Methi Rice

If you think making methi-pulav is a lengthy task, and needs preparations, and should be decided before making rice, then here’s an alternative. You can make this version of methi-rice after preparing rice. And while the rice is being cooked, the preparations with methi can be done in parallel, which saves time. And the taste is quite different, with an enhanced flavor of fenugreek.
Ever since we learnt this variety of methi rice from an aunt, we’ve switched over to it from the usual pulav style.
Here’s the recipe....

Methi Rice

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 10 min, apart from making rice Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Methi - 1 cup, chopped Onion - 2 medium sized, chopped (optional) Green peas - ½ cup (optional) Cooking oil - 1 Tbsp Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp Cinnamon - 1” stick, broken into 4-5 pcs Cloves - 4-5 Pepper - 8-10 Cooked Rice - 3 cups (preferably Basmati) Water - 3 cups Salt - ½ Tsp or as per taste Coconut - ½ cup, grated Green chilies - 5-6, depending on taste Ginger - 1" cube Method: • Heat oil in a pressure pan and add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and pepper • After half a minute, add grated ginger, slit green chilies, chopped onion and peas. Sauté for 2-3 minutes • Add chopped methi leaves and sauté for 3-4 more minutes, till the raw smell of methi is replaced by an aroma of sautéed methi • Add grated coconut, salt and stir • Mix in the cooked rice thoroughly and optionally heat it for another few minutes • Add water and cook in the pressure pan till 2 whistles • Serve it hot, optionally with any raita Tips n Tricks: • Avoid adding methi in excess as it gives the pulav a bitter taste Variations: • Onion and green peas can be added or omitted – both give a different taste

Eerulli Gojju - Onion Gravy

We generally make this when we're bored of gravies with vegetables, and want a change in taste. This onion gravy is quite simple to make and has a distinct taste when compared with other vegetable gravies. Making it a little spicy, with a correct blend of chilies, tamarind, jaggery and salt makes it an ultimate dish for rice, chapathis or even dosas. And it can be preserved for a couple of days too, when boiled sufficiently.

Here’s the recipe....

Onion Gravy (Eerulli Gojju)

Preparation time : 15 min Cooking time : 15 -20 min Serves : 5-6 Ingredients: Onions – 8-10 medium sized Cooking Oil - 1 Tbsp Turmeric - a small pinch Chana dal – 2 tsp Urad dal – 1 tsp Fenugreek seeds - ¾ tsp Red chilies - 10 -12, byadagi variety (use Guntur variety for spicier version) Coconut - 1 cup, grated Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - 15-20 Jaggery - 2 big marble sized lumps Tamarind - 2 -3 big marble sized balls, washed and soaked Salt - 1 tsp, vary acc to taste Method: • Chop onions into small pieces (Need not be very fine, and nor should it be very big ) • In a thick bottomed pan, heat the oil and mustard seeds and allow to splutter • Add half the curry leaves and chopped onion and turmeric • Sauté it well on medium flame for 5 to 10 minutes, till the onions turn translucent. • Meanwhile, in a separate pan, dry roast chana dal, urad dal, fenugreek seeds, red chilies and remaining curry leaves for 1-2 minutes till they become aromatic and golden brown • Allow to cool slightly and grind the roasted spices with grated coconut, salt and jaggery, tamarind pulp adding water if required • Add this ground paste to the sautéed onions, and bring it to a boil • Add water to maintain gravy-like consistency • Put off the flame after 5 minutes of boiling Tips n Tricks: • Sauté the onions well, till they turn translucent to avoid the raw smell

Methi Pulav

A flavored rice with fenugreek leaves, this one can be easily prepared. This is my most common choice when I’ll have to host a big bunch of people for lunch/dinner. Keep the ingredients ready before hand, and prepare the pulav just before they arrive, and have no worries at all! Reheating also may not be required if the pressure cooker is kept closed till serving (if served within a couple of hours). And a simple raita makes a good combination.
This one is one of my favorites for lunch pack too.

PS: The pic is an old, not-so-good one, will try to replace it sometime...

Methi Pulav

Preparation time : 15 min Cooking time : 15 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Methi - 1 cup, chopped Onion - 2 medium sized, chopped (optional) Potato - 1 small, cut into pcs (optional) Green peas - ½ cup (optional) Cooking oil - 1 Tbsp Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp Cinnamon - 4-5 small pcs Cloves - 4-5 Pepper - 8-10 Rice - 2 cups (preferably Basmati) Water - 3 cups Salt - ½ Tsp or as per taste Coconut - ½ cup, grated Green chilies - 5-6, depending on taste Ginger - 1" cube Coriander - 1 Tbsp, chopped Ghee - 1 Tsp Cashew nuts - 10-12 Method: • Heat oil in a pressure pan and add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and pepper • After half a minute, add the cut onion and potato sauté for 2-3 minutes • Add chopped methi leaves and sauté for 2 more minutes • Add washed basmati rice to the pan and sauté for a minute • Meanwhile coarsely grind coconut, green chillies, coriander leaves and ginger without water • Now mix the ground mixture and salt in to the pan and stir for a minute • Add water and cook in the pressure pan till 2 whistles • In another small pan, heat ghee and fry cashew nuts till golden • Add to the pulav and mix after the pressure comes down • Serve it hot, optionally with any raita Tips n Tricks: • Avoid adding methi in excess as it gives the pulav a bitter taste Variations: • Any combination of onion, potato and green peas can be added – every combination gives a slightly different taste

Upma with green pigeon peas (Kalu uppittu)

I always loved Upma with some peas in it – green pigeon peas (togarikalu) or green peas (batani) or Indian beans (avarekalu). It seems when I was a kid, I used to call it “kaupputtu”, my version for Kalu-uppittu (Upma with some peas in it).

