Zatar- Hummus - Egg wrap with the King Khan guest appearance.

 

 



 

 You know how most..most of the Indi-movie romance goes ?

 

 

The hero - heroine starts off the journey like this ! They neither look at each other....nor talk. Constantly...

 

dishoom..dishoom.....

But some minor twist..and they end up...

 

 this way.

 Dance..Music... and then the real show gets rolling !!!!

 

My attitude towards these two ingredients - Za'atar and Hummus  was exaclty in the very same lines.

 

I was introduced to the "yucky" looking dip for the first time (almost 8 yrs back) during an offficial lunch meeting, and   the host, a Project Manager of an other Engineering Consultant Group  and of Lebanese origin, knowing that I was new to Kuwait, was giving me an in-detail intro into their cuisine. And this..za'atar in olive oil mix was served as a dip for bread sticks.

 

For me, then, most of the time..food appeal goes by looks and this was definitly not appealing to my eyes. May be he, who was sitting right across me, noticed it and started..

 

"Sona ! you need to try it. In our country...our mothers used to force us to have it, cause it was said to be a wonder herb mix. Good for memory. We too as kids, never liked it much...but nevertheless, always used to have it on the day of our exams".  It's a belief that za'atar makes the mind alert and the body strong.

 

(This, however, is also believed to be a myth fabricated during the Lebanese civil war to encourage eating of za'atar, as provisions were low at the time and za'atar was of abundance)

 

 

 

Za'atar is generally prepared using ground dried thyme, oregano, marjoram, or some combination thereof, mixed with toasted sesame seeds, and salt, though other spices such as sumac might also be added

When the dried herb is moistened with olive oil, the spread is known as za'atar-wu-zayt or zeit ou za'atar (zeit or zayt, meaning "oil" in Arabic and "olive" in Hebrew).

 

Not so willingly..i took a dip..and thought that would be my first and last.

 

 

Exactly the same with hummus too. More about this chikpea-dip here  .

 

But some where, down the line...things changed...and i gradually started liking these. Well not just me..my kids too. They love it. So, for a change it was a combination of these two which went as the spread for their dinner chapathi roll.

 

 

How to prepare hummus :

1 clove garlic

1 (19 ounce) chickpeas

4 tablespoonslemon juice

2 tablespoons tahini paste (store-brought)

1 teaspoonsalt

2 tablespoons olive oil

 

Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in blender or food processor. Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas. Blend for 3-5 minutes on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Place in serving bowl, and create a shallow well in the center of the hummus.        
Add a small amount (1-2 tablespoons) of olive oil in the well.

Garnish with red paprika powder and throw few chick peas on top.   

 

While preparing the rest of the ingredients for the roll...a sneak-peep from the kitchen on to the tv screen     ......

Of course ! he knows the trick.

 

 

Ooh..please dont kajol darlin' ...hota hai rae... ;)

 

 

It's all coming back to me"her" now.......(the background music plays )

 

While Lady Kajol is definiely not unhappy with King Khan repeating his tactics...the cucumbers and tomatoes got sliced.

Line them in...

Few eggs turned into omlettes . They too get aligned.

 

Wrapped ..and gone !



         

meanwhile... the King is back with his "call".

 

Just need to wait and watch, who takes that call.

Those who are regular at my place defintiely will know that it is not the first time that Mr. King Khan makes a guest appearance on my writes. He was here, in  the Train Cake post

 

 

and here  as well,  

 

 

the "chaahun-me-yaah-na" post on Pick Quicks . Coincidently, all these three posts are of the  same concept but in different contexts thou.

 

I AM, his fan...need I say ?

Oats & Prices @ Kuwait Market & some DIY hair treatment solutions using Oatmeal

An Englishman and a Scotsman were discussing oats. The Englishman, with his nose in the air said     

"In England we feed oats to our horses, and in Scotland you feed oats to your men...",

to which the Scotsman replied      

 

"...that's why in England you have such fine horses and in Scotland we have such fine men!" :P :P

 

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In continuation to one of my previous post :  

 

Oats - A case study 

 

which is all about the common doubts that we have about Oats...... What is all with these different types..steel cut, rolled, old fashioned, latest fashioned.. ;), quick cooking..slow cooking.... which type can be used for what type of cooking...does the health benefits vary with each types...so so on.....

 

this, however is specifically for those here in Kuwait, about the different varities available in the market, WITH the PRICE TAGS...and of course, some interesting DIY hair care solutions using OATS.

 

Never thought of that ?? Read on...

 

 

Went shopping last weekend..kids were back home...hubs was browsing elsewhere..so the happy-me got some perfectly "me" time to peacefully look around the aisle and be clicking specifically having this post in mind.

 

The most colourful was this Instant flavoured Oats section. Literally..any flavour...with fruits, nuts, spices...PRESENT SIR !  The Indian savoury ones are yet to hit the market thou. (pictures clicked @ LuLu Hyper market, Kuwait)

 

 

At around KD 1.700 - KD 1.900 they are about 10 (or 8 ??) individual serving sachets per pack. Handy for a quicky     on-the-go run. Just add hot water and M/W or leave on counter top for a few minutes.

