Indian, Stew

Dhal with green lentils

What a taste explosion this dish gives in the mouth! I could feel lovely and fresh flavors of ginger, chilli, garlic and spices a long time after I stopped eating. I think it could almost be used instead of a breath freshener to give a fresh feeling in the mouth!

Serves 4

4 dl dried green lentils, rinsed
1 onion, chopped
0.5 dl of grated fresh ginger
1-2 green chillies, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
7 dl water
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp herb salt
1 tsp garam masala
1 handful bunch of coriander, chopped
Oil for frying

Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the onions for one minute. Add the garlic, chilli and ginger and fry for another half a minute. Add lentils, water and the dry spices. Boil for 30 minutes. Finally stir in the coriander. Serve the dhal together with naan bread.

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Indian, Patties and burgers, Stew

Watermelon Curry with black lentil patties

This is a tasty dish with very interesting ingredients, flavorful lentil patties and a spicy and tasty watermelon curry. (I have to confess that I would never have come up with the idea myself to make a curry out of watermelon, so the recipe is inspired by a recipe in the “New Vegetarian Kitchen” by Nicola Graimes.)

Serves 4-5

Watermelon Curry

2 kg watermelon
1 red chilli
2 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tbsp lime juice
0.5 dl chopped fresh mint
Oil for frying

Cut half of the watermelon in 2 cm large cubes. Blend the other half in a food processor into a purée. Fry chilli, ginger and garlic in a pan for about 1 minute. Add the remaining ingredients to the curry except the lime juice and mint and let simmer about 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and mint and serve the curry with black lentil patties (recipe below).

Black lentil patties

230 g dried black lentils
1 onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground chilli pepper
1 egg
0.5 dl flour
Oil for frying

Cook the lentils according to the instructions on the package. Blend all the ingredients in a food processor. Shape the batter into large patties and fry them in oil until they are browned on both sides.

Fusion, Indian, Iranian, Omelette

Herb omelette with lemon basmati rice

This is a wonderfully herbal omelette which goes well together with flavored rice. The dish is a self-composed Iranian-Indian combination where the recipe for the Iranian herb omelette is inspired by a recipe I got from my friend Maryam and the lemon basmati rice is inspired by a recipe from the cook book India by Mridula Baljekar.

Serves 4

Herb omelette

5 eggs
1 leeks, sliced
65 g fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
30 g parsley, chopped
1 handful bunch of coriander, chopped
0.5 dl dried cranberries
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp herb salt
0.5 tsp ground black pepper
Oil for frying

Beat the eggs and mix in the remaining ingredients. Fry the omelette over medium heat in a frying pan until solid and browned on both sides. Serve it with lemon basmati rice (see recipe below).

Lemon basmati rice

3 dl basmati rice, rinsed
1 tsp brown mustard seeds
0.5 dl cashew nuts
0.5 tsp turmeric
1 tsp herb salt
5 dl water
2 tbsp lemon juice
30 g chives, chopped

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry mustard seeds and cashews for a few minutes. Add rice, turmeric and herb salt and fry for another minute. Pour in the water and lemon juice and cook according to the cooking time on the rice package. Stir in the chives before serving.

Indian, Soup

Lentil soup with curry and lemon

This is a fresh tasting soup with its tangy lemon flavor and a spiciness which is balanced by the creamy crème fraiche.

Serves 5

2 onions, chopped
3 dl dried red lentils, rinsed
3 potatoes
2 parsnips
1/4 celeriac, peeled
3 carrots
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 dl freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 liter water
1.5 tbsp yellow curry powder
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp turmeric
0.5 tsp ground black pepper
1.5 tsp herb salt
1.5 dl of crème fraiche
Oil for frying

Cut all the root vegetables into 2 cm cubes. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion for a couple of minutes. Add the root vegetables and garlic and fry for another couple of minutes. Add the water, lentils and the spices. Boil for about 12-13 minutes, until the vegetables become soft. Blend the soup quite smooth with a hand blender and stir in the lemon juice. Serve the soup with a dollop of crème fraiche.