Whole green gram dal fry

This is another simple and wholesome dal recipe and another variation from the regular dal. The whole moong dal packs more nutrients. A wholesome protein source and this accompanies well with rice or rotis.

Ingredients
To pressure cook
Whole green gram/green moong dal - 1 cup
Tomato - 1 finely chopped
Green chillies - 2
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Onion - 1/2 finely chopped
Ginger garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Oil - 1 spoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves 1 sprig
Coriander leaves/cilantro - for garnish
Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Soak the whole green moong dal for about 1 to 2 hours.
2. Pressure cook the dal, green chillies, turmeric powder and tomatoes with enough water for about 4 to 5 whistles.
3. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat the oil and do the tempering with the mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves.
4. Once everything starts spluttering, add the chopped onions. Saute till the onions turn translucent.
5. Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes away.
6. Add the red chilli powder and garama masala and mix well.
7. Finally add the cooked moong dal and enough water (approximately 1 cup) and bring it to a boil.
8. Simmer until the required consistency is obtained.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Note: The green moong dal thickens once the dal cools down. If planning to serve after a while, stir in some hot water or add some water and heat before serving.

This is my entry for day 6 in the 7 day blogging marathon! Check out the Blogging marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12.

Sambar

While I was compiling a recent post to mark 4 years of blogging, I was astonished to see that I had never blogged about sambar! Sambar is a staple at my house. I make it almost every week or every other week to accompany our dosas and idlies for breakfast and dinner and also with rice and poriyals for lunch. It is a versatile dish to be served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I try to make different versions by rotating the vegetables I use. This is my mom's recipe for sambar. It sounds like a difficult procedure, but it is so easy to make.

Ingredients
Toor dal - 1 cup
Vegetables - 1 cup chopped (potatoes, drumstick, cauliflower, brinjal, radish, beans, peas, carrots etc. can be used) I use 3 to 4 of the above veggies mentioned
Tamarind extract - from the size of 1 lemon or 1 teaspoon tamarind paste
Sambar powder - 2 teaspoons
All-purpose curry powder/Kuzhambu milagai thool (or chilli powder) - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Onion - 1/4 cup chopped
Tomato - 2 chopped roughly
Green chillies - 2
Cilantro/coriander leaves - for garnish
Salt to taste

For the tempering
Oil - 2 spoons
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dhal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Hing/Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Instructions

1. In a pressure cooker, cook the toor dal with about 3 cups of water and turmeric powder until you get 4 whistles. Alternatively, you can cook it in a stockpot for about 30 minutes, until the dal turns soft.
2. With the help of a wooden spoon or a potato masher, mash the dal to make it into a smooth paste.
3. In a saucepan/kadai, heat the oil and do the tempering with mustard seeds, urad dhal, curry leaves and hing.
4. Once everything splutters, add the chopped onions and saute until it turns translucent. Then add the chopped tomatoes and allow it to cook for a minute.
5. Now add the chopped vegetables and saute until the raw smell goes away.
6. To this add the sambar powder, curry/chilli powder, salt and the tamarind extract and bring it to a boil.
7. Simmer for about 5 to 6 minutes until the veggies cook well.
8. Now add the dal to this and mix thoroughly.
9. Add some chopped coriander/cilantro, cover and cook for about 10 minutes until you get the required consistency.

Alternate quicker method
After step 6, pour all the contents in the kadai into the pressure cooker with the dal. Add about 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 3 whistles. Delicious sambar is ready.

I am participating in a blogging marathon hosted by Srivalli for 7 days and I will be posting under the theme - "Seven Days of Delicious Dals"

Check out the Blogging marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12

This is my entry to My Legume Love Affair #43 started by Susan and hosted this time at Chez Cayenne and Love for Lentils hosted by Sudha

Manathakkali Vathal Kuzhambu

This is a tangy and delicious curry made with manathakkali vathal known as black nightshade in english. It is of high medicinal value and tastes great in this curry. It is so easy to make and is a staple in south indian households. I remember having vathal kuzhambu once a week for lunch in our hostel mess in college. I never used to like it at that time, but this kuzhambu has become a recent favorite. I served this with rice along with seppankizhagu roast and some papads.

The manathakkali vathal can be replaced with sundakkai vathal or any vegetable.

