TOMATO RICE RECIPE ,THAKKALI SADAM| LUNCH BOX RECIPES

Tomato rice is my favourite variety rice recipe but Sendhil don’t like this as it has more spices.Even then I wanted to make him eat my tomato rice and praise me .. I tried many combinations and at last i settled with this recipe.. He liked it a lot and i got credits as i wished . In the beginning I used to add fennel seeds along with spices but he hate the taste of fennel seeds while eating. So i omitted fennel seeds  & other spices and i used garam masala powder , coriander & mint leaves which gave a nice flavour & taste to the rice..I have made this so many times for his lunch box and this has become a routine lunch box dish for me .. Check out my tomato pulao recipe if interested..

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml

Basmati rice – 1/2 cup Water - 1 cup Ripe tomatoes – 4 nos (small sized, I used bangalore tomato) Big onion – 1 no Garlic cloves – 8 nos Green chillies – 1- 2 nos Red chilli powder – 1 tsp Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp Mint leaves & coriander leaves – few (chopped) To temper Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp urad dal – 1 tsp Channa dal – 1 tsp Coriander leaves – to garnish Ghee  or gingely oil – to add while mixing with rice

METHOD

Cook the basmati rice adding 1:2 cups of water..Here i used 1 cup of water.. Add a drop of oil and little salt while rice is cooking. Pressure cook it and spread the rice in a plate to cool down.. Slice cut the onions , slit the green chillies , chop the mint & coriander leaves , peel the garlic cloves and roughly chop the tomatoes and set aside.. In a kadai , heat oil and splutter mustard , urad & channa dal.Then add the onions , green chillies and saute well. Now add the garlic cloves and mix well.. Then add the mint & coriander leaves and saute well.Finally add tomatoes and all the spice powders along with salt. Mix well till tomato turns to a paste.Add little water if necessary..Make sure tomato paste has some moisture content ..The paste should not be dry..Garnish with coriander leaves , paste is ready.. Now add the tomato paste to the rice adding gingely oil and mix well with a fork like ladle..Add a tsp of ghee before serving if u wish..Add more paste while mixing because the rice may absorb all the paste and it will taste bland after the rice cools down. So i have given more tomatoes to make the paste. Add the required paste , mix , give some setting time and then serve !

NOTE

For variations u can try adding fennel seeds while tempering which gives an additional flavour. U can also try adding 1/2 tsp of ginger garlic paste instead of whole garlic cloves ..

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Pottukadalai Chutney Recipe | Fried Gram Dal Chutney Recipe - Chutney For Paniyaram

Pottukadalai chutney / Fried gram dal chutney ( roasted chana dal chutney) post was lying in my drafts for long time.As I dint prepare any new dishes, I thought of posting this simple and yummy chutney . My mom makes this chutney as a side dish for leftover dosa batter paniyaram.I think most of u would have seen this watery chutney ( thanni chutney) in road side hotels. After tasting this chutney in a Kai yeandhi bhavan (road side hotels), my mom started making this at home. It tastes great for paniyaram , dosa and idli. This chutney can be made using fried gram dal without coconut but my mom adds coconut for getting white color and togetherness & adds more water at the end to make it runny. Do add more number of chillies otherwise the chutney will be bland after adding water. Try this pottukadalai thanni chutney also called as Udacha kadalai chutney. U’ll like it for sure. For variations u can try adding fried gram dal alone or equal quantity of dal and coconut.Please adjust the quantity of water as u wish !

Pottukadalai chutney recipe

Watery chutney using fried gram dal / Pottukadalai chutney - Road side hotel chutney

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Chutney

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 5 Minutes

Total time: 10 Minutes

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml

Grated Coconut – 2 tbsp  Fried gram dal / Pottukadalai – 1/2 cup Green chillies – 4 – 5 nos ( adjust based on the size of chilli) Garlic cloves - 3 nos Tamarind – A small piece Salt – As needed Water – 1/2 cup for grinding + 1 cups for mixing ( adjust as needed) To temper Cooking oil – 2 tsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Curry leaves – few Hing – A big pinch

METHOD

Take all the ingredients and grind to a smooth paste adding 1/2 cup of water. Add 1 cup or more of water to make it watery and temper at the end. Check for taste.Serve with paniyaram , idli , dosa ! Enjoy with hot idli,paniyaram !

