Big Curry Night

Vegeterian Balti Curry, Dahl, Steamed Rice and Rotti

The vegeterian Balti was an adaptation from an episode of 'The Cook and the Chef' on ABC television.
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/cookandchef/txt/s2500737.htm


The Balti paste was so simple to make. The quantities below make 1Lt of paste. Freezes very well, so half in the freezer for a quick curry another night.

Balti Paste
Ingredients
3 tbs oil
2cm ginger, peeled
4 cloves garlic, peeled
3 onions, peeled
3 spring onions, peeled
1 tin Italian tomatoes
2 tsp ground corriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground tumeric
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cardamom
salt to taste
250Ml water

Method
Place ginger, garlic, onions and spring onions in thermomix and finely chop on speed 8 for 5 seconds. Add oil and cook on 100 degrees for 4 minutes on reverse speed 2. Add water and heat on 100 degrees for 5 minutes reverse speed 2. Add remainder of ingredients and cook on 100 degrees for 15 minutes reverse speed 3. When cooked puree mixture on speed 9 for 5-10 seconds.
Reserve 1/2 the mixture in a bowl for the Balti curry. Freeze the remainder for later.


Balti Vegeterian Curry

Ingredients
1 bunch silverbeet, washed, stems removed
3 medium potatoes, diced and par boiled
1 bunch green beans, halved
1 tin corn kernals, drained
3 tbs oil
1/4 cup dried shallots/onions
500Ml Balti curry paste (above)

Method
Sweat the silverbeet in a saucier to wilt. Squeeze out extra moisture.
Heat oil in Saucier, when hot add potatoes and brown. Add Balti paste and stir through. Add remainder of ingredients and heat through. Beans will take approx 5-7 minutes to still be a bit on the crunchy side. Keep warm in the termomix food keeper.

Dahl

Ingredients
200g red lentils
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 tbs oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 onion, peeled
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp chilli flakes
water
salt

Method
Place lentils and 750Ml water into thermomix and cook on 100 degrees for 8 minutes on reverse speed 2. Add tumeric and cook on 100 degrees for 15 minutes on reverse speed 2. Pour into container to keep warm. Without cledaning bowl place onion, garlic and mustard seeds to bowl and chop on speed 8 for 5 seconds. Scape down bowl and add 1 tbs oil. Cook on 100 degrees for 4 minutes on reverse speed 2. Add cumin, corriander and chilli and cook for further 2 minutes on 100 degrees reverse speed 2. Add lentil mixture back to thermomix bowl and add 150Ml water. Cook on 80 degrees for 5 minutes on reverse speed 2.
Pour into serving bowl and cover. Dahl will thicken in a couple of minutes.

Rotti
Best accompaniment for the curry.

Ingredients
3 cups plain flour
2 tbs oil
1 egg at room temp
water
oil for cooking
1/2 tsp salt

Method
Place flour and salt into thermomix and mix on speed 4 for 3 seconds. Add oil and mix on speed 4 for 5 seconds. Add 250Ml water and egg. Knead for 2 minutes. Turn onto bench and form into a ball. Place in a bowl lightly coated with oil. Cover with clear wrap and rest for 1 hour.

After 1 hour divide the mixture into 12 portions. Shape each piece into a small disc shape about 12-14 cm in diametre. Coat in flour to avoid sticking and keep aside in a single layer. Once all are shaped heat oil in fry pan and fry for 1 1/2 minute. Turn and fry for 1 minute. Press down with egg flip while cooking to promote bubbling and colour on bread. Keep warm in the oven while cooking the rest.

Rice
Easy thermomix rice.
400g of rice in the basket, cover with water, Set on 100 degrees for 16 minutes speed 4. Never fail.

Wash it all down with a beer of choice. This made enough for about 5 adults to be mighty full.

Pasta with Napolitano Sauce

The Pasta dough was made with Semolina flour my wife purchased during the week The result was a nuttier taste with Spaghetti that held together very well.

Ingredients

3 free range eggs at room temp

300g Semolina Flour

10g Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Method

Place all ingredients into the Thermomix bowl and knead for 2 minutes on Interval speed.

