Indian food recipes please

[Scootergrrrl]

I've just been to an enormous supermarket in Bradford and bought shedloads of spices in order to fulfill one of my New Years resolutions of learning to cook Indian food - the curryhouses where we live in Germany are woeful!
In order to fulfil my other resolution of stopping spending so cash, can anyone give me lovely recipes they use?
Ta very much

If you want to buy a cookbook I recommend Anjum Anand (sp?) or Madhur Jaffrey.

I have a couple of favourite recipies that I will post when I'm at home and free from a toddler pleading to play.

Germans just can't take chili at all, can they? When we lived in Berlin there was only one Indian restaurant that was worthy of a revisit, and even that wasn't great.

Madhur Jaffrey is brilliant. I'd recommend Indian Cookery to start with. The lemon and coriander chicken in that is fabulous and so is the black-eyed bean and mushroom thing. Can post recipes when I get back from holiday on Jan 9th if you can wait that long!

I'd be ever so grateful if you could post recipes - DH will throttle me if I buy any more cookbooks. If there's any recipes you're after, let me know and I'll search my extensive collection

This is from Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cookery and I make it all the time.

Cabbage with peas (Bund gobi aur matar)
Serves 4 (actually dh and I eat it between two of us)

450-500g green cabbage (I like savoy best because the crinkly leaves hold the spices well)
150g frozen peas
5 tablespoons veg oil (I use 1 or 2 tablespoons because I use a non-stick wok)
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 bay leaves (I often leave this out if I don't have them)
1/4 teaspoon ground tumeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 fresh green chilli, very finely chopped (I consider this to be optional, it's just as nice without if you don't like hot)
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon garam masala

1. Core the cabbage and cut it into very fine, long shreds. Put the peas into a strainer and hold them under warm, running water until they separate.

1. Heat the oil in a wide saucepan (I use a wok, could also use a deep saute pan) over a medium-high flame. When it is hot, put in the cumin seeds and bay leaves. As soon as the bay leaves begin to take on colour - this takes just a few seconds - put in the cabbage and peas and stir them for 30 seconds. Add the tumeric and cayenne. Stir to mix. Cover, turn the heat to low and cook for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are just tender. (I usually add a tiny amount of water before covering so that the veg steams a little. No need to do that if you use the full 5 tablespoons of oil though.) Add the green chilli, salt and sugar. Stir to mix. Cover and cook on a low heat for another 2-3 minutes. Remove the lid and sprinkle in the garam masala. Stir gently to mix.

1. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

You must buy snjum ananda book called Indian food made easy. Tie sensational. I buy large amounts of ingredients at www.indianspices.co.I'm we are currently addicted to Indian food

I also make this one a lot - it's delish.

Black-eyed beans with mushroom (Lobhia aur khumbi)
Serves 6 (unless you're a bit piggy like dh and I)

225g dried black-eyed beans, picked over, washed and drained
1.2 litres water
225g fresh mushrooms
6 tablespoon veg oil (I use much less)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1.5cm piece of cinnamon stick (I often make it without this)
150g onions, peeld and chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and very finely chopped (All Madhur's recipies are over the top with garlic IME, I use 1 or 2 cloves)
400g tomatoes, peeled and chopped (Save yourself time and effort, it's just as good with chunky tinned tomatoes)
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons salt
freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander or parsley

1. Putthe beansand water into a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low and simmer gently for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pan sit, covered and undisturbed, for 1 hour.

1. While the pan is resting, cut the mushrooms through their stems into 3mm thick slices.

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high flame. When it is hot, put in the cumin seeds and the cinnamon stick. Let them sizzle for 5-6 seconds. Now put in the onions and garlic. Stir and fry until the onion pieces turn brown at the edges. Put in the mushrooms. Stir and fry until the mushrooms wilt. Now put int he tomatgoes, ground coriander, ground cumin, turmeric and cayenne. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Cover, turn the heat to low and let this mixture cook in its own juices for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat under the frying pan.

1. Bring the beans to a boil again. Cover, turn the heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes. To this bean and water mixture, add the mushroom mixture, salt, black pepper and fresh coriander. Stir to mix and bring to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, on a medium-low heat for another 30 mins. Stir occasionally.

1. Remove the piece of cinnamon stick before serving.

We always cook indian style at home and the 2 basics to have on teh table are basmati rice and dhal (red lentil curry) It's so easy. You need the red split lentils. One cup full would serve us for 2 days. This is our version (there are many classic versions).

