I don't possess a lot of recipe books, at least not Indian food anyway. I prefer to follow my senses to create something which is a mix of both traditional and new flavors. Don't get me wrong - I am no culinary guru but I like to believe that I have good instincts when it comes to food. Of course, this includes a fair share of failures and unpalatable recipes but that's how we learn right?
The sausage yakhni was developed this week, when my freezer had some forlorn looking mini sausages and we had a guest coming over for dinner. It seemed the sausages were destined to the garbage bin sooner or later so I decided to make something from them. I am trying desperately to reduce the amount of food we waste - with so much hunger in the world, we all need to make whatever little effort we can and the first step is to stop wasting food.
I don't have a name for this dish. My husband called it a yakhni since it is made in a yogurt gravy but you can call it whatever you want. In my opinion it would also taste good with seekh kebabs.
Sausages in Yakhni Curry
serves two
5 mini chicken sausages, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup yogurt, whisked smooth with 2-4 tbsp water
3 medium onions
1 large green chilly
3-4 garlic cloves
2 green cardamoms
2 cloves
1 one-inch long cinnamon stick, broken into two
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp fennel powder
2-3 tbsp mustard oil
For the yakhni masala, you need:
1/2 nutmeg
1 black cardamom
1 whole dry red chilli
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mace
1 tsp whole black pepper
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp asafoetida
To make the masala, dry roast the spices for the yakhni masala in a pan. Turn off the heat when you start getting an aroma and powder them in a spice grinder or a mixer.
In the mixer, make a smooth paste of the onions, garlic, and green chilly. Heat the mustard oil to smoking point in a large kadhai or pan. Reduce heat to low and add green cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves. Add the onion paste, stir to incorporate the oil into the mixture. Increase heat to high and let it cook for 3-4 minutes till the onions start browning. Add 1/2 cup water, cover and let it cook for another 5 minutes.
When the onions look cooked, add salt, ginger powder, fennel powder, and yakhni masala to it and stir well. Lower heat and add yogurt. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes.
In another pan, heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chopped sausages and cook till they are light golden in color. Strain and set aside on a kitchen towel.
Add the fried sausage pieces to the curry, cover and let it cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Slow cooking ensures that sausages absorb flavor. You may have to add more water at this point.
Once the sausages have softened, add garam masala and turn off the heat. Serve hot with rice or chapatis.
The sausage yakhni was developed this week, when my freezer had some forlorn looking mini sausages and we had a guest coming over for dinner. It seemed the sausages were destined to the garbage bin sooner or later so I decided to make something from them. I am trying desperately to reduce the amount of food we waste - with so much hunger in the world, we all need to make whatever little effort we can and the first step is to stop wasting food.
I don't have a name for this dish. My husband called it a yakhni since it is made in a yogurt gravy but you can call it whatever you want. In my opinion it would also taste good with seekh kebabs.
Sausages in Yakhni Curry
serves two
5 mini chicken sausages, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup yogurt, whisked smooth with 2-4 tbsp water
3 medium onions
1 large green chilly
3-4 garlic cloves
2 green cardamoms
2 cloves
1 one-inch long cinnamon stick, broken into two
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp fennel powder
2-3 tbsp mustard oil
For the yakhni masala, you need:
1/2 nutmeg
1 black cardamom
1 whole dry red chilli
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mace
1 tsp whole black pepper
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp asafoetida
To make the masala, dry roast the spices for the yakhni masala in a pan. Turn off the heat when you start getting an aroma and powder them in a spice grinder or a mixer.
In the mixer, make a smooth paste of the onions, garlic, and green chilly. Heat the mustard oil to smoking point in a large kadhai or pan. Reduce heat to low and add green cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves. Add the onion paste, stir to incorporate the oil into the mixture. Increase heat to high and let it cook for 3-4 minutes till the onions start browning. Add 1/2 cup water, cover and let it cook for another 5 minutes.
When the onions look cooked, add salt, ginger powder, fennel powder, and yakhni masala to it and stir well. Lower heat and add yogurt. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes.
In another pan, heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chopped sausages and cook till they are light golden in color. Strain and set aside on a kitchen towel.
Add the fried sausage pieces to the curry, cover and let it cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Slow cooking ensures that sausages absorb flavor. You may have to add more water at this point.
Once the sausages have softened, add garam masala and turn off the heat. Serve hot with rice or chapatis.
Sausages in Yakhni Curry is great idea!!This is my kind of recipe.Thanks for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteMy son's favorite, super combo
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