Kheer

An Indian rice pudding with cardamom.  Serve warm or cold (though if you cook it down too much it might be quite firm when cold).

4 C whole milk
1/4 C rice (basmati or jasmine)
scant teaspoon cardamom powder
6 T sugar
pinch of saffron
raisins to garnish
pistachios, chopped to garnish

Soak the rice for an hour in water, then drain off the liquid.  Add the milk and sugar to the rice and bring to a simmer, but pull off a couple of tablespoons of milk while just warm to bloom the saffron. Stir frequently while the mixture simmers.

When the rice mixture is starting to thicken up add the saffron and cardamom and cook for another couple of minutes.  Serve up in individual bowls, garnishing with raisins and pistachios.

Pakoras

The Indian version of battered and fried veggies.  This is only the recipe for the batter, but it can be used on any number of vegetables: thinly sliced sweet potato, cauliflower (YUCK!), onion rings, zucchini, spinach, or whatever else you want to try.

1.5 C gram (chickpea) flour
1/2 C rice flour
pinch asafoetida
1/4 t turmeric
Cayenne pepper to taste
salt to taste

Combine all the ingredients, adding enough water to make a moderately thin batter.  Keep in mind that you want the batter to be a little salty to season the veggies.  Dredge vegetables in the batter and deep fry at 350 F until golden brown.

Jackfruit Curry

An unusual curry using green jackfruit in place of meat.  Green jackfruit has  a great texture, but very little flavor, so it's cooked with plenty of onion, garlic, and spices.  Note: I was winging it when I made this, so it's more approximate than most for amounts.

2 cans of green jackfruit (it has to be green) roughly 10 oz each when drained
3 T mustard oil
1-1.5 T black mustard seeds
1 medium onion, chopped
1.5 T garlic, chopped
1.5 T ginger, grated
2 t cumin
3 T tomato paste
1/2 C stock (vegetable stock if going vegetarian, otherwise chicken stock)
1/2 t turmeric
ground chile to taste
salt to taste

Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over medium high, and add the mustard seeds, onion, garlic, and ginger (if using whole cumin add it as well, otherwise add it with the jackfruit).  Cook until well the onion and garlic is well browned.

Add in the jackfruit, chile, and turmeric and stir fry for a a couple of minutes.  Add the tomato paste and the stock and stir fry for another couple of minutes to combine and cook down to desired consistency.  Add salt to taste.

Cambodian Grilled Pork (Bai Sach Chrouk)

This street food dish of grilled pork over rice (often broken rice, which is to say cheap broken grains of rice) served with pickled vegetables (included below) is, oddly enough, a breakfast dish in Cambodia.  Personally I eat it as a main dish.  I intentionally make this a little salty to eat with rice.  Start the pickled vegetables at least a day ahead of time.

1 lb pork loin, well trimmed, then sliced against the grain in to 1/4" slices
2/3 C coconut milk
2 T + 1 t palm or brown sugar
4 T soy sauce
1 T black soy sauce, or kecap manis
1 T fish sauce
4 cloves garlic
black pepper to taste
Thai chiles to taste (either chopped fresh, or ground dried)

Combine all the ingredients and marinate for at least an hour.  Remove the pork from the marinade (reserving marinade), and grill or broil until cooked and well caramelized.  Bring the marinade to a boil and reduce slightly to make a sauce. Serve the pork over rice and pour over some of the cooked marinade.

Pickled Vegetables:
1/2 C rice vinegar
1/2 C white vinegar
2 T salt
8 T sugar
1 carrot, peeled, halved lengthwise, and sliced in to thin half rounds
1 small daikon, peeled, halved lengthwise, and sliced in to thin half rounds
1/2 cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, and sliced in to thin half rounds
4 cloves garlic,thinly sliced
6 sprigs cilantro
6 Thai chiles

Combine the vinegars, salt, and sugar and bring to a simmer just long enough to dissolve the sugar; cool slightly.  Mix together the other ingredients, then pour the vinegar mixture over the top, making sure all the vegetables are covered.  Refrigerate for at least a day before eating.