4 Indian dishes you need to try cooking at home

Indian cuisine cannot be summed up in a few words for it has a lot to offer. This weekend, try your hand at some of these delicacies that are sure to transport you to a food coma

Dahi Ke Kebab

COOK TIME: 20 MINS

SERVES: 6 PORTIONS

INGREDIENTS

•1 kg yoghurt

•60 gms ginger

•10 gms green chillies

•15 gms yellow chilli powder

•20 gms salt

•20 gms fresh coriander stem

•200 gms dried dates

•500 gms fresh kunafa dough

•400 ml frying oil

For Turmeric Aioli

•50 ml refined oil

•40 gms turmeric powder

•Salt, as per taste

•10 gms sugar

•5 gms garlic powder

•1 lemon

•200 gms labneh

For Pickled Beetroot

•100 gms red beetroot

•50 ml white wine vinegar

•10 gms salt

•20 gms sugar

For Garnish

•Pea shoots

METHOD

Hang the yoghurt in a muslin cloth for at least six hours to remove all the water from it. This needs to be done in refrigerator so that yoghurt does not become too sour.

Peel the ginger and finely chop it. Slit the green chillies, remove all the seeds and finely chop it as well.

Wash the coriander stem and finely chop. Similarly, finely chop the de-seeded dates.

Mix all the chopped ingredients with the hung yoghurt and season it with salt and yellow chilli powder.

Put that in a piping bag and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Blanch the beetroot in salted water. Peel them and cut into 1cmX1cm cubes. Make a mix with equal quantity of water and white wine vinegar, salt and sugar. Put those beetroot cubes in the mix to pickle.

For the turmeric aioli, in a shallow pan, add refined oil, heat it and add turmeric. A quick stir and switch off the fire. Place the bottom of the pan on an ice bed to stop the turmeric overcooking immediately.

Slowly start whisking the labneh. It should get a nice bright radium colour.

Add the lemon zest and lemon juice. Adjust the seasoning and it’s ready.

To make the dahi ke kebab cylinder pieces, spread the kunafa dough lengthwise with a dimension of 5cm width and 15cm length.

At one width end, pipe the yoghurt mix and roll it towards another end. Yoghurt mix will be covered with kunafa strings now. After rolling all the kunafa dough, put them in deep freezer for two hours below -15 deg C.

Get the frying oil at around 160 deg C and fry those frozen yoghurt kebabs. Drain on kitchen cloth to remove extra oil.

Before serving, spread the turmeric aioli on the base of the plate.

Place the fried kebab and put a pea shoot and pickled beet as garnish.

Sesame Crusted Kofta

COOK TIME: 1 HOUR

SERVES: 6 PORTIONS

INGREDIENTS

•2 kg tomato

•40 gms ginger paste

•40 gms garlic paste

•50 ml cooking oil

•Salt to taste

•35 gms Kashmiri chilli powder

•40 gms cashew nut

•5 gms dried fenugreek leaves

•100 gms butter

•15 gms green cardamom powder

•4 gms mace powder

For Kofta

•250 gms cottage cheese

•Salt to taste

•30 gms ginger

•15 gms green chilli

•1 tsp refined flour

•40 gms black sesame

•40 gms white sesame

•50 gms dries prunes

•Frying oil

METHOD

In a deep pan add 80 ml cooking oil, once heated add ginger-garlic paste. Sauté for few minutes and then add tomatoes.

Add salt and Kashmiri chilli powder. Add enough water to cover the tomatoes and let it boil. Deep fry the cashew nuts in hot oil and add to the tomatoes.

Let it cook till tomatoes are mashed. Make puree with a blender and strain it. Temper it with dried fenugreek leaves and add cardamom-mace powder.

Strain the gravy and then finish it butter and adjust the seasoning.

For the Kofta, finely chop the ginger, deseed the green chillies, finely chop.

Chop the prunes and keep it ready for stuffing the Kofta.

Mix it with rest of the kofta ingredients except prunes which need to be stuffed, and shape it like small cylinders after portioning the mix for 40-50 gms balls.

oat the kofta with mix of black and white sesame.

Fry the kofta in hot oil till it gets light golden in colour. Strain it on tissue paper to absorb the excess oil. Or you can bake it in the oven at 175 deg C. for around 6 mins.

For plating, pour the sauce in a bowl and place the fried kofta on top. You can garnish it with fresh micro greens or coriander leaves.

