SERVES 1
North Indians make this kind of quick salad all the time, using whatever ingredients they have. Most of the time in the summer it is tomatoes and onions and cucumbers, but in the winters it could include radishes and young kohlrabis. I was just sitting working one day and I needed a quick lunch. So I heated up some Black-eyed Peas with Mushrooms (this page), which I had made the night before, and then I looked around. There was an avocado in the refrigerator and some radishes in the garden. I made a quick salad of the two and had my meal with whole-grain bread. It was wonderful. You do not need too many ingredients for this salad. And I won’t even provide you with the exact measurements—you can just taste and go. Make the salad at the last moment, or it will get watery.
¼–½ avocado, peeled and diced
3–4 radishes, cut crossways into thick slices
Lemon juice
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Ground roasted cumin seeds (this page), optional
Chili powder
Put the avocado and radishes into a bowl. Squeeze lemon juice over them. Now add generous pinches of salt, pepper, cumin, and chili power. Toss to mix.
SERVES 4
Here is my slightly Indianized dressing flavored with mustard oil that I often use for salads served with Indian food. You can make the salad with baby arugula or a selection of microgreens like mâche. Always dress the leaves very lightly, reserving any remaining dressing for future use. There is enough dressing here for 5–6 cups of greens.
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons mustard oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Put all the ingredients in a small jar. Shake until well mixed. Dress salads with a very light hand. Save remaining dressing for the future.
SERVES 4
There are so many variations of this everyday salad, eaten by Indians of all classes. Almost the same ingredients can easily be converted into a raita by adding yogurt (this page).
1 cup peeled seedless cucumber cut into ½-inch dice
1 cup peeled tomatoes cut into ½-inch dice
1 cup onion cut into ½-inch dice
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds (this page)
⅛–½ teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice
Put the cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions in a bowl. Shortly before eating, add the salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and the lime or lemon juice. Mix and taste for balance of flavors.
SERVES 4
This is a very common, simple salad. It is best made just shortly before eating. You may add cilantro or mint to it as well.
1 cup fine onion or shallot slivers
½ cup firm, medium-sized tomatoes cut into fine wedges
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
¼ teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds (this page)
A dusting of chili powder
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
SERVES 6–8
1 well-packed cup cilantro leaves
2–3 fresh hot green chilies, chopped
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup plain yogurt
1. Put the cilantro, chilies, salt, lemon juice, and 3 tablespoons water into a blender. Blend, pushing down with a rubber spatula as needed, until smooth.
2. Put the yogurt in a bowl. Beat lightly with a whisk or fork until smooth and creamy. Add the contents of the blender and mix it in. Taste for balance of seasonings.
SERVES 6
Not unlike a salsa, this is a simple fresh chutney to have on the table.
2 cups peeled and finely chopped fresh tomatoes
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1–4 fresh hot green chilies, chopped
½–¾ teaspoon salt
Combine the tomatoes, cilantro, and chilies in a bowl. Mix. Add the salt just before serving and mix it in.
MAKES A GENEROUS ½ CUP
This hot, sweet, and sour chutney is really a revelation of the Indian palate in a bowl. This is what gets our juices flowing. It is intense—but then, we never use too much of it. It is an accent that we add to many foods: You can dribble it over yogurt or banana slices as a relish, or you can use it as a dip with French fries (see Spicy Fat French Fries, this page), among other things. It will last several weeks in the refrigerator and can also be frozen.
This recipe requires tamarind paste. You can make your own, if you wish. Follow the instructions on this page. This is what I generally do. But when I’m in a rush, I follow an easier method.
All Indian grocers now sell bottled tamarind pastes. Even some general specialty food shops carry them. (Just do not get tamarind concentrate, which is a different thing.) Most tamarind pastes vary a bit, so you may need to alter the amounts of water, sugar, and salt you add. You are aiming for a thick but flowing sauce.
Very finely chopped fresh mint or finely crumbled dried mint is sometimes added to this chutney.
