I have some very fond memories associated with Punjabi by Nature. It was the venue of my first date with my wife during our courtship where we could hardly finish anything because of their huge portions and got most of the food packed. Then who can forget their chilli golgappa shots or the famous raan-e-punjab.

I believe the ownership has changed hands and yesterday along with a couple of friends, I discovered that they have an outlet at Apparel House, Gurgaon. Their manager informed us that the outlet has been there for almost 8-9 months but somehow we never heard of it. The same was also evident with the very few tables occupied at the restaurant.

The restaurant is quite big and can seat almost 100+ people including their alfresco area and the bar is already functional. Because they are located in a corporate area, probably they see more traction for lunch than dinner.

Food was delicious to say the least. Whole tandoori chicken came cut into four big pieces. The bird was small and it retained its juiciness and marination just right. I especially loved the coriander-mint chutney which was thick and coarsely ground. It could have a bit more of khatai in the form of anardana etc to give it more spunk. Dahi kebab were amongst the best I have had. The texture of the soft hung curd complemented the small bits of ginger and green chilly with a nice crust on top. A sweet jam kept on top of kebabs further accentuated the flavours.

We all loved the nicely done tandoori prawns. The four pieces of delicious jumbo prawns marinated in cheddar cheese and garlic vanished in a jiffy. However, we felt that the portion size didn’t justify the pricing of Rs1495. It was perhaps the only thing on the menu that we felt was over priced.

For mains, we ordered their speciality jumbo garlic naan along with dal makhani, murgh masala and bullet pudina aloo. This garlic naan at just Rs195 can easily feed a family of four but we wanted to be greedy and ordered a single laccha parantha also which was again pretty Punjabi-sized compared to what you get in the market.

I won’t go dish by dish for the mains since everything was good except the aloo. I would have loved some more of the tanginess and pudina flavour. Having said that, it went well with the dal.

Looks can be deceptive. Mango icecream looked hard and pale in colour. But one bite into it and we knew how wrong we were. Meal ended with very soft and an overly sweet gulab jamun.

Overall a great meal with attentive service. Apart from Prawns, I felt that Punjabi by Nature pricing has also come down from its earlier Avatar. More reasons for foodies to rejoice.

PS: Don’t remember to get the parking charge of Rs50 waived by getting your parking slip stamped by the restaurant on eating your meal here.

Ratings (Out of 5):
Food: 4.25 | Drinks: 4.0 | Service: 4.5 | Ambience: 3.5 | Overall: 4.0

Address: Punjabi By Nature, Plot Number 101, Apparel House, Insitutional Area, Sector 44, Gurgaon | Phone: 8650884913

The post Punjabi by Nature, Apparel House, Gurgaon: Delicious Punjabi Food appeared first on Indian Food Freak.

Rajma Masala Powder is a extremely good mixture of Spices with flavours accentuating from the Spices utilized in it with a slight notice of tanginess from Amchur (Dry Mango Powder) and Soury -candy flavor from Anar Dhana(Dry Pomegranate Seeds Powder).  

Freshly grounded homemade Rajma Masala Powder is the soul of Rajma Masala. Perfectly cooked Rajma/Kidney Beans combination at the side of the masala blend and a rich & creamy primarily based totally Rajma Masala curry. 

Now, you need not to be buy it from market, you can make it at home with fresh spices and store in an air-tight container. You can use this Rajma Masala powder with up to 1 month. 

Homemade spices are always best,very easy and quick process. Well, the answer is simple – it’s

   No preservatives,

   Unique Aroma and

   WONDERFUL taste

Author : Jolly Makkar

Cooking time : 5 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Course: Masala / Indian spice

Cuisine: Indian (Punjabi)

INGREDIENTS :

For Rajma Masala Powder :

Dry Red Chillies - 10-12 Nos.

Coriander Seeds - 1/2 Cup

Cumin Seeds - 1 Tbspn

Carom(Ajwain) Seeds - 2 Tspn

Bay Leaves - 3 Nos.

