How to sterilize Glass-Jar?

Quick way to sterilize glass-jar for preserving anything:

• Wash a glass jar and lid with fresh water and pat-dry it.
• Preheat oven to 180 degrees and turn it off after pre-heating.
• Place a glass jar up-side down in oven for 4-5 mins. 
• Keep a lid in boiling water for 5 mins and dry it with a kitchen towel.

Alternatively, you can keep both - jar n lid in a boiling water for 5 mins and use them after drying completely!!! 

Easy.... Isn't it??? :)

Mint Powder

METHOD:

- Pick all green mint leaves from stems and wash them with tap water.

- Dry with a kitchen towel and arrange it on a big plastic sheet or plate.

- Make sure about no/minimum overlapping of leaves.

- Sun dry it for 2 days and grind it to make a course powder.

USE FOR:

- Any kind of kebabs or skewers

- Tandoori marinade to give it a minty touch!

- Beverages like jaljeera, lemonade, masala soda etc.

Caramelized Onions

INGREDIENTS:

1 Brown Onion
2 tsp Olive Oil
A pinch of Salt

METHOD:

- Cut onion in thin strips.
- Heat olive oil in a sauce pan and add onions.
- Sprinkle a little salt over to get it caramelized faster.
- Saute it till dark brown in color.
- Transfer it to some bowl and keep it open for a few mins. It will be crispier.

SJ's NOTE:

- Can be stored in air-tight container in refrigerator for 2-3 days.
- Mostly used for rice varieties or chat dishes :)

Enchilada Sauce

You will find many different recipes for enchilada sauce, but I discovered this one to be the best base version... Add your flavors and tag it as your own. Great flavors and quite easy to make in-house!  At least, I can say it now... it's 100% better than canned sauce from supermarket :)

Stuff your filling... Roll your tortillas... Arrange them in a baking tray... And pour this spicy sauce!!! :) 

INGREDIENTS:

2 tsp Olive oil
1/2 can Crushed Tomatoes
1 cup Tomato Sauce
1 Chopped Onion
1 tsp Self-rising Flour
2 Garlic Cloves
1 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Capsico (Red Pepper) Sauce
Salt, to taste


METHOD: 

- Grind crushed tomatoes, onion, garlic in a mixture to make a smooth saucy texture.
- Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat.
- Add self-rising flour in it and cook for a min. It will make a thick paste.
- Add the tomato-onion-garlic mixture along with all spices and mix well.
- Turn heat to low and cook it for 4-5 minutes until water evaporates.
- Enchilada sauce is ready to be used! :)

KEY TO USE:

- Definitely for cheesy enchiladas
- Supreme Nachos
- A pizza sauce on thin-crust base
- As a dip with any appetizer

Click on the link to find recipe for Beans Enchiladas to go along with this sauce...!!!

Tandoori Marinade

Before you read the recipe given below, let me explain a fine line between "Marinade" and "BBQ Sauce"!!! 

- Marinade is a strong-flavored liquid with thick consistency that is used to soak veggies for few hours before you plan to grill them. It helps veggies to absorb all the flavors before cooking! 

- A condiment, BBQ sauce should be applied at the finish line (when it's almost done) of the cooking or after serving on plate. As there are high chances of BBQ sauce getting burnt while grilling due to tomato/garlic. 

I usually don't prefer to use BBQ Sauce as when I use it, I always find my kebabs lacking in flavors inside :) I prefer marination process before grilling, it's a little time-consuming though... 

Here it goes...

INGREDIENTS:

2 tsp Tandoori Masala

1 cup Thick yogurt

1 tsp Besan

1/2 tsp Onion Powder

1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste

1/4 tsp Mint Powder
Salt, to taste

1 tsp Oil

METHOD:

- Take all the ingredients well in a bowl and mix well to make a thick slurry.

SJ's NOTE:

- It's necessary to coat your veggies/paneer (or anything else) well with this marinade and cover the bowl with lid or plastic wrap.
- Keep it in freeze for minimum 2-3 hours for the best results.