And it still is one of my favorites, especially when it is prepared in the right way, with right proportions of ingredients. The aroma that fills into the house when preparing upma, a plate of hot upma with a spoon of ghee topped on it, the crisp lentils in it, awww... it’s mouthwatering.......

And now at home, my FIL gives me good company in being a fan of it! We both conspire to prepare it, against my MIL’s wishes and just savor it..... when there are green pigeon peas in the fridge, definitely there would be a demand for upma from FIL.....

Here’s how you make tasty tasty kalu-uppittu....

Kalu Uppittu / Upma with pigeon peas

Preparation time : 15 min Cooking time : 20 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Semolina/Soji/Rava - 2 cups Fresh green Pigeon peas / Togari kalu / Tuvar Lilva – 1 cup Cooking Oil - 2 Tbsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Turmeric - a small pinch, optional Green chilies - 8 – 10 Ginger – 1” piece Onions – 1 medium sized, optional Curry leaves - 15-20 Coriander – 1 tbsp, chopped finely Water – 3-4 cups Coconut - ½ cup, grated Chana dal – 2 tsp Urad dal – 2 tsp Salt - 1 tsp, vary acc to taste Method: • Dry roast semolina in a thick bottomed pan for 5-10 minutes, continuously stirring. Roast till semolina starts browning and the aroma fills into the house • If pigeon peas are not very tender, cook them in a little water, either on stove-top or in microwave for 3-4 minutes • Meanwhile, chop onions into small pieces (Need not be very fine, and nor should it be very big ). Slit green chilies, grate ginger • Heat water in a vessel and bring it to boil while you start with the upma • In a thick bottomed pan, heat the oil, add mustard seeds and allow to splutter • Add the curry leaves, slit green chilies and chopped onion and turmeric. (I did not use onions and turmeric this time) • Sauté it well on medium flame for 2 minutes, add grated ginger • Now add the pigeon peas (without water; save the water for later use) and sauté for another 3-4 minutes till the peas are soft • Add salt and stir for another minute • Now add the roasted semolina and mix thoroughly • Carefully pour the boiling water into the pan, stirring continuously, ensuring no lumps are formed. Use a long ladle/spoon to avoid burning your hands • Add grated coconut, coriander, cover the pan with a plate and cook for 5-8 minutes, on medium low flame. Stir occasionally. Turn off the flame and keep covered for a couple of minutes more. • Finally, in a small skillet, heat a teaspoon of oil and roast chana dal, urad dal for about a minute till they turn golden brown. Mix it to the upma just before serving. This ensures that the dals are crisp when served. Serving: • To make the upma more attractive, take a cup, add a bit of coconut, a few coriander leaves. • Stuff the cup with the hot upma. • Invert it over the serving plate and remove the cup carefully • Add a spoonful of ghee and serve it before the ghee melts on hot upma :) Tips n Tricks: • Make sure the pigeon peas are tender, before adding it to the oil • Chana dal and urad dal can be added along with other tempering, but adding it late retains the crispiness Variations: • Pigeon peas can be substituted with green peas • Adding onions or not gives very different tastes

Brahmi Tambuli

Tambuli is a kind of raita prepared generally using a medicinal herb. It requires very few ingredients and is very easy to make, with high medicinal values. One of the types of tambuli is made from Brahmi or Vandalaga as it is called in Kannada.

Brahmi / Bacopa monnieri / Thyme-leafed gratiola is a long treasured herb, possessing antioxidant properties, and having the amazing ability to facilitate learning and enhance memory and concentration. It is a pacifier of all the three doshas — mainly kapha and vata. Brahmi is not only a memory-booster and intellect-promoting herb; it is also a tranquillizer, a muscle relaxant, an anti-convulsant, a blood purifier, and an anti-pyretic, carminative and digestive agent.

Brahmi is known for its salutary effect in anxiety, depression, hypertension, sleeplessness, mental retardation, insanity, hysteria and epilepsy. Ancient texts describe the use of Brahmi in a number of other disorders like biliousness, ulcers, asthma, skin diseases and in general and senile debility.

Brahmi Tambuli

Preparation time : 5 min Cooking time : 5 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Brahmi leaves - 1 cup Ghee - 1 Tsp Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp Pepper - 1 Tsp Red chili - 1 Coconut - 2 Tbsp, grated Salt - ½ Tsp or as per taste Curd - ½ cup For tempering: Ghee - 1 Tsp Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp Method: • In a skillet, heat ghee and roast cumin seeds, pepper and red chili • Once the spices are roasted, add washed Brahmi leaves and sauté till they wilt, for a minute or two • Grind the above mixture with grated coconut into a fairly smooth paste • Transfer it to a bowl and mix in salt and curd Tempering: • In a skillet, heat ghee and add cumin seeds and curry leaves and allow to splutter • Transfer the tempering to the Tambuli and serve with hot rice Variations: • Other herbs like Doddapatre, ginger, etc can be used in place of Brahmi

Menasina Saru / Black Pepper Rasam

A very simple and easy to make variety of rasam, made with pepper as a main ingredient. It is best suited for a cold and rainy day, with a bowl of piping hot rice. Nothing else can beat this rasam. Also makes a great meal if you’re just about recovering from cold, cough or fever, adding the health benefit of pepper and cumin seeds, and soothing the throat.

