Rice Idli

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups rice - preferably par boiled (sela)

1 cup split and husked dhuli urad

2 tsp salt

Method
Soak the rice and lentil in water separately for 5-6 hours.

Grind the lentil to a fine smooth paste, and the rice a little coarse (enough to feel a texture, like fine sand).

Mix the two ground ingredients with salt and enough water to form a batter of dropping consistency.

Leave, covered, in a warm place to ferment to a spongy batter, overnight.

Steam in an idli steamer and serve hot.

Key Ingredients: Rice, salt, husked black gram

Salli Boti

Ingredients
4-5 Tbsp of oil

1 bowl of chopped onions

2 Tbsp ginger garlic paste

300 gm of boneless mutton

1 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp of turmeric powder

1 1/2 tsp roasted coriander

1 1/2 cumin powder

1 bowl of chopped tomatoes

1/2 tsp sugar

2 tsp vinegar

1 tsp garam masala

3 tsp chopped coriander

1 bowl of Salli/fine potato shreds

Salt to taste

Method
Heat the oil in a pan and add onions to it.

Fry till turn golden brown

Add ginger-garlic paste, mutton, red chilli powder and turmeric powder.

Mix well.

Now mix in the the roasted coriander powder, cumin powder followed by tomatoes, stir again.

Add a little sugar and vinegar.

Add garam masala and salt, mix well.

Reduce the flame and cover till cooked for about 30 to 40 minutes.

Add chopped coriander and give it a final stir.

Garnish it with more coriander leaves and top it up with lots of Salli.

Key Ingredients: potato, coriander, garam masala, vineger, sugar, tomatoes, cumin, turmeric, chilli powder, mutton, garlic, ginger, onion, vegetable oil, red chilli, cumin seeds, tomato, coriander leaves, salt

Steamed Dhokla

Ingredients
1 cup gram flour (besan)

1 Tbsp citric acid

1 Tbsp sugar

Salt to taste

Pinch of turmeric

Water to make batter

1 Tbsp fruit salt/ baking powder, dissolved in water


For the Tadka:

1 Tbsp oil

1/2 Tbsp mustard seeds

1 dried red chilli

7-8 curry leaves

Method
In a bowl mix gram flour, citric acid, salt, sugar and turmeric. Add water and make it into a smooth batter with medium thick consistency.

In a glass make add the fruit salt or baking powder. Add water to it and pour this into the dhokla mixture.

Grease the steaming tin with 2 drops of oil and por the mixture into it. Steam for about 15-20 minutes or till cooked.

In a pan, add oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies. Let it splutter.

Pour the tadka over the prepared dhokla.

Cut into pieces and serve.

Key Ingredients: gram flour, citric acid, sugar, Salt, turmeric, Water, baking powder, vegetable oil, red chilli, mustard seeds, dried red chilli, curry leaves

Hyderabadi Biryani

Ingredients
1 kg meat

1 Tbsp salt

1 Tbsp ginger garlic paste

1 Tbsp red chilli paste

1 Tbsp green chilli paste sauteed brown onions to taste

1/2 Tbsp cardamom powder

3-4 sticks cinnamon

1 Tbsp cumin seeds

4 cloves pinch of mace mint leaves to taste

2 Tbsp lemon juice

250 gm curd

4 Tbsp clarified butter

750 gm semi cooked rice

1 tsp saffron

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup of oil

Method
Clean the meat. Then in a pan add meat, salt, ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, green chilli paste, sauteed brown onions, cardamom powder, cinnamon, cumin seeds, cloves, mace, mint leaves and lemon juice. Mix it well.

Add curd, clarified butter, semi cooked rice, saffron, water and oil and mix it well.

Now apply sticky dough on the sides of the pan.

Cover with lid to seal it and cook for about 25 minutes.

Hyderabadi Biryani is ready to eat. Garnish it with boiled eggs, sliced carrots, cucumbers and serve hot.

