STUFFED BITTER GOURD!

For past two weeks I was so tired of everything blogging, studying, traveling. I just felt like getting away from everything. So took a long break and feel so refreshed now. All I did was update something in my creative blog. That’s it! But it’s better to come back after a break because it gives a clear mind to start something fresh.

I love trying different recipes apart from the food prepared at my home. My maid is a very good cook too. She’s a maharashtrian and whenever she prepares something different she gets it for me and my friend to taste. She had prepared this stuffed bitter gourd and I liked it so much that I asked her for the recipe. Trust me all those people who don’t like to eat bitter gourd will atleast eat the veggie for this recipe. Good example, my hubby! Can you believe it he did not even know what the veggie is, until I told him? I kept telling him its karela (hindi). He did not know what that was until I said its haagal kayi (kannada). Imagine the expression on his face! He was so impressed that it was bitter gourd and he knew nothing about it.

Stuffed Bitter gourd (Serves 3)

Ingredients:
Bitter gourd – 4

For grinding:
Coconut - ½ Cup
Ground nuts – 1 handful
Coriander leaves – 1 tbl spn
Tomato – 2
Garlic – 4-5 flakes (Optional …although I think adding garlic definitely helps in terms of taste and health wise)
Red chilli powder – 2 tspns
Turmeric – 1 tspn for boiling and 1 tspn for the ground paste
Salt to taste
Oil – 3 tbl spns

Preparation:
1. Cut bitter gourd in half and slit one side.
2. Scoop out the seeds. Boil them in water with salt and turmeric until the bitter gourd becomes soft and cooked. This process is approximately 15 mins.
3. Roast ground nuts without oil in small pan on a low flame.
4. Grind tomatoes, coconut, coriander leaves, garlic and the roasted nuts. Take out the paste to a bowl and add salt, chilli powder, turmeric and curry leaves to it.
5. Stuff this ground paste inside the bitter gourd. You will have more ground paste left for the amount I have mentioned.
6. Take Oil in a pan; place the bitter gourds one by one in the pan. Add the rest of the paste in the pan. Fry on each side for 5 mins.
7. Fry till the raw smell of the paste goes. Check for salt again at this point. Add more if required.

8. Fry in simmer for 10 mins until the bitter gourd takes all the juice.

This dish goes well with rice/dhal combination or rice/rasam combination and chapathis too!

YUMMY GOBI MANCHURIAN!!!!!

We visited my hubby's friend and his wife when we went to New York on a holiday last year. We had an amazing time at their place. N, his wife prepared lovely food for us. She made this Gobi Manchurian and I liked it so much that I asked her to mail me the recipe. And now whenever I make it, we always remember the lovely time we spent there. Thanks N again for this recipe! From her recipe, I have made some major changes to suit my taste.

This is for Monthly mingle - Appetizers & Hors'Doeuvres, hosted by Mansi Desai. Monthly mingle is an event started by Meeta of What’s for Lunch Honey to which I intend to participate regularly.

GOBI MANCHURIAN

Ingredients:

Cauliflower - 1
Maida - ½ cup
Gram flour (besan) - 1 tbl spn
Corn flour - 1 tbl spn
Rice flour - 2 tbl spns (very important according to me...makes it crispy)
Chilli powder - ½ tspn
Ginger paste - 2 tspn
Garlic – 4-5 flakes (chopped)
Onion (chopped in big pieces) = 2 small or 1 big
Capsicum – 1 (chopped in big pieces)
Green chillies - 2 - 3
Chilli sauce - 1 tspn
Tomato sauce - 2 tbl spns
Soya sauce - 1 tspn
Oil
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves – ½ cup

I. Method I use to wash the cauliflower:

Break the florets and wash them first in running water. Boil hot water in a vessel and add in some salt and turmeric. Switch off the flame and add the florets. Cover the lid and let it sit there for 10-15 mins till you prepare the batter for deep frying the florets and rest of the work. This way of immersing the florets in hot water cooks the florets at least by 40%. The rest of the cooking is done by frying them. Throw the water, run it again under tap water and place it on thick kitchen towels to drain the water.

II. Prepare the batter with Maida, gram flour, corn flour, rice flour, chilli powder and salt. Use very little water because we want a batter which is good and thick enough to coat the florets well. The amount of chilli powder I use might be less or more to others. So depending on your taste you can add more or less.

III. Heat a large deep frying pan with oil in it. Dip the florets in the batter. Add one by one and turn the heat to low. The idea is to cook it slow but cook it thoroughly. This might be a patience testing task. But when you eat the Manchurian, all your hard work is worth it. Drain them on kitchen tissue.

IV. When you fry the next batch, wait for the oil to heat up really well and then add the florets. Follow the same procedure as mentioned above.

V. Take oil in a separate pan, add the ginger paste, green chillies and fry till the raw smell goes. Then add chopped onions and garlic. Add capsicum fry well.

VI. Add the tomato sauce, chilli sauce and Soya sauce. Before you add the florets, if you fry for 2-3 mins with the above sauces then the color changes to dark red, the desired color for Manchurian.

VII. Now add the fried cauliflower and mix well. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Starter for a good dinner is ready. When I prepare such an elaborate starter, I always keep the dinner simple and light.

Note from my experiences:
1. Don’t make the Manchurian and keep it for a long time. It becomes very chewy.
2. Never reheat it again in microwave because that softens the Manchurian.
3. You can prepare the florets and keep it ready before your guests come but prepare the sauce and mix when you are just about to serve.
4. Best solution is to eat it immediately! Who wants to wait in front of mouth watering Manchurians rgt?????? Dig in!!!!!!!!!

MAANTWADI PALYA

Ingredients:

Bengal gram (Kadle bele in Kannada) - 1 cup (soak for 2-3 hrs)
Snake gourd (Padavalkaayi in kannada) (halved, scooped, and sliced) - 2 cups

(Snake gourd-whats that????)
Oil - 2 tbl spns
Curry leaves - 1 strand
Mustard – 1 tspn
Black gram – 1 tspn
Turmeric – ½ tspn

For grinding:
Coconut – 2 to 3 tbl spns
Coriander - 2 tbl spns
Green chillies – 2 (you can either add green or red chillies, I like to add both)
Red chillies - 2
Hing- ½ tspn
Bengal gram (soaked)
Salt (add little while grinding)

Grind with very little water.

Preparation:

1.In a large pan, take oil and temper with mustard, black gram, curry leaves and turmeric.
2. To this, add the vegetable and fry for few minutes till the raw smell goes.
3. Then add water and little salt, cover and cook the vegetable. Once it’s cooked. Keep it aside.

4. Take oil in a different pan, add the ground mixture and fry well for 3-5 mins.
5. Lower the heat and mix the vegetables. Serve hot with chapathis, rice and rasam, sambhar or kolambu.

You can prepare this palya with gorikayi (cluster beans), any type of greens (like Dill, Amaranth Leaves (dantina soppu).