This blog has been created especially for those of you who are living away from home and are craving for authentic Indian food. This blog will provide you with all the recipes possible and tips to make them quickly with the least available resources...So keep your worries aside and Happy Eating!
Vegetable Biryani is the most famous delicacy of Indian cuisine. And it is a specialty of the 'City of Pearls', Hyderabad.
Recipe:
Ingredients: Cauliflower, Beans, Carrots finely chopped, 1 cup Basmati rice, 2 bowls Onions, thin sliced, 4 Cinnamon, cloves Caraway seeds Curd Tomatoes, chopped, 3 Cooking oil Cashew nuts, Almonds, raisins Green peas Jeera (cumin seeds) Garam masala Biryani masala (if available) Procedure: 1. Add double amount water to rice (for eg- 1 cup rice= 2 cups of water), a little salt some dry fruits. Cook it in pressure cooker till one whistle. 2. Put oil in deep frying pan. First put onion, when light brown, add jeera (cumin seeds), tomatoes, salt, red chilly powder, green chillies, cloves, black pepper, garam masala, caraway seeds etc. 3. Then add all the cut vegetables and green peas. Cook it on sim for 5 minutes covered with a lid 4. Then add curd and stir well. Let it cook for a few seconds 5. Finally, add the cooked rice and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes and its ready!
Aloo Gobhi is a tasty spicy vegetable preparation from Northern India. Recipe: Ingredients: Hard-boiled potatoes, 4-5 Cauliflower, cut Chopped onions, 2-3 Jeera (Cumin seeds) Hing Salt & Pepper Haldi (turmeric) Garam Masala Dhaniya Powder Cooking Oil Green chillies
Procedure: 1. Put oil and jeera in a deep frying pan 2. After it heats, put chopped onions, green chillies, all spices (Garam masala, hing etc) 3. After the onions become golden-brown, put chopped potatoes and pepper 4. Fry for 2-3 minutes and then put cut Gobhi (cauliflower) in it and stir 5. Simmer the flame and put a lid; let it cook for 5-7 minutes 6. Open the lid and stir again; if not cooked close the lid again for a few minutes 7. Check if the vegetables have become soggy and it is ready!
Aloo Gobhi can also be cooked with gravy, for which, tomatoes are an essential ingredient
Chholey is the most famous Punjabi dish and is known for it spicy taste. Recipe:
Ingredients: Chholey (chickpeas) boiled, 2 bowls Onions chopped, 5 Tomatoes chopped, 1 Garam masala Dhaniya powder Salt & pepper Elaichi (cardamom) 3-4 Kali mirch (Pepper seeds) Ginger-garlic paste Cooking oil Jeera (cumin seeds) & Hing Green chillies or red chilly powder Procedure: 1. Heat oil & jeera in a deep pan and add chopped onions, chillies & ginger-garlic paste 2. Once the onions are golden brown add chopped tomatoes, elaichi (cardamom) and stir 3. Add all the spices (Garam masala, dhaniya powder, kali mirch, salt & pepper etc) 4. Keep stirring till the paste becomes dark & gives an aroma 5. Add chholey and cook for 3-4 minutes 6. Add 2-3 glasses of water and let it boil 7. Once the gravy becomes thick and chickpeas are cooked it is ready!
Rajma is essentially a North-Indian dish, but is a favourite of most of the people throughout India. It is considered as one of the delicacies of Indian cuisine. Recipe:
Ingredients: Tomatoes (7-8), finely chopped or tomato puree Onions (4-5), finely chopped Rajma (Kidney beans soaked overnight and thoroughly boiled) Cooking Oil Salt Ginger-Garlic paste Jeera (cumin seeds) Red chilly powder Garam Masala Dhaniya Powder Rajma Masala (If available) Green chillies, finely chopped Half a cup milk Procedure: 1. Put oil and jeera in a big and deep frying pan 2. When hot, put onions & Ginger-garlic paste and stir till it turns golden brown 3. Put tomatoes or tomato puree and let it cook for 3-4 minutes 4. Put all the spices (Garam masala, dhaniya powder, red chilly, green chilly etc) & stir 5. When the paste becomes dark brown, add half a cup milk to it 6. Put rajma (kidney beans) in the pan and let it cook in the paste 7. After 5-7 minutes, put water in the pan (3-4 glasses) & let it boil 8. When the curry becomes thick, check if rajma is cooked properly & it is ready!
Aloo capsicum is one of the favourite vegetable combinations in Indian cuisine. Recipe:
Ingredients: Hard-boiled chopped Potatoes (4) Capsicum chopped (2) Tomatoes chopped (2) Onions chopped (1 big or 2 small) Jeera (Cumin Seeds) Cooking Oil Hing Garam Masala Dhaniya Powder
Procedure: 1. Heat oil in a deep pan and put jeera (cumin seeds) in it 2. After jeera becomes blackish, put chopped onions & tomatoes 3. Stir well till onions and tomatoes become soggy and light brown 4. Put Garam masala, dhaniya powder, salt, Haldi (turmeric) & hing in it 5. Keep stirring for 3-4 minutes 6. Put boiled potatoes in the pan and let them cook with the mixture 7. After 3 minutes put capsicum in the pan, stir & close the lid and simmer the flame 8. Let it cook and keep stirring every 3 minutes, after its soggy and in one color it's ready to eat! You can add green chilly or red chilly powder to make the vegetable a little more spicy
Yellow Dal is probably the most common Dal eaten throughout India. It is made differently in different states and regions, but here is the simplest and tastiest recipe...
