Masala Poori Chaat

Masala Poori or Masalpoori is a popular chaat in Southern states of India, mainly Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. This chaat can be made spicy and sweet, and of course the best way, which is sweet and spicy.

I think all chaats need to have “Tikhi-Meethi”, which is sweet and spicy in hindi. A chaat has to have medley of flavors that just make you happy. Chaats should make you remember and enjoy good times. See, people usually don’t realize but more than any sweet dish, chaats spread more happiness. Sweet dish is a part of every family and usually made or brought in from sweet shop every time for an occasion, big or small, sometimes not so important and sometimes made even without an occasion. But, Chaat, people mostly don’t make it at home and when they step out to enjoy their favorite chaat, its more like an event.

If you happen to be a chaat lover like us, and enjoy making them at home, this is a recipe for you. This chaat is different from all other chaats, the difference is North and South, literally. This one is more cooked, blended, mixed in and a little more effort from our regular chaats, but the end result is all worth it.

This chaat is mostly made with peas and sometimes with Chickpeas/Kabuli Chana. I have made both ways and I feel the Kabuli Chana is much better so preferred in my house, but you can always substitute and follow the same steps. Peas do not need to be soaked so you can always make this chaat in around an hour if using peas. Make sure you follow the steps of mashing and blending, the flavor would not be the same if you omit those steps. The chaat is served warm and would fill you like a meal, so I recommend it more for tea parties or chaat evenings than an appetizer. It is also a great option for Ramadan Iftaar, if you have an hour gap between Iftaar and dinner. Also, I prefer making my papdi at home, and I make it with Whole wheat flour. Nevertheless, using store bought Papdi gives exactly the same fabulous result. If you want to make yours at home, feel free to follow my recipe. You can also substitute whole wheat with All purpose flour as well.

My better half, Mr. Parveez introduced me to this chaat. It was his college days when he would be out with his friends, after college and at times bunking classes enjoying mouthful of flavors and mostly it was Masala Poori. All in all, loads of wonderful memories. Now, I can definitely bring back his wonderful carefree days, but every now and then I help him remember them with a smile by offering his favorite chaat.

Salmon Tortilla Wrap

The family that loves fish, finds each and every way possible to get their fish on their dish….Yeah!!! Please ignore my not so funny sense of humor rhyming the words…LOLzzz. My boys love the fish rolls or wraps for school. Making Salmon Tortilla roll is one of their favorite school lunches.

The Salmon needs to be lightly marinated and can be pan fried till crunchy. The marination is simple with garlic powder, black pepper, turmeric [optional, I prefer it], salt, lemon juice and dry parsley. I like my marinade to be simple, since Salmon has a very strong itself. The light marinade helps Salmon have its own flavor and the other spices help enhance it more.

I have people always question me as to why I never try making my Salmon like my other recipes for Indian style fish fry. Believe it or not, just like fishes come in different flavors, adding same spices to 2 different fishes while makes one taste amazingly delicious, makes the other one lose its flavor. Fishes like Mackerel have a very strong fishy flavor. Adding strong spices to a Mackerel and deep frying it after rolling it in refined flour makes it a scrumptious appetizer, where as if I try the same style of cooking on Salmon, which also has a very strong fishy taste would not taste that good. I have been to a few restaurants that serve Salmon cooking it like a fritter/ Pakoda or rolling salmon fillet in flour and serve it as a patty for Burger. I strongly felt that Salmon in such styles loses its taste. Salmon has a wonderful outer texture that makes it super crunchy when you shallow fry it and its best this way.

I always throw in some veggies like shredded cabbage, or chopped lettuce with sliced Onions and sliced tomatoes. Pair the crispy Salmon with the fresh and chopped veggies and sauces makes it flavorful and if you are making them for your kids, its always a great way to sneak in those veggies.

I added corn, that I had boiled and then saute’ed them till slightly crispy. My corn kernels were fresh. I took them off the cob after boiling the corn. It just gets a little easier to get the kernels off. You can always simply saute’e them in a pan by adding a tsp of butter/oil. You can also add a little garlic powder and chili flakes and add that zing to it.

Sauce can always be changed according to your taste. I added the mayo-garlic sauce and hot sauce, but I think mustard sauce or green chili sauce would be good too.

Salmon Fajita

Salmon is an all time favorite for us. Any day, any way, Salmon on the plate not just looks appealing but also is very healthy and tastes absolutely delicious. Sunday lunch/brunch made with Salmon is a Parveez family special. Not just loved but also a favorite for our friends.

Its amazing how my friends who drop in on weekends request a good Salmon fajita and I very happily make it for them. Salmon is easy to make, marination doesn’t need to be for too long and if you use fresh fish, the flavors come out even more amazing.

I serve my fajita with and without tortillas. Many times people find tortillas to be a must with their fajita, but I kind of take it easy and a lot of times make my fajita without tortillas too. This time I made the tortillas at home, but store bought are almost as good and can be substituted with homemade, except the freshness and preservative free food cannot be substituted.

