Dry Poha!

POHA !!

This is just a fantastic breakfast food or can be an evening snack too. It's ready in just minutes!I learnt this recipe from my aunty(mom's sister).

You will need:

3 cups thin poha

1/2 cup chopped onions

3 dried red chillis

1/2 cup grated coconut

Mustard and jeera for tampering

1/4 cup groundnuts

1tsp chana dal

salt to taste

Method:

Take 2tsp oil in a pan and heat it. To this add mustard, jeera,chana dal,groundnuts, red chillis and fry them. Then add the chopped oinions and saute it till turns to golden brown colour.

Allow this mixture to cool for a while. After that, using your hand crush the fried red chillis and mix it well into the fried mixture. Add salt to taste. Now add the grated coconut and poha and mix it well using your hand.

Dry Poha is ready to be served!!!

Dry Bhindi(okra) Sabzi!!

BHINDI SABZI!

This is my all time favorite dish. It takes time to prepare this especially the shallow frying of the bhindi(okra) takes a long time. I make it only when I have lots of time to cook,mostly on the weekends. But the end result is a delicious dish which is all worth the time spent.

You will need:

1/2 lb cut bhindi(okra)
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1 cup chopped onions
Mustard and cumin(jeera) for tampering
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Take a pan and heat 3 tbsp of oil in it. Add the cut bhindi( okra) and fry it on a low flame. Make sure to add the lemon juice to the bhindi(okra) while frying to rid of the gluey thing. You can even add tamarind juice too.Something sour being added makes the bhindi( okra) pieces nicely fry without sticking to each other.Fry it till the bhindis(okra) become dark coloured.Take care not to burn it. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes for this.Keep it aside.

Now in the same pan add 1/2 tsp oil and heat it.Add mustard and cumin . Then add the chopped onions and fry it till it becomes golden brown colour. To this add the chilli powder and turmeric powder and mix well.Add the chopped tomatoes and salt to taste and mix it well.Finally add the fried bhindi and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes .

Dry Bhindi sabzi is ready to be relished..It goes best with chapatis or rotis!!!!

Spinach Dal!!

SPINACH DAL!

This is a very easy recipe. I really didn't know what to make from the spinach I bought and my aunty (mom's sister) taught me this simple delicious recipe.

You will need:

1 bunch spinach leaves

2.5 cups toor dal

1 cup chopped tomato

1 cup chopped onions

1/4 cup chopped garlic

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

Method:

First cook the toor dal in a pressure cooker adding 1 tsp salt and turmeric powder.

Chop the spinach leaves and keep it aside.

Transfer the dal into a pot and add the chopped onions. chopped garlic, chilli powder, chopped tomato and cook for about 5 minutes. Finally add the chopped spinach leaves to this and cook for 3 to 4 minutes till the spinach gets cooked. Add salt to taste.

The Spinach dal is ready to be relished.It goes very well with white rice!!

Customized Bhel Puri!!

BHEL PURI!
This is my grandmom's recipe. She used to make very tasty bhel puri at home . All of us loved this evening snack of hers. This is not the traditional bhel puri where the differnt chutneys are used. It is more the dry type but it tastes yummy.

You will need:

4 cups puffed rice
1/2 cup grated carrots
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup grated coconut
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 small pieces of fresh tamarind
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
salt to taste

Method:

First soak the tamarind pieces into 1/4 cup water and squeeze it to get the juice out of it. Throw the remaining tamarind out.Into this add the grated coconut, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, lemon juice,salt and mix well with your hands. To this add the pufffed rice and mix till all the grains get coated well . Then add the grated carrots , chopped tomatoes and mix well. Finally garnish it with chopped cilantro.

The custamized bhel puri is ready to be served. It can be topped with some chick pea mixture( sev) and would be a wonderful snack to relish!!!

Vegetable Fried Rice!

VEGETABLE FRIED RICE!
This is my all time favorite dish. I can practically live on it.:) Very simple and quick to make and tastes yummy.

