A Taste of India

The following three recipes aren’t exactly an Indian menu—but could be with a few additions. Like rice and stir-fried spinach with garlic. Better in terms of learning to cook Indian food and helping your dinner companions like the spiciness of it, you might introduce the chicken or the chickpeas into a dinner that is rounded out with more familiar fare. Like rice and a salad. The carrot dip will be a hit under any circumstances.

Curried Carrot Dip

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into ½ -inch pieces
¼ cup sunflower seeds, lightly toasted
2 teaspoons olive oil
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1. Place the carrots in a pot of salted water and bring it to a boil. Cook for 7 to 10 minutes or until soft. Drain and let cool.
2. Place the sunflower seeds in a blender or food processor and process into crumbs. Add the carrots and all the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as needed.
3. Taste for salt and adjust the spices and lemon juice. Transfer to a covered container and refrigerate until ready to use. Serve with crackers, toasted naan (Indian bread) or fresh veggies.

Makes 2 cups
Adapted from Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero’s Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook

Chickpeas with Mango Powder
This recipe calls for mango powder which you can find at a purveyor of Indian spices in your area. I go to Vik’s Chaat Corner in Berkeley, located on Channing Way at Fourth Street. But don’t hesitate to use lime juice instead. Vary the amount of heat in the dish by starting with a small amount of cayenne, tasting the sauce (and waiting for the heat to build), and adding more to your taste. This dish benefits from sitting for a while after being made. The flavor sneaks into the chickpeas with every passing minute. Just reheat gently before serving.

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 black, green or white cardamom pods
1-2 cinnamon sticks, 3 inches long
1 cup canned crushed or diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons mango powder or fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, ground, or 2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
½ teaspoons cayenne pepper [I used about 1/8 teaspoon]
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
3 cups cooked chickpeas, canned or cooked from dried beans
1 cup water or chicken stock
4 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
¼ cup finely chopped red onion

1. Heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium high heat. Sprinkle in the cumin seeds, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks and cook until they sizzle and smell aromatic, 10 to 15 seconds.
2. Add the tomatoes, mango powder or lime juice, coriander, ground cumin, salt, cayenne, and turmeric. Lower the heat to medium and simmer the sauce, partially covered, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Stir in the chickpeas, 1 cup water or stock, and 2 tablespoons cilantro. Cover the pan and simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally until the chickpeas absorb the flavors, and the sauce thickens, 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Remove the cinnamon sticks. Sprinkle with the onion and the remaining 2 tablespoons cilantro and serve.

Makes 4 cups
Adapted from Raghavan Iyer’s 660 Curries

Chicken in Saffron-Almond Sauce
This dish is so convenient. Ahead of time you can get the chicken steeping in the cream and saffron, chop up the garlic and ginger, and make the almond paste. When you are ready for dinner, everything is set to go and you can cook it up in 20 to 25 minutes.

















1-2 pinches saffron threads
½ cup heavy cream, warmed (in the microwave)
1¼ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch strips
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper [I used much less.]
½ cup blanched almond slivers
¼ cup water or chicken stock
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (see below)
2 tablespoons ghee, vegetable oil, or butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1. In a large bowl, steep the saffron in the warm heavy cream for 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add the chicken, cilantro, salt, and cayenne. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes but no more than 8 hours.
3. In a blender, purée the almonds, water or stock, and Garam Masala until smooth.
4. In a 10-inch skillet, heat the ghee, oil or butter over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden.
5. Stir in the chicken mixture and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 12 to 15 minutes, or until partially cooked.
6. Mix in the almond paste and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink in the center.
7. Pour into a warmed serving bowl. Rice or naan (Indian bread) are great for sopping up the delicious sauce.

4 servings
Adapted from Raghavan Iyer’s The Turmeric Trail

Garam Masala
You can find jars of Garam Masala in the spice section of your supermarket or in packets at an Indian spice store. I don’t particularly like the balance of spices in these jars—the one I tried has too much allspice or cloves in it. But if you are really pinched for time, try one out. It won’t ruin your dish, but your own mixture will make it much better.

1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds (removed from the pods)
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
15 whole cloves
3 cinnamon sticks, 3 inches in length, broken into pieces

1. In a small heavy skillet, roast all the spices over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the spices turn one shade darker, start to crackle, and become fragrant.
2. Transfer the roasted spices to a plate to cool for 3 to 5 minutes. Grind in a spice grinder until the mixture has the texture of finely ground black pepper.
3. Store in an airtight jar in a cool, dark place for up to a month. Be sure to label the jar so you remember the contents.

Makes about ¼ cup
Adapted from Raghavan Iyer’s The Turmeric Trail

Menu 16: A Lemon and Herb Extravaganza

If I were to choose a wine to go with the lemon and herbs in all three dishes, I might try a gewurztraminer or a riesling with a little residual sweetness to balance all the sour herbiness. What do you think would work nicely?

