OK, full disclosure, I use these croquettes as a way to sneak in vegetables into my diet that my family and I don’t like to eat. So yeah, this recipe came into being out of NECESSITY more than anything else!

I cooked up these croquettes right after my chicken and vegetable kebabs went viral on IG. And well, they are here to stay, my friend! Pss.. You can also load veggies in your nuggets, just btw (I do that in my chili parm nuggets too)

Ingredients

Don’t get overwhelmed with the list. I promise you these are simply things you probably already have in your pantry.

• Vegetables – I use this recipe as an excuse to eat all the veggies that I generally don’t like on their own. So broccoli and cauliflower are always part of the mix. Feel free to use any hard vegetables of your choice. Customise as you want!
• Potatoes – All croquettes need a potato base. I’ve used regular white potatoes PLUS a sweet potato to up the nutrition.
• Shredded Chicken – For the shredded chicken in this recipe, you can use any leftover rotisserie chicken from last night. Or, you can boil some with the potatoes.
• Coating – Like all croquettes, this one also needs a crumb coat. You’ll need flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs. I also add sesame seeds for extra crunch and nutrition.
• Cheese – Use any fresh high-protein cheese of your choice. I went with cottage cheese. You can use Feta, cream cheese, or mascarpone. Just adjust the salt level if using salted cheeses.
• Seasonings – Apart from salt and pepper, I use homemade dahi bara masala for this recipe, which you can buy from the store or use chilli flakes, roasted cumin seeds, and coriander seeds instead.
• Binder – I use breadcrumbs in the croquette base to give it binding.
• Other – For taste, I also add cilantro leaves, garlic, and onions

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Instructions

Let me show you a simple step-by-step pictorial for this recipe.

Step 1: Boil potatoes and chicken together or separately with garlic, salt, and pepper.

Step 2: Peel the potatoes and add them to a large bowl.

Step 3: Mash the potatoes.

Step 4: Use a food processor to chop all the listed vegetables and herbs. Keep it as fine or as chunky as you like.

Step 5: Add all the chopped vegetables to the mashed potatoes.

Step 6: Shred chicken in the food processor and add it to the mashed potatoes.

PROTIP: Use the food processor to shred the chicken instead of doing it manually to save time and effort.

Step 7: Add in your cheese. (feta, cottage, ricotta, or any of your choice)

Step 8: Add in all the seasonings.

Step 9: Combine everything with your hands to make a uniform croquette mix.

Step 10: Take a tablespoon of the mixture and shape it in one of your preferred ways.

Step 11: Coat the croquettes in flour, then eggs, and lastly, breadcrumbs.

Step 12: Fry at medium flame in oil until crispy and golden brown in color.

Please note: Purple Cabbage bleeds in the kebabs and turns them slightly pink. I didn’t have a problem with that, so I went ahead and used it. If you think your kids or family may have issues, best to avoid them altogether.

Serving Suggestions

Serve hot with your favorite sauces on the side. I like to pair mine with garlic mayo or hot honey ranch (both recipes in my E-book)

Here are some more fun ways to use your croquettes and turn them into a meal:

• Eat with yellow rice and yogurt
• Serve with dal chawal (rice and lentils)
• Make wraps out of it with mayo and veggies
• Use for paratha rolls.

Variations and Substitutions

This recipe is generally on the spicy end ( my brown folks can ignore this comment). Here are some variations for you to try

• Nuts and seeds – I add sesame seeds with the bread crumbs to up the nutritional value, but feel free to add some chopped nuts or seeds of your choice into the croquette mix as well.
• Meats – Make this recipe with shredded beef, mutton, or lamb.
• Heat – I’d categorize this recipe as spicy for a non-brown person, so feel free to reduce the heat a bit if you like.
• Coating – Try using cornflakes instead of bread crumbs for an extra crunch.
• Spring rolls – You can use this croquette mix as a filling for puff pastry, spring rolls, or samosas.
• Potatoes – I’ve used a combination of white and sweet potatoes for this recipe. You can use just one variety as well.
• Binder – I use breadcrumbs to counter the added moisture in the croquettes. You can use cornstarch, oatmeal, or tapioca flour, too, as a substitute.

Storage

The croquette mix can last in the fridge for about a day or two. So you can make the mix a day before and roll it and coat it the next day in front of the TV or something.

Freeze the croquettes in an airtight box. To freeze in a ziplock bag, make sure you freeze the croquettes individually first. They can last for upto 2 months in the freezer.

Expert Tips

• I used whatever vegetables I had in the fridge. Please note
• Use parchment paper in the tray that you freeze your kebabs in to avoid them getting stuck to the pan
• This is a great recipe for “clean-your-fridge” day.
• Freeze the croquettes individually in an open tray. Once they harden, add them to ziplock bags to avoid them getting stuck to each other.
• Purple cabbage leaves tend to turn the croquettes pink (avoid it if you don’t want that)

Frequently Asked Questions

More Nutritious Deliciousness

Here are some more potato-chicken-veggie mash-ups that have the ability to be full meals!

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!

Print

Chicken Vegetable Croquettes

They are high on protein, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Freezer-friendly, customizable, and perfect as a snack, appetizer, or side dish with rice

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Fusion Food, International

Diet Halal

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 30 servings

Calories 80kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

Croquette Mix

• 3 medium potato 300 gm
• 1 medium sweet potato 150 gm
• 300 gm chicken breast
• 1 whole garlic peeled and cloves seperated.
• 2 1/2 cup chopped vegetables of your choice (see notes)
• 1 medium onion
• 1 cup cottage cheese 200 gms
• 1/3 cup bread crumbs 1 slice
• 2 tablespoon dahi bara masala
• 1 tablespoon salt or to taste
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
• 1 small bunch of coriander

Coating

• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup sesame seeds optional
• Oil for frying

Instructions

• Boil chicken and potatoes in water along with a teaspoon of salt and 5 garlic cloves. See notes.
• Peel the boiled potatoes and add them to a large bowl. Mash them until smooth.
• Shred the chicken in the food processor and add it to the potato bowl.
• Use a food processor to chop all the listed vegetables and herbs. Keep it as fine or as chunky as you like. Add them to the potato bowl.
• Add the rest of the ingredients for the croquette mix. This is the best stage to do a taste test and adjust seasonings.
• Knead the croquette mix into a dough. Take a tablespoon of the dough and shape it with your hands into a cigar, a ball or a patty.
• Place all the shaped croquettes on a tray, ideally lined with parchment paper.
• Prepare 3 shallow plates, one with the flour, one with the eggs beaten and one with the breadcrumbs mixed with sesame seeds.
• Roll the croquettes first into the flour, then dip them in the beaten egg and finally roll them through the breadcrumbs and sesame seed mix, making sure they are completely covered. Place them on a plate or tray until ready to fry. You could also put them in the freezer directly at this point if you wish to fry them later.
• Add any neutral oil to a pot so that it’s at least a couple inches deep and heat it over medium high heat. Fry the croquettes in oil for 3 to 4 minutes, or until golden brown on all sides.
• To airfry, put the croquettes in an air fryer sprayed with oil and bake for 375°F-400°F (190°C-200°C) for 10-15 minutes until golden brown, flipping them halfway through if needed.
• Serve with your favorite chutney or sauces.

Notes

• Use leftover shredded chicken if you have any instead of boiling more.
• You can use just one type of potato for this recipe as well.
• Use any vegetables you have at hand. For this recipe, I prefer carrots, cabbage, bell peppers, cauliflower, and broccoli. 
• Use cornstarch or oatmeal instead of breadcrumbs in the croquette mixture if you need a substitute. 
• The croquettes last for upto 3 months in the freezer.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 80kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.001g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 310mg | Potassium: 100mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1082IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 36mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Crispy Chicken Vegetable Croquettes appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

So me and my husband have phases where we go from total health nuts to absolute Junk food addicts. Lately, we’ve found a balance where we try to have at least one nutritional meal a day (minus holidays ofcourse). These kebabs or kabobs are my go to for most of those meals.

I loveeeee recipes that freeze. These kebabs work beautifully when frozen, just like my chicken cheddar kababs or the delicious Asian Meatballs. You save time and meal prep at the same time.

Bonus: These kabobs or kababs are super versatile. Go in with whatever veggies you like and pair it with literally anything you want! (more ideas laters)

Ingredients

Here are a couple of pointers and notes about the ingredients.

• Ground chicken – There is no restriction as to what part of the chicken you need for this recipe. You can buy boneless chicken and process it at home or buy pre-ground chicken. Everything works.
• Spices and Seasoning – The spices are a little heavy in this recipe simply to season all the bland veggies and oats. There is black and white pepper, cumin, crush red chili, garlic, and ginger.
• Vegetables – Here’s the fun part. This recipe has no prerequisite of which veggies you need. Use this as an opportunity to clean your fridge. I went with carrots, onion, bellpepper, and coriander (as the herb)
• Binding – These kabobs have a higher moisture content which makes managing them a little tricky. Adding eggs and bread crumbs helps with that and gives a nice subtle flavor.
• Oats – I love adding oats to this recipe for the added nutrition boost. They don’t alter the taste but you’ll require a little more salt. Its optional either ways.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Method

You literally have to just mix all the ingredients and let it rest for 5 to 10 mins! That’s all there is to preparing these kebabs! Here’s a pictorial I made for you.

