Coconut Ladoo, Kobari Ladoo

Ingredients:

( Makes about 15 ladoos)

2 Cups - Grated coconut

2 Cups - Milk

1 Cup - Sugar

1/4 tsp - Powdered Cardamom ( Elachi)

1/2 tsp - Ghee

Take a deep pan, on medium heat, add ghee.

When the ghee melts, add the grated coconut and stir it well for about 1 min.

Add milk and sugar to the pan. The consistency becomes watery.

Keep stirring in between till it becomes thick. It takes about 30-40 mins to become thick.

It has to become thick enough to make balls out of it. Turn off the heat.

Leave it to chill till it reaches room-temperature. Make balls out of it by pressing gently with your hand.

Serve it or you can store it in refrigerator for future use. It stays fresh for a week in the refrigerator.

Enjoy !

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Eggplant Curry, Vanakaya Koora

Eggplant, Aubergine, Brinjal they all are the same names. Vankaya in telugu, Kathirikkai in tamil, Badanekayi in kannada, Baigan in hindi they come in different shapes and sizes. This tasty purple vegetable does wonders in the kitchen. It tastes delicious, whatever you cook with it.

The eggplant is used in cuisines from Japan to Spain. It is often stewed, as in the French ratatouille, the Italian parmigiana, the Greek moussaka, and many South Asian dishes. It may also be roasted in its skin until charred, so that the pulp can be removed and blended with other ingredients such as yogurt to make raita, or make Baigan Bhartha or Gojju. It can be sliced, battered, and deep-fried, then served with various sauces. The ever-famous Guthi-vankaya koora is so popular in Andhra, that they write telugu-film songs on it. Bagara-Baigan is another popular dish in many marriages in Hyderabad.

Here is a simple recipe of the eggplant curry :

Ingredients :

10 - Medium sized Brinjals

3 tbsp - Curry powder

2 - Green Chillies

1/2 tsp - Turmeric

Few curry leaves

1-1/2 tsp - Salt or to taste

2tbsp - Oil

For Tempering ( poppu,tadka) :

1 tsp - Mustard seeds ( avaalu, rai)

1 tsp - Channa dal ( sanaga pappu)

1 tsp - Urad dal ( mina pappu)

2 - Red chillies

Chop brinjals into desired shape. Slit green chillies into two halves.

Take a pan, on medium-high heat, add oil.

When the oil becomes hot, do the tempering in the order given above.

When the mustard seeds splutters, add green chillies and curry leaves.

Now add the brinjals. Mix well. Add turmeric now and mix once again.

Cover the pan with a lid partially. Keep stirring in between till it gets cooked.

Add salt and stir it once again. Now, add the curry powder and mix well and let it cook for 3-4 mins more. Turn off the heat.

Serve it hot. The curry tastes good with rice or with chapathi.

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Tomato pickle, Tomato pachadi

Tomato pickle, pachadi as they call it in telugu. Sweet, sour, salty and spicy, the rich taste of tomato pickle is a sure hit at our home. It tastes good with almost everything, rice, chapathi, dosa, upma to name a few.

The pickle is also made with sun-dried tomatoes, like they do it in India. I've made the stove-simmering method. The pickle tastes good either way

Ingredients:

6 - Medium sized tomatoes,
chopped into small bits, makes about 7 cups
1 small lime sized Tamarind ( to enhance the taste of tomatoes)
10 tsps - salt
1/4 cup -Red chilli powder
2 tsps - Fenugreek powder (mentulu, methi)
1/4 cup - Oil

For Tempering (poppu,tadka):

3 tbsps - Oil
1-1/2 tsp - Mustard seeds (avaalu,rai)
little asafoetida (inguva,hing)

Soak tamarind in 1/2 cup water and extract the pulp. Heat a pan on medium-high heat, add oil. Add tomatoes, salt and red chilli powder, tamarind pulp and mix well. Cover with lid. Keep stirring in between. It takes about 20-30 mins for all the tomatoes to get mushy. The juice will start splattering around.

Add fenugreek powder, and mix it well. Reduce the heat. Cover and cook again it becomes thick and semi-solid.

