Vegetable Hakka Noodles And Chilli Paneer

Every now and then, I have this craving for Indo-Chinese and sadly there are just one or two places in the bay area where I can get something very close to what you get in India. So at times, I slog it out in the kitchen to recreate some of my favorite dishes. The first ever taste of noodles I had was from a Restaurant in Hyderabad near my home called Reddy's and they used to pack these awesome hakka moodles with a salan-like gravy. I know you are probably thinking gravy with noodles??? But trust me, this was the tastiest accompaniment to the noodles and it tasted even better when reheated the next day. Sadly that place closed down and I have never found an equivalent of it since then. I didn't fathom it back then but that was my first taste of fusion food :) . Another tasty haunt for indo chinese is the road side stalls where they cook up the food with fire rising from the wok. The downside to these places is that you never really know what you are eating and the upside is that whatever is on your plate will please your taste buds. My initiative of cooking Indo-Chinese food started with my desire to get my mom to taste some of it since she is a hard core vegetarian and very apprehensive about trying chinese food. So I started with fried rice and vegetable manchurian and was delighted when she ate it and loved it. The recipe I have in this post for Chilli Paneer was an outcome of a weekend I spent at my friend Renuka's place in Chicago. She introduced me to mushroom soy sauce which is a thick and rich variety of soy sauce and adds wonderful flavor to all chinese food. It is high in sodium but then you cannot afford to pay much attention to the sodium and oil content of Indo-Chinese food if you don't want it bland. I have used this sauce for making alu 65 with tater tots as my friend did and it is a very easy and tasty dish to make for a pot luck. The chilli paneer version with this sauce is easy as well and a perfect accompaniment to any fried rice or noodle dish that you whip up. I could go on and on about Indo-Chinese food but I should probably stop here so that I have more to write next time:)

Vegetable Hakka Noodles Recipe:

Ingredients:

1. Hakka Egg Noodles - 1 packet, boiled and strained (I get this pack in the India store)
2. Ginger - 2 inch piece chopped finely
3. Garlic - 10 cloves, finely chopped
4. Carrot - 1 cup, cut into thin long strips
5. Beans - 1 cup cut diagonally and thin
6. Cabbage - 1 cup, chopped long
7. Spring onion - 1 cup
8. Salt
9. Black pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
10. Vinegar - 1/t tsp
11. Mushroom soy sauce - 1 tsp
12. MSG or ajinomoto - 1/4 tsp
13. Red chilli flakes - 1/4 tsp
14. Oil - 1 tbsp

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a wok and when it gets very hot, add the ginger and garlic.
2. Once the ginger and garlic are fried, add the sprint onions and cabbage.
3. Saute on high heet for a min and then add the carrot and beans.
4. Once the veggies are cooked slightly (don't let them overcook), add the noodles, salt, pepper, chilli flakes, msg, vinegar, soy sauce and mix well.
5. Let the noodles cook on high heat for a couple of mins and they are done.

Chilli Paneer Recipe:

Ingredients:

1. Oil - 1 tsp
2. Ginger - 2 inch piece, finely chopped
3. Garlic - 10 cloves, finely chopped
4. Spring onion - 1 cup, chopped
5. Jalapenos - 2 , sliced diagonally
6. Paneer cubes - 1.5 cup
7. Mushroom soy sauce - 1/2 cup or more as needed

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a wok and when really hot, add the ginger and garlic. Let it cook for a couple of mins.
2. Add the spring onions and paneer and stir fry until the paneer browns lightly and starts turning crisp.
3. Add the jalapenos and cook for a couple of mins. Add the mushroom soy sauce and cook for 2 mins.
4. Add more soy sauce if you want a little sauce in the dish. Garnish with some sprint onion and enjoy hot.

