Grilled Peppers

After owning and using several small charcoal grills, and doing plenty of BBQ parties...we think we are ready for a big charcoal grill. My husband has had his eye on this charcoal grill since past 4 years now. The fun part of this grill is a handle to crank up the charcoal tray. A new toy for him! :) But on a serious note: it indeed is a useful and a fun appliance for my backyard kitchen.  The pictures below are self explanatory.

So we spent last weekend not only setting up our new grill and grill gazebo, but also BBQing. And the first recipe that sizzled with taste, flavor, and aroma were my grilled peppers.

We love grilled peppers: sweet peppers stuffed with cream cheese is my husband's favorite. I have made them ample number of times cooked either in a pan or baked in an oven or deep fried with a batter.  They just taste delicious in all combinations. Check out various pictures and recipes below.

Stuffed with Paneer and Cashews

Stuffed with Cheese and Onions

Stuffed with purple potato and deep fried

Sweet peppers stuffed with potatoes and pan fried with little oil and cumin seeds.

Ingredients to make Grilled peppers:

10-15 colorful sweet peppers

1 cup boiled, peeled, and mashed potato

1 cup grated paneer

1/2 cup cream cheese

1 tsp. salt

Finely chopped green chili (as per your spice level)

chopped cilantro

• In a bowl mix mashed potatoes, grated paneer, cream cheese, salt, chopped green chilies, and chopped cilantro. Mix all ingredients well till it comes together like a dough. The mixture should be cold. If not, stuff the peppers and refrigerate it for some time.
• Slit sweet peppers, remove seeds if any, and keep them aside.
• Stuff each pepper with the stuffing. The stuffing needs t be cold and not room temperature. The reason here is that while grilling you do not want the cheesy stuffing to ooze out of peppers. Cold stuffing will turn soft and creamy after grilling, but if your stuffing is already room temperature and soft, it might ooze out and create a mess on the grill. If grilling after few hours, it is a good idea to keep stuffed peppers in a plate, cover them, and refrigerate till ready to use.
• Use double bar skewer to secure peppers. If using bamboo skewers, it would be a good idea to to use 2 secures parallel to each other to secure peppers so that then are easy to flip on the grill.
• Grill on high temperature. till it chars on both sides.
• Serve immediately while the stuffing is soft and warm.

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

In a bowl mix mashed potatoes, grated paneer, cream cheese, salt, chopped green chilies, and chopped cilantro. Mix all ingredients well till it comes together like a dough. The mixture should be cold. If not, stuff the peppers and refrigerate it for some time.

Slit sweet peppers, remove seeds if any, and keep them aside.

Stuff each pepper with the stuffing. The stuffing needs t be cold and not room temperature. The reason here is that while grilling you do not want the cheesy stuffing to ooze out of peppers. Cold stuffing will turn soft and creamy after grilling, but if your stuffing is already room temperature and soft, it might ooze out and create a mess on the grill. If grilling after few hours, it is a good idea to keep stuffed peppers in a plate, cover them, and refrigerate till ready to use.

Use double bar skewer to secure peppers. If using bamboo skewers, it would be a good idea to to use 2 secures parallel to each other to secure peppers so that then are easy to flip on the grill.

Here is the link to buy double bar skewers.

Grill on high temperature. till it chars on both sides.

Serve immediately while the stuffing is soft and smooth from warm cheese.

Let's Get Grilling!!!

Masala Kandh/Ratalu

Just before winter starts, yams, and sweet potatoes, and other root vegetables rule farmer's market in India. Streets full of vendors with veggies pilled in a large basket or just a cloth is not a rare sight. Women get out of the house to shop fresh veggies and prepare delicacies for their family... of coarse winter is the time to indulge in food. :)

Although most vegetables are no longer seasonal, but available year round, we still enjoy the flavors of the food in that season. Like spicy, hot, and delicious Undhiyu in preferred and enjoyed more in winters rather than summer. So while it is not summer in California yet, I found our favorite purple yam/kandh/ratalu. This underground root vegetable is purple, is pretty, and delicious too :)

Purple yam brings me memories of Rajasthan...our trip to Shrinathji/Nathdwara, 100 km away from Udaipur where we specifically go to worship our God. This small town of Nathdwara has colorful shopping and delicious food experience.  Below are pictures of our family trip to Nathdwara. Sorry about posting so many, but the train experience, the food, family fun... is making me mostalgic. You will also see pictures of food carts, cows in a shed where we specifically go to feed and worship them, little hand carts and rickshaws as means of transport.