Ingredients
Manathakkali Vathal - 2 tablespoons
Tamarind extract - from a lemon sized ball
Tomato puree - 1/2 cup
Sambar powder/Vathal kuzhambu powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dhal - 1 teaspoon
Methi/Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Oil - 2 teaspoons
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Salt to taste

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, fry the vathal in 1 spoon of oil for a minute and remove from the pan.
2. In the same saucepan, heat the remaining oil and do the tempering with the mustard seeds, methi seeds, urad dhal, hing and curry leaves.
3. Once everything starts spluttering, add the sambar powder or vathal kuzhambu powder and turmeric powder and roast on a low flame for about a minute.
4. Slowly add the tomato puree and the tamarind extract and salt. Add half a cup of water and bring it to a boil. Add more water if needed to get the required gravy consistency.
5. Finally add the fried manathakkali vathal and simmer for about 3 minutes until the kuzhambu turns thick.

Serve with a poriyal and papad over rice.

Also, do check out the giveaway to celebrate 4th year blogiversary!

Rajma Chawal / Kidney Beans Curry and Rice

This is a North Indian classic dish made with rajma/kidney beans and rice. Steaming rajma curry served over plain white rice is rich in iron and protein from the kidney beans and carbohydrates from the rice and makes a wholesome satisfying meal.

Ingredients
Rajma/Kidney Beans - 1 cup (soaked overnight or atleast for 5 hours)
Onion - 1/2 medium sized
Tomato - 1
Green chillies - 3
Ginger - 1 inch finely chopped
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Cumin powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds/Jeera - 1 teaspoon
Oil - 1 spoon
Salt to taste
Cilantro/Coriander for garnish

Instructions
Soak the rajma in water overnight or atleast for 5 hours.
Drain the water and pressure cook with water until 4 whistles until the rajma turns soft and completely cooked. Alternatively, instead of using a pressure cooker, the beans can also be cooked in a stockpot with a lid for 30 to 35 minutes until the beans turn soft and tender.
In a wide saucepan/kadai, heat the oil and add the cumin seeds. once they start spluttering, add the chopped ginger and garlic and saute until the onions turn translucent.
Add in the chopped tomatoes and saute for a minute until the tomatoes turn tender.
Add the turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt and mix well. Cook for a minute.
Finally add the cooked rajma/kidney beans and a cup of water.
Cover and cook on low heat for about five minutes until all the flavors blend together.
Remove from heat and garnish with cilantro.
Serve over cooked rice.

Chicken Curry for Idly/Dosa

This is a simple and easy chicken curry which goes very well with idlies and dosas. It also tastes great with rice dishes.

Directions
Chicken - 1/2 kg
Onion - 1 medium sized
Tomato - 2
Coriander/cilantro and mint leaves - 1/2 cup
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tablespoon
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1 teaspoon
Jeera/Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Green chillies - 3 or as per taste
Cashew nuts - 5
Curd/yogurt - 2 tablespoons
Coconut - 1/2 cup grated
Oil - 2 spoons

Instructions

1. Wash the chicken well and cut into small pieces.
2. Marinate the chicken in a mixture of curd/yogurt, ginger-garlic paste and a little salt.
3. Chop the onions and tomatoes and slit the green chillies.
4. Allow the chicken to marinate for about an hour. You could also, leave it to marinate overnight, by placing the chicken in a bowl, wrapping it with a plastic wrap and leave it in the refrigerator.
5. In a saucepan/kadai, heat  one spoon of oil and add half the onions and fry it until it turns translucent.
6. Once the onions start to brown, add the tomatoes. Once the tomatoes get cooked, add the green chillies, coriander leaves, mint leaves and all the powders - chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and turmeric powder.
7. Saute all the ingredients for a minute. Switch off the stove and allow the mixture to cool completely.
8. Grind the mixture along with the grated coconut and cashewnuts into a coarse paste.
9. In the saucepan, heat the remaining oil and saute the remaining chopped onions. Once the onions turn translucent, add the marinated chicken.
10. Allow the chicken to cook for about 3 to 4 minutes and then add the ground masala.
11. Add about one cup of water and bring it to a boil. Simmer for about two minutes until the flavors blend together. Finally add the garam masala and cook for one more minute.
12. Garnish with cilantro. Serve warm with idlies, dosas, rice or chapatis.

Collard Greens Dal

We had just returned from India after a fun vacation and I had to make a hearty, comforting meal for lunch. We were craving for some comfort food after eating the airline food for a whole day.

