Gobi (Cauliflower) Manchurian

Gobi or cauliflower Manchurian is a popular Indo Chinese dish. This is a super delicious appetizer or main dish. Gobi manchurian satisfies both your savory and spicy cravings! It consists of fried gobi (cauliflower) simmered in a flavorful gravy made with soy sauce and red chili sauce.
Serves 4
 

Ingredients:

• 20 cauliflower pieces cut into medium size florets

For Sauce

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste or finely shredded ginger (adrak)
• 1 green chili chopped
• 1/4 cup celery finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons red chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons corn starch or arrow root powder
• Approx. ½ cup water

For Batter

• 1/3 cup all purpose flour (plain flour, maida)
• 3 tablespoons corn starch or arrow root powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• Approx. ½ cup water

 Method

1. Mix the corn starch with water and set aside.
2. Heat the oil in sauce pan over medium high heat; add ginger, celery and green chili stir for about two minute. Add all the ingredients for sauce except corn starch, (chili sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, and sugar).
3. Stir for 2 minutes add corn starch and cook for another two minutes, sauce should be thick, consistency of a dosa or pancake batter. If needed add more water, sauce gets thicker as it sits.
4. Sauce is ready, set aside.
5. To make batter mix flour, corn starch, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the water slowly to make a smooth batter (batter should be consistency of pancake batter or dosa batter).
6. Heat at least one inch of oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Oil should be moderately hot. (If oil is not hot cauliflower will be greasy).
7. Dip the cauliflower into the batter one at a time, making sure it is completely covered by the batter. Then drop the cauliflowers slowly into oil in the frying pan. (do not overlap them)
8. Fry the cauliflowers in small batches, four to five minutes per batch. Fry them turning occasionally, until they are all sides golden brown. Take them out over paper towel.
9. Repeat this process for the remaining cauliflowers.
10. Fold fried cauliflower/ gobies into gravy and serve hot.

 Notes
Manchurian tastes best when cauliflower has some crunch. If you have fried them earlier, refry them before dipping in the sauce as fried cauliflower becomes soft as they cool off.

The Ultimate Dhalpuri Recipe.

Over the past couple years I’ve shared a few recipes which I’ve coined as being “Ultimate” and with the popularity of this roti and the amount of requests for the recipe over the last few months I strongly believe it deserves to join the other cast members in the ultimate series. Growing up in Trinidad and Tobago dhalpuri was one of those special dishes which was made the occasional Sunday morning or when the first choice – pelau wasn’t made for a beach lime. I still recall the strong aroma of geera (cumin) roasting before it was ground and added to the dhal filling for the roti, emanating from my great aunt’s house next door. Not sure if I was one of her’s faves, but I do recall always having a portion reserved for me (her curry potato was ah bess). When I wasn’t causing trouble with my brother… I was a good boy and everyone loved me
For this recipe I got my mom’s help , so let’s give moms some props!
There are a few steps in making dhalpuri roti, so I do hope my explanation below is not too confusing. We’ll start with the filling, then the dough and close off with putting everything together and cooking the actual roti.
You’ll Need…
For the filling
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon ground roasted geera (cumin)
2 cups split peas (dhal)
1/4 of a scotch bonnet pepper (or any hot pepper you like)
For the dough (actual roti)
3 cups all purpose flour
pinch fast acting yeast
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon baking powder
water (see note below)
* 5 tablespoon vegetable oil (for brushing the roti while it cooks)
Notes: We ended up using close to 1 and 3/4 cups of water when making the dough. Start with about 1 cup and add as necessary… the goal is to achieve a smooth, tender dough which is a bit firm (hold it’s shape). With the roasted geera, traditionally that’s roasted the same time the roti is being made (grains are roasted then ground) to really release the oils and aroma. But in my case I used the pre-packaged ground (roasted) one.
Making this roti can be a bit messy, especially if you have any break while cooking and with the use of the oil you’ll be brushing onto it it cooks… it may splatter onto your stove. Be prepared for some cleaning when the stove cools.

The first thing we need to do is prepare the dhal, since it needs to cool before we can work with it. Quickly sort through the 2 cups of split peas to see if there’s anything foreign among them (twigs etc – remove), then give it a good wash. Place about 5-6 cups of water to boil in a deep sauce pan and add the split peas and turmeric to the boiling water. Reduce the heat so it’s at a rolling boil and cook for about 20 minutes. NOTE: If you’re using a food processor as I did, allow it to cook for about 25-30 minutes. If using a traditional food mill, cook for the 20 minutes I mentioned.

Then drain and set aside to cool.

