Perfect Menu

Lifestyle Parenting, Household Affairs and Cuisine corner
1

I need some really good ideas for starters, main course and sweet dish. I’ll be cooking dinner for around 20 ppl, all Punjabi males and females, and a couple of kids perhaps. It has to be traditional desi.

I was thinking, tiny veggie samose, fried chicken wings, and tiny egg rolls filled with chicken. Never tried cooking Kashmiri aloo, can they be served as starters? This may sound stupid but maybe roasted chicken? And different chutneys? I should have at least three items, one of them will hopefully end up being edible :o

What kind of chutney should I serve? And what kind of soft drink?

For main dishes I have butter chicken, murgh pilav and roghani naan on my list so far. But need to add more stuff. Salad and raita is must so don’t need to think about that. What more should I add? I was thinking four salan dishes, one rice dish, something roasted or maybe Ammi will force kebab in the menu, hampf. Oh and salmon has to fit in as well. What’d be considered as good combo?

I can afford to have a light sweet dish, rasmalai maybe?

So gimme some good combos and please suggest soft drinks as well. Recipes would really be appreciated as I need to try any new dish before weekend for approval :smiley:

2

Gosh people eat so much food in your part of the world!! You are always making 10 things for dinner.

You can try this punch recipe to serve with your starters. Yeah might be too easy for you. If it is too easy, skip it :p

Lime sherbet + Sprite = awesome pastel greenish punch!! :) Everyone loves this stuff.

3

You can add fattoush salad (Arabic Salad) if they guys like it as a starter and other dishes for starters are chicken or mutton pateez, grilled chicken boti with mint chutney, in chutnies you can add aalo bokharay ki khatti meethi chutney and in raita mix cucumber, tomato boiled potataoes, boiled and diced carrots, mint, cilantro, red onion, salt and ground black pepper and ground cumin up to taste.

For main course the dishes are achar gosht, baked pasanday kabab, tandoori chicken, grilled salmon, hunter beef etc...

For kids starters are French Fries with Ketchup, Brownies, cookies etc.

For dessert ras malai is good and if you like other desserts are pista kulfi, fruit triffle, baked egg halwa and carrot halwa is wonderful in winter parties.

4

batair
pakoray
chicken broast.

5

A drink idea that kinda comes across as a punch is Saudi Champagne...

It is basically Apple juice mixed with Perrier Water, and you just add thin slices of red apples and oranges...along with sprigs of Mint!!! It turns out excellent!! I would use 2 parts Apple Juice ( dont use the fresh type, use what you find in the Drink Aisle - I hope that makes sense!) to 1 part Perrier....and then adjust according to your taste...

Ur menu sounds so awesome!! I wish I knew how to cook all those items!!!! As for desserts....I dont knwo how to make any desi desserts.....but I have alot of other dessert recipes and ideas...so let me knowww...

S

6

^^ hey id like to know some yummy desserts pleazee

7

Rukhsar, sirf zindah rehne ke liye khate haiN ham log :o

I'll go find lime sherbat today, this is desi sherbat right?

Rsjs, how do you make this arabic salad? I was thinking plum chutney, green chutney and that is pretty much all I know about chutneys, okay and tomato chutney. I need at least one more. Plus I never understood what you serve with plum chutney :o

I'll add achar gosht and pasandy to main dishes. I'll need to test pasandy, pata nahiN last time kab banae the. My trifles always end up being a disaster, everything goes into each other and it doesn't look nice, how do you make a perfect trifle? I could make it in serving glasses, hai na? How do you make baked egg halwa?

I'm gonna try this Saudi Champagne on my sister tomorrow, if she survives, it's in.

Please share dessert recipes that can be made a day in advance, I have a company Christmas thing planned on same day so don't have more than four to five hours for all the cooking :o

8

Hey Ok I have a Trifel recipe that is to die for and a really good baked anday kah halwa recipe that is easy as anything and you can make both desserts in advance...

I dont knwo where you live but I have made these desserts everywhere....so it should work whereever you are...

1) Buy instant vanilla pudding....(I buy the jello version but sometimes people who prefer halal jello use the rafhan or some other brand of instant vanilla pudding). Mix the powder with, 1 can condensed milk, 1 1/2 cup cold water... Mix well and put in fridge to settle.

2) Make two cups whipped cream, I use the dream whip packets and one packet is perfect for this...or you can buy already made whipped cream up to you...Just add 2 cups to the pudding and mix thoroughly...your custard layer will be nice and thick....and will not be runny at all..

3) I use store bought cake...Sara Lee pound cake if you are in the US/CAnada... Pakistan I just bought it from a bakery... Slice it up..

4) Now jsut layer, 1/2 cake, 1/2 of the pudding, fresh fruits...and repeart....

