The Month that it was _ JUNE '07

Monsoon skies at Cochin
And the rains came down!!

June has come and gone.........bringing with it the Monsoon, heavy rains.. the usual leaks to be stopped, wet floors to dry.. and a lot of lovely days at Dal Roti. This post is aimed at listing some of the great and not so great moments.


Three birthdays were celebrated in June.......

ZULFI'S BIRTHDAY
Amaarah, Zehra & Saba with a little help from their mother Maimoona had a surprise birthday for their father Zulfi at Dal Roti to see in the first day of June... about 50 people took over the restaurant and hopefully had a great time

The three girls and their mother giving the birthday greeting!!


And the birthday boy!!!!

ESWAR'S BIRTHDAY
Mangal threw a lunch birthday party for his son Eshwar and combined it with a father's day cake on the 17th.. had about 25 people at the party

Eshwar cutting the birthday cake while Mangal cuts the Father's day one

And at the Birthday lunch

HEMANGI'S BIRTHDAY
Hemangi Asher with husband and close friends came for a quiet birthday celebration. She is far too shy to be photographed!!

Harrison Malayalam Ltd. had a three day seminar for their executives from the tea and rubber plantations and Dal Roti catered the lunches on all the days and also the evening get togethers.. Thanks HML and in particular Carry and Vinay

A not so welcome guest, well after the fact was a gentleman ( tough to call him that!!) who dined regularly at Dal Roti and then suddenly vanished. It was only later we learnt that he was an internationally wanted criminal and had been arrested in another city. Seeing him, one would have never imagined it!!

There has been a surprising number of tourists considering it is the monsoon and as has been the trend, the French continue to dominate

Thanks to all our customers, both in Cochin, Kerala, India and worldwide who visited Dal Roti and we look forward to them visiting us again

PRESENTING THE FIRST TEAM!!

Presenting the team which creates the food at Dal Roti....... the cooks par excellence!

L-R: Nasim, Miraj, Mustaquin, Jasim, Mumtaz & Wasim

A Recipe - Paneer Butter Masala ( Paneer Makhani)

This one is for Tejal

Paneer Butter Masala (Paneer Makhani)

250 g fried paneer, cubes (cottage cheese)

1 onion, ground into a paste

1 inch gingerroot, ground into a paste

6 garlic flakes, ground into a paste

2 tomatoes, ground into a paste

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder

1/2 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)

2 teaspoons fresh cream

2 teaspoons cashew nuts paste

2 teaspoons ghee

1/2 teaspoon butter

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Salt to taste

 in a pan heat the ghee until melted.

 fry onion-ginger-garlic paste until it turns golden brown.

 add the masala powders and sauté till the raw smell is gone.

 add tomato paste and sauté for 5 minutes.

 fold in sugar and kasoori methi.

 add fresh cream and cashew nut paste.

 cook on low flame and add paneer cubes and salt.

 stir in 1/2 cup water and cover the pan.

 cook for 3 minutes.

 once the gravy thickens, add 1/2 teaspoons butter and remove from heat.

 garnish with cashew nuts and mint leaves.

 Serve hot with naan or rotis or kulchas or parathas.

Special Guests - Class of 2006, NPS, Cochin

L - R :Reshma, Deeksha, Ayush, Shloka, Shweta & Shweta
A few from the class of 2006, Naval Public School, Cochin came to lunch, including our son Ayush. I wonder where the rest of the guys were!! Or did Ayush in typical fauji fashion.. keep them away??

one more recipe - MALAI KOFTA

Malai Kofta (Stuffed potato balls in cream)

Koftas

200 g potatoes, boiled and grated

100 g paneer, crumbled (cottage cheese)

1 tablespoon corn flour

1 teaspoon cumin powder

Salt to taste

oil, to deep fry

Stuffing

1 tablespoon raisins, chopped

1 tablespoon cashews, chopped

Gravy

1 tablespoon oil

2 medium onions, peeled, washed and chopped

1 inch fresh ginger, peeled, washed and ground to a paste

2 cloves garlic, ground to a paste

1 teaspoon red chili powder 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 tablespoon coriander powder

1 cup water

1 tablespoon cream

Garnish

1 tablespoon sliced almonds

1 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves, washed and finely chopped

1 tablespoon mango powder (amchoor powder) - optional

2 tablespoons oil

1. Mix all the ingredients for the Koftas together.
2. Divide the mixture into equal portions.
3. Shape into balls.
4. Flatten each ball.
5. Place 1/2 tsp of chopped nuts and raisins in the center of each ball.
6. Close the ball (you may use a little water to seal the ball with your fingertips).
7. Prepare all koftas in this way.
8. Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the koftas till golden brown on either side.
9. Remove onto clean paper napkins, allow the excess oil to drain and keep aside till you prepare the wonderful gravy.
10. Now for the gravy.
11. For that, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pot.
12. Add the ginger-garlic paste.
13. Sauté for 4 minutes, stirring it continuously till it is golden in colour and the raw smell is gone.
14. Add onions and fry till golden in colour.
15. Add 2 tbsps of water.
16. Mix well.
17. Add chilli, turmeric and coriander powders.
18. Add 1/2 cup of water.
19. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
20. Add salt to taste.
21. Add 1-2 tbsps of cream and cook for a minute.
22. Remove from heat.
23. Place koftas in a serving dish.
24. Pour the gravy over them.
25. Garnish with mango powder, cream, almond flakes and corriander leaves.
26. Serve hot.

