Mushroom Biriyani

For me, cooking vegetarian is very hard. Actually it's not the cooking that is hard but deciding what to cook really is. If we are having some guests at home, I would be very happy if they are non-vegetarians. Because I could get away with one chicken curry or fish curry and rice. If they are vegetarians, I am doomed. I would always like to do something unusual for my guests. So I try to  think away from the usual recipes. One of the lifesavers is mushroom biriyani. It's a very easy, quick and yummy recipe, I love to make so that I could finish it off in minutes and turn my focus to other items like appetizers, desserts etc., I always make my pulao or biriyani rice in my rice cooker, but if you prefer to fry the rice and vegetables separately and then cook it in the rice cooker, its ok to that also. Taste dosen't change.

Things you'll need:
Basmati rice - 2 cups
Onion - 2, cut lengthwise
Tomato - 1, cut lengthwise
Mushrooms - 1 cup, cubed (I used button mushrooms)
Capsicum or bell pepper - 1, cut lengthwise
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Green chillies -  3 or 4 according to your spice tolerance
Mint leaves (optional) - a bunch
Coriander leaves - a handful
Lemon - 1/2
Whole garam masala - Cinnamon - 1 inch stick, cloves - 5, Cardamom - 2, Bay leaves - 2
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - as needed
Oil -2 tbsp
Water - 4 cups

Yield - Serves 3 to 4 persons

Method:

Step 1:
Soak the rice for 15 mins.

Step 2:
Heat oil in the rice cooker or a pan, add the whole garam masala. When the cloves crackle, add the onions, fry till translucent, add green chillies and ginger garlic paste. Fry till the raw smell of ginger garlic is gone, then add the tomatoes, capsicum and mushroom and mint leaves. Fry until the raw flavor of the vegetables is gone, then add the turmeric, chilli and coriander powders.

Step3:
Add rice and fry until rice is well coated with the mixture. Add water and salt. If frying in a separate pan, transfer the contents to the rice cooker. Squeeze the lemon juice into rice mixture.

Step 4:
When done, garnish with coriander leaves and serve with raita and your favorite curry.

Tip:
You can also cook this in the pressure cooker. Cook in medium heat for two whistles.

Mint (Pudina) pulao

This is one of my favorite mixed rice varieties. I love this pulao for one more reason..My lil one likes this one after her most favorite 'masala rice' (biriyani). Whenever we get mint from the grocery store, I would make this pulao with any spicy side (rajma masala, channa masala or chicken curry) and there's our exotic lunch served. Excluding the time it takes to remove the mint leaves from the stalks, it takes very less time and could be prepared quickly.

Things you’ll need:

Mint leaves (without stem) – 1 cup

Coriander leaves or Cilantro – a bunch

Green chillies – 2

Onion – 1, cut lengthwise

Ginger garlic paste – 2 tsp

Salt – as required

Lemon juice – 1 tbsp

Coconut milk (optional) – 1 cup

Water – 2 cups (1 cup if using coconut milk)

Whole garam masala (cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves) – as desired

Basmati rice – 1 cup

Oil or ghee – 2 tbsp

Yield – Serves 2-3 people

Method:

Step1:

Clean and soak the rice for 15 minutes. Grind the mint leaves, coriander leaves and green chillies into a paste without adding water.

Step2:

Heat the oil (or ghee) in a pan and add the whole garam masalas. When they crackle, add the onions and saute until they are soft. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry until its raw smell subsides.  Add the green paste and saute for couple of minutes.

Step 3:

Drain and add the rice to the pan, fry until the water is absorbed, add the water (and coconut milk if desired), lemon juice and salt.  Transfer it to a rice cooker or pressure cooker and cook until the rice is done. (you can switch off the cooker in ten minutes if the rice cooker doesn't turn off automatically. For pressure cooker you can switch off after two whistles)

Serve with your choice of curry.

  

Hyderabadi mutton 'Dum' Biriyani

I feel so dumb to say I like biriyani..Who doesn't?. If you are a non-vegetarian you sure do like biriyani. There are different varieties of biriyani depending upon the methods to prepare the biriyani. The most popular one is the hyderabadi dum biriyani which I wanted to try for a long time. But authentic dum biriyani seemed a very complicated process with layering the rice and curry in a big vessel, sealing it, placing it in a hot tava at low heat (I've heard some even add some hot charcoal at the top of the vessel to transfer heat from the top of the vessel)..whew! I got tired thinking about all these processes..I thought there should be a simpler way which takes less time without compromising the taste (without the charcoal thing especially). I made some research (no..I just browsed the web) and found that some had found success making this dum biriyani in oven. Wow! that simplifies it. It doesn't take much time and there's no worrying about rice burning out at the bottom of the vessel. Here's the dum 'oven' biriyani..