Chicken Berry Biryani

Serves: 4 PORTIONS

Cook Time: 30 MINS

Ingredients

•150 gm onions

•50 ml vegetable oil

•50 gm ghee (clarified butter)

•10 gm garlic paste

•75 gm ginger (julienne)

•2 cinnamon sticks

•6 cardamom pods

•6 cloves

•600 gm chicken thigh boneless

•200 gm yoghurt

•1 tsp chilli powder

•1 tsp yellow chilli powder

•½ tsp royal cumin

•½ tsp green

cardamom (ground)

•½ tsp mace powder

•1 tbsp cumin powder

•2 tbsp coriander powder

•1 tsp garam masala

•300 gm basmati rice

•100 ml cream

•2 pinch saffron

•4 tsp rosewater

•6 tbsp chopped mint

•6 tsp chopped coriander

•4 green chillies

•10 gm blueberries

•20 gm fresh red currant

•20 gm dry black currant

•20 gm fresh raspberry

•10 gms raisins

•Salt to taste

PREPARATION:

Slice the onions and deep fry and drain on kitchen paper.

Wash the rice gently and soak for 20 mins.

Marinate the chicken with ginger, garlic, slit green chilli, cumin powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt.

Make a mix of ginger, chopped mint, coriander, and all berries.

METHOD:

Heat the ghee in a deep pan and add whole spices (cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, royal cumin).

Add the marinated chicken once spices start crackling.

In another vessel, cook the rice to 80 per cent and drain.

Remove half chicken and its masala on side and cover the rest of the chicken with cooked rice, repeat with another layer of remaining chicken and rice.

Drizzle it with saffron, cream and ghee. Top it with half of the brown onion, chopped coriander and mint.

Seal it with foil and cover with a tight lid.

Transfer the biryani vessel on tawa and cook on slow fire for 20 mins.

Open the lid and top it with rest of the fried onion, all the berries, raisins, currants and chopped mint coriander.

Start serving once all the steam in absorbed.

Saffron Rose Pudding

Serves: 6 PORTIONS

COOK Time: 15 mins, except freezing (2-3 hours)

INGREDIENTS

For Pudding

•500 ml full fat milk

•500 ml full cream

•100 gms candied rose petal

•15 gms fennel powder

•20 gms almond powder

•5 gms green cardamom powder

•1 gm saffron

•60 gms sugar

•8 gelatin leaves

For Pistachio Sauce

•100 gms pistachio slivers

•100 gms cream cheese

•150 gms full cream

•40 gms condensed milk

For Banana Caramel

•60 gms butter

•100 gms sugar

•140 gms whipping cream

•4 Ripe Bananas

For Candied Nuts

•50 gms sugar

•5 gms sesame seeds

•5 gms rose petals

•5 gms almond flakes

•5 gms pistachio slivers

For Garnish

•Raspberry halves

•Gold leaf

METHOD

First, start with Saffron Rose Pudding. Soak the gelatin leaves in cold water for 5-10 minutes until it becomes soft. Meanwhile, mix rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil and keep it aside.

Put the soft gelatin leaves in hot mix and stir it till it gets dissolved completely.

Pour the mix in the moulds and let it set in chiller for 2-3 hours. Demould only before plating.

For pistachio sauce, whisk the cream cheese, condensed milk, and full cream together. Blend the Pistachio Slivers into a fine paste and blend it together with the cream cheese mix. Check the consistency; if its too thick, add some cream to dilute.

For banana caramel sauce, melt the butter on medium heat in a heavy skillet. Stir in sugar and cook until sugar is melted and light brown. Put on the double boiler and stir in the cream.

Peel the ripe bananas and make a fine puree. Cook the puree until heated thoroughly. Blend this with cooked butter and cream mix. Put it in a piping bag and chill.

Caramelise the sugar in a pan for candied nuts. Roast all the nuts lightly, rose petals and sesame seeds. Pour the caramelised

sugar over butter paper or silicon pad. Spread the caramel immediately to a thin layer and add all the nuts, rose petals and sesame seeds. Let it cool down till it becomes brittle.

Cut the raspberry lengthwise and let’s start the plating.

In a bowl, spread the pistachio sauce and place the saffron rose pudding at the centre. Pour some banana sauce dots with even gaps. Break the candied nuts and place it on the sides. Near the banana caramel dots, place the raspberry halves.

And finally at the tip of the pudding place the gold leaf and let it shine.

• Dubai