Krishna & Maria's Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 large leeks (white and light green parts), sliced
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 4 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup heavy cream (optional)

Instructions:

1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add leeks and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.
2. Use garlic press to prepare the garlic and let it stand for 10 min ( to increase nutritional value)
3. Add broth, potatoes, garlic, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
4. Remove bay leaf. Blend soup until smooth.
5. Stir in cream if using.

Kartoffel-Lauch-Suppe Rezept

Zutaten:

•   4 Esslöffel ungesalzene Butter
•   4 große Lauchstangen (weiße und hellgrüne Teile), in Scheiben geschnitten
•   6 Tassen Hühner- oder Gemüsebrühe
•   4 große Kartoffeln, geschält und gewürfelt
•   2-3 Knoblauchzehen
•   1 Lorbeerblatt
•   1 Teelöffel Salz (oder nach Geschmack)
•   1/2 Teelöffel gemahlener schwarzer Pfeffer
•   1 Becher Sahne (optional)

Anleitung:

1.  Butter in einem großen Topf bei mittlerer Hitze schmelzen. Lauch hinzufügen und etwa 10 Minuten weich dünsten.
2.  Knoblauch pressen und 10 Minuten ruhen lassen (um den Nährwert zu erhöhen).
3.  Brühe, Kartoffeln, Knoblauch, Lorbeerblatt, Salz und Pfeffer hinzufügen. Aufkochen, dann Hitze reduzieren und 15 Minuten köcheln lassen, bis die Kartoffeln weich sind.
4.  Lorbeerblatt entfernen. Suppe pürieren, bis sie glatt ist.
5.  Nach Wunsch Sahne unterrühren.

Receipt credit: Kitchen Stories

Ingredients:

• 2 large eggplants
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp mirin
• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp teriyaki sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 scallion
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• rice

Method:

Peel the eggplant and cut off the ends. Bring water to a boil in a streamer. Put large pasta strainer over the boiling pot and add the eggplants to it. Close the lid of the boiling pot. Steam the eggplants over medium heat for approx. 18 mins until a knife slides easily through the eggplants.

Mix soy sauce, mirin, water, teriyaki sauce, sesame oil and sugar in a bowl. Cut scallion into fine rings. After steaming let the eggplants cool a bit and cut them in half lengthwise. Using a fork, open each piece several times like a book to create a large surface for the sauce later.

Heat oil in a non stick frying pan on high. Fry the eggplants on both sides until golden brown. If necessary add 1 more tbsp of oil.

Pour the sauce mixture over the eggplants in the pan and simmer until reduced enough to make the eggplants sticky and glossy. Add the scallion.

Arrange on a bed of steamed rice and serve.

Ingredients:

• Lemon
• pita bread loaves
• cooked falafel balls, from homemade or store-bought falafel mix
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 medium cucumber, unpeeled and diced
• 1 medium white or red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• 3 cucumber pickles, optional
• Tahini sauce, homemade or store-bought, to taste. (or sesame based sauce)

Cooking Method:

Prepare the filling. Dice tomatoes, cucumber, onion, parsley and add to a bowl

Prepare the falafel balls. Add sufficient oil to small wok so that each falafel ball can be deep fried. Before frying, prepare the falafel mixture as per instructions on the box. Usually this involves add falafel mix to a bowl, squeezing in half a lemon, add some hot water to the mixture and letting it sit for some time.

When the falafel mixture is ready, head the oil in the wok for 5 mins, then make small falafel balls and add to the wok for deep frying. Fry each surface for about 30 seconds. Check to ensure that balls are not being over fried. Put each ball on a plate over a pass-though metal bowl, to drain any oil.

After all balls are fried, prepare the pita bread by heating both sides on a frying pan. No need to add oil to the pan.

Once ready, people can pick up the bread, add the freshly fried balls, add the fillings, drizzle with Tahini sauce (or sesame sauce) and enjoy with pickled cucumbers on the side.

Ingredients:

• Chana dal
• Carrot
• pachforan or jeera seeds
• bay leaf
• dry red chilli
• ginger paste
• turmeric powder
• coconut milk powder or very small pieces of coconut
• salt
• sugar free sweetener or little sugar
• oil.  