Rice and beans with grilled Salmon make an excellent accompaniment and so does grilled veggies and sour cream. Rice and beans can be eaten separately with the Salmon too, without adding them to the tortilla. I also like some cheese and raw onions, but that’s always a personal choice.

A little bit of guacamole adds a lot of flavor. Avocado adds a little softness and buttery flavor to the fajita and the crunch of Salmon and veggies with the buttery guacamole is very fancy together. I usually add green chilies and tomato to avocado to make my guacamole so its little bit on the spicier side, but you can always make it a little bland or less spicy.

Oven Fried Chicken Roll

A little twist to our all time favorite fried chicken roll. My kids love the fried chicken roll. We tried it in some restaurant in India a few years back from a popular joint. The roll was amazing crunchy and delicious. Since, we returned, these chicken rolls found a place to our play date parties, since they are a big hit in kids.

Though I would always fry my chicken but then when a dish is made more often, it sometimes makes you switch to a healthier option and that is exactly what I did with my fried chicken roll. Instead of frying it in oil, I substituted my fryer with my oven to make the chicken a little more healthier. The bread/Roti that i made for the roll is also cooked on a skillet without using oil.

Its funny that a person like me who isn’t very conscious about what she eats and I also truly believe that flavors shouldn’t be played around with and I made sure of that with this one too. This dish came to perfection after a few trials and errors and this is the final outcome, as good as the regular one.

Now, the first try for making the chicken without frying was cooking it in the air fryer. I am not sure if people achieve a lot of success while using air fryers, because I don’t seem to like them much. I have an air fryer from one of the best companies and I did follow all the instructions as well, but the chicken came out very chewy and the outer part wasn’t as crunchy either. I tried again and this time sprayed a little oil. The result was great exterior and very chewy inside.

Then I decided I should give my oven a try too and though everyone has their preference, but trust me on this one that the oven gives you much better results than an air fryer. There is definitely a little more work where you will have to turn the pieces around mid way cooking to ensure the chicken is cooked evenly from all sides, but, it’s totally worth it.

The sauce that I used to assemble the roll is pretty simple to make. The recipe is available in sauces. If in case its not, please feel free to remind me. Being a homemaker and a mother to two boys, I do forget updating things…LOLzzz

Meanwhile, please do go through the recipe. I am sure you will love to try it too. Its easy, simple, and healthy. Enjoy!!!

Chhole Sev Chaat

Do you ever have those days when you feel like having something filling, flavorful, colorful, sweet and sour, but you don’t want the dish to be heavy and not too filling. It’s one of those days when you don’t want those extra calories to pile up but, it’s hard to give up on that craving.

Well, this dish is for those days. To me, its a perfect weekend lunch. Our weekend lunch is difficult decision to make, specially on Sunday. My boys have sports and morning are always eggs, banana and milk or smoothies. After spending most of our day at sports ground and returning home at 2 PM, you can imagine the huge hunger pangs and growling stomachs.

At this point, serving my boys with kebabs or burgers is fine since they can easily digest it but the problem is that with 4 hours remaining in dinner, you want something filling but nothing too heavy. This dish is is perfect for those days.

Chhole/chickpeas are rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals. Mixing them up with tomato, onion, coriander leaves and few spices with yogurt, chutneys and sev make an excellent chaat which is satisfying to your belly and craving. A mouthful of delicious bites without the fear of adding extra calories.

Hariyali Daal

Belonging to Northern west part of India, I grew up eating more of Moong, Masoor and chana daal. Toovar daal was either used to accasionally make sambhar or my mom’s Saturday Night khichdi. Believe it or not, my mom made khichdi every Saturday night and I always tried hard to get an answer to this question. The standard reply to my question was that my Dad enjoyed “Bhuni khichdi” or “pan fried khichdi” for breakfast every Sunday morning, therefore Khichdi had to made for Saturday dinner. Though I loved Sunday pan fried Khichdi, I still could never fall in love with the original Khichdi.

Coming back to Toovar daal. So, after I got married, I found so many different ways of cooking Toovar daal since down south, they cook a lot of Toovar daal. Isn’t it a blessing getting married to someone from a completely different state or region because you both are accustomed to eating similar flavors yet so many varieties add to your table in zoom. Its just amazing. All you need if you get married to someone different from you is keep an open heart, open mind and a pallet that is open to new foods and experiments. At least, thats what Mr. Parveez and I did.

Once when I revisited my hometown, I went to a restaurant and tried “Hari daal”… Now, with the flavor I did realize that its Toovar daal but what amazed me the most was to see my younger son, who was 4 that time, loved the daal and didn’t fuss. Of course, the restaurant owner didn’t share the recipe except confirming that it was Toovar daal. After I returned home, to USA, I still had the daal in mind and decided to trying to make it.

