An Indian adventure.

Starters:

Salmon kabab, Lamb kabab, Spicy apple onion salad and Mint Raita

Soup:

Rasam / South Indian style lentil soup

Main course:

Chicken Tikka Massala

Lamb Balti

Chola Curry / Chickpea curry

Side dishes:

Kele aur Kheere ka Raita / Banana & Cucumber Raita

Mango Chutney

Tandoori Naan and Basmati rice

Dessert:

Gajar ka Halwa / Carrot Halwa

Salmon Kebab

Salmon Kabab

Mamta Gupta

A delicately flavoured kebab.

•	500 gm fresh salmon fillets, skin removed
•	1 onion peeled and finely chopped
•	2 green chillies, finely chopped
•	2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed or grated
•	1 tbs. butter
•	2 tbs. finely chopped chives or spring onion greens
•	2 tbs. mayonnaise
•	2 tbs. sour cream
•	1 tbs. oil

Instructions

1.	Chop the fish very, very finely, using a sharp knife. Do not mince.
2.	Heat the butter in a pan and fry onion, garlic and green chillies on a low heat, until soft but not browned. Turn heat off.
3.	Place all ingredients in a bowl, along with fried onion mix. Mix well.
4.	Transfer to an airtight container and leave in the fridge for an hour or two.
5.	Divide in 12 or more portions and shape into round kebabs.
6.	Place on a plate, cover with a cling film and return to the fridge for an hour or until nearly time to serve.
7.	Heat a grill. Place kebabs on a tray lined with foil and grill them for 4-5 minutes. Keep a close watch. If they begin to turn brown, move the tray further away from the grill. They must cook through. If you do not have a grill, shallow fry on high heat for a minute or two and then on medium, until cook. Do not turn too often, they are quite fragile.

Lamb Cutlets or Kebabs

Lamb Cutlets

Mamta Gupta

Lamb cutlets are easy to make, are delicious to serve with drinks and can be made in advance. Reheat in oven or a frying pan. This recipe can be used with other mince meats/chicken too. Makes 12 or more small kababs.

•	500 gm. finely minced lamb of good quality
•	2 large slices of white bread
•	1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
•	2 green chillies, finely chopped
•	1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated
•	2 cloves of garlic, peeled and grated (optional)
•	1 tbs. green coriander leaves, chopped
•	1 tbs. fresh mint leaves, chopped
•	1 tsp. garam masala
•	2 tsp. coriander powder
•	Salt to taste
•	2 eggs, beaten
•	1 cup dry bread crumbs, spread on a flat plat
•	1 egg, lightly beaten
•	Oil for frying

Instructions

1.	Soak bread slices in water for a few minutes, remove and squeeze all the water out.
2.	Place onion, green chilli, ginger and garlic in a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. You can chop them finely or grate by hand.
3.	Take out in a large bowl and add all other ingredients, except 1 egg, bread crumbs and oil. Mix well and keep in the fridge for 2-3 hours. This will allow flavours to infuse.
4.	Divide the mix into 12 or more portions, roll into balls and then make into cutlet shapes-round, flat pear shaped or oval.
5.	Heat oil, to medium hot, in a heavy bottomed frying pan.
6.	Beat 1 remaining egg lightly.
7.	Dip each cutlet into beaten egg, roll into bread crumbs and fry until golden colour on both sides. Do not have the oil too hot or the meat will not cook and the outside will burn.
8.	Lift out with a slotted spoon, drain on a kitchen paper and serve hot.
9.	These cutlets can also be deep fried in a kadhai or wok. Test fry one first, to make sure that do not fall apart. If they do, you may need to add a little more egg, or a little besan (gram flour), to improve binding.

Apple and Onion Salad - Spicy

Apple and Onion Salad

Devi Patel

This salad is very easy to make and tastes very crunchy and fresh. You can serve it with Indian or Western style of meal.

