When my father was working in Mumbai, he learnt this recipe from his North Indian friend. Whenever my dad comes to Salem for holidays, he used to cook for us. We love our dad's cooking a lot . We love his Kara kuzhambu, rasam and this onion tomato sabji. My dad used to say this tomato sabzi is their go to recipe for every day's dinner.They also make it for their lunch box as a side dish for chapathi or poori . Its so easy to make and tastes great too. Sometimes my dad make this sabji by adding boiled potato, peas and even ladies finger. We love this simple sabzi with idli,dosa as well. I don’t say this is the authentic Maharashtrian style tomato sabji or tomato bhaji. This is just an easy, one pot version which is ideal for working women and bachelors. Last weekend I made methi poori and this tomato sabji for our breakfast. It was a nice combo.Sendhil and Raksha loved it a lot. It tastes the best with roti and poori. Do try this tomato sabji recipe and share your feedback with me :)
Tomato sabji recipe for chapathi, poori
How to make tomato sabji in a pressure cooker - Easy & quick side dish for poori and roti/chapathi !
Red chilli powder - 1/2 – 3/4 tsp ( I used Kashmiri chilli pwd)
Dhania powder/coriander seeds powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Salt & water - as needed
To temper
Cooking oil - 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp ( optional)
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - few
Coriander leaves - to garnish
METHOD
Wash and chop the onion and tomato into small pieces. In a cooker base, heat oil and splutter cumin seeds.
Saute onion until transparent and then add ginger-garlic paste and curry leaves. Saute till the raw smell of g&g paste goes off.
Now add the tomato pieces and saute for a minute. Add salt, turmeric powder, sugar, red chilli powder, Dhania powder, garam masala powder and saute till tomato turns mushy.
Now add 3/4 cup of water, mix well and pressure cook in high flame for 2 whistles. Open the cooker after the steam is released. Oil would float on top. Mix well with a ladle and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Boil for few minutes if the sabji is watery. Make it thick. Serve hot with poori or roti !
Enjoy !
Note
For variations, you can add equal quantity of tomato and onion but adjust the quantity of spice powders accordingly.
You can also add some cooked peas or boiled potato cubes.
You can skip dhania powder if u wish. But flavor varies.
Adding sugar helps to enhance the taste. It gives a mild sweetness to the bhaji.
You can also make this sabji in a kadai instead of pressure cooker.
For variations, you can add coarsely crushed peanut powder ( 1 tbsp )
Try this easy, yummy tomato sabji at home and enjoy !!
I must thank my reader friend Harini for requesting me to try Chennai Ganga sweets shop style coconut burfi with khoya ( Thengai burfi in Tamil, Nariyal Ki burfi in Hindi). When she told me, I had no clue about its taste and texture. Recently I bought that coconut burfi from Ganga sweets during my Chennai trip. When I tasted it, I found the barfi is made with coconut and khoya. I browsed for the recipe and tried it by watching Dr.Shalini’s YouTube video. Even though its my first attempt, I am quiet happy with the results.I won’t say it came out 100% close to the sweet shop ones but it tasted similar.
Usually South Indian coconut burfi is made by cooking freshly scraped coconut in sugar syrup of one string consistency. But this coconut burfi with khoya is prepared by cooking khoya/mawa, desiccated coconut, sugar and water together till it reaches the burfi consistency. You don’t have to check for one string sugar syrup. But this burfi takes long time to cook and set as it has khoya in it.
I have not used milk, milk powder or condensed milk in this recipe as I had used yellow food color to resemble the sweet shop burfi. If you want to make white colored coconut burfi, use milk instead of water. I am happy that I could try this North Indian style nariyal ki burfi successfully at home. I am sharing this colorful recipe as my contribution for Holi festival. Do try this easy and yummy coconut mawa burfi at home for this festival and have a great celebration. Lets see how to make coconut khoya burfi with step by step photos and a VIDEO !
Do check out my Holi special recipes COLLECTION for more sweets and snacks ideas!
Coconut khoya burfi recipe - Nariyal Ki barfi with mawa
How to make coconut khoya burfi recipe at home - North Indian style coconut burfi with khoya !
Desiccated coconut - 1.5 cups ( I used store bought dry coconut)
Unsweetened Khoya / Mawa - 1 cup ( I used 200gms of Milky mist khoya)
Sugar - 1 cup
Water - 3/4 cup
Saffron threads - Few
Yellow food color - A pinch
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Chopped pistachios – 2 tbsp ( To garnish)
Ghee – 1 tsp ( to grease the plate)
METHOD
Grease a tray with ghee and keep it ready. Mash the khoya well and measure 1 cup. Keep aside.In a kadai, take 3/4 cup of water, add saffron threads, food color and cardamom powder. Mix well and let it start to boil. Add 1 cup of mashed khoya and mix well without lumps. It resembles condensed milk after mixing.
