Mushroom Mutter Masala

10-15 Mushrooms sliced
1/2 cup Green peas
1 Onion finely chopped
2 Tomatoes finely chopped
1/4 cup Cashew
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup tomato ketchup
 1" inch cinnamon
3 cloves
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 garlic chopped
1 " inch ginger chopped
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin-coriender powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp red chili powder
salt to taste

In a pestle & motor make a ginger-garlic paste set aside.
Blend the cashews with little water and make a fine paste.

Heat a oil in a heavy sauce pan, add cinnamon, cloves and cumin seeds. when cumin sluptters add chopped onions, saute it until light golden
Add turmeric, and masala powders mix well and let it blend for 2 mins.
Add tomatoes salt to taste  cover it and cook for 2-3 mins ocassionally saute it.
Now add the cashew paste and water( make sure not to add too much as we need to add milk later) cook for 4-5 mins or until thoroughly blend.
Add peas and mushrooms, tomato ketchup, cover it and cook for about 7-10mins on medium-low flame.
Lower the flame and add milk and mix well
Lastly, garnish chopped cilantro 

Serve with any Indian bread.

Shallots Sambar

Well, Lots of changes going around, we moved an hour forward and a major devasting change is shift in the earth axis caused by the quake in Japan it's such a horrified disaster. my prayers for the people of japan.

Back to ma recipes, here is a quick recipe on shallots.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Red gram dal
1/2 pound shallots
lemon sized tamarind, soaked in water and extract the paste
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp jaggery
salt

Masala Paste
1/4 tsp Fenugreek seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 1/2 tbsp coriender seeds
1 tbsp bengal gram
4 red chilies
1 tbsp poppy seeds
3-4 tbsp coconut shredded
oil

Tempering
1 Mustard seeds
1 black gram dal
1 red chili
and few curry leaves

Pressure cook the red gram dal and set aside
Heat a small pan, add oil add red chilies, fenugreekseeds, cumin seeds, coriender seeds, bengal gram and poppyseeds and saute for 2-3 mins. Blend all to fine paste with coconut and 4 shallots.
Now, In a heavy sauce pan heat a oil add 1tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp black gram, one red chilies and few curry leaves. When mustard seeds sluptters add tamarind paste, salt to taste, jaggery, turmeric and rest of shallots . Close the lid of the pan and cook until the raw smells of tamarind disppears.
Add cooked dal and masala paste and cook until thoroughly combine.
Lastly, garnish with cilantro.

A recipe from Cookbook "Dakshin"

Ginger Rasam

Ingredients:
2 tbsp toor dal/ pigeon peas
2 1/2 inch ginger
2 green chilies
3 tbsp shredded coconut
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp peppercorns
3 tsp jaggery
salt to taste

Tempering
1tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumins seeds
1-2 red chilies
few curry leaves
hing / asafedita powder

Soak the pigeon peas/toor dal for 30 mins and keep aside.
In a blender, add coconut, ginger, green chilies, cumin and peppercorns and coaked dal. make a fine paste.
In a heavy pan, boil 2 cups of water with salt and turmeric powder, add the paste, simmer the flame and boil until the raw flavour goes or until you dont see the foam standing.
Lastly, In a small pan heat 3 tsp oil, add mustard seeds when it sluptters, add cumin, red chilies, curry leaves and hing.
Mix it with rasam.
Serve with white rice.

Pav Bhaji

Hope all you out there having a nice, fun-filled holidays. For us it's being a relaxed holiday, not much cooking, lot more shopping. Here is my quick last post for this year :) See you all next year.
Wishing all a peaceful new year 2011.

Ingredients:
1 big onion finely chopped
3 tomatoes
1/2 cauliflower
1 big green pepper
1 carrot
2 small potatoes
3 green chilies
1 tbsp ginger-garlic (homemade)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriender powder
1 1/2 tsp pav bhaji masala
Cilantro chopped for garnish

Pressure cook all the veggies except onion & tomatoes for 7-10 mins and let it cool.
Smashed the veggies and keep aside.
In a medium saucepan, heat 2-3 tbsp of oil(mix of butter and oil), add chopped onions and fry until golden brown, add ginger-garlic paste & saute for 1 min.
Add all the powders, mix well and add tomatoes cover & cook until the tomatoes are smashed in medium flame.
Now add the 1/2 tsp pav bhaji masala and mix well. cook for 2-3 mins until the masala blend with onion & tomatoes.
Add smashed veggies and 1 tsp pav bhaji masala and salt for taste and cook for 5 - 10 mins in the medium flame,stir occasionally.
Turn off the flame and garnish with cilantro.
Serve the bhaji with chopped onion & slice of lemon and Pav.