Step 1: Put all the assorted vegetables and herbs in a food processor.

Step 2: Process the vegetables until finely chopped.

Step 3: In a bowl add the vegetables, chicken mince, egg, spices, oats and bread crumbs.

Step 4: Mix everything thoroughly to make a uniform kabab mixture. Allow it to rest for 5 to 10 minutes on the counter.

Step 5: Use a tablespoon to portion out kababs onto a plate.

Step 6: Grease your hands with oil and flatten the kabobs in the palms of your hand and press into patties.

Step 7: Directly put the patties onto a hot grill pan greased with oil.

Step 8: Grill for 3 minutes on each side until you get golden brown edges.

Expert Tips

• Always do a taste test before grilling up all the kebabs. Make a small bite sized kebab and grill it. Adjust seasoning and spices accordingly.
• Tomatoes tend to become mushy in a chopper, hence avoid putting them in. Instead, opt for chopping them by a knife. 
• Resting the kababs for 5 to 10 minutes gives the bread crumbs enough time to absorb moisture. Do not skip this step! You can leave it for longer in the fridge if you aren’t planning to make the kababs right away.

Pairing Suggestions

• Make burgers out of them!
• Pair it with good ‘ol Daal chawal (lentil and rice)
• Make wraps or rolls out of it with sauce of your liking.
• Serve with pulao rice and yogurt.
• Have it with a side salad to keep it low-carb.

Frequently Asked Question

I shared this recipe back in ’23 for the first time on IG and tiktok. Here are a couple of questions some of you had.

More Low-Carb Nutritious recipes

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!

Print

Chicken Vegetable Kebabs

These are low-carb kebabs, made with chicken, aromatic Pakistani spices, oats and vegetables. Nutrient dense and packed with flavor. Grill on a pan or freeze in a bag.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Diet Halal

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Additional Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 24 kebabs

Calories 60kcal

Author Wajiha

Equipment

• 1 chopper

Ingredients

• 400 gm chicken mince
• 2 tbsp rolled oats
• 2 tbsp bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
• 1 tsp cumin seeds or zeera
• 2 tsp crushed red chilli
• 1 tsp salt or to taste
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 whole bell pepper chopped
• 1 big onion chopped
• 1 medium carrot chopped
• 1 handful coriander leaves
• 1 or 2 stalks green onions
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 inch piece of ginger
• 1 large egg
• Oil for frying

Instructions

• Start by adding carrot, bell pepper, onion, garlic, ginger in a chopper and chop coarsely.
• In a bowl, add minced chicken, oats, chopped vegetables, spices, seasonings, egg and bread crumbs.
• Mix all the ingredients and cover it. Leave it for 5 to 10 minutes.
• Drop heaped tablespoons of the mixture onto plate or a tray to make patty portions.
• Heat up the grill pan at medium heat with oil in it.
• Grease the palms of your hands with oil and use it to flatten the kabab portions into flat patties.
• Drop the kebab patties in the grill pan. Grill for 3 minutes and flip. Grill until golden and remove.
• Serve hot with chutney or sliders on the side.

Notes

• Always do a taste test before grilling up all the kebabs. Make a small bite sized kebab and grill it. Adjust seasoning and spices accordinly.
• Tomatoes tend to become mushy in a chopper, hence avoid putting them in. Instead, opt for chopping them by a knife. 
• Resting the kababs for 5 to 10 minutes gived the bread crumbs enough time to absorb moisture. Do not skip this step! You can leave it for longer in the fridge if you aren’t planning to make the kababs right away.
• To freeze the kababs, grill the kebabs like you normally would, but only for a minute on each side before the kebab starts to get its characteristic golden brown edges. This half-cooked method will seal the juices in the patties. Allow them to cool down, pop them in a ziplock bag, and freeze. Whenever you want to eat them, simply thaw them in the microwave for 30 seconds and grill as usual.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servings | Calories: 60kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 116mg | Potassium: 99mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 65IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.3mg

The post Chicken Vegetable Kebabs appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

‘Imli’ or Tamarind is a super sour flavoring ingredient. This recipe uses a LOT of it and balances that sourness out with some heat from spices and sweetness from dates (or other sweeteners). The overall hit of flavor is definitely sweet and tangy with a bit of heat in there.

No Pakistani/Indian Chaat is complete without imli chutney, oh and neither is the ever-so-popular dahi bhalley (or baray). It can last for months in the fridge and more so in the freezer!

Ingredients/Substitutes

Here are a couple of pointers and notes about the ingredients.

• Tamarind (Imli)-
  This is the main ingredient of the chutney and therefore a must. The most easily available tamarind is in these 3 forms:
  • Tamarind block with seeds
  • Tamarind block without seeds
  • Tamarind Paste
    The paste is a ready-to-use option where no real cooking is needed. While the block tamarind takes a little bit of time to extract the tamarind concentrate. I’ve mentioned how to use both in the recipe
• Sweetener – The sweetness comes from the dates in this recipe. It adds a layer of flavor depth that regular sugar does not. I used organic date syrup available at my local grocery store. But worry not, if you can’t get your hands on that, get date paste instead OR make your paste at home with whole dates. However, dates aren’t compulsory to use in the recipe. Use any sweetener of your liking:
  • Regular white sugar
  • Brown sugar or molasses
  • Coconut sugar
  • Artificial sweeteners like stevia
  • Honey
  • A combination of these sweeteners.
• Salt, spices – The flavoring in this recipe comes from roasted cumin, coriander, and red chilies. Also known as the DAHI BARA spice mix. You can make your own spice mix or buy a boxed dahi bara spice blend at your local Asian grocery store.
• Optional Ingredients – Asafoetida (hing) and dry ginger powder (saunth) are also 2 commonly used ingredients in tamarind chutney. Add a pinch of Asafoetida and 1/2 tsp of ginger powder to add another layer of flavor.

NOTE: Asafoetida has a very strong aroma and taste, so if you’ve never tried it or added it to your food, it’s best to avoid it with this chutney.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Step-by-Step Instructions

I’ve put together all the steps in a simple pictorial for you to see how easy this is to make.

You can skip steps 1- 4 if you are using ready-to-use tamarind paste for this recipe.

STEP 1: Place a colander in a heat-proof bowl and put tamarind blocks inside the colander.

STEP 2: Pour boiling water at least 2 cups or enough to soak the entire block completely. Set aside for 10 minutes.

STEP 3: Use a spoon or fork to break the block of tamarind into little pieces.

STEP 4: Add 1 cup of cold water to reduce the temperature. Now use your hands to squeeze all the chunks of tamarind to release all the tamarind juices from the seeds etc. Pick up the colander and allow all the tamarind juice to strain into the bowl

IMPORTANT: Always test the water temperature first before dipping your hands into it to squeeze out the juices from the tamarind block. You can also repeat step 4 as much as you like if you feel there is more tamarind juice to be extracted, all your water will cook down eventually.

STEP 5: Transfer the liquid into a pot and add all the seasonings.

STEP 6: Boil the tamarind juice at medium flame for 20 minutes.

STEP 7: Allow the liquid to reduce to half of its original volume.

STEP 8: Add date syrup/date paste/ or any sweetener you prefer. Simmer the chutney for 10 minutes at medium-low heat.

STEP 9: Allow the chutney to cool down uncovered.

STEP 10: Your chutney will thicken as it cools down, transfer to airtight jars.

Allow your chutney to cool down and store them in airtight glass jars in the fridge. Go ahead and enjoy it as you like!

Expert Tips

• Always use a glass jar to store condiments.
• Make sure your jar or storage bags are dry before pouring your chutney in it.
• Don’t overcook the chutney to get a thicker consistency. You may end up burning it. Instead, let the chutney air dry while it cools. It’ll thicken up considerably.
• Always use a clean dry spoon whenever using the chutney from the fridge.
• The chutney tends to boil like rice does, so make sure your chutney water only reaches up to 3 quarters of your saucepan and there is enough room for the chutney to rise while it boils.

Frequently Asked Questions

Serving Suggestions

Like I said, this imli ki chutney works as a topping sauce or a dipping sauce with a LOT of snacks and mains. Here are some ideas:

• On dahi bara (fried lentil fritters in yogurt)
• With mix chaats like Papri Chaat (mix chickpea, veggies and yogurt)
• Perfect to pair with bbqs like chicken tikka etc
• Use as the sweet chutney for pani puris
• I would totally give this as favor to my non-desi folks to try it out.
• On paratha rolls, sandwiches, or wraps.
• With Indian/Pakistani fried snacks like pakoras, kachori samosas, etc.

Similar Recipes for you to try.

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!

Print

Sweet Tamarind Chutney

A classic sweet and tangy chutney made with tamarind and dates.