Paneer 65

Its been a long break since my last blog post and the primary reason is laziness:D:D. I know people complain about lack of time and I would too except that I know myself only too well and I know that if I wanted to make time for something, I will. Work has been exceptionally crazy and I haven't been a very creative cook recently either. Hence for the lack of a better dish, I am posting this quick Paneer 65 recipe that relies solely on the magic masala called aachi masala which Vidya akka recommended to me. Its really tasty and gives you that flavor that you get at restaurants. Here goes -

Ingredients :

1. 1 slab of paneer - chopped into small cubes
2. 1 cup yogurt
3. 2 tsps chicken 65 aachi masala (or more if you want it spicier and saltier...A word of warning - the masala itself has a lot of salt, so don't add any more. Although the masala is for chicken 65, the ingredients are all vegetarian)
4. Curry leaves - 10
5. Oil - 1 tsp
6. Geen chillies -3, slit lengthwise
7. Garlic - 2 pods, finely chopped
8. Lemon juice - 2 tsps
9. Corriander - 1 cup finely chopped
   

Directions:

1. Mix the yogurt and the masala and marinate the paneer cubes in it for 2 hours
2. Heat oil and sautee the garlic, curry leaves and chillies in it
3. Add the paneer without the excess liquid and stir fry until the paneer gets well roasted and has brown edges.
4. Sprinkle lemon juice and corriander and enjoy hot!

Alu - 65

This is an amazingly simple recipe that my friend Renuka introduced me to during my recent trip to Chicago. It is a shortcut recipe which cooks really quick because you use tater tots instead of taking raw alu and cooking it. This recipe is slightly high on salt but it is yum yum yummy. Thanks Renu!

Ingredients:

1. Tater tots - 1/2 a bag
2. Olive oil - 2 tsps
3. Garlic - 7-8 pods chopped
4. Green chillies - 3-4 chopped
   
5. Soy sauce or mushroom - 3 tbsps (you can use low sodium)
6. Red chillie paste - 2 tsps
7. Cilantro - 2 tbsps chopped
8. Lemon - 1/2

Directions:

1. Thaw the tater tots and bake them at 350 for 20 mins. Then broil then to make then darker in color.
2. Heat the olive oil and add the garlic and chillies until the garlic turns brown.
3. Add the tater tots, soy sauce, chilli paste and sautee on high heat until the potatoes are coated well with the sauce.
4. Garnish with chopped cilantra and lemon juice and enjoy!
   

Pineapple cake

This cake was inspired by the Indian style pineapple pastries. It came pretty close to that and I was very happy with the outcome. It was light and yummy. I made this for my sister's birthday. I would have liked to use a proper sponge cake recipe for the cake layers but could not find a good reliable one and since I have never tried it before, I decided not to take a chance with a birthday cake. But I will try it some other time. I was also inspired by a video on youtube and even used the combing technique that he recommends. For the basic cake layers I doubled the recipe here and skipped the nuts in it to bake two 8 inch round cakes. If you have pineapple essence, add 1 tsp for each layer of the cake batter. I did not have it and had to skip and it didn't make much difference. This recipe is relatively easy and hassle free.

Ingredients:

1. Canned pineapple - 1 can
2. Whipped cream- 4 cups
3. Powdered sugar - 2 tsps
4. Sugar syrup - 1 cup (not very thick)
5. Maraschino cherries - 7/8 to decorate

Directions:

1. Drain the pineapples and save some for topping and chop the rest into fine pieces. Save the drained liquid and mix it with the sugar syrup.
2. Place one layer of cake on the cake stand. Slice it into half across if the layer is too thick. Sprinkle the cake with the syrup and pineapple preservative liquid mixture until it is moist. It takes about 3-4 tbsps.
3. Drop a blob of the whipped cream in the middle and spread evenly with a spatula or butter knife.
4. Layer with the crushed pineapples and place the next layer of cake on top. Conitnue this till the topmost layer and for that skip the crushed pineapple.
5. Spread the whipped cream evenly on the top and sides of the cake. Now take a small piece of cardboard and cut one side like the teeth of a comb and used that to finish the sides. Use something smoother to finish the top.
6. Take the remaining whipped cream in a ziploc bag and cut a piece in the corner to use as an icing bag. Or if you have a proper icicing bag, go with that. Decorate with the pineapple chunks and cherries as desired.
   

I would recommend making this cake a day in advance so that all the goodness soaks in to make it taste even better:).

Directions for whipped cream: Take 2 cups of heavy whipping cream in a mixer bowl and to it add 2 tsps of powdered sugar (more if you want it sweeter). Gradually increase whipping speed from 2 to 8 and stop when stiff peaks start forming. A little before that add 1 tsp of vanilla essence. Its as simple as that!!

