Mushroom Tikka

My friends came over.. they wanted to see my Tandoor and try some food made in it. Now that I have gotten enough practice of using it well, I was more confident to invite them over and show off my Tnadoor skills. They all came, all excited and with their signature dish to share. I was in charge on only few of the Tandoori items. It was a feast... paneer makhni, signature karela, masala rice, yummy kheer and icecream. OMG it was a blast. We sat in my backyard, under the shade of my Avocado tree and enjoyed all the delicious food while I bragged about our homemade DIY Tandoor. :)

My friends are my guinea pigs. :) There are so many recipes that I try out for the first time, and only after it is approved by the panel of judges (my friends) that it lands up as a post on my blog. Some of the recipes are still to be typed and published. This one was a hit...an instant hit... It was all gone before I could click a picture. Luckily I had my friends send few pictures that they took and wow they are so brilliantly captured, that I am pleased and thrilled to say that I have wonderful friends and will be glad to host them again :)

While I have grilled mushrooms a lot with paneer tikka, and we love it...this time it was a new marinade and grilling over charcoal heat of my Tandoor. Thanks to SV for sending me the picture that I have used as a cover photo. Brilliant isn't it? This marinate for mushrooms is mint flavored...yogurt and mint with mushrooms is a delicious combination and super easy to make too.

Ingredients
10-15 button mushroom.
1/2 cup mint leaves
1-2 green chillies
1/4 inch ginger
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 cup hung plain yogurt or Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp. salt

Thinly sliced onion rings or onion spirals so serve mushroom tikka.

• In a blender blend mint leaves, green chilies, ginger, salt, cumin seeds with little water.
• Add the mint paste to hung yogurt and mix well.
• Clean wipe mushrooms and remove the stalk. 
• Mix mushrooms well into the marinade. If left for a long time, mushrooms will sweat moisture and that is all right.
• Use a 2 prong skewers and gently insert mushrooms in it. One prong skewer is not very easy to turn to cook mushrooms well. as mushrooms shrink, they can break from the skewer and fall off. 2 prong skewers hold mushrooms well and can cook well on all sides.
• Grill mushrooms over charcoal heat or in the oven. If placing in an oven, put skewers on a high pan so that mushrooms do not touch the bottom of the pan. If they touch the bottom of the pan, they can get soggy. Heat the oven to 500F temperature and grill mushrooms till done and golden brown. You might need to flip it too. 
• When done, place on a bed of sliced or spiral onions.
• Also, sprinkle a bit with chaat masala. and then serve. 

In a blender blend mint leaves, green chilies, ginger, salt, cumin seeds with little water.

Add the mint paste to hung yogurt and mix well.

Clean wipe mushrooms and remove the stalk. 

Mix mushrooms well into the marinade.

Two prong skewers for Mushroom tikka. 

Check this Amazon link http://amzn.to/2ufqvrr

Use a 2 prong skewers and gently insert mushrooms in it. One prong skewer is not very easy to turn to cook mushrooms well. as mushrooms shrink, they can break from the skewer and fall off. 2 prong skewers hold mushrooms well and can cook well on all sides.

Grill mushrooms over chacoal heat and flip it when it gets slight color.

Spiralizer to make onion spirals.

 When done, place on a bed of sliced or spiral onions.

Let's get grilling!!!

Tandoori Gobi

Like I have said in my earlier posts, we love spending time in our backyard and we love BBQing. I don't think vegetarians have limited options of BBQing. There are so many veggies or basically all veggies that can be marinated and grilled or pan seared or cooked over charcoal heat. BBQ or charcoal cooking imparts delicious smoky flavor to the food and veggies rather cook very quickly keeping the the food moist and tender.

Although I love all veggies grilled, cauliflower is one of my favorites. Cauliflower kababs, Buttered pan seared cauliflower, grilled cauliflower, oven cooked cauliflower, cauliflower with cheese...in any recipe cauliflower just tastes delicious!

Since the time we have finished with our DIY tandoor project... my husband and I are trying to come up with out of the box tandoor recipes. We all know that tandoor can be used for rotis, naans, flatbreads and kababs. But we want this charcoal oven to be used for more than just naans and kababs. Yes, tandoor is nothing but a traditional high temperature charcoal oven. People all over the world used tandoor or clay oven to make exotic recipes. So everything that can be done in a regular oven should be made in a tandoor. With few variations and adjustments we are getting to know our tandoor better and enjoying each and every moment with it.

I have cooked/baked whole cauliflower or Gobi in an oven before (click here for recipe), but now it was time to use a tandoor and cook cauliflower. The tricky part was to have cauliflower suspended inside tandoor so that it cooks and bakes over the charcoal heat without touching charcoal. I found a grilling basket and attached few metal wires on the sides so that I could suspend the basket using my grilling tripod. the entire construction did take some time but it worked just great. I was so happy with the outcome that now I am ready to try out lot more things to do in my Tandoor! Below are pictures of hanging basket construction.

