Food Carnival

PUNJAB

Badam Gosht

Ingredients

Mix yogurt with spices and salt. Add mutton and set aside for 3 hours. Heat 4 oz. ghee and add ginger, garlic and onion till soft. Add almonds and mutton and cook for ½ hour until dry. Mix in hot water and continue cooking for 15 additional minutes. Remove from fire put in a serving dish and decorate with coriander leaves.

Spicy Egg and Cheese Paratha

Ingredients

Add enough water to the flour to form stiff dough. Heat 2 ozs. ghee and fry onion and ginger until soft. Add tomatoes and spices. Cook until dry. Beat eggs, mix with tomato mixture along with coriander leaves and cheese, and stir until the mixture turns firm. Divide dough into lime sized balls. Roll out each ball into a round circle. Stuff filling, fold edges and make into round balls. Flatten ball and roll with dry flour into a thick round paratha. Shallow fry and serve with hot green chili chutney and ketchup.

Pinjari

Ingredients

Heat ghee and add cardamom seeds and wheat flour. Stir on a slow fire until the flour turns golden brown and emits a nice aroma. Remove from fire and mix nuts and sugar.

HYDERABAD

Shahjahani Egg Curry

Ingredients

Cut eggs into halves lengthwise. Remove yolks carefully so as not to damage the outer shells of eggs. Mince the yolks. Fry whole almonds, poppy seeds, onion and all the spices lightly, then grind to a smooth paste along with the green chilies, mint and ginger. Heat 2 oz. of ghee and fry ¼ of the ground mixture to a golden color. Stir in the yolks, peas and potatoes. Keep stirring till thick. Remove from fire and cool. Stuff one half of the egg shell with the mixture and cover with other half. Tie both halves with a thread carefully together and fry in a little butter. Drain and set aside in a serving dish. Heat remaining ghee and fry remaining ground paste to a golden color. Stir in tomatoes and remaining spices. Cover and cook over a medium heat until tomatoes turn soft. Add coconut milk and yogurt. Continue cooking until gravy turns thick. Pour gravy over eggs and garnish with sliced almonds and pineapple. Remove threads from the eggs.

Nutty Brinjals

Ingredients

Grind nuts and poppy seeds to a smooth paste and stir in all the seasonings. Wash and wipe eggplants; slit each eggplant into four. Stuff the ground mixture liberally into each eggplant. Melt 2 tablespoons of ghee and fry the eggplants lightly on all sides. Sprinkle left-over paste on top. Cover pan tightly. Cook over a very slow fire, stirring frequently until the eggplants are tender. Serve hot.

Shahi Bread Dessert

Ingredients

Trim and cut bread into quarters and deep fry to a golden color. Drain thoroughly. Pour over each slice enough milk to moisten, but not soak bread. Heat milk and sugar together until the mixture turns thick and separates from the side of the pan. Arrange pieces of bread in a single layer on a serving plate, spread thickened milk after mixing rose water on top and decorate with nuts.

Kashmir

Rogan Josh

Ingredients

Heat ghee and add whole spices. When spices emanate aromatic smell add remaining ingredients and cook over a very slow fire for 1 hour until the mutton is soft and the ghee floats on top.

Walnut Chicken

Ingredients

Heat the ghee and fry onion, ginger, garlic, mint and coriander until soft. Add walnut paste, spices and salt and cook mixture for 2 minutes. Add chicken and pomegranate juice and cook for 10 minutes on a slow fire. Serve on a bed of green salad.

Chuare Ki Kheer

Ingredients

Soak the dry dates in hot water overnight. Drain out water. Remove the seeds and run in blender with one small tea cup of milk for 1 minute until smooth. Heat remaining milk with jaggery, add dry date paste, ginger and cardamom seeds and cook for ½ hour on a slow fire until thick. Fry nuts in ghee and serve hot.

MAHARASHTRA

Masala Bhakri

Ingredients

Mix all the above ingredients together to form hard dough. Divide into big balls and roll out into round thick chapatti on a floured board. Dry roast on both sides until done. Smear with butter and serve with green garlic chutney.

Hot and Spicy Fish Curry

Ingredients

Grind together coconut, onions and chilies. Heat half the ghee and fry the ground paste to a light golden color. Add spices, salt, ginger and garlic paste and ¼ litre water. Bring to a boil and add the cleaned fish slices. Cook for 10 minutes. Place in a serving dish. Heat remaining ghee and fry mustard seeds and sliced garlic. When the seeds stop tossing, pour over the curry. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Ginger Delight

Ingredients

Heat ghee and fry ginger and coconut to a golden color. Mix together sugar and milk and boil till the mixture is reduced to ¼ of its quantity. Add coconut and ginger and half the nuts. Keep stirring till the mixture forms a ball and separates from the sides of the pan. Put mixture on a greased plate, level the surface and decorate with the remaining nuts. When cold cut into square pieces and serve.