Vada Pav

Vada Pav, a bombay roadside delicacy that is the most favourite snack of my mum's. There are several variants of the vada itself and this recipe is of course what my mom makes. Pair a hot vada with a well toasted pav, mint and tamarind chutney and the chilli-garlic powder and trust me it can beat any pizza or pasta. To me the chilli-garlic chutney (kandya lasnachi chutney) is an essential ingredient and my folks got it for me from India. Vada pav isn't the same without this:D:D

Ingredients:

For chilli chutney that goes in the vada filling

1. Green chillies - 10
2. Corriander leaves - 1 bunch
3. Ginger - 1 inch
4. Garlic - 3/4 pods
5. Salt

For filling

1. Potatoes - 3/4 big, boiled and mashed
2. Onions - 1, finely chopped
3. Chilli chutney - 3 tbsps
4. Salt
   

For batter

1. Besan - 1 1/2 cup
2. Chilli powder - 1 tbsp
3. Salt
4. Water

For frying

1. A frying pan full of vegetable oil

For final assembly

1. Pav - slit into half and toasted with a little butter
2. Mint chutney
3. Tamarind chutney
4. Chilli-garlic powder

Directions:

1. Grind all the ingredients for the green chilli chutney together

2. Mix the ingredients for the filling together and make into small balls

3. Mix the ingredients for the batter together and dip the potato ball in it and then deep fry until golden brown

4. Put the fried vada in between the slit pav along with the chutneys and eat hot!!

Masala Macaroni

I call this the desi version of mac and cheese. Typical to desi food it has a lot of spices and just a little cheese to retain the Italian effect. The cheese again is Amul cheese which is as desi as cheese can get:). I used to make this a lot when I was in India and I think the origin was something similar that my friend used to bring for lunch. My mom likes this much better than the authentic versions and I love making this for her:) This is also an easy way to feed veggies to kids as they have an inexplicable bond with mac'n'cheese.



Ingredients:

1. Elbow macaroni - 1 packet
2. Carrots - 2 chopped into small pieces
3. Beans - ~25 chopped into small pieces
4. Onion - 1 big sliced
   
5. Peas - 1 cup
6. Ginger - 1 inch piece chopped fine
7. Garlic - 3 pods chopped fine
8. Amul cheese slices - 3 or 4 chopped into small pieces
   
9. Garam masala - 1/4th tsp
10. Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
11. Dried red chillies - 2
12. Curry leaves - 8
13. Lemon
    
14. Oil - 1 tsp
    
15. Salt

Directions:

1. Boil the elbow macaroni in hot water until it is a little underdone. Drain and keep aside.
   
2. Heat oil and add the curry leaves, dried chillies, ginger and garlic and let it cook for 1 min.
   
3. Add the sliced onion and cook until golden brown.
4. Add the rest of the veggies and cook until a little soft.
5. Add the garam masala, salt and chilli powder and the cooked macaroni. Mix well and place a lid and let it cook for 2 mins.
6. Turn off the gas and add half the cheese and mix in. Squeeze some lemon juice and mix in. Use the rest as a garnish before serving and enjoy hot!

Note: If you want this dish healthier, you can skip the cheese altogether and this dish would still taste yummy. You can also use a whole wheat version of the macaroni.

Vegetable Cheese Toast

This recipe was inspired by Nupur's (of One Hot Stove) Cheese Toast Recipe. I came home after an evening of shopping and had to think of something quick to finish the bread that was going to expire in two days and without too many ingredients and I thought of this. I changed the way the veggies were made although the basic idea is the same as Nupur's recipe. It is a really quick and easy snack or meal when you have bread on your hand and some frozen veggies.


Ingredients:

1. Potatoes - 2 small cut into small cubes
2. Frozen or fresh mixed vegetables
3. Kitchen king masala - 1 tsp
4. Garam masala - 1/2 tsps
5. Chilli powder - 1/4 tsp
6. Curry leaves - 5
7. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
8. Jeera - 1/2 tsp
9. Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
10. Salt
11. Oil - 1 tsp
12. Whole wheat bread slices - 8
13. Mozzarella or any low fat cheese - 1 cup grated
14. Red chilli flakes
15. Dried oregano
    
16. Tomato ketchup
    

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add jeera, mustard, turmeric, curry leaves and let the mustard seeds sputter.
2. Add the potato cubes and let them turn a little brown at the edges.
3. Now add the frozen vegetables, kitchen king masala, chilliw powder, garam masala, salt and about a half cup of water and steam it all until it is well blended and well done.
4. Toast slices of bread until well done. Apply a layer of ketchup and then a layer of the cooked veggies.
   