After you’ve put the boiled dhal (split peas) to cool, it would be a good time to start working on the dough. In a large bowl (I’m sure you can use a food processor as well – providing it can make dough) add the flour, salt, yeast, baking powder and start adding water. Knead to a  firm consistency… keep adding water as necessary. Work to form a huge dough ball, then cover the bowl with a tea towel or plastic wrap and allow it to rest for about 20 minutes. (pay attention to time as you don’t want the dough to over-rest)

Let’s now work on the split peas filling. I used a food processor and ran into some problems as I tried to work all at the same time and it just wasn’t happening. So I then divided it into 3 batches which was a lot easier to get to the consistency I wanted.
Place all the ingredients for making the filling into the food processor or food mill and work until you have a no whole peas or large pieces. I guess the ground peas should look similar to bread crumbs… if you have any full grains of dhal in the mix it may rip the roti while cooking. If you’re using a food mill it will have a soft, smooth consistency as the mill really grinds it in a way the food processor can’t duplicate. If you’re not familiar with what a food mill is, see below- it’s the traditional device used in preparing the dhal filling.

The next step in to break down the main dough ball into six smaller balls, then fill them with the peas filling we just made. You will have enough filling left over to make about 4 more dhalpuri so you can either freeze this or make some more dough (or cut back on the amount of split peas you prepare).

Divide the main dough into 6 pieces and form six smaller dough balls. Here’s where it may get a bit messy… flatten out each dough ball in your hand (see pics below) to form a 6 inch circle, then dust with flour and add 4 tablespoons of the filling to each. You will have to make a sort of bowl shape as you keep adding the split peas filling. Then using your fingers, form to a ball shape and pinch to seal. I do hope the pics below helps with explaining this step.

Now it’s time to heat your tawa (baking stone) on medium/high heat and brush some oil onto it’s surface. On a flour dusted surface, roll out one of the stuffed dough balls we made. Turn, flip and keep rolling until you have a pizza like shape that’s about 12-14 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick. Remember to consider the size of tawa you’ll be using, so you don’t end up with a roti that’s too big to fit on your tawa. I assume you could use a large non-stick frying pan if you don’t own a tawa but you may encounter a problem when trying to flip with the edges of the frying pan.

Be careful when placing the rolled out dough onto the tawa as it will be hot. After about 30 seconds, using your hand if you’re a pro or a couple spatulas flip the roti. Now give this side a quick brush with the oil. You may have to flip this a couple times. It will take a bout 4-6 minutes to fully cook and you’ll notice that it will start to “swell” or inflate as cooks. That’s a sign that it’s ready to be removed off the tawa. Repeat this step for the remaining 5 roti.

Yes, there are a few steps involved and you’re probably saying “this is exactly why I buy my dhalpuri”, but I assure you that it’s rather simple and I do hope the combination of my description and pictures above is easy to follow along. I would suggest placing these on paper towels to absorb excess oil and do wrap in paper towels or tea towel to keep them soft (the air tends to make them a bit stiff). For those of you who make dhalpuri may find that the instant yeast is a bit strange.. but I assure you that you’ll have a nice tender roti which will reheat as if they were just made. I’ve seen my mom not only wrap them in a tea towel, but place that into a plastic shopping bag to eat later that day. If you make a couple batches you can certainly freeze them. I usually place them (folded) into freezer bags and they keep for at least a month in the freezer. Then it’s just a case of nuking them in the microwave to reheat. However when reheating in the microwave, don’t put the full time at once. I usually do 45 seconds on high and depending on hot it is I then flip over and heat an additional 40 seconds.

Vegan Baozi(Chinese Steamed Buns)

Baozi is also known as Chinese Steamed filled buns. In China, it has the same position with dumplings.
The difference between baozi and dumplings lies in the final shape and the dough.

Usually the dough for dumplings does not use yeast while most of the dough for baozi needs yeast. However soup dumplings is a member of baozi in China with the name of .
Besides, baozi is usually around while dumplings are of different shapes.  I have write a general post introducing Chinese baozi.




Making the dough for baozi is similar with the dough for mantou , meat baozi usually is called Chinese steamed pork buns. However a little bit more water is added compared with the dough for making Chinese Mantou.
For the details about making the dough, check Chinese steamed buns.
Scatter some flour on your board and cut the log to small sections around 1 inch long.
Roll the small dough into round wrapper with thinner edges.

Another part for making baozi at home is to fold baozi. The process is quite simple and contains the following steps.

Prepare the wrapper and the filling.
Place the wrapper in your left hand. Place 1 ~2 tablespoon of the filling in the center of your wrapper (depending on the size of the wrapper).
Fix the starting point with the thumb of right hand and begin to fold the edge counterclockwise.
Move the thumb slowly in the process until the boazi is completely sealed.
For more pictures about how to fold baozi, check here.
The filling used for today’s vegan baozi is stir-fried tofu with the similar taste of mapo tofu. I love it so much!

