Tag: healthy cooking

Country bread

Country bread

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 3 Comments

This rustic country loaf is healthy, tasty and easy to make. The mix of bread flour and whole wheat flour makes this a bread for all occasions. It goes well with soups and also makes great sandwiches.

Ingredients

Bread flour 3 cups

Whole wheat flour 1 1/3 cup

Olive oil 1/3 cup plus for greasing

Italian herbs 2 tbsps

Yeast 3 tsp

Salt 1 tsp

Sugar 2 tbsps

Method

Mix all the ingredients and make a dough in the bread machine or stand mixer.

Roll the dough on to a floured surface and knead for about five minutes.

Shape into a ball and let rest covered in a greased bowl for two hours. I leave it overnight in winter.

Punch down the dough and give it a second rising.

Keep a tray of water in the oven and bake in a 210 degree C convection oven for 40 minutes. Spritz with water a few times during the first 15 minutes.

Cool on a rack, slice and serve.

Khaman Dhokla

Khaman Dhokla

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 1 Comment

This is actually known as just khaman in Gujarat, but as a pan-Indian dish it is known as dhokla. Filled with protein, this is a light snack that is good any time of the day.

Ingredients

(Serves 5)

Chickpea flour or besan 1 cup (136 g)

Semolina or suji 1 tbsp

Turmeric 1/2 tsp

Water 3/4 cup

Sugar 1 tsp

Oil 1 tbsp

Lemon juice 1 tbsp

Salt 1/2 tsp

Baking soda 1 tsp

Ginger 1” piece

Green chillies 3

Grated coconut 1 tbsp

For tempering:

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Oil 1 tbsp

Sugar 1 tsp

Curry leaves few sprigs

Coriander leaves for garnish

Asafoetida 1/2 tsp

Salt 1/2 tsp

Green chillies 5

Method

Mix the chickpea flour, suji, baking soda and turmeric together in a bowl.

In another bowl mix the water, oil, sugar, salt and lemon juice. Stir well till the sugar dissolves.

Add to the dry ingredients and whisk well to form a batter.

Pour into a greased tray and steam for 20 minutes.

Heat oil in a frying pan and add the mustard seeds. When they stop sputtering, add the curry leaves and asafoetida. Add the asafoetida and salt and add three tablespoons of water. Stir till the sugar dissolves. Add the green chillies and cool for two minutes.

Pour over the cooked dhokla. Garnish with scraped coconut and coriander leaves.

Slice and serve.

Mushroom Soup

Mushroom Soup

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 2 Comments

This creamy mushroom soup is delicious on cold winter evenings, especially with corn bread. I use fresh button mushrooms that are firm and have a lovely woodsy flavour.

Ingredients

Button mushrooms 250 g

Onion 1 large, chopped

Garlic 3 cloves, minced

Butter 100 g

Olive oil 4 tbsps

All-purpose flour 4 tbsps

Milk 1/3 cup

Fresh cream 1 cup

Salt and pepper to taste

Water as needed

Coriander leaves for garnish

Method

Slice the mushrooms.

Add the butter and olive oil to a heavy-bottomed pan and heat till the butter melts.

Add the onions and mushrooms. Sauté till the mushrooms are brown.

Add the minced garlic and fry till the raw smell disappears.

Add the flour and sauté for two minutes. Add the milk, stirring all the time. Add 2 cups of water and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook till the soup begins to boil.

Add the cream and stir till bubble begin to appear.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with corn bread.

Butter Chicken

Butter Chicken

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Butter Chicken is a favourite dish from northern India that has become popular across the globe. Traditionally, it is made with a lot of butter and cream, but I have cut the quantity of oil, butter and cream for a healthier but still tasty version of the dish.

Ingredients

Chicken 1/2 kg, boneless cubes

Red chilli powder 2 tbsps

Turmeric 1/2 tsp

Ginger 2” piece

Garlic 10 cloves

Oil 2 tbsps

Butter 2 tsps

Cream 1 tsp

Tomatoes 4 medium, roughly sliced

Onion 1 large, roughly sliced

Cashew nuts 8-10

Kasoori Methi 1 tbsp

Garam masala 1 tsp

Apple cider vinegar 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Method

Make a paste of the ginger and 5 garlic cloves.

Marinate the washed chicken cubes with 1 tablespoon of red chilli powder, salt, turmeric, apple cider vinegar and the ginger-garlic paste. Let it rest for 15-20 minutes.

Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed pan and fry the marinated pieces till the surface changes colour. This will take about 2 minutes each side. Keep it aside.

Add 1 tablespoon of butter to the oil and add the the onions. Fry the onions till they become transparent.

Add the tomatoes and cashew nuts.

Crush the rest of the garlic and add to the pan.

Add salt, the rest of the red chilli powder and garam masala. Add 2 cups of water and cook on medium heat till the tomatoes become mushy. This will take about 10-15 minutes.

Cool the mixture for about 10 minutes and blend well in a mixer or with a hand-held blender. I use my Braun hand blender.

Strain the blended mixture back into the pan. Add the rest of the butter, the cream, the fried chicken cubes and the kasoori methi. Heat through for five minutes.

Serve with rice or naan.

Banana and Chocolate Rice Cake

Banana and Chocolate Rice Cake

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 1 Comment

I was trying to come up with a way to use rice flour and remembered some lovely dishes I had in Japan. Thinking of some the sweets made from rice flour, I decided to make a banana cake. The chocolate chips added a delicious but subtle taste.

