Curry With One Masala- Palak Soya Bean Curry

It's been gloomy and rainy for the past few days, somehow I don't feel like doing anything when the sun hides into the clouds and the day becomes gloomy.  No matter how tired and lazy I feel, still  have to fulfill few of my basic instincts, like eating.  I can go on with some take away or some snacks to munch on but that's definitely not going to satisfy the nutritional requirements for my body. 

So I'm forced by myself to cook and eat some healthy food and at the same time without too much chopping or cooking.  Thinking about some spicy food which is apt for this season, at the top of my head I could dream about poori channa, parotta chalna etc. Oh! no that requires quite lot of time.

 
 Alright, now having some soaked soya beans and fresh palak in my refrigerator, all I could think about is Palak soya bean curry. After palak panner, Murg Palak, we all love making Palak channa or Palak peas too, this is exactly the same category.  Although Palak Channa is the best for me, I love combining Palak with other pulses and beans too.

Note:
The same curry style can be adapted for Chickpeas or Peas instead of Soyabeans. Channa Masala can be found in any Asian or Indian Grocery stores

Serves 2
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
Cooked Soya beans- 100 gm
Palak- 100 gm ( cleaned and chopped )
Tomato- 2 medium sized (pureed)
Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Channa Masala powder- 2 tsp
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
Heat Oil in a pan. Add the cumin seeds, then ginger garlic paste.  Stir it for 2 minutes until the raw smell goes away. Now add the tomato puree, stir well. Cover and let it simmer for about 3 minutes. When you open the pan, the colour of the tomatoes should be in bright red colour and the oil should start leaving the sides of the pan. 
At this stage add the cooked soya beans, channa masala powder, salt and stir well.  Cover and cook for a few minutes until the masala gets incorporated well.  Finally add the palak puree, stir well, let it simmer for 2 minutes. Switch off the flame. Serve warm withbread, chapathi's or rice.

To make the palak puree:
Blanch the washed palak in hot water for 2 minutes.  Drain the water and wash in cold water immediately. Puree the palak in a
blender into a smooth paste by adding little water.

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Black eye peas gravy

I might have over 400 recipes in my blog, but still I have the question of what to cook today almost everyday. There might be a millions of recipes passing through our mind from television shows, Internet or book,  the questions is about ,do I have these ingredients in my pantry,will this recipe suit my family and above all is it easy to cook and how much time does it take.  It's not possible to spend hours and hours in the kitchen everyday.  On special occasions we might cook different recipes and lots of varieties to please our family, but on daily basis, I'm sure everybody will be looking for something easy to cook and less time consuming.

This is one such gravy or curry which can be cooked  in minutes.  Also if you prepare the base of the curry and store it in a refrigerator, you can use different beans,potatoes or mixed vegetables or even chicken or meat  with the same base.  Imagine you have the base of the gravy stored in the refrigerator, you wake up late in the morning and got 15 minutes to prepare your lunch box.  Take out this curry base, heat it up for 5 minutes, then add canned beans or cooked beans to the gravy,let it simmer for another 5 minutes.  Your quick curry is ready under 10 minutes,  now you have 5 more minutes to spare for other work.  That sounds good isn't ?

Coming to the recipe, as I already said different pulses,mixed vegetables or potatoes can be added to this gravy.  I prefer adding pulses and today's pulse is Black eye peas. Black eye peas are high in fibre. Since you get the best from the dried ones, I would prefer using the dried one rather than the canned ones.  It's also rich in potassium and iron.  These pulses are also a rich source of protein.  Particularly if you are following a vegetarian diet, it's good to include these pulses in the regular diet to keep up the protein level. Read more about black eye peas from here.  Let's see how to make this simple and easy gravy.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Dried black eye peas- 100 g
Onion- 1 large (roughly blended)
Tomato- 1 medium sized ( pureed)
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
Chilly powder-1/2 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tsp
Curry powder or Channa masala powder-1 tsp
Garam masala- 1/4 tsp
Cinnamon- 1/4 inch stick
Cumin seeds-1/2 tsp
Coriander leaves- 1 tbsp ( finely chopped )
Lemon juice- juice of 1/2 a lemon
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
Soak the dried black eye peas overnight or minimum 3-4 hours.  Pressure cook the soaked peas for upto 1 whistle.  Coarsely blend the onions in a blender and keep it separately.  Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan,  add cumin and cinnamon.  Add ginger garlic paste and coarsely ground  onions and saute well.  Once the raw smell goes and slightly brown in colour , add the pureed tomato.  Mix well and stir until you see oil on the sides. At this stage add all the spice powders and mix well.  Cover the pan and cook until oil floats on top.
If you would like to store in a refrigerator,  at this stage take it off from heat,  add the lemon juice, allow it to cool down completely and store it in a glass jar.  This can be kept upto a week in the refrigerator.
To continue with the recipe,  add the cooked peas,stir well.  Cover the pan and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Add salt to taste, chopped coriander and finally lemon juice.  Stir well and take it off from heat.  Serve it warm with breads, roti's or rice.

