Risotto

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1/2 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced

• 2/3 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 5 1/2 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock, plus more if needed

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• 1 1/2 cups arborio rice

• 1/2 cup dry white wine

• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. Gather the ingredients.

2. In a large pot, heat the butter over moderate heat. Add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms are browned, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the chicken, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and the pepper. Cook until the chicken is just done, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the mixture from the pan. In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer.

4. In the large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir until it begins to turn opaque, about 2 minutes.

5. Add the wine and the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt to the rice. Cook, stirring frequently, until all of the wine has been absorbed.

6. Add about 1/2 cup of the simmering broth and cook, stirring frequently, until it has been absorbed. The rice and broth should bubble gently; adjust the heat as needed.

7. Continue cooking the rice, adding broth 1/2 cup at a time and allowing the rice to absorb it before adding the next 1/2 cup. Cook the rice in this way until tender, 25 to 30 minutes in all. The broth that hasn't been absorbed should be thickened by the starch from the rice. You may not need to use all the liquid, or you may need more broth or some water.

8. Stir in the chicken and mushrooms, the Parmesan, and the parsley and heat through. Serve the risotto with additional Parmesan.

   
   

Dhal Palak

Spinach - 2 cup

Toor Dhal - 1/4 cup

Moong Dhal - 1/4 cup

Tomato - 1

Ghee - 2 tbsp.

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Dry Red Chilli - 2

Ginger - 1 tsp, grated

Garlic - 1 clove, chopped

Green Chilli - 2

Asafetida - 1/4 tsp

Turmeric - 1/2 tsp

Salt

Kasoori Methi - 1 tsp

Lemon juice

In a pressure cooker add the Dhal along with Tomato, Turmeric, required Salt and 1 1/2 cup Water. Pressure cook for 3 whistles on medium heat. Allow the pressure to come down naturally and open the lid. Mash the cooked Dhal and keep aside.

Temper Asafetida, Cumin and Dry Red Chillies in Ghee. Add Ginger, Garlic and Green chillies and saute for a min. Add Spinach and saute on medium heat until the leaves begin to wilt. Now add the cooked Dhal along with KassorMethi and 1/2 cup Water and mix well. Cook closed five minutes on medium heat. Turn off heat and add Lemon juice.

Serve warm with Rice or Roti.

Idly

Urad Dhal - 1 cup, washed and soaked with 1 tsp Fenugreek in Water for at least 4 hours

Idly Rice - 4 cup, washed and soaked in Water for at least 4 hours

Salt

In a wet grinder add the soaked Urad Dhal and grind until smooth and fluffy. Transfer the batter to a large bowl and keep aside.

Next, grind the soaked Idly Rice until smooth and pour over the Urad Batter.

Mix both the Batters together until they blend to form a single smooth Batter.

Rest the Batter overnight and allow to ferment.

When you are ready to make Idly, season the Batter with required Salt and mix again until well blended.

Pour some Water in the Idly cooker and bring to boil (until the steam comes through its vents).

Grease the Idly plates with Oil and pour a ladle of Batter into each mold in the Idly plate. Place the Idly plates inside the Idly cooker and steam the Idly for about 12 minutes and remove from heat.

Sprinkle Water on the Idly plates and allow the Idlies to cool down.

Once the plate is cooled, remove the Idlies from the Idly plate and transfer to an insulated container.

Serve warm Idlies with Chutney, Sambhar and Vadai.