What is Palidu?

What is Palidu? A medley of recipes for anything & everything. Tested & tried…perfected & not! Let’s have a little kitchen humor as well.

Our own take on recipes passed onto us by our mothers, grandmothers and aunties...with a flair of our own take on it and some new ones to pass on to our children.

“Mumma, how do you make chai? I would like you and Baba both to show me how you guys make chai” Awwallyn, our firstborn ...
02/17/2024

“Mumma, how do you make chai? I would like you and Baba both to show me how you guys make chai” Awwallyn, our firstborn misses her chai fix. Her Baba would make her chai if she were coming over.

How do you make your chai?

I never can make it just right? Awwal never liked my chai but 2020 gave me an opportunity every weekend to hone in on this staple in every Indian household.

She actually said I made good chai. 🥰

We have always used Wagh Bakri Chai. My Dad used to send me kilos worth of chai or bring with when he visited. This was before everything became readily available in our area.

Chai
Milk
Water
Mint
Ginger
Sugar
a dash of Musliwala love!

It’s been a while. I had a wedding to plan from India for functions in Wisconsin and then return back here to the mayhem...
01/28/2024

It’s been a while. I had a wedding to plan from India for functions in Wisconsin and then return back here to the mayhem of several weddings…family and friends!
Is it our home or it’s the same darn thing at every household in Vadodara??? Work is never done here. There is always something to do and never enough time…but

I still manage to sneak in a little cooking time for myself. Made an “old folks”* version of my chicken n rice. *(saucy) Skipped the white sauce- not needed and served it with fried rice and cajon roasted tots!

Chicken Breasts - cleaned, chopped, & marinated in ginger, garlic, salt, pepper, & chili flakes.
1/2 Cup Chicken Stock
1/2 Tbsp Ketchup
1/2 Tbsp ACV
1/4 Tsp Sugar
1/2 Tbsp Oregano
2 Tsp Dark Soy Sauce (low sodium)
Salt to taste (if needed)
1 TbSp Toasted Sesame oil
3 Tablespoons EVOO

Fried Rice
Cup of cooked rice
Choice of veggies diced
Three eggs cooked - scrambled eggs
Garlic - pressed or sliced - I go heavy
Green Chili - diced
2 Tb Sp EVOO
1/2 Tb Sp Toasted Sesame Oil

Cajon Tots
Potatoes - diced, parboiled, and drained
1 Tbsp Cajon Seasonings
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
EVOO - use your judgement don’t drench them.

I need to get better at plating food here in India. I am craving me some of my deviled eggs…maybe next weekend 🥰

Made my favorite - stuffed baby eggplants for lunch today. Cooking is therapy for me, just as gardening, sketching, & pa...
07/26/2023

Made my favorite - stuffed baby eggplants for lunch today. Cooking is therapy for me, just as gardening, sketching, & painting.

These babies we sourced from a local veggie market near Panigate. It was an experience to go shopping in an open market but amazing how fresh and cheaper the produce was. Tomatoes were only 200 rupees kilo compared to 400 rupees from the guy close to our home!
Last year I had tomatoes galore at home in Neenah - all home grown!!! Roma, SweetBoy, & BeefSteak, and my favorites cherry in red and midnight. I do not know the seasons for veggies here yet…maybe next year!

Simple Recipe
Eggplants - soak in water & rinse them off
Onion - diced
Tomatoes - diced
Garlic - minced
Oil - neutral or evoo
Turmeric, C&C, Chili Powder
Salt to taste
Roasted Chicpea flour - 1 heaping TbSp

Sauté onion & tomatoes with garlic and let it mellow on low heat
Slit the eggplants and soak in water to avoid oxidization. Mix the spices and Chic-pea flour. Drain the eggplants and stuff the spice mixture in the eggplants.
All while stirring the onion & tomatoes mixture in between. Now lay in the eggplants like so (see photo) and drizzle on some EVOO - cover and cook undisturbed for 15 mins on low heat. Stir gently and cook for another 10 mins until the oil separates - top with chopped cilantro and lemon juice.

