Indian Spiced Pork in Tomato Sauce

Pita bread or basmati rice would be good with this saucy dish. Toasting the whole spices before adding them to the other ingredients intensifies their flavors.

Lycopene count: 13 milligrams per serving.

Yield
6 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups)

Ingredients
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 cups chopped onion (1 medium)
3 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
2 teaspoons sugar
6 garlic cloves, crushed
2 pounds boneless pork loin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Cooking spray
1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
4 cups (1 1/2 pounds) baking potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Preparation
Heat first 7 ingredients in a dry skillet over medium heat about 3 minutes or until fragrant, stirring often. Transfer spice mixture to blender or food processor; add onion, vinegar, ginger, sugar, and garlic; process 2 minutes or until well blended.

Combine pork and spice mixture in a glass bowl, tossing to coat. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add half of pork mixture; cook 5 minutes or until pork begins to brown, stirring often. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat process with cooking spray and remaining pork. Add broth to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add pork mixture to pan. Stir in potato, salt, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour or until potato is cooked and pork is tender, stirring occasionally. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.

Nutritional Information
Calories:383 (26% from fat)
Fat:10.7g (sat 3.9g,mono 4.6g,poly 0.9g)
Protein:36.1g
Carbohydrate:35.8g
Fiber:5g
Cholesterol:90mg
Iron:3.2mg
Sodium:611mg
Calcium:93mg

Indian cooking@home
by cooking lover

Indian Cashew Chicken

A take on the Indian dish murgh makhani, this entrée recipe varies but typically has a thick sauce punctuated with Indian spices. To mimic the full-bodied sauce, we caramelize onions and later simmer the mixture to a thick, marinara-like consistency. Serve over brown basmati rice or with naan flatbread.

Yield
6 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

Ingredients
2/3 cup cashews, toasted
2/3 cup fat-free Greek-style yogurt
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 1/4 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces (about 14 ounces)
2 (8-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
Cooking spray
2 3/4 cups finely chopped onion (2 large)
2 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup organic tomato puree (such as Muir Glen Organic)
1 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons half-and-half
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Preparation
1. Combine first 9 ingredients in a blender or food processor; process until smooth. Combine nut mixture and chicken in a large bowl; cover and refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.

2. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion, cardamom, and cinnamon stick to pan; cover and cook 10 minutes or until onion is golden, stirring often.

3. Add chicken mixture to pan; cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in broth, tomato puree, paprika, and salt, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook 1 hour or until thick. Stir in half-and-half; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Discard cinnamon stick. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired.

Nutritional Information
Calories:340 (36% from fat)
Fat:13.6g (sat 3.4g,mono 5.8g,poly 2.6g)
Protein:36.7g
Carbohydrate:18.7g
Fiber:3.8g
Cholesterol:91mg
Iron:3.2mg
Sodium:435mg
Calcium:83mg

Indian cooking@home
by cooking lover

Indian Spiced Chicken and Spinach

The flavor of this dish is rich, fragrant, and mellow--not hot. You can make the sauce ahead of time and simmer the chicken in it just before serving.

Yield
4

Ingredients
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 jalapeño peppers, seeds and ribs removed, minced
1/2 cup canned crushed tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cinnamon stick
1 1/2 cups water
2 10- ounces packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/3 pounds in all), cut into 3 pieces each

Preparation
1. In a large frying pan, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and cook until starting to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes longer. Stir in the cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Cook until the spices are fragrant, about 1 minute, and then stir in the jalapeños and tomatoes. Add the cream, cinnamon stick, and water. Squeeze the spinach to remove excess liquid and add the spinach to the pan. Bring to a simmer. Cover the pan, reduce the heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.

2. Stir in the chicken and the remaining 12 teaspoon salt, cover, and simmer the stew until just done, about 10 minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick before serving.

Menu Suggestions: Indian basmati rice would be an ideal accompaniment here, but plain white rice will work well, too.

Wine Recommendation: An off-dry chenin blanc from California or a chenin-blanc-based French Vouvray (look for a demi-sec) will be lovely with the aromatic cream sauce. The acidity of these wines and their melon and apricot notes are perfect foils for the exotic stew.

Indian cooking@home
by cooking lover

Introduction

Indian cuisine for the most part is rich in flavor and diversity. Many cultures and regions in other parts of the world lightly use spices and seasonings on their foods while much of Indian cooking rely on the heavy use of such things. The variety of ingredients is immense and many are blended together to create symphony of flavor on your taste buds. Cumin, turmeric, ginger, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, cilantro, chilies, curry leaves, and black mustard seed are the most commonly used ingredients with meats and vegetable dishes.

Here you can learn how to cook Indian food at home by yourself from many popular Indian recipes. Let's do it and enjoy the great foods now!

Indian cooking@home
by cooking lover