Paneer – Indian Cheese

Paneer is a homemade Indian cheese which has many applications from side dishes to chat to sweets. Paneer by itself has lot of taste and flavor of milk. Paneer can be made in advance and stored in refrigerator for around 3 –4 days. Although fresh paneer tastes best, stored paneer is close and much better than store bought ones. It is advisable to store paneer in submerged in water and change the water every day. This will give a better shelf life. Paneer can be made very quickly and takes less than 90 minutes from start to finish being ready. 1 liter 2% milk yielded around 160 grams of paneer. You can use lemon juice, vinegar or citric acid to break the milk. But when curd or whey is used, you get the maximum quantity of paneer. You could also add spices to the paneer while curdling and you get the spiced paneer. Once I have added Red chili flakes and the paneer was so cute with the little red dots from the flakes.

Ghee / Nei / Clarified Butter

A key ingredient in many recipes to help it be elevated to the next level in taste and flavor is GHEE!! Ghee or Clarified butter originated in India and is part of many delicious recipes like Indian Sweets, some gravies, some Indian Breads etc. Ghee also plays a part in pooja, homam and fire sacrifices. A great advantage of ghee is its shelf life.. Ghee can be stored in room temperature for many months. It needs to be stored in an airtight container to have that long shelf life. Also make sure to use a moisture free spoon and dirt free spoon every time. Ghee is used in many homes to light vilakku (deepam).

Tamarind Chutney / Sweet and Sour Chutney - Indian Chaat Recipes

Indian Chaat recipes are so famous and so delicious... And this chutney is a key one!! This chutney is both sweet and sour chutney and is a delicious condiment. Serve it with pakoras, samosas, chaat and many more popular Indian snacks to take it to a next level.. Have fun with this chutney drizzled over dahi vadais, bhel poori, or any kind of chat; this takes them. You can make this in bulk and pour it in muffin trays or ice cubes tray and freeze and store it in a Ziploc bag. It stays good in freezer for 3 months. When need to use, take required piece out and thaw and serve chilled or room temperature!!

Malai Kofta / Malayi Kofta

Malai Kofta is a very rich and creamy Indian Side dish. It tastes amazing when served hot with roti, naan or paratha. Malai means cream and kofta defines the shape.. You can make this less rich by substituting milk for cream and water for milk. But indulge in this with this creamy and silky way and you are sure to try them again soon…Also add the koftas just before serving or they will become soggy. Stuffing is a personal choice, but paneer and potatoes need to be there. This is a dish which can go wrong easily if there is excess moisture in the balls. Make sure that the balls are dry. Also when frying the balls, add one ball and see if it comes perfect fully before adding more. If it breaks open in oil, then it has moisture, so add more flour and fry again. Once you get the kofta fried fine, then add a few in a batch and fry them. Linking this with Nupur’s page and Divya’s page

Pavakkai Pitlai (பாவைக்காய் பிட்லை)

Pavakkai Pitlai is a type of Sambar. Pavakkai is Bitter gourd and is one of the healthy vegetables out there. This recipe tastes best when served hot with rice.

Lavang Latika / Labongo Latika

Lavang Latika, known by several names like Lavanga Lata, Labongo Latika etc is a very delicious and flavorful sweet.. It is a small pocket filled with mawa, sugar and nuts, deep fried in oil and coated with sugar syrup. They look so cute from their tiny pocket appearance with the clove acting the beautiful and elegant accent to the bag... I have bookmarked this sweet from a cooking show sometime back, but never got to try it until now when Sanoli announced it as a challenge for this month’s Southern Team of SNC which was started by Divya and I am so happy that I finally made this…This makes 20 pieces.. The flavor of the clove, the delicious filling and a lightly crispy outer with a  sugar coated exterior makes this delicious sweet..

The Greek Politiko Simiti / Koulouri - My 400th post

Yayy!!! My 400th post!!! Thanks to all who have supported me and looking forward for the same in future... So to today's recipe - Simiti is the breakfast bread served in many places in Greek. These simiti are the breakfast choice of the Athenians.. These are irresistible... From Little Expat Kitchen – “The Greek word simiti/σιμίτι (plural: simitia/σιμίτια), comes from the Turkish word simit, which comes from the Arabic word semid, which in turn comes from the ancient Greek word semidalis/σεμίδαλις (simigdali/σιμιγδάλι in modern Greek), meaning semolina”. We loved the texture of the bread and also the flavor the sesame seeds and the grape syrup!! I have never heard of this bread before until Gayathri announced this as a challenge for this month's Eggless Baking Group from here.. It was sure a great learning and so excited that I tried it!!