Vegetable Jalfrezi

Jalfrezi (also jhal frezi, zalfrezi, jaffrazi, and many alternative spellings) is a type of Indian Chinese cuisine that involves frying marinated pieces of meat, fish or vegetables in oil and spices to produce a dry, thick sauce. 

As the dish includes green chillies, a jalfrezi can range in heat from a medium dish to a very hot one.Jalfrezi recipes originally appeared in cookbooks of the British Raj as a way of using up leftovers by frying them in chilli and onion. 

This English language usage derived from the colloquial Bengali word jhālpharezī: in Bengali, jhāl means spicy food; in Urdu/Persian, parhezī means suitable for a diet. In Shetland, jalfrezi is often confused with vindaloo due to the paucity of ingredient availability. 

In South Asia, chicken jalfrezi is considered an Indian Chinese or Pakistani Chinese dish, with a mix of Chinese and South Asian cooking techniques used in its preparation.

Ingredients

• Oil - 1 tbsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Onions (large) - 1
• Capsicum - 2 (any 2 color)
• Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
• Salt as needed
• Coriander powder - 2 tsp
• Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Tomatoes (medium) - 3
• Tomato ketchup - 1 tsp
• Mixed vegetables - 1 bowl (cauliflower,baby corn, beans, carrot) / (any vegetable)
• Dried fenugreek leaves - 1 tsp

Method

1. Slice and blanch vegetables and keep aside.
   
2. Blanch tomatoes and make puree.
   
3. Heat oil in pan, add cumin seeds.
4. When cumin crackles add sliced onions, saute.
   
5. Add ginger garlic paste and cook till raw smell goes.
   
6. Add sliced capsicums.
   
7. Now, add blanched vegetables.
   
8. Then, add salt, turmeric, coriander powder, chilli powder and garam masala.
9. Add tomato puree and cook along with masalas till raw smell goes.
   
10. Add tomato ketchup and toss them well till vegetables get cooked.
11. Finally sprinkle fenugreek leaves and serve with roti.
    

Paneer Bharta

Paneer Bharta is grated or crumbled paneer which is simmered in spicy tomato gravy. 

Ingredients

• Paneer - 250 g
• Onion (large) - 2
• Tomato (medium) - 2
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tbsp
• Dried Fenugreek Leaves - 1 tsp
• Yogurt / Curd - 1 tbsp
• Cream - 1 tbsp
• Milk - 1/4 cup
• Water - 1/4 cup 
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Butter - 2 tbsp
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Salt as needed

Method

1. Grate paneer and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add chopped onions and saute them.
3. Add ginger garlic paste and cook them till raw smell goes.
   
4. Then add chopped tomatoes,garam masala, chilli powder and cook them till it becomes mushy.
5. Add 1 tbsp butter, salt.
6. Add yogurt and mix them along.
   
7. Add grated paneer, add water and milk. Leave them to boil for 5 minutes till gravy consistency becomes thick.
   
   
   
8. Add cream, mix them well and add fenugreek leaves.
   
9. Finally add 1 tbsp butter and serve with Indian breads (Naan / Rumali Roti / Roti).
   

Ingi Puzhi (Ginger & Tamarind Sauce)

Injipuli is a dark brown sweet-sour and spicy Keralite curry made of ginger, tamarind, green chillies and jaggery. It is also a part of Tamil Nadu cuisine. It is also known as Puli inji in some parts of Kerala, South India.

Ingredients

• Ginger - 2
• Tamarind - 1 lemon size
• Green chillies - 3
• Coconut oil - 2 tbsp
• Mustard - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 pinnate
• Turmeric a pinch
• Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Salt as needed
• Fenugreek seeds - 1 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery - 1 tsp
• Asafoetida powder a pinch

Method

1. Extract tamarind juice by adding tamarind in hot water.
2. Clean, remove skin and chop ginger finely.
3. Chop green chillies and keep aside.
4. Heat oil in a pan, add coconut oil.
   
5. Add mustard seeds, when it pops, add curry leaves and green chillies.
6. Then, add chopped ginger and roast them for 5-6 minutes.
   
7. Add turmeric, chilli powder, salt and roast them along.
   
8. Add tamarind extract.
9. Add jaggery.
10. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, heat oil and add fenugreek seeds, roast them.
11. Cool fenugreek seeds and grind them into a fine powder.
12. Add grounded fenugreek seed powder into ginger tamarind sauce.
13. Add asafoetida powder.
    