Course Dips & Condiments

Cuisine South Asian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 3 cups

Calories 287kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

• 1½ cup date syrup see notes for substitutes.
• 1 tsp salt or to taste see notes
• 2 tbsp Dahi bara spice mix Homemade or bought
• 1 tsp crushed red chili flakes
• 1 tsp chat masala powder see notes

Tamarind- Use only ONE of these three options

• 300 gm tamarind pulp block with seeds
• 200 gm tamarind pulp block without seeds
• 100 gm tamarind paste unflavoured

Instructions

Tamarind Chutney using Tamarind blocks

• Place a colander in a heat-proof bowl and put tamarind blocks inside the colander. Now, pour boiling water at least 2 cups or enough to soak the entire block completely. Set aside for 10 minutes.
• Use a spoon or fork to break the block of tamarind into little pieces. Add another 1 cup of cold water to bring down the water temperature. Now use your hands to squeeze all the chunks of tamarind to release all the tamarind juices from the seeds etc. Test the water temperature first before dipping your fingers into it. Don't worry about how much water you are using, we'll cook it down eventually.
• Pick up the colander and allow all the tamarind juice to strain into the bowl. Transfer the tamarind juice to a cooking pot. You can repeat the previous step if you think there is more juice to be extracted.
• Add all the seasoning (minus the date syrup) and boil the tamarind juices at medium flame for 20 minutes. Your tamarind juice should be reduced to half its original quantity.
• Now add date syrup, date paste or any other sweetener you prefer. Let the chutney simmer for another 10 minutes at medium-low heat.
• Turn off the heat and do a taste test to check salt, heat and sweetness. Adjust salt according to your liking.
• Allow the chutney to cool down uncovered. It'll thicken a bit more as it cools. Transfer into waterproof jars and store in the fridge.

Tamarind Chutney using tamarind paste

• Add all the ingredients in a cooking pot with 4 cups of water. Boil at medium high flame for 5 minutes.
• Turn off heat and do a taste test to check salt, heat, and sweetness. Adjust salt according to your liking.
• Allow the chutney to cool down uncovered. It'll thicken a bit more as it cools. Transfer into waterproof jars and store in the fridge.

Notes

DATE SYRUP ALTERNATES

1. Make your own date paste at home by soaking 1 and 1/2 cups of pitted dates in boiling water for 10 mins. Discard the water and blend the dates in a blender to make a paste. 
2. Other sweeteners you can use are Jaggery, brown sugar, and honey. Use 1 cup of any of these sweeteners for the recipe given above. 

Other Notes

• Dahi bara masala is a dry roasted ground spice mix made with whole red chilies, cumin seeds and coriander seeds. For this recipe, use 8 whole red chilies, 1 tbsp cumin seeds and 1 tsp coriander seeds. Dry roast them in pan and grind to make a coarsely ground spice mix.
• Chaat masala is a South Asian finishing spice used to sprinkle on salads, and street food and other recipes. You can easily get this in any South Asian grocery store. IF you don’t have any, you can skip it altogether and just increase the dahi bara spice by 1 tsp.
• Optional Ingredients – Asafoetida (hing) and dry ginger powder (saunth) are also 2 commonly used ingredients in a tamarind chutney. Add a pinch of Asafoetida and 1/2 tsp of ginger powder to add another layer of flavor.
• Store the chutney in an airtight jar in the fridge. It can last for 2 to 3 months. 
• To freeze the chutney, transfer it into a ziplock bag and freeze. Simply thaw on counter when need to use. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 287kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 0.5g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.03g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 786mg | Potassium: 692mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 60g | Vitamin A: 17IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Sweet Tamarind Chutney (Imli Chutney) appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

It’s pretty hard to make my family eat healthy. With the exception of Tangy Lentil Oats, and now these Skewers, I have to improvise every frikkin time I want them to eat better. But skewers, my family loves! Like my chicken shashlik skewers are a top family favorite for low-carb nights. Things we do for love I swear.

I loveeeee that this recipe works with literally any hard veggie I like. I use it on days when I kinda wanna do a fridge clean-up. #iykyk

Ingredients and Substitutes

You probably already have all the ingredients in your pantry right now. Here’s what you need:

• Vegetables – Feel free to use any vegetable you like. This is the perfect time to utilize that produce in your pantry you’ve been ignoring. I went with potatoes, bell peppers, onions, and carrots. I’ve also tried the recipe with sweet potato, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, and tomatoes.
• Dry spices – You need paprika, black pepper, salt and garlic powder. Add a pinch of white pepper powder to add that extra kick.
• Sauces – You need a couple of pantry staples to make the sweet and tangy sauce. Oyster sauce, ketchup, vinegar, honey, and sesame oil.
  • Skip sesame oil if you don’t have it.
  • Oyster sauce substitute: equal part combo of soy sauce and bbq sauce.
• Garnish – Sesame seeds add such a great crunch, texture, and flavor to the skewers. To make it extra nutritious, top it off with flax seeds or pumpkin seeds.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Instructions

I’ve put together all the steps in a simple pictorial for you to see how easy this is to make.

STEP 1: Prepare the glaze/sauce by mixing all the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.

STEP 2: Chop all your vegetables into 1/2-inch squares.

STEP 3: Peel and cut potatoes into 1/2-inch cubes. Put it in a pot along with salt and vinegar.

STEP 4: Parboil potatoes for 2 to 3 minutes or until the knife can cut through a piece.

PRO TIP: Boil your potatoes with salt and vinegar. The vinegar will help your potatoes to remain firm even if you overboil them by mistake. 

STEP 5: Toss all the vegetables and potatoes in a bowl.

STEP 6: Season it with spices.

STEP 7: Thread the vegetables onto wooden or metal skewers.

STEP 8: Place the skewers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and grease well. Grease the top of the skewers with oil and bake in a preheated oven at 220 C or 425 F for 7 minutes. Flip the skewers, glaze with sweet sauce, and bake for another 5 minutes.

STEP 9: You can also grill these on an outdoor grill or a stove top at medium-high heat. Grill for 5 to 6 minutes on each side and glaze with oil while it’s cooking. Towards the end of the cooking, glaze with the sauce right there on the pan.

STEP 10: Once your skewers are baked/grilled, glaze with leftover sauce and sprinkle sesame seeds as garnish.

EXPERT TIP:

• If you are using wooden skewers like me, soak them in water for 20 minutes before using, this prevents the sticks from burning while on an open flame.
• Glazing the skewers with the sauce while its ON the grill/pan creates a very nice deep flavor. Some of the glaze gets cooked and sticks onto the kebabs and when you glaze it later oh la la la ! This step isn’t a must but definitely something to try.
• If you are afraid some of the vegetables you have chosen aren’t going to cook properly in 15 mins, you can boil them for a bit with the potatoes to be sure.
• Adding sesame seed as a garnish adds a great layer of texture and taste. You can also opt for other seeds like flax, or pumpkin.

Pairing Suggestions

I absolutely love serving these as is, when I serve them as an appetizer. If you want to make these for brunch or high tea, you can use little toothpicks instead to make them look super cute!

These kebabs go so well a side with this Chicken Malai Boti Pulao. I’ve made them as a starter during my Indo-Chinese theme dinners, and it’s always gone within minutes. When my man embarks on his “I-don’t-eat-junk-anymore” phase, I make these veggie skewers and serve them with my hot and sour soup.

Frequently Asked Questions

More vegetarian recipes you’ll enjoy

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!

Print

Sweet Sour Vegetable Skewers

A nice and easy, healthy appetizer, made by marinating vegetables in spices and glazing them later on a grill pan.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Fusion Food

Diet Halal, Vegetarian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 24 sticks

Calories 35kcal

Author Wajiha

Equipment

• 18 bamboo or metal kebab sticks

Ingredients

FOR SKEWERS

• 3 medium bell peppers cut in squares
• 2 large potato peeled and cut in 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 large carrot peeled and sliced
• 2 large onion cut in 1/2 inch squares
• 1 teaspoon salt while parboiling
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• Oil or butter for grilling

Seasoning

• 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder zeera
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

FOR SAUCE

• 2 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoon vinegar
• 3 tabkespoon ketchup or tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
• 3 tablespoon sesame oil

Instructions

Sauce

• Combine all the ingredients for the sauce and form a uniform mixure. Set aside

Skewers

• Parboil the cut up potatoes for 2-3 minutes in 1 tsp salt and 1 tbsp vinegar.
• Drain the water from potatoes and allow them to cool down.
• Toss all the cut up vegetables in a bowl along with potatoes.
• Add seasoning to the vegetables and mix well.
• Thread the vegetables on to sticks or skewers in any order you like.

Cooking the vegetable kebabs

• Grilling/pan frying.

  For stove top, use a grill pan and heat it at medium high heat. Add a little oil to grease the pan and add the skewers one by one. While on the pan, glaze the skewers with the sweet sour sauce and oil. Flip over the skewers after 4 minutes. Now glaze this side with the sauce as well and finish cooking after another 3 minutes.
• Baking/Air frying

  Preheat the oven at 220℃ or 425 ℉. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and grease with oil. Place the skewers on top and spray cooking oil on top. Baking for 7 minutes, then bring out the tray and flip the skewers over. Glaze with sweet sauce and bake for another 5 minutes.
• Once baked/grilled, use the left over sauce and drizzle it generously all over the skewers. Garnish with sesame seeds and serve hot.

Notes

• If you are using wooden skewers like me, soak them in water for 20 minutes before using, this prevents the sticks from burning while on an open flame.
• Feel free to use any vegetable you like. This is the perfect time to utilize that produce in your pantry you’ve been ignoring. I went with potatoes, bell peppers, onions, and carrots. I’ve also tried the recipe with sweet potato, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, and tomatoes.
• You can marinate the vegetables and thread them overnight to grill the next day. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1stick | Calories: 35kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 0.4g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 271mg | Potassium: 67mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 969IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 0.2mg

If you still need a healthy fix, click here to browse through the healthy recipes on the blog.

