Recipe : Kala Channa Chaat - Black Chickpea Salad - Vegan

Ever since last Wednesday when the husband sent me photos of pani puri and other chaat that he had at Southampton at the match, I’ve been craving those flavours. Today’s salad was an attempt to capture the balance of sour, spicy, salty, crunchy without the sweetness.

I used kala channa - legumes like channa are not allowed on the keto diet because they do contain carbs - but we are on a slightly more flexible diet - for us no carb means avoiding grains, flour and high starch veggies.

Kala channa / Black chickpeas have a low glycemic index, and high fibre and protein so I will occasionally slip it in.

If you are following strict keto, avoid the black chickpeas. If you avoid the black chickpeas, this dish works for the raw food diet too.

The black chickpeas are more nutritious, but white chickpeas will also work in this recipe.

So, the salad is

1 bowl drained black chickpeas (you can use canned or soak overnight and cook the next day)

1 bowl chopped cucumber

1/2 bowl chopped tomato

1/2 bowl chopped onion,

2-3 sprigs coriander chopped

1-5 chopped green chillies (as per spice tolerance)

The dressing is

2 tbsp lemon juice,

1 tbsp chaat masala

1 tsp black salt (use regular salt if you don't have black salt)

Feel free to adjust the quantities to suit your taste.

I let the salad and dressing sit for awhile.

Just before serving, I tossed in a handful of groundnuts.

Kim's Tip : If the taste of raw onion is not a flavour you like, drop the onion completely or let the onion sit in the lemon juice / vinegar for 10-15 minutes which helps take the edge off.

The lamb kebabs were from @meatn16 that I picked up after a session of the @stokenewingtonliteraryfestival at their location.

The meat was fantastic. I just seared it on all sides and served it medium rare.

Recipe : Carrot & Baby Radish Salad - Vegan

This was another of our no-carb dinners.

Carrot & Baby Radish Salad

4 carrots - cut into circles

1 small packet baby radish - 200 gms - quartered

1-5 green chillies chop in circles(depending on spice tolerance)

2 tsp lime juice.

1 tsp salad/olive/avocado/nut oil

2 sprigs fresh coriander chopped

salt to taste

Soak the chopped green chillies in lime juice for a few minutes.

Add salt, oil and chopped coriander.

This is your dressing.

Mix this into the chopped carrot and baby radish.

This I let sit for awhile, tossing occasionally as I was cooking the chicken.

The carrots and radish are crunchy.

So it sits well and the flavours blend together if left for a bit.

The Masala fried chicken is just chicken cooked with onion, tomato, ginger, garlic and some spices I had on hand.

Recipe : Bean Sprout Salad (Vegan)

This salad is bean sprouts.

2 minutes stir fried in a hot pan (any more and you will lose the liquid as they start to turn soggy and soft). I’m not a fan of their raw taste, so just about 2 minutes.

You can use them raw if you like.

Dressing

2 tsp lime juice,

1 tsp soya sauce,

1 tsp chipotle chilli flakes,

1/2 tsp Chinese all spice powder

1 tsp of hazelnut oil - I need to finish this bottle, any olive oil or salad oil will work too.

Toss gently.

I served it warm, because sprouts once heated can turn soggy quite quickly.

It barely takes 5 minutes to put it together.

So glad the weather is turning warmer and we can eat a lot more salads.

I served it with a Texan slammer - jalapeño poppers with cheddar cheese, encased in pork mince / sausage meat and rolled in bacon from @marksandspencer Lightly pan fried at home.

Recipe : Sprout Salad (Raw / Vegan)

I've made this one before, but we just have it so often these days, that I decided to repost it since  got some lovely colorful pictures this time.

Ingredients:
1 bowl of mixed sprouts
2 medium cucumbers chopped
1 medium tomato chopped
1 medium onion chopped fine (you can reduce this quantity if you don't like onions)
2 green chillies
6-8 stalks of corriander leaves chopped fine.
salt to taste
juice of half lemon

Method:
Take the finely chopped cucumber, tomato, chilies, corriander and onions, toss it with the sprouts.
Sprinkle salt and squeeze the lemon juice over the salad.
Toss again.

Note:
Toss it gently so the sprouts dont break.
You can use chaat powder instead of salt for a different taste.

I make mine without tomatoes.

Recipe: Cabbage Salad (Vegan / Raw)

This is a very light and healthy salad. While it can be eaten raw, you can also slightly saute the sliced cabbage before using, if you do not like the raw taste. Saute it only a little so that it doesn't lose its crispness and add the salad dressing only after the cabbage has cooled down.

Ingredients:
Cabbage - you can use a mixture of purple and green, for colour
Carrots
Total quantity - 1 bowl of finely chopped/grated vegetables
groundnuts - optional

Dressing:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp - malt vinegar or lime juice
1-2 green chillies to taste - finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Finely chop or grate the cabbage
Finely grate the carrot.
If you are not comfortable eating raw cabbage then saute it slightly without oil or water till it loses its raw taste but retains its crispness.
Wait for cabbage to come to room temperature before mixing in the dressing.

