The holidays are here bringing the joy of Christmas and New Year with them. Families have already begun traveling and going to their loved ones to celebrate the merry birth of Lord Jesus. While the nature is resetting itself and love and happiness are in the air, cheers to everyone for the coming amazing week and if you are fond of Indian food, here are the top 5 dishes you can cook at home to make your Christmas even merrier in traditional Indian way-

Nargisi Kofta

As delicious and unique as it sounds, it will sizzle your taste buds giving you the taste of heavens inside your mouth. This is not your regular egg curry, it is a non-vegan’s paradise. The boiled eggs when coated with the Perfect batter of lamb mince, finely chopped onions with spices, dusted with rice flour and prepped for deep-fry with a coat of whisked egg will make your mouth start watering before even preparing the delicious gravy. Make the gravy as thick or as juicy as you like by fresh non-salty yogurt. Once deep-fried eggs, soak the excess oil with paper towels, garnish with fresh coriander, cream or butter and serve hot with chapatis and enjoy this soft and creamy delicacy.

Pork Vindaloo

Coming right out from perhaps the most beautiful tourist spots in India, the state famous for beaches and parties, a very popular honeymoon and party destination, Goa, is this finger licking dish. If you love spicy main course served with Jeera Rice, this is what you go for to make you clean your fingertips with your tongue. I believe your tummy has already started roaring by now but hold it just yet, here’s how you make this recipe. Vindaloo is a traditional Goan masala (seasoning) made by dry mixing finely chopped onions, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, toasted red chilies, coriander and cumin seeds, peppercorns and vinegar but the secret is that you add the vinegar while the other stuff is getting mixed to make a perfect seasoning to keep you on your toes when eaten HOT. Now that you’re ready with your masala in 2 minutes, coat the pork (chopped cubes) properly with Vindaloo seasoning and allow it to marinate so as to get soft and juicy just like what your tongue needs. Fry onions with cinnamon, ginger paste and cloves till it sprouts into beautiful golden tone with a mesmerizing fragrance. Add natural palm sugar and once this is ready, add just the meat into the pan. That’s where most people go wrong. Leave the marinade behind, cook your meat first till it browns and then with an added cup of water and salt, add the marinade and cook on low heat allowing it to ooze out a fragrance that will steal your heart. Eat till your heart’s content.

Rogan Josh

The perfect recipe to win someone’s heart is this Afghani style dish. The tendered soft lamb mixed with yogurt, when mixed with whole spices including bay leaves and then with powdered spices for the perfect taste with a touch of Kashmiri dry red chilies for just the perfect color, would steal the heart away. So, if you are planning on to win over your loved ones or please your in-laws, this is your kryptonite. The secret to get the softness and the yum look with tongue rolling taste is to add beef stock in the gravy to thicken it up and then to smooth the mix with cream till the perfect touch. All that it would need after is a garnishing with coriander leaves and of it doesn’t make people go “WOAH!” just by the fragrance, feel free to spam the blog as much as you want. Serve with Khamiri Rotis or Pulao and just watch out to not eat your fingers along with it.

If you’re not a meat lover but still crave for the foody satisfaction with your gathering, here are the top 2 vegan Indian dishes that are world famous to make people crazy about Indian food.

Malai Kofta

If the West gave Meatballs to the world and the Chinese gave Manchurians, Indians gave the world famous and highly in-demand appreciated Malai Kofta (vege balls). It is the recipe which demands love and effort in its making. The perfect mash of boiled potatoes, mixed vegetables, paneer and cream is the toughest thing to achieve but when done, seasoned with salt, adding ½ tsp of nut and raisin mix in the center of each ball and then frying it would not only give an added flavor but also will never fail to surprise people who would be expecting a normal Kofta. Well the Kofta is not the only thing that takes time, the gravy also demands a little extra love and effort. Once you pan fry chopped onions with whole spices, you have to grind it with tomatoes, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander and red chili powder. Once grinded into a paste, fry this paste again now and once the oil starts to separate, add poppy seeds powder and nut paste and then fry again for some time. Although the gravy needs to be thick but if you’re not a fan of thick gravy, add a little water to it and let it boil. Add Koftas now and cook uncovered. Now comes the part where you separate it from the rest of the world. Turn off the gas and sprinkle garam masala all over the dish and cover immediately and allow to settle for 5 minutes. Add cheese, butter or cream with coriander leaves to garnish and you’ll have the best vegan Christmas ever with your loved ones when served with chapatis or naan.

Palak Paneer (spinach and cottage cheese)

Oh! I know, nobody cooks this better than our mothers but we have to do it for our kids, right! So that they say nobody is better than their parents. A simple dish which would perhaps remind every Indian of their homeland is this Palak Paneer, hence perfect for Christmas Eve. All it requires is for you to golden fry paneer cubes in a heavy-bottomed pan, separate it and drain it. Fry onions till the perfect golden color, add ginger and garlic pastes and let the fragrance change. Now is the perfect time to add spinach, fenugreek leaves (Kasuri Methi), tomato, coriander, cumin, turmeric and garam masala powders and mix well. The advantage of adding fenugreek leaves is to give the dish a fragrance to match up to your mum’s cooking. Add salt and allow it cook till the spinach and fenugreek leaves are soft as a pulp to be mashed. You can use a blender or food processor to shape it into a beautiful smooth paste and then all you’ll need is to add the pre-fried paneer cubes to this gravy. PS: Add Maggie masala from over the top and settle and mix to give an added finger licking flavor and you shall be your children’s ideal and impress everyone around.

With the holiday season on, spread the love around. Cherish every moment of it with your loved ones. Style like never before, shop online and spend your hours in the kitchen surprising everyone. Happy Holidays!