Boca Rojo

Boca Roja


Boca Roja, literally translated, means "red mouth," which is an implication of the red Roquito peppers grown in Peru. These are small sweet red peppers that are delicious. Pop them into your mouth on a slice of roasted Japanese eggplant topped with a dash of yoghurt, a spot of caramelised or soused onions and your boca roja roquito on top! 
This was the idea that created the dish below, as I searched high and low for these yummy roquitos. They are easily available in the UK, but not in Canada. 

Instead, I found these delicious sweet peppers. Prepare similar flavours with a filling of roughly chopped roasted eggplant, garlic, herbs, and other ingredients. It is an easy recipe that can be prepared up to a week ahead. Refrigerate them after wrapping them tightly in plastic wrap. Just fill the peppers before serving this amuse-bouche! I love the red ones, but the choice is yours to pick from.

This will fill 36 peppers

300 g/10 oz grilled or roasted aubergine/eggplant; with skin
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp salt

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp caramelised onions
1 tsp sumac
1 tsp finely chopped fresh herbs of choice like dill, coriander, mint or parsley

2 tbsp yogurt
pinch of sugar

Slice the fresh eggplant or aubergine lengthwise. Toss this with the oil and sprinkle with salt. 
Roast this in a preheated oven at 170 C|350 F on a baking tray which is lined with parchment paper for 45 minutes until cooked through. Alternately, grill it until cooked through. 
When cool, roughly chop with a knife and place in a large bowl. 
Add the garlic, caramelised onions, herbs, and sumac. Toss with a metal spoon. 
Refrigerate until ready to use. When ready to fill the peppers, mix in the yoghurt with the pinch of sugar in it. 

Tips

Dried mint blends well with this recipe. 
Sumac can be substituted by zataar or cumin if you wish. 
Ready to use peppers are available in jars and can be mild or hot. Drain the pickled water before using it. They are available in mixed or red-coloured bottles. 
Caramelised onions can be bought in a jar ready to use. 
To caramelise onions, peel and chop the onions. Heat a skillet with a tsp of oil. Saute` the onions until the colour starts to turn golden brown. Add 2 tbsp of water, a pinch of sugar, and cover and cook for 5 minutes on a low flame. This will soften the onion. Remove the lid, allow all the liquid to evaporate, and you should be left with a perfectly cooked onion.

 

My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on Amazon.

The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is an award-winning book. It was self-published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

The Art of Parsi Cooking: Reviving an Ancient Cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through Amazon Book Depot, Book Depository, and from the publishers.

For more recipes click and download 
Niloufer's Kitchen: French Bistro  or choose from any 9 e-cookbooks from the series.

Eggplant and Chutney

Eggplant and Chutney
Ravaiya Vengna~Chutney na Vengna

These eggplants are slit and filled with green coconut chutney. They are called Ravaiya/raveya, which literally translated means attitude! (Generally the bad kind of attitude, lol!!) 
Whoever named this dish was not in a good mood while creating this delicious dish. 

The idea is to serve them ''moist'' at the end of the cooking. Shallow fry them lightly in oil all over, turning them only once very carefully, and then cover the lid and allow them to cook through. To make it simpler, add 1 cup of coconut water to the pan before steaming them. This is two-fold: it will allow for the moisture without the chance of burning and it will keep the chutney taste intact. Tying a thread around before frying to keep it together is an option.

Steaming them in the oil and coconut water helps them cook through without burning. However it is important to allow it all to evaporate as there is little or no gravy in this dish - just some juicy succulent chutney filled eggplants to enjoy. 

Eggplant Stuffed with Green Coconut Chutney

Vengna na Ravaiya

Green Coconut Chutney

2 cups fresh or dry grated coconut

10-15 green chillies (or to taste)

1 packed cup coriander leaves

1 small raw green mango, peeled and chopped with seed removed

Juice of ½-1 lemon

2 tbsp jaggery or sugar (or to taste)

¼ tsp salt

10 mint leaves

Grind the ingredients very finely to make a smooth chutney. 

