Haggis

Haggis

Wednesday, February 24, 2021

 

The humble haggis rose to fame in 1787 when Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1787) penned his immortal ode Address to a Haggis, to what has since become a global symbol of all things Scottish even though, in all likelihood, the haggis may not be Scottish at all!

Robbie Burns, as he is affectionately remembered, is commemorated, along with the haggis he made famous, at Burn’s night suppers held, wherever there are Scots, all around the world on January 25.

A selection of his poems is duly recited by kilt wearing men, with Address to a Haggis accompanying the haggis — already having made its grand entrance born aloft on a platter and piped to the table accompanied by the Banshee wail of bagpipes — as the ritual dinner is served.

There is something intrinsically barbaric about serving a meal, let alone eating it, encased in a sheep’s stomach but, historically speaking, it made complete sense.

The first confirmed haggis recipe, written down in the early 1400s, came, much to Scottish dismay, from England. This surprisingly tasty peasant dish is also claimed by Scandinavians, the French and ancient Greek historian/poet Homer, in the eighth century BC.

Irrespective of its origins, Scottish legend has it that the original haggis was an animal. This simple and nutritious dish is relatively cheap and easy to make and, in all of its current variations, is deserving of its place of honour on the table.

A symbol of all things Scottish, this simple and nutritious dish is relatively cheap and easy to make

Traditional haggis

Ingredients

500g sheep liver, lungs and heart — minced
2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion — minced
1 cup coarse oatmeal lightly toasted in a dry frying pan 1 cup mutton stock
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 egg
Salt to taste
A cleaned sheep’s stomach and a length of strong cotton string

Method

Put toasted oatmeal into a bowl and mix in the stock. Leave to stand until all liquid has been absorbed. Lightly fry the onion and herbs in the butter. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients until well-blended and lump free. Carefully stuff the prepared sheep’s stomach with the mixture, securely tying both ends closed with the string when done.

Put the haggis in a large pan of water, bring to the boil and simmer for one-and-a-half to two hours, when it should be done. Serve with mashed potatoes and mashed swedes/rutabaga or turnips.

Simple haggis

Ingredients

500g mutton qeema
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion — minced or finely chopped
3 teaspoons garlic paste
1 cup rolled oats lightly toasted in a frying pan with a little soya sauce
1 cup mutton stock
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried sage
1 teaspoons ground black pepper and whole peppercorns to garnish
Half teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 egg
Salt to taste

Method

Combine toasted oats with stock and let stand until all liquid is absorbed. Lightly fry onion, garlic and herbs in the olive oil. Mix all ingredients, except the peppercorns, together in a large bowl. Line a baking tin, approximately six inches by 10 inches by four inches deep with aluminum foil, and evenly spread the mixture in this. Lightly press whole peppercorns into the top for extra crunch and peppery taste. Cover with more foil.

Bake in moderate oven for approximately one hour.

Serve with mashed potatoes, mashed swede/rutabaga or turnip.

Vegetarian haggis

Ingredients

2 cups cooked red lentils or chana daal, cooked until liquid has evaporated and grains are separate
1 cup mixed chopped nuts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion — minced
3 teaspoons garlic paste
1 cup rolled oats lightly toasted in a frying pan with a little soya sauce
1 cup vegetable stock
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
2 teaspoons dried age
2 tsp dried thyme
1 teaspoons ground black pepper and some peppercorns for garnish
Half teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 egg

Method

As for simple haggis, substituting the meat with the lentils and nuts. The egg can also be replaced with a little oil if desired.

Quick cook haggis: Using the mixture for whichever haggis you prefer, make into burger, kebab or sausage shapes and fry. Serve with rice, French fries, on burger buns or with salads.

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Originally published in Dawn, EOS, January 31st, 2021

Chicken Stew Al Jawahar Old Delhi Style

Chicken Stew Al Jawahar Old Delhi Style

Saturday, February 20, 2021

 

We North Indians are obsessed with creamy gravies and making them low fat is a challenge . Many people like a good fat layer on top of the dish as it definitely makes the spicing more aromatic . All the aromatic oils of the spices are soluble in cooking fat and the aroma of the finished dish depends a lot on how the spices are cooked and seeped into the cooking medium . The meats also take up the flavors well when cooked with some fat .

At the same time , cooking with lesser amounts of fat is not such a big deal . Using just enough fat to let the spices bloom in the gravy and the meat get evenly cooked and seeped into the spicy notes is the idea . The heat level needs to be kept in control as the meats need more time to cooked in a low fat medium , without getting stuck to the base of the pan...Slow cooking with some liquid drowning the meat is a great idea , best suited for low fat cooking, especially meats.

