Masala Toast Sandwich

This recipe is for the Bombay Masala Toast Sandwich. Here the Masala is made from boiled and mashed potatoes , which are tempered with spices. Easy to make, especially if you have leftover boiled or mashed potatoes.
Ingredients to make 4 Bombay Masala Toast Sandwiches:
For the green chutney:

1 cup coriander leaves
1/ 4 cup mint leaves
1 green chili
salt
For the potato filling:
2 cup mashed potatoes
1/2 onion – chopped finely
1/2 tomato –  chopped finely
1 small green chilly –  chopped finely
1/2 sprig of curry leaves – optional
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
a few chopped coriander leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
a pinch of asafoetida
1/4 tsp red chili powder (optional)
Other ingredients:
8 slices of bread – brown or white
a few thin round slices of onions, tomatoes, capsicum
Amul Butter or any other brand of Butter
Sandwich Masala or Chaat Masala

Method to make the Bombay Masala Toast Sandwiches:

■Method to make the green chutney
1.Grind the ingredients for the green chutney with little water to a smooth paste. If this chutney remains, then you can use it as a dip for pakoras, samosas, or even serve it as a side dish with pulaos or biryanis
■Method to make the potato filling

1.In a pan, heat some oil. Add mustard seeds. Let them splutter.
2.Add cumin seeds. Then add onions. Fry the onions till transparent.
3.Now add the tomatoes. Fry the tomatoes till they become soft and are cooked.
4.Add the chopped green chilli. Add the all the spice powders mentioned above. Mix them well.
5.Now add the mashed potatoes. Add salt. Mix the stuffing really well. Keep on stirring on a low flame so that the mixture does not stick to the pan.
6.Cook for 5 minutes. Let the mixture cool before you start using it for the sandwich.
■For making the sandwiches
1.Trim the edges of the bread
2.Apply amul butter evenly on the bread.
3.Now apply the green chutney on the bread.
4.Take the potato mixture and apply it on this bread. Keep  one or two onion, tomato and capsicum rings on this mixture. Sprinkle some sandwich masala or chat masala.
5.Now cover this potato laden bread with another slice of bread, to which both butter and chutney has been applied.
6.In a sandwich toaster or grill, toast or grill the sandwich till browned from both sides.
7.Remove and apply some butter on top of the sandwich. The butter melts. Ah….. melted butter on hot sandwich.
8.Its crisp from outside and spicy and soft from inside. Serve the sandwich hot with the green chutney and tomato ketchup.

Bread Halwa Recipe
Cooking Time: 30 mts
Cuisine: South Indian
Serves 6-7 persons
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Ingredients:
3/4 cup – 1 cup ghee (clarified butter)
1 loaf bread
6-8 cardamoms (elachi)
2 tbsps almonds (badam)
2 tbsps cashewnuts
1 lt milk (low fat)
1 ¼ cup sugar (increase or decrease as per your taste)
1 Tear the bread into bit sized pieces. Heat three fourth cup of ghee in a cooking vessel and add the bread pieces and fry them till they turn a golden brown.
2 Grind elachi, almonds and cashewnuts (leave a few toasted almonds and cashewnuts aside for garnish) to a fine paste.
3 Meanwhile boil the milk, add sugar and keep stirring it till it blends into the milk. Add the fried bread pieces and the remaining ghee to this mixture.
4 Let it simmer till the bread pieces turn soft and cook in the milk mixture. Combine the nuts paste. Garnish with the toasted almonds and cashewnuts.
4 Serve warm or refrigerate until chilled and serve. It tastes good both warm and cold.