We had almost nil fresh produce at home and I was glancing at my freezer to find something to cook with for our lunch. I found a pack of chopped collard greens, which I had picked up on sale just before we left on our trip. I have this habit of stocking up on frozen veggies and greens whenever they are on sale and they always come in handy when I run out of fresh produce. I used up fresh tomatoes and green chillies from my little balcony garden and made this dal in minutes. We had the dal with rice, roti and some vadams for our lunch.

Ingredients
Collard greens (fresh or frozen) - 1 cup chopped
Toor dal - 3/4 cup
Tomatoes - 2
Green chillies - 2
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

For the seasoning
Oil - 1 spoon
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds/jeera - 1 teaspoon
Dried red chillies - 2

Instructions

1. If using fresh collard greens, wash them and chop them into strips. If using frozen greens, use them as is.
2. In a pressure cooker, combine together washed toor dal, the collard greens, chopped tomatoes, slit green chillies and turmeric powder. Add about 4 cups of water and pressure cook for 4 to 5 whistles.
3. When the pressure gets completely released, open the cooker lid and mash the dal with a potato masher. Add salt to taste and mix well.
4. For the seasoning, heat the oil in a saucepan and add the mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add the urad dal, jeera, asafoetida and dried red chillies.
5. Pour the seasoning over the cooked greens and dal and mix well.
6. Serve hot with rice or roti.

Red Chard Kootu

I have always seen red chard and swiss chard in the grocery stores and farmers markets, but they looked huge to me and I have been always reluctant to pick them up. After knowing that the chard family is a storehouse of essential vitamins and minerals I had to buy them.

I made an Indian style kootu with the greens. Kootu is generally made with vegetables, coconut and cooked dhal and served along with rice. I decided to make a similar dish with the red chard. I was surprised that it tasted very much like the arai keerai we get in Tamil Nadu. This has become a regular in my household and I serve it with rice and papads.

Ingredients
Red Chard(can be substituted with swiss chard or any type of greens) - 3 cups
Toor Dal (split pigeon peas) - 3/4 cup
Turmeric Powder - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

To grind
Cumin seeds - 2 teaspoons
Urad dhal - 2 teaspoons
Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup
Red Chillies - 3

Seasoning
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dhal - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Red chilly - 1

Instructions

1. Wash the red chard leaves thoroughly and chop them roughly along with the red stem.
2. Cook the toor dal with about 2.5 cups of water and turmeric powder until soft. I pressure cooked the dal to make the process quicker.
3. In a saucepan, dry roast the two teaspoons of urad dhal until it turns fragrant and brown. Then grind it into a smooth paste along with the other ingredients - grated coconut, cumin seeds and red chillies adding a little water. 
4. In a heavy bottomed pan, cook the chopped red chard along with the stem in a few tablespoons of water. Once it starts wilting, add the cooked dhal and the ground paste and mix everything together. Season with salt.
5. In a saucepan, do the tempering by adding oil, mustard seeds, urad dhal, asafoetida, curry leaves and red chilly one by one. Once everything starts spluttering, switch off the stove. 
6. Pour the seasoning to the cooked chard and dhal and mix well.

Serve along with steamed rice and papads.

Kathirikkai Pulikuzhambu/ Eggplant or brinjal in a tamarind sauce

This is a curry made with eggplant/brinjal simmered in a tamarind based sauce and often part of lunches especially in South Indian households. Amma makes puli kuzhambu atleast once a week with different vegetables like brinjal, drumstick, okra/ladies finger etc. She adds a lot of garlic which gives a nice flavor to the curry. This tastes great especially with cooked rice and some papads or vadagam or omelette to accompany it.

Ingredients
Eggplant/Brinjal (the smaller variety) - 8 to 10
Tamarind extract - from a lemon sized ball of tamarind
Onion - 1/2 medium sized
Garlic - 10 cloves or as per taste (optional)
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Chilli powder or all-purpose curry powder - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

For tempering
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few

Directions

1. Soak the tamraind in warm water for about 15 to 20 minutes. Squeeze out the pulp to get tamarind extract.
2. Chop the onions. Also slice the brinjal/eggplant lengthwise.
3. In a pressure cooker or a kadai, do the tempering with oil, mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. once they start spluttering, add the onions and saute till they turn translucent for about a minute.
4. Add the peeled garlic and saute for a minute.
5. Add the sliced brinjal/eggplant, salt, turmeric powder and the chilli powder/all-purpose curry powder and stir well.
6. Finally add the tamarind extract and about half cup of water.
7. Pressure cook for about 3 whistles. If using a kadai, cover and cook for about 15 minutes until the brinjal and the garlic becomes tender.
8. Allow the sauce to simmer until you get the required consistency.

Serve with rice and papads.

Cauliflower kuzhambu / Cauliflower Curry

This is simple and elegant curry made with cauliflower and tastes great with some cooked rice. It can also be enjoyed along with some chapatis or rotis. it is a one pot dish and can be made in minutes using a pressure cooker. The mild red color of the curry comes from the all purpose curry powder/ kuzhambu masala podi. It mildly spices the curry and is very flavorful.

Ingredients
Cauliflower florets - 2 cups
Onion - 1/2

Oil - 1 spoon

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon

Urad dal - 1 teaspoon

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Salt to taste

To grind into a coarse paste
Onion - 1/2
Tomato - 2
Grated coconut - 2 tablespoons
All purpose curry powder/ kuzhambu masala podi - 1 tablespoon

Instructions

1. Wash the cauliflower florets and blanch them in hot water and set them aside.
2. Grind all the ingredients listed above into a coarse paste.
3. In a pressure cooker, heat the oil and temper with the mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. once everything starts spluttering add half the chopped onion and saute until it turns translucent.
4. Add the blanched cauliflower florets along with some salt and saute for a minute.
5. Then add the ground masala and stir well.
6. Add a cup of water, close the cooker with a lid and cook until 3 whistles. If using a kadai instead of a pressure cooker, cook for about 10 minutes, until the cauliflower florets get well cooked.
7. Adjust salt and garnish with cilantro/coriander leaves.

Serve with warm rice and some papad for a delicious lunch!

Mirchi ka Salan

Even though I have seen several versions of Mirchi ka Salan around in the blog world, I haven't really tasted it myself. I only knew it was really spicy because of the jalapenos or peppers present in the curry. We happened to taste this in an Indian restaurant one weekend and got hooked to its taste. I knew, i had to make it at home and got a bunch of jalapeno peppers just to make this curry. I adapted this recipe according to our tastes and it turned out to be truly delicious. this recipe is a keeper.

This is a specialty of the cuisine of Andhra which is famous for all its spicy stuff starting from biryani to pickles. Whole chillies or pepper are pan fried in oil and then added to a thick gravy made with a mixture of sesame and peanuts which mellows down the spice level of the peppers making it tolerable to eat!I removed the inner seeds of the jalapenos to reduce the heat level. If you want the curry to be really really spicy, go ahead and leave the seeds in there at your own discretion!

Ingredients
Jalapenos/Chillies/Peppers (any variety) - 6
Red chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Cumin/Jeera powder - 1 teaspoon
Tamarind pulp - from a lemon sized ball of tamarind
Oil - 2 spoons

To grind into a smooth paste
Peanuts - 1/2 cup
Sesame seeds - 2 tablespoons
Onions - 1/2 chopped
Ginger garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Cinnamon - 1/2 inch
Cloves - 3 to 4

For the tadka/tempering
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Jeera/cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Methi/fenugreek seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves - a few


Directions

• First prepare the jalapenos. Slit the jalapenos from the bottom about half way keeping the stem/stalk intact. Carefully remove the pith present in the center of the peppers along with the seeds. Take care to wash your hands immediately after handling the peppers to avoid hand burns.
• In a wide skillet, add the oil. Once the oil turns hot, add the prepared peppers. Immediately cover with a lid because the oil starts spluttering outside. After about a minute, open the lid and give the peppers a turn. Cover and cook for two more minutes until the peppers have charred a little bit and the skin turns color. Remove the peppers and keep them aside.
• Grind the ingredients listed into a smooth paste adding a little water.
• In a saucepan/kadai, heat the oil for tempering and add the mustard seeds, jeera, methi and curry leaves one by one. Add the charred jalapeno peppers, chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder and the ground paste. Also add the tamarind pulp. Add about 1 cup or required quantity of water and required amount of salt to taste.
• Cover and allow the gravy to simmer for around 12 to 15 minutes. The gravy should thicken and soak the jalapeno peppers with all the goodness!

Garnish with cilantro.

Serve along with chapatis, rotis, naan, plain rice or pulaos. Also tastes great with curd rice!!

Ready for some spice in your life?

