Easy Wheat Kulcha (Indian flat bread)

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Kulcha is best described as soft leavened Indian flat bread.  Kulcha is somewhat similar to naan, the main difference between the two is in the leavening. Whereas naan uses yeast to achieve its leavening, kulcha uses a combination of  baking powder and baking soda. . Traditionally both naans and kulchas are made in a tandoor (clay oven) but both of these can be made on a stove top with pretty good results and of course both can be made in a conventional oven too.



Kulchas are one of my favorite kind of flatbreads. Not only are kulchas super delicious with a fantastic soft texture that tastes fabulous with a curry on the side, but they are also faster to make when compared to naans, because kulchas do not need yeast.  A lot of the kulchas featured in restaurant menus are the stuffed kind, usually with stuffing of either onions, potatoes or paneer (Indian cottage cheese) but this plain version is the one I prefer the most and make most often.  So what are you waiting for, give this one a try...... it is really easy peasy and all you need is a curry on the side for a sumptuous and delicious meal :)



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Ingredients and Method to make Wheat Kulcha.
2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
1/2 cup all purpose flour (maida)
salt to taste ( I used approx 1 tsp)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1/4 packed cup finely cut cilantro (coriander leaves) (optional)
1/2 cup plain yogurt (curds/ dahi)
2 tbsp oil 
water as needed

a little butter/ clarified butter to apply on the kulchas (optional)
a little extra flour for dusting

In a large bowl, add whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and baking soda and mix well.

Add cilantro if using and mix again. Add yogurt and oil and mix into the flour. Add water as needed and knead into a soft and non sticky dough. I needed approx 1/2 to 3/4 cup for this quantity of flour.
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Keep the dough covered for about an hour. Divide the dough into 10 to 12 equal lime sized balls.

Heat a griddle/ flat pan/ tawa on medium to medium high heat.  Roll the dough with the help of a little flour into a circle of desired thickness. When the pan gets hot, place the rolled out dough on the pan and cook until there are small brownish spots on the lower side. Flip over and cook the other side until it has brownish spots too.
Remove, apply butter/ clarified butter if you plan to use it and serve hot with a curry of choice.

This flatbread tastes best when hot, so if all the dough is not needed, the balance can be stored in the refrigerator wrapped in a cling film and kulchas can be made fresh as needed.

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Instant Buckwheat Dosai ~ Savory Indian crepes ~ Kuttu atta dosa

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Ever since I tried this buckwheat upma ,  I have been devising ways to use buckwheat in traditional cooking in my mind. Buckwheat is so healthy that I have been wanting to include it more often in our diet. To learn more about the health benefits of buckwheat, check out this post. Initially I thought I would try to powder buckwheat and see how it works out in dosais. Conveniently before I made the effort, I came across some buckwheat flour in my local grocery and happily purchased it.

The very next day after I purchased the flour, I tried an instant dosai with it and I have to admit I was blown away at how awesome it turned out. The dosai was crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, just the way I love it :)  It was obviously quick, cannot get quicker than instant in dosais, and between the buckwheat and the flax it packed in a good bit of nutrition too :)  I've made this a few times since the first time I tried it and have enjoyed it every single time. This last time I made it with some of this potato curry (potato masala curry) and loved the combination. So far buckwheat has been a huge winner in our home, cannot wait to try it in some more traditional Indian recipes :)




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Ingredients and Method to make Buckwheat dosai (savory crepes)

1 cup buckwheat flour (kuttu ka atta)
1/2 cup rice flour (chawal ka atta/ arisi maavu)
1/4 cup flax seed meal (optional, see notes) (powdered alsi/ ali virai)
salt to taste

Seasoning
1 to 2 tsp coconut oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 Thai or Indian variety green chili cut fine (or to taste)

a little sesame oil to shallow fry the dosai

In a large bowl mix together buckwheat flour and rice flour well.  Add flax seed meal if using and mix well. Add water a little at a time to make a thick batter of pouring consistency. Buckwheat flour seems to get a slightly gelatinous quality when water is added to it, not too much just a tad bit, but this quality makes it easy when making the dosai / crepe. When in doubt err on the side of a thicker batter, you can always add a little more water later to achieve desired consistency.

