Panang Curry with Tofu, Red Pepper and Baby Corn

Panang, Penang or Phanaeng curry is a milder curry from Thailand – characterized by the use of coconut milk and peanuts. Penang or Phanaeng is one of the islands off the west coast of Malaysia making it farther, not closer, from Thailand. One can only speculate how this curry made it to the mainstream Thai cuisine – probably through trade with Malaysia. But made it, it did, and how. It is now one of the most popular items on the Thai menu with its exquisite blend of sweet and spicy flavors.

I learned to make this curry from the excellent cookbook by Nancie McDermott. The version I make now is derived from her recipe. This curry is a big hit in the foodydoody household for many reasons – the kids eat it without complaint, the wife likes it and like most Thai curries it can be put together in a jiffy. Here is my version of this curry. I tend to overload it with veggies – different colored peppers, zucchini, carrots etc. to make it a substantial meal. You can play around with the veggies/protein. Generally speaking, anything non-juicy should work. Thai cuisine is generally meat centric so beef, chicken etc should also work very well in this curry.

INGREDIENTS (for 6 adults)

2 cans of coconut milk

3 Tbsp Red Curry Paste (homemade is best, I will post a recipe at some point)

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp soy sauce

Some Rooster Sauce because everything is better with it

1 cube vegetable bouillon (or about a quarter cup of veggie stock)

12 oz hard tofu cut into small cubes

1 can of baby corn, drained and cut into 1 inch pieces

1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts – ground

8-10 basil leaves

1 red bell pepper, cored and cut into small inch square chunks

STEPS

1. Heat 1/2 a can of coconut milk till it starts giving out fragrance and is gently boiling.

2. Add the red curry paste and mash and mix well.

3. Add the remaining coconut milk, sugar, salt, soy, stock (or bouillon), Rooster sauce and bring to a boil.

4. Add the tofu and baby corn and coat well. Shred the basil leaves and toss them in.

5. Add the peanuts.

6. Let the curry simmer for a while (10-15 minutes) on medium-low heat.

7. Add the red pepper right at the end, bring to a boil and serve garnished with basil leaves. NOTE: If you like your pepper cooked, reduce to medium heat for a couple of minutes. You don’t want to overcook the pepper.

8. Eat with boiled rice.

Mango Ginger Sorbet

Who doesn’t love mango (the fruit not the clothing store)? Well, other than my older daughter, who seems to have a personal vendetta against all fruit, that question is largely rhetorical for those who have tried it. It is the fruit of the gods (if you are a believer) or just a damn good fruit (if you are not). Living in the US, the problem is supply. For those of us from the Indian subcontinent, there is not just mango, there are varieties of mangoes with their own texture, taste, and believe it or not ways of consumption. In fact, in Malihabad (a town close to Lucknow known for its mangoes) a farmer,  Kallimulla Khan had grafted and grown 300 varieties of mango on a single tree. In the US, though, when mangoes become available in the summer, you can get any type of mango as long as it is either Ataulfo or Kent. Nothing wrong with them, in fact a good Kent mango is extremely enjoyable when you can find a good one.

Good sweet mangoes are difficult to come by in the summer, let alone other times of the year. So what do you do if mango cravings hit and there is not a mango to be had? You run to an Indian grocery store and buy some mango pulp and make a Ginger Mango sorbet. I used pulp to make a variation of the recipe I had posted earlier in the summer and I have to say that the result was pretty good and it was very easy to make with an ice cream maker.

INGREDIENTS

40 oz sweetened mango pulp

1.5 inch ginger – peeled and chopped fine

Juice of one lime

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup brown sugar (you can play around with the quantity of sugar, since the pulp is already sweetened)

STEPS

1. Couldn’t be easier. Puree all the ingredients in a blender.

2. Cool in the fridge overnight.

3. Make a sorbet in the ice cream maker as per the instructions. My ice cream maker took about 45 minutes.

4. Enjoy.

Sort-of Kulfi

We recently had a large group of friends over for dinner. Instead for cooking for close to 50 people, we took the lazy route and catered Indian-Chinese food from a new restaurant that had opened in our area (Inchin Bamboo Garden, excellent choice by the way, and it is a chain so there might be one close to you). The wife however, told me to get my act together for dessert and we decided we will have Indian-ish ice cream to go with the theme. Mango-ginger sorbet made from canned mango pulp was prepared (a separate post on that will follow) and then I decided to be a little adventurous and try my hand at making Kulfi.

