Madhu Knits and Cooks

Recipe, knitting, and sewing project notes

Tag: Cooking — Main Courses

  • Corn and Cheese Enchiladas with Homemade Tomatillo Salsa

    After attempting the first round of tomatillo salsa, we
    decided to make enchiladas to put a large portion of the salsa to use in a
    tasty, filling meal.  Our natural
    inclination was to make enchiladas, which I have to admit, I don’t think of as
    being particularly clever but I have to say that the first batch (as well as
    the second, the black bean enchiladas) sure turned out to be incredibly tasty!

    Corn and Cheese Enchiladas with Tomatillo Salsa

    Makes 2 large servings

    Ingredients

     Directions

    • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
    • Heat the tortillas either on an open flame on the stovetop
      or in the preheating oven for 3 – 4 minutes, or until the tortillas become
      slightly firm
    • Cover an 8 by 8 inch baking pan with a light layer of the
      tomatillo salsa to prevent the enchiladas from sticking to the pan
    • Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan, add onion and sauté a few
      minutes until cooked, and then add corn and chopped pepper
    • Saute until the mixture is warm, and then divide mixture
      into 4 even portions
    • Spoon each quarter of the mixture into a tortilla, sprinkle ¼
      cup of cheese on top and roll tortilla, taking care to ensure that the mixture
      does not fall over the ends of the tortillas
    • Place each tortilla, with the edges of the rolled sides face
      down, in the pan
    • When all tortillas have been placed in the pan, spoon the
      remainder of the salsa on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle remaining cheese
      on top of the enchiladas
    • Cover the pan with foil and bake for 35 – 40 minutes,
      removing foil 2/3 through baking time

  • My First Attempt at Risotto (Simple White Wine Broccoli Risotto)

    Upon a quick scan of my pretty-sparse fridge a month or two
    back, I realized that I had the perfect set of ingredients to make a dish that
    I had never before tried – risotto.  I
    had about a ½ cup of white wine, one cup of leftover vegetable broth and some
    leftover yellow onion, in addition to an unopened box of Arborio rice in the
    cupboard.

    Because it was my first time making risotto, I consulted
    some cookbooks and recipes online to figure out the right technique – and it
    seemed that constant stirring with a lot of liquid was the only real
    “must”.  Specific ingredients seemed to
    be up to the cook, so I decided to improvise the following recipe with items I
    had in the house (I did not want to buy new items to make the risotto in an
    effort to put to good use things already in my kitchen).  Ingredients, technique and lessons learned
    follow the picture below.

    Broccoli Risotto

    Makes 4 larger meal-size servings, or 8 side dish servings

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup white wine
    • 1.5 cups of Arborio rice
    • 1 cup vegetable broth
    • Approx. 2 cups of water
    • 1 medium to large yellow onion, diced
    • 1 cup frozen broccoli, finely chopped and partially steamed
    • 4 cloves garlic, chopped
    • ¾ cup shredded mozzarella (optional)

    Directions

    • Heat water and vegetable broth in small pot
    • Heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil in large saucepan
    • Add onion, garlic and broccoli and saute
    • As the onions become cooked, add in the dry rice and saute with the vegetable mixture for 4-5 minutes, stirring to ensure that the rice is incorporated into the mixture
    • Add the wine, stirring until the white wine blends into the rice
    • Add 1/2 cup of heated water/broth combination to the saucepan, stirring until the liquid has been incorporated into the dish
    • Continue
      adding ½ – ¾ cup of the heated water/broth combination to the saucepan,
      stirring until the liquid incorporates into the rice, until you reach the
      consistency you would like for the dish (I believe I was cooking the dish
      for an hour from start to finish).
    • Remove
      pan from heat, and garnish with mozzarella, if you desire, either in the
      pan itself or in the individual serving bowls

    Lessons Learned

    I learned several lessons from this first attempt at
    risotto, starting with several ingredient-related flags. 

    First, I definitely used too much onion – there was a little
    too much onion flavor in the risotto and I think that it would have been better
    to use maybe ¾ of the amount I ended up using. 

    Second, I only wanted to use ingredients I had in the house,
    which meant I only used one cup of broth to two cups of water, instead of using
    all broth.      I think that that diluted the
    flavor of the risotto, so that it ended up being blander than it should have
    been.

    Third, risotto is fairly bland generally and I think that
    one may need to really think creativity when it comes to vegetarian risottos in
    terms of how to pump up a flavor to make them an interesting main course as
    opposed to a good side dish that is complemented by a more flavorful main
    course.  I don’t have a great answer to
    this yet, but perhaps some hot peppers or other interesting flavor can help
    make risotto transition to a solid main course.