Soya Chunks Vegetable Pulao Recipe
Recipe source: Own experiment
Prep & Cooking: 45 mts, soaking of rice: 15 mts
Serves 6 persons
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Ingredients:
3 cups basmati rice – washed and soaked in water for 15 mts
1 cup dried soya chunks – washed and boiled in water till soft
2-3 tbsp ghee
1 tsp shah jeera
2 bay leaves
2 big onions finely sliced
1 tbsp grated ginger
3-4 green chillies slit length wise
1 cup chopped mixed vegetables like beans, green peas, carrots or potatoes
½ tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste
3-4 tbsps of fresh mint leaves (pudina)
3 cups of freshly extracted coconut milk
2 ½ cups water
2-3 tbsps lemon juice
fresh coriander leaves for garnish
3-4 bread slices (cubed and lightly fried in ghee) – optional
8-10 cashewnuts (lightly roasted in ghee till golden brown)
For Masala Powder (lightly dry roast in a pan and grind to a fine pwd)
2 green cardamoms
4 cloves
2” cinnamom stick
3-4 pepper corns
1/4 tsp fennel seeds (optional)
1 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1-2 dry red chillis
1 Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed vessel. Add shah jeera and bay leaves and stir for a few seconds till the jeera splutters. Add the sliced onions, grated ginger and green chillis. Saute the onions till they turn pink.
2 Add the mixed vegetables and on medium heat, let them cook. Add salt and keep covered for 4-5 mts.
3 Add turmeric pwd, masala pwd and combine well. Stir fry for a minute.
4 Add the cooked soya chunks and keep covered for 2 mts. Add the mint leaves and combine.
5 Add the coconut milk, let it come to a boil, reduce heat and add the water. Bring to a boil again.
6 Add the drained basmati rice and mix well. Add salt, if required, at this stage. Reduce heat to medium and let it cook covered with lid.
7 Finally, once the rice and vegetables are cooked, add the lemon juice, fried bread cubes, fried cashewnuts and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
8 Serve with raita, mixed vegetable curry or chicken curry.


Note:
The above spices measurements can be categorised as medium spice. You can increase the use of green chillis, cloves, pepper and dry red chillis, if you want a spicer pulao. I have used less spice to suit my toddler’s palate. If you dont have a coconut on hand, replace the coconut milk with water, but the flavor of pulao will differ.

Chicken Biryani restaurant style


Ingredients: (serves about 18-20 as main meal)

6 lbs chicken, skinless and cut into big pieces
pomegranate arils, nuts, chopped cilantro/coriander for garnish (Optional)


for marinade:

2 tablespoons ginger paste
1 tablespoon garlic paste
1 teaspoon dried mint
1 cup strained yogurt/Greek yogurt
salt
2 tablespoon lemon juice


To cook the chicken:

3/4 cup oil
10 small green cardamom pods
2 black cardamom pods
8 cloves
3 sticks of cinnamon
1.5 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorn
5-6 medium onions, sliced thin
3 tablespoons garlic paste
2 tablespoon ginger paste
1 tablespoon chopped hot green pepper
salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
3/4 cup tomato paste


to combine:

1 cup thick strained yogurt/Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon mace
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper/chili powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon dried mint
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground caraway seeds
1/2 cup alubokhara/dried plums (substitute: prunes)
1/2 cup sliced/chopped toasted almonds
Note: If you do not want to make a completely homemade combination of spices, you can use store bought Biryani Spice Mix, available at the Indian Groceries instead of the the spices in the “to combine” list. I usually use Shan Sindhi Biryani Masala.

For caramelized onions:

4 medium  onions, sliced in to very thin half moons
1.5 tablespoons ghee
a pinch of sugar


For the rice:

12 cups Basmati rice
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons garam masala
salt


for layering:

cooked chicken
partially cooked rice
caramelized onions
finely chopped fresh cilantro/coriander
2 teaspoons good quality saffron
1/2 cup warm milk
1/2 cup ghee. melted
food color (optional)
1/2 teaspoon kewra/screw pine (optional)
1 teaspoon rose water (optional)




Preparation:

Wash the chicken and pat dry. Rub the lemon juice and salt on the pieces and let them sit for about 15 minutes.
Combine all the other in ingredients of the marinade and whisk. Place the salted chicken in the marinade and toss. ( I usually use a large ziploc bag and put everything together in it and give it a good shake). Let the chicken sit in the marinade for at least 2 hours. Overnight really works better.

