Bread Upkari (Spiced bread)

I thought I would break the monotony of Indian/Konkani dishes by throwing in a Pad Thai dish. That didn't last too long because here I am again with a Konkani dish. For me, the point of this blog is to create an online recipe book for myself, so that I have a record of the winning recipes for my favorite dishes. :) 


Bread upkari isn't a 'fixed' recipe and by that I mean there are tons of variations on the recipe I'm about to post. I've looked online for some and found that people add peas and carrots to theirs. I'm a purist (or rather, I grew up eating a purist recipe) and I don't like adding peas and carrots and whatnot to my bread upkari. Although, there's nothing to stop you from adding them if you prefer them. :) 


Ingredients:


1/2 pound slightly stale bread (1/4 a sliced loaf), cubed
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsps plain non-fat yogurt*
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium red onion, sliced
3 green chillies, sliced
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
4-5 curry leaves
3 tbsp shredded coconut
1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp fresh lime juice 
1/2 cup water


*Omit if using fresh bread


1. Place bread cubes in a large bowl and add the turmeric, salt and yogurt. The yogurt is used to soften the slightly stale bread, so do not use it if the bread is fresh. Mix until the turmeric is evenly distributed. The bread should have a slightly yellowish hue to it, so add a little turmeric and then increase if it looks very pale. 

2. Heat oil and butter in a pan. Add mustard seeds until they start to pop. Then quickly add green chillies and curry leaves. Fry for about 10 seconds and add the sliced onions.

3. Cook onions until they are translucent. Add the bread and stir. Once the bread and onions are well mixed, add two tbsp of water around the edge of the pan and quickly stir the bread. Continue to add water (sprinkling is better than pouring) until bread achieves soft and slightly moist texture. 


4. Add coconut, cilantro and lime juice. Stir until well mixed and serve!


'Til the next dish..

Pad Thai

I guess if I'm posting a recipe for Pad Thai, it's safe to say I love Pad Thai. :) I used to get by with using this premade Pad Thai sauce even though it tasted *nothing* like restaurant Pad Thai. I told myself that it was probably better than attempting to make the sauce myself. That is, until I happened to come across this website. It's still not restaurant Pad Thai quality, but it's a helluva lot better than the premade sauce that's for sure! So it's a keeper.


Sauce Recipe:


1/2 cup hot water
3-4 tsp tamarind paste
4 tbsp soy sauce
5 tbsp brown sugar (packed)
1 tbsp peanut butter (optional)


1. Boil rice noodles until they are almost cooked. My method of testing the 'doneness' of the noodle is to stop it when I think it needs a couple more minutes to get the perfect consistency. Once noodles are cooked, drain and separate into portions. I separate right away because once the noodles dry, they tend to stick in clumps that makes it hard to separate them.

2. Stir fry vegetables and 2 eggs (optional). Heat 2 tsps of oil in a wok and bring it to high heat. You can use any vegetables you like or would like to try with your Pad Thai. I usually add napa cabbage, mushrooms, green onions, and sliced carrots. Remove vegetables when done. I like my vegetables to have a slightly charred look. I think they taste better that way. Also, don't forget to lightly salt the veggies while they cook. 

3. Prepare sauce by dissolving tamarind paste in hot water. Tamarind paste looks exactly like tar. It also has a very bitter (?) taste. If you've never eaten it before, add half the amount. Once the paste is dissolved, add the soy sauce, brown sugar and peanut butter. I use the crunchy peanut butter so that there are flecks of peanut in the final dish. Creamy peanut butter is an equally good alternative.

4. Pour enough sauce for a portion into the wok. Wait until it bubbles. Add noodles and stir until they are coated with the sauce. It will look like there is too much liquid, but keep stirring and it will thicken. Add the vegetables and stir until they are coated as well.

5. Serve and eat!! :)


'Til the next dish...

Spiced Corn

I'm not sure if this is an Indian dish or something my mom invented...Regardless, it's yummy and oh-so-simple, so it's a quick go-to recipe if you're jonesing for a snack or a salad topping (my preferred use).

Ingredients:

1 bag frozen corn nibblets (Recommended: Steamfresh Green Giant brand. A little pricey, but amazingly fresh taste)

2 tsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

5-6 curry leaves (karbev)

3 green chillies, chopped (more, if you like it spicy)

Salt to taste

1. Thaw bag of corn. 

2. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add mustard seeds. When mustard seeds start to pop, add chillies and curry leaves.

