Poached Shrimp (in a slow-cooked onion sauce)

This recipe is sick! And I mean that in the "urban dictionary" way: crazy, cool, insane. It all revolves around this amazing sauce which has the consistency of a thick pasta sauce (which is possibly why they suggest serving it over pasta) with some really creative flavors. The core come from the fried onion paste which is made from caramelized onions. Add to that a bunch of other spices and slow cook it until everything blends together and then serve it with some shrimp... heaven!

Poached Shrimp in a Slow-Cooked Onion Sauce bhuna hua jhinga serves 6 2 Tablespoons canola oil 4 lengthwise slices fresh ginger (each 2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and 1/8 inch thick), coarsely chopped 1 cup Fried Onion Paste 2 tablespoons tomato paste 2 teaspoons mango powder or fresh lime juice 2 teaspoons coriander seeds, ground 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ground 1 teaspoon fine black salt 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (ground red pepper) 1 pound large shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), peeled and deveined but tails left on 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems for garnishing

Heat the oil in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the ginger and garlic, and stir-fry until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the garlic and ginger to a blender jar. Pour in 3/4 cup water, followed by the onion paste and tomato paste. Puree, scraping the inside of the jar as needed, to form a thick, reddish-brown paste. Transfer the paste to the same saucepan. Pour 1/4 cup water into the blender jar and swish it around to wash it out. Add this to the pan.

Stir in the mango powder, coriander, cumin, black salt, turmeric, and cayenne. Cover the pan and simmer the sauce over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the oil starts to form a few shiny drops around the edges, 5 to 8 minutes.

Stir in 1/2 cup water, cover the pan, and simmer, stiffing occasionally, until there is a thin film of oil on the surface, 8 to 10 minutes.

Pour in 1/2 cup water and repeat one last time: cover the pan and simmer, stirring occasionally, until there is a thin film of oil on the surface, 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the shrimp and stir once or twice. Cover the pan and poach, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are salmon-orange, curled, and tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Tea and Ginger Simmered Chickpeas

The best thing about this recipe was all the new and neat things I got to try. I was first attracted to it because it use TEA in the cooking. I'm a huge tea fan and I have all sorts of loose-leaf tea around. I usually drink it but using it to cook with sounded to good to be true. Another thing about this recipe is that it is for chickpeas and I always try to find new things to do with legumes. I'd like to eat more vegetarian and tasty recipes are always keepers. And chickpeas are much more "approachable" to the rest of my family than some other legumes like lentils and beans.

So in addition to all the reasons I wanted to try the recipe in the first place, I had a bunch of fun when preparing it because there are some unique ingredients I have not been exposed to before. Like the use of mustard oil. It says you can use canola oil but I grabbed a bottle while I was at the Indian grocer. After I added the cumin seeds I bent my head over the pan to take a whiff and I almost choked! I thought I was smelling for the toasting of the cumin seeds but I inhaled a whole bunch of horseradish smell! Definitely can open up the sinuses.

When I took my first bite of these chickpeas I thought they were bland. So I took a second and scooped up some of the sauce and it was much better. By the third bite the flavors were coming through and after that I couldn't stop until I polished off my whole bowl. I will say that I think this is a bit salty, but I'm not sure if Indian food is supposed to be this way or not. It does call for 1 1/2 tsp. of salt which is quite a lot!

Tea and Ginger Simmered Chickpeas chai patte waali chana serves 6 2 tablespoons black tea leaves, preferably Darjeeling 2 tablespoons mustard oil or canola oil 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic 2 to 4 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, to taste, stems removed, thinly sliced crosswise (do not remove the seeds) 3 cups cooked chickpeas 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric Juice of 1 medium-size lime

Bring 2 cups water to a rolling boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle in the tea leaves, remove the pan from the heat, and allow the tea to steep for about 5 minutes; it will turn the water a deep reddish brown. Strain the infusion, discarding the swollen leaves.

Heat the oil in a medium-size saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the cumin sees and cook until they sizzle, turn reddish brown, and smell fragrant, 5 to 10 seconds. Then add the ginger, garlic and chiles, and stir-fry until the ginger and garlic are light brown and the chiles smell pungent, 1 to 2 minutes.

Stir in the chickpeas, cilantro, salt, and turmeric. Cook, making sure every chickpea gets well coated with the seasonings, until the turmeric is cooked, about 1 minute. Pour in the brewed tea, stir once or twice, and bring to a boil. Then lower the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, until the sauce has thickened slightly, 8 to 10 minutes.

Stir in the lime juice and serve.

