Paneer Pulao (Cottage Cheese Pulao)

My son is a great fan of paneer no matter what the dish.so paneer is on our family menu at least once a week but believe me I don't know why I haven't posted a single paneer recipe on my blog yet.I guess I mostly make paneer for dinner and either I get too tired to click a picture or the lighting is not sufficient.So this time when I made Paneer Pulao for lunch and the first thing I decided is to make a post of it on my blog .Here goes everyone's favourite Paneer Pulao and I served it along with small onion and capsicum raita (which I will post soon).to add colour to the pulao I added green peas.You can add other veggies too.

Preparation time:20 mins

Serves :3

Ingredients:

Paneer or Indian cottage cheese cubes-200 gms

Basmati rice or (jeeraga samba rice which I used here)-1 1/2 cup

Green peas-1/2 cup

Thinly sliced onion-1 no

Chopped fresh mint leaves-1/4 cup

Chopped fresh coriander leaves-1/4 cup

Garam masala-1 tsp

Salt -to taste

Sugar-1 tsp

Milk-1/2 cup

Oil-2 tbsp

Ghee-1 tbsp

To be grind to a fine paste:

Small onion or pearl onions-6 to 7 no

Garlic -5 pods

Ginger-1 1/2 inch

Green chillies-2( depending on your spice level)

To temper:

Star anise-2

Bay leaves-2

Cinnamon-2 one inch sticks

Green cardamom -2

Cloves-2

Procedure:

1.Grind the ingredients given for grinding to a fine paste.

2.Heat a cooker,add 1 tbsp of oil and ghee .Then add the sugar and once it caramelizes add  the ingredients given for tempering .Now ass the sliced onions and saute well.

3.Once the onions turn golden brown add the ground pate ,followed by chopped mint and coriander leaves.

4.After it is sauteed well ,add the green peas and soaked basmati rice and mix well.

5.Then add the water and milk followed by garam masala. Mix well and close the cooker lid and cook for 2 whistles.In a separate wok add a tbsp of oil and shallow fry the paneer till they are golden brown.Place this roasted paneer inside warm water to retain its softness.

6.Add this paneer to the cooked rice and mix well when it is hot so that the flavour blends well with the paneer.

7.The most yummy and flavorful paneer pulao is ready in a jiffy.Serve hot with any raita of your choice.

Tips:

*I used Jeerasamba rice so the grains are small.You can use basmati rice to get a long grain texture but flavour wise both are good.

*Mixing the paneer after the rice is ready helps it to keep soft .If you cook the paneer along with rice,sometimes it turns rubbery.

Guest Post:Arisiyum Paruppum Sadam using avaraiparuppu(Lentil Flavored Rice)

Ever since I started blogging I wanted to invite a friend to do a guest post for my blog and now I am honored and extremely happy to do it for my friend Prabha Bubesh.She is a very enthusiastic and cheerful person with loads of creativity.She is a great motivator and encourages me in every step of my blogging journey .So here goes my guest post for Prabha ...Arisiyum Paruppu Sadam using avarai paruppu,a typical Kongunadu specialty.

Hailing from Coimbatore one cannot say they haven't tasted Arisiyum Paruppu Sadam.It is a very delicious and yummy one pot meal ,packed with protein and carbohydrates to keep you going for the day.More than that it is super easy to make an ideal lunch box recipe.Usually they make it with rice and toor dal but I tried it with avarai paruppu and the outcome was a delectable and flavourful rice .It tastes best when served hot with ghee and potato curry.

To see the post at Prabha's Space click: http://prabasyummyexperiments.blogspot.in/2015/07/arisiparuppu-sadam-guest-post-from-suja.html

Her FB Page:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Prabas-yummy-experiments

Google+ : https://plus.google.com/106582238724700402955

Tomato Pulao

This is yet another nice variety which I make regularly for lunch and ideal for lunchbox .The tomato pulao also comes handy whenever I run out of vegetables or when I return from a 2 or 3 days trip,as I have onions and tomatoes always .The tomato pulao when paired up with a simple onion raita or a potato fry tastes awesome and heavenly.To get the bright red color I puréed the tomatoes but you can add finely chopped tomatoes also.

Preparation time:20 minutes

Serves:2

Ingredients:

Basmati rice -1 cup

Tomatoes-3 no

Chopped onion-1 big

Slit green chillies-2

Chilli powder-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Garam masala-1/2 tsp

Coriander leaves-togarnish

Salt -to taste

Oil-2 tbsp 

To be grind to a fine paste:

Garlic-4 pods

Ginger-1 inch

Saunf/fennel seeds-1/2 tsp

To temper:

Bay leaves-3

Cinnamon-1 inch stick

Cloves-2

Green cardamoms-2

Procedure:

1.Soak the basmati rice in 1 and 1/2 cups of water for 20 mins.Grind the ingredients for grinding to a fine paste.