The post Sweet And Sour Grilled Vegetable Skewers appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

You don’t need to sit and spent an entire day in the kitchen rolling out parathas to freeze. You can simply use the leftover roti/chapati dough every other night and use it to freeze parathas. I roll out 1 or 2 parathas every time I have said leftover atta. And before I know it, within a month I am looking at a stack of fresh homemade 30 40 parathas, which btw is a LOT! and perfect if you are meal prepping for Ramzan (Muslim fasting month)

FAQS

Can you freeze fully cooked paratha?

Fully cooked parathas usually don’t do well in the freezer and somehow or the other, their taste, texture and softness doesn’t last. Unfortunately my friends, I’d have to say NO to this.

Is frozen paratha good for health?

The parathas you get in the store are normally made from the same dough they make puff pastries from. This is because, they need a large quantity of fat to keep commercially produced parathas soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. Even if they offer you whole wheat options, they are still giving you a ton of butter with it. Since paratha is something us brown folks consume on a regular basis, buying the store bought ones might not be such a good idea. Ofcourse, the one you freeze yourself at home is wayyyyy better, infact its nutritious! Using good quality organic ghee, and wholemeal wheat flour, your homemade parathas can be a good source of Vit B, fibre and good carbs. Plus no added preservatives is always a bonus

How long can I freeze the parathas for?

They can last upto 2 months in the freezer and sometimes 3. Beyond that, they might be subjected to freezer burns because alas, we aren’t using a truck load of butter/ghee in them, so the shelf life is limited.

Can I use oil instead of ghee?

You can most definitely use oil instead of ghee, but then opt for freezing method 2 for better results. (see under freezing section)

Ingredients

• Chakki Atta (Wholemeal wheat flour) – Chakki Atta is the best option to make parathas or rotis and is the choice of flour in most brown households for all types of flatbreads. It is definitely more nutritious than all purpose flour. Please note, Chakki Atta is different from the regular whole wheat flour you get in American grocery stores. So if you want to make authentic parathas, look for chakki atta specifically. You can find them in Asian grocery stores.
• Salt – Goes without saying but your parathas need seasoning too. A few pinches of salt ar enough to add flavor to your flatbreads.
• Water – Room temperature or lukewarm water works best for kneading the dough.
• Melted Ghee (clarified butter) – We are going to need ghee in the dough as well as while rolling and folding the parathas. I prefer using melted ghee because you end up using less this way. Since so many steps involve applying layers of ghee, you will end up using more than a tbsp per paratha is you use solidified ghee. If you want, you can use oil too, but the results may vary with it.

Prepare Dough

For preparing the dough, you can use a stand mixer with the hook attachment or simply do it by hand. There’s a small video tutorial at the end of this post too!

Start with flour, salt and melted ghee. And allow the ghee to spread evenly throughout the dough. Then slowly starting adding water until your flour is fully combined. You are NOT kneading at this point. Simply allowing all the flour to soak up water and form a dough. It may seem crumbly or not smooth, which is fine! Trust the process!

Cover the dough with cling wrap and let it rest in the fridge for 30 to 40 mins. This allows the gluten in the dough to be activated and makes kneading much easier.

A well rested, cold dough is easier to work with and gives you a
good paratha/roti texture.

Take out your dough from the fridge and now knead it for about 5 to 6 mins with your fists. You will eventually get a uniform smooth dough, that springs back a little when you poke it. Now you can decide to roll out the parathas straight away or keep the dough back in the fridge, where it can last for 5 days.

Instructions

Rolling out Parathas

STEP 1 & 2– Divide your dough into smaller segments and make small dough balls from your dough. Coat with lose flour before placing them on the countertop.

STEP 3– Flatten the dough balls by pressing them with the palms of your hand. Flatten them as much as you can with ease. Sprinkle more flour on the dough discs if they become too sticky. Use a rolling pin to flatten out one dough disc into a medium disc shape. The shape doesn’t need to be perfect. Just a rough round shape is good enough.

STEP 4 – Use a brush and cover the surface of the disc with ghee. Sprinkle some lose flour on top of the ghee and start folding as shown in the pictures below

STEP 5 & 6 – Lift one edge of the disc and fold towards the centre. Now do the same on the opposite side to form a burrito.

STEP 7 – Use the brush and cover the surface of the exposed top of the paratha and sprinkle some lose flour again.

STEP 8 – Bring in one of the open ends of the paratha towards the centre and bring the other to overlap the first one to form a square.

STEP 9 & 10 – Coat the square dough with flour again and roll it out to form a square paratha. Sprinkle lose flour again if the dough becomes sticky. Parathas are thicker than rotis when rolled out.

How to freeze paratha

There are 2 methods to freeze parathas, you can use whichever one you find easier. For both methods, you will needs sheets of butter paper or wax paper, and a ziplock bag or an airtight box.

METHOD 1 – FREEZING RAW PARATHAS

In this method, you simply brush some melted ghee on either side of the rolled out paratha and place them on a sheet of wax paper. Add another layer of wax paper and layer the rolled out parathas this way Keep the tray in the freezer to turn the parathas solid. Once they harden up, transfer them into a ziplock bag and store for upto 2 months

METHOD 2 – FREEZING SEMI COOKED PARATHAS

Another approach is to half cook the paratha before freezing. Heat a pan and cook the paratha on one side long enough to see the color of the paratha change on top. When that happens, remove the paratha and keep on the side to cool down. Stack the parathas with wax papers in between each paratha and since these aren’t delicate, you can directly put them in a ziplock bag and freeze (for upto 2 months)

Cooking Frozen paratha

You don’t need to thaw frozen parathas. Simply place the solid paratha on a hot pan and brush a little ghee on all corners. Flip over when the top changes color. Brush ghee on this side too and flip over when the bottom gets nice golden brown color all around.

Enjoy with your favorite curries, kebabs.

Expert Tips

• Make sure your ziplock bags are sealed properly. You can use a box or a zipper bag to store your parathas but it needs to be airtight. The freezerburn from being exposed in the freezer is real and will make your parathas hard when you make cook them.
• Always use oil or ghee in the dough when making frozen parathas.
• Sprinkling flour on ghee while folding the paratha gives it better layers and makes it flaky.
• Label your bags with dates of when you started adding parathas to it, so that you have a rough estimate of when your parathas will expire.
• You can prepare a big batch of parathas to freeze together all in one go or do it in increments, every other night when you are making fresh parathas, just roll out 1 or 2 extra and freeze!
• On those lazy days, bring out some frozen dam keema (slow cooked beef mince) or frozen chicken curry from your stock, pair it with your frozen parathas, and you have to hardly spend 10 mins in the kitchen max to serve food.

Similar Tutorials

How to make crispy fried onions for curries
How to make Chili oil

Print

How to freeze parathas

Parathas are fried flatbreads from India / Pakistan. Follow these instructions to make parathas from scratch and freeze them for future use

Course Side Dish

Cuisine South Asian

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 8 parathas

Calories 237kcal

Author Wajiha

Equipment

• 1 Rolling Pin
• 11 sheets of wax papers
• 1 ziplock bag or airtight container

Ingredients

• 3 cups Chakki Atta Flour wholemeal wheat flour see notes
• 2 tbsp melted ghee clarified butter for dough + 3 tbsp for layering
• 1½ cup warm Water or as needed.
• 1/2 tsp salt
• more ghee needed if cooking on the spot

Instructions

• In a bowl, add flour, ghee and salt. Mix well.
• Now add water gradually and knead the dough as you go. You can do this manually by hand or use a stand mixer with the hook attachment.
• Once your dough is mixed, don’t knead any more. Transfer the dough into a clean bowl, cover it and refrigerate for about 15 to 20 mins.
• Bring out the dough and now knead for 5 mins with your fists. Knead till you get a smooth dough.
• Make small dough balls from your dough. And keep placing them on a surface that has been sprinkled with flour.
• Flatten the dough balls by pressing them in the palms of your hands. Flatten them as much as you can with ease. Sprinkle more flour on the dough discs if they become too sticky.
• Use a rolling pin to flatten out one dough disc into a medium round shape.
• Use a brush and cover the surface the rolled out dough with ghee.
• Lift one edge of the disc and fold towards the centre. Now do the same on the opposite side.
• Your paratha should look like a log right now. Use the brush and cover the surface of the exposed top of the paratha.
• Bring in one end of the paratha towards the centre and bring the other to overlap the first one to form a square.
• Dust the square dough with flour and roll it out to form a square paratha
• TO FREEZEMETHOD 1 – RAW PARATHA
• In this method, you simply brush some melted ghee on either side of the rolled out paratha and place them on a sheet of wax paper.
• Add another layer of wax paper and layer the rolled out parathas this way
• Keep the tray in the freezer to turn the parathas solid.
• Once they harden up, transfer them into a ziplock bag and freeze.

