Curry Naan Bread Tacos

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Ground turkey is browned, seasoned in Indian spices, and spooned into buttered naan bread to create one delicious twist on a taco!

It's been well established that Indian food is one of my very favorite cuisines - I love the flavor and aroma of their spices! If you're unfamiliar with the flavors, these tacos would be a great entry point. They are super flavorful but not spicy at all. Plus your kitchen will smell amazing :)

You can pull this dish together in less than 30 minutes and with minimal clean-up. Simply brown ground turkey, add some spices, chicken stock, and mango chutney, and let simmer. Spoon it into browned and buttered naan bread pieces, top with some additional chutney and Greek yogurt, and serve.

These will disappear in a flash!

Garam masala should be easily found at your grocery store or at someplace like World Market. If you struggle finding it, sub in curry powder instead.

 

Curry Naan Bread Tacos

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb ground turkey

1 inch piece ginger, peeled and grated

4 clove garlic, minced

1 fresh red chile (like Fresno), minced

1 tablespoon garam masala 

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup mango chutney

1 package mini naan bread (or original size, cut in half)

2 tablespoons melted butter

salt and pepper

For topping: additional chutney and Greek yogurt

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the ground turkey and cook, stirring often, until browned, about 5-6 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, chile, and spices. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until the spices are aromatic, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in the stock and chutney and let simmer until thickened, about 6 minutes. 

Heat a grill pan over medium-high. Add the naan bread and cook until it browns in spots, about 1 minute per side. Lightly brush with melted butter.

Lay the naan bread buttered side up and top with turkey, additional chutney, and yogurt.

Source: adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine April 2016

Chicken Tikka Masala

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Chicken Tikka Masala, also known as chicken in creamy tomato curry, is a great entry level Indian dish. No curry powder, no hot spices, no strange flavors just tomatoey goodness. Your family will be begging for more!

I love love LOVE Indian food - and I wish more people would embrace it! I think because some have a really strong aversion to curry (or the smell of curry) that they write the entire cuisine off. The truth is that calling something a curry means it's just a basic spiced soup or stew. This dish, and most Indian dishes I've made at home, don't contain a drop of curry powder. Instead, they have a delicious blend of other staple spices plus a few new ones that might be unfamiliar.

If your family likes tomato based dishes, they will probably love this dish. Chicken is marinated overnight, grilled, and then tossed into a creamy tomato sauce. Serve it over basmati rice accompanied with a big piece of naan bread. Yum!

I originally shared this recipe almost 4 years ago and it deserved a revisit!

Chicken Tikka Masala

For the marinade:

1 cup yogurt

1 tablespoon grated ginger

3 cloves garlic, grated

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 pound boneless/skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite sized pieces

For the sauce:

2 teaspoons olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 inch piece ginger, minced

2 serrano peppers, seeds removed and minced (keep seeds if you want heat)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon garam masala

2 teaspoons paprika

1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 cup water

1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves (optional)

1/2 cup heavy cream

Salt, to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, ginger, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add the diced chicken and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

Bring a large skillet to medium-high heat and add the oil and butter. Once melted, add the garlic, ginger, and serrano peppers. Saute until lightly browned around the edges. Add the tomato paste and cook until darkened, about 3 minutes. Add the garam masala and paparika and saute about 1 minute.

Add the diced tomatoes and their juices plus 1 cup water. Bring to a boil then lower heat to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 20 minutes. 

Preheat grill and lightly brush with oil. Carefully shake off excess marinade and place the chicken pieces on the grill. Cook until charred, about 2 minutes on each side. The chicken will finish cooking in the sauce.***

Pour the sauce into a blender or food processor, or use your immersion blender, and process until smooth. Pour back into the skillet and bring it back to a boil. Add the grilled chicken and fenugreek, if using. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Add the cream and stir to combine.

***Too cold to fire up the grill? Lightly coat a wire rack with cooking spray, place it on a baking sheet, and add the chicken to the rack. Broil on high, turning once, until the chicken starts to char. It won't have the same chargilled taste but it's warmer!

Source: slightly adapated from Aarti Sequeria

Saag Paneer Enchiladas

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The popular Indian spinach and cheese dish, saag paneer, transformed into enchiladas! Saag paneer is rolled in flour tortillas, topped with a yogurt based cilantro mint sauce, and baked until bubbly. This vegetarian Tex Mex-Indian mash-up is guaranteed to be a family favorite.

