Indian Cuisine!!

Some of my favorite twitter friends and I occasionally get together and cook up an Indian dinner together on twitter.  Margaret of Scones4me, Nancy of The Dogs Eat the Crumbs, Kayte of Grandma's Kitchen Table, and Rebecca "Hobknob", and also Abby of Mixitbakeit.  A fun group for sure!

We decided on Authentic South Indian Biryani with Indian Cucumber Salad.  I'm not a lover of curry and fortunately for me this one did not include any.  It was easy to prepare and so delicious.  I especially loved the fresh mint in both dishes.  I also made some Kashmir Spinach to go with (I won't be making this again though hubs liked it).  On the side, we had delicious naan bread.  I could eat naan bread every day!

Here are the recipes so you can try them yourself!  Really good.  I cannot wait to eat the leftovers for my lunch today.  Let me know if you try it!!

Authentic South Indian Biryani

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pod cardamom
• 1 clove
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 medium onions, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• chili powder to taste
• 1 1/2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 16 ounces plain yogurt
• 3 tablespoons water
• lemon juice, to taste
• 3 cups white rice
• 1 teaspoon butter
• salt to taste
• 1 bunch fresh mint, chopped
• 1 bunch chopped cilantro

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Heat oil in a large oven-proof pot over medium heat. Add cardamom, clove, and cinnamon stick. Stir in chopped onions, and fry until golden brown. Stir in garlic and ginger. Stir in chicken pieces, and fry about 3 minutes. Stir in chili powder, and cook several minutes. Stir in tomatoes, and cook about 5 minutes. Mix yogurt with 3 tablespoons water and lemon juice; stir into sauce.
3. Cover pot, and bake in a preheated oven until the sauce is somewhat thickened and concentrated, about 15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook rice in enough salted water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook until it is half cooked, about 7 minutes. Drain rice, and stir into chicken and sauce. Stir in butter, season to taste with salt, cover pot, and bake 1 hour. Stir in mint and cilantro immediately before serving.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 860 | Total Fat: 14.1g | Cholesterol: 75mg

Indian Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:

Servings:

  4   4

4-6

Units: US | Metric

• 3 medium cucumbers
• 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon sugar, to taste
• 1/2-1 teaspoon ground cumin, to taste
• 1/2-1 tablespoon chopped mint

Directions:

1. 1
   Peel cucumbers; slice in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Dice the cucumbers and place in a bowl.
2. 2
   Whisk together yogurt, lemon juice, sugar, cumin and mint.
3. 3
   Pour over cucumbers and toss to coat.