Huggi (Pongal)

My father and father-in-law love this dish a lot. A favorite of my hubby too but always needs the tamarind sauce to persuade the kids to eat it. This is served as breakfast in almost all hotels throughout tamilnadu. Raita is served alongwith this in many places but i have always liked this best with the tamarind sauce as served in "KADAMBAMS" in Bangalore. Pongal is an easy option to cook for me when i have less time to spare to prepare a meal as this requires very little time for preparation.

HUGGI (PONGAL):




Ingredients:

1 cup raw rice
1 cup moong dal
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tbsp peppercorns (slightly crushed)
4 green chillies
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
4 cloves garlic crushed (optional)
1 tsp jeera
1 sprig curry leaves

Method to prepare:

1. Wash rice and dal seperately.
2. Heal 1 tsp ghee in a pressure cooker and fry the moong dal till a pleasant aroma emanates.
3. Add rice and mix well. Add turmeric, ginger and salt.
4. Add 2 and 1/2 cups water and cook for 2 whistles.
5. Heat 1 tsp ghee in a kadai and add jeera. Once it splutters, add garlic (optional), chillies and curry leaves.
6. Add a little water, boil well and mix this with the rice.
7. Roast a little cashews in ghee an add to this for extra taste.

Serve hot with tamarind sauce (hunisehannina gojju). Recipe given below.

Hunisehannina Gojju (Tamarind Sauce)

I always prepare this dish alongwith Pongal. This tangy, spicy sweet dish tastes delightful and enhances the taste of Pongal unfailingly every single time. I always make extra sauce as the kids love eating chips and crispy snacks with this sauce as a dip. This is another recipe that i made a practise to prepare after relishing its combined taste at "Kadambams" in Bangalore.

HUNISEHANNINA GOJJU (TAMARIND SAUCE) FOR PONGAL:





Ingredients:

1/2 cup thick tamarind extract
1/2 cup powdered jaggery
4 slit green chillies
1 tbsp grated ginger
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1/2 tsp jeera
1 sprig curry leaves
1 tsp oil

Method of preparation:

1. Bring together tamarind extract, jaggery, turmeric, ginger and salt.
2. Add 3/4 cup water and bring to a boil.
3. As the mix is coming to a boil, make a tempering of oil, mustard seeds, asafoetida, jeera, green chillies and curry leaves.
4. Add this tempering to the tamarind mix, mix well and switch off the flame.

Cool this and serve with Pongal.

Pundi Gatti (Steam Rice dumplings)

I like preparing different dishes for dinner rather than chapathi always. Variety always interests the kids and hubby without fail and makes dinner, the only meal together on weekdays, more enjoyable. Making this dish is easy, preparation however takes time and patience. I soak the rice when i'm free in the afternoons and grind it before going to pick my kids from school.

PUNDI GATTI (STEAM RICE DUMPLINGS):





Ingredients:

For batter:
2 cups raw rice
1/2 cup grated coconut
Salt to taste

For tempering:
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp chana and urad dal mix
4 green chillies roughly minced
1 tsp oil

1. Soak the rice for 3 hours.
2. Gring the rice alongwith coconut to dosa batter consistency (The batter need not be too smooth). Add salt.
3. Heat a kadai, add oil.
4. Brown the dal mix in the oil and add mustard seeds and chillies.
5. Add the batter and keep folding from all sides seeing to that the batter does not stick to the kadai. The batter will get cooked and coming together resembing a dough.
6. Make small balls of this and steam for 15 minutes.

Serve hot with chutney. I made roasted gram dal chutney with this.

Roasted Gram Dal Chutney

I always try out different chutneys mostly to avoid the use of coconut which is a big NO when you wanna watch your weight. Tomato and onion chutney, pudina, tur dal, roasted gram dal are all healthier options. Below mentioned is roasted gram dal chutney which i prepared as an accompaniment to the above mentioned steamed rice dumplings..... It makes a very good combination and is very filling as well.

ROASTED GRAM DAL CHUTNEY:



Ingredients:

1 cup roasted gram dal
4 green chillies
1 inch piece ginger
a small piece of tamarind (wet this with a little water)
salt to taste

for tempering:

1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp urad dal and chana dal mix
1 sprig curry leaves
1/2 tsp oil

Method of Preparation:

1. Blend all the ingredients mentioned for the chutney together. Use a little water.
2. Take this chutney in a bowl.
3. Take a little oil in a tempering kadai and heat it.
4. Once the oil is hot, add the urad and chana dal mix and once it browns, switch off the flame.
5. Immediately add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Stir well.
6. Add this to the chutney

Serve with idli, dosa or chapathi. Goes well with chilli bonda and alu bonda as well.
4.

