How to make a very simply yummy northern thali

scotsman

Hi Indimikers Although its about 6 or 7 months since I've been back from india, I still have memories frequently about my visit. I really want to go again!
My post is really just to ask any of you indian ladys of how to make a simple thali? My favourite thalis were the ones in the north and in kerala. Delhi had some good thalis too but bombay/chennai and andamams (which was toooo salty and watery) were least favourite. I miss india so much but alot of that was due to the fact it was just like a 4 month holiday and in Scotland I'm a bit dissalusioned with the lifestyle im leading. Trainfinders dont have a 330 return to delhi from heathrow anymore and its about double now so wont be going this year- but I aim to go september next year, or maybe nepal.. who knows. Northern india i miss the most, and the food there was so amazing, only rivalled by the coconut curry in kollam I had in kerala. anyone know how to make that? id be really in awe of youre culinary skills if you could give me a quick rundown on how to make that delicious sweet and savoury coconut (it was even whitish in colour) curry mmmmmmmm mmm

In early december in dalhousie I stayed at hotel craggs, I got stoned out my box and it was only me staying at the hotel. I'd sit in the kitchen around the fire keeping warm with the honourable manager and my friend sono who was kind of like a tout who would wait at the bus stop and try to entice new arrivals to the hotel They were really sound guys and one of the things that was especially good was siting there chatting smoking a charas doobie waiting for my rice/curry chipatis to cook. It was all fresh and so simple. I'm sure it was made pretty much the same way in all the surronding areas ie dharamsala/mcleod/kullu/pathankot this area was my favourite type of curry/thali - and it was so simple...

After a few months of eating it every day all day and a few bananas to keep my vitamins up i steadily got a bit bored of it but 7 months on I am absolutely CRAVING this simple, mainly water/oil/tomato/lentils (dahl they call it) and caramelised onions curry. with various spices sprinkled in, ohh my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

I just wondered if any of the people here cook these thalis on a regular basis.... One of my favourites was in hotel crags in dalhousie where they prepared it in the kitchen next to where we sat by the fire. oops just said that

The RECIPE: My understanding of it was this

Cut
1:up onion into fine pieces,
2.fry it in oil (what oil would this be?) till it partially caramalised. fr about 5 mins. on a hot pan.
3.cut up fresh tomatoes small pieces and fry them for a little bit but not as long as the onions. (added after the onions had caremalised
4.add a little bit more of the oil
5.once this had turned a bit mushy throw in spices of various sorts, they had a wooden tray with about 10 spices and must have added half of the box.
5.add water, a little bit at a time
6. add lentils! (dahl!) a load of dahl! and keep topping it up and the dahl would expand and the dry dahl would expand due to cooking and be a really nice soft consistency, adding water bit by bit. Cook this over the kerosene stove for 20 minutes-30 minutes. it amazed me that this very watery curry would turn out so creamy spicy and delicious it was sooo nice I made it into a kind of kebab sandwich with the chipatis oh my mouth watering with the thought of it

That was pretty much it but my memory isnt that great. it was 7 months ago and I was very stoned on parvati valley cream during this time. This was a very simple dahl but it tasted sooo tasty, in other places i tasted vegetables in it too not sure what they were but they sometimes added to it (especially the really friendly dhaba at the very top of mcleod ganj who offered you more rice and dahl as much as you could eat for 25rs he was such a cool man I remember his smile and he was allways so polite to all the customers. oh yeah and unlimited chipatis!

In this method it really amazed me that with just oil, a couple chopped tomatoes onion and lentils this brew would end up being quite sticky and absolutely delicious. not watery at all considering 80% was water! Have I explained how to cook a basic dahl curry here or is this going to end in disaster? I am really wanting to try this as it is so much more tasty and MUCH more nutritional than the chinese takeaways in scotland, a chicken curry is nothing compared to these amazing dhabas recipes.
What spices should I get for this dish? I hope so much someone can give me a bit of tips of how to improve this, ive not made it yet but hopefully will tomorrow if I get the chance to use my mums cooking utensils as im going there tomorrow to visit family who have come up from newcastle and maybe even they can eat it if they want to!

Just pour this delicious curry over rice and it was ohh wonderful.. I think it was the dahl that expanded (to the consistency of baked beans but not quite as mushy) that made it go gooey even though there was alot of water and onlt 10%-20% oil in the dish. Is it castor oil? would using olive oil improve it?

Hopefully I can get a reply before tomorrow I set off to the supermarket for my weekly shop. which is normally tuna eggs milk apples bananas and dilutey juice. but im on a dahl hunt now. I really prefer that stuff to the "fake" indians in scotland, which is just fatty oily greasy mush with a bit of cheapie spices added and costs an arm and a leg.

can anyone help me with a simple recipe/guide, on making this simple tomato/onion/lentils curry I will be so much in awe I really want to make it how those indian dhabas made it for me.

