Cooking Station

Aloo Tikki Chat

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:26:00 +0000

Ingr edients:

For Aloo Tikki:

Potatoes : 3
Cornflour: 2 tbsp
Salt

Cook potatoes, deskin and grate them. Add salt and two tablespoon of cornflour and knead. Divide them into equal portions and make ball from each portion. Flatten the ball to get a disch shaped 1" thick. Shallow fry them on a pan. Tikkis are ready for chat.

For Pudina/Dhania (Mint/Coriander) /Green Chutney :

Roughly chopped fresh coriander leaves : 1 cup
Roughly chopped fresh mint: 1/2 cup
Green chillies: 2-3, stemmed and chopped
Black Salt-1/2 tsp
Sugar: 1/2 tsp
Freshly squeezed lemon juice: 1tsp

1. Take coriander leaves and mint in a blender and add 1/4 cup ( 50ml) of water and blend to a smooth paste
2. Add the black salt and sugar and blend again.
3. Transfer to a bowl and stir lemon juice.

For Dates and Tamarind chutney

Deseeded Dates : 15-20
Tamarind Pulp: 350 ml (soak tamarind in water and squeeze the juice)
Jaggery : 200gms (grated or powdered)

Roast and Powder: 2tsp cumin seeds and 1/4 tsp fennel seeds

Red Chilli Powder : 2 tsp
Ginger Powder: 1tsp
Black Salt: 1tsp
Table Salt: 1tsp

1. Tear/Roughly chop dates. In a non stick pan, combine dates, tamarind pulp and jaggery. Bring to boil. Add all powders and boil over medium heat, continue to cook for 6 mins.
2. Let it cool to room temperature. Preserve in a jar.

Additional Ingredients:
Cooked Green Peas : 1 cup
Finely chopped onions: 1/2 cup
Finely chopped tomatoes: 1/2 cup
Finely chopped coriander: 1/4 cup
Aloo Bhujia/Sev: 1 cup
Chat Masala: 1tsp

To Assemble:
Place Aloo Tikki in a plate. Spread a tsp of green chutney and tamarind chuteny. Top it with few peas, Add onions, tomato and coriander. Drizzle little chat masala and Sev. Serve.

Enjoy!!

Granola Bars

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 07:59:00 +0000

I tried these from Prathibha's "The Chef and her Kitchen" They were absolutely yummy and we were like "yeh dil maange more" Thanks Prathibha. I will be making this more often.

A step by step procedure to make granola bars with measurements can be found at her site here: Granola Bars

Rewriting her recipe here for my reference:

Ingredients:

(Yields around 18 big bars)

2 cups quick cooking Oats

1/2 cup cornflakes cereal

1 cup honey

1 tsp cinnamon powder

3 tbsp peanut butter

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 tbsp water

dry fruits and nuts:(This comes around 1-1/4 cup)

12-15 almonds,finely chopped

12-15 walnuts,finely chopped (did not use)

10-12 pistachios,finely chopped

2-3 tbsp raisins

2-3 tbsp dried cranberries

5-6 seedless Arab dates,finely chopped

3-4 dried figs/anjeer,finely chopped

1 tbsp watermelon seeds(did not use)

2 tbsp flax seeds (did not use)

1 tsp sesame seeds (did not use)

Method:

1.Dry roast oats and cornflakes separately until a nice aroma comes and oats starts slightly browning up,take care not to burn them while frying.Keep them aside.
2.Now dry roast flax seeds until they pop and followed by sesame seeds and add them to the oats mixture.
3.Add almonds,walnuts and pistachios to the pan and roast them until they are slight crisp and then add watermelon seeds,chopped dates,figs,raisins,cranberries and fry them for a minute and add them to the oats mixture.
4.Mix everything well and keep the vessel aside.
5. Heat the same pan and add butter and let it melt.Now add brown sugar to it and let ir caramelize a bit and bubbles form.
6.Add water,honey,peanut butter and cinnamon powder and heat the mixture until it starts bubbling up.
7.Add vanilla essence and give a quick stir.
8.Now add the roasted oats, cornflakes,nuts and dry fruit mixture and mix well until the honey mixture is coated uniformly all over the oats cornflakes mixture.Let it cook for 2 mins and keep stirring it in between.
9.Divide the mixture into two portions and transfer the mixture on to a baking sheet or a butter paper and spread it using a spoon or a wooden ladle to 1/2 inch thickness.
10.Straighten the edges with the help of a spatula into a square or rectangle and let it cool a bit.Smoother the top portion using hands or a butter paper and gently make it uniform.