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Palak Paneer

Spinach is one of those super vegetable which has to be included in our everyday diet.  We know that spinach is a rich source of iron,apart from that spinach is also rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin K, magnesium etc.  Including a good amount of spinach in your everyday diet, helps you prevent against certain type of cancer.  It helps builds up your immunity system, Vitamin K - strengthens your bones.  The high amount of Vitamin A- keeps your skin glowing.  When this super vegetable has so much to offer for our body, why don't we include this in our diet and keep our body active and healthy.

Whatever recipe you prepare,remember to boil the spinach in water for few minutes to remove certain types of acid in the leaves.  Don't drink or use the boiled water as stock, since the acids are not good for your health.  If you would like to know more about this super vegetable, read it from here, here and here.

When it comes to spinach, I always feel comfortable with dhal and that's the most comfort food of all for me.  Recently my daughters have developed a phobia that no more dhals.  When I enter into my kitchen to prepare lunch, my little one comes running at the back of me and she says, amma, no dhal today.  So the alternative for spinach would be with paneer,aloo or mutton.  In my home when it's mutton they enjoy the food a lot, for a veggie alternative we like it with paneer and aloo.  I almost use the same preparation method for mutton and paneer but still there is a huge difference in flavours.  When you have fresh paneer and fresh palak, it tastes the best.  This can be enjoyed as a side with roti's,naan or kulchas.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time:20- 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
Spinach- 1/2 kg
Paneer- 200 g ( thinly sliced into squares or rectangle)
Onion- 1 big sized ( finely chopped )
Tomato- 2 medium sized ( finely chopped)
Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp
Cinnamon- 1/2inch stick
Bay leaves- 1
Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder-1 tsp
Curry powder- 1 tsp
Green chilly- 1
Kasuri methi- 1 tsp crushed
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:

Wash the spinach in water for 3 to 4 times to remove all the dirt.  Add the spinach to the boiling water and leave it for 3 to 4 minutes.  Drain all the water and blend it in a blender,keep  it separately.

Heat oil in a thick bottomed vessel.  Add bay leaf, cinnamon and cumin.  Now add the ginger garlic paste and chopped onion.  Saute until the raw smell goes, this may roughly take about 5 minutes.  Then add the tomatoes, mix it well.  Keep the flame in medium,cover the pan and let it cook until the tomatoes look mushed up.  At this point add chilly powder,coriander powder,curry powder,green chilly and kasuri methi.  Give it a good stir, keep the flame in low,cover the pan and cook until oil separates.

Finally add the pureed spinach, paneer and salt.  Let it simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.  Switch off the flame and serve it warm with roti's and naan.

This recipe goes to  Healthy Morsels- Pregnancy , Let's Cook- Greens, Green Blog Hop

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Paneer Mutter Masala

Paneer Mutter Masala is again something very special which we would like to order in a restaurant.  Every home cook will have their own version for this gravy with few minor changes.  When it comes to these restaurant special gravies like Butter Chicken, Paneer Makhani etc.
There is always one recipe which I totally depend on is,Varevah.  Almost everybody who watched  his video recipes will definitely start following his recipes.  His videos are always simple and easy to follow and interesting to watch too.  Needless to say his recipe never fails, no wonder he has got so many fans.

Whenever I had these gravies like paneer makhani or paneer mutter masala, I never thought it would be so easy for me to make at home.  Sometimes it makes you feel really good when you are able to recreate this restaurant menu at home.  With big thanks to Varevah for sharing this recipe, let's see how to make it.

Preparation Time:10 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
Paneer- 100 gms ( diced in cubes )
Peas- 200 gms ( boiled )
Onion- 1 big sized chopped finely
Tomato- 2 medium sized chopped finely
Ginger garlic paste-1 tsp
Chilly powder- 1 tsp
Coriander powder- 2 tsp
Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
Kasoori methi-1 tsp
Cashew nut-4 nuts
Ketchup- 2 tsp
Cumin seeds-1 tsp
Cinnamonstick- 1/2 inch stick
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Cream-2 tsp ( optional )

Method:
Boil the peas and keep it separately.  Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and cinnamon stick.  After a minute,add ginger garlic paste, keep the heat in medium and stir well.  Now add the cashews and onions , stir well until they looks transparent.  To get the onions cooked quickly, you can add a little bit of salt. Now add the tomatoes and stir well.  Cover the pan and cook till the tomatoes get soft and mushy.  Now add kasurimethi,chilly powder and coriander powder to it.  Add some water , cover the pan and cook till it looks like gravy.  After few minutes,switch of the stove.  Blend the mixture in a blender until  it's pureed well.  Pour the ground mixture again in a pan and start cooking it in medium heat.  Now add the ketchup and salt to taste.  Add the diced paneer and cooked peas.  Cover the pan and let  it cook for a minute or two.  Finally add the garam masala and stir well.  Just before serving, you can drizzle some cream on top or just serve it without cream with naan or roti's.