Add salt to taste to the batter and mix well. In a small pan, heat oil add cumin seeds, when the seeds sizzle add green chilies. When the green chilies splutter a little pour the entire seasoning on the batter and mix well.

This batter can be used immediately or can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days.
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To make the dosai / crepes
Heat a flat pan/ griddle/ tawa on medium heat. When hot pour a ladle of batter in the center and quickly spread into a circle. Spread very thin for a crispier dosai and a little thicker if you want a soft dosai. Add a few drops of oil around the circumference of the dosai.  When the lower side is golden brown flip over and cook the other side until it has small brown spots.

Remove and serve with chutney of choice or with this potato curry for a little more filling meal or with this spice powder or this sambar or any combination of the above four choices :)

Notes:

The flax seed meal is completely optional, I have made this dosai both with and without the flax seed and it does not impact taste substantially and it is not added for binding in this crepe as well, just for added nutrition. So you can leave it out completely if you wish.  Additionally for this quantity of buckwheat flour you can add anywhere from 2 tbsp to 1/4 cup of flax meal as per choice. 

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Salsa

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Ever noticed how much fresher and tastier food tastes when made at home than the ones we buy outside. I have always noticed the difference but it still manages to surprise me how much tastier and fresher food tastes at home. Whether it is this garam masala powder, this rasam powder or this pav bhaji masala, I have realized that using home made makes a huge difference in taste, not to mention just a little goes a long way in terms of flavor.

Now I can add one more item to my list..... salsa. Until recently the only kind of salsa I ever used was the ones that came in a bottle. I had always intended to try salsa at home sometime but somehow it never featured very high in my priorities....until a few weeks back, when I tried salsa for the first time at home.

I was just blown away at how delicious it tasted and how easy it is to make :) I wonder why I took so long to try it. Anyway to make up for lost time I have been making this frequently since then and it tastes delicious every single time :) It's easy peasy, just cut everything, mix it, chill it and enjoy with some tortilla chips. Nice to have for the weekend :) So if you have a packet of tortilla chips in your pantry, here is the recipe for salsa that you could make to go with it :)



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Ingredients and Method to make Salsa (adapted from this recipe on food network)
1 very small red onion cut very fine (or half of a medium red onion)
3 medium tomatoes deseeded and cut fine ( I used roma tomatoes)
1 jalapeno cut very fine (deseeded if you do not want too much heat) (or to taste)
3 tbsp finely chopped cilantro (coriander leaves)
salt to taste
3 tsp lemon juice (or to taste)
a pinch of red chili powder (optional or to taste) 

Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Chill in the refrigerator for 8 to 10 hours for the flavors to infuse.

Serve with favorite mexican dishes or with some tortilla chips

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Apple Raita (Apple in yogurt salad) and a DIY Sunburst Mirror

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One of my favorite options for quick weeknight dinners is some form of mixed vegetable rice and a good raita. At least once a week I end up making some kind of mixed rice and raita. If you are unfamiliar with Indian cuisine, Raita is a form of salad made with a variety of vegetables or fruits mixed with yogurt. It is the north Indian cousin to the south Indian pachadi, which is somewhat similar but has different seasoning and a subtly different flavor.  It tastes yum when paired with mixed vegetable rice, especially the spicy variety. Check this link for some of the other raitas that I have posted in this space.



This apple raita is one of my favorite fruit based raitas. It's slightly sweet spicy taste is so yum that I could easily have a full bowl of this raita just on it's own, no need for rice or parathas :) That said,  this time I made it to go with this spinach and black bean rice  and I loved the combination, it just worked so well together. If you like apples, this raita might be something that you will enjoy too, so go ahead and give it  a try :)

 

Before I go,  here is the picture of yet another sunburst mirror that I made recently. After each project I tell myself I am done, and am not going to be making any more mirrors, but I just love sunburst mirrors so much that I get tempted to make just one more from time to time:) This one was so quick and easy to make, once I got all the stuff I needed for it, it just took a few hours to make. If you would like to check out more detail on how I made this mirror, check out this post on bead creationz.



