Soy Chunks Dhanshak, Brown rice and Kachumber

Dhanshak is a Parsees all time favorite and must have Sunday Lunch. Its not at all complicated just a long list of ingredients but it will be done in no time. Generally it's with Mutton (Lamb /Goat) or Chicken too. So give that feeling I made it with Soy chunks along with vegetables. 

Dhan mean grains so it has rice and different lentils, shak means vegetables so mix of grains and vegetables and you have a feast. Its traditionally served with brown rice, kachumber and kababs too. 

For brown rice traditionally they brown the sugar so that gives the nice brown color but I dont like the sweet so I added soy sauce and that was giving me umami while it was cooking and flavor was spot on. 

so let's start

Dhan Shak Ingredients : 

Pulses

2 cup Tuver dal - split  chickpea yellow lentils

1/2 cup masor dal - red split lentils

1/4 cup Chana Dal 

1/4 cup Mung dal - Yellow Split lentils

Vegetables :

1 cup diced pumpkin or sweet potatoes

1/2 cup greens - either methi , spinach, kale

handful chopped mint leaves

1 green onion chopped

2 chopped tomato

1 potato cut in big chunks

1 large red onions sliced thinly

1 cup chopped eggplant

2 green chilies or as per our spice level

1 cup soaked and dry soy chunks

handful chopped coriander leaves

Spices : 

1 tbsp. Turmeric Powder

1 tbsp. Cumin and coriander powder

1 tbsp. Ground ginger garlic paste

1 tbsp. Kashmiri red chili powder

1/2 tbsp. Red Chili powder

3 tbsp. oil 

Salt as per taste

Method :

Wash all lentils and soaked separately at least for 2 hours. 

Before use it , wash again and keep it aside. 

Heat a pressure cooker and add oil in it. 

Fry the onions until its brown , then add green chilies, and ginger garlic paste, cook till raw smells goes away. Then add all spices and mix it and cook for a minute on low flame.

Add all the vegetables and mix it with the spices. Check the seasoning as per your taste.

 Leave some coriander leaves for garnished. 

Add dal in it and add enough water to cover the dals and vegetables. Pressure cook till 3 whistle. 

Let the air pressure goes normally. 

By the time let's make the rice. 

Rice Ingredients :

2 cup rice

1 chopped  red onion

1 Bay leaf

2 green whole cardamom pods

3 cloves

1 tsp. cumin seeds

salt as per taste , we are going to use soy sauce too so don't add more taste

instead of water, you can use vegetable stock for more flavor

1 tsp. Soy sauce , if you want to use sugar, then skip this and 2 tsp. sugar

1 tbsp. oil

Method :

Wash and soak the rice for 2 hours too. 

In a big pan, add oil and fry the onions till its brown. 

If you are adding sugar, take out the onion and in the same pan add sugar and caramelized it. 

Add a cup of hot water and melt the sugar and then add the fried onions back.

If you are not using sugar then after frying the onions, Add rice in it and stir for about 5 minutes. 

Add the whole spices in it and cook for a minute. 

Now add 3 and half cups of warm water / stock and salt. 

Once it comes to boil, lower the flame and cook the rice  till the water is absorbed and its cooked. 

ALWAYS , allows the rice to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving. 

Let's make kachumber : 

Kachumber (Red onion, tomato and cucumber salad)

1 medium red onions finely sliced or matchstick slices, what ever way you prefer, make sure you do the same way for tomato and cucumber too

1 tomato chopped

1 small green chili chopped

salt  as per taste

Lime juice as per taste

1 tsp. olive or vegetable oil

fresh chopped mint and coriander leaves

Method:

Chopped all vegetables and herbs and all the salt, lime juice and oil and mix it and serve it with the dhan shak platter 

Rice 

Kachumber 

Air Fried Methi na Muthia - Gluten Free

Muthia is a yummy snack from verities of vegetables you can make it from. Each one has its unique flavor, but the texture more over same. You can either steam it or deep fry it  specially this one. Because methi na muthia is mostly used in undhiyu which is a winter specialty in Gujarat and since methi is in season during winter, hence the use of it in cooking is. This muthia you can make it as regular steamed muthia and have it as a snack, or deep fried it or better , now with the new gadget , air fried it. It takes hardly 10 minutes and its ready. You can eat it as it is or use in undhiyu or muthia with lilva and val na dana nu shak, I used it in eggplant , lilva nu shak.

Ingredients :

2 cups of washed and chopped methi leaves

1/2 cup bajri flour

1/2 cup juvar flour (if you want you can take whole wheat instead of Juvar)

2 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 green chili finely chopped

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

Pinch of Turmeric powder

1/4 tsp each baking soda and powder 

Salt to taste

1 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder

Juice of one lime / lemon

2 tbsp. oil

Water as needed to make the dough

1 tbsp. sugar - optional  

Method : 

In a bowl,  add methi leaves, both flours, Turmeric powder, chili powder, salt, ginger, garlic, chili, juice, oil and baking soda and powder.

Mix nicely and try to knead it so you don't need to add too much water.