Linking this recipe with Comfort Food 

 

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Beans Poriyal

This time I'm not going to say, I'm back after a long time, held up with this or that and so on.  Since this has become my usual routine these days.  Anyways today I have come up with a very simple version of poriyal.
  In my earlier days of cooking, I consider even this poriyal as something special, for me poriyal used to be very simple stir fry, with only vegetables, salt and turmeric powder.  Poriyal has to meet  the purpose of intake of vegetables in your regular diet, that's it for me.  I never cared about adding any extra touch or flavours to it, which was more than enough for me and my husband.

  But when I cook for others, the poriyal has to meet a few criteria, like proper seasoning with dried chillies, curry leaves etc.. also it has have few extra additions like grated coconut, moong dhal etc.  I have seen so many people making so many different version of poriyal, each one is unique and delicious.  Sometimes I even used to think, why we shouldn't have cooking as simple as just steaming , roasting with less spices or without any spices.   Our great great ...  ancestors  lived with those food, they were happy and stayed much healthier as well.  When cooking got complicated with lots of innovative techniques, our taste buds also went complicated, seeking for more flavours, sometimes which may also lead into lots of problem like wastage of food in some star restaurants to meet their high quality or even some minor problems in family with flavours or varieties etc...  No no, please don't lead your thinking that is there any problem with my family, this is just general discussion about what happens around in most of the family.  Okey let's move on to our recipe now.

Preparation time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  15- 20 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Beans- 250 gm
Yellow split moong dhal- 1 tbsp
Fresh grated coconut- 1 tbsp
Onion- 1 small sized ( finely chopped )
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Coconut oil or sunflower oil- 1/2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Seasoning:
Dried red chilly- 2
Curry leaves- 5 to 6
Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp
Urad dhal- 1/4 tsp

Method:
Chop the beans finely and steam it in a steamer for 5 minutes.  This will help your beans stay in shape and colour when you are cooking.  Soak the moong dhal for about  30 minutes.  Heat oil in a kadai, add mustard seeds and urad dhal, once the seeds start spluttering, add dried chillies and curry leaves.  Stir for about a minute.  Now add the finely chopped onions ans saute well until it looks transparent.  Now add the grated coconut , moong dhal, turmeric and salt.  Stir it for about two to 3 minutes until coconut gets light brown in colour.  Finally add the beans and stir well.  Cover the kadai with a lid and cook it for further 5 minutes until the beans look cooked well.  Serve it warm with steamed plain rice, rasam and papad.

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Vazhaipoo Usili for Blog Hop Wednesday

Phew! It's time for blog hopping again, I just can't believe how time flies.  I know almost everybody says this, how quick the time goes, even little kids at the age of 2 and 3 are saying, Oh! I'm busy, don't disturb me.  Whatever I talk to them, come back to me at some point .  Feel like so much to be done in very little time.

Anyways this week for blog hopping, I hopped over to Schmetterling Words.  I love her recipes and I was lucky to taste her food when we were in Germany.  This is a recipe which I have been waiting for a long time to try it from her blog.

Just a short explanation about this recipe,  Vazhaipoo is nothing but Banana flower.   Vazhaipoo Usili is made with banana flower and ground lentils with a blend of spices.  This can be served along with rice, rasam or dhal.  I found this recipe very delicious just like soft and crumbled lentil vadas.  Hope you enjoy making this recipe at home.

Preparation Time:  20 minutes
Cooking Time:  20 minutes
Serves :  2 to 3

Ingredients:
Vazhaipoo/ Banana Flower- 1
Toor dhal- 1/2 cup
Dried red chillies- 4
Fennel seeds-  2 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Curry leaves- 5 to 10 leaves
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Onion- 1 medium sized ( finely chopped )
Oil- 1/2 tbsp
Salt- To taste

Method:
Soak the toor dhal in water for 1 hour.  Then grind it into a coarse paste along with two red chillies and 1 tsp of fennel seeds.
Start preparing the banana flower,  peel the banana flower completely until you get a white part which is found inside.  Chop the top part like a stem.  Now chop the top part which contains small florets.  Chop finely the remaining  white part, and immerse it in a thin buttermilk to avoid discolouration. 
Mix the chopped  vazhaipoo , salt and  ground toor dhal.  Steam the mixture in a steamer or idli plates for 10 minutes.
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, dried red chillies, fennel and curry leaves.  Add the chopped onions and saute until it looks soft. Add turmeric  powder and mix it well.   Finally add the steamed mixture and keep stirring continously without sticking at the bottom.  Keep stirring for about 10 minutes until the mixture looks well cooked and dry.
Serve it warm along with steamed rice, rasam or dhal.

This recipe is linked with Blog Hop Wednesday, also sending it to Kerala Kitchen Event and ABC series: Bfor Banana

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Ennai Kathrikai / Fried Brinjals Cooked in Spicy Gravy

It's time for us to Blog Hop again.  If you are  a regular reader here, you should be familiar about this event now. Blog Hop Wednesday is started by Radhika of Tickling Palates,  where we pair with different bloggers and cook from each other's blog.  To have a detailed view about the event please check it here.