Dal with Unripe Mango and Pigeon Peas

Okay, just the title of this recipe alone has my curiosity peeked. What are pigeon peas and why would anyone want to cook anything with an unripe mango? So I set out to make Unripe Mango with Pigeon Peas (khatte aam toor ki dal) from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer.

Well, I still don't really know why pigeon peas are named the way they are, but I can tell you they they are kind of like lentils. They are yellow and usually come dried so you need to rinse them and cook them with water to hydrate them similar to other legumes. As for the unripe mango, it's not as unappealing as I first thought it might be. The mango adds some tangy flavoring which is really unique.

The recipe is long but it is actually very easy to make. It can all be thrown together once you get the mango, onions, chiles and ginger slices. Everything kind of stews and the way the flavors meld together is amazing. I used 10 chiles as suggested and it was hot! I wish I had prepared some raita (cucumber yogurt) to calm the flavors a bit, but when you eat it with rice, the rice counters some of the heat. But people who don't like things spicy may want to tone it down a bit. I think the heat in this balances well with the tart mango and the spices.

I will admit that when I took my first bite I was super proud of myself because I made something that tasted just like what I'd get at an Indian restaurant. And it was really easy! So I am excited to make a few more things from 660 Curries to see what else I can create on my own.

The book suggests serving with Basmati rice but I didn't have any so I used long grain brown rice instead. Not as authentic, but tasty and healthy all the same.

Unripe Mango with Pigeon Peas khatte aam toor ki dal makes 4 cups 1 cup oily or unoily skinned split yellow pigeon peas (toovar dal), picked over for stones 1 medium-size rock-firm unripe mango, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped 2 tablespoons Ghee or canola oil 2 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon left whole, 1 teaspoon ground 6 green or white cardamom pods 1 small red onion, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced 8 to 10 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, to taste, stems removed, cut in half lengthwise, each half cut into long, thin strips (do no remove the seeds) 3 lengthwise slices fresh ginger (each 2 1/2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and 1/8 inch thick), cut into matchstick-thin strips (julienne) 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems 2 teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, ground 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

Place the pigeon peas in a medium-size saucepan. Fill the pan halfway with water and rinse the peas by rubbing them between your fingertips. The water will become cloudy. Drain this water. Repeat three or four times, until the water remains relatively clear, drain. Now add 3 cups water and bring to a boil, uncovered, over medium-high heat. Skim off and discard any foam that forms on the surface. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peas are partially tender, about 10 minutes.

Add the mango and 1 cup water to the partially cooked dal. Stir once or twice, cover the pan, and continue to cook stirring occasionally, until the pigeon peas and mango are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

While the peas and mango are simmering, heat the ghee in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Add the whole cumin seeds and the cardamom pods, and cook until the seeds turn reddish brown and the pods smell fragrant, 5 to 10 seconds. Then add the onion, chiles, and ginger, and stir-fry until the onion is lightly browned and the chiles are pungent, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the cilantro, salt, the ground cumin, coriander and turmeric. Stir-fry until the ground spices are cooked, about 1 minute. Set aside.

Transfer half the cooked pigeon peas, mango, and cooking water to a blender and puree until smooth. Pour this creamy blend into a bowl. Repeat with the remaining peas, mango, and water. Return all the puree to the saucepan. (If you have an immersion blender, you can puree all the peas, mango, and water right in the saucepan.)

Scrape the contents of the skillet into the dal, and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the dal absorbs the flavors, 5 to 8 minutes. Then serve.

Fried Onion Paste

I made this batch of Fried Onion Paste because caramelized onions are the bomb. It is a key ingredient in many curries and since I'm on an Indian kick it shows up in a few recipes I want to make. You can probably buy this at the Indian grocer, but the thought of slowly cooking onions until they was just too much. I LOVE the smell while it's cooking.

This recipe turned out just fine for me, but it didn't go exactly as written. Maybe I didn't have the burner turned up high enough, but it took closer to an hour for my onions to caramelize than the suggested 25 to 30 minutes. Also, it yielded only about a cup and a half instead of 3 cups. 2 pounds of onions really aren't all that much so next time I'll double the batch.

