A quick snack with Rice flakes

                                  Rice flakes tossed with raw onions and salad cucumber

POHE WITH ONION AND SALAD CUCUMBER

 

This was a dish introduced to us by a friend  LEENA MUZUMDAR  in my most favorite food group in which i have joined .It is so easy to cook and we can have it for breakfast as well as along with  a hot cup of coffee or tea as a snack. As me and my hubby liked it though of sharing with you all this yummy recipe.Here is the recipe..!

SERVES:1

Ingredients

Rice flakes{POHE/AVAL/PHOVU/CHUDA}- 1 cup

Water as  needed

Salt to taste

Finely chopped onions- 1/3 cup

Finely chopped salad cucumber-1/3 cup

Lemon juice from half of a lemon

For Seasoning

Oil- 2 tsp

Mustard seeds{SARSON/KADUKU/SASAM/RAI/SORISO}-1/2 tsp

Curry leaves-1 sprig

To Garnish

Cilantro or Boondi ( deep fried chickpea  balls) -1 -2 tbsp

Method

1,Wash and clean the poha. It should be soft in texture.

2.Squeeze or strain the excess water and spread them on to a wide plate.

3.Sprinkle generously the finely chopped onions,salad cucumber ,lemon juice and salt to taste.

4.Mix them up.Now let us make the seasoning.

5.Heat little oil in a tadka pan,once it is hot add the mustard seeds and allow them to pop up.

5.Once done add in the curry leaves .saute for a second and pour this on to the above made poha.

6.Mix again and garnish with boondi or chopped cilantro..

7.Enjoy with a cup of tea or coffee..!!                                             

Fish curry (without adding coconut)

                                                 Meen mulakitathu 

Cuisine:Kerala

Serves-3-4

Ingredients

Fish-1/2  kg

Onion -1

Tomato-1

Salt to taste

Coconut oil 1 tsp to garnish

Water as needed for gravy 

FOR SEASONING:

Oil-1 tbsp

Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp

Curry leaves-1 -2 sprigs

Ginger-1 tbsp

Garlic-6-8 pods

Green chilly 2- 4

Shallots-4 -5

FOR THE SPICE PASTE

Red chilli powder-2 tbsp

Kashmiri red chilly powder-2 tsp

Coriander powder-2 tbsp

Fenugreek  powder-1/4 tsp

Malabar tamarind /kudampuli -2-3 pieces

Water as needed

Method

1.Wash & clean  the fishes and keep them aside.

2.Chop all the veggies needed and keep them ready .Soak the kudampuli in 1/4 cup of water

3.Take a small bowl add all the spice powders into it and make a thick solution of it by adding little water.Keep the spice paste aside.

4.Now heat a kadai ,once smoke starts coming (it is an indication that the vessel is heated) add 1 tbsp of oil into it.

5.Now add all the ingredients given under the label for seasoning.Saute them till they attain a soft texture.

6.Time to add in the sliced onion and tomatoes along with little salt.This is totally optional.If you do not want to add onion and tomato you can skip this step.Saute  them till they are well cooked .no need to brown them.

7.Pour in the spice paste along wit the kudam puli. Mix them well.Saute till the raw taste of the powders goes off.

8.Add water according to your gravy requirement and bring it to a boil.Do a taste test at this step and adjust the spices .You can add all the spice powders again if needed.Mix well.

9.Once the water starts bubbling lower the flame and add the cleaned fish pieces.Cover and cook till they are done.

10.Do a final taste test .Our curry is ready to serve..Enjoy with steamed rice..!!!

Note :  For better taste cook it the previous night itself and serve the next day again after boiling it one more time.As this will allow the flavors to blend so well that your family will like it and praise  Cooking your skill..  

     

     You are free to increase or decrease the amount of spice powders according to your family's taste preferences. If the curry became so tangy feel free to remove the  1 or 2 kudampuli pieces from the curry.

                                                                                 

Fish thali

 

FISH FRY ,RED BOILED RICE,FISH COOKED WITH SHALLOTS AND SPICY TANGY FISH CURRY (no onion and ,tomatoes were just used for garnishing)

Curd Rice

                                       Curd rice a treat for myself
                                       
                                    


Serves:1
Ingredients

Cooked raw rice -1/2 cup
Curd/yogurt -1/3 cup
Pomegranate -1 /3 cup

For seasoning

Oil-1tbsp
Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds1 / 2 tsp
Chana dal-1 / 2 tsp
Urad dal-1 / 2 tsp
Green Chilly-1
Curry leaves -1sprig
Onion -2tbsp
Tomato-2tbsp
Salt to taste
Note: can add finely chopped ginger,cashews,pineapple pieces,grapes,green apples,grated carrots etc too if you prefer.

Method

1. Take the cooled cooked rice in a wide pan .Keep it aside.

2. Beat the curd well and it should be free from lumps.

3.Separate the seeds from the fruit.

4. Now mix the cooled rice, curd along with salt to taste.

Note: rice should cool completely before adding the curd.It is  a must.

5.Reserve a tablespoon or 2 for garnishing and add the rest of the seeds into the rice and toss well.

6.Now let us make the seasoning.

7.Heat oil in a tadka pan once it is hot add in the mustard seeds and allow them to pop up.

8.Then add in the cumin seeds, chana dal,urad dal ,green chillies finely chopped ,curry leaves,finely chopped tomatoes and onions and sauté well.Sprinkle salt to taste.

9.Once done pour it over the rice and toss them up.

10.Our CURD RICE is ready to serve.Enjoy with pickle of your choice..😍😍👍🍚

Dum aloo

                                          Dum aloo/potato curry

dum aloo

Serves-2
Ingredients

Aloo/potato/urulakizangu/kuuk -4 medium sized
Tomato-1
Yogurt/curd- tbsp
Water- 1/2 - 1 cup

Oil-1 tbsp+1 tsp
Cumin seeds-1/2  tsp
Bay leaf-1

To make fine paste:
Onion-1
Ginger-1" piece
Garlic pods-4-5

Spice powders used:
Salt to taste
Cumin powder-1/2 tsp
Coriander powder -1 tsp
Red chilly powder- 1/2 tsp

To garnish:
Ghee-1 tbsp

Method

1.Wash and pressure cook aloo. Once the pressure goes off open the lid ,peel the skin off and cut the aloo into big chunks. Keep it aside.

2.Now let us make a fine paste of ginger+garlic+onion and keep it aside.

3.Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a kadai/pan.

4.Once it is hot add in the cumin seeds and bay leaf and saute for a second.

5.Add in the ground paste and saute till the raw smell goes off.

6.Once done add in the finely chopped tomatoes along with the spice powders and toss them well till oil separates.

7.Time to add in the aloo chunks .Toss them well.

8.Pour in the curd along with water and bring it to a boil.

9.Do a taste test and adjust the spices.Our DUM ALOO is ready to serve.Just before serving top it off with a table spoon of ghee.Enjoy with rice or rotis{INDIAN FLAT BREAD/PUFFED BREAD} of your choice.                                             

Poori and Aamras

                           Poori/puffed bread and Aamras/mango pulp

OUR DINNER THALI

POORI AND AAMRAS

RAW PLANTAIN FRITTERS

AND MASALA PEPPER PAPPAD

This was a quite new combo that i tried last week & all the courtesy goes to a fabulous food group  "Konkani Khann Anik Jevan "{konkanikhann.blogspot.com/}  in which i am a member now.It is a group close to my heart can be called as a second HOME,which paved way for a beginner like me to treasure a lot of authentic Gowda Saraswat Brahmin dishes as well as many dishes from all over the world.All the credit goes to my lovely new buddies in that group..!!Dedicating this post to my KKAJ Family.. <3

 FOR POORI
Makes 14 poori

INGREDIENTS

Wheat flour/atta-1 1/2 cup
Water needed to knead the dough
Salt as needed
Oil-1tbsp

Method:

1.Let us make poori first. 

2.Take atta in a mixing bowl add salt to taste and just mix dry powders well.

3.Now into it add water little by little and knead to get a smooth and soft dough.(don't feel lazy in this step. You should knead well for at least 4/5 minutes then only you will get your poori puffed up like a bubble)

4.Add little oil also in between(the amount of oil used can be adjusted accordingly)once you get a soft dough keep it aside for at least 10 minutes covered with a wet kitchen towel.

4.Now as usual pinch equal size balls .

5.Dust with little atta and  roll them into small circles.

6.Meanwhile heat oil in a kadai/frying pan ,for deep frying the pooris.

6. Once you have finished rolling all pooris ,oil will be hot enough to deep fry.Fry them in piping hot oil of your choice.(fry in high flame)

7.Transfer them on to tissue paper so as to absorb excess oil. POORIS ARE READY..

FOR AAMRAS

Ripe mango-1
sugar as per your sweet tooth

Note:As i just want to make it simple i used only 2 ingredients.You are free to alter the flavor as per your choice

Method.

1.Peel the skin of mango and chop them roughly

2.Grind  it in a mixie jar along with sugar to a smooth paste .Do not add water.