Bisi Bele Bath

A very famous Karnataka recipe. This dish tastes very good at MTR (Mavalli Tiffin Rooms) in Bangalore. They serve it with a delicious raita. It is a one dish meal, easy to make and one of my favorites to cook after i mastered the art of preparing BBB. It took me 10 times of trying to get the perfect BBB recipe. Now i prepare as often as once in 10 days and it improves with every time i cook it. My kids like to eat potato wafers alongwith it, for me, i like it as is or with raita. Replace white rice with brown rice and it makes for good diet recipe with all the nutrition of vegetables and very less oil. This is how i prepare BBB.

BISI BELE BATH:





Ingredients: (powder)

2 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp urad dal
1 tbsp channa dal
1/2 tbsp jeera
6-7 methi seeds
2 pieces of 1 inch each , chinnamon
2 cloves
5 tbsp dry coconut (grated)
8 dry chillies (adjust this to your taste)

1. Dry fry all the above ingredients seperately and blend it into a powder together. Divide this powder in two portions.

For the BISI BELE BATH:

1 cup rice
3/4 cup toor dal
1 portion of the Bisi Bele Bath powder (recipe above)
1 cup of mix vegetables chopped evenly and washed (carrot, beans, capsicum, turnip)
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1/2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp turmeric powder

2. Wash the rice and dal together.
3. Heat the oil in a pressure cooker and add the asafoetida, add the vegetables.
4. Stir fry vegetables for 1/2 a minute, add salt, turmeric powder and the BBB powder, stir fry.
5. After a minute of stir fry, add the washed rice and dal, mix well, add 4 cups of water and pressure cook for 2 whistles. Let the pressure reduce and then open.
for the tamarind mix:

2 tbsp thick tamarind extract
1 tbsp jaggery

6. Mix the above 2 ingredients in 1 cup water and bring it to a boil.
7. Add this to the rice in the pressure cooker and mix well.

for the tempering:

1 tsp mustard seeds
2 sprigs curry leaves
2 dry chillies (split, i used the byadagi variety)
1 tbsp halved cashewnuts (optional)
1 tomato (cut fine)
the second portion of the BBB powder
1 tsp ghee
1/4 tsp asafoetida

8. Heat the ghee in a pan and add mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add asafoetida and reduce flame and add chillies.
9. Add curry leaves and the tomato. Stir fry the tomatoes till cooked.
10. Add the powder and fry for 10 secs and immediately transfer this to the rice. Mix well.

You can also add onions for the tempering.

Though the recipe looks tedious with the number of steps, it isn't when you cook it.

Seafood platter (Mackerel fish curry)

One of the good things of moving to mumbai is the seafood- fresh, variety, abundance. My kids and I love seafood. My daughter does not eat rice or anything else when seafood is prepared at home. She is satisfied only with eating fish all three meals in the day. The prawns here is excellent. I used to not prepare prawns much when in Bangalore but here i love preparing it since it is fresh and does not smell a lot. I marinate prawns in a little turmeric and salt for 15 mins after cleaning and washing it. For curry, mackerel is the best and tastes yum. The meal posted below was prepared the last sunday before diwali (we don't eat non-veg for a month after diwali).

MACKEREL FISH CURRY:





Ingredients:

1 kg mackerel (wash and pat dry)
1/2 cup coconut
1 tbsp red chilli powder
1 tsp dhania powder
a pinch turmeric
1 tbsp thick tamarind extract
salt to taste
8-10 peeled shallots (sambhar onions)
10 cloves of garlic (peeled)
2 sprigs curry leaves
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp vadiyam (if you do not have vadiyam, use 1 tsp mustard seeds, a little jeera, 5 methi seeds)

Method of Preparation:

1. Make a paste of coconut, chilli powder, tamarind extract, turmeric, dhania powder and salt with a little water.
2. Heat oil in a wide thick bottomed vessel. Add vadiyam and fry for 30 seconds.
3. Add the peeled shallots and garlic and fry for a minute
4. Add curry leaves and stir fry for 15 seconds.
5. Add the ground coconut paste and add a little water as the curry will thicken.
6. Let the curry come to a boil and add the fish pieces. Cook for 10 mins, garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with rice. Also tastes superb with dosas and idli.

Prawn Fry (Royalla vepudu)

There are so many different kind of prawns in all sizes available in the market here, i enjoy shopping for them. They are sold in small heaps and the price differs on the size of the prawns. I love the tiger and jumbo prawns than the small ones. Though it is tedious to de-vein them, i just love the taste. If you are averse to the smell of prawn you can make use of the following method to get rid of the smell. After de-veining the prawns, wash it well and marinate in lime juice and turmeric for 15-20 mins and then use it in your recipe.

PRAWN FRY: (ROYALLA VEPUDU):

Ingredients:

1/4 kg prawns (de-veined)
1 large onion (chopped)
1 tomato (chopped)
1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp red chilli powder
2 sprigs curry leaves
1 tsp vadiyam
salt to taste
coriander leaves to garnish
1 tbsp oil

Method of preparation:

1. Heat oil in a kadai (wok), add vadiyam, fry for 30 seconds and add onion.
2. Once the onion turns translucent, add the ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes.
3. Add curry leaves and fry.
4. Add the chopped tomato and fry well till it gets mushy.
5. Add chilli powder and salt and mix well. Let this cook for a minute
6. Add the prawns and cook for 15 mins.
7. Garnish with coriander leaves

Goes well as an accompaniment with rice and dal.

