Pickled Jalapeños n' a note on 'The BBQ Story', Bangalore

I have to do a blog post today....yeah, HAVE TO. You must have all realized that i'm being rather slow with my blog post updates these days....well let me assure you its not lack of cooking. I have been really busy with guests/friends pouring in (what with me not working anymore more n' all, I'm the only one with loads of time on my hands) n' on top of that I'm just not inspired to take photographs of what I have been cooking. Don't know why, i'm hoping its just a phase n' it will soon be over. I have heard some bad news yesterday which has left me feeling gutted. Well mopping up is over n' I have decided to do a blog post today.







I have mentioned Chef Sarabjeet in my Hara Bhara Paneer Tikka post a while back. I met him at this Weber grill workshop here in Bangalore. Now he n' his friends are working together on projects/workshops to make food enthu people like you n' me, convert that enthu into some serious skills in the kitchen. They call it 'The BBQ Story' n' "Learn, Grill n' Chill" is there motto. :) So far, they have done 3 workshops, missed out on the 2 of them, but I ensured I could take part in the 3rd one n' I enjoyed it a lot. Some of you who have added me on Facebook must have seen some of the snaps here. The menu that day was Banglore Muslim Dum Biryani, Chicken Malai Tikka, Grilled Ghost Kheema Tikka, Grilled Fish Wrapped in Plaintain leaf with a Coriander marinade.. The Biryani was to die for, the recipe was simple, but the tips n' pointers the Chefs there tell us while cooking are irreplaceable. All in all, it was just an awesome Sunday for me. Please read more about them here n' follow them for more regular updates. They are coming up with BBQ Chapter 4 on 24th July...the details are as under.

Chef Sarabjeet says...."Learn to make,Country style Grilled Steaks and Home made fresh Sausages, and lots more...!!!!!!
When..????-24th July, Sunday
But what time..?? 10am onwards
Now..Where..?? @ Yolk Studio Kormangala
How to book..? Call sarabjeet on 9916580506 or text Sushil on 9880340900
and to drink??......:) Wines from Nine Hills..!!!!!..come learn, grill and chill..!"

Coming to today's recipe, its a simple recipe for some fuss free Pickled Jalapeno Peppers. I love pickled jalapenos, if I see them listed as an ingredient while ordering a Pizza, i'm almost always biased towards that pizza. Buying them in Bangalore is an expensive option. I buy a 200gms of sliced jalapeno pickle for Rs.75/-. So when I saw a packet of fresh Jalapenos here, I just had to buy them. Having no clue how to pickle them didn't help. Saw lot of takes on how to do some fancy way of pickling them. But I decided to stick with this simple version. The recipe is adapted from here.



Ingredients:

1. Fresh Jalapeños: 250gms (whole or sliced)
2. Salt: 1tbsp
3. White Vinegar: 1cup
4. Water: 1 cup

Method:

Step 1: Warm the jar you want to put the pickle in. (I kept it in the MW for 1.30 seconds)

Step 2: Pack the jalapeños in the warm glass jar. Since I used whole Jalapeños Peppers, I prodded them with a serrated knife to ensure that they soak up the brine.

Step 3: In a saucepan, add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 5 minutes. (I just boiled the mixture in MW for 2mins).

Step 4: Pour hot brine over top. Bubble your jars thoroughly by tapping them firmly on the countertop and using a wooden chopstick to release any stubborn bubbles. Wipe rims, apply lids and bands.

For a crunchy bite, you can start nibbling on them within a few hours. As for softer texture, let this sit for 4-5 days. They say you can keep it refrigerated for upto two months.
They taste awesome in a sandwich n I plan to take some for my mom who is a huge fan of Sandwiches n' pickled veggies. Happy Cooking!!! :)

Grilled Carrots with Rosemary

I like carrots, they are sweet but tastes great in a savory dish. They are crunchy, look so pretty n' is packed with healthy nutrients especially Vitamin A, K n' C. (I learnt all that from the Active Foods workshop I recently attended). So anyways, Rj doesn't like it when I cook carrots, (for that matter most veggies) so I clean them n' give them in his salad n' he enjoys that. So I bought some extra yesterday. But I forgot to give him any last night n today he has some office thing so didn't need lunch n' won't be back before late in the night.

So I was looking at an option to make a juice. But then I came across this recipe for grilled carrots n' I just fell in love. I have been hoarding posts for later. But with this one I just couldn't wait to publish it. I totally love this recipe n' the kitchen smelt so good after grilling them with rosemary. You just have to try this. Our awesome friend, Jeffrey, who was with us in Bahrain, had given me this grill pan (I had even used this in my Hara Bhara Paneer Tikka recipe too) and its just so useful. He wanted me to show off this pan here n' I thought this recipe is perfect for it. lol.... I love it n have used it to make this. The recipe is adapted from here. So here you go.