This is how it looked when we transferred it to a plate for cutting into squares. I did not have butter paper, so just poured it into a big plate.

11.Allow them to cool for 5-10 mins and then cut them into bars.If it does not hold shape just press the sides with hands to form the clean edges.
12.Arrange them on a aluminum foil on a baking tray and bake in preheated oven @ 160 degrees for 4-5 mins.This step is completely optional and you can avoid it if you do not have oven.I do this way which helps in holding its shape and can be stored for longer.Let them cool completely for 30 mins.
13Wrap them in aluminum foil and store them in airtight container.

We enjoyed every bite of these chewy granola bars.

Pumpkin, Chickpeas and Lemon Grass soup ~

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 05:02:00 +0000

Ingredients :

Pumpkin : 1 wedge, cut into 1" pieces

Cooked Kabul Chana(Chickpeas): 3 tbsp

Onion: 1/2 diced

Garlic: 1/2 minced

Lemon grass pith : 1/2 inch (pound it with the back of knife)

salt and pepper for seasoning

Olive oil for sautee

Fry onions and garlic in olive oil till the raw smell dissappears. Add pumpkin pieces and fry for 2-3 mins. Add cooked chana dal, lemon grass pith and 2 cups of water. Bring to boil. When pumpkin pieces are soft, switch off the stove. Take out lemon grass pith. Remaining ingredients should be blend to smooth paste. You can dilute it if needed with little more water. Add salt and pepper. Warm the soup before you drink. Enjoy it with garlic bread or any other accompaniment.

Baby Corn and Mushroom Curry

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 02:59:00 +0000

This is a tasty combination. Mushroom is a rich source of B Vitamins. You can read more about the goodness of mushrooms here : Fresh Mushrooms

Ingredients:

Mushroom : 12 numbers (I used button mushrooms)

Baby Corn: 8 (chopped into small pieces)

Tomatoes: 2 large (chopped into small pieces)

Onion: 1 large (chopped into small pieces)

Garlic: 1 clove (chopped into small pieces)

Tomato sauce : 1/2 tbsp

Kitchen King, Turmeric, coriander powder, jeera powder, Red Chilli Powder, jeera, hing

Oil: Olive Oil

Method:

In a separate bowl cook mushrooms with little water and keep it aside. Cut baby corn into half or quarter them if they are long.

Heat oil in a pan, add chopped onion followed by ginger garlic paste. When the raw smell of ginger garlic paste has subsided add in tomato and stir. Let tomatoes becomes soft and you can now switch off the stove. Blend this mixture and keep aside. Heat oil in the same pan, add jeera, hing, turmeric mix well give a sec for hing to be fragrant. Add in coriander powder, jeera powder, redchilli powder, Kitchen King and salt. Throw in baby corn pieces and sautee till it is little crisp. Make sure you cook this on low flame or else the powders will burn. Pour in tomato paste you have blended, add 1/2 tbsp tomato sauce and mix well. When the mixture starts to give away oil from the sides, add cooked mushroom pieces and stirr well and cook for 5 more mins before you switch off. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis/chapathis or phulkas.

Palak Paneer

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 04:21:00 +0000

This time palak paneer had come out very well, thanks to Pratibha of The Chef and Her Kitchen Blog. Color and taste were awesome.

Requoting the recipe from her blog for this blog :

Ingredients:

250 gms paneer,cubed

1 regular fresh corn instead I used Paneer cubes. Paneer Cubes were kept in warm water to keep them soft and moist.

1 big bunch spinach

1 big onion,diced

1 medium onion,finely chopped

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

4-5 green chillies

2 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp roasted cumin powder

1 tsp garam masala

a pinch of sugar

1/2 tsp kasuri methi(optional)

1/2 tsp amchur powder

2 tbsp fresh cream(or 1/4 cup milk)

salt to taste

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp oil

Method:

Boil water in a big pot and add cleaned spinach leaves and whole green chillies and blanch for a minute.Add a pinch of sugar while blanching it in order to retain the green color of spinach.Strain the spinach(save the water to dilute the gravy later) and quickly run the blanched spinach under running water and squeeze out extra water.You can even saute the spinach but you should be really quick in doing it otherwise you will loose the beautiful green color of spinach.

In that hot water(in which we blanched the spinach)soak the paneer cubes until its uasge.This way the paneer will be soft.