Vanjaram Fry (Anjal/Surmai/Seer Fish Fry)

Vanjaram Fry is a perfect complement to Rasam rice. I buy a whole fish, a minimum of 1 kg will be a good one - anything less would be too small and the pieces will not be so good. In Bangalore, i used to buy half kg or 1kg slices. Here, since there is a good choice, i buy a whole one. I marinate the slices in spices and keep them in the sun for 2 hours and then freeze them. When necessary, i take the required number of slices and fry them. This comes very handy when i have less time to spend for meal preparation and yet my kids demand something yummy and their favorite..... Rasam rice and fish fry.

VANJARAM FRY (ANJAL/SURMAI/SEER FISH FRY):

Ingredients:

1 kg Seer fish (sliced, wash and pat dry)
2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp dhania powder (coriander powder)
1/2 tsp jeera powder
1 tsp vinegar
6 tbsp tamarind extract
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp turmeric
Oil for shallow frying

Method of preparation:

1. Mix all the above mentioned spices. The tamarind extract and vinegar should be enough to bind the dry spices together to a paste, if it is still dry, add some water but the paste must be thick.
2. Coat each slice on both sides with the paste. Keep it aside for 2 hours.
3. On a hot griddle add 1 tbsp oil and place the fish on the oil.
4. After 2 mins, turn over the fish, add a little oil to the sides and cook for another 2 mins. At this point, you can sprinkle pepper powder on the slice.

Serve hot with rasam rice or dal chawal.

Tomato Rice and Chicken Curry

I like trying out different combinations when preparing non-veg dishes. Biriyani always stands alone without any accompaniments when there are no guests, or else, biriyani with green chicken curry. Ghee rice/coconut rice with green chicken/mutton/vegetable stew. Tomato rice usually is prepared when i'm unable to prepare any vegetable dish or curry, hence one dish meal. Last time, after i had made all the preparations for tomato rice when i remembered that i had chicken in the freezer. So, i decided to make red chicken curry to go with the tomato rice. Posting the recipe for the same.

TOMATO RICE AND CHICKEN CURRY:



Ingredients:

for tomato rice:

1 cup rice (washed and soaked for 15 mins before cooking)
1 large onion (sliced)
3 tomatoes (chopped fine)
50 gms green peas (optional)
2 green chillies
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 sprig curry leaves
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 tbsp oil

for chicken curry:

1/2 kg chicken
4 tbsp coconut
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
a pinch of turmeric
1 tbsp tamarind thick extract
1 tbsp vadiyam
1 tbsp oil
2 tbsp ginger garlic paste

Method of Preparation: (Tomato Rice)

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add onions and stir fry till they turn translucent.
2. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes.
3. Add the green chillies, green peas and curry leaves and fry for 30 seconds.
4. Add the tomatoes, fry for 30 seconds and add chilli powder, fry for 1 minute
5. Add the rice, 2 cups of water and pressure cook for 2 whistles and switch off the flame. Open after the pressure is completely released.

To cook this dish in rice cooker, follow steps 1-4 in a kadai in place of the pressure cooker. Add the seasoning for the rice alongwith the rice in the rice cooker.

(Chicken curry):

1. Grind coconut, chilli powder, turmeric, coriander powder, turmeric and salt into a smooth paste
2. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add vadiyam and fry for a minute.
3. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes, then add curry leaves.
4. Add chicken and fry for a minute, add the ground paste and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

You can serve this curry with dosa and idli also.

Puliyogare

One of the easiest to make in an emergency. Maybe that is one of the reasons most of friends at college and my first workplace would get this in their lunch boxes. I for one, hated the ready mix puliyogare and have not had puliyogare anywhere other than Kadambam restaurant in Bangalore. Mummy makes good Vangi bath but even her puliyogare recipe falls short of the taste of Kadambams. I then got this recipe from a Kannada cook book and tried it out with a little variation of my own. Since the first time i prepared this, my husband and kids want this mix ready always so that they can have it as often as they feel like having it. At last, I'm satisfied with the taste of home made Puliyogare. Now, i always have puliyogare gojju stocked in my fridge always.

