Baingan Salna & Chicken Salna
Every now and then a small bomb will diffuse in the name of "Biriyani" on the food groups that I follow and it would leave me salivating for the same the whole day.
But I hate going through the whole ordeal of preparing and Dhumming (if there is a word like that?!!! sealing) the vessel so that the rice would cook in those exotic spices and the flavours would meander through each grain of rice and every meat that has been thrown in and finally it cooks in its own steam. No Thank you! That's not for me without a helping hand or two...I think it's a family thingie...to be done with like minded friends or family ensuring that everybody has a role in it and not just the eating part.
As a kid growing up, my personal opinion is that my mother made the best biriyanis and it was cumbersome...I have seen her toil and moil the entire day. But she did it passionately for her man and for us. I do remember slitting the cashews for her...wonder if she knew that most of it would be in my tummy. I used to love watching her brown the sliced onions that would decorate the dish in layers and in the end...Of course whatever mom did I worshipped! She was the epitome of all things fresh and all food that was flavoursome and that would have our cousins home to dig in.
I do not have half her energy to meet the biriyani eye to eye. I have made them but always took the cheat's way out...ALWAYS!!! there would be so much flavour but the rice would be sticky! By the time I am done with the biriyani, I have no energy to make its accompaniments and so on and so forth...that's me in a nut shell!!! I have skipped steps to reach the final stage...that's me THE INCONSISTENT CHEF!
I know for sure that one of these days I am gonna have my friend over and we would do it together like the last time we did as she has a lot of patience and has taught me a thing or two about the nuances of making a biriyani. I like to be the helper...I do often go to her place when she has orders to help her with slicing or peeling something.
Hence today I would like to dive right into the accompaniments of a biriyani-The Baingan Salna and the non-veg chicken salna. STAY TUNED... RECIPE TO BE UPDATED SHORTLY :-
The updated recipe:- For the baingan salna, I used the big aubergines and diced them. One can use normal egg plants, slit them cross-wise from the base upwards leaving them still on the stalks.
I have roasted and ground grated coconut, two to three cloves of garlic, half a sliced onion, a sliced tomato,a bit of ginger,a tbsp. or more of peanuts, a tsp. of fennel seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, chilly powder, coriander powder and whole spices or the garam masala powder. Set this ground paste aside.
Allow the diced aubergine to cook in a tbsp. of oil, a tsp. of turmeric with sliced onions and tomatoes. Once mushy, add tamarind paste or tamarind water. Add adequate salt. Add a few curry leaves as well.
Once nice and mushy, pour the ground masala or spice mix into this baingan that has turned nice and soft by now. Dilute it according to your desire. Add a tsp. of chilly powder and a little more garam masala to finish the dish. Garnish with finely chopped cilantro. Avoid using too much oil although in restaurants one would find a lot of oil floating on top of the salna. It does make the dish tastier.
Salna can be made with a medley of veggies that you like so do mix and match. We had them with these poratas. I also did a non-veg version with a few remnant chicken.
Ha Ha...enjoy irresponsibly...no way!!! We should be extremely careful on what goes into our tummies.
The chicken version follows the same, it replaces the aubergine and would require more time to cook through and may require some more spice to make it flavoursome.
In hotels or take aways, One would find just these curries along with the biriyani devoid of any meat. These are nice sides and accompaniments that go very well with the biriyani.
Do add crushed peppercorns and Kashmiri red chilly to allow the non veg to stand out in taste and spice.
But I hate going through the whole ordeal of preparing and Dhumming (if there is a word like that?!!! sealing) the vessel so that the rice would cook in those exotic spices and the flavours would meander through each grain of rice and every meat that has been thrown in and finally it cooks in its own steam. No Thank you! That's not for me without a helping hand or two...I think it's a family thingie...to be done with like minded friends or family ensuring that everybody has a role in it and not just the eating part.
As a kid growing up, my personal opinion is that my mother made the best biriyanis and it was cumbersome...I have seen her toil and moil the entire day. But she did it passionately for her man and for us. I do remember slitting the cashews for her...wonder if she knew that most of it would be in my tummy. I used to love watching her brown the sliced onions that would decorate the dish in layers and in the end...Of course whatever mom did I worshipped! She was the epitome of all things fresh and all food that was flavoursome and that would have our cousins home to dig in.
I do not have half her energy to meet the biriyani eye to eye. I have made them but always took the cheat's way out...ALWAYS!!! there would be so much flavour but the rice would be sticky! By the time I am done with the biriyani, I have no energy to make its accompaniments and so on and so forth...that's me in a nut shell!!! I have skipped steps to reach the final stage...that's me THE INCONSISTENT CHEF!
I know for sure that one of these days I am gonna have my friend over and we would do it together like the last time we did as she has a lot of patience and has taught me a thing or two about the nuances of making a biriyani. I like to be the helper...I do often go to her place when she has orders to help her with slicing or peeling something.
Hence today I would like to dive right into the accompaniments of a biriyani-The Baingan Salna and the non-veg chicken salna. STAY TUNED... RECIPE TO BE UPDATED SHORTLY :-
I have roasted and ground grated coconut, two to three cloves of garlic, half a sliced onion, a sliced tomato,a bit of ginger,a tbsp. or more of peanuts, a tsp. of fennel seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, chilly powder, coriander powder and whole spices or the garam masala powder. Set this ground paste aside.
Salna can be made with a medley of veggies that you like so do mix and match. We had them with these poratas. I also did a non-veg version with a few remnant chicken.
Comments
Post a Comment