Aloo Palak ~ Potato Spinach Curry

A big thanks to Manju @ Mirch Masala  for introducing me to  "Full Circle Farm". I'm glad that I found this service. A box of fresh Vegetables and fruits on every wednesday morning at doorstep oh! no grocery shopping.. I'm we are loving it. This week delivery included fresh Spinach, Idaho potatoes and I can't think of any other recipe than "aloo palak" which is quick and simple to go with chapathis, pulkas or even with plain white rice.

Ingredients:
1 Bunch of Palak/Spinach
1 big Potato cut into cubes
1 big Onion chopped
2 Tomato chopped
3 Green chilies
Fresh ginger slice(Crush & paste using pestle mortor)
2 Garlic cloves(Crush & paste using pestle mortor)
1/2 tsp Coriender powder
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Garam masala powder
1/2 tsp Red chili powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
Whole masala( 2 Cloves, 3-4 Peppercorns,1" cinnamon, 1 small cardamom, 1 tsp cumin seeds)

Boil water and cook palak and green chilies until the leaves are soft and tender. Let it cool
In a heavy pan heat 3 tbsp oil add whole masalas and cuminseeds. when seeds starts splutters add chopped onions and saute for a min.
Once the onions are golden add ginger-garlic paste and saute.
Now add all the powders and mix well.Let the masala and onions combine well.
Add potatoes,tomatoes mix well add salt and reduce the heat, cover and cook until the potato soft(occasionally saute)
Meanwhile, Grind the palak and greenchilies to fine paste.
Once the tomatoes and potatoes are well combine finally add the ground palak-paste (add water depending on how thin the curry you want)and cook for 5-10 mins in low flame
Serve with hot pulkas, rotis,chapathis.

Aloo Sabji - Rajasthani Style

One of the easiest sidedish to make is aloo subji/potato stir fry and it is prepared in several ways in different parts of India. In southern part, it's stir fried and blended with coconut and in north it'xs sprinkled with garam masalas.
This time I tried a authentic rajasthani style aloo sabji with yogurt and gram flour. It tastes bit sour because of yogurt.

 

Ingredients:
2 big Potatoes/Aloo (peeled, boiled and cut into cubes)
1 cup Yogurt beaten
1 tsp Besan/Gram flour
1 tsp roasted Coriender-Cumin powder
1 1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Tempering:
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tsp Fennel seeds
1/2 tsp Kalonji/ Onion seeds
2 Cloves
1 inch Cinnamon stick
1 Bay leaf
Oil
1/4 tsp Asafoetida powder

In a bowl mix gram flour and yogurt.keep aside
Heat a 2 tbsp of oil in heavy saucepan, Add mustard seeds, when it splutters add cumin, fennel, kalonji, cloves, cinnamon , bay leaf and asatoetida powder and saute for few seconds.
Add gramflour-yogurt mixture and bring to boil.
Now, add the cut potatoes/aloo and salt mix well and add 1/2 cup water, cover and cook in a low flame for 5-10 mins or until it's combine
It's ideal for rotis and chapathis  

Tindoora in Coconut gravy - South-Indian style

Ingredients:
20-25 Tindoora
small lemon size Tamarind
1 tsp Jaggery
Salt to taste
1 tsp Turmeric powder
Gravy:
1 1/2 tsp Coriender seeds
1tsp Black gram
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
2 tsp Seasme seeds
4-5 Red chilies
1/2 cup coconut grated
1/4 tsp Asafoetida powder

Tempering:
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Black gram
2 Red chilies
Few curry leaves

• In a pestle and mortor punch the tindooras
• Boil the water in a heavy pot, add turmeric powder, few curry leaves(keep half aside for garnishing)  and tindooras, cover and cook in low flame until the tindooras are soft and tender.
• Meanwhile, dry roast the ingredients from gravy list except coconut. Grind with coconut by adding water to fine paste.
• Once the tindoora are cooked add tamarind paste, salt to taste, jaggery and ground paste. Mix well and cook in low flame for 15-20 mins or until combine.
• Laslty, heat a small pan add 2 tsp oil, mustard seeds, black gram, chilies and asafoetida powder, when mustard seeds splutters mix it with gravy.
• Garnish with leftover curry leaves.
• Serve with hot white rice.

