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✦ Week 3 · Bazaar Veg

Chole, Kadai Paneer & Bharta

Three dishes, cooked once. Every lunch and dinner lists its plate weight (g) and estimated calories.

3 dishes 7 days ~1855 kcal/day (L+D)

Grocery list

One shop for the whole week — three dishes, no leftovers. Tap to check off — saved on this phone.

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Produce

Dairy & protein

Legumes & grains

Snacks & pantry

This week's three dishes

Every batch below is sized to exactly what the menu eats, plus one spare portion. Scale with a kitchen scale when you can.

Punjabi Chole

Punjabi Chole

6 plates this week · ~1.52 kg batch
~300 kcal / serving ~250 g on the plate

Chickpeas

  • 450 g dry kabuli chana, soaked 8 hrs (or 4 cans drained)
  • 1 tea bag or 1 tsp chole masala in cook water for color (optional)
  • ⅞ tsp salt

Masala

  • 2¾ tbsp oil
  • 2 large onions, finely chopped (~350 g)
  • 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 3 medium tomatoes (~350 g)
  • 1¾ tsp cumin powder
  • 1¾ tsp coriander powder
  • ⅞ tsp turmeric
  • ⅞–1¾ tsp chole masala
  • ⅞ tsp amchur or anardana powder
  • ⅞–1⅜ tsp salt
  • 225 ml water (1 cup)
  • 1-inch ginger julienne to finish (optional)

Method

  1. Pressure-cook soaked chana until soft; keep 1 cup liquid.
  2. Golden onions → ginger-garlic → tomato → all powders 30 sec.
  3. Add chana + water/liquid. Simmer 15–20 min; mash a few. Finish amchur + ginger. Portion ~250 g.

Same protein role as Week 1 chana — darker Punjabi spice profile. Batched at 450 g dry so the 300–300 g menu plates and the Sat/Sun leftover bowls both fit. Batch ~1.52 kg — that is 6 plates of 250 g plus about 75 g spare.

Kadai Paneer

Kadai Paneer

6 plates this week · ~1.73 kg batch
~400 kcal / serving ~280 g on the plate

Kadai masala (coarsely crush)

  • 1 tbsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 dry red chilies

Gravy + veg

  • 3 tbsp oil
  • 2 large onions — 1 chopped for gravy (~200 g), 1 in petals (~200 g)
  • 2 capsicums / bell peppers, 2 cm squares (~300 g) — no mushrooms
  • 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 3 medium tomatoes, puréed (~400 g)
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
  • 1–1½ tsp salt
  • 120 ml water (½ cup)
  • 1 tsp kasuri methi, crushed
  • ½ tsp garam masala

Paneer

  • 400 g paneer, 2 cm cubes

Method

  1. Dry-roast coriander, cumin, red chili 1–2 min; crush coarse (mortar or pulse).
  2. Heat oil. Cook chopped onion 7 min golden → ginger-garlic 1 min → tomato purée + turmeric + chili powder 8 min until thick.
  3. Add crushed kadai masala + ½ cup water; simmer 2 min.
  4. In another pan or same wide kadai: flash onion petals + capsicum 3–4 min on high (still crisp). Add to gravy.
  5. Add paneer, salt, kasuri methi, garam masala. Simmer gently 4–5 min. Portion ~280 g (~65 g paneer).

Capsicum only — no mushrooms. ~400 kcal per 275 g serving. Batch ~1.73 kg — that is 6 plates of 280 g plus about 100 g spare.

Baingan Bharta

Baingan Bharta

5 plates this week · ~975 g batch
~140 kcal / serving ~200 g on the plate

Eggplant

  • 800 g large baingan (2–3 big), for roasting
  • ¾ tsp oil to rub skins

Masala

  • 1½ tbsp oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped (~150 g)
  • ¾ tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 2 medium tomatoes, chopped (~200 g)
  • 1–2 green chilies, chopped
  • ⅜ tsp turmeric
  • ¾ tsp cumin powder
  • ¾ tsp coriander powder
  • ⅝–¾ tsp salt
  • ⅜ tsp garam masala
  • 1½ tbsp chopped cilantro

Method

  1. Rub baingan with oil; roast over open flame or 220°C oven 35–45 min until collapsed and smoky. Cool, peel, mash flesh (~600–575 g mash).
  2. Heat oil. Onion 6 min golden → ginger-garlic + chili 1 min → tomato + powders 5 min until jammy.
  3. Add mashed baingan + salt. Cook 8–10 min on medium, stirring so it dries slightly and picks up smoky flavor.
  4. Garam masala + cilantro. Portion ~200 g. Pair with dal or paneer for protein.

