January 4, 2015

Dindigul Thalappakatti Veg Biryani-Mushroom,Soya Chunks Biryani Recipe--Sunday Lunch Recipes -1

In this New year, with all your support and blessings, I have planned to start biryani series from this week. I guess most of you make ( Both vegetarian & Non-vegetarian) make biryani in weekend especially on Sunday. Even I too make biryani mostly on Sundays, make myself free and enjoy my time with my family. To me, Biryani is an easy to make yet very rich & delicious one pot meal that make everyone drool over its smell & color. I love to try varieties of biryani recipes by watching TV shows, by referring blogs or cookbooks. I thought of blogging the same here as it might be useful to vegetarians who look for varieties of biriyani recipes. So every Sunday, you can expect some yummy biryani & pulao recipes in my blog. Actually I wanted to start this series with “How to cook Basmati rice” post. But I still have some work pending to bring that post here. As I am in Salem, I couldn’t do it. So I thought of starting this series with this most popular Dindigul thalappakatti biryani recipe in which I used jeera rice. Generally vegetarians have less options for biryani varieties. So I used to refer non-veg biryani recipe too & try it by replacing chicken or mutton with vegetables like mushroom, Gobi/cauliflower and soya chunks. You can find one such example here. Even today I have shared Dindigul thalapakatti biryani which is the most popular mutton biryani of Dindigul district. For this recipe, I referred so many sites and read readers comments to get some idea about its color, the rice used in it etc. Finally I landed upon here & tried this biryani by making small changes in the actual recipe to achieve its brown color. I used mushroom & soya chunks/meal maker in place of mutton ;). The taste was awesome. It came out super flavourful with minimum masala. Raksha & Sendhil loved it a lot. Raksha told me to make the same biryani next day too for her lunch box . So I made a minimum quantity for her using rice cooker. Now I can confidently try this biryani for my guests too. I served this biryani with simple onion raita as a side dish. I made fruit custard for dessert & curd rice as well. So last week we had this biryani, raita, fruit custard and curd rice for our lunch. It was simple yet divine ! I have updated this recipe with a full video. Do watch it !

I will try my level best to collect the best biryani recipes, try them in my kitchen and share it here.Wish me Good Luck. Leave your feedback or share the picture if you try any biryani recipes from this series. It will motivate me to try n post more. Check out my other biryani & pulao recipes that are popular in my blog.

Ambur veg biryani

Kuska biryani/Plain biryani

Spicy vegetable pulao

Vegetable biryani

Paneer biryani

Tomato rice using rice cooker

Mushroom Biryani

I have updated this recipe with a video. Please check it !

Microwave Rava Kesari Recipe/Sooji Halwa

Hi friends, I hope you all had a great new year celebration. I had a wonderful day with morning darshan at a nearby perumal temple for vaikundha ekadesi, breakfast with this rava kesari, lunch at Rajdhani Restaurant and above all I bought my favourite red color Handbag in JP nagar central mall as New year gift. The day went on really well more than I expected but we missed our daughter Raksha as she is in Salem for vacation. Tomorrow we are going there & spend this weekend with my in-laws.

Coming to this recipe, I must thank my friend Sudha for insisting me to try rava kesari recipe using microwave. She gave me a recipe too. I made some modifications & tried it yesterday for New year celebration.We loved it a lot.

I have used oil & ghee after watching Revathy shanmugam mam’s recipe in youtube video and I also referred Mrs.Mallika Badrinath’s Microwave recipes book for the timing and method. I added yellow food color and pineapple essence. So its flavor was very similar to pineapple kesari. But I tell you its not the authentic pineapple kesari version. So you can follow this recipe in my way using pineapple essence or just add cardamom powder with kesari color.It tastes great in either ways!

Try this easy, hassle free microwave rava kesari for poojas,special occasions and for your guests. I am sure it will come out great !!

Rava kesari - Microwave version

Rava kesari recipe using microwave !

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: Serves 2

Prep time: 4 Minutes

Cook time: 4 Minutes

Total time: 8 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Rava/sooji/Bombay rava - 1/4 cup
Sugar – 1/2 cup
Water – 1.5 cups
Ghee - 1 tbsp + 2 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Yellow food color - 2 pinches
Pineapple essence or cardamom powder - little ( as needed)
Cashew nuts – few ( to garnish)

METHOD

Take a big microwave safe bowl & add oil + ghee.Choose a big bowl because rava will rise well while cooking & it may spill.
Add cashews & roast it for 2 minutes in high power(mine is 800w power). Keep an eye after 1 minute.If cashews turn golden brown quickly,remove it.No need to keep it for 2 minutes.Remove cashews alone & add rava to the oil+ghee mixture,mix well so that rava is well coated without any lumps.