" I Skipped this Step as I used Paneer.
Grill the corn on the flame until light black spots appear all over the corn.Quickly rub it with lemon wedge dozed with salt all over the corn and let it marinate for some time,aproximately 10 mins.Take a knife and cut the corn to get the corn kernels. "

Grind diced onion with ginger and garlic paste and keep it aside.

Grind the spinach and green chillies to a fine paste.Open the mixer and keep it,otherwise it will change the color.

Heat oil and butter in a big kadai and crackle cumin seeds,add finely chopped onions and fry until translucent and add ground onion mixture and fry well.

Add coriander powder,cumin powder,amchur powder,slightly crushed kasuri methi and mix well.

Add spinach puree and cook over medium flame.Add salt,grilled corn kernels,paneer cubes(slightly squeeze them after removing from hot water) and garam masala and mix well.If required add the strained water to dilute the gravy to get the required consistency and ook for 2-3 minutes.Do not cover the kadai while you are cooking,otherwise you will loose the green color of spinach.

Add cream(or milk) and mix well and cook for a couple of minutes and remove it from stove.Add lemon juice and give a quick stir.

Serve it hot with roti/kulcha/naan/jeera rice.

And Enjoy!!!

Baby Corn and Paneer

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 13:00:00 +0000

We absolutely loved this curry with chapathi. Try it if you like...

You need :
Baby Corn : 10 numbers (soak in hot water)
Paneer: 100g cubed (soak in hot water)

Tomato: 2 medium sized, washed and chopped into small pieces
Onion: 1, chopped into small pieces
Ginger garlic paste: 1tbsp
Kasuri Methi: 1/4 tsp
Tomato sauce: 1tbsp
salt and sugar to taste
Almonds: 10 (soak in hot water)

Other Masala:
Coriander Powder: 3/4 tbsp
Redchilli Powder: 1tbsp
Kitchen King Masala: 1tsp
Jeera : 1tsp

Oil

Method:
1.Heat oil in a wok and add jeera, gg(ginger garlic paste) and fry till the raw smell dissappers
2. Add kasuri methi, onions and sautee till onions turn pale and transcluscent
3. Add tomatoes and fry till they are mushy. Add in salt, sugar and tomato sauce with 1/4 cup water.
4. Blend this mixture along with 10 almonds to a smooth paste.
5. Take 1 tbsp oil and add mustard, jeera and hing. When mustard stops cracking and jeera is red, add the masalas (coriander powder, chilli and Kitchen King) followed by a pinch of turmeric. Add corn and fry for a 1 min. Pour in tomato paste with almonds and mix. Throw in paneer pieces. Bring it to boil on medium heat. Check salt and add if required. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 07:50:00 +0000

Got this recipe from Monsoon spice. H.D.Bhindi was delicious. Thank you Sia and Chatkhor.

( Serves 2 people)

Ingredients and Procedure :

Bhindi : 12 no's (Wash, wipe and cut into 1" pieces)

Cut Bhindi and fry in little oil. Keep it aside.

Make paste of the following:

Almonds/Cashewnuts : 10 (Soaked in milk/water for 1hr)

Fresh Coconut : 1tbsp

Dry Masala:
Kasoori Methi : 1 big pinch
Kitchen King Masala : 1& 1/4 tsp (Garam masala can also be used)
Red chilli Powder : 1 tsp

Amchoor Powder : 1inch

Coriander Powder : 1/2 tsp

Turmeric : 1 big pinch

Other Ingredients :

Onion : 1 big cut into small pieces

Tomato : 1 big cut into small pieces

Ginger Garlic Paste : 1 tsp (if u don't like GG paste like us, grate ginger and garlic and put water into it. Mash it to releaUs into water. Use this water to have a mild flavor of GG)

Yogurt/Curds : 3tbsp

Tampering Ingredients

Oil, Hing, Jeera and curry leaf

Heat Oil in pan. Add hing and jeera. When jeera is red add Onions n curry leaf and sautee. Sautee till onions are transcluscent. Add ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell dissappears.
Add all ingredients listed in 'dry masala' and mix well. Reduce the flame or you may burn the masalas.
Add in tomatoes and mix. When tomatoes start releasing the pulp add almond coconut paste. Mix well and stirr for a minute.
Pour in curds and mix well. Keep stirring for a minute or two.
Add salt to taste and a pinch of sugar and stir well. Depending on the thickness of the gravy required you can add 1/2 to 1 cup water and bring to boil on a low heat. Check salt and adjust if required. Add in fried bhindi pieces and mix well. Boil for a minute before you transfer to serving dish.
Enjoy with your choice of flat bread.