Low calorie volume veg. Protein comes from the dal/paneer/yogurt you serve with it. Batch ~975 g — that is 5 plates of 200 g plus about 55 g spare.

Grab-and-go breakfasts

Pick one every morning. Weights are as prepared in the jar/bowl.

Overnight oats with banana, berries, and nuts
Night before · best option

Overnight Oats

~450 kcal ~420 g jar
  • 40 g (½ cup) rolled oats
  • 175 g Greek yogurt
  • 120 ml milk or water
  • ~100 g fruit + optional 10 g nuts

Night: mix oats + yogurt + liquid. Morning: fruit + toppings.

~450 kcal with banana; berries leaner (~400).

Greek yogurt jar with apple, blueberries, and roasted chickpeas
1–2 minutes

Greek Yogurt Jar

~320 kcal ~350 g jar
  • 225 g Greek yogurt
  • 100 g fruit, chopped
  • Optional: 20 g roasted chana (~80 kcal extra)

Layer the night before or morning of. Ready in under 2 minutes.

Base jar ~320 kcal; + roasted chana ≈ 400 kcal.

Hot oatmeal with Greek yogurt, banana, and strawberries
Under 5 minutes

Quick Hot Oatmeal

~420 kcal ~400 g bowl
  • 40 g rolled oats + ~200 ml water/milk
  • Microwave 2–3 min
  • 125 g Greek yogurt + ~80 g fruit

Stovetop or microwave. Finish with yogurt for protein.

With water base ~420 kcal; whole milk adds ~60–80.

Sunday prep

About 60–75 minutes active for three dishes. Do the Saturday-night soaks so Sunday is mostly cook and portion.

Saturday night

~5 min
  1. Soak 450 g kabuli chana, 8 hrs.
  2. Optional: wash the salad veg and store it dry.

Phase 1 — Start the long cooks (in parallel)

~10 min to start · 30–45 min unattended
  1. Chana for chole — pressure-cook with a tea bag for colour.
  2. Baingan — roast 35–45 min at 220 °C or over the flame.
  3. Put 1100 g dry quinoa or rice on (≈ 3.3 kg cooked). The week needs about 235 g cooked grain per plate.
  4. While the pots run → Phase 2. Don't stand around.

Phase 2 — One chop, one base

~15–20 min
  1. Chop once for all three dishes: 5 onions, 7 tomatoes, ginger-garlic, chilies, cilantro.
  2. Prep the paneer: 400 g for the kadai paneer, 460 g cubed for the veg plates. Keep it chilled.
  3. With only three dishes you can build one onion-tomato base and split it — it saves a pan and 15 minutes.

Phase 3 — Finish the three dishes

~25–35 min
  1. Chole: masala base + chole masala + chana, simmer 15 min, finish with ginger julienne. ~1.52 kg batch · 250 g portions.
  2. Kadai paneer: crush the kadai masala, thicken the tomato base, flash the peppers, fold in paneer. ~1.73 kg batch · 280 g portions.
  3. Bharta: mash the roasted flesh into the onion-tomato masala and dry it out 8 min. ~975 g batch · 200 g portions.

Phase 4 — Portion & store

~15 min
  1. Cool everything uncovered 10–15 min — trapped steam makes watery fridge food.
  2. Box by meal: 200–280 g curry + ~235 g grain + ~200–250 g yogurt. Label the boxes.
  3. Fourteen plates come off three batches (1.52 kg + 1.73 kg + 975 g), so nothing sits in the fridge past Sunday.
  4. Chop salad veg for 2–3 days only; do the rest mid-week. Portion fruit for breakfasts.

Efficiency rule: never cook one pot at a time. The long cooks and the grain should all be running before you start the masala. Three dishes means one chopping board, one base, and one wash-up.

Daily tips

Reheat Splash of water on the curries. Weigh after reheating if you are tracking tightly.
Protein rule Legume or paneer dish + yogurt on every plate. 100 g Greek yogurt ≈ 10 g protein.
Plate template 200–280 g curry + ~230 g grain + ~220 g yogurt. That is the whole plan.
Still hungry? Add salad and yogurt volume before you add grain — it costs the fewest calories.