Curry In Kadai ~ An Indian Cooking Blog

Bachali Aaku Pappu ~ Purslane / Malabar Spinach with

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 10 Sep 2013 21:46:00 -0400

Back home mom makes sure to cook greens at least 4-5 times a week, be it sautee(talimpu), with pulses( pappu ), chutney( pachadi) or stew( pulusu ). We do get a lot of fresh green vegetables every day, a lady sells exclusively green vegetables grown in her farm. They are so vibrant, crisp, tender and fresh from the garden! It used to my routine everyday to accompany mom in buying fresh veggies everyday.. There are so many greens available back home like palakura( spinach ), thotakura( amaranth ), molaka kura, bacchali kura( malabar spinach ), munagaaku( drumstick leaves), menthu kura( fenugreek leaves), avisaku , gongura(Sorrel leaves ). One of my favorite greens is Bachchali aaku in telugu and purslane, chinese spinach, oriental spinach, ceylon spinach,malabar spinach in english, However i found that its botanical name is Basella alba. Being green leafy vagetable this is high in fiber, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, Calcium and Iron but low in calorie and fatfree( ofcourse). This Purslane leaves are more crispier and higher in water content than spinach. Heres one simple way of cooking this bachali aaku with raw or sour mango.

Ingredients:

2-3 handfuls of Bachali aaku
1 cup toor dal
1/2 cup raw mango chunks
5-6 green chillies
1 tomato
5-10 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1-2 tbsp oil

How To:

Clean the leaves and chop them, don't discard the stems if they are tender chop them too
Chop onions, tomatoes and green chillies
Peel raw mango and cut into 1 inch cubes
Wash and clean tuwar dal
In a pressure cooker, heat oil and add cumin seeds and mustard seeds ad they start to crackle add curry leaves followed by tomatoes, mango chunks and bachali aaku along with some turmeric
Add the soaked and drained toor dal, saute for a couple of minutes and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. Alternatively you can cook separately until the dal is completely cooked
Adjust salt to taste and finish it off with cilantro

Cracked Whole Wheat Upma -- Goduma Ravva Upma

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 20:02:00 -0400

Here's something you can have it as much as you wish which not only tastes delicious, but adds nutrition to your diet with loads of fiber and wholesome goodness. My dad loves this upma so much that he could eat it everyday. Mom also stuffs this upma in pesaraatu( moong dal dosa ).. And that adds a special flavor to the dosas.. Checkout the recipe to make this wonder grain upma!!

You need:

1 cup Goduma Ravva ( Cracked whole wheat / wheat germ )
2 1/2 cups water
1 tomato
handful of petite green peas
2-3 green chillies
1 inch ginger root
2-3 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
5-10 cashew nuts
10 curry leaves
a pinch of turmeric

Preparation:

In a saute pan / kadai toas the ravva with very little butter / ghee. Once toasted remove the ravva and keep aside
In the same pan add oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, cashewnuts, urad dal and chana dal, Once they are toasted add curry leaves, ginger, turmeric, peas and chopped tomato. Stir ans close the lid
Once peas and tomatoes are cooked add water and close the lid. When the water bubbles add ravva stirring continuously, lower the heat and close the lid.
Check if the whole water has been absorbed and the wheat germ cooked. Adjust salt to taste . Now add some ghee or butter and remove from heat.

Beerakaya Pottu Pachadi ~ Ridgegourd Peel Chutney

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 28 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Are your Beerakaya aka Ridgegourd peels making their way to trash.. wait.. just check out this awesome chutney that's made with the nutrient and fiber rich rigde gourd peels. Believe me vegetable peels never tasted this good! This recipe has been handed down to me from my grandmother, who is a kitchen pro. She has that midas touch, so even the simplest recipes work wonders for our palettes.. She keeps saying this "Uppu karam sarigga padithe cheppu ayina baguntundhi", Even the footwear tastes good if you cook it with right spice and salt!

Sauteed ridge gourd peels and green chillies are ground in mortar and pestle along with tamarind and onion finished with cilantro tastes heaven with ghee rice or steaming hot rotis.

You need:

Peels from 2 large ridgegourds, beerakaya pottu
4-5 green chillies
marble sized tamarind soaked in water
Onion
cilantro
oil

How to:

Take oil in kadai and saute ridge gourd peels along with green chillies and add some salt
Once the chillies and the peels loose their raw smell switch off the flame and it them cool
In mortar and pestle or grinder, ground the mixture, tamarind and cilantro to a coarse paste
And now pulse the chutney with onions.
Finish off the chutney with tadka.

Note: Try sauteing with a bit ghee and taste the difference!!

Gutthi Vankaya Kura - Spicy Stuffed Eggplants!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 23 May 2013 19:31:00 -0400

"Aha Emi Ruchi.. anara mai marachi, roju thinna mari moje theeranidhi. Thaja kooraralo raja evarante inka cheppala Vanakaye nandi......... ". This is a popular Telugu filmi song about The mighty king of vegetables "The Eggplant aka Brinjal". Eggplant( Vankaya ) is my first most favorite of all veggies and a lot my freinds have been asking me for a long time for Eggplant recipes in Andhra style. Sorry friends, i know you might wonder why i didn't post any Eggplant recipe in my blog until now, i had to stay away from my fav veggie for a few years for Spiritual reasons. Anyways i invite Eggplant back into my kitchen and life again!