This week I'm paired with Prabha's Samayal/ Cooking, where she has got a collection of delicious recipes, which is a real treat to your eyes.  To spice up this week hop I went for a spicy and tangy South Indian gravy, Ennai Kathrikai.  Ennai Kathrikai is a traditional South Indian dish.  This is a perfect combo with Pulavs and Briyani's.  Thank you Prabha for this yummy recipe and thank you Radhika for organizing this lovely event.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 to 40 minutes
Serves 3 to 4

Ingredients:
Brinjals - 5 to 6
Onion- 1 small sized chopped
Tomato- 1 medium sized chopped
Tamarind- 1 gooseberry sized
Curry leaves- 7 to 8 leaves
Hing- a pich
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Fenugreek / Methi seeds- 1/4 tsp
Oil- 1/2 thsp fpr the gravy and oil for frying the brinjals
Salt to taste
To grind:
Methi/ Fenugreek seeds- 1/4 tsp
Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
Dried red chillies- 2
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Chana dhal- 1 tsp
Urad dhal- 1 tsp
Coconut- 1/2 tbsp

Method:
Dry roast all the ingredients to be ground in a pan until it releases a nice aroma.  Make it into a fine paste by grinding them in a mixer grinder.  Slit the brinjals at the bottom and immerse them in water to avoid discolouration.  Insert the spice paste into the brinjals using a butter knife and keep the remaining paste for the gravy.  Fry the stuffed brinjals  in oil for 3 to 4 minutes, remove it from oil and keep it aside.
Start preparing the gravy by heating the oil in a kadai or pan, splutterthe mustard seeds, fenugreek, curry leaves.  Add the chopped onions and fry it till the onions become nice and soft, then add the tomatoes, stir well.  Keep the flame in medium, cover the pan and cook till the tomatoes get soft and mushed up.
Now add the remaining paste and stir well, extract the juice from the tamarind by adding little water, add the tamarind extract to the gravy and salt to taste.  Cover the pan and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.  Now add the fried brinjals and gently stir it without breaking it.  If the gravy is too thick, add some water to dilute the gravy. Cover it and cook until the brinjals are soft and oil floats on top of the gravy. 
Serve it warm with plain rice and poppadoms , it also goes well with pulavs and briyani's.

This post is linked with Blog Hop Wednesday

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Kumbakonam Kadappa ( Potatoes cooked in spicy lentil gravy)

It's time for us to Blog Hop again, this time my pair is Jayasri of Samayal Arai.  If you have look at my recipe index you can notice that there is only very limited recipes in vegetarian gravy, that's because I don't cook much vegetarian gravy. 
So now I'm in a mission to learn some new veg gravies, I quickly had a glance at Jayasri's gravy section. A lot got my attention but for now I made only one, it's Kumbakonam kadapa.   The name sounds interesting isn'it,  actually the name of recipe attracted me towards it and it's with potatoes, dhal and spices.  A wholesome and rich gravy.  A perfect accompaniment with chapathi's.  Now I have many recipes bookmarked  from Jayasri's blog, thanks to Blog Hop Wednesdays.  Do check Jayasri's blog for her yummy delights.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20-30 minutes
Serves 4 to 5

Ingredients:
Potatoes- 4 to 5 ( medium sized chopped )
Moong dhal- 75 g
Onion- 1 finely chopped
Garlic pods- 3 to 4 chopped
Green Chilly- 2 sliced
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice- 1 tbsp
Curry leaves - a few spring
Coriander leaves- a few stalk
Oil- 1/2 tbsp
Salt to taste

To Grind:
Grated fresh coconut-2 tbsp
Green chillies- 2
Garlic pods- 2
Roasted split gram dhal- 1/2 tbsp
Cinnamon stick- 1/2 inch
Coriander seeds- 3 tsp

Tempering:
Oil- 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds- 2 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp

Method:
Grind all the ingredients to be ground.  Heat the oil in a kadai or pan, add the curry leaves and garlic.  When the garlic turns light brown, add the onion and saute well.  Once the onion turns transparent add the chopped potatoes, turmeric powder and mix it well.  Cover the pan and cook till the potatoes get cooked.
Meanwhile pressure cook the moong dhal for 3 to 4 whistles.  After the potatoes get cooked, add the cooked moong dhal, ground paste and salt.  Allow it to boil for about 10 minutes until the ground paste get incorporated with the gravy well. Finally add the lemon juice on top of  the gravy.
Heat oil in a separate pan, add the mustard seeds when it starts spluttering, add the cumin seeds.  Pour the tempering on top of the gravy.  Serve the gravy with chapathi or dosa.

This post is linked with Blog Hop Wednesdays.  

