Dal Tadka | Punjabi Toor Dal – Home Style

Toor Dal is a lentil much loved all over India, from the Sambars of Tamil Nadu and other parts of South India, to the Aamti variation of the Maharashtrian Varan, to the Dal Tadka of the Punjab. And no wonder. The creamy, flowing texture and interesting flavour of the dal makes it a favourite with many.

The Punjab is full of wonderful dals, from Dal Makhani to Amritsari Dal. But nothing really beats the simplicity of Dal Tadka. In the same way that Varan is loved by the Maharashtrians, and Neiyyum Parippum is loved by the Keralites, this simple dal dish has a strong appeal. It is made with toor dal and generously spiced with a tadka of black mustard seeds, garlic, chilli and cumin.

Toor Dal is famous world wide. Easy and cheap to make, it became a favourite of restaurateurs, so was introduced early to restaurant-goers in other parts of the world. It goes so well with rice and an array of Indian flat breads. Jeera rice is particularly nice with it.

Dal Tadka is very similar to Aamti, and my Maharashtrian friends call it the Punjabi Aamti.

Please have a look at Aamti too, and our Sambar dishes. You might also like a beautiful Mung Dal. Explore other famous Punjabi dishes such as Baingan Ka Bharta – Punjabi Smoky Eggplant Curry,  Dal Makhani and Amritsari Dal.

Browse all of our Toor Dal dishes here, and all of our Punjabi dishes also. All of our Indian dishes are here. Or explore our easy Mid Summer recipes.

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Ladyfinger Masala | Kerala Okra Curry

Once upon a time  when I was spending a few weeks in Kerala, I had some cooking classes with a chef from the Leela. What a joy these classes were, with me madly taking notes and taking photos while my beautiful chef cooked and explained, cooked and explained. One of the dishes we cooked was this Okra Masala.

Every now and again I come across some of the notes from those recipes, and, just as I needed it, the scribbled notes on this ladyfinger (okra) curry came to my attention once again. It brought back memories of that beautiful time in Kerala and the amazing food to be found in the Leela, the vegetarian restaurant just up the road, all through Trivanderam and in the other homes and cafes where I ate. Each trip to India has been memorable and this one no less so than any other.

Are you looking for more Okra recipes? Try Pickled Okra, Sri Lankan Okra Curry, Cooking Okra for Sambar, and Spicy Stuffed Fried Okra.

What about some Kerala recipes? Try Spinach Thoran,  Aubergines in Coconut Milk, and Pomegranate and Banana Salad.

Or browse all of our Okra recipes. All of our Indian dishes are here. If you are looking for all of our recipes from Kerala, they are all here. Or simply explore our Mid Autumn recipes.

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Roughly Mashed Parsnips with Olive Oil and Parmesan

Luxurious and nourishing, a Winter dish

Parsnips are a wonder in winter – slightly sweet, beautifully tender. Once Spring comes, parsnips become more woody and starchy and are less successful. Make this mash when parsnips are at their peak. It is deliciously indulgent and nourishing.

Are you after other Mashes? Try Garlicky Mashed Potato, and Parsnip and Carrot Mash.

And try these Potato Mashes – English, French, and Indian.

Perhaps you might like to browse our Parsnip recipes, and all of our Mash recipes. Explore all of our easy Mid Winter recipes as well.

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Mediterranean Barley with Crispy Tofu

Barley is beautiful, especially in Salads

I am in love with barley at the moment – a great wintery grain that also, strangely, has some cooling properties when used in the warmer months. Not only does it do well in soups, pilafs and vegetable stews, it is an accommodating base for salads.

Ilyse, the amazing artist from the no-longer-existing blog Lucullian Delights, had a wonderful barley and tofu salad for any season. I tweeked it just a little, and it is a perfect salad for summer or for winter.

Do also try Black Pepper Tofu, an exquisite dish from Ottolenghi. Or make Toa Hou Hod, Deep Fried Tofu with a Sweet Peanut Sauce, a Thai dish full of flavour.

Are you looking for other Barley recipes? Try Barley Pilaf. This Parsley and Barley Salad is pretty good too.

You might like to browse other Barley recipes here. Our extensive list of wonderful Salads are here. You might like to see all of our Tofu recipes also. Or simply explore our easy Late Summer Recipes.

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Seasonal Cooking | MID SUMMER – 27 Dishes Not to Be Missed

Enjoy these highlights from our Mid Summer classic recipes.

You can browse all of our Mid Winter recipes here:

Please let us know if you find links that are not working. We would love to fix them for you.

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Raw Beetroot and Herb Salad

How great is the earthy taste of beetroot! Growing my own, the earthiness and its inherent sweetness are both intensified in these fresh-from-the-ground crimson balls.

