Homemade pav

                           Next to masala pori,i love pav bhaji. I miss masala pori in US but i am satisfied that  i am getting pav bhaji in chat shops here. Intially i used to buy ready made pav in shops and will make bhaji in home. But recent days, i like to prepare pav too in home. If i make pav, i will use it for pav bajji, vada pav and misal pav. My son have it as bread and sauce or bread and jam. For his sake, nowadays i either prepare it in home or buy it and keep it in stock. The ingredients needed for this pav is very less and easy to make.

Ingredients:

All purpose flour/Maida - 3 cup
Yeast -  1 1/2 tbsp
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Salt - 1/2 tbsp
Butter - 1 1/2 tbsp
Milk - 1 1/2 cup
Warm water - 2 tbsp

Recipe:

1.Take a small bowl,add 2 tbsp water and add yeast and sugar.Mix well and leave it for 10 minutes.
2.After 10 minutes, check whether yeast is foamy.Mix one more time.
3.Take a large bowl,add all purpose flour,Salt,warm milk,proof yeast and mix well. If needed,add some warm water to it.
4.Knead the dough very softly.Don't knead like chappathi dough(hard)..
5.Transfer the kneaded dough in a glass bowl, apply melted butter on top and cover the dough with damp cloth and rest it in a warm place like conventional oven.

6.Leave it there till the quantity of dough doubles its volume.

7.Once again knead the dough and divide it into equal portion and roll it into balls.

8.Place the rolled balls on a baking pan and cover it with damp cloth and allow to rest for 1 hour.
9.After 1 hour,check whether the rolled balls double the size.

10.Pre heat the conventional oven for 400 F for 5 minutes.Meantime, apply milk as coating on top of rolled balls. If needed, sprinkle some sesame seed on top.

11.Place the pan inside the oven and bake it for 20 minutes.Check the pav by piercing a tooth pick inside,if it comes out clean without sticking any dough,then pav is ready.
12.After 20 minutes, remove the pav and leave it for 2 minutes inside pan.

13.After 2 minutes,transfer the pav to a drying rack.Apply butter on top when it is warm.
14.Once the pav cool down, cut the partitions and remove individual pav buns.

Note:

*.Don't baked the bun so long,it will make the bun hard.
* Place the pan in middle rack in oven,so that bottom part won't get burned soon.
* Don't cut the pav immediately after removing from oven.
* Adjust sugar and salt according to taste.

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Malai kofta

              Malai kofta is one of the famous gravy which we order in restaurants . It goes very well with jeera rice and roti's. As my family like spicy dishes ,this gravy is sweeter one than other gravies. Once in awhile i used to prepare this gravy for jeera rice and chappathi. This gravy is bit sweeter and creamier . Those who are in diet can avoid adding cream and cashew nut.

Ingredients:

For kofta:
Potato - 2 no
Green peas - 1/4 cup
Onion - 1
Green chilli - 2 no
Jeera - 1 tsp
Paneer - 2 tbsp
Carrot and beans -  4 tbsp
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
Corn flour - 4 tbsp
Oil - for deep frying
Salt - as per taste

Gravy:
Jeera - 1 tsp
Onion - 1 no
Tomato - 3 or canned tomato puree - 1
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 tbsp
Cumin powder - 1 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tbsp
Cashew - 5 no
Half and half or heavy cream - 1 small container
Salt - as per taste.
Kashuri methi - 1 tbsp

 

Recipe:

 For Kofta:
* Boil potato and grate it and keep it in a bowl.
* Chop onion into very fine pieces.
* Boil carrot,beans and green peas and squeeze out excess water and transfer it to same bowl.
* Chop green chilli into very fine pieces.

1.Take all the ingredients which are under " For kofta" in a bowl and mix it well.
2.Make small small balls and coat it with corn flour and deep fry it in oil.
3.Transfer fried kofta balls on a plate layered with tissue.

For gravy:
* Chop onion into very very fine pieces.

1.Take a big kadai,add 1 tbsp oil. Once it is warm, add jeera followed by onion. Fry for awhile till onion turn translucent.
2 Add tomato puree  or chopped tomatoes. Add enough salt and cover the kadai. Cook till tomato is cooked and smashed well.
3.Now add all the powder,cashew and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes till raw smell of powder fades.Switch off the flame.
4.Once the content is cooled down,grind it in blender by adding little water.
5.Take another kadai,add little oil. Add jeera and fry. Now slowly pour the grinded mix.
6. Cook for 5 minutes.Once the mix is cooked,crush kashuri methi and add it to the gravy.Add salt if needed.Switch off the flame.
7.Finally add half and half or heavy cream,mix the gravy and garnish with coriander leaves.Cover the kadai.

Serve hot with roti or jeera rice.

Note:

* Those who are in diet,can avoid cream and cashew,instead can use curd.
* By adding the store bought tomato puree, the gravy gets its reddish color without adding red color. Those who are adding chopped tomatoes,can add food color.
* For kids, who love cheese can add chunks of mozzarella cheese inside kofta and cover it,before frying.
*  Those who feel difficult to fry kofta without breaking,can coat kofta with maida liquid and roll it in bread crumbs and then fry it. My son love this kofta than normal one.

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Chettinad chicken fry/ Chettinad kozhi varuval

                        Its been a myth that for non vegetarian chettiand dish used to be tasty and spicy.So i thought of trying their vegetarian dishes,but i tried non-vegetarian dish for my husband sake.  When i tried this recipe, my son who haven't ate chicken ,first time got impressed with the texture and color of the chicken dish and had three pieces.Second time when i prepared it, he liked it too. So this recipe has become one of the side dish on weekends.. Very easy to make and hope tasty too(My son like it).I got this recipe from the blog " You too can cook ".

Ingredients:

For chettinad powder:

Cumin seed - 3/4 tbsp
Coriander seed - 1 tbsp
Sombu/Fennel seed - 1/2 tbsp
Peppercorns -  1/4 tbsp
Red chili - 6

For frying :

Small onion - 8 no / Large red onion - 1/2
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Chicken - 1 lb
Green chilli - 2
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp( Garnish)

Recipe:

1.Clean the chicken ,slightly apply turmeric powder and coat the chicken.
2.Grind the onion in mixie and take it in a bowl.
3.Dry roast the content in " Chettinad powder" and powder it.
4.In a thick bottom kadai, add gingerly oil and once it is hot,add silted green chili,grind-ed onion paste and ginger garlic paste. Fry for awhile.
5.Once the raw smell fades, add the chicken pieces. Mix well.
6.After frying for 2 minutes,add powder 1 tbsp at a time. Add little bit food color at this time if needed( I add to impress my son who just started having chicken, it is purely optional).Add salt as per taste.Fry it in slow flame.
7.Fry for 2 more minutes first by closing the kadai and 5 more minutes without lid.Fry till the chicken is dry and crispy.Finally garnish with coriander leaves.

Notes:

1. Adding food color is purely optional. If you like dark brown color chicken fry,avoid food color.
2.If needed,we can add some lime juice on top while having.

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