1,000 Indian Recipes (135 page)

Mixed Greens with Pan-Roasted Tomatoes

Bhunae Tamatar vaala Hara Salaad

Makes 4 to 6 servings

This salad features salad greens topped with pan-roasted chunks of vine-ripened tomatoes, meltingly soft and full of tangy juices. Complementing them is a spicy buttermilk and
chaat masala
dressing.

1
¹
⁄
₂
teaspoons
Chaat Masala
(or store-bought)

4 to 5 cups coarsely broken mixed sweet and bitter greens, such as iceberg, romaine, green oak, endive, and arugula, rinsed and drained

1 tablespoon peanut oil

4 to 6 small firm vine-ripened tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon peeled minced fresh ginger

¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon salt, or to taste

¹
⁄
₂
cup buttermilk

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1.
Prepare the chaat masala. Place the lettuce in a large salad bowl. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, add the tomatoes, ginger and salt, and cook, shaking the skillet and turning the tomato pieces once or twice, until they are soft but retain their shape, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle half the chaat masala on top and transfer to the lettuce bowl. Do not mix.

2.
Add the buttermilk and the remaining chaat masala to the skillet and stir, being sure to scrape the bottom of the skillet to incorporate any tomato bits and juices into the buttermilk. Bring to a boil over high heat. Let cool, then add it to the salad and toss to mix. Top with freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Spinach Salad with Roasted Cumin Seeds

Palak ka Salaad

Makes 4 to 6 servings

A quick salad, this recipe calls for baby spinach bathed in a honey-yogurt dressing and topped with dry-roasted cumin seeds.

2 teaspoons cumin seeds,
dry-roasted
and coarsely ground

5 cups firmly packed baby spinach leaves, trimmed, washed well and spin-dried

1 teaspoon peanut oil

¹
⁄
₂
teaspoon ground ginger

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon melted honey

1 cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth

¹
⁄
₂
teaspoon salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1.
Prepare the cumin seeds. Then place the spinach leaves in a salad bowl.

2.
Heat the oil in a small saucepan and add first the ginger, then the lemon juice and honey, and stir to mix. Remove from the heat and let cool. Mix in the yogurt, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, salt, and black pepper. Add to the spinach and toss lightly to mix. Sprinkle the remaining cumin seeds on top and serve.

Paneer Cheese Salad with Baby Greens

Paneer vaala Hara Salaad

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Here, the cheese is fried—to delicious effect. But the real surprise comes from the amazing flavor the baby greens take on after being tossed with the
sonth
chutney and spices.

8 ounces (1 recipe)
Paneer Cheese
(or store-bought), cut into
¹
⁄
₂
-by-3-inch pieces

¹
⁄
₂
cup any
sonth chutney
of your choice

2 teaspoons
Chaat Masala
(or store-bought)

1 cup peanut oil for deep-frying

¹
⁄
₂
cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth

4 cups mixed baby greens

1.
Prepare the paneer, sonth chutney, and chaat masala. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it reaches 325°F to 350°F on a frying thermometer or a small piece of paneer cheese dropped into the hot oil rises to the top in 15 to 20 seconds. Add the paneer cheese, 2 to 4 pieces at a time, and fry until barely golden, 30 to 40 seconds.

2.
Transfer to a plate, let cool, then when cool enough to handle, coarsely break them into
¹
⁄
₂
-inch pieces. Mix the pieces with
¹
⁄
₄
cup sonth chutney and 1 teaspoon chaat masala. Cover and keep warm.

3.
In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt and the remaining sonth chutney. Toss the baby greens with this mixture and spread them on a serving platter. Place the paneer cheese over the greens, garnish with the remaining chaat masala, and serve.

Fruit Salads

Spicy Mixed Berry Salad

Berriyon ki Chaat

Makes 4 to 6 servings

There are several Indian berries that are unknown in the United States:
falsa
, a small, round berry with a deep red color, similar to blueberries;
jamun
, a dark purple, oval fruit with a long center seed; and
baer
, similar to dates, ranging in color from pale green to brown, also featuring a long center seed. Typically,
falsas
and
jamuns
are put into small terra cotta or metal containers along with special spice blends. The mouth of the container is covered with a dried leaf or a piece of paper and shaken vigorously until the berries become very soft and thoroughly covered with spices.

I've often thought about preparing the berries I find in America this way, but because they are already soft, this treatment is sure to turn them into mush. So instead, I gently toss them with
chaat masala
.

2 to 3 cups fresh mixed berries, such as raspberries, blackberries, and boysenberries

1 teaspoon
Chaat Masala
(or store-bought), or more to taste

Finely chopped fresh mint leaves

Rinse and drain the berries, blot with paper towels, then place on a towel and allow to air-dry until as dry as possible. Meanwhile, prepare the chaat masala. Transfer to a serving bowl, add the chaat masala, and toss lightly. Garnish with mint leaves and serve.

Savory Summer Fruit Salad

Phallon ki Chaat

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Almost like a Mexican fruit salsa, this sweet and savory salad can be served as a snack or as part of an Indian meal or Western-style cook-out.

1 to 2 teaspoons
Chaat Masala
(or store-bought)

2 pounds mixed fruits, such as peaches, nectarines, and apricots, pitted and coarsely chopped

1 large mango, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 cup cherries, pitted and halved

1 cup strawberries, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon peeled minced fresh ginger

¹
⁄
₂
cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, including soft stems

1 tablespoon minced fresh mint leaves

1 fresh green chile pepper, such as serrano, minced with seeds

1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lime or lemon juice

1.
Prepare the chaat masala. Then, in a large serving bowl, mix together the peaches, nectarines, apricots, and mango. Remove about 1 cup of the mixed fruits, mash coarsely, and return to the bowl.

2.
Mix in the cherries and strawberries, then add the ginger, cilantro, mint, chili pepper, lime juice, and chaat masala. Mix well and serve.

Variation:
Vary the fruit depending upon what is on hand or in season. Exotic fruits, like the tart star fruit (
kamrak
), can be an attractive addition.

Non-Vegetarian Salads

Indian Egg Salad

India ka Andae ka Salaad

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Try this mayonnaise-free egg salad on sandwiches, or use as a stuffing for hollowed-out cherry tomatoes or small bell peppers. It can also be simply presented over a bed of greens. You can use store-bought curry powders, but they don't compare to homemade.