Vegetable Korma

This recipe is just bursting with flavor and nutrition. What could anyone want more than to eat their vegetables and like them too! You can make this in a pressure cooker or a covered pot. It takes a little longer in the latter. I made it in a pot/pan as I think it gives more flavor.

Ingredients

1. 1 cup cauliflower cut in small pieces
   
2. 1 cup diced carrots
3. 1 cup diced potatoes 
4. 1 cup green beans cut in small pieces
5. 1 cup peas
6. 1 cup small pieces of paneer, fried (I used the store bought paneer and fry it at home)
7. 1/2 cup tomato sauce
8. 1/2 tsp ginger paste
9. 1/2 tsp garlic paste
10. 2 tsp fresh cilantro paste
11. salt and red chilli to taste
12. 1/2 tsp haldi
    
13. 1/2 tsp garam masala
14. pinch of kesar (saffron) in a small amount of hot milk
15. 2 tbsp ghee
16. 1/2 cup milk (I use 2%)
17. 1 tsp cashews
18. 1 tsp lemon juice
19. Some cut cilantro to garnish

Process

1. Add ghee to a large pot. Once it is hot, add the ginger and garlic paste. Fry a little bit and add the cilantro paste. Fry the mixture. Add a little bit of the milk and and keep frying the paste. Add all the milk and make it into a nice paste.
2. Add all the vegetables, tomato sauce, all the spices, the kesar in milk, and cashews. I added the paneer after about 20 mins of cooking as I did not want it to dissolve in all the veggies.
3. Add about 1 or 1 1/2 cup of water, depending on how much of a curry you want.
4. Cover the pan and cook until all the vegetables are cooked. 
5. Once all is cooked add some cut cilantro to garnish.

This vegetable korma can be eaten with rice or naan. The flavor of this vegetable is amazing!!

Spices - An Introduction

Using the correct spices are the key to enjoy Indian cooking.  I get most of my spices from the Indian store. Although a number of spices are available in most grocery stores, there are still some that I have to make the special trip to the Indian store.

Here is a list of the spices I use regularly and keep in my spice rack. Then there are some that I keep handy - not for all dishes but occasionally.

Most common:

• Cumin seeds (Jeera) 
• Coriander seeds and powder (Dhaniya)
• Turmeric powder (Haldi)
• Chili powder (Mirch)
• Dried Mango powder (amchur or khataai)
• Garam masala (a mixture of various spices)
• Fennel seeds (saunf)
• Asafoetida (heeng)
• Mustard seeds (raai)

As much as I don't reference Wikipedia, I must say this is the best list of Indian spices with pictures! Indian Spices.

Some of the less used ones are:

• Fenugreek seeds (methi)
• Carom seed (ajwaain)

The exotic ones are below. I use these ones only once in a while.

• Cinnamon (dalchini)
• Black cardamon (badi elaaichi)
• Green cardamon (choti elaaichi)
• Black pepper (kali mirch)
• Dried ginger (sonth)
• Nutmeg (jaiphal)
• Cloves (long)
• Black salt (kala namak)
• Dried mint (pudeena)
• Saffron (kesar)
• Bay leaf (tej patta)

Then there are some that are premixed for convenience sake. These are named according to what food you use them for:

• channa masaalaa (for chickpeas)
• sambhar powder (for sambhar)
• paav bhaaji masaalaa (for pav bhaaji)....

So best is to have at least the three above for most of the staple dishes. Rest...I get as I need them.  I don't really have a preference for which brand I use: most common are MTR and MDH.