Indian Buffet at home

Even though I live in one of the most vegan friendly places in the world, I find it hard to get good Indian food at a reasonable price. For this reason I decided to make a few different dishes to get a nice variety of flavors for hardly any money. It's pretty obvious that I love (maybe even be obsessed with) cilantro. If you love it as much as I do you will find many uses for the cilantro chutney. Be prepared for some spice and some heat throughout the whole meal!

Sweet walla walla onions braised with homemade curry broth, spicy zucchini, bright fragrant cilantro chutney, and blackened chickpeas with tamarind and simmered in tea.

Pyaj Ki Subji
Curried Onions

2 large walla walla onions, sliced into thin round slices
1 tbl canola oil
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp garlic, minced
1/8 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4c water
1/8 tsp garam masala
1 tsp lime juice
1 tbl cilantro, chopped

In a saute pan, heat oil and add cumin seeds. Cook for a couple seconds until the seeds are golden brown. Add onions and garlic and fry for 2 minutes until onions start to sweat. Add turmeric, sea salt, coriander and cayenne. Add water and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in garam masala, lime juice and cilantro.

Sukhi lauki
Spiced Zucchini

2 large zucchini, slice into 1/4 inch strips
1 tbl canola oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp ground coriander
1/4c water
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tbl cilantro

In a saute pan, heat oil and add cumin seeds. Toast. Add zucchini and stir. Add turmeric, salt, cayenne pepper and coriander. Add water and cover. Reduce heat and simmer 7 minutes. Add garam masala, lemon juice and cilantro.

Cilantro Chutney
Dhania Chutney

1 1/2c cilantro with stems
1/4c onion, chopped small
2 tsp ginger, peeled and minced
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp green chili, minced
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbl lime juice
1 tbl water

Cut the dried end pieces off the stems. In a blender add cilantro (with stems), onion, ginger, cumin, seeds, green chili, salt and lime juice. Grind to a smooth paste. Add water as needed. Serve!

Blackened Chickpeas
Chole
1-15oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
5c water, divided
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 teabags of black tea
2 tbl canola oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
3/4c onion, finely chopped
2 tsp garlic, minced
2 tsp ginger, minced
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp tamarind paste (found in Asian markets)
1 tbl ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp garam masala
2 tbl cilantro, chopped

Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add teabags and steep for 10 minutes. Remove tea bags and set aside.
In a saute pan, heat oil and toast cumin seeds. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and cayenne pepper. Add chickpeas, tea water, tamarind, coriander and garam masala. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes. Add water if necessary. Garnish with cilantro.