Nisha Katona's cheese on toast with a twist!
It's a best seller in her restaurant's and a staple in households across the country - Nisha Katona is showing us her ultimate lunchtime snack, Himalayan style cheese on toast. Made with coriander powder, red onion and chilli- you'll never think of cheese on toast in the same way again!
Himalayan Cheese on Toast
Serves 2
Ingredients:
100g grated extra mature cheddar
2 tsp ground coriander
½ tsp finely diced green chilli
1 small red onion, finely diced
1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
2 slices thick sliced white toastie or bloomer bread
Sliced red chilli and coriander leaves to garnish
Method
1. Preheat the grill. Mix together the grated cheese, ground coriander, cumin, green chilli, red onion and coriander in a small bowl.
2. Place the bread on a baking sheet and toast on each side, taking care not to burn – toast the second side more lightly.
3. Carefully sprinkle the cheese mixture onto the light side of the toast and then grill for a further three minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown.
4. Finish with a slice of red chilli and a couple of leaves of coriander and serve with beetroot pickle and tomato salad.
Beetroot and Green Chilli Pickle
Makes 1 Large Kilner Clip Top Jar
This is a very common way to treat beetroots / beets in India and these kind of crisp vegetable pickles are extremely popular. The combination of spice is second nature to Indian grandmothers. The beets need to retain their crunch, while the spicing is sharp and can be carried well by the sugars in the vegetables.
Ingredients:
4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
2 large green chillies, deseeded and thinly sliced
3 dried red chillies
4 large beetroots / beets, peeled and cut into 1cm batons
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp sugar
Juice of 1 large lemon
Small bunch of fresh coriander, chopped to serve
Method
1. Put the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and set over a medium-high heat. When hot, add ½ tsp of the mustard seeds and the fenugreek seeds and fry until the mustard seeds turn grey and the fenugreek a deep golden brown, then add green chilies and the dried red chillies.
2. Turn the heat down to low and add the beetroot, salt, sugar and lemon juice and continue to cook for 6 minutes or until the beetroot has just started to soften around the edges.
3. Crush the remaining mustard seeds in a pestle and mortar and add them to the beetroot mix, stirring until everything is fully mixed.
4. Place the beetroot pickle in a sterilised jar. It will keep for a week in the refrigerator and can be used straight away.
5. When ready to serve, sprinkle with fresh coriander.
Indian Tomato Salad
Serves 4-6
Indian dining tables will always have an onion and tomato salad. We usually pile a little heap of salt on the side of our plate and dip the tomato or onion into it and eat them as separate mouthfuls. Choose the best tomatoes you can for this salad.
In the East, tomatoes are as flavourful and as beloved as ripe plums.
Ingredients:
8 large, ripe vine tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
½ tsp chat masala
1 tbsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt
¼ lime
1 green chilli, finely chopped
Method
1. Arrange the sliced tomatoes on a large serving dish, then add the sliced red onion.
2. Sprinkle over the chat masala, lemon juice and salt just before serving. Squeeze the lime over the salad and garnish with the green chilli to serve.