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May 29, 2014

EASY POTATO CURRY/POTATO FRY RECIPE | BRAHMIN STYLE

Potato curry brahmin's style
I am a big fan of this Tamil Brahmins style potato curry/Urulai kizhangu varuval recipe. I have already mentioned about this potato fry in my brahmin style arachuvitta sambar post. It is one of the easiest poriyal recipes & the best side dish for sambar and rasam. Ideal recipe for bachelor’s quick cooking. Just 5 minutes, this curry would be ready. Moreover it is a No onion No garlic recipe.

When I was working, my colleague used to bring this as a side dish for sambar sadam. I learnt this from her. I make this mainly for Raksha. She loves it a lot. I think most of you know & make this at home. But I wanted to have this easy recipe in my food book. So lets proceed how to make this easy and quick potato curry recipe with a shorts video.



Do check out my other potato curry recipes
 baby potato curry 
Easy potato curry recipe


Easy potato curry - Brahmin's style


Easy potato curry - Brahmin's style Easy potato fry/Potato curry- Urulai kizhangu varuval without onions and garlic -Brahmin's style
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Curry
Serves: 3
Prep time: 5 Minutes
Cook time: 5 Minutes
Total time: 10 Minutes


INGREDIENTS

  • Potato - 4 to 5 nos (medium size)
  • Sambar powder or red chilli powder - 3/4 to 1 tsp
  • Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
  • Salt - as needed
  • Lemon juice – few drops (optional)
To temper
  • Cooking oil - 2 tbsp
  • Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
  • Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
  • Cumin seeds/jeera – 1/2 tsp
  • Curry leaves – few
  • Asafetida/Hing – a pinch
HOW TO MAKE POTATO CURRY - METHOD

  • Wash and peel the potatoes. Chop into small pieces.
potato curry step1

  • Heat oil in a kadai, temper all the ingredients given above in the same order.
  • Add the chopped potatoes, salt, turmeric powder and fry for a minute in high flame. Then add sambar powder or red chilli powder and fry in medium flame till the powder coats the potatoes well.
potato curry step2

  • Now simmer the flame completely and close the kadai with a lid. Let the potatoes cook in slow fire in oil. After a minute, open the lid, stir well & again close it. It takes nearly 3-4 minutes to cook. After its cooked well and soft, switch off the flame. Add lemon juice if desired.
potato curry step3

Serve with sambar or rasam rice . Tastes yummy !!

Easy potato fry recipe


Note

  • For variations, you can add finely chopped onions & garlic along with potatoes while sauting.
  • Replace sambar powder with red chilli powder
  • Lemon juice is optional. U can also garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.

Enjoy this yummy potato poriyal with sambar , rice and papad. Tastes heaven !!

Easy lunch menu



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May 28, 2014

FRUIT CUSTARD RECIPE-CUSTARD POWDER RECIPES


mixed fruit custard

When I posted custard powder ice cream, I wanted to share this easy fruit custard recipe using eggless vanilla custard powder. This is one of the easiest custard powder recipes and its a good replacement for fruit salad to serve your guests at get-together or for birthday parties. I have been making this for years for all my friends & relatives. Its a very simple recipe but it fetches you more credits for sure.

Initially I used to add only apple & banana and call it as apple custard. Then I got the idea of adding cherries and cashews from Nags blog. But this is a much simplified version. Addition of nuts & cherries make this dessert richer, tastier and colorful too. As mangoes are around, you can try adding it.

Last week when Raksha’s friends came to my house,i made this along with veg fried rice and baby corn fry for lunch. They all loved it. Try this for your kids n family members & have a delectable dessert after an yummy meal. Everybody will love it and ask for more!!. So Lets see how to make this easy fruit custard recipe. 