Also sending this to  Life is Green and Flavours of South India

 

 

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Mixed Vegetable Aviyal

This post is exclusively for Blog Hop Wednesday.  Blog Hop Wednesday is a  brand new exciting event started by Radhika of Tickling Palettes.  The concept behind this event is visting our fellow bloggers and trying out new recipes every week.  Radhika has moulded this event in a special manner like forming groups, and each week we choose one of the blogger to try out new recipes.  Hope you got it, if not that's ok, once you start following it, you'll surely get it.  If you are a blogger just jump into the blog hopping with us and have fun.

At this point we have a bunch of  wonderful bloggers and this week I have got Divya of Easy Cooking to cook from.  I know you don't need any introduction for Divya's Easy Cooking.  She is very popular with all her baked goodies and offcourse other recipes too.  I was so excited when I got Divya's blog for this week,  I  went through her blog so many times and a lot of recipes caught my eyes, she is such a wonderful blogger.  Finally I ended up in this aviyal from her blog.  Aviyal is nothing but a mix of vegetables cooked in mild coconut based sauce, a traditional recipe from Kerala . 

To be honest as a kid I used to hate this aviyal with all the vegetables in it, I used to pick only the raw mangoes and leave the rest in the plate.  It's just gone the opposite now, I'm loving this aviyal a lot now.  Do try this recipe, I'm sure you'll enjoy it, also don't forget to check our Blog Hop every alternative weeks.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
Raw banana-1
Drumstick-1
Carrot-2 medium sized
Potato- 1 medium sized
Raw mango-1 small sized
Green Chilly-2
Curry leaves- 6 to 7 leaves
Coconut oil- 1/2 tbsp
Salt as required

To Grind:
Coconut- 3 tbsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp

Method:
 Wash and slice all the vegetables lenghtways. For raw banana, carrot, potato and drumstick peel them before slicing it.  Heat oil in a kadai or pan.  Add all the washed and chopped vegetables , except raw mango. Stir well to coat in oil.  Cover the pan and let it cook for 3 to 4 minutes.  Meanwhile grind together coconut, turmeric and cumin seeds into coarse paste.  Add  the ground mixture along with green chillies, raw mango and salt to the vegetable mixture.  Add enough water to cover  the vegetables.  Cover the pan with a lid and cook until the vegetables are soft enough.  Finally heat oil in a separate kadai, add the curry leaves, stir for 1 minute.  Pour the hot oil on top of the cooked aviyal.
 This Aviyal goes well with plain rice with a combination of Spicy fish gravy and poppadums.

Note:
Instead of coconut oil you can also use sunflower oil or any other oil of your choice, but coconut oil gives a special touch to this aviyal.

This recipe is linked with Blog Hop Wednesdays.

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Aaloo Paratha with Paneer Tikka Masala

After Idli and sambhar, if I have to say I enjoy a vegetarian dish it must be these soft aaloo parathas and any paneer dishes.  This is something which I regularly order in a restaurant.  From blogging I have learnt that this is favourite for many like me.  To be honest I enjoy these paneer recipes much more than chicken.
  Aaloo paratha recipe is somrthing which I prepare even in my earlier days of cooking, when I just started to cook.  It never goes wrong and one good thing about these parathas are they remain just as soft even after a long time, you don't have to reheat it again.  So this is perfect for dinner parties or even picnics.
   Paneer Tikka Masala, I learnt from Vahchef.  I know he must be a favourite chef for many foodies.  I enjoy watching his videos.   A good food picture will tempt the viewers, but to me his videos and the way he explains about the food, makes me to try it immediately.  His recipes are always reliable which is presented very interestingly.  I enjoy a lot watching his online recipe, do check it out.

Aaloo Parathas

Preparation Time: 40 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Makes 10 to 12 parathas


Ingredients:
Wheat flour- 300 g
Yogurt- 3 tbsp
Ghee- 1 tbsp
Bicarbonate of soda- 1/4 tsp
Honey- 1/2 tbsp
Salt- 1/2 tsp
Water just enough to knead the dough
Oil for making the parathas
For filling:
Potatoes- 3 to 4 medium sized
Onion- 1 small sized finely chopped
Green chilly- 1 chopped
Coriander leaves- finely chopped 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Sift the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl.  Make a well in the center add the yogurt, honey and ghee.  Add water little by little to make it into a smooth dough.  Knead the dough in a floured work surface for 5 minutes, until the dough looks elastic.  Place the dough in a clean and oiled bowl.  Cover with a cling film  and let it rest for minimum 2 hours.

Prepare the filling:
Boil the potatoes for about 20 minutes until it's soft enough to mash.  Peel the skin, mash the potatoes without any lumps.  Add the chopped onion, chilly, coriander leaves, salt and pepper to taste. Mix it well.

Prepare the parathas:
Divide the dough into 10 equal rounds and divide the potato filling into 10 equal rounds.  Roll the dough into 3 cm diameter.  Place the filling in the middle.  Close the dough and seal the edges.  Apply some flour to the work surface and roll it out into 8 cm diameter.  Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
Heat a non stick tawa, when the tawa gets heated, place the parathas in the middle.  Cook it each side for 2 to 3 minutes, until it looks brown spots on top.  Apply ghee or oil while cooking.
Serve the parathas warm with veg or non veg curries.

