Gobi Manchurian

Words are extremely difficult to come at times. The more so, when there is a pressure. When you really wish, hope and even demand, the ‘word well’ inside us just seem to dry up.

I am trying my level best here, to write something. And I am not able to. This is funny, especially when you consider that I am quite a yakety-yak. Its a fact that there are people who really run away or hide when they see me – cause they know I yack their head off. They know I don’t stop once I start.

My friend who was staying with me, tried her level best to hide her relief when she moved out. No more midnight yack-yack-yack to listen to. Cramped her hostel may be, but there will be peace and calm when she reaches home from work now onward!

Oh well! I have done it again. Four paragraphs explaining how I am not able to write on the blog! That quite makes a post by itself. Enjoy the gobi manchurian, served with a small dose of chatter.

Its the second Wednesday of the month and its time to Blog Hop! This time around, I am paired with Deeksha of Dee’s kitchen. I made her Gobi Manchurian for dinner and it got finished off in a matter of minutes.

Ingredients:

For the sauce:

• Onion                    :       1 small (or 1/2 cup spring onions), chopped
• Capsicum            :        1 small, chopped fine
• Ginger                  :        1/2″ piece, very finely chopped
• Garlic                    :        2-3 cloves, crushed
• Soy sauce            :        2 tsp
• Green Chilli sauce :  1 tsp
• Tomato Ketchup   :   1 tbsp

For the batter and florets :

• Cauliflower florets        :     2 cups
• All purpose flour           :     1/2 cup
• Corn flour                         :     2 tbsp
• Chili powder                    :     1/2 tsp
• Garlic                                  :     1 clove, minced
• Salt
• Water ( 1/4 – 1/2 cups approx)
• Oil                                         : for deep frying

Method:

1. Clean the cauliflower florets and immerse them in hot water with a tsp of salt, for 5 minutes. This is supposed to clean the florets thoroughly. Drain and keep aside.
2. Prepare the batter. Mix the all purpose flour, corn flour, chili powder, garlic with required amount of salt. Add water in steps, starting with 1/4 cup and mixing the batter and then adding a little bit more. You want a batter with pouring consistency, but not too thin. Keep this aside.
3. Prepare the sauce. Heat one teaspoon oil in a kadai. Add the onions (or the white portion of spring onion), capsicum, garlic, ginger and saute till onion turns brown, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Add soya sauce, green chili sauce and tomato ketchup. Mix well and cook for a minute in low heat. Check and add salt as required. Take off the heat and keep aside.
5. Heat oil for deep frying. Take the cauliflower florets, dip it in the prepared batter until it is coated fully. Deep fry in the oil. Drain in a kitchen towel.
6. Once all the florets are fried, add it to the prepared sauce. Mix well. Garnish with spring onions (if you have) and serve hot.
7. This makes an excellent starter to a meal. It also pairs well with any Indo-Chinese rice/noodles.

Linked to:

• Blog Hop Wednesdays

Dil Chahta hai

and my cauliflower curry…

Have you seen the movie Ratatouille? There is a flashback scene, where in the food critic Anton Ego is taken back to his childhood days when he eats Ratatouille.

Similar to that, every time I see a dry cauliflower curry, it takes me back to the day we saw Dil Chahta Hai.

Three of us were supposed to go. Me and another sleeping beauty, slept through the entire morning and left all the work to Miss M. The movie was at around 1 or 1.30 PM – So, Poor Miss M, ended up cooking our brunch, waking us up, making sure that we had food and generally seeing to it that we reach the theater well fed (we would be cranky otherwise), and on time. Our jaws dropped open when we saw that she had booked a call taxi (point to point taxi, which was a whole new thing then). Tickets were sold out by the time we reached the place and we had to buy it in black for Rs. 150/- ( three times the ticket price). When we got in, the movie had started and the first thing we saw was Akshay Khanna’s close up shot and the exclamation was “150 muthalayi” (Well worth the 150 Rupees)!!!!

Now, back to the cauliflower curry. This was what Miss M had cooked for our brunch. My version is not half as good as hers, but still I keep trying.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower – 1 medium, cut into small florets

Onion – 1, chopped fine

Tomato – 1 or 2, chopped fine

Chilli powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric Powder – 1/4 tsp

Garam Masala – 1/2 tsp

Mustard Seeds – 1 tsp

Urad dal – 1 tsp

Curry leaves, a few

Oil – 1 -2 tsp

Salt, to taste

Method :

1. Heat oil in a pan and when its hot, add the mustard. When it splutters, add the urad dal and curry leaves.
2. Add the chopped onions and fry till it turns transparent.
3. Add the chopped tomato and fry till it turns soft.
4. Add all the powders (chilli, coriander, turmeric, garam masala). Add salt and fry for a minute or two.
5. Add the cauliflower florets and mix nicely.
6. Fry for 4-5 minutes, stirring now and then.
7. Add about 1/4 cup water, cover the pan and cook on a low flame till cauliflower is done, about 4-5 minutes.
8. Switch off once the cauliflower is cooked and serve with rice and sambar.

Easier Version:

1. Cover and cook the cauliflower florets in Microwave for about 6-8 minutes. It should be cooked, but shouldn’t be mushy.
2. Heat oil add the spices and salt.
3. Add the (almost) cooked cauliflower and mix nicely.
4. Cook for 3-4 minutes, till the flavors blend in and the cauliflower is completely cooked.
5. Serve with rice and sambar.