The flavour of these buttermilk naans is slightly tangy and so delicious with a slick of salty butter. Use them to scoop up your favourite curries, or dunk them in daal for a a comforting meal — you won’t believe they aren’t from a restaurant!

How to make restaurant-style naan at home

What would you say if I told you that you can make them without a tandoor, and have them on the table in under 40 minutes? If you love the flavours of sourdough bread, you will go wild for these delicious Indian restaurant-style naans. They’re quick, easy and require no yeast or time for raising. Simply mix the ingredients, knead the dough, rest it for a short time and then roll and cook.

The shape of the naan doesn’t have to be perfect either. In fact, I think that the more rustic and imperfect the edges, the better they look.

What makes this Quick Buttermilk Naan recipe so special?

The revolutionary thing about this naan recipe is the cooking method. You don’t need to switch on the oven or grill. They are made on a tawa on the gas cooker. The only requirement is that the pan is not a non-stick one and the cooker has an open flame. This method won’t work on an electric cooker or induction hob. If you don’t have a traditional Indian tawa, a cast iron frying pan or skillet is ideal.

How to cook naan without a tandoor

Lets face it, a home tandoor is nothing more than a pipe dream for the average Indian home cook, myself included. Luckily, there’s a quick and inexpensive way to give naans a beautifully-blistered surface without a tandoor.

Simply heat up a tawa until smoking hot, wet the surface of the naan with water and place it water-side down on the tawa. It will begin to puff slightly. After 20 seconds, grab the pan handle (wearing a heatproof glove if the pan doesn’t have a wooden handle) and flip it upside down to cook the surface directly over the open flame.

Water is the magic ingredient!

The water you sprinkle on the base ensures the naan remains stuck to the pan so you can turn the pan upside down without it falling off. The surface will begin to char and puff, leaving the naan perfectly cooked in 25-30 seconds.

A note on flavouring naan

This is a basic recipe for plain butter naan. If you would like to flavour your naan, there are lots of delicious options open to you. A popular choice and personal favourite of mine is garlic naan, whereby the cooked naan is brushed with a mixture of melted butter and fried garlic. You can also add chopped coriander leaves to the butter emulsion if you like.

Another option is to make chilli naan, also known as “bullet naan” in many Indian restaurants. To make chilli naan, melt the butter in a pan and add chopped chillies. Allow to sizzle for a moment before using this butter to brush the entire surface of the naan.

Kulcha

Then there’s the world of kulcha or stuffed naan. To make Kulcha, are layer up naan dough like paratha and stuff them with a spicy filling. I will write a separate post on these because the possible variations are extensive and utterly deserve of their own deep dive.

Ingredients you’ll need to make Quick Buttermilk Naan

• Plain flour
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Sugar
• Any flavourless oil of your choice
• Buttermilk

Step-by-step: how to make Quick Buttermilk Naan

Print

Quick Buttermilk Naan

Make lip-licking naans that are thin, tender and chewy, with perfectly-puffy blisters, just like in Indian restaurants. The flavour of these buttermilk naans is slightly tangy and so delicious with a slick of salty butter. Use them to scoop up your favourite curries, or dunk them in daal for a a comforting meal — you won’t believe they aren’t from a restaurant!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword bread, naan, north indian

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Author Sanjana

Equipment

• Cast iron, steel or aluminium frying pan (not a non-stick pan), about 25cm in diameter
• Stand mixer with dough hook attachment (optional, you can also make these by hand)

Ingredients

• 400 g plain flour plus more for rolling out
• 300 ml buttermilk
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder not baking soda
• 100 ml flavourless oil
• 1 tsp kalonji (nigella seeds) optional
• Water for sprinkling on the surface of the naan
• Butter for spreading on the cooked naan melted

Instructions

For the naan dough:

• In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and optional kalonji seeds. Give it a quick stir and then add the oil and buttermilk. Mix to form a wet, shaggy dough.
• Now, either by hand or using the dough hook attachment of your stand mixer, knead the dough until soft and smooth. This will take 6-7 minutes by hand or 3 minutes in the stand mixer running at medium speed. Cover the dough with a damp cloth or tea towel and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

To roll the naan:

• Divide the dough into 10 equal portions and roll into balls.
• Heat the frying pan or tawa over a medium heat. It should be scorching hot. It's a good idea to open a window at this point.
• On a very lightly floured surface, roll one of the dough portions into a round-ish shape. It doesn't have to be perfectly round. You could also roll it into an oblong or teardrop shape. The choice is yours. The most important thing is that the surface is of an even thickness so it all cooks evenly. Aim for a thickness of about 1/2 cm.
• Use your fingers to sprinkle and lightly spread water on the entire surface of the naan. Be gentle, you don't want to tear the naan or rub it in.