Dosa Pan giving trouble? -Keep it Ready- Kitchen Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Cooking Station) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 03:28:00 +0000

Hi there,

It's been long long time since I updated this blog. I am back with another wonderful kitchen tip. If you are a dosa fan and often use a single pan to make dosa and chapathi you might have experianced difficulties making dosa. Here is a tip!

Make dosa tava hot. Cut a potato/Onion into half. Rub potato on the hot pan. Now sprinkle some oil on it and rub again. Start making dosas. Voila ! it works

Simple Dal - recipe for bachelors :D

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:13:00 +0000

A simple dal recipe from my husband for all bachelors and forced bachelors :D

you need ;

Toordal or Moongdal
Pressure cook dal with a pinch of turmeric and water till it is soft.

Seasoning : Oil, jeera and mustrad seeds, curry leaves,green chillies slit lengthwise, onions chopped length wise, tomatoes chopped roughly, coriander leaves chopped roughly.

Heat oil and pop mustard and add jeera. Whey jeera turns little brown add curry leaves, green chillies and chopped onions. Sautee them. Let onions turn transcluscent then add tomatoes. When tomatoes become mushy add salt, cooked dal with water and salt. Bring them to boil. Let it boil for next 2-3 mins. Switch off the stove and add coriander leaves and cover the pan with a plate. Let it settle down before you devor it with hot rice.

Result : He says it is awesome!!

Dhal filled paranthas

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:49:00 +0000

A very tasty and filling parathas for your lunch box.

Ingredients :
For Prathas :
Whole Wheat flour : 2 cups
Salt: 1/4 tsp
Water sufficient to make a tight dough. Mix the above ingredients to make stiff dough.

For filling :
Chanadal/deskinned, split chickpeas- 1/2 cup (1 cup=100ml of water)
Garlic: 1 piece( not the whole round of garlic just 1 pod)
Redchillies : 1 or 2
Cumin/Jeera : 1/2 tsp
salt
oil : 1/2 tsp

Soak chanadal for 3 hrs and pressure cook to make it soft. Drain water and keep dhal aside till it cools down.
Take cooked dhal, garlic, chillies, cumin and salt in a blender and blend to make coarse paste. Do not use water.
Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan and add the ground coarse paste of dhal and fry till water in the mixture dries away. Switch off the stove and make small balls of this mixture.

Take a pingpong sized whole wheat flour dough and roll into a circle of 5 cm diameter. Place the filling in the center and cover/lock the edges to the flour to make a ball again with stuffing in the center. Press down the ball and dip in little dry wheat flour and roll into 6 -8 cm diameter circle. Fry paratha on a hot girdle using oil.
Serve hot with any accompaniment of your choice.

Potato Vepudi/Stir fried Potato

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:33:00 +0000

Probably this is one simple dish that everyone loves to eat. It goes well with chapathi and rice.

Ingredients: (sufficient for 2 people)

Potato : 3 numbers
Oil : 2-3 tbsp
Turmeric : 1 pinch
Mustard : 1/4 tsp

To make powder:
Cumin: 1tsp
Redchilli Powder: 1tsp
Garlic: 1 (optional, I have used in the recipe)
Dry grated coconut: 1 tbsp(optional, I have used in the recipe)
salt

1. Make coarse powder of the ingredients mentioned under that category.Keep it aside.
2. Peel and chop potatoes into small cubes. Soak them in water to prevent discoloration of potatoes. Before adding it to hot oil drain water and then add potatoes.
3. Heat oil in a wide pan. Add mustard and wait till it stops popping. Add turmeric.
4. Add chopped potatoes and fry it in oil till they turn soft and crisp.
5. Add powdered chilli cumin powder and mix. Stir and fry for next 2 mins till the powder is well mixed and fried.
6. Remove and serve hot with chapathi or rice.

Tondekayi Palya/Ivygourd

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Fri, 22 May 2009 03:48:00 +0000

Ivygourd or Tondekayi tastes good in sambar, stirfried veggie, stuffed and also in yogurt.