Paneer Tikka Masala

Recipe Source: Varehvah
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Marination:
Paneer- 250 gms
Onion- 1 roughly chopped
Red pepper- 1/2 diced
Green pepper- 1/2 diced
Tomato -  1/2 tomato diced
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Kasoori methi- 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice- 1 tbsp
Yogurt- 1/2 tbsp
Oil- 1 tsp
Salt and pepper to taste

For gravy:
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
Onion- 1 medium sized finely chopped
Tomato- 1 medium sized pureed
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
Garam masala- 1/4 tsp
Flour- 2 tsp
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste
Coriander leaves- 2 stalk finely chopped
Note:
To make your own home made paneer click here

Method:
Dice the paneer into small cubes and marinate with all the marinade ingredients for 1 hour.
Take a grilling pan or normal pan, add all the marinated ingredients and cook until the paneer looks brown around the sides.
  Heat oil in a pan, add the  cumin seeds, finely chopped onion and ginger garlic paste.  Cook till the onion looks light brown in colour. Add the flour to the onion mixture and stir well.  Then add the tomato puree and keep stirring until it looks like one whole mass. Add water slowly to the mixture and thin the gravy.  Add the chilly and coriander powderand let it boil for 2 minutes, until the gravy looks thick.  Finally add the paneer and other grilled ingredients to the gravy and let it simmer for 5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with garam masala on top. Just before taking off from heat add the finely chopped coriander leaves.

Serve the gravy warm with parathas or naan.


These two recipes goes to AWED- Indian Cuisine hosted by me , started by DK.  Paneer Tikka masla goes to Bookmarked recipes by Priya and Aipi.

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Greek Style Layered Dip

Probably last week I saw this recipe in Kevin's blog and the same week I tried it.  It's a very simple recipe with layers of hummus,tzatziki , chopped cucumber, tomatoes, feta cheese and olives.  Hummus is a very popular middle eastern dip almost everybody will be familiar with this.  Hummus is made with a blend of chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice and garlic.  This is generally used as a dip for pitta bread, you can also serve  with fresh cut vegetables.
Tzatziki is again a Greek dip, made with strained yogurt, cucumber and fresh mint leaves. Actually the idea of making a perfect tzatziki I got it from my friend Schmetterling words.  She said to get a perfect tzatziki we have to squeeze out juice from the cucumber completely and a thick greek style yogurt.  Right let's see the ingredients for the layered dip...


Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Serves 2


Ingredients:
For Hummus:
Dried chickpeas- 100 g
Tahini- 1 tbsp
Garlic- 2 cloves
Lemon juice- 2 tbsp
Olive oil- 4 tbsp
Salt to taste
For Tzatziki:
Greek yogurt- 150 ml
Cucumber- 1(10 cm size)
Garlic- 2 cloves
Fresh mint leaves- 2 stalk finely chopped
Salt to taste
For the layers:
Cucumber- 1 ( 10 cm size)
Tomato- 1 medium sized( chopped into cubes)
Feta cheese- 75 g
Black olives- 7 to 8 chopped

Method:
Prepare the hummus:
Soak the dried chickpeas in water for 1 whole night.  The next day  add enough water to the chickpeas until it's completely immersed and pressure cook for upto 4 whistles. Add the cooked chickpeas, tahini, grated garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt to a food processor.  Grind it to a coarse paste. If it doesn't grind well add some more oil.  Take the hummus and keep it separately.

Prepare the Tzatziki:
Peel and grate the cucumber, press it through a sieve to squeeze out the juice from the cucumber completely. Grate the garlic and chop the mint leaves finely. Mix the yogurt, cucmber, mint, garlic and salt.

Note:
If you can't find Greek yogurt in your place.  Place the normal yogurt in muslin cloth and squeeze out the excess water.

Prepare the layers:
In a wide plate or bowl, first spread the hummus, then tzatziki.  And on top of that add the chopped cucumber, tomatoes, feta cheese and olives.

Serve the dip immediately with tortillas or pitta bread.  If you are planning for a party.  Prepare the hummus and tzatziki earlier and put it in your refrigerator.  Just before serving prepare the layers and serve.

