they turn soft and the oil begins to leave the masala..This is when you add the ginger-garlic paste..Cook this until the raw smell disappears..This is followed by the entry of the leaves, turmeric powder and the green chillies...after 2 or 3 minutes of mixing, in a separate bowl mix the ground paste into the curd and add this into the masala..Then add the chicken pieces that have been waiting to go in!!!
Mix well until the masala coats all the chicken pieces..Follow this by adding the water and salt..Stir in the rice..and pressure cook for 2 whistles.. Turn off the fire and let the rice stand in the cooker for 30-45 minutes..

Remove and serve with raita..


I enjoyed it...Try it!!