To cook the naan:

• Carefully, using two hands, pick the naan up and place it water-side down on the hot pan. It will sizzle and bubbles will quickly begin to appear on the naan. Allow to cook for 15-20 seconds.
• Using a heatproof glove, grab the pan handle and carefully tip it upside down to cook the uncooked side directly over the open flame. It will take 20-25 seconds to puff up and blister.
• Remove the naan from the head and use a metal spatula to carefully unstick and lift the naan from the pan. It should come away fairly easily and be nice and charred on the bottom. Wrap it in a dry tea towel to keep warm while you roll and cook the rest of the naans. Keep them together, wrapped in the tea towel until you're ready to serve.
• Brush the naans with melted butter before serving.

Pin it for later!

If you like these, you will love this recipe for Soft Spinach Roti (Chapati).

Love Sanjana

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Channa Bateta (or CBs as we called it as kids) was the simplest of dishes using very few ingredients, but dad would put his heart and soul into it. He’s always been a well-seasoned cook and one that adds a fistful of this, a splash of that and a pinch of something else… and he makes cooking East African classics like Channa Bateta look so easy he could be doing it with his eyes shut. The son of two brilliant cooks, he acts as cool as cucumber raita about his mad skills and he nails flavour-packed East African dishes, chutneys and chaats every time. He’s got “chatpata” (hot, sour and sweet) flavours down. What I owe him greatly for is his wonderful encouragement and support over the years with my cooking. I started out as a curious toddler with a taste for Doodh and Khichri (stewed rice and lentils with milk). It was my equivalent of porridge and I’d wolf it down as I watched my Mum roll rotlis, thinking I wanted to be just like her when I was big enough to reach the stove. She’d give me pieces of dough to practice rolling and I’d sit on the floor cross legged in the tiny kitchen above our shop and roll rotlis using my coveted kids chapatti set from Popat’s, an Indian homeware store in Wembley. Needless to say, my rotlis totally sucked. They weren’t soft round, they were chunky frisbees of play-doh which my mum would still pop on to the tawa and cook into a biscuitty puck. And it was dad who would eat them up and tell me how delicious they were. Everything I know is down to those “map-of-Britain” monstrosities that were only fit for the bin. If he hadn’t have eaten them and told me they were great, I’d probably never have fallen in love with cooking and trying my absolute best in sharing that passion with others. So thank you Dad, you’re the source of my motivation, determination and self belief.

At home, if ever a bag of Seabrook Ready Salted crisps, Kenya Chevdo (a kind of potato-based trail mix) and lemon wedges were on the counter top and I instantly knew Channa Bateta was for dinner. You see, this dish is traditionally served with a crispy topping that comes in the form of said crisps, chevdo or even cassava crisps. A squeeze of lemon brings the whole thing together so what you’re left with is an orchestra of tender potatoes and chickpeas, a spicy chilli-laced coconut broth, fresh and fragrant coriander, a crunchy potato chip topping and sour raw mango chutney that brings the entire thing to life. It’s so balanced, filling and flavoursome… and all without trying too hard.

I posted a recipe for Mombasa-Style Kachri Bateta before which is a similar kind of thing but uses sour tamarind as the broth base. Channa Bateta is quicker and the heartier of the two. Filling carbs like potatoes, cassava and ugali are the essential sources of energy in East Africa. People work long hours, often have multiple jobs and of course, it’s damn hot. Usually what’s needed is a hearty, energy-rich bowl of stew or savoury porridge to keep bodies fuelled throughout the day.

I use tinned chickpeas because life is too short when you’re just home from work and are in need of a quick-fix meal (and that’s what this is). If you follow this recipe, it should take no longer than 20 minutes from start to finish. And that’s not including time to do the washing up which, if you were really smart, you’d enlist a minion to do for you. You should then put your feet up and wait for this to bubble away, filling your home with the smell of the simplest Indian-African dish there ever was.

