Kedgeree

Ingredients
1 cup long grain brown rice; washed thoroughly and soaked for at least 30 minutes
2 1/2 cups water
1 lb smoked haddock; steamed and flaked
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspn cumin
3 cloves
1 2 inch stick cinnamon
3 cardamom pods
6 whole peppercorns
1 large onion, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoons coriander powder
1/2 tspn tumeric
salt to taste
2 Hard boiled eggs; quartered for garnishing
coriander leaves for garnishing

1. Heat the oil in a pan, add the cumin, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and peppercorns, let them pop.
2. Add the onions, fry until they are a rich brown, add the cumin, coriander and tumeric powder. Mix and cook for a couple of minutes.
3. Add the rice and the water, bring to boil, lower the heat, cover and cook for 25 minutes; add the peas, cook for a further 5 minutes
4. Add the flaked fish, mix, garnish with boiled egg and coriander.

Chuti or Bhuni Kitchri

Ingredients
1 tablespoon oil
2 sticks cinnamon
2 pods cardomom
2 cloves
4-5 peppercorns
1/2 tspn cumin seeds
1 medium onion; chopped fine
3 cloves garlic; minced
1/2 tspn tumeric
1 cup skinned mung or tuver daal; washed and soaked for 30 minutes
1 1/2 cups rice; washed and soaked for 30 minutes
salt to taste
5 cups of water

Heat the oil in a pan, add the cinnamon, cardomom, cloves, peppercorns and cumin seeds, as soon as they splutter add the onions, and fry until golden brown
Add the garlic and tumeric fry for a few seconds, add the rice and the daal, stir.
Add the water and salt and bring to boil.
Simmer for 25 minutes or until all the water is absorbed.
Serve with kadhi

Kitchri

Ingredients
1 cup split unhulled mung beans
1 cup rice
salt to taste
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil

Method
Wash the mung beans and rice.
Place in a large pan with 6 cups of water and salt, bring to boil
Simmer for 30 minutes.
Add butter or oil and beat until smooth
Serve with Kadhi

Kitchri

I am finally back after a long break.
Kitchri a truelly ancient dish, it is a mixture of split unhulled mung beans and rice. Ibn Battuta, the Arab traveller in the 14th Century, described it as "the munj (ming) is boiled with rice, and then buttered and eaten. This is what they call kishri." Afanasy Nikitin (15th Century), a Russian merchant also mentions it in this writing.

We make two kinds kitchris, lussie kitchri and chuti or bhuni kitchri. Lussie kitchri is creamy like rissoto, whereas chuti kitchri is fluffy with separate grains. I also make kedgeree, an Anglo-Indian breakfast dish, which is kitchri with the lentils replaced by smoked fish.

Here are the recipes for

1. Kitchri
   
2. Chuti Kitchri
3. Kedgeree

Roast Masala Lamb

Ingredients

1 4-5 lb lamb leg; deboned (ask your butcher)

Marinade:

1 large lemon; juiced

3-4 garlic cloves; crushed

3 inch ginger; grated

3-4 green chillies; minced

Salt

Sauce:

2 large onions; chopped fine

2 tablespoons oil

1 tspn cumin seeds

2 inch piece of cinnamon

3-4 cloves

2-3 cardomom pods

2 tspn tomato puree

½ cup water

1 tablespoon cumin and coriander powders

½ tspn tumeric

Method

Mix the marinade in a large glass dish, and marinate the lamb for overnight in the fridge.

Next day:

1. Heat the oven to 220^oC.
2. Heat the oil in a pan, add the cinnamon, cardamom, cloves; cumin seeds, cook for about 3 minutes, the cloves and cardamom should have puffed up
3. Add the onions and fry until they are a rich golden brown, to save time, you can buy prefried onions - available in Indian shops.
4. Add the tomato puree and water, cook for about 5 minutes, add the tumeric, cumin/coriander powders.
5. When the sauce has cooled, apply it to the meat.
6. Place the lamb in the hot oven for 20 minutes, lower the heat to 200^oC and cook for 15 minutes per lb. For example for a 5 lb leg, you will need 1 ½ hours. This timing gives a fairly rare roast. If you like it well done increase the time by another 30 minutes.
7. Remove the meat and place in a large dish and let it rest for 20 minutes, remove the sauce from the baking dish and place a gravy boat
8. Slice the meat and serve with the sauce.
9. 

We served it with herbed pilau rice and spicy sweet corn.