Veggie Jai-ros..eh Yee-rows..eh Gyros

Well, we had Yee-rows, or gyros as they are (mis)spelled, for lunch this month. Since it was the first time I was making it, I had made our usual lunch as a ‘disaster back up’. I needn’t have – the pitas came out beautifully, the tzatziki was cool and perfect for summer, and the rajmah filling was wonderful. It was a nice blend of all things yummy.

I had joined the google groups ‘The 4 velveteers’  last month and the challenge for this month was Gyros, set by Asha from Fork Spoon and Knife.

I haven’t heard about Gyros before. So in case you are just like me, wondering what this ‘Yee-row, Jai-ro, Gyro thing’ is, it is a sandwich wrapped in a pita bread. It usually has a layer of meat or meat substitutes, followed by salads – mainly onion and tomatoes, and topped with tzatziki (cucumber with yogurt) sauce.

So I divided the task into three – bread baking, red kidney bean filling and the cucumber sauce.

First thing in the morning (which was almost afternoon :D), I made the dough for pita bread. While it was resting, I made the cucumber sauce and kept it in the fridge. The next step was to make the red kidney beans filling and cut the salad vegetables. After that, it was back to pita rolling and baking. Once the pitas were done, I assembled the gyros. Then came the important part – trogo  - well, if that sounds greek to you, it actually is. Trogo is the greek word for eating.

I followed the fresh loaf’s recipe for pita bread. The site has clean and clear instructions. I used 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of whole wheat flour. I had also added four teaspoons of vital wheat gluten to it. I noted that the pitas with uniform thickness puffed up fine for me, the others didn’t puff up fully.

I followed thetofuguru’s video for the sauce and filling, with variations to suit our taste.

Tzatziki Sauce: 

Ingredients:

Cucumber : 2, small 

Yogurt : 2 small tubs of 200g each 

Sour cream : 1 tub (I didn’t use this)

Juice of half a lemon 

Garlic : 1 clove 

Mint : 4-5 leaves

Method:

1. Grate the cucumber first and let it drain in a strainer.
2. I drained the yogurt too for some 15-20 minutes in a big  juice strainer.
   
3. Mix the yogurt, sour cream (if using), lemon juice and mint leaves.
4. Squeeze water out of the grated cucumbers and add to the yogurt mix.
5. Mix nicely and let it rest in the fridge for at least two hours for the flavors to blend. 

Red Kidney Bean Filling:

Ingredients:

Onion : 1 big, chopped

Red Kidney beans : 1 can, drained (about 400 gms)

Olive oil : 1 tbsp

Chilli powder : 1-2 tsp, per taste

Salt & Pepper : to taste

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan, cook the onions till transparent. 
2. Add the red kidney beans, chilli powder, pepper and salt. 
3. Cook for 4-5 minutes, till everything is nicely mixed. 
4. Turn off the heat and keep aside.

Assembling: 

1. Keep the pita bread in a plate / napkin.
2. Add the red kidney beans filling.
3. Add chopped onions and tomatoes.
4. Top it with tzatziki sauce.
5. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
6. Fold the pita and wrap with the napkin.
7. Serve with french fries, if desired.

Verdict:

Absolutely loved these wraps! Next time (yes, I will make it again), I will be increasing the spice components for the sauce and the filling. I will be making the pitas bigger too.

I would never ever have made Pita bread or gyros, if not for this challenge. So, thank you Asha for introducing this dish to our table :)!

Linking this to the Saturday Evening Pot and Tasty Tuesdays.

The 4 Velveteers was started by Pamela, Aparna, Asha, and Alessio, who are passionate about different cuisines and food in general. Each month, we will attempt a new dish and share our experiences and the recipes we used. If you’re interested in joining the Velveteers, please feel free to drop by our Google group http://groups.google.com/group/the-4-velveteers.