Dad’s 20-Minute Channa Bateta (Kenyan Chickpeas and Potatoes in Coconut Broth)

Serves 4

Ingredients
1kg baby new potatoes, steamed and peeled
2 x 400g tins chickpeas (drained weight 480g in total)
8-10 curry leaves
400ml full-fat coconut milk
800ml hot water
2 tsp turmeric
Juice of 1 lemon
2 chillies, chopped (adjust to your taste)
1/2 raw green mango, peeled and grated
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

For the Channa Bateta toppings bar
1 red onion, finely diced
2 tbsp chopped coriander
4 packs of salted crisps/potato chips, crushed (you could also use cassava chips)
4 tbsp Kenyan Chevdo and/or Jinni Sev (trail mix), optional – you can buy these in many Asian supermarkets
Green chutney, to taste (recipe below)
Tamarind chutney, optional
Daal vada, optional
Red chilli powder, optional

For the Raw Mango and Coconut Chutney
1/2 raw green mango, grated
1 whole fresh coconut, shelled, peeled and grated (the coconut water is the chef’s treat)
100g fresh coriander
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
240ml cold water

Method

1. Pour the coconut milk and water into a large pan. Add the curry leaves, chopped chilli, turmeric, green mango, salt and sugar. Bring to the boil.

2. Add in the chickpeas and potatoes, along with the lemon juice.

3. Simmer on a medium/low heat for 15 minutes with the lid on.

4. Ladle into a bowl and customise with all your favourite toppings. Serve immediately.

5. To make the Raw Mango and Coconut Chutney: Blend all the ingredients in a food processor until you have a semi-coarse, bright green chutney.

Love Sanjana

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These days I love to add rose to lots of dishes from sweet to savoury, but mostly sweet. I’ve got a tonne of rose recipes on the blog, some of my favourites being Strawberry Cheesecake Falooda, Eggless Rose Custard Creams, Pistachio and Rose Bombay Halwa, Cardamom Wreath with Rose Drizzle and Candied Lemon Peel. A dash of rose water also doesn’t go amiss in biryani, ice cream and of course, cake.

Here I’ve dunked chewy toasted coconut macaroons in a simple rose icing made with icing sugar and rose syrup – the bright pink kind you find in Indian shops. One of my pregnancy cravings has been rose milk reminiscent of my falooda-crazy days. I add a dash to cold milk and stir for a strawberry pink milkshake that’s so refreshing without the faff of having to make a true falooda.

The macaroons are eggless, switching in a trusty can of sweetened condensed milk instead of egg whites. The result is a delicious, toasty coconut cookie with a coconut ice-like centre. After they’ve cooled, the bottoms get dunked in the rose icing and chopped toasted pistachios. Pistachio and rose are a flavour combo I’d like to eat every day for the rest of my life – I’m obsessed.

If you’re looking for a quick and easy 6-ingredient cookie that’s both egg and gluten free, this one’s for you.

Dust with icing sugar for a pretty snow-topped peak. So pretty!

Eggless Pistachio-Rose Macaroons
Makes 25 macaroons

For the macaroons:
1 x 397g tin sweetened condensed milk
300g sweetened desiccated coconut
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda

For the rose icing:
140g icing sugar
4 tbsp rose syrup

Icing sugar to dust, optional

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/320°F. It’s really important you do this. The oven needs to be HOT or the cookies will melt into flat puddles. Grease and line 2 large baking trays with greaseproof paper and butter.

2. In a large bowl, combine the coconut, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract and bicarbonate of soda until you have a thick pliable mixture.

3. Divide the mixture into 25 equal balls and shape each one into a teardrop shape. Arrange on the pre-lined baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden and toasted on the outside. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

4. To make the icing, mix the icing sugar and rose syrup until you have a thick, drippy pink icing. Dip the bottom of the cooled macaroons in the icing and then into the chopped pistachios. Sit them back onto a lined baking tray. Allow to set at room temperature for a few hours.

5. Dust with icing sugar and serve.

The macaroons will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a week. Although I doubt they’ll last that long.

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This is not just any old wrap. This is a flavoursome, satisfying chapatti wrap filled with rich paneer, tangy lemon and mouth-watering spices. Seriously, M&S would be proud. These kati rolls are simple, filling and perfect for lunch or dinner. You can stuff them with anything you like, from scrambled paneer to Bombay potatoes.

