[Recipe] Madras Curry and Naan.
Jan. 10th, 2010 06:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kitchenklutzFollowing through on my resolution to try at least one new recipe every week, I stumbled over an old printed recipe for garlic naan. That inspired me to pull out my copy of Bay Books' The Essential Asian Cookbook, looking for Indian recipes. Thus, being not too immediately hungry, I decided to try out both the naan and a recipe for Madras curry.
Madras Curry
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Total Cooking Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients:
* 2 lbs. skirt or chuck steak
* 1/4 cup ground coriander
* 6 teaspoons ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds (I used the same amount of ground mustard instead)
* 1/2 teaspoon cracked black peppercorns (I finally got some use out of my mortar and pestle, yaaaaay!)
* 1 teaspoon chili powder
* 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons crushed and diced garlic
* 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (lacking fresh ginger, I used a similar amount of ground ginger instead)
* 2 - 3 tablespoons white vinegar
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or ghee
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1/4 cup (60 g/2 oz) tomato paste
* 1 cup beef stock (lacking beef stock, I used chicken stock instead)
Method:
1. Trim the excess fat and sinew from the meat, and cut into 2.5 cm (1 inch) cubes.
2. Place the coriander, cumin, mustard seeds, peppercorns, chili powder, turmeric, salt, diced garlic, and ginger in a small bowl; stir to combine. Add the vinegar and mix to a smooth paste.
3. Heat the oil in a large pan; add the onion and cook over medium heat until just soft. Add the spice paste and stir for 1 minute. Add the meat and cook, stirring, until it is coated with the spice paste. Add the tomato paste and stock. Simmer, covered, for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the meat is tender.
(Interesting side note: with the beef, tomato paste, and onion, this particular recipe ends up having an aftertaste rather like good chili. Not too spicy, but quite filling.)
Makes six reasonably-sized servings.
Naan
Preparation Time: 30 minutes Ready In: 3 hours
Cook Time: 7 minutes
Ingredients:
* 1 (0.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
* 1 cup warm water
* 1/4 cup white sugar
* 3 tablespoons milk
* 1 egg, beaten
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 4 1/2 cups bread flour
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
* 1/4 cup butter, melted
Method:
1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise for 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
3. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.
4. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.
This is finishing up cooking as we speak, although the naan still has a while to go -- I haven't even divided up the dough yet. The curry smells great, though, and I'm anticipating it'll be very tasty given all the spices that went into it.
ETA: The curry turned out quite good, though nowhere near as spicy as I was expecting. I had it with rice, and with the naan on the side. The naan was surprisingly tasty, considering it was my first time trying to cook it. It's very straightforward to fry up. I actually realized only after I'd mixed up the dough that it indicates "Portions: 14" -- so I made three pieces of naan and kept the rest on the tray to refrigerate. I can quickly fry up more naan each morning or night, given a little melted butter.
Madras Curry
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Total Cooking Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients:
* 2 lbs. skirt or chuck steak
* 1/4 cup ground coriander
* 6 teaspoons ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds (I used the same amount of ground mustard instead)
* 1/2 teaspoon cracked black peppercorns (I finally got some use out of my mortar and pestle, yaaaaay!)
* 1 teaspoon chili powder
* 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons crushed and diced garlic
* 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (lacking fresh ginger, I used a similar amount of ground ginger instead)
* 2 - 3 tablespoons white vinegar
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or ghee
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1/4 cup (60 g/2 oz) tomato paste
* 1 cup beef stock (lacking beef stock, I used chicken stock instead)
Method:
1. Trim the excess fat and sinew from the meat, and cut into 2.5 cm (1 inch) cubes.
2. Place the coriander, cumin, mustard seeds, peppercorns, chili powder, turmeric, salt, diced garlic, and ginger in a small bowl; stir to combine. Add the vinegar and mix to a smooth paste.
3. Heat the oil in a large pan; add the onion and cook over medium heat until just soft. Add the spice paste and stir for 1 minute. Add the meat and cook, stirring, until it is coated with the spice paste. Add the tomato paste and stock. Simmer, covered, for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the meat is tender.
(Interesting side note: with the beef, tomato paste, and onion, this particular recipe ends up having an aftertaste rather like good chili. Not too spicy, but quite filling.)
Makes six reasonably-sized servings.
Naan
Preparation Time: 30 minutes Ready In: 3 hours
Cook Time: 7 minutes
Ingredients:
* 1 (0.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
* 1 cup warm water
* 1/4 cup white sugar
* 3 tablespoons milk
* 1 egg, beaten
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 4 1/2 cups bread flour
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
* 1/4 cup butter, melted
Method:
1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise for 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
3. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.
4. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.
This is finishing up cooking as we speak, although the naan still has a while to go -- I haven't even divided up the dough yet. The curry smells great, though, and I'm anticipating it'll be very tasty given all the spices that went into it.
ETA: The curry turned out quite good, though nowhere near as spicy as I was expecting. I had it with rice, and with the naan on the side. The naan was surprisingly tasty, considering it was my first time trying to cook it. It's very straightforward to fry up. I actually realized only after I'd mixed up the dough that it indicates "Portions: 14" -- so I made three pieces of naan and kept the rest on the tray to refrigerate. I can quickly fry up more naan each morning or night, given a little melted butter.
