Kadai paneer was in my try list for long time. I never knew it’s so easy to make & a very tasty recipe. It tastes great with roti/phulka & mild rice varieties like jeera rice and veg pulav.. I had bookmarked sia’s recipe long time back.
When I went through my bookmarked recipes, I got this link under restaurant style recipes. I made some changes for my convenience & to suit my family’s taste buds. Kadai paneer should be semi-dry in consistency like a stir fry. Crushed coriander seeds & kasuri methi are the star ingredients.
Other than this, there can be many variations to this recipe. Some people use tomato puree & whole spices like cinnamon, cloves etc. I used chopped tomatoes, little tomato sauce & garam masala powder instead. It came out very well. My family loved its taste & flavour. Soft paneer & crunchy capsicum blended with masala gives a great taste to this recipe :) Do try & let me know how you liked it..
Chop tomatoes, onions into very small pieces. Cube cut capsicum & set aside. Slit green chilli. Cut paneer into small cubes & soak them in hot water till use. It makes the paneer soft. No need to fry it.
In a kadai, heat oil + ghee & add the coarsely crushed dhania seeds. Then add jeera , pinched red chilli. saute for a second.
Then add the onions, green chilli, Ginger garlic paste & saute till raw smell emanates. Next add the tomatoes, turmeric powder, salt, red chilli powder & garam masala powder . Saute till tomato turns pulpy.. Add crushed kasuri methi & tomato sauce. Stir well.
Now add the capsicum pieces & mix well. Sprinkle little water to make it wet if the mixture is too dry. But make sure capsicum should be crunchy.
Lastly add the paneer pieces, mix well, add little water & simmer the flame completely . Allow it to cook for 5-7 minutes for all the flavour to get infused. Mix well, Switch off the flame, garnish with coriander leaves. It will be semi-dry to look. If you want it like a gravy, add little more water to make a paste, boil & serve..
Let it rest for 30 minutes before serving.
Serve with roti/phulka !
I love garlic pickle & onion pickle a lot. Yesterday I told my MIL to prepare this garlic pickle ( Poondu oorugai in Tamil) for me. She made it instantly. Its very easy to do. I stood nearby and noted down all the ingredients with measurements. Hope i’ll try this on my own very soon. We made in very less quantity (1/2 cup) and i finished all the pickle in one go...Now u know how much i loved this pickle & how tasty it was . It was tasting great for curd rice & roti..Thank u Aunty ( this is how i call my MIL) .. As my MIL says , next to red chilli powder ,3 ingredients are most important for any pickle .They are fenugreek seeds , turmeric powder & hing (ie . vendhayam , manjal , perungayam in tamil).. These 3 ingredients are responsible for taste & flavour of the pickle.Other than these , some pickles may need tamarind paste too..So beginners , making pickle is really an easy job. Storage has also become easier because of refrigerator..So don’t panic and go ahead trying this easy pickle recipe.U’ll succeed
INGREDIENTS 1 cup - 250ml
Garlic cloves – 1/2 cup ( 2-3 bulbs)
Red chilli powder – 1.5 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Hing – 1/4 tsp
Grated jaggery – 3/4 tbsp
Tamarind – Big gooseberry size
Roasted & ground methi seeds – 1/4 tsp
Cooking oil – 1 tbsp
Salt & water – as needed
To temper
Sesame oil / gingely oil – 2 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
METHOD
Peel the skin of garlic , dry roast & grind the methi seeds & powder them. set aside.
In a kadai , heat 1 tbsp of cooking oil and saute garlic cloves till golden brown. Then add 1 cup of tamarind extract and allow it to boil till the garlic is cooked well.Now add salt , red chilli powder, turmeric powder , hing and mix well.
Finally add the grated jaggery and methi seeds powder. Mix well till jaggery melts.Allow it to boil for few minutes.
U’ll get a thick paste. Switch off the flame and temper the above said ingredients..Mix well and serve with curd rice !!
Aloo palak is in my try list for a long time. I have blogged Restaurant style palak paneer and Sindhi style palak paneer recipes..So I thought of trying aloo palak by combining those 2 recipes. It came out very well. We loved it a lot..We relished it with chapati....
INGREDIENTS 1 cup - 200ml
To saute
Palak leaves – 2 cups
Sugar – 1/4 tsp
Cooking oil – 1 tsp
To pressure cook
Boiled Potato – 2 nos (big)
To temper & saute
Cooking oil + ghee – 1 + 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
Crushed fennel seeds powder – 1/2 tsp (optional)
Big onion – 2 nos
Ginger Garlic paste – 1 tsp
Tomato - 2 nos
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 to1.5 tsp
Dhania powder – 1 tsp
Garam masala powder – 1 tsp
Crushed Kasuri methi – 1 tsp
Salt & water – As needed
Milk – 1/4 cup
To garnish
Fresh cream or milk skin (paal aadai) - 1 tbsp
Lemon juice – few drops
HOW TO MAKE ALOO PALAK
Pressure cook the potato and cube cut into small pieces.Set aside.Chop the onions finely and cut tomatoes into small pieces..