I remember a few months ago I was on a hunt for the curd to make a lassi and no-one stocked it it was a terrible dissapointment (sainsburys and tescos never had any) but I'm sure i can get the thali ingredients somewhere! Im hoping so! I really determined to start making these really nutriotional curys they taste better than indians in my opinion with 1/4 calories of the "indian" takeaways in scotland = does not even come close to the delicious currys in india! ooo please help me with this thali making project,

PS nick and kullukid, styler, grizzly, avips et all and others in the manali thread il pick up that 7 page story i wrote to my sis tomorrow if your reading this the one.. i said i was goin to post a few weeks ago, but il just have to ask my sister i dont think she will object, it was quite deep but now i just find it an amusing read and it puts a smile on my face to realise how much good it gave me i feel the positive vibrations when i read it that I've lost somewhat now ive been back 7 months. Indiaaa what an adventure, im going to start saving up again and go!again! man i miss it.... i miss the people the most, even though i dont stay in contact with the ones i promised i would I dunno i think i still have emails somewhere and see how theyre getting on if i can find it. theres a printed copy (of this 7 page enlightenment letter haha i now call it) in my mums house I read it for nostalgia last time i was there... il log on and keep in contact with yas your help was so invaluable, and post it up as i say with the consent of my sis bt i dont think she'l mind... but better ask anyway

much respect

Ive gone off on one off on a tangent totally unrelated to my original question i just cant stop talking about india when i start on this site must mean something.... could one of you indian cooks tell me if my recipe for the dahl is going to be ok and if you have any changes to the that recipe which might make it better thanks so much

cheers
scotsman

Aishah

Your recipe will work, make sure you have pre-cooked your dahl. You must soak dahl for half an hour, then cook with salt and some turmeric powder and water.
Oil - here we use soya bean oil, or sunflower oil.
Also, before you add your onions, you can saute asafoetida (hing), cumin seeds and cloves for a few seconds then add onions. When they are golden brown, add ginger-garlic paste, and red chilli powder (small pinch). Cook 3 -4 mins. Then add if you want some chopped ginger, green chillies and tomatoes. Cook till mixture leaves the side of the pan.
Last of all add your pre-cooked dahl.

__________________
"Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards."

scotsman

Thanks for such a swift reply, that was quick

Il let you know how it goes aiasha.... I about to get washed and pick up the ingredients for my culinary curry masterpiece

I used to be a commis chef so I should manage it but ya never know I could end up making water n spice but il give it my best shot.. ginger garlic paste.. mmm i like my garlic not keen on ginger I'l ad 0.0023 g just so it keeps in with the "real" indian thali.. didnt mind it in the chai's in bombay strangely enough but cooking oooo nonono get the garlic away from me! i get a reaction like vampires when its in food


must remember the chopped chillies missing out the ginger not sure about what mixture leaving side of the pan means but i might do when it does leave in the process of cooking it in a few hours...

Il report back how it went later this evening

thanks very much this is a highly more skilled recipe than my original much kudos, all these extra ingredients the pressure is on bigstyle, you either thrive or dither under pressure for me i dither cooking probably why im not a commis chef no more but football and im revelling in it hope this works as my grandma is up she dosnt come up much very frail these days hope I dont overspice it and she gets a stomach ulcer il keep it not too hot...

thanks!

Aishah

This is a typical Rajasthani dahl, scotsman. I also don't like it as hot as the boys here do. I have it made for me separately - mine is far less of the lal mirch (red chilli) but i do like ginger/garlic particularly lots of garlic. It gives it a good taste for my liking and also natural antibiotic. If you make all less spicy but with the garlic it will be very good for grandma!
Let me know how you go! I'm talking about the cooking in our rooftop kitchen, but I have made it often on my own where I lived before. Where I am now, I don't have gas bottles etc. have a small galley kitchen with microwave, 1 electric element and an emergency very small gas single plate burner. Hence, easier for me to have the boys upstairs make it on the gas. I didn't want gas in my small kitchen because it generates too much heat.

Alohaguy

"I'd sit in the kitchen around the fire keeping warm with the honourable manager and my friend sono who was kind of like a tout who would wait at the bus stop and try to entice new arrivals to the hotel They were really sound guys and one of the things that was especially good was siting there chatting smoking a charas doobie waiting for my rice/curry chipatis to cook."