Do the tempering. Heat oil in a seperate pan, add mustard seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add it to the tomato pickle. Combine well.

When it cools down to room temperature, store it in an air-tight container or jar. It stays fresh for about a month. Store it in the refrigerator for extended use.

Note: You can adjust the salt and chilli level according to your taste.

Recipe source: Mom

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Aloo Rice

This is a rice dish, prepared with potatoes and yogurt base. It's a recipe passed onto me by my friend, Swathi, who is an excellent cook. I've learned and still trying to learn lot of dishes from her.

It's little time-consuming, but the end result is so tasty. It's worth all the hard work. It pays off !

Well, now without wasting anymore time in telling about it's history and blah blah, let me tell you the ingredients needed to prepare it.

Ingredients:
(serves: 2)

2 cups - Basmati Rice
1/2 cup - Green peas

For Curry :

5 -Medium sized potatoes
1- Large onion
1/2 cup - Grated coconut
1tsp - salt
3 tbsp oil + oil for deep frying

Green paste:

4-5 Green Chillies
1 inch - Ginger
1/2 cup Coriander leaves

Masala powder:

3 tbsps - Coriander seeds ( Dhaniya)
2 tsps - Shajeera
1 inch - Cinnamon stick
3 - Cardamom ( Elachi)
4 - Cloves

For Yogurt base :

1 cup - Yogurt
2 tbsp - lemon juice
1-1/2 tsp - salt

Wash and soak basmati rice with lot of water for about 20mins. Now add green peas and cook the rice and peas together till its 3/4th done. Don't cook it completely. Drain out the excess water through colander. Keep it aside.

Peel the skin of the potatoes, cut them into big bite size chunks and boil them with water, again, till 3/4 done. Don't overcook it , it loses it's shape. Drain the water and deep fry the potatoes in oil till medium-brown.

Grind together all the ingredients for the green paste into a smooth paste. Fry all the ingredients under masala powder and grind them too as a powder.

Slice onion into thin long pieces. Now , take a pan and add oil, add onions. Fry them, on medium-high heat till they turn transparent. Add green paste, stir it and add grated coconut, and cook well. Add deep-fried potatoes and masala powder. Stir well, and cook it for about 5 mins. Add salt and mix well and cook for 1 more minute.

Now, for the yogurt base. Add salt and lemon juice to the yogurt and mix well.

Now the Grand Finale ! Take a large, deep non-stick pan, like a pressure cooker. On low-medium heat, add a tbsp of oil and arrange rice,curry and yogurt base in layers. Divide and arrange in three layers. First layer has to be rice, second layer curry and third layer yogurt base on top. Cover and cook for about 10min on low- medium heat. You get a nice aroma. Gently mix the dish from top to bottom.

Serve hot with raita. Enjoy!

Recipe source: My friend Swathi Diwakar.

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Poha, Atukulu upma

Beaten rice is a rice which is dehusked and beaten to make small flat flakes.This type of rice absorbs even cold water and gets swollen.This type of rice is used in variety of dishes in Udupi cuisine. It is called Poha in Hindi, Atukulu in Telugu, Aval in Malayalam and Tamil, Avalakki in Kannada, and 'pohe' in Marathi. There two varieties of beaten rice thin and fat. They are so called because of their thickness.

Beaten rice is also a convenience food made from rice pressed into flakes. It is used to make variety of snacks, payasam(porridge).

Ingredients:
(Serves: 2)
Difficulty : Easy
Time to prepare : About 20 mins

2 cups - Thick Pova(Atukulu,Beaten rice
1 lemon sized - Tamarind (chinthapandu)
(Adjust the amount of tamarind according to
sourness and taste, lemon sizes vary ;) )
3-4 -Green Chillies
1/4 cup - Roasted peanuts
1/4 cup - Grated coconut
1/4 tsp - Turmeric
2 tsps - salt or to taste
3 tbsp - oil

For tempering(poppu,tadka):

1 tsp -Mustard seeds (Avaalu,rai)
1 tsp - Channa dal (sanaga pappu)
1 tsp - Urad dal (mina pappu)
2 - Red chillies
pinch of Asafoetida (inguva,hing)
Few curry leaves

Soak tamarind in about 1/2 cup warm water. Wash poha briefly with water, else it will become a mush, and drain out all the water. Squish and squeeze out the pulp of the tamarind and take out the tamarind skin. Pour the squeezed pulp into the poha, add turmeric and mix well. Just make sure that you add less water into poha. The lesser the water, the less mushy it gets.

