Chapatis

Chapatis are an Indian version of a tortilla. They are made from flour and water, rolled into a circle and fried. Traditionally they are fried in a little butter but last night we used the griddle with no oil on it at all. We still got great results and the "tortillas" were low calorie. I used AP flour as a "control" but over time we'll experiment with using whole white wheat flour and maybe some whole wheat pastry flour.
The recipe is simple but give the dough some time to rest. I've made them without resting and that's okay but they are tougher. Cover with a moist cloth or plastic wrap to keep the dough from drying out.

Chapatis
2 1/2 cups flour plus more for dusting
1 cup water

Mix flour and water into a soft dough. Let rest 30 minutes. Divide the dough into 12 pieces. Roll each out to a thin tortilla like disk. They do stretch easily so be careful. Set in hot skillet or griddle and fry until lightly brown, flip and fry until lightly brown.
Can brush on melted butter while frying.
Serve with some sort of saucy dish - we made fajitas out of ours.

My son took one and wrapped it around sliced onions and peppers before frying. It was so beautiful I wish I had taken a picture. He said it tasted good but he should have tucked in a piece of steak.

Aromatic Rice

Please bear with me as I petition for a slot in the Sodastream promotion. I work with a variety of companies to test products and for me that's a fun and inexpensive way to try new foods. This campaign is the first one I have been really interested in that involves an appliance. These are highly competative campaigns and I usually sit back and let everyone else fight over them while I enjoy my sample of breakfast cereal or cleaning product. However, I have big plans for the Sodastream and I wasn't kidding when I say I have wanted one for ages.
Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled program. Tonight, we are making fried tofu with almond sauce. This is the first time we have attempted fried tofu and we have high hopes for it. Lately my husband has been complaining about having rice with dinner. When we were gluten free, rice was served several times a week. Right now we're having pasta several times a week and I want rice. To comprimise, I'm returning to a rice dish that I used to make often. It's an Indian version of rice that gives the dish a slightly sweet, spicy flavor. The rice is cooked with spices so it's still just rice but with flavor. The spices do not add any difficulty to the dish and you can make it just like any rice. The instructions have you soak the rice before hand. This is traditional to the dish but not something I often do since I rarely think about making rice until it's time to cook. Soaking does make a less starchy rice that keeps the grains from sticking.

Aromatic Rice
1 ½ cups dry rice (basmati is the best choice)
2” cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves
2 green cardamom pods, slightly crushed
Wash rice with cold water until it runs clear, cover with water and soak for 30 min. Drain with sieve. Put into thick-sided pot with 2 cups water. Add spices, stir and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce to very low heat, cover and cook 25 min. Remove from heat, let sit 5 min, fluff with fork and remove spice. Serve as normally would.

Chai Tea and Syrup

Fall in the Palouse means hot days and cold nights. We sit each day watching the forecast searching for signs of the first frost. We got close last week but this week our nights are back in the 50's. It's not winter cold yet but still creates a desire for hot drinks and hearty desserts. One I love to indulge in during the cold months is Chai. It's not unusual for me to put a pot on in the morning and leave it throughout the day, adding water and milk as necessary (perhaps a little more sugar).
Chai is a spicy Indian drink that has become quite popular in the United States. Nearly every coffee shop sells some variety of chai but more often than not, it's a boxed concentrate added to hot milk. It's still tasty but no match for the fresh brewed variety. If you really like the boxed variety - don't fear. I'm going to give you my Chai Syrup recipe. This syrup stores beautifully in a canning jar (waterbath 10-15 minutes). Then in the fridge for quite awhile, depending on how fast you drink it. It can easily be added to milk, hot or cold, for a quick chai drink.
The ingredients may seem pricey. I purchase my dried herbs and spices through San Francisco Herb. What I get in return is a large quantity for a lot less money than the stores. I get my ginger in the glass jars in the produce section of the grocery (double check to make sure it's nothing but ginger) or Ginger People's ginger juice (it comes in a tabasco-type bottle and it for cooking not drinking). Either product last a long time.