•	8 cooking apples (or any other sharp apples)
•	1 large onion, peeled
•	Salt to taste
•	1 tbs. chopped coriander leaves
•	2 green chillies, very finely chopped
•	1 tsp. cumin seeds, dry roasted and coarsely ground

Instructions

1.	Wash, peel core apples.
2.	Peel onion.
3.	Grate apples and onion coarsely. If grating by hand, add salt as you are grating. If grating in a processor, add salt immediately after grating. This will stop apples from discolouring.
4.	Squeeze out all water and discard.
5.	Mix all ingredients.
6.	Keep in air tight tub, until needed. It lasts in the fridge for a week.

Mint Raita (Yoghurt)

Pudina ka Raita

Abha Gupta

This is a popular raita in Indian homes, especially during the hot weather. Mint is known for it’s cooling properties.

•	500 ml. fresh, natural yoghurt or dahi
•	A small bunch of fresh mint leaves, ground to a paste. Amount depends on how minty you like it.
•	1/2 tbs. cumin seeds, dry roasted and coarsely ground
•	Salt to taste
•	1/2 tsp. chilli powder/black pepper (optional)

Instructions

1.	Beat yoghurt lightly
2.	Add all other ingredients and stir well.
3.	Adjust seasoning to taste.
4.	Serve chilled with an Indian meal.

Notes

•	You can add finely chopped red onions/cucumbers/green chillies

Lentil Soup - South Indian Style

Rasam or Sambhar Soup

Mamta Gupta

This is a milder and more diluted version of the South Indian 'sambhar'. It is rather hotter than the Western lentil soup. Serves 12

•	2 cups red lentil (dhuli masoor)
•	6-8 cups water
•	400-800 gm. vegetable mix - aubergine, okra, beans, potatoes, carrots etc., chopped into small pieces
•	2 small onions, thinly sliced
•	A few curry leaves (not bay leaves)
•	2 tbs. tamarind pulp (Imli ka guda). You can buy it in bottles or jars from Indian grocers. If tamarind is not available, use 2 heaped tbs. tomato puree and juice of half a lemon.
•	4 cups hot water
•	4 tbs. Sambhar Powder or Curry Powder
•	2 tsp. salt (to taste)
•	For tarka or tempering
•	2-4 tbs. oil
•	2 tsp. mustard seeds or rai
•	A large pinch of asafoetida powder
•	4 red chillies, broken into 2-3 pieces each

Instructions

1.	Wash lentils and boil in 3-4 cups of water, until soft. Keep aside.
2.	Dissolve tamarind pulp in 2 cups of hot water and bring to boil in a pan.
3.	Add curry/sambhar powder, salt and all the vegetables and curry leaves.
4.	Cook briskly until all vegetables are tender.
5.	Add cooked lentil and mix thoroughly.
6.	Adjust salt and the consistency of the soup to you liking.
7.	Tempering:
8.	In a ladle or a small pan, heat oil.
9.	Add mustard seeds and asafoetida powder and broken red chillies. Once the seeds splutter, add it to the rest of the soup. Cover immediately and let the flavours seep.
10.	Serve hot.

Notes

•	It can be garnished with chopped coriander leaves.
•	You can make it without the vegetables too.

Tandoori Roti - Indian Bread

Mamta Gupta

This simplest of Indian bread is easy to make and can be eaten with any curry or dal. Don't be put off by long instructions, they are to make the procedure clearer. These rotis are very easy to make, easier than normal roti or chapsttis.. Makes 12

•	500 gm (2-2 1/2 cups) atta or chapatti flour. If you can not get chapatti flour, mix 2/3rd plain white and 1/3rd whole-wheat flour. 100% white flour can also be used.
•	Approximately 1 1/2 cup water
•	Heated Grill

Instructions

1.	Make a soft dough by kneading flour with water. It has to be soft enough to roll out but not too soft to make it difficult to roll. Remember that firm dough makes for harder rotis. Dough can be made quickly in a food processor.
2.	Keep aside for 10-15 minutes.
3.	Switch grill on and let it heat to maximum, leaving the grill/oven tray under it. You need a hot tray, before you put chapatties on it.
4.	Place dusting flour in an old dinner plate or similar.
5.	Divide dough into 10-12 golf ball size portions and roll into balls.
6.	Keep the dough balls covered with a moist cloth.
7.	Roll each ball out gently, to a 6 inch circle, using dry flour for dusting. Dusting can be done easily by dipping the roti, one side at a time, in the dry flour kept in a plate. Roll out in batches of 3-4 at a time.
8.	Place the rolled out rotis on the hot tray and return under the grill. How many you can do at a time, depends on the size of your tray/grill. Keep the door closed to retain maximum heat. Remember, tandoor is very hot. Rotis fluff up into balls, so keep space between tray and the grill. Keep a close eye to stop the rotis from burning.
9.	Once the top looks cooked, very lightly golden with a few dark brown-black spots and patches, turn them over and cook the other side.
10.	You need help to keep an eye on the grill, while you are rolling the next batch out, the roties burn very quickly.
11.	Serve straight out of the oven with any Indian dal, vegetable, meat, chicken fish curry. You can butter them lightly.

