Eid Mubarak!! Hope you had a great time with your family and friends.
Its been sometime right? I was a bit busy with some stuff and now am off to India for a month's holiday. Thought I will keep you posted about it.
I am very happy to share with you that Nivedita of Nivedita's Kitchen passed me the Honest scrap award. Also Priya of House of Spices passed me a bunch of awards. Thanks a ton to both of you for sharing the awards with me :)
Here is the dal makhani recipe which I promised long time back, hope you'll enjoy this. I've some recipes in drafts, will try to post it if I get time :). I will not be checking my mails frequently, but will try my best to reply at the earliest.
Please see the picture of dal makhani, made by Josphine, based on the above recipe. Thanks a lot dear :)

Hi Maria – which cream did you use? whipped cream?
Hi Lakshmi,
I used whipping cream
Tried it along with your butter chicken recipes and made 4 north Indian food deprived Punjabis very happy! Best part was the next day we had the dal which was left over and Yum!! They are all so thankful of u :)
You are welcome dear :) Thanks again for taking time to leave comment here, appreciate it very much.
Cheers
Maria
This receipe made my last Sunday a joyful one…… ..thank you sooooo much Maria….
Happy that I could satisfy my hubby with this dish who has northindian taste buds though malayalee….thank you soooo much once again…..
Thanks a bunch Anitha for your lovely comment :) Great to know that this recipe made your Sunday a special one…
Cheers
Maria
tried this recipe last night and once again Maria’s Menu became a hit in my husband’s big stomach and heart… :) :) thanks again maria for the recipes, all i need to do is blindly follow your instructions.. :) you are part of my everyday cooking now… :) Big Hugs..!!
Hi Julia,
Thanks dear for your lovely comment! I’m really thrilled to know that this tiny space has become part of your everyday cooking :)
Hope all is well with you..
Take care,
Maria
Excellent recipie….got the dhabe wala taste .
Thank you for sharing
You are welcome Preety :) Glad you liked this recipe. Thanks for the comment!
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
Is it ok if I use black eyed beans instead of urad saboot??
Hi,
I havent tried it yet using black eyed beans, so I’m not sure how it tastes like.
Cheers
Maria
Nice post. I love dal makhni, but as I am weight conscious i like to cook  it diet style. Check the recipe for diet style dal makhni here – http://www.gdayindia.com.au/dal-makhani-diet-style
Yes Kathy, who I call “Bhuni” loved it. She loves dals and curries I make. Met some people from Albany N.Y. who are originally from Guyana South America who love curries too. They incorporate allspice and sometimes nutmeg into their curries. Sometimes, all we have are Sri Lankan and Indian dishes. God bless you and much success with your site.
Hi Anthony,
It’s great to know that your wife liked it. She’s lucky to have a husband like you :)
Though I havent tried any Sri Lankan recipes yet, I’ve seen some similarities in the recipes, like they also use coconut a lot.
Please convey my special regards to your wife.
Thanks again for all your good wishes.
Cheers
Maria
dear maria- loved this dal. Although I have a “mantra” brand pressure cooker from India, it doesn’t “whistle”. But I’m ok with it, it is just amusing to see recipe instructions that state “cook two whistles” or whatever for a north american like me. But I love your site, it is wonderful. God bless.
Dear Anthony,
Thank you so much for your kind words :)
About mentioning the number of whistles…majority of my readers are newly weds who are beginners in cooking and they like to have even the minutest details. So I try my best to make their life easy :)
Please do try some Indian recipes from here, I hope you like it.
Best wishes!
Cheers
Maria
@Maria, I’m going to prepare the prawn curry friday, I have all the groceries. I’m sure it will be great (my spouse loves coconut AND shrimp,or prawns.) Love your chatter, especially the last paragraph “So, shall we etc” Very Interesting You keep on keeping on.
Hi Anthony,
Hope you tried the prawns curry. Did your wife like it?