The mughlai stew is called 'Ishtoo' and this is not a revelation for anybody who likes it.. whenever you want a nutty creamy gravy with an intense chicken flavor you can have this ishtoo . This ishtoo i made with the remaining boney pieces of the chicken after making a grilled tikka . The boney pieces have more intense flavor and they come out well if cooked for a soup or for a stew...

This chicken stew is an exact replica of a mutton stew i recreated after having it at a famous purani dilli (old city of Delhi) eatery , with boney pieces of chicken this was the best thing to have with some fresh whole wheat chapatis ..

ingredients...
(for 2 servings)
chicken pieces on bone 250 -300 gm
 red chilly powder 1tsp or a bit more
cumin seeds 1 tsp
whole coriander seeds 1 tsp
fennel seeds 1 tsp
whole peppercorns 15 nos.
green cardamom seeds and skin separated 2 nos.
black cardamom a few seeds only ( about 1/4 of a whole pod)
a small cinnamon stick 
half a star anise ( optional, i am just obsessed by it)
cloves 4 nos.
a small sliver of mace 
salt to taste
ghee 1 tsp
fresh cream 1 tbsp ( i used home made malai)

 to be minced in the food processor or mixie..
2 big onions (1.5 cup minced)
an inch piece of ginger chopped
7-8 small cloves of Indian garlic

to be made into a fine paste
1.5 tbsp of melon seeds ( magaz in urdu and kharbuze ka beej in hindi)
100 gm of thick curds

Procedure...

There are a lot of ingredients but the cooking is really simple.

Place everything into a pan except the paste of melon seeds and curds. Add a cup of water and cook the chicken on low flame till cooked.It takes about 25-35 minutes according to the size of the chicken pieces.

Add the white paste made with melon seeds and curds , mix well and let it come to a soft boil. Cover the pan and take off heat. Let the pan stand for 5 minutes before serving.

There will be some oil floating on top , but not overwhelming . The whole recipe is quite low on fats and equally tasty ..

You might like to discard some of the whole spices as they are not a welcome bite...I like the whole coriander seeds and some whole peppercorns coming under my teeth once in a while...this one is a rustic dish where you pick out the whole spices if you don't like them and use your hands to eat it...

With hot chapatis , roomali rotis or fluffy naan , this stew needs some bread ....to be mopped clean.

Mutton stew : the new improved ishtoo...a la Al Jawahar...

Mutton stew : the new improved ishtoo...a la Al Jawahar...

 

The most versatile mutton recipe is an Ishtoo as it is called in Hindi speaking regions of India. It is actually a stew which was probably inspired by the brown stew of the British raj. Every region of India has it's own stew and can be spiked with yogurt, milk, different spices and even tamarind and coconut or nut paste.

In my home any kind of vegetarian or non vegetarian stew was a way to consume less time in the summer months when the bhunoing method of cooking curries in the kitchen would cause a lot of sweating and there will be no fun eating after soaking yourself up in all that sweat. The stews are light on the stomach too, as is required in Indian summers.

Just making a paste or two and them stewing all the ingredients together in either a pressure cooker or an old fashioned thick base round bottom kadai was a way to beat the heat too.

But the finished dish had no respite from the heat. Folks love spicy food even in summers. The yogurt and some cooling spices used in the stew make it easy on the system though.

This ishtoo is actually a result of an extensive experimentation to match the taste of the famous Ishtoo of Al Jawahar at Matia mahal , Old Delhi. 

After many experiments, starting from this one posted here,  many ingredient combinations tried, I reached to this recipe which is the perfect. Almost 99 % the actual taste. Just the red chillies are used as a paste and not as broken pieces as I used in the first recipe, Just because I like it a little hot.

Actually, the first recipe was also very close to the original, but something was missing. That something came around in the form of some anaardaana, some cashew and poppy paste and a few grains of fenugreek. That made the difference.

So here it goes. The famous Mutton Ishtoo of Al Jawahar...The slightly darker shade of the gravy is due to my love of chilly heat, add lesser or just broken chillies if you want it milder...

