Spiced Lemon Rice

A typical southern Indian favourite, this citrus-flavoured rice dish is a perfect accompaniment to plain grilled fish, lamb stew or chicken.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

200 g basmati rice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 bay leaf
12-14 fresh or dried curry leaves
1 dried red chilli
2,5 cm cinnamon stick
3-4 cloves
4-6 cardamom pods
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
8-10 black peppercorns
¼ teaspoon turmeric
juice of 1 large lemon
450 ml boiling water
salt

Method:

1. Place the rice in a sieve and wash it throughly under cold running water. Drain well and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a nonstick saucepan; when it is hot add the curry leaves, chilli, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, bay leaf and turmeric. Stir-fry for 20-30 seconds and add the rice. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, then add the lemon juice and the measured water.

3. Bring to the boil, cover the pan tightly and reduce the heat to low.

4. Cook for 10-12 minutes, remove from the heat and allow to stand undisturbed for 10 minutes. Fluff up the rice with a fork and season before serving.

Healthy tip:

Lemons are an excellent source of vitamin C, which is important for boosting the immune system, healing wounds and protecting against heart disease. Vitamin C also helps the body absorb iron.

Beef Biryani

This biryani, which uses beef, is a speciality of the Muslim community. The recipe may seem long, but biryani is one of the easiest and most relaxing ways of cooking, especially when you are entertaining. Once the dish is assembled and placed in the oven, it looks after itself and you can get on with greeting your guests.

Serves :4

Ingredients:

2 large onions

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2.5 cm fresh root ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

1 fresh green chilli, seeded and chopped

small bunch of fresh coriander (cilantro)

4 tbsp flaked (sliced) almonds

3 tbsp water

1 tbsp ghee or butter, plus 25 g butter for the rice

3 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp sultanas (golden raisins)

500 g braising or stewing steak, cubed

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tbsp ground cumin

½ tsp ground turmeric

½ tsp ground fenugreek

good pinch of ground cinnamon

175 ml natural (plain yogurt, whisked

275 g basmati rice

about 1.2 litres hot chicken stock or water

salt and black pepper

2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered, to garnish

chapatis, to serve

Method:

1. Roughly chop one onion and place it in a food processor or blender. Add the garlic, ginger chilli, fresh coriander and half the flaked almonds. Pour in the water and process to a smooth paste. Transfer the paste to a small bowl and set aside.

2. Finely slice the remaining onion into rings or half rings. Heat half the ghee or butter with half the oil in a heavy flameproof casserole and fry the onion rings for 15 minutes until they are deep golden brown. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon.

3. Fry the remaining flaked almonds briefly until golden and set aside with the onion rings, then quickly fry the sultanas until they swell. Transfer to the plate.

4. Heat the remaining ghee or butter in the casserole with a further 1 tbsp of the oil. Fry the cubed meat, in batches, until evenly browned on all sides. Transfer the meat to a plate and set aside.

5. Wipe the casserole clean with kitchen paper, heat the remaining oil and pour in the onion, spice and coriander paste made earlier. Cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring all the time, until the mixture begins to brown lightly. Stir in all the additional spices, season with salt and ground black pepper and cook for 1 minute more.

6. Lower the heat, then stir in the yogurt, a little at a time. When all of it has been incorporated into the spice mixture, return the meat to the casserole. Stir to coat, cover tightly and simmer over a gentle heat for 45 minutes until the meat is tender. Meanwhile, soak the rice in a bowl of cold water for 15-20 minutes.
7. Preheat the oven to 160°C/ 325°F/ Gas 3. Drain the rice, place in a pan and add the hot chicken stock or water, together with a little salt. Bring back to the boil, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
8. Drain the rice, and pile it in a mound on top of the meat in the casserole. Using the handle of a spoon, make a hole through the rice and meat mixture, to the bottom of the pan. Place the fried onions, almonds and sultanas over the top and dot with butter. Cover the casserole tightly with a double layer of foil and secure with a lid.

