Annapurna

Mysore Pesarattu Dosa Recipe

2018-07-06T23:42:00.000-07:00

Todays recipe is Mysore Pesarattu dosa. I tasted this dosa dring my stay in hyderabad ...

Now whats pesarattu ?

Pesarattu(Telugu: పెసరట్టు), is a crepe-like bread unique to Telugu cuisine that is similar to dosa. It is made with batter of green gram (moong dal), but unlike a dosa, it does not contain urad dal.

Pesarattu is eaten both in breakfast and as snack that popular in Andhra Pradesh state in India. It is typically served with ginger or tamarind chutney.Green chillies, ginger and onions are used in different variants of this snack.

A variety of pesarattu served with upma is known as MLA pesarattu, which came to be known after it was popular in MLA quarters restaurants in Hyderabad.

Upma pesarattu is a favourite in coastal Andhra region especially the Guntur, Krishna, East Godavari and West Godavari districts.

Paired with the tiffin sambar, coriander chutney ,white coconut idli chutney and ginger chutney ( Andhra allam pachadi ) it was quite a different treat!

I thought of giving it a twist by adding red chilli garlic mysore chutney which is smeared while making Mysore Masala dosa and a new dimension was added to the regular pesarattu..

I made the Pesarattu dosa with green moong dal but you can even use whole green moong beans

Pesarattu taste yum even without upma too as we have onion, green chili and cumin seeds sprinkled so you can skip upma filling

Ingredients

To Grind

2 Cups - Hara Moong Dal/Green Gram

1/4 Cup - Rice

3 to 4- Green Chili

1 tsp - Chopped Ginger

2 garlic cloves

1 small bunch coriander leaves

1 tsp - Cumin Seeds

To Taste - Salt/Namak

Filling for pesarattu

2 Medium - Onions

4 - Green Chillies

2 tsp - Cumin Seeds

To Cook – Oil/Ghee

Red chilli chutney

1/4 cup - chanadal

4 to 5 nos - Red chili
4-5 garlic flakes
1 tsp tamarind
1 tablespoon – coconut/ 3 madras sambhar onion/ 1 medium onion
Salt to taste

Serving

tiffin sambar, coriander chutney ,white coconut idli chutney and ginger chutney,rava upma

Method:

1. soak the moong beans and rice overnight(or atleast 5 hours) in enough water. next morning drain water rinse it few times and Grind together with rest of the ingredients and some salt + water to make batter of pouring consistency

2. Meanwhile roast cumin seeds slightly , finely chop onion and green chilies, mix together crushed cumin, chopped onion and green chili.keep aside.

3.Heat oil in a pan or kadai, add roasted gram (chana dal), dry red chili and roast in medium flame until it becomes light brown, add chopped onion, garlic and saute for another 1-2 mins, off flame and allow to cool.Grind roasted ingredients with salt, tamarind with little water to make thick chutney. (add 1 tbsp water at a time, not to make chutney watery).

4. Heat a tawa and spread one ladle-full of batter into a dosa.Spread it thinner for a crisper version, . Drizzle with some oil and let it cook covered on medium heat for 2 minutes .

When dosa is about to done, spread red chutney and put spread the minced onions,chilli cumin mixture on top .drizzle oil or ghee over edges, cook for 1 minutes in high to medium flame. Remove cover and check if pesarattu is cooked if not cover and cook again for 30 secs to a minute.

5. Apply ghee or oil on top and cook for 30 seconds to a minute to make pesarattu more crispy.

6.Serve hot with sambar, coriander chutney ,white coconut idli chutney and ginger chutney ( Andhra allam pachadi)

Tips

1. You can even use potato masala (palya) filling instead of onion green chilli mixture to make Mysore Masala Pesarattu

2.The dosa can be made with whole moong beans or spilt moong lentils which are also known as green gram in English.For a more nutritious pesarattu, use moong dal sprouts instead of the whole beans

3.You can add rice flour instead of raw rice but grinding the rice along with the dal gives a coarse texture to the pesarattu which I personally love

Tomato upma recipe ,How to make Tomato Rava Upma

2017-09-15T00:19:00.000-07:00

Upma is a popular breakfast in maharashtra and south India

upma and poha are two breakfast dishes i make when i am in a hurry as they are quick to prepare with easily available ingredients.