PULIYOGARE:

 











 

Ingredients: (for gojju)

6 tsp chana dal (kadale bele)
6 tsp urad dal (uddin bele)
24 red chillies (mix of 14 byadagi and 10 guntur chillies)
18 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp jeera
3/4 tsp methi seeds
9 tsp black sesame seeds
9 tsp grated dry coconut
a small piece of jaggery
6 tsp thick tamarind extract
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
1 and 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
4 tsp groundnuts
3 sprigs curry leaves
pinch of hing
10 tbsp oil
salt to taste

Method of preparation:

1. In one tsp oil, fry the chana dal, urad dal, coriander seeds, jeera, methi and chillies seperately.



2. Dry fry the sesame seeds and once the start crackling, add the dry coconut and immediately switch off the flame.


3. Powder all the ingredients in step 1. together.
4. Powder the sesame seeds and dry coconut together. Keep both the powders seperately.
5. Mix the tamarind extract, jaggery and turmeric with a little water in a bowl.
6. Take a thick bottomed karahi and heat the 10 tbsp oil. Add grounduts.
7. Once the groundnuts turn reedish brown, immediately sputter mustard seeds, curry leaves and add hing.
8. Add the tamarind extract mix and let it boil. Once it starts boiling, add the step 1. powder.
9. Mix well and later add the step 2. powder.




The gojju is ready. You can mix this with hot rice, if necessary garnish with coriander leaves.
This stays good for 5 days at room temperature and for more than 15 days when stored in refrigerator.

Nippattu

Another fried snack. I prepared this for Ganesha festival, but could not post the recipe till now. In fact, all the recipes from now on for quite sometime is backlog being uploaded. Mummy used to prepare all these together - rave unde, chakkali, nippattu, kodubale. She used to prepare in large quantities with the assistance of my aunts and granny. It used to be a large group gathered when such snacks and festivities were prepared. Now, with everyone busy in their works none of us staying in close proximity to each other, we end up cooking in small quantities and at times not cooking this stuff at all. I have seen more number of people buying from supermarkets and groceries where they sell this stuff ready. I had done it once but did not like the items much and it did not give me the fulfillment and satisfaction i have when i do it myself. So here goes, another of the fried stuff recipe......

NIPPATTU:



Ingredients:

2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup besan (fried gram flour)
1/2 cup dried coconut (grate and powder)
3 tbsp fried, peeled and lightly crushed groundnuts
6-7 dry red chillies (byadagi variety), coarsely powdered
2 sprigs of curry leaves roughly chopped
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp hing
2 tbsp hot oil for mixing the dough
a pinch of salt

Method of Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients mentioned above into a dough.
2. Make small balls and flatten it into 1/2 inch thick discs on a plastic sheet.
3. Slide it into hot oil and once reddish brown, remove it from the oil.
4. Repeat the same till you exhast all the dough.
5. Cool it and then store it in a air tight container.

Alasande Husuli (Black eyed beans salad)

Legumes being a good source of protein, i include it quite often in our diet. The kids love eating sprouts and beans when it is a salad. They especially like the green gram and alasande (lobia/black eyed bean) salad a lot. My son eats this as a whole meal instead of as an accompaniment. I prepare this without onions if it is on fasting days and if it is prepared as prasadam.

ALASANDE HUSULI:




Ingredients:

1 cup alasande (lobia/black eyed beans)
1 large onion, chopped fine.
3-4 green chillies (slit lengthwise to make it easy for the kids to remove the chillies when eating)
2 tbspn grated fresh coconut
1 tsp mustard
1 sprig curry leaves
a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1 tsp oil
salt to taste
coriander for garnish


Method of Preparation:

1. Cook the beans for 2 whistles and strain completely
2. Heat the oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds, add hing.
3. Add onions and fry till it turns translucent, add curry leaves.
4. Add salt and mix well, now add the beans and mix thoroughly.
5. Add the grated coconut and coriander, mix well and switch off the flame.


Serve this as an accompaniment or as an evening snack

See Kadubu

The preparation for Ganesha festival starts off a week in advance. I remember my mother soaking rice for the preparation of Kadubu dough a week previous to the festival. The main offering to Ganesha on the festival is this Kadubu (also known as modak). There are different kinds of modak, deep fried, steamed and just stuffed. The recipe given below is for the plain stuffed kadubu. For preparing the rice flour for this recipe, rice needs to be soaked for 3 hours, strained and then spread on a clean muslin cloth for drying. Dry this in shade for 1 whole day. Next day it is powdered very fine. My mother, aunt and me would sit and make kadubus with our hands without moulds, when the dough was still hot. Now that moulds are available and i'm the only hand to make kadubus, i use a mould. The kadubus should be made when the dough is hot.

SEE KADUBU:




Ingredients:

For the stuffing
1 cup fried Bengal gram powdered roughly (hurikadale)
1 cup white sesame (fried and roughly powdered)
1 cup jaggery powdered
1 cup dried coconut, grated.
1/4 cup poopy seeds (fried)
6-7 elaichi (seeds powdered)

For the dough:
2 cups rice powder
1 and 1/2 cup water ( adjust according to necessity)
a pinch of salt


Method of preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the stuffing and keep it in an airtight container.
2. Boil water and add a pinch of salt, as the water starts boiling, add the rice flour till all the water is absorbed.
3. Keep mixing with a thick spatula (preferably wooden) to avoid lump formation.
4. As you keep mixing, bring the whole flour together into one huge dough.
5. Make lemon sized balls of the dough when it is still hot.
6. Pat this ball flat and put it into the kadubu mould and fill the stuffing powder into it and make hot hot kadubus.
7. You can further steam this kadubu or eat it without steaming.

