India-Dinner is Ready! Recipes, Famous Indians in History, & Fun Facts

Our Indian Dinner is Complete! We made Lamb Vindaloo , Basmati Rice with Golden Raisins, Currants, Clove, Toasted Almonds, and Cumin Seeds, Saag Paneer, and Garlic Naan Bread. We served this with traditional Mango/Green Chile Pickle. So delicious! I have never learned how to pickle anything, so this accompaniment was store bought. Here are the recipes we used for tonight.
Basmati Rice

1.In a Large Pot, heat  3 cups salted water to boil. Add 2 cups of Basmati Rice and 1 tbsp. vegetable oil. Cook for about 20 minutes. Add 1 Bay Leaf, a few threads of saffron and set aside, covered.
2. In Large Saucepan, heat 1 Tablespoon Vegetable oil. Add 1 Teaspoon mustard seeds and  1 teaspoon of  Cumin Seeds. When mustard seeds start popping, add a 1 Teaspoon Cloves, 1 Tablespoon chopped ginger, and 1/4 Cup chopped onions. Stir occasionally for a few minutes.
3. Add 1 Teaspoon of the following spices: Turmeric, Cumin, Coriander, and Garam Masala. Stir frequently on low heat for about 5 minutes.
4. Add Rice to sauce pan and mix with spices, onion, ginger, garlic mixture. Add 2 tbsp. Golden Raisins, 2 tbsp. currants, and 2 tbsp. sliced toasted almonds. Add salt to taste. Stir and serve immediately.

Lamb Vindaloo

Ingredients

• 1 lb Lamb-I prefer Australian Natural Lamb-cubed
• 2 tablespoons ghee or vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 2 fresh green chilies finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon cumin powder
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder
• 3 tablespoons red hot chili powder 
• 2 tablespoons Garam Masala powder
• 2 tablespoons plain yogurt
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons chopped coriander
• 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
• 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
• 1 onion
• 1 cup crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar

1. Heat the ghee/vegetable oil over medium heat.
2. When the ghee is hot, scoop in the garlic and ginger along with the chopped chilies.
3. Allow to sizzle for about a minute and then add the mustard and cumin seeds, cumin powder, coriander powder and the turmeric.
4. Add onions, tomatoes, and lamb. 
5. Add the red chili powder one tablespoon at a time while stirring. This way you can stop when it gets up to the heat you like.
6. Add the vinegar and cook for a further minute.
7. Scoop in the yogurt one tablespoon at a time stirring as you do.
8. Then sprinkle with the chopped coriander and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Saag Paneer-  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/authentic-saag-paneer/
Garlic Naan-  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/naan/

                                                         Famous Indians

 

 

Born in Calcutta in 1894, Satyenda Bose was a gifted physicist who worked closely with Albert Einstein on  the Bose-Einstein Condensate and as namesake of the boson, or “God particle".

 

 Born in Bombay in 1965, Asra Nomani is a well known women's rights activist, journalist, and academic author known for her fight for women's equality in the American Muslim Community.

Born in 1114, in Biddur India, Bhāskara was a brilliant mathematician credited with devising the decimal system. Bhāskara's work on calculus predates Newton and Leibniz by over half a millennium. While Newton and Leibniz have been credited with differential and integral calculus, there is strong evidence to suggest that Bhāskara was a pioneer in some of the principles of differential calculus. He was perhaps the first to conceive the differential coefficient and differential calculus

 Mahatma Gandhi was born in 1869 in Kathiawar India.  He was an anti-war activist, best known as  the primary leader of India's independence movement and also the architect of a form of civil disobedience that would influence the world.

Ravi Shankar was an Indian musician and composer best known for popularizing the sitar and Indian classical music in Western culture.

Sachin Tendulkar is an Indian professional cricket player, considered by many to be one of the greatest batsmen of all time.

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was an Indian political leader and diplomat, one of the world's leading women in public life in the 20th century.



                                                                  Fun Facts

 1. The National Bird of India is the Peacock.

 

2. The National Flower of India is the Lotus Flower.

3. The National Symbol of India is the endangered Bengal Tiger.

 

4. The most popular sport in India is cricket, with the Indian team being the first to   win the Cricket World Cup on home soil when they were victorious in 2011.

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Many different languages are spoken in India. The main ones are Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, and Urdu.

6. The capital city is New Delhi, while the most populated city is Mumbai. Other major cities include Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore.

7. Because of India's location, it experiences periods of heavy rain called Monsoon.

8. The Taj Mahal (a famous mausoleum and popular tourist attraction) is located in the region of Agra.

9. The highest mountain in India is Kanchenjunga, standing at 8,598m (28,209 ft), which it shares with Nepal. Kanchenjunga is the third highest mountain in the world.

10. More than a million Indians are millionaires, yet most Indians live on less than two dollars a day. An estimated 35% of India’s population lives below the poverty line.

11. Cows can be found freely wandering the streets of India’s cities. They are considered sacred and will often wear a tilak, a Hindu symbol of good fortune. Cows are considered one of humankind’s seven mothers because they offer milk as does one’s natural mother.

12. Dancing is one of India’s most highly developed arts and was an integral part of worship in the inner shrines of every temple. It is notable for its expressive hand movements.

13. It is Illegal to take Indian Currency(Rupees) out of India.

                           

Sources: http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/india-facts/http://facts.randomhistory.com/2009/07/21_india.html,