3.Do a taste test and adjust the sugar.Our Aamras is ready to serve.Top it off with a spoon of (Amul) fresh cream..Enjoy !!!

Note:you can add cardamom powder/saffron /ghee fried nuts of your choice for garnishing.

Masala Pepper Pappad

                                                Masala  Pappad

Serves:1
Ingredients

Pepper pappad-1
Note:can use any pappad of your choice

Vegetables used
Onion-2 tbsp
Tomato-2 tbsp
Salad cucumber-3 tbsp
Capsicum/bell peppers-2 tbsp
Lemon juice from quarter of a lemon
Note:can also use finely chopped cilantro ,mint leaves,cooked sweet corn,zucchini etc

Spice powders used
Salt or kala namak/ black salt  to taste
Chaat masala to sprinkle
Pepper powder-1/4 tsp (optional)
Note:can use roasted cumin powder,red chilly powder etc

Method
1.Deep fry or pan fry pappad and keep it ready.

2.Now into the mixing bowl add all the finely chopped vegetables except the lemon juice.

3.Into it sprinkle all the spice powders.Toss them well& do a taste test.Keep the salad ready.

4.Just before serving assemble it.
            Place the pappad on a serving plate ,spoon the salad generously,squeeze the lemon juice.

5.Our masala pepper pappad is ready to serve..ENJOY!!!

PRAWNS PAKODA

                                                      Prawns pakoda

RECIPE COURTESY: my SIL NIKHITA PAI
Serves:1

Ingredients

Prawns-27 small prawns
Maida/all purpose flour-1 tbsp
Corn flour-1/2 tsp
Water-1 tbsp
Pepper powder- 1- 1 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Lemon juice from quarter of a lemon
Oil for deep frying

Method

1.Wash ,clean and de-vein the prawns.

2.Marinate it with salt,pepper powder and lemon juice and keep aside for few minutes.

3.After 5- 10 minutes add in the maida and cornflour and mix well.

4.Pour a tablespoon full of water and make it to a pakoda/fritter  batter consistency.

5.Heat oil in a kadai,once it is hot deep fry them.

6.Transfer them on to a kitchen towel so as to absorb excess oil.

7.Our PRAWNS PAKODA IS READY TO SERVE..Enjoy!!!

AAM KA KHATTA

                                     Aam ka khatta- oriyan side dish

Cuisine:Oriyan
Serves-2-3

Ingredients

Partially ripe mangoes-2 medium sized ones
Oil-1 tbsp
Mustard seeds/sarson/soriso/rai/kaduku/sasam-1 tsp
Dry red chilly/vattal mulagu/sukhi mirch-3
Asa foetida/hing-to sprinkle
Salt to taste
Water-1/4 cup + 2 tbsp

Jaggery/guud/belam/sarkara/ghood-1/3 cup
Red chillly powder/lal mirchi powder/mulagu podi/miryapitto-1 tsp
Roasted mustard seeds powder-1 tsp

Method

1.Wash,clean and chop mangoes into bite size pieces,grate jaggery and keep aside.

2.Take a tadka pan and dry roast mustard seeds and powder them finely & keep it aside.

3.Now let us start cooking.

4.For that heat oil in a kadai ,once it is hot add in the mustard seeds and allow them to pop up.

5.Once done add in  dry red chillies along with hing and saute them in the oil for few seconds.

6.Time to add in the chopped mangoes along with salt and 1/4 cup water. Mix them up , cover and cook till the mangoes are mushy.

7.Once they are mushy add in the grated jaggery .Cook till the jaggery melts completely.At this time if it sticks to the kadai add in few teaspoons of water and stir well.

8.Once jaggery is melted completely and the syrup has become completely thick add in the roasted mustard seed powder.Mix well .

9.Our AAM KA KHATTA is ready to serve .Enjoy..!!!                                           

DALMA

                      Dalma- an odia style dal loaded with veggies 
                                             

Serves-2 -3
Cuisine:Oriyan

Ingredients

Oil-2  cup
Phanch phutna-1tsp
Toor dal/arhar dal/thuvaraparippu/pigeon pea-1/3  cup
Vegetables of your choice-1 1/2  cup

I used just 3 vegetables
Raw plantain-1/2  cup
Pumpkin-1/2  cup
Brinjal/egg plant-1/2 cup
Note: can also use potato ,onion,tomato,papaya,radish ,beans etc..

To make the roasted powder
Cumin seeds-1 tsp
Dry red chilly-3
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Water as per gravy requirement

Method

1.Wash and clean the dal/lentil and keep aside

2.Chop the veggies of your choice.Keep it aside.