Kodubale (Cripy Spicy Donuts)

This is another snack i prepared for Ganesha. Preparing these dishes was nostalgic for me.... reminded me of my mom preparing kodubale and rave unde before we went out on a vacation and even for school picnics. I prefer giving both my kids these home made snacks rather than chips which little ones are usually fond of. Thankfully my kids too prefer homemade snacks to readymade.

KODUBALE:



Ingredients:

2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup huri kadale/bhuna chana/putnala pappulu (ground to powder)
1/2 cup grated & powdered dry coconut (dry coconut is best if you want to store the snack)
1 tbspn jeera
1 tbspn red chilli powder
1 & 1/2 tspn salt
1/4 tsp hing
3 tblspn hot oil
Oil for deep frying

Method of Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients mentioned above except oil.
2. Once all the dry ingredients are mixed well, add the hot oil and again mix well.
3. Add water and knead dough of the above ingredients.
4. Roll the dough into long cylinders of 6 inches in length and 1/2 inch diameter (apprx measurement). Picture shown below for reference.



5. Bring both the ends of the cylinder and join it.
6. Deep fry 6-7 kodubales at a time for 4 mins depending on the size of the kadai. (You have to fry them thoroughly so that it does not soft after it cools)

Store this in an air tight container. Stays crispy for more than a week.

Rave Unde (Rava Laddu)

It has been very long since i have posted on my blog, most important reason being my settling down in a new place, school for kids, a minor accident. Now i'm back to the comfort zone in my new place and back to browsing the net and continuing my internet activities.....
Ganesh festival celebrations are so extensive in mumbai and it was very nice to witness it first hand after listening about it all these years. In my mom's house we treat Ganesha with a huge spread of home made goodies for the festival. The preparations start a week in advance. I too prepared a simple fare for the Lord starting 3 days in advance. I made Rave Unde, Kodubale, Chakkli, Ellu Unde, Nippattu and Kadubu (with Kadubu pudi).

Rave Unde (Rava Laddu):



Ingredients:

2 cups chiroti rava (very fine variety)
1/2 cup milk (warm)
1 and 1/2 cup sugar (powdered) (You can alter it as per your taste)
3 tblspns cashew and raisins (fried in ghee)
4 tblspns ghee
4 pods cardsmom (powdered)

Method of preparation:

1. On medium flame fry the cashew and raisins in 2 tblspns ghee and remove.
2. In the same kadhai with the left over ghee, add another tblspn ghee and fry the rava. U need to keep stirring it continously to avoid burning.Fry till it gives out a pleasant aroma. This will take around 5-6 minutes.
3. Take this into a large mixing bowl and add cashew and raisins, powdered sugar, cardamom powder and warm milk and mix well.
4. Grease your hand and make rava laddus.

This stays good for 15 days at room temperature but the stock has never lasted beyond a week at my place.

Vegetable Wheat Momos & Tangy Spicy Dip

I have been MIA for more than a month since i have been so occupied in settling down and getting the kids adapted comfortably with their new school and surroundings. However, i managed to click a few photos whenever i have wanted so badly to put the respective recipes on my blog......
I have started preparing low calorie dishes quite often, of late. Wheat momos is one of them where we use whole wheat flour instead of maida.I also made a tangy dip alongwith it.

VEGETABLE WHEAT MOMOS & TANGY SPICY DIP



Ingredients:

for stuffing:

50 gms french beans (finely chopped)
50 gms carrots (finely chopped)
25 gms capsicum (finely chopped)
1/2 cup cabbage (finely chopped)
1 onion (finely chopped)
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 tsp green chilli paste
salt to taste

1 cup whole wheat flour, a pinch of salt and sufficient water for making dough.

for spicy tangy dip:

5-6 dry chillies
1 small clove garlic
1 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin powder
a pinch of sugar
salt to taste
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp soya sauce

Method of Preparation:

1. Make a dough of the flour, salt and sufficient water. Keep aside.
2. Heat a tbsp oil in a kadai and add the choppped onions, once it turn translucent, add the ginger-garlic paste and chilli paste and fry till the raw smell goes.
3. Add the chopped vegetables and fry well.
4. Add salt and stir fry the vegetables till done.
5. Make a small round with the dough, fill the vegetable filling and bring the edges together. You can either make it round or semi circle shaped. Pleat the ends. Repeat this till all the filling is used up.
6. Now steam this momos in a steamer for 10 mins. You can use a idli steamer. (I used the rice cooker steamer).

7. For the dip, roast the red chillies and grind it alongwith garlic, cumin powder and coriander seeds and a little water. You can season this with a 1/2 tsp oil and heat the dip adding the vinegar and soya sauce, cook this for a minute till the moisture is dried up.

Serve hot.