Fruit custard recipe

Fruit Custard recipe


Fruit Custard recipe Mixed Fruit n nut custard recipe - Easiest dessert recipe !
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Dessert
Serves: Serves 4
Prep time: 10 Minutes
Cook time: 10M+2H
Total time: 20M+2H


INGREDIENTS

 1 cup = 250ml

  • Milk - 500 ml (2.5 cups)  + 1/4 cup
  • Vanilla custard powder - 2 tbsp
  • Sugar - 4-5 tbsp
  • Vanilla essence - 1/2 tsp
  • Mixed fruits and nuts- Apple, Mango, banana, Cherries, tutti frutti, Cashews & Badam
METHOD

  • Boil 2.5 cups of milk and add sugar to it. Take 1/4 cup of milk and mix custard powder without lumps.
fruit custard step1
  • Add this custard mixture to the boiled milk. Mix well in medium flame for few minutes till it thickens like dosa batter. Keep stirring else you will get a burnt layer at the bottom and it spoils the entire recipe.
fruit custard step2
  • Switch off the flame and add vanilla essence. Refrigerate it for 2 hours.
  • Just before serving, chop all the fruits and nuts into small pieces.
  • Mix them with the chilled custard. Serve immediately.
fruit custard step3


Note

  • Adjust the quantity of custard powder as per the thickness u need.
  • I always like the custard little thinner.Its ur personal choice of making it.
  • Adjust sugar as per your taste buds.
  • Adding cherries, tutti frutti, cashews and badam gives a nice crunchy taste while eating. So never skip it.

Fruit custard recipe


Enjoy this all time favourite fruit custard with ur loved ones Smile.It tastes yummy !!

Fruit custard recipe

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May 26, 2014

AMBUR VEG BIRYANI RECIPE WITH SOYA CHUNKS

Ambur veg biryani recipe
As you all know, the world famous Ambur biryani is a non-veg biryani prepared with mutton or chicken. But you may think how come I post Ambur biryani in my vegetarian blog ?. U are right. Being a vegetarian, I can’t try the actual biryani recipe. But somehow I wanted to try this in my kitchen after knowing its popularity.

When I asked my non-veg friends, they suggested me to use soya chunks/meal maker instead of mutton. Meal maker very much resembles mutton right, eppuuudddi ?. So I just replaced mutton with soya chunks and tried this biryani by referring The Hindu “Food safari” section & Aval vikatan magazine where “Star biryani “ Muneer ahmed has shared the recipe for how to make in small quantities at home. I also watched you tube video by “Puthiya thalaimurai” channel for more details.

It came out very well & I started making this regularly. This would be our sunday biryani at least once in a month. I used jeera rice/ seeraga samba arisi as mentioned in the actual recipe. Without using ghee  & coconut milk, the flavour of just masala & jeera rice while cooking is awesome. Try it, you will come to know. Next I have planned to try Dindigul thalapakatti biryani too. 


Ambur veg biryani recipe

In the “Notes” section I have shared some of the health benefits of soya nuggets/meal maker. Do read it. As there is no grinding or chopping works, you can do this quickly. Bachelor's can try this too..

Check out my soya chunks gravy if interested!

Ambur veg biryani recipe

Ambur Biryani recipe with soya chunks


Ambur Biryani recipe with soya chunks Ambur style Soya chunks biryani recipe – Sunday special biryani !!
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Lunch
Serves: 3
Prep time: 10 Minutes
Cook time: 20 Minutes
Total time: 30 Minutes


INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml
  • Jeera rice/Seeraga samba arisi - 1 cup
  • Big onions - 2 nos
  • Tomato - 1 no
  • Soya chunks - 2 handful
  • Red chilli paste - 1 tbsp (I used 5-6  byadgi chillies & make a paste)
  • Garlic paste - 1.5 tbsp ( grind 20 cloves)
  • Ginger paste -1.5 tbsp ( Grind thumb finger size piece)
  • Mint & coriander leaves - a handful
  • Salt - as needed
  • Water - 1.5 cups( I used 1.75 cups to make it well cooked)
  • Curd - 3 tbsp
  • Lemon juice - as needed
To temper
  • Cooking oil - 4 tbsp
  • Cinnamon – 1 big piece
  • Cloves - 2 nos
  • Cardamom - 2 nos
HOW TO MAKE AMBUR VEG BIRYANI - METHOD