When it starts to boil with bubbles, add sugar and mix well.Sugar melts and the mixture starts to roll boil. Let it boil for a minute.
Then add 1.5 cups of desiccated coconut and mix well. Mixture will start to thicken. Keep mixing till the burfi mixture is thick and leaves the sides of pan completely. It becomes a whole mass with nice coconut smell. Stay nearby and keep stirring to prevent burnt bottom. It takes nearly 10–15 minutes to reach the final stage if mixing in medium to high flame. Make sure there is very less moisture. It should not be too wet. Remember over mixing makes the burfi too hard and chewy.So remove it at the right time.
Grease the bottom of a small bowl with ghee. Put the burfi mixture to the greased tray and press it well with a greased bowl. Level it and sprinkle the chopped pista pieces. Press it well.
Freeze the burfi mixture for one hour OR refrigerate it for 2-3 hours. It helps to set the burfi quickly and make shapes perfectly. Mark square shape using a greased knife.As the burfi mixture is cold and frozen, it would be difficult to handle. So press it hard to mark shapes. Remove it after few minutes. It tastes slightly chewy when consumed on the same day. Tastes perfect the next day. This burfi needs a setting time of 8 hours. Be patient. Leave over night and taste it the next day to know its actual taste.
Enjoy ! This burfi stays good for 2 days in room temperature and 4 – 5 days under refrigeration.
Note
If you want to use fresh coconut, you can use instead of desiccated coconut. But it takes longer time to cook and reach the final stage as fresh coconut has some water content.
Shelf life of the sweet reduces if you use fresh coconut.
Try this easy, yummy coconut khoya burfi at home and enjoy the festival !
Elephant Yam ( Also known as Elephant foot yam in English, Senai kizhangu in Tamil, Chena in Malayalam, Suran/ Jimikand in Hindi) is a tuberous vegetable which has lots of amazing health benefits. It helps to reduce bad cholesterol, reduces hypertension, good for piles, controls diabetes, balances hormones, rich in anti oxidants etc. I am a big fan of yam chops/ Senai kizhangu roast that is made in dosa tawa. I have tried so many recipes but nothing was like the one I had in a marriage feast. I will share that recipe once I get it perfect. Today’s recipe is a very simple South Indian style Yam fry/ Poriyal recipe for rice that is usually made in my house. I learnt this recipe from my MIL. Generally Yam creates an itchiness in the tongue after eating. To avoid this, my MIL adds tamarind while cooking yam. It helps to reduce the itchy feeling to some extent.Last month I made this yam fry as a side dish for Instant more kuzhambu. It was a nice combo and tasted good. Do try this easy senai kizhangu fry at home and share your feedback with me. I am planning to try more yam recipes like varuval, masiyal, kuzhambu , roast etc.Stay tuned ! Now lets see how to make Elephant Yam Fry recipe with step by step pictures !
Yam fry recipe - Senai Kizhangu poriyal
How to make Yam Fry - Senai kizhangu poriyal for rice
Tamarind extract – 1/4 cup ( Soak gooseberry size tamarind)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
To Temper
Cooking oil - 2 tbsp
Big onion - 1 no ( Sliced)
Curry leaves - few
Hing/asafetida - 2 pinches
Grated coconut - 1/ 4 cup
METHOD
Cut the yam into big slices. Peel its skin and discard the skin.Chop the yam into small cubes or thin 1 inch strips as I did. I chopped it like this after tasting this poriyal in a hotel.
Soak small gooseberry size tamarind and take extract using 1/4 cup water. In a pressure cooker base, take the chopped yam, turmeric powder, salt and 1/4 cup thin tamarind extract. Mix well and pressure cook in high flame for just 2 whistles. Over cooking makes the yam mushy. Adding more water while cooking also makes it mushy. So take care while cooking. You can also cook the yam in a kadai or bowl instead.
Open the cooker after the steam is released. Mix well and drain the excess water if any. Heat oil in a kadai, splutter mustard seeds, urad dal, cumin seeds and curry leaves. Saute onions till transparent.
Add the cooked yam pieces, sambar powder and mix well for few minutes. Mix well till raw smell goes off. Lastly garnish with grated coconut. Mix well and switch off the flame . Serve hot with sambar or more kuzhambu.Tastes yum !
Enjoy !
Note
For masala flavor, you can add 1/2 tsp of garam masala powder or fennel seeds powder along with sambar powder.
If you wish, you can use lemon juice after switching off the flame and skip tamarind. In that case, cook the yam pieces with plain water.