Chepala pulusu (Fish curry)

My kids love seafood a lot. When we moved from bangalore to mumbai, i was so excited to visit the fish market and was not disappointed at all. I went to the market in malad which is quite big and all kinds of fish is available. The difference from bangalore is definitely the rates and of course the fish was a lot more fresh. The fish are mostly stored in handfuls and not weighed. A handful of jumbo prawns weighing approximately a kg cost only 350. I enjoyed visiting this market. I came back with prawns and 2 seer fish.

I usually prepare only fry out of seer fish, but since there was a lot of it, i prepared curry as well this time.

CHEPALA PULUSU (FISH CURRY) :



Ingredients:

1 kg seer fish (sliced)
2 medium onions
1 big pod of garlic (peeled)
1 tbsp chilli powder
1 tsp dhania powder
a pinch of turmeric
curry leaves
1 big lemon sized tamarind (soaked and the juice extracted)
coconut milk (optional)
coriander leaves (for garnish)
1 tbsp oil
salt to taste

Method of preparation:

1. Heat oil in a thick bottomed wide dish. Add garlic, fry well.
2. Add onions and fry well till golden brown, add the curry leaves.
3. Now add chilli powder, turmeric, dhania powder, salt.
4. Mix well and add tamarind extract, add some water and let it boil.Add the coconut milk at this stage if required.
5. Once the curry starts to boil, add the fish slices and let it cook for 5-6 minutes, till the fish is cooked.
6. Add the coriander leaves and switch off the flame.

Goes well with idli, dosa and rice.

Bansi Rava upma (lapsi upma)

A very nutritious and tasty dish containing vegetables and fine broken wheat which is healthy and good for people who are on diet. I make this once in 15 days atleast, either for breakfast or dinner. Breakfast if i cut the vegetables the previous night, dinner if i cut the vegetables in the afternoon.

BANSI RAVA UPMA:



Ingredients:

1/4 kg rava
1 onion
1 tomato
1 carrot (cut fine)
7 beans (cut fine)
1 handful green peas (frozen or fresh as per availability)
1 capsicum
6 green chillies (adjust according to taste)
1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
2 cloves
1/2 inch cinnamon stick
a pinch of turmeric
water - twice the measure of rava
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
curry leaves
coriander leaves
1/2 lemon

Method of preparation:

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add clove and cinnamon stick. Splutter the mustard seeds, add the sliced onion and fry.
2. Once the onion turns translucent, add ginger-garlic paste, fry for a minute and then add curry leaves.
3. Now add the vegetables and fry for a minute. Add salt and turmeric, mix well.
4. Add the rava, mix well, add water and again mix. Now add the finely cut coriander leaves and sqeeze the lemon. Close the lid of the cooker and pressure cook for a whistle.

Serve with pickle. I prefer this with avakai.

Idli with Chicken stew

Sunday breakfasts, actually brunch, is usually quite heavy since everybody are at home and are in a leisure mood. Of course, cooking the fare is tedious but since i love feeding my family, i enjoy preparing these meals. For me satisfaction is full stomachs, big smile when licking fingers after finishing off a meal.

IDLI AND CHICKEN STEW:



Ingredients for idli:

2 cups steam rice (salem idli rice)
1 cup normal raw rice
1 cup urad dal
a little salt
Ingredients for chicken stew:

1 kg chicken
2 medium potatoes
1/2 cup coconut
6 green chillies
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 cup mint leaves (pudina)
1/4 cup coriander leaves (cut fine)
4 cloves
1 inch cinnamon stick
4 cardamom pods
1 onion (sliced thin and long)

Method of preparation (idli):

1. Soak rice and urad dal seperately for 6 hours.
2. First grind the urad dal till it is smooth, then add the rice to it and grind. Let the batter be a little rough.
3. Leave the batter for fermentation overnight, minimum 8 hours. Add salt in the morning.
4. Oil the idli moulds a little and pour the batter and steam the idlis for 15 mins.
Method of preparation (chicken stew):

1. Fry half an onion till brown, take this out and fry half the pudina in the same kadhai.
2. Grind the fried pudina, onion, coconut and chillies into a smooth paste.
3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pressure cooker, when the oil heats up add cloves, cinnamon and cardamom and let it splutter.
4. Add the other half onion, fry for a minute, add the remaining pudina leaves and fry for a minute.
5. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for a minute. Now add the chicken pieces, fry well for a minute, then add the potatoes and coriander leaves, mix well.
4. Add turmeric, the ground paste and mix thoroughly. Close the cooker and pressure cook for 3 whistles.

Serve with rice, idli, dosa or chapathi. Goes well with anything.

Brinjal Slice fry

The bharta variety brinjal is available in abundance, like i have mentioned in my earlier posts, brinjals are in plenty in mumbai. I bought a big brinjal 2 days back for preparing bharta and this morning when i was looking for vegetables to prepare a side dish, i hit upon this idea or making brinjal slice fry. I make it rarely, simply because of the time it takes for shallow frying.

