Adrakwali Chai / Indian Style Ginger Tea

It is not an exaggeration to say that the daily routine in every Indian household starts with boiling a pot of milk. Coffee / tea preparation is the first ritual in every home, every morning and they are prepared with a good dose of milk. Pasteurized milk is not a commonly available ingredient in India and so, the milk gets boiled properly before consumption. You see, everyone including any guests present expect their morning dose of coffee / tea while the kids are fed milk/ sugar-chocolate laden energy drinks. This all happens before serving the breakfast and so, there may be a round 2 coffee / tea session for adults after the breakfast, if time permits. And of course, there is the evening tea / coffee that is served around 4 or 5 pm along with light snacks.  
Coffee was once considered a south Indian drink while tea or chai as it is called in Hindi was associated with North Indians. Now both drinks are extensively consumed all over India and as as I mentioned above, both are milk based beverages. Indians expect a good quality tea / coffee and by default mostly use full fat milk, in portion for the preparation. Again tea preparation is subjective to one's taste preferences. The strength of the brew decides whether the tea is strong / kadak or light / feeki. One may stick to the basic version or may prefer to flavor it with spices / herbs. Tea can be made using milk alone, using milk and water in equal proportions or with more water ratio than milk. I usually go with milk and water in equal proportions whereas my husband uses more water and prefers fatfree milk. 
 
The basic tea preparation starts with boiling water. An extra amount of liquid need to be added than the final quantity of tea expected since some of the liquid gets evaporated during the tea making process. Black tea leaves / granules are then added to boiling water and allowed to simmer for few minutes before the addition of milk and sugar, the common sweetener used. The whole mixture is boiled some more time for the flavors to build up. The brew is then passed through a strainer and served piping hot. And of course plenty of variations can be created by adding herbs and spices while preparing the brew. Today's version is one such variation, that is based on fresh ginger root which is quite popular and a flavorful one. Besides, the ginger adds a healthy punch.

Ingredients for 1 serving:
3/4 cup water
1 tsp. peeled & grated / crushed fresh ginger
1.5 to 2 tsp. black tea granules (I used Brook Bond Red Label one.)
1/2 to 3/4 cup full fat milk
Sugar / Artificial sweetener to taste

Method:
* Add water and ginger to a sauce pan and bring it to a boil.
* Add tea leaves / granules and continue to boil for about 3 -4 minutes more.
* Next add milk and sugar and continue boiling the mixture until it starts to boil over.
* Pass it through a sieve and serve immediately.


 
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Pudina Paratha

For this week's blogging marathon, I am going with the theme 'One menu card - 3 different courses' and I picked Puranmal menu card from the given choices. I am going with 'Pudina Parathas' on Day 1.

These parathas can impress anyone with their looks alone. The flecks of emerald 'mint' and the prominent layers are absolutely appealing. These are made 'lachha paratha' style, resulting in flaky, flavorful parathas. They make a great meal with minimal efforts since they don't need any side dishes as such. We enjoyed them with just plain yogurt and a pickle. 

Ingredients: (Yields 5 parathas)

1 cup atta / wheat flour + extra for dusting

Salt to taste

1 cup tightly packed mint/pudina leaves or 1/2 cup packed mint leaves + about 1 tbsp. mint powder

1/2 tsp chaat masala

2 tbsp. butter

Oil to make parathas

Method:

* Wash and finely chop about 1/2 cup of pudina leaves. 

* Combine flour, salt and chopped pudina leaves in a mixing bowl. Add sufficient water to make a firm, pliable dough. Cover and let the dough rest for about an hour or so.

* In the mean while, wash and pat dry the remaining 1/2 cup mint leaves. Toast them on low flame until they turn crispy. Cool and grind them fine. Ignore this step if using mint powder.

* Mix mint powder and chaat masala in a bowl and keep aside.

* Divide the dough into 5 portions and roll them into balls. Work with one dough ball each time and keep the rest covered.

* Roll one ball into thin circle of about 6 inches, dusting with flour if necessary. Smear with butter and sprinkle some chaat masala - mint powder mixture all over it.

* Now comes the pleating part. Start from the upper end of the disc. Fold the disc into pleats using your hands, as shown below.

* Just pinch at the edges after folding the disc like a fan, if it is not done so already while pleating .

* Then twist the pleated disc into a tight roll.

* Again roll it into a thin circle of about 6 inches diameter. Dust it with flour if necessary.

* Heat a tawa / shallow frying pan. Fry one roti at a time on medium heat. Place the rolled disc onto the hot griddle. Toast for about a minute. Small bubbles start to appear on the surface. Then flip it to the other side using a spatula. Add 1/2 tsp oil around the edges and spread around 1/4 tsp oil on the surface. Toast the other side too. Keep moving around and pressing the roti a little with the spatula for uniform toasting including the edges. Flip the roti one more time if required. Properly toasted roti / parathas have small brown spots all over it. Remove the roti and keep it covered. Repeat the steps with the remaining dough balls.

* Serve them with a spicy curry or some pickle and yogurt.

Check what other marathoners are cooking during this marathon.

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