John’s Roasted Chicken with Herbs and Lemon

















1 (3½ pound) free-range chicken
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, softened (in the microwave for 1 minute)
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme or rosemary
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
Lemon wedges, for serving
Chopped parsley to garnish, optional

1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400ºF. Line a low-sided roasting pan with parchment paper. If you are using a pottery dish, there is no need to line it with parchment.
2. Remove the giblets and the neck from inside the chicken.
3. Set the chicken on its tail with the backbone facing you. Cut down along one side of the backbone from the neck to the tail. Cut down along the other side.
4. Open the chicken and split the chicken between the breasts from neck to tail. You now have two halves of a chicken, without the backbone. Remove the center breastbone if you want.
5. In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, butter, parsley, salt, and thyme or rosemary. Massage the mixture all over the chicken halves, slipping some underneath the skin. Season with salt and pepper, especially the inside without the skin.
6. Set the chicken halves, skin side up, on the prepared pan and roast until the juices run clear when the thickest part of the thigh is pricked, about 40 minutes. (A 4-pound chicken will take 50-55 minutes; a 5-pound chicken will take 50-60 minutes.)
7. Serve hot or warm, with lemon wedges and the optional parsley.

4-5 servings
Adapted from Carrie Brown’s The Jimtown Store Cookbook

Lemon Barley Pilaf

















2¾ cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking pearl barley
OR
1 cup de-hulled barley
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage or 1 teaspoon dried sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Grated zest from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring water and salt to a boil and stir in the barley. When the water returns to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes for the quick-cooking and 25 for the de-hulled. Drain if necessary.
2. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet and sauté the onion until transparent and golden, about 10 minutes. Add the drained barley, herbs, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste, and toss together. Serve warm or hot.

Note: You can make the whole dish ahead of time. When it is time to serve, reheat it in the skillet and taste for seasonings, especially salt.

4 servings
Adapted from Linda Gassenheimer’s Dinner in Minutes

Indian-Style Broccoli with Spiced Yogurt

















2 large heads of broccoli, broken into florets
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
5 cardamom pods, seeds removed and pods discarded
¼ teaspoon sweet smoky paprika
1 cup natural plain yogurt, medium consistency (not too thick or too thin)
Zest from 1 large lemon
Juice from 1 large lemon or less if your yogurt is pretty thin
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Blanch the broccoli in boiling salted water for 4 minutes or less, until bright green.
OR
Steam the broccoli over boiling water until tender and bright green.
Drain in a colander.
2. Toast all the spices (except the paprika) in a hot pan for 2 minutes or until they become fragrant. Let them cool slightly. Grind them in a spice or converted coffee mill. Add the paprika to the mixture. Store any leftover spice mixture in a labeled jar to use the next time you make the dish.
3. Stir about half of the spices into the yogurt. Taste the result, adding more of the spice mixture to your taste, along with the lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper. Save a bit of the spice mixture for the garnish. The yogurt mixture improves if allowed to sit for an hour or more.
4. Place the broccoli in a serving bowl. Just before serving, pour out any accumulated water from the bottom of the bowl and then spoon part of the yogurt mixture over the top. Sprinkle with some of the reserved spice mix. Serve warm or at room temperature with the remaining yogurt mixture in a small bowl on the side.

4-5 servings
Adapted from Jamie Oliver’s Cook with Jamie: My Guide to Making You a Better Cook

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

2 tablespoons butter
2 large carrots, peeled, sliced
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons curry powder
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne or smoky hot paprika
1 or 2 butternut squash (2 pounds in all), peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
1 teaspoon salt
5 cups apple juice, preferably organic and unfiltered
1 cup heavy cream or combination of heavy cream and milk
¼ cup chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat the butter in a soup pot over medium-high heat until melted. Add the carrots, onion and garlic; mix well. Sauté for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
2. Stir in the fresh ginger, curry powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cayenne. Cook for 1 minute.
3. Stir in the squash, salt, and apple juice. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes or until the squash is tender.
4. Process the soup in batches in a food processor or blender until smooth. Return the soup to the pot, adding additional apple juice if needed for desired consistency.
5. Stir in the heavy cream. Cook until heated through, stirring occasionally. Do not let it boil. Add more salt or seasonings if necessary. Ladle into soup bowls. Drizzle with additional cream if desired. Sprinkle with cilantro.
If you want a bit more protein, fry up some bacon or pancetta, cut in ½-inch pieces. Add some to each bowl of soup.

8 servings
Adapted from The Toledo Museum of Art Aides’ Art Fare: A Commemorative Celebration of Art and Food