Bitter Gourd fry

Because of it's bitterness, for some it's a favourite and for some it's not.
From Health standpoint, consuming of cooked bittermelon reduces risk of diabetics, bloodpressure and diffferent kinds of cancer.

Ingredients:
4 Bitter Gourd
1 Onion sliced
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp chili powder or depending on your taste
1 tbsp coriender powder
2 tbsp fennel seeds crushed
oil to fry
Salt

Peel the bittergourd and wash thoroughly. Cut in to round thin slices and add salt, mix and keep aside for about 3 hours.
Wash out thoroughly again and squeeze out excess water.
Heat the oil and fry the bittergourd unitl golden.
In a medium saucepan heat 2 tbsp oil add sliced onions and saute it until golden. Now, mix all the masala and salt as required and saute for a min.
Lastly, add fried bittergourd mix well, cover and cook for 4-5 mins in low flame.

It goes well with curd rice.

Sarson ka saag - Mustard leaves curry

Ingredients:
1 bunch of Mustard leaves
1 bunch of Spinach leaves
1 big Onion
2 Garlic
1 inch Ginger
3-4 Green chilies
2 tbsp Corn starch
Salt
oil
1 tsp Garam masala
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

Wash the leaves and chopped roughly. Chop onion, garlic, ginger and green chilies.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a heavy saucepan, add chopped onion, galric, ginger, greenchilies and leaves saute for a min and add salt, cover it and cook until the leaves are done. Stir occasionally.

Once the leaves are cooked, wait until they cool down. Now, blend coarsely.

Heat  2 tsp of oil in same pan, add the grind paste and bring it to boil.

Serve with any rotis, or chapathis.

Gram Dal - Rajasthani Style

Ingredients:
1 cup Black gram split
1/2 cup  Bengal gram
1 big Onion sliced
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp green chilies chopped
2 red chilies
2 cloves
1 small inch cinnamon
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp garam masala powder
Oil
Salt to taste
Water

Wash the grams and pressure cook with turmeric powder and 3 cups of water.
Heat a medium saucepan, add 2 tbsp oil add the whole masala(cloves,cinnamon and red chilies) add sliced onions and deep fry until they turn golden.
Add ginger-garlic paste and  green chilies saute for few minutes. Add redchili powder and garam masala mix well.
Now, add cooked grams, salt and water(if required) cooked for 4-5 miuntes and turn off the heat.
Garnish with chopped cilantro or sliced ginger- chilies.
Relish the Rajasthani style dal with rice or any roti/ chapathi and onion slices.

One of Tarla dalal recipes.

Poori and Vegetable Korma

It's been long time I haven't made this. Just because I don't want to make whole house frying oil smell. But, from past 2 days weather was so gloomy our food sense was craving for home fried food.
It's a famous recipe in Bangalore restaurants they either serve with the aloo masala or korma

Vegetable Korma
Ingredients
1 cup mix vegetables of your choice(I used carrots, turnips, potato)
1/3 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Lemon juice
Cilantro for garnish

Paste
1 garlic clove
1'' inch ginger
3-4 green chilies(If you want to have red color korma, go with red chilies)
1 tsp poppy seeds
5-6 black peppercorns
2 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp roasted Bengal gram
4 tbsp coconut grated

Boil 1 cup water add turmeric and vegetables cover and cook until the vegetables are soft and tender.
Mean while, grind all the ingredients from paste list to fine. keep aside.
Once the vegetables are cooked add salt and ground paste. cook for 5-10 mins.
Lastly add lemon juice and garnish with cilantro. Korma is ready!

Poori
Ingredients
1 cup wheat flour
water
Oil for frying

In a mix bowl, Mix wheat flour and water as required and make a dough and knead well. Keep aside for 30 mins.
Again knead well and make small balls and roll out with help of oil and Fry.

Note: The Poori dough should be little harder than chapati in that way it won't take much oil while frying.