Menasina Saru / Black Pepper Rasam

Preparation time : 5 min Cooking time : 10 min Serves : 5-6 Ingredients: Black pepper - 2 Tsp Cumin seeds - 3 Tsp Urad dal - 3 Tsp Channa dal - 1 Tsp Red Chili - 1 Curry leaves - 10-12 Coconut - 2 Tbsp, grated Salt - ½ Tsp or as per taste Water - 4 Cups, change acc to consistency Milk - ½ Cup For tempering: Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp Ghee - 1 Tsp Method: • In a skillet / kadai, roast pepper, Cumin seeds, Urad dal, Channa dal, Red Chili and Curry leaves till the lentils turn golden brown • Let it cool slightly • Grind the roasted mixture with coconut and water if needed to make a very fine paste • Transfer the ground paste to a larger vessel, add enough water to get rasam-like consistency • Add salt and allow to boil for 5-8 minutes • Add milk and put off the heat Tempering: • Heat ghee in a small skillet • Add cumin seeds and allow it to sputter • Add this crispy garnishing to the menasina saru just before serving • Serve hot with piping hot rice and a spoon of ghee Tips n Tricks: • Make sure to grind the ingredients into a very smooth paste, which will add to the taste Variations: • Dry coconut can be added instead of fresh coconut, but nothing can beat the taste of fresh coconut

Badam Puri - A layered, soft-yet-crispy sweet

At lunch table, when we were discussing about what sweet dish to prepare for Deepavali, someone suggested Badam Puri. And immediately the memories of my first birthday after marriage came up. MIL had prepared a very tasty meal of Peas Pulav and Badam Puris for me. I had happily hogged all that I could.

I remembered that and decided that Badam Puri would be the sweet for one of the days of Deepavali. I just couldn’t resist my temptation to have those slightly crisp, golden colored, sugar coated melting sweet, but I had no choice but to wait till the festival. This sweet is generally made in weddings, but I bet home-made version cannot just beat the taste and is also healthier, mainly because we use ghee at home instead of vanaspathi (dalda).

I learnt making it from my MIL, and it did come out very well.

Here’s the recipe...

Badam Puri

Preparation time : 20 min Cooking time : 20-25 min Makes : ~20 Ingredients: All Purpose Flour (Maida) – 2 Cups Ghee – 1 ½ Tbsp Baking Powder – ½ teaspoon, optional Food color – 1 pinch/drop, preferably saffron or yellow Salt – a small pinch Cooking oil for deep frying Water For Sugar Syrup: Sugar – 1 Cup Water 1 Cup Method: Dough: • In a bowl, add ghee, baking powder, salt and food color and beat it for 5-10 minutes continuously with your fingers • Once the ghee forms a very smooth paste, add flour and mix thoroughly • Add a little water and form a soft dough, neither too tight nor too loose • Knead the dough for at least 8-10 minutes ensuring there are no cracks in it Sugar Syrup: • Meanwhile in another vessel mix water and sugar and boil it • Food essence may be optionally added for enhanced aroma • A pinch of color can be added as well for attractive color Badam Puris: • Now make small TT-ball sized balls out of the dough • Roll out puris of about 4” diameter • Fold it first into half and then again, making it 4 layered • Slightly press it, using the rolling pin so that the layers are held closely • Heat oil in a frying pan and fry these rolled and folded puris one by one in medium low flame till golden brown. The puris puff up and increase in size when fried. • Drain excess oil by spreading it on a kitchen towel / tissue • Drop the puris one by one as they are fried into the sugar syrup prepared • After 5-6 minutes take out the sugar soaked puris from the syrup, in the order that they were dipped, and spread them out on a dry plate. • The coated syrup is absorbed and the Badam-puris become dry in sometime Serve it immediately when still hot or after cooling Tips n Tricks: • Knead the dough enough to get a uniform texture • The sugar syrup should be thicker than that for Gulab Jamuns, so that the puris do retain crispiness, yet absorb the sweetness • Do not wait for too long after the syrup is made, as the syrup starts solidifying when cooled

Eggless Banana Muffins

Don’t want to make a full fledged cake, yet want to bake something?

Don’t want to spend a lot of time, yet come up with some yummy mini-cakes?

Don’t want to take risk with baking and want a sure-success recipe?

Don’t want to waste the left over ripe bananas, and make something ‘fruitful’ out of it?

Then here’s a simple, easy, no-risk recipe for banana muffins..... It just cannot go bad, so try it out without any hesitation..... Jump start to baking with this irresistible muffins...

Banana Muffins

Preparation time : 15 min Baking time : 20-25 min Makes : 12 muffins Ingredients: Ripe Bananas – 4, medium sized All Purpose Flour – 1 ½ Cups Sugar – ¾ Cup Melted Unsalted Butter – 1/3 Cup Baking Powder – 1 teaspoon Baking Soda – 1 teaspoon Raisins - Half Cup, or Walnuts, Finely Chopped Method: • Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F • Line the Muffin tray with the Muffin Liner Paper Cups. I simply greased and dusted the muffin tray • Mash the Bananas in a bowl • Add the Melted Butter and mix well using a spatula • Add in the sugar and stir well. Keep this bowl aside till needed. • Take another bowl, preferably Large. Add the Flour. Mix in the Baking Powder and Baking Soda. Sieve the mixture a couple of times for uniform mixing. • Mix in the wet and dry mixtures together. Do not over mix. Mix only for a minute or two. Do not use any kind of Electric Hand Mixers. • Keep aside 1 tablespoon of raisins and stir in the remaining raisins in the batter. • Fill ¾ of the Muffin Cups. Use a Spoon to fill the Cups. Sprinkle the remaining raisins on the top • Bake it in the Oven for about 20 -25 minutes, until the Muffins are golden brown. • Cool the Muffins completely before serving. Tips n Tricks: • Do not over mix the mixture. Let it remain crumbly. Variations: • Chopped walnuts can be added in place of raisins • One beaten egg can be added to get smoother muffins, but even eggless tastes almost the same

