Uppu Saaru / Bittergourd Rasam Recipe

I learnt this delicious kuzhambu /rasam from my MIL.Just like Kazhani kuzhambu , this is also an easy , unique recipe.I usually make pitlai with BG.But this is something different in taste and the procedure.Here comes the recipe with the picture..

INGREDIENTS 

• Bittergourd - 1 no (medium size)
• Tamarind - Small gooseberry size
• Salt & water - As needed

To roast & grind :

• Oil - 1 tsp
• Toor dal - 1.5 tsp
• Channa dal- 1 tsp
• Urad dal - 1 tsp
• Red chilly - 4 -5 nos
• Grated Coconut - 1 tbsp

To temper :

• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves - few

METHOD 

• Slice cut Bittergourd with 1 inch thickness.
• In a pressure cooker , take the bittergourd slices and cook till 1 whistle.
• Take a tsp of oil in a kadai and roast the ingredients given above. Powder it coarsely and set aside.
• In the  kadai , heat oil and temper the items given under "to temper". Now add the tamarind extract , salt , hing and curry leaves.
• Add the cooked bittergourd pieces and allow it to boil for sometime.
• Now mix the coarsely ground powder and boil for 5 mins.
• The mixture should be watery in consistency.
• Finally garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with plain rice & papad.

 

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IDLI FRY RECIPE - LEFTOVER IDLI RECIPES

Recently my MIL was telling about the idly fry she had in her brother's place. I was attracted by the simple recipe and we tried with the left over idlies.It was very nice & tasty. Usually i add G&G , garam masala to make the fry. But this version is completely different from mine.No need to deep fry the idlies too. So its an easy & low calorie food.Do try this let me know friends.

INGREDIENTS

• Left over idlies - 12- 15 nos
• Sesame oil - 2 tbsp
• Salt - As needed.

To roast & grind :

• Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
• Red chilly - 4 nos ( long variety )
• Grated Coconut - 1 tbsp
• Small onion - 10 nos or Big onion - 1 no
• Jeera / cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Cooking Oil - 1tsp

To temper :

• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Urad dal - 1 tbsp
• Chana dal - 1 tsbp
• Curry leaves - few
• Cooking oil -  1tbsp

To garnish :

• Coriander leaves - few

Lemon juice - few drops to taste.

METHOD

• Heat oil in a kadai and roast the items given under "To roast & grind " except coconut.
• Grind all the roasted items along with grated coconut.Add little water & grind to a smooth paste.Set aside.
• Cut the idlies into small cubes.Mix the ground paste and toss well. Take care the idly pieces should not break.
• In a wide mouthed kadai , add oil and temper the items given above .
• Now add the masala coated idly pieces and saute well for few minutes by simmering the flame.Saute till the raw smell of masala disappears.
• Switch off the flame and add the lemon juice.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot !!

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Boondi Ladoo Recipe / South Indian Boondhi Laddu - Diwali Sweets Recipes

Hello friends , sorry for the sudden disappearance from blogging.I had a problem with my writer and could not upload the posts. At last my hubby resolved the problem :)
Coming to this post, I learnt this from my MIL.She is an expert in making badusha, ladoo, adhirasam ,burfi etc.I told her to make this boondhi ladoo for my husband's birthday and of course for blogging too .This is our South Indian style Boondhi ladoo which is very popular in Tamil nadu.This is prepared by mixing fried boondhi in thick sugar syrup & made as balls.The consistency of sugar syrup is very important for this sweet recipe.In North India, people make a ladoo named Motichoor ladoo using the same ingredients but in a different way. I will try to share that recipe in future.Now lets see how to make boondi laddu with pictures !

Boondi ladoo recipe

Boondi ladoo/Boondhi laddu recipe

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 12 nos

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 200ml Besan flour / Kadalai maavu - 1 cup Rice flour - 2 tbsp Cooking soda - 1 pinch Yellow color - 2 pinches For Syrup Sugar - 1.5 cups Water - 3/4 cup Cardamom- 4 nos ( powdered ) Cloves - 3 nos Cashews - 10 nos (Broken into two) Sugar candy/Kalkandu - 2 tbsp

