Tofu Bhurji with Coriander Naan

I'm reminded of our trip to Jaipur whenever my mom makes this dish. We ate at this local dhaba popular with tourists (and recommended by lonelyplanet) called Ganesh Restaurant. The best dishes were paneer bhurji (pictured below) and garlic & coriander naan. 

We loved eating this dish with freshly made naan 😀. As heavenly as this dish was, it's not the healthiest, considering all the butter that went into making it and floating on top. 

BUTTER MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER, RIGHT? 

It does but you shouldn't eat it everyday. And it's not like we can just swing by this dhaba on our way home. So we decided to make this dish at home.  

Our local Indian grocer, started stocking spice mixes for various dishes. While browsing through the aisle, we found the spice mix for paneer bhurji by Rasoi Magic. My mouth started watering just thinking about it. Since we're cautious of what eat now, we decided to buy firm tofu instead of paneer (Indian cottage cheese).  

I know you're dying to know how we made it...so let's get to it. Here's what you need:

Servings: 4 to 5 

Ingredients

- 1 packet of Rasoi Magic Paneer Bhurji spice mix

- 250g firm tofu, chopped 

- 1 medium onion, finely chopped 

- 1 medium plum tomato, finely chopped

- 1 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped

- 1 to 2 green chilies, diced

- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil

- 1/2 cup of milk

- a small bunch of fresh coriander or cilantro, finely chopped

Procedure (on the back of the Rasoi Magic packet)

Mix the entire pack of spice mix with the milk to make a paste and put aside. Heat the oil in a pan on low to medium flame. Then add green chili, onion and fry for 3 to 4 minutes. Next add green bell pepper (also known as capsicum), tomato, and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. Then add the spice mix paste, and fry till the oil separates. Add two tablespoons of water and cook for one minute. Then add the tofu and mix well. Finally add coriander and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Serve hot with roti or naan. 

The tofu bhurji tastes just as yummy as paneer bhurji with less calories.  

Rasoi Magic Paneer Bhurji Spice Mix Review: This dish came out really well and it was quite tasty even with the tofu substitute. We found this spice mix very convenient and easy to use and would definitely recommend everyone to give it a try. 

Deep Foods Frozen Chili Coriander Naan: We wrapped the naan in foil and toasted them in the toaster oven. They tasted like they were fresh out of the "clay oven". The naan were fluffy and flavorful. We would definitely recommend all to try. 

I am looking forward to trying more recipes with Rasoi Magic's spice mix now. Have you used this spice mix before? How do you like it? Please share your thoughts. 

Karapappalu - Crispy Ragi and Kale Patties

It's surely been a healthy ride these past couple of months...and still going! We're ending National Nutrition Month with a "Krispy" twist; scroll down for more details...

Every year my mom and I try various ways to eat better and stay healthy. Rice is our staple and we ate a lot of it. Alas, that has come to an end. Instead of eating rice heavy meals, we switched to salads for dinner. Don't get me wrong, I still eat rice but not as much as before. 

Does judge me when I say this but I love shopping for food items more than clothing. I love the aromas of different spices, herbs, fruits and vegetables. Our local farmers market has a good stock of vegetables and that's where we got the KALE. 

Didn't realize it at the time but I think we bought too much. So we started using it in everything. Even kale in Karapappalu! 

Karapappalu are crispy rice and moong dal patties that are a popular Telangana snack.  We got soo bored of eating salads few weeks back that we got creative and made Karapappalu with kale and other healthy ingredients. Check out the recipe below and tell us what you think:

Ingredients

- 1 cup Ragi flour

- 2 cups Rice flour

- 1 long squash

- 1 cup kale, finely chopped

- 1/3 cup moong dal, soaked in water for 30 minutes

- 1/2 Tbsp chili powder

- 3 Tbsp sesame seeds

- 2 Heaved Tbsp cornmeal

- 1/2 Tbsp Salt (or as needed)

- 2 to 3 cups Vegetable Oil (for frying)

Procedure

Combine all the dry ingredients in a medium to large bowl and mix well. Then add all the vegetables and soaked moong dal to the dry mixture and mix well. 

Slowly add water to the mixture and knead until it is of dough consistency. (Note: raw vegetables release water after few minutes of taking in salt, so keep the dough somewhat dry).

Heat oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Shape (lime size) dough balls into round flat ½ cm thick patties.

Quick tip: To avoid dough from sticking to your fingers, slightly wet your hands.  You can also use wax paper or plastic bag to press the dough into patties as shown below.

Transfer each shaped patty into hot oil and fry to golden brown/reddish color. 

For best results:  Use a steel skimmer to turn each patty in-between for even frying. Then use it to transfer the fried patty into a metal sieve resting in a bowl so that excess oil can be drained. After that, you can transfer the patty to a serving bowl (see video for for clarification). 

After the patties were ready, we served them with a dipping sauce we made with sour cream and crushed dried mint. You can use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream too.