Notes

•	Variations can be made by adding grated onions or chopped methi or fenugreek leaves, chopped spinach etc. to the dough.

Mango Chutney - Sweet - Gupta Family Style

Aam ki Meethi Chutney

Suresh Chandra

This chutney was cooked each summer by my late father. It has been taken from his old recipe book. To this day, it is a great favourite of all our family members, even the ones born after his death! It is good in cheese sandwiches. make it when raw mangoes are in season and keep in the larder for a whole year or even longer - Mamta.

•	1 kg. green pickling mangoes (any green, unripe mangoes will do)
•	120 gm. onions
•	30 gm. garlic
•	1 kg. sugar
•	60 gm. salt
•	1 tsp.red chilli powder-to taste
•	250 ml. malt vinegar
•	2 tsp. cumin seeds
•	4 bay leaves*
•	3 cinnamon sticks of 2 inch each*
•	2 tsp. black peppercorns*
•	3-4 brown cardamoms*
•	12 cloves*
•	1 small piece of muslin or an old hankerchief (it will be thrown at the end).

Instructions

1.	Peel and grate mangoes coarsely or chop finely.
2.	Mix salt, sugar and mangoes in a heavy bottomed cooking pan and leave for 1/2 an hour. This makes the natural juices in mangoes to ooze out and lets the salt and sugar dissolve in the juices.
3.	Stir once or twice.
4.	Peel and grate onions coarsely or chop finely.
5.	Peel and grate garlic.
6.	Tie all the whole spices marked* in muslin or an old handkerchief.
7.	Add to mangoes in the pan. Flavour of the spices will be released into the chutney through the cloth during cooking.
8.	Add chilli powder, onions and garlic.
9.	Cook briskly for 10 minutes.
10.	Add vinegar and continue to cook until the chutney thickens. This takes approximately 45 -60 minutes.
11.	Cool a little and pour into warm, sterilised jars.
12.	When completely cold, put airtight lids on and store

Banana and Cucumber Raita

Kele aur Kheere ka Raita

Mamta Gupta

•	2 cups thick and creamy natural yoghurt
•	1 ripe banana-peeled and coarsely chopped
•	1 small or 1/2 large cucumber-peeled and grated
•	10-12 mint leaves-finely chopped
•	4-5 mint leaves for garnish
•	1 tsp. salt
•	1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
•	1 tbs. honey (optional)
•

Instructions

1.	Beat yoghurt with salt, honey, mint leaves and salt.
2.	Add and mix bananas and cucumber.
3.	Decorate with a few mint leaves.
4.	Serve chilled.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Murgh Tikka Masala

Mamta Gupta

This Indian dish does not originate from India. In fact, it does not even exist in India. If you ordered it in a restaurant in India, chances are that they have not even heard of it!

Chicken Tikka Masala, or CTM as it is known in short, is one of those dishes that was invented for British palate. It is said to have been produced by an astute Bangladeshi chef, in response to a customer’s query “where is my gravy”, when he was served Chicken Tikka, a well known Indian dish. The chef said “no problem”, called the dish back to the kitchen, just fried some sliced onion, ginger garlic, added a little of tinned, condensed Campbell’s Cream of Tomato Soup, a few more curry spices and sent it back to the said ignorant customer. Chicken Tikka Masala was born! After all, it is only Chicken Tikka, with a little more ‘masala’! Perhaps this customer was on to something and was not as ignorant as described in the Chicken Tikka Masala folk lore!

