Instant Pot Lentil Balls Curry (lockdown special)

When you are in lockdown for a long time. It makes you remember the simpler times
and simple foods because you cannot go and buy special spices or gourmet ingredients.
Sometimes abundance and freedom to go anywhere make you forget the basic ingredients and simple things. Growing up my mom used to cook a lot of vegetarian food for me although I was an ardent non-vegetarian.
The most beautiful recipes do come from simple ingredients and traditional cooking.
The Lentil ball curry made of Red Lentil (Masoor Dal) and Spices that are always
available in an Indian kitchen and is one of my favorite childhood dishes my Mom
made.

My memories of lentil balls go back when I used to visit my grandma's house.
She used to make this amazing recipe of lentil balls in minutes. She can produce amazing dishes twice a day every day without visiting the vegetable market for a month, she was that resourceful.

Although she was vegetarian, had a herb garden and was lactose intolerant which helped her in her quest of staying inside the house.
This lockdown due to the COVID pandemic has made me think of her often and how self-sufficient and resourceful she was. This situation makes me guilty because these ingredients were always there in front of my eyes but I forgot the humble lentils, rice, potatoes, and spices that form the backbone of Indian cooking and always trotted around the town to find exotic spices and ingredients to have a culinary experience when I can have one with the basics like my Mom and Grandma.

Today I want to share Lentil Balls curry recipe with you, which I have tailored to fit in the Instant pot with dry ingredients so no green chili, and fresh herbs. Although I used a tomato you can always use tomato paste from a can.

It's easy, super yummy, it's amazing and this is a dish from your pantry and it
does not require any fresh ingredients. Enjoy it with a bowl of hot rice.

Ingredients

For Lentil Fritters (Daler Bora):

• 1 cup Masoor dal 
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tbsp chopped ginger
• 1 tsp carom seeds
• 1tsp turmeric powder
• 1garlic clove
• ½ onion if medium or  ¼ if large 
• Pinch of Asafoetida
• to taste Salt

For the Curry:

• 1½ Onion if medium,½ if large, chopped
• 1 Potato -medium, peeled and chopped
• 2 Tomato - medium, chopped (4Tbsp of tomato paste)
• 2 red chilies - slit(I used dried red chili)
• 1 tbsp ginger paste
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp chili powder 
• 1 bay leaf
• to taste salt

INSTRUCTIONS

To make Lentil fritters:

1. Soak the red lentil in water for 2 hours. Then grind them along with red chili powder, salt, turmeric, and garlic into a coarse paste (just 2 or 3 pulses in the grinder)using little water. Ground paste should not be too watery. 

2. Then add the onion, carom seeds, turmeric powder, asafoetida, and chopped ginger. Mix all the ingredients in the batter.

3. Heat oil in a pan, fry the ground mixture until golden brown all over.

4. Remove onto a paper towel and set aside

To make the Curry:

1. Put the instant pot on saute mode for 25 minutes.

2. Heat 2tbsp oil in the instant pot, add the dry chilies, cumin seeds, and bay leaf. Once the seeds start to splutter, add the onions. Once onions start translucent, add the potato and cook covered with glass lid until tender, about 5-6 minutes. Mix them with a steel ladle all together and again saute with the lid on for 5 minutes.

3. Next, add the tomatoes and all the dry masalas. Cover with a glass lid and cook until tomatoes turn mushy for 8 minutes.

4. Add salt and 1cup of water. Add the fritters, close the instant pot lid, and put the pressure mode for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes move the whistle to venting mode and when the steam is released completely open the instant pot lid and serve it with hot rice.

Slow Cooker Doodhi (bottle gourd) Halwa

The memories I have of eating doodhi halwa are during Eid in my friends house and some of my Gujarati friends wedding. The doodhi halwa that was prepared for Eid generally also had vermicelli mixed with it and it was more creamy with silver paper all over. Gujrathi doodhi halwa are soaked in ghee with lots of dry-fruits with prominent bottle gourd taste. I liked both. Generally I don't like this vegetable but in this form I can have it ever day.