Ingredients....
(2-4 servings depending on what is served on the side, large quantities always result in a better taste and texture of the meat)

mutton, curry cut preferably ribs and some meaty pieces 400 gm

whole spices 
2 black cardamoms
2 green cardamoms
8 cloves
3 one inch pieces of cinnamon
20 black peppercorns
10 grains of fenugreek
one small sliver of mace
1 tbsp whole coriander seeds
2 tsp of fennel seeds
3-4 tejpatta

To make a paste
1 cup of chopped onions
10 garlic cloves
1.5 tbsp of chopped ginger
5 dry whole red chillies
2 tsp of anaardaana (dried pomegranate seeds, or use powder if you have)

To make a white paste
fresh yogurt (full fat) 1 cup
fried onion slices made from one medium sized onion
cashew 25 gm (one heaped tbsp and some more of broken cashew)
Indian white poppy seeds ( khuskhus) 20 gm or1 heaped tbsp
Salt to taste
ghee 1/3 cup

Procedure...

Make a paste of the ingredients listed in the first list first and mix with the mutton pieces in a large bowl. Add salt to taste and mix well.

Now make the second paste too in the same grinder jar and mix it with the mutton.

This second paste will be tricky to make. Soak the poppy seeds first with 2 tbsp yogurt and then grind it with the broken cashew and a tbsp more of the yogurt. Grind till a smooth paste is formed. Add the rest of the yogurt and whiz once again to homogenise.

Now add all the whole spices to the mutton mix and keep this bowl in the fridge for about 2 hours. You can go on to cook it instantly too.

Pour the ingredients in a pressure cooker pan , add 1/2 cup of water and the ghee and cover with the lid. Cook on high flame till the whistle blows and then lower the flame to cook the meat for 25-30 minutes.

let the pressure release by itself. Serve hot.

This dish tastes better the next day so you can always make it beforehand if you have to serve it for a formal dinner.

Slow cooking always results in better texture of the meat, so cook the stew in a thick base pan for about 2 hours on the lowest possible flame, if you have time to enjoy cooking. The gravy tastes great any which way and you would like to make more gravy every time you make it. One of those gravies you want to have with a naan bread or as it is.

The ishtoo tastes best with yeasted flat breads. I make my own kulcha style breads, thinner than pita to masquerade as the tandoori rotis of Al Jawahar. You can always use pita breads or yeasted dinner rolls with them. Even roomali rotis or plain homemade chapatis will be great.

Gajar Ki Kaanji

Gajar Ki Kaanji

Seasonal pickles (like this radish pickle) are one of the tastiest ways to get more varied microbes for the tummy. I am telling you about a fermented drink called Kanji in the north India. This is Kaale gaajar ki kaanji, a fermented drink made by purple/black carrots.

This is an easy process, you just need to have a large glass or ceramic jar with lid. Mason jars are the best but you can do with any nonreactive jars with lids. Traditionally the jars were covered by thin muslin allowing aerobic fermentation so that can be done if you wish.

 Ingredients..

• purple black carrots/ beets/turnips/ red carrots 500 gm total
• yellow mustard powered 4 tbsp
• red chilly powder 1 tbsp
• pink salt or Himalayan salt (sendha namak) 1/4 cup
• black salt or rock salt (kala namak) 1 tbsp
• filtered water 5 L

The purple carrots provide a nice color owing to the presence of pigments (read antioxidants) so it is preferred for this drink. Beets work well too with a slightly changed flavor. The desi red winter carrots also work well but the drink has a very dull and boring color. A combination of beets and carorts would work really well if you don't get purple carrots. I add a few slices of turnips too for added flavor. Use more of the purple carrots or beets and about 10% of turnips or red carrots by weight to get a nice color.

procedure...

Sterilize the jars, knives and chopping board to be used for the process.

Wash, clean and chop the carrots in batons. Slice the beets and turnips too if using.

Mix all the other ingredients with water and dissolve. The mustard powder will keep floating on top.

Place all the chopped carrots and turnips in a glass jar or divide into smaller jars if you don't have one big mason jar. Pour the pickling solution into the jar filling it to the brim. The carrots will float initially but will submerge into the colored water by the next day. Do not worry even if they don't submerge just keep pushing them with a clean spoon everyday. These jars will be kept on a sunny windowsill or in a warm place for a week or till you taste the fermented pickling solution to be sour.

Filter the dark pink/purple colored pickling solution that is the tasty drink ready for you. Adjust seasoning, you might like to add some more of black salt to the drink or some more red chilly if you like it a little hot. Fill the drink in glass bottles and refrigerate for up to a month.

The pickled carrot batons can be served on the side of your meals. They make nice addition to salads and can be had independently too. Chopped finely, they can also be added to some creamy type soups or cold dips as well.

 The pickled carrot batons also have the probiotic benefits as these also carry the live culture. So use them freely everyday.

The drink makes a nice welcome drink for your guests as well, traditionally it is served with meals just like buttermilk is served in Gujrat and some southern states and Sol kadi is served in Goa and Maharashtra.

