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Custard Apple Milkshake

My childhood memories take me to spices of India. When it comes to India and fruits of India, Custard Apple is invariably one fruit I can not keep my hands off. Deliciously sweet Custard Apple sometimes can be off putting owing to seeds it has, however Custard apples are rich in anti-oxidants like vitamin C. Custard Apple is also rich in calcium, magnesium, iron, niacin and potassium. ‘Custard apple’, ‘Sharifa‘ or ‘Sitaphal‘, ‘Sita Pazham’, ‘Seetha Palam’, ‘Seetha Pazham’, ‘Sitaphala‘ are a few names it is known.

Custard apples are native to West Indies, South America and some parts of Asia (India). Custard apple with its high calories and natural sugars are great as a dessert and as a nutritious snack. Hence I thought why not make Milkshake of this, a perfect drink on a hot day. Read through this detailed step by step recipe to make milkshake of Custard Apple.

Prepration time: 10 minutes

Cook time: Not Applicable

Serving: 2 Glasses

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Maggi Noodle Recipe

We all love Maggi! Don’t know if there are exceptions…”Din ho ya raat , bhukhe ho ya full, we can eat it anytime anywhere…. at least I can”. Surely all who have grown in Indian sub-continent will have nostalgia with Maggi and a “Maggi Story” to share. This recipe only takes 10 minutes as you can do preparation and cooking simultaneously. This maggi is big hit with my daughter, she is fussy food eater as most of kids are, but when comes to maggi, she would generally be ready.

Rather than making it normal (read as putting the noodles in boiling water with maggi masala), I prefer to add vegetables, to make it healthier. Maggi is perfect food in student life and saving grace when there is nothing available to eat in late night for students in hostels. Continue reading for the detailed “step by step recipe of vegetable maggi noodles”. This is an absolute filler and you can have as nice morning breakfast, evening snacks or as a meal.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Serving: 3-4 person

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Tandoori Chicken Recipe

When you can make restaurant style Tandoori Chicken yourself, why you need takeaway? The key to this recipe is marination. Marinade this chicken over night and enjoy the flavour in the depth of this tender chicken. Tandoori chicken is one of the world famous tandoori recipe which has its roots from the Mughalai cuisine.

Ideally you need a Tandoor to prepare this, but I have made this in Oven, and this is what my recipe is, to make tandoori chicken in an oven, in the comfort of your home. I have served this Tandoori Chicken multiple times and have been a huge hit between my guests. Sharing my “step by step recipe of tandoori chicken” below, give it a go and you will forget the takeaways.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Marination time: Minimum 4 hours (Ideal over night)

Cook time: 25-30 minute

Serving: 7-8

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Vada Pav Recipe

I never lived in Mumbai, but always heard stories of Mumbai from my partner and invariably in all those stories “Vada Pav” was a common character. Vada Pav or Wada Pav is the common man’s food in Mumbai and in general all over Maharashtra region of India. This is enjoyed by all from “Rags to riches”. You will find Vada pav being sold in almost each food joint / restaurant and tastes fabulous. I got the taste of it for the first time when I went to Switzerland and on the foothill of Mt. Titlis there is this guy who sells Vada Pav with tea. I will recommend him shall you ever go there. Vada pav is one of the most humble street food of mumbai, or can say Mumbai’s very own burger. Basically it has batata bada which is sandwiched between two slices of a pav (bread loaf), along with tamarind/ Imli chutney (sweet chutney) and Mint-coriander chutney (green chutney).

Since then I have tried making vada pav and what am sharing is my take on this. Continue reading for “vada pav recipe shown with step by step photos”. This vada is also known as Aloo Bonda or Aloo Gunda in central part of India (Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh).

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Serving: 8

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Aloo Tikki Chaat

Still remember those narrow lanes of old Delhi and the authentic, finger licking “Aloo Tikki Chaat” that one can find on the road side eatery. This inspired me to try this recipe out in the comfort of my own kitchen. Aloo tikki is a potato patty or cutlet made with boiled potatoes and few spices. It is served with chickpea curry and yoghurt topped with mint-coriander, tamarind / Imli chutneys. You can further try your hand by stuffing these potato based tikkies with peas or nuts like cashew and raisins. Stuffing varies as per region but the common among all is that, these are always served hot and crispy. These aloo tikki / potato patties also make perfect fillet between sandwich or burger. Continue reading for the detailed “step by step recipe of Aloo Tikki Chaat”.