Required:

8 Eggplants
Oil
Soaked tamarind or tamarind pulp to taste
fresh shredded coconut / dry coconut 3-4 2 inch pieces

For magic spice powder:

1 cup coriander seeds / dhaniyalu
1 cup chana dal
1/4 cup jeera seeds
10 - 12 red chillies
asofetedia / hing
1 tsp oil

How to:

In a thick bottomed kadai/pan, add oil followed by chana dal, coriander seeds, hing, cumin seeds
Keep stirring and once the chanadal starts to change ots coor, add red chilies and once the chana dal is brown, you will smell the toasted aroma of the spices.
keep aside and let it cool, meanwhile, take a pot with water add salt and cut eggplant from one end like a cross with the stem intact and drop them into the water'
Once the spices are cooled, grind them to powder and keep aside
In the same blender grind coconut into smooth paste, add the ground spice powder
Chop the onions fine and mix them with the ground spices paste.
Slit eggplants/vankayalu on the bottom, like a cross until 3/4 and put them in a big bowl of water
Stuff the slit eggplants with the spice mixture and set them on a plate
In a thick kadai/pan, add oil and a minute later sort these eggplants on the pan as show in the picture.
Cook on medium heat with the pan covered and keep stirring until the eggplants starts to fall apart
Once the eggplants are cooked to perfection, you can add chopped cilantro and remove them on to a serving plate.
This is dry curry and if you want gravy, take another pan and add oil and do tadka with mustard seeds and cumin seeds along with curry leaves.
And then add the 2-3 tbsp spice powder and some tamarind juice/pulp and water. Let it cook until the oil separates from the gravy, add little more water bring to boil and then drop the sauteed eggplants! Tada Sauteed eggplants with gravy is ready!

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

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Looking Through My Lens -- Nature Photography!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Fri, 6 Apr 2012 20:44:00 -0400

Aloo Badam Bonda for Ugadi ~ Sri Nandana Nama Samvatsara Ugadi Subhakankshalu ~ Ringing in the Telugu New Year

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 23:57:00 -0400

We at CurryInKadai, wish you all a very happy and prosperous New Year ahead! We wish this new year brings in loads and loads of happiness for everyone.. Ugadi is so important for Andhrites and we start the day with the pooja and then taking Ugadi Pachadi made with Mangoes( new mangoes ), neem flowers, jaggery/sugar, salt, tamarind juice, khus khus( gasagasalu ), putnala pappu etc., Its actually a juice with Shadruchulu.

Today the house will be swamped with family and freinds enjoying a feast with lots of sweets and savories. Mostly comprising of foods made with Mangoes, like Mango Rice, Sweet Mango chutney, etc., Aloo bondas are a definite must at my in laws house for Ugadi. Aloo Bondas are Dumplings made with potatoes and spices and are sumptuous and super easy! These bondas are brimming with flavor from ginger, mint and cilnatro along with nuttiness from almonds and cashew nuts! I bet no one can eat just one!

Ingredients:

Potatoes
Ginger
Chillies
Curry leaves
Lime Juice / Grated Green mango
Cilantro
Mint
Besan / Chick Pea Flour
Slivered Almonds
Cashew nuts
Mustard seeds
Jeera
Ajwain
Oil

How To:

Boil the potatoes and peel the skin off mash them and keep aside
Chop ginger, chillies, cilantro and mint in a chopper or blender
In a kadai, add some oil and do the tadka, cashew nuts and then add curry leaves followed by ginger chilli paste
Let it fry for a min and then add turmeric, slivered almonds and potatoes
Mix everything well together and add salt to taste and then chopped mint and cilantro let the mixture cool
In the mean while, heat oil in kadai, and in a mixing bowl, add besan, chilli powder, salt, ajwain seeds, baking soda and salt and sift the flour
Keep adding water until it gets the cinsistency of Pancake batter
Now make balls out of potato mixture, dip the balls in the batter and drop them into hot oil and cook under medium heat until done
You can either add more water / flour if you want thinner / thicker besan coating outside the aloo bonda.
Relish them hot off the kadai with some onion chutney / ketchup!!

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Mushroom Aloo Tikkis ~ Spicy Potato Stuffed Mushrooms ~ Baby Portabello Mushrooms stuffed with Indian spiced potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:22:00 -0400

We love mushrooms! Even my 2 year old cant have enough mushrooms sauteed in very little ghee along with her rice. Mushrooms are a very good source of fiber, protein, folate, vitamin C etc., and the best part very low in fat and calories( 1 cup of sliced mushrooms counts upto 15 calories ). I love to add mushrooms in my noodles. pasta, pulaos and curries. Sometimes to make to sound it a bit fancier i would bake these Potato stuffed Mushrooms. Potatoes are spiced with kasuri methi, garam masala and peas, stuffed into Mushrooms and then baked into perfection. These mushroom aloo tikkis are so cute and super easy to make.

Ingredients:

10-15 White mushrooms / Baby portabellos
1-2 large red potatoes
1/4 cup peas
1 tbsp kasuri methi
1 tsp garam masala
2 green chillies
1 lime/lemon
oil for saute
salt to taste

How to:

Boil potatoes, peel, mash them and keep aside
In a kadai, heat 1 tbsp oil add peas, followed by chopped Green chillies, turmeric, kasuri methi, garam masala and then mashed potatoes
Saute for 2 minutes add salt and switch off the heat. And lime juice to taste and let it cool.
Heat oven to 350 F, wash mushrooms under running water and let them dry
Remove the stems and stuff them with the spiced potato mixture, and then apply oil with cooking oil sprayer to cover the mushroom evenly
Bake for 10-15 mins, or until the mushrooms or baked enough.
Serve them hot or at room temperature

These Mushroom Potato tikkis will definitely be a hit with the kids and a wonderful appetizer even for a larger crowd. My Portabello mushroom potato tikkis are on their way to:

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Happy Mothers Day !

