Thanks to my moms and MIL’s unclear and clear instructions (respectively of course), and all u lovely ladies here, and the husband’s never ending patience to eat whatever i make him (believe me i’ve goofed a few times!)…I’ve successfully graduated from “how to defrost meat 101” to preparing for a dinner party (kaheen toh graduate ho jaun )
My parents will be coming from pakistan in december inshAllah and i plan on making a full fledged dinner for them. This will literally be the first time i have cooked for them and since i’ve had about 3-4 months to experiment and mess around, there’s no room for error this time around.
This is the menu i have in mind:
salad (red onion + tomato + dhania + scallions + lettuce + cucumber) and dahi bhalay/raita. (what we call raita is actually dahi bhalay w/o the bhalay…and then i wonder why my urdu is so messed up)
chicken biryani (alot) + gosht ka salan (a little) + chicken makhni (only cz the landlords only eat boneless and well it just wouldn’t be right if I didn’t make anything for them to enjoy would it? ).
Should i also make a veggie salan (daal, aloo gobi, saagh)? I also want to make kababs but i think that will be too much work?
Edit: snap i forgot dessert. whaddya think? im leaning towards kheer but last time i made it it was a disaster.. zarda and halwa is another option…
Since my own andaza is STILL not right yet, i need the experts here to help me out with the quantity and timings! For a family of 6 adults and MAYBE more coming by, how much should I make? how many cups of rice for the biryani? how much chicken (whole and boneless) should i buy? Timing wise, what can i get away with making days ahead of time and what should be made fresh?
I’m asking 3 weeks + in advance b/c i have to plan this out around my classes/work schedule and schoolwork/exams, so i guess more than anything timing is the issue here!
If you're making chawal already dont make zarda... make halwa... and how about making a turkish salad sprinkled with feta cheese? It only requires a few more ingredients to what you are already putting in your salad anyway... and it tastes DIVINE! I say make a daal as well and serve with buttered naans and achaar plus vinegar onions and sliced green peppers.
Hmmm…menu sounds good… i would say skip kabab and make a sabzi salan or daal. Instead of kheer make zarda. I know CA had posted a recipe with exact measures, lot of people have tried it and pretty much everyone likes that recipe. Oh and if you are making salans then maybe have some naans too…not too much but little bit…
The menu sounds great but I gotta tell you that people mostly eat biryani and eat very little salans. I say skip gosht salan and make kebabs,you can make chapli kebab which are very easy to make. Veggie dish will be good too like lusi said. Saagh i think goes very well with meat dishes but whatever your ‘mehmaan’ prefer. for dessert, zarda is a good choice or homemade kulfi or mango ice cream. Let me know if you need any recipes.
Quantities, hmm…1 glass(8 oz) rice feeds approx. 2 people so for biryani, I think 3 cups rice( 1.5lb+ meat) will be more than enough. If you want to eat it next day too than increase upto 4 cups(2.2lb meat).
boneless chicken about 2lb is more than enough.
2lb keema for kebabs.
I’m sure shino, lusi and other cooking experts will be able to give you more accurate quantities.
my idea for the menu:
chappli kababs- so eay wit shaan masala
dahi bharay ur idea
biryani offcourse
instead of just gosht ka salan make achar gosht - so much easier wit shaan masala as well
makhni chicken sounds gud
maash ki daal - u need a dry salan too along wit the two above
for dessert - try making rasmalai trust me its a great ending for a dinner and much easier wit shaan packet sachet.
:D
oh and for salad i forgot! dis is how i make it =
take cucumbers, reddish, onion, little tomato, some black olives, add viniger about 3-4 tbs , about 1/2 tbs salt, and 1-2tbs black pepper. mix and sprinkle wit some parmesian cheese on top. its so easy and delicious.
( masshed potatoes r another great and easy idea)
You can "bhoon"/fry the ghosht/chicken for the biriyani the night before and then before they are scheduled to arrived....layer the biriyani and bake so its hot n fresh when they arrive. I wouldn't cook more than 1 day ahead for freshness. Do the cleaning, and even prepping (cutting onions/garlic...etc the day before or 2 day sbefore). For dessert why not keep it simple for yourself and just serve cake/ice cream...or make a simple fruit trifle that's easy/simple and good.
So i have decided, salad + raita . not doing the dahi bhalay this time yet. well the kind of raita IS dahi bhalay but without the…bhalay (dont ask :halo: )
– definitely chicken biryani
– chicken makhni…my mom never even made that, so i think it will be something nice for them, plus the others will get to eat it too…
– gosht ka salan
– maash ki daaL
What of these things can I get away with cooking and freezing on the weekend and then just preparing when the time comes? or are all of these only meant to be eaten fresh? i’ll make sure to keep the veggies chopped but generally speaking how long will they stay fresh keeping em in the fridge? my onions and tomatoes stay okay for about 5 days but the dhania/scallions go bad after just 2-3 days
When i have a dawat, i always cook in advance so the day of i am just cleaning and relaxing. Gosht salan shouldnt take you much effort, i just let mine slow cook on the stove.
Chicken makhni is very easy to make, and you have already tried it.
For chicken biryani, if you have time the day before, make the salan for it. If not you could do everything the same day for biryani.
Salad and raita is always best when fresh, esp salad.
Now that i think abt it, 3 is alot
I dont know why i want to make gosht…hmmm…
and makhni, only b/c the other two will eat only boneless. and I’d feel like a huge meanie if i deliberately cook stuff they wont eat. even tho i’d end up complaining later on cz…ok this is going off track lol…
everything sounds yummy. However, why don't you go for paneer makhani instead of chicken makhani? You've got chicken and gosht dish already. i use Daagh bhai's recipe from his blog and it is a hit amongst hubby and bros everytime.
Sara, if you're looking for a barbecue type item then why not do Tandoori chicken? It's super easy/fast and sooo yummy. I can send a recipe your way if you want.
You can make kebabs a week in advance and freeze them, I make mine and freeze fortnightly and they go really fast.
Raita depends what kind of Raita you are making, If you are just whipping up yogurt with smoked zeera than you can smoke and crush zeera a day or week in advance and keep it in an air tight container and add it to the yogurt on the day.
If you are making Green Raita ( which wont go with Biryani ) than you can make the Hari chutney in Advance and add it to yogurt on the day.
Salad will have to be done on the day.
For the Biryani, you can make the base a day before, just the salan part of it. Then on the day of actual dinner party boil fresh rice and add the base to it with all the garnishings.
Opt out of the Mash ki Daal unless you have a Pressure Cooker.
The Chicken salan you can make on the day since chicken doesnt take that long to cook.
(kaheen toh graduate ho jaun 
)
).
for dessert, zarda is a good choice or homemade kulfi or mango ice cream. Let me know if you need any recipes.