  • Pinch & soak 6 chillies in little hot water and grind into a smooth paste. Use Kashmiri variety chilli (Byadgi) to get this bright color. Grind ginger to smooth paste adding required water. Similarly grind garlic and make the paste.Keep all the paste separately.
  • Boil water in a pan. Once it starts to roll boil, add the soya chunks and switch off the flame. Let the chunks soak and gets doubled in size.
  • Chop onions, tomato, mint & coriander leaves and keep it ready.
ambur biryani step1
  • In a cooker base, heat oil. Sprinkle a tsp of curd to check whether the oil is heated. Now add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom. Saute for a second and add the garlic paste. Saute for a minute till raw goes off. Now add ginger paste. Saute well for a minute. Mix well. Then add chilli paste & mix well.
ambur biryani step2
  • Now add onions & saute till transparent.Then add tomato pieces. Saute till it turns mushy. Squeeze and add soya chunks. Mix well.
  • Lastly add mint & coriander leaves & salt. Toss well.
ambur biryani step3
  • Add the curd & mentioned quantity of water, lemon juice. Let it boil nicely. Wash the jeera rice and add it to the boiling water. Close the cooker with the lid. Pressure cook in low flame for one whistle(approx 10 mins).
ambur biryani step4
ambur biryani step5
  • After the steam is released, check whether rice is cooked well. U can put **DUM** for 5 minutes if necessary else check for taste and serve hot with raita ! Prepare this rice 30 minutes in advance because all the masala will infuse well & tastes good.
HOW TO PUT DUM
You can put the dum in two ways. 
1. Heat an old dosa tawa till very hot. Place the cooker over the dosa tawa. Keep the flame very low and cook for 5 - 10 minutes. 
2.Transfer the rice from cooker to a flat base vessel. Keep the vessel over the low flame and cover it tightly with a lid. Boil water in a bowl and keep this bowl over the rice vessel as a weight. Put the Dum for 5-7 minutes. Keep the flame very low. Remove and serve hot! 



Ambur veg biryani

Note


  • As Muneer ahmed says, the secret & color of this biryani lies in red chilli paste. So I used byadgi red chilli to give the natural red color and it is mildly spiced too. I have not used food color here. If you use other chilli varieties, add less based on its spice level.
  • As per the original recipe, you should cook the gravy & rice separately upto 80%, mix & put under DUM. But cooking in pressure cooker suited my family’s taste. So I follow this way.
  • No need to use ghee or coconut milk in this recipe,
  • Use the paste as mentioned above to get the actual taste. Never add G&G paste. It will give a different taste & flavor. I have tried in that way too.
Health benefits of soya nuggets
  1. Soya is rich in protein, minerals & vitamins. Hence it is a good choice for vegetarians.
  2. It is high in fiber and aids in weight loss.
  3. It is one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acid. So it is good for heart.
  4. It is beneficial for women during post menopausal days.
Enjoy Ambur style soya chunks biryani with simple onion raita. Tastes great !
Soya chunks biryani

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May 24, 2014

BABY CORN FRY(BABY CORN GOLDEN FRY RECIPE)-BABY CORN 65 RECIPE

Baby corn fry
I tasted this baby corn fry/baby corn 65 in a banquet. From then, I wanted to try it at home. Its a great starter recipe for lunch as well as dinner. Yesterday Raksha’s friends came home for lunch. So I prepared this fry along with veg fried rice, fruit custard and choco chip cookies.

 All the kids relished this fry with tomato sauce and there was not even a single piece left for us. It was very crispy, mildly spiced and the smell of masala was awesome. Everyone loved it. Do try this for your kids. U can make it as an evening snack too ! But one thing , you should eat it hot to enjoy its crispness and flavour!.
Baby corn fry

Crispy baby corn golden fry recipe


Cripsy baby corn golden fry recipe Crispy baby corn golden fries / baby corn 65 - Easy starter recipe
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Starter
Serves: 4
Prep time: 60 Minutes
Cook time: 10 Minutes
Total time: 70 Minutes