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Sun, 8 May 2011 11:35:00 -0400

I wish all the Moms out there a very Happy Mothers Day! Mom, we love you so much and for everything you are doing for us we are very grateful ! Wherever i go i will always have a special place in my heart! You are an amazing woman with lots of love instore for us! I miss you so much mom! Love you always!

Here are some OF MY FAVORITE recipes directly from MOM's kitchen!

Kandi Pappu Pachadi ~ Toor Dal Chutney ~ Yellow Pigeon Peas / Lentil Chutney

Paala Bellam Pongal ~ Rice Pudding ~ Sweet rice with milk, jaggery, dried fruits and nuts

Paalakayalu On Vinayaka Chavithi ~ Spicy Crispy Rice Balls ~ No one can eat just ONE!!

Ullipaya Karam ~ Sweet Onion Chutney with Green Chillies, tamarind and Cilantro

Simple Potato Stir Fry ~ Spicy potato curry with onions and cilantro

Kobbari Pachadi -- Fresh Coconut Chutney ~ Sweet, Spicy and Tangy!!!

Sorakaya Pesara Pappu ~ Lauki / Bottlegourd Dal

Vegetable Korma ~ Welcoming the New Year with Moms Mixed Vegetable Curry with Whole Spices and Nuts

Pappu Upma & Allam Pachadi ~ Moong Dal and Rice Sooji Upma with Ginger Chutney

Kanchipuram Idly and Vellulli Karam -- A match made in Heaven

Dosakaya Talimpu -- Sauteed Lemon Cucumber with Onions

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Kandi Pappu Pachadi ~ Toor Dal Chutney ~ Yellow Pigeon Peas / Lentil Chutney

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 18:55:00 -0400

Kandi Pachadi / Toor Dal chutney, Yellow Lentils are toasted to golden brown along with some asoefetida and then ground to a coarse paste with tamarind and red onions.. This chutney take s me back to my childhood where mom would make this chutney in a snap and then mixes it with steaming hot rice and of homemade ghee. This is so comforting, hearty and earthy! This Kandi pachadi is protein packed and actually tastes better when relished right away! Mom makes this chutney at its best, mine never tasted like mom's until i actually saw mom making it. There are a few things to keep in mind, the chutney shouldn't be ground to a smooth paste but should be like coarse paste using very minimal water, we should just use soaked tamarind actually. And add onion only at the end and just pulse it. If you have mortar and pestle please use it to make this chutney and i promise you wont regret at all!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Toor dal / Tuwar dal/ Kandi Pappu / Yellow lentils / Split Pigeon Peas
3-5 Dried Red Chillies
Gooseberry sized tamarind / 2 marble sized tamarind balls soaked in some water
a pinch of hing
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp oil

How to make Kandi pachadi:

In a kadai / pan, heat oil and then add toor dal/ kandi pappu and toast them under medium heat until it turns into golden color.
At this point add cumin seeds and red chillies, add toast everything until the lentils turn into red color and you will notice a very nice aroma. Add hing and remove from heat and let them cool.
In the mean while coarsely chop onions into chunks and keep aside
In a blender, add the toasted toor dal and red chillies mixture and then grind to a coarse powder and then add soaked tamarind and salt and grind again
Once the chutney looks like shown in the picture, add onions and run the blender in pulse setting.

You can add tadka/popu/seasoning and then add to the chutney. I couldn't wait any longer and relished the chutney right away along with hot rice and ghee.. Yummm heaven!!

Note: You can store in the refrigerator, but i wouldn't recommend as the chutney will loose its crunch.

This Nutty Spicy Kandi pachadi / Toor dal chutney is on its way to:

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Happy Sri Rama Navami ~ Vadapappu and Panakam as Naivedyam!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 00:16:00 -0400

Sri Rama Rama Ramethi, Rame Rame ManoRame ....

Sahasthra Nama Thathulyam, Rama Nama Varanane .....

My favorite picture of Lord Sri Rama, we all have this same picture at home

Happy Sri Rama Navami Everyone. Sri Rama Navami is so special at moms place as this is kind of a big festival. At dad's shop, we will do the pooja in a grandeur with lots of prasads( naivedyams ) like Panakam, Vadapappu, Kajjayam, Vada, Pulihora, Fruits and Coconuts. All these will be served to everyone in a plantain leaf which is then placed on top of a handfan made of Palm tree leaves( Thataku Visana Karralu ). As Sri Rama Navami comes during the months of peak summer, we give out these hand fans along with the prasad to everyone. And dad still does celebrate the festival the same way even now. Here are two of the most popular Naivedyams( offerings ) for Srirama Navami, Panakam and Vadapappu. Panakam is jaggery( gur ) water with some spices. This panakam cools your body is very good during summer ( vedini thaggisthundi, chalava chesthundi )

How to Make Panakam:

This Panakam is a must for Sri Rama Navami
You need to soak Jaggery / Gur in water, once its melted add a tsp of ghee, crushed cardamom, and ground pepper. I usually put all the ingredients in a bowl even before starting the pooja, and by the time its time for naivedyam, panakam will be read

How to Make Vadapappu:

Vadapappu is a very easy naivedyam, clean the yellow moong dal, wash with water and then soak in enough water for around 1-2 hours. Once you are able to cut the dal with your nails, then its ready for naivedyam.
In this vadapappu, we usually add some fresh coconut pieces, chopped raw mango, lots of lime juice, red chilli powder and salt.. Mouth watering!