Heat the oil in a pan. Do the tempering in the order given above. When the mustard seeds splutters and the dals become golden brown, add the roasted peanuts and fry a bit. The reason I've asked to use roasted peanuts is that it adds crunchiness to the upma. Add the poha, which has been soaking in tamarind juice to the pan. Stir well for about 5 mins. Add grated coconut now and stir once again for about a minute.

Serve hot. Vadams ( vadiyaalu, Wafers ) or majiga-mirapakayalu ( Green jalapeno chillies soaked in yogurt base, sun-dried and deep fried ) go well with this dish.

Recipe Source : Mom

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Bell pepper, Capsicum curry

Ingredients :

4 - Large Green Bell peppers (capsicum) -chopped
1 tsp - Cumin seeds (Jeera, Jeelakara)
2 tbsp - Putnala podi (Gun Powder)
2 tbsp - oil
2tsp - salt or to taste

In a pan, heat oil. Add cumin seeds, when they splutter, add chopped bell peppers and fry them for a while. Add salt. Cook till the bell peppers get soft, stiring occasionaly. Add putnala podi and stir it once again and leave it for about a min.

Serve it with rice or roti.





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Puttnala podi, Gun Powder

Puttnala podi is the easiest, handy dandy powder I make, which I use for making curries. It is also famously known as 'Gun Powder'. I really don't know why they call it like that. When I was a kid, I used to wonder if they ever used for making guns or something. Silly me ! Well, whatever, u may call it, this powder is very easy to make and adds a great flavor to the curries.

It is made of dahlia - roasted black chickpeas, which is often referred in India as 'kala channa'. chick peas are first washed, soaked and then roasted in big pots, and then spilt into half. It is widely used in making chutneys, and served as snacks in different forms. I remember eating along with small bits of fresh coconut and jaggery mixed together, it was a tasty snack.

Ingredients :

For 1 Cup - dhalia, roasted chickpeas
4 - Red Chillies
1 tsp - Cumin seeds
2 cloves - Garlic ( optional )
3/4 tsp salt or to taste



No roasting business ! Just grind all the above ingredients without adding any water. And store them in an airtight container. It will last for weeks.

It tastes good as is with rice, drizzled with ghee, or as I like it, with avvakai ( Mango pickle ), mix avvakai, puttnala podi, and rice. Try it you'll love it.




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Happy Sankranti

Wishing you all a Happy Makar Sankranti !

"Makara Sankranti" -- which is celebrated when the Sun begins the northward journey, marking the beginning of the "uttaraayaNa puNyakaalam". Sun enters the sign of "Makara", (Capricorn) from Cancer at this time.

Makar Sankranti is one of the most auspicious day for the Hindus, and is celebrated in almost all parts of the country in myriad cultural forms, with great devotion, fervor & gaiety. Lakhs of people take a dip in places like Ganga Sagar & Prayag and pray to Lord Sun. It is celebrated with pomp in southern parts of the country as Pongal, and in Punjab is celebrated as Lohri & Maghi. Gujarati's not only look reverentially up to the sun, but also offer thousands of their colorful oblations in the form of beautiful kites all over the skyline.

In Andhra Pradesh, it is celebrated as a three-day harvest festival Pongal. It is a big event for the people of Andhra Pradesh. The whole event lasts for four days, the first day Bhogi, the second day Sankranti, the third day Kanuma and the fourth day, Mukkanuma.

At home, we make traditionally make ‘Pongal’, which takes its name from the surging of rice boiled in a brass metal pot of milk tied with turmeric leaves. Rice and pulses cooked together in ghee and milk is offered to the family deity after the ritual worship. In essence in the South this Sankrant is a ‘Puja’ (worship) for the Sun God.