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Ingredients and Method to make Apple Raita
1 large apple cut into small pieces (yielded approx 1 1/2 cups of cut pieces)
1 1/4 cup plain yogurt (curds/dahi/thayir)
1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp fine sugar
1/2 tsp cumin seeds dry roasted and powdered
1/2 tsp red chili powder (or to taste) (can be substituted with cayenne powder)

In a small pan, dry roast cumin seeds on low to medium low heat until it emits an aroma. Remove and powder using a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle until fine or slightly coarse.

Whisk plain yogurt until smooth. Add all the spices and sugar to it and mix well.
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Add apple pieces to it, chill and serve with some pulao or mixed vegetable rice.

This time I served it with this spinach with black bean rice and the combination tasted fantastic. The slightly sweet- spicy taste of this raita complemented the flavors of the rice well :)

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Paneer Masala- Indian cottage cheese curry

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When visiting Indian restaurants, especially ones that serve north Indian cuisine, one item is almost invariably found in their menu................Paneer masala ! Whether it is named paneer masala, paneer butter masala, or shahi paneer,  some version of this popular curry is offered in most Indian restaurants. There seem to be many, many versions of this curry, it seems like every one has their own version of making this curry. My version omits one item that I commonly find used in this curry....cream, and honestly I never miss it. The cashews give this curry such a creamy texture that I do not feel the need to add cream at all.



I know the ingredients for this curry look long and daunting, but most of the items used in this curry are common spices that are stocked in the pantry. This is a very easy peasy recipe, nothing complicated about it and the taste is awesome. Ideally this curry tastes fantastic with served with Indian flat bread like naan or tandoori roti, but it can just as easily be served with plain roti, or phulkas/ chapathis or even plain steamed rice. I was hoping to get better pictures for this curry, but I was having not a great day picture wise :-(  So for now I am posting this recipe with my current set of pictures and hope to update the pics at a later date. If your weekend menu includes paneer, give this recipe a try and as always, let me know what you think about it :)



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Ingredients and Method to make Paneer Masala 
2 1/2 cups of cubed paneer
(To make your own paneer check out this post with step by step pictures)
1 to 2 tbsp oil to shallow fry the paneer
1 tsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp red chili powder (or to taste) (can be substituted with cayenne powder)
1/4 cup whole milk

For the masala/ gravy
1 large red onion cut fine
2 medium tomatoes cut fine
a thin sliver of ginger chopped into small pieces
1 clove garlic peeled and cut into small pieces
2 tbsp oil/ butter/ clarified butter(ghee/nei)
2 whole dry red chilies
2 cloves
3 small green cardamoms (elaichi)
1 small (1 inch) piece cinnamon
10 whole black peppercorns (miri/milagu)
1/2 tsp coriander seeds (dhania/ kothamalli virai)
1/4 cup cashewnuts broken into small pieces

Shallow fry the paneer cubes in 1 to 2 tbsp of oil until it is slightly golden/ creamy golden and keep aside.

For the masala/ gravy
Heat oil/ butter/ clarified butter in a large heavy bottomed pan, add onions and saute until onions turn transparent. Add ginger and garlic and stir a few times.

Add whole dry red chilies, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, whole black peppercorns and coriander seeds (that is all the whole spices) and stir a few times.

Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes turn soft and mushy. Remove from heat and keep aside to cool a little.

Puree this entire mixture along with 1/4 cup of cashews until smooth, adding a little water if required.
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Transfer this gravy back to the pan and place on heat. Add shallow fried paneer pieces to the gravy, add salt to taste, sugar, kasuri methi, chili powder (if using), water if required to achieve desired consistency and simmer on low heat for the flavors to mingle. 

Finally add milk, mix well, allow the curry to simmer for another minute or so on low heat, then remove.

Serve hot with any kind of Indian flat bread like naan/ tandoori roti/ roti or even phulkas/ chapathis. Or this curry could be served with some plain steamed rice/ or jeera rice

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