Schezwan Matar Chaat ( A Crazy Indo-Chinese Fusion experiment )

Stick to a desi palate ? Or try some Chinese 'chatka' for a change (does not matter even if it is for the 500th time). One of the perennial dilemmas that I face everytime I venture out for some street food is to make up my mind. Walking down one of those lanes is sheer torture for me with the tongue tickling panipuris, chaats, pav-bhajis and dahi vadas trying to lure me with their tantalizing appearance even as the sinful aromas drifting from a nearby Chinese stall has my mind in the throes of what can only be described as a 'culinary orgasm'. Often I end up ordering both. Only to regret wasting food. That is if I am lucky enough to escape the obligatory tummy-ache.

It was during yet another bout of such a dilemma on an idle winter afternoon that I thought of marrying two of my all time favorites so that I could enjoy both at the same time. "Only an idle brain can come up with something so insane ", retorted the husband as he promptly dismissed the idea. "Hah ! Wait till I execute my idea. You will be asking for seconds", replied back the incensed rebel (aka me). Though the first trial did not go as well as I had expected, a little bit of perseverance paid off. It was no longer a toss between the two. Instead I had the perfect amalgamation of two of my favorite street foods.

A simple ragda chaat is infused with the flavors of Schezwan egg noodles. Minus the noodles bit of course. Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 30 mins

Ingredients - 

• 1 cup yellow peas (soaked overnight)
• 2 eggs
• 1 medium sized potato
• 1 large capsicum
• 1 small carrot 
• 1/2 cup finely sliced onions
• 1/2 cup finely sliced cabbage
• 5-6 finely chopped garlic cloves
• chopped green chillis 
• 3-4 tsp Schezwan sauce
• 3 tbsp tomato sauce
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 3 tsp oil
• 2 pinch garam masala
• a pinch of turmeric
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt to taste
• cilantro for garnishing
• fried papad for garnishing 

Preparation - Wash and cook the yellow peas with 2 cups water, the potato, turmeric and salt to taste. Remove from flame after 2-3 whistles. The peas should be thoroughly cooked without turning mushy.

Drain the excess water. Peel the potato, roughly mash it up and add it to the cooked peas.

Cut the capsicum and carrot into long slices.

Cooking - Heat a wok. Add 2 tsp oil.

Add the finely chopped garlic and green chilis. Once the garlic is fragrant, add all the veggies and saute on high for 2-3 minutes so that they do not lose their crispiness. 

Add the sugar, schezwan sauce, soy sauce, tomato sauce and vinegar. Toss for 1 minute.

Add the boiled peas and potato along with a generous sprinkle of water. Adjust the salt.

Cook for 2-3 mins. Sprinkle garam masala and mix in. (If it looks too dry at this point, sprinkle some more water. The yellow peas tend to absorb a lot of water)

Around the same time, scramble the eggs in another skillet.

Transfer the schezwan chaat to the serving bowls/plates. Top with the scrambled eggs, sliced onions, more green chili (optional), crushed papad and cilantro.

Serve immediately.

Paneer - Mushroom Schezwan

This is an easy and quick vegetarian side dish that I prepared sometime back. Somehow I never got around to posting it. But this week I am not doing much cooking and so while looking to post some recipe this one popped up from the drafts. This one suits my lazy mood perfectly as it requires very less cooking time. It is the cleaning and chopping of the veggies and mushroom that takes the major chunk so if you buy some chopped veggies one can actually get this ready in less that 10 minutes.

The veggies, panner and mushroom make it one nutrition packed dish and with all those lovely colors even the kids find it difficult to resist. One can also add assorted peppers for making it more appetizing. But make sure that you cook the veggies till a little tender (for kids) as opposed to leaving it quite crunchy while serving it to guests. Also go easy on the schezwan sauce in case of the former. Read on for the recipe:

Ingredients:
For marinate : Button mushrooms ( 200 gm), Paneer cubes ( 200 gm), Capsicum ( 1 medium ), carrot ( 1 medium), french beans ( 10-12 nos ), onion ( 1 medium ), spring onions whites ( 3 tbsp, cut into strips), schezwan sauce ( 2-3 tsp), soya sauce ( 1/2 tsp ), finely cut garlic ( 1 tsp ), pepper powder ( 1/4 tsp), salt, tomato sauce ( 1 tsp ), cornflour ( 1 tsp), sugar ( 1/2 - 1 tsp ), oil ( 3 tsp ), spring onion greens for the garnishing.

Preparation: Clean the mushrooms and cut each into 4 parts. Blanch and keep aside. ( Put in hot water for
2 mins, remove and run under cold water.

Put the panner pieces in boiling water (salted) for 2 mins. Drain and keep aside.

Cut the capsicum, carrot, french beans and onion into long strips.

Take the schezwan sauce, soya sauce, pepper powder, tomato sauce, cornflour and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add 2-3 tbsp water along with a little salt. Mix well.

Cooking: Heat the oil in a frying pan.

Add garlic pieces and fry for 5-10 seconds.

Add the onions first and fry till till translucent. Next add spring onion whites, french beans and carrots. Fry for 1-2 mins on medium to high flame.

Next add the mushroom and peppers and fry for 3 minutes on a HIGH flame.

Add the contents of the mixing bowl, stir well and fry the veggies for 1-2 minutes on medium flame.

Finally add the paneer and fry for another one minute or so. (Fry less if you want a little amount of sauce to remain but if you prefer it completely dry increase the flame and cook for 1-2 minutes longer)

Garnish with finely chopped spring onion greens. Serve hot with rice or as a starter. ( If using as starter, cut the mushrooms into 2 instead of 4 halves, and keep it a little crunchy )

Schezwan Sauce

Another recipe to help you manage your household budget (By cutting down on eating out!!).

Instead of hopping over to your nearest Chinese eatery or ordering some to be delivered at your doorstep, whip up your favorite recipes at home. With a homemade batch of Schezwan sauce, the possibilities are quite endless. Plus the feel-good factor at avoiding most of the preservatives found in the store bought one. (If you are still feeling lazy, opt for the Ching's brand of Noodles and mixes. They are good value for money.)

Preparation Time - 10-12 mins

Ingredients - 2 inch long ginger, 10-12 garlic flakes, 10-12 dry red chillis, 1 tsp peppercorn, 1 tsp vinegar, 1 tsp light soy sauce, 1 tsp tomato sauce, 1 tsp sugar, salt to taste, 3 tsp oil.

Preparation - Soak the red chillis in water for 2 hours. Grind into a smooth paste with 1-2 tbsp water. (Remember to remove the seeds before soaking the chillis. They can make the sauce really hot.)

Chop the ginger and garlic into really small pieces. Grind the peppercorns.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a wok. Add the chopped ginger and garlic. Fry for 2-3 minutes till light brown.
Add the chilli paste and fry for 3 minutes.

Now add all the remaining ingredients. Fry till the sauce reduces to required consistency (about 3-4 mins).

Allow to cool down before storing in a airtight container. Use as required.

Note - Stays fresh up to a fortnight in the fridge. (It will last a month I think but mine gets used up real fast.)