How to Make Homemade Paneer(Cottage Cheese)

Paneer-Homemade cheese

Fresh cheese, called paneer in Hindi, can be eaten by itself or used as an ingredient in recipes. There is no substitute for paneer. It is unique among cheeses for its versatility, its fine taste, and its resistance to melting at high temperatures.

  Preparation and cooking time: about 30 min

  10 cups (2.3 ltr) whole milk
  5 tablespoon lemon juice, or 2 teaspoon citric acid,
  or 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) yogurt, or 2 1/2 cups (600 ml) sour whey

Heat the milk over medium heat in a pot large enough to allow the milk to rise without overflowing. While waiting for the milk to boil, prepare the curdling agent and get a strainer ready by lining it with two layers of cheesecloth and propping it above a receptacle to collect the whey.

When the milk begins to rise, stir in the curdling agent. Almost immediately, the spongelike paneer will separate from the clear, yellow-green whey with a kind of a magical suddenness. If the whey is not clear, add a little more curdling agent and stir again.

After the curds and the whey have separated completely, remove the pot from the heat. Collect the curds in the cheesecloth. Rinse them under cold water for half a minute to make them firmer and to

How to Make Ghee(Clarified Butter)

Ghee - Clarified butter

Making ghee is neither difficult nor complicated, but it does take some time. Bringing out the sweet, nutlike flavor of the melted butter requires long, slow cooking to fully evaporate the water and allow the milk solids to separate and float to the surface leaving clear, amber-colored ghee.

Begin by heating the butter in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat until it comes to a boil. When the surface of the butter is covered with a white foam, reduce the heat to as low as possible and simmer uncovered. From time to time remove the solids that accumulate on the surface. Make sure the ghee doesn't burn. If ghee is cooked over too high a heat or cooked too long, it will darken and give off apungent odor.

How much time you need for preparing the ghee depends on how much you are making (see table below). The finished ghee should be golden-colored and clear enough to see through to the bottom of the saucepan. Carefully ladle the ghee into a can or crock and allow it to cool uncovered to room temperature. The milk solids skimmed off the surface and the solids remaining in the bottom of the pan can be mixed into cooked vegetables, soups, and grains.

Ghee properly prepared and stored in closed containers in a cool dry place will keep for months.

Preparation and cooking time

Quantity of butter	Cooking time	Yield of ghee
2 Ibs (1 kg)	1/2 hr	1 3/4 Ibs (800 g)
5 Ibs (2.5 kg)	3 hrs	4 1/2 Ibs (2.2 kg)
10 lbs (5 kg)	5 hrs	9 Ibs (4.6 kg)

Several points to remember when frying with ghee

• There are two types of ghee: usli ghee and vegetable ghee. When we refer to ghee in this book, we always mean usli ghee, or genuine ghee, which is clarified butter and can be made at home. Vegetable ghee is a combination of various vegetable oils and can be bought in large cans.

How To Make Buttermilk

Cultured Buttermilk

Cultured buttermilk is prepared in the same manner as yogurt by inoculating milk with a special culture and allowing it to grow under certain conditions. However, the type and the amount of culture, and the temperature conditions, differ from yogurt production. Buttermilk requires twice as much culture as yogurt; it must be incubated for up to 2 - 3 times as long and at a considerably lower temperature. For these reasons, it is best to use an electric yogurt maker or a thermos when making buttermilk. Buttermilk has a milder taste than yogurt and is lower in calories because it is produced from skim- or low-fat milk. Try Orange Buttermilk Smoothie or substitute home-made buttermilk in any dish requiring yogurt for milder, lower-calorie results.

  •  SETTING TIME: 8 - 16 hours
  •  YIELD: A little over 4 cups (1 litre)

  •  PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes

  •   3/4 cup (185 ml) commercial cultured buttermilk
  •   2/3 cup (165 ml) full-fat milk powder

  •   4 cups (1 litre) fresh skim or low-fat milk

1. Heat the milk over moderate heat in a heavy-bottomed 2-litre/quart pan, stirring constantly. Don't boil the milk; just heat it until it reaches 42°C/108°F. Remove from the heat.

2. Blend the buttermilk and milk powder in a blender or food processor until

Sri Rama Navami Recipes

Sri Rama Navami Recipes

Panakam is a traditional Indian cool drink best suited for summer. The main ingredients of this popular drink which can be prepared instantly are jaggery, ginger and black pepper making it rich with medicinal value.

Kosambari, a type of salad, normally a mixture of urad dal, cucumber, coconut and green chilies makes an ideal pair with panaka.

These two preparations are especially popular as prasadam which is served on Rama Navami by volunteers in many temples as is customary. The food and beverages served not only make the day special, but also prove ideal to beat the heat.

Panakam

Ingredients:

• Jaggery – 1/2 cup
• Powdered Cardamom – 1 tsp
• Musk Melon (peeled and chopped) – 1 cup

How to Make Homemade Yogurt

Home-made Yogurt

Yogurt is an indispensable ingredient in vegetarian cuisine, being nutritious, tasty, and easily digestible.

It is a source of calcium, protein, fat, carbohydrates, phosphorus, vitamin A, the B-complex vitamins, and vitamin D. The lactic acid content of yogurt aids in the digestion of calcium. Yogurt encourages the growth of "friendly" bacteria in the intestines that help destroy harmful strains. And yogurt is quickly assimilated into the body.

Yogurt is made by adding a small amount of "starter" (which can be either previously prepared homemade yogurt or commercial plain yogurt) to warm milk. Under certain temperature conditions, and after some hours, the live bacteria in the starter will transform the milk into yogurt, which can then be refrigerated and used as needed. If you prefer a slightly thicker, firm yogurt, you can add milk powder at the beginning.

Yogurt is called for in many recipes in this book, from the traditional creamy yogurt-based drinks called Lassi to the cooling yogurt salad called Raita. Drained of its whey, yogurt is transformed into a low-calorie cream cheese featured in Syrian Yogurt Cheese  and Greek Yogurt Dip. When sweetened, this yogurt cheese becomes a delicious dessert called Shrikhand. Yogurt can be folded into vegetable dishes, such as South Indian Vegetable Combination, or heated into zesty Gujarati Yogurt Soup. A small bowl of plain yogurt is a cooling addition to any main meal.

  •  PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes

  •  SETTING TIME: 4 - 10 hours
  •  YIELD: 4 cups (1 litre)

  •  1/3 cup (85 ml) fresh milk (optional)

Corn Masala

Sliced corn , mustard seeds , dry red chili ,

curry leaf , 1 tbsp of red chili powder , salt and sugar ( the sugar not in this picture as i forgot to add , so sorry for that ) please add sugar .

Get a pan with some oil , add mustard seeds , curry leaf , dry red chili and give a mix about few seconds .

Then add the corn and give a mix about 1 to 2 minutes .