Indian lunch

It wasn't until I had lived in the UK for a few years that I actually tried Indian food for the first time. I'm not really sure why this is - I guess I didn't eat out a lot when I was a student and tended to prefer a Chinese takeaway. The first time I remember going to an Indian restaurant was when I moved to Preston, and we went to Spice of Bengal the day after my first proper night out there with the other PhD students. Although I'd eaten curries before, I'd never done the whole sharing poppadoms thing, and I don't think I had quite realised the range of tastes, flavours and styles that Indian food can come in.

Things have changed dramatically since then - not even five years ago. I've learnt what I like about Indian cuisine, and adopted my favourite aspects of it into my cooking. My favourite parts are, of course, the spices, flame-grilled meats, loads of veggies. And so nowadays we frequently have Indian food for dinner and it is one of my favourite things to cook when I have people coming over for a meal.

A thoroughly marinated chicken :D 

Additional chicken, for a certain someone who doesn't like bones

The following set of recipes are some that I've started cooking quite regularly, and is particularly good for big lunches with friends. A tandoori roast chicken, with chana masala, home-made chapattis, curried daal and Bombay potatoes. All super easy to make (provided you have a well-stocked spice cupboard), and most of these dishes can be made in advance, which means that you don't have to slave over a hot stove the entire time your guests are there.

And just in case any of you are of a mind to say: but this is Indian food, not Maltese recipes in an English kitchen!...well, I have a few answers to that.

First of all: English kitchens see a lot of Indian food make their way in and out again. The British love a curry!!

Second, and more importantly - a good Maltese cook needs to accept that although Mediterranean cuisine is the best, sometimes it pays to step outside your comfort zone and make something entirely different. Once you're familiar with cooking foods from different countries, you can move into Fusion cooking and hell! there's nothing better than that! And now...to the recipes..

An Indian Feast

Tandoori Roast Chicken:

raw, whole chicken

tandoori paste (you could make your own but totally not worth the time)

2 tbsp yoghurt

fresh coriander

Coriander Chutney:

handful of fresh coriander

3 garlic cloves, peeled

large piece of ginger, peeled

2 green chilli

lemon juice

cumin powder

Chana Masala:

can of tomatoes

chickpeas, soaked overnight and boiled

Fresh/frozen spinach

onion

3 garlic cloves

large piece of ginger, peeled

cumin powder

garam masala

turmeric

Curried Daal:

bag of daal (yellow split lentils)

red pepper

red chillis

cumin powder

fresh curry leaves

hot curry powder

yellow mustard seeds

Home-Made Chapattis:

chapatti flour

cold water

fresh coriander

Bombay Potatoes:

chopped, peeled potatoes

hot curry powder

garam masala

chopped fresh tomatoes

chopped, fresh coriander

half a garlic bulb, crushed

Method:

Preparing all this is all about getting your timing right, as is the case with virtually any other roast dinner. 

1. The day before, mix the tandoori paste with a tablespoon or two of yoghurt, then liberally baste your full chicken in this. Be sure to lightly slice the drumsticks, to allow the flavour to soak into these tender parts. Sprinkle a handful of chopped fresh coriander over the top, cover with foil and leave in the fridge to marinate overnight.

2. Prepare the chana masala first. Add chopped onion to a little oil over the hop, and sauté for about five minutes, until they're soft but before they turn brown. Add chopped ginger, garlic and chilli to the mix and after another minute, add generous helpings of all the herbs and spices. I don't usually measure this part, but at least a tablespoon of each. Stir these into the mix, add your chickpeas and can of tomatoes and bring to the boil. Leave this simmering for about an hour and then take off the heat and allow it to partially cool down, which enhances the flavour. When you reheat it on the stove before serving, add the spinach.

Chana masala - ready to be dished up

3. At the same time, put the chicken in the oven (still covered in foil) at about 180 degrees for a couple of hours. You can also get the daal on the go - put some oil in a pan, then add mustard seeds. Wait for them to start popping, at which point go in with your chillis, red peppers and other spices. Then, add the daal to the pan with boiling water (just enough to cover the daal), stir, and leave to simmer until the daal soaks up all the water. Tada!

Curried daal with red peppers and fresh tomatoes

4. Only a few things left to do. The coriander chutney is very easy - stick all the ingredients into a blender and the rest is fairly obvious. Add a little olive oil if it looks too dry.

Coriander chutney - star of the meal!

5. Mix chapatti flour with chopped coriander, seasoning and small amounts of water until it comes together to form a dough. Be careful not to let it get too wet. Work it for about ten minutes, until it becomes a bit more pliable in your hands. Then rest in the fridge for about half an hour. Fifteen minutes before serving the meal, split the dough into small balls, roll them out into roughly circular, very thin shapes and cook them by putting them into a very hot frying pan for about 30 seconds on each side. You're not supposed to add any oil at this point, but I find this makes them puff up nicely. Other people might coat them with some ghee after cooking, but that makes them too fattening for my taste!

Chapattis - ready to go in the pan

6. The last thing to do it the Bombay potatoes, and there's loads of ways to make these. I like to par-boil chopped, peeled potatoes beforehand. Fifteen minutes before serving, I'll throw the spices with a lot of garlic into a saucepan with hot oil, then add the potatoes and chopped tomatoes. A little bit of water also helps the process. I continue to stir these on a medium heat until the potatoes have soaked in all the spices and softened enough to eat. Then a sprinkle of fresh coriander, et voila!

Looks good enough to eat!

Et voila!! The final masterpiece