You will need:

2 cups rice
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup green peas
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped spring oinions
1/4 cup soya sauce
salt to taste

Method:

First cook the rice in a rice cooker. Then spread it out in a container and allow it to cool down so that the rice grains don't stick to each other.

Take a pan and heat one spoon of oil in it . Add the chopped onions , chopped carrots and green peas into it and saute it . Close the lid and cook it till the veggies become soft.
To this add the spring oinions and mix it well. Then add the cooked rice and soya sauce and mix it. Add salt if required .

The vegetable fried rice is ready to be served and relished!!!

Shrimp Biryani!!

SHRIMP BIRYANI!
This is a delicious main course for sea food lovers. It takes about 20 minutes to prepare if you already have cooked rice ready . If not,then another extra 20 minutes for cooking the rice. Mostly traditional biryani is made my cooking the rice to about 70 percent done and then slow cooking it after adding it to the meat.But I prefer using a properly done, well cooked rice so that you don't have to go through the hassel of the food getting burnt at the bottom of the utensil while slow cooking it on a low gas flame.

You will need:

1 lb large raw shrimps

3 cups of rice

2 cloves

1 big cinnamon stick

2 whole cardamom

1 tsp jeera(cumin)

1/2 cup fried onions

1/4 cup chooped mint leaves

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

1/2 cup yogurt

For marination(shrimp):

Salt to taste

1tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp ginger garlic paste

1 tsp coriander powder

Method:

Cook 3 cups of rice in a rice cooker.

Clean the raw shrimps and marinate them in a bowl with salt, red chilli powder, turmeric powder,ginger garlic paste and coriander powder. Keep it aside for 5 minutes.

Take a pot and heat 3 tbsp of oil in it. Put the marinated shrimp into this pot and shallow fry it .Take the fried shrimps out and keep it aside.

Now into the same pot add cloves, cinnamon,cardamom,jeera(cumin) and yogurt and stir it well. To this add mint leaves, coriander leaves and fried onions. Then add the fried shrimps and mix well. Finally add the cooked rice and mix it .

Relish the yummy shrimp biryani!!!

Yummy Gobi(cauliflower) manchurian!

GOBI MANCHURIAN!
This is a famous starter dish. It takes a while to make this dish , most of the time is taken for frying the gobi(cauliflower) . But once it is done it's heavenly taste makes you forget the time you spent in preparing it. I learnt this from my friend who makes delicious gobi manchrian!

You will need:

1lb gobi florets
1 cup rice flour
1/2 cup corn flour
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1.5 cups water
Oil for frying


For the sauce:
1/4 cup finely chopped garlic
1 cup finely chopped onions
Mustard and jeera(cumin) for tampering
1/2 cup tomato ketchup(store baught)
3tbsp texas pete sauce(store baught)
2 small chopped green chillis
1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves
Salt to taste

Method:

Take a container and mix the rice flour and corn flour with water. Now add the chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to taste and mix well and make it into a consistency like a batter.
Dip the gobi(cauliflower) florets into this and mix well.

Take a pan and heat oil to smoking hot. When the oil gets hot fry the dipped gobi(cauliflower) florets till they become golden brown colour. Then take it out of the oil and keep them on a tissue paper to soak the extra oil off from it.

To prepare the sauce, take a spoon of oil in pan and heat it. To this add mustard , jeera, chopped garlic, chopped grren chillis, chooped onions and saute till the onions turn golden brown colour. Then add the tomoto ketchup and texas pete sauce and mix well . Now add the chopped coriander and salt to taste.
Finally into this sauce add the fried gobi(cauliflower) and mix well .

The yummy gobi manchurian is ready to be served and relished!!!

Aloo (potato) tikki(small cutlet or croquette)!!!

ALOO TIKKI!
This is a delicious evening snack although it can be served as an appetizer too. Simple and quick to make and your guests would love it!!!

