It was about time for Indian food night! There's a woman in the neighborhood who walks every day wearing the most beautiful saris. Every time I see her I think, hey, where does she live? I bet she dries her saris on the patio, and wouldn't miss one or two.
No, of course that's not what I think. Instead it's, hey, Indian food night time! Because these days, food holds way more interest for me than clothes. It's hard to think about a lot of clothes when it's 90 degrees out heading toward 100.
None of these recipes is very difficult, although doing them all takes some time. The only slightly unusual spice in the menu is garam masala powder, which is becoming more common at grocery stores. You can substitute vegetable oil for the ghee.
I asked The Colonel what his favorite Indian food was and he said that red chicken. Tandoori chicken.
This Tandoori-style chicken is cooked in a very hot oven because who has a tandoor? I understand that many small Mom and Pop Indian places may not have them anyway. Be sure to use your stove top vent and turn fans on because the dish does smoke. I set the smoke alarms off twice! You may marinate for as little as 6 hours, but the dish will be better if you start to marinate a day ahead of cooking. You can use red and yellow food coloring to replicate the look of a restaurant dish, but I don't bother.
I go a little heavier with the garlic for the chicken, adding about 3 cloves. I also love the fried scallions in the lentil dish so I double that. You'll want to use the food processor to puree the ingredients for the marinade.
A chaunk or tarka is added at the end of cooking for many dal (lentil or pulse) dishes and there are many variations for this fried flavor bomb. In Jaffrey's tarka for Tarka Massor Dal, it is thinly sliced scallions fried in ghee into which whole cumin seeds have been added. It's amazingly simple and so gloriously flavorful!
The tarka in the pea dish is the background taste of whole cumin and mustard seeds, with a lovely tomato cream sauce flavored with chiles, cilantro and garam masala.
Serve with store bought naan bread and cilantro chili chutney if desired. To me, the chutney really makes the whole thing that much more wonderful, although it is a little work.
All recipes courtesy of or adapted from Madhur Jaffrey, from Spice Kitchen, World Vegetarian and From Curries to Kebabs.
Mangia!
Tandoori-style Chicken Drumsticks
2 1/2 pounds chicken drumsticks, thighs, or breasts, or combination
1 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 juicy lemons
15 ounces plain yogurt
1 small onion, peeled and quartered
3 cloves garlic
1 inch piece fresh ginger , peeled and quartered
1 fresh hot chili, seeded if you want to tone down heat, then roughly chopped
2 to 3 teaspoons garam masala
Optional:
3 tablespoons yellow food coloring mixed with 1/2 to 1 1/2 red food coloring
If using breasts, cut in 4 pieces. cut long slits in each side of the meat. Do not start at edges and go deep enough to reach the bones. You are creating a "pocket" for the marinade to reach into deeply. Spread the chicken pieces out on large platters. Sprinkle with half the salt and juice of one lemon over the pieces. Lightly rub the salt and juice into the slits. Turn the chicken over and do the same with the remaining salt and lemon. Set aside for 20 to 30 minutes.
Combine the remaining ingredients except food coloring in a food processor and blend until you have a smooth paste. Put in a bowl large enough for the chicken.
If using food coloring, brush the chicken pieces after their salt and lemon juice wait on both sides. Add the chicken to the bowl with the marinade and mix well, making sure marinade goes into slits. Cover and refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours.
Heat oven to its highest temperature. Take chicken pieces out of the marinade and shake off as much of it as possible. Arrange chicken in a shallow baking pan in a single layer. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until just done.
Peas with Cumin and Mustard Seeds - Malaidar Matar
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground garam masala
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped green coriander (cilantro)
1 fresh long green hot chili or 1/3 jalapeño, finely chopped
4 cups shelled fresh peas or frozen, defrosted under warm water and drained
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
Method:
Combine the sugar, ground cumin, garam masala, salt, cayenne pepper, and tomato paste. Slowly add 2 tablespoons water, mixing as you go. Add the cream slowly and mix. Put in the lemon juice, green coriander, and chili. Mix again and set aside.
If the peas are fresh, drop them into 4 cups of boiling water and cook until just barely done. Drain.
Heat the oil in the a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the cumin and mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop (this takes just a few seconds), add the peas. Stir and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the cream sauce. Cook over high heat for about 1 1/2 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened, stirring gently as you do so.
Red Lentils with Cumin and Scallion - Tarka Massor Dal
1 cup red lentils, picked over and washed in several changes of water and drained
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp ghee, or vegetable oil
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
2 bunch scallions, cut into fine slivers all the way up the green section
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Put lentils and 4 cups of water in a heavy pot and bring to a boil. Add the turmeric and stir once. Watch at this stage because it tends to foam over and you get yellow turmeric foam all over the place. Partially cover, and turn heat to low, and simmer gently for 40 to 50 minutes. Add salt, set aside and keep warm.
Put the ghee in a frying pan and heat over medium high heat. When very hot, add the cumin seeds and let them sizzled for about 10 seconds. add the scallion slivers. Stir and fry until scallions start to turn brown at the edges. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the cayenne. Pour the contents into the lentils and stir to combine.
Cucumber and Mint Yogurt Raita
2 cups plain Greek Yogurt (I take regular yogurt and line a sieve with a couple paper towels, place it over a bowl, add the yogurt and let it drain for a few hours. This leaves the yogurt very thick without the cost of Greek yogurt. You want thick yogurt to start because the cuke will add a lot of moisture even with draining)
1 medium cucumber (Jaffery doesn't use this much, but I like the extra crunch)
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1 garlic clove, finely minced and mashed
2 tsp ground cumin
Salt to taste
Peel the cucumber and shred using a box grater. Line a sieve with a couple paper towels, place it over a bowl, transfer the grated cucumber to the sieve, and let it drain for about 30 minutes. Press the cucumber into the towels to try to squeeze out a good amount of the liquid. Mix together all the remaining ingredients and add the cucumber, stirring to combine.
Cilantro Chili Chutney
2 bunches fresh cilantro, lower stems and roots cut off
1 fresh, hot chili, coarsely chopped, and seeded if you want to tone down the heat
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Ground black pepper
Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend, pushing down with a rubber spatula several times until you have a paste. You will have to keep stopping and scraping down the sides probably 7 or 8 times until finished. Do the work; it's worth it.
Chicken, Spinach and Orzo Skillet Dinner