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Yay! India Won the Cricket World Cup 2011...Time to celebrate!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 17:05:00 -0400

Wow...We won!! What a game.. Dhoni Sena did it again! .. My first Live World Cup 2011! Never liked cricket before, until this World Cup 2011! Thanks to dear husband! What a great feeling.. Even my 2 year old cheered, screamed and jumped along with us!! Everyone played so well, Tendulkar, Dhoni, Gambhir, YuvRaj, Sehwag, Raina, Zaheer Khan, Munaf.. etc., must say every one!! Well done Guys!! You made India so Proud again! As always!!

Here are some of my favorite Moments in World Cup 2011!!

Its time to Celebrate!!

Awww.. these kids are surely very proud of their Dad!! Master Sachin Tendulkar!

Disappointment and contentment.

Yay we won!!

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com

Kadai Aloo Gobi ~ Purple Potatoes & Cauliflower Curry

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:27:00 -0400

The best part about Indian Cooking is the delicious marriage between the spices and vegetables. You could create an array of wonderful curries and dishes with the magic of Spices and Herbs. This is what Indian cooking teaches you about, making plain vegetables delectable and nutritious! This is the reason why a lot of Indians who are Vegetarian can stay as Vegetarians for life. Indian cooking is all about making good use of ginger, garlic, fresh herbs and the spices but that too in right proportions just enough to revive your taste buds. I do agree too Indian food( especially in my kitchen ) is spicy, but you sure can adjust the spice to your taste. Thats the magic in Indian Cooking.

Heres my Kadai Purple Aloo Gobi Curry, Purple potatoes cooked with cauliflower and peas in a tomato based sauce flavored with Ginger, Cilantro and Mint. Lovely combination of vegetables and spices. The curry is so delicious you dont need a lot of rotis/chapthis to go with it! Yep you can finish the curry as is!

Ingredients you need:

1 Purple potato
1 red potato
fistful of peas
1/4 cauliflower
2 - 4 green chillies
1 tomato
1 inch ginger root julienned
Mint
Cilantro
1 tbsp Coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
a pinch of turmeric
4 tbsp oil

Method of Preparation:

Seperate cauliflower into florets, rinse thouroughly in warm water with salt and microwave for 2-3 min, cauliflower should still be firm
Cook the potatoes in microwave until done( should still hold the shape )
In a kadai / saute pan , heat oil add 1/3 of coriander powder and 1/3 of cumin powder and then stir in cauliflower and dry saute for 2 mins, remove and keep aside
Repeat the same above process for potatoes too and keep aside
In the same pan, add remaining oil, add remaining coriander and cumin powders along with turmeric, Stir fry for few seconds and add peas, ginger and green chillies. Fry for a min and then add chopped tomato and salt
Once the tomato is cooked add the sauteed potato pieces and cauliflower. Cook until everything comes together
Adjust salt to taste and finish with cilantro and mint

Go ahead and serve this simple Purple Aloo Gobi along with Jeera Rice, Hot Rice, Rotis or even Tortillas and the best compliments are in for sure!!

My Purple Kadai Aloo Gobi Curry is on its way to:

AWED Indian Cuisine started by DK
C for Colorful Curries
Herbs And Flowers in My Platter - Cilantro started by PJ
Only - Original Recipes started by Pari

Masala Vada on MahaShivaRatri ~ Spicy Crispy Lentil Fritters with Chana Dal, Toor Dal and Urad Dal

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Wed, 2 Mar 2011 14:40:00 -0500

Om Namo Namahshivaya..!

Brahma murari surarchitha lingam

Nirmala basitha sobitha lingam

Janmajadukka vinasana lingam

Thath pranamami sadasiva lingam

Devamuni pravarachitha lingam

Kamadahana karunakara lingam

Ravana darpa vinasana lingam

Thath pranamami sadasiva lingam

12 Jyothirlinga Strothram

Sourastre Somanatham Cha,

Sri Saile Mallikarjuna.
Ujjanyinyam Mahakalam,
Omkare Malamleshwara.
Himalaye to Kedaram,
Dakinyam Bhimashankara.
Varanasyam cha Vishweshwam,
Tryambakam Gautameethate.
Paralyam Vaidyanatham cha,
Nagesham Darukavane.
Sethu bande Ramesham,
Grishnesam cha Shivalaya

Happy Maha Shivaratri everyone. When we were kids we used to do Jagaran( wake up all night in the name of God), and early in the next day morning we would have a great feast, since we do upavas ( fasting ) on Maha Shiva Ratri. Mom and grandma make this vada to break the fasting as it is loaded with lots of proteins from the lentils along with yummy sweets, curries and rice dishes.

Today i feel so blessed to be able to watch Sri Shiva Parvati Kalyanotsvam live from Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh. Thanks so much deva! I made this vermicelli kheer as prasad today, and this Masala Vada makes a great combo with Payasam/Kheer.

Ingredients:

1 cup chana dal / Bengal Gram
1/3 cup whole urad dal / Black Gram
1/3 cup toor dal / Split Reg gram
2 inches of peeled ginger
green chillies to taste
lots of cilantro and mint
curry leaves
salt to taste
onions( optional )

Preparation:

Soak all the lentils, chana dal, Urad dal, toor dal for at least 6-8 hours
Wash the lentils and blend them in blender along with green chillies and ginger adding very little water at a time, it should not be a smooth paste.
Place oil in kadai or thick bottomed pan for deep frying
If you don't mind eating onions on this day, you could add chopped onions, otherwise you can happily omit this.
Mix in chopped cilantro, curry leaves, mint and add salt to taste.
Make flattened discs and drop them into oil. Fry them until golden brown and then drain them onto paper towels.
Make sure the heat is set at medium heat!