I prepare it with the standard upma seasoning redolent with the fresh flavor of curry leaves and green chillis, and tomatoes being the main star ingredient.

the reason being i like a recipes made with tomatoes. the tang from the tomatoes uplifts the overall flavor in this upma which is tangy and spicy.

i have not added any veggie except tomato but you may add carrots,green peas,beans,corns etc in addition to tomato to enhance nutrition value

tomato upma is best served hot drizzled with a bit of ghee on top.

For variation i have added 1/4 tsp red chilli powder ,in case you are not using red chilli powder you can increase green/red chilli to 3 or 4 .also you can try adding 1 tbsp sambhar powder , bisi bele bath masala powder or vangi bath powder in this tomato upma.

Ingredients
•1 cups semolina (rava-medium size),
•2 1/2 to 3 cups water,
•2 chopped tomato
•1 onion chopped
•2 red/green chilies, 1 teaspoon(s) ginger chopped
•1/4 cup soaked and shelled peanuts or broken cashewnuts,
•2 tsp sugar,
•salt to taste,¼ tsp red chilli powder/lal mirch powder (can also add vangi bath powder or bisi bele bath powder)
•2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) /oil,
•2 tsp mustard seeds + 2 tsp split black gram (udid dal)+1 tbsp bengal gram (chana dal)
•1/2 teaspoon asafoetida,
•10-12 curry leaves,
•coconut and coriander leaves for garnishing.

Method:

1.Put 1 tsp ghee in a pan. Roast rava over medium heat till the color changes to golden brown and it gives out nice aroma. (for 10 to 15 minutes)
2.Keep water to boil in a pan
3.Heat ghee/oil in a pan.add hing. Add urad dal,bengal gram, mustard. As the dal turns reddish, alternatively, when the mustard seeds crackle, add asafoetida, chilies, curry leaves,chopped ginger and peanuts or cashewnuts. Fry for some time. Add tomato & chopped onion, & saute for 2 minutes.next add rawa & mix it well. Add salt and sugar and keep stirring
4.When the water comes to a boil, add water slowly mixing after each addition, to keep from forming lumps.. Remove the lumps, if any
5.Now cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Add 2 tsp ghee and again sprinkle some water over the uppama to make it soft. Cover for a minute.squeeze 1 tspn lemon juice.
6.Garnish with coconut and coriander leaves. drizzle 1 tsp ghee on each bowl and serve hot with mango or chili pickle.

Tips and Variations:

1)corn kernals,green peas, chopped carrots, can be added for a different taste.
2)The proportion mentioned here is for medium size semolina. You may use coarse semolina. Then, for 2 cups of semolina, use 4 to 5 cups of water. For fine rava, reduce the amount of water to 3 cups.
3)Drizzle a little bit of ghee on top before serving.
4)Try garnishing with 'shev/sev' (fried noodles).
5)Ghee is very important to impart flavor to this dish. A combination of oil and ghee/butter can also be used.

Amla Rice,Nellikai Sadam,Usirikaya pulihora,Gooseberry Rice Recipe

2017-03-04T22:55:00.000-08:00

Amla / Awla / Gooseberry is a super fruit and it has numerous health benefits.

Amla(known as 'usirikaya' in telugu and 'nellikai' in tamil and kannada) is rich in vitamin C and is very essential to include it in our diet frequently.

One should eat amla daily as it is well known for its health benefits and is proved to be the best immune boosters. It is high in vitamin C and a great source of antioxidants.

It helps to control diabetes, heart diseases and protects us from cancer. Due to its high anti-oxidants, it slows down ageing.

This amla rice recipe is called as usirikaya pulihora in telugu.....I made it simple just like lemon rice.

Ingredients
Cooked Rice - 1 and 1/4 cups
Amla - 1/2 cup heaped grated
To temper
Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - a small sprig
Oil - 1 tbsp + 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 3/4 tsp
Chana Dal - 2 tsp
8-10 Cashew nuts,broken
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Red Chillies - 2
green chillies - 1
Peanuts - 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Hing - a small pinch

Method :
1.Wash and soak the rice for 10 to 15 minutes with 2 cups of water.Prepare the rice either in pressure cooker or rice cooker.spread it with a tsp of oil.Cool the rice completely.
2.Wash amla, grate it using a grater,Discard the seeds...Set aside.Heat oil in a pan - add the items under 'to temper' table, let mustard seeds splutter.
3.Fry till dals turn golden brown then add grated amla and saute for 2-3mins.
4.Add cooked rice to the amla seasoning and mix gently.
5.Serve hot with papad or any curry of your choice.