This crunchy salad is a good way to start or end a meal, or to serve as part of a spread of vegetable-based dishes. It is an Ottolenghi recipe, simple in its design and gorgeous in its delivery. It is very crunchy with the beetroot raw and the toasted nuts and seeds. If you like it a little softer, quickly saute the julienned beetroot, like we do in the Beetroot and Carrot Salad.

Everything can be prepared in advance, kept in the fridge, and combined when you’re ready.

We have some similar Beetroot recipes. Try Roasted Beetroot and Garlic Salad with Walnuts, Beetroot with Yoghurt Tahini Dressing, and Beetroot, Orange and Black Olive Salad.

You can browse all of our Beetroot recipes here. Or have a look through our Ottolenghi recipe collection. We love Salads and have so many. Browse them here, or explore our easy Mid Summer recipe collection.

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Seasonal Cooking | MID WINTER – Dishes Not to Be Missed

Man it’s cold! Put on another jumper and enjoy these highlights from our Mid Winter classic recipes.

You can browse all of our Mid Winter recipes here:

Please let us know if you find links that are not working. We would love to fix them for you.

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Fig Salad with Hazelnuts and Mesclun

Fig Salads are extremely Autumnal, and beautiful, enlivening. They make you forget about the cold weather to come, and just add joy to the table.

Figs and almonds go very well together, and so do figs and hazelnuts. In this salad, hazelnut oil is used to sizzle some sliced hazelnuts before adding them to figs that have been warmed through in the oven.

Are you looking for other Fig Salads? Try Baked Figs with Thyme, Figs with Rosewater and Almonds, and Fig and Almond Salad.

You can also browse all of our Fig recipes, and indeed all of our many many Salads. Or explore our Mid Autumn recipes.

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Pan Fried Broad Beans with Lime, Chilli and Salt

A quick, healthy snack.

I am here to tell you that these are delicious. A great snack, quickly prepared, is pan fried broad beans. You can use peas or edamame as well. You can even use peas and edamame in their pods. Simply suck them out of the shell between your teeth after cooking.

Broad beans, once out of their pod, still have a thick, tough coat on each bean. Removing this improves their flavour enormously. Yes, it is a little fiddly, but worth the effort. Take a small sharp knife and make a slit in the side of the bean, then coax the coat off. Sometimes they just pop out. You are left with tender, vibrant green beans.

Are you looking for similar recipes? Try Pan Fried Broad Beans with Tomato and Thyme, and Tawa Broad Beans.

Browse all of our Broad Bean recipes, and all of our Snacks here and here.  Be inspired by our Mid Spring recipes.

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South Indian Green Peas Soup

Have you ever before seen serve hot with soy sauce as an instruction for a soup? Well, now you have. In this Green Pea Soup recipe from Tamil Nadu, South India, that is exactly the serving suggestion. South Indian soups are unspiced but flavoursome soups that are probably hang-overs from the British occupation. Somehow they have snuck into parts of the South Indian cuisine. This one has a slight Indo-Chinese influence – thickened with cornflour and topped with soy sauce.

In my experience, South Indian soups are served in small amounts. I have had them both before a main meal and after, so traditions must vary across South India.

This soup is made from peas, carrots and cauliflower, and thickened slightly with cornflour. It’s delicious, in a 1970’s sort of way. I love it.

Are you looking for other South Indian Soups? Try South Indian Beetroot Soup, South Indian Summery Tomato Soup, and South Indian Cauliflower Soup.

Or perhaps you are after other (more spicy) Indian soups? Try Mung Dal with Coconut, Creamy Tomato Soup with Lemongrass and Ginger, and Simple Indian Dal Soup.

Or some Pea recipes? Try Carrots and Green Peas with Green Coriander, Green Pea Pilaf, and Buttermilk Sambar.

You can also browse all of our South Indian Soups, and all of our Indian Soups. Or have a look at our Pea recipes.  Perhaps you would like to explore all Indian dishes. Or maybe all of our Soups. Or simply take some time to have a look at our Late Spring dishes.

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Fava Bean Puree with Fresh Herbs | Dried Broad Bean Puree with Herbs | Dip, Spread or Soup

Dried Broad Beans are a great substitute for fresh broad beans once their season has finished. They don’t exactly taste like the fresh version, but are pretty good in their own right and make the smoooooothest divine puree.

The downside is that they need to be peeled before cooking. They say that dried, peeled Broad Beans (or Fava Beans) are available, even split ones, but I have been unsuccessful in my search for them. Thus it is necessary to soak the dried beans for 12 hours, then slip the peels from them, and only then put them on to cook. Not every recipe you see will tell you this trick – it seems to be rather a secret.

This recipe can be used for older fresh broad beans – the ones that have lost their green freshness and are now rather white, and for the dried variety. Either way, the individual beans will have to be peeled.

Are you looking for Broad Bean recipes? Try Thirteen Treasure Happiness Soup, Glorious Five Bean Salad, and Fava Bean Puree with Dill and Olive Oil.

