Rasaswad

 Base masala: oil+ jeera + minced onion (sauté until light brown)+ ginger + garlic (sauté for a few more minutes) + turmeric + red chilli powder + dhania jeera powder  + amchoor  (sauté for a few seconds) + tomato puree + salt and cook until tomato puree is cooked. Set aside (great base for many gravies)  Kadahi masala : on a skillet, roast some whole coriander seeds, cumin seeds, whole black pepper, fennel seeds and a couple of Kashmiri red chillies. Cool, grind coarsely and set aside.  Veggies: make cauliflower florets, cut small potatoes into wedges, slice a carrot, chop green beans, cut green peppers into large pieces, cut shallots into big pieces, thaw some green peas and corn. Also cut up some pieces of Paneer.  Heat oil + ghee in a pan, add the carrots and potatoes and let cook for a minute. Add rest of the veggies (except paneer), and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add half of the Kadahi masala and salt and sauté for a couple more minutes. Now add the base ...

 Chop red onion, green and red pepper in a chopper. Drain out excess water. Lightly mash a can of black beans, add the veggies, cilantro, salt, roasted cumin powder, coriander powder, chilli powder and panko break crumbs. Make burgers, more breadcrumbs and shallow fry. 

 Mix 1 cup sattu powder, half cup each of besan and sooji. Add salt, pepper, roasted cumin powder and a pinch of ajwain. Also add 1 cup yoghurt and some water and let it soak for 10-15 mins. Optionally can add beet or spinach purée.  Crumble some paneer, add chopped onion, peppers, green chilli, cilantro, salt, pepper and chat masala.  Make an uttapam from the batter and add paneer filling and cook on both sides with a bit of oil.  https://youtube.com/shorts/1n5kLKNyi9M?si=s02rX-aIMhrH1lOC

Heat oil in a cast iron pan.Wash, wring and slice the the lions mane mushroom, and add to the pan. Press lightly with something on top, and let it brown on both sides. In the middle of the pan, add a bit more oil, add chopped garlic, spring onion, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sesame oil and. a pinch of sugar and saute. I also added some sugar snap peas. Serve with rice.   https://www.youtube.com/shorts/YknPQUlMc6Y

 Cut red onion, red and green peppers, mushrooms and a tomato into large pieces. Heat oil, add about tbsp of panch phoran. Add all veggies except tomatoes and sauté. Add an glug of mustard oil. Add some prepared onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste. Sauté. Add salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, dhania powder and amchoor. Add tomatoes and cook for another minute. Add paneer pieces, mix and cook. Add a tsp of ketchup and cilantro and serve hot. 

 This one is a Holi special.  For Karachi Halwa:  Chop a handful of almonds, cashews and pistachios and mix with some melon seeds. Heat a tbsp ghee in a pan,  toast the nuts lightly and set aside.  In a bowl, mix 1 cup cornstarch with 11/3 cups water.  Heat 2 cups sugar and 2 cups water in a pan and heat until the sugar melts. Add crushed cardamom and few drops of red+yellow food color. Add cornstarch slurry to the sugar syrup and cook until it comes together. Add 6 tsp ghee slowly, mix and cook for a few more minutes. Add nuts and transfer to an 8X8 pan, lined with parchment paper. Cool for a couple of hours, chop into bite sized pieces and serve.  https://youtu.be/JTow_deXEqo For Daal filling: Soak 1 cup Chana daal for 4-6 hours. Wash. Add 1 cup water, salt and turmeric and cook until the daal is soft and no more water remains. Initially I cooked without covering, removed foam, and then later on I covered it for a bit. The daal should have a bite. On...