What are some Pakistani comfort foods?

Question

I have a good friend who is sick and I want to make her something to help her feel better. Preferably some sort of soup, but if there are any other dishes that would work well, let me know. She is from Pakistan, has family in both Lahore and Karachi, but grew up expat in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. I know of a few desi stores in my area, I should be able to find most ingredients. If I use meat, it must be halal. Chicken would be best.
I was also thinking of maybe just making something I am more familiar with, using halal meat, but I am not too sure about this. Any ideas or suggestions would be most welcome!

Answer 1

"Mixed Vegetable Soup
100 grams of Potatoes (peeled and cut in small pieces)
100 grams of Onion (peeled and chopped)
100 grams of Carrots (Gaajar) (peeled and cut in small pieces)
100 grams of Tomato (coarsely chopped)
100 grams of Green Peas
100 grams of Turnip
3 Bay Leaves (Tezz Pattay)
6 Whole Black Peppers (Saabut Kaali Mirch)
Salt (to taste)
½ tsp. of Ginger Paste (Pisi Adrak)
½ tsp. of Garlic Paste (Pisa Lehsan)
1 tbsp. of Butter
8 cups of Water

1) Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry bay leaves, ginger paste, garlic paste, black peppers and salt for a ½ minute.

2) Add all vegetables and fry for 5 minutes. Add the water and pressure cook on high hea. When the pressure comes reduce heat to medium and cook for another 15 minutes.

3) Sieve and serve.

Serving Suggestions: Serve Hot
Degree of Difficulty: Easy
Recipe Category: Soup
Recipe Ethnic Group: Pakistani

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

My friend's husband is from Bangladesh and he makes a really good chicken curry, with halal meat, of course. but it has about 16 or 17 different spices that you have to add at just the right time and about 10 other ingredients. Not to mention it takes about 2 hours to cook to the right consistency. So, I think that if you're planning on giving your friend this food anytime soon you might want to stick with something you're familiar with using halal meat. I've tried the chicken curry recipe numerous times and it just never comes out for me. I have him try it and he says it's ok, but i just cant make it the same way he can. I think it would be better to stay on the safe side and not risk it turning out wrong. But, i think it's really sweet that you want to make her something to remind her of home. I think she would really appreciate being made anything by a friend.

Answer 4

I am partial to Dosa, and find in Toronto we have several good restaurants that produce very good dishes, in Rexdale I like to go to the "Lahore Garden", but there are several very good place in the area around Greenwood and Gerrard.

Halal meat is very good, but does tend to be best long cooked, as the religous prepartion of the meat and the way it is cured make it a bit more dry, that depends on the cut to, unlike kosher meats the whole animal is used.

Answer 5

Chicken Shorba
(soup)

Serves 4

Preperation Time 20 Minutes

Ingredients
500 gms of chicken bones
1 tblspn oil
100 gms of boneless chicken
½ tspn of cumin seeds
1 ltr water
1 ½ tblspn of refined flour (maida)
1 tblspn of chopped garlic
White pepper powder
1 tspn of butter
Salt to taste



Recipe
Clean and wash chicken bones. Clean, wash and cut chicken into very small pieces (1/2 cm cubes). Put chicken bones in a pot and one litre of water, chopped garlic and cook till water is reduced to 600 ml. Strain and keep aside.

Stir fry chicken pieces in butter till tender and keep the stock aside.

Heat oil, add cumin seeds and refined flour, cook for a minute, stirring continuously. Then add the reduced chicken stock, chicken pieces, white pepper powder and salt.

Cook for some time and serve hot.

PS:

You may add half a cup of fresh cream just before serving to make it a little rich. (But not for someone who is sick)

Good Luck.

Answer 6

for dessert

Zurda
Sweet yellow Rice

Ingredients

- 2 cups basmati rice
- 12 strands of saffron
- 1\2 cup coconut
- 1\4 tsp. yellow food coloring
- 1\2 cup ghee
- 4 cloves
- 1 inch stick cinnamon
- 1\2 tsp. cardamom seeds
2 cups sugar
- 1\4 cup milk
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chopped pistachios
- 1/4 cup chopped almond
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1tsp kewra essence, diluted or 1\4 tsp., if concentrated
- Silver leaves (varak) for decoration, optional
1. Rinse rice well, soak it in cold water for about 30 minutes and drain. Place saffron threads into two tablespoons of boiling water and allow to soak for 10 minutes. Soak coconut in water for few hours, until soft. Then thinly slice it.
2. In a large, heavy skillet bring plenty of water to boil. Add washed rice, cardamom seeds and yellow color, bring it back to boil, reduce heat and cook for about 12-15 minutes until the rice are almost cooked, Drain and keep aside.
3. Heat ghee in a heavy saucepan, add cardamom seeds, cloves and cinnamon. Stirring all the time, fry them for a couple of minutes. Add sugar and milk. Bring to boil simmer for few minutes.
4. Add rice, lemon juice, saffron water, Stir gently, cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add pistachio nut, almond, raisins, coconut and kewra essence, stir gently and cover with a tight fitting lid. Reduce heat and cook for 12-15 minutes or until all the moisture from sugar has evaporated.
5. Transfer to a serving dish and decorate with silver leaf.
Serve warm.

for Main

Chicken Curry
Shared By Jeannie Samad

Ingredients

- 2-5lb Fryer Chickens, skinned, and cut into pieces
- 3 large onions
- 10 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp. chopped fresh ginger
- 2 heaped tbsp ground coriander
- 2 heaped tsp. ground cumin
- 1 heaped tsp. red chilie powder
- 1 level tsp. ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 cloves
- 6 black cardamoms
- 2 inch stick of cinnamon
- 1-19oz can of stewed tomatoes or 1 cup of yogurt
- 2 1/2 level tsp salt
- 1 cup cooking oil
- 1 cup water

1. Wash the chicken pieces, drain and set aside.
2. Finely chop the onions in a food processor and keep aside. Now place garlic and ginger in the food processor and blend to a paste. Add coriander, cumin, chili powder black pepper, turmeric and blend well. Transfer to a small bowl and add cardamoms, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves to it. Set aside.
3.Put tomatoes and salt in the food processor (no need to clean the bowl) and blend well.
4. Heat oil in a large pressure cooker. When hot add chopped onions and carefully fry to a golden brown, stirring occasionally.
5. Remove the onions with a perforated slice. Drain half the oil, keeping the other half in the pressure cooker. Return browned onions to cooker and add all the spices and fry on medium heat until the oil separate from the gravy, about 5 minutes.
6. Add the chicken pieces stir well and fry on high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring continuously.
7. Add tomato mixture and water. Bring to boil, stir and cook for 10- 12 minutes under pressure.
8. Remove from heat, lower pressure by running cold water over cooker. Transfer to a serving dish. Serve with rice or Nan.
Variation:
Use 1 cup of plain yogurt instead of the tomatoes.

Answer 7

how about sum yummy hot gulab jamuns
*YUM*

=)

Answer 8

grits