Many children enjoy ready-made frozen snacks, such as french fries or potato cutlets, including frozen potato smileys. If your children frequently ask for these store-bought snacks, this article offers a recipe for making equally delicious smileys at home.
Homemade potato smileys are distinguished by their freshness and taste. Furthermore, the ingredients used to create them are easily found in the kitchen. This option is perfect for a children's lunch, or as an evening or weekend snack. After trying this recipe, you might decide to stop buying frozen smileys from the store.
To begin the process, thoroughly wash and peel the potatoes, then cut them into small pieces. These cut pieces must be rinsed twice under water to remove excess starch, and then boiled until soft. A pressure cooker can be used to speed up the process.
After boiling, the potatoes should be drained from the water and left on a sieve to let all excess moisture drain away. Then, the potatoes need to be well mashed until completely smooth, without large lumps. Salt to taste, rice flour, and one teaspoon of oil or ghee are added to this mass. Black pepper and chili flakes can be included if desired. All components are thoroughly mixed to obtain a homogeneous dough.
Small balls are formed from the resulting potato dough and lightly pressed. To ensure all smileys look uniform, they can be cut using a round cookie cutter or lid. Then, using a pen casing or a thin round object, two small holes are made for eyes. Next, slight pressure is applied from below using the edge of a spoon to form a smile. The potato smileys are ready in just a few seconds.
Oil is heated in a deep pan over medium heat. The finished smileys are carefully placed in the hot oil and fried until golden and crispy on both sides. After frying, they are removed and placed on paper towels to absorb excess oil. Your potato smileys, similar to those sold in stores, are ready. They can be enjoyed with tomato ketchup, green chutney, or any other favorite sauce, and topped with chutney.
Dal-chawal is a comfort food dish that is prepared and enjoyed in most Indian homes daily. However, eating the same simple dry vegetable side dish or boiled potatoes every day can become boring. If you want to make today's lunch more interesting and spicy, then spicy cilantro potatoes will be an excellent alternative.
This vegetable side dish, prepared using fresh green cilantro, green chili, roasted spices, and lemon juice, greatly enhances the flavor of dal-chawal. Moreover, its preparation is very simple and takes only about 10 minutes. Below is a simple and spicy recipe.
For preparation, you will need: potatoes – 4-5 pieces (boiled and cut into large chunks); fresh green cilantro – 1 large bunch (fresh and washed); green chili – 3-4 pieces (to taste); ginger – a 1-inch piece; lemon juice – 1-2 tablespoons; cumin (jeera) – 1 teaspoon; asafoetida (hing) – a pinch; ground cumin – ½ teaspoon; chaat masala – ½ teaspoon; amchur powder – ½ teaspoon (optional); oil or ghee – 2 tablespoons; salt to taste.
First, place the green cilantro, green chili, ginger, 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of water into a blender jar to blend into a very thick and smooth paste. (Adding lemon juice helps preserve the green color of the cilantro).
Heat the oil or ghee in a pan. Then add cumin and asafoetida for flavoring. After this, add the chopped boiled potatoes and salt to taste to the pan. Fry the potatoes over medium or high heat for 3-4 minutes until they are slightly golden and crispy.
When a light crispy layer forms on the potatoes, reduce the heat and mix in the prepared green cilantro paste. Simultaneously add the ground cumin, chaat masala, and amchur powder. Mix all ingredients thoroughly so that the paste evenly coats the potatoes.
Simmer the dish over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly to remove any raw taste from the cilantro and allow all the aromas to penetrate the potatoes. Turn off the heat and top with a little lemon juice and finely chopped cilantro for the final mix. The ready spicy cilantro potatoes are served hot with dal-chawal, puri, or paratha.
These cilantro potatoes, prepared with fresh green cilantro and aromatic spices, are perfect as a side dish for lunch. The special combination of boiled potatoes, lemon, and green chili will give your usual serving of dal-chawal a completely new taste. This spicy dry vegetable side dish is prepared without much hassle in just 10 minutes.
If eating simple lentils, such as arhar or moong, has become boring for family members during lunch, it is worth giving the second course a special and appetizing accent. Dal Makhani, a very popular dish in North Indian cuisine, is mouthwatering when mentioned.
Many believe that reproducing the creamy and thick taste of Dal Makhani, similar to restaurant quality, at home is difficult. However, with a few simple culinary tricks and the right spices, this dish can be prepared quite easily in your own kitchen. Thanks to the perfect combination of butter and cream, these lentils will turn an ordinary lunch into a luxurious feast. Below is the simplest recipe for making Dal Makhani in a restaurant style.
For preparation, you will need: whole black lentils (Sabut Urad ki Dal) — 1 cup, rajma — ¼ cup, local ghee or butter — 3-4 tablespoons, finely chopped onion — 1 (medium size), tomato puree — 1 cup, ginger and garlic paste — 1 tablespoon, Kashmiri red chili powder — 1 teaspoon, garam masala powder — ½ teaspoon, dried Kasuri Methi — 1 teaspoon, fresh cream or homemade yogurt — ½ cup, salt — to taste.
First, thoroughly wash the whole black lentils and rajma, then soak them in water overnight (or for 7-8 hours). The next morning, place them in a pressure cooker along with 4 cups of water, a small amount of salt, and one tablespoon of oil, then cook slowly until 4-5 whistles are achieved, until the lentils are completely soft.
After cooking, open the pressure cooker and gently mash (crush) the lentils and rajma using a ladle. This step gives the dish its creamy consistency.
Next, heat 2 tablespoons of oil and a little vegetable oil (to prevent burning) in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add the finely chopped onion to this mixture and fry until golden brown. Then add the ginger and garlic paste and cook for one minute.
Add the tomato puree and Kashmiri red chili powder to this base. Fry the spices until the oil or ghee starts separating from the sides of the pot.
Pour the cooked lentils and rajma along with the water into the fried spices. Reduce the heat to a minimum and simmer the lentils for at least 20-25 minutes. The slower Dal Makhani cooks, the more delicious the taste becomes. If the lentils seem too thick, you can add a little warm water.
When the dal achieves a thick and creamy texture, add the garam masala powder and dried Kasuri Methi, crushed by hand. Finally, stir in the fresh cream and one tablespoon of oil on top, mix well, and turn off the heat after 2 minutes. The ready-made Dal Makhani in restaurant style is served hot with tandoori roti, naan, or jeera rice.
