Restaurant style Gravy with Soy Chaap

If you know me I don't like watery gravy, I love to eat smooth and thick gravy with my paneer or vegetables or soya chunks or chaap. This is the perfect gravy to go with chicken and eggs too. For chicken follow everything as it is just need little more water and time to cook the gravy. For eggs, you can boiled it and then proceed with the rest of the recipe. Here I made it with my favorite soy chaap. Its quick and easy and just need minimum ingredients all available in our pantry. So do try and let me know. 

Ingredients : 

2 soy chaap cut in pieces

4 tbsp Ginger garlic paste

2 onions finely chopped

5 Dry chili whole

2 tomatoes diced

salt as per tasste

10 pieces of cashews

1 tbsp Turmeric Powder

2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder

1 tbsp Garam masala powder

2 tbsp Cumin coriander powder

4 tbsp oil /butter combo

1/4 cup finely chopped coriander leaves

Method : 

Cut your chaap , first length wise and make pieces. 

Add  2 tbsp ginger garlic paste in it and leave it till you prep for gravy., or at-least for 15 minutes

In a pan roast cashew and dry chilies for two minutes. 

Take it out and grind it. 

then add tomatoes in chili and cashew  mix and grind it and make a smooth paste.

Add  2 oil in the pan cook soy chaap for 2-3 minutes. 

Take it out and keep it on side. 

Add rest of the oil and butter and add onions and cook till its brown. 

Add ginger garlic paste, cook for few minutes, add turmeric powder, cumin coriander powder, kashmiri chili powder and mix it and cook for a minute. 

add the puree and cook for 5 minutes on medium flame. 

Add garam masala powder and salt , Coriander leaves and mix it

Add soy chaap in it and add hot water (depend on how thick gravy you want ) and mix it and cover it and cook it till all masala cooked nicely and coated to chaap. 

shut off the flame, sprinkle more coriander leaves and enjoy it with naan, rice or both or paratha. 

Gluten Free Thai Basil Tofu Stir Fry - (Pad Krapow)

When you have Thai basil plant, you don't need an excuse to make Thai dishes, it just comes naturally. For me South Asian dishes are more preferable than Cheesy Mexican or Italian dishes. I have made this Vegetarian Thai basil tofu gluten free means I didn't use soy sauce in it, I have used tamari in it but if you want use dark soy sauce to give that color. Mine was looks white but it packed with flavors. As you can see I have used 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves to enhance the flavor, well dish name is Thai basil tofu so I have to use it right. You can use minced meat for this too. 

Ingredients : 

1 packet extra firm tofu

2 tbsp oil

1 green capsicum sliced

1 white onion sliced

3 garlic cloves thinly sliced

1/2 inch ginger thinly sliced

1/2 cup fresh Thai basil washed

Few Dry red chilies

Sauce :

3 tbsp Tamari or dark soy sauce

2 tbsp brown sugar or maple syrup

1/2 tsp Red pepper flakes

Method : 

Take tofu and squeeze out as much water as you can with tofu pressure or use your conventional way to remove water.

next crumble it with fork or with hands to get minced tofu.

Add the 1 tbsp oil in the pan and saute minced tofu till its little brown. 

Make a well in the pan and add rest of the oil in it, add ginger and garlic and saute for few seconds till you get the nice aroma. Add dry red chilies too. 

Mix it with tofu and add onion and capsicum and mixed it nicely. 

Add the sauce mix and cook for 5 minutes till capsicum is cooked. If you think you still salt add salt and pepper to taste. 

Turn off the heat and stir in thai basil and take that amazing smell . mix it together till the basil wilts. 

Serve with just plain white rice. I had it with rice, stir fry duck and vegan wings. 

Stuffed Eggplant Curry - Gutti Vankaya Curry

I just loved stuffed vegetables, eggplant, Bhindi , Parval, Onions, potatoes, stuffed anything and give it to me and I will be happy. I tried lot of variations of Eggplant stuffing and still looking for more, since my love for stuffed vegetables never ends. So here South Indian style stuffed baby eggplant, Which I just loved it. I made it spicy but you can control your spice level and make it as per your taste. I made extra stuffing to use it my other day cooking and I just love that variation in my other vegetable dishes. here I have used green baby eggplant because when ever I get purple ones, it has so many seeds in it , it spoils the dish. But you can make it with purple one, if you find good ones. 

Ingredients : 

6 baby eggplants

For paste :

3 tbsp raw peanuts

2 tsp sesame seeds

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp Cumin seeds

1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 inch cinnamon

2 tbsp dry coconut

1 inch ginger

3 clove garlic

1 tsp kashmiri red chili powder

1/4 tsp turmeric

salt as per taste

1/4 cup water

Roast peanuts until it changes the color, add sesame seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, cinnamon , roast on low flame till spices goes roasted nicely. Finally add coconut and roast slightly. Cool completely and transfer in the blender.  In that add ginger, garlic, chili powder, turmeric and salt and make a thick paste. We are going to stuff eggplant with this paste and make a curry also.

For the curry : 

3 tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp Cumin seeds

few curry leaves

1/2 onion sliced

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp kashmiri red chili powder

1/2 cup tamarind extract water

Fresh finely chopped coriander leaves

salt as per taste, if you need it

Method : 

Cut the eggplant in X shape till one end, not all the way thru and make 4 slices. 

Stuffed that thick paste we have made it. Keep it aside.

Heat a pan, with oil in it. Add mustard, cumin and curry leaves.

When mustard seeds done craking, add onion and cooked till it changes the color. 

Add turmeric and chili powder and cook on low flame for few seconds. 

Add stuffed eggplant and saute gently. 

cover and cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

Add the leftover masala paste and add water to make a thick or thin gravy as per your liking. 

Add tamarind water and cook the gravy till your desired consistency. 

Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes till eggplant is cooked 

Once done, add coriander leave and serve hot with rice or Roti. I had it with roti and dal.