METHOD

Take the flour,food color & cooking soda in a bowl.Add water and make a bajji batter  consistency ( Batter must be smooth & slightly thin ) Heat oil in a kadai.Take the batter and pour it in a sieve or ladle with round holes. Tap it gently so that small balls of the batter fall into the oil.Fry in batches and set aside.(Do not deep fry the balls till crispy .The balls should be soft .So fry for few seconds)  Start making the syrup only after making boondi.If you make sugar syrup in the beginning,it will crystallize. Now take a pan.Add sugar & cover with water.Let it boil & make the syrup of **two string consistency or gathering stage.( ie.pour few drops of syrup in a plate with water.If u try to gather the syrup,it will come together but you will not be able to shape them or take it in hand.It will dissolve) Check out my sugar syrup post for better understanding.Please be careful because this stage will come immediately after single string consistency.So be careful.You can add few drops of lemon juice to avoid crystallization.But it is not needed as you are going to add the prepared boondi immediately after the syrup is done.Act fast here. Add cardamom powder, sugar candy,Fried cloves & cashews. Add the fried balls to the syrup and mix well. Grease the hands with ghee and make balls of desired size when the mixture is still warm. If u wish to serve as boondi, just mix the sugar syrup,cardamom powder,fried cloves and mix with a ladle. serve!!  Enjoy !

Note

Soft ball consistency :Take the syrup in a bowl with water and gather the syrup.U will able to gather in one place but you cannot take the syrup in your fingers.It will dissolve.This stage is achieved in few seconds after the one string consistency.So keep an eye.This is also called as two string consistency.If you are able to bear the heat,u can test in between the fingers. If the mixture cools down, balls cannot be made properly. If the sugar syrup crystallizes before mixing the fried balls, add little water to the syrup , boil and bring it to the correct consistency. Store the ladoo in an air tight container .Its shelf life is 10 days.

Technorati Tags: Boondhi ladoo,boondi ladoo recipe,boondi ladoo,boondi laddu,laddu recipe,ladoo recipe,diwali sweets recipes,diwali recipes,sweets,sweets recipes

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MIXED VEGETABLE VADA - VEGETABLE VADAI

I googled so many recipes, referred some cookbooks and finally came up with this vegetable vada recipe. Some have suggested to make this vada with gram flour &  rice flour and some recipes are with urad dal. I felt recipe with urad dal would be better and healthy. If you want to make mixed Veg bonda, then gram flour /besan would be the best option. 

Mixed vegetable vada / Vegetable vadai recipe

Mix vegetable vada/ vadai for evening snacks !

 

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Snacks

Serves: 8

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

For the batter : White round urad dal – 1/2 cup Salt - as needed Water – 2 - 3 tbsp ( upto 1/4 cup) Asafetida / hing – 1/4 tsp Ginger – 1 inch piece Green chilli – 1 no To mix : Carrot – 2 nos Grated Cabbage – 1/4 cup Green chilli – 1 no Small onion – 10 nos Curry leaves - A few Coriander leaves – A few

HOW TO MAKE VEGETABLE VADA

Wash and soak urad dal for 1 hour.

Grind all the ingredients given under ‘for the batter’ in a mixie. Add water gradually.

Make a thick, smooth batter. 

Chop or grate the carrots. Chop the small onions, green chillies, curry leaves finely.

Grate the cabbage. Mix all the veggies to the batter. Check for salt.

Heat the oil in a kadai and deep fry vadas in batches. Serve hot !!

 

NOTE

• We don’t have to worry about the shape of vada. U’ll get a nice perfect shape. The batter mixed with vegetables would be very thick.
• Suppose if the batter is watery, add little rice flour to get the proper shape. But this step won’t be needed.

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KAZHANI KUZHAMBU | RAW MANGO KUZHAMBU - MANGO RECIPES

 

This is my MIL’s special recipe.We bought some sour raw mangoes and i told my MIL to make something special with it. she told me about this kuzhambu and we tried on the same day. It was excellent .Its very simple to do. If u get sour mangoes, do try this .I am sure u’ll love it.It got a similar taste of puliodharai /puliyogare.Thanks a lot to my MIL for teaching me this yummilicious gravy / kuzhambu.I loved it.. .