Key Ingredients: mutton, salt, onion, cinnamon, cumin seeds, cloves, lemon juice, clarified butter, rice, saffron, ginger, garlic, red chilli, green chillies, black cardamom, mint leaves, yogurt, vegetable oil

Kakori Kebab

Ingredients
Oven temp: 425F-220 C

2 cups minced mutton/lamb

1 tsp ginger-garlic paste

2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp powdered black pepper

2 tbsp chopped green coriander

Chopped green chillies to taste

2 Tbsp chopped raw papaya

4 cloves

1 black cardamom seeds

1/8 tsp powdered cinnamon

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 blade mace

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

2 cups onions - sliced thin, and browned crisp in 1/2 cup ghee

1/4 cup bhuna chana - powdered

1 egg

Ghee for brushing some chaat masala

Onion rings and lemon wedges for garnish
Method
Mix all ingredients except ghee and garnishes to marinate for about 4 hours, then grind to form a smooth, thick paste.

Knead this mixture well and mix in the roasted gram and the egg.

Cover and refrigerate for another hour.

About 25 minutes before serving, shape the meat around the skewers and place the kebabs on to a grill over a drip tray, or in a pre-heated oven (also on a drip tray).

If cooking them over a charcoal grill, you will have to keep rotating them so that they brown and cook evenly.

They should take 15-20 minutes to cook.

Brush with ghee and cook another 2 minutes.

Serve garnished with chaat masala onions and the lemon and serve with green chutney.

Key Ingredients: mutton, keema, salt, ginger, garlic, green chillies, papaya, black cardamom, onion, clarified butter, egg, lemon rind, black pepper, coriander leaves, cloves, cinnamon, cumin seeds, mace, nutmeg, bengal gram,

Chicken Stew and Appam

Ingredients
For the chicken stew:

1/2 kg chicken

4 Tbsp coconut oil

2 onions finely chopped

1 red chilli (chopped)

2 green chillies (chopped)

1 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste

2 tomatoes (chopped)

2 potatoes (diced)

Coconut milk- 1st and 2nd extract from 1 coconut

Salt

Pepper

1 lemon

Small bunch of coriander


For the appam:

1 cup soaked rice

3 Tbsp grated coconut

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp cooked rice

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar
Method
For the chicken stew:

In a deep pan, take some coconut oil, add chopped onions, red chilli, green chilli, ginger garlic paste. Fry until soft and golden.

Add chicken to the masala mix and fry for 3 minutes.

To the chicken, add tomatoes and potatoes and mix well. Add 2nd extract coconut milk.

Season the chicken with pepper, salt and add water. Put the lid on and simmer for 45 minutes.

To the chicken add 1st extract of coconut milk, coriander and lemon juice.


For the appam:

For Appam, in a deep bowl take cooked rice, add grated coconut and soaked rice. Blend it well into a smooth paste. Keep it overnight for fermenting.

To the fermented paste, add baking soda, salt, sugar and water. Blend the paste to a smooth, consistency.

In a small kadhai, pour 1 ladle of appam mix and move the kadhai such that the mix is spread out evenly.

Cover it for 1-2 minutes.

Let it cook until holes appear throughout appam and the edges become brown.

Key Ingredients: Chicken, Rice, Tomato, Potatoes, Coconut milk, onion, red chilli, green chillies, ginger, garlic, salt, black pepper, lemon, coriander leaves, desiccated coconut, baking soda, sugar

Banjari Gosht

Ingredients
150 gm oil

600 gm mutton- cleaned and cut

200 gm onions

50 gm whole garam masala

80 gm ginger-garlic paste

25 gm red chilli powder

salt to taste

15 gm turmeric

20 gm coriander powder

15 gm coriander seeds- roasted and crushed

150 gm yogurt

6 whole red chillies
Method
Heat oil, add sliced onions and saute till they turn brown.

Then add ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, red chilli powder, salt, turmeric, coriander powder.

Add yogurt and mutton.

Add coriander seeds and allow them to cook.