Place in glad wrap and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Use the trusty pasta machine to roll out to level 5, sit for 10 minutes to allow to slightly harden, run through Spaghetti blades and drop straight into boiling water.

Cooking time about 8 minutes.

Napolitano sauce

Ingredients

1 carrot diced

1 stick celery diced

I onion

6 cloves garlic

2 spring onions diced

Salt and pepper

2 tins Italian tomatoes of 800g fresh Roma tomatoes

2 fresh mild chilli

Olive Oil

8 olives

Method

I prefer to chop the carrot, celery and spring onions into 1cm cube chunks to get an even spread through the sauce. If you do this chopping in the Thermomix the pieces come out a bit irregular. If I was in a hurry I would use the Thermomix to do this.

Place onion, garlic and chilli into bowl and chop on speed 7 for 5 seconds. Add 10g olive oil and cook for 5 minutes on 100 deg. on speed 2 reverse. Add the tomatoes, diced veg and olives. Cook for 12 minutes on 100 deg. speed 3 reverse.

We served this with some home made garlic bread. The bread was left over from a baguette lunch on the weekend. The garlic butter was made in the Thermomix as follows.

Ingredients

30g butter

3 stalks parsley

4 cloves garlic

Method

Place garlic and parsley into bowl and chop on speed 7 for 5 seconds. Add butter and mix on speed 3 for 5 seconds. Slice cuts into bread and butter between slices. Wrap in alfoil and bake in 180 deg oven for 20 minutes. Open up the alfoil for last 5 minutes to crispen top of bread.

Lasagne

A family favourite is home made Lasagne. We try to make as much as possible ourselves, so today it means home made pasta, bolognaise sauce and bechamel sauce.


Firstly, make the Pasta Dough
Ingredients
4 Free range eggs
400g Plain Flour
15g Olive Oil

Method
All ingredients into the thermomix and knead for 2 minutes on Interval speed.

Tip out onto the bench and bring the fine dough together, wrap in cling wrap and sit in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Next, Make your Bolognaise Sauce
Ingredients
500g Mince
50g Bacon
80g Celery
6 cloves Garlic
1 Carrot
1 Onion
50g olive Oil
2 x tins dices Italian tomatoes
Salt and pepper

Method
Place Bacon, celery, carrot, onion and garlic into thermomix and mix for 15 seconds on speed 7. this finely minces everything. Add oil and saute for 3 mins at 100 degrees on speed 1. Add mince and cook on Varoma, Reverse, Soft for 10 mins. At this point I usually give the sides a scrape down to make sure everything is below the surface. Add tomatoes and cook for 15mins at Veroma temp on Reverse, Soft. Turn over the MC to reduce the spit effect.
Once finished place in the Thermomix warmer to keep hot.

During the last cooking period I rolled out the pasta using the trusty pasta machine into long Lasagne sheets.

Now its time to make the Bechamel Sauce

Ingredients
1Lt Milk
100g Plain Flour
60g Butter
1tsp salt

Method
Place all ingredients into the bowl and cook for 12 minutes at 90 degrees on speed 4. Chopping the butter into 4 smaller pieces stops the splash effect when you first turn the thermomix on.

Assemble the lasagne in layers on pasta, bolognaise and bechamel repeatedly until finished.

I top the Lasagne with breadcrumbs made from all our leftover crusts (Speed 9 for 1min)and grated cheese (10 seconds on speed 7).

Bake for 45 mins in 180 degree oven with another 7-10 mins on 225 degrees to really brown the top.

Banana Bread 2

With school 1 week in the house is empty of snacks. Banana bread is a great way to use the old bananas that no one wants to take to school.

Ingredients
100g SR Flour
50g Butter
75g Brown Sugar
50g Sultanas (substituted with dates)
15G Walnuts
1 Egg
225g Banana flesh

Method
Chop the dates and walnuts on speed 7 for 15 seconds. Put these aside to add later.
Add flour and butter to bowl and crumb on speed 5 for 5 seconds. Add the sugar, walnut and date mixture, egg and bananas.
Mix on speed 7 for 10 seconds.
If the mix looks too runny add a tbs of extra SR flour at this point.

Pour into the new silicone loaf pan purchased by the wife and bake in a preheated 180 degree oven. Cooking time 35 minutes. Rest in pan before turning onto wire rack.