Paneer Butter Masala - Version II

Paneer Butter Masala or Paneer Makhani is a signature Indian curry made with Paneer or Indian cheese. This tastes best with homemade paneer. I usually make PBM according to this recipe, but this version is richer due to the addition of cashews. You can never go wrong with this recipe. It is so easy to make this and tastes delicious with naan or rotis or chapatis or any kind of rice!

This curry is similar to other paneer gravies, except that, it is more rich due to butter and the gravy is thickened by using onions, tomatoes and cashew paste rather than just cream. I omitted the cream, since I felt the gravy was already rich with the addition of butter and cashews.

Ingredients
Onion - 1 medium sized
Tomato - 2 medium sized
Paneer - about 250 grams
Butter/Ghee - 2 tablespoons
Ginger garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Green chillies - 2
Green peas - 1/2 cup(optional)
Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Cumin/Jeera powder - 1 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1 teaspoon
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Cashews - around 10 to 12
Salt to taste
Cilantro for garnish

Directions

• In a kadai heat 1 teaspoon of oil and add chopped onions and saute for about two minutes until they start getting brown in color. Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute until the raw smell goes away. Then add the diced tomatoes and saute until the tomatoes turn mushy. Switch off the stove and allow the mixture to cool.
• When the mixture gets to room temperature, add this mixture to the mixie along with the cashews and blend into a smooth paste.
• In a kadai, add the butter and add the cumin seeds. once they start spluttering, add the blended onion-tomato mixture and saute until the raw smell goes away. Add the turmeric powder, cumin-coriander powder, garam masala and chilli powder and salt. Mix together and saute for about a minute.
• At this point, add the diced paneer and saute until the mixture coats the paneer. Also add the peas if using. Green peas is usually added only in mutter paneer and not in paneer butter masala. but I like the fact that the peas adds a little more color and sweetness to the dish. Allow to cook for a minute and then add half cup of water. You can substitute the water with heavy cream or a little milk. However keep the heat low so that the milk doesn't curdle. I just added water.
• Cover with a lid and allow the gravy to simmer on low heat for about 5 to 7 minutes until the paneer absorbs all the spices and the flavor. 

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with your favorite side. I served this delicious curry with green peas pulao!

Broccoli Dal

I stumbled upon this recipe a while ago and had bookmarked it to try. Recently, I have switched to a low-carb diet in order to lose some weight and this looked like a great soup to have for lunch. TH enjoyed it along with rice and a vegetable stir-fry. I adapted the recipe and cooked the dal in an indian way using the pressure cooker. It is a great way to sneak in broccoli and make kids eat their share of veggies. The end result was a bright green and yellow colored with a hint of garam masala. Makes a hearty lunch all by itself or along with some rice or rotis.

Ingredients
Broccoli florets - 1 1/2 cup
Toor dal/Masoor dal - 1 cup
Onion - 1 medium sized
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Garam Masala - 1 teaspoon
Tomatoes and coriander leaves for garnish
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Red chillies - 2
Lemon juice - 2 tablespoons
Salt to taste

Directions
Wash the broccoli florets and pulse them in a mixer into a coarse mixture.


In a pressure cooker, heat the oil and add the cumin seeds. Add chopped onions and saute till they turn translucent. Add the dal and saute for a minute followed by the coarse ground broccoli.


Add about 3 cups of water and pressure cook until you get 3-4 whistles.

Open the pressure cooker and mash the dal well with the back of a ladle. Add the turmeric powder, garam masala and lemon juice. Switch on the stove and bring the dal to a boil. Simmer until desired consistency is obtained.

Stir in the lemon juice and garnish with tomatoes and coriander leaves.

Serve warm along with rice, roti or by itself as a soup.
This is my entry to Show Me Your Soup event hosted here at Dil Se..

Chettinad Thakkali Kuzhambu / Chettinad tomato curry

I still remember amma serving hot, hot dosas along with freshly made coconut chutney and this spicy, tangy tomato curry for breakfast even on busy weekdays, when all three of us were running around getting ready to school. Gone are those days when we used to have a proper South Indian breakfast every morning. Those breakfasts have been replaced by quick cereals, oatmeal and toasts. Though we have quick and healthy options for breakfast now, I still crave for these delicious South Indian breakfasts and make it a point to make them once in a while. I made this last weekend along with crispy dosas. They taste great along with idlies and also with rice when made in a thicker consistency. You can also check out my other version of thakkali kuzhambu - here

Chettinad cuisine is one of the spiciest and the most aromatic in India. Chettinad cuisine is famous for its use of a variety of spices. The dishes are hot and pungent with fresh ground masalas. They also use a variety of sun dried meats and salted vegetables, reflecting the dry environment of the region. This chettinad thakkali kuzhambu is one such curry made with ripe tomatoes with a hint of coconut.