INGREDIENTS

• Sour Raw mango – 2 nos (medium sized, Slit cut into 3.Hope the above picture gives u a  clear idea )
• Tamarind – One seed / Small Berry size
• Turmeric powder –1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves – A few
• Salt – As needed.
• Arisi Kazhani – 2 cups ( Drain the water after washing the rice and take it in a bowl ..The water would be white in color.Its called Kazhani in tamil )

To roast and Powder

• Oil – 1 tsp
• Methi seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Channa dal – 1tbsp
• Urad dal – 1 .5 tsp
• Toor dal – 1 tbsp
• Red chillies – 6 – 7 nos
• Hing /Asafetida – 1/4 tsp

To temper :

• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves  - a few

METHOD

• In a wide mouthed kadai or bowl take the arisi kazhani and add the turmeric powder ,salt & one seed of tamarind.( We call this as ethir puli)
• Wash the raw mangoes and slit cut into 3 pieces. Please refer the above picture .
• Add these mangoes into the kazhani and cover cook till the mangoes cook nicely. Take care it should not be overcooked and becomes mushy.
• Add 1/4 tsp of hing & curry leaves while boiling.
• Now in a kadai , add a tsp of oil and roast the items in the same order.
• Grind it to a coarse powder . ( run the mixie once or twice)
• Once the mangoes are cooked , add the  coarse powder and allow it to boil for 5 mins. u’ll get a nice flavor.
• The gravy should be watery as in picture.(like rasam)
• Finally temper the kuzhambu & give some 30 mins standing time before serving ..

Enjoy with plain rice & papad.U can add a tsp of sesame oil in plain rice for additional taste.

         

NOTE

• Please grind the powder in a coarse form to get the kuzhambu in  watery consistency.If u grind it fine , u’ll get a  thick gravy. Please make it the way u want the gravy to be.
• Hing should be twice here. One time in raw and another time while roasting.
• Dont forget to add a pinch of tamarind. No need to soak & extract.. it will dissolve in the gravy.If u have the ready made paste , just add a drop of it.

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OATS BUTTERMILK PORRIDGE | OATS KANJI

I think most of  u know and  make this porridge .U all may wonder if i say this is the first time i am making this .Yes, for the first time i prepared this quick , delicious porridge and enjoyed for breakfast today.I got this recipe from a blog , made some additions and relished with pickle . 

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml

• QUAKER OATS – 1 /2 CUP
• Butter milk –2 cups or half cup of sour curd
• Water & Salt – As needed

To temper :

• Oil – 1 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Urad dal – 1 tsp
• Red chilly – 1 no ( Pinched into two )
• Curry leaves – a few
• Asafetida – 2 pinches
• Ginger – a small piece ( finely chopped)

Coriander leaves –Little ( chopped )
METHOD

• Soak the oats in water for 15 mins . This step is purely optional.
• Pressure cook the oats till one whistle.Mash it well with a ladle.
• Now add the buttermilk and salt. ( Add less buttermilk if it is too sour)
• Temper all the items given above and add it to the oats mixture.
• Mix well.Garnish with coriander leaves.

TIPS

• If u feel the porridge is too sour, add milk or water to reduce the sourness and adjust the salt accordingly .
• U can add finely chopped raw mango pieces to get a nice flavor and taste. 

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BADAM KHEER / ALMOND KHEER

I wanted to try this kheer for a long time.Yesterday I prepared this for my hubby,. I refrigerated the kheer ,thawed & had it .So it was slightly warm not very cool.The taste was awesome. We loved it..I referred so many blogs for the recipe and finally came out with my version.Picture dint come out good.

INGREDIENTS

• Almond – 12 nos (**Blanched)
• Milk – 1/2 litre ( I used low fat milk )
• Sugar – 3 - 4 tbsp
• Hot Water – 1/2 cup ( to soak almonds)
• Saffron threads – A few (soak in little warm water before use )
• Cardamom powder – 1/2 tsp ( Optional. I used it )

METHOD

• Soak almonds in hot water for 10-15 mins.
• The skin comes out easily. Peel the skin and blanch the almonds.
• Grind it to a smooth paste adding little milk.
• In  a broad pan, heat the milk. When the milk starts to boil, add the almond paste and simmer the flame.
• The milk has to boil for 10-15 mins  in very low flame and the quantity gets reduced .
• By this time, the raw smell of almond also disappears and  milk gets thickened slightly.
• Now add the required sugar and mix well.
• Allow it to boil for 5 mins.
• Finally add the saffron milk. The color of the kheer gets changed .
• Add cardamom powder if necessary.

Refrigerate & serve chill or enjoy it warm. The choice is urs !!