Traditional kati rolls come from Kolkata where they are essentially a kebab wrapped in paratha. Just like sandwiches and wraps you’ll find all over the world, from gyros to banh mi, kati rolls are a street food favourite because they lend themselves to eating on-the-go – a must in any bustling city.

My take on kati rolls combines my passion for paneer bhurji (North Indian-style spiced, scrambled paneer) and hot chapattis. I figured if I was going to fill something with pure paneer and vegetables, I’d better use a chapatti rather than ghee-filled paratha. If you’re not bothered about the extra calories, I’d recommend you go the whole hog and wrap your bhurji in hot, buttery paratha. There’s nothing quite like it.

One of my favourite places to eat in London is at Payal Saha’s The Kati Roll Company which opened after the first store in New York City's eclectic Greenwich Village was such a success. If you’ve never been to the London shop, here’s the lowdown; it’s a tiny little café-style restaurant with no more than eight tables. The walls are plastered with vintage Bollywood posters and they play filmi hits you’re more likely to bop away to at a family wedding rather than the UK’s busiest shopping hotspot. My point is that I love the Achaari Paneer Kati Rolls here – it is where the inspiration for my Paneer Bhurji Kati Rolls came from. 

If you’re up for it, try making your own Homemade Paneer. It will make a huge difference to the final texture of the paneer. However, if you’re short of time, just use shop bought – all you need to do is mash it up with a fork.

I love to cook my Paneer Bhurji in butter – it adds a delicious richness to the juicy paneer and vegetables. A squeeze of lemon juice at the end plumps up the paneer and provides the perfectly-balanced tang you’re looking for in any good paneer dish.

Paneer Bhurji Kati Rolls
(Makes 8 rolls)

450g paneer, crumbled
50g butter
1 large red onion, diced finely
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp freshly-grated ginger
2 hot red chillies, chopped finely
½  green pepper, diced finely
Handful shredded red cabbage
Handful petits pois or peas
3 spring onions, sliced at an angle
½ tsp amchur powder
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp salt
Juice of half a lemon
Fresh coriander, to garnish

8 chapattis or paratha
Salad leaves, to serve

Method

1. Melt the butter in a large pan and add the cumin seeds. Allow to sizzle a little bit, and then add the chopped red onions and red cabbage. Cook on a medium heat, stirring frequently until soft.

2. Next, add the ginger, chillies, pepper, petits pois, amchur powder, garam masala, turmeric powder and salt. Allow to cook for 5 minutes on a low heat.

3. Finish by adding the paneer and lemon juice. Cook this on a medium heat for around 5 minutes, stirring often. Don’t let this become too dry – you want the paneer to stay juicy for your kati rolls.

4. Garnish with fresh coriander and spring onions.

5. You can either serve the bhurji like a curry with hot chapattis or naan or you can make perfectly-portable kati rolls.

6. To make kati rolls, take a hot chapatti or paratha and put some filling inside. You can also add some fresh salad and chutney at this stage (I love Sriracha and green coriander chutney in these). Roll them up tightly and wrap with greaseproof paper.

Serve hot with cold lassi, beer or a steaming cuppa chai. 

Love Sanjana

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Never will I be a girl who orders a salad in a restaurant. I may be vegetarian but my appetite longs for more than a few pesky leaves. I’m usually the one who eats around the salad that comes with a meal, pushing it to the edge of the plate after it’s been wilted to mulch from the heat of the real food. Often, I need nothing more than carbs in a creamy sauce. Fast.

The simplicity of this pasta is exactly what makes it so special – take just seven ingredients and fifteen minutes and you’ll have an indulgent dinner with a touch of class. Your date, friends or family will believe you really pushed the boat out for them. For best results, don’t admit the truth.

Without a doubt, the star of the recipe is the saffron; simmered in double cream until the cream becomes a pale yellow with a delicate flavour. You’ll only need a tiny pinch for a heap of deep muskiness. It’s important not to go overboard with the saffron; it’s there to lightly infuse the cream – not to make it bitter and turmeric-yellow.

Crisp courgettes give the dish just enough bite to break up the silkiness of the pasta and sauce. For an extra kick, you can add a sprinkle of chilli flakes but I really love the simplicity of the dish without.

