Go Coconutty For Goan Coconut Rice

Long time no post, and it's good to be back here. We'll be kicking off something special in the next couple of days so there's that. It's also been crazy around here since I haven't been able to post a lot of what I've been cooking. There are two reasons for that.  One, we've been working the the CocoaPlanet people helping to develop the entirely #glutenfree menu for their new CocoaPlanet Factory and Cafe which will be opening here in Sonoma very soon.

Also, there has been this:

Which has definitely slowed down my cooking... however, I am now back and it's with a recipe that calls for minimal wrist usage, Goan Coconut Rice.

I'm always looking for the best quality stuff to put into what I cook. I grow a lot of it myself but hey, I can't grow everything, especially rice. Awhile back I received  a sample of Himalayan Basmati Rice from Authentic Royal Basmati.

There are few scents I like more than the lovely perfume that comes from a newly opened bag of Basmati Rice, and the Authentic Royal Basmatii did not let me down in that department. From the moment I opened the package I knew I had a winning rice in hand. So, now what to do with it that involves minimal wrist stress, I decided  that Goan Rice would do the trick.

Goa, is a state in Southwestern India known for it's lovely beaches and tropical beauty. One thing they grow a lot of in Goa is rice. Another major Goan crop is coconut so why not put the two of them together? Instead of cooking my rice in a mixture of coconut milk and water I figured I'd go old school and make the dish traditionally using nothing but coconut milk. The combination was fragrant, delicious, and was on the table in less than 30 minutes, which makes it a great dish for a weekday meal. 

Goan Coconut Rice

Here's What You Need:
1 and 1/4 cups of Authentic Royal Basmati Rice
6 green cardamom pods
5 whole cloves
1 onion finely chopped
2 Tbs coconut or other vegetable oil
1 Tbs grated dried unsweetened coconut
3 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp of salt
1 cup of coconut milk
1 and 3/4 cups of water...(or you can make this rice as I did using all coconut milk)
1 cinnamon stick

Here's What To Do:
Chop the onion finely and set it aside.
In a small skillet dry roast the dried coconut until it's fragrant and toasty.

This only takes a couple of minutes.

Mix the garam masala into the toasted coconut  and set it aside.

Crack the cardamom pods slightly and set them aside.

Heat 2 Tbs of coconut or other vegetable oil in a pot.

When the oil is hot add in the cinnamon stick, cloves and cracked cardamom pods.

Let them sizzle for a couple of minutes. When they swell a bit and get aromatic add in the chopped onion.

Stir the onion around and saute it until it turns translucent, this takes about 5 minutes or so.
Now add in the rice...

...salt...

...and coconut milk, or coconut milk and water.

 Bring everything to a boil, then slap a tight lid on the pot, turn the heat to low and let look for about 15 minutes. Do NOT take the lid off while cooking.
After about 15 minutes, turn the heat off and let the unopened pot stand for another 5 minutes.
now take the lid off.
Place the rice into a serving bowl.

Sprinkle the coconut garam masala powder over the whole thing.

Top with chopped fresh cilantro.

And you are done!
Give it a good stir to mix everything together before putting it on the plate.

There it is, rice that is sweet coconutty and delicious with the amazing aroma one can only get from Indian grown Authentic Royal Basmati Rice

My thanks to Authentic Royal Basmati for letting me try their rice and now I have another item to add to my shopping list! Coming up soon, more Indian vegetarian delights! Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

Got Rice? You've Got Bread, And It's Gluten Free.

This is a tale of Coorgis.
No, not this. These are  Corgis.

Cute Corgis

 Not this. These are Courgettes.

"Classy" Courgettes

Which is actually a five dollar word for zucchini. Yeah. You heard me. It's zucchinis' alias when it's trying to get onto a fancy plate. Busted.
   No, I'm talking Coorgis. Coorgi Roti.

Delicious Coorgi Roti

   Now how did all this Coorgi frenzy come about? It turns out that a friend of mine was recently diagnosed as Gluten Intolerant. I've been doing some cooking for her and it's given me a chance to stretch my non-gluten legs.
   If you've ever made chapatti or tortillas you can make Corgi Roti, however if you are gluten intolerant you are giving gluten-rich flour a wide berth, and so you are not getting any of these things.  Of course one can always purchase gluten-free flours and go that way. I was however, looking for something that didn't need any special ingredients.
   A great deal of Indian food being rice based, is naturally gluten free. Besan (chickpea flour) is also used and makes for delicious breads and cakes. So I thought how about using some of that great gluten-free rice as a bread, and what better bread than Coorgi Roti? These roti get their name because they come from the region known as Kodagu, once known as Coorg which is a principle rice growing area.

   This tasty bread is so easy to make it's almost stupid! If you have rice you can make this bread. If you have ever made pancakes you can make this bread, and yes, even if those pancakes came out of a box mix... yes, you can make this bread. 

Coorgi Roti

Here's how:

 Start with 1 and 1/2 cups of soft cooked rice.

 In a bowl sift together:

   2 cups of rice flour

   1 and 1/2 tsp of salt

 Put the cooked rice and 2 Tbs of water into a food processor or blender.

 Blend for about 2 minutes until it turns to a soft puree.

 Dump the puree into a bowl and mix it with the rice flour and salt mixture.

 Knead it until you have a soft, pliable dough.

 Divide the dough into a bunch of little balls.

 Roll out each little ball into a flat round.

 Heat a griddle or tava.

 When it's hot, brush it with melted butter.

 Slap the flat little roti down on the griddle and when it starts to get a bit brown around the edges, turn it like a pancake.

 Cook it a few minutes longer and you are done.

