21th July 2009 - Lunch - Suji/Rawa ke Cheele

What

Credits to Rohit Shroff (affectionately (?) called CP) again for suggesting the dish and giving a decent recipe. It was a cheela sort of preparation again, only with rawa/suji/semolina. I didn't have a lot of time, so I skipped the onions etc, and just filled it with mashed potatoes so that it would be filling for lunch. That, and half a litre of milk with cocoa would do nicely for Lunch!

How did it look?

Improvement

• A lot can be done. Some chopped onions, better stuff to fill and so on.
• To save time, I made thicker ones, which don't taste as nice as the thinner ones. Compromises!
• FLIPS! Today was fun. As my time in Germany nears its end, I am desperate to try as much stuff as possible. I just had to do the flipping again. I practised more, just to be sure, and then took the video. Vanity! The first time I tried the flip, it was half-hearted, and resulted in a half-flip, which neatly folds the cheela. The full flip will lose points for bad landing though. It's fun practising this stuff. So, I tried to do that again, and voilà!

20th July 2009 - Dinner - Veg Frankie

What?

It was an attempt at making Veg Frankie, the sort they serve at canteens, with a few changes.

Credits to Rohit Shroff for the suggestion. I checked out the recipe at Tarla Dalal's website, but she would have had me fry both the Roti and the potato balls, which was just too much, so I by-passed the recipe a bit.

How did it look?

A bit messy

Improvement

• I would only call the result average. The wrap wasn't thin enough, nor big enough (though that is due to the small pan), and would open up again and again.
• For filling, I used boiled, mashed potatotes with cheese, and chopped onions and tomatoes mixed with the oh so awesome Jaljira. Some chilly sauce on top and some Bhujia sprinkled for the flavour.

20th July 2009 - Lunch - Besan ke Cheele

[This, by the way, is the 50th post on this blog. Yay]

What?

I think the names for this dish differ a lot, but many people recognize it by the name of Besan ke cheele, so that's what I am using. I had tried to make it in the first week of my stay in Germany, and it had been a complete disaster. Today, armed with more experience, and a lot of Besan, I decided to conquer it.

How did it look?

The pic isn't as good as usual, please don't mind.

Improvement

• In all such dishes which involve making stuff like pancakes/omlettes, I have realized there are too crucial things: Making sure it's uniform, and making sure it doesn't stick and/or break.
• This also makes it easy to screw them up. I ruined one even today (not pictured :P). But the sticking problem can be solved by first spreading a uniform layer of oil/butter/ghee on the pan, and then spreading the batter.
• As for the breaking, I found it's best not to try to turn it when it's still quite wet. Once it gets cooked a bit and has some structural strength (!), you can go for the flip, making it as quick as possible.
• I was always fascinated by the way chefs flip pancakes and stuff by giving that jerk to the pan, without using a spoon or anything else. I desperately wanted to try it, but was scared of losing a well-formed cheela! I tried it, et voilà, it was easier than I expected!
• In my vanity, I even took a video of the whole thing, except I didn't have a decent vantage point for the camera, so you only see the cheela momentarily, but the flipping noise and the fact that you don't see it falling down should be proof enough :P. Check out

18th July 2009 - Lunch - Chhole Tikki

What?

I had decided that the last week of my stay here would see as much variety as I could manage. So, today, I thought of making Chhole Tikki. I had purchased 1 kg. chick peas, so I had some left which I used today. The result was pretty satisfying!

How did it look?

OK, so let's go step by step!

2 down, 3 to go

Vaibhav wanted to be photographed doing the frying :)

All done

Jeera Rice on the side

All set

Improvement

• This was really fun. The tikki had great consistency and there was no trouble with the shallow frying.
• Potatoes are best boiled in the µWave. I mean, it saves time, energy and nutrients. In about 4-5 minutes, you can boil 4 potatoes without using any extra water! That's the beauty of it all. Potatoes contain enough water for self-boiling.
• I had some jeera rice along with this, so I made sufficient gravy for the Chhole and then poured it and some chhole on the rice, while using the rest for the Tikki.
• The whole thing works best with chopped onion, ketchup, imli ki chutney and some coriander on the top. After that, you can always add stuff like aloo bhujiya for additional taste. I used chopped onions, chilli sauce and a special type of salad dressing which tasted quite well.

18th July 2009 - Breakfast - Omlette

What?

I had made an omlette last week too, but didn't put it up. Today when I made it, it turned out exceptionally well, and I had to upload it!

How did it look?

Improvement

• Making the egg blend is not tough at all, but getting a round and uniform omlette needs practice. I was thwarted often by the most crucial step, flipping it on the pan.
• To ensure that it didn't stick, first layered the pan with lots of butter.
• After spreading the mix uniformly, the best way to check if it is sticking is to shake the pan and the omlette should slide freely, which it did!
• And of course, while flipping, it was necessary to ensure it didn't break.
• A bit of milk in the blend does wonders; makes it all nice and fluffy.

15th July 2009 - Lunch - Onion Paraathey

What?

After a few days, I decided to try my hands once more on Onion Paraathey, and the results were greatly exceeding expectations.

They turned out exactly the way I usually like them, were quite round and did not break on folding!

How did it look?

14th July 2009 - Lunch - Halwa

What?

I made Suji ka Halwa (suji, rawa, whatever). We call it Sheera, and it turned out pretty well. I had made quite a few times here, but this was the first time I took a pic.

How dit it look?