Things You'll need:
Mutton - 1 lb
Basmati rice - 1 cup
Onion - 1, big, sliced lengthwise
Green chillis - 4, slit lengthwise
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Curd or yogurt - 1/2 cup
Chilli powder - 2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
Salt - as required
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tbsp
Whole garam masala - (cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves) as required
Oil - 3 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Cardamom  - 1
Mint leaves - a handful
Coriander leaves - a bunch

Yield - 3-4 Servings

Method:

Step 1:
Clean the meat. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Marinade the meat with the chilli powder, coriander powder , turmeric powder, half of the ginger garlic paste, salt, yogurt and lemon juice. Leave it aside for at least an hour or even overnight if possible.

Step 2:
Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, add the whole garam masala, onions, green chillis and ginger garlic paste. Saute until the onions are translucent and soft. Add the marinated mixture and mix well. Add little water and cover the cooker. Cook the meat for 6-7 whistles or until the meat is almost done.

Step 3:
Bring some water in a vessel. Add the rice, salt, cumin seeds and cardamom. Cook the rice until the rice is half-cooked (The rice should look grainy but should be soft when touched).

Step 4:
Drain the rice. Layer half of the the meat mixture and rice in an oven-proof dish. Add some of the mint leaves and coriander leaves. Again layer the remaining meat mixture and rice and top it with the remaining mint and coriander leaves. If you like some colored rice, mix some saffron in teaspoon of milk and add it by spoon at some points of the rice layer.

Step5:
Cover the dish with an aluminium foil and seal the edges so that the steam doesn't escape. Place the dish in the oven and cook it for 10 to 15 minutes depending upon the oven. Remove the dish, allow the steam to settle. Then open the foil and fluff the rice. Don't stir too much or the rice will break. Serve it hot with raita and curry of your choice. I served it with keema gravy and raita.

Burrito bowl

Mexican cuisine is one of my favorites since it resembles Indian flavors and it is rich in protein and carbs. The burrito bowl is an excellent idea for lunch box or a quick meal for an unexpected guest. This can either be had as it is or can be filled into a tortilla to make a delicious burrito. I have searched different websites and have come up with this version.

Things you'll need:

For Guacamole:
Avocado - 1
Tomato - 1/2 minced
salt - as needed
lemon juice - 1tsp

For pico de Gallo:
Tomato - 1 big, finely chopped
Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped
Jalapeno - 1 finely chopped
salt  - as needed
lemon juice - 1 tsp
cilantro - two or three sprigs, finely chopped

For rice:
cooked rice - 2 cups
cilantro - 2 or three sprigs finely chopped
oil - 1 tbsp
salt - as needed

For beans :
Kidney beans - 1 can or 1 cup of dried beans which can be soaked and cooked ( you can also use white kidney beans or dark red for variety of colors)
Cumin powder - 2 tsp
salt - as needed (canned kidney beans contains salt)

Sour cream - as per taste

Yield  - 2 Servings

Method:

Step1:
Wash and cook the rice. Mix the oil, cilantro, salt and few drops of lemon juice and keep aside. Finely chop the items for pico de Gallo (tomato,onion,cilantro & Jalapeno). Mix them with lemon juice and salt.













Step2:
Prepare guacamole by cutting and scooping out the avocado pulp, and making a puree of the pulp in a food processor, with tomato and salt. Mix few drops of lemon juice to the guacamole to prevent oxidation (changing of color)

Step3:
Wash and cook the kidney beans (just wash thoroughly if using canned beans). Saute the beans in little oil with minced garlic, cumin powder and salt. You could add some stock to make a thick gravy.

Step4:

Take a bowl, arrange the rice, beans, guacamole, pico de Gallo and sour cream in whichever order you like, scoop it from top to bottom to get the taste of all the ingredients in every bite.

Note:

If you couldn't find or dosen't like sour cream just substitute with plain yoghurt. The taste does not change.