2.Heat oil in a pan and add the tempering ingredients and then add the ground paste.

3.Once it is sautéed well add the slit green chillies and chopped onions .Then add the chilli powder,turmeric powder and salt.

4.Then add the puréed tomatoes and fry well till the tomatoes are cooked.then add the soaked basmati rice along with the water and transfer it to the pressure cooker.

5.Add the chopped coriander leaves and garam masala and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

6.Serve the tomato pulao hot with raita or potato roast.

Tips:

* You can add green peas to make it look colorful and attractive for kids.

*Soaking of basmati rice helps in getting a  long grain after cooking.

*Add mint leaves for an enhanced flavour.I didnt add it as I ran out of mint leaves.

Spinach sweet corn pulao

Fresh spinach in the refrigerator gives you a lot of options to cook with.this time I decided to make a pulao with spinach.Usually I make either hara bhara pulao with spinach so I wanted to try something different and I had some sweet corn kernels also.Voila ! Spinach Sweet Corn Pulao.Its simple to make and yet very delicious and ideal for any party or as a lunch box menu.with the goodness of spinach it makes a wholesome meal. Even kids will love it as sweet corn is added to this pulao .My son loved it and urged me to make it again . 

Serves:3

Preparation time:30 mins

Ingredients:

Basmati rice-2 cups

Chopped Spinach -2 cups(packed tightly)

Sweet corn-50 gms

Chopped onion- 1 big

Chopped tomato-1 

Green chillies-1 or 2 slit lengthwise

Chilli powder-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Oil-2 tbsp

Ghee-1 tbsp

Chopped coriander leaves -2 tbsp

Chopped mint leaves -2 tbsp

Kasuri methi -1 tbsp

Garam masala-1/2 tsp

Salt-to taste

To grind to a fine paste:

Small onions-9

Ginger-1 inch 

Garlic-4 pods

To temper:

Bay leaves-2

Cloves-2 

Cinnamon -2 one inch sticks

Cardamom-2

Procedure:

1.Wash and soak the basmati rice in 3 cups of water for 20 mins.

2.Grind the ingredients given above for grinding to a fine paste.

3. Heat oil and add the tempering ingredients.after a minute add the slit green chilli and onions and saute well .

4.Once the onions turn transparent add the ground paste and mix well till the raw smell goes off.Then add the turmeric powder,salt and chilli powder.

5.After it is done,add the tomatoes and saute well,followed by spinach,coriander and mint.

6.After the greens are sautéed well add the fresh sweet corn kernels,rice along with the water in which it is soaked .add kasuri methi and garam masala and pressure cook for 1 whistle.

7.The spinach sweet corn pulao is ready and serve hot with raita and papad.

Tips:

*You can use boiled channa insteadof sweet   corn for a spinach channa pulao.

* You can avoid garam masala if you wish.

*When soaking basmati rice,instead of water you can substitute half of it with milk for a rich flavour and taste.

Pudina Rice/Mint Rice

Mint rice is a very refreshing and satisfying one pot meal which can be prepared in a jiffy and also an ideal lunch box recipe.My mom used to make this often when we were kids and in fact we used to have it for dinner also when we run out of tiffen ideas.Mint rice tastes delicious with a simple raita and I like to eat just like that even without a side dish.It is quite similar to coriander rice but has an intense mint flavor and awesome taste.I added the whole garam masala for tempering as my son always prefers any variety rice in pulao style.You can omit it and yet the Mint rice tastes yummy.

If you like the recipe please free to drop a comment below.Your comments encourage me to do more.Thank you!

Other rice varieties on my blog are:

• Hyderabadi Vegetable Dum Briyani
• Bisibelebath/Sambar rice
• Quick capsicum rice
• Coriander rice
• Curd rice

Preparation time :20 mins

Serves:3

Ingredients:

Basmati rice-2 cups

Chopped onion-1 no

Oil-2 tbsp

Ghee -1 tbsp

Salt-to taste

Bay leaves-2 no

Cinnamon-3 small stocks of 1/4th of an inch

Cardamoms-2

Cloves-3 

Cashews broken-6 to 7 

To be Grind to a paste:

Mint leaves-1 small bunch

Coriander leaves-few strands (1:4=coriander:mint)

Small onions-6 to 8 nos

Ginger -1 inch

Garlic -5 to 6 cloves

Tamarind-a small piece

Grated coconut -3 tbsp

Green chillies-3 (increase or decrease according to your need)

Procedure :

1.Soak the basmati rice in 3 cups of water and cook them till they are soft,fluffy and separate(cook for 2 whistles along with the soaked water).

