Dhansak Masala

I have always been fond of vegetable seasonings and spice mixtures. You might say, well,.. any kind of masalas can be added to vegetables instead of meat. True, BUT! There are certain types of spices that just go better with meat dishes... Such as star anise (badyan), cloves and cinnamon combo. Somebody says that out loud and first thing I can think of is pork.... and stuff alike. It s not that I stick to the ´rules´, its just that sweet fragrant combo doesn't do well with me. That is why I am quite helpless when it comes down to using my Five Spice somewhere else rather than in baking spicy cakes. So, if you guys know any other usages (fish or veggies), please let me know...

So, learning about dhansak was very interesting to me for two simple reasons:

1. Dhansak in Parsee (where it comes from) is a type of dish that combines DHAN (means ´lots´in Gujarati, or ´rice´in Parsee Gujarati) and SAK (=vegetable). So, my humble translation would be LOTS OF VEGGIES on RICE.

2. It is a sweetish fragrant masala that includes my ´feared´fragrant combo BUT doesn't need to involve meat. I say doesn't need to, because there are tons of recipes for lamb or chicken dhansak.

Now that I read that after myself, I cannot keep but wonder DOES THIS EVEN MAKE SENSE?
Anyway, just to make it clear:

I have read about dhansak once, thought it was unusual for my liking, tried and liked it... Forget all that elaborate crap above ;-)


DHANSAK MASALA:

prep time: 20 minutes

• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 3 whole red chilies
• 1 tsp poppy seeds
• 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 6 black peppercorns
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 10 cloves
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg

Dry fry the first 5 ingredients in heated wok, shaking the pan constantly. Set aside, transfer to a mortar and grind well. Add the powders, mix well and store in airtight container.

Now, this mix can be used in pretty much anything, where you would add, let´s say curry powder.

• I used it to stir-fry rice to bake it in yellow squash
• Nandita used it in her delish pumpkin dhansak

Just so you can trust me, I ll show a real quick veggie recipe here:


BULGUR DHANSAK:

prep time: 25 minutes
serves: 2

• 1 tbsp oil
  
• 1 onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tomato
  
• 1 tbsp dhansak masala
  
• 1 cup veggies ( I used frozen corn and French beans)
  
• 1/2 cup bulgur
• salt to taste
  

Easy as it is, heat the oil in a wok, sauté chopped onions and garlic. Add chopped tomato, add the masala and let cook for 5 minutes. Add the veggies, cook partially, then add bulgur, at least one cup water and let simmer until the water is completely absorbed (10 minutes or so). Adjust for salt, garnish with chopped parsley or coriander leaves and voilla! Le diner est sur la table...

* Note: Instead of bulgur, you can use cooked rice (then skip the water part and just coat it well), quickly roasted corn meal or semolina - then reduce water to 1/2 cup... I even added roasted okara (the soy leftover when making soy milk).

So here is a funny story at the end. I was going to submit this recipe to this month´s THINK SPICE Event, because I thought it was Coriander Seeds, but then I found out it was Mustard Seeds instead. So, this post will be as it is, no event entries, just for our pleasure....