Paneer, Eggplant, Dhal and Roti

This weeks Meat free Monday ended up as an Indian style feast.  I never planned it to be this way, but that is how it turned out!

It all started when I tried to re-create a dish my husband and I have eaten many times at an Indian restaurant in Surry Hills called Maya Da Dhaba.  The dish is Paneer Ka Salan, described as strips of paneer (a firm style of cottage cheese) sauteed with capsicum, onions, spices and finished with fresh tomatoes and coriander.  This was the first time I have tried to make this dish, yet it tasted so similar to what I remembered.  I was thrilled, however, it wasn’t enough for dinner and given that we would normally order a few dishes when out for Indian, I decided to make something else to go with it.

I had two eggplants in the fridge that needed to be used.  I wanted to do something really quick and easy, but also tasty. I sauteed them with garam masala and garlic, then stirred yoghurt through at the end and topped with fresh coriander.  It was really easy and so delicious, but still not quite enough for dinner.

The meal really needed a boost of protein, so I made dhal.  Lentils and split peas are a fantastic virtually fat free, highly nutritious source of protein and a perfect accompaniment for what I had already made.  This dhal recipe uses channa dhal, small chickpeas that have been cut and polished, as well as red lentils.  It is easy to make and just delicious!

No Indian meal would be complete without roti, so I had to make some.

I make it sound easy, but it actually was.  This was all made on Sunday when I had more time.  Then Monday night, we just heated up the dishes and cooked the roti for a few minutes in a hot pan.

It was a most delicious feast 🙂

Paneer Ka Salan

makes 4 side serves

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 100g paneer, cut into cubes
• ½ green capsicum, cut into long thin pieces
• 1 red capsicum, cut into long thin pieces
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and chopped
• 3 large spring onions, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 x 400g tin crushed tomatoes
• 1 ½ teaspoons tamarind puree* (see note below)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup fresh coriander, chopped

Directions:

1. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat.  When hot, add olive oil and paneer and sautee until the paneer turns golden.  Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Add capsicums, chilli and onions to pan and sautee for 3 minutes.
3. Add garlic, ginger, coriander and cumin and cook for 3 minutes.
4. Add tomatoes.  Use ½ cup water to rinse out tomato tin and add to pan.  Bring to boil, then turn heat down and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Add back paneer, along with the tamarind puree and salt, stir through.  Turn off heat, but allow to sit for a few minutes before serving to allow the paneer to heat through.
6. Serve sprinkled with fresh coriander.

This will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days.  I would not recommend to freeze this

Per Serve: 602kJ or 143 calories; P 6g Fat 7g SFat 1.7g CHO 6g Fibre 3g

Eggplant with Yoghurt and Coriander

Makes 4 side serves

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 3 teaspoons garam masala
• 2 medium eggplants, chopped into 2cm cubes
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• Good pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons low fat Greek style yoghurt
• 1/2 cup of chopped fresh coriander

Directions

1. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat.  When hot add the oil, then add the garam masala and fry for a few minutes.
2. Add the eggplant and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
3. Add garlic and salt, mix through and cook for a further few minutes.
4. Put a large lid over the eggplant and let it steam on a low heat for about 5 minutes, until the eggplant is cooked through.
5. Add the yoghurt and mix through. Sprinkle with chopped coriander and serve

This will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days.  I would not recommend to freeze this

Per Serve: 406 kJ or 96 calories; P 3g Fat 5g SFat 0.8g CHO 7g Fibre 5g

Adapted from nwbc.com.au

Can be frozen or stored in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Makes 6 side serves

Per Serve: 787kJ or 187 calories; P 12g Fat 4g SFat 0.5g CHO 23g Fibre 7g

Roti

Makes 8 rotis

• ½ cup wholemeal flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup lukewarm water (or more as needed)
• 2 teaspoons butter
• ¼ cup wholemeal flour, extra for rolling

Directions:

1. Mix flour, salt and water together to make a soft dough (add more water as needed).
2. Knead the dough on a lightly greased surface to make the dough smooth and pliable.  (Note: I did the first 2 steps in my Thermomix)
3. Set the dough aside and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough rest for at least ten minutes.
4. Divide the dough into 8 equal parts and roll into balls.  Press balls flat
5. Take each ball, press in extra flour on both sides.
6. Roll into a 12cm circle, adding a little extra flour as needed to stop it sticking, but not too much flour to dry it out  (At this stage I stacked them with baking paper between them and stored them in the fridge for 24 hours)
7. Heat a heavy based frying pan over medium high heat.
8. Place the roti in the dry pan.  Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until it starts to puff and turn brown.
9. Flip the roti over and cook for a few minutes again until browned.
10. Flip the roti again. The roti should have light golden-brown spots on both sides.

Per roti: 200kJ or 48 calories; P 1g Fat 1g SFat 0.6g CHO 7g Fibre 1.3g

Tamarind puree: available from Asian supermarkets and in the International isle in larger supermarkets.

Tamarind is a kind of sweet and sour fruit that grows in a pod.  Pods of tamarind are available in some Asian stores, however, it is more convenient to purchase tamarind puree (and it tastes just as good).