5) You need a deep dish so you can make two layers....Fresh fruit I use whatever is best.....summers i get really exotic but in the winters its just bananas, strawberrys, and kiwis..

You can make this dessert ad ay ahead....just add the top layer of fruit ont he day of the davat

Anday KAh Halwa baked:

You need a food processor..

12 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup oil
1 cup Nido (dry milk)
1 can Condensed Milk.

Crack all the eggs into the food processor and start the machine..
Add all the ingredients one by one..int he order above.. I usually use the sprout at the top of the machine to get the indregients in. Once I add an item I let the mixer go for a minute to really combine.

Transfer to a hot pan. Cook on Med Hi heat until the mixture starts to curdle and forms really ugly small balls...dont get stressed this is what is supposed to happen..When it gets to that stage...transfer to a shallow baking pan, spread mixture evenly and pat down slightly!! Very Slightly!! Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes...

and you have anday kah halwa!!!!

hope those recipes help

9

Punjabi guests and 'tiny samosas' woh bhi veggie don't go together very well. Please add qeema to samosas.

10

damn im hungry now
can i come over??? :D

11

Baked Egg Halwa

Ingredients:

Eggs 6 separated (Egg Whites and Yolks)
Ricotta 15 oz package
Sugar 1/2 cup
Almond 1/2 cup (crushed)
Vanilla Essence 1 tsp

Method

Grease squars shape cake pan and pre heat oven at 350 F, Separate egg yolks and egg whites, then mix egg yolks with sugar abnd beat well with whisk or electric egg beater until creamy.

Then add sugar in this mixture and beat well then add vanilla essence.

Whisk egg whites separatelt until it become foamy and soft, fold it in the above egg yolks creamy mixture very slowly.

Pour in baking pan and sprinkle crushed almonds on top and bake for 30-35 minutes or until done.

After cooling cut in to spuares and you can serve as it is after cooling it in the refrigerator or serve with fruits or fresh cream .

Fattoush Salad

Ingredients

Lettuce 1 bunch cut in cubes
Tomato 1/2 cup cut in cubes
Carrot 1/2 cup cut in cubes
Red Raddish 1/2 cup diced
Red Onion 1 big cut in cubes
Cucumber 1 cut in cubes
Sumukh This is red powder use in salad for tartness found in arabic
stores 1 table spoon
Celery(curly)1/4 cup finely cutted
Pita 2-3
Salt/Pepper up to taste
Olive Oil 2-3 table spoon

Method

Mix All vegetables, add salt, ground pepper and sumukh in it and add olive oil in the salad. Fried pita and crushed in medium size chunks. At the time of serving mix fried pita in it.

:yummy:

12

I serve Plum chutney with baked or fried items like tandoori chicken, baked chicken, chicken broast and baked mix vegetable salad.

Other kinds of chutneys are tamarind ki khatti meethi chutney serve with prawn chips or fried finger fish sticks and tamarind aur cilanntro aur mirch ki kahhti chitney serve with crispy daal kay pakoray.

For triffle I use vanilla falvoured custard powder and 2-3 different colors of Rafhan Jelly like green, red and orange/pineapple.
In fruits I use Pineapple, apple, green grapes, kiwi, Strawbwerry, Raspberry, pound cake, pineapple or orange juice, fresh cream.
I dont use banana becoz after one day keep in refrigerator the color of banana is turned dark.

Make custard, jelleys (cut in cubes) mix it , cut all fruits (mix in a bowl) add few table dpoons of fruit juice to keep moistened.
In serving cups put custard then add mix fruits then again custard and then jelly then again custard then on the top make design with whip cream with piping bag on sides and put few chocolate curls in the middle of cup. Keep cool then serve. If you want to make dessert in advance don't decorate it just fill with custard and fruits and jelleys and cover all cups with plastic wrap then at the day of party you decorate it in the morning or 1-2 hours before serving after decorating keep cool to set the decoration.

13

For kids french fries, brownies, homemade chocolate truffles, popcorns and chicken burgers are the best.

:yummy:

14

Wow really grat ideas i can use it for my party :nuch:

15

Wanna know what I ended up cooking?

Had to skip half of my Christmas dinner for this :o

They arrived around 2000, so I refused to serve any samose shamose. Girls were surved papaR with extra hot chutneys just for being girls :snooty:

I made, biryani, haleem, butter chicken, murgh palak, pasande, one less important dish, as I’ve already forgotten it. Oh and roasted chicken, naan and ammi made roti. Chutney, raita and salad. And rasmalai, of course.

None of the men touched butter chiken or palak, should’ve known better. Punjabi ghaas poons kahan nigalte haiN :o

16

Aap aik hotel khool lein. Sachi mein.