Street style Gobi manchurian recipe was in my try list for long time. In Bangalore, Raja Gobi is getting popular nowadays. Though I haven’t got a chance to taste it, I have seen its making in many Instagram videos. Nearby my house, there is a big market where you can find some carts in road side selling hot and colorful Gobi manchurian in the evening. You can see a crowd of people in the evenings surrounding the cart to enjoy this delicious Gobi manchurian.
I have always wondered what is the difference between street style Gobi manchurian and the ones served in hotels. Once I had a chance to watch the cart vendor making it. He fried Gobi pieces using a readymade Gobi 65 masala powder adding red food color to give the bright look. Once deep fried, it is removed and kept in a big colander. Whenever people asks for a plate of Gobi manchurian, he makes it hot by sauting onion, capsicum, green chilli, ginger, garlic adding soya sauce, chilli sauce, vinegar, ajino motto ( Chinese salt) and tomato ketchup in a very high flame, add little water to bring the saucy consistency and finally adds the deep fried cauliflower pieces. Tosses it quickly in high flame and transfer to a plate garnishing with spring onion or coriander leaves. He did not add corn flour slurry in the sauce mix. So it looks semi dry.
I found the major difference between the restaurant style and street style Gobi manchurian is the texture. Restaurant style gobi manchurian looks saucy and creamy with a wet texture whereas the street style ones look somewhat dry with a coating of shiny sauce mixture.
Myself and Raksha loves the street style ones more than home style or restaurant style Gobi manchurian. So I tried it recently for Raksha’s birthday. I also referred few YouTube channels for the recipe. It came out so well. We loved it. Friends, do try this street style dry Gobi manchurian at home. You will also love it like us.
Parboil small size cauliflower florets for 5 minutes.
Drain and remove in a plate. Add maida, corn flour, red chilli powder, pepper powder and salt. Mix well.
Sprinkle little water and make a coating. Heat oil and deep fry in batches.
Drain in a tissue paper. Set aside.
Heat oil in a kadai. Saute garlic, ginger, onion, capsicum, onion and green chilli in high flame for a minute.
Add salt, red chilli sauce, tomato ketchup and soya sauce. Mix quickly.
Add little water and bring to boil. Add fried gobi pieces and mix well to coat the sauce.
Serve hot immediately for best taste.
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Parboil small size cauliflower florets in a bowl full of hot water. Drain the water and keep it aside.
Take the parboiled cauliflower in a wide bowl. Add maida, corn flour, red chilli powder, pepper powder and salt. Sprinkle little water to coat the gobi pieces. Alternately you can make in bajji batter consistency by mixing the flour, red chilli powder, pepper powder, salt and then dip the gobi pieces.
Heat oil to deep fry. Add the cauliflower pieces and deep fry in batches. Fry till bubbles reduce. Remove and drain in a tissue paper.
Heat oil in a kadai and when it gets heated, add the finely chopped garlic, ginger, green chilli, onion, capsicum and spring onion. Saute in high flame for few minutes.
Now add the chilli sauce, tomato ketchup, soya sauce, salt , vinegar along with 1/4 cup of water. Mix well. Let the gravy boil for a minute in low flame.
Lastly add the fried gobi pieces, saute in high flame to coat the sauce. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot and enjoy !
Note
For street style Gobi manchurian, you don’t need to add corn flour slurry/ paste to get the saucy texture.
Adding more sauce and ketchup is the key here.
Also while frying Gobi pieces, make sure you fry them in medium flame to get crispness and color. Frying in high flame makes the gobi dark brown in color.
Try this street style Gobi manchurian at home and enjoy !
To celebrate this Diwali 2020, today I have shared an easy, yummy, nostalgic sweet recipe that kindles our school days memories. Yes, its a 80’s – 90’s kids favorite sweet fondly known as Palkova / halkova. We used to call this as Maida burfi. When we were young, we used to buy this 25p/ 50 paise sweet from the petty shop (Petti kadai) near our school and house. Nowadays its very rare to find petti kadai and 2k kids are not even aware of this sweet. So I thought of making this sweet in my home and enjoy. Even though this is titled as palkova, this is no way related to a milk sweet. Milk or milk powder is not used in this recipe. As it looks white in color, it is called as palkova I guess.
