Chicken, fish and eggs are the first ones to come to mind when you think about any high protein diets. We often hear people say, they rely on artificial protein supplements as they are vegetarian and the most common misconception that follows it i.e. vegetarian dishes lack protein.
Below are few ways to incorporate protein in your daily meals.
1. Soy chunks dosa with horse gram chutney
For dosa:
1 ¼ cup of urad dal
1 cup of parboiled rice
½ cup of soy chunks (dry)
Salt – as per taste
For chutney
½ cup horse gram – Dry roast horse gram till golden grown.
Dry chillies – 5-6
Tamarind – 1 small lemon sized (soaked)
Coriander leaves – 2-3 small stems
Salt – as per taste
A pinch of jaggery powder
Season with 1 tsp of mustard seeds, jeera seeds, curry leaves and a pinch of hing.
Method of Preparation for Dosa
Soak rice with urad dal for 5-6 hours or overnight and grind them into a batter.
Grind dry soy chunks to a fine powder.
Mix soy chunks powder to the dosa batter and ferment it overnight.
You can adjust the consistency as per your requirement. The batter shouldn't be too thin, nor too thick, but should have a pourable consistency.
Method of preparation for chutney
Roast horse gram till golden brown.
Roast dry chillies.
Once the horse gram and chillies are at room temperature, add them to a blender with other ingredients and grind to a semi-smooth paste.
Adjust salt as per taste.
Temper it with 1 tsp of mustard seeds, jeera seeds, curry leaves and a pinch of hing and serve it with dosa.
2. Sattu paratha
Ingredients
1 cup of whole wheat flour
Salt – 1/4th tsp
Oil – ½ tsp
Water – as required to knead a dough.
For the filling
Roasted gram flour – ½ cup
Onions, finely chopped – 1/4 cup
Green chillies – 2-3 finely chopped
Garlic – 2-3 cloves- minced
Ginger – ½ inch- minced
Coriander leaves, finely chopped – 3 tbsp
Amchur powder – ½ tsp
Method
Make a soft dough mixing whole wheat flour, salt, oil and water. Cover and keep aside. 2.
Mix all the ingredients listed under filling together, if it feels crumbly, sprinkle warm water and mix well.
Divide the dough into equal sized balls, roll the ball a little then apply some ghee/ oil.
Place 2 tablespoons of filling in the centre of the dough, cover from sides and roll into a ball.
Roll a ½ inch thick paratha and cook on each side on a hot tawa till golden brown.
Repeat the process with all the balls.
Serve hot with cucumber raita!
3. Green chole
1 cup of Kabuli chana (chickpeas) – soaked overnight.
For puree
3 cups of spinach
10-12 cashew nuts
1-2 green chillies
For gravy
2 bay-leaves
2 cardamoms
1 inch bark of cinnamon
2 cloves
2 finely chopped onions
2 chopped tomatoes
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Jeera powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric – a pinch
Chilli powder – 1 tsp
Garam masala – ½ tsp
Salt – as per taste
Method:
Wash the soaked chickpeas and pressure cook them for 3 whistles. You can retain the water for the gravy as it contains nutrients from the chickpeas.
For the puree:
Blanch spinach in salt water.
Take a pan, add 1 tsp of oil, 1-2 green chillies, palak and cashew nuts and sauté them on medium flame until spinach wilts or till the raw smell is gone.
Cool completely and blend until smooth.
For the gravy:
Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan, add bay leaves, cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves and jeera seeds.
Add onions and sauté till they turn translucent then add ginger garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell is gone. 2.Now add tomatoes and cook them till they turn mushy.
Add garam masala, salt and other spice powders and sauté on low flame till they turn aromatic.
Pour ½ cup of water, cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes over low flame. 4.Once the gravy thickens, add spinach puree cook till it starts bubbling.
Now add cooked chickpeas and water as per your desired consistency and cook for 3-4 minutes and remove from the stove.
Serve hot with phulkas.
4. Broccoli peanut masala
Broccoli florets – 2 ½ cups
For gravy
Roasted peanuts – 1 cup
Green chillies – 4 slitted horizontally
Onions, finely chopped – 1 ½ cups
Tomatoes, finely chopped – 1 ½ cups
Jeera seeds – 2 tsp
Peppercorns – 1 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Garam masala – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Oil – 2 tsp
Salt – as per taste.
Method
Blanch broccoli for 5-10 mins in boiling hot water with salt.
For peanut puree
Heat a tsp of oil in a pan and add jeera seeds and peppercorns.
Add onions and green chillies and sauté till golden brown.
Then add peanuts and roast for 3-4 minutes.
Add tomatoes and once they turn mushy, turn off the flame and allow to cool.
