Friday, January 22, 2010

Pav Bhaji



While shopping in one of the stores I came across pav buns. Then a thought came to my mind why not pav bhaji. Pav bhaji is one of the loved chats of our country. One of my friends prepared this dish long time back which really tasted good. So I got some help from her and also through some of the sites , tadaaaan….Pav Bhaji is ready. I did it with the vegetables which were available that time. When can use any vegetables.Mostly used are potatoes, peas, beans,capcium, cauliflower, carrots. Lets don’t waste time and learn how to make it!!!

Ingredients :
• 6-8 pavs (available in any store)
• 2 cups boiled vegetables(potatoes,carrots,cauliflower ,beans)
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp pav bhaji masala (available in stores with the name Everest Pav bhaji Masala)
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 ½ cup tomato paste
• 2 medium onions finely chopped
• 3 tbsp oil
• ½ cup coriander leaves finely chopped
• 1 lemon
. 1 tsp turmeric


Bhaji



Pav Bhaji


How to prepare :
1. Boil all the vegetable and mash them and keep it aside
2. Heat oil in the pan ,add ginger garlic paste and fry for a 1 minute till the raw
smell is gone
3. Next add finely chopped onions and fry them till translucent
4. Then goes tomato paste with salt,chilli powder and pav bhaji masala,turmeric.
5. Mix all the ingredients with some water and allow it to cook for 4-5 minutes.
6. Between stir the mixture so that it wont get burnt at the bottom
7. Add boiled vegetables to it and stir it continuously for 5 minutes
8. Now add chopped coriander leaves and our pav bhaji is done
9. HMMM entire house is filled with beautiful aroma of the spices.
10. Cut the pavs in between and apply butter and fry them on a pan for 1minute
11. Like a burger, you can stuff it in between or take it in a bowl with some lemon
juice and chopped onions. Fantastic taste…you should definitely try this.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Tamarind /Chintapandu Pulihora


This is also a South Indian dish which is mostly made during festivals. My mom makes yummy pulihora . This dish always looked very much complicated to me. This time I seriously wanted to do this for sankranthi. The day before I noted down all the ingredients and procedure for tamarind pulihora. Strangely , Surprisingly, Amazingly wonderful and fabulous pulihora was made by me. Though it is the first time( I swear on god) it was really yummy. Still I need some hard work to put in..to make it the best. So lets note down the ingredients in moms style

Ingredients :
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cups water
• Lemon size tamarind
• 1tsp mustard
• 1tbsp chana dal
• 1 tsp urad dal
• 3 green chillies ( or can use according to ur spiciness)
• Salt to taste
• 1 ½ tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp hing / asofotida
• 11/2 tbsp peanuts
• 1 tbsp curry leaves
• 2 tbsp oil


Tamarind/Chintapandu Pulihora


How to prepare :

1. Soak tamarind in water for 1 hour before you make the pulihora
2. Take the pulp out of it.
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan.Add mustard seeds, when they start spluttering add urad
dal and chana dal and peanuts, till the dal turn golden burn and you hear
splutter of peanuts. Next add curry leaves .Keep them aside
4. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in the same pan, add tamarind pulp, salt , turmeric.green
chillies slit vertically length wise and hing. cook for 10mins till the oil
floats above the mixture.
5. In the mean time pressure cook rice with two cups of water. When rice is done,
allow it to cool down in a large plate/container and see that grains separate
from each other like fried rice, by mixing it slowly with a fork or a spoon
separate the grains
6. Add cooked tamarind pulp to the rice along with peanuts and urad dal..Mix it
properly
7. Delicous Tamaring Pulihora is ready. First offer it to god and then have it.

Please Note :
1. Peanuts and dals are added along with tamarind pulp and cooked but to have the
crispiness of the dals I used it separately.
2. Tamarind pulp can be increased according to your taste.
3. Green chillies can be added according to your taste

Sankranthi specials

Happy Sankrathi to all

Bhogi pallu celebrations was a good hit. I am very much surprised by own skills. I arranged all the things necessary for the ritual.Next day is Sankranthi festival which is the big festivel of the other two bhogi and kanuma. On this day a varieties of dished are prepared and people greet each other in the evening by giving til / nuvvuu.

I prepared so many dishes all alone on this occasion which i give credit myself. enough of my self dabba. But it is the first time we are celebrating this festival without parents/ inlaws.But i made it a point all should be done properly.
Sankrathi is also famous for rangolis. But this time i did not made any rangoli, asked to my servant to do the job.