Green Gram and Mix Vegetables Curry - South Indian Style

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Green gram
1 Cup mix vegetables chopped(Carrots, String Beans,Potatoes) You can add green peas or anyother less watery vegetables.
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Oil

1 tsp Cumin seeds
1/4 tsp Black peppercorns
1/2 tsp Poppy seeds
2 red chilies
4 tbsp grated coconut
Tempering:
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1/2 tsp Bengal gram
1 Red chili
Few curry Leaves

Pressure cook the green gram and drain the excess water and keep aside
In a medium sauce pan, heat 1 tsp oil add cumin seeds, black peppercorns, red chilies and poppy seeds. fry for 2-3 mins or until it turns light golden and grind with coconut and little to fine paste.
In a heavy saucepan, add 2 cups of water(depending on the quantity of vegetables) bring to boil, add vegetables, tumeric powder and cook until the vegetables are tender and soft.
Add cooked green gram and cook for 3-4 mins. Now, add the ground paste and salt and cook until combine thoroughly. Lastly, Heat oil in a small sacuce pan, add mustard seeds, bengal gram , red chilies and asafoetida powder and curry leaves when mustard seeds splutters mix it with the curry.
Serve with hot rice or even goes well with chapathis, rotis.

Hara Chana masala/Green Chickpeas Curry

Ingredients:
1 pack frozen green chickpeas (if you find fresh add about 2 cups)
1 big onion
3 small tomatoes
2 green chilies chopped
1/2 tsp ginger paste(I used fresh 1 inch ginger, made a paste using pestle and mortor) 
1/2 tsp garlic paste(used 2 small garliccloves, made a paste using pestle and mortor)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriender powder
1 tsp Channa masala powder(I used MDH brand)
oil
water
1/4 tsp asafoetida powder
Cilantro for garnish

In a bowl of hot water soak the unpack frozen chickpeas for 30 mins.
Finely chopthe 1/2 onions and other half make a smooth paste of it, finely chop tomatoes and keep aside
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a heavy sauce pan, sprinkle asafoetida powder,add the chopped onions saute it for a min. Add ginger-garlic paste, chopped green chilies and onion paste saute it for 2-3 mins.
Now, add turmeric, cumin, coriender and channa masala powder, mix well and cook for a min.
Add chopped tomatoes and salt, cover it. let it cook until tomatoes are smashed. stir occasionally.
Lastly, add the drain chickpeas and cover it. cook until masala well blend with chickpeas.
Garnish with chopped clinatro.
Serve with hot chapathis, rotis or basmati rice.

String Bean Masala/String beans Stir fry with Coconut and Spices

Ingredients:
2 cups of String beans chopped
Sal to taste
For Masala:
3 tbsp Bengal gram
1 tbsp Black gram
2 tbsp Coriender seeds
4 red chilies
1/2 tsp asafoetida powder
4 tbsp fresh coconut grated
a lemon sized Tamarind pulp
Tempering:
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Bengal gram
1 tsp Black gram
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 red chili
few curry leaves
1/2 tsp asafoetida powder

Heat 1 tsp oil in a medium pan, add all the ingredients from Masala list except coconut saute for 2-3 mins or until it turns light golden and grind to fine paste with coconut by adding little water and keep aside.
In a heavy sauce pan, heat a 3 tbsp oil add mustard seeds,cumin seeds, bengal and black grams, red chili and curry leaves when mustard seeds splutters add asafoetida powder and chopped long beans saute for a min. Add turmeric powder and 1 to 11/2 cups of water mix well and cover the lid. Let the beans cook.
Meanwhile, In a medium pan add 2 tsp oil add ground masala paste and cook for 5-7 mins or until the paste is dry and crisp.
Lastly,  add the masala to cooked beans and cook for few more mins until masala blends well with beans.
Serve with hot rice.

Rajma in Tomato Gravy

Ingredients:
1 cup Rajma soaked for 8 hours
1 big Onion finely chopped
2 Tomatoes finely chopped
2 medium size Garlic cloves(make a paste)
1 small inch Ginger (make a paste)
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 Green chilies chopped
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Coriender powder
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/4 Garam masala powder
Red chili powder(depending on your taste)
Salt to taste
1 tsp Sugar
Cilantro for garnish

Wash the rajma and pressure cook. Drain the excess water and keep aside.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in heavy saucepan, add onions and saute it. when onions turns light golden add ginger-garlic paste, green chilies and saute for a min.
Add all the powders, and saute well for min or two.Now, add chopped tomatoes,salt and sugar mix well and cover the lid of the pan.  When toamtoes are well cooked add tomato paste and cooked rajma.
Combine well and cook for 3-4 mins or until done.

