The Proven Platter, India, January 2018

Hello Diners!

We’re visiting India this month. We’ve been there many times and sampled the cuisine of many different areas of India. This time we’ll be focused on Uttar Pradesh in the northern part of India.

Wikipedia tells me that “Mughlai cuisine is a style of cooking developed in the Indian subcontinent by the imperial kitchen of the Mughal empire. It represents the cooking styles used in North India, especially Uttar Pradesh.” Being the former seat of Nawabshahi rulers during the Mughal dynasty, the cuisine of this area bears the distinctive impression of having originated from the royal court of the Nawabs. Thus, you’ll find recipes containing (at the time) very expensive dried fruits, nuts and spices.

While Chicken Korma is now pretty much ubiquitous on the menu of most every Indian restaurant, it does contain the hallmarks of the Mughlai cuisine. Rich with cream and yogurt, nuts and fragrant spices, it is a delicious dish, although not spicy.

Also on the menu is a simple stir-fried Cauliflower with Ginger, Garlic and Green Chiles, a dish that is a nice complement to the chicken, and looks good on the plate as well.

For dessert, the Chai-Spice Almond Cookies are irresistible. They can be made a day ahead of time and stored in a tin, hidden of course from other family members, lest you find yourself having to make more at the last minute!

Please feel free to contact me at nw4@togetherwomenrise.org if you have any questions or comments for me.

 

Chicken Korma (Tested)

Serves 4 to 6

Chicken Korma was once a noble dish that graced the banquet tables of the Mughal court, laden with cream, nuts, and expensive spices. Some recipes use just cream, some use yogurt, and some recipes include both. This is a mild curry, not spicy, and I think you’ll find it appealing to all taste buds. Serve with basmati rice to sop up all the sauce!

Ingredients

One 2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped (about 3 tbsp.)

1 large onion, cut in half (half chopped, half sliced)

5 garlic cloves, chopped

¼ cup cashews

1 ½ cups plain, whole milk yogurt (not Greek-style)

2 tsp. ground coriander

1 ½ tsp. garam masala

1 tsp. kosher salt, or ½ tsp. regular salt

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

3 tbsp. canola oil

2 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs

One 2-inch stick cinnamon

8 whole cardamom pods

2 bay leaves

3 tbsp. heavy cream

Cilantro sprigs for garnish

Directions

Place the ginger, the chopped onion, garlic, and ½ cup water into a blender container. Blend until smooth, then add the cashews and blend until smooth again. Set aside for use later.

Next, whisk the yogurt with the coriander, garam masala, salt and cayenne pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.

Pour the oil into a large, wide, sauté pan and heat. Make sure the pan is good and hot so the chicken won’t stick to the pan. Add the chicken thighs, and turn the heat to medium. Turn the chicken after browning one side, and repeat flipping the chicken thighs until they are mostly done. You will finish cooking them in the sauce.

Remove the chicken and set aside, remove any excess fat in the pan as well, leaving about 2 tablespoons remaining. Still over medium heat, add the cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and bay leaves. Toast for a minute, then add the remaining sliced onion. Sauté for a few minutes, until the onion turns translucent and is just starting to brown a bit. Add the reserved garlic/ginger paste to the pan, fry for a few minutes so that all the raw flavor has been cooked off.

Stir in the yogurt, the heavy cream, and then nestle the chicken thighs into the yogurt. Simmer on low for 5 to 10 more minutes, until the chicken is done and the sauce has reduced a bit.

Garnish with cilantro sprigs. Serve with basmati rice.

Recipe and photo credit: Linda McElroy

Adapted from http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2011/02/chicken-korma-recipe.html

 

Cauliflower with Ginger, Garlic and Green Chile (Tested)

Serves 4 to 6

 This cauliflower stir-fry is a snap to prepare. Have all of your ingredients sliced, and spices measured out ahead of time, so that it can be assembled quickly.

 Ingredients

2 to 3 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. yellow or brown mustard seeds

3 cloves garlic, sliced into julienne strips

One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into julienne strips

1 jalapeno pepper, sliced into julienne strips (seeds removed for less heat)

1 lb. cauliflower florets, about 4 heaping cups

½ to 1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. garam masala

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cilantro sprigs for garnish

Directions

Heat a large wide sauté with the vegetable oil. When hot add the cumin and mustard seeds. Let them toast for a minute, but as soon as the seeds begin to pop you can add the garlic, ginger, and chiles. Stir for about 30 seconds, then add the cauliflower florets.

Stir fry for 5 to 7 minutes, until the florets turn brown in some spots.

(While the cauliflower is cooking, mix the salt, garam masala, black pepper, and the optional cayenne in a small dish so that it’s ready to add to the pan.)

Add the seasonings, toss to blend, then add ¼ cup of water. Stir quickly and cover, turn the heat down a bit, let the cauliflower finish steaming for 3 more minutes. If not completely done yet, add another ¼ cup of water and continue to steam.

Garnish with chopped cilantro if using.

Recipe and photo credit: Linda McElroy

Adapted from “Quick and Easy Indian Cooking,” by Madhur Jaffrey

 

Chai-Spiced Almond Cookies (Tested)

Makes 36 cookies

I’ll venture a guess that you’ve probably made Russian Tea Cakes, or Mexican Wedding Cakes. Well, these cookies are that, but with Indian chai spice!

I’ve used whole, blanched, almonds that I ground in the Cuisinart. But I would imagine that for convenience sake you could use the equivalent amount of almond meal.

Inspired by a recipe for Chai-Spiced Almond Cookies from Epicurious, I came up with my recipe after researching several other recipes, and combined the best of them all.  I’ve created my own chai spice blend as well. You’ll have more spice blend than you need, but then, I think you’ll be making this cookie again, perhaps soon!

Ingredients

1 cup softened butter (two sticks)

½ cup powdered sugar

1 ½ tbsp. chai spice blend (see below)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

½ tsp. almond extract

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups flour

1 cup (5 oz.) whole almonds, ground, or substitute 1 heaping cup almond meal

Powdered sugar for rolling

Directions

Place the softened butter and ½ cup powdered sugar into the mixing bowl. Cream until smooth, then add the spice blend, vanilla and almond extract, and salt. Mix until blended, then add flour and almonds. Dough should come together smoothly.

Roll into 1-inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until just set. The bottom of the cookie should be very pale, not brown! If your cookies are smaller, or bigger, baking time will need to be adjusted.

Remove to cooling rack. When cookies have cooled a bit, but are still warm, roll in powdered sugar to coat. Let cool completely, then roll in powdered sugar one more time to make them look real pretty!

Pro tip: I like to roll them in the second coating of powdered sugar right before I serve them so they look very fresh. If you’re like me, and have a shaker full of powdered sugar, you can just shake sugar all over them to give them a fresh coat instead of rolling them again.

Chai spice blend

Makes about ¼ cup

1 ½ tbsp. cinnamon

1 tbsp. ginger

1 tbsp. cardamom

½ tsp. cloves

½ tsp. finely ground black pepper

½ tsp. nutmeg

Blend all spices thoroughly and store in a small container.

Recipe and photo credit: Linda McElroy