Please check out what the other Velveteers have created:

Sarah : Lamb Kebabs and Pita Bread

Aparna : My Vegetarian Version of The Gyro Sandwich

Alessio : Crispy pork belly gyros of many traditions

Veggie Momos

New born babies look a lot like monkeys. Sure, babies look cute after the initial couple of months, but I really couldn’t understand what beauty is there in a wrinkly, wriggly new born with skin coming off! All this thought process was, of course, before I became a mommy.

A very close friend’s son was born six months before Bebo. I saw him a couple of hours after he was born and I was absolutely blown away…that was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen!!! He didn’t remotely look like the wrinkly monkey face I was expecting. So I came out of the hospital thinking that ‘Yeah, some babies really do look beautiful’.

Six months later, when Bebo was born, I was again in for a shock. There he was – the most angelic looking child in the world!! He didn’t look like a monkey in the least!! So I thought, proudly, that there were indeed ‘Johnson & Johnson’ ads kind of new born babies too.

Now when I look at those photos, taken when Bebo was in hospital – well… he does look a bit like monkey. I mean, tightly closed eyes – clenched fists – skin peeling and all.. He looks very cute, but there is no denying that he looks just like all other new borns. 

And now -all babies- new born or not, look very very cute to me. My niece was born last week and I was telling everyone (who would listen to me :D) how beautiful she looks. 

People usually distribute sweets when babies are born, I deviated a bit and made momos, when my niece was born.  I meant to share them, but they were so good that I didn’t even realize that I had almost finished the entire batch :D. So I am just going to give a visual treat to all of you and buy a pack of chocolate to distribute around here.

 Ingredients: 

Dough:

All purpose flour : 2 cups 

Salt : 1/4 tsp or to taste

Oil : 1- 2 tsp

Water : To make the dough (approx 1/2 cup)

Filling : 

Cabbage : 2 1/2 cups, chopped into tiny bits (One small Cabbage)

Carrot : 1 cup (2-3), grated or chopped very fine

Onion : 1 medium, chopped fine

Mushrooms : 100 gms, chopped fine

Ginger garlic paste : 1 tsp

Green Chillies : 1-2 , per taste, chopped fine

Salt : to taste

Chilli Chutney: 

Dry Red Chillies : 4-5 , soaked in a little warm water for 15 minutes

Garlic : 6-8 pods

Coriander Seeds : 1 tsp

Cumin (Jeera) Seeds : 1 tsp

Oil : 1 tbsp

Salt : 1/2 tsp

Sugar : 1 tsp

Vinegar : 3 tbsp

Soya Sauce : 1/2 tsp 

Method : 

1. For the dough, add the flour, along with the salt in a big bowl. Add oil and add 1/4 cup water. 
2. Start kneading with your hands, adding water as you need to get a soft, but firm dough. Keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a pan, add the finely chopped onion, chillies and ginger garlic paste. 
4. Once its cooked, add the mushroom and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add cabbage and carrot. Cover and cook for a further 5 minutes till its cooked.  
5. Add salt, check the seasonings and adjust accordingly, and keep aside. I added a bit of Sabji masala, since I had them at home. 
6. Take the dough, tear off a small marble sized ball from it. Roll it out into small rounds, around 3″ or to the size of your palm. 
7. Place the rolled dough in your hand, and add a teaspoonful of the filling in the center. 
8. Follow the method in this video, cause I don’t think I will be able to put it in words. 
9. When you have made all your momos, steam them for about 8-10 minutes in a steamer. Check for doneness. Serve with a hot chilli sauce. 
10. For the chilli chutney, grind everything together except the vinegar and soya sauce. You can include the water in which the chillies are soaked too. 
11. Check the seasonings and add vinegar and soya sauce according to taste. 

Note:

I didn’t have mushrooms at hand, so I just skipped using them.

I steamed the momos in an idli cooker.

I couldn’t get the frills right, so just pressed the edges together :D. 

I already had some ready made garlic chilli sauce. So I didn’t make any. The original recipe for chutney is from Nita Mehta’s cookbook.