Vadiyam (Magic Seasoning)

Seasoning curries and gravies is nothing less of an art. Right ingredients, right quantity and right frying enhances the flavor of the dish and a little over burnt or any ingredient added in larger quantity than usual can totally spoil the curry and make it bitter. I was introduced to Vadiyam by aunt and was totally bowled over by the magic it could do to my recipes. Especially palak-pappu, all dal dishes, thalimpus taste exceptionally delicious with just a tsp of the vadiyam. Hence, i made it a point to learn to make vadiyam on my own and after 3 years of summer training have learnt to make this well.... Summer because this recipe needs sunlight in abundance...... It can be stored in air tight containers and 1 ball used at a time, for a year.... till next summer..... Believe me, once you get hooked on to it, most of your dishes will seem incomplete without adding this. That is why i call this the MAGIC SEASONING!!

VADIYAM (MAGIC SEASONING):



Ingredients:
3 kgs onions
100 gms mustard
100 gms urad dal
50 gms jeera
10 gms fenugreek seeds
10 gms turmeric
2 handfuls of rock salt
10 gms asafoedita (hing)
6 bulbs of garlic
1 small bunch of curry leaves (stem the leaves and dry it)
200 gms castor oil


1. Finely chop onions and grind it coarsely adding salt to it.
2. Take the onion paste in a plastic basin and add mustard, urad dal, jeera, fenugreek seeds and turmeric to this and mix well. Cover the mouth of the basin with a clean cloth and keep aside.



3. Next morning, squeeze the onion mix well and dry it on a plastic sheet. Keep the drained liquid in the plastic basin itself, by the end of the day add the dried mix back to the liquid in the basin and mix well again.



4. Repeat the process the next day as well. By the end of 2-3 days, the whole mixture will be completely dry without any moisture left. On the third day, crush each garlic in two (keep the garlic skin on) and add it to the mixture. Also, add the dried curry leaves and hing. Mix everything well.



5. On the 4th day, Mix 150 gms castor oil to this and make balls out of the mixture. Dry it in the sun for 2 days.



6. After 2 days of drying the balls, break each ball a little add a little castor oil to every ball and round it up again and store in air tight container.

To use this seasoning, heat 1 tbsp oil, add 1 tsp of this seasoning and brown it (take care to see it does not turn black) and add 2 red chillies and add this to the curries.

Methi Aloo

I love the methi leaves available in mumbai. It is less expensive than the stuff we get in Bangalore. A bunch of leaves would be 1kg in weight and cost 5rs. The same would cost around 20rs in Bangalore and would still not be as fresh as the greens available in mumbai. This is my personal experience and the opinions of others may differ. Back to the recipe, the flavor of methi is so luscious in this recipe, so i have used very less seasoning to retain the flavor.

METHI ALOO:



Ingredients:

1kg methi leaves
1 medium sized aloo (you can peel it, i have left the skin on)
1/2 tsp jeera
7-8 coriander seeds
1 inch ginger (chopped fine)
1/2 tsp chilli powder
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
Method of preparation:

1. Wash the methi leaves and chop it finely. Cut the potatoes into 1 inch pieces.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in kadai and splutter jeera and coriander seeds. Add the ginger and stir fry for 20 seconds.
3. Add the chopped methi leaves and potatoes and stir fry for 1 minute. Close the lid.
4. Keep stirring intermittently for another 3 minutes.
5. Add the spice powders and salt, mix well and close the lid. Cook till the potatoes are well done.

Serve hot with chapathis or as a side dish with rice and curry.

Chicken Biriyani

Making biriyani, however easy the method you adopt, takes time and patience and only on the right investment of these two does the biriyani come out well and taste delicious...... The biriyani this time came out so well that there was nothing left for me to present on a plate for the photo session. It was cleaned out from the cooker itself 15 minutes after it was prepared.

CHICKEN BIRIYANI:





Ingredients:

1.5 kg chicken
1 kg basmati rice (i used India Gate Basmati rice)
5 onions (slice thin and long)
2 tomatoes (slice thin)
1/2 cup mint leaves (chopped very fine)
1/2 cup coriander leaves (chopped very fine)
4 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
6 cloves
3 sticks cinnamon of 1 inch each
6 pods of green cardamom
2 pods of black cardamom
1 piece star anise
1 tbsp ghee
6 tbsp oil

For paste:

4 tbsp thick coconut milk
10 green chillies (you can use according to your taste)
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 cup mint leaves
1 cup coriander leaves
Grind all the above ingredients to a paste.

