How to Cook Indian (6 page)

Makes 5 tablespoons (75 grams).

1½ tablespoons
amchur
(dried mango powder)

½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns

12 Kashmiri dried red chiles, stemmed

2 tablespoons cumin seeds

2½ tablespoons coriander seeds

6 (1-inch/2½-cm) cinnamon sticks

1 teaspoon table salt

¼ teaspoon black salt

25 whole cloves

1 black cardamom pod

6 to 8 fresh curry leaves

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

1. Place a small nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add all the ingredients, one by one in the order listed, lower the heat, and dry-roast for 5 minutes.

2. Set aside to cool completely. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.

3. Store in an airtight container.

Punjabi Garam Masala

Spice mix

Another variety of
garam masala,
more popular in Punjabi homes.

Makes 1¾ cups (200 grams).

1 cup (100 grams) whole black peppercorns

¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon (120 grams) cumin seeds

11 black cardamom pods

4 or 5 whole cloves

1-inch (2½-cm) cinnamon stick

1. Place a small nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the peppercorns and dry-roast for 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

2. One spice at a time, dry-roast the cumin, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon, and add them to the peppercorns. Set aside to cool completely.

3. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder. Store in an airtight container.

Rasam Powder

Spice mix

A spice blend used to make
rasam,
a South Indian soup.

Makes 2¼ cups (250 grams).

1 cup (80 grams) coriander seeds

½ cup (100 grams)
toor dal/arhar dal
(split pigeon peas)

¼ cup (35 grams) cumin seeds

¼ cup (25 grams) whole black peppercorns

10 to 12 fresh curry leaves

15 dried red chiles, stemmed

1. Place a medium nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the coriander,
dals,
cumin, peppercorns, curry leaves, and chiles, and dry-roast for 3 to 4 minutes or until fragrant. Let cool completely.

2. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.

3. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator or in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months.

Ground Roasted Cumin

This is an excellent topping for
raitas
(yogurt sauces; page 65) or
chaats
(page 81).

Makes 6 tablespoons (30 grams).

4½ tablespoons cumin seeds

1. Place a small nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the cumin and dry-roast until lightly colored. Set aside to cool completely.

2. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.

3. Store in an airtight container.

Sambhar

Basic masala for South Indian lentil dishes

Makes 1 ¾ cups (180 grams).

½ cup (40 grams) coriander seeds

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

2 tablespoons
chana dal
(split Bengal gram)

2 tablespoons
dhuli moong dal
(split skinless green gram)

2 tablespoons
toor dal/arhar dal
(split pigeon peas)

1 tablespoon brown mustard seeds

1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds

10 to 12 whole black peppercorns

25 to 30 dried red chiles, stemmed

2 to 3 tablespoons ground turmeric

1. Place a medium nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the coriander, cumin,
dals,
mustard seeds, fenugreek, peppercorns, and chiles, and dry-roast for 3 to 4 minutes or until fragrant. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool completely.

2. Transfer to a spice grinder. Add the turmeric and grind to a fine powder.

3. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator or in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months.

Ver

Kashmiri
garam masala

Makes ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (45 grams).

1½ tablespoons fennel seeds

1½ tablespoons caraway seeds

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon black cardamom seeds

¼ teaspoon green cardamom seeds

2½-inch cinnamon stick

8 to 10 whole cloves

1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

8 to 10 whole black peppercorns

1 large blade mace

1 star anise

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1. Place a small nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the fennel, caraway, bay leaves, black cardamom, green cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, fenugreek, peppercorns, mace, and star anise, and dry-roast until fragrant. Set aside to cool completely.

2. Transfer to a spice grinder. Add the nutmeg and grind to a fine powder.

3. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator or in a cool, dry place.

Chicken Stock

Makes 3¼ cups (650 ml).

7 ounces (200 grams) chicken bones, such as wing tips, neck, or other bones

1 medium red onion, quartered

1 medium carrot, roughly chopped

2 or 3 sprigs fresh parsley, roughly chopped

1 rib celery, roughly chopped

1 leek with top, roughly chopped (optional)

6 or 7 whole black peppercorns

5 or 6 whole cloves

1 bay leaf

1. Remove any excess fat from the bones.

2. Place a nonstick saucepan over high heat and add 2 cups (400 ml) water. Add the bones and boil for 5 minutes. Drain off the water.

3. Add the remaining ingredients and 10 cups (2 liters) water. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to low. Spoon off any scum that rises to the top and replace it with cold water. Simmer for at least 1 hour and up to 1½ hours.

4. Pour through a strainer into a large bowl; discard the solids. Let the stock cool to room temperature, then cover and store in the refrigerator.

Lamb Stock

Makes 3 cups (600 ml).

7 ounces (200 grams) lamb bones

1 medium red onion, quartered

1 medium carrot, cut into 8 pieces

1 rib celery, cut into 1-inch (2½-cm) pieces

2 or 3 sprigs fresh parsley

6 or 7 whole black peppercorns

1 bay leaf

1. Remove any excess fat from the bones.

2. Place a nonstick saucepan over high heat and add 2 cups (400 ml) water. Add the bones and boil for 5 minutes. Drain.

3. Add the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, peppercorns, bay leaf, and 12 cups (2.4 liters) water. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to low. Spoon off any scum that rises to the top and replace it with cold water. Simmer for at least 2 hours and up to 2½ hours.

4. Pour through a strainer into a large bowl; discard the solids. Let the stock cool to room temperature, then cover and store in the refrigerator.

Vegetable Stock

Makes 2¼ cups (450 ml).

1 medium red onion, sliced

½ medium carrot, sliced

½ rib celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 bay leaf

5 or 6 whole black peppercorns

2 or 3 whole cloves

1. Place a nonstick saucepan over high heat and add 5 cups (1 liter) water. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns, and cloves and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium and simmer for 30 minutes.

2. Pour through a strainer into a large bowl; discard the solids. Let the stock cool to room temperature, then cover and store in the refrigerator.

Atta Dough

For sealing a pan and lid while cooking
biryani

Makes 1½ cups (200 grams).

1 cup (150 grams)
atta
(whole-wheat flour)

1. Combine the
atta
and ¾ cup (150 ml) water in a bowl and knead to make a soft dough.

2. Roll the dough into a long rope. Place it around the edge of the pan that needs to be sealed. Place the lid over the dough and press down hard. As the
biryani
cooks, the dough will dry up. When you remove the pan from the heat, peel the dough off to open the lid. (Since it will be totally dried up, it should peel off easily.)

Ghee

Makes 1 2/3 cups (325 grams).

2 cups (500 grams) unsalted butter

1. Place a nonstick saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. When the butter is melted, lower the heat to low and cook, stirring frequently so that it does not scorch, for 30 minutes or until the liquid is light brown and the residue settles to the bottom. There will be some milk solids that rise to the top as foam and these should be skimmed off.