Crave Bits

Author: poonam bera

  • Taste a Bite of shahi tukra

    Taste a Bite of shahi tukra

    Shahi tukra, a royal treat to taste buds at anytime. It is a rich and delicious Hyderabadi dessert recipe. It won’t be inappropriate to call it royal piece of dessert. It is rich in taste, aroma and flavor. Shahi tukra also called Indian bread pudding has its origin form the mughal era. Though mughal dishes demands a lot of time and preparation but this dish is way easy to make.

    Shahi-Tukda-Adukkala
    Desserts often get put In not to eat food list if you are on weight losing mission but sometime or occasional having taste of delicious desserts never harms your body. It is a similar to the famous cousin ‘Double Ka Meetha’ only difference is in way of making them. The Shai tukra is a simple sweet dish made of fried bread soaked in sugar syrup coated or topped with fragrant creamy sweet thickened milk or rabri garnished with dry fruits. This dessert is way easy to make and less time consuming as it takes maximum 1 hour.

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    INGREDIENTS:
    • 5 to 6 bread wheat/ brown bread slices or white bread
    • 2 spoon or half cup ghee ( one-one spoon for frying each bread)
    • one cup cashew nuts-break into small pieces kismis pistachios crushed almonds finely sliced
    • saffron 3 to 6 strands soaked in 2 teaspoon of milk ghee 2 tea spoons

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    For rabri:
    • 4 cup  or 1 liter full fat milk or condensed milk
    • 2 to 3 spoons sugar or as required according to your convenience
    • 3 tea spoon milk powder (not mandatory) or half spoon cardamom powder, a pinch of saffron
    • 1 tea spoon masala milk powder (optional)
    • 1 tea spoon rose water or rose essence
    • For garnishing – kesar or a pinch of saffron
    For sugar syrup:
    • Half cup sugar
    • Half cup water
    • 4 green cardamoms powder in mortar pestle or half spoon cardamom powder or a drop of rose water
    For Garnishing:
    • 14 to 15 almonds
    • A few standard of saffron
    • 12 to 14 pistachios

    you can increase or decrease the quantity of ingredients depending on the quantity of shahi tukra you making.

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    Preparing rabri or sweet creamy thickened milk:

    • First step, take milk in a broad thick pan or in a sauce pan. You can take 1 liter or as much as required, fat milk, depending on quantity you making and bring it  to the first boil.

    • Rabri can be prepared with condensed milk or you can make a vanilla clustered instead of milk.

    • Now add 3 teaspoon milk powder though it is not essential to use it. It may help you in reducing the cooking time of rabri otherwise, you have to simmer the milk for some more time period.

    • You can also add masala milk powder. Allow milk to reduce to half its original quantity.

    • Stir up and scrap milk continuously so that milk does not get brown or brunt from the bottom as well as from the sides.

    • Add back the clotted milk or malai and the dried milk from the sides to the milk.

    • Now add sugar and keep on simmering, stirring, removing the clotted cream then add sugar stir well so that the sugar dissolves.

    • Next step put crushed saffron or saffron powder along with rose water or rose essence. You can also add sliced almonds and pistachios.

    • It will take about half to one hour for the milk to thicken on a low or medium flame.

    if you want to make chilled shahi tukra then rabri to be prepared one day before and put to freeze up in the fridge.

    Preparing/ Toasting bread slices:

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    This preparation you can start while boiling milk for rabri.
    • Slice the crusts of the bread. Cut them into squares or triangles or any other shape as you like. Now put 1 spoon of ghee in a flat pan or frying pan and heat it for a minute. You can also use oil for frying but for royal and delicious taste ghee is a better choice. If you are calorie conscious then you can use wheat bread rather then white bread and can toast bread slices in a toaster till it becomes golden brown.

    • Placed bread sliced on non stick pan, drizzle two tea spoon ghee over it at low medium heat and toast them till beneath got brown after it  flip and toast the other side.

    • Then flip both the sides’ one after other till it get crispy and golden brown color.

    • Drain the toasted bread slices on paper towel and add one spoon of ghee again and toast the remaining slices.
    Preparing sugar syrup:

    Shahi-tukra
    • Mix half cup of sugar with half cup of water in a pan. You can cook and toast both sugar syrup and bread slices simultaneously.

    • Keep sugar solution on a low heat.

    • When whole mixture starts boiling, it means the one thread consistency will not take much time.

    • If one thread consistency reached then it mean sugar syrup is ready add cardamom powder or rose water and stir.

    • In case sugar syrup cools and crystallizes before you make toasted bread slices to soak in it then just add about one to two spoon water and reheat the syrup.

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    Now dip the bread slices deep in the sugar syrup with the help of spoon or coat the bread slices with sugar syrup. When bread slices looks like fully soaked in the syrup and then arranges bread slices in a try. Now neatly pour the rabri on the bread slices and garnished with almonds, pistachios and nuts.

    Now you can serve the royal piece of dessert shahi tukra, Sweet and yummy in every bite.
    If you want to serve chilled shahi tukra rather then hot fried shahi tura then keep it in fridge and serve chilled shahi kura.

