The mystery ingredient pictured above is cardamom pods. You can also purchase ground cardamom. This spice is used in Chai tea, some sweet breads, and in Indian cooking. I have a Christmas bread recipe that instructs you to put the pods in the milk used in the recipe and then warm it and let them steep for a bit to infuse the milk with flavor.
I have never tried authentic Indian food. I discovered recipes for Garlic Naan and Kheema a couple of weeks ago and since I had all the ingredients on hand decided to make them. We had purchased some frozen garlic naan at Trader Joe's a while back and both of us really liked it. This recipe was good, but I think I made it a little too thick.
Rob liked the Kheema right away. I was skeptical at first but it's the kind of dish that grows on you. I will make this again, especially now that I have a little jar of garam masala in my cupboard. To make the spice blend from the cardamom pods you have to open the pods and then grind the little black seeds (similar to large black poppy seeds). I used a mortar and pestle but you could use a spice grinder if you have one. The directions for the Garam Masala follow the recipe for the Kheema. The advantage of making your own blend is that you can control the heat and leave out any spices that you do not care for. You might want to look around Heather's recipe blog. She has many frugal recipes and some great organizing tips.
So, if you are looking for something new and different for dinner you might want to try this simple dish.
Becka
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on Jan 25th, 2012 at 12:47 am
When you go to visit new baby, you need to go to Hamtramck and try some genuine Bengali food. I’ll send you the details, if you are interested.