MASALA POTATO HINDUSTANI !!!!!!!

I always used to make this recipe just using the first masala. But recently I had been to a restaurant where they fried the potatoes marinated with just mint chutney. So I thought why not combine the two and make my own new version! What’s best about this recipe is its very simple, fast, looks good and tastes very good. It’s a big hit when you are having a party. I made these potatoes for my husband’s PhD party four years back of course minus the mint chutney.

When I read Meeta’s Monthly mingle “Bollywood cooking” theme, I thought what better way to showcase them! It has all the masalas that a commercial bollywood movie has:-)

Well that’s the theme right?

Ingredients:
Potatoes – (6-7) small ones, pressure cooked and halved

For the masala:
Oil – 1 tbl spn
Red chilli powder – 1 tspn
Turmeric powder – 1 tspn
Cumin powder – 1½ tspn
Coriander powder – 1½ tspn
Garam masala – 1 tspn
Salt – 1 tspn

Pudina / Mint chutney:
Mint leaves - ½ bunch
Ginger - ½ inch piece

Green chillies - 2
Garlic – 3 flakes
Salt – 1 tspn
Roasted gram – 2 tbl spns

Preparation:
1. Take a bowl and mix in all the ingredients for the masala in oil.
2. Prepare the mint chutney by blending all the ingredients and add 2 tspns yoghurt to this chutney.
3. Take a flat non stick pan, add the masala and spread it on the pan.
4. Now add the potatoes one by one and toss it slowly so as to coat the potatoes with the masala on all sides.
5. Fry in medium flame for about 10 mins on each side. Keep changing sides. You should be able to see a brown crust on all sides.
6. Add the mint chutney on the potatoes directly and toss over to coat well. Fry for 2 to 3 mins.
Garnish with onion rings.

So this is my entry to Meeta's Monthly mingle

BABY RAJMA SHUNDAL

Ingredients:

Rajma (smaller ones) – 1 cup (soaked overnight and pressure cooked)
Coconut- 2 tbpl spns
Coriander leaves- 2 tbl spns
Green Chillies- (4- 5) slit and cut in half
Lemon- ½
Hing- ½ tspn
Curry leaves- 1 strand
Mustard – 1 tspn
Salt to taste

Preparation:
1. Take 1 tbl spn oil in a pan, add mustard (allow it to splutter), curry leaves, hing, green chillies, rajma, mix well.
2. Add salt, chopped coriander leaves, coconut, and finally squeeze half a lemon.

I used smaller variety of rajma because it cooks really well in pressure cooker (four whistles).

YARD LONG BEANS (ALASANDE BEANS) FRIED WITH FRESH GROUND PEPPER

I don’t get this beans very often at home. But this time I thought let me buy it and see what I can do with it later. I was so tired of making the same old masala curries. I wanted to make something simple, quick yet elegant. Also the reason I used only fresh pepper in this recipe was to get the flavour of only one spice. And after eating this with chapathi, my husband wants to eat this atleast one day in a week. Try this and let me know whether you liked it or not.

Ingredients:

Yard long beans - 1 bunch (chopped in long lengths)
Onion - 1 (chopped)
Oil – 3 tbl spns
Mustard - 1tspn
Bengal gram – 1 tspn
Black gram – 1 tspn
Curry leaves – 1 strand
Coconut – 1 tbl spn (optional)
Salt to taste
Turmeric – pinch
Hing - pinch
Fresh ground pepper – 2 tbl spn (it has to be freshly ground and coarse not in complete powder form)

Preparation:

1. Take oil in a big pan; add mustard, hing, bengal gram, black gram, curry leaves, onion, fry well, add turmeric.
2. Add the beans, fry till the raw smell goes and add little water and salt. Cover and cook for 10- 15 minutes checking in between.
3. Once it’s cooked, allow all the water to evaporate. When it’s dry, add the pepper powder and coconut. Fry for 1- 2 mins. This goes very well with chapathis as a dry side dish.

FRESH FROM THE MARKET!!!!!!!!!!

