Discovering culinary delights

The cookbook 'Redefining Comfort Food with Chef Amit Puri' is a compilation of more than 100 recipes inspired from his travels. Chef Amit Puri is a renowned F&B consultant and a Chef. He says, "The cookbook is a tribute to my culinary journey, my learning from family, friends, places I have visited, my fearless spirit of experimenting and more so, to the great chefs and colleagues I have been associated with. Inside is a testament of what I have discovered along the way and have practiced as a chef, inspired by cuisines, techniques, kitchens and people."

Rich and Royal Koftas in Tomato Curry

This is an extremely simple yet flavour packed raw banana kofta curry, served along with a very rustic tomato curry. I've stuffed the koftas with chopped mixed nuts, which not only add texture but also nuttiness and a hint of natural sweetness from the cranberries and figs.

Ingredients

For the gravy

2 tablespoons refined oil

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 black cardamom

1 inch cinnamon

1 star anise

1 bay leaf

½ tablespoon fennel, crushed

1 dry red chilli, stem removed

1 teaspoon asafoetida

1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste

2 slit green chillies

1 ½ cup onion, chopped

1 ½ cup tomato, chopped

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon red chilli powder

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 tablespoon salt

Water as needed

¼ cup cream

For stuffed koftas

5 cashew nuts, chopped

5 almonds, chopped

5 pistachios, chopped

10 cranberries, chopped

2 dried figs, chopped

Pinch of salt

2 raw banana, boiled and grated

1 potato, boiled and grated

1 green chilli, chopped

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 teaspoon chaat masala

2 tablespoons coriander, chopped

Slurry

1 cup bread crumbs

Oil for frying

Method

For the gravy

Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds, allow it to splutter. Add in the whole garam masalas, fennel anddry red chillies and stir.

Add asafoetida, ginger garlic paste and green chillies, sauté for few seconds.

Add onion and cook till brown. Add tomatoes and cook till mushy.

Add the dry masala powders and cook for few minutes.

Season with salt and cook. Add in water to adjust the consistency of the gravy and simmer it for about 10 minutes.

Finish with cream and simmer for 5 minutes.

To make the kofta

Mix together all the dry fruits and nuts in a bowl.

In another bowl, mix in the raw banana, potatoes, chillies, cumin powder, chaat masala and coriander.

Divide the mixture in equal parts and shape them into bite size balls.

Using your thumb, make a depression in the ball and fill 1 teaspoon of dry fruit filling in it.

Seal it well and drop them in slurry before rolling them in bread crumbs. Shallow fry and transfer on an oil absorbent sheet.

Pour the gravy in a bowl and place the fried kofta on top. Drizzle some cream and serve hot.

Chena Poda Lassi

Ingredients

For Lassi

3 cups yogurt

3 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon rose water

4 tablespoons chenna poda, crumbled

For rabdi

500 ml full fat milk

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Garnish

Dry fruits

Method

To make the lassi

Whisk yogurt, sugar and rose water in a large bowl until the sugar dissolves.

Add chenna poda and refrigerate.

For rabdi

Heat milk in a heavy bottom pan and cook stirring continuously on a medium low flame until it reduces and thickens.

Add in the sugar and stir. Transfer into a bowl and refrigerate.

To serve, fill 80% of a serving glass with chenna poda lassi and top it up with rabri.

Garnish with toasted and crushed dry fruits.

Harissa Paneer Satay

Paneer is an important part of Indian starters especially if you are a vegetarian. However, it's extremely versatile and can be reinvented in several ways. Harissa is a North African chilli paste which is available in two versions, the red and the green paste. In this recipe, I have used green harissa paste, which is similar to spicy green chutney and brings out a strong flavour when marinated with paneer. Therefore, the next time you want to treat your guests to some paneer, ditch the mundane tikkas and try out some harissa.

Ingredients

For green harissa paste

1 bunch of fresh coriander leaves

5 tablespoons chopped parsley

3 green chillies

5 pickled jalapenos

5 bulbs of garlic

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 teaspoon coriander powder

Juice of 3 limes

1 teaspoon crushed black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

To assemble and finish

4 tablespoons oil

10 satay sticks

500 gms of soft paneer

For the tamarind peanut dip

5 tablespoons of chunky peanut butter

1 teaspoon red chilli powder

4 tablespoons jaggery

3 tablespoons tamarind pulp

1 stalk lemongrass, lightly beaten

1 medium sized kaffir lime leaf

Juice of 1 lime

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon fish sauce (optional)

1 cup water

Method

Tamarind peanut dip

Plonk all ingredients into a heavy bottom pan and whisk it to bring it all together.

Bring the liquid to a vigorous boil, stirring continuously and then allow to cook uncovered on a gentle simmer for about 5 minutes or till the liquid has reached a nice saucy consistency.

Discard the lime leaf and lemon grass once the sauce is ready.

The sauce can be consumed either hot or cold.

To process the paste

Wash the coriander leaves and parsley under running cold water and pat dry with a kitchen towel.

Place all ingredients in a blender and blitz to a coarse paste. Add a teaspoon of water to get the grinding going.

To assemble

Cut the paneer into thick long batons and marinate with the paste. Refrigerate for at least 30 mins.

Skewer the marinated paneer with wooden satay sticks and grill on a medium hot pan with a little oil. Turn the paneer at intervals to grill all sides evenly.

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and fresh coriander.

Serve the tamarind peanut dip on the side.