Cauliflower biryani

Ingredients

• Cauliflower - 1 medium size
• Egg - 1 
• Onion - 6 medium ones (sliced) 
• Ginger - a small piece 
• Garlic - 3 pods
• Green chilli - 3 to 5 (as per your spice level)
• Tomato - 1 large (sliced)
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Coriander powder - 2 tbsp
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Lemon juice - 1tbsp
• Coriander leaves - a handful chopped
• Grated coconut - a handful
• Curd - 1/2 cup
• Ghee
• Oil
• Salt

 Method

• Clean cauliflower and separate the florets
• Grind ginger, garlic and green chilli in a mixer. Keep aside
• Grind coconut and curd together into a fine paste. Keep aside
• Heat oil
• Beat egg with little salt. Dip cauliflower florets in beaten egg and deep fry. Keep aside
• In a thick bottomed vessel, add little ghee/oil.
• When the oil is hot add onion and saute until it slightly brown
• Add ginger-garlic-green chilli paste and saute again until the raw smell goes.
• Add turmeric powder, coriander powder and garam masala. Saute 
• Add sliced tomato, coconut-curd mix and saute. 
• Add salt to taste.
• Now add the fried cauliflower and mix well. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. 
• Your cauliflower masala is ready now.

Now for the rice

• Basmati rice - 3 cups (Wash and drain)
• Cloves - 4
• Cardamom - 4
• Bay leaf - 1/2
• Cinnamon - 1 small stick
• Water - 6 cups
• Ghee - 1 tbsp
• Salt

Method

• Heat ghee in a pan and saute rice with spices for 2-3 minutes. 
• Boil water in a thick bottomed vessel. When it starts boiling add rice and spices. Add salt.
• Cover and cook on low flame until all water is absorbed and rice is ready

For serving

1. In a vessel layer the cauliflower masala in the bottom
2. Layer rice above it sprinkling garam masala in between. 
3. Close the vessel and put on low flame for 2-3 minutes.
4. Decorate with coriander leaves and fried onions.

Spicy Prawns Fried Rice

Everytime I make this my husband and kid starts eating the prawns from the pan itself. This time I begged them to leave a few for taking some snaps. So I had to pick some and keep on top to say it is a prawns fried rice. This is a spicy rice and you can vary the pepper according to your spice level. Also you can substitute prawns with cooked shredded chicken and make it a chicken rice.

You need

• Prawns - 1 cup of medium size prawns.
• Basmati rice - 1 and 1/2 cups
• Carrot - 1 big diced
• Beans - 20 nos. diced
• Garlic - 2 cloves
• Ginger - 1 medium size 
• Green chilli - 3
• Onion - 1 big chopped
• Spring onion - 1 bunch
• Pepper powder - 2 tsp
• Soya sauce - 2 tsp
• Oil for sauteeing
• Salt to taste

Method

• Clean the prawns and cut it into small pieces
• Cook basmati rice in enough water, add salt and allow it to cool really well. (Avoid overcooking)
• In a thick bottomed big vessel heat oil
• Add finely chopped ginger, garlic and green chillies
• When the colour changes add finely chopped onions and saute until pink & transparent.
• Add diced carrots and beans. Add soya sauce. Lower flame and saute until they're cooked but yet crunchy.
• To the above add prawns and saute. (It takes only 2-4 minutes to cook prawns)
• Add pepper powder and salt to taste (remember you've used soya sauce above. It contains salt, so add salt here accordingly)
• Finally add the cooled cooked rice and chopped spring onions. Mix well on flame. Stir fry for 2 minutes. 
• Serve warm with any chinese side dish like manjurian

Tomato Rice

This is my quick way of making tomato rice. It has all the tanginess of tomato and you can make it a bit spicy if you wish to. I had some cooked basmati rice from yesterday's lunch part. So it was even more easy to make a yummy dinner.

You need

• Cooked basmati rice - 2 cups
• Garlic - 2 pods
• Tomato - 2 big
• Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander leaves - 1 bunch
• Oil for sauteeing
• Butter - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method

• Make a puree of the tomatoes.
• Heat oil in a thick bottomed vessel
• Add chopped garlic and saute for a minute on medium flame.
• Add tomato puree and saute until all water dries off and it becomes thick.
• Add butter at this stage
• Add chilli powder and saute for a minute. Add salt to taste (I had cooked rice with salt, so add accordingly here)
• Put the cooked rice into it and mix well. Add hand broken coriander leaves along with stem. 
• Mix well. Serve hot. 

 

Carrot rice

Carrot rice is a very quick and healthy lunch box idea. It is spicy and can be taken along with raita of your choice. Kids will love this and those who hate carrots won't say no to this one. I usually make this when I'm in no mood to spend hours in kitchen. This colour always bring joy. :)

 Ingredients

• Basmati rice - 1 cup 
• Carrots - 2 medium 
• Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Cinnamon stick - 1 small piece
• Cloves - 3 nos
• Cardamom - 3 nos
• Dry red chilli - 4 broken
• Coriander powder - 1 tsp
• Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp (for sauteing)
• Salt to taste

Method

• Wash, drain and cook basmati rice*. Keep aside and allow to cool
• Grate the carrots
• Heat oil in a thick bottom vessel. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom  and broken red chillies. Saute for a few seconds.
• Add grated carrots and saute for 2 minutes
• Now add salt to taste (Remember you've cooked rice with salt), coriander and jeera powder. Saute. 
• Follow by grated coconut and saute again for 2 minutes. 
• Add the cooked rice and mix well. Switch off flame and serve.

*Cooking basmati rice

For 1 cup rice you require 1 and 3/4 cups water. In a thick bottomed or non stick vessel boil water, add salt and 1 tsp oil (so the rice won't stick together). Add rice, stir, cover and cook until all water dries off and rice is soft and ready. 

Sending this to lunch box ideas at chandrani's cuisine,Sending this to Rasi's event I'm star

Vegetable pulao

This is a very simple recipe and a never fail one if you are a little careful in cooking the rice.

Ingredients

• Basmati rice - 1 cup
• Carrot - 2 
• French beans - a handful
• Onion - thinly sliced - 2
• Pepper powder - 2 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Ghee - 2 tbsp
• Cardamom - 3
• Cloves - 4
• Cinnamon - 2 small sticks
• Bay leaves - 1/2

Method

• Soak the basmati rice in water for an hr and then drain and keep aside
• Cube the vegetables.
• Put the chopped vegetables in a non stick vessel, add the salt, 2 tbsp water and pepper powder. Cover and cook for 7 minutes. The vegetables should be cooked and crunchy
• Heat a pan. Add 1 tbsp ghee. Add the boiled vegetables and pan fry for 5 minutes. 
• In a large non-stick vessel boil 2 cups of water. Add salt and 1/2 tbsp ghee and the soaked rice. Add cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaf. Close the vessel and cook until all the water finishes off and the rice is cooked. Cool the rice quickly and keep aside
• To make the golden brown onions
• Thinly slice the onions
• Mix with a little salt and keep aside for 30 minutes.
• After this time, express all the water out of onion and deep fry in oil till golden brown.

To assemble

• Take a oven proof dish and line with a little ghee
• Put a layer of cooled rice over it. Add a layer of vegetables and 3-4 dashed on fried onion, cashew nut and raisins. Add a little ghee to the layers too as you make it. Continue the above layering until all layers are done and decorate the top with remaining onion, cashews and raisins.
• Bake in an oven for 10 minutes

You can serve with raita, chutney, pappad... and if you have, cutlets too