4 tablespoons tamarind paste
5 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds (this page)
A generous sprinkling of chili powder
Combine all the ingredients along with 2 tablespoons water. Mix thoroughly, tasting for balance of flavors.
SERVES 4–6
A sweet and sour relish that is perfect with most Indian meals.
4 tablespoons golden raisins
1½ cups plain yogurt
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
1 tablespoon peanut or olive oil
¼ teaspoon whole black mustard seeds
1. Soak the raisins in boiling water to cover generously for 3 hours. Drain.
2. Put the yogurt into a bowl. Beat lightly with a fork or whisk until smooth. Add the salt, sugar, and carrots. Mix well.
3. Put the oil in a small pot or small frying pan and set at medium-high heat. When very hot, add the mustard seeds. They will begin to pop in seconds. Pour the oil and spices over the yogurt and mix them in. Keep covered and refrigerated until needed.
SERVES 4–6
1¼ cups plain yogurt
About ¼ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon chili powder
½ peeled apple, cut into small dice
Put the yogurt in a bowl. Beat lightly with a fork or whisk until smooth and creamy. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix well.
SERVES 6
This simple raita may be served with almost any Indian meal.
2 cups plain yogurt
¾ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds (this page)
1 medium cucumber, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons very finely chopped fresh mint
Put the yogurt in a bowl. Whisk it lightly with a fork or small whisk until smooth. Add all the other ingredients and mix. Taste for balance of flavors. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
SERVES 4
An everyday raita, but one that goes particularly well with pilafs. You can add chopped-up hot green chilies, as well.
1 cup plain yogurt
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
⅛–¼ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds (this page)
½ cup peeled seedless cucumber cut into ⅓-inch dice
½ cup peeled fresh tomato cut into ⅓-inch dice
⅓ cup onions cut into ⅓-inch dice
Put the yogurt in a bowl. Beat lightly with a whisk or fork until smooth and creamy. Add the salt, pepper, chili powder, and cumin. Stir to mix. Add the cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions. Mix gently.
SERVES 4–6
I do not know why it is, but Indians love croutons with their soups. The British gave us soups when they ruled us, and we Indianized them. However, the croutons we seem to have accepted just the way they were and left them untouched. They were always fried in our home, but here I have baked them in an oven. I used Pepperidge Farm bread, but you can use any bread you prefer.
4 slices Pepperidge Farm sliced bread
2 tablespoons peanut or olive oil or softened butter
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Brush the slices of bread on both sides with the oil or butter. Stack the slices on top of each other and cut the crusts off. Now cut the slices into croutons about ⅓–½-inch wide, or larger if you prefer. Spread out on a baking tray and bake for 7–8 minutes. Turn the croutons over and bake another 7–8 minutes. Allow to cool, and store in a ziplock bag.
SERVES 4
South India specializes in the most wonderful thin rice noodles. Known as sevai or idiappam, they are made at home from a ground rice dough that is extruded from a special gadget onto an oiled plate and then steamed. They may be eaten with cardamom-flavored coconut milk for breakfast but are mostly served with spicy curries. Some Indians do make these noodles in their American homes, but most just use dried rice noodles such as thin rice sticks and the wider, Vietnamese-named banh pho found in Southeast Asian markets. Here is a recipe for cooking banh pho. They are stiff, translucent, flat, and about 1/4 inch wide and often sold in 1-pound packets. Half the packet will serve 4 people.
8 ounces rice noodles (banh pho)
1 teaspoon peanut or olive oil, or more as needed
1. Put the noodles in a large bowl. Cover well with water and leave to soak for 2 hours. Drain.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil as you would for pasta. Once it is boiling, drop in the noodles. Cook for 1 minute or less, until just done. The water may or may not come to a boil again. Drain and rinse the noodles in cold running water to wash away the starch. Drain again and put in a bowl. Pour 1 teaspoon oil over the noodles and toss. The noodles are now ready to be stir-fried, put into soups, or reheated. To reheat, drop into boiling water for a second. Then drain and rub again with a little oil or they will be sticky.