The expression from my dad reveals everything about Masala Kandh/spicy purple Yam

So while I do bring Kandh Masala from Rajashthan, here is my attempt to create my own too. This masala or spice mix is so versatile that it can be added onto any roasted, grilled, or fried veggies to make it deliciously chatpata.

Kandh Masala or Spice mix

1 tbsp. red chili powder 

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. fine pepper powder

1/4 tsp. rock salt

Mix all these well and store this spice mix in a glass jar.

To make Masala Kandh

Purple Yam/kandh

Kandh Masala or spice mix

Lemon juice

Opitonal: Fried Chilies

• Peel kandh. Wash it well and pat dry it. 
• Cut into 1 inch thick slices.
• Fry slices in hot oil for 3-4 minutes. This is just partial frying to partially cook them. Let it cool.
• Cut into cubes and re-fry till they form crisp. You could also bake in a 400 F oven for 20 minutes.
• Remove fried cubes in a bowl and add spice mix and juice of a lemon.
• Mix well and serve immediately.
• For authentic feel, serve in a leaf bowl (duna) and a pick :)

Here are few pictures.

Peel kandh and wash it well and pat dry it.

Fry slices in hot oil for 3-4 minutes. This is just partial frying to partially cook them. Let it cool.

Cut into cubes and re-fry till they form crisp.

Remove fried cubes in a bowl and add spice mix and juice of a lemon.

Mix well and serve immediately.

For authentic feel, serve in a leaf bowl (duna) and a food pick :)

Fried chilies are optional.

चटपटा मसालेदार कंध

Potato Wafer

Everyone is familiar with potato chips, and most of us like those too. But these chips here are not regular potato chips. These are potato slices/chips that have been blanched and dehydrated under hot sun, and then freshly fried before serving. Every summer mummy would make these dehydrated snacks to  store for the entire year. But, do you think this would last the whole year? Never... They are so delicious that they would not even last for 6 months :) These were the best tasting potato chips ever. Look at the various dehydrated recipes mummy would make: Potato and Sabudana Chakli,  Potato Sev, Sabudana Papad. And we enjoyed helping her too: waking up early morning with the sunrise and helping peel potatoes, spreading the cloth or dupatta on the terrace and securing the corners of the cloth with heavy stones or bricks, and then running around to shoo away the birds while the chips would be drying out  :) Yes, we grew up with all that fun during summer break, and were rewarded with yummy snacks. :) Those are the best childhood memories.

California summers can also be hot. When my parents visited us three years back, they felt this heat, and papa immediately suggested we could make potato wafers, papads, and dehydrated veggies. And we did! With a huge bag of potatoes from Costco, we started off making variety of dehydrated snacks to store them... just like the ant in the story stores seasonal food for later. :) The lattice designed chips were made by mummy in our Mumbai house, and the plain ones were made in California. Below is the video of how to make lattice or jali design using a crinkle blade slicer. It is really simple and worth a try.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. firm, raw potatoes.
2-3 liters water to blanch potato chips
2 tbsp. Salt
1 tsp. of alum

• Peel, and wash potatoes in potatoes in cold water.
• Slice them and place them in a container with water to prevent it from browning and sticking to each other.
• Boil water in a large container. Add salt and alum to water.
• Drain sliced potatoes and remove all the water.
• Keep another container with cold water ready on the side.
• Put few sliced potatoes in the boiling water and boil for 45 seconds to a minute.
• Remove and shock them in cold water. This will prevent it from overcooking.
• Separate each potato chip and pace on a clean cloth under hot sun heat. Dry it in hot dry temperature for 6-8 hours.
• Remove each chip from the cloth and place in a large plate.
• Place it again in hot sun heat for a day or two more till they dehydrate and get crisp.
• Any traces of moisture will lead to fungus growth and spoil the chips.

To use:
Fry in hot oil or spray some oil and microwave on high for a minute.
Sprinkle red chili powder if you like it a bit spicy.

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Peel, and wash potatoes in potatoes in cold water.

Slice them and place them in a container with water to prevent it from browning and sticking to each other.

Here is my video to show how you can make jali or netted potato chips or jali wafers.

Boil water in a large container. Add salt and alum to water.

Put few sliced potatoes in the boiling water and boil for 45 seconds to a minute.

Remove and shock them in cold water. This will prevent it from overcooking.

Separate each potato chip and pace on a clean cloth under hot sun heat. Dry it in hot dry temperature for 6-8 hours.

Fry in hot oil or spray some oil and microwave on high for a minute.
Sprinkle red chili powder if you like it a bit spicy.

Enjoy Snacking!!