Ingredients

Bananas 3

Eggs 2

Sugar 3/4 cup (150 g)

Vegetable oil 4 tbsps

Milk 6 tbsps

Rice flour 1 cup (200 g)

Baking powder 2 tsps

Chocolate chips 1 tbsp

Method

Mash two of the bananas well in a wide bowl.

Add the eggs and mix well. I use an electrical whisk, my trusted hand-held blender Braun.

Add the sugar, oil and milk and whisk for two minutes.

Add the rice flour and baking powder and mix with a wooden or rubber spatula. Then whisk at high speed for a few minutes. In the case of rice flour there is no gluten and so you can whisk well to get in as much air as you can.

Line a round baking tray with greased butter paper and pour in the batter. Slice the remaining banana and arrange on top of the batter. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.

Preheat the oven at 180 degrees C and bake the cake at 170 degrees C for 45 minutes. Check after 35 minutes and stop when a toothpick poked into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Tangy Tomato Basil Soup

Tangy Tomato Basil Soup

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 3 Comments

I have been trying to get the taste of this soup from my favourite restaurant in Singapore. After a lot of experimentation, I have come up with a version I love.

Ingredients

Tomatoes 4 large

Potato 1 large

Spring onions 5

Fresh basil leaves 10 sprigs

Paprika powder 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Pepper powder to taste

Butter as needed

Method

Steam the potato, tomatoes and spring onions in a pressure cooker.

Skin the tomatoes.

Add the steamed vegetables to a blender and blend well.

Heat in a heavy bottomed pan. Add the basil leaves, paprika powder and salt. Adjust the water content and boil for five minutes.

Serve with a blob of butter, salt and pepper.

Bacon and Tomato Bread

Bacon and Tomato Bread

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 2 Comments

This bread is a meal in itself. It does not need any butter or cheese, it is moist enough and the flavours of bacon, tomato and herbs blend in beautifully in every bite.

Ingredients

Water 1 1/3 cup

Olive oil 4 tsps

Bread flour 4 cups

Sun dried tomato in oil 1/2 cup, sliced

Bacon 1 cup, cooked

Italian herbs 1 tbsp

Salt 1 tsp

Sugar 4 tsp

Instant yeast 1 1/2 tbsps

Method

Add all the ingredients to the pan of the bread machine in the order given.

Use the Basic cycle.

Cool in the bread machine pan and slice. Serve with Tangy Tomato Basil Soup or Tomato Soup and a green salad.

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 1 Comment

This is a favourite recipe that I use to make in the bread machine. It is a slightly denser bread that goes well with soups and stews. The slight sweetness of the raisins cuts the spiciness of a stew.

Ingredients

(For 1 lb loaf)

Milk 3/4 cup

Bread flour 2 cups

Cinnamon 1 tbsp

Yeast 3 tsp

Brown sugar 2 tsp

Salt 1/2 tsp

Raisins 1/2 cup

Method

Add all the ingredients to the bread machine in the order given and use the Basic setting.

Cool the bread in the pan and slice when cool.

Vegetable Pulao

Vegetable Pulao

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 1 Comment

I could never understand how much time my aunt would spend on making Vegetable Pulao, ensuring each piece was of the same size, blanching and frying each kind of vegetable separately and then bringing it all together to make the final dish. Till the Covid-19 pandemic locked us in our homes. I found myself enjoying the care in cooking and the precision of each step in the making of a dish. I learnt to enjoy the magic of botany and chemistry in the process of cooking.

Ingredients

Basmati rice 2 cups

Cauliflower 1 cup of florets, each 1” thick

Carrots 1 cup of 1” cubes

Frozen peas 1 cup

Potatoes 2 medium, cut into 1” cubes

Onion 1 medium, sliced

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Cinnamon 1” piece

Ginger 2” piece, crushed

Bay leaf 1

Peppercorns 1 tbsp

Cloves 4

Oil 5 tbsps

Method

Soak the rice for 20 minutes and drain.

Boil a pan of water with 2 tablespoons of salt and blanch the vegetables separately. Don’t blanch the peas.

Heat the oil in a iron pot — I use Le Creuset — and fry the onion slices till they are brown and keep aside.

Fry the blanched vegetables separately and keep aside. Don’t fry the peas.

Add the cumin seeds. When they stop sputtering, add the bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cloves and peppercorns.

Add the crushed ginger and sauté for a few minutes.

Add the peas and the drained rice. Add the fried vegetables and salt to taste.

Mix well and add enough water to cover the rice and 1” above.

Bring to a boil, reduce the flame, cover and cook till the rice is cooked and the water is completely absorbed.

Garnish with fried onions and serve hot.

Soya Chaap (Soya Chops in Tomato Gravy)

Soya Chaap (Soya Chops in Tomato Gravy)

by Shailaja Nair ♥ 1 Comment

Ingredients

Soya chops, frozen or freshly made 200 g

Tomatoes 3 large

Onion 1 large

Garlic 5 cloves

Ginger 1” piece

Green chillies 2, sliced on a slant

Coriander leaves for garnish

Turmeric 1 tsp

Red chilli powder 1 tbsp

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Vegetable oil 2 tbsps

Salt to taste

Method

If using frozen, boil in water for 10 minutes. Drain. If using fresh, follow this recipe.

Grind the tomatoes, onion, ginger and garlic in a blender.

Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed pan and add the cumin seeds. When they stop sputtering, add the ground paste.

Fry till oil leaves the sides of the pan.

Add the chilli powder and turmeric.

Add the drained chops. Add salt to taste.

Add 2 cups of water. Cover and cook till the gravy thickens.

Garnish with green chillies and coriander leaves.

Serve hot with rice or bread.