Wash the palak leaves..Heat a tsp of oil and saute the palak leaves till it shrinks and gets cooked. Add 1/4 tsp of sugar to retain the color of palak.Let it cool down completely. Then grind it to make a paste adding little water.
Heat oil in a kadai , temper cumin seeds , fennel seeds powder & then add the onions , ginger garlic paste.. Saute till raw smell emanates.Then add the tomato pieces and saute till mushy.
Now add all the spice powders and mix well. Then add the palak paste , salt & saute for sometime in low flame.
Lastly add the potato pieces , mix well. Add the crushed kasoori methi , milk and mix well..
Add a tbsp of fresh cream or milk skin (paal aadai) before serving..Add few drops of lemon juice & serve !
Note : For variations u can try adding green chillies instead of red chilli powder. If u use green chillies , saute them along with palak , grind and add..
This is a simple stir fry which goes well for rice n roti. I got this idea from my neighbour. I have given two versions .. One is my version in which I followed the method of potato curry and the second one is my neighbours' version which is purely a south Indian style .
Based on your liking, try any. Both tastes good. I pressure cooked the baby corn to ensure proper cooking but that step is purely optional. We can just saute the baby corns, cover and cook by sprinkling little water as my neighbour suggested.
INGREDIENTS
Baby corn – 8-10 nos
Big onion – 1 no (finely chopped)
Ginger – 1 inch (-do-)
Garlic cloves – 6 nos ( –do-)
Red chilly powder / Sambhar powder –3/4 - 1 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt & water – as needed
Lemon juice – 1/2 tsp ( adjust)
Curry leaves – few
Coriander leaves – few
To Temper:
Olive oil / cooking oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Jeera – 1/2 tsp
METHOD
Pressure cook baby corn for 1 whistle. Set aside.
In a kadai , heat oil and add the mustard seeds & jeera, once they start to splutter , add onions,ginger & garlic pieces,curry leaves.
Saute well. Add little turmeric powder, salt and mix well.
Now add the sambhar/ red chilly powder. Mix well.
Finally add the cut baby corn slices. Saute well for few minutes.
Add coriander leaves, lemon juice and remove it.
Serve hot with rice and roti!!
NOTE
Ginger&garlic paste can be used instead of ginger , garlic pieces.
Baby corn need not be pressure cooked. Instead it can be sauteed in oil & cooked by covering it in the kadai sprinkling little water in between..
Tomatoes can be used instead of lemon juice..
BABY CORN STIR FRY – VERSION 2
INGREDIENTS
Baby corn – 8-10 nos
Big onion – 1 no (finely chopped ) (optional)
Salt – as needed
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
To grind:
Grated coconut – 1/4 cup
Green or Red chillies – 3 nos
Jeera – 1/2 tsp
To temper:
Oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - few
METHOD
Grind the items given under “to grind” without adding water.
Cut the baby corn into lengthy 1 inch strips.
In a kadai , heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, jeera & curry leaves. Saute onions if you use them..
Add the baby corn and saute well.
Now add the ground coconut , turmeric powder & salt.
Saute till the raw smell emanates.
sprinkle little water , mix well.
Cover & cook till the baby corn is done.
Add water whenever necessary. Always keep the flame in medium & stir well every now & then to avoid burning.
After the baby corn is cooked well, add fresh coriander leaves & remove.
Recently I came across this Punjabi Restaurant style palak paneer recipe from HERE. I have already tried Sindhi style palak paneer long back. As my husband doesn’t like paneer I don’t buy it often. I make paneer gravies very very rarely. Even if I want to try, I first browse for some recipes which are close to restaurant taste. I can make him eat by telling “Its restaurant style “. I tried PBM which was also a restaurant style recipe.
Recently when I was browsing for punjabi restaurant style palak paneer recipe, I got this one. By seeing the comment section, I prepared this dish very confidently.
Yes, this recipe is “Truly a restaurant style recipe in 10 mins..”. My husband loved it. Me too.
Please do not attempt this recipe without kasoori methi and garam masala. They are the star ingredients. As soon as I added kasoori methi and garam masala powder , the aroma that wafted through my house was awesome. I still remember that smell. I din't have fresh cream in my hand. So I used boiled milk with its skin which was also good in taste. Do try with fresh cream for your guests. They will be amazed!!