Fried Onion Paste pyaaz ka lep Makes 3 cups 1/4 cup canola oil 2 pounds red onions, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced Preheat a wok or a large, deep frying pan over medium heat. Pour in the oil and swish it around gently to coat the bottom of the pan. the oil will immediately get hot and appear to shimmer. Add the onions and cook them, stirring occasionally, until they are caramel-brown with a deep purple hue, 25 to 30 minutes. Initially they will stew in the oil, but once they start to cook down in volume, you will need to stir them more often as they start to stick to the bottom. Transfer the onions to a place to cool. Pour 1 cup water into a blender jar. Add the caramelized onions and puree, scraping the inside of the jar as needed, to make a smooth, reddish-brown paste. (If you wont' be using all of the onion paste, divide it into smaller batches and freeze them for up to 2 months. Leftover onion paste, stored in a tightly sealed container, will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.)

Tandoori Chicken with Date-Nut Couscous

I haven't made anything from Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine in a while. I found this recipe for Tandoori Chicken with Date-Nut Couscous in the April, 2007 issue. This recipe was part of a feature in an article about buying in bulk - like at Costco or Sam's Club. I'm a big fan of roasted chicken legs and also couscous so I knew I needed to try this out.

I chose to marinade the chicken over night because that is just easier since I have a full time job and hectic work weeks. So it ended up being pretty quick to throw everything together. I love when quick and easy dinners during the week end up having so much flavor - and this definitely did. Using yogurt as a marinade is new to me, so that was fun to experiment with something new. I ended up halving the recipe and I had enough food for dinner, leftover lunch and a bit for the dogs.

You can find the recipe for Tandoori Chicken with Date-Nut Couscous on the Every Day with Rachael Ray website.

eat, pray, love

I read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert a few months ago (I listen to the audiobook) and I have been thinking about it lately. I loved this book! Maybe it is where I am in my life right now, but I have never been truly been inspired by a book by the way I have with this one. It is a cross between a woman's growth into an independant self that she likes, her travel experiences, and learning about cultures and foods from around the world. The book is separated into three parts. Eat: she is based in Rome and explores Italy. Pray: she is at an ashram in India learning about herself. Love: she is in Bali winding up her adventure and setting her paces for the next step in her life.

I want to listen to it again and maybe I will. The book was different than I thought it would be. I thought it would be more about her travels, not about a woman finding herself. So I kind of tuned out some of the first parts when she was in Italy. But I got completely caught up in her and her experiences once she got to India. She practices meditation and she goes through thinking how tedious some of these practices are and how unrealistic they are in every day life. But then she gets swayed over by her guru. I found her path very interesting.

Some of my favorite parts is how she described her relationships and the people she meets from all over the world. And when she goes to these places she lives there for four months each so we find out what life really is like. The foodie in me absolutly loves the way she describes not only the food but also the culture and why their food is an important part of the culture. The audiobook is read by the author herself and she seems like someone who thinks and feels the same things as me. I want to be her friend :)

Indian Noodles (the cheating way)

Some nights I just can't make dinner. I either don't feel like it or don't have time. Or am just busy wanting to do other things like tonight when I was busy waiting for my Vosges Exotic Ice Creams to soften up so I could try them. So I made one of my favorite throw-togethers.

I discovered the combination quite by accident one day at work. I brought regular old spaghetti with some type of tomato sauce I had made the night before as leftovers for my lunch. But the sauce had kind of disintegrated somehow and had no taste. One of the gals I was working with had whipped up some amazing potato curry the night before which she was heating up for her rice. She offered me some so I dumped it on top of my bland pasta. I was looking for some spice but I got so much more. The heat of the curry and the texture of the noodles introduced me to a new meal! And the soft Indian potatoes were so tasty in there as well. I never in a million years would have thought to mix potatoes in with my pasta. Two starches!

That began me on my quest for curry. I really would like to make curry but I have not mastered that yet. Maybe because I have some over-complicated Indian cookbooks, but I am still intimidated by the curry. Not the spice, the recipe. But lucky for me the American grocery stores now carry several ready made curry-like sauces. All you have to do is heat and serve.


Tonight I used lentils in cream sauce. The cream added some thickness that sometimes gets thinned out when combining ready-made curry with noodles. For the pasta, I used the other half of the elbow macaroni box leftover from when I made "Healthy" Four Cheese Macaroni last week. I usually make this with angel hair because i like the lightness of the noodle, but the elbows worked well too. They kept the lightness because the noodle itself is small and yet its shape allows some of the sauce to stick to it.

To make it, all you have to do is heat up the lentils in the microwave for two minutes and mix together! The only hard part to the recipe is to make sure you don't have too much pasta and not enough sauce. So instead of mixing the sauce into the pasta, I mix the pasta into the sauce a few ladels at a time. Then I give the leftover pasta to the dogs.


note* one cup of pasta plus one serving of the lentils in tomato cream sauce is 7 Weight Watchers points.