Thanks for your encouraging words :)
Cheers
Maria
sorry I meant mind blowing….
You are bind blowing Maria! I have been struggling to get a recipe of this dish, but since yours seemed right I tried it out n what happens?! It rocked Maria. After the veg stew this is the second recipe & can tell you for sure that you are a chef of a kind. I pray GOD strengthens your spirit of a great chef. Lipsmacking Maria your recipes rock!!!!!
Hi Rhea,
Thank you so much for a lovely comment :) I’m really happy that you liked this dish. Please do try other recipes also sometime…
Thanks again for your best wishes.
Cheers
Maria
I made a few minor modifications to this recipe, but apart from that followed this recipe and it turned out really tasty! Thanks for the recipe! I never knew i could enjoy a dal curry so much. Also, I recently discovered your blog, and must say that you are doing a very good job!
Hi Blessy,
Thank you so much for the sweet comment :) Glad to hear that dal makhani came out well for you.
Please try other recipes also when you have time…
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
For long time i was searching for a good dal makhani recipe.I tried yours and it turned out pretty good.Thanks a lot.
Regards,
Rinu
Hi Rinu,
Very happy to know that you liked the recipe and thanks for sharing your feedback.
Cheers
Maria
What is the size / measurement of the cup that you use in your recipes? How many mls. (for liquid ingredients) or gms. (for solid ingredients) is 1 cup?
Hi Anita
I use the standard measuring cups available in stores. However I checked my measuring cup and its 1 cup equals to 236 ml (approx).
Cheers
Maria
Dera Maria,
Can we make creme at home?
Hi Reepna
Regarding making cream at home…I’ve seen my aunty boiling the full fat milk and keeping it aisde for a while. After sometime a layer of cream will be formed on the top (pada). Separate it from the milk using a spoon. She used to store it in the refrigerator for a week or so.
Regards
Maria
hi maria
have a doubt, can I subsitute fresh cream for Nestle cream available in stores here in UAE.
Hi Rachel
I think it should be ok to use nestle cream instead of fresh cream. I’ve used nestle cream for malai kofta recipe and all.
Hope you’ll like this dish.
Cheers
Maria
HC & Priya – thank you dearies :)
Ria – Hope you’ll like this one. thanks for the wishes dear.
Mathew – I got this recipe from one of my Punjabi friends. Hope your friends will like it too.
Thanks misha
Tina – am fine dear and thank you :)
Parita – thanks dear :)
Hi Maria,
I have become an avid reader of your blog. I have a very hectic job but i love cooking. So i try to make something simple and new every week. I prepared malabar chicken, cheese cake with success :). Today I’m trying parippu chaar and chicken masala. I google a lot for recipes but after discovering your blog, i find it difficult to try out anything from anywhere else. I also love your homely honest simple writing style. So well.. thank you!
Hi Vidya
Thanks a lot for writing to me. Am very happy to know that you liked the recipes here :) Hope parippu chaar and chicken masala came out well.
Would love to hear your feedback.
Happy cooking :)
Cheers
Maria
OMG that click looks fantastic, so tempting!
Mariyaaammooooooo how r u dear….? Dal looks very rich nd creamy……pics skidu ane…..
good recipes
Hi Maria,
Chicken lollipop and chilli chicken undakkanulla recipe tharavo?
Hi Nikhila
dear, since am in India now I wont be able to try out any new recipes. Will try to post it once am back in Bahrain.
Cheers
Maria
really great recepies
try to add kerala kadala curry white kadala
i have a couple of punjabi friends…would try this for them sometime…:)
Hmm… im the first one :)
Dal looks yummy.
Enjoy having a great time back home dear. :)
I LOVE this !! But I tried making it once, and it went straight to the bin! :)But now that you have made it….I have hopes in me! :)
Have a great vacation Maria!! :) xx
Wow beautiful picture, looks so so good.
Now just need few naan to gorge on them :-)