Bottle Gourd Health Benefits: Bottle gourd juice is widely used for the weight loss. It helps reduce the inflammations in the liver and kidneys. Helps in easing the problem related to constipation.

Like Gajar Halwa recipe this too has some steps but is not very complicated and needs less time. I prefer doing these things in slow cooker as they need at least 45 mins stove time, which is difficult for me to dedicate. Slow cooker makes eating sweets at home easy with less mess if you plan ahead.

INGREDIENTS:
Medium size bottle gourd (peeled and grated)
1 cup milk (because this is slow cooker don't put more milk it will not evaporate)
1/2 cup khoya/mava or milk powder
1 cup sugar/ 3 cups splenda(sweetener)
5 tbsp ghee
4 to 5 whole cardamom
10-15 pistachio
2 tsp rose water


DIRECTION:
Shred the bottle gourd in a bowl.




 Take your slow cooker put it on high; put 4 table spoon ghee and 4-5 cardamom in it.




Add the shredded bottle gourd.and mix well put the timer for 2 hrs.



After an hr put 1 cup sugar or 3 cups splenda. Cook it for another hr. After an hr stir it and put the milk and khoya/milk powder. and cook for 3 hrs. Add 1 table spoon ghee and stir. Garnish it with pistachios and serve hot or cold.

Note: Instead of milk you can put condensed milk to make it richer than you don't have to put khoya or milk powder just condensed milk. 

Slow Cooker Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice)

Nasi Goreng the National dish of Indonesia can be enjoyed in simple versions from a tin plate at a  roadside food stall or eaten on porcelain in restaurants or collected from the buffet tables of Jakarta dinner parties.

In 2011 an online poll by 35,000 people held by CNN Indonesian Nasi Goreng was the number two of their 'World’s 50 Most Delicious Foods' list after Rendang.

HISTORY

The trade between China and the Indonesian archipelago flourished from the era of Srivijaya around the 10th century and intensified in the Majapahit era around the 15th century. By that time Chinese immigrants had begun to settle in the archipelago, bringing along with them their culture and cuisine. Chinese people usually favor freshly cooked hot food, and in their culture, it is taboo to throw away uneaten foodstuffs. As a result, the previous day's leftover rice was often recooked in the morning. Previously, Indonesians probably simply sun-dried the leftover rice to make rengginang (rice cracker).

I first had this dish in a luxury resort in the Maldives during my honeymoon. Then in my innocence, I found no difference between the Chinese fried rice and Indonesian rice ( anyways I love fried rice so much, I polished it off). There are subtle nuances in this dish that make it different and so popular than the rest fried rice dishes.

Nasi goreng is distinguished from other Asian fried rice recipes by its generous amount of Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce), and the taste is stronger and spicier compared to Chinese fried rice. Nasi goreng often includes Krupuk and bawang goreng (fried shallots) or (fried onions) to give a crispier texture.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup boneless chicken 

1 cup shrimp

4-5 mushrooms sliced

1/2 bell pepper sliced half carrot shredded

2 shallots, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tbsp. Fish sauce

1 tbsp. sugar

2 red Holland chiles, stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped

¼ cup sesame oil

1-4 eggs

Kosher salt, to taste
1 cup white rice

5 tbsp. Soy Sauce

2 small cucumbers, halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise diagonally, for serving

Few coriander leaves for garnish
Few chopped green onions for garnish

DIRECTION

Set the slow cooker in high. Take a skillet and put 3 tablespoon sesame oil. Saute the onion and garlic in medium heat until light brown put the chicken, in the skillet, and toss a little. after 2 mins or until they are slight white remove it and put in the slow cooker.

Put the Mushroom, Carrot, and Green bell pepper in the slow cooker.

Then add the Soya Sauce and Fish Sauce in the slow cooker, add salt, and stir the contents.

In most parts of Indonesia, Nasigoreng is cooked with ample

amounts of kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) that created golden brownish color and the flavor are mildly sweet.  This is an important ingredient but is difficult to get in your local grocery store so just substitute this with soy sauce and sugar which will make it sweet soy which kecap manis essentially is.  