5. Top with some cheese and red chilli flakes and oregano and broil it until the cheese melts. Serve hot with ketchup or any chutney and enjoy!

Mexican Veggie Burrito/Fajita

This is my own (healthier) version of the mexican veggie burrito/fajita. I have tips to make the unhealthier version as well at the bottom. The key ingredient to bring the taste together for this one is, believe it or not, Sriracha sauce (Vietnamese/Thai hot sauce). I know it sounds a little weird but trust me on this one:). This dish was inspired by all the burritos and fajitas I ate and wished they were done a little differently. The spiciness thats comes out of the recommend ingredients might be a little too much for some of you. But you can always tone that down by using less of the peppers. This is really easy to make for a crowd as you can just make all the ingredients in advance and place it out in front of them and let them assemble it as they like it. I do not have pictures for this one yet but promise to post one soon. Here goes -


Ingredients:

1. Black beans - 2 cans
2. Onion - 1 medium size cut into thin slices
3. Bell peppers - 1 each of red/yellow/green thinly sliced
4. Tomato - 1 big finely chopped
5. Cilantro - 1 bunch finely chopped
6. Avocado - 1 cut and smashed with lemon juice
7. Chopped lettuce
8. Chopped spring onions
   
9. Cumin powder - 1 tsp
10. Cayenne pepper - 1/2 tsp
11. Paprika - 1 tsp
12. Dried oregano - 2 pinches
13. Dried thyme - 2 pinches
14. Dried parsley - 2 pinches
15. Dried rosemary - 1 pinch
16. Dried sage - 1 pinch
17. Freshly ground pepper - 2 pinches
18. Spinach or sun-dried tomato tortillas
19. Sriracha sauce
    
20. Crushed red pepper - 1 tsp
21. Olive oil - 1 tbsp
22. Salt
    

Directions:

Beans:

1. Drain the water from the beans and wash them thoroughly in water. This is to drain all the salt that comes with it.
2. Heat in a pan and add cumin powder, half the cayenne, paprika, black pepper and salt to taste.
   
3. Boil until the beans are thoroughly cooked and spices are blended and keep aside.

Sauteed Veggies:

1. Heat 1 tsp of olive oil and add the sliced onions, bell pepper, oregano, thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley, paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, black pepper and salt.
   
2. Saute on high heat until the onion is a little cooked but do not overcook the bell peppers. They need to retains some crunch. Alternatively you can cook the onions first and then add the bell peppers.

Tortilla:

1. Heat a pancake pan or any flat pan.
2. Brush the tortilla on both sides with very little olive oil and toast it on the pan until it browns a little on both sides.
   
3. Do not roast too much if you want to eat a wrap as it will become stiff. I personally like it well done and toast ti really well and it tastes awesome.

Assembly:

1. Place the tortilla on a cutting board
2. Spread the cooked beans evenly.
3. Top with the sauteed veggies, avocado, tomato, lettuce, spring onions, cilantro
   
4. Garnish with Sriracha sauce and wrap it up.
5. You could also just service all the above as sides with the well done tortilla.
   

Tips to make it unhealthy:

1. While toasting the tortilla, do one side first and then flip. Sprinkle cheddar cheese and cover with a lid and toast until the cheese melts and then follow the assembly process.
2. Add a dollop of sour cream on top to make it yummier and unhealthier:)

Other Substitutions:

1. You can use a whole wheat tortilla instead of the spinach and sun-dried ones
2. The black beans can be substituted with pinto beans
3. You can also add rice cooked with tomato paste and vegetable broth and stuff that in this wrap to make it authentic mexican
4. You can replace the Sriracha sauce with salsa to make it less spicier
5. You can add grilled or sauteed marinated paneer to make this taste meatier.