Method of preparation:

1. In a pressure cooker, heat oil and add the whole spices.
2. When the whole spices start to crackle, add the mint leaves.
3. Add the onions when the mint leaves turn dark green and shrink.
4. Once the onions turn translucent, add the ginger-garlic paste.
5. As the raw smell of ginger-garlic paste goes, add the chicken and mix well.
6. Now add the ground paste to this and mix well.
7. Add the finely chopped coriander and pressure cook for 1 whistle. Don't add water.
8. Once you close the lid of the pressure cooker, cook the rice in a open pan till half done. Add the ghee, 2 pods of cardamon, 8 leaves of mint, 1 stick of cinnamon to the rice.
9. Strain the water from the rice (let the whole spices and mint remain with the rice)
10. The pressure would have gone down in the cooker by now, open it and add the half cooked rice. Gently mix the rice and chicken thoroughly.
11. Close the lid and cook for a whistle.

Serve this hot with raita. It tastes good without any side dish as well as vouched by my husband, kids and my mother.

Gulab Jamun

My favorite sweet dish since i was a kid. I like the jamun served in hotels and sweet stalls better than the ready mix jamuns prepared at home..... Would always wonder why both are different in texture. So, i tried to make jamuns with paneer, khoya and maida instead of the instant jamun mix, like always. And...... voila!!!!!!!! i got the same texture as in sweet stalls........ and the taste was yummy. I have added rose petals from rose grown at home to this which enhanced the taste even more.


GULAB JAMUN:


Ingredients:

200 gms khoya (unsweetened)
100 gms paneer
5 tbsp maida
a pinch of cardamom powder

for the sugar syrup:

4 cups sugar
4 cups water
7-8 strands of saffron
cardamom powder from 8 cardamoms.
petals from 1 rose (i used 1 medium sized rose, it had around 15 petals)

Method of Preparation:

1. Crumble paneer and grate the khoya.
2. Mix the paneer and khoya to a smooth dough.
3. Mix in the maida and cardamom powder (at this point you can add soda-bi-carbonate if needed)
4. Make a smooth, lumpless dough of the above ingredients.
5. For the syrup, mix the water and sugar and bring it to a boil. Add the cardamom powder, saffron strands and rose petals to the syrup and switch off the flame after a minute.
6. Make small balls of the dough ( i made oval shapes as well) and fry these till reddish brown in ghee/oil. (Pic shown below)




7. Put this into the sugar syrup.

Serve this hot or cold and enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dill leaves and Mutton (Soya aaku maamsam koora)

In South coconut is used in most of the gravy dishes. Since i like to use less coconut in my cooking, i use lots of onions and tomatoes instead. This is one variation of using greens with meat..... apart from the usually used methi and palak leaves.

Dill leaves and Mutton:





Ingredients:

1/2 kg mutton (curry cut)
3 onions (chopped)
4 big ripe tomatoes (chopped)
1 big bunch dill leaves (chopped)
2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tbsp red chilli powder
1 tsp dhania powder
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
curry leaves
Oil as per your taste, minimum 2 tbsp

Method of Preparation:

1. In a pressure cooker, put together the washed mutton pieces, tomatoes, dill leaves, ginger-garlic paste, chilli powder, dhania powder, turmeric, salt. Mix well and add only little water.Now close the lid and pressure cook the mutton for 3-4 whistles or till well done.
2. Take a large kadai, add the oil and fry the onions till translucent, add the curry leaves.
3. Now add the cooked mutton to this and keep frying till the water reduces to your liking. I usually let it cook till it is almost dry.

Tastes very well with plain rice and chapathis. Can be eaten with dosas as well.

Tomato and Carrot Soup

An easy dish to prepare when you want something light for dinner and want it tasty as well.


TOMATO AND CARROT SOUP:




Ingredients:

100 gms carrot
150 gms ripe tomatoes
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 inch piece ginger
2-3 green chillies (add according to taste)
salt to taste.

Method of preparation:

1. Put all the above ingredients into a pressure cooker and cook it for 2 whistles.
2. Once the pressure is released, open the lid and let it cool.
3. Grind it smooth.
4. Check for taste and add pepper and salt if necessary. Garnish it with mint leaves and serve hot.