For our dried Broad Beans, we have Dried Fava Bean Soup with Turmeric and Herbs.

Or perhaps you are looking for dips for your Mezza table? Try Zhug (Coriander – Chilli Puree), Chickpea, Almond and Sesame Spread, and Turkish Cacik.

You can find all of our Dips here, or browse all of our Broad Bean recipes. You might like to look through all of our Turkish dishes. Or simply take some time to explore our Mid Autumn dishes.

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Barley and Root Vegetable Soup or Stew with Umeboshi and Sesame

Healthy, warming and nourishing, a perfect soup for the coldest of days.

This recipe has macrobiotic overtones, but feel free to play with flavours in any way that you wish. It has the interesting flavours of sesame oil, tamari and umeboshi vinegar.

The recipe comes from a scribbled recipe on a piece of paper, as many of my recipes do. I have collected them over millennia, it seems. To the original recipe I have added some olive oil as the stated sesame oil was not enough for sautéing the onions and vegetables.

Would you like to try similar recipes? Try Adzuki Bean and Barley Soup with Pumpkin, Parsnip and Barley Soup with Sage and Garlic, Barley Pilaf, Barley and Red Kidney Beans, and Farmhouse Barley and Vegetable Soup.

You might be looking for all of our Barley recipes – you can find them here. Or browse our Soup recipes here and here. Our easy Mid Wintery recipes are here.

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Soupe aux Carottes Nivernaises | A French Carrot Soup from Nivernais

One more soup for the cold weather in the wintery regions. A French Carrot Soup, Soupe aux Carottes Nivernaises. A very special soup, this one. Warming and buttery, sweet and luxurious, it deserves a place at your winter table.

This soup is a specialty of Nivernais, a former province of France, around the city of Nevers that forms the modern department of Nièvre, which ennobles the carrot in its coat-of-arms! Old recipes have twice the amount of sugar as carrots, but today, this amount is greatly reduced.

Are you looking for similar Carrot Soups? Try these other recipes too: Parsnip and Carrot Soup with Crispy Garlic, Roasted Carrot and Apple Soup, and Carrot and Roasted Tomato Soup.

You can browse all of our other Carrot Soups. Or you might like to browse our Carrot recipes and Soup recipes. French recipes are here. Or check out our easy Late Winter recipes here.

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Caramelised Onion Salad with Bitter Greens and Pinenuts

I classify this recipe as an Easy Salad, but you do need to plan ahead to have enough time to caramelise the onions. Depending on your onions and your preference, this can take up to 45 mins of slow cooking. But don’t be dictated to by me – cook the onions to your preferred level of caramelisation. The longer you cook them, the sweeter they are, and this pairs nicely with the bitterness of the greens.

Add some orange segments if you care too – they are so nice with this salad. I particularly like this salad with with the Slightly Pickled Jicama and Citrus Salad.

Are you after other Onion recipes? Try Sweet Onion Salad with Roasted Rd Peppers, South Indian Spring Onion Soup, Onion Marmalade, and Sweet Onion Salad with Coriander Spice.

You can browse all of our Salads (there are quite a few, take your time), or you can check our Salads for different seasons by clicking on the Seasonal Cooking menu item at the top of this page. All of our Onion dishes are here, or you can browse our Radicchio recipes, Endive and Belgian Endive recipes, and Escarole dishes. Or simply explore our Early Winter dishes.

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Rocket Salad with Penne and Parmesan | Arugula Salad with Penne

Pasta salads are wonderful, don’t you think? Talking with my Italian Providore the other day, she wondered aloud why she and her staff didn’t bring them to work for lunch, instead of their usual sandwiches. And her question is a good one. This salad makes a perfect lunch time dish, an afternoon snack or a dinner accompaniment.

The trick with this salad is to make it a Rocket Salad with Penne, not a Penne Salad with Rocket. So the salad is heavy on rocket and light on penne. Mix it up if you wish, it would also be wonderful with different ratios, but if you are wanting your greens, I recommend trying it this way.

This is another Bittman Salad. After 3 years, we are nearly at the end of working our way through his 101 salads, making all of those that were vegetarian and modifying those that are not. There are about 13 more salads to make, and that feels so close to the end of our journey with Mark. But we shall be a little sad as we make the last one.

You might like to try other Bittman Salads. Try Roasted Sweetcorn and Avocado Salad, Fennel, Tomato and Potato Salad with Garlicky Mayonnaise, Vermicelli and Green Mango Salad, and Charred Tomato Salad with Mint and Lime. There are many, many more to come, in the queue to be published in the coming months, so stay tuned.

Or some other Pasta Salads? Try Light Pasta Salads, and Orzo Pasta with Spinach and Pinenuts.

Browse all of our Bittman Salads here (we have more in the queue for publishing over the coming months), and all of our Pasta Salads here. Explore all of our Pasta dishes (not just salads), and our Rocket recipes. Or simply browse our Early Winter dishes.

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