Recipe : Moroccan Cumin Spiced Chickpeas - Vegan

 These spiced Chickpeas (channa / chhole) are often sold as street food in newspaper cones, the way jhalmuri / charmuri used to be served in India. Its very easy to make and can be served as a starter with drinks, an evening snack or a side with rotis. If you would like them crisper, then use more oil and fry them crisp and drain on paper towels. I use less oil in this recipe, than is normally used in Morocco.Ingredients:1 cup cooked & drained White Chickpeas (safed channa / chhole) - see tips below1 tsp olive oil1 tbsp fresh coriander (dhaniya) - finely chopped1/2- 1 tbsp cumin (jeera) powdersalt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Method:Heat the oil in a wide frying pan.On low heat, add the chickpeas, coriander and cumin and toss well to coat. Toss, rather than stir, to prevent breakage or smashing of the chickpeas.Season with salt and pepper.Serve hot or at room temperature.Kim's Tips:- If you have dried channa, soak them for 8 hours or overnight and then pressure cook them for 3-4 whistles.- Adding a pinch of soda bicarb while cooking the channa, makes it fluffier and softer, but it also increases the feeling of fullness when eating. Too much soda bicarb will ruin the taste, so be judicious in its use.- I like to add 1/2 tsp methi (fenugreek) seeds and a pinch of hing (asafoetida) while pressure cooking the chhole to reduce the gassy side effects of chhanna.- If you are using a peppermill to grind the pepper, don't hold the pepper mill directly above a hot cooking pan/pot, the steam will introduce moisture into your mill and cause clumping. Grind the pepper into a cold plate and then add it to your cooking pot.

Recipe : Masala Chaas / Chaach / Spiced Buttermilk / Ayran / Majjige

aMasala Chaas / Chaach is a staple drink during the summers in Northern India where the heat can give you sunstroke. Its similar to the Turkish Ayran with more spicing. While this watered down yoghurt is called Buttermilk in the North, South Indians will disagree. In South India, Buttermilk / Majjige is the liquid you get when churning butter from cream. That too is served similarly spiced, but its obviously much thinner than the North Indian versions.There are various methods to make this drink and spicing it depends on what you and your family like. The most common herbs and spices that go into this drink in Northern & Western India are black salt (buy from an Indian store), ginger, green chillies, coriander leaves and cumin powder or chaat masala powder. My nana used to heat a little oil, temper it with 1-2 curry leaves, dried red chilli and mustard seeds. and add this to the buttermilk.Black salt has a strange smell when it mixes with any liquid, but this bears no ill effects on its taste. If you don't like the smell/taste of black salt or it isn't available, you can easily use just regular table salt.Ingredients:1/2 glass of chilled plain yoghurt/curd 1/2 - 1 green chilli finely chopped (to taste)a pinch of grated ginger1/2 tsp finely chopped corriander leaves1/4 - 1/2 tsp of roasted cumin powdered (jeera powder) black salt (kaala namak)or salt to tastechilled water to diluteMethod:Gently beat/stir the yoghurt / curd with a spoon, so no lumps remain.Add all the other ingredients except the water and stir well.If you want, you can just refrigerate it at this point and mix water when you are ready to drink. This allows all the flavours to seep into the yoghurt. (Do not keep it for more than an hour or so, it will lose its fresh flavour)When ready to consume (or immediately) top with water and mix slowly.I prefer half yoghurt to half water. Some people prefer it thicker, my mum prefers 1/4 yoghurt to 3/4 water. So play around and find the balance that is right for you and your family.This drink really rehydrates you on a hot summer day and is ideal if you want to avoid sugary drinks like lemonades and iced teas.Kim's tip:If you have a fussy child / eater, who doesn't like the bits and bobs in the drink, let the flavours seep into the drink for at least 30 minutes. Then mix in the water and strain out the cutings before serving.