2.Grind mint,coriander,ginger,garlic,small onions,green chillies,tamarind and coconut to a fine paste.

3.Heat oil in a wok,add bay leaves,cardamom ,cloves and cinnamon .After a minute,add the cashews and fry till they are golden brown.

4.Add the chopped onions and sauté till they are transparent.then add the ground paste and keep sautéing till the raw smell goes off .

5.Add the cooked rice,salt and ghee and then mix well .make sure you don't make the rice mushy .switch off the flame and serve the mint rice with Raita or potato curry or applam/chips.

Hyderabadi Vegetable Dum Briyani

Who won't crave for hot and spicy Hyderabadi veg briyani?I love it and I some how feel that the nearest Grand snacks restaurant ie amirtham in my area serves the best veg Dum Briyani. And whenever we feel like having Dum Briyani we go there.i tried once at home but isn't get it perfectly(it was good but not same as the one we ate at the restaurant ).So after a lot of trail and errors over a period of time I finally got a dum Briyani which was close to the taste of amirtham restaurant and my folks were happy and relished it.Though this Briyani was spicy for us ( our husband and kid's spice tolerance is very very low),you can add more green chillies or red chilli powder if your spice level is high.

Preparation time:35 mins

Serves:3

Ingredients:

Basmati rice-2 cups

Mixed  chopped Vegetables(carrot,beans,cauliflower,potato,peas)-1 1/2 cups

Thinly sliced onions(lengthwise)-1 no

Tomato purée -from 1 tomato

Ginger-1 inch

Garlic-6 cloves

Small onions-5 nos

Curd-1/2 cup

Bay leaves-4

Cinnamon stick 1/2 inch -3 nos

Peppercorns-5

Cloves-4 

Cardamom-4

Slit Green chillies-4

Chopped coriander leaves-1/4 cup

Mint leaves-1/4 cup

Cashews-5 

Raisins-5

Chilli powder-2 tsp

Turmeric powder -1 tsp

Sugar-1 tsp

Garam masala-1 tsp

Oil-2 tbsp

Ghee- 1 tbsp

Procedure:

1.Wash and Soak 2 cups basmati rice in 3 cups of water for 20 mins.

2. After 20 mins add the whole garam masala(2 bay leaf,1 cardamom,2 peppercorns,2 cinnamon sticks and 1 clove) and cook them till they are fluffy and 3/4 th cooked.I cooked in a heavy bottom Kadai with lid on, till they are 3/4 th cooked.

3. Spread the cooked rice on a plate and let it cool down and the grains separate.

4.Take half portion of this rice and mix 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and keep it separately.

5.Grind ginger,garlic and small onions to a fine paste.

6.Heat a wok with 2 tbsp of oil and add the remaining bay leaves,cinnamon,cloves,peppercorns,cardamom and a tsp of sugar

.

7.when the sugar carmelises add the sliced onions and slit green chillies and sauté till the onions are golden brown.

8.Add the ground garlic,ginger and onion paste and mix well and cook for minute.then add the tomato purée ,chilli powder,turmeric powder and salt and sauté till the tomatoes are cooked.

9.Now add 1/4 th cup of curd and mix well.add the vegetables and half of coriander leaves and mint and sauté well for a minute.now add a cup of water and close the wok with a lid.

10.Cook till the vegetables are done.the consistency should be semi-dry gravy.Before taking it off the heat,add garam masala.

Preparation of Dum :

11.Fry the cashews and raisins in a tbsp of ghee and keep it separately.

12.In a heavy bottomed pressure cooker add a tbsp of ghee and spread half of the white and yellow rice and then spread the vegetable gravy, add the fried nuts and raisins,and some coriander and mint leaves

.

13.Add the remaining white and yellow rice on top of the vegetables and spread some nuts,coriander and mint leaves. Add the remaining curd on top of this rice.repeatthe above process if you have more rice and vegetable gravy( if you are preparing for a large group).

14.Close the cooker with the lid but don't put the whistle and simmer the flame.let it cook for 8-10 mins.

15.After this time, open the cooker and mix it delicately so that the rice don't get mushy and you can add another tbsp of ghee when mixing the rice to get a rich taste and flavour.Serve hot with raita.

Tips:

* I didn't have star anise, but you can add it if you have along with cinnamon and other spices.

*Make sure you cook the basmati rice to 75% . It gets cooked fully when it is on dum.

*The vegetables mixture should be semi-gravy and not completely dry.

*If you wish,you can garnish the hyderabadi vegetable dum briyani with fried onion slices.