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Serving: 6 (12 tikkies)

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Raw Mango Drink | Aam Panna

Everyone now knows how unhealthy cola drinks are, then this makes me think of traditional summer coolers, full of goodness and healthy, and of course quenches the scorching heat. Two such drinks are “Aam ka Panna” and “Masala Shikanji”, made with minimal additives. Aam Panna is nothing, but Raw Mango Drink. I am certain that anyone who has had it once, will crave for more. Aam panna drink is slightly sweet and sour in taste with hint of mint and cumin. Keep reading for detailed “step by step recipe of Aam Panna”.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Serving: 1 bottle of 350 ml (concentrate)

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Papdi Recipe

Success of a good Papdi Chaat lies in how good the Papdi is. Papdis are deep fried, crisp, small flour crackers with either carom seeds or Kasuri Methi. They are used in most chaat snacks like Papdi Chaat, Sev Puri, Bhel Puri, etc. They can also be enjoyed just plain (and tastes similar to Namak Paray) or with a cup of tea as snack. Below is the “step by step pictorial recipe of how to make papdi”. I must add though its a bit of time consuming activity, end result is great and you can keep it preserved for long.

Preparation Time: 45 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Serving: Around 50-60 papdi

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Stuffed Karela

This is one amazing dish, however people have pre-conceived notion “Karela” implies bitterness and not good in taste. I must add it has an acquired taste. “Stuffed Karela” aka “Bitter Groud” or “Bharwan Karela” is something that is made with perfect combination of spices and stuffing, which gives its unique taste. The crispy surface and delicious stuffing makes it a desirable dish. As a child I hated the sight of it, but gradually over the time developed the taste for this and now its one of my favourite vegetable. You can have this as a perfect side dish with any meal. My take on Step by Step recipe of Stuffed Karela is shown below.

Preparation time : 20 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Marination time: 1-1.5 hour

Serving: 5

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Sooji Halwa / Semolina Pudding

Call it “Sooji ka Halwa“, “Sheera”, “Semolina Pudding”, “Navratri Prasad Halwa”, “Ashtami prasad”, “Jaagran Prasad”, it is one and same thing. Grew up seeing my mom making it every time as Navratri prasad, or as a yummy dessert. When I tried to make same Sooji ka Halwa, in my first attempt, I ended up making a disaster. After a couple of attempts I got the trick on how make perfect sooji halwa, perfectly roasted semolina / sooji, just the right amount of water, sugar and other ingredients. I am hoping that the below “step by step recipe of Sooji Halwa” will help you master the “art of halwa making” as much as I know.

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serving: 4 – 5

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Prawn Capsicum Curry

What do you do when you are craving for Prawns and want a quick finger licking food? You simply make “Prawn Capsicum Curry” 🙂 This recipe of mine focuses on making a simple non-vegetarian curry without much fuss. All you need is “Prawn and Capsicum“, rest ingredients are something you will find in your kitchen. Capsicum goes pretty well with Prawns and add its flavour over prawns, which makes this dish super delicious. This recipe does not involve any marination. So here is my step by step pictorial recipe to make Prawn Capsicum Curry.

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serving: 3

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Bhindi Do Pyaza

If you are an Okra lover, you must have heard of “Bhindi Do Pyaza”, but in case you are outside indian subcontinent, this is one you must try. Exceptionally easy to make, ready in minutes and tastes nothing less than Fabulous!!!

As the name suggests “Do Pyaza” means amount of Onion added here is double the normal curry i.e. Bhindi Masala. Below is “Step by Step Bhindi Do Pyaza recipe”, which I hope you will find useful. You can also make other Do Pyaza recipes like Paneer Do Pyaza, Chicken Do Pyaza, Mutton Do Pyaza, etc which are similar variants of this recipe.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serving: 4-5

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Spinach Chicken Curry

Chicken lovers love chicken whichever way it comes 🙂 So thought why not I try something that is packed with protein, and did a happy marriage of “Spinach” and “Chicken”. Spinach is high in niacin and zinc, as well as protein, fiber, vitamins A, C, E and K, thiamin, vitamin B6, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, copper, and manganese. Chicken is brilliant source of Protein.

