Chana Dal Vada

Ingredients

Chana Dal – 1 ½ cup(soak overnight)
Hing – a pinch
Salt to taste
Red chilly powder- ½ tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Onion – 1 chopped
Coriander leaves – few sprigs (chopped)
Green chilies – 2 chopped fine
Curry leaves – 4-5 cut small.
Oil to fry.


Procedure

1. Soak the chana dal overnight. Remove the water. Grind it into a coarse paste.
2. Add all the above spices and chopped onion, coriander leaves, green chilies, and curry leaves to the chana dal paste. Mix well.
3. Take a sallow non stick pan. Pour refined/ veg oil.
4. Take a small potion of the mix; make a round on your palm. They should not be too big neither too small. Too thick a round does not cook inside properly.
5. Make 4-5 rounds and shallow fry them. Once one side is brown turn it to the other side.
6. Remove when fried on both sides and golden brown in color.
7. Cook in medium flame as, high flame tend to brown the surface fast but does not cook it inside.
8. Serve hot with sauce/ green chutney.

Crispy Carrot Sandwich

How I learnt it – It was the New Years celebrations that were happening at sea. A boat cruise with few friends was fun……..
This lady who was our friends friend served us the sandwiches. They were soft, creamy and tasted great!!!!
She was an entrepreneur and did catering to various institutions in Goa for different occasions. This recipe was copied and pasted in my mind at sea. Very easily made and eaten.


Ingredients

Bread Slices/ Hot Dog – 4 / 1
Carrot – 3 tbsp per sandwich
Mayonnaise/ butter – 1 tsp
Black pepper – as per taste
Salt as per taste.


Procedure

1. Cut the edges of the bread slice.
2. Wash the carrot and grate it.
3. Mix mayonnaise / butter with salt and pepper.
4. Add grated carrot to the mix.
5. Fill the bread slices with the filling.
6. Cut them into triangle shape.
7. Serve them with tomato sauce or green chutney.

Tip - you can use cabbage instead of carrot or can make club sandwiches using both the ingredients and making three layered sandwich.

Mixed Vegetable Curry

How I learnt it - My school friend, a fighter pilot, Rakesh spends a lot of time in the kitchen when he is not flying. He loves to cook and try different recipes. According to him cooking is a great stress buster. I cooked his recipe and found its taste incredible….
Now, It’s for all you friends to enter the kitchen and enjoy the finger licking dish yourself.

Ingredients

Green peas – 2 cups (200 grms)
Beans – 7-8 cut long
Capsicum – 1 big (cut into squares)
Cauliflower – 1 cup (cut small)
Carrot – 2 med (cut into semi circles)
Butter/ veg oil – 3 tbsp
Sugar – 1tsp


Masala to grind and make puree

Onions – 2
Tomatoes – 3 med
Green chilly – 2
Ginger – 1” long
Garlic – 3-4 cloves
Salt – 1 ½ tsp
Red chilly powder – 1tsp
Coriander powder – 1tsp
Cumin powder- 1tsp
Garam masala – 1tsp




Procedure


1. Wash the vegetables thoroughly and cut them.
2. Take a kadai. Heat 2 tbsp butter/oil at low flame.
3. Add all the vegetables and cover it. Remove the vegetables after three minutes.
4. Put 1 tbsp of butter/ oil in the same kadai and heat it.
5. Add the masala which has been ground to puree.
6. Stir it and cook till the masala leaves the sides of the kadai.
7. Now add the vegetables, 2 tbsp of fresh cream and 1 tsp of sugar.
8. Add a cup of water and cook for 8 to 10 mins or till the vegetables are cooked.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves or onion roundels.
10. Serve hot with paranthas.


Tip – To make the gravy richer, you can add 2 tsp of cashew/ almond paste.

Italian Pizza

How I learnt it - She is one of my friend who’s been almost together throughout my married life. Jyothsana is a great cook and has keen interests in finance, taxation, beauty products and contemporary styling. I learnt the intricacies of good pizza making while celebrating her daughter’s 1st birthday.

Ingredients

Pizza base – 3 medium

Tomato – 3-4 (chopped fine)

Sugar – 1tsp

Onion – 1 (chopped fine)

Capsicum (finely chopped) – 4-5 tbsp

Butter – 2 tbsp

Oregano powder – 1tsp

Veg/ refined oil – 1tbsp

Cheddar / parmesan Cheese – 1 cup (grated)

Salt – a pinch

Seasoning

Red chilly flakes

Mustard sauce

Tomato sauce

Procedure

1. Take a pan, pour oil. Heat it. Add finely chopped tomatoes.

2. Add sugar, a pinch of salt and oregano powder.

3. Mix well. Cook it till it leaves water and becomes a smooth paste.

4. Switch off the stove. Add chopped capsicum, onion and finely grated cheese.

5. Take the pizza base; spread little butter on the top.

6. Spread the prepared topping over it.

7. Microwave each at 600 degree centigrade on grill + cook mode for 2 minutes.

8. Remove and cut into four.

9. Serve hot with one’s preferred seasoning.

Tip

1. To make the pizza crispier, keep on the tawa for few seconds till it becomes golden brown.

2. Paneer, chicken bits, baby corn and mushroom can be used to make the toppings. They are optional depending on the availability in the market.

