CoolCat Countries Punjab

	25. Punjab, India (Northwest India) Punjab boarders Pakistan and is in the heart of the Sikh community. “Punjab means the land of five rivers. The word has been derived from the Persian words panj (five) and aab (water). The five rivers namely Beas, Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi and Sutlej ran through pre-Independence Punjab, and are now divided between India and Pakistan. The presence of five rivers is the reason why Punjab’s soil is conducive for wheat cultivation, and hence it is also called the Wheat Bowl of India.” -timesofindia.indiatimes.com Chandigarh is the shared capital city of both Punjab and Haryana. In the city of Amritsar, you’ll find The Golden Temple or Shri Harmandir Sahib which is a very You’ll also find Durgiana Temple, a Hindu shrine famed for its engraved silver doors. This was sort of an impromptu selection because we had paneer cheese and pani puri shells on hand to do something with so we non-randomly selected Punjab. The dishes we made: Palak Paneer, Punjabi Chole and Pani Puri or Golgappa in Punjab. Palak Paneer (Creamed Spinach with Cheese) VERY, VERY, VERY Good! 1¼ cup Paneer (Indian cottage cheese), cubed 3½-4 cups palak (Spinach) (2 cups tightly packed) or ½ bag frozen 2 Tbsp Oil ¾ cup Onions (fine chopped) 1 Tbsp Ginger Garlic smashed into paste 1-2 Green Chilies- Serrano ½ cup Tomatoes, fine chop or rough puree 8 to 10 cashew nuts smashed (Cashews will make more creamy) 1 tsp+ Garam Masala (adjust to taste) ½-1 tsp Fenugreek (kasuri methi) 1 tsp+ Turmeric 1 tsp+ Cumin (jeera) ½ cup+ Cream S & P Sauté onions in oil, add garlic-ginger paste and serrano chili. Add some water to keep from browning too much. Add tomato and cashews. Add spices and a little more water. Add spinach, sauté for a bit. Add cream and cook a few minutes. Puree some of the spinach or use an immersion blender to puree some of the spinach. Then keep adding cream and water to thin it out to a smooth (not liquidy just thick) curry/gravy. Serve with rice. Palak Chole or Punjabi Chole or Chana Palak VERY, VERY, VERY Good! Palak Chole is a Spinach and Chickpea curry. 1 15 oz Chickpeas canned, drained and rinsed (OR Black-eyed Peas) 3 cups chopped Spinach, fresh or frozen ¼-1/2 can diced Tomatoes or dice-puree cherry tomatoes 1.5 cups Water, more or less to desired consistency 1 Onion, diced 1 Tbsp garlic & Ginger smashed into a paste 3 tablespoon oil 8 to 10 cashew nuts smashed (Cashews will make more creamy) 2 tsp+ Garam Masala powder 1/2 tsp+ Cumin powder 1 tsp Coriander powder 1 tsp Turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon red pepper, add more or less to taste Salt Pepper In a saucepan over medium heat, add the onions and oil. Cook until the onions are transparent and begin to soften, ~ 3 min. Do not brown the onions. Add water if needed. Add ginger and garlic paste. Next add the tomatoes and all the spices and cashews and cook until the spices become fragrant. Add some water if necessary, to prevent sticking or burning. Add spinach and some water, cook for a bit. Here is when you would add the chickpeas and season with salt and ground pepper. NOTE: We added Black-eyed Peas because emergency! somehow, we ran out of chickpeas. Cook for a while to thicken into a gravy (add more water to achieve this). The gravy will thicken and become smooth. Serve with steamed rice. Punjabi Pani Puri- Golgappa Very Good! It is a common street snack in several regions of India and has many different names: Gol Gappe in Punjab, New Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. Puchka (Fuchka) in the Eastern states of India like Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal Pani Puri in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Nepal. Pakodi in the interior parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. Phulki in Gujarat and Nepal. Tikki in in Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh. Padaka is another name for Pani Puri in Aligarh, UP. Gup Chup in Odisha, parts of Bihar, Jharkhand Chhattisgarh, Hyderabad, and Telangana. Paani ke Patashe or Phulki in Uttar Pradesh. Pani ke Bataashe/Patashi in Central India, including parts of UP and Rajasthan. They are stuffed with various masalas, chutneys and tangy/spicy flavored water. We purchased these Pani Puri. For making Gol Gappa (plural Gol Gappe): 1/2 cup Sooji (Semolina) 1/2 Tbsp Maida (Plain Refined Flour) 1/2 tsp Baking Soda Salt to taste Oil for Frying For Spicy Pani or Spicy Water: 1 1/2 cups Chopped Mint Leaves 1 Tbsp Chopped Coriander Leaves 1/3 cup Tamarind 1″ Ginger 4 to 5 Green Chillies 1 tsp Ground Cumin Seed (roasted) 1 1/2 tsp Salt or Kala Namak (Black Salt) Salt to taste For Filling: Chickpea and Tomato Pickle Chutney: Mash all together and thin with a bit of water and warm on the stove. Other Fillings: Potato boiled and mashed and mixed with saltand red chilli. Red Tamarind Chutney: 1 cup Tamarind, ½ cup Jaggery (raw cane sugar) or 2 Tbsp Sugar, ½ tsp Red chilli powder, ¼ tsp Black pepper (Kali Micrch powder), 1tsp cumin powder, Clove, 2 cups Warm water, 1 tsp Vegetable oil & Salt to taste. There are so many different kinds of fillings that can be made for your Pani Puri. NOTE**: What we did for this dish. We had purchased pre-made pani puri shells which came with a packet to make the tangy masala water. We also made a filling by mixing with cooked and smashed chickpeas with a jarred Tomato Pickle and some water to thin it a little. See “Chickpea and Tomato Pickle Chutney” above. Delicious!