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients with a fork - they will emulsify quite quickly.
Add dressing to the vegetables according to your taste.

Optionally garnish with roasted or boiled groundnuts

Recipe: Insalata Caprese (Tomato & Buffalo Mozarella salad)

Insalata Caprese is rumored to have originated on the Isle of Capri, but it could just be attributed to Capri because it became popular after King Farouk of Egypt ate it at this location.

Insalata Caprese is an incredibly simple salad, getting its flavours from its fresh ingredients. While hotels and restaurants fancy it up by slicing it thinly and arranging it decoratively, it can be served as a tossed salad, especially when served with cherry tomatoes.

Its very quick to assemble. 10 minutes tops and yet it tastes hearty and comforting at the same time and its healthy to boot!

Ingredients:
1 ball of buffalo mozarella cheese chopped into cubes
20 basil leaves washed and roughly torn
15-20 cherry tomatoes washed and halved
salt to taste
1 sachet Dominoes "pizza seasoning" (optional - I had it handy and the oregano contrasted well with the basil)
drizzle of balsamic vinegar (I like the sweet tangy flavour of balsamic)
drizzle of olive oil (adds a buttery flavour)

Method:
Lightly toss the mozarella cubes and halved cherry tomatoes, then add the basil leaves (you can reserve a few for garnishing)
Then add the rest of the ingredients.
You can serve immediately or let it stand for awhile for the mozarella to absorb the flavors of the tomatoes and other ingredients.
Don't let it stand too long or you will have a puddle of liquid collect at the bottom.

Other:
You can also serve this on top of a bed of salad leaves

Leftovers can be eaten as pizza topping or sandwich filling

Recipe: Kharam - Manglorean Cucumber Salad - Vegan

This dish is one of my favourites from my grandmothers repertoire of Manglorean vegetarian dishes. On the 8th of September for the Feast of the Nativity - Monthi Saibin Festh which our community also celebrates as the Harvest Festival, we eat an odd number of vegetarian dishes. When grandma was in charge, this normally meant 7 or 9 vegetables. With mum it was 5 (because her fussy children would protest about too many veggies in one meal) and if its me, we are lucky if I even make 3 vegetables Manglorean style.

This is essentially because my community focuses so much on meat and seafood in its meals, that the vegetables are an afterthought and just around for their fibre content. Not much effort is expended in cooking vegetables and we don't have too many varieties, so they all end up tasting the same. Till today, I have never ever cooked vegetables in the Fugath or Tel Piyao style - which is how vegetables are cooked at home 98% of the time.

This dish however is an exception. And I would always beg grandma to include this in the Nativity Menu. There is no cooking involved, but there is the grating and grinding of coconut. So its not a quick dish in that sense, unless you have access to fresh grated coconut like in the supermarkets of Bombay. 

Kharam is similar to a Kerala dish called Vellarikka Tharichathu, but there's no yoghurt in the Manglorean version.

Ingredients:
4 Manglorean cucumbers (Manglorean cucumbers are plump, so if your cucumbers are on the thinner side, use 5-6)
1 coconut grated
4 large green chillies (adjust to taste)
1/2" ginger
3-4 cloves garlic
1 tsp mustard
salt to taste
fresh tamarind to taste (dried tamarind gives a dark blackish color, so I substituted with skinned green mango)

Method:
Coarsely grind everything except cucumbers.
You should still be able to sense the texture of the coocnut.

Dice the cucumbers, apply a little salt and leave for awhile to remove excess water. If the cucumber seeds are large, remove the seeds when dicing.
Mix the coconut mixture and serve slightly chilled as a salad/ acompaniment/ vegetable side dish.

I find that it also goes well with some kinds of Biryani

Recipe : Sprout Salad

I'd been out this evening and came home about the same time as the husband, so dinner wasn't ready but he was quite hungry. Instead of just opening a packet of something for him to snack on, I now have to think of quick and easy snacks to put together that are also healthy and not fried/bought from a store.(Doctor's orders)

I had some grams sprouting in a bowl. So I just quickly tossed this salad together. Didn't even need to make a dressing. So its a one bowl dish too and if you have sprouts handy, its really fast. This dish is completely raw and suitable for those on a raw diet too.

Ingredients:
1 katori sprouts
1 katori finely chopped cucumber (you can mix this with tomatoes too, but total volume should remain the same)
1 small onion chopped fine (you can reduce this quantity if you don't like onions)
salt to taste
juice of half lemon

Method:
Take the finely chopped cucumber and onions, toss it with the sprouts.
Sprinkle salt and squeeze the lemon juice over the salad.
Toss again.

Note:
Toss it gently so the sprouts dont break.
If this was for me, I'd break in a finely sliced green chilli too