3. Add thawed corn. Salt to taste.

4. Stir until well mixed and serve!

See, super easy. Since this is a really easy and quick recipe, I'm including another recipe for today. :) 

'Til the next dish...

Curried bell peppers and potatoes

This one is a personal favorite of mine. Again, I'm not sure if this is my mom's invention or an Indian dish. I think it's my mom's invention because I haven't seen it served at other people's houses. Ever. Go Mom!

What makes this recipe even more attractive is how simple and quick it is. Don't you just love knowing you have one dish out of the way in 20 minutes? Love.this.

Ingredients:

1 medium potato*, chopped into bite size pieces

1 medium bell peppers, chopped into bite size pieces

2 tsp oil

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp jeera powder

1 tsp coriander/cilantro powder 

Salt to taste

*boiled preferable as it's faster, but raw works too. 

Side note: If you only have dhan jeera (a 1:1 combination of jeera and coriander powders, use 2 tsp instead of 1 tsp each of jeera and coriander powders)

1. Heat oil in a pan. Add potatoes and stir. Salt to taste. If using raw potatoes, put on low heat, cover and cook for 5-10 minutes (or until soft). If using boiled potatoes, cook for 3 minutes each side or until browned.

2. Add chilli, jeera, coriander and turmeric powders. Stir until potatoes are evenly coated with spices.

3. Add bell peppers and stir.

4. Put on low heat and cook for 10 minutes, or until bell peppers are soft. They will also turn a lighter shade of green than when they were raw. 

Plate and serve!

'Til the next dish...

Nevri/Karanji

As a kid, one of my aunts would make this every so often and I loved them so much, I would call them "Ds" because of their shape. I never learned the actual name of the dessert, tsk tsk. Luckily, my mom knew what I was referring to, but would refuse to make it because it involved frying. *sigh*

I had a hankering for them a few days ago and found out that in Konkani, they're called Nevris. In Marathi, they're called Karanjis. I call them delicious. :) Funny story, I was in India having dinner with my parents and uncle before leaving for the airport when my uncle asked if I wanted dessert. I had an upset stomach, so I wasn't too keen on it but he insisted I would love it when it came out. I half-heartedly agreed and when it came out, I was SO excited (it had been years since I had one) that I dug in, tummy ache and all. Point being, nothing gets in between my nevris and me. :)

Alright, on to the recipe... (I made a few changes to the recipe for the filling)

Ingredients:

Dough

1 cup flour

2 tbsp warm oil

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

Oil for frying

Filling

1 cup shredded coconut

3/4 cup jaggery

1/2 cup water

1 tsp ground cardamom (20 pods worth)

1. Make the dough by adding oil and salt to the flour. Once mixed, slowly add in a little water until the dough is formed. It should feel sticky, but not stick to the fingers. The description on the site said "stiff" dough, but I think a better word is dry dough. Stiff, to me, means a rock hard ball of flour, which is not what you want.

2. Cover the dough with plastic and keep aside for 1/2 hour. I usually make the dough first, and then make the filling.

3. Heat the water on a low flame until bubbly. Add jaggery (best if they're in small pieces). Stir until all the jaggery is dissolved, the liquid is golden brown and when you try to part the liquid it stays separate for 4-5 seconds. Basically, it should have the consistency of thick syrup.

4. Stir in the shredded coconut. Take the pan off the heat and add the ground cardamom. The amount of cardamom can be reduced if you're not a fan.

5. Keep aside to let it come to room temperature.

6. Divide the dough into 16 portions (or 8, if you want larger nevris). Roll out each portion into a thin circle (see pic). The thinner the better.

7. Add 1 tsp (twice for a larger nevri) of filling to the right side and fold the left half over the filling. Crimp edges using a fork or by hand. There are also molds available to give a uniform look to the nevris.

8. Fry and serve!

I can't get my nevris to be crispy the next day. I'm trying to figure out what I can add to the dough that will make them remain crispy. I also remember the nevris from my childhood have a rounded shape, like they ballooned during frying. I'll have to keep tinkering and find out the tricks to making them that way.

'Til the next dish...