Dry Ginger Powder -1 Tbspn

Black Cardamom - 5-6 Pods

Cloves - 6-8 Nos.

Mace - 3-4 Strands

Nutmeg - 1 No.

Dry Mango Powder (Amchur) - 3 Tbspn

Dry Pomegranate Seeds Powder(Anar Dhana) - 4 Tbsps

Fennel seeds - 1 teaspoon

INSTRUCTIONS  :

• Dry Roast the Dry Red Chillies in a pan until it fluffs-up and keep it aside.
• Dry Roast Coriander Seeds on a low flame until fragrant for about 5-7 minutes and keep it aside.
• Next, add Carom Seeds & Cumin Seeds into the pan and dry roast it on a low flame until the spices splutter.
• Remove it from the pan and keep it aside.
• Next add Bay Leaves, Cloves, Mace, Fennel and Pomegranate Seeds into the pan and dry roast it on a low flame until the spices turn aromatic.
• Allow the dry roasted ingredients to cool down.
• Do not Roast Dry Ginger Powder, Dry Mango Powder & Nutmeg.
• Combine all the ingredients and grind it into a fine powder.
• Transfer the Rajma Masala Powder into a clean and dry airtight container.
• Store it in the refrigerator for longer shelf life.

NOTES :

• Can sundry the Spices before preparing the Rajma Masala Powder, but it is purely optional.
• Dry Roast the ingredients separately.
• Dry roast the spices on a very low flame.
• Care should be taken not to burn the ingredients which will totally spoil/alter the taste of the Masala.
• Do not dry roast Dry Ginger Powder, Dry Mango Powder & Nutmeg.
• Cool the ingredients before grinding it.
• This recipe is a part of A to Z recipe challenge, we choose key ingredients alphabetically to cook and post a dish every month. This month it was alphabet time "R" so I choose my key ingredients RAJMA and make this easy and flavourful Rajma Masala Powder  and will update the whole video soon on my YOUTUBE channel - JOLLYhOMEMADErECIPES 
  

  
  

  
  

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• 

Pheni kheer is a must item in the Karwa Chauth Sargi thali or for any special occasion at my home or I usually make it for my big sweet tooth. 😁😁 It is prepared with milk, mild sweet and loaded with dry fruits. It is very light in taste, so easy to make and absolutely delicious dessert that you can served with your everyday meals.

Generally we get readymade Pheni disks in the sweet shops during the time of Karwa Chauth. It is a tradition to have Pheni on Karwa Chauth day along with other sargi items. 

At my In-laws place this Pheni kheer is made during saawan month and can be served as a sweet dish after heavy meals.

What is Karwa Chauth and their significance behind the festival?

Karwa Chauth is a festival celebrated by Hindu women from the Northern and Western India on the fourth day after Purnima (a full moon) in the month of Kartika. On Karwa Chauth, married women, especially in North India, observe fast from sunrise to moonrise for the safety and longevity of their husbands.

Being an Indian , I loved Indian traditions so much and their values behind the festivals are so beautiful and meaningful. I'll share you what we do during karwa chauth in details in other post but for now in short - 

we wake up early in the morning like around 4 a.m, make some delicious food for ourselves which include pheni ki kheer, fruits (like apple/coconut), some sweet like gulab jamun or rasgulla, a glass of water, tea/coffee, dry fruits, any stuffed paratha with curd. I know its sounds so funny that how can we eat this whole some meal in early morning😉 here's my sargi thali in below picture

Well let's go to the Feni Kheer, will share you about Karwa Chauth traditions in other post with some beautiful clicks. 

Pheni is a wonderful traditional milk based dessert which can either be served chilled or can be relished hot too. It is very easy to make and hardly takes few minutes to prepare. Do try this creamy and rich feniya ki kheer this festival for sure.