BRINJAL SLICE FRY:



Ingredients:

1 brinjal (bharta kind)
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp dhania powder
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
4 tbsp oil for shallow frying

Method of preparation:

1. Slice the brinjal thinly and wash it.
2. Make a paste of chili powder, dhania powder, turmeric, salt with a little water and apply it on the slices.
3. Fry this with a little oil on a tava.

Ready to eat.... goes well with everything. My kids eat it as a snack.

Majjige Huli (Majjiga pulusu)

A very relished dish by all at home. My daughter and me particularly like the ash-gourd in this dish. The coconut in Mumbai is so expensive and not available as easily as in Bangalore, at the same time dairy products here are of the best quality and available in abundance. The milk and milk products here are very creamy and thick..... We will have to cut curds here and not pour it..... the same way we eat lassi here and not drink it. Hence, it is very convenient to prepare curd based dishes often. There are 2 versions to cook this dish which i learnt from my granny and from my aunt. My granny's recipe has a lot of ingredients in the masala... coconut, pepper, jeera, dhania, curry leaves, mustard, ginger, chana dal, fiery red chillies and methi seeds. My aunt uses only, ginger, coconut, green chillies and chana dal. I merged both methods and took out the ingredients i like the most and made my own recipe and VOILA!!! my own version of majjige huli.

MAJJIGE HULI:



Ingredients:

1/2 kg ash gourd (diced into big squares)
2 cups curds (well beaten)
4 tbsp coconut
1 tbsp dhania seeds (coriander seeds) (dry roast)
1 tsp jeera (dry roast)
7 green chillies
1 tbsp chana dal (soaked for an hour)
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste

for tempering:

1/2 tsp mustard seeds
a pinch of asafoedita
curry leaves
1 tbsp oil

Method of preparation:

1. Pressure cook the peeled and diced ash gourd for one whistle. Strain and keep aside.
2. Grind together jeera, dhania seeds, coconut, chillies, ginger, chana dal and turmeric into a paste
3. Heat oil in a vessel and splutter the mustard seeds, add the asafoedita, and then the curry leaves.
4. Add the strained ash gourd to this and stir for half a minute. Add the ground paste to this, mix well and cook this for 2 minutes. Add water if necessary.
5. Switch off the flame and then add the beaten curds, mix well and switch on the stove and cook this for a further minute. Garnish with coriander leaves if necessary.

Tastes very good with rice.

Raw Banana fry

My kids would never eat raw banana in curries or avial. Incorporating raw bananas in their diet was a big challenge to me till i cooked it the below mentioned way quite by chance, actually. I have learnt different ways to cook banana from my mother, but always using coconut in one form or the other. One day i just tried cooking without coconut and VOILA!! everyone in my house became a fan of this dish, including my mom..... It is a great hit especially with my daughter. She doesn't mind having it without sharing with anyone..... Hence a dish which doesn't require much work from my side and is absolutely enjoyed by the kids and my husband.

RAW BANANA FRY




Ingredients:

2 raw bananas
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp dhania powder
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
Method of Preparation:

1. Peel the skin and slice the bananas round. If you want it extra crunchy, slice very thinly.
2. Heat oil in a kadai, add the bananas and stir fry for a minute.
3. Add all the spice powders and keep stir frying till done.

Serve as a side dish. My daughter eats it as a snack.

Methi Capsicum Rice

I haven't been updating my blog for sometime now since i was in the process of shifting from Bangalore to Mumbai. Now that i'm considerably settled, i'm back to my routines. The best part of Mumbai compared to Bangalore is the greens, fresh and good quality and quantity. The methi especially is not bitter when cooked even with the stalks.The brinjals here are in different varieties and very fresh. The cost is also less comparitively.

I tried this recipe as a one dish meal when i was in the process of settling. Luckily, i found the camera and decided to click away to add to my blog. Hence, the below dish.

I'm sending this to Srivalli's breakfast mela.

METHI CAPSICUM RICE



Ingredients:

2 cups rice (raw rice)
1 bunch methi (chopped fine alongwith the stalks)
2 medium sized capsicums (sliced lengthwise)
2 onions
2 tomatoes
2 green chillies (sliced lengthwise)
2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 inch cinnamon
3 cloves
3 cardamoms
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder (dhania)
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil (you can use oil as per your taste, i like it less since it helps in my diet)

Method of Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add cloves, cinnamon and cardamom and let it splutter.
2. Add onions and once it is translucent, add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell is gone.
3. Add the capsicum and methi and fry for a minute. Add the tomatoes and fry for another minute.
4. Now add the spice powders and salt, fry for a minute and then add the rice, mix well.
5. Add 4 cups water and pressure cook this for 2 whistles.

Garnish and serve as is or with raita......

Akki Roti

Akki Roti

I'm sending this dish to "BREAKFAST MELA" hosted by Srivalli.


