I went down to my native place this weekend. It's a little coastal village close to Kanyakumari and Tuticorin, and inhabited by people of Egyptian origin, with bits of Ceylon (they vehemently call Sri Lanka that, even now) and Tirunelveli thrown in.
All this fusion can only conjure up some good eats, right? Mostly, yes.
However. The past few days, my diet has consisted purely of meat curries, ghee rice and a baba-ghanoush like aubergine thingy. And rasam (fulfilling the veggie quotient?). First day, it's delicious. Second day, it's delicious-ish. Third day, um... Fourth day, Nooooooo!
Too much of good thing. I can't see another huge thambalam of kalyana saapadu for another month or two. Maybe I should try this aversion therapy/flooding to deal with my Nutella-addiction. Highly doubt anything will help now, I'm too far gone though.
Anyway.
My first meal back, mum asked me to cook something that had only vegetables and no oil, in order to cancel out those "rich" (I'm quoting the lady) breakfasts/lunches/dinners. Unless I'm a herbivore/vegan happy to be grazing on raw carrots, my options are slim to none. Random "surfing on the internet" (a little throwback to the nineties!) worked out in my favour, and I have these delicious veggie kebabs to prove it!
Make this when you want bajji, but have an inherent fear of deep-frying like I do(I've the war wounds to prove it). Make it if you count calories (it's a sad way to live. I haven't war wounds to prove this one, but trust me?). Make it because you're hungry, and you need to fill your 6 portions of veg for the day. Throw in a little paneer, if you have it in the chiller of your fridge. It has protein (fat, cholesterol, yes, yes. But we'll highlight the PROTEIN).
Veggie Kebabs:
Ingredients:
1 head of broccoli, cut up into florets- approximately 2 cups.
1/2 a head of cauliflower, cut into florets-approximately 2 cups.
1 onion, quartered.
1 tomato, quartered.
For the marinade:
3 tablespoons chickpea/gram flour (besan or kadala maavu)
1/2 cup yogurt (thick, please)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons sunflower oil (or any other neutral oil)
2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste.
1 tsp garam masala.
1 tsp chilli powder (normal red masala)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp ground coriander seeds (dhania)
1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain/omum)
Salt, to taste.
Method:
1)Steam/boil the broccoli and cauliflower florets after washing them properly. If boiling, use salted water.
Boil, for taste. Steam, for health.
Drain it in a colander after a couple of minutes in the boiling water. Wash with cold water. Set aside.
2)For the marinade:
Mildly roast the gram flour for 2 to 3 minutes on medium heat. When you get the smoky aroma, stop. Let it cool. Once cool, add all of the other ingredients.
Mum grinds all the ginger-garlic she needs for a week and stores it in the fridge door. If you cook Indian food regularly, this works to your advantage.
Dhania needs to be pounded with a pestle and mortar or blitzed in the mixie. Ajwain can be added as it is though.
3)Toss all the veggies in the marinade gently. Cover the utensil with cling film or a lid and refrigerate for half an hour.
I've heard you can use this marinade for paneer, potatoes, tofu, etc. Another day.
4)Preheat the oven to 240 degrees celcius. Change the settings to Broil/Grill. If your oven can only bake, you can try that.
5) Spread the marinated veg out on lightly greased foil sheets. Broil for about ten minutes.
When they start charring slightly, flip it to the other side. You could also try it on a griddle, normal saucepan or an outdoor grill!
Recipe source: Sanjeev Kapoor and Veggie Belly.
I served mine straight out of the oven, with a final sprinkling of chaat masala and a couple of lemon wedges. Try rolling these vegetables into your roti with a spoonful of curd.
And tell me if you still think it's health food. Tastes way too yummy to classify.
All this fusion can only conjure up some good eats, right? Mostly, yes.
However. The past few days, my diet has consisted purely of meat curries, ghee rice and a baba-ghanoush like aubergine thingy. And rasam (fulfilling the veggie quotient?). First day, it's delicious. Second day, it's delicious-ish. Third day, um... Fourth day, Nooooooo!
Too much of good thing. I can't see another huge thambalam of kalyana saapadu for another month or two. Maybe I should try this aversion therapy/flooding to deal with my Nutella-addiction. Highly doubt anything will help now, I'm too far gone though.
Anyway.
My first meal back, mum asked me to cook something that had only vegetables and no oil, in order to cancel out those "rich" (I'm quoting the lady) breakfasts/lunches/dinners. Unless I'm a herbivore/vegan happy to be grazing on raw carrots, my options are slim to none. Random "surfing on the internet" (a little throwback to the nineties!) worked out in my favour, and I have these delicious veggie kebabs to prove it!
Make this when you want bajji, but have an inherent fear of deep-frying like I do(I've the war wounds to prove it). Make it if you count calories (it's a sad way to live. I haven't war wounds to prove this one, but trust me?). Make it because you're hungry, and you need to fill your 6 portions of veg for the day. Throw in a little paneer, if you have it in the chiller of your fridge. It has protein (fat, cholesterol, yes, yes. But we'll highlight the PROTEIN).
Veggie Kebabs:
Ingredients:
1 head of broccoli, cut up into florets- approximately 2 cups.
1/2 a head of cauliflower, cut into florets-approximately 2 cups.
1 onion, quartered.
1 tomato, quartered.
For the marinade:
3 tablespoons chickpea/gram flour (besan or kadala maavu)
1/2 cup yogurt (thick, please)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons sunflower oil (or any other neutral oil)
2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste.
1 tsp garam masala.
1 tsp chilli powder (normal red masala)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp ground coriander seeds (dhania)
1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain/omum)
Salt, to taste.
Method:
1)Steam/boil the broccoli and cauliflower florets after washing them properly. If boiling, use salted water.
Boil, for taste. Steam, for health.
Drain it in a colander after a couple of minutes in the boiling water. Wash with cold water. Set aside.
2)For the marinade:
Mildly roast the gram flour for 2 to 3 minutes on medium heat. When you get the smoky aroma, stop. Let it cool. Once cool, add all of the other ingredients.
Mum grinds all the ginger-garlic she needs for a week and stores it in the fridge door. If you cook Indian food regularly, this works to your advantage.
Dhania needs to be pounded with a pestle and mortar or blitzed in the mixie. Ajwain can be added as it is though.
3)Toss all the veggies in the marinade gently. Cover the utensil with cling film or a lid and refrigerate for half an hour.
I've heard you can use this marinade for paneer, potatoes, tofu, etc. Another day.
4)Preheat the oven to 240 degrees celcius. Change the settings to Broil/Grill. If your oven can only bake, you can try that.
5) Spread the marinated veg out on lightly greased foil sheets. Broil for about ten minutes.
When they start charring slightly, flip it to the other side. You could also try it on a griddle, normal saucepan or an outdoor grill!
Recipe source: Sanjeev Kapoor and Veggie Belly.
I served mine straight out of the oven, with a final sprinkling of chaat masala and a couple of lemon wedges. Try rolling these vegetables into your roti with a spoonful of curd.
And tell me if you still think it's health food. Tastes way too yummy to classify.
It IS possible to get over your nutella addiction. Try having it for breakfast and lunch for about 3-5 days The rest of the bottle will remain unused for months after. It worked for me!
ReplyDeleteOK. I'm going to give that a sincere shot. Lol.
ReplyDeleteI'm still skeptical, though.