METHOD 2 – HALF COOKED PARATHA

• Heat a pan and cook the paratha on one side long enough to see the color of the paratha change on top.
• When that happens, remove the paratha and keep on the side to cool down.
• Stack the parathas with wax papers in between each paratha and since these aren’t delicate, you can directly put them in a ziplock bag and freeze
  
• COOKING
• You don’t need to thaw frozen parathas. Simply place the solid paratha on a hot pan and brush a little ghee on all corners.
• Flip over when the top changes color.
• Brush ghee on this side too and flip over when the bottom gets nice golden brown color all around.
• Serve with your favorite curry or kebab.
  

Notes

• Chakki atta or wholemeal wheat flour is different than regular whole wheat flour, you can find it in Asian grocery stores. Most bags also have pictures of roti or paratha on it.
• If you don’t want to roll out parathas straight away, keep the kneaded dough back in the fridge where it can last upto 5 days
• Your frozen parathas can last 2 months.
• IF you want to use oil instead of ghee, go for method 2 of freezing.
• You can use any other folding method than the one mentioned in the this post as well.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 237kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 179mg

The post How to make Frozen parathas at home appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

WHAT are SAMOSAS?

Samosas are fried or baked pastry which has savory or sweet fillings in it. There are different ways you can fold a samosa. Most popular ones include the triangles, moon shaped or boxed. You can either make the wrapping pastry from scratch or use ready made sheets. This recipe uses ready-made samosa sheets.

Ingredients

Chicken Tikka Filling

• Chicken – For this recipe you need boneless chicken fillets, thigh or breast. If you are making it with regular bone-in chicken, make sure to pick of all the bones before shredding the chicken.
• Chicken tikka spice mix – I used my homemade chicken tikka spices to season and flavor this recipe. But you can also use the boxed ready to use spice mix available at most grocery stores. Follow the instructions on the box and just add an additional 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 cup additional yogurt to the marinade to compensate for the additional onions and mint that is going to go in the filling.
• Cream – This recipe needs about a dollop of cream. You can use any cream available to you, including the canned ones, fresh, tetra pak or cooking creams.
• Onions and Mint – The onions help in forming the bulk of the filing so that you can make more samosas (life hack!) but also, they add to the tikka-ness of the filling, it that even makes sense lol
• Charcoal – A small piece of coal to give that smoky flavor to the tikka chicken filling. If you are sensitive to smoke, you can also use 1/2 tsp of liquid Smoke. It is essentially a smoke essence that you can use with ease to flavor your dishes.

Wrapping

• Flour slurry – You need a DIY edible glue to keep the folded samosa edges intact. A mixture of flour and water is the most popular choice, but you can also use just water as well. I personally prefer the flour slurry because I feel like it flows into small nooks and seals those as well.
• Samosa Wrappers – These are long rectangular dough sheets that are easily available in South Asian or Mediterranean stores. You can also make them at home if you are willing to put in the effort. You can also use square spring roll sheets and cut them into 3 strips. Each strip can be used to fold samosas. Here in the Middle East, the brand that I use is called Switz which is way better than others available in the market.

Instructions

When you make the chicken marinade, and marinate the chicken, you will notice that the marinade is more than needed. That’s ok! You need the leftover marinade to season the onions.

The chicken only needs a 20 mins marination time.

Simply grill the marinated chicken pieces in a pot or on a pan at low flame. Add 1/2 cup of water as well towards the end. Cook the chicken covered and pierce the pieces to check if they are cooked.

Now remove the pieces of tender chicken in a bowl and shred them. I find using a hand mixer does the job within 2 mins! Simple use an electric beater or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and see the magic happen!

Now come back to the pot with another tablespoon of oil and add in your onions, mint and leftover tikka marinade. You need to cook these for about 10 mins at low flame or until all the water from onions have dried out.

NOTE: Always dry out water from onions or any other vegetable for samosa fillings, because excess moisture can leach out while frying and cause the oil to splatter or make your samosas soggy.

Add the shredded chicken back in the onions with a bit of cream and mix well. Now I heated up some coal on the stove and added it to the chicken with a tablespoon of oil on top of the coal and covered it for about 10 mins. This gives your filling a nice smoky flavor.

PROTIP: Use an aluminum muffin liner to hold your coals safely on top of the chicken.

After your filling cools down, you start assembling. You’ll need your samosa wrappers, your flour and water slurry, a plate lined with foil to place all the folded samosas in and some extra foil. If you are new to folding samosas, HERE’s a tutorial you can watch which is quick and easy!

Cooking methods

Now you can decide if you want to fry them straight away or freeze them for a later date. To freeze, simply put the samosas in the freezer and once they harden up you can put them in a ziplock back and store.

Frying – Simply heat some vegetable oil (or any oil of your choice) and shallow fry the samosa at medium flame until golden on both sides. Remove them and place them on towel papers to blot any extra oil.

Airfryer – Preheat to 350 degree F or 175 Degree C and Coat each samosa with oil and arrange them in your air fryer basket. You’ll need about 15 to mins of air frying time. Depending on the size of your basket, you may need to do this a couple of times.

Baked – To bake the samosas, preheat the oven at 350 degree F or 175 Degree C and grease a baking tray. Place your samosas on it and use a brush to coat it with oil. Bake for 20 mins, flipping over at 10 min mark. Remove when they turn a nice golden brown.

Tips

• Make sure to dry out all the water from onions to make a nice water free filling. If your onions will retain water, after you fry your samosas, they can turn soggy OR produce oil splatters
• Never overcrowd your plate while freeze the samosas to harden up. Always leave enough space in between so that your samosas don’t touch. Or else the can get stuck together and break when you try to seperate them. Once they are hard enough, then you can easily store them in a ziplock back
• Same tip for frying, air frying or baking. DO NOT over crowd your pans, or airfryer basket, to get nice crispy samosa.

FAQS

Can I use leftover Chicken tikka from last night to make this filling?

Absolutely! In Fact that’s how I made these samosas for the first time. Just use half of the marinade quantity mentioned and start the recipe from shredding the chicken!

Can I reheat leftover fried/baked samosas?

Yes you can! IT won’t be exactly like it was when freshly baked or fried but it’ll be VERY close. Heat a frying pan at medium flame and then turn it to low. Simply place the samosa on a frying pan (sprayed with cooking oil) and leave at low flame for 10 mins, flipping halfway through. They should be ok!

I don’t like onions very much, can I skip it or substitute it?

The onions help this recipe in 2 ways, they add bulk to the filling so you’ll have more filling than you would with just chicken. And it also bring about a mild sweetness. IF you are not a fan of the onions, you can skip it and use boiled and grated cauliflower instead. IF you want to skip vegetables completely, then reduce all the spice quantities mentioned by half.

Can I use the filling in other recipes?

Wraps, sandwiches, open sandwiches, puff pastry or for stuffed buns. These are all amazingggg options to use the tikka chicken filling in. You can also add the filling to boiled and mashed potatoes to make potato and chicken cutlets.

Similar Recipes

As you can see, I am little obsessed with this spice blend!

Chicken Tikka Biryani
Grilled Chicken Tikka
Chicken Tikka Nachos
Chicken Tikka Sandwich
Tikka flavored chicken nuggets

Print

Chicken tikka samosas

A tikka flavored chicken and onion filling for samosas

Course Appetizer, iftar, Snack

Cuisine Fusion Food, pakistani

Prep Time 35 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Servings 33 medium samosas

Calories 45kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

• 500 gm boneless chicken fillets
• 2 tbsp cream fresh / canned / cooking or any that is available
• 4 cups sliced onion or 240 gm (or 4 medium onions)
• 1/2 cup mint leaves about a handful
• 3 tbsp all purpose flour
• 30 samosa sheets.
• 2 pieces charcoal to give smoke.

Chicken Marination (to use boxed spices see notes)

• 1 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Black pepper powder
• 1 tsp Red chili powder
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Cumin powder zeera
• 1/2 tsp Garam masala powder all spice powder
• 1 tbsp Garlic ginger paste
• 1 tsp Coriander powder
• 3 pinches of orange-red food color
• 2 tbsp Lemon Juice
• 2 tbsp Vinegar
• 1/2 cup yogurt

Instructions

• Mix everything together from the chicken marination list and marinate the chicken in it for about 20 mins.
• In a pot or a pan, add 2 tbsp of oil and turn it on at medium flame.
• Tap the chicken pieces to make sure the extra marinade stays in the bowl and add the chicken fillets in the pot. Sear lightly on both sides for 5 mins. Add 1/2 cup of water and cover the lid to cook the chicken through for another 10 mins.
• Turn off the flame and remove the chicken in a bowl. Use the paddle attachment in a stand mixer or a hand held electric beater to shred the chicken within 2 mins. Set aside.
• In the same pan, add another 1 tbsp of oil at medium low flame and add onions, mint leaves and left over chicken marinade.
• Allow the onions to cook for around 10 mins or until all the water from the onions dries up.
• Add the chicken and cream back into the onions. Mix at high flame for 2 mins. Turn off the flame and allow the chicken to cool down.
• Assembling
• Make a flour slurry by mixing flour with about 1/2 cup of water. You can also use plain water if you like.
• Use a tablespoon of filling to fill each samosa wrapper and sealing with the flour slurry.
• Place all wrapped samosas on a plate and fry/bake directly or freeze for later.
• Frying/Baking
  Airfryer OR Baked- Preheat airfryer or oven at 350 degree F or 175 Degree C and Coat each samosa with oil and arrange them in your air fryer basket. You’ll need about 20 to min to get a nice golden color, flipping the samosas at the 10 min mark. Depending on the size of your basket, you may need to do this a couple of times

Notes

• You can also use Boxed or packet pre-made chicken tikka spice mix instead of using all the ingredients mentioned in the chicken marination, simply follow instructions on the box and add 1/2 tsp extra salt.
• To freeze samosas, allow them to harden up on a plate in the freezer without touching each other, and then put them in a ziplock bag and freeze for about 3 to 4 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1samosa | Calories: 45kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 123mg | Potassium: 56mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 65IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 0.3mg

The post Chicken Tikka Samosa appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

What are Cheese Chicken Kababs?

