Veggie love, Indian and Italian Style!

Last week, I spent an afternoon cooking. I like to make multiple meals when I get to cooking, and always make extra, for leftovers, guests, mom, neighbors, or the freezer, lol. I had a drawer full of veggies that were starting to be not so fresh, and so I knew it was time for sambhar. This is a south Indian meal served almost daily with dosas, idlis, vadas, or just plain rice. Most families eat this at least once a day in the south of India, and usually with some fish. When mummy first came for a visit several years ago, I watched eagerly, and learned how to make this tasty dish.

I make this once a week, or two at the most. It's a wonderful way to use up all your veggies, and hello, it is sooooo tasty, and nutritious. My husband and I love it spicy, but I usually make it more mild so everyone else can enjoy it, and we just add some lemon pickle to it, for my enjoyment. More on lemon pickle at another time, lol, just know its lemon, and its pickled, in LOTS of red chilli powder, lol. It is sooooo good. We usually just eat our sambhar with rice, but sometimes I do make dosas.

Ok, now for the Italian part, well, I was looking at my lovely veggies, and thought how about I show all you lovely people how I make two completely different tasting meals, with the literally the same veggies. Enjoy reading the rest as you see how people from two different parts of the world, enjoy the same food, but with the addition of some spices, how it can change dramatically. I thought this was pretty cool, so I wanted to share with all of you.

Oh and since I was on a roll, I just went ahead and made three more meals, with some leftover chicken from soup a couple days earlier.

Five meals, and a whole lotta veggies. Check it out!!!

hmmm, what do we have here, well, let me break it down for you ok.
In the front of course the stars of the show, the veggies.
In the middle I have my daal, chicken and carrots, spinach, pickles, and ginger garlic paste.
In the back I have peas, cream of mushroom, mayo, mustard, beans, green sauce, canned tomatoes, and veggie broth.
Lets get cooking shall we!!!

I diced up onions, and celery, and carrots, with some fresh garlic, and a chili pepper. Then let it saute.  This was the base for my MINESTRONE soup.

I added the veggie broth, canned beans, canned tomatoes, cut up zuchini, and squash,  shredded some more carrots,  and added a bunch of italian dried herbs, as I didn't have any fresh. Then I let this baby cook, until everything was nice and tender and then I added my cooked whole wheat pasta.

What makes this Italian, is of course the lack of indian spices, and addition of italian ones, and the EXTRA tang from all those canned tomatoes, which I love, and the difference in legumes. Rather than daal, we used red kidney, and white northern beans, as my protein. Everything else is the same. How cool, right?

Ok on to my sambhar....

Washed up some daal, and put it in my pressure cooker. 

Diced up all the rest of my veggies, big bites, and put that all in the pressure cooker.  I threw in a big handful of curry leaves, and a couple teaspoons of ginger garlic paste, and 3 packets of sambhar seasoning. This is only the 3rd time using these packets, as I've always made my own sambhar mix, but whenever I buy the dosa mix (and I buy it often, as it's instant dosas ) it comes with a packet of sambhar mix. I had so many that I thought I had to try it, and its not bad at all, so for now, I will be showing you this way, since its SUPER easy.

You can add any veggie you like in here, but I like to use carrots, squash, zuchini, onions, tomatoes, eggplant, and these little cucumber looking veggies you find at the indian super market. Didn't have any this time, but they are really tasty. I have also started using radishes, and like the flavor it gives. 

Add water,  to fill, and you can put the lid on here, and let it go. I add a bit more for some extra flavor, and you can too. 

The hing powder, (on top) also called asafoetida and the fenugreek are what give sambhar its unique flavor. SO I added just a bit more of these, along with you guessed it chilli powder, as the mix is very mild.

At this point I simply put the lid on and turned on my pressure cooker for about 40 minutes, then letting it go for another 15 or so on low, then turning it off, and letting the steam go down on its own.

I like my veggies to be a bit firm, but mostly cooked very soft. I then add my seasoning, which I didn't take a picture of.
All this means, is taking a bit of oil, and frying up some flavor in it. I choose, mustard seeds, onions, curry leaves, cumin seeds, red chillies, and a bit of hing powder at the end. I poured this over my sambhar and let it sit. Then I added my tamarind paste, which is soaked to release the pulp. Sorry for not taking pics of these steps, don't know why I didn't, but next time I will try to be more thorough.

MINESTRONE SOUP .......AFTER

SAMBHAR.......AFTER

GREEN CHICKEN ENCHILADAS.... one of my favorites. 

I also did not take pics of the daal, or the chicken salad. Next time I will make these I will surely take some better pics. I guess I was focusing on the veggie dishes above. Oh well, I hope you liked that, and if you are ever in need of a healthy veggie meal, try one of my suggestions above. You'll love it!

I am linking up to these parties:
Metamorphosis Mondays
Get your Craft On
Topsy Turvy Tuesdays
Talented Tuesdays

Inspiration Friday




Also don't forget that I have officially started my AMAZE me AUGUST weekly party starting every TUESDAY, so please go HERE to enter and join in the fun. Show me what you got girls, I look forward to all the AMAZING things you will be sharing.
As always ENJOY!