Note

For variations,u can add little milk while grinding the chutney along with water to get white color.But adding milk will reduce the shelf life of chutney.so keep it refrigerated. Adjust the quantity of chillies as per your spice level.Generally my mom makes this chutney spicy. Also reduce the quantity of coconut to 1 tbsp or use fried gram dal alone if u wish & make chutney.It also tastes good. It tastes the best with hot idlis & paniyaram.

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KARUNAI KIZHANGU KUZHAMBU | PIDI KARUNAI KIZHANGU KULAMBU RECIPE

I learnt this Karunai kizhangu kuzhambu / Karunai kizhangu gravy from my MIL. Pidi Karunai kizhangu is called as Taro root in English. Some people name it as Yam as well. I made this pidi karunai kizhangu kuzhambu along with drumstick – mango poricha kuzhambu and banana stem pachadi for our lunch today.. It can be called as karunai kizhangu masiyal too.  But we call this kuzhambu as "Karunai kizhangu chutney". This chutney tastes the best when mixed with plain rice. We can make this chutney with pumpkin , ridge gourd, brinjal and potato too. Procedure is the same but the quantity of tamarind and green chilies differ based on the vegetable..Do try this easy kuzhambu recipe for lunch. U’ll like it.. Pictures are taken in my mobile as I dint bring my camera to Salem. Soon I’ll update the pictures ..

INGREDIENTS

Yam / Pidi karunai kizhangu – 4 nos Tamarind – A big gooseberry size Big onion – 1 no Green chillies – 6 nos Salt & water – As needed To temper Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Urad dal – 1/2 tsp Curry leaves – few Hing / Asafetida – 2-3 generous pinches Coriander leaves – few

METHOD

Chop the big onions finely and slit the green chillies into four halves.. Wash and pressure cook yam . Remove the skin and mash it well or grind in a mixie to smooth paste . Add the tamarind extract and set aside. In a kadai , temper mustard seeds , urad dal and hing. Then add the onions , green chillies and curry leaves. Saute well.. Now add the mashed yam with tamarind extract , salt and the required water, add 2-3 big pinches of hing again. Let it boil for few minutes , garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with plain rice !! Addition of hing is the highlight for this kuzhambu. It helps to give nice flavor. So do not skip it.

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Eggless Black Forest Cake Recipe

Black forest cake is my most favourite cake..Making black forest cake at home is like dream came true for me ..Yesterday we celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary and  i made this cake for the celebration. It came out very well.We loved it. It was soft , juicy and i used whipping cream for the first time ever…The cream was delicious and light.. I must thank Valarmathi of Bake pipers for guiding me in how to make whipped cream with some useful tips.I thought of whipping the cream using my electric blender which i use for whipping curd but it pulled my leg .. The cream dint come out well with soft peaks as i expected . So i used my hand whisk after watching an you tube video and beaten it to the maximum to get soft n firm cream. I did for nearly 30 minutes with Sendhil’s help .He saw me struggling with the cream and he told “will buy a beater soon” , Yay . It was really tiring and painful but somehow i made the cream thick and frozen it till use. So electric beater is mandatory to make whipped cream at home. The recipe i have given here is perfect to make a delicious cream..Hope i can do the cream in correct consistency with beater and design the cake well in future.. . I used “ Tropolite”  heavy whipping cream to make the topping.I bought it from General food additives (GFA) at seshadripuram.
Coming to this cake  , i got this recipe from Aval vikatan magazine. It was the recipe given by Mrs. sundari of “Shilpa cookery” in T.nagar , Chennai..The cake came out very soft and spongy.. .. I dint use cherry syrup for layers instead i used Thums up drink and little sugar syrup to make the sponge soft and juicy.. Also i refrigerated the cake over night before cutting it. If u plan to make this cake for some celebration , its better to make it the previous day , refrigerate it over night and then use it for the best result.. The cake may taste hard as soon as u remove from fridge . So its good if u keep the cake outside for 30 minutes before having it..U can use this cake recipe for making eggless chocolate cake too.