  • Indian-Style Black Eyed Peas

    I recently had some really tasty black-eyed peas at my uncle's place, and finally after thinking weeks about how good they were, I asked him for his recipe which was a lot simpler than I expected!  This is a good, simple AND healthy addition to any meal.

    Black_eyed_peas_close_up

    Ingredients:

    • 1 bag dried black eyed peas (I used a bag that yields 6 cups cooked blackeyed peas)
    • 1 tsp. mustard seeds
    • 1 thai green chili, sliced
    • 4 dried red chili peppers, broken in half
    • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
    • 4 curry leaves, ripped in half
    • 3 tsps. vegetable oil
    • pinch of cumin

    Directions:

    1)  Soak peas for at least 4 hours — I soaked them for 10

    2)  After peas are soaked, drain the water.  Add fresh water and lots of salt to soaked peas and bring peas to a boil.

    3)  Boil covered for 20 – 3o minutes (I boiled them for 40 minutes and it ended up being too long.  My uncle recommends 20 minutes)

    4)  While peas are boiling, heat vegetable oil in a  small saucepan and add the mustard seeds, sliced thai chili and dried red chilis.  Saute under the mustard seeds pop and then add pinch of cumin and the chopped garlic until the garlic browns.

    5)  Drain peas, and stir the contents of the saucepan into the beans.  Also add the curry leaves, mix and enjoy with rice, Indian breads or as a side to any meal.

    Black_eyed_peas

  • Indian Lemon Rice — A Great Side or Light Meal

    The final of the three recipes I learned on my most recent trip home was Lemon Rice — a light favorite of mine.  I like to eat warm lemon rice mixed with plain yogurt as a light lunch, and it also can be a part of virtually any meal.  My mom recommends eating it with grilled chicken and garnishing with peanuts (I am vegetarian and allergic to nuts so unfortunately I can't follow either of these recommendations).

    Lemon_rice

    Ingredients:

    • 3 cups cooked, day-old (or just not fresh) rice
    • 1 1/2 tsps. mustard seeds
    • 2 dried red chilis, broken in half
    • 1 tsp. cumin
    • 2 tsps. uridahl
    • 1 tsp. channa dahl
    • 15 dried curry leaves
    • 1/2 cup shredded carrot
    • 1 thai green chili, sliced
    • Heaping 1/4 tsp. turmeric
    • 1 tbl. fresh lemon juice
    • salt
    • vegetable oil

    Directions:

    • Warm up the rice in the microwave for 2 minutes or so
    • In a medium pot or saucepan, heat a few tablespoons of oil on medium heat
    • Add the mustard seed, dried red chilis and cumin
    • When the mustard seeds start popping, add in the uridahl, channa dahl, curry leaves and turmeric.  Quickly stir the mixture, then turn off the heat.
    • Mix in the shredded carrot and the thai chili, stirring quickly
    • Mix in the warm rice, and when fully mixed, add 1 1/2 tsps. salt
    • Finish with adding the lemon juice and making sure all the flavors are blended.  Add additional salt to pump up the flavor if you wish.

    Garnish with peanuts if desired. 

  • Mom’s Crispy Indian Potato Dish

    This recipe is not only a family favorite, but also a favorite of family friends and visitors to my parent's house.  It can be made spicy or without much spice so it can serve a variety of guests.

    Moms_crispy_potato

    Ingredients

    • 4 – 5 Idaho Russett potatoes
    • 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
    • 1/2 tsp. cumin
    • 1 dried red chili, broken in half
    • 1/2 tsp. uridahl
    • 1 clove garlic, sliced
    • 6 dried curry leaves or so
    • 1/4 tsp. turmeric
    • vegetable oil
    • salt

    Directions

    • Peel the potatoes and dice them into 1/3 inch square cubes
    • Cover the chopped potatoes in cold water and add 1/2 tsp. salt (this will prevent discoloring of the potatoes during cooking and help take out some of the starch).  Let the potatoes sit for 5 – 10 minutes or so (can be longer, but as short as 5 minutes if you are in a hurry).
    • The drain the water and roll the potato pieces in a towel to get the water out.
    • In a saucepan, add 5 tsps. or so of vegetable oil and bring to medium heat.
    • Add mustard seeds and cumin.
    • When the mustard seeds start popping, add the dried red chili, uridahl, garlic and curry leaves.
    • Saute for a minute or two, and then add in the potato.  Mix the potato in well so the potato pieces get coated with the mixture.
    • Add turmeric.
    • Let the potato cook, and stir from time to time.  When the potato starts getting brown and crispy, add salt to taste (start with 1 tsp — be fairly liberal as the salt really brings out the flavor).

