1,000 Indian Recipes (63 page)

Pissa Kaaju ka Masala

Makes about 1 cup

On its own, cashew paste forms the base for rich desserts and fudges. Combined with ginger, garlic, and other aromatic spices, it is frequently used to thicken and flavor special sauces. For a variation in flavor, try grinding the cashews with milk, yogurt, or coconut milk instead of the water.

1
¹
⁄
₄
cups raw cashews

1 cup warm water plus more for the paste

Soak coarsely chopped cashews in the warm water to cover, about 45 minutes. Drain and process in a blender (not a food processor) adding 2 to 3 tablespoons water, as needed, to make a smooth paste. Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator 4 to 6 days or 4 months in the freezer.

Chile Pepper Paste

Pissi Mirchon ka Masala

Makes about
¹
⁄
₃
cup

Definitely not for the faint of palate, much less the faint of heart, this paste could make you sweat for days. Use this paste sparingly, as it tends to be very intense in color as well as flavor. With salt to taste, it can also be used as a chutney or a sandwich spread. Or reduce its potency by mixing in some yogurt and use as a marinade for meat, poultry, and seafood.

10 dried red chile peppers, such as chile de arbol, broken

¹
⁄
₄
cup distilled white vinegar or water

5 fresh green chile peppers, such as serrano, coarsely chopped

2 teaspoons black peppercorns, dry-roasted and coarsely ground

Soak the red chile peppers in the vinegar about 1 hour to soften. Transfer to a blender. Mix in the green chile peppers and the peppercorns and blend until smooth. Transfer to an airtight jar and refrigerate up to 6 months.

Mughlai Curry Paste with Nuts

Korma ka Geela Masala

Makes about 1 cup

A blend of two of the best things in life—cream and nuts—
kormas
are rich curries, traditionally prepared in the
dum
(Indian pot-roasting) style of cooking, where the pan and the flavors of the foods are completely sealed and the foods cook slowly. The following paste is what gives most
kormas
their distinctive flavor.

To use, pan-fry chopped onions until golden, add any meats, mixed vegetables, or
paneer
cheese and cook until golden. Then add the paste and finish cooking, adding more yogurt if the meat needs further tenderizing.

2 tablespoons
Basic Ginger-Garlic Paste

¹
⁄
₂
cup
Fragrant Masala with Nuts

2 tablespoons melted ghee or vegetable oil

¹
⁄
₄
cup heavy cream

¹
⁄
₂
cup nonfat plain yogurt

1.
Prepare the paste and then the masala. Heat the ghee in a large nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat, add the ginger-garlic paste and korma masala and cook, stirring, until lightly browned.

2.
In a bowl, whip together the cream and yogurt with a whisk or an electric beater, then add it to the saucepan in a thin stream, stirring constantly to prevent curdling, until it is completely incorporated into the paste. Let cool, then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator 7 to 10 days or 3 months in the freezer.

Goan Vindaloo Paste

Goa ka Vindaloo Masala

Makes about 1 cup

Vindaloo
, meaning "with vinegar," is a curry to be made spicy, or not at all. It's character comes from vinegar and dried red chile peppers that will clear your sinuses faster than anything from the pharmacy.

Use with water or broth to make special meat and vegetable curries, such as
Hot and Tangy Goan Mixed Vegetables
and
Spicy Goa-Style Lamb Curry
.

3 to 4 dried red chile peppers, such chile de arbol, broken

¹
⁄
₄
cup distilled white vinegar

¹
⁄
₂
cup
Goan Vindaloo Powder
(store-bought)

8 to 10 quarter-size slices of peeled fresh ginger

5 to 7 large cloves fresh garlic, peeled

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

30 to 40 fresh curry leaves

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

3 tablespoons peanut oil

1.
Soak the red chile peppers in the vinegar, 1 to 2 hours. Meanwhile, prepare the vindaloo powder. In a food processor, process together the red chile peppers, plus the vinegar, ginger, garlic, onion, curry leaves, and salt to make a smooth paste. Mix in the vindaloo masala and process once again.

2.
Heat the oil in a large nonstick wok or saucepan over medium-high heat and stir-fry the paste, over medium-high heat the first 2 to 3 minutes, and then over medium heat until rich brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Let cool, then store in an airtight container about 1 month in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer.

Tamarind Paste

Imli Ras

Makes about 1
¹
⁄
₂
cups

Tamarind, in all its forms, including paste, is available in Indian, Asian, and Mexican markets, but it is worth having made from scratch. You extract the paste from fresh tamarind pods, yielding a delicate flavor and the best color. Or you can simply use the store-bought tamarind paste or powder, as I sometimes do.

If you're using the fresh pods, remove the brittle shell and break the soft and sticky, seed-filled insides into small pieces before you start the recipe.

6 ounces shelled fresh tamarind pods with seeds or 5 ounces tamarind pulp without seeds

1
¹
⁄
₂
cups warm water

1.
Soak the shelled tamarind pods or pulp in 1 cup of the water, 1 to 2 hours to soften. With your fingers, gently rub and mash the tamarind to loosen the pulp from the fibrous parts and to separate any seeds.

2.
Discard the seeds and pass the softened pulp through a fine-mesh strainer or a food mill to make a smooth paste. (I prefer the food mill, especially when preparing large quantities). Remove the fibrous leftovers to a bowl, mix the remaining
¹
⁄
₂
cup water into the pulp and mash once again. Then pass through the sieve or food mill to extract more paste. Mix into the already extracted paste. Store in an airtight container about 1 week in the refrigerator or freeze measured amounts into ice cube trays and store the cubes in zip closure bags up to 6 months in the freezer.

Chutney and Pickles

Trimming with layers of flavor, in often surprising combinations, Indian chutneys and pickles are the pantry and refrigerator essentials that can be made once and eaten all year long. They are perfect for exploring the promise of Indian cuisine. Alone or with other foods, they are tasty and stimulating with every bite.

While an Indian meal can depend solely on chutneys and pickles, when served with
paranthas
(griddle-fried flatbreads) or other breads, or with rice, they are generally meant to be eaten as relishes and condiments, in small portions alongside other foods—some no more than a teaspoon at a time. (Most of the long-lasting pickles and chutneys are preserved with a lot of sodium and/or sugar and fat—something to be aware of, but don't let that be a deterrent.)

Chutneys and pickles range from sweet to fiery hot, and can differ in texture from smooth herbal blends to meltingly soft or crisp-tender chunks of fresh vegetables and fruits. And while they may seem similar to the uninitiated, to Indians each one is very different.

Indian chutneys fall into two broad categories: fresh and preserved. The fresh, perishable kind are the tangy purées of fresh herbs, spices, fruits, and yogurt, such as
Basic Green Chutney
or
Yogurt-Almond Chutney
. These chutneys stay fresh about 10 days in the refrigerator. Except the chutneys that contain yogurt, all the fresh puréed ones can also be frozen. To freeze, place the chutneys in serving-size containers or in ice-cube trays. Once they freeze, transfer to plastic zip-closure bags and freeze up to 6 months. Thaw at room temperature, or if you are in a hurry, in the microwave.