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Not Red Lentil Curry

November 25, 2012

The Ranting Chef Indian, Kosher, Lunch, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetable, Vegetarian , , , , , , , , , , , , , 13 Comments

My attempts at making and liking Indian food continues. Looking for a meatless entry and one that used the lentils I had already, I found this recipe for Red Lentil Curry.

Ok, so my lentils were not red. I had the white ones in the pantry.

I used chicken broth as I had it on hand.

Fry up the scallions.

Cooking the lentils.

It was a decent hearty dish. Like all the other Indian dishes I’ve made, it really doesn’t fit my palate.

Red Lentil Curry

Prep Time: 10m | Cook Time: 30m | Makes: 4

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 8 scallions, sliced, white and green parts separated
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • 4 medium carrots (about 8 ounces), chopped
  • 1 large russet potato (about 10 ounces), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 cup red lentils
  • 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • kosher salt and black pepper
  • naan bread and lime wedges, for serving

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the ginger, garlic, and scallion whites and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the curry powder. Add the carrots, potato, lentils, broth, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the lentils and vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the curry with the scallion greens and serve with the naan and lime wedges.

Nutritional Info:

Calories 374 Fat 11g Sat Fat 1g Cholesterol 5mg Sodium 549mg Protein 19g Carbohydrate 50g Sugar 7g Fiber 6g Iron 3mg Calcium 78mg

Source: http://www.realsimple.com/m/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/red-lentil-curry-00100000086781/index.html?xid=dailyrecnews-09-26-2012

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No Stranger to Mango

June 22, 2012

The Ranting Chef Chicken, Indian, Kosher, Low Carb, Recipes , , , , , , , , , 23 Comments

As noted previously, I keep trying to make Indian style dishes, despite it never really “clicking” with my taste preferences. I ran across this recipe online and it looked and sounded so great that I knew I needed to try it out.

Curry has never been a mainstay in my household. Not growing up. Not as an adult. I’ll go to it one to two times a year, but it never has become that go-to flavor. Mango had never really been part of my diet until about five years ago. Sure, an occasional slice would make it to my plate, but I never really purchased or cooked with it. Part of that was general availability of the fruit was much more limited than today. Finally I had a recipe for Mango salsa and I have not turned back. While not a major player still in my diet, it is certainly no stranger.

Recent I made Curried Mango Chicken, and while pretty good, still hasn’t made me a convert. However I recognize that billions of others love it, so this is for them!

A decent looking dish.

The mango chutney was found in the “ethnic foods” aisle in my local grocery store.

You can’t go wrong when a recipe has you sautéing onions.

Onions, tomatoes and chicken are so versatile.

The sweet/spicy combo works.

Curried Mango Chicken

Prep Time: 15 Min | Cook Time: 20 Min | Servings: 6 servings | Difficulty:easy

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat – cut into bite-size pieces
  • 3 tablespoons curry paste
  • 1/2 cup mango chutney
  • 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained

Directions:

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat; cook the onion and garlic in the butter until the onions are translucent, 2 to 3 minutes; add the chicken and cook about 30 seconds while stirring. Stir in the curry paste until the chicken is evenly coated. Pour the chutney and tomatoes into the pan; continue to cook until the chicken breasts is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 10 minutes.

Nutritional Info:

Amount Per Serving Calories: 261 | Total Fat: 5.7g | Cholesterol: 91mg Powered by ESHA Nutrient Database

Source: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Curried-Mango-Chicken/Detail.aspx?ms=1&prop25=73715144&prop26=DailyDish&prop27=2011-12-13&prop28=DailyRecipe&prop29=FullRecipe&me=1

Butter Chicken and Dahl

March 13, 2012

The Ranting Chef Chicken, Indian, Low Carb, Recipes , , , , , , , , , , , , 25 Comments

The local paper (Cleveland’s own Plain Dealer), for the last two years has come out with the top 100 restaurants in Northeast Ohio. When it first came out, my wife and I decided that every time we decided to eat out, we’d try to choose from the list until we had been to each of them. Our initial cut showed that we had already been to only 5 on the list. Pitiful. Shameful. For someone who loves good food, I was embarrassed. Then I looked at the list and determined that very few served chicken nuggets and realized that the last 15 years of my eating out was determined by availability of that single menu item. So began our quest.

We don’t eat out much, but really took the challenge to heart when we did. One of the restaurants on the list, in fact the one closest to our home (2 miles away), was an Indian one.

I want to like Indian food. I really do, but so far it hasn’t clicked for me. I am not a big curry fan, so have tried making dishes without it. I have made main dishes and side dishes and while I have not thought them bad, there is nothing that keeps me coming back. We attended the restaurant and again, what we had was good, but not great.

Recently I decided to try my hand again. I decided to make a non-curry main dish, Butter Chicken, and as I had some lentils on hand, Dahl.

The chicken looks very complex as the ingredient list goes on and on, but it is actually very easy.

In the end, my youngest declared that the chicken was underspiced but not bad. My eldest liked the Dahl. My view, it fell in line with other Indian dishes, it wasn’t bad but not sure I’d make it again soon.

Chicken Makhani (Indian Butter Chicken)

Prep Time: 10 Min | Cook Time: 25 Min | Servings: 4 servings | Difficulty: easy

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon peanut oil
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 1/4 white onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/4 cup plain yogurt
  • 1 cup half-and-half
  • 1 cup tomato puree
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 pinch black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon peanut oil
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup water

Directions:

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Saute shallot and onion until soft and translucent.

Stir in butter, lemon juice, ginger-garlic paste, 1 teaspoon garam masala, chili powder, cumin and bay leaf.

Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Stir in half-and-half and yogurt. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Season with salt pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

Reduce heat, and season with 1 teaspoon garam masala and cayenne. Stir in a few spoonfuls of sauce, and simmer until liquid has reduced, and chicken is no longer pink. Stir cooked chicken into sauce.

Mix together cornstarch and water, then stir into the sauce. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes, or until thickened.

Nutritional Info:

Amount Per Serving Calories: 408 | Total Fat: 27.8g | Cholesterol: 107mg Powered by ESHA Nutrient Database

Source: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-makhani-indian-butter-chicken/

Spicy Indian Dahl

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup red lentils
  • 2 tablespoons ginger root, minced
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seed
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  • 4 tomatoes, chopped
  • 3 onions, chopped
  • 3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander seed
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 cup water
  • salt to taste

Directions:

Cook the lentils by boiling or pressure cooking until lentils are soft. (Pressure cooking is faster.)

In a skillet heat the oil and add mustard seeds.

When mustard seeds begin to flutter, add onions, ginger, jalapeno peppers, and garlic. Saute until the onions and garlic are golden brown.

Add coriander and cumin. Add chopped tomatoes. Saute the mixture well until tomatoes are well cooked.

Add water. Boil 6 minutes. Add cooked lentils, stirring well. Add salt to taste, stirring well. Add finely chopped cilantro and remove from heat. Serve hot.

Nutritional Info:

Amount Per Serving Calories: 209 | Total Fat: 5.7g | Cholesterol: 0mg Powered by ESHA Nutrient Database

Source: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Spicy-Indian-Dahl/Detail.aspx

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