Rasamalai -Indian cottage cheese Desert -Diwali festival special

RAS MALAI SWEET for Diwali By Chef Mohan

Rasmalai is a Bengali dessert consisting of soft paneer balls immersed in chilled creamy milk. Like Rasgullas, Rasmalai is also made with homemade cheese .

Ingredients

for the for rasmalai patties

4 cups milk
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup cane sugar
4 cups water
for the for milk mixture
3 cups milk
2 tablespoons cane sugar
1 teaspoon cardamom (crushed)
1 tablespoon almonds
1 tablespoon pistachios
Pinch of lemon yellow colour(optional) or Saffron strings

Method

Paneer:

Mix lemon juice in half a cup of hot water and keep aside.

Boil the milk in a heavy bottomed over medium-high heat, stirring frequently making sure milk do not burn on the bottom of the pan.

As the milk comes to a boil, add the lemon juice slowly and stir the milk gently. The curd will start separting from the whey, turn off the heat.

Once the milk fat has separated from the whey, drain the whey using a strainer line with cheesecloth or muslin cloth.

Wrap the curd in a muslin cloth, rince under cold water, and squeeze well. This process takes out the sourness from the lemon.

To take out the excess water squeeze the cloth, or press the wrapped paneer under a heavy pan for about one hour. Taking the right amount of water out of the paneer is the most important part of this recipe.

To check if enough water is out of the paneer, take a little piece of paneer on your palm and rub with your fingers. After rubbing the paneer for about 15-20 seconds, you should be able to make a firm but smooth ball.

If the paneer is too dry, add a few drops of water, using the water squeezed from the paneer.
Once the paneer is drained, place on a dry, clean surface and knead the paneer for 3-4 minutes until the paneer is almost rolls into smooth soft dough.

Knead the paneer by dragging the palm of your hand hard on the paneer. Keep scooping it back to togather and knead more. Your palm will be little greasy.

Making the Rasmalai & Syrup:

Divide the dough into 12 equal parts and roll them in smooth balls.

To make the balls apply some pressure at the first and then release when forming the balls, lightly press to make about 3/4″ patty shape.

Mix the sugar and water in a pressure cooker on medium high heat and bring to a boil.

Add the paneer balls and close the pressure cooker. After the pressure cooker starts steaming, turn the heat to medium and cook for about seven minutes.

Make sure the cooker is large enough to accommodate the finished rasgullas patties, as they will expand to about double in the volume while cooking in the syrup!

Close the heat and wait a few minutes before opening the pressure cooker. Pour cold water over the cooker before opening.

Take out the patties from the syrup and squeeze them lightly,and keep aside.

Boil the milk in a frying pan on medium heat until the milk reduce to about 2 cups.

Make sure to frequently stir the milk as the milk burns easily in bottom of the pan.

Add the sugar and the Rasmalai patties in milk. Let it cook for few minutes.

Add the cardamom and food colour and mix in. Garnish with sliced almonds and pistachios.

Serve the Rasmalai chilled.

VEGETARIAN MOMOS (Indo - Nepali- Tibetan Recipe)

Veg Momos 

Tibetan -Nepali  and north East Indian Recipe: an easy process to make veg momos at home without any special tools. Simple recipe to make veg momos .

Ingredients

for outer cover

• 1 cup all purpose flour/maida
• ½ tsp oil
• ¼ tsp salt or as required
• 2 to 3 tbsp water for kneading or as required
• 
  

for the stuffing

• 1.5 to 1.75 cups finely chopped vegetables (i added ½ cup chopped cabbage, ½ cup chopped carrots, ⅓ cup chopped french beans and ¼ cup chopped capsicum)
• 2 small sized spring onions, finely chopped - reserve the greens to be added later
• 3 to 4 small garlic/lahsun finely chopped
• 1.5 tsp light soy sauce 1 tsp soy sauce. add as required
• ½ tsp black pepper or as required
• 1 tbsp oil
• salt as required

METHOD

Preparing the outer cover of momos:

1. take the all purpose flour/maida, salt and oil in a bowl and mix it.
2. add water in parts and knead to a firm dough. cover the dough and keep aside for 30 minutes.

For the veg momos stuffing:

1. finely chop all the vegetables. you can also use a food processor to chop the vegetables.
2. heat oil. add garlic. saute for 2-3 seconds.
3. add onions and saute for 10-15 seconds. add all the finely chopped vegetables.
4. increase the flame and stir fry the vegetables on high heat.
5. when the edges starts getting golden, add soy sauce, salt and pepper.
6. 
7. continue to stir fry on high heat till the vegetables are cooked. takes about 8 to 9 mins on a high flame.
8. later add 1 to 2 tbsp of the spring onions greens and stir fry for a minute.

