Shallot Raita Recipes

Steps:

• Put the yougurt into a serving bowl.
• Add water, more or less, depending on how thick you want the yogurt to be, and stir until smooth.
• Add the shallots and salt and blend.
• In a small frying pan put the oil and mustard seeds. Heat over high heat until the mustard seeds have popped for about 5 seconds.
• Quickly add the cayenne and then pour the mixture into the yogurt. Stir.
• Garnish with the cilantro.
• Set in the fridge for a time so that the flavors can marry. Good served with vegetable biriyani.

Steps:

• Heat oil in a 1-quart saucepan over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking (365°F on deep-fat thermometer), then fry shallots in 3 batches, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer as fried with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, spreading evenly, then cool.
• Cook chard leaves in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 2 minutes. Transfer with tongs to a bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels.
• Halve each leaf lengthwise, discarding rib. Place 1 tablespoon shallots at 1 end of a chard strip and firmly roll up, forming a cigar shape. Make 15 more rolls in same manner.
• Mash garlic to a paste with sea salt using a mortar and pestle (or mince and mash with a large heavy knife). Purée cilantro with garlic paste and 1/4 cup yogurt in a blender, scraping down sides occasionally. Transfer to a bowl and stir in remaining 3/4 cup yogurt. Serve chard rolls with raita.

Steps:

• First finely chop the shallots and soak in white wine vinegar. Set aside.
• For, the raita, sprinkle the cucumber lightly with salt and set aside to drain in a colander for 20 minutes.
• Pat the cucumber dry and mix with the yoghurt and coriander. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
• Cook the potatoes in a saucepan of boiling salted water until tender; drain and mash with butter and milk. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Drain the shallots and mix in with the mustard and parsley.
• Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan. Season the salmon with salt and freshly ground pepper and score the skin, using a sharp knife.
• Add the salmon skin side-down and fry for 3-4 minutes or until the skin is crispy.
• Turn the salmon over and cook for a further 1-2 minutes on the other side.
• Serve the salmon on a bed of shallot mustard mash with the cucumber raita. Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the salmon just before serving.

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium high. Add shallots and thinly sliced garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots have become totally softened and caramelized with golden-brown fried edges, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Add red-pepper flakes and anchovies. (No need to chop the anchovies; they will dissolve on their own.) Stir to melt the anchovies into the shallots, about 2 minutes.
• Add tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly to prevent any scorching, until the tomato paste has started to cook in the oil a bit, caramelizing at the edges and going from bright red to a deeper brick red color, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer about half the mixture to a resealable container, leaving the rest behind. (These are your leftovers to be used elsewhere: in another batch of pasta or smeared onto roasted vegetables, spooned over fried eggs or spread underneath crispy chicken thighs.)
• To serve, cook pasta according to package instructions in a large pot of salted boiling water until very al dente (perhaps more al dente than usual). Transfer to Dutch oven with remaining shallot mixture (or a skillet if you are using the leftover portion) and 1 cup pasta water. Cook over medium-high heat, swirling the skillet to coat each piece of pasta, using a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape up any bits on the bottom, until pasta is thick and sauce has reduced and is sticky, but not saucy, 3 to 5 minutes.
• In a small bowl, combine parsley and finely chopped garlic clove, and season with flaky salt and pepper. Divide pasta among bowls, or transfer to one large serving bowl, and top with parsley mixture and a bit more red-pepper flakes, if you like.