Rechado Paste for fish fry

 Rechedao fish fry is one of the best known recipes from Goa and is quite popular not only with Goans but also non-Goans and the tourists. Rechado paste is a blend of red chilies and spices ground in vinegar and used to fry seafood like cream dory, tilapia, mackerels, squids, prawns, mussels, pomfret, salmon and king fish. I am sure it can be used with other fish too, but I haven't tried it personally with any other fish. As with all recipes, every family has their own version, and what I share with you today is from my mum-in-law's kitchen, tried, tested and relished by the family for many years! This is made in a large quantity and can be used for up to six months if stored correctly. 

Recipe credit: Rozita Coutinho

Ingredients:

1. Kashmiri Chilies - 100 gms
2. Cumin seeds (jeera) - 1/2 tbsp
3. Peppercorn - 1/2 tbsp
4. Cardamom - 4 nos
5. Cinnamon - 3 inches
6. Cloves - 20 nos
7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tbsp
8. Ginger - 1 inch piece
9. Garlic - 20 nos
10. Vinegar - 350 ml

Method:

1. Dry grind ingredients one through seven. 
2. Add garlic, ginger and vinegar, grind till you get a fine paste. You can use a little more vinegar if needed.
3. Store in a clean dry glass jar that is airtight, and always use a clean dry spoon to take the paste from the jar. Keep the jar in a cool dry place and use as needed. You can use the paste up to six months and it does not require refrigeration. 
4. Use the paste and salt to marinate fish for about twenty to thirty minutes. You can use bread crumbs to coat the fish and shallow fry on all sides till the fish is cooked. 

Prawns in Garlic and Onion

Today's recipe is something I borrowed from my sister eons ago. As I have mentioned earlier, she is a fabulous passionate cook. Since she is a working mum, she likes to keep her cooking simple. And most of the recipes I have learnt from her are simple to cook and delicious to taste. Well she has two kids who are her worst critics, today's recipe is an absolute favorite with not only her kids but with everyone in the family. So that should give you an idea of what I'm talking about.

Ingredients:

1. Prawns - 1 cup shelled & de-veined
2. Garlic - 6 cloves
3. Onions - 1 large
4. Spring onions - 3 nos (optional) * see notes
5. Soy sauce - 1to 2  tbsp
6. Green chilly - 1 no
7. Oil - as required

Method:

1. Marinate the prawns in the soy sauce and keep aside.
2. Roughly chop the garlic, green chilly and onions. 
3. Heat oil in a non-stick pan, add the garlic and onions, including the bulb of the spring onions. Reserve the greens, they will be added later. Let it fry for a minute, stir in the prawns and green chilly. Mix well and let it continue to cook in the pan on the lowest stove setting.
4. Let it cook for about fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally, and when the onions start to caramelize, add the spring onions (the greens) and mix well. 
5. Switch off the flame when the onions have browned and the prawns have cooked. It goes very well with chappatis or as an accompaniment to rice and daal.

Notes:

1. Spring onions are optional. I added them as I had a few sprigs that were close to their use by date.
2. I don't add salt up until the end as the soy sauce is salty. Add salt towards the end after you've tasted the dish.

Cucumber Raita

Raitas are a great accompaniment to any Indian meal. The cool yoghurt pairs very well with the spicy curries and cools the palate and system. Raitas are primarily made with yoghurt and seasoning and vegetables or fruits. Most popular vegetables are cucumber, red onions, tomatoes, radish, carrot and fruits like pomegranate, pineapple etc.are also used. Boondi raita is very popular specially with biryanis. (Boondi - droplets of deep fried chick pea flour) 

Ingredients:

1. Thick yoghurt - 1 cup
2. Cucumber - 2 medium sized, cut in small cubes
3. Sugar - 1/2 tbsp
4. Cumin powder - 1/4 tsp
5. Freshly ground pepper - as per taste
6. Salt - as required
7. Coriander for garnish

Method:

1. Whisk the yoghurt in a bowl to a smooth consistency.
2. Add all ingredients and mix well.
3. Refrigerate before serving and garnish with coriander leaves.

Batata Vada

I don't like deep frying food and I very rarely cook deep fried food. But during the lockdown we were trying to cook different types of food, and we were really missing home and Mumbai street food. So I decided to make batata vadas and serve them with pandesals. Pandesals are much like the pau you get in Mumbai, but somehow different. We enjoyed this treat with a hot cup of chai and the cool monsoon weather just added loads of nostalgia to the whole experience. It is a fairly simple recipe to follow and cool monsoon evenings are perfect for this treat. You can serve this with the traditional red garlic chutney, but since I didn't make it, we just had it plain. 

Ingredients for the potato mixture:

1. Boiled potatoes - 5 nos, medium sized
2. Mustard seeds - 3/4 tsp
3. Cumin seeds - 3/4 tsp
4. Curry leaves - 20 leaves, broken in half
5. Asafetida (Hing) - 1/4 tsp
6. Garlic cloves - 8 nos
7. Ginger - 1 and half inch piece
8. Green chili - 3 nos
9. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
10. Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup
11. Salt and oil as needed

Ingredients for the batter:

1. Besan (Chick pea flour) - 3/4 cup
2. Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
3. Baking soda - 1/4 tsp
4. Carom seeds (Ajwain) - 1/2 tsp
5. Water - as needed to make a batter.
6. Salt as per taste

Oil for deep frying.

