Nasreen ka Kitchen

Ingredients
Potato Pakoras - chinese style

2 potatoes , cut into thin rounds
Maida (plain flour) 3 table spoons
Cornflour 3 table spoons
One egg
A pinch of baking soda
Salt depending on taste or 1 tsp
1/4 tsp black pepper
Oil for deep frying
Water - as per requirement
For thin coating- the batter should be runny, but thick coating will require a thick batter

Method of preparation
Mix all ingredients, to make a batter, dip the potato rounds and deep fry until golden brown and until potatoes are cooked.

Peshawari Mutton Karhai

Ingredients:
1 kg mutton with bones
1 cup oil
1/4 tea spoon fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
2 tablespoon butter
1.5 tablespoon crushed garlic
2 teaspoon crushed red chilli
3-4 one inch pieces ginger
2 tablespoon ginger thinly slivered
1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
15-20 black pepper corns
6-7 tomatoes chopped
2 tablespoon chopped green chilli
1 tablespoon dhania powder
1 tsp crushed black pepper
2 tsp salt ( or as per taste)
6 large green chillies whole
2 tablespoon hara dhania
1 tablespoon kasuri methi

Method:
1) In a small bowl, mix crushed garlic, red chilli flakes in half cup water, set aside.
2) Heat oil and butter, crackle fenugreek seeds.
3) Add the water chilli flakes and garlic mixture and let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the one inch ginger pieces until the oil turns aromatic.
4) Add the mutton, black pepper corns and ginger garlic paste. Saute the meat on medium- high flame until water dries up and the meat is half cooked/ golden brown.
5) Add tomatoes and chopped green chillies, crushed black pepper, dhania powder, slivered ginger and salt. Let it cook further until the oil separates.
6) Add 1-2 cups water and let it cook covered with lid on medium flame until the meat is tender and water dries up.
6) Add kasuri methi, whole green chillies and dhania leaves. Mix thoroughly once and put it on dum for 10-15 minutes.
7) Serve with Naan.

Kala Chana Pulao

Ingredients
250 grams/ 1 Cup Rice(Long grain basmati)
1/4 cup (or 60 ml / 4 tablespoon) cooking oil
125 grams Black Chanas - Large ones, soak in 2-3 cups water for 12 hours with baking powder, then boil them in the same water until soft, and only when about half cup water is left in them, do not discard the water.
2 Medium sized Potatoes, diced
1 Onion thinly sliced
2 Medium sized tomatoes, chopped
1 Tablespoon ginger garlic paste
2-3 large green chillies chopped or paste (can adjust up/ down as per taste)
10-12 Curry leaves

Whole garam masalas:
1 2-inch piece cinnamon
2 Teaspoon cumin seeds
2 cloves
1 Bay leaf
2 green cardamoms
1 black cardamom
1 Star Anise (Badyan ka phool)

Other powder masalas:
2 Teaspoon Salt (can adjust as per taste)
1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric powder
1 Teaspoon Cumin Powder
1.5 Teaspoon Coriander powder
1-2 Tablespoon Shaan's Bombay Biryani Masala (use 1 tablespoon if you want a less spicy pulao)
1/2 Teaspoon Red Chilli powder (I usually skip this but can be added as per taste)

For Baghar and dum
2 tablespoon oil
1 Onion thinly sliced
2-3 green chillies whole
2 Tablespoon Mint/ Coriander leaves (optional)

Preparation Method:
1) Soak the black chanas overnight or 10-12 hours with 1 tsp baking powder (not soda). Boil them as explained in the ingredients section and set aside. Do not discard the water.
2) Wash and soak basmati rice for about an hour, keep them aside.
3) Take 1/4 cup oil, and fry all whole garam masalas and curry leaves for 2-3 minutes until you can smell the aroma from the oil. Add 1 thinly sliced onion and keep frying until it turns golden in colour.
4) Add ginger garlic paste, fry for another 2-3 minutes, then add chopped tomatoes and green chillies.
5) Add all dry masalas and keep cooking until oil separates.
6) Add Chanas and potatoes to the cooking pot, keep cooking on high flame for 3-5 minutes, then add water enough to cook potatoes and cover the pot with lid and let it cook on medium flame for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
7) Once the potatoes are cooked, remove the lid, cook on high flame until excess water evaporates, and oil separates from the gravy.
10 ) Now drain the soaked basmati rice and add them to the gravy along with 2 cups water. Be careful while stirring now, as the rice can break. Let the mixture cook on medium flame.
9) Prepare the onion baghar on the side, take 2-3 tablespoon oil and fry 1 sliced onion until golden brown.
10)When all the water is absorbed and the rice is about 90%-95% cooked, it is ready to be kept on dum. Pour the brown onion mixture with the oil on top, and the whole green chillies, cover the pot with the lid and cook for another 15-20 minutes on very low flame. By that time, the rice would have cooked completely and the pulao will be ready to be served.