Gongura pickle

We had these tenants of ours who were from Andhra. They were recently married, and the wife was quite a young girl, who was just out of college. She'd come home for spending some time talking to mom to kill her boredom in a new place. And mom give her company for sometime, while we would be curiously listening to the conversation!

One of the usual topics would be food, and she'd often say she had prepared something with gongura. We were quite unaware of this gongura then. And she'd explain that it is a very famous variety of greens and used widely in Andhra cuisine. And she'd sometimes give us a tangy spicy pickle like thing to taste, in a small bowl in return to something that mom would have sent to her. And it would taste awesome with hot rice and a spoonful of ghee/oil. The next encounter with this gongura pickle was at Andhra style restaurants, where Dee loves the pappu (dal) and this gongura pickle.

So when the vegetable vendor come with fresh bunches of maroon stalked green gongura, i was tempted to buy it, even without any idea of how to use it. And i soon figured out umpteen different recipes from various sources! Then decided to refine it to my taste and make it to suit our tastebuds. And it did come ou good, and a huge bunch of leaves yielded me only a small bowlful of the pickle, and what i thought i'll have to preserve for weeks, didn't last for more than three days! Everyone - including little niece Hima had an extra round of gongura pickle rice for every meal, till it lasted!

Gongura pickle

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 15 min Makes : 1 cup of pickle Ingredients: Gongura leaves - 5-6 cups, washed and picked Oil - 2 tbsp Salt - 1 tsp For spice powder:Dry red chilies - 15-20 depending on taste Mustard seeds - 3 tsp Fenugreek seeds - 3 tsp For tempering: Oil - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Asafetida - 1 pinch Method: Spice powder• Heat a skillet and roast all the ingredients • Cool slightly and grind it to a powder Gongura pickle• Wash the gongura, separate the leaves from stalk • In a heavy bottomed pan, heat 1 tbsp of oil and add the gongura leaves • The volume of the greens reduces drastically • Sauté it for a while till the water content evaporates • Keep stirring, to avoid sticking to the pan, add more oil if needed • Once done, the oil starts separating out from the pickle • Add the spice powder prepared and mix thoroughly for a couple of minutes, with the heat on • Heat oil in a small skillet, add mustard and allow to splutter, add asafetida and mix it to the pickle • Serve with rice and ghee/oil, curd rice, dosa, etc Tips n Tricks: • The gongura reduces in volume drastically - so use more if you want to prepare more Variations: • Sautéed onions can also be added

Nutty Okra Masala - A definite hit!

'What's cooking?'

'Bendekai ....'

'Ohhh no..... i dont want it.... i'll just have somthing else....'

'Listen, it'll be nice.....'

'No, it'll be sticky and slimy.... i dont like it at all....'

This used to be Dee's reaction to Okra, till I started making dishes with okra not sticky, slimy, flabby and broken....

'And now the conversation goes like this....

'What are u making?'

'Bendekai .....'

'Wow... You're making that peanut wala bhindi, right??'

'Hmmmm....'

'Make that please... i love it.....'

So would be everyone's demand - even my inlaws'. We've all fallen in love with this variant of Bhindi masala. I've even made it for guests, shared it with colleagues, lunch pals, and well, every one gets bowled over for this! And they'll definitely ask for the recipe, even the guys would! And a pal who tasted it, urged me to put it on my blog soon, and thanks to her, the post is up for u all!

Well, i actually got this recipe from Sia's Monsoon Spice here; Thanks Sia for a wonderful combination. I had read it and got a fair idea of the ingredients and method, though not noted it, and later tried it out after a few days. I did not follow it completely, though, and made some modifications to suit my taste and method.....

You just got to try it, and I can guarantee it's gonna be a BIG HIT! Be sure to follow the instructions to handle okra, though.

Nutty Okra Masala

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 20 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Okra/Ladies finger - ½ - ¾ kg Onions - 2 big Oil - 2 tbsp Salt to taste For spice powder: Peanuts - 1 tbsp Bengal gram dal - ½ tbsp Black gram dal - ½ tbsp Sesame seeds - ½ tbsp Dry red chilies - 10-15 depending on taste Curry leaves - 10-12 leaves For tempering: Oil - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Black gram dal - 1 tsp Peanuts - ½ tbsp Sesame seeds - 2 tsp Curry leaves - 10 - 12 leaves Method: Spice powder • Heat a skillet and roast all the ingredients except sesame seeds • When they are almost roasted, add sesame seeds and turn off the flame, continue stirring for a few more seconds • Cool slightly and grind it to a coarse powder • This can be prepared in larger quantity and stored for multiple uses Okra masala • Wash the okra, wipe it with a kitchen towel and dry it completely • Chop it on a dry cutting board with a dry knife, into ¾” pieces • In a heavy bottomed pan, heat1 tbsp oil and add the chopped okras • Roast the okra on a high flame, continuously stirring, till the slime vanishes. • Add a little more oil if needed • Add salt and mix in thoroughly, continuing heat for 2 more minutes • Chop onions and in a separate pan, heat the remaining oil and sauté till translucent • Mix the roasted okra, add the spice powder prepared above and mix thoroughly till the spice powder is evenly coated over the okras Tempering • Heat oil in a small skillet, add mustard and allow to splutter • Add peanuts and after a few seconds add black gram dal and curry leaves • When the nuts and dal are done, add sesame seeds and turn off the flame • Add this to the above prepared okra-onion masala and mix well • Serve with chapathis / rice Tips n Tricks: • Make sure there is no water content in the okra, or the dish will turn into a disaster. • Don’t worry if the walls of the pan get charred, it can be easily washed off. • Never cook the okras with the pan covered, it gets soft and broken rather than staying crunchy Variations: • Dry grated coconut can also be added, but I prefer without it