INGREDIENTS
To pressure cook
  • Baby corn - 6 nos
  • Salt & water - as needed
For the batter
  • All purpose flour - 2 tbsp
  • Corn flour - 2 tbsp
  • Rice flour - 1 tbsp
  • Red chilli powder - 1/2-1 tsp
  • Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
  • Fennel seeds powder – 1/4 tsp(optional)
  • Ginger-Garlic paste - 1 tsp
  • Kasuri methi - a pinch
  • Fresh Curd – 1 tbsp
  • Salt - as needed
To coat
  • Bread crumbs - 1/2 cup
HOW TO MAKE BABY CORN 65 - METHOD

  • Peel the baby corn and pressure cook it adding required water and salt.cook in high flame for 3-4 whistles. Remove chop into roundels and set aside.
baby corn fry step1
  • In a bowl, take the chopped baby corn and add all the powders given above. Lastly add a tbsp of curd. Mix well. Add little water to coat the baby corn with masala like bajji batter. Make sure the coating is not too thin or thick. Let it marinate for an hour.
baby corn fry step2
  • After one hour, take the baby corn pieces, dip in bread crumbs well and deep fry in hot oil. While deep frying, do in medium flame and make sure you do not flip the baby corn as soon as you put in oil. Let it be in oil for a minute. Then flip the other side and cook for one more minute. After it turns golden brown, remove and drain in a tissue.
baby corn fry step3
Serve hot with tomato sauce !



Note

Instead of deep frying, you can shallow fry the pieces in dosa pan drizzling with oil. It will become a yummy low calorie snack.
U can use lemon juice instead of curd.
Bread crumbs are optional but it gives a crispy outer layer.

Enjoy this crispy baby corn golden fry dipping in tomato sauce. Tastes great !
Baby corn fry
Do check out my baby corn stir fry recipe with health benefits


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May 22, 2014

CURRY LEAVES CHUTNEY RECIPE (WITHOUT COCONUT)/ KARUVEPPILAI CHUTNEY FOR IDLI,DOSA

Karuveppilai chutney
As u all know, curry leaves(Kadi patta in Hindi,karuveppilai in Tamil) has lots of health benefits.Most importantly it helps to avoid premature greying of hair and promotes hair growth.I used to like curry leaves from my young age.I love to have a lengthy hair.So I used to eat all the curry leaves which is used for seasoning & never throw away. When I was young, my mom makes hair oil using curry leaves by grinding the leaves to a paste,pat it to small thattu vadai,spread in a polythene sheet and dry under shade for one week. .After it is completely dry,mom breaks them into small pieces and adds it to pure coconut oil.Heat it for a minute and stores in a clean bottle.After few days,the color of oil turns dark green.I used to help her in all these procedures which was a good time pass for me. We keep this oil for 6 months and apply it twice daily.Now after marriage,my MIL makes even more special hair oil by adding karisalankanni,gooseberry,curry leaves,methi & henna which helps to promote hair growth and prevents premature greying etc. Other than this well known benefits,curry leaves has much more.So it is better not to waste them when u eat.I try to include it in my cooking more often either as a gravy or as chutney,podi apart from seasoning.I usually make curry leaves chutney with coconut for my mom's adai recipe.But I wanted to try curry leaves chutney without using coconut for long time.So i browsed for it and got this recipe from 7aum suvai.I tried this morning as a side dish for idli.It was very nice.I slightly modified the recipe as per the ingredients i had in hand.It came out very well.Sendhil usually don't like curry leaves chutney but he liked this chutney a lot. This chutney tastes good only for tiffin varieties and not with rice.Do check out my curry leaves thogayal for rice if interested.Lets see how to prepare this yummy karuveppilai chutney :)
Curry leaves chutney recipe

Curry leaves chutney recipe


Thumbnail Url Curry leaves chutney recipe for idli,dosa without using coconut
Cuisine: Indian Category: Chutney Yields: 1 cup
Prep Time: Cook Time: Total Time:
 



Ingredients
  • Curry leaves - 1 cup
  • Big onion - 2 nos.
  • Garlic cloves - 20 nos. ( small)
  • Red chillies - 2 to 3 nos.
  • Tamarind - 1 seed(small berry size)
  • Turmeric powder - 2 pinches
  • Cooking oil - 1 tbsp
  • Salt and water - as needed
To temper
  • Cooking oil - 1 tsp
  • Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
  • Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
 