Special requests, or mad love always welcome:)
bellabeforeandafter@gmail.com

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How to make an inexpensive FISH dinner.

Quick update, just wanted to send a shout out to Jen over at http://www.remodelaholic.com/, for being awesome enough to feature my recipe on her blog today. Thank You girl, her blog is INCREDIBLE, please check it out and show her some love too!!

So while at Kroger the other day, I picked up 3 packs of Mahi Mahi, on sale. I like to make fish curry a lot, and when making a dish like that, your fish can go a long way.

Here is my breakdown of the dishes I created with just under 2lbs of fish. :)

Oh btw, I am NOT a recipe person, so this was actually a very hard way for me to cook, so I tried  my best in writing down a recipe, but I also hate binding you all to a recipe. So I think I am going to do it a little different, and plus I made like 4 meals with this fish, so kinda hard doing 4 recipes without getting everyone confused. So try to pay attention, and HAVE FUN.

Please not that this was not a 30 minute meal, but rather took me about 2 hours. (Not bad considering how many dishes, I made, and the fact that I was trying to write my recipe, take pics, and deal with my hungry family, asking when is the food going to be ready.) So before you get started, look at all the pics, and do as much prep work before hand, then get started. It shouldn't take much more than an hour at most, with everything ready to go. Enjoy!

• 2 lbs firm fish ( i used mahi mahi) reg $13.13--on sale $7.65
• 3-4 onions
• 2-3 tomatoes
• frozen green beans (please use whatever you have on hand, fresh or frozen)
• some coconut milk (I prefer the lite kind)
• canned beans (whatever you have is fine)
• rice (or pasta, or chappati (an indian bread similar to tortillas) or EVEN a crispy loaf of bread)
• cilantro leaves 
• curry leaves
• tons of spices (look below)

It's really hard to believe that all of this can turn into so much food, but it did. I'll show you how!
This is the kind of stuff my family deals with on a regular basis, I rarely ever cook the same exact thing twice.
I am always creating new combinations, and sometimes it works, and rarely it doesn't.

In this example, I had to use up those green beans as one of my kids decided to tear it open, and leave it.
They were starting to get freezer burn, so rather than freak out, and throw them out, I added them, and they were good.
Also you will notice leftover rice, one less thing to worry about, I always make extra.
I already removed the skin on the fish, and diced up 4 of the pieces, leaving 2 whole.
I have cilantro (corriander leaves), on the bottom, and CURRY leaves on the fish (found at indian grocery stores)

The lovely spices, that made this possible. I love Indian Food, and all the spices,  I use them in most of my food.
Im not going to tell you what they are, I have everything labeled so you can see. I will try my best to tell you
how much I used in the following pics, as I begin cooking. This is how I follow recipes, if I ever use one, and think
it's much easier then telling quantities at the beginning. I promise just get all your spices ready, have a small
teaspoon on hand, and follow along, you will do fine.

Ok like I said, just follow along with me, and you will see my style of cooking.   I am working on several dishes
at once, so don't worry about what goes with what just do what I say in the pics OK.

Add the following to a small bowl.

• 2 tsp oil
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 2 tsp chilli powder ( adjust to your taste, I love my food spicy)
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste (or make your own, I usually use one thats already mixed in a paste)
• 1/4 tsp fenugreek crushed

Mix this together and add the fish, mix around, then put fish in a smaller bowl.
Add green beans, or other veggie, and coat with remaining mixture, and let both just be happy for a while. 

Now get to chopping girl, or you could have done this earlier too.
Chop up 3 onions regular. Slice half of another, and finely chop the other half.

In most Indian dishes it calls for something called tempuring,  this can be done at the beginning, or sometimes
at the end of a meal to add the final touch. In this case it's done at the beginning.
Add a little oil (maybe 2 tsp) in a hot pan,  then add your curry leaves, a pinch of mustard seeds, and a pinch of
cumin seeds, and let sizzle and pop. Then add your onions. Add the entire big pile of diced onions.
Add a pinch of salt to help them sweat (med heat until they get glossy and translucent).
Add 2tsp ginger garlic paste, and continue to saute on med to low heat. Add dashes of water if it begins to stick. 

Now that my onions are caramelized, I have added about 1/4 of them to another pan, starting my other dish.
To the pan on the left add the following-
1 1/2 tsp corriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
I added the rest of my spices to the marinade remember. 

Time to add my masala ( combination of spices) to make this a yummy fish curry.

• 1 tsp turmeric
• 3/4 tsp chili powder (again adjust to your liking)
• 2 1/2 tsp corriander powder ( this helps thicken the whole things up)
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp fenugreek crushed
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp amchur powder (I forgot to take a pic of this. It's raw mango powder, and gives a slight sourness to the dish. Which I really like.)
• 1/2 tsp lemon pepper ( again adds a tang, my mother in law started adding a dash to all her dishes when she came for a visit, and I have been doing it ever since.)