Once the mixture is cooled, blend it to a smooth paste and keep it aside.
For the masala curry
Heat oil in the same pan and add jeera seeds and allow them to splutter.
Then add- turmeric powder, chilli powder and blanched broccoli florets. Sauté these for 8-10 mins on low-medium flame.
Add garam masala and make sure it doesn’t burn. Then add peanut paste and mix well and adjust the consistency as required.
Add salt and simmer it for 6-9 minutes. Turn off the flame and keep it covered for 5 minutes.
Serve hot with brown rice!
5. Cauliflower soy chunks burji
Cauliflower florets (washed and cleaned) – 500 gms
Soy nuggets – 1 cup
Green peas – ½ cup
Onion, roughly chopped – 1 cup
Green chillies, finely chopped – 2
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
Oil – 2 tsp
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Garam masala – ½ tsp
Coriander powder – ½ tsp
Salt – as per taste.
Water – 1/4th cup
Method
Blanch cauliflower in hot salted water for 5 minutes and grate it.
In boiling water, add soy chunks, cover and cook for 1-2 minutes until soft.
Drain and mash them roughly by hand.
Boil green peas and keep them aside.
Now in a pan, heat ghee and add onions, cook them till they are translucent.
Add ginger garlic paste and cook till aromatic. Add green chillies also.
Add garam masala, chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric and salt and give a stir.
Add 1/4th cup of water to keep masalas from burning and sticking to the pan.
Now add grated cauliflower, boiled green peas and roughly mashed soy chunks. Give it a mix, cover it with a lid.
On a low flame, cook for 10-12 mins while stirring once in a while.
Serve with chapatis/ unpolished rice.
6. Quinoa tomato bhaath
Quinoa – 1 cup
Water – 2 cups
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Jeera seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves + coriander leaves, chopped – 2 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste – ½ tsp
Onions, finely chopped – ½ cup
Tomatoes, finely chopped – 1 ½ cup
Red chilli powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Sambar powder – ½ tsp
Garam masala – ½ tsp
Salt – as per taste
Vegetable oil – 1 tsp
Method
Heat oil in a pressure cooker, when hot, add mustard seeds, jeera seeds and allow them to crackle.
Add onion, sauté till it turns golden brown.
Add ginger garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell goes away.
Then add curry leaves, coriander leaves and tomatoes, and cook them till they are mushy.
Add turmeric powder, sambar powder, chilli powder and garam masala, combine well.
Add quinoa and water, mix well.
Cook it for 5-6 whistles and wait till the pressure is naturally released.
Serve hot with raita.
7. Methi-chana pulao
Unpolished rice – 1 cup
Water – 2 ½ cups
Overnight soaked chana – ½ cup
Methi leaves – 1 ½ cups
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Jeera seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves + coriander leaves, chopped – 2 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste – ½ tsp
Onions, finely chopped – ½ cup
Tomatoes, finely chopped – 1 ½ cup
Red chilli powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Garam masala – ½ tsp
Salt – as per taste
Method
Blanch methi leaves in hot salted water.
Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add mustard seeds, jeera seeds and allow them to crackle.
Add onion, sauté till it turns golden brown.
Add ginger garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell goes away.
Then add methi leaves, curry leaves, coriander leaves and tomatoes, and cook them till they are mushy.
Add turmeric powder, chilli powder and garam masala, combine well.
Add rice, soaked chana and water, mix well.
Cook it for 5-6 whistles and wait till the pressure is naturally released. Serve it with raita.
8. Makhana masala
Makhanas – 1 cup
Onions, finely chopped – 1 ½ cups
Tomatoes, finely chopped – 2 cups
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
Green chillies – 4 slitted horizontally
Jeera seeds – 2 tsp
Pepper – 1 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Garam masala – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Oil – 2 tsp
Salt – as per taste.
Method:
Heat oil in a kadai over low-medium flame and roast makhanas till they turn a light golden colour.
Heat a tsp of oil in a pan and add jeera seeds and peppercorns.
Add onions and green chillies and sauté till golden brown.
Add tomatoes and once they turn mushy, remove from the flame, keep the mixture aside to cool down.
Once the mixture is cooled, blend it to a smooth paste and keep it aside.
Heat oil in the same pan and add jeera seeds, turmeric powder, chilli powder, garam masala and sauté for 1-2 minutes over low flame. Then add tomato-onion puree and mix well and adjust the consistency as required.
Add salt to this and cook it on simmer for 6-9 minutes. Turn off the flame, add makhanas, keep covered for 5 minutes and serve!
Note – add makhanas just before serving to prevent them from becoming soggy.
References: