Zaiqa

No wedding banquet in Hyderabad in earlier days were witnessed sans Luqmi in the menu, as a starter paired along with Qimah Kawab. Today other sophisticated entrées make their appearance on the wedding banquet tables. Luqmi is not much seen so nowadays, but it not forgotten, it is still one of every Hyderabadis most favorite snack.

Luqmi has Persian origins, and now is a popular Hyderabadi snack. Other snacks like Osmania biscuit, Pauna chai, Irani chai, etc all have Persian origins and made a mark in Hyderabad. Irani cafes in Hyderabad, seen at every other corner, selling these snacks and refreshments are always crowded with locals. Luqmi is preferred as a starter in the menu, a rectangular parcel stuffed with sauteed minced mutton cooked with a hint of spices and a delicious lemony zing to please your palate.

My miya yesterday had requested me to prepare a few Luqmi for the إفطار and الحمد لله he loved them.

Qimah – Minced meat (the filling)

Ingredients:

Qimah~Minced Veal/Lamb/Sheep meat – 700 gms
Onion -1, large, finely sliced
Cumin seeds – 2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Cilantro – 2 tbsp
Long green chillies – 3, chopped finely
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Salt – 2 tsp
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Lemon juice – 3 tbsp
Cashewnuts – chopped, handful

Qimah – Minced meat

Method:

In a large frying pan, pour oil and as soon as it warms up, add the onion and fry until evenly golden brown in color. Add the cumin seeds, ginger garlic paste, cilantro and green chillies. Fry for a few seconds. Add the minced meat and cook mixing it well. Add the red chilli powder, salt and turmeric. Mix well and cook stirring frequently until all the moisture has been dried up. Pour lemon juice, and add the chopped cashewnuts, mix well and remove from heat. Let it cool down completely.

Luqmi – Minced meat stuffed parcels
Makes – 15 Luqmi

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour/Durum Atta – 2 1/2 cups+extra for dusting (you can also use All-Purpose flour/Maida instead)
Semolina/Sooji – 1/2 cup
Salt – 1 tsp
Yogurt – 1/3 cup
Warm water/milk – 1/4 cup
Ghee – 1 tbsp
Canola oil to deep fry

Luqmi – Minced meat stuffed parcels

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl, add all the above ingredients except ghee and oil and working with your fingers, form a soft dough. Add a few more sprinkles of warm water if needed to form the soft dough. Once the dough has formed into a ball, smear ghee and cover with a lid. Keep aside for 40 minutes.
2. Knead the dough for 3-5 minutes. Form the dough into 30 equal size balls and cover them all with a damp kitchen towel. Also divide the prepared Qimah filling into 15 equal portions. Pour cool water into a cup and keep aside.
3. Dust with extra flour and roll out two dough balls, one at a time into 8 cm in diameter circle each, using your rolling pin on the work surface. Make sure the rolled out circles are not very thin, they should be just a little bit thick. Place a potion of the divided Qimah filling in the center of the rolled out dough circle. Dip your fingers into water and smear lightly on the entire outer edge of the dough circle. Gently place the second rolled out disc over the filling and press the edges of the dough circle to seal them. Using a pizza cutter cut out the extra outer edges of the dough to shape into a rectangle. (You can collect the scraps until the last luqmi is done and roll it out into a ball and repeat the procedure again). With your fingers, press the edges once again to make sure they are sealed. Crimp the edges with a fork to form a pattern. Repeat until all the luqmi is prepared. Keep them on a tray, covered with a towel, until all are ready to deep fry.
4. Heat oil to deep fry in a kadai. Depending on the size of your kadai, you can fry the luqmi, one or two at a time, until lightly browned on both sides. Remove using a slotted spoon into a wire mesh strainer for the extra oil to drain away. Serve them warm.

Head over to Muneeba’s blog and have a look at her version of Luqmi. Enjoy!

Luv,
Mona

Karela~Bittergourd, a not very favorite vegetable of kids as well as most adults, is full of medicinal properties. People, who have a liking and an acquired taste for bittergourd are doing themselves a great favor. Its peel, seeds and flesh, every part of this vegetable is laden with health benefits. This vegetable has remedial properties for illnesses such as Diabetes, Asthama, Hypertension, GI disorders, Urinary disorders, HIV/AIDS, and many other ailments by lowering blood sugar levels, helping the liver function better, and has a wonderful healing effect on blood. The smaller the size of the vegatable, the more nutritous it is.

Bittergourd ~ Karela

Fortunately, my family enjoys bittergourd, and I am always delighted to get this humble vegetable home whenever they appear in the market here. Today I prepared these two dishes for our meal and we all enjoyed it.

Usually, I shallow fry bittergourd chips, but today I tried them in a healthier way, Indira inspired, and they were perfectly good.

Bitter-Gourd/Karela Chips

Ingredients:

Bitter gourd/Karela – 2, medium sized, yound and tender
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Salt – 1/2 tsp
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Ghee – 1 tsp

Bittergourd cut into thin chips

Bittergourd chips

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°C.
2.Wash the bittergourd well in several changes of water. Pat dry with paper towel.
3. Using a mandoline or hand slicer, slice the bittergourd into thin chips. There is no need to peel the skin.
4. In a mixing bowl, add the bittergourd and the rest of the ingredients. Gently toss the bowl to mix well.
5. Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil. Place the raw bittrgourd chips in a single layer on the baking sheet and place it in the middle rack in the preheated oven for 10 mins at 350°C. Later, turn the setting on broil for 3-5 minutes. Keep a close eye, and remove the baking sheet as soon as the chips are done. Serve immediately.

Suggested Accompaniments: Bittergourd chips can be enjoyed on the side along with any of your meals.

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I love to cook Bittergourd along with Qimah. Bittergourd when cooked with minced meat brings out the flavor of the meat and and in turn its bitterness is amazingly neutralized by it.

Qimah bhare Karelay – Bitter-Gourd stuffed with Minced meat

Ingredients:

Bitter gourd – 4, medium sized, young and tender
Canola oil – 2 tbsp
Yellow Onion – 1, medium sized
Ginger-garlic paste – 2 tsp
Minced lamb/Sheep/Veal meat~Qaaeema – 1 pound
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Salt – to taste
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Roasted Cumin seed powder – 1/2 tsp
Roasted Coriander seed powder – 1 tsp
Coconut cream – 1 tbsp
Canned Tomato paste – 3 tbsp
Tamarind concentrate – 1 tbsp
Chopped cilantro and mint – to garnish

Bittergourd, lightly scraped, stuffed and tied close with twine

Method:

1. Wash and pat dry the bittergourd. Lightly scrape the skin using a knife (I scraped it for even searing). Cut off just the tips of the bittergourd with your kitchen shears.
2. With the tip of a knife, carefully open the bitter gourd to form into a boat shape, and remove the seeds from inside without tearing/damaging the bittergourd. Chop the bittergourd seeds roughly and keep the seeds and bittergourd aside in individual bowls.
3. In a pan at medium high heat, pour 1 tbsp oil and as soon as it warms up, add sliced onions and stir fry until golden brown. Add the ginger garlic paste and stir fry for a few seconds. Add the washed minced meat. Mix well and add the red chilli powder, turmeric and salt. Let cook uncovered until the meat is browned and the moisture has dried up. Keep stirring the meat every once in a while. Remove from heat once done.
4. Stuff the bittergourd with the prepared Qimaha and tie to close the bittergourds using a kitchen twine.
5. In a pan at medum high heat, pour remaining oil and as soon as it warms up, add the stuffed tied bittergourd. Stir fry them until lightly seared on all sides. Remove the bittergourds into a platter using a strainer and keep aside.
6. Add the left over prepared qimah into the same pan, and add the chopped bittergourd seeds, cumin and coriander powders, tomato paste, coconut cream and tamarind concentrate. Mix well and pour in 1 1/2 cup water. Close the lid and let it come to a boil. Lower the meat to medium and add the stuffed bittergourd. Close the lid and let cook for 10 minutes. Later, gently give a good stir and again close the lid and let cook for 10 minutes, until the qimah is fairly dry and the bittergourd is well cooked.
7. To serve, discard the kitchen twine and cut each bittergourd into two using a knife. Garnish with chopped cilantro and mint and serve immediately.

Qimah bhare Karelay – Bitter-Gourd stuffed with Minced meat

Suggested Accompaniments: Enjoy Qimah bhare Karelay along with Khatti dal and a dry vegetable curry on the side for a delicious meal.

Luv,
Mona

Delightfully sweet, and subtly sour, is how I describe the taste of this curry. Memories of my childhood are closely yet again associated with this traditional dish that my Ammi used to prepare with so much love for us all.

Tamarind – Imli
AntiClockwise from top – Tamarind pod; inside the pod without shell; tamarind seeds; tamarind pulp shaped into ball; leftover fibre from the pod to be discarded

Tamarind, an essential ingredient in Indian cuisine, is used in this recipe for a sweet-sour flavor. The prepared curry is then subtly thickened with finely powdered rice and allowed to cook for a little while to impart a silky texture to the curry.

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Pre-prererations for the curry: (you can prepare these a day before you plan to make the curry)
1. Tamarind pulp:

Remove the shell of the tamarind pod, and gently pull away the fibres meshed with the inner pulp and remove the seeds embeded inside. Discard the shell, fibre and seeds. Shape the pulp into a ball to use. (See the picture above for an idea)

2. Rice powder:

Soak rice for 2-3 hours in cool water. Drain the rice and spread on a cloth to air dry for a few hours. Once completely dry, powder the rice very very finely in a spice grinder to use. The texture of the rice powder should be similar to that of flour, or else coarsely ground rice results in an unpleasing gritty texture in the curry. This ground rice flour is used as the thickener in this curry.

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Tamatar ki Kadi – Okra and Meat in tangy Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

Canola Oil – 2 tsp
Ginger paste – 1/2 tsp
Garlic paste – 1 tsp
Fresh Curry leaves – 2 sprigs
Veal/Lamb/Goat/Sheep meat with bones – 600 gms (boneless meat is not recommended)
Tomatoes – 5, large, roughly chopped
Roasted Coriander seed powder – 1/2 tsp
Roasted Cumin seed powder – 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Salt – to taste
Okra – young and tender pods, 100 gms, tailed and topped
Tamarind pulp – lime sized ball of tamarind pulp, or as per taste (see above)
Very Finely powdered Rice – 4 tbsp (see above)

Tamatar ki Kadi

Method:

1. In a pressure cooker at medium high heat, pour oil, and as soon as it warms up, add the ginger and garlic pastes. Fry it for a few seconds. Add the curry leaves and as they splutter, add the meat and the tomatoes, salt, red chilli powder, turmeric,, cumin and coriander seed powders and mix well. Pour in 3 cups of water and pressure cook until the meat is tender.
2. Open the lid of the cooker, and add the okra. Half cover the lid and let cook for 8-10 minutes or until the okra is tender. Add the tamarind pulp and mix well.
3. In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup warm water and add the rice powder to it. Mix well so that it doesnt get clumpy, and gently pour this mixture into the pressure cooker stirring continously. Let it cook uncovered for 10-12 minutes until the sauce leaves oil and thickens gradually because of the rice powder. Remove from heat and serve warm.

Once the curry is no longer warm, it begins to thicken due to the thickener added. If the left over is refrigerated it turns into a slighty pasty consistency, but do not worry, as soon as it is reheated with the addition of a little water, its consistency will thin up again.

Luv,
Mona

Fresh Fenugeek leaves~Methi patta, a cleansing and healing Indian herb, adds an earthy flavor when cooked. Every Summer, I religiously sow a few seeds of methi along with other herbs and veggies in the small patch of vegetable garden in my lawn and enjoy the summers bounty.

Freshly plucked matured fenugreek plants and chopped turai

Fenugreek leaves are rich in iron, protein, calcium, carotene (vitamin A). When steamed along with Turai and meat, it enhances their taste and makes the curry more flavorful and appealing.

Turai Methi Gosht ka Salan – Ridged Gourd in Meat+Fenugreek leaves sauce

Enjoy this mellow tasting curry along with something khatta/sour like the khatti dal or khatta salan for a delicious meal.

Turai Methi Gosht ka Salan – Ridged Gourd in Meat+Fenugreek leaves sauce

Ingredients:

Yellow onion – 2, large, peeled and roughly chopped
Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp
Turmeric – 1/2 tsp
Salt – 2 tsp
Sheep/Veal meat with bone – 650 gms
Turai – 6, medium sized, peeled, and sliced
Small Green chillies – 2 or 3, chopped (optional)
Fresh Methi leaves – 2 cups, loosely packed, finely chopped (discard stems and flowers)

Method:

1. In a pressure cooker, add chopped onions, red chilli powder, salt, turmeric and meat. Pour half cup water and mix well. Close the lid and pressure cook for about 10 minutes or until the meat is tender.
2. Open the lid and add the chopped turai. Mix well with a spoon. Half cover the lid and let it cook for 20 minutes.
3. Add the chopped green chillies (if using), and chopped methi and stir well to mix. Cook uncovered for about 10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated. Serve warm.

Luv,
Mona

Tala huwa Qimah

Sautéed minced meat/Talahuwa Qimah along with Kacchi Imli ki Khatti Dal and plain Basmati rice is ideal for a simple yet delicious meal. My Ammi always used to prepare Talahuwa Qimah as a change from the usual Qimah recipes and we all always relished it.

Tala Huwa Qimah – Sautéed Minced Meat

Ingredients:

Cumin seeds – 1 1/2 seeds
Ginger garlic paste – 1 heaped tbsp
Dried red chilli – 2, each split into two
Curry Leaves/Karyapaak – 10 fresh leaves
Minced Veal or Lamb or Sheep meat/Qimah – 800 gms
Red Chilli powder – 2 heaped tsp
Salt – to taste
Turmeric – 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Juice of 1 Lime/Lemon
MDH Chat Masala powder – 1/2 tsp (optional)
Fresh Cilantro and Mint leaves – 1 tbsp, finely chopped
Canola oil

Method:

1. Wash Qimah and drain in a fine wire mesh strainer.
2. In a non-staick heavy bottmed Kadai/Wok, pour 2 tbsp oil and as soon as it warms up, add cumin seeds and ginger garlic paste and stir fry till it is lightly golden brown. Add the dried red chiili, karyapaak and quickly in a minute add the Qimah. Using a wooden spoon mix it all well and keep stirring it breaking the lumps of the Qimah for 3-5 minutes.
3. Let it cook uncovered at medium high heat until most of the moisture has been evaporated and the qimah is nicely cooked. Pour in about 3 tbsp oil and all the other ingredients and stir fry the qimah for 25-30 minutes more, stirring continously. Keep sprinkling a few drops of water if it tends to stick on the bottom of the Kadai. Fry the Qimah well and serve warm.

Suggested Accompaniments: Enjoy the Talahuwa Qimah along with Kacchi Imli ki Khatti Dal and Plain boiled rice for a delicious meal. 

Luv,
Mona