Triple M - Methi Malai Mattar

I had plans of making methi egg burji today but when I got home, Pras said he had eaten egg for lunch. I remembered the peas that I had bought and the pack of fresh cream that I had opened for the Butter Karela Masala. So, here goes the recipe for one of my favorite white curries - methi malai mattar.

I had made a similar recipe Methi Peas Panneer sometime back. It is similar except in this one I did not use cashews.

Ingredients (Serves 2 as a side dish):

1. 1 cup peas - I used safal frozen peas. 
2. 1 inch cinnamon stick
3. 3-4 cloves
4. 1 tsp cumin seeds
5. 1 tbsp oil
6. 1 bunch methi leaves
7. 1 small sized onion
8. 4-5 medium sized cloves of garlic
9. 1 inch size ginger
10. 4 green chillies
11. 150ml fresh cream
12. 1/4 cup milk
13. 1/4 cup water
14. Salt to taste
15. 1/2 tsp garam masala powder

How I made it :

1. In a mixie jar, blend together the onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies and fresh cream.
2. Put the peas in a microwave safe bowl and zap them for about a minute. 
3. In a kadai, heat oil.
4. Add cumin seeds, cinnamon stick and cloves.
5. Once the cumin seeds change colour, add the chopped methi leaves.
6. Fry for about 4-5 minutes till the bitter smell goes away.
7. Add the mixture from step 1.
8. Add the green peas.
9. Let it fry on slow for about 8 minutes. Stir in between to ensure no sticking. When inhaled, there should be no raw smell of onions nor ginger nor garlic.
10. Add water and milk to get desired consistency.
11. Add salt.
12. Fry for about 2 minutes.
13. Just before turning off the heat, add the garam masala. Fry for about 30 seconds and then close the lid.
14. Serve hot with rotis.

Tips :

1. You could use kasuri methi instead of fresh methi leaves. You may not need to fry them as much as in step 5 above. Use about 5tsp of kasuri methi.
2. To get more volume, use cashews as in the recipe Methi Peas Panneer

0

Peas pulao

I had my cousins over for dinner a few days ago. To avoid having to stand in the kitchen making rotis, I thought of cooking up some pulao/rice dish as well. I learnt this trick from my mom and aunt as they used to cook up delectable meals for guests back home. Peas pulao used to be one of the standard rice dishes prepared by them. I added my own touches to their recipe and it was loved. My friends at work loved it too.

Preparation Time : 10 minutes - to clean rice, grind ginger garlic paste
Cooking Time : 15-18 minutes
Ingredients (Serves 4-6): 
2 cups jeera samba rice
1/2 to 1 cup of frozen peas
2 cups coconut milk
2 cups water
4 cloves
4 slit green chillies
1 big stick of cinnamon
2 bay leaves
4 cardamon
1 small onion finely sliced
2tbsp oil
2tbsp ghee
1tbsp olive oil
1tbsp ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
To garnish :
A handful of fried panneer cubes - optional
Fried cashews
Coriander leaves chopped

How I made it :
1. Pick and clean the rice and keep aside in water.
2. In a wide bottomed pan, heat oil and ghee.
3. Drop in the cinnamon, bay leaves, cardamom and cloves.
4. Once fragrant add the onions and fry till translucent. Add the slit green chillies.
5. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes away. I find that this is easier when using store bought ginger garlic paste. When using fresh ginger garlic paste, it is a bit tough to tell with the aromas of the kada masala.
6. Add the olive oil and rice without the water.
7. Mix and fry till you can smell the nuttiness of the rice.
8. Add the coconut milk, turmeric powder, water and salt to taste. To test whether the salt would be right, taste the mixed liquid after the rice is in and it should be a little on the salty side.
9. Bring to a boil.
10. Cover with aluminium foil. Put on the lid and cook on low for 8 to 10 minutes.
11. Once done, using a fork just ruffle up the rice.
12. Garnish with fried panneer cubes, cashews and coriander leaves.

Serve hot. I served this with mom's delectable mutton curry. Recipe coming soon.

0

Methi Peas Panneer

The past week has been hectic with a wedding in the family so I hardly got to do much cooking. When my friends asked me what my weekend plans were I said I would relax and probably do some baking. For me, cooking/baking is therapeutic. I need to come home and cook my meal to feel that all is well. So, here is my first post for this weekend with methi peas panneer in a white sauce. This is a really simple recipe and is ready in a jiffy.

Preparation Time : 10 minutes
Cooking Time : 10-15 minutes
Ingredients (serves 2):
1/2 cup packed fresh methi/fenugreek leaves
1/4 cup frozen shelled peas
200g panneer/cottage cheese - chopped into small cubes
1/4 cup fresh cream
1/4 cup milk
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
salt to taste
1/2 tsp garam masala (optional)
To grind :
10 cashew soaked in hot water for 10 minutes
1/2 tsp khus khus/poppy seeds soaked along with cashew
1 small onion or 1/2 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
4 green chillies
1/2 inch ginger

How I made it :
1. Grind the ingredients under the "To grind" section and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan. Add the cumin seeds.
3. Add the methi leaves - chop them up if you like.
4. Once your kitchen is filled with the aromas of the fried methi, add the panneer and green peas. Fry till there are tiny bits of brown seen on the panneer.
5. Add the ground paste.
6. Fry for about 8 minutes. Do take care as it can stick to the bottom of the pan because of the cashew and poppy seeds paste.
7. Add salt to taste.
8. Add the whipped cream and milk. You may require more milk based on the consistency that you desire.
9. Finally add the garam masala. Mix well and serve hot with rotis/paratas.

I served it with plain parathas.

0