Bitter Gourd Pitlay

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Toor dal
Lemon sized Tamarind pulp
3-4 Bittergourds chopped
1 big Tomato chopped
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Sambar powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tbsp Jaggery
7-8 Cashewnuts
Paste:
Oil
6 Red chilies
1 tbsp Coriender seeds
1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
1 tsp Bengal gram
1 tsp Black gram
1/2 tsp Asafoetida powder
1/2 cup Fresh coconut grated
Tempering:
2 tsp oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds
Few curry leaves

Pressure cook the dal with water and add 1 tsp oil. Meanwhile, In a medium pan, roast all ingredients from the Paste list above and grind to fine paste by adding water and keep aside.
(To remove the bitterness of bittergourd,add salt to chopped bittergourd and keep it for 30 mins and squeeze the juice out of it and then use it)
Soak the tamrind for 15 mins and extract the juice.
Heat a heavy sauce pan, add the tamrind juice,salt, jaggery,turmeric,sambar powder and finely chopped bitter gourd. On a medium flame cook the bittergourd.
Once the bittergourd is well cooked, add chopped tomato cooked dal and ground paste. lower the flame and bring it to boil(add water if required)
Lastly, Heat a 2 tsp oil add, mustard seeds and chopped cashews, when it splutters add curryleaves saute it and mix it to pitlay.
Relish it with white rice.

Besan Bhindi /Okra Stir Fry with gram flour

Ingredients:
1 pound small Okra/Ladies finger
1/4 cup Gram flour (besan)
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Garam masala powder
1 1/2 tsp Roasted cumin powder
1 tsp Amchur powder
1 1/2 tsp Fennel seeds (saunf), crushed
1/2 tsp Red chilli powder
1 tbsp Coriander powder
Oil
1/2 tsp Onion seeds (kalonji)
8- 10 Shallots

Cut the Okras/lady fingers top and bottom and make a slit on one side without cutting through.
In a bowl, mix salt, turmeric powder, garam masala powder, roasted cumin powder, amchur, fennel seeds, red chilli powder and coriander powder.
Fill this mixture into the slits. Sprinkle the remaining mixture (if any) over the okras/lady fingers and add a tablespoon of oil.
Heat the remaining oil in a sauce pan, add onion seeds and sauté it. Add shallots and sauté for one minute. Add gram flour and sauté for a couple more minutes. Add the stuffed Okras/lady fingers and mix, cover the lid and cook in a low flame,stirring occasionally, till the okras/lady fingers get cooked and turn crisp.
Serve with chapathis

Taro Root Kootu

Ingredients:
4 tbsp Toor dal
4 tbsp Bengal gram
lemon sized Tamarind soaked and extract juice
4-5 Taroroot peeled and chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Paste:
1 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
2 tsp Blackgram dal
1 tbsp Bengal gram
1/2 tsp asafoetida powder
1 tbsp coriender seeds
1 red chili
4 tbsp coconut grated

Tempering
Oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tbsp peanuts
1 red chili
few curry leaves

Pressure cook the lentils/dals and keep aside.
Heat a oil in pan, add all ingredients from paste list and roast except coconut until light golden and grind along with coconut to fine paste.
In a heavy saucepan. add mustard seeds, rew peanuts,red chili and few curry leaves.When mustard seeds splutters add chopped taro root, salt,turmeric powder and tamarind juice. Cook until the taroroot is tender.
Now, add the cooked lentils/dals cook for 2-3  mins until it's thoroughly blend. Lastly, add the ground paste and cook for a few more mins.
Serve with rice.

Yellow Dal/Lentils Curry

A simple dal/curry is a must in Indian food platter without which meal is not complete.  This curry can be served with hot rice, chapathis.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Green gram
1/4 cup Toor dal
1 onion chopped
2 Tomatoes chopped
2-3 green chilies
1 small piece of ginger - make a paste
1 garlic cloves - make a paste
small or1 inch cinnamon
3-4 cloves
2-3 peppercorns
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp Jaggery/Sugar
Salt to taste
Oil
Cilantro for granish.

Dal Curry powder:
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp coriender seeds
3-4 red chilies
3-4 black pepper
1 brown cardamom
2 green cardamom
Few dried Dill leaves
Roast above ingredients expect dried dill leaves and grind to fine powder.

Pressure cook the lentils and keep aside.
In a heavy sauce pan, Heat a 2 tbsp oil add cinnamon,cloves, peppercorns and cumin seeds when splutters add ginger-garlic paste,chopped green chilies,onions and suate it for a min.
When onions turns light golden, add turmeric powder and dal curry powder and saute for 1 min.
Add chopped tomatoes, jaggery/sugar and salt mix it well and close the lid and cook until the tomatoes are cooked and smashed.
Now, add the cooked lentils, mix well and bring it to boil. Lastly granish with Chopped cilantro.