Ingredients
Ripe, medium sized tomatoes - 4
Medium sized onions - 2
Green Chillies -  4
Curry Leaves - 1 sprig
Tarmarind Extract - 1/4 cup
Turmeric Powder - 1 teaspoon
Pepper Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Jaggary / Brown sugar - 1/2 teaspoon (optional)
Oil - 2 spoons

Ingredients to be ground into a coarse paste:
Grated fresh coconut - 2 tablespoons
Khus khus/Poppy Seeds - 2 teaspoons
Dried Red chillies - 4
Ginger - 1/2 inch
Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon


Directions
In a kadai/saucepan, add one spoon of oil and add all the ingredients to be ground. Saute on medium heat. Take care it doesn't burn. Grind it into a coarse paste.

Blanch the tomatoes and remove the skin. You could do this using a microwave.

Chop the onions lengthwise. Slit the green chillies vertically.

In a saucepan, add the remaining oil and saute the onions, green chillies and curry leaves until the onions turn translucent. Add the ground masala and fry for about two minutes until the raw flavor goes away.

Add the blanched and peeled tomatoes. Cook for two more minutes until the tomatoes get well cooked. Add the tamarind extract, salt and jaggary if using and bring it to a boil. Simmer for about 5 minutes until it reaches the required consistency.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with idlies or dosas.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo for ICC

This is one delicious curry I prepared for the Indian Cooking Challenge. It goes well with any dish - pulao, plain white rice, chapati, naan roti etc. I loved the tanginess of the curry due to the addition of yogurt. It is a different version of the normal curries prepared at my home. The spices filled my house with aroma and was so appetizing. I made my curry with purple baby potatoes and I shallow fried them instead of deep frying them as the recipe called for. This recipe is a keeper for sure.

Ingredients
(Recipe adapted from Indian Food)

Baby potatoes (I used the purple ones) - 8 or 9 in number
Cumin seeds (roasted and powdered) - 1 teaspoon
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Kashmiri red chillies (roasted and powdered) - 3-4 (or) Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Fresh yogurt - 2 1/2 cups (must not be sour)
Ground Ginger powder - 1 teaspoon
Fennel/aniseed powder - 1 tablespoon
Cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Mustard oil - 4 tablespoons
Cloves roasted and powdered - 6
A pinch of asafoetida/hing
Cooking oil to deep fry potatoes( I shallow fried the potatoes in 3 spoons oil)
Salt to taste
A cup of firm dough made from flour and water

Directions
Wash the potatoes and prick all over with a fork. Soak them in water for about 20 minutes.

Heat a pan and add 3 to 4 spoons of cooking oil. Shallow fry the potatoes for about 5 minutes till the skin turns its color. Drain on paper towels.

Make a paste of yogurt, chili powder, ground ginger, cardamom and fennel powders. Then add the potatoes well with this paste and keep it aside.

Heat the mustard oil in another pan, add the clove powder and asafoetida. Add about half a cup of hot water and salt to taste and bring to a boil. To this, add in the potato-yoghurt marinade, stir thoroughly and cover the pan.

To do the dum, seal the edges of the pan's cover with the dough made with flour and water to ensure no steam can escape. Alternatively, you could just cover the pan with a lid. Put on the stove, cook on a low flame for 10-15 minutes.

Switch off the flame, remove the cover and add the cumin powder and garam masala. Cover and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes.

Serve warm with any dish. Tastes great with some peas pulao.

Aloo Baingan / Curried potato and eggplant

This is an authentic combo of vegetables. Potatoes and eggplants beautifully pair each other. Both veggies cooked with a few spices take themselves to a whole new level. This subji makes a great accompaniment with rotis, chapathis, naan or with some rice and dal. It can be made real quick and tastes delicious.

