Tag: side dish
Pakistani Mixed Bean Salad
Pakistani Mixed Bean Salad
This mixed bean salad is the perfect balance of savory, spicy, and tartness. It assembles in 5 minutes and only needs a couple of hours to for all of the ingredients to meld together. Toss with chopped cilantro right before serving.
Ingredients
- 1 can white beans
- 1 can garbanzo beans
- 2 Roma tomatoes seeded and diced
- 1/2 medium white onion diced
- 2 green bird’s eye chilies finely chopped
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Mix together all of the ingredients except the cilantro. Let the ingredients marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Mix in the cilantro right before serving.
Roasted Kabocha Squash
Roasted Kabocha Squash
I recently had kabocha squash, aka Japanese pumpkin, for the first time at a Japanese restaurant in Denver. It tastes like a cross between a butternut squash and a potato that is very buttery in flavor. The green skin is edible, so it doesn’t need to be peeled. You can find them at any Asian market for relatively cheap. They also have a 4 month shelf life. There’s nothing really not to like about it. Roasting kabocha squash couldn’t be easier. You will need a sharp knife to cut through the squash. It’s actually pretty difficult. First, cut it in half. Scoop out the seeds and wash the entire squash. Then cut 1” slices from each half. Line them on a baking sheet lined in foil. Brush each side with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast at 400 degrees for 10 minutes a side. Then brush the squash with a simple maple/soy/ginger sauce and toast gor 10 more minutes. The squash should be bubbly and caramelized. Garnish the squash with toasted sesame seeds.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1/2 large kabocha squash seeded; cut into 1” slices
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp sslt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
Garnish
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Brush each side of the squash with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 10 minutes a side.
- Mix together the maple syrup, soy sauce, and ginger.
- Brush the squash with the maple/soy/ginger sauce.
- Roast for 10 more minutes.
Spiced Grapes
Spiced Grapes
Spiced grapes might not sound too exciting, until you give it a try. While there are only 5 ingredients to this recipe, it has a complexity of flavors. Sweetness from the grapes, sourness from the lemon, earthiness of cilantro, a hint of spice from the chili powder, and salt to bring out all of the flavors. What you’ve really created is a bowl of candy, because that’s how you’re going to think of this after consuming. Spiced grapes pair well with any Bengali curry, acting as a palate cleanser.
Ingredients
- 2 cups green grapes sliced in half
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 3 tbsp cilantro chopped
- pinch Kashmiri chili powder
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Toss the grapes with the cilantro. Squeeze the lemon juice over.
- Add a pinch of chili powder and sea salt to the grapes.