Add 1 cup of rice and two cups of water in the slow cooker. Stir the mixture and cook in high for 1 hr.

. 




After 1 hr, the rice will be almost cooked. Put the shrimp into the slow cooker and carefully mix it.

Make portions on the rice and break one or as many eggs you want. This recipe is for 3-4 people. Cover the slow cooker and cook for 1/2 hr on high.

After 1/2 hr your rice will look like this, now garnish it with coriander and green onions and serve it with slices of cucumber.

Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Curry

I came up with the recipe when I was expecting my daughter, I am really fond of Thai food and during those days, the flavor and powerful aromatics increased the cravings even more. However, given the high usage of seafood and several exotic spice blends, I wondered if consuming Thai food in pregnancy is safe. Although Thai women have given birth to healthy babies for centuries while having their own kind of food in pregnancy, one never knows what is used in all these neighborhood Thai restaurants. So I replaced the fish sauce with few tablespoons of soy sauce and made a simple curry with coconut milk and fresh spices and vegetables without any store brought sauce.


Thai food is also healthy. The cooking style makes use of simple yet effective and healthy preparation techniques like stir-frying, stewing, steaming, grilling, and salad making. Traditionally deep-fried foods are used in limited quantities in a meal and emphasis is given to stir-frying. This ensures that nutrients and flavors of the food are not destroyed by heat. In addition, there is little or no addition of oil in most of the dishes making the food light.

Ingredients

2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs, cut into cubes

5 large carrots, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, peeled and quartered

2 cloves garlic, peeled

Slivered ginger slices

1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup peas

5 to 6 broccoli pieces

1 large tomato or 4 to 5 cherry tomato

1 (14 oz) can coconut milk

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp peanut butter

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 dried jalapeno chili seeded ( removed the seed to reduce the spice level)

2 tbsp water

1/2 tbsp cornstarch

Mint or cilantro leaves for garnish

Directions

Grease your slow cooker with olive oil. Place the chicken and carrots, bell pepper, tomato, and broccoli on the bottom of slow cooker.

Saute the onions, ginger, and garlic in a pan until light brown and transfer in the slow cooker.

Mix peanut butter and soy sauce and pour this and coconut milk in the slow cooker and mix well, then cover and cook on low for about 6 hours.

An hour or so before serving, mix cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour mixture and peas into the slow cooker, stir to combine, and continue cooking for another hour.

When the sauce is to your desired thickness, turn slow cooker to warm setting until ready to serve.

Serve over rice,  and garnish with cilantro or Mint leaves.

Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Noodle Soup

I am a huge fan of Thai cuisine especially of the spicy peanut sauce which I am guilty of eating by the spoonful.  My mother always used to make chicken noodle soup for me, but I particularly like this one with peanut sauce and edamame beans. 

This soup is super basic but sometimes simple is best. The process of making the soup is a comforting process in itself and it smells great in your kitchen. Although the cooking time is long, the hands-on work is not too much. What is it about chicken noodle soup that truly warms the heart and soul? It heals the sick. It soothes the soul. It’s cheap and filling and nutritious. Make a big pot, eat some for dinner, bring some to work for lunch, take some to your friend who just had a baby and freeze some for later when there’s no time to cook. A pot of chicken soup feeds many and is meant to be shared! So go ahead, slurp up!

Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounces) can coconut milk
• 1/4 cup red curry paste
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate or 1/4 cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons palm sugar or brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 6 ounces of rice noodles
• 2 cups edamame beans
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 cup peanuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
• 2 green onions, sliced

Directions

Add the coconut milk, chicken broth, chicken, sweet potato, peanut butter, tamarind, fish sauce, sugar, and turmeric, cook until the chicken is cooked and the sweet potato is tender, about 2 -2 and  1/2 hrs in high in a slow cooker.

Add the mushrooms, red bell pepper, and rice noodles and cook until the noodles are tender about 30 minutes.

Mix in the bean sprouts, remove from heat and serve garnished with cilantro, chopped peanuts, and green onions.