 

Ingredients

Eggplant/Brinjal - 1 big or 4 small ones

Potato - 1 big or 2 small sized ones

Onion - 1 medium sized

Tomato - 2 medium sized ones

Garam masala - 1/2 teaspoon

Coriander/Dhania powder - 1 teaspoon

Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon

Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch (optional)

Oil - 1 spoon

Coriander leaves/Cilantro - for garnish

Salt to taste 

Directions

Dice the potatoes and eggplants into even sized pieces.  Also chop the onions and tomatoes.

In a kadai/saucepan, add the oil and do the tempering with cumin seeds and hing. Add the diced onions and saute until they get translucent. Then add the tomatoes and cook for about two minutes until they turn mushy.

Add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt and mix well. Saute for a minute. Add about two table spoons of water, cover and cook for about five minutes or until the veggies turn tender.

Add the garam masala and mix well. Cook for two more minutes, adjust salt and spices and turn off the stove. 

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve warm along with any side - rice/roti/chapati/naan.

 

Sending this recipe to Any One Can Cook hosted by Umm Mymoonah

Basic Masoor Dal

Masoor dal is a quick comfort food which often found in our weekday menus. I love the fact that it cooks quicker than other dals. It gives a creamy consistency and is so yummy when tempered with ghee. A bowl of rice and dal with some pickle and papad makes a yummy comfort meal often when I cook for myself and when in no mood for elaborate cooking.

Masoor dal also known as red/pink dal is a rich source of protein, cooks quickly, and turns golden and mushy when cooked. This recipe is passed onto me from my grandma. You might wonder, what difference might actually be there in a basic dal recipe. Yes, there is a small twist in this recipe. My grandma actually uses 1 spoon of grated coconut while tempering and it gives a nice aroma to the dal.

Now onto the recipe..

Ingredients

Masoor Dal/Red Lentils - 1 cup

Onion - 1 small sized finely chopped

Tomato - 1 small finely diced

Red chillies - 2

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Salt to taste

For the tempering:

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon

Urad dal - 1 teaspoon

Curry leaves - few

Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch

Grated coconut - 1 teaspoon

Ghee - 2 teaspoon

 

Directions
In a pressure cooker, add the dal along with about 2 cups of water, chopped tomatoes and turmeric powder. pressure cook for about three whistles, until the dal turns soft. Once the pressure gets released, open the pressure cooker and with the back of a ladle, mash the dal well until you get a creamy consistency. Add salt to taste.

In a saucepan, do the tempering. Heat the ghee (you may substitute the ghee with oil, but the ghee renders the yummy taste to the dal) and add the mustard seeds. once the start spluttering add the other tempering ingredients one by one(urad dal, asafoetida, curry leaves, dried red chillies and grated coconut). Once everything gets tempered, add the chopped onions and saute till they turn translucent.

Here comes another trick from grandma! Once the tempering is ready, switch of the stove. Using a small ladle, take about 1 tablespoon of the cooked dal and add it to the tempering. Mix well. By doing this, all the flavor from the tempering gets incorporated in the dal well. Transfer the tempering to the remaining dal and mix well. This actually works! Do try this when you do tempering next time for any dish!

Serve warm along with rice or roti.

Sending this to MLLA:#25 hosted by Siri and started by Susan
and also to Back to Basics hosted at Desi Soccer Mom

Aloo Mutter(Potato Dry peas) Burger with leftover curry

Wondering what kind of burger this is? This burger was born in my kitchen entirely using leftovers. I had some aloo mutter kurma and some cooked brown rice leftover. Hence I combined both of them to make these yummy Indianized burgers.

Cooking lunch for myself is a tedious task. I am so lazy to cook up a complete meal for myself. Hence I try to have leftovers from the previous night's dinner. At times having the same meal over again seems boring. So I try to use the same stuff and create a new meal for my lunch. This burger was born as a result. You can even freeze the patties in ziploc bags and store them for future use.

All I did was mash the brown rice and the aloo mutter kurma together along with some powdered oats and some bread crumbs to form patties and cooked them in a tawa and made burgers using whole wheat buns, a few tomato slices, a cheese slice and some lettuce. The aloo mutter kurma had all the spices needed. All the vegetables and rice are already cooked. Hence it takes very less time to make and assemble this burger.

This is no specific recipe. You can use any leftover curry which has some legumes, potatoes and vegetables to make this burger.

