A one-derful idea

DINNER: Chicken curry and chicken pulao

Prep time - 15 mins
Cook time - 20 mins
Total time - 35 mins
Serves - 2 persons

Ingredients
Cumin seeds - 2 tbsp
Bay leaf - 1
Green cardamom - 3 small
Cinnamon stick - 1 medium
Black pepper whole - 6 pieces
Cloves - 3
Sugar - just a pinch
Salt - as per taste
Turmeric powder - 2 tbsp
Refined or mustard oil - 4 large spoons
Ghee - 1 large spoon
Water - 4 cups
Ginger paste - 6 tbsp
Garlic paste - 6 tbsp
Green or red chilli paste - 3 tbsp
Rice - 2 cups (washed, soaked for 10 minutes and dried)
Chicken - 250 gm (cleaned and marinated for 20 minutes in salt, vinegar or lime juice, and cooking oil)
1 tomato large (optional)
1 large potato - peeled and diced
2 beans, half carrot (if available) - large pieces
2 large onions - sliced
Red chilli powder - 2 tbsp
Coriander powder - 2 tbsp

Method
Take a medium-sized vessel with a thick base or a small pressure cooker. In that, put 4 tbsp oil. Let the oil heat and add a pinch of sugar, cumin seeds, bay leaves, green cardamom, cinnamon, whole black pepper and clove, and allow them to sizzle. Add the onion slices, stir till golden brown, and add chopped tomatoes. When the tomatoes are half done, add the ginger, garlic and chilli paste. Add salt, turmeric powder, red chilli and coriander powder and stir well. When the paste starts to release oil, add the marinated chicken. Stir well till the chicken is cooked, and the gravy turns red. Add one cup water and cover with a lid for the chicken to cook properly. Stir in intervals. Once done, transfer half the chicken and gravy on to a serving dish. Now, add the dried rice, diced potatoes, carrot and beans to the remaining gravy. Top it up with a bit of salt, 1 tbsp coriander powder and one large spoon of ghee. Cover the lid and let it cook for 10-12 minutes. Check if the rice is well done. Once done, it can be served. You can use any other meat or prawns with the
same recipe.

Inputs by Sneha Senapati

LUNCH: Odiya-style sada kheichidi

Prep time - 15 mins
Cook time - 20 mins
Total time - 35 mins
Serves - 2 persons

Ingredients
Cumin seeds - 2 tbsp
Bay leaf - 1
Green cardamom - 3 small
Salt - as per taste
Turmeric powder - 2 tbsp
Ghee - 3 large spoons
Water - 4 cups
Ginger minced - 3 tbsp
Hing (asafoetida) - 1 tbsp
Tur dal + yellow moong dal - 1 and 1/2 cups
Rice - 2 cups
Large potato - 1
2 beans/ half carrot (if available)

Method
Take a medium-sized vessel with a thick base or a small pressure cooker. In that, put 2 tbsp ghee. Allow the ghee to heat, and add cumin seeds, bay leaves and cardamom. Allow them to sizzle and immediately add four cups of water. Then add rice, tur dal and moong dal (all properly washed and drained), and grated or minced ginger. Add the potatoes cut into four pieces along with the skin (you can peel the skin off if you wish). Add the diced carrots and beans followed by salt and turmeric. Cover with a lid and stir in between, and check for the right consistency; it should be bit runny, as rice absorbs water quickly. After 15 minutes, the kheichidi is ready. If you are using a pressure cooker, wait for two whistles on medium flame and turn the stove off. Lastly, when ready, transfer it to a serving bowl and add the rest of the ghee. The simple kheichidi is ready to eat.

Sneha Senapati

Quick hacks

. If you want to save time and effort, make the ginger, garlic and red chilli paste in bulk and store in your refrigerator. This can be easily used for upto
two weeks.

. Slice onions and deep fry them until brown and store them in the freezer. These can be used for making omelettes and curries without the trouble of slicing them each time. Or make a paste to use every time by adding a little water to the same.

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