You need the following to make this vegetable :

Tondekayi/Ivygourd : 20 (washed and cut into desired shape)
Fresh wet coconut : 2 tbsp (grated)
Green Chillies OR Red Chillies : 3 (adjust acc to your taste)
Cumin : 5-10 seeds
salt
Oil -1 tsp
mustard : few seeds
urad dal : few seeds (split deskinned urad dal)
curry leaves- 2-3
coriander leaves : 1 tbsp (chopped)

Microwave ivygourd with little salt and water till they soft. Pressure cook or cooking it over stove top can also be done if you don't wish to microwave.
Coarse grind coconut, chilli (roast dry red chilli if you are using it), cumin and salt.
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard and let it pop. Add urad dal and saute till it turns red.
Add coarse paste of coconut mixture and sautee for 30 sec, add cooked and drained Ivygourd pieces.
Stir to mix the contents. When the vegetable mixture is warm, remove the pan from stove and garnish it with coriander.
Serve hot as a side dish with rice and dal or with sambar. Goes well with curd rice :)

Chapathi Roll for quick lunch

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:55:00 +0000

You need the following :

Chapathi : few freshly made

for filling :
Carrot : 1 grated
Onion : 1 chopped into fine pieces
Tomato : 1, pulp removed and chopped into fine pieces.
pepper powder : 1/4 tsp
green chillies : 1/2 chopped into circles
Olive oil : 1 tsp
salt

Heat olive oil and add chopped green chillies and onion and saute till they change color. Add grated carrots and saute till they are done. Now, add chopped tomato and saute till the skin of tomato wilts. Sprinkle little pepper powder and salt and remove from stove. You can garnish with coriander.
Make chapathis, spread the above veggie over it and roll it. You can pack it for your lunch or have it for your breakfast.
This veggie also serves as a good spread over your bread.

Stuffed Jalepenos

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Sun, 03 May 2009 04:36:00 +0000

You need the following to make :

Jalepeno Peppers/Long Mirchis : 8
Shredded wet coconut : 1/2 cup
Jeera/Cumin : 1tsp
Roasted Chickpeas : 1 tsp
Green Chillies : 4
Coriander leaves : 1tbsp (chopped)
Salt

Dry grind coconut, jeera, chickpeas with chillies, coriander leaves and salt.
Slit peppers lengthwise and remove seeds from it.
stuff the ground mixture into slit chillies .

Tampering :

Oil : 1/2 tbsp
curry leaves : few
hing : 1 pinch

Heat oil and add hing and curryleaves. Arrange stuffed chillies in the pan and toast them. Reverse them when they start browning at the bottom. When the other side also browns switch off the stove and serve hot with rice.

Spicy Baby Potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:06:00 +0000

After I saw this at Bharathy's place I got tempted and thought of making it. Well, when I start making some dish I always end up adding something extra to suit our pallet. It happened without fail this time also and it was perfect! after I finished the potatoes with coarse peanut powder and I deleted away garlic from the original recipe.

You need the following to make spicy baby potatoes :
Baby potatoes : 250g
Oil : 1tbsp
Mustard : 1/8 tsp
Hing/asafoetida : a pinch
Turmeric : a pinch
Onion : 1 chopped into fine pieces

Sambar powder/saarina pudi : 1 tsp
Curry leaves from 1 line
Water : 5 tbsp
Salt
Coarse Peanut Powder : 2 tbsp
Coriander : 2 tbsp, chopped

1.Wash and pressure cook baby potatoes with little salt. De skin them and refrigerate for 2 hrs.This makes them little firm.
2.Heat oil, pop mustard seeds, add hing, turmeric and curry leaves.
3.Onions go in next. Sautee till onions change color. Add in sambar powder, baby potatoes and give a good stirr. You can sprinkle little water at this stage as potatoes stick to the pan. Add little salt. Cover and cook till flavors get infused into potatoes.
4.Finally add peanut powder and mix. Open and cook for next 2-4 mins.
5.Switch off the stove and remove potatoes to a serving dish.Garnish with coriander leaves.
6. Serve hot with rice and rasam or they are good on their own :D

Bread Halwa from Srikar's Kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:20:00 +0000

I saw this on Sri's blog and decided to make it. It was indeed a delicious treat for us. Thanks Sri for sharing your recipe.

Ingredients :

Bread : 10 slices (chopped into 1" pieces)
Sugar : 1cup
Milk: 200ml
Saffron strands : few (soaked in 25 ml warm milk)
Ghee : 3 tbsp
Chopped Nuts : 4 tbsp

1. Fried bread pieces in 2 tbsp of ghee and remove them from pan. Fry nuts in the same pan with remaining 1 tbsp of ghee and keep nuts aside.
2.Take fried bread pieces, milk and bring to boil. Let bread pieces cook in milk.
3.When the mixture thickens, add sugar, saffron strands with milk and bring to boil again.
4.Let the mixture thicken, switch off the stove and garnish with fried nuts and serve.