Now add little water at a time to make it all combined and it comes out as a dough. 

Now take small portion of it and shape into small oval shaped, its totally up to you how long or small you want to make it. But we are air frying so keep everything same size and portion to cook it at same time.

Once all done, put it in air fryer plate, spray the oil on both sides.

Set the fryer on 400 for 10 minutes and  put the tray in it

Flip it in between from every side so it cook evenly. If you don't get the color, keep it longer for few minutes since all air fryers are different. 

Use it as it is with chutney or save it to make it undhiyu or what ever your heart desires. 

Tater Tor Chat

We love our chats right, spicy, tangy, sweet , crunchy what not to love about it. But when you want to east something fast and don't have time to prepare, this tater tots comes in handy. I just love tater tots and come on who don't like potatoes. This tiny bits is always comes in handy for a breakfast but to use it chat it was awesome. When I got the package I was looking forward to make this one and my husband also suggest me that make a post about it , I said I am way ahead of you. 

So basically you don't need any fancy ingredients but if you want to make fancy you can,  by adding pomegranate seeds and raw mango pieces. I just wanted to have it for quick weekend lunch so I made it what I have it on hand. Just tater tots, onion, tomatoes, boiled brown chickpeas and chutneys and sev. And done. 

Ingredients : 

2 cups of tater tots

1/2 cup boiled brown chickpeas

1 chopped tomato

1 chopped red onion

cilantro mint chutney & tamarind date chutney as per taste

3-4 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro and mint

Chat masala on top to sprinkle , if you dont have one use fresh lime juice

1/4 cup sev 

I don't like sweet yogurt but if you want please go ahead. 

Method : 

I air fried my tater tots and made it little crunchy. 

Let it cool it for 5 minutes. 

Add chopped onions, tomato, chick peas. 

Then add cilantro mint chutney, tamarind date chutney. 

Sprinkled sev and chat masala on top and serve immediately. 

Tariwala Poha Nagpur Style

I have never eaten this kind of poha but the idea of making it with spicy black chana is tempted. Before I never put potatoes in my poha , always had it with black beans so with protein is not a big deal for me. 

For this dish make poha the way we always do and make black chana with gravy and do extra tadka with more chilies with oil to give that tari effect. 

I had to feed the kids so I didn't  make very spicy but if you have no limitation go ahead and make it zanzant spicy.

Ingredients for Poha 

HCF: Protein Poha

Ingredients for Brown chana

HCF: Kala Chana Masala | Brown Chickpeas Curry

To assemble it 

Take poha in a bowl, add black chana and the gravy on top of it, sprinkle with sev, pomegranate pearls,  chopped chilies, chopped cilantro leaves and enjoy it with the cup of tea or have it for light lunch too. 

Pull A Part Dabeli

So you can make lot of variation while making pull a part bread. Lots of cheese, different stuffings, sliders then why not Dabeli. It comes in bread, stuffing , with or without cheese  and you are done. I have simply heat up dabeli bread with oil and without taking apart the buns, stuff the masala in it and enjoy with the sides of your favorite chutneys. Since it is not a Pomegranate season, I didn't add it and I am not a big fan of cheese also, so If you like you can shred the cheese on top of it with sev and onion and pom. This is just for me so I only use 4 buns but if you are feeding more people, make more masala and use it.





Ingredients : 

For stuffing : 

2 Tbsp oil
1 red onion finely chopped
2 Big potatoes boiled and mashed
1 tbsp Chili powder
1/2 tbsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Garam Masala powder
1 tbsp Dabeli masala or as per you liking but don't put too much it has very strong clove flavors in it
1 cup water
salt to taste
1 tbsp Tamarind chutney
Coriander leaves chopped

Garnishing : 

Chopped onion, masala peanuts, coriander leaves, pomegranate seeds

For assembly : 

4 Dabeli bread
4 tbsp Garlic chutney or as per taste
2 tbsp finely chopped onion
4 tbsp tamarind chutney or as per taste
oil or butter for toasting
sev as needed

Method for Stuffing :

In a pan, add oil and saute onions till its pink. Add all powder masala in it and saute on a very low flame for a minute.

Add water in it and then add mashed potatoes in it and mix it well.
Add salt and see if you need to thin it out potatoes or not  , if stuffing is very stiff, add more water. You need loose stuffing but not runny.

Add tamarind chutney and mix it and transfer it in a bowl.

Layer first stuffing, then onion, masala peanuts, coriander leaves and Pom seeds.





Assembly : 

Cut the bread in between without breaking in to  apart, since its pull apart you need whole thing together.

Heat the pan, add oil / butter and toast the bread on both sides.

Once its warm, add garlic chutney on one side, tamarind chutney on other side and spoonful of stuffing , with little bit of onions in it.

Roll the whole bread in sev so it can cover the edges.

Serve immediately with some green(coriander) , red (garlic), brown (tamarind )chutney.

You might have seen Pull a part Pav bhaji also. Same concept, just stuff it with bhaji. You can do vada pav too.