Mutton Vindaloo - O mere Meat-wah!

Things required for Mutton Vindaloo

Mutton – 500 grams (for 2 people, medium size cubes)

Onion – 3 (Get it chopped very finely)

Sugar – 1.5 tsp (Else you can use juggery)

Curry Leaves powder – 1 tsp (I used Curry leaves powder which I made earlier, although it is an optional ingredient)

Salt

Oil – 4-5 tbsp (I used mustard oil)

Water

Now you need to make a paste before starting the cooking. Ingredients for paste:

Red chilis – 10

Cumin powder– 1.5 tbsp

Coriander powder – 1.5 tbsp

Black Pepper Powder – 1 tbsp

Poppy seed paste – 1 tbsp

Readymade Garam Masala – 1 tbsp

Ginger + Garlic Paste – 2 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1.5 tsp

Tamarind Pulp – 1.5 tbsp

Vinegar or Lime Juice – 2 tbsp

Water – 2 tbsp (Add water considering that the paste should be smooth but not watery.)

How to make Mutton Vindaloo:

Your paste is ready. Now you get ready to marinate the mutton. Wash the mutton pieces carefully. Let it be for pat-dry for few minutes. Apply the paste on mutton and add both sugar and salt. Keep it inside the refrigerator for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, take it out of the refrigerator and keep it outside for 10 minutes.

Heat oil in a deep frying pan. Add chopped onion to the oil and keep frying till onion looks translucent.

Now add marinated mutton. Keep stirring frequently for next 8-10 minutes.

Check if mutton pieces are sauteed well. Now you have to add water and curry leaves powder one by one. I first added 3 cups of water. Then I reduced the heat. Then I added curry powder and mixed well. Check the seasoning and adjust it if required.

I would like to suggest you not to add entire water at this stage. I kept adding water little by little.

Remember, Vindaloo is a SLOW COOKING PROCESS. For me it took almost 1 HOUR 45 MINUTES.

After first 1 hour, you have to adjust the consistency of the gravy. If you need more gravy, you can add little more water.

Once cooked, turn off the gas. Let it be on the pan for next 10 minutes.

You can serve Mutton Vindaloo with hot rice.  

Stuffed eggplant or Bharli Vangi

I am not sure, whether it is Malvani, Goan or konkani recipe. I first saw this recipe on a wonderful food blog. When I first made stuffed eggplant, I followed that recipe step by step. But I felt, I could make it in a different way. So in the second turn, I wanted change the recipe. Here goes my recipe below.

For this dish I used few dark purple colored baby eggplants. You can cook with big size eggplants as well. The spices used in the recipe, need to be coated on to each eggplants, and the taste would be the same, no matter what size of eggplants you are using.

Ingredients:

8 baby eggplants

1/2 cup of grated coconut

1/2 cup roasted and ground peanuts

1 tbsp ginger and garlic paste

2 large onion (chopped)

1 medium size chopped tomato (optional, I used)

1 tsp of each powder (turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder, cumin powder, coriander powder)

2 tbsp mustard oil

Water

Salt

Method:

1. As the recipe name suggests, I hope you are done with slitting the eggplants. If not, slit them on 4 sides, but DON'T break them.

2. Take water and little bit salt in a bowl to soak them in salted water. After that keep it aside for 10-15 minutes.

3. You are ready with dry-roasted peanuts, right? Now roast grated coconut. Roast them till the color is becoming brown. DON'T roast peanuts and coconut together. Now set them aside separately for cooling down.

4. Take half of the chopped onion and garlic-ginger paste in the bowl of mixer grinder. Now check if the roasted coconut and peanut got cool or not. If them become cool, take them to the same bowl. And grind it to a smooth paste. If you need, you can add little water. But DON'T make it liquid.

5. Heat oil in your frying pan. Then add few amount of chopped onion to the hot oil. Keep frying them until they become transparent.

6. Add garam masala and cook for 2-3 minutes. Now add all other powders mentioned in the ingredients list and add tomato this time. Mix them well and cook for few minutes. Then remove from the heat and set aside for cooling down.

7. Now add half of the coconut-peanut paste to the paste mentioned in step no. 6.

8. Combine them well and stuff the mixture between eggplant. Did you find, the mixture is escaping from the eggplant? Don't worry; tie each eggplant back together with cotton thread.

9. Heat oil in the same frying pan. Add rest of the onion and fry it until light-brown. Add the eggplants to the pan carefully. Remove the cotton thread. And cover the pan with a lid.

10. Leave to cook for few minutes (10-15 minutes). But you have to turn them occasionally until cooked.

11. Serve the hot stuffed eggplants with roti or parantha.  

For other eggplant recipes click here.