Now mix, and you will probably want to add more oil at this point, but no need just add a dash of water, and let it
saute some more. Let it get pretty mushy, and then you go to the next step.

So you can see my other onions still chilling over there. Just let them chill. Dice up your tomatoes,
separate accordingly, about 1/2 of a roma I sliced instead of diced, and put next to the sliced onions.
It does make a difference when you eat a meal, if the onions and tomatoes, have been sliced or diced,
so do try to follow the steps I have showed you.

I've now added 3/4 of my diced tomatoes to the dish on the right, and the rest 1/4 on the left.  Now just let it simmer.
Don't rush this step, as you want everything to get really mushy, and do it on a lower heat, so it doesn't burn.
Again adding only enough water to prevent it from sticking. 

This is the pan on the left. I've just added the fish that was marinating in the bowl.
Be careful so the fish doesn't stick. If it does add a dab of oil at this point, instead of water. I want my fish to fry a  bit,
and not boil, or be steamed you know what I mean. Just a dab, and only if you really need it. 

My masala is almost ready, at this stage you can mash the mixture with the back of a spoon, and it should
all fall apart, as in the tomatoes will completely blend in making a paste.  Add a little more water, and simmer.

To my fish fry, I have added 3/4 of my green beans, and 3/4 of my canned beans. Now I mix everything together
and let it mellow in that yummy sauce. It should start releasing some of the water from the frozen green beans,
just let it simmer, until it becomes kind of dry again, I don't want this to have a sauce, but be a dry fish fry.
When ready to plate your dish, squeeze some fresh lemon juice on there. It is so tasty, you'll love it. 

The rest of the beans are waiting for a quick stir fry without the hot spice of the other dish. This will be
the side dish for the kids, and they can't handle the heat like my hubby and I can.

After adding about 1 1/2 cups water I let it simmer to a boil, and then added my fish. The rest of the pieces I  had cut.
Mix everything well, and let it simmer away, slowly, on low heat. Does not take long, fish cooks fast.
I let mine simmer maybe 10 more minutes at this point, then really reduced the heat, just to let the fish chill,
and absorb the curry. The smell at this point was amazing. My husband was salivating just waiting to eat. 

I added some rosemary garlic seasoning to the 2 other pieces, and am now ready to cook those.   

My MAHI MAHI FISH FRY is ready!

Looks good doesn't it? This is enough to serve 4 people easily. 

Adding about 1/4 can of coconut milk to my fish curry. Do not have a high flame for this, low heat, and just
another minute or two. Does not need to cook much longer. Add a heaping handful of chopped cilantro.

Look at that! Yummy!!!!

MAHI MAHI FISH CURRY

Quickly cook the other 2 pieces. I choose to add a tsp of oil and cooked them  for
a  couple minutes  on both side, until firm and flaky. Not too long, you want it to be juicy still.

One of the fish pieces, and those green beans you know. I cooked just until hot.
MAHI MAHI WITH SPICED GREEN BEANS
Doesn't look like alot, but all 3 of my kids ate out of this. The fish was enough for all of them.
I plated it and it looks like one serving, but it was way more.

That other piece of fish, got chopped up for my last dish. A yummy fish salad.
I added that finely chopped onion, AND

• 1 celery rib, diced finely
• 1 green onion finely sliced
• several dashes of tapatio
• a few olives, sliced
• 2 tsp mayo
• small squeeze of mustard
• salt and pepper
• dash of lemon juice

Ta Da Yet another meal. Everyone really loved this one!
MAHI MAHI TUNA SALAD

Dinner is served. Well it was lunch for us! All five of us ate from this, and then my mom came

over from church, she also ate. I still had leftovers. Enough of the 

FISH FRY AND FISH CURRY for my hubby and I to eat another meal.

MAHI MAHI TUNA SALAD did not make it, and got devoured by everyone. 

You can also see the simple onion and tomato salad I served. No dressing just some lemon juice. 

Now thats what I call a feast. I don't know about you guys but I love to eat fish. You have to 

admit however that it is kind of costly, especially if you serve it up whole. So from what little I had, I was able to creatively create 4 meals and I had everything on hand in my pantry. 

The cost of these meal, was $7.65 for the fish. 

Ok you can add the other things too, I bet if you look around your kitchen you will have

most of the things I used, so you would only have to go buy some fish. 

I will be doing a post on what a well stocked pantry looks like, so you will always be prepared to cook. 

My pantry staples are always on hand, with plenty to spare. I always buy extra of things I use often, or can be added to anything to create a new dish. 

Look forward to sharing with you all my tips on pantry staples next time. 

Until then get cooking, you can do it. 

Hope you enjoyed!

Please share with me-

1. What's your favorite kind of fish, how often do you eat fish?
2. Do you cook it at home, or eat it out?
3. Have you ever tried making a fish curry, or eaten one before?

Bella

I've linked up to the following parties, check them out for more wonderful ideas.

http://itsablogparty.com/

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/
http://bargainhuntingwithlaurie.blogspot.com/
http://www.trashtotreasuredecorating.com/

http://lindycottagehill.blogspot.com/

Metamorphosis Mondays

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