Crash in the Kitchen: Indian Feast!

Knowing that we'd be pretty snowed in on Saturday, I got it in my head that I wanted to make an Indian feast. So, we invited Greg and Eileen over (the only people who live close enough and are brave enough to trek through the snow to our house and to eat my concoctions), and I got to work making several Indian dishes. Don quickly realized that I had bit off a little more than I could chew, and rushed to my side as my sous chef. He's a chopper extraordinaire!

Birdhouse, amazingly still holding up

On the menu was Chicken Tikka Masala, Chana Masala (chickpeas), Roasted Indian-Spiced Potatoes, Turmeric-Spiced Rice with Peas, and Homemade Naan. I know, I don't know what I was thinking either.

The hardest thing is certainly the timing, but with Don's chopping help and Greg/Eileen's naan skills, I managed to have everything ready at about the same time. First I made the Naan dough since it had to sit for 1.5 hours, then I broiled the chicken, then threw in the potatoes to roast. While those were roasting, I put the rice in the rice cooker, then made the chana masala and the rest of the chicken tikka masala. Finally, we threw the naan in the oven in several batches.

All the dishes had the same essential ingredients which is nice: jalepenos, garlic, ginger, onion, cumin, coriander, turmeric, and garam masala. For the delicious recipes, see below!

Some of the ingredients

Chicken Tikka Masala

from Pioneer Woman Cooks!

4 Chicken breasts (I used the ginormous non-natural ones I buy in bulk at the store so I ended up saving some chicken for later use)

Salt

Ground coriander

Cumin, to taste

1/2 cups plain yogurt

6 Tbsp butter

1 whole large onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, minced

3 Tbsp garam masala

1 jalepeno, finely chopped

1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes with juices (I used the ones with jalepenos as usual)

1 Tbsp sugar

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 cup Basmati rice

Fresh cilantro

2 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 cup frozen peas

Season the chicken breasts with salt, then sprinkle both sides with coriander and cumin. Coat the breasts completely with the yogurt. Set the chicken on a metal cooling rack over a foil-lined baking sheet (I used a well-oiled broiling pan) and place it about 10-12 inches below a broiler for 5-7 minutes per side (don't char!). Remove and set aside. Once cooled, chop into bite-size pieces.

Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute until slightly browned. Add the garlic, ginger, 1 Tbsp salt, the garam masala, and the jalepeno. Saute for about 30 seconds then add the diced tomatoes. Continue cooking and stirring, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze it. Add the sugar and let simmer on medium for about 5 minutes.

To a rice cooker add 1 cup Basmati rice, 2 Tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tsp ground turmeric, and 2 cups of water. Cover and turn on the rice cooker. Once done, add the frozen peas and let the steam cook them for a minute or two.

After the Tikka Masala sauce has simmer for a bit, add the heavy cream and chopped chicken. Add cilantro to taste. Serve with rice and Naan.

Chana Masala

from Smitten Kitchen

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 medium onions, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 jalepeno, minced

1 Tbsp ground coriander

2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

1 tsp ground turmeric

2 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground (I didn't have the patience to do that part so just let them toast right in the skillet for a minute)

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp garam masala

1 (15-oz) can diced tomatoes with juices

2/3 cup water

2 (15-oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 lemon, juiced

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, ginger, and pepper and saute over medium heat until browned, about 5 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low and add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, turmeric, cumin seeds, paprika, and garam masala. Cook onion mixture with spices for a minute or two, then add the tomatoes and any accumulated juices, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the water and chickpeas. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir in salt and lemon juice.

Indian Spiced Potatoes

adapted from Gourmet (I didn't have cauliflower)

1 1/2 lb fingerling potatoes, diced into 1/2-inch cubes

3 Tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp salt

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 jalepeno, minced

2 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss potatoes with 2 Tbsp oil, cumin seeds, and 1/2 tsp salt. Spread in hot baking pan and roast, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are just tender, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook onion, jalepeno, and ginger in remaining oil in a heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until soft and golden (8-10 minutes). Add ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, cayenne, and remaining 1/2 tsp salt and cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes. Stir in water, scraping up any brown bits from bottom of skillet, then stir in roasted potatoes. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.

Naan

adapted from AllRecipes (I halved the recipe and didn't use a grill due to the snowmageddon)

1/2 package active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1/8 cup white sugar

1.5 Tbsp milk

1/2 beaten egg

1 tsp salt

2 1/4 cup bread flour

1 tsp garlic, minced

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6-8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well-oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise for 1 hour or until dough has doubled in volume.

Punch down dough and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball (I might do bigger next time). Roll into balls and place on a tray. Cover with a towel and allow to rise until doubled in volume, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with a ceramic pizza stone preheating inside it.

Roll balls into thin circles. Place on the pizza stone in batches and cook for 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Next time, we would make bigger-sized naan balls then not rolled them out as thin, as they came out pretty crispy. When we rolled them out, they were quite sticky so we had to add more flour but I think they came out a little too floury.