Shan Chicken Tikka Masala
I used this masala to make Chicken Tikka last week. It turned out really good. Its really easy and convenient to make.
Chicken tikka
Brand: Shan Chicken Tikka masala
Net wt: 50 gs
Price: Rs. 60
Validity: 3 yrs
Rating: 4 on 5
Chicken tikka
I made this last week. My hubby really liked it. I used Shan masala (see following post). I was really good. Served it with dal-rice.
I love Ratatouille !
ratatouille
It a French side-dish but I have it as a main course.
I perused quite a few recipes and finally put them together and came up with my own mix of ‘way to make ratatouille’.
Ratatouille is a heady mix of tomatoes, veggies, garlic and herbs, tossed together. A bowlful of this and you are quite satiated for a while.
Request for recipe
potato n pasta salad
I love making this salad as my hubby relishes it. Its easy to make, versatile (use whatever ingredients you have at the moment at home), mix, refrigerate and eat when you want.
The original recipe is one I picked over the years from the net. However, I fine-tuned it to my taste. The above pic has potato, green peas, egg, carrots and macaroni tossed in creamy dressing. One can delete or add any element.
Request for recipe
This is by far one of the best restaurants to have a vegetarian thali in Mumbai. They also have an extensive a la carte. Samrat has a huge following for both – the thali and a la carte. I went there last night for dinner. A meal for 4 costed us Rs. 1401, which included a 6% service charge.
2 of us ordered a thali. It includes buttermilk, 3 snacks ( we got dhokla, samosa and ghoogra), salad, phulka, puranpoli, puri, papad, 3 vegetables (we got rawa, aloo rasa and paneer makhanwala), oondhiya, dal, kadhi and dahi wada. Then we could choose from steamed rice, pulao or khichdi – i chose khichdi. All this is unlimited. As desserts, we could choose any two from options of gulab jamun, rasgulla, walnut halwa and shirkhand (which is limited). I elected for gulab jamun and walnut halwa. The thali is for Rs. 355 for a Sunday dinner.
Had a great dinner. Totally stuffed.
thali
julab jamun
walnut halwa
A la carte order was a Vegetable Makhanwala with a Chili Garlic Naan and a Stuffed Paratha.
The Vegetable Makhanwala was excellent. At Rs. 260 it easily served 2.
vegetable makhanwala
The Chili Garlic Naan was perfect, as was the Stuffed Paratha (it was an aloo paratha). Naan for Rs. 95 and Paratha for Rs. 75.
chili garlic naan and aloo paratha
My 2 companions completed their meal by ordering a Malai Kulfi. Price at Rs. 110 it was exceptional. I would say its a must to order this anytime one goes there.
malai kulfi
Sai Bhaji is a Sindhi dish. It is made with dal, spinach and other vegetables cooked together. It’s had with yellow masala rice (rice made yellow by adding turmeric powder) or then with Bhugal rice (rice browned with onions and masala).
sai bhaji
Its one of the dishes I like from the Sindhi cuisine and, my hubby loves it. He can eat it often (one of the few vegetarian dishes he adores). Add a spoonful of curd and enjoy.
sai bhaji with rice n curd
My husband loves to cook and try new recipes, but mainly non-vegetarian. Recently, when he said he would try a new dish, I requested it to be vegetarian. He surfed the web, downloaded the recipe for Paneer Tikka Masala and we had that for lunch with phulkas. I loved the dish.
He mailed me the recipe and now I make it quite often. I made it yesterday for lunch. Its got a great taste and gives the essence of having a restaurant-styled meal at home. Have it with butter naan and you feel you are dining out at a good restaurant.
paneer tikka masala
This recipe is from cookingandme.com.
Request for recipe and I shall upload it.
Like I said in my previous blog, I have become a huge enthusiast of Tadka Dal. While at Aurangabad, whether at the hotel or restaurants visited or dhabbas ate at, I always ordered Tadka Dal and it never let me down in taste. Each diner had its own distinct flavour and each taste was excellent. Maharashtrians make Tadka dal from Toor / Arhaar dal. Some also add Masoor dal. Having recently eaten so much Maharashtrian food, I was still pining for more. I never thought I would like Maharashtrian food so much!
Well…. the very next day, having returned from Aurangabad, I surfed the net, downloaded a Tadka Dal recipe and made some for dinner. Made some minor changes to the recipe while cooking it.
tadka dal
Aha…it turned out good. Had this with jeera rice.
Request for recipe.
Recipe source: http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com.
I took a road trip to Aurangabad last weekend. Actually as the 02nd of October, Wednesday, was a holiday, we got out of Mumbai on Saturday morning, drove to Aurangabad, and returned on Wednesday. We stayed at the Vivanta by Taj.