Saag paneer is a creamy spinach dish that uses - you guessed it - paneer cheese. Since paneer doesn't melt down, the spinach has bites of delicious cheese throughout and a creamy, rich flavor. I recently shared a recipe for homemade paneer cheese as I was fruitless in my search for it - and come to find out, it's just 2 ingredients and minutes to make!

The enchilada sauce is yogurt based (a nod to Indian cuisine) and loaded with cilantro, mint, jalapenos, and other Indian-TexMex flavors. I know, the mint sounds strange but it totally works!

Don't be intimidated by the seemingly long list of ingredients - there are duplicate ingredients used in both the filling and sauce so it's really not as many items as it appears. Plus, your food processor does most of the work!

Saag Paneer Enchiladas

For the filling:

1 medium yellow onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 10-ounce packages of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed of liquid

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup plain yogurt or sour cream

1/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 pound paneer cheese, cut into 1/4 inch cubes

For the sauce:

2 cups cilantro

1/4 cup mint leaves

1 jalapeno, seeds and stems removed, chopped

1 clove garlic

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup buttermilk

1.5 cups plain yogurt or sour cream

salt to taste

For the enchiladas:

8-10 flour tortillas

Additional paneer cheese, for crumbling over top

In a food processor, chop the onion, garlic, and ginger. In a skillet, heat some vegetable oil over medium-low heat, add the onion mixture, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the spinach, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne, yogurt, and buttermilk. Turn the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the half and half and paneer cheese and simmer for 5 more minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, puree the cilantro, mint, jalapeno, garlic, ginger, cumin, lemon juice, and buttermilk until smooth. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl and stir in yogurt. Add salt to taste.

Preheat the oven to 350. Wrap the tortillas in foil and place in the oven for 10 minutes while it's preheating. 

Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish. Spoon 1/4 cup of filling down the center of a tortilla. Roll and place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas. 

Pour the cilantro sauce over the tortillas and crumble additional paneer cheese over top. Bake uncovered for 5 minutes. 

Source: Homesick Texan

Homemade Paneer Cheese

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Making cheese at home is fast, inexpensive, and fun! Stop the endless search for paneer cheese - you're just 2 ingredients from your own batch.

I (stupidly) tried in vain to find fresh paneer cheese locally. Even Whole Foods didn't carry it! Before throwing in the towel, I Googled how to make it just for kicks and found out how easy it was. And really, it's not only easy, it's like doing a science experiment in your kitchen that results in a big ball of fresh cheese. If we had made cheese in high school science class, I probably would have been more interested...

Paneer is SO delicious - like all Indian food! It's a fairly soft, mild in flavor, crumbly non-melting cheese. Similar to queso blanco but without salt. Since it doesn't melt down or become gooey, it's perfect in hot dishes where you want a big bite of creamy cheese (like saag paneer). I used it in an AMAZING enchilada recipe I'll be posting in a few days!

Since paneer is not aged you can be eating it in 30 minutes. Which is much faster than running all over town looking for it :)

Though not typically salted, you may want to salt it prior to pressing if you plan to eat much of it plain. 

Homemade Paneer Cheese

8 cups whole milk

1/4 cup lemon juice

Line a large colander with a double layer of cheesecloth and set in your sink. If you'd like to save the whey, place a bowl under the colander. 

In a large pot, bring the milk to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom to avoid burning. This takes awhile so be patient.

Once barely boiling, add the lemon juice and turn down to low. Stir gently and you should almost immediately see the curds and whey start to separate. The curds are white milk solids and the whey is a greenish liquid. Try to stir the curds together instead of breaking them apart.   

If the milk doesn't separate, add another tablespoon of lemon juice and turn the heat up again. 

Once the milk seems to be separated, pour the contents into the prepared colander. Gently rinse the curds with cool water. Grab the ends of the cheesecloth and twist to remove the liquid and create a ball of cheese. Tie the cheesecloth to your faucet and allow to drain for 5 minutes.

Once drained, place the (still wrapped in cheesecloth) cheese on a dinner plate with the extra cheesecloth gathered on the sides of the cheese (this is so your cheese is nice and smooth). Put another dinner plate on top and weigh it down using cans or something heavy. Place it in the fridge and let sit for 20 minutes. 

Unwrap it and it's ready to go! 

Source: Aarti Sequeria