This is my entry to jai and bee's jugalbandi click event

PUDINA RAAGI DOSE

Ingredients: (makes 6 dosas- enough for 2 persons)

Raagi Flour - 1 Cup

Pudina - 3/4th Cup (fine chopped)

Rawa(fine variety) - 3 tblspn

Rice flour-2 tblspn

Green chillies - 2

Ginger - ½ inch piece grated (use a ginger garlic grater)

Garlic - 2 cloves grated

Jeera - 1 tspn

Onion- 1 fine chopped

Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients with water. Remove all the lumps. The consistency of the batter should be thinner than the normal dosa batter.

2. Heat a tawa (non-stick flat pan), pour the batter from top center and work your till the edge of the pan. Dont use the laddle to spread the dose.

3. Use oil along the edges and cover the pan with a lid. Cook on one side for about 3 mins on medium flame and flip the other side for 2-3 mins.

4. Serve hot with Chutney of your choice. For children who don't eat chutney attract them with some tomato ketchup. This one's a winner with my daughter!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Note: This dose is very heavy so it can be easily categorized in brunches. If you eat 2-3 one doesnt have to think of food till evening. So go ahead try it out and let me know your feedbacks.

This is my entry to Srivalli's DOSA MELA.

Better clarity than the previous shot!

SUNSET VIEW FROM MY APARTMENT!!!

My sisters and I have always been crazy about taking pictures. I think this interest of ours comes from my dad, who in my opinion has the largest collection of photographs taken from our childhood days!

I dont know why but i thought i have to upload this photo. I just love the color of the sun reflecting beautifully on the sky. Hopefully someday I will find the time to paint this picture on Oil canvas!!!!

VEGETABLE UPMA

It’s important for me to keep my blog filled with the basic recipes as well as different, difficult ones that one has never tried to prepare. The reason being if its a person who is just starting to try her/his (or bachelors) culinary skills, I assume they would require to make something very basic dishes like dosa, upma, pohe, idli, dhal etc. But keep in mind, even if its not a very fancy dish, one needs to know thoroughly how to make them, otherwise sometimes the simplest of the simple recipes can get spoilt.

Below is the recipe for UPMA (Uppittu). This one is VEGETABLE UPMA.

Rawa – 1 cup
Water – 2½ cups

Veggies required: (all fine chopped)
Onion (1)
Carrot (1)
Capsicum (1)
Potato (1)

Tomato (1) optional
Peas (½ cup)

Curry leaves – 1 strand
Coriander leaves - ½ cup
Coconut – 1 tblspn
Grated Ginger (optional)
Green chillies – 4-5
Salt to taste

For tempering (tadka):
Oil - 4tspns
Mustard - 1tspn
Bengal gram -1 tspn
Black gram – 1 tspn
Turmeric (optional)

Preparation:
1. Fry rawa on a low flame for about 5-10 minutes until its gives a good aroma. Take care not to burn it. Spread it on a plate.
2. Take oil in a big pan (kadai), add mustard, Bengal gram, black gram, curry leaves, green chillies all one after another in the same order.
3. Now add onions and fry till they are translucent. Add turmeric or you can skip this.
4. Add the other veggies and pour in water and add enough salt and coconut, coriander leaves.
5. Let the vegetables get cooked. Once it’s cooked, add the rawa and keep it on a low flame covered for 2-3 mins.
6. Its important to serve your food nicely. To serve upma I use this method. I fill it in a bowl till the brim and toss it upside down. Before doing it add a slice of tomato and coriander leaves chopped in the bowl and then add upma. The result is what you can see above.

My First Tanjore!

This is my first tanjore painting which i did years ago! ALE DA ELE KRISHNA (KRISHNA ON A LEAF).

HAPPY UGADI TO ONE AND ALL!!!!!!!!!!!

It’s that time of the year where one looks forward to celebrate with family and friends with elaborate feast. More than the food, it’s more to do with the start of a new year which so explains the term “UGADI” meaning a new beginning. This term is used in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. This Festival is celebrated in Maharashtra also but they call it GUDI PADWA.

