wow ..this is a treasurechest of information....i'm going 2 keep visiting this thread more often ....
Re: Bitter gourd is bitter My whole family likes bitter gourd. The one thing that cuts down the bitterness is to boil them in little yogurt before you make curry. Hopefully this helps.
Make paneer easily in the microwave: YOU WILL NEED 4 qt microwave safe glass or ceramic bowl or casserole A colander lined with butter muslin, flour sack cloth, or REAL cheesecloth (like this) A large stainless steel stock pot or other large pan (if you plan to reserve the whey) Weights for pressing the paneer (not needed for ricotta or desert paneer) 1/2 gallon of whole milk 2 T organic plain yoghurt – MUST have live culture and NO thickening agents added - your homemade is best, OR 2 T lemon juice or white vinegar OPTIONAL: 1/2 c powdered milk (to increase paneer yield) DO NOT USE if you are making desert paneer or ricotta cheese The higher fat content you can find for the milk you use, the more paneer it will yield. DIRECTIONS Put 1/2 gallon milk in the microwave safe bowl – use 2x capacity so it won’t spill over if it foams up in the microwave. Stir in the powdered milk if you are using it. Microwave on high in 5 min intervals – how long it ultimately takes depends on the power of your microwave. Keep heating at 5 min intervals until the temp of the milk reaches 120F – then start watching the milk and check the temp every 2 or 3 mins until it reaches 160F to 165F. Stir in the yogurt, vinegar, or lemon juice. The curds should separate from the whey very rapidly. If it does not fully separate, add a bit more souring agent until separation is complete, about 1 T at a time. Drain in a colander lined with butter muslin, REAL cheesecloth (not the gauze stuff they sell at the grocery store), or flour-sack cloth – or some variety of a thin, lintless cloth. Suspend the colander over a large stock pot or other pan to reserve the whey for making dal, bread, or other uses. FOR RICOTTA CHEESE: Let the curds hang for about 15 minutes. Do not press. Unwrap it and you’re done. The sooner you use it the better. FOR INDIAN DESERTS such as Ras Gullah: For desert use, you will not press the curds, you will instead leave it hanging until the curds are cool enough to handle and you will knead the curds. FOR MAIN DISHES such as Mattar Paneer: Fold the straining cloth over the drained curds, remove from the colander, set on a plate or inside a pan and put a heavy weight on top to press the curds. I usually put the paneer wrapped in the muslin in the bottom of a large pan and set a plate on top of it, then put a milk jug full of water on top. I let that sit in the fridge overnight. Take it out the next day – there will be additional whey pressed out – unwrap it, cube it, and you’re good to go.
Save whey from making paneer and use it to make puri/roti/chappati/naan etc, or use to cook dal instead of plain water. The whey has a lot of protein in it.
Hi I have a constant problem with Stuffed paranthas? They become hard and chewy in the centre? Also they don't rise. I saw my mom making nice soft and fluffly paranthas but mine don't come out that way despite trying several times. Any suggestions?? Neha
Try to add some oil in parantha dough...press them with big spoon in between cooking so they will rise easily..try to cook on medium flame....