Heat the 3/4 cup oil in a large pan. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, cloves to the oil; when the spices sizzles and when they are fragrant, add the cumin and the peppercorn. When the cumin starts to sizzle, add the onions and cook till they start turning brown. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and save the marinade. Add the chicken to the pan and cook till the chicken is light brown on both sides. Add the ginger paste, garlic paste and the tomatoes. Toss everything together. Add salt and turmeric and chili peppers and cook till the chicken is completely cooked and the oil starts separating from the sauce. While cooking slowly add the marinade. The chicken should be cooked and there should be about 4 cups of sauce left in the pan.


Caramelizing the onions:

Heat ghee in a pan; add a pinch of sugar and the onions and fry them slowly at low to medium heat till they are caramelized, crisped and dark brown. Once they are uniformly brown , drain on thick layer of kitchen paper, so that extra oil is soaked. As they cool down, the onions will become crispy. Set aside.


Cooking the Rice:

Note: The rice is going to be only partially cooked. The cooking of the rice will be completed when the meat is layered with the partially cooked rice and steamed/baked again.

Wash the rice till water runs clear. Soak the rice in cold water for 30 minutes. Drain. Use 2 cups of water for every cup of rice. (Since I had cooked in a big quantity, I had to cook the rice in 3 containers.) Bring the water to a boil; add salt, oil, garam masala and rice. Cook till the rice is about 3/4 cooked. They will look long and segmented and whitish in some parts. To test, take a grain in between two fingers. If the rice breaks in about 3 parts, the rice is cooked just right. It is very important not to overcook the rice. Drain immediately and spread the rice in a tray/plate for the remaining water to dry off – for about 15 minutes.


Combining yogurt and spices and the chicken:

Whisk the yogurt till smooth and creamy. Combine all the spices and the dried plum and the nuts with the yogurt evenly. Add this mix to the cooked chicken and toss well to combine. DO NOT COOK. Set aside and get ready to layer the rice, chicken spices and the final cooking.


Layering/Final Cooking:

Combine the saffron in warm milk and let it rest for about 10 minutes; the milk will turn deep yellow. If you are using orange food color, use a couple of drops in the milk.

Divide the caramelized onions, so you have about a few tablespoons left for final garnish of the finished dish.

You will need a thick bottomed deep pot with a very tight fitting lid. If you want to cook in the oven, use a an oven safe deep dish.

Coat the bottom of the pot with ghee. Spoon a thin layer of the sauce from the cooked chicken. The bottom most layer has to be the sauce to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom. Next will be a layer of rice. Do not make a thick layer; it should be about 2 cups of rice for each layer. Over the rice layer, spoon some of the sauce and the chicken and gently spread it out evenly. Add some of the caramelized onions, top a tablespoon of chopped cilantro, and a tablespoon of ghee. Next drizzle some of the saffron milk. Cover this layer with another layer of rice. Keep going with the rice, meat/sauce, caramelized onion, cilantro/coriander, ghee and saffron milk sequence. The top most layer has to be rice.

(Since I had a big quantity, I used 2 big pots to cook the Biryani)

After the final layer of rice is done, use the back of a wooden spoon and make several (about 6) holes from the top layer to the bottom of the top. This allows the stream to distribute and cook evenly. Drizzle the rest of the saffron milk on the top. Drizzle a few drops of screw pine/kewra and/or rose water. Cover the pot tightly. (If the cover if not tight enough, use aluminum foil to tightly cover the pot and use the pot over over that.

If cooking on the stove top:

Leave the pot on the stove top at the lowest heat and cook for about 30-40 minutes.