Kulfi is a popular ice cream from the Indian sub-continent. Though the exact origins of the dessert are lost in time, some time between the 16th and 19th century, inhabitants in Northern India living close to the Himalayas are thought to have discovered the art of making frozen foods. It is believed that Noorjahan, emperor Jahangir‘s queen, prepared a dessert using nuts, fruit pulp, milk and ice for him. Anything remotely resembling ice cream was limited to the consumption of royalty till the invention of modern refrigeration techniques. Kulfi, is now ubiquitous and even though the classic dessert is made with just thickened milk, pistachios (and other assorted nuts), sugar and saffron, these days we are assaulted with all flavors of Kulfi.

Anyway, back to the story. Since vanilla ice cream forms the base of so many ice creams, I decided to start with that and add some cardamom to add some Indian flavors to it. Then, inspiration struck me and I went to the local Indian grocery store and got some Thandai mix. Now, Thandai (or “Coolness” in Hindi – strictly in the temperature sense, mind you), is a drink popular in North India during the summer months. You can think of it as the liquid form of Kulfi, though there are some differences. Since both Kulfi and Thandai use similar ingredients and Thandai mix is readily available as a syrup, I decided to use it as the ingredient “X” in my recipe. Not quite Kulfi but a nice little ice cream nonetheless.

Here is what I did. Do let me know if you make it and experiment with it. Would love to hear of your outcomes.

INGREDIENTS (for 12-14 people)

5 cups half and half

8 cardamom pods (smash them on the side to expose the inside)

1 vanilla bean

8 yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup thandai mix

1/4 cup shelled pistachio

1/4 cup almonds

STEPS

1. In a thick saucepan, heat the half and half, cardamom and vanilla bean on medium heat till they simmer but not boil.

2. Remove the saucepan and let it cool for 30 minutes or so.

3. Whisk the yolk and sugar in a separate bowl (TIP: Use the egg whites to make a Chocolate Mousse).

4. Slowly add the half and half mix to the egg and whisk vigorously when adding.

5. Pour this mixture back in the saucepan (it is now a custard) and put it on medium-low heat.

6. Add the Thandai mixture to the custard and cook till the mixture thickens. Keep stirring often while heating. You will know when it is done when the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and leaves a clear trail when a finger is drawn through it, about 6-7 minutes.

7. Pour through a medium sieve, cover and cool in the fridge.

8. In the meantime, take the nuts and roast them for 5 minutes at 400F in the oven. Cool and crush the nuts with the flat of the knife and keep aside.

9. Once the custard is chilled, pour into a prepared ice cream maker and make as per the instructions for vanilla ice cream. In my Cuisinart, it took about 40 minutes.

10. In the last minute, put in the nuts.

Saag Tofu with Paratha

A long time back, a girl I knew, mentioned that she sometimes uses Tofu instead of Paneerin her Indian dishes. I took that information, filed it away and forgot about it. Fast forward to 2012 and I was at the grocery store and picked up some fresh spinach, since it looked good and the wife has made it very clear that she expects to see more variety of food in our diet – veggies, protein, carbs etc.

It just so happened that there was some Tofu in the fridge when I got home. Even though I am over 40 and my brain is full, somewhere in the dark recesses of my frontal lobe the nugget of information gathered many years back still resided. And so a voice inside me said – “When life gives you spinach, peas and tofu, make saag tofu.” And I did. It was good. And there was much dancing and rejoicing by the fireside that night.

I was actually very surprised at how well Tofu went with Indian flavors. Since it has Tofu in what is very much a North Indian dish, I wonder if this qualifies as Indian-Chinese food.

INGREDIENTS (very very approximate, I was winging it)

1 tsp cooking oil

1/2 diced onion

2 medium tomatoes – diced

1 tsp minced garlic

1 inch piece of ginger – peeled and finely chopped

1/2 tsp red chili powder

Salt to taste

2 bunches of fresh spinach leaves – washed with the stems broken off

12 oz hard Tofu cut into small cubes (TIP: Buy Tofu, if possible, from a Chinese grocery store. It is better and significantly cheaper than a regular grocery store)

4 oz frozen peas

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp chana masala (I added it just for the heck of it)

STEPS

1. Heat oil on medium heat and fry onions till they starting to brown.

2. Add tomatoes, garlic and ginger. Cook till pulpy.

3. Add salt and red chili powder and stir.

4. Add the washed spinach leaves and cover the saucepan.

5. The leaves should wilt quickly. Add some water and let the concoction boil for 10 minutes or so.

6. Using a wand or a hand mixer, puree the concoction.

7. Add more water if you need to. This gravy/soup should be thick and runny, like a nice thick stew.

8. Add the tofu and the peas. Turn the heat to low, cover the saucepan and cook for 10 minutes.

9. Add garam masala and chana masala. Adjust seasoning and you are done.

10. Serve with boiled rice or an Indian bread of your choice.

Honey Glazed Veggie Ham

As you know from my tagline, I am a carnivore in rehab. While I really miss eating meat, I don’t regret my decision to quit. However, I don’t let any chance to try a meat substitute go by.