You can also soak lentil fritters (like urad daal vadas) into this fermented drink for a few hours and have it alongside your meals or as a snack. That is called Kanji vada.

Other convenient ways to incorporate friendly bacteria to our foods.

• Pickled vegetables like cucumbers, cabbage (as in kimchi and saurekraut), Olives, chilies, onions and even garlic. The vegetables can be pickled with just some salt, they get digested by  some airborne bacteria and become good probiotic food for us.
• Fermenting the dosa and idli batter like it is done traditionally in South India is the great way of having the grains in a more suitable way and introducing our body with some probiotic food as well.
• Fermented bread dough is also good but it's always better to have sourdough breads than industrial yeast. Sourdough results form natural fermentation that involves the activity of many strains of bacteria.
• Drinks like Kombucha, toddy, fenni* are all traditional and have been traditionally used.

• Many cultures use a fermented rice drink or porridge mixed with raw onions and green chilies. This savory porridge is a great way to start the day.

• Miso, fish/oyester sauce etc also are good prebiotic foods.
• Yogurt and buttermilk is the most common but pasteurized milk doesn't support many bacteria other than lactobacillus to grow and milk. 

I would like to hear from you if you liked this article and if you try this drink.

Cheers with a healthy drink..

PS: *As pointed out by Anurag Mehrotra in the comment section, Fenni is doubted to have probiotic microbes owing to double distillation, but Urack is a better probiotic drink originating from the same cashew apple juice.

Pineapple kanji : a kanji made with pineapple peels....

Pineapple kanji : a kanji made with pineapple peels....

 I never knew pineapple peels would pack in so much flavors. I have been experimenting with fermented drinks and salads for ever. Having worked in a microbiology lab keeps the fire ignited all the time, the friendly microbes are always close to heart. I started experimenting with this pineapple kanji 2 years ago when a few carrots were dug out from the garden and those were too fibrous to eat. I usually would soak them in water and required spices to make the kanji but that particular day I was peeling a large ripe pineapple for my salads. It used to be a pain to see so much of juicy bits of pineapple flesh being wasted along with the tough spiny skin. I did an experiment that day.

The pineapple was cleaned before peeling with a soft brush under running water to clean everything from the rough skin. Then it was peeled as I would do so normally. All the peels and small bits that come with the 'eyes' were thrown into the kanji jar along with the 2 fibrous carrots. A wonderfully refreshing drink was ready after a week and I was amazed at how much flavors the pineapple skin still retained.

Later I started making kanji with just the pineapple peels and pith. The carrots were skipped conveniently. After all carrot kanji is a different thing to enjoy on it's own.

Actually the skin and the pith of the pineapple is quite rich in Bromelain, the digestive enzyme that helps digest dense proteins easily and the vitamin C andManganese content of the fruit is very high hence the anti oxidant property of this fruit. Manganese helps absorb and utilise many other nutrients and it makes pineapple one of the healthiest foods.

So when we enjoy all this goodness in the edible flesh of the fruit, why should we waste such nutrients that we can harvest from the peel and pith as well?

The last batch of my pineapple kanji was ready today, ready to be strained and a bottle of 2 month old kanji was still lying around. You would be surprised to know this pineapple kanji is stable at room temperature once it is fermented well. Just add ice cubes in summers and have at room temperature in winters. It is a refreshing drink that you can have one glass everyday. Add soda to it and it becomes tingling smacking good.

Here is the bottle of 2 months old kanji, a freshly fermented pineapple kanji ready to be strained and a pineapple being peeled, it's fresh peel and pith ready to make another batch. No I am not mad, I just love what I do.

This is the 2 months old pineapple kanji with ice cubes.

The contents of the fermenting jar are strained to discard all the peel now that we have extracted out flavors from it. The kanji has a really kicking taste of pineapples and the tangy taste of the usual kanji owing to mustard seeds and red chilly powder..

And the jar was emptied, cleaned and a new batch was filled in to ferment...

I added 2 liters of filtered water, 2 tsp of mustard seeds, 1 tsp red chilly powder and 1 tbsp table salt. Peels and pith of half a pineapple went into this jar. 

This is a simple recipe to be followed. Keep this mix into a lidded jar and let it ferment for 5-7 days. This jar can be kept at your windowsill or on the highest loft of your pantry where some ambient light reaches. I have never tried fermenting it in dark but there shouldn't be a problem if you keep the jar in a dark pantry as well.