You will need:

3 medium boiled potatoes
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp pepper powder
1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves
1 small green chilli chopped
salt to taste

Method:

Mash the boiled potatoes and mix in the grated ginger , pepper powder , chopped green chilli,chopped coriander leaves and salt to taste. Mix it well and make small tikkis( cutlets) out of it and keep aside.
Take a pan with 2 tbsp oil and heat it. Shallow fry the tikkis(cutlets) well on both sides till the colour changes to slightly orange red.

Take it out of the pan and relish it when hot with tomato sauce or green chutney !!!!

Black Chana(chickpea) Usli!!

BLACK CHANA USLI!
My aunty(mom's sister) used to make this black chana usli every Sankasta Chaturti day as offering to Lord Ganesha. This is a famous prasad we get at most of our Hindu temples. I made this chana usli for Ganesh festival last yesr(2009).

You will need:

2 cups of black chana(chickpeas)
1/4 cup grated coconut
Mustard and cumin (jeera) for tampering
A few curry leaves
3 chopped small green chillis
Salt to taste.

Method:

Soak the black chana(chickpeas) overnight. Then pressure cook it and keep aside.
Take a pan and heat one spoon of oil in it. Add mustard, jeera, chopped green chillis and curry leaves and saute it. To this mix the cooked black chana (chickpeas). Add salt to taste. Finally add the grated coconut and mix thoroughly.

Black chana usli is ready to relish. It can be eaten just like that ,served with chapatis or even as a dry side dish with rice!!!

Pasta With Broccoli!

PASTA WITH BROCCOLI!

Pasta, a simple easy dish which is quite filling when made for lunch or for dinner.This recipe is my simple experiment using Indian spices which suits our taste buds. It takes just about 30 minutes to prepare this pasta.

You will need:

1/2 packet fuscilli pasta( or any kind of pasta you prefer)
1/2 cup chopped onions
4 pods garlic finely chopped
1 cup pasta sauce(store baught)
1 chopped green chilli
10 boiled broccoli heads
1/4 tsp oregano powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Cook the fuscilli pasta in boiling water for 10 to 12 minutes. Then drain it and keep it aside.
Take a spoon of oil in a pan and heat it.Add the chopped garlic , chopped green chillis and chopped onions and saute it till the onions become golden brown colour. Then add the boiled broccoli heads and mix well. Add the pasta sauce to this and saute it. On this sprinkle some oregano powder . Finally add the cooked fuscilli pasta and stir it for 2 minutes . Add salt to taste.

The pasta with broccoli is ready to be served! Enjoy and relish!!!

Bharvan ( stuffed ) Bhindi( okra)!!

STUFFED BHINDI!
This is a very tasty dish that I learnt from my neighbour friend . Very easy to make and we don't have to deal with the bhindi getting gluey while cooking.:) It takes about 45 minutes to cook this dish including the preparation time.

You will need:
1 lb whole bhindi( okra)

For stuffing:

2 tbsp coriander powder
1 tbsp fennel powder
1/2 tbsp mango powder
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp cumin powder
Salt to taste


Method:

Wash and dry the bhindi(okra) well. Slowly and carefully make a small lenthwise slit on each of the bhindi(okra) with a knife so that it opens up well.

Mix all the above ingredients listed under the stuffing . Slowly fill each of the slit bhindi(okra) with the stuffing mixture and keep aside.

Now heat about 2tbsp of oil in a pan. Then one by one place the stuffed bhindi(okra) into the pan and shallow fry it by adding little more oil if you need. Close the lid and allow it to cook for 2 to 3 min. Then slowly turn each bhindi(okra) and see to it that it is cooked on all sides properly. It will take about 10 to 15 minutes for all of it to get cooked.

Transfer it from the pan into a serving dish and relish it with either chapatis or as a side dish with rice.

Ginger Broccoli Stir Fry!!

GINGER BROCCOLI STIR FRY!

Broccoli .. one of my favorite vegetables. I just tried this simple recipe yesterday night which preserves the broccoli taste yet giving it simple flavours of ginger and other ingredients. It takes just less than 10 minutes to prepare this dish. I am sure the young and the old equally will enjoy the dish!!