Honest Scrap Award

Jyothi has passes this award caller “Honest Scrap Award” to me. Thanks Jyothi, I’m honored.

I didn’t know what it means when I read the comment from Jyothi that I’ve got this ‘Honest Scrap’ award. Googled and found out this: "This award is about bloggers who post from their heart,who oftentimes put their heart on display as they write from the depths of their soul."
The award has two components:

1. First, you have to list 10 honest things about yourself (and make them interesting)
2. Then, you have to present the award to seven other bloggers.

Now, coming to the 10 honest facts about me.... Since I’ve got this award on my food blog, let me try to list down 10 honest things related to food / cooking.... and here it is....

1. I like trying out new things and experimenting new combinations
2. I don’t mind admitting fault when I’ve done some goof up with some dish
3. When it comes to having my favorite items, I WANT it the way I want it... I’ll just not like it if it’s a little this side or that in taste / appearance
4. People get irritated with me at times when I’m so particular
5. I like cooking myself - taking ownership of whatever I do, rather than taking instructions and just helping out in the kitchen
6. As much as I love to cook at home, I also love to freak out and try different cuisines at various food joints. And when I feel like having something at some place, I’ll badly start craving for it :)
7. If I feel I don’t like something, then I’d be so adamant not to change my opinion for it. Like I never used to eat raw onions (except for in chats), I never eat tomatoes if they are visible, and many more like that. And of late I’m getting over that habit.... I’ve started loving raw onions, though I’ve not changed my mind about tomatoes yet!
8. I just LOVE whatever mom makes, and still I make a fuss with her, that this should be like that, that should be like this and so on, and irritate her
9. Though I had learnt quite a bit of cooking before marriage, I had never managed to learn rolling chapathis! It was only a few months after marriage that I started seriously practicing it whenever I went to mom’s place, and learnt it!
10. I get excited when I invite guests home for a meal. I’d plan and plan on an elaborate meal, prepare for it and make it..... and end up feeling exhausted and of course satisfied!

Ok, these were the ten things I could think of for now......
Now, I pass it on to
- Sia
- Kitchen Flavours
- Preeti
- Kaush
- Hema
- Sushma
- And anyone else who wants to take it.....
You don’t have to necessarily write 10 honest things related to food alone... it can be anything :)

Pongal & Chutney - A simply great combination

• Are you tired to cook something complicated, and want to wind off cooking something very easy not compromising on the quality of food?
• Are you tired after having heavy foods for a couple of days and longing for some simple-food?
• Are you just recovering from fever, with your taste buds craving for something hot and tasty, but do not want to spoil your health with anything spicy or fatty?
• Are you just feeling low and want something to lift your spirits up?

If you answer yes to anyone of the above, then here’s the remedy - prepare a bowlful of pongal, and have it hot - real hot with crispy tempering and freshly prepared simple chutney.

Pongal is something that can be made in a variety of ways, with a variety of add on ingredients, and whatever way you make it, it’ll surely taste good. And will definitely make you feel good, lift your spirits up and of course fills up your tummy too. Dont forget to serve with a spoon of ghee poured over the hot pongal!

Here’s a simple version of the simple food - Pongal...

Pongal

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 15 min Serves : 4 -5 Ingredients: Split moon dal - 1 cup Rice - 1 cup Ghee - 1 tbsp Ginger - 1”cube, grated Cumin seeds - 1 tsp Coconut - 2 tbsp, grated Green chilies - 3-4 Coriander leaves - 3-4 strands Turmeric - 1 pinch Hing - 1 pinch Salt to taste Water - 6-7 cups (or more if you want it more watery) For tempering: Ghee - 2 tsp Black pepper - 1 tsp Cashewnuts - 2 tsp Method: • Wash rice thoroughly and keep aside • Grind raw cumin seeds, coconut, green chilies, coriander leaves, turmeric and hing into a coarse paste without adding any water • In a pressure pan, heat ghee • Add split moon dal and fry till light golden, till it gives out an aroma • Add the grated ginger, ground mixture and stir for a few seconds • Add washed rice, water and cook in the pressure pan for 3 whistles Tempering • Heat ghee in a pan • Add black pepper and allow to sputter • Turn the heat low, add cashew nuts and stir till they turn light golden color • Add this to the pongal prepared, just before serving, to retain the crispness of pepper Tips n Tricks: • Dry grated coconut can be used instead of grinding the fresh coconut with chilies, etc Variations: • Add enough water - more than 4 times the quantity of rice and dal combined, to have a watery consistency

And this is the chutney that best goes with pongal...