    Moms_crispy_potato_close_up

  • Spinach Pappu Recipe — An Indian Spinach and Dal Dish

    Last week, I went home to my parents house in Michigan and learned three new Indian recipes.  The first that I learned — which takes the longest to prepare — is a very tasty and very healthy spinach and dal dish.   It is an excellent accompaniment to rice, any Indian breads or yogurt.  And although it takes about 40 minutes to prepare, most of that time it is just cooking in a pot so it's fairly hands-off. 

    Spinach_pappu

    Ingredients:

    • 10 oz. of frozen chopped spinach
    • 1/2 cup of mung dal/pappu (available at Indian grocery stores — it is yellow)
    • 2 cups chopped onions
    • 3 thai green chilis (or other spicy fresh chilis), sliced lengthwise or chopped
    • 1/8 tsp. turmeric
    • 1 1/4 – 2 cups coarsely chopped tomatoes (2 or 3 tomatoes)
    • 3 tsps. homemade tamarind paste (if you use store-bought tamarind paste, its usually more concentrated so probably use 2 tsps)
    • 2 dried red chilis, broken in half
    • 8-10 dried curry leaves
    • 1 clove garlic, sliced
    • 3/4 tsp. mustard seeds
    • 1/2 tsp. cumin
    • 2 – 3 fenugreek seeds
    • pinch of asafoetida
    • vegetable oil
    • salt to taste

    Directions:

    • In a medium pot, put in the mung dal and put in water to both fully cover the mung dal and have an additional 1/4 inch of water above the mung dal.  Increase heat so to bring the water to a boil.
    • After 5 minutes or so (as the water heats, but before it boils), add the frozen spinach and the chopped onions.  As you put in those items, do not fully stir them in — you want the pappu to remain at the bottom of the pot for most of the cooking so it can get fully cooked. 
    • Add in the turmeric and cover the pot.
    • As the mixture starts to boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
    • Then add in the tomato, tamarind paste and approx. 2 tsp. salt
    • Add water as appropriate — it should be a soupy consistency because it will continue to lose water as it cooks.
    • Cover and cook the mixture an additional 7 minutes or so.
    • In a seperate small pot, heat a small amount of vegetable oil on medium heat and add in the mustard seeds and cumin.
    • When the mustard seeds start to pop, add in the fenugreek, garlic, dried red chilis and the curry leaves.  Saute the mixture together for a few minutes.
    • When the flavors start to come out/blend together, add in a pinch of the asafoetida and saute.
    • Pour the contents of the small pot into the simmering medium pot, remove from heat and stir the entire mixture (including the dahl at the bottom).  Add salt to taste (or lemon if you prefer) — it's better to overflavor a bit because the flavors will become muted as the mixture settles.
    • Serve and enjoy!

  • Bendakaya — My Mother’s Recipe Definitely Works!

    Madhus_bendakaya

    The two things I learned from making this dish:

    • It will probably take more than 15 minutes to cook — more like 20-25 minutes.  But the good thing is that it requires little effort while cooking (just stirring every several minutes or so).
    • Don't be afraid to really salt it up toward the ending of cooking.  Even if you think it seems probably salted about 5 minutes before it's done, check before you are completely done to see if there really is enough salt because salt REALLY brings out the other flavors of the dish.

  • A pizza I didn’t mess up!

    A few years back, when I was living in D.C., I bought a $9 pizza stone at Target thinking it would change my life.  Since then, I have never made a good pizza.  I usually use the Trader Joe’s refrigerated pizza dough, which you can find in a variety of delicious flavors at any Trader Joe’s for under a $1.   You can make an entire pizza for less than $7 that is much, much better than any other place (unless you live in New York or New Haven).

    At first, I didn’t realize you need to pre-heat the pizza stone which of course meant I was cooking the pizza for an hour and inevitably burning the cheese, while waiting for the dough to cook. 

    And then I found on the internet that you should not only pre-heat the pizza stone, but also pre-heat the crust to avoid the burning of the cheese problem. 

    So finally, I put all of these pieces of advice (which I now feel may actually be common sense) to make a great pizza.  Recipe is below the picture.