My mix was a litttle over wet (hence the suggestion to add more flour) and the loaf did not hold it's full baking height once removed from the oven.

Chilli Nachos

A variation of the Chilli Con Carne recipe in the thermomix recipe book, Instead of kidney beans and tomato paste we substitute a tin of baked beans. This adds the beans content and the sweetness of the tomato sauce. Also only had mince in the freezer, so this substituted for the beef cubes.

Cooking time was only 15 mins. The recipe was a little liquidy from the baked beans so another 3 minutes with the MC removed was enough to make the chilli perfect.

My six year old did everything for the recipe except peeling the onions. He was very impressed with his cooking and the outcome.

This made enough for 3 people to eat their fill and enough in the freezer for another meal.

Pancakes for Breaky

Weekend breakfast usually means pancakes on Saturday mornings. The thermomix is the easiest pancake mix I have ever made. All the ingredients into the jug and a quick mix for 20 seconds and it is ready to go. We add a reaspoon of bi-carb to the thermomix crepe recipe and it gives them a little bit of air during cooking.

20 minues to rest in the fridge and then it's pancake time.

My son loves his pancakes with the thermomix plum jam he made all by himself.

Pizza

Thermomix pizza bases are very easy to make. We have 2 recipies that are never fail.
Tonight's dinner was the yeast based mixture with 500g flour, oil, yeast, salt and milk added to the jug and mixed for 10 seconds before being kneaded for 2 mins. Using luke warm milk activates the yeast quickly and raising time is reduced.
Toppings tonight are thermomix tomato conserve, cheese, cheese, bacon, pineapple and fresh basil. Bakes in a 200 oven for 20 mins.

Time from mixing to eating was about 45mins which included 2 x 15min raising periods.

The mixture makes enough for 3 family size pizzas. We wrap the unused bases in cling wrap and freeze for a quick dinner another night.

School Snacks

With the new school year less than a week away it was time to stock the pantry with yummy snacks for the first week back.

First on the list was Banana Bread with date and Walnut. Very easy to prepare... the thermomix blades make chopping dates and walnuts a 15 second job. Following the recipie in the thermomix cookbook it was in the oven in just under 2 minutes from getting all the fixings on the bench. Best off all with this bread is grinding your own wholemeal flour from wheat grain.

Second on the list was Anzac biscuits. We find the thermomix instructions leave the oats too fine. We add half the amount required as per the instructions and then hand mix in the remaining amount of oats at the end before baking.

Both will be lucky to make it to the first day of school. I am sure more baking will be required on the weekend.

Quickie Chicken Curry

A slight adaptation of the recipe in the Thermomix cookbook.
Requires 4 chicken thighs cubed, 3 potatoes cubed, 2 onions peeled, 2 cloves garlic peeled, sml tin coconut cream, 150Ml milk, 30g oil and 2 tbs curry paste of choice.

Chop the onions and garlic in the bowl and then add paste and oil and cook for 3 min on 100C. Blend on speed 8 for 5 seconds to turn into a smooth paste.
Add potatoes, cream and milk. Cook for 20 min on 100c... remembering to put on reverse soft.

Add chook and cook for 10mins on same settings.


Place into the Thermomix warmer
Quick rinse of the jug and lid. Cook 400g basmati rice in the thermomix (16 mins).
Place rice into thermomix strainer. Add water up to the '1' level in jug. Insert jug and cook on Veroma for 16 minutes speed 3. Easy as pie.

Served 3 people for dinner with enough in the freezer for another 3.

Coleslaw

A quick salad to accompany some pork sausages.
Preparation time 1 minute
Cooking/Mixing time 10-12 seconds

This recipe calls for 1/4 cabbage, 1/2 a big carrot, 1/4 small onion , 1/2 stick celery, a couple of tablespoons of mayo and salt/pepper to taste.

Place all ingredients into the thermomix bowl and mix on speed 5 for 10-12 seconds. While mixing use the spatula to stir the stir through the lid.

Recipe book called for an apple instead of the cerlery. This may have added some crunch and a touch of bitterness to the salad. A dash of mustard could also have been added to increase the tang factor.

Family very happy with the results.