New Year 2008

Wishing you all a Joyous and Prosperous New Year

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Bise Bele Huli Anna with Pearl Onions

Bise Bela Huli Anna is a Karnataka speciality and it's my mom's sunday favorite. It is a rice dish cooked along with Toor dal and lots of vegetables. 'Bise' means hot, 'Bele' means ' toor dal, 'huli' means tamarind and 'anna' is rice.

Though there are many similarities between the food of Karnataka and its southern neighbors, the typical Mysore cuisine is well known for its own distinctive textural forms and flavor-the dishes complementing and balancing each other. As one goes north within the state, the food begins to resemble that of Maharashtra. The cuisine of coastal Karnataka has similarities with the food of Kerala. There is, in fact, a large amount of correspondence in the food of the four southern states of Karnataka. Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. But there are subtle distinctions and recognizable differences in flavor. The Karnatka food on the whole is less hot than that of Andhra, and the Kannada housewife uses more of lentils and coconuts than her Tamil sister.

My weekend preparation ( continuing the tradition of my mom ) is Bise Bele Huli anna with the pearl onions I bought few days back.

My entry of a satisfying meal for Jihva : Onions at Radhi's Kitchen

Ingredients:

(serves 2)

1 cup - Rice
1 cup - Toor dal ( Kandhi papu)
10-12 - Pearl onions or 1 medium sized onion
2 cups - cut vegetables ( carrots, beans, cauliflower, brinjal etc.)
1 - Drumstick ( fresh or frozen )
Lemon size - Tamarind
2 cups - Water
1 tsp - Turmeric
Few Curry leaves
2 tsps - ghee (optional )
1- 1 1/2 tsp - Salt or to taste

For Tempering ( poppu/tadka)

1 tsp Mustard seeds (avalu/rai)
1/2 tsp Channa dal ( sanaga pappu)
2 tsps roasted peanuts (optional)
2 tbsp - oil

For Masala Paste

2 tsps Coriander seeds ( dhania)
2 tsps Channa dal ( sanaga pappu)
1 tsp black pepper ( miriyalu, kali mirch)
1 tsp fenugreek seeds ( menthulu, Methi)
1 inch cinnamon stick ( Dal chinni )
2-3 cardamom ( Elachi)
2-3 Cloves ( lavagam, laung)
4 Red Chillies
1/4 cup fresh coconut
1 tsp oil

Cook rice and dal together with enough water.

For masala paste, fry everything , except coconut in oil until u smell the aroma of the spices. Grind everything together with coconut into a smooth paste.

Peel and cut pearl onions in to half or if you are using onions cut them into thin strips. Soak tamarind in water. Do the tempering. After the Mustard seeds splutters, add curry leaves, and onions. Fry them a bit.

Now add the vegetables, drumstick pieces and let them cook for a while. Now squeeze the tamarind in the water and add that juice into the vegetables. Add turmeric and salt. Let it boil till the raw smell of tamarind goes away. Now, add the masala paste and let it boil little more, for about 2-3 mins.

Add the cooked rice and dal into it and stir it very well breaking any lumps if any. If the consistency is too thick add little water into it. The consistency has to be semi-solid. You can add 2 tsps of ghee . Combine well.

Adjust the level of spiciness according to your taste buds. Also, the sourness of tamarind may vary from mine, so adjust that too accordingly. You can also try out with different vegetables of your choice.

Serve it hot with papad. You can top it with more ghee like a traditional hostess in Karnataka would do as a signal to begin eating ;)

Another speciality of Karnataka is Vangibaath which is made with Brinjals ( Eggplants) which I'll posting very soon.

Recipe source : Mom.

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Banana Breakfast Shake

Get your day off a healthy start with this quick, yet nutritious Banana shake.

You need :

(serves 2)

2 ripe bananas

3/4 cup yogurt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Put the bananas, yogurt, skim milk and vanilla extract into a food processor or blender and process it until smooth. If you like it more thinner, add little more milk and process it.

Serve it immediately.

Variation as suggested by my friend, Indira, is to add a 2 tsp of maple syrup instead of yogurt and vanilla extract. It tastes good but is little thinner in consistency.

