Lentil and roasted cauliflower tacos (cookie and kate)

 Here.  These were good!  Not too involved.

Lahori chana attempt #1

 I transcribed the recipe from this video, but halved everything.  The video was recommended in this thread.

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250g chickpea soaked overnight in 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp baking soda

Drain and rinse.

Cook in pressure cooker with 1/2 tsp salt for 25-30 minutes. Let depressurize naturally for 10.

Heat 1/4 c oil.  Add 2 green cardamom, 2 **small** black cardamom, 1.5" cinnamon stick, 1 star anise, 10 black peppercorns

Add 1-2 tsp red chili flakes and fry stirring continuously for 1-2 min.

Add a little water and fry 1-2 min more (??)

Add 1 onion worth of onion paste and cook 4-5 min until oil separates.

Add 1 Tbsp ginger+garlic paste and fry 1-2 min.

Add 1/2 Tbsp coriander powder, 1/2 tsp cumin seed, 1/2 tsp salt and cook 1-2 min. 

Add 75 g yogurt and cook 3-4 min (on low).

Add boiled chickpeas, with 1 cup removed and processed into a paste.  Cook 3-4 min.

Add chickpea paste.

Now add boiled chickpea water (about 1 C) and 3-4 green chilies.

Cook uncovered over low flame for 10 min.

Add 1 Tbsp ground black pepper (or to taste) and cook 1-2 min.

You can adjust with more water if needed.

Chicken Pho

 We followed this recipe.

Notes:

- Great idea to make the broth on the weekend and then prep the meal in like 15 min during week days.

- We used a whole brined chicken, so I only used 1.5 Tbsp salt and 1 Tbsp sugar.  Broth turned out great!

- Don't try and cook noodles or vegies in the broth.  Blanch everything separately, rinse the noodles to avoid weird aftertaste, and then pour broth over them.

Hummus Plate

  This was great!  Lots of components.

0).  Sumac dusted skirt steak 

1).  Hummus

2).  Pickled onion

3).  Roasted vegies

4).  Zhoug sauce (spicy green sauce)

5).  Cucumber/tomato salad

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Sumac-Dusted Skirt Steak

Ingredients

• 1 – 1.5 lbs skirt steak
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp ground sumac
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt (adjust to taste)
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
• Optional: squeeze of fresh lemon at the end

Instructions
1. Prep the steak: Pat the skirt steak dry, cut into manageable section if it’s very long
2. Make the rub: In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, sumac, smoke paprika, cumin, garlic
powder, salt and pepper into a paste. Rub the mixture all over the steak until well coated.

Let it marinate at room temp for at least 30 minutes or refrigerate overnight.

Bring the meat back to room temperature, if you want a more even cook. If you prefer a heavier sear and less cooked center, you can throw the meat on the grill straight from the fridge.

3. Grill or Pan-Sear
a. Grill method: Heat grill to high… really high. If possible, use a 2-zone
method, in case you need to cook in batches and want to keep the cooked
meat warm. Sear for 2-3 minutes per side for medium-rare.
b. Cast-iron method: heat skillet until nearly smoking. Add a drizzle of oil, then sear steak 2-3 minutes per side

4. Rest and Slice
a. Let steak rest for 5-10 minutes, loosely tented with foil.
b. Slice thinly, against the grain. You may need to cut the steaks into more
manageable pieces before cutting against the grain to get reasonably
sized pieces

5. Finish
a. Dust with a little extra sumac and squeeze of fresh lemon just before
serving.   (I didn't actually do this step)

Hummus.  

1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight (or 2 cans 15-oz chickpeas, rinsed and drained)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda (if using dried chickpeas, for soaking and boiling)

1/2 cup tahini (good quality, light-colored)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons), plus more to taste

2-3 cloves garlic, crushed or minced

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

1/4 - 1/2 cup ice water (for desired consistency)

Optional garnish: Paprika, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:

If using dried chickpeas: Drain soaked chickpeas, rinse, and place in a pot with fresh water and 1/2 tsp baking soda. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, or until very tender and mushy. In the instant pot: if we pre-soaked for 8-10 hours, then 20 minutes is enough + 10 minutes to naturally depressurize.  Drain well, reserving some cooking liquid if you want to use it to adjust consistency (or for some other purpose). (For canned: just rinse well.)

Blend: In a food processor, combine the cooked chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, crushed garlic, and salt.