PREP TIME : 5 mins

COOK TIME :10 mins

COURSE : Dessert, Karwa Chauth Special, Festival Special

CUISINE : North Indian Punjabi Cuisine

Ingredients:

Pheni/Fenia - 1/2 cup

Milk - 4 cup

Sugar - 1/4 cup sugar (adjust it to your taste)

Chopped Almonds - 12 to 14 pieces

10 Raisins

Instructions :

1. In a heavy bottom pan, bring the milk to a brisk boil. Lower the heat and add pheni....simmer the milk along with pheni for 5 to 10 minutes till it thickens a little. 

2. Once the milk has thickened a little, add the sugar and chopped dry fruits as of your choice and simmer for another couple of minutes.

3. Turn off the heat, transfer the pheni into another serving bowl. So the pheni is not over cooked on the same pan as it is very hot.

4. After cool down and keep it in refrigerator and serve cold or hot kheer as per your taste,  in my family including me everyone love pheni ki kheer as a cold dessert. 

5. Before serving Garnish with chopped almonds. Tadaa it's ready to serve...So creamy and rich dessert..

This post is little bit late, but I was waiting for the right time now I have got chance to share it with one of the important sweet in Sargi thali is PHENI KHEER and this kheer is the contribution of my A to Z season 2 challenge. This month letter is F earlier i knew only 1 ingredients that is Phalsa- dry berry which is not easily available in Bangalore easily. I was thinking to not to take participate in this month challenge luckily his PHENI box is in my fridge and when i read the word 😍😃 then my mind strike oh wow that;s another ingredients that's start with hindi letter PH or Fa. So I choose it and made this "RICH & CREAMY FENI KHEER"

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Aloo Baingan ki sabzi or baingan aloo is a delicious vegan and gluten-free recipe. Made with eggplants & potatoes this tasty dish is very easy to make.

This is purely home-cooked everyday dish which is family favorite veggie especially my son. 

Aloo baingan ki sabzi is a simple yet delicious vegan & gluten-free Indian vegetable recipe. Aloo is the Hindi word for potato and baingan for eggplant so basically, this dish is made by cooking potatoes and eggplants with tomatoes,  and a few spices. This is purely NO Onion NO Garlic Recipe

Even this simple recipe has different variations and I love almost all of them. I usually dry and sometime i usually make curry version, will share the recipe soon with my readers. Today I am sharing the most common method of making aloo baingan also called baingan aloo by many.

To make aloo baingan you need the following ingredients:

• Eggplant: Though aloo baingan is generally made with a baby purple variety, feel free to use whichever variety of eggplant is available to you.
• Potato: Any variety of potato can be used
• Tomato
• Indian Spices - turmeric, coriander, red chilli, salt, garam masala
• Olive Oil or any vegetable cooking oil
• Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing

More Indian Sabzi Recipes like :

Aloo baingan is generally served with Indian bread like roti or paratha with side homemade curd or raita or lassi. Though a lot of people don’t love eggplants, I loved this vegetable even as a kid. It’s one of my favorite vegetables.   

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 3 people

Author: Jolly Makkar

Ingredients :

3 medium-sized eggplants chopped into medium-sized pieces

2 medium-sized potatoes chopped into medium-sized pieces

2 medium-sized tomatoes finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/4 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 tablespoon coriander powder

1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder

Salt as per taste

3 tablespoon olive oil or any cooking oil of your choice

coriander leaves finely chopped

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a pan, stir fry the sliced aloo and baingan by adding some salt and turmeric powder. Cover the pan and cook until the potato and eggplants are nicely cooked.

2. Once it is cooked properly, take all potatoes and baingan into the late.

3. On to the same pan, add chopped tomatoes, all the spice powder, and salt. Mix, cover the pan, and cook it until the tomatoes turn mushy.

4. Once the tomatoes are done add potatoes, eggplant. Add garam masala and cover the pan. Cook covered for another 3-4minutes. then switch off the flame.

5. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with roti/ paratha or rice and dal.

Notes:

1) Make equal size pieces of potatoes and eggplants. 

2) Never add water to cook aloo baingan and let the vegetables get cooked covered in their own moisture.

3) Use a heavy-bottomed pot to make this dish.

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HAPPY COOKING & ENJOY💛💛