INGREDIENTS
 1 cup = 250ml

For cake base Maida / All purpose flour – 1 cup  Sweetened condensed milk – 1/2 tin ( 200ml) Baking powder – 1 tsp Baking soda – 1/2 tsp Cocoa powder – 2 tsp Chocolate powder – 2 tsp Milk – 1/2 cup Water – 1/2 cup Butter – 1/4 cup ( 50gms) For sugar syrup Sugar – 1/4 cup Water – 1/4 cup Vanilla essence – 1/2 tsp Thumps up or pepsi or coke  – 4 tbsp  For whipping cream Heavy cream – 2 cups OR Fresh cream – 1 cup Icing sugar – 5 tbsp Vanilla essence – 1 tsp For decoration Cherries – 1/2 cup  ( Reserve few cherries for decoration and chop the remaining) Chocolate vermicelli – 1/2 cup Silver sprinkles – few Chocolate shard/gratings – 1/4 cup

METHOD

Refrigerate the heavy cream for 24 hours before using it..Keep ice cubes ready. Freeze the bowls ( which u r going to use for whipping) , paletted knife , beater blade for 1 hour.. Sieve maida , baking powder , baking soda , cocoa powder , chocolate powder in a bowl.In another bowl melt butter , add milk , water , condensed milk and mix well. Now add the maida mixing well in one hand.. Beat the mixture well for 5 minutes.The mixture thickens to ribbon consistency.Grease the baking pan with butter and sprinkle maida over it. Spread it well..Pat the pan for even spreading and pour the cake mixture to the baking pan..Pat it well.. Preheat the oven in 180c for 10 minutes and bake the cake for 20-25 mins in convection mode..Keep an eye after 15 minutes.. Remove the cake after 1 hour and let it cool down completely.. In the mean time , make the whipping cream. In  a wide bowl , take the ice cubes and keep another vessel over it. Then add 2 cups of whipping cream and beat it for 3 minutes. When it becomes slightly thick add the icing sugar , vanilla essence and mix well.Again beat it for 2-3 minutes till soft peaks form and the cream becomes thick. Freeze the cream for 30 minutes before applying..Do not over beat the cream. Over beating leads to cracking of cream while applying. Make the sugar syrup by mixing water and sugar. After the sugar is well dissolved , allow it to boil for few seconds , make a thin syrup , mix vanilla essence and keep it refrigerated.. Remove the extra dome in the cake and level it..Cut the cake horizontally and into two round shaped pieces. Sprinkle few tbsp of sugar syrup and thumps up all over the cake pieces. Make sure the cake should not be soggy. Then apply the whipped cream on the both pieces for 1 inch thickness and sprinkle chopped cherries. Then invert the cake one over the other and drizzle some more syrup on top of the cake .Then apply the remaining cream to cover the cake completely.. Use a piping bag and a star mould to decorate the cake and place some whole cherries on top of the cake. Sprinkle the vermicelli and sprinklers..Refrigerate it over night or minimum of 3-4 hours..Serve and enjoy!!

NOTE

Whipping cream doubles in quantity . So adjust as per u need. For this measurement u get approximately 4 cups.I still have some left over whipped cream and iam blinking what to do with it.. . U can store the left over whipped cream for 3-4 days in refrigerator. I have used thums up and sugar syrup for drizzling over the cake. U can also use cherry syrup instead of this.. As far as i heard rum is used to give a strength and flavour , but i wanted to make it alcohol free, So i used thums up here..U can also use pepsi or coco cola ..

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ALOO PEAS MASALA | SIDE DISH FOR ROTI

I tried this potato peas masala recipe from Sabdha’s kitchen. My husband likes a kurma if it is mildly spiced..So i was searching for the same and i got this recipe. . Actually the original recipe was from Mrs. Revathy shanmugam using field beans.Sudha had adapted that recipe and made it using aloo and peas.I too tried the same way but i made a slight change in the recipe to suit our taste buds.I have tried this twice and first time i made with baby potatoes.As i made this kurma for dinner , i couldn’t click in natural light.This is my first attempt in taking a low light picture. Hope it looks OK ..Soon i’ll update the picture.. The consistency of this masala can be adjusted as per ur wish. I wanted it thick. U can make it watery as sudha made.. Both the ways it tastes great Thank u sudha for this yummy gravy recipe..