If I may be a smart alec and say Are you sure it was Dahl and not the Charas Doobie that made it so delicious?

scotsman

hi!

aloha you are correct! the charas munchies were in full force most of those nights

Aisha thanks for the tips they really made the dish... I left the house without writing the ingredients and forgot to add the asafoetida (hing), cumin seeds and cloves... I had some cloves in my mums house but I didnt like the smell of them much so didnt add them, you now jog my memory they added cumin seeds to the dish in dalhousie I'm sure of it they are very little small seeds am I right? anyway back to my masterpiece I fried 2 onions in some oil for 5-10 mins till very soft but not brown, then chopped up 4 tomatoes into smaller pieces and added these, at the same time adding more oil, this then turned a bit mushie and the tomatoes were very soft and it was a delicious smell and colour. my mum had a spice cupboard and there were lots of different spices but not all indian!

I added a little bit of cumin, coriander (ground up in a spice bottle) some fresh red chillies my mum also had but not as hot as indian ones, some very hot red chilli powder just a sprinkle... the main spice I added was Garam Masala! I smell all the indian spices my mum had and decided this one smelt the tastiest so added mostly this one, my mum told me it is a mild spice... oh yes and not to forget a big squeeze of garlic paste, i might have added 1 more spice but cant remember now... I then added a little bit more oil it smelled amazing

Then I added about 1 litre maybe a little more of water and lots and lots of orange coloured pre-cooked dahl! I remember the tip of leaving them for half hour before cooking which I did and they were 4 times as big as before i put them in water at first. I then cooked the dahl for 15 minutes boil only as by this time it was very well cooked my auntie agreed. I left it to sit in a sieve over the sink draining before I started to cook the other part (onions tomatoes etc)

I boiled the water before putting it in the onion/tomatoe/garlic/spice mix I explain at the first part of this post, and added the cooked orange colour dahl almost immediately. It was like watery curry at this point but then after about 10 minutes was very creamy and smelled delicious!!

My 2 sisters were back from uni also to see my gran and auntie and I did not realise they would be back, keri is a vegetarian and she kept coming over asking when it is ready it smell was so nice

I cooked some basmati rice and when that was ready me and my 2 sisters had it and about 3/4 was all eaten up! they commented it was very tasty

This was about 2 oclock

my mum, dad, auntie and grandma did not want any at this point as my mum had already cooked beef caserole (sorry, cow not so sacred here) and didnt want to waste it...

Then they took my sisters to the train station for the train as it was sunday and tomorrow they have lectures at uni (now today)

We were away for a long time (long story, train cancellations due to a strike from railway workers) and had to take 1 sister 30 min drive away to get a bus then drive back, and drop my little sister off at her friends house. My mum phoned home to my auntie and grandma and said we will be late so help yourselfe to anything you like to eat because we will not be back for dinnertime.

Then.. we get home and there is still 1/4 of curry left I was just about to eat it then my mum said "no, no no no ive not had any yet" and my dad also wanted it too. I was proud that my first attempt at curry people seemed to like, so I of course said have it, "i dont want it anyway I had it for lunch" (which was a lie I really wanted it) but I very much enjoying people eating my thali

They both commented it was very nice and said I must make it again! for a first attempt it was very successful thanks to you're tips aishah if you did not mention the garlic and pre cook dahl it would not have tasted so good! thank you very much!

I will try it with hing and cumin SEEDS (i used powder) next time. It tasted nearly like the ones I had in India but in my opinion Indian one was a little bit better, but everyone enjoyed it very much and considering it was a big amount for 5 people it was all eaten! so I am pleased with my first attempt.

thanks for the tips they definitely made a difference

Aishah

Congratulations, Scotsman! You made a masterpiece - and one spice I left out I think - coriander! This is essential and great you added it. You can put a lot of dried coriander - heaped dessertspoon if you want - because it is very mild and subtle. Did Grandma get a bit?

mmmmmjenny

Wow, this sounds so yummy!

scotsman

Sorry for neglecting this! I keep forgetting about it when im on the computer then when i make something to eat I was thinkin about my thali!

My second one I made was not quite the right spices, I added goan spice mix, tandoori curry powder, garam masala, lil bit of cumin powder, hot chilli powder, and another spice mix along with the coriander powder...

I also added a bit too much water but everyone still enjoyed it! I enjoyed it too it was just not quite right, not as good as my first one.

I think the key is more dahl/less water = thicker consistency. Grandma didnt have any.. she didnt want it she not a curry fan I did ask her a few times if she would like a small helping but nooooo. everyone else liked it though.. Including me I love these indian healthy curries.

Aishaha what raw spices do u reccomend I buy to make this a tastier curry? I am sure they didnt use ready mixes spices in india they would never go to those skimpy lengths, very unprofessional culinary wise... It would be better I think if I went and bought the raw spice and added to taste to make my own spice mix and make it more like my first masterpiece and its cheating adding ready mixed spices isnt it?

hope u been enjoying the indian warm weather, its freezing in Scotland now, winter. No sun only clouds rain and cold

namaste