You will need:

1 lb of broccoli heads
1/4 cup grated ginger
3 tbsp soya sauce
salt to taste
1/4 tsp sesame seeds
oil

Method:

Cut out the broccoli heads neatly and slit the remaining stems into half. In a container bring the water to boil.. into this add the broccoli and cook for just 2 min. Take it out and drain it under cold water so that it doesn't cook any longer. Keep it aside.

Take a stir fry pan and heat a spoon of oil in it. Once it's heated add the grated ginger and saute it well. To this mix the boiled broccoli and stir fry it. Add the soya sauce and very little salt as soya sauce itself has adequate quantity of sodium in it. Finally add sesame seeds and stir fry the mixture just till it starts to give out a nice aroma.You could add sesame oil instead and it gives a nice asian flavour.No need to cook it for long as the broccoli is already cooked.

Pour it on to serving dish and relish the yummy broccoli stir fry !!!!

Tindora Stir Fry!!!

TINDORA STIR FRY!

Tindora stir fry is a very easy dry side dish.I learnt it from my aunty(mom's sister). It comes out very tasty and delicious . It takes a little bit of time especially to slice each tindora .With a little bit of patience to prepare this dish it can be enjoyed and relsihed!!!

You will need:

1 lb tindora

Mustard and jeera(cumin) for tampering

1/4 tsp chana dal

1/4 tsp urad dal

4 dried red chillis

A few curry leaves

3/4 cup coconut powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

A pinch of asafoetida(hing)

salt to taste

Method:

First slice each tindora lenghwise into four parts. Then bake it in the oven at 415 F for 10 minutes. Some people deep fry the tindora but I prefer to bake them.

Then take a spoon of oil in a pan and heat it. To this add the dried red chillis,mustard , jeera , chana dal ,urad dal and a pinch of hing. Then add turmeric powder and curry leaves and suate it. Now add the coconut powder and stir it till it becomes reddish colour and crispy. Finally add the baked tindora and mix it well. Add salt to taste and stir fry it well.

Serve the tindora stir fry as a side dish with rice. Enjoy and RELISH!!!

Methi(fenugreek) Sabzi!!!

METHI SABZI!
This methi sabzi recipe is very famous among us konkanis. It is made by using methi(fenugreek) leaves and toor dal. The bitterness of methi leaves is to some extent balanced and lessened by adding toor dal. I learnt this recipe from my co-sister. It's a very simple,quick and tasty side dish the whole family will enjoy!

You will need:

2 bunches of methi(fenugreek) leaves
1/2 cup toor dal
1/4 cup finely chopped onions
Mustard and cumin (jeera) for tampering
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
A small piece of jaggery
Salt to taste

Method:

Pinch out the methi(fenugreek) leaves from the bunch and wash it thoroughly and keep aside.
Then pressure cook the toor dal. It should be cooked in such a way that it doesn't get mashed up.Keep it aside.

Take a spoon of oil in pan and heat it. Now add mustard , cumin(jeera) turmeric powder and red chilli powder . Add the chooped onions and saute it till it becomes golden brown colour.To this add the cooked dal and mix well. Then add the piece of jaggery and stir it well till it melts away. Finally add the methi ( fenugreek leaves) and stir it well. Add salt to taste and close the lid of pan and allow it to cook on a slow flame. Keep stiring it once in a while. It would take about 10 minutes to cook well.The sabzi is cooked when the colour the methi leaves turn slightly dark.

The methi sabzi is ready to be savoured! .. It can be relished with chapati or bread!!

Spicy Bread Pakoras!!!

BREAD PAKORA!

Pakora is an all time favorite dish of Indians. I tried making this bread pakora from the recipe given by a friend of mine.It's a very delicious evening snack and very easy to make with the ingredients that you would have at home most of the times.