White Chutney

Preparation time : 5 min Cooking time : 5 min Serves : 4 -5 Ingredients: Coconut - 1 cup, grated Green chilies - 5-6, depending on taste Ginger - ½” cube Asafoetida - a big pinch Cooking oil - 1 Tsp Fried gram dal - 2 Tsp Tamarind - a small marble sized ball Salt - ½ Tsp or as per taste For tempering: Cooking oil - 1 Tsp Curry leaves - A few strands Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp Method: • Roast green chilies and asafetida in a tsp of oil, till the chilies become crisp • Grind the above with all other ingredients, adding a little water if needed • Transfer the ground chutney to a serving bowl Tempering: • Heat the oil in a pan, add mustard and allow to splutter • Add asafetida and curry leaves Garnish the chutney with tadka Tips n Tricks: • Do not make the chutney too smooth – a little coarse consistency will give a better taste

Dill Rice - A nutritious rice speciality

Dill, or sabsige soppu as we call it in kannada, is a flavored herb, and used in a variety of dishes. I recently found that it has many nutritional values...

• Dill contains numerous plant derived chemical compounds that are known to have anti-oxidant, disease preventing and health promoting properties.
• This popular herb contains no cholesterol; but is rich in anti-oxidants and dietary fibers which helps to control blood cholesterol levels.
• The essential oil, Eugenol, in the dill has been found to reduce blood sugar levels in diabetics, however, further detailed studies required to establish its role.
• Dill oil, extracted from dill seeds has anti-spasmodic, carminative, digestive, disinfectant, galactagogue (helps breast milk secretion), sedative properties.
• It is also rich in many vital vitamins including folic acid, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin A, beta carotene, vitamin-C that are essential for optimum health and helps body to protect from lung and oral cavity cancers.
• Fresh dill is an excellent source of antioxidant vitamin; vitamin-C. Vitamin-C helps body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals.
• Dill weed is a good source of minerals like copper, potassium, calcium, manganese, iron, and magnesium.

Source : http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/dill-weed.html

Dill has all the characters to consider it has one of the most valuable functional food. Then why not use this nutritious herb and make a delicious rice item!

Got this recipe from mom - she apparently learnt it recently, experimented it and then told me about it. And I, wanting to try out something new, tried it out, and it came out beyond my expectation! The spice powder used here is something that one can find stocked in our kitchen shelf at any time, so that made it easier for me. Nevertheless, it is not a great task to make the spice powder fresh, and it is really worth it. And once made, it can be stored for a couple of months too.

Dill Rice

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 15 min Serves : 4 -5 Ingredients: For Spice powder: (makes spice powder to make Dill rice 3-4 times) Chana dal - 1 tbsp Urad dal - 1 tbsp Red chilies - 20 - 25 (preferably byadagi variety) Coriander seeds - 2 tbsp Cinnamon - 2-3 one inch sticks Cloves - 8-10 Maratha Moggu - 2-3 Cardamon - 3-4 For Dill Rice: Dill leaves (Sabsige soppu) - 2 small bunches Cooking oil - 1 tbsp Tamarind pulp - 2 tsp Salt - 1 tsp, adjust acc to taste Spice powder - 2 tsp Jaggery - 1 small marble sized ball Rice - 2 cups For tempering: Cooking oil - 1 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Groundnut seeds - 1 tbsp Chana dal - 2 tsp Urad dal - 2 tsp Curry leaves - 2-3 strands Turmeric - 1 pinch Method: Spice powder • Dry roast all the ingredients • Allow to cool for 5 minutes • Grind them into slightly coarse powder • This can be made in larger quantity and preserved for a couple of months Tempering • Heat oil in a pan • Add mustard seeds and allow to sputter • Turn the heat low, add groundnut seeds, and stir • After the groundnuts are half-done, add chana dal and urad dal • Add curry leaves and stir for half a minute till all the ingredients are properly roasted. Keep aside till needed. Dill rice • Wash rice, soak in water for 10 minutes • Cook rice in pressure cooker or in microwave by adding about 4 cups of water (quantity of water should be adjusted depending on the variety of rice)• Pick the dill leaves, wash thoroughly and chop into small pieces • In a heavy bottomed pan, heat 1 tbsp oil • Add the chopped dill leaves, and stir every 2 minutes for about 10 minutes • Ensure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. It takes a while to cook thoroughly. • Once the dill leaves are cooked, add tamarind pulp, salt, jaggery and 2 tsp of spice powder prepared • Stir for another 5 minutes till the mixture becomes slightly dry • Spread the cooked rice in a wide pan, cool slightly and mix in the dill mixture and tempering • Mix thoroughly using hands, so that the dill is evenly mixed into rice • Serve it warm, or by heating slightly, optionally along with any raita Variations: • The same can be prepared with methi leaves too

Jackfruit Halwa

More than two years into proper cooking and still I hadn’t tried out any sweet. Except for often making my favorite semiya payasa and jamoon using ready mix; and also being an assistant in making some other complex sweets. With the sweet tooth or teeth that I have, I started wondering why I hadn’t yet experimented with any sweet myself. May be because the folks at home do not like sweets as much as I do, or are not supposed to eat them. But how do I resist my temptation for a sweet....

One day at lunch table, while having nice and ripe jackfruit, V suggested a recipe of halwa out of jackfruit! ‘It’ll be heavenly’, was how she described her dish. I was initially apprehensive to try ANYTHING out of this wonderful fruit - because I simply love eating it and eating it as it is! Anyway, the recipe had been noted in my mind.