Method:

Heat a little oil in pressure cooker, add little pachforan or jeera seeds, bay leaf, small piece of dry red chilli, little ginger paste and saute. Cut carrot in big pieces and add to the pressure cooker.  Add required quantity of chana dal, little turmeric powder,  little coconut powder or very small pieces of some coconut,  pinch of sugar or half a pill of sugar free, salt.  Mix well. Add 1 cup water.  

Close  the lid and heat in high flame.  When the pressure reaches maximum , as indicated by the sound, reduce the flame and keep in low for 20 minutes.   Switch off the burner.  Let the pressure subside by itself, then open the lid. 

Add water if required. It need not be too dilute.  Heat and serve with roti or rice.

Ingredients:

• Yellow mug dal
• few small pieces of bitter gourd (optional)
• small piece of dry red chilli
• radhuni  or mustard seeds
• bay leaf
• ginger paste
• turmeric powder
• ghee
• oil
• salt
• little sugar or half a pill of sugar free

Method:

Heat a little oil in pressure cooker.  Add little radhuni or mustard seeds,  bay leaf, small piece of dry red chilli and little ginger paste and saute.  

Add the washed appropriate quantity of mug dal, turmeric powder, salt and little sugar or sugar free.  

Mix well.  Add about 1 cup water.  

In another vessel,  lightly  fry a few pieces of fiinely cut bitter gourd. with a little salt. 

Add this to the pressure cooker.  Close the lid and heat in high flame till the pressure reaches maximum. Then switch off the burner.  When the pressure subsides by itself,  open the lid, add a little ghee.  Add water if required, to have the dal  of your required consistency.  

Serve  it hot with plain rice.

Biryani Ingredients:

• Chicken boneless or with bones
• Basmati rice, 1 heaped cup
• onion grated
• ginger paste
• garlic paste
• bay leaf – 2 big ones
• plain curd 
• 4 green cardamom
• 4 cloves
• a piece of cinnamon
• a piece of star anise
• a piece of mace
• dry fried onion
• Sunrise biryani masala
• half packet
• little  Kashmiri mirch powder
• little turmeric powder
• oil
• ghee
• salt 

Raita Ingredients:

• Curd
• finely cut cucumber
• tomato
• onion
• salt
• chat masala ( optional )

Biryani Method:

Marinate the chicken pieces with salt, turmeric, biryani masala , Kashmiri mirch powder, ginger, garlic paste and curd for at least half an hour. 

Heat a little oil in the pressure cooker. Add bay leaf, 1 piece and grated onion and fry the onion till light brown.  Add the marinated chicken. No need to add water, as a semi dry prep is required and water will be generated from the chicken. 

Stir the marinated chicken for some time. Close the lid and heat the pressure cooker in maximum heat. When the pressure reaches maximum, reduce the flame at low and cook for 20 minutes. Switch off the burner and  let the pressure subside by itself.  Open the lid, heat and make a semi dry preparation.  Keep aside.  

Cooking of rice:

Wash the Basmati rice and drain off the water. 

To a vessel,  add some ghee and oil, add  the cardamom, cinnamon, clove, star anise,  mace pieces and bay leaf and saute in low flame.  

Add the rice and mix.  Add 1 and three quarter cup water, appropriate amount of salt.  Mix  well and heat till boiling point. 

Cover and cook in low flame, until the water in the vessel  dries up. Check by opening the lid and inserting a spoon. Check regularly and be very careful that rice at the bottom of the vessel does not burn.

Now cool the rice and  keep aside. The rice this way will be partially cooked.  Try to remove  the garam masala and bay leaf pieces as they are visible in the white rice.

Now in a large vessel, layering of chicken and rice is done. 

Add some rice at the bottom of the vessel, then layer some semi dry chicken pieces on it.  Sprinkle  a little dry fried onion.  Repeat the process until layering of chicken, rice is complete. 

Add half cup water  over the mixture. Heat  and when the water gets heated up in a few seconds, cover and cook in low flame, until the water  in the vessel dries up.  Again be very careful that rice at the bottom does not burn by checking water level regularly. If rice is still not cooked, add some more water and cook rice until it is just cooked and free flowing.

Serve gently so that the rice gets a mixed colour which looks nice.  

Raita Method:

Take required amount of normal curd, beat it with a spoon to a smooth consistency. Add washed pieces of the above vegetables. Add some salt and chat masala (optional ). Mix well and keep in fridge before serving with biryani.