My Mixed Dal Masala Vada is on its way to:

Walking through the Memory Lane
Herbs And Flowers In My Garden Cilantro started by PJ
AWED - Indian Cuisine started by DK
My Legume Love Affair started by the Well Seasoned Cook

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Spicy Vegetable Hearts On Valentine's Day For Your Valentine!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 16:53:00 -0500

Happy Valentines Day!! Hurray Valentines Day is here and i am sure everyone will be busy trying to put up something special for their Valentine on this Valentines Day! I believe, the best way to win a great heart is to cook good food loaded with lots of LOVE. Here are my special Valentine Vegetable Heart Cutlets along with my Chocolate Covered Fresh Strawberries that are sure to make any dinner special and memorable!

An array of Vegetables are steamed and then mixed up with ginger, garlic, green chillies, cashew nuts, raisins, garam masala, amchur with lots of cilantro and mint, binded with some breadcrumbs and then shaped into little hearts and then either sauteed or deep fried to perfection are so easy to make and are yet full of flavor!

Ingredients:

3-4 Potatoes
1-2 carrots
15 beans
1/4 cup peas
<1/4>
3-4 green chillies or to taste
2 garlic cloves
1 inch piece of ginger
red chilli powder
1/2 tbsp amchur powder
chopped cilantro
chopped mint
breadcrumbs or ground stale bread
salt to taste
oil for frying

Preparation:

Peel potatoes and carrots and chop them into big chunks. Cut beans into 2 inch long pieces.
In a steamer, add potatoes, carrots, beans, peas and corn and then steam until the vegetables are tender. I usually use a pressure pan, where i will put these vegetables in a steamer basket and then pressure cook for just 1 whistle, once cooked remove and let it cool.
Mean while chop ginger, garlic and green chillies very fine and keep aside
If you prefer to use bread, let it dry over the counter and then powder the bread ion a food processor.
Once the vegetables are cooled, mash them and then add garam masala( chaat masala ), amchur powder, ginger, garlic, green chillies, raisins, cashew nuts, cilantro, mint, red chilli powder, salt to taste.
You need to add breadcrumbs little by little just to bind everything together.
Heat either a griddle or kadai with oil for deep frying.
Shape the cutlets in heart shape, apply breadcrumbs on both sides and wither deep fry or shallow fry until brown on both sides. Let them drain on paper towels!
Serve these Spicy Vegetable Hearts along with your choice of Ketchup Or Chilli Sauce!!

Serve these special Valentine Vegetable Hearts as appetizer, then your regular entree and then finish up with my Fresh Chocolate Covered Strawberries. You are sure gonna see beautiful smiles on your Valentine's face! Oh just don't forget to light up Some Candles!! Nothing beats Candle light Dinner @ home!

My Spicy Heart Valentine Hearts are on their way to:

My hearty cutlets are on their way to 'Food Palette series - Brown'

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Gobi Fry ~ Cauliflower Pepper Stir Fry ~ Kosu Puvvu Vepudu

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:47:00 -0500

Whenever i feel lazy to cook up some dry curries along with rice and curry, my Cauliflower Stir Fry comes to my rescue. Its so simple yet very delicious and loaded with nutrients and the best part uses very little oil! Go ahead and try this curry when ever you are not in mood for deep fried veggies like potato, dondakaya, okra, aratikaya. I am sure you will not be disappointed!

I have been again contacted by CSN stores to review a product from their site and i am very excited about it. I know with the busy kids at home we would love to shop only online. I am an online geek and usually shop online, and CSN stores has recently become my favorite place to shop. CSN can even price match with any other online retailer( I love it ). They have everything from Kitchen Esentials to Electronics to Backyard Swing Sets. I would love to have one of their swing sets for my Baby soon..

Ingredients you need:

1 medium cauliflower
pepper to taste
salt to taste
oil as needed

Preparation:
Separate cauliflower into florets, rinse in warm water with salt and microwave for 2 mins
In a kadai or saute pan heat oil and then add cauliflower florets
Fry cauliflower until golden brown, and add ground black pepper and salt to taste.

Variations:

Instead of black pepper you can add any one of these following:

Garam Masala + Red chilli powder
Coriander Powder + Cumin powder + Red chilli powder
Red chilli powder

Chocolate Covered Strawberries from Our first Strawberry Picking ~ Perfect For Valentines Day Indulgence!!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 06:39:00 -0500

Hope this new year brings you loads of Happiness and Prosperity . We wish you all a very fabulous NEW YEAR ahead and Happy Valentines Day!!

I am so blessed to have a Strawberry patch open minutes from home. I have been waiting for Strawberry Picking for years and it finally happened and that too so close from my home.. just cant believe it. I know i sound so funny when i say that, yep i was that desperate. Not anymore, anytime i need some strawberries i just take my daughter along with me and then "Pick our own Strawberries".

I just cant explain how good i felt when i plucked the first strawberry fresh from the vine. Oh my baby, she just cant wait until the strawberries are cleaned. Also, we had hard time picking the right ripe ones as a lot of them were hiding. Oh my goodness, the strawberries were super sweet, juicy and succulent. And most of them ended as my daughter's dinner and brunch.

Anyhow i managed to save some and made these delicious chocolate covered strawberries for the very first time and to my surprise they turned out to be pretty cute and easy.