Instructions
  1. Wash and keep the curry leaves aside.In a pan,heat oil and saute the onions,chillies and garlic cloves till onions turn transparent. 
  2. Then add curry leaves,turmeric powder,salt and tamarind.Saute till curry leaves shrink and leaves a nice aroma.Switch off the flame.Let it cool.Then grind it to a smooth paste adding required water.
  3. Temper all the ingredients given under "to temper" and add to chutney.curry leaves chutney
Mix well and serve with idli,dosa.Enjoy !

NOTE
U can replace big onions by 15 small onions as given in the original recipe.
Increase the number of red chillies if u want more spicy.
Serve with idli,dosa drizzled with a tsp of gingely oil.It tastes yummy.

Curry leaves chutney recipe


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May 20, 2014

CUSTARD POWDER ICE CREAM RECIPE–CUSTARD POWDER RECIPES

Custard powder ice cream without ice cream machine was in my try list for long time. Last week when I posted mango ice cream, Raksha told me to prepare vanilla ice cream for her. When I was thinking about it, I reminded about this ice cream recipe which i had bookmarked from jeyashri’s kitchen long back. First time I halved her recipe and tried. But I din’t get it right. There were ice crystals and the ice cream was not soft as I expected. I couldn’t find out the proper reason too. Then I e-mailed jey and asked her for improvements. 

She is very sweet that she replied immediately and suggested me to add more custard powder as its quality may differ as per the brand. So this time I added little more custard powder & tried adding more fresh cream too. It came out very well. I was very happy with the result. We all loved it. More than us Raksha thoroughly enjoyed this ice cream and finished half the quantity. Do try this recipe for your kids. I am sure they will enjoy this summer. This recipe makes a good base for any ice cream. Just run ur imaginations, add nuts or chocolate powder, make different flavours with it. Enjoy !

Custard powder ice cream recipe


Custard powder ice cream recipe Custard powder ice cream recipe - Basic ice cream recipe with vanilla flavour.
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Ice cream
Serves: 4
Prep time: 6h
Cook time: 6h
Total time: 12hrs


INGREDIENTS
 1 cup = 250 ml

  • Milk - 2 cups
  • Sugar - 5 tbsp
  • Vanilla essence - 1/2 tsp
  • Custard powder - 2 tbsp (I used pillsburry, golden vanilla flavor)
  • Fresh cream - 4 tbsp ( I used Amul)
HOW TO MAKE CUSTARD POWDER ICE CREAM - METHOD

  • Reserve 4 tbsp from 2 cups of milk. Mix custard powder without lumps and set aside.
Custard powder ice cream step1

  • Boil milk adding sugar and add the custard powder mixture. Boil for sometime till the milk thickens like dosa batter.
Custard powder ice cream step2

  • Switch off the flame and cool it completely. Now add fresh cream and mix well.
Custard powder ice cream step3

  • Whip it using a hand blender or mixie for few seconds till it becomes frothy.
Custard powder ice cream step4

  • Transfer it to an air tight box and freeze it for one hour.
  • After an hour, beat the mixture in mixie or blender for a minute. Again freeze it for 1 hour.
  • Repeat this procedure for 5 times. Totally you have to beat this ice cream for 5 times. This helps to avoid ice crystal formation.( Add chopped nuts at this stage if you are using)
  • Finally freeze it over night by covering the top of ice cream with a butter paper. You can also freeze it for 6 hours. Remove and keep outside for few minutes. Then scoop it.
Custard powder ice cream step5

Custard powder ice cream is ready.

Enjoy !


Note

  • U can add more fresh cream to get a creamier, rich ice cream.
  • Do not add more custard powder as it may harden the ice cream.
  • I used low fat milk. U can use full fat milk too.
  • Adjust sugar and vanilla essence as per your need.

Make this creamy,delicious ice cream and enjoy this season .Here is a picture of melting ice cream!!

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