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VEGETABLE PYAZ MASALA / KAIKARI VENGAAYA MASALA

I tried this from Mallika badrinath’s cookbook.We had with chapathi / Roti. It was very nice. It got a similar taste of mixed vegetable masala in restaurants. Try this for ur guests.. I am sure they’ll enjoy it.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 250ml

• Potato – 3 nos (medium sized)
• Carrot – 2 nos
• Peas – 1/2 cup
• Big onion – 2  nos (slice cut)
• Salt  & oil – As needed.

To grind

• Tomato – 2 nos
• Big onion – 2 nos
• Grated coconut – 1/4 cup
• Green chilly – 3 nos ( Saute in little oil ..Please increase the number of green chilly if u want spicy gravy. The original recipe calls for 5nos )
• Coriander seeds – 1/2 tbsp
• Jeera / cumin seeds – 1 tsp
• Pepper – 5  nos ( dry roast in a kadai separately)
• Cinnamon – 1 inch piece
• Cardamom – 1 no
• Cloves – 2 nos
• Ginger – A small piece.
• Khus khus – 1/2 tbsp

To garnish

• Chopped Curry & coriander leaves – Few

METHOD

• Chop all the vegetables and pressure cook for 1 whistle. ( vegetables should not be mushy )
• Slice cut onions and keep aside.
• Now grind all the items given under “to grind” to a smooth paste adding required water.
• In a kadai , add  1tbsp of oil and saute the sliced onions.
• Add the ground masala & cooked vegetables.
• Add the required water , salt and simmer the flame.
• Let the gravy boils for 10- 15 mins to ooze out the raw smell of the ground masala.
• Add water if necessary & stir in between. After sometime u get a nice smell and the gravy gets thickened.
• Remove and serve hot garnished with curry leaves & coriander leaves.

We relished with chapathi ..

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Carrot Puttu Recipe

We make this carrot puttu as side dish for sambar rice. Sambar Sadam , Carrot puttu & appalam (papad) is a divine combination.. I learnt this recipe from my mom. Its very easy to prepare. Try this for kids. I am sure they’ll love it. Its always better to eat the carrots raw to get the complete nutrition . If not possible, its good to steam to retain the nutrition. Here I ‘ve steamed the carrot. So I feel this side dish is good for growing children who doesn’t eat raw carrot.

INGREDIENTS

• Carrot – 3 nos ( Grated)
• Big onion – 1 no (Finely chopped)
• Green chilly – 1 no ( slit into 2 )
• Grated coconut – 2 tbsp (optional)
• Salt – As needed.

To Temper :

• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves – Few

HOW TO MAKE CARROT PUTTU - METHOD :

• Grate the carrot. Spread the grated carrot in the idly plate and steam it for 10 –15 mins in idli pot.( This method retains the nutrition in carrot )
• Finely chop the onions and slit cut the green chillies.
• Now in a kadai , add oil and temper the items given above .
• Add the onions & chillies . Saute till onion turns transparent.
• Now add the steamed carrot , salt and toss well.
• Keep in low flame for sometime by tossing in between.
• Now add the grated coconut, stir for sometime and switch off the flame.

Yummy carrot puttu is ready to go with sambar rice !!

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TOMATO THOKKU FOR IDLI, DOSA

This is a tasty side dish for idli dosa.Whenever I have ripe tomatoes in my hand, the first side dish that comes to my mind is this tomato thokku. I learnt this from my mom. Very easy to prepare . U can try this for chapathi too. Ideal side dish for trip / travel .

INGREDIENTS :

• Ripe tomatoes – 1/4 kg
• Big onion – 2 nos (finely chopped )
• Tamarind – 1 small piece ( Optional )
• Red chilly powder – 1.5 - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
• Salt & water – As needed

To temper :

• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal – 1 tsp
• Channa dal – 1tsp
• Curry leaves – A few

Coriander leaves – To garnish
METHOD :

• Cube cut tomatoes and finely chop the onions.
• In a kadai,add oil and temper the items given above. 
• Now add the onions and saute till transparent.
• Then add the tomato pieces and saute till it becomes mushy.
• Add the turmeric & red chilly powder along with salt.
• Mix well and add the required water to cook. Cover with a lid.
• After sometime ,check whether the onion & tomato gets cooked.
• Once the mixture thickens, add the coriander leaves and serve hot..