Recipe:
Ingredients: Yellow Lentils (1 or 2 bowl full) Haldi (Turmeric) Salt Jeera (Cumin Seeds) Hing Ghee (Home cooked butter)
Procedure: 1. Wash the dal (yellow lentils) and put it in a cooker 2. Add water according to the measurement. If 1 bowl dal, put 1 glass water 3. Put salt and haldi (turmeric)- half a tea spoon 4. Close the lid of the cooker and wait for 2 whistles 5. Let the steam pass and then open the lid for garnishing 6. Heat ghee, jeera (cumin seeds) - 1 tea spoon and half a pinch hing in a small pan 7. When jeera becomes blackish, put the mixture in the dal cooker 8. Close the lid, add water if you feel it is less and then put it on stove for 5 minutes & it's ready!
Upma is basically a dish of South India and can be made according to preferences and availability of time. If you have time you can make a nutritious Upma with all the veggies, but if lack of time, then Onion and tomatoes are the saviours...
Recipe:
Ingredients: Suji (Semolina) Mustard Seeds Cooking Oil Chopped Onions (2) Chopped Tomatoes (2) Chopped Carrot (1) Chopped Capsicum (half) Salt Red chilly powder Hot water (2 glasses) Procedure: 1. Put a bowl full of Suji (Semolina) in a deep fry pan 2. Keep stirring it on a high flame till the suji (semolina) turns light brown 3. Meanwhile, in another pan put a little cooking oil & mustard seeds and let it heat 4. Put onions, wait for them to turn soggy, then put all the other cut vegetables, salt and red chilly powder in the pan 5. Once the vegetables become soggy and look cooked, put suji (semolina) in it 6. Keep stirring for 3-4 mins; then pour hot water in it 7. Suji (semolina) absorbs water immediately and upma is now ready to eat!
Poha is a Maharashtrian dish, which is very tasty and easily digestible.
Recipe:
Ingredients: Chidwa (rice flakes) Cooking oil Onions- 2 small Boiled potatoes- 1 big to 2 small Mustard seeds Haldi (turmeric) Salt Peas Beaten Almonds or peanuts (optional)
Procedure: 1. Soak the rice flakes and drain out the water 2. Put little oil in the frying pan 3. Put mustard seeds and chopped onions into the pan 4. After the onions are brown, put beaten almonds or peanuts and add peas 5. Put chopped potatoes and then soaked rice flakes. 6. Add haldi (turmeric), stir properly till entire rice flakes become yellow 7. Add salt to taste and keep stirring till mixed and yellow and it is ready!
When getting late for college or work, eggs can be the most handy item to make. Scrambled eggs are nutritious as well as tasty.
Recipe:
Ingredients: Eggs- 1 or 2 Onion- 1 small (If you have time) Tomato- 1 Salt Chat Masala (If available) Cooking Oil
Procedure: 1. Chop onion and tomato 2. Break the eggs and empty them into a bowl 3. Stir it and mix salt to taste and chat masala 4. Put little oil in the frying pan and after 2 mins, put the chopped onions and tomatoes in the pan 5. Keep stirring with a spatula and when onions turn soggy and little brown pour the egg into it. 6. While stirring keep cutting the egg into small pieces with the spatula 7. As soon as the egg starts turning light brown switch off the stove and it is ready!
Eat the scrambled eggs with bread and tomato ketchup.
(In case of lack of time, no need to put onion and tomatoes, only egg will suffice)
Since I have also been a student who lived abroad for my higher studies, I completely understand what living away from home does to our health. After a whole day's struggle and juggle between work and studies, we do not feel like cooking and eating. And even if we do cook, eating the same old quick and ready-to-eat food items make us sick. It happened with me too and there were times when I used to wish for a jeannie who would keep delicious food ready everytime I came back from college or got up to go out for work. But obviously that was not possible. So to prevent those of you who are struggling with food blues away from home, I created this blog with extreme empathy and honesty. As an experienced struggler, I would like to tell you that the tips and recipes that I am giving you made me healthier instead of weaker living away from home. When I came back home, almost everyone asked me how I managed food and I told them very happily that it's a secret. But now I thought I should share my secrets with you.
Warning: Please do not expect any miracles. The secrets are not exactly secrets, infact they are known to all. But its only few of us who realize it's importance.
Vegetable Biryani is the most famous delicacy of Indian cuisine. And it is a specialty of the 'City of Pearls', Hyderabad.