INGREDIENTS
Spinach/Palak leaves – 2 bunches (medium sized)
Vegetable oil /Cooking oil or butter - 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds /jeera - 1 tsp
Ginger, crushed – 1 inch piece ( I used G&G paste – 1 tsp)
Garlic, crushed – 6 cloves
Big onion ( finely chopped) – 1
Finely Chopped tomatoes – 4 nos ( I used very small tomatoes, if big use 2)
Dried fenugreek leaves (or kasoori methi) – 1 tsp (crush it well before use)
Red chilli powder –3/4 - 1 tsp (adjust)
Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp
Fresh thickened cream – 1 tbsp or Milk with skin / malai – 1.5 tbsp (less than 1/4 cup)
Salt to taste
Lemon juice – few drops ( add at the end , before serving)
HOW TO MAKE PALAK PANEER (RESTAURANT STYLE)
Remove spinach leaves from stems and wash it well.
Cook in boiling water for 3 to 4 minutes & then refresh in cold water, drain, squeeze out excess water and puree until smooth. Reserve this water and add to gravy. Alternately, you can saute the palak leaves in little oil along with one green chilli and grind to a paste.
( add a tsp of sugar while it cooks which helps to retain its green color).
Chop tomatoes and onions.
Heat oil in a heavy pan. Add cumin seeds, ginger & garlic paste and onions and fry until golden brown.
Add tomatoes, salt and cook until they become soft and mushy. Add the red chilli powder.
Saute for sometime and then add the spinach puree.
( Keep the paneer cubes immersed in hot water till use)
Add the paneer cubes.
Stir well and add kasoori methi ( crush it with your hands and add), garam masala powder. Boil for few mins. Add water if necessary. Gravy should be little thick in consistency .
Add water accordingly as we are going to add milk skin/ malai in the next step.
Add milk/ malai at the end. Mix well, leave it for a minute and switch off the flame. If you use fresh cream, add it, mix well and switch off the flame. Add few drops of lemon juice if desired & Serve hot.
NOTE
Instead of blanching the leaves, you can also try sauteing them with little oil. Add sugar while you saute.
I used red chilli powder here. Green chillies can also be used for variation and to get a greener gravy. But in the original recipe it is not mentioned.
If you plan to add green chilly, saute it with leaves and then puree it along with the leaves.
U can also try adding a pinch of fennel seeds powder while adding kasoori methi to get additional flavour.
Boil some water in a bowl, switch off and put the paneer cubes till use. This keeps the paneer soft till end. No need to fry the cubes in oil. Its completely optional.
Salna is a spicy, delicious side dish served with parotta in roadside hotels of Tamil nadu (Kai endhi bhavan). It is very popular in Madurai. Empty Salna recipe is nothing but a plain, watery, tomato based spicy gravy packed with awesome flavour. But today I made vegetable salna recipe for parotta. Whenever I think about parotta, the side dish that immediately strikes my mind is Salna. This road side hotel gravy is my favorite more than vegetable kurma that is served in restaurants. Nothing can beat this combo.
Before marriage, my dad used to buy parotta salna almost twice in a month. We used to buy the parotta just for salna which tastes good for dosa, idli and chapathi as well. So we buy less parotta and ask for more salna ;). My mom makes idli /dosa additionally and we relish the salna with it. Even nowadays when I visit my mom’s place , my lovable dad never forgets to buy this for me.
Last week I bought frozen parotta for the first time just to prepare this salna. When I searched for the recipe, I got so many. Finally I made my own by combining all the recipes based on the salna I tasted. Usually in vegetarian salna , you can’t find any vegetables except onions, skin of tomato and a layer of oil floating on top and may be some pieces of cauliflower. I have also shared a plain tomato salna. But I added some vegetables just to make it healthy. We loved its taste. Its taste will surely remind road side hotels salna to you.
Lets see how to make parotta salna at home. Give a try and let me know how it turned out for you. Hope you will love it like me ;). If you have salna and parotta leftover in hand, you can make delicious kothu parotta too.
Mixed Vegetables ( carrot , beans , peas and potato, cauliflower) – 1/2 cup ( I add 1 cup)
Ginger – Garlic paste – 1/2 tsp
Big onion –1 no (finely chopped)
Tomato - 1 no (-do-)
Mint leaves – a few
Cooking oil - 2 tbsp
Bay leaf – 1 (optional)
Black stone flower – 1 (optional)
Salt & water - as needed
To grind:
Cooking oil – 1 tbsp
Tomato – 2 nos
Red chilli powder – 1.5 tsp (use 3/4 tsp for less spice)
Coriander powder – 2 tsp
Jeera powder – 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder OR Chicken masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Cinnamon – 1 small stick
Cloves – 2-3 nos
Elachi / cardamom – 1 seed
Fennel seeds /soambu – 1/2 tsp
Grated coconut – 3 tbsp
Khus khus / Poppy seeds – 1/2 tsp
Cashew nuts – 3 nos
Salt & water – as needed
HOW TO MAKE VEGETABLE SALNA
Wash and Cut all the vegetables of small size uniformly.