Method:

1. Wash the potatoes well and cook them whole with the skin in a cooker for up to five whistles. Wait for the pressure to release naturally. Add salt while cooking the potatoes.
2. Remove the skin of the potatoes and mash them and set aside. 
3. Finely chop ginger, garlic, green chilies and coriander leaves and set aside. 
4. In a pan, heat oil,  add the mustard seeds, let it splutter, then add the cumin, ginger garlic, and green chilies. Fry it well, while continuously stirring and add turmeric powder, asafetida and curry leaves.
5. Add in the potatoes and mix well. Let it stay on the flame for about three minutes, while you stir occasionally.
6. Let the potato mixture cool down and then make 8 to 10 medium sized balls. You can grease your palm with a little oil to help shape them.
7. Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying the vadas and prepare the batter while the oil heats.
8. For the batter - Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl and ensure there are no lumps, now add water little by little to form a thick batter consistency.
9. Once the oil is hot, you can drop the vada in the batter and coat the vada on all sides, then gently drop the coated vada in the hot oil. You can fry as many as your pan permits. Ensure that there is enough space for you to flip them on the sides and that the pan is not too crowded.
10. Once they are fried on all sides, will take about five minutes and you will see the color of the vada change, you can remove from the kadai and drain on a kitchen towel. 
11. Enjoy them with pau and garlic chutney.

Paneer Capsicum masala (Cottage cheese and capsicum masala)

I have been trying out a few vegetarian recipes in the last few months and the recipe I share today is a source of great joy and pride for me. My son, who refuses to eat vegetarian food in any form or fashion loves this dish and to me that is a winner.

Don't let the laundry list of ingredients and cooking instructions daunt you. I promise, it is much easier and simpler once you read it and understand the instructions. It is basically the same process followed for many Indian vegetable preparations. 

There are two methods you can follow for the preparation of the sauce or masala:

1) Fry the sliced onions till they soften, then add sliced tomatoes, ginger and garlic in the pan. Cook till they soften and change color. Switch off the flame, cool and make a fine paste in a blender. Heat a pan, add the whole spices and the paste, once it starts boiling and leaving the sides of the pan, add powdered spices and continue with the rest of the instructions below.  

Or. 

2) Grate onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic or chop fine and cook as per the instructions below.

I have kind of gone mid-way and tried to shorten the whole process, by finely chopping onions in my vegetable chopper that gave me a grated consistency. And I used tomato paste to get a rich red color and texture. I also used roasted besan or gram flour to thicken the sauce a bit. The end result was just yummilicious..... and worthy of being served in a restaurant. So here goes!

Ingredients:

• Paneer - 250 gms
• Bell peppers - 2 medium sized
• Onion - 1 medium sized
• Red chilly powder - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

For the sauce:

• Cumin - 1 tsp
• Cardamom - 2 nos
• Cloves - 2 nos
• Cinnamon - 1 inch pc
• Bay leaf - 2 nos
• Onion - 1 large
• Tomato Paste - 3 tbp
• Ginger paste - 1/2 tbsp
• Garlic - 1/2 tbsp
• Red chili powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander powder - 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Roasted besan - 1 tbsp
• Yoghurt - 1/4 cup
• Kasuri methi - 1 tsp
• Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaves - garnish
• Salt and oil as needed

Preparation before cooking the sauce:

• Cube the paneer, peppers and onion into  same sized pieces.
• Roast the besan or chick pea flour in a pan for a minute or so. It will change color and smell. Once it looks toasted and smells nutty, remove from the hot pan and and set aside to cool. Once  it has cooled down add it into the 1/4 cup yoghurt, and mix well and keep aside.
• In the same pan, add a little oil and stir fry the cubed onions for a minute or two on high heat and set aside.
• Add a little more oil to the pan and add the red chilly powder and turmeric powder and quickly add the paneer cubes, sprinkle salt and gently mix the cubes and fry on high heat till they get a good color and set aside.
• Be careful while frying paneer as it can break and crumble if not handled correctly. Also once you add the spice powders in the oil, quickly add the paneer so that the spices are not burnt. Typically chili and turmeric powder burn easily in hot oil and hence speed is of essence.
• Chop the onion as fine as you can, you could also make a paste or grate it.(The large onion listed under sauce)

Method:

• In the pan used above to fry the vegetables, heat 2 tbsp of ghee or oil, add all the whole spices - cumin, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon. Fry it for a minute and then add the grated or chopped onion, salt and the ginger garlic paste. Fry well on medium to low flame till the raw smell of the onion is gone, this could take a few minutes.
• Add the spice powders - red chili, coriander and turmeric and give it a good stir, add the tomato paste and continue cooking and stirring as needed. Add half a cup of water to mix all the contents well, cover and cook on low heat for 3 to 4 minutes or till the oil separates from the masala.
• Once the water has evaporated and the masala and oil separate, add the yoghurt-besan mixture and 1/4 cup water and mix well, let it come to a boil and then add the stir fried vegetables. Add more salt if needed and gently mix the vegetables, so that each vegetable is coated with the sauce, cover the pan and cook for a five to seven minutes.
• Add more water if needed in the above step and also check for seasoning.
• Lastly sprinkle the kasuri methi and garam masala on the vegetables, give it a last stir and switch off the flame.
• Finally garnish with coriander leaves and it is ready to be served with roti, paratha or rice.