25. Punjab, India (Northwest India)
Punjab boarders Pakistan and is in the heart of the Sikh community.
“Punjab means the land of five rivers. The word has been derived from the Persian words panj (five) and aab (water). The five rivers namely Beas, Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi and Sutlej ran through pre-Independence Punjab, and are now divided between India and Pakistan. The presence of five rivers is the reason why Punjab’s soil is conducive for wheat cultivation, and hence it is also called the Wheat Bowl of India.” -timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Chandigarh is the shared capital city of both Punjab and Haryana.
In the city of Amritsar, you’ll find The Golden Temple or Shri Harmandir Sahib which is a very
You’ll also find Durgiana Temple, a Hindu shrine famed for its engraved silver doors.

This was sort of an impromptu selection because we had paneer cheese and pani puri shells on hand to do something with so we non-randomly selected Punjab.

The dishes we made:
Palak Paneer, Punjabi Chole and Pani Puri or Golgappa in Punjab.

Palak Paneer (Creamed Spinach with Cheese) VERY, VERY, VERY Good!
1¼ cup Paneer (Indian cottage cheese), cubed
3½-4 cups palak (Spinach) (2 cups tightly packed) or ½ bag frozen
2 Tbsp Oil
¾ cup Onions (fine chopped)
1 Tbsp Ginger Garlic smashed into paste
1-2 Green Chilies- Serrano
½ cup Tomatoes, fine chop or rough puree
8 to 10 cashew nuts smashed (Cashews will make more creamy)
1 tsp+ Garam Masala (adjust to taste)
½-1 tsp Fenugreek (kasuri methi)
1 tsp+ Turmeric
1 tsp+ Cumin (jeera)
½ cup+ Cream
S & P

Sauté onions in oil, add garlic-ginger paste and serrano chili.
Add some water to keep from browning too much.
Add tomato and cashews.
Add spices and a little more water.
Add spinach, sauté for a bit.
Add cream and cook a few minutes. Puree some of the spinach or use an immersion blender to puree some of the spinach.
Then keep adding cream and water to thin it out to a smooth (not liquidy just thick) curry/gravy.
Serve with rice.

