Indian Kheer, a bit like Rice Pudding!

At first when I went to India, the incessant offerings of sweets and desserts made me feel quite queasy. They love sugar! Heaps and spoons of it, all a bit too much for me. So now I can make my own desserts, I hold back on the sugar and make everything to my taste, plus one spoon to make my husband happy!

Kheer is one of our favourites. So simple and sooo tasty. It's comfort, home food, perfect in the summer straight from the fridge and in the winter straight from the pan!

Ingredients: 

All quantities can be changed to suit your own taste... this will make enough for 4 people.

100g Seviyan (Roasted Vermicelli)

Semiya Payasam (South Indian), Seviyan (Hindi/Urdu), Sev (Gujarati)

Seviyan is made from Semolina, unlike the Italian version which is made from Durum Wheat or the Chinese version made from rice flour (glass noodles)

Kheer can also be made from the following in case you don't have a packet of Seviyan in the store cupboard!: Rice, spaghettini, quinoa, chickpeas, semolina, moong beans, even banana and cornflakes!

50g butter

1/2 tin of Condensed milk

You don't have to use these but they give a nicer flavour...

Flavourings of choice...

I like to use:

5 Cardamom pods (crushed)

A nice scraping of fresh Nutmeg and Cinnamon

And of course a few spoons of brown sugar...

(You could use anything you fancy really, like vanilla pods/essence, raisins, sultanas, almonds, cashews, coconut, saffron, even grated carrots!...)

A pint of Milk

Only roughly use as much or as little as you like, like rice pudding, some people prefer it stodgy, some runny.

Then for a really authentic Indian taste, try to get hold of some Kewra Essence or Kewra Water...

Kewra is an extract distilled from Pandanus flowers. Kewra flowers have a sweet, perfumed odour with a pleasant quality similar to rose flowers, but kewra is more fruity. 

('Tropical Designs' Pandanus Flower)

To me it is such an 'Indian' smell, a whiff of this and I am transported to the streets of Bombay!

Method:

In a thick bottomed saucepan (to avoid burning, husbands take note:) Melt the butter, then add the spices/nuts/fruit and fry a little to bring out the flavours.

Then add the seviyan. If you crunch it up it makes it easier to eat with a spoon! 

Add the condensed milk, milk, kewra (only a drop if essence or a splash if water) and sugar.

Stir it all up and simmer gently for a while. You may need to add some more milk as the kheer cooks. We like it quite runny, because if there is any left over (which is rare!) it gets thicker with time.

You can garnish with Saffron, nuts, sultanas or even gold leaf if you're feeling fancy!

There are a couple of online UK Indian Food stores that seem to have a nice variety of products. One is 'Spices of India' and the other 'The Asian Cookshop'. They both have Kewra and Vermicelli for less than a pound.

***

For my little sister Hanna... 'cos she loves Kheer too!

Kerala Style Beef Masala...

A special request from Sharon J at Finding Simplicity... 

(and Anonymous Jane!)

Serves at least 2 plus a bit more...

Ingredients...

500g Beef (stewing type)

2 large Onions (finely chopped)

5 large Cloves Garlic (chopped)

Thumb size Ginger (Chopped)

10 Curry Leaves

1/2 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp Garam Masala (See below note)

2 Green Chillies and 1/2 tsp Red Chili powder (if you like it hot)

Tomatoes (half the amount of chopped onions)

1 cup Coconut Milk (optional) or vinegar

2 tbsp Oil 

(You can cook the Beef, Turmeric and a little Salt in water, in a pressure cooker if you have one, for 20 minutes for more tender beef. It reduces the final cooking time and saves energy too! I just use a saucepan with a lid and bring it to the boil for 5 minutes)

Note: I use electric, so when I mention turning off the heat, I leave the pan on the stove as the element cools down. If you use gas you would have to leave the gas on low for a few minutes before turning off the flame to get the same result. (Does that mean electric ovens are more energy efficient? Does anyone have a gas versus electric argument? I'd like to know...)

In a large pan or wok, fry the onions, garlic, ginger, curry leaves and green chili in 2 tbsp of oil (preferably coconut for an authentic South Indian taste, it really makes a big difference)

When the onions are golden,  add the coriander powder, garam masala, turmeric and chili powder.

When the oil separates from the spices its time to add the tomatoes and the beef. 

Give it a good stir to mix all the fried spices, onions and beef evenly. Add 1/2 cup of water if needed, cover with a lid or large plate, then turn down the heat to simmer for 1 hour or more until reduced by half. Finally, when beef is tender add the coconut milk if desired OR a dash of vinegar (DO NOT MIX BOTH)

Garnish with homegrown :) Coriander and serve with rice, chapattis (or parathas for a yummy leftovers breakfast)

(For Perfect Rice, see 'Note on Rice...' in this post)

Note on Garam Masala...

We use packets of masala (literally means 'mix') They come pre-mixed for chicken, meat, fish, chick peas, tandoori and a million other things. You can buy them in any Indian store and recently some of the larger supermarkets have an Asian aisle. We use 'Everest' or 'Eastern' brands. Choose one that says 'meat masala', or 'mutton masala' (mutton is a generic word for beef)

If you want to make your own Garam Masala, the ingredients are listed on the Everest website but they don't give quantities. This blog has a nice recipe to make your own.

Note on Coconut Oil...This one is 95p from Tesco... but I encourage you to shop locally and buy it at your nearest Indian shop.  It usually comes in a jar that looks like mayo and it's thick like lard. You'll sometimes find it in the beauty section, as it's also great for your hair! Just make sure it's 100% pure Coconut Oil.

This site has some great info on the benefits of Coconut oil.

Note on Turmeric... It stains everything, therefore I do not hold any responsibility for yellow wooden spoons and yellow splashed walls!