If cooking in the oven:

Cook in the oven at 350 degree F for about 30-40 minutes.

Serve warm/hot as a mail meal.

Chicken Kolhapuri


Ingredients:(will serve about 6)

2.5 lbs chicken, skin removed and cut into 1-2″  ( Feel free to use any kind of chicken pieces)
1/4 cup oil
For marinating:

2 tablespoons yogurt
1 tablespoon turmeric
2 tablespoon red chili powder (more or less)
2-3  tablespoons Spice Mix/Goda Masala or Kala Masala Mix (Recipe Below) – May use the store bought powder too.
salt


For the main Sauce:

3 large onions, sliced into thin half moons
4 cloves of garlic, sliced or minced
3″ fresh ginger, grated or thinly sliced
1/2 can coconut milk (about 7 oz/200ml)
3/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon sugar
salt
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, tender stalks and leaves
2 tablespoons fresh or dried coconut
3/4 cup tomato paste + 1/2 cup water




Spice Mix (Goda Masala or Kala Masala Mix):

Light fry in oil:

1 tablespoon white poppy seeds
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cumin/jeera
3 tablespoons coriander/dhania seeds
1.5 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fenugreek/methi seeds
1 teaspoon peppercorn
6 dry red chilli pepper (more or less as per your spice tolerance)
4 cloves
4 small  green cardamom
2″ cinnamon stick
A pinch of hing/asafoetida
Dry Roast:

2 tablespoons dried coconut
1 teaspoon sesame seed




Preparation:


Preparing the Spice Mix/Goda or Kala Masala mix:

Heat very little oil in a pan and very lightly fry the ingredients mentioned in the “Light Fry”at low heat for a couple of minutes. Switch off the heat when they get fragrant. Do take care and watch like a hawk, for they will burn very quick.

Dry roast the coconut and sesame seeds for a couple of minutes, till the coconut is very light brown.

Blend in a spice grinder or coffee grinder all the ingredients of the “light fry” and “dry roast” in a powder.

Note: This spice mix is not exactly the kala/goda masala mix. I did not have all the ingredients that the authentic mix asks for; this was pretty close. If you do not have all the ingredients, just skip them. The taste of the curry might vary a bit but it is still going to be good if not 100% traditional.




Marinating Chicken:

Marinate chicken with yogurt, turmeric, salt, chili powder and spice mix for at least an hour (I left mine overnight).


Cooking the curry:

Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and brown them in the heated oil on both sides. they should be light brown; does not need to be evenly brown. Save the marinade.

Remove the chicken pieces and save the leftover oil.

Making the Sauce/Kolhapuri sauce

Heat 3/4 cup oil  and fry the onions, ginger, garlic, sugar and salt till the onions are brown and starts to caramelize. Switch off the heat and transfer half of the onion mix from the pan to a blender or food processor along with the fresh cilantro, coconut, tomato paste, water and the left over marinade and blend till smooth.

In the remaining half of the fried onions in the pan, add the chicken and toss them and cook them for about 10 minutes at medium to high heat. If the spices stick at the bottom of the pan, do not worry. Just sprinkle some water and scrape it off .

Add half of the mix from the blender to the chicken and the leftover oil from frying the chicken if you have any) in the pan and stir everything gently. Cook/simmer for about 10 – 15 minutes at medium to high heat. When you see the sauce reducing pour out the rest of the blended ingredients in to the pan. Gently stir everything together for them to combine. Cover and cook at low to medium heat till the chicken pieces are tender.

Uncover and increase the heat. Add the coconut milk. Cook till the oil separates (you will see the sauce sizzling and bubbling and the little wells of oil on the sides and the top layer) for about 15  minutes.  There should a considerable amount of sauce/gravy left; it is going to be a thick sauce which readily coats a spoon.

The flavor of this dish matures with time. Let it sit overnight if you can before you serve it.

Serve hot with Basmati rice or Indian Flat Breads.