Day 20 of Lockdown: Are you bored of eating the same food daily? Try these tasty recipes at home

Comfort foods do not have to be boring. As we are in lockdown and stuck at our homes, put your creative minds to use and whip up some amazing dishes instead of eating the same kind of food every day. Follow our meal plan for some amazingly delicious dishes to try at home

Breakfast Meal - Paneer Paratha

Paneer paratha is a popular Indian flatbread mostly cooked in Punjab and made with whole wheat flour and paneer stuffing.

Paneer Paratha Recipe:

Preparation Time: 15 Minutes

Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

 INGREDIENTS

- For the whole wheat dough

1. 2 to 2.25 cups whole wheat flour
2. ⅔ cup water or as required
3. 1 tsp ghee or oil
4. ½ tsp salt or to taste

 - For stuffing

1. 200 grams paneer (cottage cheese)
2. 1 or 2 green chillies, finely chopped
3. ½ tsp red chilli powder
4. ½ tsp garam masala powder
5. ½ to ¾ tsp dry mango powder 
6. ½ tsp salt or to taste
7. Ghee or oil as required

 INSTRUCTIONS

 - To knead the dough

1. Take 2 to 2.25 cups of whole wheat flour, ½ tsp salt, 1 tsp ghee or oil in a bowl and pour ½ cup of water. Mix well.
2. Start kneading the dough. Add more water in parts and knead it into a smooth dough.
3. Cover it and let it rest for about 20 to 30 minutes.

- Prepare the stuffing

1. While the dough is resting, grate 200 grams of paneer.
2. Now, add 1 or 2 green chillies, 1/2 tsp dry mango powder, 1/2 tsp garam masala powder, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder and 1/2 tsp salt. Mix it properly.

- Roll the paneer paratha

1. Pinch two little balls from the dough and dust a little flour on the dough balls.
2. Roll these dough balls to a circle of 4 to 5 inches. Now, place the stuffing on the circle and cover it with the other circle. Press its edges properly.
3. Sprinkle a little flour and roll the stuffed paratha to a circle of 6 to 7 inches.

- Making paneer paratha

1. Heat the tawa and place the paratha on it. Flip it when one of its sides is partly cooked and apply ghee on this side. Then flip it and apply ghee on the other side as well.
2. Flip 3-4 times while pressing the edges of the paratha using a spatula.
3. The paratha is done once it turns brown in colour. Put a little butter on top and serve the paneer paratha hot with fresh yoghurt and butter.

 Lunch Meal - Baingan ka bharta

Baingan ka bharta is an amazing Punjabi recipe at home. It is simple to prepare and tastes good.

Baingan ka Bharta Recipe:

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Cooking Time: 10 Minutes

 INGREDIENTS

1. 1 large aubergine (eggplant)
2. ½ cup onion, finely chopped
3. 1 cup tomatoes, finely chopped
4. 5 to 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5. 1 green chilli, chopped
6. ¼ tsp red chilli powder or as required
7. 1 to 1.5 tbsp oil
8. 1 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped
9. salt to taste

 INSTRUCTIONS

 - To Roast the Baingan

1. Rinse the baingan in water and dry it with a napkin. Put the baingan on the stovetop and let it roast.
2. Keep turning the baingan after every 2 to 3 minutes making sure it is cooked from the sides.
3. Roast the baingan until it is cooked completely and becomes tender. Check it using a knife. The knife should slide easily in the baingan. Remove the baingan from the stovetop and put it in a bowl of water until it cools down.
4. If not roasting, then try the dhungar technique of infusing the charcoal smoky flavour into the baingan. Heat a little piece of charcoal on the flame and wait till it becomes hot and red.
5. Make cuts on the baingan using a knife and place the hot charcoal in the same plate where the roasted baingan has been kept. Add some drops of oil on the charcoal this will make the charcoal start to smoke.
6. When the smoke starts to release, cover the plate with a large bowl tightly. Let the smoke from the charcoal get infused for about 1 to 2 minutes. The more you let it stay, the smokier the bharta will become.
7. Next step is to peel the skin and then chop the roasted and smoked eggplant finely. If you want to mash it then it is fine.

- To Make the Baingan ka Bharta

1. Heat oil in a Kadai and add finely chopped onions and garlic.
2. Saute it till the onions turn golden in colour. Don't brown them.
3. Now, add the chopped green chillies and saute. Add the chopped tomatoes and saute well.
4. Keep stirring occasionally until the oil starts to separate from the mixture. Cook until the tomatoes soften and become pulpy, and oil starts to release from the masala. 
5. Next, add the red chilli powder. Stir and mix well. Add the chopped baingan to it.
6. Mix the chopped baingan properly with the onion-tomato masala mixture. Add the salt as required.
7. Keep stirring and saute for about 4 to 5 minutes.
8. At last, add the chopped coriander leaves for garnish and serve the baingan bharta with phulkas, rotis or chapatis or even with bread, plain rice or jeera rice

 Dinner Meal: Dal tadka

Dal tadka is basically cooked lentils which are tempered with spices fried in oil or ghee.

Dal Tadka Recipe:

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Cooking Time: 10 Minutes

 INGREDIENTS

- For cooking dal

1. 1 cup arhar dal (tuvar dal)
2. 1 or 2 green chillies - chopped or slit
3. 1 onion - chopped
4. 2  tomato - chopped
5. ½ inch ginger - finely chopped or grated
6. 1 tsp turmeric powder
7. 1 to 2 pinch garam masala powder
8. 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
9. 2.5 cups water for pressure cooking
10. 1 tsp crushed Kasuri methi
11. 1 or 2 tbsp cream (optional)
12. 1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
13. Salt to taste

 - For tempering

1. 2 tbsp oil or 1.5 tbsp ghee or butter
2. 1 tbsp cumin seeds
3. 5 to 6 garlic cloves - finely chopped
4. 2 to 3 dry red chillies
5. a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
6. ½ tbsp red chilli powder

 - For garnish

1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

 INSTRUCTIONS

  - To prepare

1. Rinse the dal and add it to the pressure cooker. If you are going to cook the dal in a pan then soak it for about an hour or two before you cook them.
2. Cooking the dal in a pan or pot will be more time consuming than cooking in the cooker.
3. Add the chopped onions, tomato, green chillies, and ginger to the lentils.
4. Now, pour 2.5 cups of water in it. If you are cooking in a pot, then add 4 to 4.5 cups of water approximately.
5. Add the turmeric powder and asafoetida as well. Stir it.
6. Let the dal pressure cook for 7 to 8 whistles or more. Make sure it becomes soft and creamy. Now mash the lentils using a wired whisk or a spoon and keep it aside. If the consistency of the dal is thick, then add more water to it to get a medium consistency.
7. Let it simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes. After you get the desired consistency, add cream, garam masala powder, crushed Kasuri methi, chopped coriander leaves and salt. Switch off the flame.
8. Mix it well and check the salt before adding the tempering (or tadka) to it. Add more salt if required.

 - To make the tempering (tadka)

1. Heat oil or ghee or butter in a pan and add the cumin seeds to it. Let it splutter but don't let it get burned. Fry all the ingredients on a low flame so that they don't get burned.
2. Then add the red chillies, asafoetida and the chopped garlic to it. Saute till the garlic is brown and the red chillies have changed their colour.
3. Then add the Kasuri methi and red chilli powder. Stir it well and switch off the flame. Pour the tempering mixture immediately into the dal along with some oil/ghee.
4. Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and serve it hot with steamed basmati rice, jeera rice, or Rotis.

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