Cooking easy home alone Indian dinner or lunch in less than an hour?

Have you ever been in a situation when there is no one at home and you come back from work tired and you aren’t keen on preparing dinner?


Most certainly, we all have!

Here is a recipe that is quick and will easily solve your dinner woes.

We shall now discuss how to prepare “potato-spinach” curry and pulses(”Dal”) and believe me, it can be done in no-time.



Ingredients:

Spinach Leaves, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Onions, Oil, Pulses, Garlic pulps, Coriander(optional) seeds, Cumin(optional) seeds, Sesame seeds, English Sauce/Tomato sauce(optional), Tomato Sauce(optional), Ginger-Garlic paste(optional), Coriander leaves(optional), Butter(optional)

Recipe:

* Take some potatoes,peel off the skin with a knife and cut them, desirably into equal halves. Now, wash them and put them into a pressure-cooker after adding water. The water level should be little above the vegetable. Now, close the lid and put them on the cooking-stove for heating.

* Now, put some pulses(”Dal”) into a container, wash them several times and

let the dal soak in little water for some time.

* In the meanwhile, get hold of some onions and tomatoes. Wash these and cut them. Also, get some garlic pulps ready.

* Now, wash the spinach(”Palak”) leaves thoroughly and segregate the petiole from the blade and shred them. Keep it in a container after adding little water to it.

By this time, the potatoes are likely to be cooked. It takes normally three whistles/”steam-outs” for potatoes to be baked.

Let the steam out from the cooker and pour cold water into the potatoes. You can give a gentle poke with a kitchen knife to confirm that it is ready.

* Now, get a cooking pan, pour some oil into it and put it up for heating. When the oil is ready, add some cumin(”Jeera”), sesame(”Til”) and Coriander(”Dhania”) seeds to it. If these ingredients aren’t available, then do not worry. We have onions and tomatoes to fill for them.

* Add tomatoes and onions, add garlic and ginger paste(if available) and keep on stirring them till they are deep brown in color. Further, add some turmeric powder for colour and salt for taste. If you have tomato sauce or “English Sauce”, add them as well.

* Finally, add the potatoes and ensure that its mixed with thoroughly with the paste and leave them on the gas-stove for a while.

* Now, wash the pressure cooker, fill it with some water and add pulses to it.
* Add a pinch of turmeric powder, shut the lid and put it back on stove.

We shall now attend to the curry.

* After about two or three minutes, mix the shredded spinach leaves to the potatoes and add some water to it. Mix it thoroughly and keep it on low gas after covering the pan with a lid.Ensure that you do not add to much water and stick to making this a thick paste instead.

By this time, the “pulses” will be almost ready(It usually takes 6 quick whistles or “steam-outs” from the cooker).

* After the steam is out, use a stirrer to beat the pulses.

* Take a small cooking pan and pour oil or butter on it. Heat this with garlic and when the garlic turns brownish, pour this into the pulses. This might sound “hissy” but the end result is savoring. Heat the pulses for sometime with or without the pressure cooker lid on. Add salt and water to your liking.

The spinach leaves are certainly cooked by now. Add coriander leaves for the tinge of that special “extra” flavour.

Avoid overcooking to retain the nutrient value of the spinach leaves.

And Lo!- you have the “Spinach-Potato” curry along with pulses ready in no-time.

Serve with rice which can be cooked easily in a rice cooker or the same pressure cooker.

Now, wasn’t that easy?