As many of you might know, east Asia has a long history of Buddhism. Now, while traditionally, Buddhist monks ate whatever they were offered, the preference was for vegetarian cuisine. Over many centuries with typical East Asian ingenuity and brilliance, many different meat substitutes emerged. Mostly soy based, these “mock-xyz” (substitute xyz for Chicken, Tuna, Ham etc.) are quite tasty and readily available at Chinese grocery stores. It was on a visit to one of these stores that my younger daughter professed a desire to try veggie ham. We bought a two pound cylinder and once thawed and sliced, it was delicious.

Holidays came and the wife wanted to host a traditional holiday dinner. A traditional American holiday dinner, of course, means it has to have ham, turkey or both. Problem was that we are vegetarian – so ham and turkey were out. We solved the turkey problem by buying some Tofurkey. For ham, I went back to the Chinese store and bought another two pound hunk of ham. This time though, I decided to cook it like it was regular ham. I found a recipe for Honey Glazed Ham at allrecipes.com and I subjected the veggie ham to the same directions. It was wonderful. I couldn’t stop eating it at the dinner and for many days afterwards, I had ham sandwiches for a snack.

The daughters craved it again and so a month or so after the holidays, I made it again. It was great the second time around as well. It is really easy to make. Hope you enjoy it.

INGREDIENTS (for a two pound cylinder of Veggie Ham)

Whole cloves

1/8 cup dark corn syrup

1 cups honey

1 stick of cinnamon

1/4 cup butter

Sweet and savory crepes

My wife was born in Belgium and spent a lot of years in Europe when she was younger. Having developed a taste for crepes early on, one recent Sunday morning her cravings started again. Waking up, I found her hunched over the family computer poring over recipes for crepes. Having decided on one from allrecipes.com (link here), she promptly dispatched me to the grocery store to procure some strawberries, bananas and blueberries for them. NOTE: she added 1 tsp vanilla extract to the recipe, which makes a huge difference, in my opinion.

Not wanting to be left behind, I contributed by making a savory filling for the crepes using up whatever we happened to have in the fridge, which that morning happened to be some yellow bell pepper. Using my newly acquired cast iron skillet, I sauteed up some onion, yellow bell pepper with a little bit of salt, black pepper, thyme and rosemary.

We had the fruit crepes with Nutella and the savory crepes with some goat cheese with cranberries. A very satisfying breakfast indeed.

INGREDIENTS (for about 8 crepes) – recipe largely from allrecipes.com

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract

STEPS

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt, butter and vanilla extract; beat until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.
3. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Serve hot.

Veggies grilling happily on a cast iron grill pan

There is a reason cast iron cookware has been the cornerstone of kitchens since the iron age (it would have been harder before then because iron hadn’t been forged yet – ). For one thing, it is sturdy. Secondly, it is relatively cheap (that absolutely appeals to the cheap Desi in me). Thirdly, it is versatile. It retains heat very well and as a result can cook foods evenly. I had stayed away from cast iron cookware mostly because it was an unknown and also because growing up I was used to stainless steel and aluminum cookware but not much else. So for the longest time I have been cooking on non-stick and hard anodized aluminum surfaces. I had briefly considered stainless steel but not gone that route because stainless steel requires the use of excessive amounts of grease to ensure that nothing sticks – which I don’t like. In the process of being cooked, I like my food to have stepped through a few puddles of grease, not swum across a river of it.

Then two things happened – we received a gift card to a cooking store (Sur la Table) and I realized that cast iron cookware, if properly seasoned, is virtually non-stick. That meant I could cook with less oil, which is my preferred method anyway. Curiosity piqued, I did some more research and found that cast iron cookware “leaches” or imparts iron to whatever is cooked in it. Added iron in the diet for the kind of food we eat is not necessarily a bad thing. So I went to the store, looked at the fancy French brands – Le Creuset and Staub and then the cheap Desi got the better of me and I got myself a 10 1/4 inch square ribbed grill pan made by Lodge. I figured, I can use this for grilling veggies with nice grill marks as well as for veggie burgers and panini sandwiches. Plus the price couldn’t be beat – it was under $20 with a price match.

