Category Archives: Sides

Paneer Butter Masala


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I do not know the history on why this is called Butter Masala. I just add 1 tbsp of butter in the recipe, I just interpret it as the gravy is as smooth as butter. Long shot, uh ? What so ever, this dish appeals to the kids with its subtle flavors, smooth texture and of course, no apparently visible vegetables 🙂

  • You need the ingredients below for the gravy.

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  • Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wok and fry the whole spices.

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  • Saute the onions until they turn slighty brown. Also fry 1 tsp of ginger garlic paste.

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  • Add the tomatoes. Sprinkle salt to sweat the tomatoes.

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  • Once the tomatoes soften add the tomato paste. You can just use the paste, or just use tomatoes or a mix of both.

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  • Mix well and add little water if needed. Add turmeric powder, chilli powder and a pinch of garam masala. Also add salt as needed.

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  • What adds to the flavor of this dish is “Kasoori Methi”, dried fenugreek leaves. You can get this in an Indian grocery store.

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  • Crush 1 tsp of kasoori methi in the palm of your hands and add to the onion tomato mix.

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  • Allow the mix to cool down and make a puree with cashew nuts. Cashews help with the smoothness, you can also us toasted poppy seeds instead of cashews. While grinding , grind the cashesws first and then grind the tomato-onion mix to puree.

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  • While making the puree , if you need to add water , add heavy cream or milk instead.

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  • Return the puree to the wok. Add a tbsp of butter and a tbsp of oil. you can add more butter as you desire, but 1 spoon is more than enough.

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  • If the gravy starts to thicken you can dilute by adding milk or cream.

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  • While the gravy is cooking, you can cut paneer and brown them slightly . You can replace  paneer with tofu.

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  • Add the paneer to the gravy.

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  • As of now, the dish is complete. But if you would like to add one more layer of flavor, dry toast a tsp of cumin and a tsp of kasoori methi. If you don’t have kasoori methi, use a tsp of fenugreek seeds.

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  • Grind the toasted cumin and fenugreek leaves to a fine powder.

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  • Sprinkle this pixie dust on the gravy.

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  • Reduce the heat and simmer until oil separates.

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Just as I was about to finish, my son came back from school. As soon as I opened the door he exclaimed “wow , I can smell my favorite paneer dip” and my day was made. 🙂

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Kadai Tofu


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Kadai chicken/ Kadai Paneer is one of the Punjabi Dhaba recipes, which is basically a quick and rustic stir fry. Quick is a tricky word here,  if you have the kadai masala (dry spice blend) and the tomato gravy ready , then it is really quick to stir-fry. If you are making everything from scratch like I did today, it does take a little bit of time. But its worth, not just the taste but the aroma that fills the house. “Kadai” is the Indian wok. I am using Tofu today , the curry base is the same whether it is Kadai Paneer or Kadai chicken.

  • First lets make the kadai masala. Its a blend of the dry spices. Traditionally ‘Kasoori methi’ (dried fenugreek leaves) are used. I do not have it, so I replaced it with fenugreek seeds.Image
  • Heat a wok and dry roast the spices, add the fenugreek at the very end as roasting them too much can give a bitter taste. Grind them to a coarse powder.Image
  • Next step is to make the tomato gravy.  Grind a few garlic cloves with a pinch of salt to a thick paste.

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  • You can use tomato paste. But I prefer using fresh tomatoes. Dice about 3-4 big tomatoes.

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  • Heat up 2tbsp of oil in the wok (you can use butter/ghee or a mix of ghee and oil) and fry the garlic paste. Take your time and cook until the raw smell is completely gone. And then add 1 tbsp of the kadai masala (dry spice blend) to the oil and fry for a few seconds. The rest of the kadai masala will be used at the end.

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  • Now add the tomatoes to the oil.

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  • Add salt and cook until the tomatoes sweat and soften.

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  • Cut some onions and green peppers into chunks.

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  • Add the onions and green peppers to the gravy. I know it is counter intuitive to add raw onions to the gravy, but for this recipe it works really well. It is important to have the crunch in the finished gravy.Image
  • Let the gravy simmer. Meanwhile, we can get the Tofu ready. I am using extra firm Tofu. Cut the Tofu in cubes.

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If you are using paneer, frying the paneer is optional. If you are using Tofu, I strongly recommend slightly browning the tofu before adding to the gravy. This can be done with 1 or 2 tsp of oil.Image

  • By now, the gravy should have reduced. As with all tomato based gravies, as we cook them longer and slower the color becomes rich. I am making this as a side for rice, so I allowed my gravy to reduce a lot, you can make it as loose as you prefer.

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  • Add the tofu to the gravy and mix well.

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  • Finally sprinkle the rest of the kadai masala (dry spice blend) and mix with the tofu and the gravy.

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  • And the Kadai Tofu is ready. Serve with rice or naan.

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Stuffed Eggplants


Usually the eggplants are stuffed with dried powders (which I love !). This is a different version in which the eggplants are stuffed with a simple tomato-onion masala. Very quick and easy.

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Clean the eggplants. (When you shop for this recipe, get the smallest eggplants).

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Steam them over boiling water for 6-7 minutes. You can also pressure cook them for 1 whistle or just blanch them in boiling water. whichever way, try not to overcook.

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While the eggplants are getting steamed, prep the filling. Fry some mustard seeds, cumin and fennel and sauté chopped red onions.

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Sauté chopped tomatoes and crushed garlic.

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Add turmeric powder, salt, chilli powder, dhaniya powder or any of your favorite masalas….even sambar powder will do. Add very little water (less than 1/4 cup) and let everything blend and cook well.

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Let the water evaporate and the masala thicken. The filling is ready and by now your eggplants should be done too.

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This is the right texture, its cooked but not too soft.

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Make a horizontal and vertical slit , but keep the eggplant intact.

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Generously spoon the filling into the eggplants. Rub the leftover filling on them.

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Add very little oil to the pan, both the eggplants and the masala filling are already cooked, so the oil is only to crisp the skin…2 tsp of oil is plenty. Sear one side for 30 seconds.

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Sear the other side.
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When the sides are seared, prop them up to cook the bottom… 

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Serve with steamed rice. Goes very well with yoghurt rice.

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Besan puttu / scrambled chick peas flour


This is a  perfect rainy day snack without frying (ready in 5 mins). If you crave for bajji/pakora on a rainy evening, but double thinking it because of its deep frying, try this, same flavor, same taste sans the frying.
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Mix 5 tbsp. of besan (chick peas flour) + 2 tbsp. of rice flour + 1 tsp turmeric powder + 2 tsp chlli powder + salt to taste.
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Add water and make batter with the consistency of bajji/pakora batter.

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In a non-stick pan add a tbsp. of oil and fry mustard seeds, urad dhal, curry leaves and chopped green chillies.
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Sauté chopped red onions and coriander leaves. (You can add thinly sliced bell peppers also).
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Pour in the prepared batter and stir.Image
Keep stirring as the batter thickens.
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Try breaking the big chunks while stirring…
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This is just like scrambling an egg. If you don’t use a non-stick pan, you might have to use more oil.
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And its done… This is traditionally a side for rice, but I like it as a snack.
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