I recently invited some friends over for dinner and was thinking about what I could make for the main course. Given the spread of preferences, I figured chicken would be the easiest protein to go with. But what to do with the chicken?
I was making a lot of other things which would take time (chaat, dal makhni etc) so wanted something which would be easy and fuss free. I ended up tweaking my Dahi Chicken recipe to make it into a drier, more spicy dish. Result – AMAZE!
Growing up, there were a few standard paneer recipes that were made at our house. Being from the east of the country, paneer really wasn’t core to our food. The Delhi impact was not as high for paneer as it was for Rajma and Chole 🙂 Those we adopted with much more enthusiasm than we did paneer. I think it stemmed from the fact that we thought paneer was a bit bland.
However, all my friends ate paneer in many forms and quite often. That’s where I grew to develop a stronger taste for paneer and realized that while it is not spiced or bursting with flavour on its own, it provides a lovely canvas for a whole range of flavours. Now I am at a level where I can just eat paneer heated on a pan, dusted with some salt and garam masala; topped off with a squeeze of lime. Much proud, I say! 🙂
This recipe for tawa paneer is something I have tweaked and honed ever since I started living by myself, 4 years ago. Paneer was my quick fix dinner after a long day at work. It is easy to make, quick to cook and is really tasty!
Another standard north Indian staple – Matar Paneer.
This simple curry with cottage cheese (paneer) and peas makes its way onto the menu fairly often. It is a quick meal, tastes good and is easy to make.
When you’re from Delhi, Chole is pretty much a staple part of your diet. At home, at friend’s homes, at restaurants – because Chole is delish. And there are many ways to cook this. The standard curry, the tangier curry, the drier version, the darker version, the one with other vegetables added to it etc etc. I shall attempt to cover all of these in the blog, over time. Today, I am covering my version of the standard, home style chole/chickpeas curry.
Our family is not Punjabi, even though we live in Delhi (yes, that is quite common!). So our standard home food, isn’t very high on the garam masala, the spices. The chole we use to have at home was quite subtle. It was all I knew until I met B, my oldest friend. We have been friends since we were in class 4. So yup, we pretty much grew up together! The food at B’s house was slightly different from that at mine, more spicy, tangy and yumms! Given that we grew up together, I have spent a ton of time at her house. Days at a time even (summer vacations!). Both of us love food and spent a lot of time eating the various delicious things her mom and sister would make. Chole was one of my favourites.
My Tuck Box 