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Vadacurry with Polenta Idli

Vada Curry

   Vada curry is a traditional South Indian dish which is normally served with idli's , dosas or appams.  Vada curry is usually an vegetarian dish made with lentil fritters which is crumbled and made into an thick spicy gravy. The  recipe which I have given here is with ground meat and lentils, you can also use the same recipe without any meat.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes+ soaking time for lentils
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
For vadai:
Ground meat- 200 g
Chana dhal- 100 g
Dried red chilly- 2
Fennel seeds- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves- 5 leaves
Coriander leaves- 1 stalk
Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Oil for frying
Salt to taste
For the gravy:
Onion- 1 big sized sliced finely
Tomato- 1 big sized chopped finely
Ginger garlic paste- 1/2 tbsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 1/2 tsp
Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
Green chilly- 1
Mint Leaves- 1 stalk
Coriander leaves- 2 stalk
Coconut milk- 100 ml
Oil- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
For Seasoning:
Cinnamon Stick- 1/2 inch stick
Bay leaves- 1
Fennel seeds- 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves- 1 stalk

Method:
Prepare the vadai:
Soak the chana dhal in water for 2 hours.  Grind into a coarse paste along with dried chilly, fennel, curry leaves and coriander leaves.  Add the ground chana dhal along with ground meat, salt and garam masala, mix it well.
Heat oil in a kadai enough for deep frying.  Drop a small portion of mixture in the oil and check if it's hot enough for frying. If the mixture comes to the top sizzling, then the oil is ready to fry.
 Make small patties of the mixture.  Drop 2 to 3 at a time and deep fry until they look golden brown.
Prepare the gravy:
Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, when they start spluttering, add the seasoning ingredients one by one.  Then add the onion and ginger garlic paste, saute well.  Keep the heat in medium to low, cover the pan and cook until the onion looks completely soft and light brown in colour.  Now add the tomatoes, saute well, cover the pan and cook until the tomatoes go soft.
 Add chilli powder, coriander powder and mix well.  Then add half cup of water and cover the pan, cook in medium heat for 5 minutes.
  Crumble the vadas and add it to the gravy.  Add the chopped mint and coriander leaves and mix well.  Finally add the coconut milk, green chilly and salt to taste.  Let it cook for another 10 minutes until oil separates and floats on top.  Take it off from heat, sprinkle with chopped coriander leaves on top.  Serve warm with idli'd or dosas.

Polenta Idli

   Polenta is made from yellow or white corn meal, which looks very similar to semolina.  This is the exact same version of my usual instant idli's.  You can make plenty of variations to this simple idli like adding different vegetables, adding whole grains etc... Just play with a basic semolina idli recipe.  You can find all my different types of idli's here.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Makes about 25 idli's

Ingredients:
Polenta- 1 cup
Semolina- 1/2 cup
Bulgur wheat- 1/2 cup
Bicarbonate of soda- 3/4 tsp
Salt- 1 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Yogurt- 2 cups
Seasoning:
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Urad dhal- 1 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Green chilli- 1
Curry leaves- 1 stalk( leaves only chopped)
Coriander leaves- 2 stalk( finely chopped)
Blanched almonds- 5( chopped roughly)
Oil- 1/2 tbsp

Method:
Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, when they start spluttering , add the remaining seasoning ingredients one by one except coriander leaves.  When the nuts turn slightly brown, turn f the heat, add polenta, semolina and bulgur, mix it well.  Add this mixture to the large bowl, add the bicarbonate of soda , salt and turmeric powder, mix it well.
  Then add the chopped coriander leaves and yogurt, mix it well. At this stage the mixture will be quite thick, add about 1/2 to 1 cup of water to make the batter similar to idli batter or semi thick batter consistency.  Grease the idli moulds, fill the moulds with batter and steam it for 5 to 7 minutes until they look fluffy and cooked.
Serve the idli's warm with vada curry or any sambhar or chutney of your choice.



This recipe goes to Twist the Traditional- Idli's by My Innovative Kitchen

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Ragi Chapathi's with Tofu Broccoli Masala

Ragi Chapathi

Ragi or finger millet is generally made as porridge and given for babies. It's not just good for babies,it's also healthy for adults since it's rich in amino acid methionine. Methionine helps produce a substance called lecithin, which reduces the cholesterol level in the body, protects the liver and kidney. It is also rich in calcium, protein and good amount of iron. Read more about ragi from here.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Makes about 8 to 10 chapthi's

Ingredients:
Whole meal flour- 1 cup
Ragi flour- 3/4 cup
Ajwain seeds- 1 tsp
Kasuri methi( dry) - 2 tsp crushed
Salt- 1 tsp
Honey- 1 tsp
Olive oil- 2 tsp
Water- to knead the dough( about 3/4 cup)

Ingredients:
Mix the flour, seeds, methi and salt together. Make a well in the center add the honey, oil and water to make a smooth dough. Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes. Divide the dough into 8 equal balls. Roll it out into 10 to 12 cm diameter circle.
 Heat a non stick pan to high. Cook the chapathi on both sides, until it bubbles and looks lightly brown on top.
You can also apply some oil on top at the end. Serve warm with veg or non veg curries.