I use Gigli pasta for this dish – the flower-like shape envelopes the sauce and the pasta becomes stained with the sunset-yellow colour, making it even more like a plate of ruffled daffodils, speckled with strands of saffron. Having said this, I’ve also tried it with fettucine, tagliatelle and linguine – all are fine.

15 Minute Saffron and Courgette Pasta
(Serves 2)

Ingredients

150g dried Gigli pasta, cooked according to packet instructions
1 large courgette, halved and quartered lengthways, then chopped into 1cm pieces
1 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, peeled
300ml double (heavy) cream
½ tsp salt
Small pinch saffron

Method

1. Heat the butter in a large saucepan until foaming. Add the whole garlic clove and courgettes. You want the garlic to flavour the sauce ever so slightly. Sauté for a minute.

2. Add the cream, and saffron and bring to a gentle simmer. Allow to reduce for five minutes. Remove the garlic.

3. Add the cooked pasta and combine until coated. Serve piping hot.

Love Sanjana

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It’s the simple pleasures in life I’ve always appreciated the most; chapattis with mango pickle, paratha dipped in raita and from time to time, maybe peanut butter and banana sandwiches (let’s keep that one between us).

From sitting on a Mombasa beach nibbling on maize, smothered with lemon and red chilli powder, to scoffing cassava fries doused in citrus hot sauce in university halls, these flavours are an integral part of my food memories.

I think it reason this combination works so well is because the chilli heat is mellowed out with the sharp acidity of fragrant lemon. Indeed, it’s not only Indian and East African dishes which take full advantage of this mouth-watering duo – just think about your favourite Mexican salsas and Thai salads made with the native lime.

I never remove seeds or membrane from fresh chillies – I don’t see the point. However, if you prefer to remove them for a mild flavour then remember to adjust your use of lemon accordingly. A general rule of thumb is that the hotter the chilli, the more the lemon will be able to stand up to it. If your chillies are milder, add less lemon to ensure its flavour doesn’t become overpowering. If, by chance it does, a pinch of sugar should help.

For a speedy side or snack, this sautéed cauliflower tossed with fresh green chillies, mustard seeds, turmeric and lemon juice is the perfect dish. Serve it alone, in a lunchtime wrap with falafel and yogurt, or as part of a larger meal with your favourite curries and Indian breads.

Tip: in most dishes, a pinch of sugar and salt balance the chilli and lemon combination perfectly.

Chilli and Lemon Cauliflower
(Serves 2-4)

Ingredients

500g cauliflower, broken into bite-sized florets and boiled until al dente
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp asafoetida
½ tsp turmeric
3 green chillies, sliced finely (or to taste)
Juice of ½ lemon
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt or to taste

Method

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and add the mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds have popped, add the asafoetida, turmeric, chillies, sugar and salt.

2. Quickly add in the parboiled cauliflower and sauté on a high heat for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Keep them moving to avoid the spices from burning.

3. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and garnish with chopped coriander.

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Last week I ordered a salted lassi at an Indian restaurant and got it in a pint glass. I didn’t even get a straw. It was an entirely bizarre experience which I can’t say I’d like to try again – lassi moustaches really don’t suit me.

Forget beer and wine, I think nothing compliments an Indian meal better than lassi. It’s a cooling, yogurt-based drink with palate cleansing properties that balance out a spicy Indian meal perfectly. You really couldn’t get a more traditional drink.

The roots of lassi are firmly embedded in Punjabi cuisine from Northern India and parts of Pakistan. Many Indian and Pakistani regions have adapted the refreshing beverage to suit their individual cooking styles and tastes. 

A quick guide to lassi

As well as being popular in the Punjab, salted lassi (or chaas) is also the drink of choice to accompany the classic working mans lunch for the many farmers in Porbander (Gujarat). Chaas usually accompanies a lunch of buckwheat chapattis (rotla), rice and lentil stew (khichdi) and aubergine curry (oroh).

Chaas differs to lassi slightly in its consistency, which is made slightly thinner with water. Like salted lassi, it can be blended with various herbs and spices to create a cocktail of mouth-watering flavours.