This step by step recipe of “spinach chicken curry” (पालक चिकन रेसीपी) is hugely simply and easy to make, no marination, ready in about half an hour.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serving: 4

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Handi Gosht / Lamb Stew

“Handi Ghost” (हांड़ी गोश्त) is Lamb stew or mutton stew, cooked in Handi. Handi is a deep and narrow-mouthed cooking utensil used in Indian subcontinent, normally this is an earthen pot, but can be made of metal. In an ideal set up “gosht” should be cooked in the earthen pot, that offers an absolutely unique flavour, however I have cooked it a metal “handi”, the unique shape of “handi” offers the perfect mechanism on how the heat gets distributed on to the contents while cooking. You may try this in any normal pan, but if you have handi or can get it, try in that. This is awesome non-vegetarian recipe that I have learnt from the authentic traditional cooks living in village, where cooking in “handi” is norm of life. This way you now know “how to make handi gosht” 🙂

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Marination time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour

Serving: 5

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Mushroom Tikka Masala Recipe

There were days when I had a negative image of Mushroom, however when I started living in metro cities and saw clean edible mushroom, with all hesitation I tried mushroom in an Indian restaurant. That was an eye opening experience and ever since then I have been a fan of mushroom based dishes. Now that I live in UK, you can find Chicken Tikka Masala in every corner, however I have struggled to find Mushroom Tikka Masala in any restaurant in UK. Here I am sharing “Mushroom Tikka Masala” (मशरूम टिक्‍का मसाला), as I make, it is a nice exotic dish for all those who love to eat mushroom. It is a delicious thick gravy recipe which has grilled mushrooms.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Marination time: 1 hour

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serving: 5

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Eggs Kejriwal Recipe

When you hear Kejriwal, rightly or wrongly, you get an image of Arvind Kejriwal. Surely am miles away from any politics, but have built a soft corner for Kejriwal….ummm…Eggs Kejriwal to be precise 🙂 During my visit to “Soda bottle opener wala” restaurant in India I saw “Eggs Kejriwal” in menu, I felt, I must try out to see what that is, and was pleasantly surprised to see its Cheese, Egg and Chilli Sandwich. Subsequently when back in London, I recently visited “Dishoom” restaurant in London, and I saw Eggs Kejriwal and tried that again. Basic recipe at both “Soda bottle Openerwala” as well as “Dishoom”, was similar with minor variation. This led me to try out the “Eggs Kejriwal Recipe” myself .

Preparation time: 7-8 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Serving: 4

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Achari Paneer Recipe

My love for Achaar (Pickle) is probably as old as I can cast my memory. Those were the days when growing up in a middle class house hold, that too in a sleepy city in 80’s, when treating having paneer in a meal used to be an event. To make the daily meal more enticing ‘Pickles’ were the best friend. With time I got exposure to new things, and one such thing was variety of food. But, how could I forget my good old friend pickle? That led me to culinary expedition and I found “Achari Paneer”, which is best of both worlds of Pickle and Paneer.

Achari Paneer is a spicy, tantalising paneer curry liked by many and it got its name owing to the presence of spices which are generally used in making pickles / Achaar.

Prepration time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Serving: 4

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Bhindi / Okra Masala

Bhindi Masala (भिन्डी मसाला) or Okra masala is a delicious and easy to make recipe for all Okra / Ladyfinger lovers. It is really quick and requires basic cooking skills, which means anybody can try their hands on. This recipe is North Indian / Punjabi version and very similar to what you find in a dhaba / roadside eatry or restaurant. This easy recipe has dry texture and is made by shallow frying okra in onion and common curry spices / masala. The detailed step by step pictorial recipe below explains how to make this bhindi masala easily at home. These are best served with chapatties or indian bread.

These are great source of Calcium, Magnesium, and fibre.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serving: 4

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Kala Jamun

Kala Jaam or Kala Jamun (काला जामुन) is an exotic sweet dish served on special occasions being a scrumptious desert very similar to Gulab Jamun. The difference between gulab jamun and kala jaam is the colour and texture. While gulab jamuns are golden colored balls, kala jamun have a dark color very close to black (with out loosing any flavour) and have a very distinct texture of grainy from inside and somewhat chewy on the surface.

Below is the Kala Jamun pictorial recipe depicted step by step.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serving: 20-22 pieces

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Easy Rasmalai Recipe

Rasmalai is a bengali dish made with spongy cottage cheese balls, and the word ‘Ras’ indicates the juice that oozes out of these cheese balls. Below is the detailed step by step recipe to make Rasmalai at home.

Whenever I make Rasgulla, I invariably make some Rasmalai too 🙂 You can not evade this delicacy once you have had it once, it is so much tempting.

Preparation Time: 30 mins

Cooking Time: 30 mins

Serving: 20 pieces

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Paneer Puff Patties

When you crave for something crispy on surface and filled with some mouthwatering stuffing you will immediately relate to “Puff Patties” as these are crispy, flaky savoury snack usually relished with a cup of hot tea/coffee in the evening.

Here is my recipe for making this much loved puffed patty with the filling of paneer, aka Paneer Puff Patties, some call this as Paneer pastry as well.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serving: 6

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Easy Vegetable Pulao

Vegetable Pulao / pulav or Pilaf (वेजीटेबल पुलाव) is one of the most common rice dish that is made in Indian homes very so often. Being among common dish on the menu for parties or celebrations, it is an easy one pot recipe in which rice are cooked with simple vegetables. As with any recipe, the success lies in how much your guests love it. This recipe of mine has always been popular for about a decade now.