9. Cook the biryani in the preheated oven for 60-70 minutes. To serve, spoon the mixture on to a warmed serving platter and garnish with the quartered hard-boiled eggs. Serve with chapatis.

Chicken Saag

A mildly spiced dish using a popular combination of spinach and chicken. This recipe is best made using fresh spinach.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

225 g fresh spinach leaves, washed but not dried
2.5 cm piece fresh root ginger, grated
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 fresh green chilli, roughly chopped
200 ml water
1 tbsp oil
2 bay leaves
¼ tsp black peppercorns
1 onion, finely chopped
4 tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chilli powder
3 tbsp natural (plain) yogurt
8 chicken thighs, skinned ( I used chicken legs instead)
Naan bread or rice to serve
natural (plain) yogurt and chilli powder, to garnish

Method:

1. Cook the spinach leaves, without extra water, in a tightly covered pan for 5 minutes. Put the cooked spinach, ginger, garlic and chilli with 50 ml of the measured water into a food processor or blender and process to a thick purée. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large heavy pan, add the bay leaves and black peppercorns and fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the onion and fry for a further 6-8 minutes or until the onion has browned.

3. Add the tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes.

4. Stir in the curry powder, salt and chilli powder. Cook for 2 minutes over a medium heat, stirring once or twice.

5. Stir in the spinach purée and the remaining measured water, then simmer for 5 minutes.

6. Add the yogurt, 1 tbsp at a time, and simmer for 5 minutes.

7. Add the chicken thighs and stir to coat them in the sauce. Cover and cook for 25-30 minutes until the chicken is tender. Serve with naan bread or basmati rice. Drizzle over some yogurt and dust with chilli powder.

Sweetcorn and Pea Curry

Tender sweetcorn cooked in a spicy tomato sauce makes a flavoursome curry.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

6 frozen corn cobs, thawed

1 tbsp oil
½ tsp cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 fresh green chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp curry paste
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp salt
½ tsp granulated sugar
400 g chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato purée (paste)
150 ml water
115 g frozen peas, thawed
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
Chapatis or rice to serve, optional

Method:

1. Using a sharp knife, cut each piece of corn in half crossways to make 12 equal pieces in total.

2. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and cook the corn cob pieces for 10-12 minutes. Drain well.

3. Heat the oil in a large heavy pan and fry the cumin seeds for 2 minutes or until they begin to splutter. Add the onion, garlic and chilli and fry for about 5-6 minutes until the onion is golden.

4.  Add the curry paste and fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining spices, salt and sugar and fry for a further 2-3 minutes, adding some water if the mixture is too dry.

5. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato purée together with the water and simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Add the peas and cook for a further 5 minutes.

6. Stir in the pieces of corn and the fresh coriander and cook for 6-8 minutes more, until the corn and peas are tender.

Chicken Jalfrezi

A Jalfrezi is a stir-fried curry which features onions, ginger and garlic in a rich pepper sauce.

Ingredients:

Serves: 4

675 g chicken breast portions

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 onion, finely chopped

1 green (bell) pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 red (bell) pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 cm piece fresh root ginger, finely chopped

1 tbsp curry paste

¼ tsp chilli powder

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

½ tsp salt

400 g can chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro), plus extra to garnish

Plain rice, to serve.

1. Skin the chicken breast portions and remove any visible fat. Cut the meat into 2.5 cm cubes.

2. Heat the oil in a karahi, wok or heavy pan and fry the cumin seeds for 2 minutes until they splutter. Add the onion, peppers, garlic and ginger and fry for 6-8 minutes.

3. Add the curry paste and fry for about 2 minutes. Stir in the chilli powder, ground coriander, cumin and salt and add 1 tbsp water; fry for a further 2 minutes.

4. Add the chicken cubes and fry for about 5 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes and chopped fresh coriander. Cover the pan tightly with a lid and cook for about 15 minutes or until the chicken cubes are tender. Garnish with sprigs of fresh coriander and serve with rice.