How to make paneer at home.

It has been quite a while that I had been craving to make paneer ,the Indian version of cottage cheese.And today I decided to tantalize my taste buds with the soft and smooth texture of paneer.Paneer can be used in many recipes and my most favourite is the palak paneer , a creamy and savoury dish made with spinach and cottage cheese.Though I have eaten it at parties thrown by friends and at restaurants ,I never got an opportunity to make it at home.But now that I  learnt to make paneer at home I am waiting to get hold of a palak paneer recipe and try it out myself. 

HOW TO MAKE PANEER

You only need just 2 ingredients to make the Indian version of cottage cheese.Making paneer is  very easy and no hassles whatsoever.Milk and lemon juice are the only ingredients needed.

Pour six cups of wholemilk in a heavy bottomed pan.Bring it to a boil.This must really boil.Then add half a cup of lemon juice to it.Put off the heat.At this stage you will see that the milk is curdled and separated from the whey.Cover a strainer with a clean muslin cloth and drain off the whey.Squeeze out the excess liquid and your cottage cheese is done.The end result will be a soft ,smooth dough.Leave to cool before you eat it or use it out on other recipes. Once its cooled you can knead it and  add your favourite herbs and spices and season it with salt and pepper to give it an extra flavour.

I have added some parsley and chilly flakes to my paneer

Cooking Vegetables

Basically all the vegetables cooked at home are prepared in the same way.The basic ingredients will be onion,garlic,curry leaves,mustard seeds,curry powder,turmeric powder,coconut milk.Optional ingredients would be Maldive fish flakes and tomato.Ingredients  could be adjustable and should be used according to preference and taste.You could increase the quantity of the ingredients accordingly.Increasing or decreasing the amount of spices  depends on  your taste buds

For  cooking vegetables this is the procedure that I follow-Sautee onion with a little oil,add crushed garlic,chilly flakes,mustard seed curry leaves.Mix in the  curry powder and turmeric.(If you want to add the optional ingredients ,do it at this stage and cook till soft).Put the desired vegetable and add a little water.Salt to taste.Cook till tender.Add thick coconut milk.Simmer and serve with rice and curry.

Sweet potato

Beet Root

Green Beans

Drum Stick

How To Make Tuna Fish Cutlet

After frying

Before frying

You will need

4 (100 gm) canned tuna fish

2 medium potatoes( boiled and cooled )

3 big onions chopped

3 green chilies

3 cloves of garlic chopped

A piece of ginger chopped

A tsp cumin seed

1 tsp pepper seed

1 tsp curry powder

½ tsp turmeric powder

A few coriander leaves

1 carrot chopped

Juice of one small lemon/lime

Salt to taste.

Oil for frying

For coating the cutlets

*Make a batter with a little flour,water and 2 eggs.Beat it well. The batter should not be thin.

*breadcrumbs

Method for preparing:

Transfer the canned tuna into a bowl. ( discard the liquid).

Pound the garlic,ginger,cumin and black pepper seeds ,set aside.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a nonstick pan.

Cook the onions till tender.

Stir in all the pounded ingredients and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Add the green chilly and the chopped carrot.Saute for another minute.

Stir in  the turmeric and curry powder

Now add the tuna, separate the pieces gently and mash with a spatula. Add the lemon juice and salt and mix the coriander leaves. 

Transfer this curried mixture into a big bowl and set aside to cool.

Next, mash the boiled potatoes and add to the curried tuna .Mix well

Tuna mixed with  all the ingredients

Now follow this  instructions  

Using fingers,make  medium sized round patties.Place in the refrigerator for ½ hour.

For Coating the cutlets - Remove the cutlets from fridge.Beat the eggs.Dip cutlets  in batter and coat with breadcrumbs.Fry in hot oil till golden brown.Makes about 20-25 cutlets.( depends on the size)

Baked Vegetables In Coconut Milk

It was  nearly lunch time and I was bored stiff  cooking the vegetables in the same mode.More over my vegetarian daughter preferred to eat her veggies baked rather than in the usual way  I cook.So I decided to do some baking and surprise my daughter when she came home from school.I rummaged through the refrigerator for some of her favourite veggies,fortunately I had some.

 All I needed to prepare this dish was  some vegetables like   zucchini,cauliflower florets , onions,green chiily/red chilly.To this I added some spices like : a little less than a teaspoon each of ,red chilly powder,turmeric and curry powder.And then added salt according to taste.I drizzled a bit of olive oil, about a tablespoon and placed the tray into an hot oven.
After about 15-20 minutes I removed from the oven and added some garlic paste and squeezed into it the juice of half a lemon .Mixed it gently and  put it back into the oven for about 5 minutes.Finally I added half a cup of coconut milk and a little more salt and let it simmer in the oven for a further five minutes .

It was still sizzling in the oven when my children returned from school.The aroma was irresistible  and I wasn't  surprised when they all said they were  hungry. 


This prepared  dish consists of 
3 zucchini
florets of a medium cauliflower
2 large onions cut coarsely
4-5 green/red chillies
Spices: chillie powder,turmeric powder, curry powder
salt
garlic
lemon juice


Enjoy making this dish with your favourite vegetables.Give it a try!
Tip: Steaming white rice makes a good accompaniment

Curried Zucchini

We usually eat our vegetables curried. And all the vegetables are cooked in the same way. I have never eaten Zucchini back at home but once I came to the Middle East I started seeing more and more of these greens, which looks so much like the 'cooler' gherkins. At first I started using them in soups and as time went by, I experimented it with various other dishes. Soon we all got acquainted with this wondrous vegetable. And that's when I started cooking it with spices, herbs and coconut cream.

Cut 2-3 Zucchini into small pieces and put into a pan, with a cup of water, one small sliced onion, one chopped green chilly, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon of curry powder, one clove of chopped garlic, a slice of green ginger, 2-3 crushed curry leaves and salt to taste, boil until the vegetable is cooked. Then add a tablespoon of coconut milk powder and stir quickly so that no lumps form. Heat 1/2 a tablespoon of oil in another pan and fry the onions till it becomes quite pale in colour. Then transfer the fried onions (with the oil) to the cooked vegetable pan. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Serve with rice and curry.

Facts About Honey And Cinnamon

It is believed that honey and cinnamon cures most diseases.Honey is produced in most countries in the world.Scientists also accept honey as a very useful medicine for various illnesses.Honey can be used in patients and it doesn't cause any side effects.It has also been proven that although honey is sweet it ,doesn't harm a diabetic ,patient if the correct amount is taken.




Those suffering from common colds and coughs ,should be given one tablespoon lukewarm honey,with 1/4 spoon of cinnamon.For a period of three days.This procedure cures the cold, cough and will clear the sinuses.

Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ailments and also clearsany stomach ulcers.

Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder boasts the immune system and protects the body from all kings of viral attacks.

Honey and cinnamon is also recommended for various other health related issues like skin diseases,pimples,bad breathe and weight loss.