So far, I have only grilled veggies and I like it. Unlike an electric panini maker, the veggies remain juicy but have nice grill marks. The pan has also been surprisingly easy to clean up.

Next thing for me to do is to try using a non-ribbed skillet for anything I use a regular frying pan for. I did use the balance of the gift card to get one of these. I will let you know what I find out but I know it will be a fun process.

Vegetarian Thukpa Soup

India, especially the region around Delhi and Himachal Pradesh, has a lot of people who migrated from Tibet. These are folks that escaped the Chinese invasion into Tibet and now call India their home. When I was in college in the 80s there were a number of eateries around the ITO area in Delhi that were run by Tibetans. Since Chinese food (of the Indian-Chinese variety) is wildly popular, these eateries did brisk business in making their versions of Indo-Chinese staples like the Manchurian. Tibetan food was still a bit of an unknown.

Fast forward to 2011. On a recent visit to Delhi I was really happy to see that Tibetan cuisine has become a force in itself and it is not unusual to find Tibetan restaurants in the capital. At a restaurant in Gurgaon, my nephew introduced me to a spicy noodle soup called Thukpa which was simply stunning. To my knowledge it is the only soup that uses Garam Masala as a key ingredient. Given how cold it is these days, here is something to warm you up on a cold night. NOTE: This is not a purist’s recipe. It is my take on this soup.

INGREDIENTS (enough for 4)

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

3 large ripe tomatoes – diced

1 inch ginger finely chopped

2 cloves garlic – minced

2 carrots – peeled and diced

2 cubes of veggie bouillon

1 cup baby corn – cut into 1 inch pieces

8 oz Tofu – cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 tsp Chinese Five Spice powder

1/2 tsp Garam Masala

Couple of handfuls of fresh spinach

1 Lime

Salt to taste

1 tsp of Rooster Sauce (Sriracha) – everything is better with Rooster Sauce

Egg noodles – boiled till partially cooked

STEPS

1. In a stockpot, heat the oil.

2. Once hot, add tomatoes, ginger and garlic and cook till tomatoes are pulpy.

3. Add 4 cups of water and the cubes of veggie boullion.

4. Add carrots, baby corn and tofu.

5. Add the five spice powder and garam masala.

6.Add the Sriracha sauce.

7. Cook on medium heat till the carrots are cooked.

8. Tear the spinach leaves and throw these in.

9. Squeeze in 1 whole lime.

10. At this point taste the broth to adjust to your taste. It should be spicy and tangy. If it is not, add lime and Sriracha sauce till you achieve the flavor profile you want. If you like a little sweetness with your heat, throw in some sugar. Hey, you are going to eat this. It better taste good to you.

11. Ladle over cooked noodles and garnish with cilantro. Serve hot.

IMAGE COURTESY OUTLOOK INDIA

For those of you who do not know, India is a nation of foodies. A friend shared this article recently. It is a wonderful little piece on a couple of culinary traditions of the state I come from in India (there are many many other traditions just within the state of UP). Enjoy!

http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?279381#.TvmnZjzXaoE.facebook

Double Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti

Happy Holidays! This is a quick post to share a holiday tradition we have in our family. Many years back on a trip to San Francisco, I bought a cookbook from the Ghirardelli factory tourist trap. Surprisingly, it turned out to be a pretty nice little book. One of the recipes in there is a Double Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti that all of us fell in love with. Serendipitously, we first made it around Christmas and then from then on, it became an annual tradition for us to make around the holidays. Pretty easy to make, it is lip-smackingly good. Enjoy.

INGREDIENTS (for 4 dozen)

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup sweet ground chocolate and cocoa

4 oz semi sweet chocolate – chopped fine

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 cup hazelnuts coarsely chopped

STEPS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. In a food processor, pulse and mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cocoa and chocolate, until smooth.

3.  Add the eggs and vanilla. Pulse till dough forms.

4. On a greased cookie sheet, using lightly floured hands make 1 1/4 X 10 inch logs and place them at least 4 inches apart.

5. Bake in the oven till firm to the touch. About 25 to 30 minutes.

6. Remove from the oven and cool.

7. Lower the oven temperature to 300 F.

8. Cut logs into 1 inch slices with a serrated knife and place directly on a wire rack in the oven.

9. Bake for 20-25 mins until crisp.

10. Enjoy with or without coffee.