Ingredients

PHANCH PHUTNA: (source:from internet)

3.Now pressure cook the dal along with vegetables till they are done.Keep them aside.

4.Meanwhile we can make the roasted powder.For that take your tadka pan and dry roast cumin seeds along with dry red chillies.

Dry roasting cumin and dry red chillies

5.Once they are roasted well ,transfer them into a blender and powder them.Keep it aside.                        
6.Heat oil in a kadai,once hot add in the phanch phutna and allow them to pop up.
                                               

phanch phutna in oil

7.Add into it the cooked dal along with veggies.Mix them well.

added cooked dal along with veggies

8.Pour in the required amount of water as per your gravy consistency and requirement.(i used about 1-1 1/2 cups of water)

9.Sprinkle salt to taste and turmeric powder.

added salt and haldi

10.Bring them to a boil.Now sprinkle the dry roasted powder.

sprinkled dry roasted powder

11.Do a taste test and adjust the salt.OUR DALMA IS READY TO SERVE..ENJOY with rice..!!                                                              

INSTANT MANGO PICKLE

                                                        Mango pickle

RECIPE COURTESY :ATHIRA RAM
Ingredients

Chopped mangoes-2 cups
Oil- 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds- 1tsp
Garlic- 10 pods
Green chilly-2 - 3
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Spice powders used
Red chilly powder-1 -2 tsp
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Fenugreek powder-1/2 tsp
Asa foetida  to sprinkle

Method

1.Wash ,clean and chop the mangoes.Keep them aside.

2.Heat oil in a kadai once it is hot add in the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter.The flame should be kept at maximum.

3.Now add in the whole garlic pods,green chilly pieces & curry leaves.Lower the flame  & saute them nicely.

4.Switch of the flame and into it immediately add in all the powders and saute them nicely so as to get rid of there raw flavor.Be careful not to burn them.

5. Wait till the above mix is cooled completely.It is a must.

6.Once it is completely cooled you can in the chopped mangoes and mix them well.

                                         
Note:this is very important because if you add in the mangoes before the mixture is cooled ,mangoes will get cooked in that heat and will release moisture and there is a chance of the  pickle getting spoilt within few days.

7.Do a taste test and  adjust the spices.Pickle is ready to be served..Sterilize a jar by keeping under sun and transfer the pickle into it and keep it airtight.Enjoy..!!!                                       

FISH FENUGREEK CURRY

                         Meen uluva curry/methi machhi -Kerala style 

RECIPE COURTESY :LEKSHMI PRAKASH
Ingredients

Fish pieces-6
Tomato-1(optional)
Onion-1(optional)

 Malabar tamarind/kudampuli-2
Oil-2tsp+2 tsp
Water- 1-2 cups

For making  the Paste
Coriander powder-5-6 tsp
Chilly powder     - 4-5 tsp
Fenugreek powder-1 tsp
Shallots-14
Water-1/4 cup

Method                                                                                                                                          

1.Wash and clean the fish pieces thoroughly in water.Keep aside.Chop the onion and tomato into thin slices and keep them ready too.

 

2.If you have fenugreek powder handy then carry on with the next step .Otherwise let us make the fenugreek powder.

3.For that take a teaspoon of fenugreek in a tadka pan and roast it well.Be careful not to burn them.

4.Once they are dark brown in color switch off the flame transfer them into a mortar and powder them finely as possible using a pestle and keep it aside.

5.Now let us make the paste by grinding all the ingredients mentioned under the label 'for making the paste' to a smooth paste.

paste is ready

6.Lets us start making the curry.Heat oil in  a kadai once it is hot add in the sliced onions and tomatoes along with salt and cook them till they are soft and lightly browned.

7.Make a well in the center, add in the remaining oil into it pour the smooth paste and saute till the raw smell goes off.

8.Add in the Malabar tamarind  & water required to full fill your gravy requirements and bring it to a boil.

9.Once it starts bubbling do a taste test and adjust the spices.Now add in the fish pieces ,cover and cook till the fish pieces are done.

10.Again for a one final time, do a taste check and switch of the flame.Enjoy with steamed rice..!!!

FISH COOKED IN BANANA LEAF,FISH CURRY,FISH FRY SERVED WITH RICE AND MANGO PICKLE

ASTRAM

               Astram - an authentic dish from Kerala
                                             

     

RECIPE COURTESY :LEKSHMI PRAKASH my dearest friend
Ingredients

Taro root/chembhu/tharo jhad/mande/-1/2 cup
Purple yam/kaachil/water yam/rasa valli kilangu-1 cup
Tamarind/emli- a gooseberry size

To make the paste
Coconut grated-1/2 cup
Cumin seeds/jeera/nala jeerakam-1 tsp
Shallots/pearl onions/kunjulli-4-7

For the seasoning/tadka/phann/thalikaan
Oil(coconut oil is recommended strongly)-2 tsp
Mustard seeds/rai/sarson/soriso/kaduku/sasam-1 tsp
Turmeric powder/haldi/manjal-1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Chilly powder- 1/2 - 1 tsp(optional)

Method

1.Clean ,wash and pressure cook the veggies along with a gooseberry size tamarind.