Ingredients:

32 ounces Semi sweet chocolate chips / Milk chocolate chips
4 - 5 tbsp Butter / Shortening
2 pounds fresh ripe firm Strawberries ( with stems if possible )
White Chocolate( Optional )
Crushed Almonds( Optional )
Chopped Chocolate( Optional )
Toothpicks( Optional )
Parchment Paper( Optional )
Styrofoam( Optional )

Preparation:

Wash the strawberries and dry them on paper towels and let them dry for 1- 2 hours. Make sure there's no water left on the strawberries, as we want the chocolate to sit nice on the strawberries.
Prick a toothpick on top of the strawberries and keep aside
You can let the chocolate either in a double boiler method / in microwave. Personally i felt melting in the double boiler to be easy.
For melting on the stove: Place a sauce pan filled 1/2 with water and heat under medium heat, let a glass mixing bowl sit on the sauce pan, add butter and once butter is melted, add chocolate chips and keep stirring continuously until melted and smooth.
For melting in microwave: Place the chocolate chips in microwave safe bowl, and heat them in an interval of 30 seconds, and keep stirring until all melted and smooth.
Dip the strawberries in chocolate and place them on parchment paper.

Note:

For perfect chocolate dipped strawberries, insert the dipped strawberries on styrofoam to let them dry

For fancier strawberries, dip the chocolate covered strawberries in chopped walnuts/almonds, sprinkles, chopped chocolate.

You can even drizzle some melted white chocolate over dried strawberries for that gourmet touch. I am going to do this for my next batch.

My delicious Strawberries are on their way to:

My Chocolate Covered Strawberries are on their way to 'Food Palette series - Brown'

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Ravva Kesari ~ Semolina Sweet ~ Happy Bhogi, Sankranthi and Kanuma!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 23:53:00 -0500

Wish you all a very happy Bhogi, Pongal, Sankranthi and Kanuma. On Bhogi we do Bhogi pallu ( blessing the kids with some flowers and fruits ). We used to have so much fun doing it. We did for our baby too, and she couldn't stop eating Borugulu( rice puffs ) from the Bhogi Pallu which she is not actually supposed to eat though.. Read more here on my last year post on Sankranthi. Most common sweets and savories on Pongal are Ariselu, Kesari, Bobbatlu, Poornalu, Gulab Jamun( from scratch ), Carrot Halwa, Vada, Pulihora etc., Ammamma used to make a lot these during pongal and we kids had so much fun relishing them!! Love you grandma!

Bhogi Kundalu ( Pongal Pots ) Rangoli with Rice Flour( Biyyam Pindi )

Bhogi Pallu For Blessing Kids On Bhogi

Here is the most popular and easiest of all sweets, Ravva Kesari. Semolina / Ravva / Sooji sweet made with raisins and nuts. A super simple sweet ready in minutes!!

Ingredients:

1 cup Semolina / Sooji / Bombay Ravva
2 cups water
1/2 stick butter or 1/4 cup butter or ghee
<3/4>
cardamom
raisins
cashewnuts
Saffron or food color

How To:

In a thick kadai, add ghee/ butter along with cashew nuts, once the cashews are browned add raisins and fry for few seconds, add sooji and keep stirring until it turns golden brown.
In the meanwhile boil the water in a separate vessel
Once the ravva/sooji is fried enough reduce the heat and add water stirring continuously just like you do for upma. Mix well and cover with lid and cook it under very low heat
Now measure sugar and add it to the mixture and keep stirring
Once the sugar is melted, remove from the stove and keep aside.
If you want you can either add some saffron soaked in milk or a pinch of food color in boiling water.
Tada, Ravva kesari is ready to be relished in minutes.

This ravva kesari does get crumbled once its stored in the refrigerator , don't worry heat it up in microwave in 30 second intervals and you are good to go!

Here are some popular sweets and savouries that are specially cooked on Pongal/Sankranthi or any Festivals in India.

Besan Burfi

Paala Bellam Pongal ~ Rice Pudding ~ Sweet rice with milk, jaggery, dried fruits and nuts

Paala Kayalu ---- Spicy Crispy Rice Balls

Pulihora ~ Rice seasoned with Spicy Tangy Tamarind and Sesame Seeds Sauce

Palakura Minapa Garelu( Vadai ) ~ Spinach and Lentil Fritters

Kesar Badam Vermicelli Kheer / Payasam

Nethi Bellam Appalu

Whole Wheat Eggless Orange Pancakes ~ Thiyyappachi

Semiya Kesari ~ Vermicelli Halwa with Cashewnuts and Raisins

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Beetroot Black Pepper Fry ~ Beetroot Talimpu

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 00:35:00 -0500

This Beetroot pepper fry recipe has been lying in my drafts for months and today i am finally bringing it to light! Beetroot steamed and then sauteed with tadka, curry leaves and spiced with black pepper is a very simple recipe, but yet packed with loads of vitamins and flavor. This goes well with hot steamed rice, or wrap rotis, with beetroot curry, some fresh sweet onions, cilantro and fresh thick yogurt(curd). I am sure kids wouldn't mind some sour cream too inside the wrap.

You need:

2 Beets
10 curry leaves
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
salt

Preparation:

Boil the beets until soft. For more detail info on cooking beets, click here
Chop the boiled beets into small chunks and keep aside
In a kadai / pan heat oil. add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Once they start to crackle add curry leaves and beets.
Stir fry for a couple of minutes and then add saltand black pepper. Adjust spice to taste and remove from heat.

Click here for more information on cooking beets, nutritional information and some more Beetroot recipes.