3. Already cheese has enough salt so it can be used judiciously.

Hari Chutney

How I learnt it– I always used to make the pudina chutney using sugar and lemon. One day my neighbor suggested why don’t you add jaggery and tamarind instead. It tasted great! Everybody appreciated my chutney in all my parties after that. You too can try it and get applauds.

Ingredients

Mint leaves (Pudina) – 1 cup Coriander leaves – 1 cup

Onion – 1 medium peeled Garlic – 5-6

Green chillies – 3-4 jagerry – 1 ball lemon sized

Tamarind paste – 2 tbsp salt to taste

Procedure

1. Take coriander leaves, mint leaves, green chilies. Wash them and chop them.

2. Peel the onion, garlic and wash them.

3. Put all the above ingredients in the grinding jar.

4. Add salt to taste, jaggery and tamarind paste.

5. Grind it to a fine paste. There is no need to add any water.

6. It is an excellent accompaniment with samosa and kababs.

Tip - To make the chutney last for 3-4 days add a tea spoon of veg oil and mix it thoroughly.

Vangi Bhaath (Brinjal rice)

 

Ingredients –

rice – 2 cups  

 Brinjal – 3 med size               

Bay leaves – 2

green chilies – 2-3 (slit)

onion – 1 chop fine      

tomato puree – ¾ cup    oil – ½ cup

fresh grated coconut – 4 tbsp

fresh coriander leaves – 2tbsp.

 

Masala to grind

 

Coriander powder -1tbsp   

Cumin powder – 1tsp

Red chilly powder – 1tsp

Pepper powder – ¼ tsp

Garlic – 3-4                   ginger – 1 inch

Cardamom – 2               clove – 2-3

Lemon juice- 2tsp

1. Add the above masalas with grated coconut, fresh coriander leaves and grind it in the mixer to a fine paste.

Procedure

 

1. Soak rice in water for sometime.

2. Wash the brinjal and cut them round shape .  Apply salt to brinjal and keep aside.

3. Heat oil in a pan and fry the brinjal pieces. Fry till golden brown.

4. Take a heavy bottomed pan . Add the remaining oil. Sauté with bay leaves, chopped onion, and green chilies. Mix well.

5. Add the ground masala paste, tomato puree and salt to taste. Stir it and keep moving till the oil leaves the side of the pan.

6. Add rice and mix well for 1-2 min.

7. Add 4 cups of water and let it come to boil.

8. Add  the lemon juice and cover the pan half and let it cook.

9. Cut few brinjal roundels into four pieces and add to the rice after the rice is almost done.

10. Once the rice is cooked garnish with the remaining fried brinjals on the top.

11. Serve hot with raita, pickle and pappad.

 

 

 

 

 

Pulihara (Tamarind Rice)

 

An Andhra recipe cooked during festivals……..

 

HOW  I LEARNT IT -   My colleague in Bangalore college used to get this dish in her lunch box. She used the traditional spices and it tasted so good that we would swap our lunch boxes. One day she came home and cooked it for me.

 

Ingredients

 

Rice-  1 cup (cooked)

Tamarind  paste – 4 tbsp

Jaggery – lemon sized

Ground nut – 3 tbsp

Urd dal –  1tsp

Channa dal – 1tsp

Red chillies – 3-4

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Asafoetida (hing)– a pinch

Ginger paste-  1 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves-  6-7

Salt to taste

Oil – 3 tbsp 

 

Procedure

 

1. Make the tamarind paste by boiling tamarind pulp.

2. Once the pulp thickens into paste, add some salt, turmeric powder and jaggery in the paste

3. Boil for some more time.

 

Saute

 

1. Heat groundnut oil/ refined oil in a pan .Add mustard seeds, Red chilies and Asafoetida (hing).

2. Add a bit of urad dal, channa dal and ground nuts. Roast properly.

3. Add curry leaves and a paste of ginger and green chilies into the pan Fry them properly in oil.

4. Add the tamarind paste. If the paste is thick add little water to it. Cook it till it leaves oil on the sides of the pan. Add the cooked rice along with the tamarind paste. Mix well.(Salt can be further added according to taste)

 

 

Tip: Can roast a bit of fenugreek seeds (methi) and mustard seeds, powder them and add them to the paste and then mix with rice. It adds a good flavour but turns bitter if the quantity of mustard or fenugreek seeds (methi) is more.