Another recipe - Dal Makhani

Dal Makhani

3/4 cup whole black lentils (whole urad)

2 tablespoons kidney beans

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

2 green chilies, slit

1 stick cinnamon

2 cloves

3 cardamoms

1/2 cup onions, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 1/2 cups fresh tomato puree

3/4 cup cream

2 cups water, to boil the lentils in 3/4 cup water

3 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander

salt to taste

1. Clean, wash and soak the whole black lentils and kidney beans overnight. Drain and keep aside.
2. Combine the lentils and beans with salt and 2 cups of water and cook till the dals are overcooked. Whisk well till the mixture is almost mashed.
3. Heat the butter in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
4. When the cumin seeds crackle, add the green chilies, cinnamon, cloves, green cardamom, onions, ginger-garlic paste and sauté till the onions turn golden brown in color.
5. Add the chilli powder, turmeric powder and tomato puree and cook over a medium flame till the oil separates from the tomato gravy.
6. Add the dal mixture, water and salt if required and simmer for 10 t 15 minutes.
7. Add the cream and mix well.
8. Garnish with the cilantro and serve hot.

In and around Cochin

Fort Cochin is quiet, very few people walk the streets and it is in what is referred to as the "off season" mode. The monsoon started with all its fury in the last couple of days of May with welcome rain, dark skies, beautiful luminescent light and after three days decided we should have some more clear skies and sunshine. One thing is sure, wherever the monsoon is, it is not Cochin. the few late, late tourists and travelers are getting a real bargain at the moment, clear blue skies, warm sunshine and rock bottom rates in hotels and home stays!! they are even able to grab days on the Varkala beach working up a sun tan.

Fort Cochin also sports a somewhat new look. The local administration, in it's drive to clean up the beach have removed all the fish stalls at the Chinese Nets and the accompanying "you buy, i fry" food stalls. While it looks like a bit of the character of Fort Cochin has been lost it sure has cleaned up the place and the views are lovely.

At Dal Roti we serve a wide range of kebabs and tandoori rotis on weekends and have been working at expanding our menu to include a wider range of traditional village food.

The three lovely mascots of Dal Roti, Amaarah, Zehra & Saba with a little help from their mother Maimoona threw a surprise birthday party for their father Zulfi on the 1st of June at dal Roti. It was a great bash.... details and pics in a post coming soon!!

To all our customers around the world, have great days ahead and we look forward to having you back

p.s.: on a more personal note, our son Ayush is home on vacations from the National Defense Academy where he is training to become a career Naval Officer and our daughter Aneesha surprised all of us by doing exceptionally well in her high school Board exams

Very, Very Special Guests!!

We at Dal Roti believe that every guest who visits us is very very special but there is always a first amongst equals or several firsts. This post is on just that.... the very, very, very, lovely, special guests. and what better way to start that loveliness multiplied three times over. One lovely little girl is special but when that multiplies into three lovely little girls, triplets, does one need to say more. Amaarah, Zehra & Saba are not only very very special guests, they are also our mascots... lovely, very feminine and demure with a well hidden streak of naughtiness.. they are indeed special
We have had many more very, very special guests.. here are some of whom we have pictures



need we say more???????

new extended menu

dal roti introduces a new extended menu effective 18th may 2007. all the old favourates are there and a whole range of tandoori kebabs both for vegetarians and for non vegetarians.

the basic dal - a recipe

Dal

225 g yellow lentils

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

75 g butter

½ teaspoon cumin seeds

1 medium onion, sliced

2 tomatoes, chopped

2 cloves garlic, sliced fine

1 green chilly chopped

1 tablespoon fine chopped coriander leaves

Salt to taste

1. Rinse the lentils under running water, and then put into a pan with the turmeric, salt to taste and enough water to cover.
2. Bring to a boil
3. add chopped.tomatoes
4. Turn down the heat and simmer, stirring from time to time, until they are soft
5. Meanwhile, make a spiced butter by heating the butter in shallow pan.
6. Add the cumin seeds and cook for a few sounds, then add the onion and garlic.
7. Cook, until both are golden brown, stirring so they do not burn.
8. Add the chilly and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
9. Pour the butter over the top and serve garnished with coriander leaves.
10. Serve warm with rice or roti

post your comments!!

this post has been created for all of you who would like to add your own personal experience at dal roti and any comments you may have

the first recipe - FIRNI

Firni

10 oz fresh milk

1 ½ oz rice flour

1 tablespoon ground almond

1 can ( 14 oz) evaporated milk

3 strands saffron

2 oz sugar

1 tablespoon rose water

1 tablespoon ground cardamom

1 ounce flaked almonds

1 oz dried apricots, finely chopped

1. Put the fresh milk into a heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat.
2. Mix the ground rice and ground almonds together and sprinkle evenly over the milk.
3. Bring the milk to the boil, stirring frequently.
4. Add the evaporated milk and sugar, stir and cook over a low heat for 6-8 minutes.
5. Add the strands of saffron
6. Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool-stirring occasionally to prevent a skin forming on top.
7. Stir in the rosewater and the ground cardamom.
8. Reserve a few almonds, pistachios, and apricots for garnish, and stir the remaining ones into the pudding.
9. Transfer the firni into a serving dish and top with the reserved fruit and nuts.
10. Serve hot or cold.

A bit about Dal Roti

Dal Roti is a restaurant in Fort Cochin offering a window into the cuisine of the plains of North India. The food of the heartland of India covering the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh in it's traditional, rural village tradition is served through the day. The menu includes thali's a range of parathas, curries, rice dishes, kebabs, roti and sweets

Co-ordinates
1/293, Lilly Street, Fort Cochin, Cochin 682 001, Kerala, India
Tel: +91 484 2217655 Mobile: Ramesh: +91 98461 90052 Kalpana: +91 9388623859
E-Mail: dhal.roti@gmail.com, Blog: http://dalroticochin.blogspot.com