Indian Kitchen explored

Essential Kitchen Powders

2011-03-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

Indian cooking is partially dependend upon various sorts of spices mixed together to add up flavour and aroma to the dish prepared. These mix are either prepared homely or purchased from grocery shops. They may be finely or coarsely powdered. They are used in preparation of Sambar, Rasam, Curry, Kurma, Gravy and so on. Here I do present the essential powders and their preparation that are found in each and every Indian Kitchen.

Idli Cooker

2011-03-15T21:39:00.000-07:00

Idli cooker

This vessel is used to cook the South Indian famous food named 'Idli'. It comprises of 2 or 3 plates with cup like wholes numbering 4, 5, 7 or more and a vessel to hold these plates and then a lid to cover the vessel. The bottom vessel will be half filled with water and over it the plates filled with idli batter will be laid and covered. It undergoes steaming when placed on stove. Just requires not more than 10 minutes to get cooked. It is mostly manufactured in Aluminium and now stainless steel made are available in wide range.

Murukku achchu

2011-03-15T21:37:00.000-07:00

Murukku achchu

This is a device used to prepare murukku, the kurkure snack. It has 2 or three parts. Dispalyed here is an achu of 2 parts. The bottom vessel and the topper. The dough prepared for the snack has to be kept inside the bottom vessel which has tiny wholes that determine the width of the snack. Then using the topper and pressure has to be applied by holding the handles of the twoo so that the dough is delivered in the form of thread which when deep fried becomes the snack. This device is very traditional one and comes in bronze, stainless steel and thick plastic.

Pressure Cooker - Indian vessels

2011-03-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

Pressure Cooker

This is Pressure Cooker. It plays a vital role in every Indians Kitchen. It is used to pressure cook rice, potato, dal, and steam vegetables and idli. Its parts comprises of a whistle, gasket, the bottom pan and lid. It is mainly made of thick Aluminium or Stainless steel. It may be copper plated also. It comes in varied sizes based on the quantity it can hold from 3 litres to 10 litresNowadays non-stick pressure cookers fill up the market. The leading pressure cooker manufacturing companies are Prestige, Hawkins, Preeti.

Raita

2011-03-15T21:23:00.001-07:00

Ingredients
Any of grated vegetables like onion, cabbage, mango, cucumber, carrot, vazhathandu(stem of banana) - 1 cup
curd - 1 cup
finely chopped chilli - 1
corriander leaves, tomato, sprouted green grams finely chopped to garnish
salt to taste

Method
Mix any of the given vegetable to curd or a mixture of the given vegetables to curd with chilli, salt and corriander leaves. Make it and serve fresh.

Curry

2011-03-15T21:22:00.000-07:00

Ingredients
any vegetable well chopped - 1 cup
onion chopped - 1
curry leaves - little
chilli - 1
mustard seeds, urad dal - 1 tea spoon
asafoetida - 1 pinch
turmeric powder - 1 tea spoon
oil - 1 tea spoon

Method

Heat oil in tava. Spurt mustard seeds. Add urad dal. Stir till it turns golden brown. Add curry leaves, chilli, onion, salt and stir well and then add vegetables with turmeric powder. Mix well. Close the lid and cook in low flame. Then and then open the lid. Allow the water in inner lid to drain on vegetables and stir well.

Chilli can be replaced by chilli powder
When you cook lady's finger, add 2 more spoons of oil to season and add a spoon of curd or tamarind pulp if you feel it to be sticky.
When you cook bittergourd add 2-3 spoons of tamarind pulp or water from rinsing rice to lessen its bitterness.

Rasam

2011-03-15T21:20:00.000-07:00

Ingredients
tomato - 1
tamarind pulp - 1 cup
dal water - 1 cup
rasam powder - 2 tea spoons
salt to taste
turmeric powder - 1 tea spoon

To season
Gingelly oil - 1 tea spoon
dry red chilli - 1
curry leaves - little
smashed garlic -2
mustard seeds - 1 tea spoon
asafoetida - a pinch

Method

Add dal water, smashed tomato, tamarind pulp, turmeric powder, salt together with rasam powder and bring to boil till foam appears. Now seaon it with its ingredients. The dal water can be taken out when dal is cooked for sambar. Otherwise instead of dal water one more smashed tomato can be taken to make out Tomato rasam.

Sambar

2011-03-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

1 cup toor dal
1/2 cup channa dal(kadali paruppu) or moong dal
1 cup of any vegetables chopped
1 tomato
shallots - 5-6 or 1 onion chopped
green chilli - 1
tamarind pulp - 3 tea spoons
turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
sambar powder - 3 tea spoon
corriander powder - 1 tea spoon
salt to taste
corriander leaves to garnish
To season
asafoetida - 1 pinch
mustard seeds - 1 tea spoon
curry leaves - little
gingelly oil - 1 tea spoon
vadagam - little

Method:

Pressure cook dal as follows. Rinse both the dal 2 times with water, drain the water and add the proportional water to it ( for cup of dal, 1 1/2 water is enough). Place the gasket properly and close the cooker lid. Place it on the stove. When steam comes put whistle. Can allow 3 whistles and switch it off. When steam lowers remove whistle and open the lid to see your cooked dal. In another pan, boil the vegetables with little water.