Roast the rava in high power for ONE minute.Open the microwave,mix well & again roast it for a minute.So roasting takes TWO minutes here.Take care that rava doesn’t get burnt.So stand nearby and watch carefully.Remove the rava bowl and keep aside.

In a vessel,heat water in gas stove till it starts to roll boil and add it to the roasted rava.Take care,it splashes.After adding water,add food color.Mix well without lumps.

Cook the rava for TWO minutes in high power covering with a lid. Choose a big bowl because rava will rise well while cooking & it may spill.After 2 minutes,remove the bowl,mix well, cover it with the lid & cook again for ONE minute.Rava will thicken and gets cooked very well.Now remove the bowl.
- Add sugar,essence & mix well without lumps.

The mixture will turn watery & small lumps may form.Mix quickly and break the lumps.As u mix,mixture will thicken slightly due to the heat of glass bowl & lumps will break.Make sure u break all the lumps.If u touch the mixture,it will be slightly sticking to the fingers.

Keep it in high power for 30 seconds,remove & mix well. U will see the rava leaving the sides of bowl.Immediately add 2 tsp of ghee.Mix well & transfer to a plate or bowl.Do this process quickly else kesari may turn hard because of the heat of glass.If u touch,mixture will be non-sticky.
Mixture will be semi solid initially. But it becomes thick & well set as it cools down.So don’t panic.

Serve in a bowl by garnishing with roasted cashews.U can also reheat the kesari for one minute in high power before serving ! But this step is optional.

NOTE : Timings may differ based on the power of your microwave.If its more than 800w,the entire process needs lesser time than mentioned and if the power is less than 700w,time taken may be more.So keep an eye and do it carefully if making for first time.

Note

Rava has to be cooked well else kesari turns chewy n hard.
Adding right amount of sugar also helps to give u soft kesari.
Adding oil helps to retain the moisture & prevents the kesari turning hard even after it cools down.Skip it & add ghee alone if u wish.
Adding pineapple essence is completely optional.U can add cardamom powder or saffron as u wish.
Here i used more water than mentioned in the original recipe.It helps to make lump free and perfectly cooked kesari.

Try this easy microwave rava kesari and enjoy your day !

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December 31, 2014

Microwave Fruit Cake | Eggless Microwave Plum cake recipe in 3 Minutes

I wish all my friends and readers merry Christmas and a very happy New year. I should have posted this eggless, microwave fruit cake recipe without alcohol/ rum before Christmas. But I couldn't do it as I was busy with some personal work. Better late than never. Here is an easy microwave plum cake/ dry fruit cake recipe that can be prepared under 3 minutes for you all. Try this cake for your kids as evening snacks or for this New year and have a great celebration.

I tried this eggless microwave plum cake recipe from “The Hindu” Christmas special recipes edition. I made some changes in the actual recipe to make it more soft n flavourful. It came out really spongy and crumbly as well. I tried this cake twice with and without cocoa powder too. Both came out well but I liked the one without cocoa powder. Its a very easy and awesome plum cake recipe that can be made in 3 minutes using a microwave. It can also be done in pressure cooker I guess.

Please check this link for my eggless cooker cake recipe to get some idea. Lets see how to make this easy, yummy, eggless, no butter, no condensed milk, alcohol free microwave fruit cake recipe in 3 minutes at home easily !

Also check out my Christmas fruit cake recipe using convection oven and my eggless Christmas fruit cake recipe in a pressure cooker !

Microwave plum cake recipe/Fruit cake

Microwave plum cake/Fruit cake recipe for Christmas !

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Cakes

Serves: 10

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 3 Minutes

Total time: 13 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

For 1 cup = 240 ml

All purpose flour/ Maida - 1 cup
Sugar or brown sugar - 1/2 cup ( 100 gms )
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
Curd - 1 tbsp ( semi solid,fresh)
Cooking soda /baking soda - 1/2 tsp
Baking powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1/4 cup / 60 ml
Lion dates syrup - 4 tbsp
Water - 1/2 cup/125 ml + (2 tbsp extra,only if needed)
All spice powder OR powdered cinnamon,cloves & nutmeg – 1/2 tsp
Cocoa powder – 2 tbsp (optional)
**Finely chopped dry fruits n nuts - 1/3 cup (add more if u wish)
Orange zest - 1 tbsp

** I used cashews,badam,pista,walnut,plum,cherries,tutti frutti,raisins

HOW TO MAKE MICROWAVE PLUM CAKE - METHOD

Heat 1/2 cup ie 125 ml of water in a microwave safe bowl for 1 minute. Put the finely chopped nuts & dry fruits in water and let it soak for 10 minutes.