 Brush each with a bit more melted butter (come on this is a treat)  and serve them up.

  These delightful little roti are great with breakfast, lunch or dinner, or even at midnight in the kitchen in your underwear. Not that I'd ever do that. Really. And they're 100 % gluten free!

  This is one of the easiest recipes that I've ever fixed and there is a huge bonus that comes with it. When you make the rice for this recipe you get not only roti, but you get another completely different delicious dish.Looka what ya get.....

"not only do you get the Sham Wow but also the Slap Chop!"

  I'll be posting that recipe next so stay tuned, no shipping or handling charges involved.

   Meanwhile this is the last day of my 2nd Blogiversary Giveaway.

 I'm giving away 2 great gifts: The first is a Copy of the fabulous cookbook Mangos and Curry Leaves 

  The other prize I have is Organic Coconut Water Vinegar from the nice people at Tropical Traditions. This vinegar is great and what can I say, a must have for old skool Indian cooking!

 So how do you get this stuff???? Here's what to do?

1.) Follow  @WorkmanPub  and  @Troptraditions on Twitter 
2.) Follow @kathygori on Twitter or follow my blog The Colors Of Indian Cooking
3.) Tweet about the sponsor and my giveaway  or mention it on your blog
4.) Let me know you've done so

  The drawing is going to be conducted on Random.org. It ends today July 14th. Winners announced tomorrow.  Thanks again to everyone who helps make this blog possible, especially my husband Alan Berger for his great photographs.  
     Follow along on Twitter @kathygori  

One Pot Rice And Dal Combo! Another Easy Indian Party Recipe.

My last few posts have been concentrated on the Tri-fecta  extravaganza we held for my parents last week; toss in Easter and we had the Godmother of all Italian dinners. So now it's back to Indian cuisine and one of the dishes I served two weeks ago when Paula Wolfert came to dinner.
It's called Hyderabadi Pilaf and it is an absolutely "save your bacon" dinner party dish. Why?  Because like all my favorite Indian party specialties it knows how to mind it's own business, and part of it can be made ahead of time and then finished quickly just before it's popped into the oven. Another point in its' favor is that the dal and rice mixed together in this dish form a complete protein which makes vegetarian diners happy.
 Even though the dish is called a pilaf it's not what most people think of as a rice pilaf.  As a matter of fact it is actually called  Khichdi, or Khichuri and is related to the Asian porridge dish known as Congee and the dish the Brits brought back from the Raj known as Kedgeree. Either way it's cooked all over India in all sorts of different ways. This is one of them.
  Hyderabadi Pilaf is my adaptation of a Madhur Jaffery dish I've been cooking for years.
  The dish comes in two parts. The Rice part and The Dal part.
 The Dal part can be made ahead of time and put together with The Rice part at the time of cooking. Just remember to warm it up before you put it into the dish.
  The Dal Part 1
Rinse 1/2 cup of channa dal and soak it in about 3 inches of water for 1 and 1/2 hours.
Take the dal and the water it's been soaking in and put it into a heavy pot.
Add:
1/4 tsp of turmeric
Bring the mixture to a boil, then partially cover the pot and turn down the heat to simmer for about 30  minutes.
When the dal has softened but is not mushy, take it off the fire and drain it.
 At this point, the dal can be set aside and kept for the next day.
  If the dish is being put together in one fell swoop, here's what's next.
The Dal Part 2
Heat 2 Tbs of oil in a heavy skillet. When it's hot add in:
1 large onion, halved and cut into very thin half rings.
Saute them until they are a nice crispy reddish brown color.
Take the onions out of the pan with a slotted spoon and drain them on some paper towels.
  Take the oil that the onions were cooked in and add:
2 tsp of finely minced and chopped ginger and
1 tsp of finely minced shallot
Saute these until they're lightly brown now toss in:
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 Tbs of plain yogurt
 Stir it well until the liquid in the yogurt has evaporated and it starts to brown slightly.
Add 4 more Tbs of yogurt one at a time until each has been absorbed.
 When all of the yogurt has been added, toss in the cooked dal and
 1/2 tsp of salt
1/8 to 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper
Mix it up well and saute it for about 1 minute.
The Rice
Soak 2 cups of Basmati rice in 2 inches of water for 30  minutes. Then drain it.
How to Put It All Together
Boil 12 cups of water, then add:
1 Tbs of salt
 Toss in the drained rice and let it come to a boil again and then let it boil for only 5 minutes.
Drain the rice.
 Pour half of the rice into a deep oven-proof baking dish. I use an Egyptian Bram.
Pour the dal over the rice, and then pour the rest of the rice on top of the dal.
  Final Steps
Scatter 2 Tbs of butter cut into little pieces on top of the top layer of rice and
Sprinkle the browned crispy onions  on top along with
2 tbs of lemon juice
2 Tbs of milk
1 Tbs of finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbs of chopped mint
2 finely chopped seeded green chilies
1/2 tsp of garam masala
 Now seal the baking dish tightly. Stretch tin foil over the top and crimp it around snugly so that it's well sealed. Place a lid on top of that.
Shove the whole thing into a preheated 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

This dish makes a stunning presentation. Take the lid and the foil off and display it on the table.

When serving, dig in deep through the layers of rice, dal and more rice. The blend of flavors and textures is delicious. I also love using my big clay pot with it's rustic texture. That's the great thing about clay, it goes from the oven to the table beautifully. Of course it's even better out of the pot and on the plate.

 This dish was served at a dinner party with many dishes of meat and vegetables, but it's simple and filling enough to be served with only one vegetable side dish and a simple salad. That's why I love this for company dinner and beyond.