Now heat oil in tava and saute shallots or onions, add tomatoand green chilli. Stir well till tomato smashes. Add Sambar, corriander, turmeric powders with salt and mix well with little water. When a thick paste is formed add the boiled vegetables and dal with water left over. Mix well and allow to cook for five minutes. Add tamarind pulp and allow to cook till form appears. Now season it with mustard seeds, asafoetida, vadagam, curry leaves. The sambar is ready.

Cooking Rice in pressure cooker

2011-03-15T21:14:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

For 1 cup rice 2 cups of water

Method:
Rinse the rice 2 times with water, drain the water and add the proportional water to it. Place the gasket properly and close the cooker lid. Place it on the stove. When steam comes put whistle. Can allow 3 whistles and switch it off. When steam lowers remove whistle and open the lid to see your cooked rice.

If you are using basmati rice, then for 1 cup of basmati rice 1 cup of water is enough.

To get the rice cooked well can soak the rice for half an hour before you place on your stove.
To get non sticky rice, add a tea spoon of ghee along with water to rice before you place on your stove.

2010-03-05T02:46:00.000-08:00

Indian Kitchen is basically an accumulation of beautiful art work. By exploring Indian Kitchen, the tradition, culture, the taste, the flavour and nature of Indians can be known and cherished. The tree of how it is explored currently is given here. Research is being undertaken to present it in a more better way. Also suggestions from viewers are highly welcomed.

Home

About Cooking

--Indian Breakfast

--Indian Meals

Recipes
--Menu Card

--Gallery

General Cooking Procedures

Traditional Indian Vessels

Indian Vegetables

Indian Fruits

About Cooking

2010-03-04T19:59:00.001-08:00

Cooking is an art of preparing food. It is an amazing way to express creativity. Combining colors, flavors and varying the patterns in various dishes makes a great taste. Cooking has to be fused with passion to get yummy taste. One who cooks without haste or waste does an efficient cooking. It goes easier if organized by planning the order in which you cook the meals and use time to your best. Also clean as you cook as "Cleanliness is next to Godliness".

A healthy and hygenic way of cooking forms the backbone of a healthy family. Indian Recipe Corner sticks to these concepts in presenting you yummy meals with numerous kitchen tips along with it. Enjoy the Meals and lead a healthy life full of satisfaction and contented mind.

Indian Breakfast
The breakfast of South Indians will normally be either idli with chutney, dosa with chutney or sambar, ven pongal or uppuma. Some also include ulundu vada ( methu vada ) in their regular breakfast like 2 idli, 1 vada or 2 dosa with 1 vada. Their breakfast is completed or gets perfect with a cup of tea.
Have a glimpse of Indian Breakfast recipe here.

Indian Meals

The much effort spent for cooking is best appreciated only on the way we serve the meals. In our Indian tradition especially in South India serving in green banana leaf is a tradition from ancient times followed on aspects of sanity and hygenic like the use and throw plates we use for serving food. Anyhow nature made things cannot be replaced on any cause for its worth.

From the books I referred, I have listed the order of serving the meals items in bana leaf starting from left edge of the leaf as numbered in the Banana Leaf picture is explained as follows:

1. Salt 2. Pickles 3. Chutney Powder 4. Green Gram Salad 5. Bengal Gram Salad 6. Coconut Chutney 7. Fogath 8. Jack Fruit Fogath 9. Lemon Rice 10. Papad 11. Crispies like chips 12. Steamed Rice Cake 13. Rice 14. Dal 15. Raitha 16. Rasam 17. Black Gram Paste 18. Brinjal Pakoda 19. Sweet And Sour Gravy 20. Maida Fry like bonda 21. Avial 22. Ladies Finger Pakoda 23. Brinjal Sambar24.Sweet 25. Masalwada Curry 26. Sweet Coconut, Chapati 27. Vangi Bath or Upma 28. Sour Ginger Gravy 29. Gheer or any Sweet 30. Curds 31. Butter Milk

The above said are our traditional rules.Also the leaf should be laid out so that its widened end is at the right side of the guest and narrow end is at the left side of the guest. Before laying it should have been cleaned well without any dust particles as " Cleanliness is next to Godliness" . Along with it do not forget to place a glass of water as most of them undergo traditional prayer to God with water before consuming Bojana. If we are not able to follow the entire thing as a custom we could approach it as a best way to organise our serving to give a delicious garnishing effect as a whole.