Traditionally the day starts with eating “bevu bella” meaning neem leaves with jaggery symbolizing both bitterness (sadness) and sweetness (happiness). This is eaten to accept both joy and sorrow equally in life. On this day South Indian homes make an elaborate spread which consists of rasam, sambhar, parpu (plain dhal), any vegetable curry, obbattu , payasam (kheer), mango vogare (which I have already given the recipe for), ambode and much more. Instead of making obbattu I made besan ladoo. The recipe is mentioned below.

BESAN UNDE (GRAM FLOUR LADOO)

BESAN UNDE (BESAN / GRAM FLOUR LADOO)

Preparation time: ½ an hour-45 mins

This recipe is from my mother-in-law.

Ingredients:

Gram flour (besan) - 1 cup
Powdered sugar - 1 cup
Ghee - ½ cup
Cashew nuts – 2 tspns (chopped)
Saffron- few strands
Cardamom – 3-4

Method:
1. First of all sieve the gram flour.
2. Take a heavy bottomed pan and add 2 spoons of ghee when it melts add the cashews and then gram flour and keep stirring on a low flame until its smells good. Take care to remove all the lumps.
3. I used a potato masher to remove all the lumps:-). Worked really well for me.
4. Once it turns slightly brownish, turn off the gas and keep it down to cool it.
5. Add sugar (grind normal sugar in blender) to this mixture along with saffron and cardamom powder.
6. Melt the rest of the ghee, allow it cool and add to the above mixture and mix well.
7. Now you can make lemon sized balls and voila! Its ready to dig in!!!!!!

INJI PULI / GINGER TAMBULI

Hi all I am back after a short hiatus. I had been to my hometown on holiday. It was amazing to eat all that great food, getogethers, meeting all my folks just awesome!!!! Bringing some of the great food I had there back home to my blog is one thing I enjoy as it reaches out to all those people who want to do something different in their kitchen. Ginger tambuli or Inji puli is one such dish. It’s made in different ways. It’s very healthy as it’s good for digestion and most of all tasty and quick too. Eat with rice, chapathi anything its tastes great.


Inji puli / Ginger tambuli (Ginger is called SHUNTI in kannada and INJI in tamil)

Ginger – 2 inch piece (fine grated)
Curd – 1 cup (beat it with ½ cup of water)
Salt as required

For grinding:

Coconut – 3 tspns
Green chillies – (2 to 3)
Coriander leaves – about 2 tspns
Fenugreek seeds (Methi/ Menthya) - 3 (for added taste, although take care not to add more than this because it will give a bitter taste to the tambuli)
Cumin seeds - ½ tspn

1. Grind all ingredients and add them to the curd. Add salt and grated ginger to this.
2. Mix well and temper this dish with oil, mustard and one red chilli. Cool and add to the curd mixture. Its ready!

3. Another method is to roast all the ingredients, grind them and add it to curd. This also gives a different flavor and tastes really good.

MAANGA VOGARE (MANGO RICE)

MAANGA VOGRE (MANGO RICE)

Raw mango - 1 (peeled and grated)
Rice - 1 Cup

For grinding:

Coconut-½ cup
Red chilli -2 to 3(depending on the spicyness of chillies)
Mustard - 1tspn
Tamarind – small piece (optional just for added taste)
Coriander leaves - ½ cup

For seasoning:

Oil – 2 tspns
Mustard - ½ tspn
Bengal gram - ½ tspn
Black gram - ½ tspn
Ground nut – 1 handful
Curry leaves- 1 strand
Turmeric - ½ tspn
Little jaggery (size of ½ lemon)

Method:
1. Cook rice with just enough water so that it doesn’t stick and spread it on big pan to separate the grains.
2. While that gets cooled, grind all the ingredients mentioned in the grinding list above. Also add the raw mango and just switch on the blender one last round just for a couple of seconds. This is done to blend raw mango with the rest of the mixture.
3. Then take a non-stick pan and add the entire seasonings one after the other. Add in the ground mixture and fry for few minutes. Add salt as required.
4. Add a little grated jaggery to this if you find it too sour. Switch off the stove and then place the vessel down.
5. Mix this paste to the cooled rice (add another spoon of oil if required).
6. Keep the rice again on the stove in a low flame and cover it for 5 mins.

It tastes SIMPLY SUPERB!!!!