Tag Archives: lemon

Hariyali aloo – Cilantro & mint potato curry

Can be made vegan, Gluten Free, Indian, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Cilantro. Either you love it or you hate it. I’m from the loving side and I tend to add some fresh cilantro leaves to just any type of food. Sadly, in the Israeli kitchen cilantro is kind of left out and parsley gets all the fame. The Thai cooking trend saved the situation a bit but still it is one of the most underrated greens.

In Indian cooking its quite the opposite, both cilantro leaves and coriander seeds are central to lots of dishes and spice mixes. This curry is called in Hindi “Hariyali Aloo” which practically means green potato. This curry is based on lots of cilantro and mint which are blended together with spices and cooked with potato cubes. The potato cubes in this recipe can be replaced with paneer cubes or chicken breast pieces.

The end result is slightly sour and has a special taste. It is served with rice or some Indian bread and is a great side-dish in a Thali.

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Lemon rice

Gluten Free, Indian, Vegan, , , , , , , ,

Despite my apparent liking of spicy and hot food I usually don’t like to change anything in rice – white rice is just perfect as it is and there is really nothing better to accompany and tone down my adventurous kitchen experiments. However, rice is one of the main players in Indian cuisine and a lot of times it appears not just as a side dish but as the main course.

Rice as main course has endless amount of versions – rice with varying spices, Biryani and many more. The most common rice dish in south India is lemon rice full of crunchy surprises.

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Paneer Cheese

Gluten Free, Indian, , , ,

Am I really suggesting to make cheese at home?! Apparently it is much more simple than it sounds. Paneer, the most common cheese in Indian cuisine is prepared from only two ingredients. Paneer comes in two versions – firm Paneer and soft Paneer. The soft Paneer is less known outside of India but it is very common in Indian cooking both in spicy dishes, patties and even in deserts. This soft version is actually identical to Ricotta cheese… yep, making Ricotta cheese at home is easy peasy!

In many places you can find fresh Paneer cheese (usually the firm version) in any supermarket. In Israel that is not the case and the only option I found is to buy frozen and somewhat depressing Paneer cubes in the few Indian grocery shops here. But no worries! making Paneer at home is such a simple process that doesn’t require and special skills or dishes and is so satisfying 🙂 You can also make a large amount and freeze for a two-three months.

The Paneer cubes can be added to any dish with/without gravy, to a stir fry or even grilled on skewers. It has a neutral milky taste and a fun bite-able texture.

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