You will need:

6-7 slices of bread( I prefer white bread)
Oil for frying
1 cup water to soak the bread

For filling :
2 medium sized potatoes
1/4 cup green peas
A pinch of mustard and jeera(cumin)
1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
A pinch of garam masala powder
Salt to taste

Method:

First boil and peel the potatoes. Then grate the potatoes and keep it aside.
Take a spoon of oil in pan and heat it. Once the oil is hot add mustard , jeera, ginger garlic paste, turmeric and red chilli powder and saute it. Now add the green peas and saute it till they become soft.To this add the grated potatoes and mix it well. Add a pinch of garam masala powder, salt and mix it well. Keep this filling aside.

Remove the brown side portions of the bread and use only the while part. Soak each slice of bread in a cup of water and squeeze the water out. Then flatten the slice of bread and fill it with the potato filling ( about 1 tsp of fillling in each slice). Fold the bread and seal the edges properly by pressing hard along the edges.

Heat the oil in a pan . Once it's adequately heated deep fry the bread pieces separately one at a time till they become slightly reddish brown on both sides. Take it out of the oil and keep it on a tissue paper to drain the excess of oil.

RELISH the bread pakoras when they are hot with tomato sauce or green chutney!!!

Yummy Potato Chips!

POTATO CHIPS!

Potato chips ... a nice passtime munching food. Very easy to make and comes out delicious! It takes a little while but at the end when it's done you will definitely be satisfied !!!

You will need:

2 large potatoes

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

salt to taste

oil to fry

Method:

Peel the potatoes and slice them using a slicer. As you are slicing, keep transferring them to a container with water. This prevents them from getting oxidized and changing colour. Once you are done slicing all of them , spread the sliced potatoes onto a large tissue paper and allow it to dry for a while( about half an hour). Once they are dry , fry them well in oil.

Transfer the fried potato chips into a container and mix with chilli powder and salt.

Enjoy the chips and RELISH!!!

Oven Potato Fries !!

OVEN POTATO FRIES!

We all know how much we love french fries. But for the peole who are calorie conscious and those who stay away from deep fried foods , here's a very simple recipe to make potato fries in the oven. It comes out very tasty and can be done in 15 to 20 minutes.

You will need:

3 large potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Peel the potatoes and slice them to the desired shape with a knife. If you have a slicer you can use that. Then mix the sliced potatoes with oilve oil, chilli powder , turmeric powder and salt .
Pre heat the oven to 425 F. Then bake the potatoes in the oven for about 10 minutes ,until it becomes slightly light golden brown. After it is baked transfer the fries to a bowl and enjoy it with whatever sauce you prefer.

And now you can relish the oven potato fries with any of your favorite sauces!!!!!

Potato Chakkuli!!

POTATO CHAKKULI!

I am sure everyone loves to munch chakkulis. Usually they use different flours to make chakkuli and it's a very tiring process.Here's a simple Chakkuli recipe from my mother in law using potatoes. It tastes like french fries but definitely a better version.

You will need:

2 large bolied potaoes( Boil them really well so they mash up really good)

3 cups rice flour

50 gm melted butter or ghee

1/2 tsp sesame seeds

1/2 tsp jeera

salt to taste

Method:

Mash the boiled potatoes really well in a container.To this add the rice flour and kneed the dough. Now add the butter or ghee to this and kneed the dough very well. To this add very little sesame seeds, jeera and salt. If you want you can add chilli powder too. Now using the chakulli maker make chakkuli of your desired shape and size and fry it in the oil.

Potato chips are ready to be served and relished!!!!

Coconut Rava(samolina) Laddus!

RAVA LADDUS!

This is a very very delicious Indian sweet. This was my first try ever at making sweets. We were invited over for Ganesh pooja at my husband's brother's house and thats when I prepared these and took it to their place. Everyone out there loved it.Thanks to my aunty for providing me with an easy recipe.