Coincidently, the same evening, there were guests at home for dinner, and I had to make some sweet for the dinner. So I just ventured out to try this newly learnt sweet, and it did take longer than I had expected. But I sure was worth the time spent, as it came out pretty nice. And the guests openly appreciated my halwa, and honored it by helping themselves with serving after serving, till the bowl was cleaned out! Even Dee who refuses any sweet did have it and compliment on it!

Now I make sure that I prepare this halwa every time we get home a jackfruit. I take out and save up a portion of the fruit for halwa before we start attacking the fruit from all directions to have our shares of the fruit.

Jackfruit Halwa

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 25-30 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: Jackfruit deseeded - 2 cups Sugar - ¾ - 1 cup Ghee - 2 tbsp Cashew nuts - 12-15 Method: • Chop jackfruit into 1” pieces • Grind it into a paste in a mixie / food processor, without adding any extra water • In a thick bottomed pan, heat 2 tsp oil and fry the cashew nuts till golden brown, take out from ghee and keep aside till needed • Pour the remaining ghee into the pan and add the ground jackfruit paste • Mix in sugar and stir continuously for 15 minutes on low to medium flame • The ghee starts to separate out from the halwa when it is done • Switch off the flame and pour out the extra ghee separated out • Decorate with the fried cashews, serve hot or cold Variations: • Sugar can be substituted with jaggery • Mashed banana can also be added

White Beans Masala - Cooking good things is so easy!

Who says cooking is difficult? Of course there was one time when I too used to think cooking is a fractious job. I would dread at the thought of cooking alone when mom was ill or away, in high-school or college days. I would occasionally cook well too, but that would have taken an epoch. I would take hours to chop vegetables get things ready and check and re-check the recipe some zillion times, and still make some mistake and get nervous how to fix it and so on and so forth.

I feel like laughing thinking of those days. There has been a world of difference now. I can now say confidently that I can cook a good meal for about 20 people in a couple of hours. And if something goes wrong I can easily be sure to get it fixed. And the proportions too will quite be apt.

And also guessing the ingredients and method for a food that I taste somewhere and later trying it out myself is another thing I like and enjoy.So this time it is White beans masala that I wanted to try out without looking into any recipe but just taking guesses. And it did turn out to be quite tasty. We just loved it with simple Ghee rice. It would be good with chapathis / rotis too.

Here’s the recipe...

White Rajma Masala

Preparation time : 10 min, apart from soaking time Cooking time : 20-25 min Serves : 4-5 Ingredients: White Rajma (Bean seeds) - 1 cup, fresh/dried; Soak overnight if using dried Tomato - 3 medium sized Onion - 2 medium sized Green chilies - 2-3 Ginger - 1” cube Garlic - 5-6 cloves Garam masala powder - 1 Tsp Red chili powder - ½ - 1 tsp, depending on taste Kitchen king masala - ½ tsp, optional Jeera powder - ½ tsp Coriander powder - ½ tsp Oil - 1 tbsp Salt - 1 tsp, as per taste Sugar - ¼ - ½ tsp Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp, chopped Method: • Soak rajma overnight if you’re using dried ones. I used fresh ones so didn’t have to soak, and the cooking time was less too. • Pressure cook rajma with enough water for 3-4 whistles, or till well cooked • Boil tomatoes in water till tender, cool and make puree • Heat oil in a pan • Add chopped onion and sauté for 2 minutes • Crush ginger and garlic and add the paste and continue to sauté till the onions turn translucent • Add all the spice powders and mix thoroughly so that no lumps are formed • Mix in tomato puree, salt and sugar and bring to a gentle boil • Add the boiled bean seeds, and water if necessary to maintain a gravy consistency • Let it boil for 5-10 minutes, till the bean seeds absorb the taste and flavors from the gravy • Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rotis/chapathis/ghee rice Tips n Tricks: • Cook the bean seeds just tender enough for the right taste

Jackfruit Mulka - Sweet and Spicy versions for RCI Mangalore-Udupi

When I returned home in the evening tired and hungry, my MIL and FIL were in the kitchen, preparing something that I couldn’t guess. There was a variety of ingredients like soaked rice, jaggery, green chilies, coconut and most importantly jackfruit! Jackfruit is another fruit that I love so much, that I can eat it as a meal! Especially if it is a juicy and sweet one, just ripe enough, with aroma filling in the entire home.....

And I was apprehensive about preparing something with this great fruit, fearing that a portion of the fruit will be reduced for eating as is. On enquiring what’s being cooking, FIL enthusiastically replied that he’s getting Mulka prepared, which is a popular snack in South Canara, Mangalore and Malnad regions. And he explained to me how nice a snack it makes for a rainy evening like that. I was still wondering why there was this green chili and coriander leaves for a sweet dish made out of a fruit, and got myself involved in the undertaking. I did not take too long for me to realize that there were two variants cooking one sweet and one spicy. I was kind of relieved by now.

What came out in the next few minutes were platefuls of aromatic, mouthwatering, hot snacks, just perfect for the cold, rainy evening! Had enough of them, and became quite a fan of this and now want to spread a word about this Jackfruit delicacy.

What else can be beetter than this to enter the event RCI-Udupi, Mangalore, hosted by Sia of Monsoon Spice...

