Punjabi Chicken Pulao

When you think of Comfort-Food what comes to your mind? To mine, a rice dish, specially at the time when hunger pangs don't leave me in solace; it certainly has to be Chicken Pulao! :D I'm sure most of you will agree with me. 

I'm literally obsessed with rice and if I could, I would've had rice everyday and this type of Chicken Pulao that's called Punjabi for its cooking style/origin, is most certainly on top of my all-time favorite dishes! So naturally my 1st post on a main course dish had to be of rice besides, my best friend requested for it so, Fayee, this ones for you :D

This one-pot meal was introduced to us by my Khala (maternal aunt) while we were vacationing in Pakistan during school holidays. To be honest with you, my mom always made different type of Pulao before in which she prepared Yakhni (stock) and cooked rice in it (I shall be sharing the recipe of my mom's Pulao in the future posts) so, when she prepared a large pot of Punjabi Pulao, and dished out steaming hot rice while I was witnessing her culinary skills in the kitchen, which is my favorite task, the aroma that filled the kitchen and entered my nostrils, was enough to make me salivate (the memory still managed to do the same at this very moment :D)

The dinner was served and that day onward, I got hooked on it! My Mom got the recipe from her and switched to cooking it her way. I learnt to make it from my Mom years later naturally and just by watching her and asking her questions like always, as she busily gets on with the cooking. She even succeeded in turning my Dad into a devout fan of this delectable dish who's not very fond of chicken meat. I hope that should be evident enough to prove that what a beautiful meal it is :)

This hearty meal is not only served at Dawats (dinners,feasts etc) but is widely prepared for regular everyday meal as well. The blend of good quality Basmati rice, juicy tender chicken pieces, some vegetables to prepare Masala and aromatic spices creates such an amazing flavor that it is almost impossible to not love this succulent dish! (have I achieved the desired aim of making you fall for it yet or not? hmmm let me try some more) 

Punjabi Pulao with chilled Raitha (a dip made by using yogurt and fresh vegetables) is simply an oh-so-divine combo! But it can be paired with some Salan (curry) or Shorba (thin gravy) preferably made with meat, such as, Koftay (meatballs-both cooked as Salan or Shorba) Palak Gosht (spinach curry made with chicken or mutton/lamb) Aloo Gosht (Potatoes and meat cooked in thin gravy) to turn it into a rather grand meal (don't worry, you will find the recipes of all the aforementioned dishes in my upcoming posts, just stay tuned)
Mm-mm I'm drooling now so shall we see how this luscious dish is prepared? :)
So here we go, Let the cook be unleashed! :D 

Punjabi Chicken Pulao


Ingredients: 

1 kg chicken pieces (without skin)
4 cups of Basmati rice (soaked for an hour before cooking)
2 large onions (sliced)
2 medium tomatoes (chopped)
1/2 cup yogurt (beaten) 
2 tbsp. ginger garlic paste 
2 Green chilies 
1 tbsp. salt 
1 tsp red chili powder 
1 tsp coriander powder 
1 tsp Garam Masala powder 
1 tbsp of whole Garam Masala (black pepper corns, cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon stick, black cardamom pods, green cardamom pods, bay leaf, star anise all mixed together)
1/2 tsp of nutmeg, mace and fennel seed powder (mixed) 
3/4 cup of oil. 
5 cups + 1/2 cup of water 
Fresh coriander leaves and chopped green chilies for garnishing 

Method:

1. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pot and fry onions in it till light golden-brown. 
2. Add ginger and garlic paste and the whole Garam Masala and fry for a few seconds. 
3. Now add 1/2 cup of water and cook till onions turn pasty. 
4. Add chicken pieces to it along with half of the salt and fry well till the chicken changes its color to golden-brown. 
5. Keep on frying for a few minutes more and add chopped tomatoes, chopped green chilies and all the spices to the chicken and mix well. 
6. Now add the beaten yogurt, give another mix and let this cook, covered over medium flame for 10 minutes.
7. If chicken is not cooked after 10 minutes, add a little water to cook it completely. 
8. Add 5 cups of water and the other half of the salt after all the moisture has been evaporated, chicken is cooked, gravy is formed and the oil added has been separated. 
9. Once the water starts boiling, add the drained rice and mix gently. 
10. Let the rice cook covered for 5 minutes over medium flame. 
11. Check after five minutes and if the water has been partially evaporated, mix again gently and sprinkle some chopped coriander and green chilies on top and turn the flame to the lowest possible. 
12. Cover the pot with a tea towel, place the lid back on and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Once the rice is done, turn off the flame, fluff the rice very gently and take out in a serving platter. Serve with chilled Raitha
    
    Serves: 4-6

That's all my dear readers! :) Seasoning can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Ladoo Peethi Walay- a famous Lahori Street-food

Ladoos with all the condiments

Ladoo Peethi Walay, strange name! isn't it? Is it a sweet snack or savory? Well, I had similar thoughts when I first heard about this street-food at the age of  8 or 9 years at my late Dadi Ma Jee's (paternal grand mother) house. I remember she introduced it to me and explained that what exactly it is and how to eat it and guess what, I loved it!:D

This spicy and lip smacking snack is widely available in the city where the vendors would mostly sell it on the carts or would push their 'Rairees' through different streets and allies while calling out 'Ladoo Kararay' or 'Ladoo Kararay nay kararay nay kararay naaaay'  which means the Ladoos they are selling are spicy and tasty in Punjabi language.