During this lock down, I came across this halkova recipe in my Instagram feed, tried and posted by @starving.tummy Vinesh. When I saw the picture, I was tempted to know the recipe and DM’ ed him. He was so sweet and he shared this perfect recipe immediately. With just 3 major ingredients, this petty shop palkova can be prepared under 15 minutes. Its completely a beginners sweet. There is no sugar syrup consistency or mixing process unlike our usual Maida burfi. It is so simple to make. Original recipe called for using Dalda / Vanaspathi but I used ghee in my first attempt and dalda in my second try. We loved the ghee ones more.
Anyone can make this halkova easily without any fuss. Friends, do try this easy, yummy, halkova / palkova / Maida burfi recipe for this Diwali 2020 and enjoy !
Heat ghee in a kadai for few seconds. Add maida and roast in low flame for 8 to 10 minutes without changing the color.
Maida gets roasted and resembles a semi thick paste. Switch off the flame. Transfer to a bowl.
Let it come to room temperature. Add cardamom powder.
Add powdered sugar gradually and mix well to make a thick dough.
Take a ghee greased bowl lined with butter paper and press the dough to make square shape.
Let it set for an hour in room temperature or in refrigerator.
Then loosen the sides and invert the bowl in a plate.
Cut into small squares and store in an air tight box. It tastes the best from the next day.
Store in an air tight box and enjoy up to one week.
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Powder 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp sugar and measure 1 cup from it. Set aside.
Take melted ghee in a kadai and heat it for few seconds. Add Maida. Roast it well for 8 to 10 minutes in low to medium flame without changing the color of maida. Maida turns like a semi thick paste after roasting. Switch off the flame and remove the kadai. Transfer the roasted maida to a mixing bowl and cool down. I kept in the kadai itself.
Let the maida paste cool down to room temperature. It should be warm enough to handle with your hands. It should not be hot. Add cardamom powder and half of powdered sugar. Mix well and add the remaining powdered sugar gradually.
Mix well to make a smooth, thick dough. Take a bowl. Line with butter paper. Grease with ghee and transfer the dough to it. Press to make shape. Let it set for an hour on counter top or refrigerate it. It takes 30 minutes to set in refrigerator. Remove the bowl and keep it outside. If it's too hard to cut, wait for sometime to bring down to room temperature otherwise burfi may crumble while you cut it.
Loosen the sides with a knife gently. Invert the bowl to a plate and pat it. It will fall easily. Now cut into small squares and arrange in an air tight box. It tastes the best from the next day. You can store and use up to one week. Enjoy !
Note
To make white colored burfi, maida should be roasted patiently in low flame without changing its color.
Do not forget to line the bowl with butter paper for easy removal.
If you use dalda, texture and taste of burfi varies slightly. Also burfi sets quickly than the ones made with ghee.
Make sure, you don’t change the color of maida while roasting. Burfi won’t come white in color.
For variations, you can add a tbsp of milk powder along with powdered sugar.
If you cut the burfi before its set completely, it may crumble into small pieces.
Try this easy, yummy palkova / maida burfi recipe and enjoy !
Usually Nachos is served with salsa, cheese sauce, bean dip, curd mayo dip etc. But I wanted to try some simple and instant dip recipe using store bought, eggless mayonnaise just like the ones served in restaurants like Mc Donald's and Tacos. Finally I prepared this no cook, garlic flavored mayo dip without cheese and without fire when I was looking for some easy mayonnaise dips for chips and nachos. It can be served with potato wedges and French fries too. I won't say this one tastes exactly like restaurants, but it tasted delicious. Kids would love it for sure. We relished it with salted nachos and potato chips for our weekend evening snacks. Raksha loved it very much. Basically we all love to eat chips with plain, store bought mayonnaise. When you pep it up with spices like garlic, oregano, basil, pepper powder, chilli flakes and Olive oil, it goes to the next level. So friends, do try this easy, instant, no cook, yummy mayonnaise dip for Nachos and chips. You will love it !
In a wide bowl, mix all the ingredients given above except hot water.
After mixing the dip, check for consistency.
If its too thick, add little more olive or hot water.
Mix well and serve with Nachos, Chips, Potato wedges or French Fries !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
In a wide bowl, mix mayonnaise, tomato ketchup, garlic powder, chilli flakes, pepper powder, Italian seasoning or oregano, basil and olive oil.
Check for consistency. If its too thick, add little more olive oil or a tbsp of hot water. Mix well, check for taste. Add more seasoning or ketchup if required. Mix well and serve with Nachos, Chips, French Fries or Potato wedges.
Enjoy !
Note
Adjust the quantity of Italian seasoning, chilli flakes and pepper powder as per your taste.
You can skip pepper powder if you don't like.
For variations, you can add some hung curd instead of tomato ketchup.