Basic Salted Lassi
(serves 4)

Ingredients

7 tbsp Greek yogurt
650ml iced water
1 tsp salt

Method

1. Blend all of the ingredients together and pour into salt and sugar-rimmed glasses.

Toasted Cumin Lassi

Blend together: 
1 x recipe for basic salted lassi
1 tsp toasted, ground cumin seeds
1/8 tsp black salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

Tempered Lassi with Curry Leaves

Temper 3 curry leaves, ½ tsp mustard seed and  ¼ tsp asafoetida in 1 tsp oil until the mustard seeds pop. Pour over 1 x recipe for basic salted lassi.

Chilli and Coriander Lassi

Whisk together:
1 x recipe basic salted lassi
2 tsp chopped coriander leaves
1 hot green chilli, chopped finely

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It’s Pancake Day this Tuesday 8th March which funnily enough, automatically makes it acceptable for us to stuff our faces with stacks of syrup-drenched pancakes. I’m never one to argue when it comes to traditions like these.

These sweet/savoury pancakes are made with fine cornmeal and juicy kernels of sweetcorn and no eggs whatsoever. Instead, I used baking soda as a raising agent, which makes the pancakes light, fluffy and perfect for brunch. Don’t you just love waking up to the smell of warm pancakes on a duvet day?

I really love sweet and savoury flavours together, although I don’t often play around with dishes to create them. I also added mature cheddar cheese to these because I like to live on the wild side, but you could add chopped spring onions, or both for that matter.

Eggless Polenta and Sweetcorn Pancakes
(makes 8-10)

Ingredients

120g fine cornmeal
30g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp oil
3 tbsp sour cream
140g sweetcorn
140g mature cheddar cheese, grated
½ tsp salt
Pinch ground white pepper
Approx 250ml water or enough to make a thick batter similar to cake batter

Extra oil to grease your pan
Maple syrup and butter to serve

Method

1. In a large bowl, sift together the cornmeal, flour and bicarbonate of soda. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine thoroughly.

2. Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes.

3. Grease a wide, non-stick pan and place on a low heat. Allow 2 tbsp of batter for each pancake, slightly flattening as you spread onto the pan.

4. Cook on a med/low heat until small bubbles begin to appear on the surface of the pancake, flip and cook on then other side. Keep in a warm place while you repeat the same process for the remaining batter. Serve in a stack, drizzle with maple syrup and a pat of butter.

Are you a syrup kind of person? Or do you prefer a spritz of lemon juice and a dusting of sugar? I need to know all about your pancake habits so as to progress my own – and because I’m a pancake fiend.

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Firstly, I’m going to make an attempt at guessing what you’re thinking;

“What the heck are sev and where do I get them from?”

These are great questions, great questions to which I don’t have great answers. I know that’s not very helpful however, I’ll do my best to explain the deliciousness of this mysterious ingredient.

Because you need to know.

Sev are a Gujarati snack, closely related to ‘gathia’ in the way they’re made from chickpea flour and fried. They come in all different sizes and are classed as a ‘farsan’ or savoury snack.

They’re best described as crunchy, nutty and great for sprinkling on top of cassava dishes and spiced yogurts.

In this classic Gujarati recipe I’ve re-created à la KO I’ve used jinni (small) sev which is very traditional and also very cute. The tiny little strands soak up the sweet, tangy and spicy flavours of the rich tomato base.

I used cherry tomatoes because that’s what I had, but you can use any variety of fresh tomatoes you have. A sprinkle of ground cinnamon kisses this dish with the flavours of Gujarat, essential if you’re in the mood for an atypical Indian dinner.

You see Gujarati cuisine is beaming with fresh ingredients and sweet, spicy flavours. Sev tameta nu shaak is a one pan meal and so comforting you hardly need to chew (a sign of amazing comfort food, of course). All in all, it’s very quick, very simple and very satisfying – just how I like it.

You can buy sev in Indian farsan stores, most Indian grocery stores (it will be near the gathia, chakris and other savoury snacks). I’ve also seen them popping up in the supermarket more often, so keep an eye out. If you can’t find them in stores, order them online.

Quick Sev and Tomato Curry (sev tameta nu shaak)
(serves 2-4)

Ingredients

325g fresh tomatoes, roughly pureed
140g jinni sev (small sev)
120g onions, finely sliced
2 tbsp oil
¼ tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
¼ tsp asafoetida
2 tsp concentrated tomato puree
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
1 tbsp sugar
½ tsp cinnamon powder
4-6 tbsp water
Salt to taste
Handful of chopped coriander to garnish

Method

1. Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds (wait for them to pop) and then add the cumin seeds, asafoetida, concentrated tomato puree and onions. Saute until the onions become translucent, and then add the pureed fresh tomatoes.

