Pav Bhaji

 

I love Pav bhaji and especially the one i make it :). After various trails i have perfected the recipe for the same. So here goes the recipe.

1.Chop 3 potatoes, 1 carrot and some cabbage .  Here you can use veggies of your choice.

2.Pressure cook these along with a handful of fresh peas for 3 whistles.

3. Heat oil and butter in a pan and add 1 small chopped capsicum and saute them for a minute, add puree of 1 onion, 3 small garlic cloves and some ginger and fry nicely.

4. Add r.chilli powder, pav bhaji masala, haldi , dhaniya powder and salt and cook for some seconds.

5. Add puree of 3-4 tomatoes and also the boiled and mashed veggies at this stage.

6. Mix nicely, add little water if required to get the right consistency and cook for close to 15 mins.

7. Just before taking it off the heat add a tbsp of butter and coriander leaves.

I always taste and adjust the masalas and seasoning according to my taste. So taste and make it more spicy or less accordingly. The main difference and the best taste was when i added the veggies along with tomato puree. Earlier i used to fry the puree nicely and then only add veggies.

Serve hot with buttered and toasted pav, chopped onion and lemon wedges.

 

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Dal Kaanda

Dal kaanda is a spicy maharastrain dal which makes use of goda masala and is a great accompaniment to rice or roti.I had it for the 1st time when i was visiting my inlaws and loved this dal. In their house majority of the cooking was done on wood fire and it surely does impart a different flavor to the dish as well.

Dal Kaanda

Ingredients

Tur Dal 1/2 cup

Onion 2 large ones chopped

Garlic 3 cloves crushed

Oil 1 tbsp

Rai 1/2 tsp

Jeera 1 tsp

Kala/Goda masala 2 tbsp

Roasted peanut powder 2 tbsp

haldi 1/2 tsp

salt to taste

water as required

Corinader leaves.

Method

Wash and dal nicely and drain the water.

Heat oil in a kadai,  add rai ,jeera and then add onions and garlic

Saute then for 2 mins on a low flame.

Add dal and saute on a slow flame till u get a nutty aroma of the dal.

Add water and haldi and cook the dal on a medium flame for 15 mins.

The dal will be half cooked at this stage , then add salt, kala masala , peanut powder and mix nicely.

Cook again for the 10-15 mins till the dal is completely cooked but has its shape.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with roti and rice.

Tamarind Rice/Puliogre

In south rice is a staple ingredient so you will find many rice dishes from pulao to rice sambhar, lemon rice vaangi bhaath puliogre etc. My favorite is puliogre from all the rice dishes i have tasted. The tangy taste of it is very tickling on the pallet and i just love it. To prepare this they are many ready mix packs also available in the market both in the powder form or in the gojju or paste form here. But i usually prepare the tamarind gojju at home and store it for in the fridge.

Tamarind Rice/Puliogre

Ingredients

For Gojju

Tamarind 150 gms

Peanuts 1/4 cup

Mustard Seeds 1 tbsp

Red Chillies 3

Salt

Jaggery 1 tbsp

Sesame Seeds (Til) 1/4 cup

Curry Leaves 2 sprigs

Oil 1/4 cup + more

To be ground to a masala

Chana Dal 2 tbsp

Urad Dal 1 Tbsp

Methi 1 tsp

Dry R.chillies 12

Hing 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves 1 sprig

Oil 1 tbsp

To prepare Puliogre

Cooked Rice 1 Bowl

Oil 1 tbsp

Chana dal tsp

curry leaves 5

Haldi 1/2 tsp

prepared puliogre gojju 3-4 tbsp

Method.

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil and add all the masala ingredients and roast them for 2-3 mins on a slow flame till the dals are lightly browned and u get a nice aroma from it. When cooled grind it to a fine powder.

2. Soak Tamarind in warm water for for 1/2 hour and extract the pulp. I got 3/4 cup pulp from this.

3. Soak peanuts in water for 10 mins and drain all the water.

4. Dry roast sesame seeds till a very light brown and pound it in a pestle. U can do it in a mixie as well but pulse it for some seconds as u dont want a fine powder.

5. Heat 1/4 cup oil in a thick bottomed kadai,add mustard seeds, curry leaves, Red Chillies and peanuts. Fry the peanuts till they are lightly browned.

6.Add the tamarind pulp and cook for 5 mins stirring continuously.

7. Add salt, pounded til, jaggery and the the masala powder and mix nicely and cook again for 10 mins till the raw smell of the tamarind goes away.

8. I usually add a extra 2 tbsp of oil at this stage and cook again.

9. Keep on stirring continuously and cook till the oil comes on top. and the paste has become quiet thick.

10. This whole process of cooking takes close to 25-30 mins.

11. When cooled store it in a clean bottle and use it to prepare the puliogre.

12 Heat oil in a pan , add chana dal and curry leaves. Then add haldi and take it off the fame. Add the Gojju and mix nicely. Add the cooked rice and mix nicely. You can increase the amount of gojju depending on how tangy you want the rice to be.

Note.

The quatity of jaggery depends on how tangy you want the gojju to be, i usually add a very little qty coz i like the tangy taste of it.

The colour of the gojju is very light , it depends on the color of the tamarind you use. This time the tamarind i had was very light brown in color.

This recipe was shared by a neighbor many years ago and have been following the same method.

What i like is spread the gojju on a roti , roll it and have it, it taste very good. Half of the qty is usually finished in this way.