CTM is sold in the “ready to eat meals” section of all British food stores, over 20 million portions are said to be eaten UK wide every year and it is supposed to make 15% of all the curries served in UK’s Indian restaurants every year. I have to say though, that I have no idea how these figures have been reached.

Many chefs like to lay claim to have invented the UK’s most loved dish, but there is no evidence to support their claims. Some say that it was invented in Glasgow, by a man called Sultan Ahmed Ansari, who ran the Taj Mahal, in the 1950s. But we don’t even know if there were any “tandoors” in UK in the 50’s. There is no verifiable evidence to support any of the claims for inventing this most popular of British dishes.

•	1 kg. chicken brest, skinned, boned and cut into bite size pieces
•	Marinade:
•	200 gm natural yoghurt (creamy yoghurt is better)
•	1 tbs. oil
•	1 1/2 tbs. coriander powder
•	1 tsp. chilli powder (adjust to taste)
•	Juice of 1 lemon/lime
•	2 tsp. sweet paprika powder for colour (I do not use artificial colouring in this dish).
•	1 tsp. Garam Masala
•	Salt to taste
•	For cooking:
•	1-2 tbs. oil
•	2 medium onions peeled and thinly sliced
•	3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed or grated
•	1 inch root ginger, peeled and grated
•	1 large tomato, chopped*
•	1 tbs. tomato puree*

Instructions

1.	Wash and drain chicken pieces.
2.	Mix all marinade ingredients and make a paste. Marinade chicken pieces in this mix overnight or for at least a few hours. Keep it in an airtight container in the fridge to avoid smell getting into everything else.
3.	Heat oil in a large wok or pan.
4.	Stir fry chicken, along with the marinade, on high for 6-7 minutes. Take out and keep aside.
5.	In another pan, fry onion, ginger and garlic until nicely browned.
6.	Add Tomatoes and tomato puree (or soup) and fry for a few minutes.
7.	Add the cooked chicken and its marinade to the onions and boil briskly until sauce thickens and the chicken is tender. You may need to add a little water or chicken stock if the gravy looks too thick. The sauce should be of custard like consistency.
8.	Adjust spices and salt.

Notes

•	*You can add 1 can of tinned Campbell’s tomato soup to replace condensed these two

Lamb Curry - Balti

Balti Gosht

Shagufta Shahin

I first tasted this dish on holiday in Pakistan. We had travelled to Murree and then taken a little coach ride to Ayubia, which is a remote town further up the mountains. These are the foothills of the Himalayas, also known as the Switzerland of Asia! We told the cook that we were going for a walk up the mountains and would be back in an hour. Could he make us something filling and tasty. He looked at us as if to say "shouldn't everything be .....?" Anyway we had a delicious and memorable meal and it gives me great pleasure to be able to pass this on to others to savour! The list of ingredients looks long but it is an easy to cook dish, the actual cooking time is perhaps 15-20 minutes.

•	1 kg. good quality lamb leg or shoulder meat, cut into cubes. Ask your butcher to cut it for you, leaving the bones in. (other meats or chicken can also be cooked in the same way)
•	2 medium sized onions coarsely chopped
•	5 cloves of garlic, whole
•	1 inch piece of fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
•	1 1/2 tsp. salt or to taste
•	1/2 tsp. red chilli powder
•	1 tsp. coarsely ground coriander seeds (this is better than the ready made coriander powder)
•	1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
•	1 tsp. coarsely ground cumin seeds (jeera)
•	1/4 tsp. nigella seeds or kalonji/kalaunji
•	3-4 whole cloves (laung or lavang)
•	3-4 whole black peppers (kali mirch)
•	3 tbs. vegetable oil
•	2 medium sized tomatoes, cut into quarters
•	3 green chillies, thickly sliced
•	A handful of fresh green coriander leaves
•	3-4 sprigs of fresh garden mint

Instructions

1.	Put all of the above ingredients, except the last four, into any non stick container e.g. a wok or a heavy based saucepan that can be covered to seal all the moisture/steam.
2.	Add only 1/2 cup water, as the onions and meat will release water.
3.	Bring to boil.
4.	Leave to cook gently for around 15-20 minutes or until the meat is tender. Poorer the quality of meat, longer it takes to cook.
5.	Remove lid and dry the sauce slowly, mashing the onions and garlic with a spatula.
6.	Add the fresh tomatoes and the green chillies and stir until the tomatoes have been reduced and the whole mixture looks like a sauce. If the mixture sticks to the bottom of the pan, add a little water at a time as you go along. Once the mixture starts releasing the oil, it is ready.
7.	Add fresh coriander and garden mint, cover and remove from heat.
8.	Balti gosht is ready.