To make two burger patties, I used:
Aloo mutter kurma - 1 cup
Cooked brown rice - 1/2 cup
Powdered oats - 2 tablespoons (Just powder about 1/4 cup using a blender)
Bread crumbs - 1/4 cup (I used homemade bradcrumbs)
Salt to taste

Combine the kurma and the cooked brown rice together in a bowl. Mash it well into a coarse paste using a potato masher. In case you want a smooth consistency, you can either pressure cook the rice and kurma together for one whistle or pulse them together quickly for a few seconds in a blender before mashing them.

Add the powdered oats, bread crumbs and salt to taste.

Form patties of about 3 inches in diameter.

Heat a pan and cook the patties for about 2 minutes on each side drizzling some oil if needed. Cook until the patty turns brown on both sides.

Serve warm on a burger bun along with your favorite toppings. I used lettuce, tomato slices and cheese.

Aloo Mutter/ Potato Dry Peas Kurma

This is a traditional accompaniment to chapatis and rotis and made with potatoes and dry peas. The dry peas can also be substituted with fresh or frozen peas. This curry also tastes great with pulao or plain white rice.
Ingredients
Dry green Peas - 2 cups
Potato - 1
Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Garam masala - 1/2 teaspoon
Oil - 1 spoon
Salt to taste

To grind into a smooth paste:
Onion - 1 medium sized
Tomato - 1 big sized
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger - 1 inch
Coriander seeds/Dhania - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds/Jeera - 1 teaspoon
Green chillies - 1

Directions
Soak the dry peas overnight.

Next day, pressure cook the soaked dry peas and potato in a pressure cooker until it gets well cooked.

Grind all the ingredients listed to make a smooth masala.

In a kadai, heat the oil and add the ground masala. Fry till the raw smell goes away. Add chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, chilli powder, garam masala and salt. Let the tomatoes get mushy and well cooked. Add about 1 cup of water and bring it to a boil. Finally add the pressure cooked peas and boiled and diced potato to the mixture and allow it to come to a boil.

Simmer for about 5 to 6 minutes, until you get the required consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve warm with chapatis. rotis, dosas or rice.

Beans Poriyal

This is a simple and hearty beans poriyal made with beans, dal and coconut. It is very easy to prepare and goes well with rice and curry. It tastes great especially with sambar and rice.

Ingredients
Beans - 1/2 lbs / 250 gms
Onion - 1/2 chopped
Moong dal / Paasiparuppu - 2 tablespoons
Oil - 1 spoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dhal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Grated coconut - 2 tablespoons

Directions
Wash and soak the moong dal for a while.

Wash and slice the bean thinly as needed.

In a saucepan, heat the oil and do the tempering using oil, mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. Add the chopped onions and saute for a while until they turns translucent. Add the moong dal and beans and saute for a while. Add the turmeric powder, chilli powder and a few spoons of water. Cover and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes until the beans get completely cooked. Add salt to taste and the grated coconut and mix well. Cook for about 1 more minute and remove from heat.
Serve warm along with rice and curry.

Whole Lentils Dal

In an attempt to try different type of lentils, I grabbed few pounds of whole lentils from the bulk aisle in my grocery store. It was lying in my pantry for a while and I was planning to make some pilaf kind of dish with the lentils. It lay there for weeks and finally, the lentils made their way into an Indianized dal. I made a few tweeks my adding some garam masala and it resulted in a really yummy dal which tasted great with plain basmati rice and even aloo parathas. this has become a staple in my house now. You should really try these next time you have whole lentils at home!!
Ingredients
Whole lentils - 2/3 cup (soaked for one hour - optional) It turns great even without soaking
Onion - 1 small sized
Tomato - 1 medium sized
Garam masala - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
Green chillies - 2 slit lengthwise
Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 teaspoon
Coconut milk / plain milk - 1/2 cup
Oil/ghee - 1 spoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida / Hing - 1 pinch
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Salt to taste

Directions
Wash the dal and soak it for an hour if soaking. Pressure cook the dal along with roughly chopped onions, tomatoes, green chillies, ginger garlic paste, garam masala, turmeric powder and enough water. Pressur cook for 3 to 4 whistles.

When the pressure goes off, mash the dal adding the coconut milk. Season with salt.

Finally do the tempering with oil/ghee, mustard seeds, urad dal, asafoetida and curry leaves and pour it over the cooked dal.

Serve warm over some rice or along with some parathas/chaptis/rotis.
Sending this to Healing Foods- Onion started by Siri and hosted this month by Priya;
Also to Think Spice-Think Garam Masala started by Sunita and hosted this month by Sara's Corner