 

 

Dont get the logic here. Old fashioned and Quick cooking ones both at the same price !! KD 2.250. I would in this case definitely go for the old fashioned one as the second seems to be highlt priced for this particular packing.

 

 

 

Same here... Quick Cooking Rolled Oats and Old Fashioned Rolled ones..again at the same pricing. KD 1.640. hmmm... Again, would go for the Old fashioned in this case too...

 

 

Bob's Organic Red Mill-Steel cuts  @KD 2.140 for 680 gms.

 

 

 

 

 500 gms Oatmeal - less than 1/2 KD .

 



 

 

while this brand is definitely much highly priced than the previous. KD 1.850 for a less than 1/2 kg pack.

 

And , now for some Did You Know facts...

 

Unrelated to oatmeal the food, there is a town in Texas called Oatmeal. It's 56 Miles northwest of Austin putting it nearly smack dab in the very middle of the state.

 

 

 

 I'm not sure if they eat oatmeal in Oatmeal, but it's a curious fact none the less (or maybe not). !!!!

 

Did You Know ...

Oatmeal can be a best sudstitute to a deep conditioner for hair.

 

Check out this video .

 

 

DIY Oatmeal & Honey Moisturising Deep Conditioner

 

Did You Know ...

 

Oatmeal does a great job as a dry shampoo as well. Seriosuly !!
 

 

You can use oats and baking powder to create your own dry shampoo right at home. Rd.com suggests, “Put 1 cup oatmeal in the blender and grind it into a fine powder. Add 1 cup baking soda, and mix well. Rub a bit of the mixture into your hair. Give it a minute or two to soak up the oils, then brush or shake it out of your hair (preferably over a towel or bag to avoid getting it all over)

More about it here.  

Hope this post was helpful to you, as much it is to me.

                           ******************************

 

 

LoR 08 - Instant Tomato Chutney

(LoR - Leftover Remake )

 

 A quicky post on an even quicky remake.

 

 

 Instant tomato chutney with leftover tomato thokku.

 

Had posted  a remake version of the Tomato thokku (recipe "here") to make Egg Burji some time back. This chutney is yet another version I do almost regularly .

 

 

Infact, i always prepare the simple tomato thokku a bit more than necessary to make way for the remakes..either of them...depending on what i have in hand to pair up with.

 

If for some chapathi, i go for the egg burji remake, but

 

if for dosa or idli, its this chutney version.

 

Its basically just two steps involved :

 

 

Take the tomato curry (thokku) in a mixer , add some grated coconut. Have used dessicated ones in here, as i was short of the fresh ones. Either ways , its fine.

 

Give a pulse, and thats it.  Maybe, you can add in a green chillie if required, for some extra spice, but I dont as my kids are the spice-repellant type.

 

Salt..yes..a tad bit more could go in.

 

Quicky, yeah ?

 

;)

 

click "here" to go to the previous post in the LoR series.

Oats - A case study

 It's been raining " oats" in my kitchen offlate. Need to try out very many recipes as I can with oats as the main ingredient (got a reason for it..will let know in the next coming posts ;) . So, it basically..an experiment, a recipe trial literally each day (to be read as "night") , and as the first very first step what myself wanted to be aware of was on the different type of oats.What the differences are...which type is suitable for what...

So, for myself, and for those whom this would seem informative, thought of putting up this post on the very same.

Oats types

The different types at a glance. Image courtesy - The Yummylife.com

In detail...

 

 Raw Oats, newly harvested

This is what oats look like before the kernels (groats) are separated from the hulls and stalks. Admittedly, you won't see them this way in stores, but we thought you'd like to see what they look like fresh from the fields.

  

 

 Whole Oat Groats

A groat is another name for a grain kernel. Whole oat groats are the result of simply harvesting oats, cleaning them, and removing their inedible hulls. You can most often find these in health food stores. They take the longest to cook.

 

 

 

 

Steel Cut Oats / Irish Oatmeal / Scottish Oatmeal

If you cut groats into two or three pieces with a sharp metal blade, you get steel cut oats. They cook quicker than oat groats, because water can more easily penetrate the smaller pieces. Steel cut oats are also sometimes called Irish oatmeal.

 

Instead of cutting oats with a steel blade, the Scots traditionally stone-grind them, creating broken bits of varying sizes, which some say results in a creamier porridge than steel-cutting.

 

 

 

Rolled Oats – regular (old fashioned)

Rolled oats (sometimes called old fashioned oats) are created when oat groats are steamed and then rolled into flakes. This process stabilizes the healthy oils in the oats, so they stay fresh longer, and helps the oats cook faster, by creating a greater surface area.

 

 

Quick Cooking Oats

If you roll the oat flakes thinner, and/or steam them longer, you create quick oats and ultimately instant oats. The nutrition stays the same (these are all whole grains) but the texture changes – a plus for some people and a drawback for others. The good thing about having so many choices is that everyone can get exactly the taste they like best!