The amount of mustard added is lesser than kaali gajar ki kanji just because the pungency of mustard would kill the refreshing taste and aroma of pineapples. Mustard seeds initiate fermentation and once the culture has set in, starting form the ambient mix of yeast strains, the culture keeps growing till the fermenting mix is stable. Red chilly provides ambient lactobaccili and a few more mesophilic bacteria for sure.

I am not sure what would be the percentage of acetic acid, alcohol and aldehydes in this drink, as I never tested it, but the drink is stable at room temperature unlike carrot kanji that keeps getting more sour at room temperature and has to be refrigerated for longer use. May be the Bromelaine or a high amount of ascorbic acid present in pineapple helps stabilise the drink but it is a great result for kanji lovers for sure.

Also, keeping the strained liquid for a week or so clears the turbidity and a crystal clear drink is yours to relish. See how the jug has a turbid liquid (the freshly strained kanji) and the bottle has crystal clear drink that looks gorgeous.

Read more about benefits of fermented foods here.

Please note that Kanji is wrongly judged as an 'acquired taste' (indicating it is foul smelling and weird tasting), but if your kanji is smelling foul it means the culture has become contaminated. Discard the kanji or kanji culture if it tastes foul. A thin white layer of mould will be seen on the fermenting kanji, just keep mixing it so no new strains of contaminants get a chance to grow in the same culture. This kanji has strong overtones of pineapple, sourness of the fermented sugars and a hint of sharp heat provided by chilly and mustard. A very intriguing mix of flavors in fact.

Ask me questions if you want to ferment your own kanji and something makes you feel nervous. I wish I could make you smell and taste this drink now.
A few of my friends have already started making this :-)

I made this kanji with peels of watermelon as well, the white pith was used, the green skin was discarded. The drink was tasty and sour as a kanji should be, but not as refreshing and aromatic as this pineapple kanji, neither as colorful as kali gajar ki kanji. But the watermelon rinds become a nice pickle after you make the kanji. So if you like pickled carrots or watermelon peels you can make the kanji with those as well. For me, pineapple kanji is a winner and I don't bother making watermelon peel kanji anymore.

There will be many more jars and bottles of pineapple kanji happening here...

Green seasoning paste that’s so unique to Caribbean cuisine.

Green seasoning paste that’s so unique to Caribbean cuisine.

 The one key ingredient when it comes to cooking any meat or fish dish in the Caribbean, is the green seasoning mix that’s used in the marinating process. Before we go on I’d like to mention a couple things. This recipe usually calls for 2 key ingredients “shado beni” and “Spanish thyme” (aka podina), both of which I can’t get readily get here in Canada, unless I source out a Thai or Caribbean specialty store. 

For the “shado beni” I’ve substituted in cilantro, which is somewhat similar but less pungent and I’ve left out the Spanish thyme. 

If you’re based in the Caribbean or can get those 2 ingredients, please use with caution since they can easily overpower the green seasoning with it’s strong flavors. I also couldn’t get the pimento peppers, so I opted for 1 banana pepper, but you can also use a Cubanelle

There are several variations of this seasoning mix, but this is one that I’ve tested and perfected over the years.

You’ll need…

1 bundle of Cilantro (about 1-2 cups)
1 stalk of celery (include leaves if you have it)
1 head or garlic (about 11 cloves)
4 green onions (scallions)
1 bunch of fresh thyme (about 3/4 cup)
1/4 cup of water
pinch of salt (optional)
2-3 shallots (optional)
2 pimento peppers (1 banana pepper or 1 Cubanelle)

Peel, trim and wash the ingredients and let drain.

Then rough-cut into smaller pieces so it’s easier to manage and work in the blender or food processor.

Personally I like to liquify my blend to the consistency of pesto or even a bit more liquid. However you have the choice at this point to make a bit more chunky-like if you wish.

After a few pulse actions you’ll find that everything blends together quite easily. Here’s a picture of the finished green seasoning :

Storage Tips!

From this batch I have a plastic container that I pour half into and keep in the fridge for everyday use, the other half I pour into a freezer zip lock bag and freeze until I get through the batch in the fridge. Since you probably won’t be using the seasoning as much as I do, I suggest you divide it into 3-4 portions, keeping 1 in the fridge (can last for 2-3 months) and freeze the rest.

You can also get a couple ice cube trays from the dollar store and fill each ice cube area 1/4 up with the seasoning mix and then freeze. Then when it’s frozen, you can dump the cubes into a freezer bag and place back in the freezer. Now whenever you’re cooking, all you have to do is grab a cube and use.

You’ll notice that after time the once brilliant green color will go darker, don;t be alarmed. That’s natural!

https://caribbeanpot.com/