    

8.check the taste and add more salt, pepper or soy sauce, if required.

shaping the veg momos:

1. divide the dough in two parts. make a 6-7 inch log from each part. cut the log into equal slices.
2. make ball of each slice and keep them covered with a moist napkin.
3. take each dough ball and on a lightly dusted board, roll each dough ball into a thin circle of about 2-3 inch diameter.
4. 
5. try to get the edges to be thin and the center to be thick.
6. place 1 or 2 tsp of vegetable stuffing in the center.

       

1. lift one side of the edge and start pleating. (you can also refer to the video above to see how pleating is done).
2. start folding and forming the pleats one by one. towards the end, join the pleats in the center.
3. prepare all momos this way and keep them covered under a moist napkin. till you are ready to steam them.
4. heat water in a steamer or in a electric cooker or in a pressure cooker. let the water come to a boil.
5. in a greased steamer pan or in idli moulds, place the momos keeping space between them so that they don't touch each other. * check notes on how to steam the momos in idli pan or pressure cooker.
6. 
7. steam momos for 5-6 minutes.
8. 
9. don't overdo the steaming, as the dough becomes dense and dry.
10. the steaming time may vary upon the thickness of momos' cover.
11. when you touch the momo then dough should not feel sticky to you. this means they are done and the momos will have a transparent look.
12. time of cooking momos varies from intensity of the flame and kind of pan and the steamer you are using.
13. once done, garnish veg momos with spring onion greens.
14. serve vegetable momos with a spicy sauce like schezwan sauce or tomato-chili sauce or chili sauce. you can also serve it with red chilli garlic chutney. momos go very well with a spicy sauce.

Note 

For Non Vegetarians 

you can replace vegetables with Meat such as chicken and Lamb meat.

Bombay -Karachi Halwa- Desert

Bombay Halwa orKarachi halwa is a unique Sindhi halwa as compared to rest of the halwa's. It appears to have rubber like texture,Kids loves this this sweet -desert Easy to make with minimum ingredients .

Ingredients

For Sugar Syrup:
Sugar - 200 grams
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Water -100 to 125 ml

Other Part of Recipe
Corn flour - 50 grams
Water - 100 ml
Ghee - 100 grams
Food color - pinch
Cardamom powder - pinch
Cashew

Directions

Take a bowl add sugar and water bring it to a boil, add lemon juice. 

In a small bowl add water to corn flour mix well so that it doesn't form any lumps. 

In a non stick pan add 1/2 table spoon ghee ,do not switch on the flame now ,add cornflour mixture to it and mix, now switch on the flame at very low and stir continuously.

when the mixture is thinking switch of the flame and add sugar syrup little by little and keep mixing to avoid lumps .Repeat the same till syrup is completed. 

Now switch on the flame and keep mixing , add ghee very slowly keep mixing repeatedly till the ghee is completed.

Now add food color,cardamom powder cook till ghee is oozing out,now add broken cashew nuts mix well once it is done transfer it to a plate.

Grease the plat with ghee and pore the mixture keep a side for 1hr and cut into small pieces. 

Note :

1) Please add the sugar juice after switch off the flame and sugar syrup to be added step by step.I.e add 1 spoon of sugar syrup ,then stir to mix it properly,then next spoon of sugar syrup,stir again ,repeat the process,this is to avoid lump formation 

2)Add Ghee step by step by continously string 

3)Grease the plate with ghee,then pour the mixture in plate.

DOUBLE KA MEETHA - HYDRABADI SWEET/DESERT

Double Ka Meetha is the Hyderabadi dessert made of  fried crispy bread,soaked in milk and cardamom syrup.Its also similar to Shahi Tukre.

Ingredients

6 slices of  bread and cut into shapes (one slice into two or four)

1 1/2 cups milk

1 cup sugar

4 cardamom (elaichis)

2 cup Ghee/Oil 

1 big pinch Saffron threads

1 Edible Silver Leaf (Warq) optional 

For Garnishing :

 Slices Almonds, Pistachios and Cashews fry until golden,about 3 minutes.

Khoa (optional)

Method:

In a large non-stick saucepan/Khadhai at medium heat, Fry the bread pieces in Ghee /oil till golden brown keep aside.

Then another saucepan at a medium heat add  milk, crush 2 cardamom and saffron let the milk  cook for 20 minutes,

Meanwhile prepare the sugar syrup add crush 2 cardamom powder till thicken,
Remove from the heat.

Then arrange fry breads on a plate.

Then pour sugar syrup over the bread,allow the bread to soak up the syrup

Then pour milk over the Bread,allow the bread to soak up the milk leave for 15 minutes.

Garnish with khoa, toasted Slices Almonds,Pistachios and Cashews.

You can Serve it warm/cold.