Garnish with pounded coriander seeds and whole red chillies.
Key Ingredients: Vegetable oil, mutton, onion, garam masala, ginger, garlic, red chilli, salt, turmeric, coriander powder, coriander seeds, yogurt

Bhapaa Aloo

Ingredients
200 gm small potatoes

2 tsp mustard oil

1/2 tsp Bengali five spice mixture (panchphoron) (whole jeera, saunf seeds, fenugreek seeds, black mustrad seeds and kalaunji)

2 dry red chillies

1/2 tsp mustard paste

1 tsp hung curd

3/4 tsp desiccated coconut paste

Pinch of green chilli paste

Pinch of turmeric powder

Salt - to taste

Dash of lime juice

2 banana leaves

Method
Peel the potatoes and par boil them in salted water, drain and keep aside.

Heat oil in a non-stick pan, add the five spice mixture, break the red chillies in half and add them next.

Stir the spices around till they splutter.

Pour this over the potatoes and put aside

In a mixing bowl prepare a marinade with the mustard paste, curd, coconut paste, green chilli paste and turmeric powder, whip it well.

Gently mix the potatoes into this marinade.

Add the salt and lime juice, mix again.

Put the potatoes on a steel plate, cover with the banana leaves and steam them for 6-8 minutes. Serve hot.

Key Ingredients: potatoes, mustard oil, cumin seeds, fennel, fenugreek, mustard seeds, onion seeds, red chilli, hung curd, desiccated coconut, green chillies, turmeric, salt, lemon juice, banana

Butter Chicken

Ingredients

700 gm raw chicken 

For theMarinade:

1 tsp red chilli powder 

1 tsp ginger and garlic paste 

Salt to taste 

1/2 kg curd 

For theGravy:

175 gm white butter 

1/2 tsp black cumin seeds 

1/2 kg tomato, pureed 

1/2 tsp sugar 

1 tsp red chilli powder 

Salt to taste 

100 gm fresh cream 

4 green chillies, sliced

1/2 tsp fenugreek leaves, crushed

Method

For marinating the chicken

1. In a mixing bowl, mix red chilli powder, ginger garlic paste, salt and curd. 

2. Add the raw chicken pieces to the marinade and mix well. Keep it in the refrigerator overnight or minimum 6 hours. 

3. Roast the marinated chicken in a tandoor or an oven for about 10-12 minutes until it is three-fourth done. 

For the chicken gravy

1. Heat half the quantity of white butter in pan. 

2. Pour in the tomato puree, and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add cumin seeds, sugar, red chilli powder and salt. Mix well. 

3. Add the prepared chicken, white butter, fresh cream, sliced green chillies and crushed fenugreek leaves. Saute for 3-4 minutes and let the chicken cook.

4. Cook till chicken is done. Serve hot with rice or naan.

Key Ingredients: chicken, red chilli, ginger, garlic, salt, yogurt, butter, cumin seeds, tomato puree, sugar, cream, green chillies, fenugreek

Rogan Josh

Ingredients

• 1 kg meat
  
  1 cup mustard/refined oil
  
  3 tsp red chili powder
  
  3 tsp fennel powder
  
  2 tsp ginger powder
  
  2 tsp cumin powder
  
  3 tsp brown cardamom powder
  
  1 tsp asafoetida
  
  4 pieces of green cardamom
  
  2 cinnamon sticks
  
  2 bay leaves
  
  2 cloves
  
  1/3 tsp saffron - optional 1 cup curd salt to taste

Method

Wash the meat properly.  Heat oil in a pressure cooker.

Put cinnamon, bay leaves, green cardamom, cloves, 1 tsp salt, asafoetida, and meat together.

Fry meat till it turns brown. Once browned, pour a cup of water.

Add the red chili powder and saffron into the meat. Keep stirring for about a minute.

Mix the curd nicely in the mixer and pour it into the pressure cooker.

Keep on stirring till you get a reddish tinge.

Add 2 cups of water, fennel powder, ginger powder, and pressure cook for 2 minutes.

Check if the meat is tender.  Peel and grind green and brown cardamom and add to the meat dish.

Finally sprinkle cumin powder and simmer for a minute and serve.

Key Ingredients: red chilli, fennel, ginger, black cardamom, cloves, green cardamom, bay leaf, mutton,mustard oil, cumin seeds, asafoetida, cinnamon, saffron