The chutney should be spicy, sweet, and sour  tweaked to suit your taste. 

For the eggplant 

8 long, thin Japanese eggplants with stems on; slit lengthwise on one side, leaving stem on.

Oil (for shallow frying) 

Stuff the eggplants with the chutney and tie them with thin white thread. 

Heat the oil in a big fry pan. Fry the eggplants, turning to cook on all sides until they are soft all around.

As an alternative to frying, sprinkle some oil on the stuffed eggplants and bake them in a at 170°C| 350F oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until cooked, turning them once halfway through. 

To read about an ancient cuisine you can purchase my cookbooks called The World of Parsi Cooking; Food Across Borders and The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.  

Niloufer's Kitchen: Quick and Easy  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HBSBLI4

Niloufer's Kitchen : Autumn   http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FCZC36C

Read more about Niloufer's Kitchen on The Huffington Post Blog

Photo Credit Sheriar Hirjikaka

Eggplant/Aubergine salad

Eggplant and Aubergine Salad 

Creating new salads, one discovers the joys of combining so many of one's favourite foods. I like to taste with my mind's taste buds while adding and tossing things from my pantry and fridge. 
It is fun, the only downside being I perhaps can never recreate it to the tee. I can live with that!! 
So here is something that was much appreciated by my guests for an impromptu lunch that I will share with you.

Eggplant, herbs, tomatoes, salad and more 

4 small Japanese eggplants 
250 g/ 8 oz or 1 cup of mixed small tomatoes
1 small pita bread,  rubbed with toasted with a rub of garlic, soft butter and chopped fine herbs like parsley or mint on it.
a handful of mixed herbs like fresh mint and parsley 
The zest and the fresh juice from one lime or limbu
salt
sumac
sunflower or pumpkin seeds
dried cranberries
125g/ 4 oz or 1/2 cup of feta cheese, curmbled
olive oil
garlic clove
drizzle of honey
4 cups of mixed greens, spinach, kale, lettuce, cabbage

Slice the eggplant into 1-inch rounds. Toss this with salt and olive oil. 
In a pan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil and toss the eggplant in until it starts to colour. Try to flip it with the handle of the pan and don't use the spoon. Add a few drops of water from time to time as it helps caramelise faster. 
Remove the eggplants, set them aside, and repeat with the remaining eggplants. Sprinkle them with a tsp of sumac, lime juice, and a drizzle of honey. 
In a hot oven at 170 C | 350 F place the pita with rubbed garlic, smeared in butter and topped with herbs. This will take about 7 minutes to crisp. Cut it into pieces and leave it aside. 

To assemble, toss the greens, herbs, and the zest of the lime together and place them on a platter. 
Toss the tomatoes in a tsp of olive oil after cutting them in half or leaving them whole if you prefer. 
Sprinkle lightly with salt. Place all the eggplants all over. 
Sprinkle the pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds over. 
Now sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese over. Next, the crisp toasted pita chips. and cranberries.

The vinaigrette

If you like to serve this with a vinaigrette, make a light one with 4 tbsp of olive oil. One pressed garlic clove; a pinch of brown sugar and salt to taste; and a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar. Shake well and drizzle all over. 

Tips
Do not assemble in advance, only prior to serving. 
Add dried cherries, figs, or apricots instead of cranberries. It is still as sweet! 
It will work well if you add walnuts or pecans instead of seeds.

Add pomegranate seeds for colour and texture. 

Add a tsp of brown sugar instead of honey, but while it is cooking rather than after, so it helps caramelise the eggplant. 
The melange of salad leaves gives a blend of texture and visually looks amazing. 
Sumac is found in Middle Eastern stores universally and is a tangy berry powder. Anar dana is the closest to it as a substitute. 
If Japanese eggplants are not available, use the ordinary ones cubed and diced equally. Discard the seed pouches within larger eggplants.

Photo courtesy Niloufer Mavalvala

My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on Amazon.

The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is an award-winning book. It was self-published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

The Art of Parsi Cooking: Reviving an Ancient Cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through Amazon Book Depot, Book Depository, and from the publishers.