Ingredients:

2 cups rice flour
2 medium onions (cut finely)
1 carrot (grated)
1 tbsp jeera
coriander leaves (minced fine)

Roughly powder:

6 red chillies
3 tbsp roasted groundut

Method of Preparation:

To prepare powder: Roast the red chillies and once it cools down, powder it rough, add groundnut to it. Don't make the powder very fine, it should be a little more rough than bread crumbs.

1. Mix all the ingredients along with the powder.
2. Once all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, add warm water to it and mix it to the cosistency of chapathi dough.
3. Take a thick muslin cloth (kitchen napkin will also do) and wet it in a bowl of water. Keep this water handy to pat the rotis.
4. Take a handful of dough and pat it on the wet cloth evenly, it looks like the pic below.



5. Place this on a hot tava roti side down and lightly lift the cloth away. Apply oil and close the roti.
6. Allow this to cook 1 minute each side.
7. Prepare all the rotis in the same way.
8. Serve this hot with a dollop of butter. (i prepare rotis everytime i churn butter at home)

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.

Pepper Chicken

PEPPER CHICKEN:

Ingredients:

1/2 kg chicken
1 medium sized onion (thinly sliced)
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
2 tsp pepper powder (coarsely powdered)
a pinch of turmeric
3 tbsp oil


For paste:

1 medium sized onion (thinly sliced and browned) (To brown onions, fry onion, on medium flame, in oil)
4-5 chillies
1/2 cup coriander
Blend all the above ingredients to a smooth paste and keep aside.
Method of Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a kadhai and add the onions. Fry the onions till they turn translucent.
2. Add the ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes.
3. Add chicken pieces and stir fry for a minute. Add turmeric, mix well.
4. Add the paste, mix well and close with a tight lid. Keep stirring every 5 mins. Once the chicken is cooked, add the pepper powder, mix and cook for 30 seconds.
5. Garnish with chopped coriander and a wedge of lime.

I have added potato to this recipe, which is optional.

Serve with chapathi, as a side dish with rice and dal or just enjoy it as an appetizer.

Uddin Vade

My daughter's absolute favorite. If only for her, i usually get it from a sagar hotel near my place and prepare at home only on special occasions. This time i prepared when i did hanuman pooja at home.

UDDIN VADE:

Ingredients:

2 cups urad dal
1 inch piece ginger (chopped fine)
3-4 green chillies (chopped fine)
1 tsp peppercorn (kept whole)
1 big onion (optional, i don't use onions when i keep the vadas as offering to god)
coriander leaves (chopped fine)
curry leaves (chopped fine)
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying.


Method of preparation:

1. Soak the urad dal for 2-3 hours.
2. Grind this to a fine paste without adding much water. The batter should be very thick, not of pouring consistency. (If you made the vadas immediately after grinding, it will be very crisp)
3. Take the batter in a large bowl and add the rest of the ingredients, except oil.
4. Now head the oil in a kadai, Now wet a plastic sheet/betel leaf/banana leaf on your left palm and take a lemon sized ball of this batter.
5. Flatten this slightly on the leaf and make a hole in the middle. Slide this gently into the oil.
6. Deep fry till golden brown on both sides.

Once you get the hang of this, you can make the vadas in your one hand itself without the use of the leaf, as mentioned in step 4.

Brinjal and Potato fry

This dish is so simple and easy and yet tastes very good. It requires minimal energy and ingredients to prepare and tastes very good with phulkas, chapathis and as a side dish with rice and dal. The potato is this dish is optional.

BRINJAL AND POTATO FRY:




Ingredients:

1/2 kg brinjals (preferably the long green ones)
1 medium sized potato
1 tbsp chilli powder
1/2 tbsp dhania powder
a pinch of turmeric
salt to taste
1 tsp mustard
3 tbsp oil

Method of preparation:

1. Cut the vegetables evenly and wash well.
2. Heat oil in the kadai and splutter the mustard.
3. Add the vegetables and stir fry for a minute.
4. Add the spice powders and mix well. Close the lid and let it cook.

Goes very well with phulkas/chapathis.

Kumbalakayi palya (Yellow pumpkin side dish)

Very easy dish to make which goes well with chapathis. I usually make it in the nights when chapathis are a must for everyone at home. This dish goes excellent with plain akki roti as well.

KUMBALAKAYI PALYA (YELLOW PUMPKIN SIDE DISH):

Ingredients:

1/2 kg yellow pumpkin
3 large onions
6-7 green chillies (use according to taste)
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
curry leaves
2 tbsp oil
Method of Preparation:

1. Cut the pumpkin evenly, keeping the skin on and wash it well.
2. Heat oil in a kadai, splutter mustard seeds, add the curry leaves.
3. Add onions and fry till it turns translucent, now add the vegetable and salt.
4. Mix well and close a lid. Cook on medium flame. Add water only if you feel the vegetable is st
icking to the bottom of the pan. Closing the kadai with a tight lid usually helps cook without water, using the vegetables moisture itself.

Serve this hot with chapathis.