Ingredients:

1. Carrots: 3nos
2. Butter: 2-3 tspn (room temperature) (yeah I was a little generous, I used salted Amul Butter)
3. Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 2tsp
4. Balsamic Vinegar: 1 tbsp
5. Rosemary: 1 tsp (chopped) fresh
6. Salt: if required
7. Fresh Black Pepper: as per taste (optional)

Method:

Step 1: Heat grill pan to high flame.

Step 2: Whisk together butter, olive oil, vinegar, and rosemary.

Step 3: I left the whole carrots in the marinade for couple of mins and then arranged them on the grill and brushed them lightly with the marinade occasionally. (all this should be once you have changed the flame to low. (keep them in the warm area first before shifting them to the hot area on the grill.)

Step 4: Grill for approximately 20 minutes, turning occasionally to prevent extreme charring.
When carrots are softer, but still slightly firm, remove from heat.

Step 5: Add to a serving platter and drizzle with the remaining marinade. I had to add a little more salt n' some freshly ground black pepper to give it an extra kick (but that is totally optional). I even grilled 2 red chilies along with this in the last 5mins n' ate it along with this. Try it try it...its good...Happy Cooking!!!

Sanjeev Kapoor's- Hara Bhara Paneer Tikka

I have immense faith in Sanjeev Kapoor's recipes. He is referred to as "The most celebrated face of Indian cuisine" for a reason right? :). None of the recipes I have tried of his has ever failed me. My only problem is with his TV shows, they show some 3-4 dishes in like half an hour n' that means everything is happening so fast...I'm sometimes worried I'll miss out something. When I saw his show on using a grill stone for cooking, I was sure I have to try this paneer recipe that was featured. The first time I made this dish was about a year back. Have tried this many times after that n' it has always been a winner. But my paneer pieces weren't grilled to perfection, like I wanted it to and could never get a decent photograph until now.




I attended a BBQ session at Weber- Bangalore (outdoor BBQ grill dealers) recently and it helped me a lot with the grilling process this time around, (even though this recipe calls for grilling on the stove top.) Chef Sarabjeet, gave us a lot of pointers and it proved useful to me. They are running a weekend half a day BBQ workshop on May 1st, do let me know if you are interested, will give you the contact details. It is in fact, my favourite Paneer Grill recipe to date. So here you go.




Ingredients:

For the Paste:
1. Fresh coriander leaves : 2 bunches
2. Fresh mint leaves: 1bunch
3. Green chillies: 4nos (reduce if you don't like it too spicy)
4. Garlic: 10cloves
5. Ginger: 1 1/2" piece
6. Lemon Juice: 2tsp
7. Onion: 2nos (medium sized) chopped
8. Salt: as per taste
9. Hung Curd: 1 cup
10. Fresh pomegranate pearls: 2tbsp

For the Marinade:
11. Gram Flour (Besan): 4tbsp
12. Kasoori methi powder:2tbsp ( I used dried kasoori methi leaves)
13. Chat Masala: 2tsp
14. Roasted Cumin Powder: 2tsp
15. Garam Masala: 2tsp
16. Mustard Oil: 2tbsp ( I used regular Sunflower oil)

Other Ingredients:
17. Paneer (Cottage Cheese): 500gms (2 inch cubes)
18. Onion: 2nos (medium) cut into 2 inch pieces
19. Green Capsicum: 2nos- seeded(medium) cut into 2 inch pieces
20. Tomatoes: 2nos- seeded (medium) cut into 2 inch cubes

Method:

Step 1: Grind together green chillies, coriander leaves, mint leaves, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, onion, salt, yogurt and pomegranate pearls into a thick paste using very little water.

Step 2: Roast the cumin seeds n' powder it using a mortar and pestle. Roast gram flour for two to three minutes and set aside.

Step 3: Place the paneer cubes in a bowl, add kasoori methi powder, chaat masala, roasted cumin powder, garam masala powder, roasted gram flour and the ground paste and mix well. Add a tbsp of oil to this and marinate the paneer for two hours.

Step 4: Thread the paneer pieces onto skewers alternating with onion, capsicum and tomato pieces.

Step 5: Season the grill stone/pan with oil and heat. Place the skewers on the hot grill pan and grill for three to four minutes. Baste with oil, turn the skewers and cook the other side for two to three minutes. Once this was done, I turned the flame to high and grilled it over the flame for 5-6secs both sides. (this step wasn't part of Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe) Serve it hot with a dip/chutney and its gonna impress everyone.




I'm gonna give this recipe★★★★★ ;) Its a must try, take my word for it. Happy Cooking!




I'm sending this post to the event Dish Name Starts with H, hosted by Akila from Akila's Kitchen.