This daal is pretty easy to make and the best part is that because everything is blended, its easier for your kids to eat and enjoy the flavors. I always notice my boys taking coriander leaves, onions or tomatoes out of their daal but with this they enjoy the flavor and eat everything too.

Chicken Tikka Masala Biryani

Biryani is a gift from the Mughals to India, but certain recipes are so purely Indian that when you try making them, you know that they are just inspired by Biryani as a cooking method and not really the recipe. Sometimes, when you cook these recipes by combining them, the final result comes out so fabulous that you question for not trying your hand on it before.

Chicken Tikka is and official tikka starter that I believe is the first kebab anyone tries when they try Chicken kebabs. And, Chicken Tikka Masala is a favorite chicken curry for all ages. My boys love Chicken tikka masala any day, any time.

So, One fine day I decided to take a step further and make Biryani with flavors of Chicken Tikka Masala. The curry is made with boneless chicken, but I chose to make Biryani with regular chicken with bones. So, if you choose to go boneless with this one, its fine too.

Though, I was a little nervous at first but the Biryani came out amazing. The taste is something every one who loves Chicken Tikka Masala would love and since we normally consume the curry with Naan, this being with Rice makes it taste super amazing.

Tomato Rasam

The first time I tried Rasam was in Dallas, Texas. Funny, right??? We were newly married and after 2 weeks of coming to USA, Mr. Parveez was offered a 2 week project in Dallas and he took me along. There happened to be an Indian restaurant very close to the hotel where we stayed and we would visit that place for lunch almost every other day. The non vegetarian food in that restaurant was not halal, leaving us with the only option of consuming vegetarian food.

After a day or two of being there, I came down with bad cold.  I was in a pretty bad state and all I needed was a some nice warm soup. We were back for lunch to the same restaurant and decided to order some Tomato soup and while going through different soup options, Mr. Parveez came acrossTomato Rasam on the menu and he ordered it for us. I still remember looking at the soup bowls that looked like they contained colored water with tadka. My expectations were really low and honestly, somewhere in my mind I wasn’t too happy with Mr. Parveez performing experiments with my taste buds while I suffered from bad cold.

Anyways, the first spoon of the Rasam in my mouth and I had a party of flavors in my mouth. The spice was so mild, yet so prominent to make its mark and leave that tingling sensation on your tongue. The taste was so delicious that while you have a spoonful in your mouth, your soul craves for another one. And, the best part was the reaction of my sinus. My nose block just opened up and I started feeling so much better since now, I could smell the lovely flavors as well. From that day, till the day we stayed in Dallas and were in that restaurant for lunch, we would order the Tomato Rasam everytime.

And, after I returned home, I started my research on Rasam and discovered that Rasam is made in different flavors, Tomato Rasam is just one among the many and from there started my journey on making different rasam at home. We enjoy it more during winter and fall. My kids love it with boiled rice and every sinus congestion, cold and flu season…Rasam is always a part of our meal.

Drumstick Sambhar

Drumstick Sambhar is one of the basic and easiest sambhar recipes you can come across. I have always recieved most compliments on this sambhar from family and friends. I think one of the best foods are foods that require less time and hassle to cook and can be served immediately. Since you consume them few mins after cooking, the flavors are beautiful, rich and divine.

If you study Indian culture closely, you will notice a word in food terms, referred as “Saatvik”. Saatvik is clean eating habits and is generally referred to the food consumed by Sadhus or Spiritual healers and teachers. It was believed that simple food helped them think higher and deeper thoughts and eventually they became leaders of religion or society by keeping their lifestyle basic and food extremely simple. During the time of ancient India, even widows were asked to consume spice less food, since it was believed that consumption of spice led to desires that were regarded a sin for women.

As much as I have studied, Saatvik food requires almost no spice and it lets the flavors of the vegetables and daals enhance the dish, rather than produce mixed with spices. With time and years passing by, the meaning of saatvik changed as well. Now saatvik stands for simple and clean food and is consumed by everyone on daily basis to take a break from the over processed food around us.

This sambhar recipe is very clean and easy to make. Serve with boiled rice and enjoy the heavenly flavors.

Cabbage Carrot Curry

The value of eating vegetables is something most of us realize after getting older, specially after having kids. This is the time you understand why your mom took all those strict routes of making you eat Bhindi, turai and patta gobhi. In my case, I always threw a fit when my mom made cabbage or patta gobhi but, since I wasn’t a big fan of Okra/ lady finger/Bhindi either, I had to pick my battle and would normally give in with cabbage.

It was my teen age when I actually started enjoying cabbage and I remember that my mom started adding grated carrot and peas to the cabbage which changed the taste from the tradtional cabbage curry and added a lot more flavor to the dish.

This cabbage curry is my mom’s recipe. There is no onion or garlic added to it. My boys love it and its one of the few ways to serve the greens in a delicious way.