Wash and soak a cup of rice. Slice a red onion and open a can of chickpeas. Heat ghee in a pan, add bay leaves, a big spoon of panch phoran. Once it splutters, add home made chole masala and the sliced onions. Once the onion softens a bit, add a slit green chilli, ginger garlic paste, salt and sauté for a bit. Add drained chickpeas, and mix. In a bowl, mix some yoghurt with red chilli powder, a pinch of turmeric powder, and add to the pot. Cook for a few minutes till yoghurt cooks, then add two cups of water, more salt and let the water come to a boil. Now slowly add soaked and drained rice gently over the top, so as not to mix with the chickpeas. Add chopped cilantro and mint and let cook until the water evaporates. Now cover and cook on a low flame for another ten minutes. Serve with boondi raita, papad etc. we served with pickled onions and it worked great.
To my non-Indian friends, who enjoy cooking Indian food..It's a rather long post, but it's meant for those who dream of exotic food all day long and constantly obsess over their ingredients.... Most of you have heard of Turmeric and Garam Masala and Ghee...But here are some ingredients that I think can help step up your game. If you want to move beyond naan, and greasy curries, and understand the beauty and simplicity of simple, home made Indian food, you need to get to know these ingredients. Some of these are short-cuts, but hey, every good cook has some dark secrets. Some of these ingredients sound really scary, but be brave, and just venture into your nearest Indian grocery store to find them, and you will be rewarded with new flavor awakenings. 1. Chaat Masala: It's a mixture of spices, usually sold in small cardboard boxes. I usually buy "MDH" brand, but most brands are good. "Chaat" means "to lick". This spice is literally lip sma
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