Having spent most of the life overseas, we didn't get to eat most of the Pakistani/Indian snacks besides upon visiting back home, our parents being quite reluctant about the hygiene and all, never let us eat anything from the 'streets' therefore, my only vague memory of having this interesting and peculiar blend of flavors was only at my Dadi Ma Jee's. After moving back to the country a couple of years back, once a class fellow and a friend, who's a fan of this scrumptious snack, took me back to my childhood memory by getting some ladoos from the hawker, in Anarkali Bazaar (a famous market in Lahore) for both of us. They were served in a stainless steel plate, along with all of its condiments. I reluctantly ate them since the outlook of the entire setup was not so promising. Once we finished eating and handed back the plates, the next thing I witnessed, was enough to put me off eating it from the vendors for the rest of my life! The Chota (helper) of the vendor took the plates and dumped them into a shabby looking iron canister which once carried cooking oil in it but was now filled with dirty water. He rinsed the plates in it, took them out, lo and behold, they are ready to be used for the next customer... I think lets just stop here and revert our thoughts back to this delicious treat, right? 

That day onward, I decided to try making them at home and I did! but just last month. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to ask about its recipe from my Dadi Ma Jee as her sudden demise didn't leave me with any chance to learn so many things from her that I could have if she had lived a few more years. May her soul rest in the highest stations of Jannah, Ameen Sum Ameen. Today is her death anniversary and a rainy day, hence I decided to share this recipe which is very apt according to the day, history and background. I have created this recipe by following my instinct and the taste and flavor I remember by having it as little as twice in my life.

So what are they exactly, that I had been singing praises of (or been putting efforts to make everyone anti-vendor's-made-Ladoods :P) for the past don't know how many minutes?! Well they're Just Split Green Gram, Moong Daal and Bengal Gram,Channay kee Daal's spicy fried dumplings, served with grated white radishes and topped with two types of tangy, spicy and sweet Chutneys- that's it. Sounds easy and delicious, doesn't it? :) Lets get on with making it then! You would need just a couple of ingredients to make this appetizing snack that you all must have in your pantry and refrigerator already.

Let the cook be unleashed! :)

Ladoo Peethi Walay

For Ladoos

Ingredients: 

Split Green Gram, Daal moong: 1 cup 
Bengal Gram, Daal Channa: 1 cup 
(Both washed and soaked in enough water that can be easily absorbed while being soaked overnight) 
Salt: 1 tsp
Red chili powder: 1/2 tsp
Carom seeds: 1/2 tsp 
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp 
Dried Ginger Powder or Fresh Ginger root: 1 inch piece 
Garlic powder or fresh garlic paste: 1/4 tsp 
Soda bi Carb: 1/4 tsp

 Method: 

1. Blend the soaked lentils with all of the above mentioned ingredients accept for soda.
2. Blend till thick, pasty and smooth (use water if required)
3. Add soda prior to frying.
4. Heat oil in a large pot or wok to medium hot.
5. Spoon the batter in the form of medium sized flat balls and deep fry over low-medium flame till golden and crisp. 
6. Take out with a help of a slotted spoon and place in a sieve till ready to serve. 

Serve warm with mint-tamarind chutney, dried apricot chutney and grated radishes with some Chaat Masala sprinkled on top. 
Makes 24 approx 

Dried Apricot chutney

Ingredients: 

Dried apricots (de-seeded ones) 1/2 cup roughly

Dried Tamarind: 1/4 cup (soaked in warm water and seeds removed)
Sugar: 1 cup 
Whole Red Chilies: 6-8 
Salt: 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp 

Dry Ginger powder: 1/4 tsp
Water: 2 cups 

Method: 

1. Put all the ingredients into a medium sized pot.
2. Cook everything together for a few minutes.
3. Blend well with the help of a hand held blender or in a blender jug. 
4. Cook again till thickens.
5. Let it cool down completely before serving. 

This chutney can be stored in an airtight container and stays good up to 2 weeks but keep it refrigerated and use a dry spoon for taking out chutney from the container. 

Mint-tamarind chutney 

Ingredients: 

Fresh Mint: 1 small bunch 
Coriander/Cilantro: few sprigs
Tamarind pulp: 1/4 cup (soak few tamarind seeds in hot water for a few minutes or simply microwave on high for 2 minutes. Squeeze the seeds into the water to obtain the pulp. Discard the seeds) 
Green chilies: 2,3 
Salt: 1/2 tsp 
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp 

Method: 

1. Blend everything together by adding water.
2. Pour into a bowl and keep it refrigerated until served.

This chutney should be a little runny and the ladoos should absorb it at the time of serving. Can be stored in a glass jar up to a week. Keep it refrigerated.

That's all folks! :) Seasoning can be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Finally!

Yes,finally! that's what I'm thinking to myself while I jot down these words. My blog has been live since 2012 but I haven't posted anything on it ever-since (yeah I know, lazy me) The idea behind creating this blog was to share my recipes with everyone at one place where it would be easily accessible for all, although the constant inquiring and awaiting hasn't been able to persuade me to start posting until today.
I am an occasional cook but love baking. Been in to it since I was a little girl. I remember sitting on the counter-top and watching my mom cook while I closely observed her every little move, though she has never been a passionate or ardent cook; she has mostly done it as a chore, but not an unpleasant one, all her life. That's my first memory of the beginning of my lifelong romance with cooking. my study commitments however didn't allow me to express my love for it much but I had been showing my passion for it off and on :)
The knack of cooking though, I've got from my late Dadi Ma Jee (paternal grandmother) who was an excellent cook. Its her 11th death anniversary tomorrow, and my first recipe post will be dedicated to her. That I shall post tomorrow as well.
My mantra has always been to create something new; different and unique. I've learnt through various sources, will mention about them with all of my posts always.

As you embark with me on this journey of cooking, recipes and experiences, I  hope that we all get to learn a lot from each other. There is always room for improvement so, try out my recipes and share your experiences here, I'll look forward to hearing the positive feedback :)
So here we go, Lets get unleashed! :D