Here is the recipe:
1 medium sized cauliflower
1+1/2 cup hung curd
1+1/2 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. chili garlic paste or garlic chutney or my schezwan sauce
1 tbsp. garam masala powder
1 tbsp. kasoori methi
1/2 tbsp. red chili powder

• Remove leaves and hard stalk from the cauliflower. Soak entire cauliflower head in salt water for 30 minutes. Wash and clean well by moving florets and check for any dirt in it. Clean well. Keep it aside.
• In a bowl mix all other ingredients well. This is the tandoori marinade for our gobi/cauliflower
• Coat cauliflower well with the marinade. Use spoon or finger to push marinade in between the florets. Cover cauliflower entirely and let it rest for 30 minutes. This is a great recipe if you are invited to a potluck BBQ party. Just take your marinated cauliflower and grill it at the party. I am sure host will be excited too.
• You do not have to use a Tandoor for this recipe. Using the same recipe you can bake cauliflower in a 400 F oven for 30-45 minutes, or even use a regular charcoal grill basket covering top of the cauliflower with aluminum foil. You can also use a regular grill to bake tandoori marinated cauliflower at the highest temperature for 25 minutes or till done.
• Serve with sprinkled chat masala, sliced onions, salad, and lime wedges. 
• Have some tandoori roti or naan ready to make some quick tandoori wraps.
• Enjoy!

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Remove leaves and hard stalk from the cauliflower. Soak in salt water for 30 minutes. Wash and clean well by moving florets and check for any dirt in it. Clean well. Keep it aside.

In a bowl mix all other ingredients well. This is the tandoori marinate for our gobi/cauliflower

Coat cauliflower well with the marinade. Use spoon or finger to push marinade in between the florets. Cover cauliflower entirely and let it rest for 30 minutes.

I use organic charcoal for grilling!

Marinated gobi in grilling basket.

Grilling basket suspended in tandoor.

I covered tandoor with foil to keep the heat in.

Here is the grilling tripod to suspend the basket.

Beautiful color and amazing aroma from grilling.

I like to make a tandoori roti wrap with tandoori gobi.

Enjoy this BBQ season!!

Paneer Tikka

We love to spend time in our backyard. Although it is unfinished and we do not have a great landscaping done, spending time under the shade of the trees is relaxing and fun. We spread mats on the backyard floor, sit with variety of food cooking on the grill, few drinks, and it is a picnic in our backyard!

By now everybody knows my love for terracotta and charcoal cooking. Most of you know about my little terracotta elephant grill and I just love it. But when I saw another terracotta grill at World Market I immediately had to buy it. It is so cute! I am so ready for a full outdoor cooking challenge now with my grills and tandoor!

My Terracotta elephant grill

My New mini grill!

Last weekend we inaugurated my new grill by making paneer & veggie tikka. Grilled paneer and veggies are my husband's favorite, and together with fresh rotis and chopped onions it is a complete meal. A glass of chilled chaash/yogurt drink makes it satisfying. Paneer tikka can be made on griddle, over electric grill, in an oven, over a charcoal grill, over a panini press, or tandoor. I have tried making it every way and it tastes amazing always.

Ingredients (serves 5-6 people)

14 oz (400 g) paneer

1 cup bell pepper cubed

1 cup cubed onions

1 cup mushrooms(optional)

1 cup cauliflower florets (optional)

2 cups plain yogurt

2 tbsp. red chilli and garlic paste

1+1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. red chili powder

2 tsp. garam masala powder

2 tsp. kasoori methi (dried methi leaves)

• Put yogurt in a sieve or a strainer for at least an hour so the the water can drain off. You need thick yogurt, so you can also use greek yogurt.
• In thick yogurt add red chili garlic paste, salt, garam masala, kasoori methi, and red chilli powder. Mix well.
• Add cubed bell peppers, cubed paneer, mushroom, cauliflower floret. Mix well. Cover and keep the mixture aside for an hour.
• Grease metal skewers and arrange paneer and veggies in the skewer. If using bamboo skewers, skewers should be soaked in water for at least an hour before grilling.
• Light charcoal. Wait for 10 minutes till all the charcoal start to burn and get red hot.
• Place each skewer over charcoal heat. Cook evenly all sides.
• Remove and serve in a platter over chopped onions. Sprinkle chaat masala and squeeze fresh lemon over it.
• Enjoy!!

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Put yogurt in a sieve or a strainer for at least an hour so the the water can drain off. You need thick yogurt, You can use greek yogurt too.

In thick yogurt add red chilli garlic paste, salt, garam masala, kasoori methi, and red chilli powder. Mix well.

Add cubed bell peppers, cubed paneer, mushroom, cauliflower floret. Cover and keep the mixture aside for an hour.

Grease metal skewers and arrange paneer and veggies in the skewer.

Light charcoal. wait for 10 minutes till all the charcoal start to burn.

Place each skewer over charcoal heat. Cook evenly all sides.

Remove and serve in a platter over chopped onions. Sprinkle chaat masala and squeeze fresh lemon over it,

Enjoy Delicious Paneer Tikka!

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