In a kadai, heat oil and add the spices, ginger, garlic, onion, tomato and spice powders.
Mix well till tomato mushes. Then add the grated coconut, cashews, poppy seeds. Mix well and switch off the flame. After it cools down, add little water and grind to a smooth paste.
In a cooker base, add oil, bay leaf, black stone flower and Ginger garlic paste, onions, mint leaves and sauté till raw smell emanates. Now add the chopped tomato pieces and saute well till it turns mushy.
Now add the ground masala paste,required salt and all the vegetables. Add enough water and pressure cook for one whistle.
When you open the cooker, you’ll see a layer of oil floating on top and you get a nice aroma. If you feel the water is more, allow it to boil for sometime by simmering the flame which makes the oil separate more. Remove and garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve hot with Parotta, dosa, idli and biryani. Enjoy !
NOTE
If you want the salna to be watery, add little more water after opening the cooker and allow to boil.
U can also add coconut milk at the end instead of grinding coconut .
For variations, try adding all the masala while sauting instead of grinding part.
Adjust the amount of chilli powder according to your taste. You can even add it at the end and boil for sometime if required.
I usually make Bhindi curry/ vendakkai curry with sambar powder .. For a change I tried this method for our lunch . I got this vendakkai masala recipe from a book. I think most of you make this for roti. This masala goes well for roti as well as dal rice & mild pulao varieties. It tastes and smells great.
INGREDIENTS
Ladies finger / okra – 12 nos
Big onion – 1 no
Tomato – 1 no
Ginger garlic paste – 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp – 1 tsp (adjust)
Coriander powder – 3/4 tsp
Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp
Salt – As required.
Water – just to sprinkle.
To temper
Oil – 1 tbsp
Jeera – 1/2 tsp
Coriander leaves – to garnish
METHOD
Heat oil in a kadai and add the cumin seeds. Then put the chopped onions and ginger garlic paste.
Saute till the raw smell emanates.
Then add the cut okra pieces and saute well for few mins.
Now add the tomato pieces and saute till it turns mushy.
Finally add all the dry powders.Toss well for few mins.
Sprinkle or add little water and close the kadai with a lid.
Keep the flame low and allow the okra to cook well.
Toss in between to avoid charring.
Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.
This is a very simple South Indian style veg kurma recipe for Chapathi. I learnt this from my mom..Whenever I pack variety rice(lemon,tomato rice etc) as lunch for my husband, I do chapathi with this mixed veg kurma for dinner so that I get a satisfaction of including all the veggies in his diet. Usually I add more vegetables. If you wish, you can reduce it as per your taste.
Green chilly – 2-3 nos or red chilly powder - 1 tsp
Fried Gram – 1 tsp
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
To temper:
Cinnamon – 1 small stick
Cloves – 2 nos
Cardamom – 1 no
Oil – 2 tbsp
Coriander leaves – To garnish
Method
Step 1 : Heat a cooker base with 2 tbsp of oil and add the tempering items one by one. Add the onions and saute till golden brown., Add G&G paste & saute till raw smell leaves it..Add the tomatoes and cook for a minute till tomato turns mushy.
Step 2: Now add all the chopped vegetables and fry for a minute by adding the required salt.
Step 3: Add 1cup of water and pressure cook for 1 or 2 whistles. Meanwhile grind all the items given under “ to grind” to a smooth paste by adding water.
Step 4: Once the veggies get cooked , add the ground mixture to it. Let it boil for 5 – 6 mins in medium flame.Now add the Garam Masala powder and boil for another 5 mins.If the gravy is too thick, add some water.Check for salt.
Finally ,garnish with coriander leaves and serve with Chapathi.
Tastes good with dosa too..
Note: If u grind green chillies, color of the kurma will be greenish not red.. U shud add red chilli powder to get the above color .
. It was tasting great for curd rice & roti..Thank u Aunty ( this is how i call my MIL) 
.. As my MIL says , next to red chilli powder ,3 ingredients are most important for any pickle .They are fenugreek seeds , turmeric powder & hing (ie . vendhayam , manjal , perungayam in tamil).. These 3 ingredients are responsible for taste & flavour of the pickle.Other than these , some pickles may need tamarind paste too..So beginners , making pickle is really an easy job. Storage has also become easier because of refrigerator..So don’t panic and go ahead trying this easy pickle recipe.U’ll succeed 
.