I like to have it with a side of sweet yogurt. I dunk my morsel in the yogurt before I take a bite! Absolutely delicious 🤤

My mother in law makes the best gujarati khatti meethi daal. So, when she says make “the daal” today I nervously attempt...
07/26/2023

My mother in law makes the best gujarati khatti meethi daal. So, when she says make “the daal” today I nervously attempt it.
Dad said the vaghar is as aromatic as Mum’s! It most definitely was, as he ate it up & asked for seconds!!!! 🧿😊

Not gonna share the recipe but here are the ingredients:
Toor Daal
Ginger
Curry leaves
Whole cumin, fenugreek, & mustard seeds
Turmeric
Cumin Coriander Powder
Chili powder
Lemon Juice
Gudd/Jaggery
Lots of cilantro

BTW, when Mum makes it, she makes a big batch. We have it sent to our family, friends, and acquaintances. Last time she made it, it was shared with 13 households. Alhumdulillah!

Chicken IDK! I do not do leftovers unless it’s Biryani or Chicken n Gnocchi soup, but this was good I had it the day aft...
05/08/2023

Chicken IDK!
I do not do leftovers unless it’s Biryani or Chicken n Gnocchi soup, but this was good I had it the day after too!

So, I made Masoor & Moong Daal chilas for dinner last night. (pink & yellow daal savory crepes) Protein packed and defin...
02/23/2023

So, I made Masoor & Moong Daal chilas for dinner last night. (pink & yellow daal savory crepes)
Protein packed and definitely vegan!

Masoor Daal - 3/4 Cup
Moong Daal - 1/2 Cup
Ginger - 1.5” k**b
Green Chilies - 2*
Cilantro
Salt to taste
Black Pepper Powder
Roasted Cumin Powder
EVOO - 4-5 Tablespoon

Wash and soak the daals in cold water for at least 2 hours before cooking. Drain the daal and purée it to a smooth texture along with the ginger, cilantro, chilies, and a bit of water. Make a thick smooth batter.
Add in the salt, pepper, & cumin powder to taste preference.

If you want to, you can add in finely diced bell peppers, tomatoes (seeded), and onions to the batter just before frying them.

Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet, spray or drizzle on the EVOO and laddle in the batter to make a a little thicker than crepe consistency. Flip when the sides start turning brown and repeat.

Serve with your favorite sauce or chutney.
Aawo jamwa! (Let’s Eat) 💕🧿

01/29/2023

Chicken Malai - it was good enough to pass my FIL’s tastebuds. It was devoured with such affection I forgot to grab a photo 😁

Ingredients:-
1 Lbs/ .5 Kilo Chicken breasts - bite size pieces
1 heaping Table Spoon of Ginger Garlic Paste
1 Ts Sp - Lime/ Lemon Juice
1 Tb Sp - Tandoori Masala (more if desired spicy)
1/2 Ts Sp - Chili Powder
1/2 Ts Sp - Chili flakes
3 Tb Sp - Crème Fresh
Dash or Two - Oregano or Kasuri Methi (Dry Fenugreek)*
* Crush the leaves in your hand before adding it in.

Marinate in the ingredients above.
Set aside for 2-4 hrs or overnight in the fridge please!
Take out the marinade at least 30 minutes prior to cooking.

4-5 Tb Sp - Crème Fresh or Malai (heavy cream would work too)
1 Tb Sp - Ketchup (does the b***s good)
Salt to Taste
EVOO

Take a nonstick skillet add EVOO - 4-5 TbSp
I eyeball it, we are not frying the chicken b***s, we are sautéing it. Use your brain, we all have one!

When warm add in the chicken along with the marinade. Let it sit untouched for 2-3 minutes then stir so that the other side cooks as well on medium to high heat.
Keep stirring and add in the salt now to taste and let it cook through for 5 for minutes then add in the ketchup and stir in the crème fresh and lower the heat, cover, and cook for additional 3-4 minutes.

For my Awwallyn & Shuara - Drizzle in lemon juice and freshly chopped cilantro! Dadaji had it w/o and with jeera garlic rice!

Notes-

The marinade shouldn’t have released any water if you have drained the chicken before marinating it.
Ketchup is essentially the tanginess of the sauce.

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Neenah, WI

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