Yummy bread halwa is ready to be devoured. :D

Storing Coriander Leaves

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 12:35:00 +0000

Few of you had left comment on my earlier post about storing coriander leaves. Here is how I store them:

Wipe coriander leaves with a dry kitchen towel. Roll them in news paper and put it in airtight box. Like this it stays for a week in your refrigerator.

Southekayi Koddel

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 14:25:00 +0000

I got this recipe from Sushma's blog. I prepare this atleast once in fortnight. It is now in our 'fav' list. You have to just visit Sushma for the yummy recipe. She has used Winter melon and I substituted it for Cucumber!.

You need the following to make Koddel :

1 big Old Cucumber (Peel and Chop, deseed the cucumber)
1/2 coconut grated (about1.5 cups fresh/frozen)
3-4 red chillies
1 tsp jeerige/cumin
2.5 tsp dhania/coriander seeds
1/4th tsp methi seeds/fenugreek seeds
1 tbsp thick tamarind extract
jaggery (1 medium grape size)
salt according to taste

Seasoning:
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
6 curry leaves
a pinch of asafoetida/hing
coriander leaves (for garneshing)

Method :
1.Season the vegetable in a vessel you intend to make sambar. Add chopped cucumber pieces, 1 cup of water and cook the cucumber.
2.Meanwhile roast cumin, coriander, fenugreek, redchillies separately on a hot pan. Let them cool
3.Grind the cumin, coriander,fenugreek, redchillies with fresh grated coconut to a smooth paste.
4.Add this to cooked cucumber, add little more water if required, salt, tamarind juice, and jaggery.
5.Bring to boil. Taste the Koddel before you switch off the stove.

Southekayi Koddel is my entry for AFAM-Cucumber hosted by Neha of Tasty Recipes. AFAM was the brain child of Maheshwari of Beyond the usual blog.

Fresh Chickpeas and Carrot Salad and storage tips

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 06:05:00 +0000

I am a crazy fan of fresh chickpeas. We get chickpeas separated from its pod in India. 2 months back when I returned to Singapore after spending good time with family and friends I bought half a kilo of these fresh chickpeas. Thanks to Singapore immigration, they allow us to bring food products to Singapore :-).
I prepare salad with these chickpeas when ever I miss them!

Fresh Chickpeas and Carrot Salad
Fresh Chickpeas : 1 small cup
Grated carrot : 2 tbsp
Green chilli paste : 1/2 tsp
Lemon Juice : 1/2 tsp
Seasoning/Oggarane : little

Toss everything and serve. Enjoy !!

Storing Fresh Chickpeas :
Clean chickpeas in water, drain the water. Spread it on a clean thick towel. Let the moisture in peas escape to towel. Transfer the peas to another fresh dry towel and pat them well to remove any adhering moisture. Pack them in the freezer safe ziplock bags/containers and store in freezer. I stored fresh chickpeas and hyacinth beans. Thaw and use!

Frozen Fresh Hyacinth Beans/Avarekalu

Storing Lemon Juice
Are you getting lemons at a cheaper price ? Store the lemon juice and use it whenever you want.

Wash lemons, pat dry them and squeeze the juice using a juicer. Note that the juicer must be wiped dry before you start squeezing lemons. Store the juice in a clean, dry glass bottle or a tupperware container. Store in the coolest part (not freezer) of your refrigerator.

Steamed Tapioca Kueh

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:14:00 +0000

'Kueh' was Greek to me 5 years back when I came to Singapore. Now I make them in my kitchen! To me kueh/kway is an Asian Cake. People here would love to Kueh Vs Cake. The basic ingredient in Kueh is either rice flour/tapioca with coconut milk flavored with pandan leaves and dressed with shredded coconut. You can make it look colorful and attractive :) I started off with a recipe provided by my colleague however one of the Singapore blogs here gives you a more accurate recipe. But women here say there is no correct/right recipe for Kueh. Everything is agak-agak(approximately) la .....

Here is how I made Steamed Tapioca Kueh as per my colleagues recipe :

Tapioca : 2.5 cups (cleaned and grated)
Coconut Milk : 1 cup
Sugar : 3 tablespoons
Food Color : any color
Shredded wetcoconut : 4 tablesp
Pandan leaves : 3-4

Method:
Mixed grated tapioca, coconut milk, sugar. Place pandan leaves over it and closed the pan with a lid. Steamed for 15 minutes. Enjoyed hot Kueh's.