Fry onion and cumin seeds in oil or butter 'til light brown, add chopped garlic, 1 tspn of turmeric, a tspn of garam masala (you can add some ready mixed curry powder if you like) and a chopped chilli then add the cup of lentils and 2 cups of water, also you can add a chopped tomato or 2. Bring to boil then reduce heat and cook with lid on. When cooked stir with a whisk add fresh chopped coriander and season with salt. You can change the consistency by adding abit more water or a bit of coconut milk.

I have a korma recipe somewhere that's good. I'll see if I can hunt it out.

If you're a pedant the previous post should have read "dh and me", obviously.

I sometimes make pakoras if you want the recipe (from 'An Indian Housewife's Recipe Book'!!)

Also, paneer and peas from a vegetarian recipe book (can't remember the name of it now, it's quite famous but old)

ooh, I have a stupily easy and quick (if slightly inauthentic) naan recipe

[rummages]

225g SR
5g (1 sachet) of fast-acting yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp roasted cumin seeds
2 tbspns plain yoghurt
1 tbspn melted butter (plus extra for brushing)
4 tbspns warm milk

In a large warmed mixing bowl mix flour yeast salt cumin yoghurt butter milk. Mix and knead to a soft dough.
Cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to rest 20-25min in a warm place.
Turn out onto floured worktop, knead 3-4min or till smooth. Divide into 8 portions and roll each one out to an oval or triangle the size of a pitta bread.
Brush with melted butter and cook under a preheated hot grill 2-3min each side.

(If you don't need all 8 you can put half the dough in a tupperware in the fridge and roll out the next day.)

You can use nigella (kalonji), poppy or sesame seeds, or finely chopped garlic, instead of the cumin.

The book I referred to is by Jack Santa Maria.

palao rice

11b basmati
2oz ghee2 medium onions
6 cloves
6 cardamons
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp cummin seeds
half teaspsoon salt
2 pints water.

fry unions, add spces and fry, add rice and water and cook 20 minutes.

yum

curried meat balls (wedding food apparently, can be eaten cold, if you can resist temptation)

1lb minced meat
1lb onions
6 cloves garlic
1 oz parsley
1 egg
oil for deep frying
4 oz ghee
2 tsp salt
1 tsp chlli powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp cummin seed powder
2 tsps garam masala
2 tsps paprika
50 g fresh ginger (page ripped at oz section)
half pint yoghurt.

mince meat in mincer with half onions, 3 cloves garlic and parsley.
add the egg and mix with hands, form 1 inch diameter balls.
deep fry for 2 minutes.
slice remaining onions and fry in the ghee.
add spices and stir well 10 minutes.
addat balls and simmer for 30 minutes,
then add yoghurt and simmer 30 minutes.

enjoy

I use mamtaskitchen.com for a lot of recipes. Its a v. good site.

Best indian cookbook (complete with pics of how it should look !!) is:
The Complete Encyclopedia of Curries by Mridula Baljekar

Aaahgh, I can't find that korma recipe because the notebook it's in has gone missing. Now that I think about I don't remember seeing it since before ds arrived. It's a real pain as that notebook had various recipies from magazines and tv that will be hard to replace (including a very sophisticated bubble & squeak with cumin seeds and curly kale).

I know that the korma recipe came from the Sophie Grigson tv programme "Grow your greens/eat your greens" so I've but a bid on her book on ebay. If I get it I'll post the recipe for you. I had a look on the web but I haven't found one as good as hers, they mostly seem to be made with cream which I find too heavy, hers uses yoghurt which makes it beautifully tangy. [drool emoticon]

I must get back into longer cooking now that ds can amuse himself. Up until recently it has had to be things that cook quickly or that you bung in the oven and forget because he used to scream his head off if I turned my back on him for more than a minute or two.

SG, have you already gone back to Germany? If not then I recommend you get a few jars of Pataks paste (not the cook-in sauces). They are very good quality and I often use them as a base and add other things to them. The two I use most are Korma Paste (although never for making a korma) and Mild Curry Paste.

am making the dahl as I type!
Would like the korma recipe as well bran if you get it

If you look on youtube there are some really good step by step recipes for Indian cooking. Search for manjula - she does authentic dishes.

try this step by step korma video

look here lots of Anum anands good recipes are on the bbc website at that link
Can thoroughly recommend the lamb curry oh god to die for

Thanks everyone - we're going back to Germany today so will be testing the recipes out tomorrow - back in my own kitchen at last!