Yam cooks quickly.So pressure cook it only in high flame adding very less water for just 2 whistles else it will be mashed.
Easy, healthy Elephant Yam poriyal is ready to serve with rice !
Atta halwa also known as Atta ka sheera is one of the most popular sweet/ dessert recipe in North India. This is an Instant halwa made with whole wheat flour( atta in Hindi). This atte ka halwa is served as Kadah prasad ( Karah prashad) to all the visitors of Gurudwara ( A place of worship for Sikhs ) in Punjab.
Traditionally, it is prepared with equal quantity of Whole wheat flour, Sugar and Butter/ghee to emphasize everyone are equal. Some people make this halwa adding equal quantity of wheat flour and sooji. For variations, this halwa can be made with milk or jaggery instead of sugar. I never thought making this North Indian style wheat flour halwa is so easy.
South Indian style Godhumai halwa/wheat flour halwa ( Tirunelveli halwa) is in no way related to this atta halwa in preparation and cooking procedure. Both has its own variations and taste. This sweet can be prepared easily and instantly for surprise guest and to celebrate special occasions at home. I am sure this ghee dripping halwa gets a big applause from your family members and friends. I followed the recipe from HERE and watched some You tube video recipes too.
Even though its my first attempt, making this halwa was a breeze for me. You can easily find the correct stage of removing the halwa. Its 100% a beginners recipe. This halwa tastes very soft and it slides in your mouth. I made in very less quantity just to serve 2 people as the quantity of ghee is more . Holi festival is fast approaching. Include this easy, rich atta ka halwa in your menu and enjoy the festival ! This atta halwa can also be prepared for babies but its made without ghee. I will share that recipe later.
Now lets see how to make Instant, easy wheat flour halwa/ atta halwa with step by step pictures and a video !
Whole wheat flour - 1/4 cup ( I used Aashirvad atta)
Sugar - 1/4 cup ( I used 1/4 cup heaped, add 1/2 cup for more sweetness)
Melted Ghee - 1/4 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder - a pinch ( Optional, Its not used traditionally)
Cashews & sliced almonds - To garnish
HOW TO MAKE INSTANT WHEAT FLOUR HALWA - METHOD
Heat 1/4 cup of ghee in a wide, non-sticky kadai. Add wheat flour and roast till it turns golden brown in color with nice aroma. Keep the flame low to medium while roasting and keep mixing to prevent burnt bottom. It takes 3- 5 minutes to roast well based on the quantity you use.
Boil 1/2 cup of water in a bowl and add the hot water carefully to the roasted wheat flour. It splashes. Add 1/4 cup (heaped) sugar, cardamom powder ( I din’t use) and mix well without any lumps. All the water would be absorbed by the wheat flour and gets cooked.
Mix well till halwa leaves the sides completely, becomes a whole mass. Do not switch off the stove. Keep mixing till ghee starts to ooze out in the sides of kadai. It will turn glossy too. Do the whole procedure in medium flame. It takes just 3-5 minutes to release the ghee. Switch off the flame and remove in a plate or bowl. Serve warm or cold as you wish. Please watch the video for clear understanding !
For variations, you can add milk instead of water. You can also use grated jaggery in place of sugar. Enjoy !
Note
Traditionally this halwa is prepared with equal quantity of wheat flour, sugar and ghee. But I used little more sugar ( 1.25 cups) as we are sweet toothed.
If you don’t want to use equal quantity of ghee, you can use half the quantity mentioned. But texture may slightly vary.
Cardamom powder is not used in the traditional atta halwa. If you wish, u can add it along with sugar.
If you feel the sweetness is less, you can add it even at the end. Heat the halwa till the sugar melts and ghee oozes out. Serve it warm.
I read people have this halwa as a side dish for pooritoo just like suji ka halwa.
Try and enjoy this easy, yummy, rich wheat flour halwa at home !
Potato kurma @ Aloo kurma is a delicious South Indian style side dish for chapathiand poori, dosa too. Many readers who had tried my Saravana bhavan style veg kurma requested me to share potato kurma recipe. Usually in Tamil nadu, Potato masala is the most common side dish for poori. Its our family favorite too. So most of the time, I make urulaikizhangu masala. But sometimes I make this potato gravy for chapathi. Last weekend I made puri along with this kurma for our breakfast just for posting this recipe in my space.Its a very simple South Indian style potato kurma that can be made easily in a pressure cooker. We all love this a lot. I personally like to have potato kurma with dosa as well. Friends, do try this easy yet yummy side dish for poori and share your feedback with me. If you are looking for a no grind potato kurma without coconut, do check out this recipe. Its a very old post.So pictures are not that good. Soon I will try to update that post with a video. Now lets see how to make this South Indian Potato kurma for poori and chapathi with step by step pictures and video !