Notes

•	Remember to keep all ingredients as near to fresh and unprocessed as possible.
•	The amounts given are for a mildly hot curry but you can increase or decrease the amount of chillies according to your taste. All other ingredients remain the same.
•	Kalonji can be spelled as Kalowunji on some packets.
•	Note from Mamta: Using fresh English leg of lamb, it took 50 minutes of brisk simmering, for meat to be tender.

Chickpea Curry

Chola Curry

Mamta Gupta

This is a favourite of my daughters Kavita and Neeta who love it served with freshly made poori or roti. It is not very highly spiced though spices can be adjusted to make it hotter.

It can be a quick dish, if you use tinned boiled chick peas. Left over can be frozen.

•	400 gm chick peas (unsoaked) or 800 gm tinned chickpeas in brine
•	2 medium to large onions, peeled
•	1/4 inch piece of ginger
•	2-3 cloves of garlic (optional)
•	2 medium tomatoes, chopped finely or 200 gm tinned tomatoes. If tomatoes are unavailable, 1/2 cup of natural yougurt can be used instead
•	1 tbs. cooking oil
•	1 tsp. cumin seeds
•	1 small pinch of asafoetida
•	1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
•	1/2 tsp. chilli powder
•	1 tsp. of coriander powder
•	Salt to taste
•	1/2 tsp. Garam Masala
•	A small bunch of coriander leaves, washed and chopped finely
•	1 cup of water

Instructions

1.	Clean, wash & soak chickpeas overnight in salted water.
2.	Boil chick peas in salted water for 1 to 1 1/2 hour, until tender or cook in a pressure cooker for 15-20 minutes. If using tinned chickpeas, drain and rinse them (these don’t need boiling).
3.	Crush the chick peas slightly by pressing with a laddle so they are not completely broken but have a slightly rough texture.
4.	Peel, wash and chop onions, ginger and garlic in a food processor or (finely) by hand.
5.	Heat oil in a pan.
6.	Add cumin seeds and a pinch of asafoetida and let the seeds splutter.
7.	Add onions, ginger and garlic & fry until golden to dark brown (not burnt).
8.	Add all powdered spices except garam masala and stir for 10 seconds to release flavours.
9.	Add tomatoes and stir fry until oil separates.
10.	Add chick peas, stir and add water.
11.	Adjust salt, chilli and water to your own taste and likes.
12.	Cook briskly for 15 minutes
13.	Take off the heat and add garam masala and coriander leaves, saving a few leaves for garnish.
14.	Serve hot, garnished with remaining coriander leaves.

Notes

•	Those of you who live in the West, can use tinned, boiled chick peas in brine to save time.
•	You can add a couple of boiled potatoes cut into bite size pieces, towards the end.

Carrot Halwa

Gajar ka Halwa

Mamta Gupta

This is a popular winter sweet dish in North India as carrots grow mainly in cold months. It is best served warm. My mother used to make it from the desi gajar or the dark purple carrots, which gave it a very distinctive flavour and colour. However, any variety of carrots will do.

Serves 12

•	1,5 kg carrots
•	300-500 gm sugar (adjust to taste)
•	750 gm Khoa (khoya or Mawa) or 600 gm dry milk powder, if khoa is not available. Using skimmed milk powder instead of khoa, reduces the fat content of this dish but taste may not be as good.
•	75 gm ghee
•	A few strands of saffron
•	5-6 green cardamom pods or 1 tsp. powdered cardamoms
•	150 gm chopped pistachio/almonds
•	75 gm raisins. You can use dry blueberries if you don't like raisins or omit altogether.