KEY TO USE:

- Paneer Tikka

- Chatpata Chat Platter

- Tandoori Kebab

- Grilled Mushrooms

and my list goes on!!! Keep Grilling.... :)

Soft Taco Shells

I'm not much a fan of Tacos... and specially a big NO-NO for hard shells! Still for a change in tiffin-box or on-the-go biting, it's never a bad option! ;) But again, couldn't digest an idea of buying corn tortillas from a super-market... So, here I come with a good option to make and store it in-house... 

"Soft Taco Shells" - A part of "Kids Favorites" for all time!!! :)

Makes: 5-6

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup Cornmeal
1/2 cup Wheat Flour
2 tsp Oil
Salt, to taste
Lukewarm water, as required

METHOD:

- Take cornmeal and wheat flour in a big bowl. Add salt and mix it well.
- Add 1 tsp oil and combine all together to form crumbles.
- Knead a soft dough by adding lukewarm water gradually.
- At last, pour another tsp of oil over dough and knead to form a soft surface.
- Let it rest for around 10 mins.
- Roll out a medium-thick chapatis of 6-inches in diameter.
- Roast it on flat-griddle and make sure it's 85-90% cooked on both sides.
- Cool it down to room temp and store it in air-tight container.

SJ's NOTE:

- Cover with a damp cloth while making it to keep them soft.
- Fill in your favorite stuffing / salad, half-fold it and heat in oven or flat-pan! Ummm yummy it sounds... :)
- This version (if roasted 100% on both the sides) is called "Makke di Roti"!!!

Mung Sprouts

It's true... You'll never get to know how easy it is, without trying by your own!!! I find myself sprouting often since I got to know the perfect process of doing it...

I have taken mung beans here, which is the quickest one possible :)

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup mung beans
3 cups hot water

METHOD:

- Soak mung beans of your choice in hot water for 5-6 hours
- Drain all water out of it and transfer it to a big bowl.
- Cover with a damp cloth and keep it in warm place for 24 hours.

SJ's NOTE:

- Sprinkle some water on a damp cloth when it dries out.

- Major keys to use "Mung Sprouts" are:

• Make kebabs / tikkis
• Add in different chinese varieties i.e. hakka noodles, fried rice etc.
• Toss as a salad with dressing made of lemon juice, salt and pepper! 
• Cook as a side-dish with very little of spices... 

Breadcrumbs

An effective use of left-over breads or bread sides for making breadcrumbs at home!!! Try it out...

METHOD: 

- Cut them into pieces and arrange all the pieces in a baking tray.
- Keep it in preheated oven for 6-8 mins on 160 degrees.
- Cool it down to room temp and grind to make a course crumbs.
- Store in an air-tight container.

Key to use: 

1. Prepared breadcrumbs serves the best as a "Binding Agent" for any kebabs or tikkis.
2. It can be used just as a coating for them to get crunchiness while frying (shallow/deep).

Home-made Tortillas

Why to buy ready-to-use tortillas when it's quite easy n quick to make at home? Turn your routine meal into something special with these wraps or transform your tiffin into a treasure box! :)

Makes: 4-5

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups wheat flour (plain flour or combination of both is always an option)
1 tsp salt
4 tsp cooking oil
1/2 cup water
2 tsp baking powder

METHOD:

- Mix wheat flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
- Add 3 tsp of cooking oil into it and mix well to make crumbles.
- Add your flavor in it and mix well.
- Knead a soft dough using lukewarm water.
- Divide the dough in 4 balls and roll them out in thin chapati.
- Cook them on flat tawa for a min or two on both the sides.
- Cover all tortillas with a damp kitchen towel to keep them soft.
- Use these wheat-based tortillas to make varities of wraps!

SJ's NOTE:

You can make tortillas with your magical flavor! Few of my choice...

1. Garlic and Herb - Crush garlic cloves and any herbs of your choice with few drops of olive oil.
2. Cinnamon n Sugar - Mix of cinnamon powder (a pinch) and caster sugar.
3. Spinach - Fresh/frozen spinach puree
4. Lemon n Black pepper - Mix black pepper powder in lemon juice.
5. Tomato and Basil - Blend tomato and basil in mixture using water.