Veg Samosas

Hey made some samosas using a recipe from My Khazana of Recipes, thanks Rooma. I always find stuffing samosas a major issue. Is there such a thing as a samosa stuffing machine.

Jyostna normally after rolling out the dough into chapatti shape/size, cooks it a little on a tava, and then cuts into halves, rolls and stuffs. Apparently Jyostnas method makes it easier to fill the samosas and also one can roll the dough a little thinner. Ah well no matter whatever the method, I still find it hard to stuff. I guess practice is what I need. Anyway, I did get some help from Bhavni (my daughter), she being the dough queen, normally does anything doughie for me. Like me she too loves indian street food. Mention dhal, bhat, shaak and lotlie (i.e. daal, rice, dry curry and chapatti) and she groans as I do sometimes.

Hey also made bhata vada using the same stuffing as I used for the samosas, tasted different but good.

Mawa Pandas

Hey made some pandas from home made mawa/khoya. The mawa recipe is from Mamta’s Kitchen. Once the mawa was completely cold, rubbed it between hands to turn into breadcrumb texture.

Mawa - breadcrumb texture

Made some sugar syrup (two string consistency) and added it to the mawa. Rolled into pandas, decorated it with almonds and pistas.

Home made mawa pandas, wow….what a delightful heavenly taste.

Mawa Pandas

Thanks Mamta for the help with the mawa.

Gujarati - Stuffed Vegetables

Well, how is everyone, I am recovering from a bout of fever but okay now. Food is in my comfort zone, so I tend to go there as and when I can and read recipes and peoples experiences. So let me post my latest experience, a Gujarati Style Stuffed Vegetables called Bharelu Shaak in Gujarati. If I may thank Garam Masala from Spice is Right. The results were very good, I did make some changes though to the original recipe. The dish was enjoyed by my lovely partner and yes the two very hungry adult kids, ohh yes plus my parents too. Now please note, I am NOT Garam Masala but my blog is called as such, I am simply me, Dilip in sunny UK. Now we have that out of the way, back to the recipe.

The changes I made were mainly, I did not add the brinjal and why I hear from the Brinjal fans out there (BTW I am no Brinjal fan). Well I made twice the amount stated in the recipe (hey did I mention my two very hungry adult kids) and took longer then I anticipated to stuff the potatoes and onions. Plus I added 5 of those warm but not very hot long chillies, which are not in the original recipe. So due to the longer stuffing time, I decided to leave out the brinjal. Next time I will added them in, I promise I promise. So get of my case you Brinjal fans out there. The other major change was not steaming the onions, only the potatoes and the chillies. In the past I have experienced that onions tend to get too mussy and watery for my liking after steaming. So the final cooking step was little longer then 2-3 mins to allow the onions to cook. So that’s about it and thanks again to Garam Masala

This is such a typical of a Gujarati dish. I don’t know of any Gujarati who does not like this dish. It’s very popular. Please post your stuffed vegetable recipes. I would love to try them.

Just made Pav Bhaji using the recipe from Foodies Hope (thanks Asha). I love this street food stuff.

I spend a month in India last March but I was not travelling and stayed mainly in Rajkot in the state of Gujarat. I have to say, I was very cautious of the food street vendors. I was told, its OK to eat hot food. But I have to say, I was not happy to try it even though the some of street food looked great and was often tempted. Even when I visited relatives and friends and had a meal with them, I often ended up with a sore throat. I think it must be quality of the oil they use Or I have a very sensitive throat.

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So I missed eating the snacks I love so much. Still not much of problem, i did enjoy eating in restaurants, although the quality varied a lot. Plus I could not get used to eating the main meal at mid-day, how can one do that :-)

Cheers...catch you folks later

Hey, just tried the Besan Burfi recipe from Saffron. Ended up with a nice tasty sweet dish. My mother tried the Burfi and was impressed. But as you would expect, she has her own recipe. Its guajarati variation of the burfi called Magaj. Here is the Magaj recipe from the Insurat site.

This again is one of those recipes that I love to cook but not a great fan when it comes to eating. I am not a ghee fan. Do I hear screams of shock and horror from my indian brothers and sisters. Yes, you heard me; I am a guajarati and brahmin at that, who does not like ghee. Am I black sheep of the indian community?. Ah well, I guess I will just have to live on the outer fringes.

Hey, any tips out there when it comes to making thin slivers out of pistas and almonds. Is there a gadget that will do this awful job. Please let me know.

Have to dash, catch you folks later