Instructions

1.	Making khoa
2.	Boil 2 litres of milk in a wide, heavy bottomed pan until it is semi-solid. It will require constant stirring towards the end. It can be bought ready made from Indian shops in the shape of a round cake. When cool, crumple khoya. Shop made one can be grated coarsely.
3.	Makimg Halwa
4.	Wash, peel and grate carrots. Food processor is good for this purpose.
5.	Remove cardamom skins and pound seeds finely in a mortar. Discard any fibre. Keep aside.
6.	Measure other ingredients & keep aside.
7.	Place carrots and in 1/2 cup of water in a pan, bring to boil and simmer on low to medium heat, until tender. This takes only 15-20 minutes or so. Carrots can be cooked quickly in a pressure cooker by giving only 1 pressure.
8.	Drain off the water in a colander. This water can be used in soups or drunk chilled as carrot juice.
9.	Heat ghee in a wok or kadhai and add cooked, drained carrots. Stir fry until all water evaporates.
10.	Add saffron, if used. Add milk powder or khoa and fry until thoroughly mixed.
11.	Add sugar and stir fry again until all liquid evaporates. Sugar melts, and releases more liquid.
12.	Remove from fire.
13.	Add nuts, raisins and cardamoms, mix thoroughly.
14.	Cool.
15.	Pack in a box and keep in fridge.
16.	Re-heat the amount required just before serving. This can be done in a frying pan or in a microwave for 1-3 minutes. Time and power will depend on the amount heated and the power used. One portion will roughly require 20 seconds on full heat.

500 gm fresh salmon fillets, skin removed

1 kg. chicken brest, skinned, boned and cut into bite size pieces

500 gm. finely minced lamb of good quality

1 kg. good quality lamb leg or shoulder meat

14 onion

10 green chillies

2 large garlic bulbs

2 bunch chopped chives or spring onion greens

2 bunches of fresh mint leaves

2 bunches of coriander leaves

8 cooking apples (or any other sharp apples)

2 cup red lentil (dhuli masoor)

400-800 gm. vegetable mix - aubergine, okra, beans, potatoes, carrots etc., chopped into small pieces

1 kg. green pickling mangoes (any green, unripe mangoes will do)

4 inch piece of fresh ginger

6 medium sized tomatoes

1 ripe banana

1 cucumber

400 gm chick peas (unsoaked) or 800 gm tinned chickpeas in brine

6 tomatoes,

1,5 kg carrots

1 lemon

1000 ml thick and creamy natural yoghurt

500 ml. fresh, natural yoghurt or dahi

100 gm ghee

2 tbs. mayonnaise

2 tbs. sour cream

12 large slices of white bread

3 eggs

250 ml. malt vinegar

1 tbs. tomato puree

1000 gm basmati rice

2 tsp.red chilli powder

7 tsp. cumin seeds

4 bay leaves

3 cinnamon sticks of 2 inch each

3 tsp. black peppercorns

3-4 brown cardamoms

16 cloves

5 tbs. coriander powder

2 tsp. sweet paprika powder

2 tsp. garam masala

A few curry leaves (not bay leaves)

2 tbs. tamarind pulp (Imli ka guda). You can buy it in bottles or jars from Indian grocers. If tamarind is not available, use 2 heaped tbs. tomato puree and juice of half a lemon.

Curry Powder

21 tbs. mustard seeds

asafoetida powder

4 red chillies, broken into 2-3 pieces each

1 tsp. coarsely ground coriander seeds (this is better than the ready made coriander powder)

1 tsp. turmeric powder

1/4 tsp. nigella seeds or kalonji/kalaunji

A few strands of saffron

5-6 green cardamom pods or 1/2 tsp. powdered cardamoms

500 gm (2-2 1/2 cups) atta or chapatti flour. If you can not get chapatti flour, mix 2/3rd plain white and 1/3rd whole-wheat flour. 100% white flour can also be used.

1 kg. sugar

300-500 gm sugar (adjust to taste)

1 small piece of muslin or an old hankerchief (it will be thrown at the end).

750 gm Khoa (khoya or Mawa) or 600 gm dry milk powder, if khoa is not available. Using skimmed milk powder instead of khoa, reduces the fat content of this dish but taste may not be as good.

150 gm chopped pistachio/almonds

75 gm raisins