  • Cheesy and spicy Enchiladas- Puro Mexico

    Cheesy and spicy Enchiladas- Puro Mexico

    The intangible cultural heritage of the world, the Mexican food has a wide network all over the world. The life without Mexican food is like no life at all and I think this phrase set right here if we are discussing about the enchiladas, the world famous Mexican dish full of cheese and spices. Mexican enchilada has emerged as a, cultural and culinary phenomenon that goes far beyond than mere belly filling. Enchiladas are rooted in the Mexican culture, religion and tradition, regarded as symbol of Mexican ethnic heritage and sense of delicious food. Enchiladas are also a most favorite street food of Mexico.

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    This dish was originally came into existence, when the people living in valley of Mexico used to eat corn tortillas folded or rolled around small fish. After that, from generation to generation enchiladas are regarded as central part of the Mexican culture. It is served on all the occasions. Varieties of enchiladas depend on the regions. Enchiladas are rolled maize tortillas stuffed with either chicken or vegetables and covered with melted cheese and Chile sauces. Recipe of enchiladas is very simple it hardly takes 30 minutes to prepare delicious enchiladas.

    For Veg cheese enchiladas the ingredients are – 12 corn tortillas, red enchiladas sauce, 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil, half onion chopped, 1 clove of garlic, 14 ounce crushed tomatoes, half cup water, half teaspoon dried oregano, 4 cups of jack cheese, mild cheddar, a handful of cilantro, ¾ cup of chopped cooked green chilies, 1/3 cup chopped pickled jalapenos, 1 cup of sour cream half a head of iceberg lettuce. For making tortillas take a mixture of either of wheat or maize with salt. stir in water and oil. knead 10 to 15 times then roll and cook tortillas over medium heat.

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    Method of making enchiladas- preheat oven to 350 degree F. Add a tablespoon of oil on large frying pan at medium heat. Now add a corn tortilla cook it for 2 to 3 minutes. Lift up tortilla with the help of spatula and add another tortilla underneath and cook it also for 2 to 3 second, repeat this process until all the tortillas become brown and soft. you can add more oil if needed. This pre-cooking of tortilla helps in softening them for rolling. Add the fried and chopped onion, cook them for 5 to 6 minutes until translucent. Add the crush tomato, chili, salt and garlic, cook for a minute then add ½ cup water. Add the oregano and if it taste too vinegary, add half teaspoon sugar then put it aside.

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    Now take tortillas one by one, stuffed with all the mixture and cheese, cover 2/3 of it tightly with the shredded cheese, then roll up the tortilla and place it in casserole pan with little olive oil on the bottom of it. Add sauce on the top of the tortilla in the casserole pan until the tortillas are fully covered with the sauce cover the whole thing with the rest of the grated cheese. Put the casserole in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese melts. Now you have cheesy, spice and tasty veg enchiladas served with sliced iceberg lettuce dressed topped with different sauces and cheese. you can put more vegetables according to  your test and desires.

    Making of non-veg enchiladas-

    Ingredients are-
    2-3 tablespoon olive oil, 1 cup frozen corns, 2 red onion sliced, 2 red peppers, red chili powder, 2 garlic cloves, crushed, 1 tablespoon cumin seeds and ground coriander, Boneless chicken, cut into small chunks, re fried beans, tomatoes, pasta according to the need, 10 tortillas, 3 ml. pots soured cream and around 200 gm cheddar, grated, 1 tablespoon golden caster sugar, 1 cup shredded cheese and Red enchiladas sauce.

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    Method: To make enchiladas sauce- first, blend the charred garlic, onion, tomato, chopped green chili and coriander in mixer then put this mixture for heat in oil or Heat the olive oil, fry the onions, peppers, chopped chili and coriander stalks half the garlic and tortillas in a large pan for the 10 minutes until it becomes soft then stir in it 2 teaspoon ground coriander and cumin seeds and fry for 2 minutes. .  Now add water, salt, and pepper, simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.

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    Meanwhile boil chicken in the water, rinse and shred with fork. Add onion and garlic. If using ground beef, brown with the onion and garlic or fry the chicken in another pan until it becomes brown then add it to the pan of vegetables. Sprinkle chicken with cumin, garlic powder and Mexican spices on vegetables, then remove it and allow cooling. Add corn and chili then after mixing add canned tomatoes. Stir the beans, sweet corn, coriander leaves, spices and 150 ml of pasta into the vegetables and chicken. Add tortillas drain on paper towel. The pour the enchiladas sauce in the bottom of the baking pan, fill the tortillas with a spoonful of chicken mixture, spicy vegetables and Cheese.To put together the enchiladas slather sauce on the tortilla, add the cooked enchiladas chicken, roll it and pour enchiladas sauce and cheese on the top. Bake it till the cheese melt. place for the bake at 350 degree for 20 minutes or until cheese melt then garnish with chopped tomatoes, decorated with different salads and sour cream before served.
    Now enjoy the cheesy, spicy and testy enchiladas.!!!