Sweet Mulka

Sweet Mulka

Preparation time : 10 min, apart from soaking time Cooking time : 15 min Serves : 6 - 8 Ingredients: Jackfruit - 1cup, deseeded, cut into big pieces Coconut - ½ cup, grated Rice - 1½ cups Jaggery - 1-2 Tbsp, depending on how sweet the jackfruit is Oil - for deep frying Method: • Soak rice in water for about 2 hours • Peel, deseed and cut the jackfruit into 1 inch pieces • In a food processor or mixer, grind soaked rice, jackfruit pieces, coconut and jaggery into a smooth paste • Add little water and keep the batter thicker than dosa/idli batter • Heat oil in a frying pan • Once heated, drop a spoonful of the batter into the oil, in a round shape • After half a minute, turn around and fry till golden brown Tips n Tricks: • If jaggery is used is of darker color the Mulka also turns darker, but doesn’t affect the taste. • Don’t soak the rice for too long, since it absorbs more oil when fried • For a low-calorie version, the Mulka can be shallow fried on a tawa, but the taste is best when fried!

Spicy Mulka

Spicy Mulka

Preparation time : 10 min, apart from soaking time Cooking time : 15 min Serves : 6 - 8 Ingredients: Jackfruit - ¾ cup, deseeded, cut into big pieces Coconut - ½ cup, grated, 2 tbsp cut into small pieces Rice - 1½ cups Green chilies - 3-4, depending on taste Ginger - 1” cube, grated Salt - ½ tsp Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp, chopped Oil - for deep frying Method: • Soak rice in water for about 2 hours • Peel, deseed and cut the jackfruit into 1 inch pieces • In a food processor or mixer, grind soaked rice, jackfruit pieces, coconut and green chilies into a smooth paste • Add little water and keep the batter thicker than dosa/idli batter • Mix in coconut pieces, chopped coriander, grated ginger and coconut pieces • Heat oil in a frying pan • Once heated, drop a spoonful of the batter into the oil, in a round shape • After half a minute, turn around and fry till golden brown Tips n Tricks: • The addition of chopped coconut pieces gives a nice crunchy taste to the Mulka • Don’t soak the rice for too long, since it absorbs more oil when fried • For a low-calorie version, the Mulka can be shallow fried on a tawa, but the taste is best when fried!

Event : RCI - Udupi & Mangalorean Cuisine - Neer Dose & Goli Baje

When I saw this post about an event “RCI - Regional Cuisines of India” at Sia’s Monsoon spice a few days back, I was quite excited. Wanted to take part in this event, with some Mangalore /Udupi cuisines. The only ones that I could think of, which I can boldly say I am an expert in were Neer Dosa and Goli baje. But I had already posted both of them, and was not sure what to do.

This is what I asked her -
“Hey Sia! I'd love to take part... since i'm a newbie to food blogging, this will be my first RCI...Wanted to know if i can send out entries for posts that i've already posted in my blog... I can give a link to this announcement page and RCI logos... or do i repost them this month, with RCI logo, announcement, etc??”

And immediately came the response -
“Sum, u can either link to announcement page from ur old post or repost them :) But I do hope that u get time to cook something more dishes for RCI and enjoy participating :)”

Okay! I thought. Before I can think of another special cuisine that I can cook and send to the event, I can send these two old ones as well. And here they are, ready for the event.......

Neer Dose - The smoothest and lightest dosa

Goli baje - A famous evening snackHoping to learn a loadful of Udupi & Mangalorean recipes from fellow bloggers....
Cheers,
Sum.

Mango Mania : Mavinakai Hasi Gojju - Another tantalizing Raw Mango gravy

Ok, you’ve made a wonderful dish, now what else can you do with almost the same set of ingredients? Well, a totally different looking and tasting competitor for the former! And it’d be difficult for anyone to judge which is the better one of the two since both are equally tempting and awesome tasting. And what more, even the ingredients are the same! But they taste so very different from each other!

Well, the former here is the Mavinkai (raw mango) gojju which I posted some days back. And the latter is again a mavinkai gojju, but a totally different one! The ingredients are almost the same, except for the color of chilies, er I mean green chilies instead of dry red. But of course the method of preparation is quite different, which is what makes the difference.

Trust me; this is also a heavenly gravy that you can make in the mango season. And it multiplies your appetite too! But this one doesn’t have a long shelf life like the former one; it can be kept refrigerated for just a couple of days. Anyway, you wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation and save it!

Mavinkai Hasi Gojju

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 15-20 min Makes : A bowlful Ingredients: Raw Mango - 2 medium sized, sour variety Green chilies - 10 -12 Curry leaves - 10 - 15 Coriander leaves - a small bunch Fenugreek seeds - ¾ tsp Channa dal - 1 tsp Coconut - 2 cups, grated Cooking oil - 1 tsp Turmeric - a small pinch Jaggery - 2-3 big marble sized lumps Salt - 1 tsp, vary acc to taste For tempering: Cooking oil - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Sesame seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - 15-20 Method: • Boil the raw mangoes in water for 10 -15 minutes, till they are cooked soft • Allow to cool and squeeze out all the juice from it. • Meanwhile, in a separate pan, roast channa dal, fenugreek seeds, green chilies and curry leaves for 1-2 minutes in a tsp of oil till they become aromatic • Allow to cool slightly and grind with grated coconut, salt and jaggery, adding water if required • Transfer this ground paste to a serving bowl and mix in the mango juice extracted • Add water if required to maintain gravy/chutney like consistency For tempering • Heat oil in a small skillet • Add mustard seed and allow to splutter • Add curry leaves and stir till they become crisp • Add sesame seeds and switch off the flame after a few seconds; Do not allow the sesame to get overly fried • Transfer this tempering to the gravy prepared • Serve with rice or akki rotti or dosa, etc Tips n Tricks: • Choose sour mangoes for better taste