White Bean Chicken Chili

This recipe I did not make, but rather enjoyed at the home of our friends H&J D. I asked H for the recipe because it was so delicious, but also rather different than the chili I make and I like having two or three versions of a dish in my box o' dishes, just because. I loved the white beans and the lighter feel of this chili, and the Robber ate two big bowls (I think mostly to get away with eating four more pieces of cornbread, bless his cornbread loving heart.)

From All Recipes:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/white-bean-chicken-chili/detail.aspx

Ingredients:

4 T. olive oil

2 onions, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 14.5 oz cans chicken broth

3 tomatillos, chopped

2 16 oz. cans seasoned diced tomatoes

1 jar salsa verde

2 7 oz. cans diced green chiles

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. ground coriander seed

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

4 ears fresh corn or one bag frozen corn

2 lbs diced, cooked chicken meat

2 15 oz. cans white beans, drained and rinsed

Chili powder, to taste

Salt and pepper, to taste

Lime slices for garnish

Directions:

1. In large pot, heat oil and saute onion and garlic until soft.

2. Stir in broth, tomatillos, tomatoes, chilies, and spices. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Add corn, salsa, chicken, and beans: simmer for 45 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Chana Masala 1

I put a 1 here because this is a dish I definitely want to learn how to make well, but I'm not sure this is the recipe I'm going to keep and use for life. It got better with time, but the Robber thought it smelled like marijuana on the first day (probably the fried cumin powder, oh the silliness of trying to make substitutions in cooking food you know nothing about.) I thought it was just fine but needed some more tomato. In the end of course it all got eaten with plenty of happiness with our leftover naan, but in the future I might try another recipe or tweak this one or just make this one with all the proper ingredients.

From Manjula's Kitchen: http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/2007/01/28/chola-chana-masala/

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can of chickpeas (kable chana, Garbanzo beans)

3 T. oil

Pinch of asafetida (Hing) -- didn't have any of this

1 tsp. cumin seeds -- used ground cumin, hmmm

1 T. gram flour (Besan) -- replaced with cornmeal

1 large tomato

1 tsp. ginger paste -- used chopped fresh ginger

1 tsp. chopped green chilies -- omitted

2 tsp. coriander powder

1/2 tsp. turmeric

1/2 tsp. red chili powder

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. garam masala

1 teaspoon chopped cilantro (Green coriander)

Thinly sliced tomatoes for garnish

Directions:

1. Drain the water out of the can of chickpeas and wash the chickpeas well.

2. Blend the tomatoes, green chilies and ginger to make a puree.

3. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Test the heat by adding one cumin seed to the oil; if seed crack right away oil is ready.

4. Add the asafetida and cumin seeds.

5. After the cumin seeds crack, add the gram flour and stir-fry for a minute.

6. Add the tomato puree, coriander powder, turmeric, red chili powder and cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat.

7. The mixture will start leaving the oil and will reduce to about half in quantity. Add the chickpeas and a half cup of water and let it cook for 7 to 8 minutes on medium heat, covered. Press the chickpeas with a spatula so they soften. Note: add more water as needed to keep the gravy consistency to your liking, and let it cook for few more minutes on low heat.

8. Add the garam masala and cilantro. Let it cook for another minute.

9. Garnish with thin tomato slices and serve.

Note: We added about 2 T. brown sugar to this the first day to make it a little sweeter which made it better tasting to our poor American palettes.

Green Beans With Corn

After a long hiatus, I dipped back into my Indian cookbook by Balkejar et al. to create a dish for a family medicine potluck. I wanted to make something that wasn't carbohydrate-full, like most of the fare for potlucks. This dish, while having its problems, certainly fit well into the rest of the foods presented and got eaten entirely, although no one commented on it to me. Overall I found it rather too strong and wished that the flavors of the ginger and the garlic were less overpowering, although admittedly the combination was rather interesting. In the future I might half the amount of the spices (as well as the salt-- too much), or substitute a smaller amount of powdered ginger and garlic salt for the actual ginger and garlic. I used fresh green beans, which are my current favorite fresh vegetable, and cooked for the same amount of time with nice effect. The green beans were cooked but still a bit crunchy at the end, just how the Robber would like them. I also omitted the red chile, and seeing as how it was spicy enough without it, didn't feel the loss. Furthermore, I found the kidney beans somewhat superfluous. Like all recipes like these, the proportions are probably best played with to find something most satisfactory to you, but following the original recipe will yield a tasty-- if strong--vegetable product.

Ingredients:

1 tsp. oil
1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 medium red onion, diced
1/3 cup frozen corn kernels
1/4 cup canned red kidney beans, drained
6 oz. frozen green beans
1 fresh red chile, seeded and diced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1-inch piece fresh ginger root, finely chopped
1 T. chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp. salt
1 medium tomato, seeded and diced, to garnish

Directions:

1) Heat the oil in a karahi, wok, or heavy pan for about 30 seconds, then add the mustard seeds and onion. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.

2) Add the corn, red kidney beans, and green beans. Stir-fry for 3-5 minutes.

3) Add the red chile, chopped garlic and ginger, cilantro, and salt and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.

4) Remove the pan from the heat. Transfer the vegetables to a serving dish and garnish with the diced tomato.

Nutritional Notes

Serves 4-- per serving:
84 cal energy
3.44 g fat
0.50 g saturated fat
11.13 g carbohydrate
2.70 g fiber

Chicken Pilau

From Baljekar et. al, the Indian cookbook I am borrowing from Rebekka. We made this recipe together. We used brown basmati rice and subsequently had to adjust the timing of the cooking and things didn't turn out 100% correctly. The rice was too wet and the potatoes not quite done enough, but the dish was still good. I expected it to be more interesting, and wished it had a higher chicken:everything else ratio, but it is nice to have dishes that provide everything all in one place. Meat, vegetables, carbs. These pack well for lunch and are keeping me alive in medical school. So I suppose I will be making this again because it is fairly easy and is nutritiousy.

Ingredients:

2 cups basmati rice
6 T ghee or unsalted butter
1 onion, sliced
1/4 tsp. mixed onion and mustard seeds
3 curry leaves
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger root
1 tsp. crushed garlic
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 potato, cubed
1/2 C. frozen peas, thawed
6 oz. chicken breast fillets, skinned and cubed
4 T chopped fresh cilantro
2 fresh green chiles, chopped
3 cups water

Directions:

1) Wash the rice thoroughly under running water, then let soak for 30 minutes. Drain in a strainer or colander and set aside.

2) In a pan, melt the ghee or butter and fry the sliced onion until golden.

3) Add the onion and mustard seeds, the curry leaves, ginger, garlic, ground coriander, chili powder, and salt. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes over low heat.

4) All the sliced tomatoes, cubed potato, peas, and chicken cubes and mix everything together well.

5) Add the rice and stir gently to combine with the other ingredients.

6) Add the cilantro and chiles. Mix and stir-fry for 1 minute. Pous in the water, bring to a boil and then lower the heat. Cover tightly and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, leaving the lid in place, and let the pilau stand for 6-8 minutes. Serve.

Serves 4.

Nutrition Notes per serving

Energy 603 cal
Fat 16.8 g
Saturated Fat 10 g
Carbohydrate 91.9 g
Fiber 2.1 g