Mirchi ka salan

I was looking for a low key accompaniment for biryani and came across this recipe.  We always end up making cucumber raita for any kind of pulao/veg rice/biryani.  The combo is yummy and refreshing for sure, but in the way that a seasoned tongue demands more I was on the lookout for a wholesome accompaniment for rice dishes.  This fits the bill.  Apparently salan can be done from other vegetables as well (such as tomato/brinjal?) but this version is simply awesome. 


I got the recipe from this page http://www.cookingandme.com/ and of course tinkered with it a little bit.  The recipe can be found on this link: (http://www.cookingandme.com/2013/07/mirchi-ka-salan-mirchi-ka-salan-recipe.html)  The recipe here was very well presented and neat/concise instructions literally made it a cakewalk.

I used jalapenos instead of the type of mirchi recommended in this page, firstly because we love the toasted jalapenos, secondly because I only had the small green chillies with me and I am sure that would be way too spicy for us.

I omitted the jeera powder simply because I did not have it in my pantry.  Here's what I did.

I washed 5 jalapenos, wiped them dry with a paper towel, split them in half and roasted them with a tsp. of cooking oil on a tawa till they were uniform.  I could have taken out the seeds but let them be - this way the spice level was individualized - if you liked spicy you could bite into it.

On a dry pan I roasted 3 tbsp. freshly grated coconut, followed by 1 tbsp. of sesame seeds and 3 tbsp. of peeled peanuts.  This mixture toasts very easily and I had to constantly turn it around with a spoon so that they were uniformly brown.  When this cooled down I ground it into a fine paste and kept aside.

In the same pan I roasted jalapenos, I added 1 tbsp. cooking oil, added mustard and fenugreek; when mustard sputtered I added finely chopped onion (1 big onion) and curry leaves.  I added salt, turmeric, 1 tsp. of red chilly powder, 1 tbsp of coriander-chilly powder.  When onion was brown added 2 cups of water and let it simmer.  There was a nice aroma from the fenugreek seeds.  The recipe called for tamarind extract.  I have fresh tamarind, and since I had not soaked the tamarind ahead, I added an inch or so of fresh tamarind when this mixture was simmering.  We are not great fans of sweet/sour combination hence did not add the tsp. of sugar which the recipe calls for.

In a few minutes I added the ground paste and let it thicken till the desired consistency.  I added the jalapenos and let it simmer just for a minute or two.  We let it rest for about an hour. 

Since this was a super hit in my home, I "expanded" this recipe the next day by cutting the jalapenos into three or four pieces and pretty much did everything else afresh, the paste and the onions/masala etc.

The beauty of this recipe is its flexibility - your preference matters whether its the spice level or the consistency of the gravy(based on the coconut-sesame-peanut paste).  This was a reasonably simple and fun preparation. 

Chefpro Roti-maker review

Awesome gadget!  

We were looking for a reliable roti maker and initially I was oscillating between a manual one and electric version - because left to me I would like to keep things simple, and moreover did not want to shell out nearly 40 bucks for a gadget.  Came across quite a few cast iron and cast aluminum tortilla presses online but the reviews were very confusing - some said it broke after a few uses; some said it was not suitable to make Indian breads like chapati or puri.  Moreover it was all online - I would prefer to get to feel the gadget before purchasing.  Looked for it in speciality kitchen ware stores but no luck.  

Anywise, asked around in my friends circle and combed the internet for some hints but again got such mixed opinions.  Then finally we decided to take the plunge (I dont take credit for this) and got one at the local store.  It was the Chef pro brand and there are two sizes - 8" and 10".  In my opinion 8" is sufficient for household use.

I cannot say that I started making perfect rotis from day one; in fact I wondered if I had made a mistake of getting it.  The instructions which came along with the gadget were a little vague  and the few demo reviews on the net were not very helpful too.   To me it seemed like a camera trick that their rotis came out so perfectly.  But hey! perseverance does pay! 

Now I have evolved a way of getting near perfect rotis - 

1. make the dough a trifle watery than what you would for hand-making it. 

2. Use a little more oil than you would while mixing the dough - cooking oil is better than olive oil; but you can probably use an equal ratio of both.

3.  Smear a little oil (instead of atta powder) while pressing.

4.  Switch on the roti maker, adjust the heat settings between medium and maximum.

5.  Take a small amount of dough, flatten a little, smear a little oil on both sides, place it off center near the hinge and press through.

6.  Flip the roti and place it in the centre and press again, most of the way. (pressing it all the way could make the edges unnecessarily thin)

7.  Have a heated tawa ready and cook roties the usual way, except it starts fluffing right after dropping on the tawa because the heat in the roti maker has already started cooking it.

A great addition to my kitchen appliances!! Thoroughly enjoying the ease of making rotis now!! Its so much more convenient and quicker!  FYI I was very comfortable hand-rolling rotis as well.  But another stark difference in using the roti maker is the less use of counter space which is always in great demand!