“Kabab”, which is spelled in many difference ways ( kebap, kabob, kebob, or kebab) simply means piece of meat or vegetable thread onto a skewer and grilled. It is a traditional style of cooking in the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, and South Asia. In South Asia, kababs also refers to patty style appetizers, like spinach and potato cakes.

The chicken cheddar kebab is a fusion variation of its traditional counter part : The chicken seekh kabab. They are made with mince and shaped into long kababs on skewers. Usually made on an open grill, you can get the perfect results at home on a stove top.

Traditionally, when “cheese” is used in Indian and Pakistani food, it is usually Paneer i.e Cottage cheese. Whenever European style cheeses are used in Desi cooking, it automatically becomes a style of fusion food. Although, most mainstream Indian Pakistani food now, use European style cheese in a lot of recipes.

I was going through my recipes and realised I haven’t made any traditional skewer style kababs for the blog, which is ironic because we make SOME form of kebabs almost every week! So here it is, in all its glory and simplicity the chicken cheddar kababs.

Ingredients you need to make the kebabs

Here are the 12 ingredients you will need to make Chicken cheddar kebab, plus some notes on ingredient selection.

• Ground Chicken – I’ve used chicken mince from my local store but you can make your own by adding boneless chicken into a food processor, which is better in any case. For using other types of meat, read the FAQS below
  
• Coriander and Mint leaves – Substitute mint leaves with more coriander if you don’t have any or the other way round. If you are one of those who don’t like coriander, substitute with parsley.
  
• Red and Green chilies – The red and green chilies I’ve used for this recipe are called “Indian Chilies” or “karhayi”chilies in Pakistan. Theyare mild as compared to Serrano or Bird’s eye chilies. I’d recommend using Jalapenos if you can’t find these. You can also use Red bell peppers instead. Ofcourse, if you can’t find any, skip the red chili altogether and add more green instead.
  
• Onions and garlic – I’ve used red onion for this recipe, but use any that you have at hand. To keep the moisture minimum, I’ve used chopped garlic instead of paste. You can use garlic powder too if you want too.
  
• Powdered Spicesand Seasoning
  • Paprika – You can substitute with Kashmiri lal mirch if you want
  • Blackpepper – Bring out the perfect balance of spices in this recipe.
  • Garam masala powder – This bring out the earthy flavor of the recipe. Use Allspice powder instead or skip it entirely
  • Salt – Adequate amount of salt is important to bring out the flavor in your recipe. Remember, when seasoning kababs, you are also seasoning all the additives, like eggs and herbs etc. which is why don’t be stingy with that salt.
    
• Cheese – For this recipe, you need non-stringy cheese with a mild flavor of its own. I’m using mild English Cheddar because that’s what my family likes. Feel free to use any according to your taste. Sharp Cheddar, Emmental and Monetery Jack are all excellent options! (See more about cheese selection in the FAQS section)
  
• Egg – The egg helps in adding a little binding and tenderness to the kebabs.
  
• Breadcrumbs – All good kababs need “fillers”. These are ingredients that give body to the kebab while avoiding shrinkage, that happens when you grill any kind of mince meat. Homemade or store brought, both breadcrumbs work!
  
• Oil – You only need oil for panfrying, air frying and coating your hands while shaping the kababs.

How to make and shape Cheese Kababs

Click Here to watch steps in a Reel I made for these kebabs

STEP 1 – Make the kabab mixture/dough

• To do so, you simply chuck all your herbs and onion into a food processor and process until its nice and finely chopped.

• Then you need to squeeze out all the water from the mixture. I wear gloves while doing this, because my skin is senstitive to garlic. You can also use a nutmilk bag or a cheese cloth to do this.

• Add the herb mixture and all the other ingredients in a bowl and knead them by hand. A stand mixer with a paddle attachment would also do the job.

• I add cheese last so that it gets less time while being kneaded. This avoid cheese to soften up from the heat of our hands.

STEP 2 – Shaping the Kebabs

• To divide the mixture into equal portions, use a tablespoon or an icecream scooper. Scoop out small portions on to a plate.

PROTIP
I find the easiest way to shape these kababs are when they are cold. So after portioning, I stick the plate in the freezer for about 15 mins before shaping. This makes the mixture firm and easy to handle

• To shape the kababs, grease the palm of your hands with oil so that the mixture doesn’t stick. Shape them into thick cigars by squeezing and rolling them in your palms.

• Then you insert a skewer on one end of the kabab.

NOTE:
I am using a makeshift skewer aka straw for this step. You can use the regular metal ones or wooden sticks too. I shape the kebab around the straw some more and pull it out. IF you are
using a wooden or metal skewer, you can also leave the kababs on it and grill it as is.

• Shape all the kebabs, pull out from the straw and prepare to pan fry.

STEP 3 – Cooking the kebabs

• I panfry these kebabs at medium heat for 3 to 4 mins, tossing and flipping for even browning.

NOTE:
Avoid overcooking the kebabs as it will lead to dry hard kebabs and burnt cheese.
Chicken mince cooks very fast, don’t worry about it being raw.

Best Cooking Method for Chicken Kababs

In order of the best results:

1. On an outdoor charcoal grill – This is usually how restaurants make skewer kababs.
2. On the stove – Pan-frying or grilling is the best indoor way of making these, in my opinion
3. In an Air-Fryer – Less oil than pan frying, but similar results taste and texture wise.
4. In the Oven – Easiest to do, but definitely not as tender as the pan-fried ones

FAQS

Can I make this recipe with any other meat?

Sure! You can make this recipe with beef, lamb or mutton. You will need to add 1 inch chunk of ginger in your herb mix. And your grilling / pan frying time would increase to 6 – 7 mins. DO NOT skip the skewers for beef kebabs, as it can shrink a lot without it. I would say this, beef kababs require a special set of instructions and tips that would go beyond the scope of this post but hopefully I should write one soon on just Beef cheese kababs.

Why does my cheese melt and burn in the pan?

When I posted this recipe on Instagram, most of you have had this issue with other cheese kababs recipes you’ve tried. This is something you can’t avoid completely. There will be some oozing whenever there is cheese incorporated in kabab and when the kabab has no coating. But we can minimize it by a LOT

1. Using Pre-Shredded Cheese
   
   Pre-shredded cheese packs you get in stores are actually better for this recipe! Those packs use corn flour to coat the cheese strands and this helps in stabilizing your cheese while frying and not ooze out and burn
   
   IF you are shredding cheese yourself at home, coat them with 1/2 tsp of cornflour and freeze before using for the kababs for BEST results! You can apply this tip for any recipe kabab recipe that uses shredded cheese in the mixture.
   
   
2. Avoiding Over-browning or Overcooking
   Most of the time, if you are pan frying the kababs longer than needed, the cheese WILL melt and ooze out regardless of how good they were coated with cornflour. Make sure you are not cooking them longer than instructed.

Can I make the kababs without egg?

Some of my readers avoid consuming egg so I’ve tried the recipe for you all without eggs too. You can skip the egg and add an extra half onion instead for similar results.

Can I freeze Chicken Kebabs? And for how long?

Yes! Absolutely! To freeze the kababs, pan fry them for 2 mins or until they change color. Let the kababs cool, transfer them into ziplock bags and freeze for upto 2 months. Freezing the kababs raw is not such a good idea, because they leach out moisture that way and you end up with dry kebabs when you fry them eventually.

Can I shape the kababs without the skewers?

The hole provides an airvent. When you grill the kebabs, they shrink towards the pan, which makes the hole bigger but overall preserves the shape of your kebabs. You can still shape the kebabs without a skewer but you might see minor reduction in size of the kebab once cooked.

Why does my kebab become sticky and hard to handle?

One answer – Moisture. If your mixture is holding a lot of moisture, it will become difficult to handle and shape. Here are a few things that help

• Ground the chicken yourself from a breast or thigh fillet instead of buying mince.
• Squeeze out water from the herb mixture to reduce overall water content
• Freeze the kebabs for a few minutes before shaping.
• Last resort is to add more bread crumbs to increase binding.

Serving Suggestions

These kababs are a meal on their own honestly! I love the fact that they are so uni-cuisine. The flavors are so neutral that they go well with everything! Here are a couple of my favorite pairing

• A simple kebab platter with Mint Chutney, and sliced onions on the side
• Serve with boiled rice and lentils for lunch.
• Serve with masala dal and roti or flat bread.
• And My personal favorite! for kebab wraps with more cheddar, onions and lettuce and a tortilla to go with
• You can also always go simple with a side salad.