Preparation time : 30 minutes

Cooking time : 25 minutes

Serving : 6

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Home made Gulab Jamuns

Gulab Jamun (गुलाब जामुन) is the most popular and loved dessert in India. Best described as an Indian version of a donut immersed in a sweet syrup. Below is the step by step pictorial recipe to make “Gulab Jamun” with Khoya / Mawa / Dried Evaporated Milk.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Serving: 15 pieces

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Ghevar Recipe / Ghevar Sweet

Ghevar (घेवर) or honey comb dessert is an Indian delicacy from the Rajasthani cuisine, made on Festivals in monsoon season like Teej and Rakhsha Bandhan. It is a round plate-shaped sweet approximately 8 – 10 inch in width, which is made from ghee/oil, flour and sugar syrup. There are many varieties of Ghevar such as Plain, Mawa / Rabri and malai Ghevar. You will find this dessert in monsoon season in almost every sweet shop in Rajasthan, UP and Delhi part of India. But if you are in a foreign country, then its really difficult for you to find this sweet.

Being here in UK for almost 7 years now, I was never able to find and relish this sweet here. Following the tradition, its a must eat dish on the evening of Teej and Rakshabandhan. Struggling to find this for last so many years, I decided to give it a try at home. Believe me, with a little effort I was able to relish it finally after so many years.

Below is the recipe for Ghevar, the way I make it.

Preparation time: 15-20 minute

Cooking Time: 1 – 1.5 hours

Serving: 4

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Easy Homemade Strawberry Jam

When you think of ‘Strawberry’ what comes to your mind? The big red and juicy image of Strawberry. There are umpteen things that you can do with Strawberries (apart from eating raw). So this time around when I plucked some fresh strawberries from a farm, I thought of doing something that could last for longer…I decided to make Strawberry Jam. To my own surprise this jam tasted far better than what I used to get from supermarket, and my 4 year old approved the same with both thumbs up. Below is the simple and easy recipe for the same.

Preparation time : 10 minutes

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Serving: Yields around 1.5 kg of jam

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Coconut Ladoo / Sweetened Coconut balls

Sweetened Coconut balls or Coconut Ladoo (नारियल के लड्डू) are easy to make and can be made on any occasion which you want to celebrate with sweets and best part is these can be prepared in just 10 minutes and are super easy to make.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Serving: 5-6

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Papdi Chaat

Papdi Chaat / पपड़ी चाट (also known as papri or paapri chat) is a popular Mumbai street-food, though hails from North India mainly Delhi. So popular it is that you can find it easily on any eatery. Papdi chaat comprises of crispy flat deep fried puris (crisply fried dough wafers) made from ‘all purpose flour’ or maida served with chilled sweetened yogurt, boiled potatoes and chickpeas/sprouts, ‘date & tamarind chutney’, ‘mint coriander chutney‘, and sev topped with some dry spices.

Being a Chaat lover, I make this quite often at home. With crunchiness of papdis, sweetness of yogurt, tanginess from tamarind chutney, spiceness from ‘mint & coriander chutney’ and powdered spices this chaat gives you a burst of flavour in just one bite.

This snack is definitely a life saver when you get some unexpected guests and you don’t have much time to cook. With just few ingredients this can result into a big hit starter.

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Punjabi Kadhi

Punjabi Kadhi is a rich and creamier preparation of yogurt, gram flour, onion and spices which can be ready in less than an hour when you crave for something different, something which is not vegetable. Kadhi along with rice/ Jeera rice makes a good meal with out any other topping of other curries. This recipe is from my mum’s kitchen and believe me it turns out to be really lip smacking every time. Sometimes, I don’t even wait for rice to get cooked, rather I end up eating a bowl of Kadhi while tasting itself 🙂

There are few other variants of Kadhi like Gujrati and Sindhi Kadhi, however I love this Punjabi Kadhi. Hoping this “step by step recipe of Punjabi Kadhi” will tempt you to try this.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooktime: 25 minutes

Serving: 5-6

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Sabodana Kheer/ Sago Pudding

Sabudana kheer is another addition to the fasting desserts menu, as its generally prepared during Navratri / Fasting. As name indicates this traditional Indian sweet is made from small size sago pearls (I love calling them pearls, don’t they look cute? ). This creamy smooth kheer is easy to make and digests easily.

Enjoy this hot or cold 🙂

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time : 25-30 minute

Serving : 3-4

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