Tastes divine with hot idlies ;)

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Kathirikai Podi Curry / Brinjal Podi Curry / Eggplant Podi Curry

Today's recipe is one of my most favorite side dish for rice. Yes, its brinjal podi curry which we call as Kathirikai podi curry in Tamil. Its a no onion, no garlic recipe. Its a popular poriyal recipe in Tamil nadu. This is my mom’s special recipe too. It goes well with More kuzhambu and Rasam rice. I can have with plain rice as well. The flavor of freshly ground spice powder coated over the perfectly cooked and roasted brinjal make this dish loved ny everyone. Friends, you too try this kathirikai podi curry recipe and share your feedback with me :) .

INGREDIENTS 

• Small brinjal – 7 nos ( Choose small brinjal for best taste)
• Salt and water – As needed.

To roast & grind :

• Cooking Oil – 1 tsp
• Coriander seeds – 1.5 tsp
• Chana dal – 1 tbsp
• Red chilly – 4 nos (use 3 for less spice)
• Grated coconut – 2 tbsp

To temper:

• Gingely Oil / Sesame oil – 2 tbsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - Few

METHOD :

• Wash and cut each brinjal lengthwise into 4 pieces and soak in water to avoid change of color.
• In a kadai , add a tsp of oil and roast the coriander seeds, chana dal, red chillies till golden in color. Keep the flame low. 
• In the same kadai add the grated coconut and roast for a minute. If you are using coconut pieces, you can roast it along with dals and red chillies. Make sure you don't burn anything. 
• Grind all the roasted items to a coarse powder. ( not too fine or too coarse )
• Now in a kadai add gingely oil , temper the mustards & urad dal . Add the brinjal pieces . Saute till the brinjal is cooked soft but retains the shape. Do not add water, keep the flame low and cover cook the brinjal till its skin shrinks and cooks well. 
• It takes nearly 10 to 15 minutes in very low flame based on the size of brinjal. Cover the kadai with a lid. Open in the middle and stir it whenever needed. Make sure brinjal doesn't get burnt.  
• Lastly add the roasted powder , salt and mix well for few minutes in low to medium flame. Make sure the brinjal pieces don't break. Swicth off the flame.  
• Poriyal is ready to serve hot !!

We enjoyed with my mom’s more kuzhambu :)

NOTE 

As we cook the brinjal , its shrinks in size but the color is retained. My mom makes this curry in other way too.She slit cut the brinjal into 4 pieces , stuff this podi , use lot of oil and saute it till brinjal gets cooked in oil. Since this method consumes more oil and also the color of the brinjal turns black , we avoid making this way. For kids , you can try this method..

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PHIRNI RECIPE – MILK PUDDING USING RICE FLOUR

PHIRNI, a famous North Indian dessert is usually made with rice soaked & grind to a smooth paste. For a change I tried with rice flour suggested by MB in her cookbook. Its very easy to make and tasted great . Its a very good replacement for Payasam.

Usually Phirni looks thick. I made it little thin as per our taste. Please make it as you like. I have updated this recipe as per the suggestions given by an anonymous reader. If you want to make badam phirni, soak few badams in water , blanch & chop them finely. Add the chopped badam at the end after switching off the flame. I used badam just to garnish.

INGREDIENTS :

• Milk – 1/2 litre ( around 2 cups )
• Rice flour – 3/4 tbsp
• Sugar – 1/2 cup
• Cardamom powder – 1/4 tsp
• Cashewnuts , pista & badam – Few (finely chopped)
• Rose water  or kewara - 1/2 tsp (for additional flavor , I dint use)

METHOD :

• Mix rice flour in 1/2 cup of milk and without forming any lumps.
• Heat rest of the milk in a heavy vessel.
• When it starts to boil, add the rice flour paste and cook stirring constantly.
• It takes nearly 15-20 minutes to thicken. Keep the flame medium low - high to avoid spilling. Stir now & then..
• When the milk becomes thick add sugar & switch off the flame..
• Stir well till the sugar dissolves completely. Check for sweetness .
• Mix cardamom powder , rose water & chill in refrigerator (* Do not freeze )

Serve in small cups with fried nuts on top !!
NOTES :

• I made it slightly thin. Add milk if you want more diluted. Adjust sugar accordingly.
• Thickening time of milk may vary according to the heat. 
• U can add saffron soaked in warm milk instead of cardamom powder & name it as “ kesar phirni “. 
• We can use fine chiroti rawa for thickening of milk instead of rice flour.

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