On Saturday morning, we drove out of Mumbai to Aurangabad. Route taken was a 30km longer route but was on the Freeway and then Pune Expressway, via Ahmednagar. It was a beautiful drive. It took us 8hours and 30 mins. (with a short tea and lunch break). Having driven to Rajasthan via Gujarat, I was given to believe that those roads were the best. However, this route was as good, IF not better. Just as we entered Aurangabad, we were welcomed by an auto rickshaw saying –
rickshaw
We were not really tired by the drive. After having checked into the Taj, 2 hours later, we were swimming in the pool. The pool was large, 5’ deep and invigorating.
Four nights stay at the Taj was refreshing, relaxing and rejuvenating.
As my blog is about food, let’s get to it. Breakfast at Taj was overgenerous. Below are only some of the photographs of their counters. For non-vegetarians, there were cold cuts, sausages, bacon and an egg counter where any way-you-like your eggs, they would make. For vegetarians, apart from the layout on the counters, you could ask for parathas and though only medu-wadas and idlis were on the counter, they would make you a hot and crispy masala dosa too. Totally enjoyed the breakfasts.
breakfast collage
Loved their baked yogurt. Everyday I had a different flavour.
baked yogurt
Dinner arrangement was just as luxurious. Some pictures below. At Latitude (their restaurant), Manoj (I think he was the second-in-charge there), took very good care of our meals. We’d have a heavy buffet breakfast. Dinner was a choice of buffet or al a carte. We took the buffet. Every dish on the counter looked ravishing. However, taste-wise, most were just passable. I think the reason is that the flavours were toned down to suit the international clientele. However, Manoj would go out of the way to make our meals extravagant. He would get made a stuffed onion kulcha just for me or a mutton kebab only for my husband. The staff there was so welcoming, accommodating and attentive – they even made a complete Maharashtrian meal just for us, vegetarian as well as non-vegetarian. That night the Maharashtrian fare was very nice.
Dinner at Taj
Maharashtrian food
One day we visited the Ajanta caves and the next day, the Ellora caves. Trips to these caves are a minimum of 5 hour excursions each. We would leave for them immediately after breakfast. I was touched when, on both days, we were given a picnic box. Infact, we were given one even for our drive back to Mumbai! The box contained juice, fruits, either slices cake or croissants, muffins or other savories.
food hamper
At Ajanta, we ate lunch at Ajanta canteen; it’s the first food stall as soon as you enter the food and shopping zone, leading to the caves. We each had a vegetarian thali and order an extra dish called sev tameta. Sev tameta is a Maharashtrian dish made with tomato gravy and topped with thick sev. Thali at Rs. 60 was delicious. The sev tameta – yummy. We were so hungry after the caves that the piping hot lunch was all over in 15 mins. I was so hungry that I did not take any pictures.
Following are a few snapshots of Ajanta caves, Ellora caves, Bibi ka Maqbara and the Daulatabad fort.
attractions
Street food-wise, choices are mainly bread pakoda, samosa and kachori. I used to have their kachoris. Loved them.
kachoris
stuffed kachori
Driving around Aurangabad saw nationalism at its best.
Cows – pride of India
Aurangabad is known for Paithani sarees, Himroo and Badri work. The snapshot below is of a Paithani saree. It took about 7 months to weave the sari and it costs approximately Rs.22,000.
paithani sari
Aurangabad was named after the Mogul emperor Aurangzeb. However, surprising, the food at the restaurants and dhabbas along the way are mainly vegetarian. We were told that the citizens there are mainly Marwaris and Jains, hence mainly a vegetarian cuisine. We tried Great Sagar restaurant – said to be run by Muslims and serving good non-vegetarian meals as well. Ordered the Chicken Aurangabadi – it was really average. However, the Tadka Dal and Gobi paratha were excellent.
restaurant front
Chicken Aurangabadi
gobi paratha
Tadka dal
tandoori rotis
our meal
At our last breakfast at Taj, we were served a Bon Voyage pastry.
bon voyage treat
I enjoy eating local food especially country-side dhabbas, which serve the most authentic food of the region. On our return journey to Mumbai, stopped for lunch at a dhabba. Again had a really good meal of chicken, sev tameta and tadka dal with roti.
chicken
sev tameta
tadka dal
Since coming back to Mumbai, I’ve become a strong supporter of tadka dal. So much so that, on our return home, the very next day, I surfed for the recipe and made the dal for dinner. It was well made. Next Maharashtrian meal to try will be Sev Tameta.