HYDERABADI MUTTON/LAMB BIRYANI

Hyderabadi Kachi gosht Dum biryani 

The Kachchi biryani is prepared with meat marinated with spices overnight and then soaked in yogurt before cooking. The gosht (meat) is sandwiched between layers of fragrant long-grained basmati rice 

Main Ingredients

Serves: 6-8

Total Marinating time: 3 1/2 hrs

Total ‘Dum/slow cooking’ time: Around 1 hr and 10 mins

Any Edible oil – 6 tbsp
Ghee – 2 tbsp
Lean spring Lamb meat, with bone, preferably leg, cut into 5 cm cubes – 800 grams, excess fat trimmed, washed, drained and pat dried

for the tenderizing mix:

Raw Unripe Green Papaya skin –  grated or made into a paste (optional-you can use meat tenderizer available in market)
garlic-ginger paste – 3 tbsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp

for the marinade:
Thick Yogurt – 1/2 cup
Yellow onions – 3, medium sized, finely sliced
Fresh Mint leaves – 1 cup, loosely packed, roughly chopped
Fresh Cilantro – 1 cup, loosely packed, roughly chopped
Small green chillies – 4-6, slit lengthwise
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Garam masala powder -1 tsp
Cardamom powder – 1/8 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Lemon juice – 2 tbsp

for the rice:

Long Grained Fragrant Basmati Rice – 800 grams (old biryani rice)
Shah Zeera – 1/2 tbsp
Cardamom – 4
Cloves – 4
Cinnamon stick – one 2″ stick
Dagad Phool – 1 tbsp
Dried bay leaf –  2
Salt – 3-4 tsp

for the Biryani:(assembing layers)

Saffron threads – 2 big pinch
Warmed milk – 1/2 cup
Cilantro/coriander leaves  – 1/2 cup, loosely packed and roughly chopped
Mint leaves – 1/2 cup, loosely packed and roughly chopped
Lemon juice – 2 tbsp

additional ingredients:

Dough made with maida/all-purpose flour (flour+water) to seal the vessel(optional)

1. In a large thick walled oven-proof vessel/saucepan (if you have a thick walled Degchi(big sauce pan), please use it) (also please choose a vessel that is large enough so that there is about 1/4 amount of free headspace left after the whole biryani is assembled for the steam to collect and aid in cooking), add the tenderizing mix and the marinade and mix well. Wear gloves, add the meat and thoroughly mix the meat well. Using a knife, gash/poke the meat in the marinade. Mix once and again gash/poke it with a knife and then mix. Cover and keep aside.

2. In a thick bottomed frying pan, pour in oil and ghee. Once the oil is hot add the sliced onions. Deep fry them until evenly golden brown in color, keep a close eye and make sure you do not burn them. Once done, remove the pan from heat. Using a slotted spoon, remove half of the fried onions into a platter and spread them out. In a while, they will crisp up as they cool. The crisped fried onions will be later used for garnish. Reserve the remaining fried onions and oil in the same pan and let cool. These will be added to the marinade.

3. In a small bowl, add the warmed milk and soak the saffron threads in it.

4. Add the cooled fried onions and about 4 tbsp of the oil from the pan to the marinating meat and thoroughly mix using a spoon. Cover and keep it back in the refrigerator for 3-4 hrs.

5. Wash the rice in 3 changes of water and soak it in surplus fresh cool water for 30 minutes.

6. In a large saucepan, pour in surplus cool water and add the shahzera, cardamom, cloves, dried bay leaf, dagad phool and salt (do not forget adding salt). Cover and bring it to a boil on high. Once the water is boiling, drain the soaking rice and add it to the boiling water and stir. Cook for just 2 minutes and drain the rice immediately.

7. Spread the drained half cooked rice over the marinating meat. Spread evenly

 the chopped cilantro, mint, saffron soaking in milk, remaining crisped fried onions and lemon juice. Cover the vessel properly with aluminium foil or a tight lid (with vents closed with dough if any) so that no steam can escape. You can also apply dough to seal the lid which is the traditional method.

8. Cook the Biryani on high for 5 minutes. You will notice that a good amount of steam has built up, which is called as the pehli bhaap, meaning first steam.. Then take a flat dosa tawa and keep it below the vessel (so that the bottom does not burn and it slow cooks evenly) and lower the heat to simmer and let it slow cook for 30 minutes, until done. Remove from heat, and have a quick look to see if the rice has cooked and stick a fork through to test the meat (be careful as there will a lot of steam, do not burn yourselves). If it needs to cook a little longer, cover again tightly with the lid/foil again and cook for a further 10-15 minutes. when it is done and wait for 10 mins before mixing the rice with meat, and serve on a large serving platter. 

For a special touch, garnish with more fried onions, cilantro and mint leaves, toasted/fried almonds or cashewnuts or pinenuts or raisins and quartered hard boiled eggs.