I prepared the following items on this occasion



Aloo bajji



Chintapandu / Tamarind Pulihora




Payasam / Pongal




Aloo Curry


Aloo curry for Masala Dosa



Most of the south Indians favorite breakfast is Masala Dosa. Whenever I visit a restaurant for breakfast I definitely go for Masala Dosa. Specially the mouthwatering aloo curry / masala placed inside the dosa is absolutely ummmmmmm.. no words. I tried to make this curry which will go best with rice, roti and even dosas.This is adopted from mom inlaw . So many recipes I learnt from her. All the credits goes to her.

Ingredients :
• 5 medium potatoes boiled
• 2 medium onions finely chopped
• 4 green chillies ( according to taste)
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp oil
• ½ cup coriander leaves
For thadka / popu
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 1tsp urad dal / minapappu
• 1 tsp chana dal/ sengapappu
• Pinch hing / asofotida
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbsp curry leaves
• 2 tbsp lemon juice (optional)


Aloo Masala curry

How to prepare :
1. Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds, when they start spluttering, add urad dal
and chana dal, fry till golden brown.
2. Next add turmeric , finely chopped green chillies and onions and fry till onions are translucent.
3. Add curry leaves with partly mashed potatoes and salt. Mix it properly.
4. Stir for 5 mins. Then add lemon juice and mix properly and remove it from the flame.
5. Sprinkle coriander leaves.
6. Spicy and hot aloo curry is ready.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Sweet Pongal



First time i tried this out, which turned very delicious.It is so yum yum.. No, no this is not my say, but my hubbys words.

Ingredients :
• 1 cup rice
• ½ cuo moong dal / pesarapappu
• 3 cups of water
• 1 cup grated coconut dry / fresh
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp cardamom powder
• 1 tbsp cashew nuts
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 3 tbsp ghee
• 2 cups milk


Sweet Pongal

How to make :

1. Pressure cook rice + dal + grated coconut with 3 cups of water till you get 3 whistles
2. Fry cashews and raisins in 1 tbsp of ghee and keep it aside
3. Add the cooked rice and dal mixture in the same pan in 2 cups of milk with sugar.
4. stir it continuously so that it wont get burnt at the bottom
5. Cook it till you get good consistancy. (Not too solid not too liqiud)
6. Add the remaining ghee from the top and mix it.
7. Finally add cashews and raisins.
8. Sweet Pongal is ready to eat.

Note : Chilled dessert is even more tastier

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Hot Pongal / Pulagam



This is hot pongali with lots of ghee and spicy pepper. My daughter says kamma (means very tasty). This recipe is very easy , quick and tasty.
Ingredients :
• 1 cup rice
• ½ cup Moong dal / green gram / pesarapappu
• 3 Pepper / Miriyalu
• Salt to taste
• 3 tbsp ghee( acc to taste)
• 3 cups water
• ½ tsp turmeric





Pongali


How to prepare :
1. Pressure cook rice + dal +Salt +turmeric +pepper (slightly crushed) with 3 cups of water
2. Cook till 3 whistles
3. Add 3 tbsp of ghee to the pongal and mix it properly
4. Hot Yummy pongal is ready to eat .
5. You can have it tomato pickle or taken as it is.

Bhogi specials

Bhogi is the first day of four-day Sankranthi festival in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Tamil people celebrate Bhogi as Bhogi Pongal. Bhogi Mantalu and Bhogi Pallu are the main ritual during Bhogi festival. In the early morning, people light a sacred bonfire called Bhogi Mantalu. Children dance around bhogi mantalu, singing songs in praise of the gods and the South Indian harvest festival.
On Bhogi day, women folk spray cow dung and water in front of house and draw rangoli (muggulu). On Muggu (rangoli), gobbemmalu are kept. Gobbemma is a cow dung ball, decorated with pasupu (turmeric), kumkum, and flowers.

Bhogi pallu is special ritiual to be performed in the evening. On this day children wear new dresses and They are given bhogi pallu , mixture of fruits like berries / regu pallu , sugarcane / cheruku gaddalu, rice with some coins are showered on the heads of children to protect them from evil forces. Aarti is given to the children and later tambulaluu to the muthaidulu / married women.