If you have shredded coconut with you, steam coconut, pinch of salt and pandan leaves for 3 mins. Dredge hot Kueh with the warm shredded coconut and serve.

Yummy Steamed Kueh's just for you from Singapore .......

Green Bean and Tomato Soup ~ from Spice Cafe

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:38:00 +0000

I was impressed with the combination of green beans and tomato in a soup. I had decided to make this soup someday. I thought it was right opportunity to try out this soup when SWC-Soups is anounced. Thanks Neha for hosting the event.

You can check the recipe at THE SPICE CAFE. It is simple and filling soup. Thanks coffee for sharing your recipe with us.

Green Bean and Tomato Soup
2 medium to large tomatoes (chopped)
1 cup green moong beans (washed and soaked/rehydrated for 4 hours)
I varied this ratio as per my taste
1 onion (roughly chopped)
1/2 whole red chili (chili padi)
2 small cloves of garlic
1 cup chopped corriander( I omited it as I did not have them)
1-2 tsp sugar (optional)
salt to taste
Method :
1.Pressure cook all ingredients with little water except coriander leaves, salt and sugar
2.Remove excess water and let the mixture cool down
3.Add corainder leaves to cooked mixture and blend /run hand blender
4.Add remaining water or extra water to desired consistency (my soup was thick), add salt, sugar and warm the soup.
5. Serve hot with croutons, but we liked it without croutons :D

This bowl of soup goes to Neha who is hosting SWC-Soups and Sanghi for her event FIL-Tomato

Now Sanghi asks us to write " Choose a lovable person you would like to dedicate your most loved recipe and write a few pleasing lines on why you chose them".
I prepared this soup for myself, because I loved the combination of moong and tomato and it turned out exactly the way I had thought of! Thanks to Coffee for her recipe :)

Kitchen Essentials ~ Pickle Powder, Chilli Powder and Curry Leaves storage

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 08:15:00 +0000

Pickle Powder

You need the following :
Red chillies : 15 (spicy variety)
Fenugreek Seeds : 1tsp
Mustard Seeds : 1tsp
Fry everything separately on a hot tava. Powder them together and keep it in a airtight container. You can use it to make chutney , or any kind of instant pickle you would like to make.

Red Chilli Powder
Red Chillies : 20 (spicy variety) (Guntur variety)
Red Chillies : 10 (less spicier version which imparts color most of the times) (Byadgi/sambal chilli/kashmiri)

Fry both of them with half a teaspoon of oil on a hot tava till they are crisp. It may take about 3 mins on a hot tava. Let them cool. Powder and store it. The resulting powder is very very spicy...use it with caution. Over the years I have started disliking store bought powder so I tried this and it worked well.

Storing Curry Leaves

Separate curry leaves from stem and store in a airtight container. You can store curry leaves for more than a month like this :) in refrigerator.

Sorekayi/Doodhi Halwa

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 02:02:00 +0000

Sorekayi/Doodhi/Bottle gourd is a vegetable which I like in halwa ;)than in curries. Last week when I had one big gourd in my vegetable tray I chose to make halwa. It is a easy peasy recipe which I think any one can prepare.

You need :
Sorekayi/Bottle Gourd : 1 (tender)
Sugar, Milk, Ghee and dry fruits
I am not giving exact measurements here..just add everything in approximate quantities..

Method :
1.Peel and grate bottle gourd, squeeze to remove water. Water can be used to cook veggies or drink it in empty stomach to get health benefits
2.Coat your pan with a tbsp of ghee. Heat the pan and add grated gourd. Fry till raw smell dissappears from the guard.
3.Add 2 cups of thick milk and cook gourd in milk. You can cover the pan with a plate.
4.When gourd is completely cooked, add sugar and another spoon of ghee and bring to boil again. Let the milk, gourd, sugar mixture thicken. Remove from heat
5.Garnish with chopped nuts/dry fruits of your choice. Enjoy hot or cold dessert.

Sending this easy dessert to Recipes for the rest of us-Dessert event started by Ramki of One page cook booksand hosted by Varsha of Willo the Wisp

Green Chilli Paste ~Keep it Ready Kitchen Essentials

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 02:22:00 +0000

I use green chilli paste for many of my dishes. Few clear advantages 1.chillies are not wasted 2.paste can be stored for a longer time than whole chillies.