You will need:

1 cup rava/samolina
1 cup powdered sugar
Few raisins
2 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 cup ghee
25 g grated cocunut(dried)
25 ml milk

Method:

Heat the ghee in a pan till smoking hot. To this add the rava , sugar and grated cocunut and keep stiring till the rava turns to golden brown colour. Then add the cardomom powder and mix well . Switch off the gas flame and transfer small quantities of this mixture into a bowl and add litttle milk to the mixture and make small balls from it. Milk is added to help the contents come together. Then decorate each laddu with raisins.

The coconut rava laddus are ready to be relished!!!

Basan(gram flour) Laddus

BASAN LADDUS

This is a famous indian sweet made during various festivals . It was a Diwali delicacy back home. My mom made delicious basan laddus, I still can remember the taste of the her laddus.I tried this simple recipe at home and it came out wonderful.

You will need:

100 gm ghee

250 gm gram flour(basan)

250 gm powdered sugar

Few roasted almonds

Method:

Heat the ghee in a pan till it becomes smoking hot. Once it gets hot, lower the gas flame and add the gram flour into pan and keep stiring well till you get a nice aroma and the mixture turns slightly light golden brown . Now switch off the gas flame and add the powdered sugar and mix well. Make small balls( laddus) when the mixture is hot . Decorate each laddu with a roasted almond.

Relish the yummy basan laddus and enjoy!!

Sweet Mangalore Delicacy!

MANDO /CHOWDA
This sweet is our famous konkani delicacy. It's called Mando by Mangaloreans and Chowda by Karwar konkanis. My grandmother used to make this during Diwali festival and we kids used to relish this yummy sweet! I prepared it on diwali festival last year (2009) with the recipe from my aunty( mom's sister ) over the phone!

You will need:
2 cups of all purpose flour( maida)
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 cup water

For the filling:
1/2 cup Powdered sugar
2 tsp Cardomom powder
2 tsp Grated copra( dried coconut)

Oil for frying.

Method:
Add a pinch of salt to the all purpose flour and kneed it slowly by adding water carefully. Keep the dough aside.
Make the filling by mixing powdered sugar , powdered cardomom and grated copra together in a small container and keep it aside.

You need to make small balls( approximately table-tennis size balls) from the dough you had kept aside.Take one ball and roll it into a smooth round ball with the palm of your hands.Then press it flat.Roll it out with a rolling pin to form an even round discs. Make about 20 round discs and keep aside.

Heat the oil in a pan. Wait till the oil heats up well.
Now fry the round discs one by one. The method of frying is such that you put in the disc in the oil and turn it around and take it out of the oil . Keep it on a tissue paper and immedietly when hot put the powdered filling on it and fold it .( first make a small fold on the top and then fold it across to get the shape as shown in the picture) Here again you have to be quick in filling and folding the fried disc when it is hot esle it becomes hard and difficult to fold once it cools down..


And the sweet is ready to RELISH!!!!

Sweet treat! Til Laddus.

TIL LADDUS!
This was my first try at making til laddus on Makara Sankranti (14th January 2010).
Making til laddus is easy but you have to be very quick especially to make laddus when the mixture is still hot in the pan. Your palms really burn while making the small balls but once they are done ,they are delicious!!!!

You will need:
1 cup til
2 cups jaggery
1/2 cup peanut
1/2 cup water

Method:

First dry roast both til (to golden brown colour) and the peanuts in a pan.

Remove the roasted til and the peanuts and keep aside.

Into the same pan add water and boil it and add the jaggery and mix it till it melts .

To this add the roasted til and peanuts. Mix properly.

From here on it's a very tricky situation. Make small balls(laddus) from the mixture immedietly when it is hot . You can use some ghee or oil to grease your palm. If the mixture cools you won't be able to make the balls as the incredients wont come together or stick.

And the til laddus are ready to RELISH!!!!

For those of you reading this blog , this is my first experience writing a blog. I have created this blog to share my experiments in kitchen. I have been cooking since about 3 years now and have tried all kinds of dishes which you will be seeing posted in this blog.
I am thankful to my aunty ( mom's sister) and my mother in law who have guided me over the telephone with many dishes.

Hopefully all of you will enjoy the blog and try out my recipes.

Cheers.