Ingredients:

• Toor dal
• mustard seeds
• curry leaves
• hing
• sambar powder
• tamarind paste (You can use minced tomato if tamarind is not available.)
• carrot 1
• radish 1/4
• egg plant 3  
• salt
• oil 

Method:

Take required quantity of Toor dal. 

In a pressure cooker, add little oil. Add little mustard seeds, curry leaves and pinch of hing and heat till the mustard seeds splutter.  Add washed Toor dal and 1 cup water. Add salt.  

Close the lid and heat the pressure cooker in high flame.  When the pressure reaches maximum, as indicated by the sound, lower the flame and keep it at low for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes switch off the burner. 

When the pressure subsides by itself, open the lid.  Mix the dal to a smooth consistency with a spoon. 

Take vegetables according to your desire, not too many at the same time.  

Cut the vegetables in small pieces.  Fry them a little in oil, add little water and salt . When the mixture boils, close the lid of the vessel and cook in low flame for 10 minutes.  For egg plants, only 4 minutes is enough. 

Open the lid.  Add these cooked vegetables in the cooked sambar dal. 

Now take about 1 table spoon of sambar powder, 1 table spoon of tamarind paste and mix with water.   Add this mixture to the dal and vegetables in pressure cooker.  Add more water if required, to have the dal in the right consistency. Boil the mixture. Sambar dal is ready to be served hot with rice.

Ingredients:

• few small eggplants (2-5) or zucchini (1-2) 
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
• 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
• 1 bag (16 oz) frozen corn kernels
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped (optional)
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped (optional)
• Optional: 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon paprika, a pinch of dried oregano and chili according to taste

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. If you’re using garlic, you can add it and sauté briefly until fragrant.

2. Add the diced eggplant or zucchini to the pot and cook until they start to brown and soften.

3. Sauté the chopped red and green bell peppers until they become slightly tender and develop some color.

4. Pour in the diced tomatoes (with their juice) and kidney beans. Stir to combine.

5. Add the frozen corn to the chili, mixing it in with the other ingredients.

6. If desired, you can add the optional ground cumin, chili, paprika, and a pinch of dried oregano at this point. Stir to combine with the vegetables.

7. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and let it simmer for about 20-25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

8. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed, adding salt and black pepper to your preference.

9. Serve your vegetarian German-style chili hot.

Ingredients:

• 4 small pre-cooked beets
• 4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 1/2 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans
• 4-5 pickles (dill or sour)
• 1-2 tablespoons pickle juice
• 2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil (sunflower or olive oil)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Place the diced potatoes and carrot in a pot of boiling water. Cook them together until they are tender. This usually takes about 20-30 minutes.

2. Once cooked, drain the diced potatoes and carrot and add them in a large salad bowl

3. Peel and dice the pre-cooked small beets into small, uniform cubes. Place them also into the salad bowl and also add the finely chopped onions. 

4. Dice the pickles and add them as well together with 1-2 tablespoons of pickle juice. 

5. Add the drained and rinsed kidney beans to the mixture.

6. Finally add the vegetable oil as well salt and pepper. Mix everything gently but thoroughly.

9. Cover the salad and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight if possible. This allows the flavors to meld.

10. Enjoy this classic and memorable dish. Tastes best with fresh bread and sausages. 

Ingredients:

• Fish pieces
• grated onion
• tomato
• ginger paste
• garlic paste
• mustard seeds
• curry leaves for seasoning
• turmeriic
• cumin
• coriander
• Kashmiri mirch powder
• coconut milk powder 
• oil
• salt

Method: 

Coat the fish pieces with little salt and turmeric powder. Heat some oil in a vessel, then fry the fish pieces well on both sides and keep aside.  To the remaining warm oil in the vessel,  add little mustard seeds and curry leaves and sauté. 

Cut a tomato in very fine pieces or grate it.  

To the curry leaves and mustard seeds,  add some finely grated onion and fry well. Add the grated tomato and saute well. Then add little ginger, garlic paste and saute further. Mix all the dry masalas like turmeric, cumin, coriander, chilli powder with little water and add to the vessel. Lightly fry so that the oil separates. 

Then mix about 1 to 2  tablespoon coconut milk  powder in some water and add to the vessel. Add salt, mix well. Add enough water to form a gravy of your desired consistency.   Add the fried fish pieces. Bring the mixture to a boil.  Cover and cook in low flame for 10 minutes.  

Open the lid and have the fish curry with hot rice.