Here is how you make and store chilli paste :
Green Chillies - 200g (as many as you have)
Salt- 2 -3 tbsp ( salt is used to preserve chilli paste, so add approximate quantity)
Grind both of them without using water. Spoon it to a clean, dry container with proper lid.
Store in refrigerator. You can store it for more than a month.
NOTE: Add salt to your dish with caution as chilli paste already has salt in it

Storing Whole Green Chillies :

If you wish to store whole green chillies, here is how u do it :
1. Wash the green chillies and pat dry to remove any water from chillies
2. Remove the stalk and wipe the chillies with a dry towel
3. Transfer to a dry air tight container
4. You can store it like this for a month without any spoilage
5. Whenever you take the chillies, ensure to wipe the inner lid and inner parts of the container if you find any moisture. Best is once a week, pat dry chillies, wipe the container and put back the chillies.

The chillies in the picture here are 2 weeks old :)

Store well and Avoid Wastage..Save Food

SWC-Salads Round up

noreply@blogger.com (LG) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 06:41:00 +0000

My sincere thanks to you all for sending in your quick, healthy and tasty salads which can be made under 15 minutes. Let me showcase you the entries which I recieved from beautiful bloggers around. They are in no particular order..so please scroll down till the last entry to help yourself with delicious salad.

A salad is not complete with dressing. A spicy dressing or a tangy dressing or a sweet dressing brings out the flavor of vegetables and combines with it to make salad more interesting! Check out Asha's Spicy Thai Salad

for a combination of garden fresh vegetables.

Salsa anyone? How about having 10o simple fresh salsa in one page? err..I think it is fantastic idea :) check out at Ramki's place...

Talk about fresh lentils in salad and I am all ready to eat them as lunch..Preeti of Khaugiri finds this simple and tasty hesarubele(moongdal) kosambari of Karanataka very intersting. And you are right preeti..it can be made under15 mins ......

Indrani was busy packing her bags to enjoy her time in India with her lovedones..but she did not want to miss this healthy event. She has sent us healthy mix-veg and fruit salad. A bowl of it and you are simply done with your meal (:P if you are on diet)

Cham has sent us thai glass noodle salad, and Iam sure you guys are going to drool over that cellophane noodles...........

Meera sends us a unique cucumber salad which she learned from her MIL. This salad is from south Gujarat and has a special ingredient which makes it special..check it out at Enjoy Indian Food

She has also sent us a refreshing Maharastrian style Lettuce chi Koshimbir. ...

Smitha of Kannada Cuisine borrows idea of Mexican Fajita Platter and creates her own combination of black bean and Avocado salad. Check her salad which is protein rich and tasty too..

Nupur brings a twist to Kulcha Chana a famous combination in Punjab. She says Chana used here is tasty on its own as a salad. Stuff it into a whole meal/multigrain burger bun for a wholesome meal as Nupur did it! Drop by Cinnamon Hut to know her tasty tangy Chana.

Poonam of Poonam's Kitchen has sent us a combination of vegetables in olive oil dressing. She says it was an instant hit in the party :)

Our dear Priyanka of Asan Khana has lined up several salads for the event and do check her blog at leisure for the healthy, colorful and refreshing salads in different dressings...

Republic Day Salad ;) - Mix Veg Salad in Red Wine Dressing

Mix Vegetable salad in low fat yogurt

Sprouts salad with Carrot

Mushroom and baby corn salad with lemon leaves

Priya bring spicy thai salad and Persimmon salad in maple syrup for this salad fair and they are pretty easy to make and tasty to eat too..

Ashwini has sent us refreshing and colorful mix veg salad and it surely has added color to our salad fair

Neha of Tasty Recipes has come up with burnt corn salad and carrot salad. I love burnt corn in my salad. Thanks for sending them across Neha.

Have you tasted a curried fruit salad....taste this 'new type' of salad at Sapna's blog...

Fruit Salad with jelly is definitely a treat to eat for me, so enjoy this virtual treat with Sowmya of Creative Saga..

You can check out my posts here on Salads :

1. Fruit Salad with Orange Cinnamon dressing 2. Raddish Salad in Yogurt

Raddish Salad :

Sushma of Savi Ruchi has sent us a healthy wealthy broccoli raita. Check her place for the yummy recipe.

After salads let us enjoy virtual treat of healthy low fat soups at Neha's Tasty Recipes Do send her your entries by 9th March 09. Happy Blogging.