Happy Thanksgiving!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 11:44:00 -0500

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Hope you will enjoy and cherish your time with your loved ones!

Besan Burfi On Diwali / Deepavali ~ An offering to Lakshmi Devi

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 4 Nov 2010 12:58:00 -0400

Happy Deepavali Everyone. We wish this Diwali would bring a world of joy, happiness and
contentment to you, to last all your life through. Have a safe and sound Diwali. We usually do Lakshmi pooja on Diwali and offer some homemade special diwali sweets as prasad to Lakshmi devi. Here's one such Besan Burfi that's loaded with almonds, kaju, ghee, milk and sugar.

Ingredients Needed:

Scraped coconut - 1 cup
Gram Flour / Besan / Senaga Pindi - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Ghee( Clarified butter ) - 1 cup
Sugar - 2 - 2 1/2 cups
Fistful almonds soaked overnight and peeled
Fistful cashewnuts soaked in milk for 10 mins

Procedure:

Scrape fresh coconut and grease a flat plate or thali.
In a blender, grind soaked badam and cashew nuts to a smooth paste and keep aside
In a big mixing bowl place coconut, sugar, besan( gram flour ) and milk. Alternatively you can mix everything in blender and keep aside.
In a thick pan on medium heat, add ghee and after 30 sec, pour in the mixture and keep stirring continuously until it becomes thick.
Once the mixture begins to leave the side, transfer onto the greased plate and spread immediately and press either kaju or almonds as required.
Once cooled, cut them into desired squares/diamonds and remove them from the plate carefully.
When they are completely cooled, store them in an air tight container. These should stay good for up to a week or so!

Mom made these once as this is very quick and easy compared to Mysore Pak. And moreover this will be ready in minutes unlike other sweets. Anyone with a sweet tooth couldn't stand eating just one! Yes its that good! Mine are not as smooth, so you should spread them smooth once you pour it onto the greased plate!

My Besan Chikkis are on their way to:

Diwali Sweets hosted by Lavi

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Happy Dussehra / Vijaya Dasami _ Paala Bellam Pongal ~ Rice Pudding ~ Sweet rice with milk, jaggery, dried fruits and nuts ~ An offering to Durga maa!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 14:00:00 -0400

We @ Curry In Kadai, wish you all a very happy Dasara( Vijaya Dasami ). May this Dusshera light up for you and bring in happiness for one and all! For us Dussehra means celebrating it at ammamma( grandma ) house. Wow, we used to go to Kalikamma temple everyday during dussehra, and amma(goddess) would be dressed in different avatars everyday. I remember, in my grandmas place the goddesses are 5 sisters and each sister will be in different color, like yellow, white, red, etc.,

All these 10 days the goddesses or ammas come out for Oregimpu( a procession ). A person would sit behind the goddess figure and starts dancing according to the music. And sometimes the person would be possessed by the goddess( poonakam ). We when kids used to have mixed feelings, like half scared and half interested in the whole proceedings. We miss all the happenings here in US though!

Here's is a Milk porridge, Paala payasam/sirannam, rice cooked and simmered in whole milk and cooked with raisins, badam(almonds), dried coconut, cashew nuts and elaichi that is mostly offered to god as prasadam. A must in any festival in moms house!

Here are some pictures and i will post the recipe soon!!

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Happy Navaratri ~ Seemevankaya Kobbari Kura ~ Chayote / Chow Chow with Coconut

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 16:49:00 -0400

Happy Navaratri Everyone!! I know, how every ones home is now being swamped with coconuts everyday! Here's one simple dish using coconut that you can bring to the table in minutes, its moms Seema vankaya kobbari talimpu aka Chayote squash with fresh coconut. Ah i love this curry, its not spicy, not fancy but yet bursts with lots for flavor from fresh coconut!

This Seemavankaya kobbari kura / curry would be perfect during these Navaratri days, as people who fast wouldn't eat onion and garlic when they break the fasting at the end of the day. This curry is easy to make , and goes well with rice, rotis, or even better as it is!

Ingredients you need:

2 big or 3 small chayote squash/seema vankaya, peeled and chopped into big cubes
1/4 cup fresh grated coconut
3-4 green chillies
cilantro
curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds / dhaniyalu
1 tsp urad dal / minapappu
2 tbsp oil

How to:

In a pressure pan/cooker, heat oil and add tadka/tempurings, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and urad dal
Once they start to crackle, add curry leaves, turmeric, green chillies and choppedsquash pieces( seema vankaya mukkalu ).
Mix them together close the lid and cook for just one whistle. Alternatively you can cook covered until the pieces are softened.
Once the pressure goes off, put the cooker back on heat and then add salt and coriander, if u you dont like any water in the curry just cook under high heat until the water evaporates, personally i would mind some water!
Adjust salt to taste and then finish it off with fresh cilantro.

Tada!! Chayote curry with coconut is ready to be relished! you can add more coconut if youd like, also you can reduce the green chillies to one, if you prefer to eat the curry as is. One thing i love about this curry is, i can make this anytime of the day, need not wait for friday( ususally the day we get all Indian vegeatbles ), chayote squashes are abundatly available all through out the year in regualr american grocery stores like Publix, kroger, target..!! Thanks Mom, for this wonderful dish!! love you!

TIP:
Apply some lime juice before handling these squashes, and your hands would come out clean!!

Ganeshas from India & My first painting in 10 years

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 22:00:00 -0400

Hope everyone had good time celebrating Ganesh Chathurthi. I just cant wait to share you these pictures of lord Ganeshji from India, sent by dad and sis.

And heres my first painting in water color in 10 years!! Love to get back to painting soon!!