2. Season with chilli powder, turmeric, cinnamon, salt and sugar. Allow to cook down to a fairly thick mixture, and then adjust the texture with around 4-6 tbsp water. Turn the heat off.

3. Just before you’re ready to serve, add the sev to the piping hot sauce and give it a quick and gentle mix through. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve immediately.

I love to serve this with hot, buttered chapattis and absolutely nothing else. However, it’s also great with naan, paratha and puri. Wash it all down with a tall glass of salted lassi and feel your belly release a deep sigh of gratification.

Visit my collection of Gujarati recipes for more classic dishes and recipe inspiration.

For more nuggets of information on regional Indian cuisine, read my article, Unveiling the Magic of Indian Food on foodnetwork uk.

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I wish we all had three day weekends. One night to recuperate from the long week we just had, one night to party hard and another to recover from the partying – in that order.

Don’t get me wrong, I love work, but three day weekends would make me a very happy bunny indeed. Speaking of bunnies…

In this week’s recipe, grated carrots, swede and sweet potatoes are bound together with nutty chickpea flour and spices to create these light and crispy fritters. Dip them in a spicy coriander and lime chutney and the flavours come alive.

I wanted these fritters to remain a beautiful orange colour, keeping the filling grated and not mashed. In order to do this, I blanched the whole carrots, swede and sweet potatoes for around 6 minutes, refreshed in iced water and then grated them. This way, the vegetables became bright coloured and part-cooked, yet still held their shape.

These would make a great starter as part of an Indian or international menu and are perfect for lunch or impressing dinner party guests. They can be shallow fried, then placed in a low oven for up to 30 minutes until you’re ready to serve them. If you don’t eat onions, omit them – I added them mainly for colour.

If you can’t get hold of swede, you can also try these with courgettes and if you’re feeling indulgent, some grated paneer would taste divine.

Fresh coriander stalks, lime zest and ginger bring beautiful fresh flavours to this dish, which are reflected in the coriander and lime chutney – it’s a fantastic pairing.

Carrot-munching rabbits don’t know what they’ve been missing out on all this time. This is where it’s at.

Carrot and Swede Fritters with Coriander and Lime Chutney
(makes 10-12)

Ingredients for the Carrot and Swede Fritters

240g carrot, peeled (about 2 large carrots)
240g swede, peeled and halved (about 1 small swede)
120g sweet potato, peeled
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander stalks
1 tsp lime zest
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tbsp lime juice
2 green chilli, finely chopped
5 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp chickpea flour
2 tbsp fine cornmeal
1 tsp cornflour
½ tsp toasted cumin seeds
Pinch bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp salt
Oil to shallow fry

Method

1. Place the whole carrots, halved swede and sweet potato in a pan and cover with boiling water from the kettle. Bring to a boil and simmer for 6 minutes. Drain and shock the vegetables in a bowl of iced water.

2. Grate the vegetables and squeeze all the water out of them (this is very important as your mixture cannot be runny).

3. Combine the grated vegetables with all of the ingredients for the fritters and bring together with your hands.

4. Form small fritters with the mixture and place on a cling film lined baking tray. Dust with some fine cornmeal, cover and place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

5. Heat about 1cm of oil in a frying pan. Place in a few fritters at a time, trying not to move them around too much. When lightly golden on one side, flip and cook the other side. Use the back of a fork to very gently press and flatten them to create craggy edges which will crisp up. When golden on the other side, place the fritters on a baking tray and put them in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15-20 minutes to cook through.

6. Serve with a coriander and lime chutney and a wedge of lime.

Ingredients for the Coriander and Lime Chutney

80g fresh coriander including stalks
4 hot green chillies
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1 ½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
1 clove garlic

Method

1. Blend all of the ingredients in a food processor to create a fine puree. If you don’t have a food processor (I don’t have one), use a pestle and mortar and some elbow grease to pound it all to a pulp.

When you’re making your chutney, please try not to get any ‘chatta’ (splashes) in your eyes. I don’t want an inbox full of angry emails threatening legal action.

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