Be Fat, Be Happy.

50% of my winter diet consists of endless cups of Kashmiri chai. Needless to say, it's the bomb. Fill up a pan with water - about 1 litre.  Add a teaspoon of salt, 2 tablespoons of tea leaves, a quarter teaspoon of meetha soda (sodium bicarbonate or baking soda) and star anise (optional. The first picture is a sample of what it looks like, the second one shows how much to use in this amount of liquid). Mix, bring it to a boil and then simmer on low heat until half the liquid has evaporated.  Add cold water and fill to the brim then boil for 5 minutes.  Take a small tub or big bowl, add about 2 glasses of cold water to it and pour the qehwa in it. Beat for 5-8 mins (watch video below). In another pan, add milk (generally, mom uses 2 cups of milk to 1 cup qehwa ratio) and any flavor/ seasoning you might like (cardamom, cinnamon, nuts, sugar, etc). Add the qehwa, mix and bring to a boil.    Turn off the heat and serve...

Ingredients Qeema (minced meat)                                            ½ kg Onions                                                                  2 (medium, thinly sliced) Tomatoes                                                              4 (blended) Yogurt                                                                  1 cup Garlic               ...

Ingredients Bhindi                                                                       ½ kg (chopped) Onions                                                                       3 (large, thinly sliced) Garlic                                                                         4-5 cloves (minced) Methray (Fenugreek Seeds)                                     ...

So, Nestle sent me 4 packs of their awesome Kinnow. The little bro and I decided to experiment a little with it - this recipe may sound a bit weird but do try it! It's salty, sweet and perfect for this awful humid weather.  Ingredients Nestle Kinnow Juice 1 cup Lemon Barley ½ cup Crushed Ice 1 cup Rooh Afza ½ tsp Salt A pinch Method Blend everything together. Lightly run a lemon slice on the edge of the glass and dip it in salt/ sugar crystals. Pour juice in the glass and decorate with lemon. Serve chilled!

So this genius @lahorihousewife calls it Shahjahani Pulao, but my brothers being brothers renamed it. Thori si mehnat hai, totally worth it though. Ingredients For Chicken Qorma Chicken ½ kg Ginger Garlic Paste 1 tbsp Red Chili Powder 1 tsp Salt To taste Fried Onions 1 cup (2 large onions) Ground Coriander 1 tsp Green Chili Paste Of 6 large chilies Tomatoes 4 (sliced or blended) For Layering Boiled Rice 1-1   ½ cup Mint Chutney ½ cup For Topping French Fries Of 4 potatoes Boiled Eggs 4 Toasted Almonds ¼ cup Method Fry the onions and keep them aside. Don't brown them too much, they'll turn bitter. Oil a deep pan, add ginger garlic paste and red chili with a little water. Add salt and fried onions, ground coriander and green chili paste. Fry for a few minutes, then add th...

Ingredients Chicken 1 kg (boneless, cubed) Garlic 2 tsp (chopped) Butter 50 gms Red Chilli Powder 1 ½ tsp Mustard Powder ½ tsp Cumin Powder 1 tsp Coriander Powder 1 tsp Whole Spice (Garam Masala) 1 tsp Fresh Cream ½ cup Tomatoes 5 (blended) Salt To taste Method In a pot, add the butter and fry the chopped garlic. Saute until golden, then add chicken. Once the water has dried up, add red chilli powder, mustard powder, cumin + coriander powder and whole spice. Stir and simmer on medium flame for a few minutes. Add the blended tomatoes and turn the heat up high. Stir occasionally, until the oil starts to separate. Lower the heat and add the salt, then the cream. Add some coriander or sliced ginger for garnishing. 

Adapt this recipe to your taste. I like lots and lots of vinegar in mine, I'm sure the rest of you wouldn't touch it =P. Also, the original recipe uses cream instead of yogurt but I find that heavier, difficult to digest and generally sweeter. 'Sweet' has no business being in a Garlic Mayo dip -.- Ingredients Garlic Clove                                                                      1 Mayonnaise                                                                     ½ cup Salt                                             ...