More Recipes like this

Print

Chicken Cheddar Kabab

Soft and tender skewer chicken kababs made with simple spices, herbs and cheddar

Course Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine Fusion Food

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 6 minutes minutes

Freezing time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 51 minutes minutes

Servings 16 kababs

Calories 125kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

• 500 gm chicken mince
• 1/4 of a bunch of a cilantro pack coriander
• 1/3 cup mint leaves
• 3 whole Indian Red chilies see notes
• 3 whole Green chilies see notes
• 1 small onion
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon Paprika
• 2 teaspoon blackpepper powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder See notes
• 1½ teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs
• 1 large egg
• 1½ cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese 120 gm (see notes)
• Cooking Oil for coating and grilling

Special equipment

• Skewers / BBQ sticks / Drinking straw

Instructions

• Making kebab mixture
• In a food processor, add cilantro, mint leaves, onion, garlic, red and green chilies. Process until they are finely chopped.
• Wear a glove and squeeze all the liquid out of the chopped mix. You can also use a nutmilk bag or a cheese cloth to do this. Discard the liquid.
• In a bowl, add the chopped mixture and all the remaining ingredients except oil and cheese. Mix or knead to make a uniform kebab mixture.
• Add cheese at the end and mix until fully combined.
• 
  Shaping the Kebabs
• To divide the mixture into equal portions, use an icecream scooper or a tablespoon. Place each scoop of mixture on a plate.
• Put the plate in the freezer for 15 mins and then take it out for shaping
• Pour 3 to 4 tablespoon oil in a cup and use some to grease the palm of your hands.
• Take a portion of mixture and use the palm of your hands to roll it into a rough cigar shape.
• Insert a thick skewer (or straw or wooden bbq stick) through one tip of the cigar and bring out on the other side.
• Use the palm of your hands to perfect the shape of the cigars.
• Carefully remove the kabab from the skewer by sliding the skewer out and placing the kabab back on the tray.
• IF you want to cook the kababs with the skewers then leave the skewers intact.
• 
  Cooking the KababsOn the Stove (Gas or Electric)
• For pan frying, place a large nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium heat on the stove. You can also use a grill pan.
• Add oil to cover the base of the skillet.
• When oil becomes hot (3 to 4 mins), add kababs to the pan without overcrowding it.
• Use a straight spatula or tongs to turn the kababs frequently, allowing all sides to turn golden brown evenly.
• Cook for a total of 5 mins.
• Transfer kababs to your serving dish once they are done.
  

In the Air fryer

• Line the airfryer tray with parchment paper.
• Place kebabs in a single layer and use cooking spray grease them.
• Air-fry at 200 C (400 F) for 3 mins.
• Then flip the kebabs and cook for another 3 mins.
• 
  Oven-Baked
• Preheat the oven to 200 C (395 F)
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper, greased with butter or oil
• Place the kabab on the pan and place it in the middle rack of the oven. Turn on the top heat (broiler) on High (550°F/287°C).
• Bake for a total of 8 mins, flipping the kababs at 5 min mark.

Notes

• The fresh red and green chilies I’ve used are large and mild. You can use Jalapenos if you can’t find medium sized green chilies. You can also use a piece of red bell pepper if you can’t find red chilies.
• I have used mild English Cheddar, but you can use any that you like, Sharp Cheddar and Monterary Jack both go well with this recipe. Pre-shredded cheese is better for this recipe because those cheeses are covered with a layer of cornflour

Nutrition

Serving: 1kebab | Calories: 125kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 228mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g

The post Cheddar Chicken Kabab appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

Melons are generally mildly sweet fruits and for this recipe Muskmelon and it’s varieties are the best. With so many different types of melons out there, it can be kind of confusing which ones to chose.

Any type of Musk Melon can be used for this recipe, depending on where you live. You can use:

• Galia melon (also known as Sarda in South Asia)
• Cantaloupes – this is the one I’ve used
• Persian Melon
• Christmas Melon
• Honey Dew
• Casaba

Other fruity drink recipes:

Apple Cinnamon Latte
Saudi Champagne

Substitutions and Remixes

Ingredient Substitutes

• Use nutmilks instead of regular milk if you are on a dairy free diet. You can also use Soy milk or rice milk if you have any nut allergies.
• You can also skip vanilla ice cream and use Greek yogurt instead for a more low-calorie alternative.
• You can use natural sugar syrups like agave nectar or maple instead of sugar and dates.

Spice up the Melon shake

• Pack more nutrient by adding just a little spinach to the mix.
• Sprinkle some roasted crushed flax seeds to add a slight crunch and nutrition to the drink
• You can also add more flavoring to the drink by adding 1/2 tsp of cinnamon powder.

How long will the milkshake last for?

Well, if you taste it, it’ll be gone immediately! ok fine! Kidding. It can last for upto 2 days in the fridge. If you plan to drink it later, keep it in the fridge immediately.

Print

Date & Melon Shake

A sweet and delicious cooler made with melon, dates, milk and icecream

Course Drinks

Cuisine International

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 2 servings

Calories 317kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

• 4 to 5 dates
• 1 cup of cut up melon cubes
• 1 cup of milk
• 4 ice cubes
• 2 scoops of regular vanilla ice cream additional 2 scoops for toppings
• Extra Sugar or honey to taste optional

Instructions

• If the dates that you are using are hard (like ajwa etc), soak them in boiling water for 15 mins before making the shake.
• De-seed the dates
• Add all the ingredients in a blender and blend till all the ice cubes are crushed.
• Taste to check sweetness. Add sugar or honey if needed.
• Serve in glass with additional scoops of icecream. Drink cold.

Notes

Use soft sweet variety of melon for this shake for best results.

You can keep the shake in the fridge for 2 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 317kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 131mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 42g

The post Date & Melon Shake appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

Tikka flavored chicken Nugget is basically a chicken mix seasoned with Indian / Pakistani Tikka spices to give you this awesome kick in the regular nugget scene. And If I may recommend, pair it with mint chutney instead of ketchup and see the fireworks happen! And don’t you worry, it’s kid friendly too!

You guys already know my obsession with the Chicken tikka in general. Which gave birth to fusions like The famous Chicken Tikka Biryani, Chicken tikka sandwiches, chicken tikka nachos and now this. I think I might be outta control here. But ohhh well!

Here are a few easy steps to make this amazing fusion recipe by yourself

Home-made Chicken Tikka Nuggets

I know somethings seem daunting to do at home but I assure you, making nuggets at home is EASIER than you think.

Which chicken cut to select?

Chicken nuggets are made with chicken mix or a chicken paste of sorts and made into nugget shaped molded by hand.

Ideal part of the chicken for any nugget are the thigh fillets of the chicken. They are juicy, tender and work really well when grounded.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have any at hand. So I opted for the chicken mince that I had at hand to work with. It isn’t the best choice but sometimes you gotta work with what you have!

Making the nugget mix

You start by chucking 3 bread slices in a food processor and making crumbs. If you are using boneless chicken cubes, then chuck that into the food processor after making bread crumbs, along with all the spices and you’ll have your nugget mix ready in 5 mins

If you are using chicken mince like me, then combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well to form a uniform paste. This is a great time to fry a small piece of the mix to do a taste test. I haven’t made the marination very spicy because I assume your also making these for your kids. I did use Kashmiri red chili instead of the regular one (which is milder).

Alternatively, you can also use a box tikka mix instead to make these nuggets.

If you are going for a real authentic chicken tikka flavor, you can smoke the chicken mix with a small piece of coal to give it that nice smoky tikka flavor.

How to shape the nuggets

Traditionally, you can grease your hands with oil and shape the nuggets like kebabs etc to form the regular shaped nuggets.

But I found an easier way to shape the nuggets. I line a tray with butter paper and grease it. Then I dump all my nugget mix on the tray. Grease my hand with oil and spread out the mix as thick or as thin as I want it to be. This tray goes in the freezer for about an hour or 2. Long enough to harden up the nugget mix.

When you take out the tray, the mix is hard enough to allow a knife to cut through it and create nice clean cuts. I cut squares but you can cut any fun shape that you want to.

After you get your nuggets cut into the desired shape, all that is left to do is coat it.

Crumb Coating the Nuggets

The coating sequence is pretty basic, Flour, then Egg wash and then bread crumbs. You can also repeat egg wash and crumbs if you want a thick crust layer.

For the egg wash, I added 1/2 cup of water and little bit of salt as well so as the crust has a little flavor too. The water just makes the crust crispier.

That is literally pretty much it!

You can fry it or bake it! Your call. I shallow fry it at medium flame to make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through. To bake the nuggets, preheat an oven at 200 C and place the nuggets on a baking tray. Coat them will oil or roasting spray. Bake for 20 minutes or until crispy!

To freeze, keep the crumb coated nuggets back on a tray and keep in the freezer for half an hour. Once the crumb coated nuggets solidify, then you can transfer them into a zip lock bag and store in the freezer for up to 6 – 7 months.

Alternates, Fixes and Remixes

Substitutes and Healthier alternatives

• You can use Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt. You can also use Mayo instead of yogurt if you are on a Keto-diet
• The Kashmiri lal mirch or red chili powder has a strong color but is not very spicy. If you plan to use regular red chili powder, then reduce the quantity to 1 tsp.