 

 



Instant Oats

 Pressed even thinner than quick oats, instant oats oats often break into a coarse powder. They cook the quickest of all and make a very soft and uniform mush (erm...for lack of a better description).

 

 

To note :

 

1. Quick oats and old fashioned oats can be freely substituted for each other. 

 

 

2. Which type of oats is best suited for baking ?

 

On trying the different type oats for making cookies -   Both old fashioned and quick oats produced cookies that tasters described as “chewy” and “oaty.” The cookies made with instant however, were deemed “gummy”, “raw” and not acceptable. 

 

While the nutritional value is the same between the different styles of oats, the speed in which your body digests them is different.

The coarse oats, such as steel cut and rolled, take the longest to digest, keeping you full longer. Instant oatmeal digests the fastest, but won't keep you going. They also spike your insulin production sharply. Steel cut and rolled even out your insulin levels, making them healthier to eat.This is a good thing for diabetic patients who are  trying to keep a stable blood sugar.

 

 



 

well...Lady Barbara Bush Totally Looks Like The Quaker Oats Man in here.. ;)

And for the most commonly asked doubt.

 

Does eating oatmeal really help to reduce cholesterol...or, is it just some marketing stratergy. And if yes.. how ??

 

The short answer is yes, oatmeal can lower your cholesterol. Now for the long answer.

 

There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber is acted upon by the normal bacteria in your intestines. Insoluble fiber is not digested by the body and promotes regularity and softens stools. Wheat bran, whole grain products and vegetables are good sources of insoluble fiber.

 

Soluble fiber appears to reduce your body's absorption of cholesterol from the intestines. Oatmeal contains soluble fiber that reduces your low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the "bad" cholesterol that can increase your risk of heart attacks and strokes. This type of fiber is also found in such foods as kidney beans, brussels sprouts, apples, pears, barley and prunes.

 

Believe i have clarified myself on this topic, and hope it does for you too.

 

 

 



Potato Makhani / Potato Mattar Masala (simple, low-fat version)

 

Alright !!! Here I am back again, trying desperately to give both my blogger "properties" a refresh. This is been going on for quite some time now... my blogs (this) and ofcourse my Pick Quicks too...suffering from hiccups. No regular posts..no regular blogvisits... sorry yaars ! Not that I dont want to keep these up and running..but, just cant afford the time.

 

Do have quite a few in my drafts, as pictures but yet to put up the recipe. This post was halfway done during the Lent season..would have been apt then, for those who were abstaining from non-veggies........ but, better late than never. Here it goees now..on air!

 

Inspired by "Butter Chicken" which is always a favourite with our boys, tried the similar recipe but with Baby Potatoes.  Most vegetarian cuisine uses paneer in a similar way, as Paneer Makhani, Paneer Mattar Masala...but to be honest, I am definitely not the "cheesy" person. So, it was the cute little baby potatoes who got its pick and well....it works !

 

Not to forget, this is indeed a low fat version, with low fat milk and the "deleted" fat by replacing cheese wih potatoes.

 

You need :

 For the spice mix -

 

3  tbsp chilli pdr
2  tbsp coriander pdr
1  tsp garam masala pdr
1  tsp kasoori methi pdr
2  tsp ketchup

2 tsp tomato paste 

And the rest -
2 tbsp butter

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

3 medium sized onions cut to thin slices
1 cup low fat  milk to add to gravy
1/4 cup low fat milk OR LESS, to mix the spices
Baby potatoes (about 10-12)
Salt to taste

How to :

 

Take all the ingredients under the "spice mix" in a bowl.

Mix with the low fat milk to form a thick paste. Not beign specific of the quantity. You know when it is justt right...not to thick...not too watery.

 

Meanwhile, wash, peal, cut to half and bring to boil the potaoes. They should not be too overcooked, else they mush up in the gravey.

 

And ..i would suggest, you do this part yourself...or, be very SPECIFIC!!! on your instructions...lest your potatoes, end up like these ;)

 

  :P :P

(some innocent assistance )

 

Back to task...

 

 

In a woke, add 1 tsp butter, ginger garlic paste, onions, salt and saute till tender.

Grind them to a coarse paste.

 

 

Into the same woke, add in one more tsp of butter.

In goes the prepared spice mix and stir till the raw smell leaves.

Add the ground onion mix to the spice mix...

 

 

Next add the low fat milk to form the desired consistency of the gravey. Let it cook for a couple of minutes  . Dont forget the salt !

 

Add the cooked potatoes and gently coat it all over with the gravey.

Keep pan closed and simmer for a few minutes for the potatoes to absorb the flavours.

 

(Optional - can add in some cooked green peas. I used the canned ones, and the dish is now Potato Mattar Masala very much similar to the Paneer Mattar masala..but again, i repeat, the very low fat version.)

 





 

Serve hot with paratha, naan or chapathi.