Chai Tea
½ cup milk plus more to taste
3-inch stick cinnamon
½ inch fresh ginger, peeled and minced or 1 teas grated ginger (found in produce section of store)
2 whole cloves
4 green cardamom pods, slightly crushed
¼ teas black peppercorns
4 teas sugar and more to taste
4 tea bags
*Note - do not use powdered ginger, amount of spices are approximate can add more or less depending on taste
In large saucepan combine 5 cups of water, milk, spices and sugar. Stir and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let set for 5-10 minutes. Add tea bags and bring to boil for a second time. Reduce heat to low and let simmer 5 minutes. Check for flavor and add more sugar and milk if needed. Can strain and serve at that time or leave on slow simmer and drink on all day, straining tea into cups - be sure not to let all the water evaporate.


Chai Syrup
8 cups water
1 cup honey or 2 cups sugar
3 cinnamon sticks
12 cardamon pods
12 whole cloves
12 peppercorns
6 tsp black leaf tea
put ingredients in pot and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer 20 minutes. Add to water or milk.

Chicken in Rose-flavored Sauce

This is a lovely elegant dish that goes well with jasmine rice. Any rice is fine but jasmine's floral taste accents this dish perfectly. Be careful when adding the rose water - too much will over power this dish and ruin it's lovely flavor. Rose water is inexpensive at International/Asian markets. A bottle lasts a rather long time. I use an entire small can of minced chilies instead of purchasing whole chilies. I make this on the stovetop but was just thinking that if you used a cast iron or other all metal skillet/pan, you could easily cook this in the oven after browning the chicken. Don't skip the browning step as it adds another level of flavor to the dish.

Chicken in Rose-flavored Sauce
3 TB oil
1 ¼ pd skinless chicken legs (or whatever cut, I usually use boneless skinless breasts)
2/3 cup plain yogurt
1 TB gd ginger
2 fresh green chilis minced
½ teas cardamom
3 TB gd almonds
2/3 cup heavy cream
½ teas rose water
Heat oil and lightly fry chicken. Add yogurt, chilies and cardamom. Cover and cook until chicken is tender. Stir in almonds. Simmer for a couple minutes. Add water as necessary. Add cream and rosewater just before serving.

Indian Chicken Bites

I love Indian food. The food is so rich in texture and flavor that one falls in love with it. This recipe is an Indian inspired chicken nugget. There is no breading and can easily be made gluten free. The sauce does not and did not sound appealing to me but it complimented the chicken nicely. Here is the recipe as it was written, my changes are after.

Indian Chicken Bites
2 tablespoons molasses
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 tablespoon Sesame Seed Oil
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 teaspoons Cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
3 boneless chicken breasts (8 ounces each), trimmed and cut
into 36 cubes
1/4 cup Sun Butter
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 – 2 teaspoons hot sauce
Combine molasses, soy sauce, garlic powder, sesame oil, vinegar, cumin and coriander in a small bowl. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the marinade in a medium bowl. Place chicken in a large sealable plastic bag. Pour the remaining marinade into the bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight. Add Sun Butter, water, ketchup and hot sauce to taste to the reserved marinade and whisk to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use. After chicken is done marinating, place them on a broiler pan that has been lined with tinfoil or on a non-stick cookie sheet. Position an oven rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the broiler. Broil the chicken bites until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Remove from oven and place a toothpick in each piece. Serve with the reserved Sun Butter sauce for dipping and your favorite raw vegetables.

2 tablespoons molasses
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 tablespoon Sesame Seed Oil
1 tablespoon rice wine (still out of rice vinegar at the house)
1 tbs. garam masala
3 boneless chicken breasts (8 ounces each), trimmed and cut
into 36 cubes
1/4 cup Peanut butter
2 tablespoons ketchup

I created the marinade in a gallon zip-lock back and dropped in all the chicken without reserving any marinade. I let the chicken set for about 30 minutes, turning the chicken every so often. Using a slotted spoon, I removed the chicken and put it on my baking sheet. While the chicken was baking, I poured the marinade into a saucepan and let it come to a boil. I, then, added the peanut butter and let melt. After removing the sauce from the heat I added the ketchup to taste. I had actually scooped out a spoonful of the sauce and added a drop of ketchup for everyone to taste before I added the ketchup - everyone preferred the ketchup added.
I served the chicken with rice and hot veggies.