 

 

Vegan Baozi(Chinese Steamed Buns)

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serve: 4

Vegan Baozi with tofu as filling, similar taste to mapo tofu.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon cooking oil for brushing
For the dough
• 300g all-purpose flour
• 1 packet instant yeast = 2¼ teaspoons
• 160g water
For the fillings
• 1 box of regular tofu
• 1 tablespoon chopped spring onions
• 1 teaspoon doubanjiang
• 1 garlic clove chopped
• 1 inch ginger chopped
• 1 teaspoon cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 
  

Instructions

Making the wrapper
1. Prepare warm water around 35 °C. And mix the yeast with the water. Mix well and set aside for around 5 minutes. If you do not want sugar, just skip it.
2. Prepare the flour in a large bowl. Pour the water with yeast slowly to the bowl with flour and stir with a chop sticker.
3. Then knead the flour into smooth and soft dough. At the very beginning, it might be a little bit sticky.
4. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for around 1 hour or until the paste ball doubles in size. This process can be done by mixer.
5. When the dough is double in size, get paste ball out and punch the air out.
6. Then roll the dough into a long log around 1 inch in diameter or any size you want.
7. Scatter some flour on your board and cut the log to small sections around 1 inch long.
8. Roll the small dough into round wrapper with thinner edges.
Making the filling
9. Heat up cooking oil in pan. Stir fry ginger, garlic and doubanjiang firstly until you can sell the aroma.
10. Add scrambled tofu in with salt and light soy sauce. Mix well.
11. Remove the pan from the fire and mix chopped spring onions in. Then we have the fillings.
Making Baozi
12. Fold the boazi one by one like the picture shows.
13. Brush some oil on the bottom of each baozi and put into the steamer.
14. Heat up water in wok and begin to steam. Count at least 15 minutes after the water in wok begins to boil.

Notes

Since the dough needs to be fermented for around 45 minutes, filling can be down during the process.

When lift the cover of the steamer, please be quick and do not let any water drop on the surface of the baozi. 

Pot Stickers    Happying Eating and Cooking.

Chive Pancake

 

Firstly we need to make the filling. Mix chopped chive and scrambled egg. Add salt, soy sauce, and dried small shrimp to make the fresh filling. Since chive contains water, after pan-frying, we will get a juicy fillings.

The process of making the wrapper of those pancake is similar with making dumpling wrappers. But pancake wrappers should be larger than dumpling wrappers.

Then we start wrapper the box. There are common two ways of folding the pancake, but I recommend using this one other than the way mentioned in previous scallion pancake. Because the filling are more juicy and we need to keep the juicy sauce inside.

To fold the pancakes, use your thumb and index finger to spread a thumb size round from the edge of the wrapper and then fold the round part back. Repeat the process until the whole pancake is sealed. Then pour some oil in pan, add place the pancakes in. Use slow fire to pan-fry.
Then you can choose to serve the pancake as a whole or cut into four wedges.

Chive Pancake

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: Making 6 pancakes

Serve: 3

Crispy chive pancake with chopped chive, scrambled egg and dried small shrimp as filling. Crispy surface and juicy filling.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
For the wrapper
• 10oz all-purpose flour
• 5oz water
For the filling
• 8oz fresh chive chopped into small pieces
• 3 middle size eggs
• 1 tablespoon dried small shrimps
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon five spicy powders
• 1 inch root ginger minced
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon cooking oil
• 
  

Instructions

For the wrapper
1. Prepare the flour in a large bowl. Pour the water slowly to the bowl with flour and stir with a chop sticker.
2. Then knead the flour into smooth and soft dough. At the very beginning, it might be a little bit sticky.
3. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for around 15 minutes. And then punch the air out.
4. Then roll the dough into a long log around 2 inches in diameter.
5. Scatter some flour on your board and cut the log to small sections you like. Roll each of the dough sections into round wrapper.
For the filling
6. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Heat up 1/2 tablespoon cooking oil in pan and stir-fry the egg liquid. Cut the eggs into small pieces.
7. In a large bowl, mix chive with egg pieces and dried small shrimps. Add salt, sesame oil, ginger and light soy sauce to make the filling.
Making the chive pancake
8. Fold the pancakes one by one.
9. Heat up 1 tablespoon of cooking oil in pan. Place the pancakes in to fry until both sides become golden-brown. Cut into small wedges and serve hot! 

If this chive pancake taste good and want more similar, try the scallion pancake too.