A month before our marriage and "I don't know how to cook" was something my husband heard me say more often than "I love you". Much as I was eager to tie the knot, the thought of having to manage a house, especially handling the cooking, was giving me nightmares.

He would, of course, reassure me that I didn't have to worry about cooking. "Takeaway" and "employing someone to cook" were the words he said more often than "I love you".


Perhaps it was the lure of the shiny, new pots and pans. Perhaps it was the complete boredom with having takeaway food everyday. Perhaps it was that thing called love. Whatever it was, before long, I wanted to cook a meal for us.


Batatyachi kachryachi bhaji (loosely translated as sliced potato stir fry) is what I settled on. After all, you can't go wrong with potatoes - they taste delicious any which way you make them. Plus, though I had never actually made the stir fry myself, I had seen my mum make it very very often and knew that it was very easy to make.

"This is delicious! Who says you can't cook?!" he said when he had the potato stir fry. " Yessss, I can cook," I thought to myself happily. Carried away by the success at the potato stir fry, I took on a more challenging recipe to cook the next day. That was a disaster, but more of that on some other post.

For now, check out this easy breezy spicy potato stir fry, our favourite way of having potatoes.



Ingredients:


Potatoes: 3 medium sized
Onions: 1 large
Curry leaves: 7-8
Green chillies: 2, chopped
Coriander leaves: 2 tbsps, chopped
Mustard seeds: 3/4 tsp
Asafoetida/hing: 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
Salt, to taste
Oil: 1.5 tbsps

Method:


Wash the potatoes and pat dry. Quarter them length-wise and then slice them into thin triangles.


Soak them in a bowl of water for about 10 mins and then drain them.


Heat oil in a non stick wok. Add the mustard seeds and when they crackle, add the green chillies, curry leaves and the hing and stir for half a minute.


Toss in the onions and saute till they soften and turn pink. Add the turmeric powder and salt and stir for half a minute.


Now add the drained potatoes and stir fry them on a high heat (you need to keep stirring constantly else the potatoes will stick to the pan and gently else they will fall apart as they start to cook) for about 10 minutes or until done.

Finally, add the coriander leaves and the juice of half a lemon.


Serve hot with dal, rice and some pickle on the side for a really rustic, hearty and satisfying meal.

In terms of cooking, this has been a quest like no other. The quest, an obsession even, for the perfect chhole recipe. Over the years, I have tried numerous recipes for making chhole. It was the first recipe I would look up in cook books and blogs. Some worked, some didn't. Then I came across this recipe and I thought that my quest had come to an end.

Until I tasted my friend M's chhole. The best that I had ever had.

And while I do have a couple of 'friends' who blatantly proclaim that recipes are not for sharing, I am fortunate to have many more like M who don't just share the recipes but also the specific brands they use and the small tips that make all the difference to the ultimate taste.

Take a look, looks absolutely lip-smacking doesn't it?

Pre-preparation:

1. Masala paste

Green cardamoms: 6
Black cardamom: 1
Cloves: 4
Cinnamon: 1" stick
Black pepper: 10
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp
Coriander seeds: 2 tsps
Garlic: 10 cloves
Ginger: 1.5" piece
Green chilli: 1

Lightly toast all the above except ginger, garlic and green chillies for 2 mins on a very low flame. The objective here is to not roast but simply warm the dry spices. Then grind all the ingedients to a smooth paste, using some water as required. This masala paste can be kept in the refrigerator for about 10 days.

2. Bouquet garni:

black cardamoms: 2
green cardamoms: 4
cinnamon: 1" stick
cloves: 8 nos
tea bag: 1, optional (I don't use one as I don't like my chhole to be black, I much prefer the vibrant orange)

Put all of the above into a small square cheesecloth or a net and secure with a kitchen twine.

Making the chhole:

Onions: 2, finely chopped
Bay leaf: 1
Tomato paste: 2.5 tbsps OR Tomato puree: 5 tbsps (brand - Leggo's or Heinz)
Masala paste: 2 tbsps
Chickpeas/garbanzo beans: 3/4 cup
Salt to taste
Chicken curry powder (MDH brand) OR Chhole masala (Everest brand): 1 tsp



for garnishing:

cumin seeds: 2 tsps, roasted and powdered
onion: 1 small, finely chopped
corainder leaves: 2 tbsps, chopped


Method:

Soak the chickpeas in plenty of water overnight or for about 8-10 hours. Drain and wash thoroughly.

Add 1.5 cups of water, slip in the bouquet garni and pressure cook for atleast 5-6 whistles. If you don't use a pressure cooker (really?), you could also cook them in a slow cooker or boil them in a thick bottomed vessel till soft.

Heat oil in a wok and add in the bay leaf. Let it sizzle for half a minute and then toss in the chopped onions alongwith a pinch of salt; fry till the onions turn limp.

Now add 2 tbsps of the masala paste and fry till the raw smell disappears, about 5 minutes. If the masala paste starts to stick to the pan, sprinkle a few drops of water.

Next put in the tomato paste, salt, turmeric powder and red chilli powder. Stir fry till the oil separates from the mixture.

Then add in the cooked chickpeas (discard the bouquet garni) and the chicken curry masala and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pan and let the chickpeas simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally and adjusting the amount of water as per your preference. It might seem way too long but trust me on this - the longer you cook chhole, better the taste. In fact, I transfer everything into my crockpot and let it simmer away for about 3 hours.

Just before serving, stir in the roasted cumin seed powder and garnish with some finely chopped onions and coriander leaves.

Puris, bhaturas, rotis or rice....enjoy them with just about anything!

Sharing this with Priya who is hosting MLLA # 30, event started by Susan.