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Paalakayalu On Vinayaka Chavithi ~ Spicy Crispy Rice Balls ~ No one can eat just ONE!!

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Thu, 9 Sep 2010 17:44:00 -0400

Happy Vinayaka Chavithi. Happy Birthday Ganesha!!! Wishing that lord Ganesha fills your home with prosperity and good fortune.

My First Handmade Ganesha made with Atta( Whole Wheat Flour )

Yay! Recently i have been contacted by CSN Stores to review their online stores and products. So keep checking this spot for an upcoming review of their product! I was really surprised to see how big their online store is. CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find everything from cheap bedroom furniture to fantastic fitness equipment to cookware.

Rice flour balls ready to get oil bath!!

When we were kids Vinayaka Chavithi was our favorite of all the festivals. We kids, would actively take part in this festival, we wake up early in the morning and buy Ganesha idol made of fresh clay( that day itself ). We buy lots and lots of fruits( regi pallu, kalekkayalu, mokka jonnalu, jama pandu, apple, etc., ), flowers( wow this list goes endless ) and leaves( japatri, patri, darba, guava leaves etc., ). Dad and we used to do the pooja, dad used to read the Vrath( puja and katha ), we used to do the pooja and mom use to be very busy in the kitchen preparing all the yummy things for lord Ganesha. Poornalu, Undrallu, Bobattlu, Vada, Payasam, Pulihora, Sambar, handful of curries along with vadapappu and panakam. Hmmm.., love this day!! We would hang all the fruits ( Pala valli ) on the top of the mandap, making it easier for lord Ganesha to pick and have them anytime he wants to.

A fresh batch hot off the kadai

Sometimes mom makes these PaalaKayalu( Vepa Kayalu ) ahead and offer them to lord ganesha on vinayaka chavithi. Paalakayalu are spicy crispy balls made with rice flour, yogurt. butter etc and deep fried in oil to perfection. Mom made these for us and this recipe is directly from Grandmas kitchen. I must admit Grandma makes the best Paalakayalu, sorry mom, the next best is you of course!!

Ingredients

2cups rice flour
4tbsp.curd
2tsp.butter
salt to taste
oil for deep frying
green chillies

Method:

First run green chillies and salt in blender( or use mortar and pestle ) and it need not be a smooth paste
In a mixing bowl, add rice flour, red chilli powder, green chilli paste, yogurt, soft butter, and make a dough ( chapathi dough consistency ) adding a little water at a time
Cover the dough and let it stand for few minutes.
Pinch out small amount of dough and then roll them into tiny balls using your palms. Let kids help you in making these tiny balls, and i am sure they would have fun making these.
Rub oil onto your palms that way the dough wouldn't stick to your palms while rolling them
Heat oil in kadai( enough for deep frying ) under medium heat and once the oil is hot enough drop these dough balls slowly and fry them until they are brown in color ( see pic )
Spicy Rice Balls are ready to be relished!!! But first offer them to Ganapathiji on his birthday( Vinakaya Chavithi )

Once these balls are cooled enough , store them in an air tight containers, and these would stay good upto 3 weeks. I promise NO ONE CAN JUST EAT ONE!!!

Here are some more Vinayaka Chathurthi Pics:

Vinayaka Chavithi @ my sisters place

My spicy crunchy rice balls are on their way to:

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.

Broad Beans ~ Chikkudukaya Tomato Curry With Lima Beans

noreply@blogger.com (KALVA) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 18:17:00 -0400

Broad beans aka Chikkudu kaya is my all time favorite in Beans family. As a kid mom used to just steam these in cooker along with turmeric and salt and would serve them hot in a bowl as a snack. They were very delicious and we could finish the whole bowl without any complaints. These Indian Broad Beans are fiber rich and filled with loads of protein. I am sure kids who wouldn't love to eat steamed/boiled beans would definitely love these boiled or steamed broad beans( chikkudukaya ) for its texture and the firm plump beans( pods ) inside. Pairing broad beans with some juicy vine ripe tomatoes is something new to me as i have never cooked green beans with tomatoes.

My sister( recipe from her MIL ) asked me cook broad beans along with fresh plump juicy tomatoes and soon this Chikkudukaya Tomato curry became an instant hit in our house. And the best part it tastes so good with both rice and chapathis and its very low in fat( very little oil goes a long way in this curry!! ).This Broad Beans Tomato Curry( Chikkudakaya Tomato Curry ) is so easy and the cooking time is just one whistle away!( 5 mins ). The sourness from the tomatoes makes it extra special and i would love to add some Lima Beans / Frozen Corn for extra boost of protein.

Ingredients:

2 cups broad beans chopped into 2 inches
2 vine ripe tomatoes
A fistful frozen lima beans
A fistful frozen corn
1-2 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
Turmeric
Cilantro
Curry leaves
Salt
Red chilli powder

Preparation:

Destring each broad bean or tear into 2 inch pieces
In a pressure cooker / pan heat oil and then add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and once they start to crackle add curry leaves followed by broad beans and tomatoes
Mixin lima beans and corn
Add a little salt and turmeric, mix in and close the cooker lid
Remove the cooker from heat just after one whistle
Once the pressure is gone, open the lid and cook under high heat until the curry gets required consistency
Add red chilli powder and salt to your taste
Finish it off with loads of chopped cilantro

Spicy Broad Beans and Tomato Curry is ready to be relished.. And rice or roti is optional..As you can finish the curry as is!!!

This Broad Beans and Tomato Curry is on its way to:

P.S. Everyone has a unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.