Enjoy this easy, yummy Mayonnaise dip for Nachos and share your feedback with me !
Bread Butter Jam Recipe is the simplest and the basic sandwich recipe even a kid can make it easily. Usually kids make this for fireless cooking in school competitions. I still remember this was my breakfast during our honey moon in Srilanka in a Five star hotel😀.
Here in Bangalore, I have tasted bun butter jam in small sandwich shops and I just love it. Today I made the same using fresh bread slices. I think most of the moms pack this bread butter jam for their kids school lunch box or snacks box as it can be prepared easily under few minutes. In my case, I have never packed this for Raksha as she is not a big fan of jam based recipes. Somehow she hates the sweet taste in store bought jams. But myself and Sendhil likes to have it once in a while for our breakfast during weekends.
So last Sunday, I made this for ourselves and plain bread toast with butter for Raksha which is her favorite. As we all know, the plain bread butter jam is not a healthy choice for kids. Consuming it once in a while is not an issue but I won’t recommend to eat it regularly. So, to make it more healthy and interesting, we can add some toppings like chopped nuts, sliced fruits, sliced avocado, cheese etc.
You can play with your imaginations and do it based on your kids likings. You can serve it raw or toast it as I did. Tastes good in either ways. But use fresh or 1 day old bread slices for best taste. Now lets see how to make the simple and basic bread butter jam recipe with step by step pictures.
Cauliflower Pakoda @ Gobi Pakora (In Hindi) is an easy, yummy snack recipe for tea time. Cauliflower pakoda is different from Gobi 65 in ingredients. Gobi 65 is prepared using maida/ all purpose flour and corn flour whereas gobi pakora is made using besan flour and rice flour. Pakoda is more like bajji bonda recipe.
Cauliflower pakoda stays crispy for long time. Addition of cooking soda/ baking soda is essential to make it crispy else gobi pakoda tastes hard. Friends, do try this yummy, kids friendly cauliflower pakoda during this cauliflower season. You can make it for your weekend lunch or for evening snacks to enjoy with tea !
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp ( I used Kashmiri chilli powder)
Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt – as needed
Chopped Mint leaves – few (optional)
Curry leaves - Few (chopped)
Water - as needed
Cooking oil - to deep fry
HOW TO MAKE CAULIFLOWER PAKODA
Wash and parboil the cauliflower florets. Drain and set aside.
In a wide bowl, mix all the ingredients given above except cooking oil.
Add required water and coat the cauliflower pieces. Rest for 10 minutes.
Heat oil and deep fry the cauliflower pieces till golden in both the sides.
Remove in a tissue paper and enjoy with tomato sauce or chutney !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Wash the cauliflower florets. Boil 2 cups of water adding a pinch of turmeric powder and add them. Roll boil for 5 minutes and switch off the flame. Drain the excess water and set aside.
In a wide bowl, take parboiled cauliflower, besan flour, rice flour, chilli powder, garam masala powder, salt, turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste, chopped curry leaves, mint leaves, crushed fennel seeds and bakings soda. Mix well.
Sprinkle water and mix well to coat the cauliflower pieces with masala. Make sure its not too dry. Rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
Heat oil in a kadai and when it gets heated , drop a pinch of batter to check the oil temperature. If it rises to the top immediately, oil is heated. Now lower the flame and drop the cauliflower peices one by one in batches.
Increase the flame to medium and deep fry the cauliflower pieces till golden in color on both the sides. Toss and flip whenever needed. Do not wait for all the bubbles to cease.
Remove in a tissue paper. Enjoy with rice or as an evening snack. My daughter loves it with tomato sauce.
Note
Adjust the quantity of chilli powder and garam masala powder as per your taste.
Parboil cauliflower before mixing the flours. Raw cauliflower takes more time to cook in oil and absorbs more oil too.
Do not wait for all the bubbles to cease while frying. Remove once it turnd golden in color.
You can use corn flour in place of rice flour.
Yummy, kids friendly cauliflower pakoda is ready to enjoy. You can have with ketchup.
Potato curry / potato roast can be prepared in many ways. This Tamilnadu brahmin style potato kara kari recipe without onion, garlic is one of the easiest method of making it. It tastes so good with sambar, rasam and curd rice. You can also serve it with lemon rice. This type of potato curry is usually served in weddings ( Kalyana veetu urulaikilangu poriyal)
Kids would love this potato kara kari if you make it less spicy. If you have boiled potatoes in hand, you can make this kara kari under 10 minutes. No grinding and very less chopping works is needed for this recipe.