Bhogi pallu


Thambulalu

Monday, January 4, 2010

Shaahi Paneer



Name itself has some royal feeling . This recipe is taken from my mother-inlaw.
She is an expert in North Indian as well as south Indian dishes. I am making an effort to learn some of the delicious recipes from her. Well here is shaahi paneer .

Ingredients :
• 200gms Paneer
• Handful of cashew nuts soaked overnight and made into fine paste
• 3 medium tomatoes chopped and made in to fine paste
• 2 medium onions made into paste
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tsp daniya powder
• 1 ½ tsp chilli powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• Salt to taste
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• Few coriander leaves






Shaahi Paneer



How to prepare :
1. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and fry them for a minute
2. Next add ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell is gone (2min)
3. Next add onion paste and fry for 3minutes till brownish color.
4. Next add tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes
5. Add chilli powder, daniya powder, garam masala powder and salt with little water
6. And cook the mixture so that all the spices are mixed properly
7. After 5-10 minutes , add cashew nut paste to the mixture and stir for 5 minutes
8. Finally add paneer to the mixture and stir it continuously for a minute
9. Shaahi Paneer is ready. You can have it with roti,puri and pulao.
Note :
Paneer has to be added to the gravy 5 minutes before you eat because paneer may get dissolved in it. You can overcome it by frying paneer in low flame till golden brown and add to it.

Coriander chutney / Kothmir pachadi



Coriander Chutney : Coriander chutney is so yummy, very easy and quick recipe . Coriander is so freshly available in Bangalore and the aroma is irresistible.The flavor is so good.There are many ways to make the chutney.Mothers recipe is right here.

Ingredients :
• 1 bunch coriander leaves cleaned and chopped roughly
• 8 dry red chillies
• Lemon size Tamarind
• Salt to taste

For Seasoning :

• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp urad dal
• Pinch hing
• Pinch turmeric
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 ½ tbsp oil


Coriander Chutney


How to prepare :
1. Heat ½ tbsp oil in a pan, add red chillies and fry them for 2-3mins.
2. Blend these red chillies along with cumin seeds
3. Next add to it chopped coriander leaves, salt,tamarind and make a paste.
4. Heat oil in pan, add mustard seeds, when they start spluttering, add urad dal
5. Fry them for a minute and in the last add hing and turmeric
6. Add the seasoning to the paste
7. Delicious Coriander chutney is ready to be taken with Hot rice / any snacks

If u want chutney to be in liquid form you can add little water while grinding and adjust the salt and chillies accordingly.Instead of red chillies we can use green chillies too.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Tomato - onion Raita



Raita is a cool summer dish. It is mostly taken with pulao or any fried rice. It can also taken as it is.

Ingredients :
• 2 medium ripe tomatoes chopped finely
• 1 onion chopped finely
• ½ bunch coriander leaves chopped finely
• ½ tsp mustard powder (optional)
• Salt to taste
• 2 cups curd / yogurt


Tomato onion Raita


How to prepare :
1. Beat the curd lightly until smooth
2. Add chopped tomatoes, onions, salt,mustard powder and coriander leaves to the curd
3. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.
4. Healthy tasty chilled Tomato and onion raita is ready to be served with pulao.

Note : Most of them add chilli powder, pepper powder and cumin powder to the raita. It is personal choice

Carrot Halwa

Carrot halwa is done quite often in our house. But krishna happen to eat very less sweets. But he likes the carrot halwa made by me.I personally like this delicious dessert. It is very simple to make. Anybody can try it.

Ingredients:

1. 4 cups of grated carrot

2. 1 1/2 cups sugar

3. 5 tbsp of ghee

4• 10-15 Cashew nuts crushed

5• 10-15 Raisins

6• 1 cup sugar

7• 1tsp Cardamom(Ilaichi) powder




Carrot Halwa

How to prepare

1. Take 1 tbs of ghee in a pan and fry Cashew nuts and Raisins separately and keep
them aside
2. Add 2 tbsp of ghee in a pan, maintain low flame
3. After 30seconds, add grated carrot to it, stir for 10 mins continuously.
4. Add 3 cups of water and keep the lid,cook for 10-15 mins, stir occasionally so
that it doesn’t stick to the pan
5. Continue this process till beetroot becomes soft
6. Add 1 cup of sugar, Cardamom powder to it and stir it for 5mins.
7. Add raisins and cashews to it
8. Finally garnish it with the remaining cashews and raisins
9. Delicious carrot halwa is ready to be served.