Tofu Broccoli Masala

Tofu is nothing but made by coagulating soy milk, something which is very similar to paneer. Since it's made from soy milk, it's rich in calcium but also low in fat. Tofu is good for women who is in menopause since it's rich in calcium, it reduces the bone loss.
  Tofu also reduces the bad cholesterol in the body. There are many different varieties of tofu like silken, firm, dried etc.. Tofu can also be used in ice creams, milkshakes, cakes etc.
 For a very simple version, just crumble the tofu and make it like scrambled eggs or egg burji to have a simple and healthy brunch. Read more about tofu from here.
 I prepared this just like regular paneer butter masala, so you can also substitute with paneer and make this recipe.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Tofu- 100 g
Broccoli- 200 g( florets separated)
Onion- 1 medium sized
Tomato- 1 medium sized
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
Chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tsp
Garam masala- 3/4 tsp
Green chilli- 2
Dried Methi leaves- 1/2 tbsp crushed
Almonds- 5 to 6
Tomato ketchup or Tomato puree- 1/2 tbsp
Milk- 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Oil- 1/2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
Cube the tofu and toast in a pan with little oil on all sides. Keep them separately. Heat oil in a vessel, add the cumin seeds, gingergarlic paste. Then add the chopped onions and fry until they looks transparent. Then add the tomatoes and fry well until they become completely soft. Add the chilli powder, coriander powder and fry well. Then add about 1 cup of water to this mixture, add the almonds, green chilly, methi leaves and salt. Cover the vessel and cook in medium to low heat until the mixture starts boiling. Switch it off from the flame.
  Let the mixture cool down for a while, then blend it in a blender until looks smooth texture.
  Heat oil in the same vessel, add the ground mixture and allow it to boil in medium to low heat. Then add the tomato puree and let it boil for another 5 minutes.
  Meanwhile prepare the broccoli florets, separate it from the stalk and steam it for 5 minutes. Then wash immediately in cold water to stop cooking..
  Pour the milk to the boiling mixture and let it boil for another 2 minutes. Finally add the tofu, broccoli and garam masala. Cover the pan and keep it in low heat for 2 minutes. Switch it off and take it from heat. Check for the salt.
 Serve warm with roti's or pulav.

Both chapathi's and Tofu broccoli masala goes to my own event Eat Well Live Well, the Tofu broccoli masala goes to Only Green event hosted by Sara's corner originally started by Pari of Foodelicious.

Ragi Chapathi goes to CWS- Ajwain seeds hosted by Kavitha of seasoned and dressed, a event started by Priya's EasyN Tasty Recipes

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Punjabi Kadhi

Recently I came across this recipe in so many blogs which tempted me a lot to do. Since I already bookmarked this recipe from Chef in you, I tried her version, which came out really good. DK has described this as it's almost similar to South Indian Moor Kulambu which is totally true.
 Punjabi khadi is nothing but a spicy and tangy buttermilk gravy filled with crispy and spicy pakoras. A famous  vegetarian dish of Punjab.
 With the pakoras in the spicy yogurt gravy was a perfect combination with rice and poppadoms. Although my husband felt that if we add chicken pakoras the taste would have doubled :)
Serves 2
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Recipe adapted from DK of Chef In You

Ingredients:
For the Gravy:
Yogurt- 150 ml/ 6 oz
Besan Flour/ Gram flour- 1 tbsp
Ajwain- 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Sugar a pinch
For the pakoras:
Onion- 1 big sized sliced lenghtways
Dried Fenugreek leaves/ Kasoori Methi- 2 tsp crushed
Besan/ Gram flour- 75 g/ 3 oz
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder- 1/4 tsp
Salt- to taste
For Seasoning:
Cinnamon stick- 1/4 inch
Whole black peppercorns- 1/4 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1/4 tsp
Methi seeds- 1/4 tsp
Grated ginger- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves- 1 stalk (only leaves)
Dried red chilly- 1
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Oil- 2 tsp
Oil- for frying the pakoras

Method:
Make the pakoras:
First make the pakoras by mixing all the pakora ingredients in a bowl by adding very little water. The mixture should be similar to that of regular or baji mixture or a sticky fritters mixture.
Heat the oil in a kadai for deep frying. Check the oil is hot by dropping a small amount of mixture in the oil. If it pops up immediately and floats on top of the oil, then the temperature of the oil is right.
Drop small teaspoonful of mixture in the oil and deep fry it until golden brown. Drain from the oil and set aside.
Heat some water in a pan, when the water boils, switch it off. Add the pakoras in the boiling water, take it out after 1 minute. Squeeze the water gently without crumbling the pakoras.
Make the gravy:
To make the gravy, mix all the gravy ingredients in bowl with 250 ml of water. It should resemble like a thin buttermilk. Add the mixture to the pan and bring it to heat in a medium flame. Stir continuously, when it gets heated up and just in the boiling point take it off from heat. Add the pakoras to the gravy.
Heat oil in a pan, add all the seasoning ingredients, when the mustard seeds start spluttering and the red chillies turn brown, pour the seasoning on top of the gravy.
Serve with plain rice a and poppadoms.

This recipe goes to Tried and Tasted hosted by Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes , organized by Laksmi of Kitchen Chronicles, Flavours Of Punjab hosted by Foodelicious started by Nayna and to Bookmarked Recipes by Priya and Aipi.

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