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Vegetable Melange : A mix of fresh vegetables chopped and cooked with onion, ginger-garlic paste and a few basic spices. It is an extremely nutritious and delicious vegetable recipe. This dish can be prepared in any season but tastes best when you use fresh seasonal vegetables instead of frozen ones. You can opt for tomato puree instead of dry mango powder for slight tanginess. Cottage cheese cubes can be added to increase nutritive value of vegetable melange.

Use of fenugreek leaves powder makes a lot of difference to its taste, so do not skip it.

Easy as well as quick to prepare dish. Enjoy delectable Vegetable Melange with paratha/phulka.

SERVES : 4

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Medium Potatoes (Chopped)
• 1/2 Cup Beans (Chopped)
• 1/2 Cup Carrot (Chopped)
• 1/2 Cup Peas
• 1/2 Cup Cauliflower Florets
• 1/2 Cup Green Bell Pepper (Chopped)
• 1 Medium Onion (Chopped)
• 1 1/2 Tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
• 1 Tsp Asafoetida
• 1 1/2 Tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1/2 Tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 Tsp Coriander Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Red Chilli Powder
• 3/4 Tsp Dry Mango Powder
• 1 Tsp Fenugreek Leaves Powder
• Salt
• 2 Tbsp Oil
• 1 Tbsp Coriander Leaves ( For Garnishing )

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a kadai and add asafoetida and cumin seeds.
2. Once cumin seeds begin to crackle, add onion and ginger-garlic paste.
3. Cook for 2-3 minutes and add remaining vegetables.
4. Sprinkle turmeric powder and salt.
5. Add 1/3 cup of water. Cover kadai with a lid and cook for 12-15 minutes.
6. Sprinkle coriander powder, red chilli powder, dry mango powder and fenugreek seeds powder. Mix and cook for 2-3 minutes till all water has been dried up.
7. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Dum Aloo , popularly known as Kashmiri Dum Aloo, is prepared with small potatoes. Pricked potatoes are deep-fried, then simmered in a gravy loaded with aromatic spices.

In this version of Dum Aloo, I have boiled potatoes, subsequently pan-fried in a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil. Pan-fried baby potatoes have been further cooked at a low flame in an onion-tomato gravy along with aromatic spices and cashew-nut paste. If you are looking for a Dum Aloo recipe without onion and garlic , click on Dum Aloo/Spicy Baby Potatoes (Without Onion and Garlic).

Enjoy scrumptious Dum Aloo with any Indian flat-bread/ Rice.

INGREDIENTS

• 18 Baby Potatoes (Boiled)
• 1 Big Onion
• 3 Medium Tomatoes
• 1 1/4 ” Ginger
• 10-12 Garlic Cloves
• 2 Kashmiri Red Chillies
• 10 Cashew-Nuts
• 1/2 Tsp Asafoetida
• 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds Powder
• 1 Tsp Coriander Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Degi Mirch Powder
• 3/4 Tsp Cardamom Powder
• 3/4 Tsp kasoori methi powder
• 1/2 Tbsp Sugar
• 2 Tbsp Yogurt
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 1 1/2 Tbsp plus 1/2 Tbsp oil

METHOD

1. Soak cashew-nuts along with kashmiri red chillies in warm water for 15-20 minutes.
2. Boil baby potatoes in salted water for one whistle in a pressure-cooker.
3. Peel the skin once baby potatoes are cooled down. Prick them 2-3 times with the help of a fork.
4. Heat oil in a non-stick pan and pan-fry till they turn golden brown.
5. While potatoes are being pan-fried, make one paste with onion, garlic and ginger and another paste/puree with tomatoes.
6. Heat oil in the same non-stick pan/ another kadai and add asafoetida.
7. Subsequently, add onion paste and cook for 3-4 minutes.
8. Add tomatoes paste/puree and cook for 2 minutes.
9. Now, add yogurt, cashewnuts-red chillies paste , cumin seeds powder, coriander powder, cardamom powder and degi mirch powder. Cook for 2 minutes.
10. Add milk, baby potatoes and salt to kadai and let baby potatoes cook in simmering gravy.
11. Cover kadai with a lid and cook till oil starts to surface on gravy ( It should take around 10-15 minutes).
12. Add sugar and kasoori methi. Cook for additional 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat. Add 1/4 cup of water if gravy becomes too thick.
13. Serve with any Indian flat-bread/rice.

Achari Paneer – Spicy lip-smacking Paneer/ Cottage Cheese recipe flavored with a melange of powdered spices (which are frequently used for making pickles) .

If you are fond of pickles, you will certainly love this delectable paneer recipe. I have dry-roasted fennel seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, onion seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds and dry red chillies and powdered them. You can prepare this powder/masala in advance and store it. Whenever you run short of time for preparing a delicious meal, use this home-made powder/masala and create a delicious meal in no time.

Achari Paneer pairs well with any Indian flat-bread or steamed rice .

Serves : 4

INGREDIENTS

• 250 Gms. Paneer/Cottage Cheese Cubes
• 2 Big Onion ( Finely Chopped )
• 3 Medium Tomatoes ( In Purée Form )
• 1 1/2 Tsp Garlic Paste
• 1 1/2 Tsp Ginger Paste
• 1/2 Tsp Asafoetida
• 1 Tsp Fennel Seeds
• 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1/2 Tsp Mustard Seeds
• 1/2 Tsp Onion Seeds plus 3/4 Tsp Onion Seeds
• 1/4 Tsp Fenugreek Seeds
• 1 Tsp Coriander Seeds
• 2 Kashmiri Dry Red Chillies
• 1/2 Tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 Tsp Dry Mango Powder
• 1/2 Tbsp Sugar
• Salt
• 2 Tbsp Oil
• Chopped Coriander Leaves ( For Garnishing )

METHOD

1. Dry roast fennel seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp onion seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds and dry red chillies on a hot tava and grind coarsely.
   

   
2. Heat oil in a kadai and add asafoetida and remaining onion seeds.
3. When seeds begin to crackle, add chopped onion along with ginger and garlic paste. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
4. Add tomato purée and cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add turmeric powder, dry mango powder and powdered spices to kadai and cook for 12-15 minutes. Also add salt plus 1/3- 1/2 cup of water at this stage.
6. Add sugar and cottage cheese cubes. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Turn off the heat and transfer to a serving bowl.
8. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with any Indian flat-bread / steamed rice.