In the mean time, sieve maida,cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and set aside.
To the soaked dry fruits mixture, add sugar, oil, curd, vanilla essence, orange zest and lion dates syrup. Mix well till sugar dissolves.

To this, add the sieved maida mixture & all spice powder .Fold it well in one direction.Cake batter would be slightly thick but pourable.If u feel the mixture is very thick,add 1 –2 tbsp of warm water to it and mix well.

Grease a microwave safe bowl with oil generously and pour half of the cake batter till half of the bowl.Cake will rise till the rim.So you should bake in two batches.

Microwave in high power for 2-3 minutes ( mine is 800w.It took 3 minutes ). Please keep an eye after 2 minutes based on the power of your microwave.If u over bake it,cake will burn or the sides will be dry n chewy. Please be careful.

Remove the bowl after 2 minutes & insert the back of spoon. If the spoon comes out clean or with little crumbs, cake is done. If you see the uncooked batter in the spoon,keep it for another 30 seconds and test it again. If not done, keep it for 30 seconds more. Cook till your cake is done. Remove the cake bowl from microwave as soon as its done and keep it outside for 5 minutes.
Run a knife all through the sides and loosen it. Invert it in a bowl. Cake will come out easily. Some of the portion might be sticking to the bowl. But that’s fine. Serve hot if you like or keep the cake completely covered and set aside for an hour. It tastes the best when served after 1-2 hours as the cake needs some standing time for all the flavour to infuse well. But don’t keep the cake open. It will dry soon.

If you want to make the cake without cocoa powder, do refer the pics below. U will get some idea. Also check out the cake batter consistency which is missing in cocoa version.

No need to refrigerate the cake. You can keep it outside for 2 days but keep it covered else cake will become dry.( I always store my cake covered with a lid inside the oven after it cools down because that is the safe place to avoid ants)

Enjoy !

Note

This cake takes maximum of 3 minutes to cook in microwave 800w power. So keep an eye after 2 minutes if yours is more than 800w.
Over baking makes the cake hard n chewy. Take care.
This cake remains soft even for two days if properly covered and stored. Else the outer layer will turn dry.
Adding cocoa powder is optional. U can skip it and use the other ingredients as given above. No need to reduce the quantity of water or oil.

Try this easy microwave cake recipe for New year. Have a fantastic year ahead !!

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December 29, 2014

Millet Flour Porridge Recipe/Millet Sathu Maavu Kanji-Millet Recipes

Last month i shared our homemade mixed millet flour/energy mix powder/sathu maavu recipe here. Using that flour, I have shared an instant sathu maavu dosa recipe too. Recently I tried sweet & savoury porridge/kanji using my millet energy mix powder for our Sunday breakfast. It came out really well and it was flavourful too. Making this millet porridge is just a 10 minutes job. You can try sweet or savory version based on your liking.

If you have less time in hand to prepare your breakfast, this millet porridge is an easy & healthy option with health benefits of all the millets in one dish.Its one of the ideal recipes for weight loss too. It keeps you energetic and full. Do try it and let me know your feedback. If you don’t want to make millet powder on your own, you can also buy the organic millet powders available in stores and prepare this porridge. But homemade millet powder is economical always ! You can try this porridge for one year old babies too. But keep in mind, you should add just 1 tsp of this powder for 2 cups of water, make it really watery and give them for the first time. If it suits them, you can increase the quantity of powder gradually. Check out my millet flour ladoo/Sathu maavu urundai recipe using jaggery if interested !

Millet flour porridge recipe

Millet flour porridge recipe/Millet sathu maavu kanji recipe for breakfast

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Breakfast

Serves: Serves 2-3

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 10 Minutes

Total time: 15 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Millet flour - 3 tbsp (Millet sathu maavu)
Water - 5 cups

For sweet porridge

Grated jaggery - 1/3 cup
Cardamom seeds - 2nos ( crushed)
Boiled milk - 1/4 cup ( as needed)

For spicy version

Thick curd - 3 tbsp
Salt - as needed

To temper

Cooking oil - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1/4 tsp
Hing/asafetida - 1/8 tsp
Red chilli or mor milagai - 1 no ( pinched)
Curry leaves - few
Coriander leaves - little

METHOD

Take 5 cups of water in a big bowl and mix the millet powder without any lumps. Use a wire whisk. Add a pinch of salt and let it boil well for 10 minutes in medium high flame. Stir it once or twice in the middle because it may overflow. The porridge will thicken slightly and its color changes with a shine. It shows that the millet flour is cooked well.