Fixes

• If you feel like your mix has become very spicy or extra salty, add an extra tablespoon of cream to balance out the heat.
• If your mixture feels very dry, add an extra tablespoon of yogurt.
• You can also add extra bread crumbs if your mixture feels very wet.

Remixes

• Go ahead and use the same method to create basic chicken nuggets seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic and soy sauce.
• Use the same method and a totally different set of spices to create a different fusion of Chicken nuggets.
• You can add cheese to the mix as well to create cheesy chicken nuggets.
• You can also add sesame seeds to the bread crumbs mix to give a crispier shell and a whole new flavor profile.

Similar recipes you will love!

Print

Tandoori chicken nuggets

A Pakistani fusion to the traditional Chicken nuggets

Course Appetizer, Snacks, Sides and Starters

Cuisine Fusion Food, Indian, pakistani

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 30 nuggets

Calories 74kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

• 500 gm boneless chicken ground in a food processor
• 1 tsp Salt or to taste
• 1 tbsp Kashmiri red chili powder
• 2 tsp salt or to taste
• 1 tsp Coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Roasted and grounded cumin seeds
• 1 tsp Black pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp Garam masala powder
• 2 tsp garlic ginger paste
• 3 slices of bread
• a pinch of red food color
• 2 tbsp yogurt
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

For coating

• 1 large egg
• Panko bread crumbs
• All purpose flour
• oil for frying

Instructions

• In a food processor add bread and pulse to form crumbs.
• If you are using boneless chicken, add the chicken and spices and yogurt directly in the food processor and grind until you get a smooth mix.
• If you are using chicken mince, add bread crumbs and mince in a bowl, along with spices and yogurt and mix well by hand.
• Grease a butter paper with oil and place on a tray.
• Dump the chicken mince on the tray.
• Grease your hand with oil and spread out the chicken mix around the tray to form an even layer. Keep the layer as thick as you want.
• Pop the tray in the freezer for an hour or 2 or until the mixture becomes rock solid
• Take the tray out and cut the mix into square pieces.
• Coat all the nuggets in all purpose flour.
• Make a mixture of egg, salt and 1/2 cup of water. Dip the nuggets in this egg wash and then coat with bread crumbs evenly
• Deep fry in hot oil at medium flame and serve with lemon and a dip of your choice.
• You can also bake them at 200 °C for 20 mins in a greased tray.
• Put the remaining nuggets back on a tray and pop it back in the freezer.
• When they harden up, transfer into a zip-lock bag and freeze for future use.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 74kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 74mg

The post Tikka flavored Chicken Nuggets appeared first on Butter Over Bae.

I love making dahi barays as much as I love to freeze them! I always have them in a ziplock back in my freezer right before Ramadan and Life can’t get easier than that! Bonus, also used in mix chickpea chat!

How to make Dahi baray

Preparing the Lentil Batter

Different families have different dal (lentil) ratio to make these dahi barays. I make it mostly out of yellow lentils (moong ki daal) and a little bit of maash dal. A mix of these two dals give a sooper soft dahi bara!

Soak the daal for 4 to 5 hours or overnight. This step is pretty important! Don’t be hasty if you wan’t your dahi baras to come out soft and fluffy.

The soaked lentils will of course, puff up into double the quantity. These lentils go in the blender with a small piece of ginger.

Ginger: These dals are sort of flatulent. The ginger reduces their flatulent qualities so that it doesn’t give you gas.

Blend the lentils in a blender with as little water as possible. Make sure to get a smooth paste like mix.

Seasoning and resting

Pour the batter in a bowl and whisk with a spoon for 2 to 3 mins. It makes the batter airy and light. Add all the seasonings and then cover the mix and set aside.

This resting period also helps in getting soft and airy lentil fritters.

When you are ready to fry, add baking soda to the batter, right before frying. Don’t let the batter sit for a long time once the baking soda is added.

Tip: Mix Baking soda with a tablespoon of water and THEN add to the batter. This will allow the soda to be mixed well in the batter.

Frying the Lentil fritters

The shape of the dahi baray are a personal choice. You can either go for a more ball shaped dahi baray or flat disc like ones. The only difference between them is the way you fry them.

Shallow frying fritters – Gives you flat disc shaped dahi baray
Deep frying fritters – Gives you round thicker dahi baray
Air frying or baking – Flat disc shaped dahi baray.

I prefer shallow frying because obviously its the healthier choice, I can control how much oil I want to use. But also, generally in my family everybody prefers these as well. So win win!

Use a tablespoon to drop spoonful of batter into the pan and spread it out to form circles. Make sure your oil is at medium flame and hot already when you add the batter.

TIP: Always add fritters to oil once the oil is already hot so that the fritters don’t absorb a lot of oil.

When the fritter turn golden brown on one side, flip them over. Don’t overcrowd the pan when the batter is raw, the fritters will stick to each other. Once they are cooked on one side, then you can add more to the pan.

Fry all the fritters and set it aside. If you are going to make them right away, then dip them in water. And then directly in the yogurt sauce.

If you are making these ahead of time, then wait for the fritters to cool down and then put it in a zip lock bag and freeze. DON’T dip in water.

Making the yogurt sauce.

The yogurt sauce is basically just salt, sugar, water, yogurt and dahi bara masala. You can skip the dahi bara masala in the yogurt if you want but you would still definitely need some to sprinkle on top.

Don’t worry if it looks to watery. After you add the fritters, the fritters soak up a significant amount of the mix and your yogurt with thicken up again. If you start with a thick yogurt, it’ll almost dry up after the fritters are added to it.

For fresh dahi barays, that are already dipped in water, just dip them in the yogurt directly and refrigerate.

For the frozen batch, you’ll need to boil the fritters in water. No need to thaw or anything, just put them directly in the boiling water for 3 to 4 mins. Gentle pick each fritter up and dip them in the yogurt sauce. Refrigerate!

Refrigeration is important to allow the dahi baras to soak up all the yogurt and thicken it.

Sprinkle the signature dahi bara masala on top, along with chat masala and sweet tamarind chutney and ENJOY!

Alternates, fixes and Remixes

• You can make “Namkeen Dahi baray” with the same recipe. Simply skip sugar in the yogurt and increase the salt by 1/4th tsp.
• You can also buy pre-made Dahi bara masala. But don’t skip it.
• If your yogurt sauce dries too much, add more beaten yogurt on top of the dahi baray.
• You can also add more toppings of your choice, like chips, pomegranate seeds and mint leaves.

Related Recipes

Print

Dahi baray Recipe

A lentil fritter soaked in watery sweet yogurt sauce, topped with chutney and spices.

Course Snacks, Sides and Starters

Cuisine South Asian

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 50 medium barays

Calories 60kcal

Author Wajiha

Ingredients

Dahi baray or the lentil fritters

• 2 cups yellow lentil moong dal
• 1/2 cup white lentils mash ki dal
• 1/2 tsp crushed red chili flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 small piece of ginger or 1 tsp ginger paste
• 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• Oil for frying

Yogurt Sauce for meethey dahi baray (sweet) (for a batch of 8 to 10 dahi baray)

• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 cup water
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp dahi bara masala

Garnish

• Dahi bara masala
• Sweet Tamarind chutney
• Chat masala

Instructions

• Soak both the lentils in water for 4 hours or overnight.
• Blend the lentils in a food processor with as little water as possible along with a piece of ginger to make a smooth paste. (try to keep water between 1/4 to 1/2 cup)
• Pour the lentil paste in a bowl and add salt, cumin seeds, crush red chili and garam masala powder. Beat the batter with a spoon or a whisk for 2 to 3 mins.
• Cover the dough and let it rest for another hour.
• Mix baking soda in 1 tbsp water and add it to the lentil batter. Mix well.
• In a frying pan add a little oil on medium flame.
• Drop spoonfuls of lentil batter and fry on one side until golden brown and the flip to fry the other side.
• To assemble on the same day
• Remove the fritters from oil and directly dip into a bowl of room temperature water.
• Remove from water after 5 mins and dip it into the yogurt sauce.
• Let it sit in the fridge for an hour before serving
• 
  To assemble later
• Let the fried lentil fritters cool down. Then put them in a ziplock bag and freeze them.
• Whenever you need to make a batch, remove dahi barays from freezer, no need to thaw.
• Boil water in a sauce pan and dip the frozen dahi bareys in it.
• Let the bareys boil for 3 to 4 mins.
• Remove from water and directly add to the yogurt mix.
• Cover and refrigerate for an hour
• Adjust the seasoning in the yogurt and quantity according to your liking.
• Yogurt SauceMix all the ingredients mentioned and adjust the seasoning according to your taste. The measurements given will give you Meethe dahi baray or sweet dahi baray.
• GarnishServe garnished with chat masala, sweet Tamarind chutney and dahi bara masala.

Notes

Shallow frying the lentil fritters will give you flat disc shapes dahi barays and will consume less oil.

For round dahi barays, deep fry the batter in oil.

The yogurt quantity given in the recipe is enough for 6 to 8 Dahi barey. If you are making more, double the recipe

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 60kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 83mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g

The post Dahi Baray and batch freezing appeared first on Butter Over Bae.