Chawal ki Ghaat – A Rajasthani Recipe for India Cuisine Series

Wikipedia‘s search on Rajasthan is “Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, (“the land of kings“^[1] or “the land of colours“^[2]), is the largest state of theRepublic of India by area. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert (Thar Desert).he main religious festivals are Deepawali, Holi, Gangaur, Teej, Gogaji, Shri Devnarayan Jayanti,Makar Sankranti and Janmashtami, as the main religion is Hinduism. Rajasthan’s desert festival is celebrated with great zest and zeal. This festival is held once a year during winter. Dressed in brilliantly hued costumes, the people of the desert dance and sing haunting ballads of valor, romance and tragedy.

Rajasthani cooking was influenced by both the war-like lifestyles of its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this arid region.^[1] Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred. Scarcity of water and fresh green vegetables have all had their effect on the cooking.Rajasthan is known for tough people and tough food. It is also known for its snacks likeBikaneri Bhujia, Mirchi Bada and Pyaaj Kachori.Other famous dishes include Bajre ki roti (millet bread) and Lashun ki chutney (hot garlic paste), Mawa Kachori from jodhpur, Alwar ka mawa,Malpauas from pushkar and Rassgollas from Bikaner.^[2]Originating for the Marwar region of the state is the concept Marwari Bhojnalaya, or vegetarian restaurants, today found in many part of India, which offer vegetarian food of the Marwari people.

Today’s recipe is a very simple preparation and is curd rice but with a different taste. we love this dish in our family and is prepared quiet often. On a rainy day having this with a dollop of ghee is a good lunch or breakfast option. Chawal means Rice and Ghaat means a porridge or something which is mushy. we can even prepare this with corn and barley as well and they also turn out to be quiet good

Chawal Ki Ghaat

Rice 1 Cup

Sour Curds 3/4 Cup

Water-21/2 cups

Salt

Ghee

Method

wash the rice nicely and add water and salt and cook till the rice is soft and mushy.

You can also do this in the cooker by giving 5 whistles.

Add the sour curds to the hot rice and mix nicely and cook again on the stovetop for 10 mins.

The consistency should be not very thick it should be a bit on the thinner side.

Serve hot with a dollop of ghee and for extra zing u can have it with  a dash of mango pickle as well.

Note.

Broken rice is used instead of whole rice for this, but i prepare i with regular rice only.

As the curds is cooked along with the rice the taste is quiet different from curd Rice

Belekadubina Unde – A dish From Mysore For Indian Cuisine Series

Wikipedia’s search of Mysore got me this “Mysore  in English, Kannada: ಮೈಸೂರು Maisūru) is the second largest city in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the headquarters of the Mysore district and the Mysore division and lies about 146 km (91 mi) southwest of Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka. The name Mysore is an anglicised version of Mahishūru, which means the abode of Mahisha. Mahisha stands for Mahishasura, a demon from Hindu mythology. The city is spread across an area of 128.42 km² (50 sq mi) and is situated at the base of theChamundi Hills.

Mysore is famous for the festivities that take place during the Dasara festival when the city receives a large number of tourists. Mysore also lends its name to the Mysore mallige, theMysore style of painting, the sweet dish Mysore Pak, the Mysore Peta (a traditional silk turban) and the garment called the Mysore silk saree. In an exercise carried out by the Urban Development Ministry under the national urban sanitation policy, Mysore was rated the second cleanest city in India in 2010 and the cleanest in Karnataka.^[3]  

I Love Mysore and have lived here all my life here, can’t think of settling in any other place than Mysore.When I started the Indian Cuisine Series, i wanted to prepare something which is not well-known and i have not prepared it anytime. So when speaking to one my friend about this, she happily shared this recipe with me, it is a regular breakfast fare at her home. So happy to have tried it out coz it came out very well and my daughter loved having these.My friend minnu and me go way back to our college days, but lost touch after college and now thanx to Facebook we are in touch with each other.

Todays recipe Belekadubina Unde means steamed lentils dumplings but i have prepared them in the shape of Idlis.

Belekadubina Unde

(Steamed Lentils Dumplings)

 Ingredients

 Moong Dal ¾ cup

Tur Dal ¼ Cup

Urad Dal 3tbsp

Rice 1 Tbsp

2. Chopped Onions

1 small bunch coriander leaves

2 Small bunch dill leaves

Salt

¼ cup grated coconut

Grind to a paste

3 G.chillies

1 tsp jeera

A pinch hing

1’’ ginger

¼ tsp haldi

5-6 leaves pudina

Method

 Wash the dals nicely and soak overnight.

Grind to a coarse paste

Wash coriander and dill leaves and chop finely

Mix the dal paste, salt, greens, chopped onion, grated coconut and the g.chillies paste and mix nicely.

This batter is thick more like a the batter you prepare for dal pakoras

Grease your idli plates and add around 2 tbsp of batter into it and just lightly press with the spoon evenly.

Steam for 20 mins and serve hot with Ghee and Coconut Chutney.

Coconut Chutney

½ cup grated coconut

3 g.chillies

1” Ginger

Coriander Leaves

Phutana\Daria\Fried Gram 2 tbsp

Grind all these to a smooth paste and add salt and mix nicely

You can temper the chutney with Mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Note.

The Idlis turned out to be nice and soft in spite of not much water in it.

These idlis tasted a bit like the masala dal wadas we get here.

I had some more batter left and prepared Appe’s with them, even they turned out to be good.

Thanx Minnu for sharing the recipe.