Note:The vegetables should be cooked thoroughly.

2.Lets make the paste

3.For that take the coconut scrapings ,cumin seeds and shallots in a mixie jar and adding 1/4 cup water blend it to a not so smooth paste.Keep it aside.

4.Take a kadai add the cooked veggies along with the ground paste and bring it to a boil.Don't forget to add salt at this stage.

NOTE:Be careful while adding salt as we have already added tamarind.
If you are using curd/yogurt skip the tamarind and add curd at this stage & mix well.*Pour some water in the blender shake it well and add it into the curry to avoid the wastage.

5.Bring it to a boil.Do a taste test and adjust the salt.

NOTE:If the curry tends to be too thick or you need gravy, feel free to add water at this stage and bring it to a consistency to satisfy your requirement
                                                     or
In case  if the gravy is too watery add in little more amount of coconut +jeera+shallots paste into the curry .So that the gravy will become thick.

6.Switch off the flame.

Lets do the seasoning

7.Take the tadka/seasoning pan add a teaspoon of oil.

8.Once it is hot add in a teaspoon of mustard seeds when they pop up add in a handful of curry leaves.Saute for a second .

9.Pour this seasoning over the above made curry.Mix well.

10.Our curry is ready to serve .It can be relished along with steamed rice as well as with Indian flat bread or rotis /chapthy/phulka                                    

Astram served with steamed rice and beet talasini                                            

VEGGIE MOMOS

                                                          Veggie Momos
                                            
Serves-2-3
Ingredients

For the outer wrap
All purpose flour/maida- 1 cup(makes 8 large momos)
Salt to taste
Water required to knead the dough
Oil-1 tbsp

For Filling
Oil-1 tsp
Garlic-3/5 pods(we are garlic lovers.you can decrease the number of pods)
Onion-1/4 cup
Capsicum/bell pepper finely chopped-1/4 cup
Carrot finely chopped-1/4 cup
Cabbage finely chopped-1/2 cup

Sugar-1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Pepper powder-1 - 1/2 tsp
Soy sauce-1/2 - 1 tsp

Method

1.Lets make the filling ...

2.Take a pan add a teaspoon of oil.

3.Once it is hot add in the finely chopped garlic.Saute them for a second.

4.Add in the onions and capsicum.Saute them for few seconds.

5.Time to add the carrots,cabbage along with sugar and salt.Cook till they are half done so that the vegetables will stay crunchy.

6.Finally add in the soy sauce and pepper powder.Toss them well.Cover and cook for a minute or two.

7.Our filling is ready.

For making the outer cover...

1.Take all the dry ingredients for the outer wrap in a mixing bowl and mix them up.Now add oil and mix again.

2.Add water, little by little and knead it so as to get a stiff dough.

3.Pinch  balls of equal size and roll each ball into small circles.

Assembling process...

4.Spoon some filling in the center.Secure it by bringing the edges together in the form of pleats.

5.Pinch of the excess dough.Twist it slightly so that the pleats looks beautiful.

6.Steam for 8 minutes.Check whether the outer covering has become little transparent,as shown in the second pic and if the filling is visible ,momos are done..

7.Serve with chilly tomato sauce /schezwan sauce or dips of your choice..Enjoy..!!

tiny tot momos

VEGGIE SANDWICH TOAST

                                             Veggie sandwich toast 

veggie sandwich toast

Serves:2
Ingredients

Bread slices-6
Amul cheese spread  &Tomato ketchup to spread generously

Salad cucumber circles-12
Onion rings-3
Cherry tomato rings-12
Oregano-1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Pepper powder to sprinkle on top of veggies

Method

1.Spread Amul cheese on one slice and ketchup on another slice.

2.Now take 4 tomato and cucumber circles,1 onion ring and arrange them on one slice .

3.Sprinkle a pinch of salt ,pepper powder and oregano.

4.Toast them nicely.Do the same with rest of the slices.ENJOY..!!!

Note:you are free to add capsicum/bell peppers, mashed potato ,beet root , paneer or mushrooms as per your choice.You can also sprinkle seasonings/cheese/sauces of your choice.