    Trader_joes_pizza

    For this awesome pizza, I used:

    1 bag of Trader Joe’s refrigerated whole wheat pizza dough

    Pizza sauce — very easy to make and the recipe makes 2 servings of sauce.  Another recipe from AllRecipes.com:  http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Easy-Pizza-Sauce-I/Detail.aspx

    • This recipe uses tomato paste, garlic, dried basil and oregano, salt and pepper, water and olive oil.
    • I highly recommend that you make the sauce a day ahead to let the flavors blend.
    • I also highly recommend that you reduce the water needed for the recipe to no more than 1 cup of water and if you want a thicker sauce, you should also reduce the amount of olive oil you use.

    1 – 1.5 cups of part-skim, low moisture shredded mozzarella

    Any and all toppings that you want — I usually just mince 3-4 cloves of garlic as well as maybe 1/2 of a large fresh jalepeno for my pizzas.

    To make the pizza:

    • Preheat your pizza stone at least 30-40 minutes at the full temperature recommended for your dough.
    • Follow the Trader Joe’s directions to roll the pizza dough (and depending on the dough you use, you might want to hand stretch it to prepare it as some of the flavors do not take well to a rolling pin!)
    • Throw the dough onto the hot stone, and preheat the dough for 5-7 minutes.
    • Take the preheated dough out of the oven, sprinkle mozzarella and toppings.
    • Bake another ten minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted AND the center of the pizza dough is fully cooked through (poke in a knife or fork in the center of the pie to make sure it is no longer doughy)

    Enjoy!

  • Don’t like Okra? You will after trying this dish: Bendakaya (Indian Style Okra)

    This is one of my favorite Indian dishes — and I have to admit, the person who makes it the best is my mother.  I haven't tried the recipe yet (can't find Okra yet) but I can't wait.   The recipe follows the picture:

    Bendakaya

    Ingredients:

    • 3 cups fresh Okra
    • 3 tbps. vegetable oil
    • 2 dried red chili peppers (can be found in any Indian grocery store)
    • 3/4 tsp. whole mustard seeds
    • 1/2 tsp. whole cumin seeds
    • 1/2 tsp. uridahl/white dahl (can be found in any Indian grocery store)
    • 1/2 tsp. channa dahl/yellow dahl (can be found in any Indian grocery store)
    • 2 cloves garlic, sliced
    • Salt
    • 1/2 tsp. chili powder (optional)
    • Cilantro to garnish (optional)

    1.  Wash the okra, either towel dry or leave out to air dry for a few hours before cooking.  It is important that the okra is drier when you start, so it gets crisp and not mushy when you cook it.

    2.  Cut the okra into 1/3 inch segments, discard the ends.

    3.  Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan

    4.  When vegetable oil becomes hot, break the two red chili peppers and throw them into the pan.  Also add the mustard seeds.

    5.  When the mustard seeds start popping, add the cumin, uridahl and channa dahl.  Let it simmer  for a minute or two.

    6.  Add garlic, and saute for two minutes — make sure the garlic doesn't brown.

    7.  Add okra, and stir while raising heat to a higher medium level.  Cook the okra uncovered, and stir every two minutes. 

    8.  After ten minutes or when the okra starts to get cooked enough that the okra pieces are not sticking to each other, add salt to taste (perhaps 3/4 of a tsp. to start).   Note:  Make sure you do not add the salt too early in the cooking process, it will make the okra gummy.

    9.  Saute another 5 minutes or so until the okra is a bit crisp.  Add chili powder if desired and more salt to taste.

    10.  Serve with rice or any Indian breads.

  • Alternative to Spaghetti and Jarred Tomato Sauce: Multigrain Spaghetti with Diced Tomatoes and Asparagus

    Sick of having spaghetti and tomato sauce for dinner when you are tight on cash?  Try this tastier alternative that is just as cheap and gets you a green vegetable:

    Pasta_with_asparagus_and_tomatoes

    4 servings cooked multigrain spaghetti

    1 28-oz. can of seasoned diced tomatoes

    2 cups of coarsely chopped asparagus (partially cooked — you can use frozen asparagus cuts as well)

    4 cloves of garlic, minced

    3 tablespoons of olive oil

    dried red chili flakes to taste

    coarsely chopped parmesan

    1.  Heat pan, throw in olive oil and garlic, saute until warm

    2.  Add partially cooked asparagus and saute for 1-2 minutes

    3.  Add diced tomatoes and warm until the garlic and olive oil flavors get into the mixture

    4.  Add red chili flakes to taste

    5. Toss with the cooked pasta and parmesan.