I have already shared a Tamil brahmin style urulaikilangu fry recipe in my blog. But this recipe is completely different from that version. I followed this potato kara kari recipe from Jeyashri’s blog and a YouTube video. This kara curry is served in traditional Tamil brahmin weddings( Kalyana veedu). Yesterday I prepared this curry for the first time with slight modifications. I used both besan flour and rice flour along with spice powders.
The smell and the texture of roasted potatoes coated with masala was so appealing and drool worthy. We all loved it. Friends, do try this Tamil nadu style potato roast i.e urulaikilangu kara kari for rice and enjoy !
Wash and pressure cook potatoes in high flame for 2 to 3 whistles adding required water.
Peel the skin and chop into big cubes. Set aside.
Mix the spice powders, flours and salt.
Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, urad,chana dal and curry leaves.
Lower the flame completely. Add the mixed powders.
Mix quickly without burning. Add the potato cubes and mix well.
Cook in medium flame tossing at regular intervals till potatoes get roasted.
Switch off the flame. Serve with sambar, rasam or curd rice.
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Wash the potatoes. Cut into two pieces. Take in a pressure cooker and add sufficient water to cover the potato. Pressure cook in high flame for 2 to 3 whistles. Remember potato should not become too soft or mushy. It should be cooked but firm in shape.
Open the cooker after the steam is released naturally. Take the potatoes and keep in cold water till it cools down. Peel the skin and cut into cubes as shown in the picture. You can also chop into small sized cubes if you like.
Mix the rice flour, besan flour, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt. Mix well. Heat oil in a kadai. Splutter mustard seeds, urad, chana dal and curry leaves. Lower the flame completely.
Add the spice mix and mix quickly. Add the potato cubes immediately and mix to coat well. Keep the flame medium and toss the potato gently. Keep tossing and cooking in medium flame till potato is roasted well with a nice golden color on top. Besan and rice flour coating turns crispy. If the curry sticks to the bottom of kadai, scrape it and add to the curry. It tastes so good. I used non-stick kadai, so mine was not sticking to the pan.
Switch off the flame. Serve hot with sambar, rasam and curd rice. Enjoy !!
Note
Adjust the quantity of chilli powder as per your taste.
For variations, you can add besan flour and rice flour at the end, roast till crispy and golden.
Make sure you don't burn the spice powders while adding to the hot oil. Keep the flame completely low and add it. Immediately add the potato cubes to avoid burning.
Easy yummy potato kara kari is ready to enjoy with rice !
I started making chocolate quesadilla at home after tasting chocodilla at Taco bell restaurant. Chocolate quesadilla is nothing but chocolate filled tortilla. Earlier I used to make Nutella quesadilla but this tortilla stuffed with dark chocolate shavings or choco chips tastes the best. Its so easy to make and I am sure your kids and family would love it. Its so easy to make it if you have readymade or store bought tortilla sheets in hand. Friends, do try this chocolate quesadilla and share your feedback with me. Lets see how to make chocolate quesadilla at home with step by step pictures.
Grated dark chocolate bar - 1 cup ( Use cooking chocolate bar) Or choco chips – 3/4 cup (adjust)
Butter - to grease the tortilla
HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE QUESADILLA
Take the dark chocolate bar and grate in a plate. Set aside.
Take the tortilla sheet and put in a butter greased dosa tawa.
Cook one side of tortilla sheet and flip it. Spread the grated chocolate in one half of cooked side of the sheet.
Fold the other side of the sheet to cover the chocolate and cook in dosa tawa greased with butter.
Cook the tortilla sheets till golden brown spots appear in the sheet and chocolate melts.
Remove and grease with butter. Serve hot !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Take the cooking chocolate bar and grate it. Keep aside. Instead of chocolate bar, you can use small sized chocolate chips too.
Grease the dosa tawa with butter and put a tortilla sheet. Cook one side and flip it. Spread the chocolate gratings in one half of the cooked side or spread the choco chips in one half of the sheet.
Fold the sheet and cook both the sides by flipping and pressing the sheet until the chocolate melts.
Grease with butter and remove the chocolate quesadilla. Cut into two triangles using a scissors or knife and serve hot ! Enjoy topping with chocolate sauce if you like.
Note
Adjust the quantity of chocolate as per your taste.
You can spread Nutella instead of grated chocolate but taste differs.
You can also try adding grated diary milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate but I am not sure about its taste and texture.
Do not over cook tortilla sheets. It may become chewy.
Try this easy, yummy chocolate quesadilla for you and your kids. Enjoy !