Here is a fool proof, Karnataka special Vegetable pulao recipe (vegetable palav) with step by step pictures and video. This mixed vegetable pulao is a must and should recipe in all the weddings, lunch buffet and parties in Bangalore, Karnataka. In hotels, its called as rice bath or veg palav in the menu. In our school moms group, we used to conduct kitty party once in a month in one of our houses. Mostly it would be a lunch party. I still remember Tara’s kitty party lunch menu. I had this pulao for the first time in her house and after that in few hotels, marriage functions and birthday parties. My friends call this as “Palav” in Kannada. I am a big fan of this Karnataka style pulao especially for its wonderful flavor. I don’t mind eating one full plate of it.
I got this recipe from Tara and made it for our Sunday Lunch last week. It came out very well with the awesome masala flavor which is the highlight of this pulao. Tara makes it super spicy and very tasty. The whole pot gets emptied in few minutes. Thanks a lot Tara for teaching me this wonderful, authentic Karnataka veg pulao recipe to me. Now I am confident enough to try this rice variety for my guest and parties. This pulao looks mild green in color.
In some hotels here, they serve a red colored pulao adding red chilli powder. If you are looking for that version, check out this delicious and Restaurant style SPICY VEG PULAO recipe which I learnt from my another friend Megha. Now lets see how to make this yummy, Karnataka style Vegetable pulao with step by step pictures and video !
Karnataka style vegetable pualo recipe
How to make Karnataka style veg pulao recipe at home
Green chillies - 6 nos ( use 8 for more spicy taste, 4 for less spice)
Mint leaves - a handful
Big onion - 1/2 no
Cinnamon - 2 inch piece
Cloves - 3 nos
Cardamom - 2 nos
Ginger - 1.5 inch piece
Garlic cloves - 8 nos
Water - as needed ( to grind to paste)
HOW TO MAKE KARNATAKA VEG PULAO - METHOD
Wash and soak 1 cup of rice in 2 cups of water for 15 to 30 minutes. Wash and chop the vegetables into small cubes.
Grind the ingredients given under “ To grind” to a smooth paste by adding required water. Set aside.
Heat oil in a pressure cooker base and add the whole garam masala. Saute until aromatic and then add sliced onions. Saute till transparent. Now add the tomato pieces and saute till mushy.
Add the ground masala paste. Mix well for a minute. Now add chopped vegetables, mix well for a minute. Then add the soaked rice along with water. Add dhania powder, crushed kasoori methi(optional) and required salt in the water. Mix well. Take some water and check for taste. Add more salt if required and slit green chilli for spicy taste.
Pressure cook in very low flame for two whistles. Open the lid after the steam is released completely. Fluff the rice gently with a fork. Remove in a plate and serve hot with onion raita ! This rice looks slightly mushy when hot. But rice grains become fluffy and separate as it cools down.
If you are making it for parties or functions, make this pulao one hour in advance and let it be in the cooker to stay warm. If it cools down, sprinkle very little water and reheat it for few minutes before serving. Tastes and smells yum !
Enjoy !
Note
My friend Tara adds 8 to 10 chillies for the mentioned quantity. But I used 6 as my chillies were spicy. Adjust the quantity based on your taste. You can even add slit chillies in the water if you feel spiciness is less.
If you want, you can use red chilli powder or red chillies instead of green chillies while grinding the masala.
Addition of dhania powder and kasoori methi gives a nice flavor to pulao. Kasooi methi is not added usually in Karnataka style pulao, but I followed my friend's suggestion :)
Good quality raw rice is used for Karnataka style pulao. You can replace with basmati rice of you wish. In that case, use 1:1.5 cups of rice and water ratio based on the rice you have.
For variations, you can use coriander leaves instead of mint leaves but flavor may vary.
Try this yummy, spicy Karnataka style veg pulao for your weekend lunch or lunch box, Enjoy !
. We love his Kara kuzhambu, rasam and this onion tomato sabji. My dad used to say this tomato sabzi is their go to recipe for every day's dinner.They also make it for their lunch box as a side dish for chapathi or poori . Its so easy to make and tastes great too. Sometimes my dad make this sabji by adding boiled potato, peas and even ladies finger. We love this simple sabzi with idli,dosa as well. I don’t say this is the authentic Maharashtrian style tomato sabji or tomato bhaji. This is just an easy, one pot version which is ideal for working women and bachelors. Last weekend I made methi poori and this tomato sabji for our breakfast. It was a nice combo.Sendhil and Raksha loved it a lot. It tastes the best with roti and poori. Do try this tomato sabji recipe and share your feedback with me :)
How to make tomato sabji in a pressure cooker - Easy & quick side dish for poori and roti/chapathi ! 