Try them both :)

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Bananas

Bananas is native to the south-east Asia and Australia, India being the largest trader of all. Today, they are cultivated throughout the tropics.

Bananas, packed with energy and extremely nutritious, are rich source of Vitamin B6 , niacin, riboflavin, potassium and contains Vitamins A and C.

"Banana" usually refers to soft, sweet "dessert" bananas that are usually eaten raw. The bananas from a group of cultivars with firmer, starchier fruit are called plaintains, and are generally used in cooking rather than eaten raw. Bananas may also be dried and eaten as a snack food.

In addition to the fruit, the flower of the banana plant is used in South east Asian, Bengali and kerala cuisine as soups and curries.

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Pesarattu

Pesarattu - Andhra's favorite delicacy. 'Pesara' means Moong in Telugu, 'attu' means dosa. It's a very nutritious dosa. You need -

Ingredients :

1 cup - Green Moong beans ( whole or split )

1/4 cup - Rice

4-5 Green Chillies

About 1 inch Ginger (cut to bite size pieces)

1-1/2 tsp salt or to taste

Few tsps oil

For Garnish :

1 Onion(finely chopped)

2 Green Chillies (also, finely chopped)

Soak moong beans and rice overnight or for 8 hrs. Later drain all the water and grind it along with green chillies and ginger. Make it into a smooth paste. Add salt. This batter doesn't need fermenting. You can use it immeditely or store it in the refrigerator for later use.

On medium heat, pour one ladle of batter into the center of the tava or pan and spread it around evenly making a circle. Leave it for about 2mins and sprinkle little oil on top and the edges of the circle.

Gently lift it and reverse it and leave it for a minute. Turn it back and sprinkle some finely chopped onions on it, garnish with chopped green chillies if you extra spicy although garnishing with onions and chillies and fold it. Remove it from the pan.

For Variation, to serve it like an authentic Andhra food, you can also make sooji/rava upma, and place it in the pesarattu before folding it.

Either way, the pesarattu tastes so good, you can't stop eating more.

Serve pesarratu with ginger chutney or with coconut chutney. Instead, I've made coriander-coconut chutney for mine.

Recipe source: Mom.
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Moong Beans, Moong dal

Moong beans also called Green gram is a pulse/legume which is mainly cultivated in India, Indonesia, Bangladesh and other south-east asian countries. In China, they are used for medicinal purposes such as to reduce fever, headache and general anxiety.

Pulses have generally 20 to 25% protein by weight, which is double the protein content of wheat and three times that of rice. For this reason, pulses are sometimes called "poor man’s meat". While pulses are generally high in protein, and the digestibility of that protein is also high. Moong beans also contain good amounts of calcium and Vitamin C. Its popularity is not just from its medicinal and nutritional properties, but also from its adaptability to drought conditions and inferior soils. Cooking does not affect the protein content of this pulse.

It is consumed either whole with or without skins or as bean sprouts. With their skins removed, they are light yellow in color. They are widely used in India, as Whole, they are sprouted, and they are great evening snacks. In it's split form, they are used to make khichdi, various types of dal, payasam ( porridge), and other sweets. In powder form, they are used to make fried snacks.

Nutritional Facts

(per 100 grams or 3.52 oz)

Energy : 30 calories

Protein : 3 grams

Carbohydrate : 6 grams

Dietary Fiber : 2 grams

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Karam Podi

Ingredients :

1/2 cup - Channa dal (sanaga pappu)

2 tsp - Urad dal ( Mina pappu)

About 20-25 Red chillies

2 tbsp - White Sesame seeds (Thella Nuvulu)

1tsp of Oil

pinch of Asafoetida (Inguva)

Salt to taste.

Fry channa dal, urad dal and red chillies separately one after the other with a drop of oil each time. Grind them coarsely. Now fry sesame seeds separately and grind it along with everything else. Add salt and asafoetida too while grinding. The powder should be course in texture.
Enjoy it with Idlis and Dosas.

Recipe source : Mom. Karam podi ( Dry Spicy powder )
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