Indian Beef Patties

This was a recipe I got in my email but I can't remember from where (I think bgh.com). As always, I changed the recipe some. The burger is a little bland but went well with the yogurt sauce I made. The sauce was 1 cup yogurt with a packet of cucumber dill mix from Watkins. I have made that sauce before and have substituted ranch dressing mix and found they taste similar enough. If you want a more authentic sauce use 1 cup yogurt, 1 cucumber chopped (preferrably seeded) and 1 teas dried dill (or to taste). The original sauce is not at all salty so you will want to add salt to the burger. I served this with Aloo Gobi which I will post on Wednesday.

Indian Beef Patties
1/8 Cup minced dried onion
1-2 teaspoons dried mint, crushed
1-2 Teaspoons Garam Masala
1 Teaspoon bottled minced garlic (1 clove) or 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1 pound lean ground beef
Mix all the spices into the ground beef. Form into patties and fry until internal temperature reaches 165.
Serve with yogurt sauce and on buns or flat bread.

*Garam Masala is an Indian spice blend and easily found in Asian/International grocery stores. I buy mine from San Francisco Herb.

Pita Bread

Pita bread is actually quite simple. I had a recipe long ago that I am certain cooked the pita in a skillet but this oven recipe worked nicely. This recipe has you raise the pitas after shaping them but I found that it took up too much counterspace and worked fine baking them right after shaping. Also, I skipped the step of placing them in a paper bag or draping with a towel and just stacked them on a plate. After baking you can eat them or cool them, butter and fry in a skillet.

Pita Bread
1 1/8 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
Add yeast to water and let ferment for 10-15 minutes. Mix all remaining dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add yeast water and oil. The dough will be slightly dry but mix well. Knead in bowl or on countertop for several minutes. Let rise in a warm location. When it has risen to twice it's size, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently roll and stretch dough into a 12 inch rope. With a sharp knife, divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll each into a smooth ball. With a rolling pin, roll each ball into a 6 to 7 inch circle. Set aside on a lightly floured countertop. cover with a towel. Let pitas rise about 30 minutes until slightly puffy. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Place 2 or 3 pitas on a wire cake rack. Place cake rack directly on oven rack. Bake pitas 4 to 5 minutes until puffed and tops begin to brown. Remove from oven and immediately place pitas in a sealed brown paper bag or cover them with a damp kitchen towel until soft. Once pitas a softened, either cut in half or split top edge for half or whole pitas. They can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for 1 or 2 months.

Curried Chicken

This is a great and quick dish. I discovered something called stir fry chicken at our grocery store. It's become my favorite cut of chicken. They also have stir fry pork and beef. The cut is about 1/2 inch strips of meat but they cook really fast making them perfect for rushed dinners.
Curry is often a dish served with a lot of extras. I served this with currants, almonds and lemon slices. You can easily include other nuts, fresh herbs or anything that sounds good (chutneys are often served with curries). I made fresh pitas and will share that recipe tomorrow.

Curried Chicken
1 onion, chopped
2 teas minced or paste ginger
1 head (bulb) garlic, minced or mashed (I often smash the unpeeled cloves under a jar and then remove the peels)
2 teas curry powder
2 teas cumin
2 teas lemongrass paste
1 onion sliced
2 green peppers, chopped or sliced
2 tbs sour cream
Lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
4 3/4 pounds stirfry chicken (this is what I used - feel free to use more or less chicken)
Oil
In a blender, puree lemongrass, ginger, garlic, curry powder, cumin and chopped onion until a thick paste. Heat oil in deep skillet. Saute the sliced onion and peppers until they start to soften. Add paste and let brown. Squeeze lemon juice over pan to loosen anything sticking. Add chicken and fry until the chicken reaches 180 degrees. With this cut cooking should take about 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream and remove from heat.
Serve over salad greens on a pita.

*ginger and lemongrass paste can be found in nearly any grocery store produce section. They can come in small jars or plastic tubes. Lemongrass can be optional.