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml

Potato – 3 nos ( small sized) Green Peas – 1/4 cup To grind Tamarind – Marble size Grated coconut - 1 tbsp Red chilli powder – 1 tsp Dhania powder – 1 tsp Green chillies – 2 nos Big onion – 2 nos OR  small onion -  12 nos Cashew – 5 – 7 nos Coriander leaves – 1/4 cup Garam masala powder – 1 tsp To temper Cooking oil + Ghee  – 1 + 1 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1 tsp Crushed garlic – 8-10 nos

METHOD

Pressure cook potato and peas and set aside. Grind all the ingredients given under “ To grind” to a smooth paste.. In a wide pan heat oil and splutter the mustard seeds and add the crushed garlic.Saute till nice aroma comes out.. Then add the ground masala paste and saute in low flame for 10-15 minutes till masala thickens and raw smell emanates..Now add the cooked peas and potato and mix well.Add the required water and allow it to boil till the desired consistency is reached.. Finally add the coriander leaves and serve with roti !!

Here is a picture of kurma i made with baby potato

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Falooda Ice Cream Recipe | Royal Falooda

Falooda or faluda , is a very popular dessert in mumbai .Though i am in Bangalore for the past 6 years,i have not tasted it.I heard sivaraj lassi bar is very famous for falooda in Bangalore.I have to taste once there.Last month I tasted this falooda in Saravana’s icecream parlour,salem. I never thought i would make this at home. Thanks to Vanitha magazine and to my neighbour. She read the book and told the recipe to me .I have tried this thrice so far. Its a very easy & very tasty dessert recipe..As u all know , falooda is a mixture of falooda sev , basil seeds( Sabza/Takmania),Jelly crystals,sugar syrup and ice cream.I bought falooda sev / vermicelli and falooda seeds from Nilgiris , brigade road-Bangalore.Sabza / Takmania seeds is a best coolant for summer..This is a perfect dessert/drink to beat the summer heat ..The best thing about this recipe is we can pre prepare all the ingredients and refrigerate it. Just mix everything and serve chilled whenever required & it tastes AWEWSUM !! .. One sad thing is when i finished clicking , ice cream got melted and spreaded all over the glass .. Still then it was very tasty ..

INGREDIENTS

1 cup-200ml

For 2 persons

Falooda sev / Vermicelli – 1/4 cup Boiled Milk – 1 cup ( adjust) Rose essence – Few drops Basil seeds / sabza / takmania seeds – 3 tbsp Sugar syrup -  4 tbsp Food color – Few drops ( yellow , green or any color) Strawberry jelly – 4 tbsp Mixed fruits – 1/4 cup ( apple , banana , pineapple etc) Vanilla Ice cream  - 4 scoops Chopped nuts – 1 tbsp (optional) Falooda glass – 2 nos

METHOD

Here is a picture of falooda sev and seeds. Prepare slightly thick sugar syrup ( gulab jamun syrup consistency) , add yellow food color and set aside. Make the strawberry jelly as per the directions given in the packet and keep it ready. Soak the falooda seeds in hot water till it bulges.Drain the excess water and keep aside.. Boil the falooda sev in milk till it cooks . Make sure it should not be mushy. After all the milk is drained , switch off the flame and add few drops of rose essence, mix well and set aside. Cut all the fruits into small pieces.. For serving , take a falooda glass , add 2 tbsp of sugar syrup in the bottom. Then add 2 tbsp of soaked basil seeds on top of sugar syrup..Add 2 tbsp of chopped fruits & nuts, falooda sev , strawberry jelly on top of one another.. Finally add 2 scoops of ice cream and decorate with a cherry . Serve immediately !

Note

To make a falooda drink , add milk instead of ice cream .. U can also add chopped nuts for more richness.. Falooda sev can be replaced by payasam vermicelli/semiya  .. Basil seeds is a must for this recipe which makes this dessert healthy too..

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