No Indian festival is complete without traditional dishes. Most of us forget about health and diet during festivities and devour all the delicious food cooked at home by our moms and grand moms. However, all the overeating takes a toll on our health. Does that mean we give up eating all the good food and traditional dishes that are associated with our festivals? No! not at all!? By being mindful, you can enjoy your favorite delicacies and yet retain your health. Selection of the right ingredients is important if you want ‘taste and health’ both. Cooking oil is one such important ingredient that is the base of almost every Indian dish. A small yet smart switch to cold pressed oils from refined oils can do wonders to your health.Today, we are going to share with you two healthy recipes using cold-pressed groundnut oil.
Why cold-pressed groundnut oil?
Groundnut oil is one of the most common vegetable oils that suit Indian cooking. Depending on the nature of its process, there are different types of groundnut oils, each has a distinct flavor of its own. Cold-pressed is one of the best ways to extract the oil from the seeds where-in all the natural goodness of the seeds is retained. Since the seeds are only crushed with a strong force, all the antioxidants are released into the oil, unlike the refined versions where high amounts of heat is applied to extract oil and the seeds lose their natural nutrients. Cold-pressed groundnut oil has a strong nutty flavor and best suited for deep-fried dishes.
Here are 2 healthy recipes using cold-pressed groundnut oil for every occasion
Recipe #1 – Vegetable samosa:
One of India’s favorite snacks that goes well on every occasion and celebrations. This Rakhi, try this homemade samosa to show some extra love for your foodie brother!
Ingredients:
For filling
- 3 cups of chopped and diced vegetables: Potato, carrots, peas (boil and keep aside)
- 1 big onion – Thinly sliced
- 1-inch ginger – finely diced
- ½ cup peanut – roasted
- Mesmara groundnut oil – 1 cup
For the outer covering
- 2 cups Maida
- Water
- Salt – to taste
Method
Take a pan, add oil and heat it well. Stir fry onion and ginger until soft. Add the boiled veggies and stir fry on low heat. Add the peanuts and stir fry for a minute. Sprinkle salt to taste. Once the filling is ready, keep it aside and work on the outer layer of samosa.
Knead a soft dough with the maida. Cover and let it rest for some time. Divide it into small portions. Roll each of it into thin circles. (size of a puri). Cut each of the circles in half (into a semi-circle). Now role each semi-circle to form a cone. Fill each cone with a spoonful of the filling and seal the opening by brushing water on the edges. Ensure you have sealed it well.
Take a deep bottomed Kadai. Pour groundnut oil and heat it well. Deep fry the samosas until golden in color. Serve it hot with ketchup or imli chutney.
Recipe #2 – Cheese Corn Tikki:
Easy to make and will delight your guests too! Goes well as a starter in any family gathering. It’s tasty and healthy too!
Ingredients:
- Corn (boiled) – 1 cup
- Potatoes (boiled) – 1 large
- Lemon juice – 1 teaspoon
- Coriander (finely chopped) – 1 teaspoon
- Green chilies – as per preference
- Salt – as per taste
- Garam masala – 1 pinch
- Cheese cubes (grated) – 8-10
- Mesmara cold-pressed groundnut oil – 1 cup
Method:
Take a big bowl and mix potato, corn, lemon juice, coriander, chilies, salt, and garam masala. Make small balls with the mix. Make a depression in the balls and place a portion of grated cheese inside. Seal it back again. Take a deep bottomed pan and heat the groundnut oil. Deep fry the corn balls until golden brown. Serve hot. The outside crunchiness of corn and the inner softness of the cheese will definitely blow off your guests!
Pro–tip: If your family is not used to cold-pressed ground oil, then introduce the change slowly.
Now you can purchase authentic cold-pressed groundnut oil here. What is your favorite groundnut oil recipe? Don’t forget to share it with us!