 A Parsi or a Parsee is someone who comes from Pars, or ancient Persia, and who now resides mainly in the west coast of India. So the style of cuisine is a combination or fusion of vegetarian Gujarati and non-vegetarian Iranian cooking. A common Parsi dish is the Dhansak which traditionally is a poultry or meat dish in a gravy of pureed lentils and vegetables.
| There are many forms of dhansak found in restaurants but I’ve tried to recreate the authentic recipe using red lentils to speed up the process. With the chicken, vegetables and lentils all rolled into one recipe, it’s a meal in itself. However, it is often served with a fiery salad called Kachuber. Serves 4 100g red lentils, washed
250g frozen mixed vegetables such as baby carrots, green beans and cauliflower florets, defrosted
3 tbsp sunflower or olive oil
5cm piece root ginger, grated
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 green cardamoms
4 cloves
1 onion, chopped
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp turmeric
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp chilli powder
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tsp tomato puree Preparation: Place the lentils and the vegetables in a pan and add 700ml of just boiled water. Partially cover the pan and reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture for about 10-15 minutes until it’s mushy. Pour the mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. Then set aside. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat, then add the cardamoms and cloves. Then tip in the onion, ginger and garlic and fry stirring frequently for 5 minutes until lightly browned. | Quick Chicken Dhansak
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| | Add the cumin, coriander, salt, turmeric, cinnamon and chilli powder and mix thoroughly. Tip in the chicken and continue cooking, stirring for 5 minutes until the chicken changes colour. Stir in the tomato puree and tip in the pureed lentils and vegetables mixture. Then simmer for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally until the chicken is cooked through. Serve with plain Basmati rice or naans. |
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Light up your life with some fast, fantastic and unfussy ideas for Diwali. 