Now remove half of the porridge to another bowl for making savory version. Let it cool. In the mean time, add grated jaggery to the remaining half of the porridge and boil well in low flame. Jaggery melts and mixes with porridge. Color of porridge changes to golden yellow based on the color of jaggery. After the jaggery is melted, allow the porridge to boil for 2 minutes to remove the raw smell of jaggery. Lastly add the crushed cardamom seeds. Mix well and add little milk before serving. Mix well and serve ! ( Do not add milk when the porridge is boiling. It will curdle the mixture. So add boiled milk only after you switch off the flame)

Take the porridge reserved for savory version. To this, add 3 tbsp of lightly sour curd. Mix well with a wire whisk or beater. Add the required salt and temper all the above said ingredients.
- You can also add finely chopped raw mango pieces & green chillies, ginger to this porridge to make it more flavourful!
Add the tempered items to the porridge.Mix well and serve !

Enjoy !

Note

If you are trying this porridge for the first time, just follow the above measurements.This would give you medium thick consistency porridge.
If you want thicker porridge, add 1 tbsp more millet powder Or if you want thinner porridge, add 1 cup of more water. Adjust as per your liking.
You can also add sugar in place of jaggery.In that case,add 2-3 tbsp.Check for sweetness and add more.
Adjust the quantity of jaggery as per your taste.
You can also add finely chopped raw mango pieces & green chillies, ginger to this porridge to make it more flavorful!

Try this quick and easy millet flour porridge for your breakfast and have a healthy start of the day !

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December 28, 2014

75 Kuzhambu Recipes - South Indian Kuzhambu Varieties

Collection of South Indian Kuzhambu recipes for rice. Generally people of Tamil nadu love to make different varieties of kuzhambu recipes for their lunch. We don’t like to eat the same sambar, vathal kulambu or rasam everyday. In my home, both mom and MIL make at least 7 varieties of kulambu for a week. Sometimes we make kuzhambu without tamarind too. They don’t repeat the same at least for 10 days.

For my MIL’s kulambu varieties, few tsp of our homemade sambar powder is all you need. There are no or very less grinding work. Whereas my mom’s kuzhambu varieties have some grinding job but it tastes flavourful & awesome as most of them are freshly ground with Nellai / Tirunelveli touch. Both are completely different in procedure and taste. Most of these kuzhambu recipes I shared here are without coconut. Here I have given nearly 70+ Vegetarian kulambu/gravies recipes of my mom & MIL under one page for easy and quick reference. Most of these gravies are simple and easy to make for beginners and bachelors too.

Among these 75 gravies, you can find varieties of lunch sambar recipes and brahmin style arachuvitta sambar. Similarly you can find varieties of Vathal kuzhambu like sundakkai vatha kuzhambu, Poondu kuzhambu, Puli kuzhambu, Manathakkali vatha kuzhambu, ennai kathrikai kuzhambu, brinjal masala kuzhambu without tamarind, Chettinad Pakoda kuzhambu, thakkali kuzhambu, kara kuzhambu recipes along with an Iyengar style milagu kuzhambu recipe, paruppu urundai kuzhambu.

Other than this, you can also find mor kuzhambu, paruppu urundai kuzhambu, Poricha kuzhambu without tamarind, bittergourd/Pavakkai pitlai, Vazhaipoo kulambu, kovakkai masala kuzhambu,Yam gravy, pumpkin and ridge gourd gravies too.

I have also added some Andhra , Kerala and Karnataka Kuzhambu varieties for rice. Please click on the picture to view the respective recipe. I have given most of the recipes with step by step pictures.

Please check THIS LINK to view my latest additions in Kuzhambu recipes.

Thanks for visiting this page. Do try all these kuzhambu recipes and enjoy cooking varieties!

In future you can expect some yummy n easy lunch menu ideas in my blog. Stay tuned.
Ok, lets see the list of South Indian kuzhambu recipes / Kuzhambu vagaigal of Tamil people and other state people !

Please don’t forget to leave your feedback in the comments section if you try any of these kuzhambu recipes. I will be happy to know it and will help others too ! Thanks.

South Indian Kuzhambu recipes

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Kuzhambu Recipes

Serves: 3

Prep time: 20 Minutes

Cook time: 15 Minutes

Total time: 35 Minutes

Please check THIS LINK to view my latest additions in Kuzhambu recipes.

Check out my homemade sambar powder which is used in most of these recipes. You can also use store bought sambar powder or kuzhambu milagai thool.

70 KUZHAMBU RECIPES - Click on the image or text to view the recipe.