Haldi wali Moong Daal ki Khichri

Ingredients:
250 grams (1 cup) long grain basmati rice
125 grams (1/2 cup) chilke wale moong ki daal (split green lentils)
2 tablespoon (30ml) Cooking oil
1/2 Onion small , thinly sliced about 1.5-2 tablespoons
1/2 tea spoon Turmeric powder
2.5 cups water ( can adjust depending on the rice you are using)
1 heaped tea spoon Salt ( or as per taste)

Whole Garam masalas:
1 tsp white cumin (zeera)
1 bay leaf ( tez patta)
1 black cardamom ( bari elaichi)
2 Green Cardamom (choti elaichi)
1 clove ( long)
3-4 black peppers ( sabut kali mirch)
1 inch small piece cinnamon

Method of preparation:
1) Wash and soak the rice and moong ki daal for about 30-45 minutes.
2)Heat oil in a pot, add the thinly sliced onion. Let it cook for 1-2 mins until its soft and white.
3) Mix all whole garam masalas in quarter cup water. Add this mixture to the cooking pot once onion is white/ soft. Cook the whole garam masalas for 1-2 minutes.
4) Add 2.5 cups water, salt and turmeric powder to the cooking pot and wait for the water to reach its boiling point.
5) Once the water has reached its boiling point, add the rice and daal to it (after straining the water it was soaked in).
6) Let it cook on medium flame until the water evaporates and the rice is almost 90-95% cooked. ( Will take about 10-15 mins)
7) Keep it on dum for 10 minutes.
8 ) Haldi wali moong daal khichri tastes great with Pakora Karhee, beef qeema and mix sabzi.

Aloo Methi ka Bharta

Ingredients:
1/3 cup oil
5 Potatoes medium sized boiled mashed (uneven texture)
1/2 cup cleaned and blanche/ boiled Methi leaves
1 Onion medium to large
2 tomatoes
4-5 green chilies chopped
1/2 cup Coriander leaves cleaned / chopped
6-7 garlic cloves chopped
10-12 curry leaves
1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
1 tea spoon salt (adjust as per taste)
1 teaspoon white cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
1 teaspoon dry mango powder (optional)

Method of preparation:
1) Peel potatoes, boil them until soft, let them cool, Mash them keeping some small chunks, do not mash them completely.
2) Clean methi leaves and blanche them in boiling water for 5-10 minutes, drain and keep aside.
3) Heat oil in a cooking pot, fry onions till golden brown and remove the onions, keep aside.
4) In the same oil, keep flame at medium high, fry cumin seeds, chopped garlic and curry leaves. Then add ginger garlic paste, and 1-2 tablespoons water and keep cooking for 2-3 minutes until oil separates.
5) Add all other dry spices, along with 1-2 tablespoons of water, cook again until the oil separates.
6) Add chopped tomatoes and cook until they are soft. Then add half of chopped green chilies and coriander leaves.
7) Add boiled methi leaves, keep cooking until oil separates.
8 ) Finally add the boiled mashed potatoes to the pot, turn the flame to medium low, mix the potatoes evenly into the mixture.
9) Then add brown onions, keep mixing.
10) Finally add the rest of the chopped coriander and green chilies and keep it on dum for 4-5 minutes on low flame until done.
11) Serve with rotis, puris or parathas.

Green mango and lehsun chutney

Ingredients:
Green mangos medium sized 2 cut finely
Coriander leaves 1 1/2 cup chopped
Mint leaves 1/2 cup chopped
Garlic 18-20 cloves peeled
Ginger 1 inch piece cut into small pieces
Green chillies 2-3 chopped (as per taste)
Lemon salt ( citrus salt) 1/4 tea spoon- preserves green colour
Pink salt or normal iodized salt 1/4 tea spoon
Bhuna hua zeera powder 1/2 tea spoon

Method of preparation:
1) Put coriander, mint leaves and mango in a blender and blend into a paste.
2) Add ginger pieces and garlic cloves, green chillies and blend again until it has mixed properly.
3) Now add the seasoning lemon salt, pink salt and bhuna zeera powder and blend again.
4) Once everything is a smooth paste, the chutney is ready.
5) Can be stored in refrigerator in an air tight jar for about a week.

إِنَّا لِلَّٰهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ

Our mother, Nasreen Abdullah, who managed this page with great passion passed away peacefully to meet her Creator on 21st January 2022. As it was very sudden, it took us a while to come to terms with her being gone.

Please recite Fateha for the departed soul.

This page was her brain child, through which she wanted to help preserve her family recipes and share them with the younger generation so that the traditional recipes could continue to live for years to come.