14. Mix all together and cook till it thickens and oil separates.
    

Instant Maida Dosa

Ingredients

• All purpose flour/ Maida - 1 cup
• Rice flour - 1/4 cup
• Onion - 1/2 (chopped)
• Green chillies - 1
• Curry leaves - 1 pinnate
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Salt as required
• Oil as required

Method

1. In a bowl add all purpose flour, rice flour, chopped onions, green chillies, curry leaves, cumin seeds and salt.
   
2. Add water and mix them well .
3. The consistency of batter should be thin.
   
4. Heat tawa pour batter, drizzle some oil around, flip both sides and make dosas.
   
5. Serve hot.
   

Cauliflower Egg Masala

Ingredients

• Oil - 1 tbsp
• Cinnamon - 1 small piece
• Cauliflower - 1 medium size
• Egg - 2
• Ginger and garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
• Coconut- 2 tbsp
• Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Kalpasi / Black stone flower - 1
• Curry leaves - few
• Coriander leaves- few
• Onion - 1
• Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
• Chilly powder- 1 tsp
• Pepper powder- 1/2 tsp
• Cumin powder - 1 tsp
• Salt - as required

Method

1. Chop cauliflower into small florets, wash them.
2. Boil chopped cauliflower florets by adding water, turmeric and salt. (boil till cauliflower tenders).
   
3. Meanwhile, in a blender add coconut, fennel seeds, cinnamon and little water, blend them, make a paste. (Don't add more water)
   
4. When cauliflower tenders, drain water and separate cauliflower florets, keep aside.
5. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds, black stone flower, cinnamon, curry leaves.
6. Then add chopped onions and saute.
   
7. Add ginger garlic paste, saute for a minute.
8. Add cooked cauliflower florets into it.
   
9. Mix well, then add chilli powder, pepper powder, cumin powder and salt.
10. Now, add grounded coconut masala paste.
    
    
    
11. In a separate bowl, beat eggs.
12. Move cauliflower florets a side, pour oil in other side and scramble eggs.
    
    
    
13. When egg gets cooked, mix with cauliflower florets.
    
14. Finally, garnish with coriander leaves and serve.
    

Red Velvet Cake (with fondant icing)

Ingredients

• Cake flour - 2 2/3 cups
• Cocoa Powder (unsweetened) - 2 tbsp
• Baking Soda - 1 tsp
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Unsalted Butter - 1/2 cup (Room Temperature)
• Sugar - 1 1/2 cup
• Eggs - 2
• Vegetable Oil - 1 cup
• White Vinegar - 1 tsp
• Vanilla Extract - 2 tsp
• Butter Milk - 1 cup
• Red Food Coloring Gel - 1-2 oz

For Cream Cheese Topping:

• Powdered Sugar - 1 1/4 cup
• Cream Cheese - 17 oz (Room Temperature)
• Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp
• Whipping Cream - 1 1/3 cup (Chilled)

For Decorating Cake with Fondant Icing:

• White fondant (ready to roll) - 1 pack
• Red Fondant (ready to roll) - 1 pack

Method
Red Velvet Cake Making:

1. Sift cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt twice and mix them well, set aside.
   
   
   
   
   
2. Blend unsalted butter and sugar together using blender machine until combined.
3. Add eggs to the above blended butter sugar mixture one by one while machine is running.
   
4. Now, add vegetable oil and blend along.
5. Add white vinegar, vanilla extract, butter milk (room temperature) and blend along.
   
6. Slowly add the flour mixture made before and blend well together.
7. Gradually add food color and blend along.
   
   
   
   
   
8. Grease cake pan with butter/vegetable oil and dust with flour.
9. Pour mixture and level them
   
10. Set 180 degree C temperature in oven, set pan and cook for 30 mins (pre-heated)
11. Insert tooth pick after 30 mins if it comes out clean, remove pan out of oven, cool them for 10 mins.
    
12. Now, take cake out and cool them completely. (Divide mixture into two and bake twice)

Cream Cheese Topping:

1. Sift powdered sugar and keep aside.
2. Blend cream cheese, vanilla extract.
   
3. Add powdered sugar and blend along until smooth, keep aside.
4. Whip whipping cream well and gently fold into cream cheese mixture with spatula (don't blend).
   
5. Apply in between cakes, around cake and decorate.
   

Decorating with Fondant:

1. Roll white fondant in a surface, use powdered sugar in surface so that fondant will not stick to surface.
2. Gently cover cake with rolled white fondant, remove extras.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Similarly roll red fondant and make shapes, decorate on cake as you wish.
   
    (Microwave little amount of white fondant along with 1 tbsp of water for 10 seconds till it dissolves. This will act as a edible glue for pasting red fondant shapes on white fondant)

Storage:

1. Store in room temperature for 3-4 days.
2. Refrigerate by covering them air tight.