This Weeks Menu Plan...

Monday...

Pasta with Lamb Meatballs in a Tomato and Chili Sauce

Tuesday...

Beef Curry and Rice

Wednesday...

Pork Chop with a Honey, Ginger, Garlic, Soy sauce, served with Cous Cous and Salad

Thursday...

Prawn Stir Fry with Peas, Pepper, Spring Onion and Broccoli, served with Noodles

Friday...

Roast Chicken with a Lemon, Sage and Apple Stuffing, Baked Potatoes with Carrots, Peas and Broccoli

One special dessert of Apple and Blackberry crumble. We picked the blackberries free on the way home from the park.

I've got all the meat in the freezer which I have to use up now. The same goes for the Carbohydrates, so I just had to buy fruit and vegetables today. Total £11.27.

I have to add this... I picked up 6 Cherries at the checkout for Evangel to nibble on, on the way home. They cost me 44p...yes SIX cherries for 44p, that's 7p for a cherry!!!!

A Good Indian Wife...

I've done it at last... 

Me the ever disorganised, procrastinateur and not to mention 'The Queen of bargains, reduced value shopaholics daughter', has finally got round to doing a very simplified version of a weekly menu plan. Now bearing in mind I very rarely know what day it is or where I might be living at the end of a week, for me this is a miracle.

The last (and only) time I planned a weekly menu was when my whole family were moving out of our 13 year family home. So my job as the official 'Obliterator' was to supervise the dwindling down of supplies.

I did extremely well under so much pressure, considering my families likes and dislikes. Michael has to have HOT, tabasco or mitmita, Hanna is a picky teenager and eats only raw fruit and vegetables it seems and gallons of smoothies, my husband doesn't eat much and certainly "doesn't look for vegetables", my Mum has to find something wrong with every meal and then there's me... I eat anything (twice as much when I'm pregnant) and Grandpa who eats like a bird.

My usual plan of action is at about 6 o clock say to my husband "what shall we have for dinner", the answer "I don't know Bo, you know, whatever" inevitably comes. I look in the fridge, moan a bit, sit down for half an hour and then think I'd better get up and be a good wife and cook dinner.  Meat is always defrosted in the microwave as I never remember to take it out early. 

Now things have to change... C's shift has changed from 6am-2pm to 2pm-10pm, so now he can't buy the cheap sandwiches and samosas they sell at lunchtime. He won't eat a big meal in the day so it's my job to send him to work with a tiffin he can heat up in the microwave and have a proper meal when he returns from work at night.

So bearing in mind my one success story from the past, I sat down and scribbled some things down on a scrap of paper.

We had some pork fillet in the freezer, half price from when my mum took us shopping a few weeks back, so I took that out to defrost.  

My list...

Monday - minted lamb burgers with salad and chapattis

Tuesday - pork, pepper and pea stir fry with cous cous

Wednesday - alloo gobi (potato and cauliflower curry) with chapattis

Thursday - spaghetti bolognaise

Friday - leftover stew (anything I can find plus lentils and herbs)

lamb mince

chapattis

mint

yoghurt

pepper

onions

tomatoes 

cucumber

potatoes

cauliflower

cheese

beef mince

I haven't been to the supermarket for about three weeks now so the fridge is bare and all supplies are down to a minimum. I decided to walk to the local indian shops and buy my meat from the Halal butcher and the rest from the local Londis (mini market)

Once in the butchers looking for beef mince, I saw chicken mince and thought I'd try chicken bolognaise instead, so for 1kg of lamb mince and 1/2 kg of chicken mince I paid £5.85. Now I'm sure that's a lot less than Tescos charge. The men had a little laugh at me when I took out my supermarket carrier bags to be reused, so I told them I was out to save the world! Giggles all round and a little discount for making them laugh!

In the grocery shop I picked up everything on the list plus a nice punnet of juicy big strawberries. The cheese had 50% extra free! Total £10.80...

Now I don't keep track of how much everything is per kilo so I couldn't tell you if I saved or not, but I can say that if I had driven to Tescos (petrol and pollution) I would have picked up a lot more than was on my list, I would have had a lot more packaging to throw away (I don't use plastic bags for veg but when I'm forced to buy 'value' ranges they always come pre-packed) and I would have come away with a twisted feeling of guilt in my stomach.

So Mondays meal...

was a joy to cook, feeling on top of the world of menu plans, I chopped the mint (a very large bunch) and used half in the burger mix with red onion, chilli and garlic, blitzed in the chopper, added spices, an egg and a dash of oil and fried the patties on a griddle pan (covering with foil and turning off the heat when both sides were done to save energy)

The other half off mint I chopped and stored in a jar with sugar and balsamic, in the fridge. A teaspoon of this I mixed into the extremely thick and creamy greek yoghurt I bought for the dressing.

Served with a salad of home grown baby leaf lettuce, rocket and parsley with tomato and cucumber and chapattis (I only bought one pack of 8 chapattis forgetting about lunch the next day, so tonight I'll be making from scratch for the first time) 

Tuesdays meal... 

Threw all the ingredients into a wok with soy sauce, sweet chili sauce garlic and ginger stir fried on a high heat til meat fully cooked and then turned off the heat and left with a plate over the top.

One of the things I have been trying to do since starting this journey is measure and weigh in cups, things like cous cous, rice, porridge and pasta, so we don't get left with a plateful extra at the end of each meal and so we don't waste water or energy cooking it.

1 cup of cous cous feeds 2 adults. In a bowl add 1 and a half cups of boiling water and a squeeze of lemon and cover for 10 minutes with a plate. Perfectly cooked cous cous, not soggy not dry!

Oh I love it when things are so simple!

You may be wondering what's for dinner on Saturday and Sunday? Give me a chance... I'm not that organised!