Palak Chole or Punjabi Chole or Chana Palak VERY, VERY, VERY Good!
Palak Chole is a Spinach and Chickpea curry.

1 15 oz Chickpeas canned, drained and rinsed (OR Black-eyed Peas)
3 cups chopped Spinach, fresh or frozen
¼-1/2 can diced Tomatoes or dice-puree cherry tomatoes
1.5 cups Water, more or less to desired consistency
1 Onion, diced
1 Tbsp garlic & Ginger smashed into a paste
3 tablespoon oil
8 to 10 cashew nuts smashed (Cashews will make more creamy)
2 tsp+ Garam Masala powder
1/2 tsp+ Cumin powder
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon red pepper, add more or less to taste
Salt
Pepper

In a saucepan over medium heat, add the onions and oil.
Cook until the onions are transparent and begin to soften, ~ 3 min. Do not brown the onions. Add water if needed.
Add ginger and garlic paste.
Next add the tomatoes and all the spices and cashews and cook until the spices become fragrant.
Add some water if necessary, to prevent sticking or burning.
Add spinach and some water, cook for a bit.
Here is when you would add the chickpeas and season with salt and ground pepper.
NOTE: We added Black-eyed Peas because emergency! somehow, we ran out of chickpeas.
Cook for a while to thicken into a gravy (add more water to achieve this).
The gravy will thicken and become smooth.
Serve with steamed rice.

Punjabi Pani Puri- Golgappa Very Good!
It is a common street snack in several regions of India and has many different names:

Gol Gappe in Punjab, New Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh.
Puchka (Fuchka) in the Eastern states of India like Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal
Pani Puri in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Nepal.
Pakodi in the interior parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Phulki in Gujarat and Nepal.
Tikki in in Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh.
Padaka is another name for Pani Puri in Aligarh, UP.
Gup Chup in Odisha, parts of Bihar, Jharkhand Chhattisgarh, Hyderabad, and Telangana.
Paani ke Patashe or Phulki in Uttar Pradesh.
Pani ke Bataashe/Patashi in Central India, including parts of UP and Rajasthan.

They are stuffed with various masalas, chutneys and tangy/spicy flavored water. **We purchased these Pani Puri.

For making Gol Gappa (plural Gol Gappe):
1/2 cup Sooji (Semolina)
1/2 Tbsp Maida (Plain Refined Flour)
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
Salt to taste
Oil for Frying

For Spicy Pani or Spicy Water:
1 1/2 cups Chopped Mint Leaves
1 Tbsp Chopped Coriander Leaves
1/3 cup Tamarind
1″ Ginger
4 to 5 Green Chillies
1 tsp Ground Cumin Seed (roasted)
1 1/2 tsp Salt or Kala Namak (Black Salt)
Salt to taste

For Filling:
Chickpea and Tomato Pickle Chutney: Mash all together and thin with a bit of water and warm on the stove.

Other Fillings:
Potato boiled and mashed and mixed with saltand red chilli.
Red Tamarind Chutney: 1 cup Tamarind, ½ cup Jaggery (raw cane sugar) or 2 Tbsp Sugar, ½ tsp Red chilli powder, ¼ tsp Black pepper (Kali Micrch powder), 1tsp cumin powder, Clove, 2 cups Warm water, 1 tsp Vegetable oil & Salt to taste.
There are so many different kinds of fillings that can be made for your Pani Puri.

NOTE:
What we did for this dish.

We had purchased pre-made pani puri shells which came with a packet to make the tangy masala water. We also made a filling by mixing with cooked and smashed chickpeas with a jarred Tomato Pickle and some water to thin it a little. See “Chickpea and Tomato Pickle Chutney” above. Delicious!

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