Process: Process for 3-5 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed, until very smooth. While processing, slowly drizzle in the ice water (or reserved chickpea cooking liquid) until you reach a light, creamy, and fluffy consistency. **note that the ice water does have a large effect on the consistency**

Adjust: Taste and adjust salt and lemon juice

Chill: Transfer to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes for flavors to meld and for it to thicken slightly.

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Pickled onion.

• 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• ½ cup water
• 1 ½ Tbsp sugar (or honey for a softer note)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp sumac (echoes your steak seasoning)
• Optional: a small slice of lemon peel or ½ garlic clove
• 3–5 whole black peppercorns

Method

1. Place the sliced red onions in a heatproof jar.
2. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate.
3. In a small saucepan, bring vinegar, water, sugar, and salt to a simmer until dissolved.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the sumac, peppercorns, and any optional aromatics.
5. Pour the hot liquid over the onions, pressing them down so they’re fully submerge

They’ll be tasty after 30 minutes, but even better after 2–3 hours. They’ll keep for about 2 weeks.

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Roasted veggies.

1 sweet potato, tossed in olive oil and a little cinnemon.

 

1/2 large head cauliflower cut into florets and tossed in olive oil and 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp salt.

Roast at 425 for 25 min.

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Zhoug Sauce

 

*** I actually like trader joe's better than the recipe below**

 

1 large bunch fresh cilantro (about 1.5 cups packed, leaves and tender stems)

1 large bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley (about 1.5 cups packed, leaves and tender stems) - often a higher ratio of parsley in Israeli versions for more herbaceousness.

3-5 green chilies (such as serrano or jalapeño) - adjust to your heat preference. For a milder sauce, remove seeds and membranes. For more heat, leave them in. Some Israeli versions can be quite fiery!

4-6 cloves garlic, peeled - often a bit more garlic in Israeli versions.

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom - still essential for that unique aroma, but sometimes slightly less emphasized than in pure Yemenite versions.

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

3-4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons), or to taste - often a more prominent lemon kick.

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

Combine all in food processor and blend.

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Chopped salad

Cubed 2 cucumbers, and 1/2 large farmer's market tomato, along with thinly sliced red cabbage.  Drizzled with olive oil, a little salt and pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice.

 

or, you could use a more "proper" vinegrette like the following (but this makes quite a lot; way more than for 2 people):

• ⅓ cup olive oil

• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice (2–3 lemons)

• 1 tsp lemon zest

• 1 tsp ground sumac (echoes the steak & onions if you’re doing those)

• 1 tsp honey or sugar (balances the acidity and bitterness of cabbage)

• 1 tsp kosher salt (more to taste)

• ½ tsp black pepper

• Optional: 1 small garlic clove, grated

Whisk until emulsified. Toss with salad right before serving.

 

• 
  

vietnamese lemongrass chicken

 Followed this recipe.

Chicken was *great*.  The Nuoc Cham sauce wasn't quite right, and we kind of messed up the bowl part.  Didn't soak the noodles long enough or julienne the vegetables right.  But good to try again!

Maria said she'd eat it "on repeat"

keema khirchri

 Recipe is here.

We used 3 Tbsp oil instead of 1/2 cup when frying the onions.  Onions diced instead of sliced.

Total spice was 2-4 serranos minced (instead of green chili paste) and 1/2 tsp chili powder.  Good heat.

Somewhat time consuming but makes a lot.  Could be made in two stages by doing the keema on one day and the rest on the next day.  (STILL time consuming).

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Update:  this time we made it it wasn't flavorful enough.  Adding salt + heat helped.

WE think maybe it's to do with the potatoes.  I'd probably just omit them.  (We boiled potato cubes instead of frying). 

Maria special occasion sooji

This is a modified version of the one at Tea and Turmeric.

Maria said she does a more "breakfast style" sooji which has less butter and sugar and is a creamier texture.

For next time, we think:

1 C fine sooji (as opposed to course)

1/4 - 1/3 C ghee

1/4 - 1/3 C sugar

5-7 cardamom pods

pinch saffron

2.5 C liquid (half milk half water?)

1/4 C golden raisins

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Melt butter over med-low heat.  Add sooji and toast until golden brown ~12-14 min.

Meanwhile, heat milk/water.  Add sugar to dissolve.  Take off heat and add raisins and pinch saffron.

When sooji is browned, pour in liquid, turn heat to low, and stir for 3-4 min until completely thickened.