Tips
Use amla as per sourness of amla. Some amla are very sour and may make the rice very sour.
You can use leftover rice too to make variety rice.If you are using hot rice,make it well in advance fluff and spread it with oil and keep aside.
If you wish you can even add onion for extra crunch.
Adjust the number of green chillies in the recipe accordingly.I prefer to make this rice spicy and tangy.

Pudina paratha recipe, Mint lachha paratha,restaurant style pudina paratha recipe

2016-11-13T19:18:00.000-08:00

Mint or pudina is supposed to make a cooling effect.so with summer approaching presenting my first summer recipe pudina paratha.

this is hotel style paratha recipe where the mint paratha is layered like the lachcha paratha.

Pudina means mint leaves in marathi and hindi and paratha is an unleavened flat bread made from whole wheat flour.
pudina parathas are crispy, flaky, layered, mint flavored whole wheat flat breads.

they are crisp as well as flaky and need to be served hot. if you plan to serve in the tiffin box, then just make simple paratha without the layers.
i have used fresh mint leaves. though you can also use dried mint leaves. you can also add more or less mint leaves as per your taste. you can serve pudina paratha with a mango pickle, curd or paneer gravy.I had made them for dinner

Ingredients:

For dough:
Whole Wheat Flour / Atta - 1 cup
mint leaves 1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Water - 1/2 cup or as needed

For mint masala stuffing:
1 cup tightly packed fresh mint leaves or 3-4 tbsp dry mint leaves
1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
½ tsp fennel seeds/saunf
1 dry red chili, broken and seeds removed or 5-6 pepper corns
1 tbsp chaat masala

Soft Unsalted Butter / Ghee / Oil as needed
Wheat flour as needed for dusting

Method:
1.Take flour ,ghee /butter/oil ,mint leaves and salt in a bowl. mix well. Add water slowly and make it into a soft dough. Cover it and let it rest for 30 mins.

2.in a pan, add cumin seeds, fennel seeds and roast for half a minute on a low flame.
next add 1 dry red chili, broken and seeds removed or pepper corns.roast till the cumin seeds become fragrant. remove aside and add them in a dry grinder

3.Now chop mint leaves very finely. Add salt and above masala in it and mix well with your fingers. divide the dough into equal balls.

4 Take a ball and roll it into circle. Spread some butter /ghee/oil all over it and sprinkle flour. Sprinkle mint masala and start pleating. begin to fold from the edges like a fan with pleats.fold towards the end and then roll tightly to a circle. press the loose end at the center downwards.

5.prepare the pleated roll balls like these and keep aside covered to rest for 5 minutes.take one pleated ball and dust some flour on both sides.Now roll it into paratha of 5-6 inches.

6.Heat a tawa. Put paratha in hot tawa.when you see the paratha puffing up at some places and is ¼th cooked then flip.

spread some oil or ghee on this side.flip again and spread some oil or ghee on this side too.press the edges with a spatula so that they are cooked well.flip a couple of times to get even roasting and cooking of the parathas.

7. put them in a casserole or a roti basket in case you are not serving them right away.

8. serve pudina paratha plain with some mango pickle or curd or with a dal fry

Navratri Upwas recipes | Vrat-falahari -fasting dish- thali

2016-10-01T21:42:00.000-07:00

Navaratri represents celebration of Goddess Durga, the manifestation of Deity in form of Shakti [Energy or Power]. The word Navaratri literally means nine nights in Sanskrit, nava meaning nine and ratri meaning nights.The Navarathri festival or ‘Nine Nights festival’ becomes ‘ten days festival’ with the addition of the last day, Vijayadashami which is its culmination.

Navratri Celebrations 2012 starts from October 16th 2012 to October 23rd 2012.

Since in most of the communities, people observe fast during Navratri and eat only one meal a day at sunset, the Navratri meal has special courses and is strictly vegetarian. Even onion and garlic are not allowed in some cases. Special ingredients and vegetables are used for the dishes, which vary from region to region.

The Navratri fast is observed from the first day to the ninth day. Some devotees only observe fast during three days i.e., first fast during any one of the first three days and second fast during any one of the next three and last in any one of final three days. Some people confine to milk and fruits during the nine days. Most devotees take a single meal during the day. Non-vegetarian food is totally avoided.

Heres a collection of few upwas dishes which can be eaten during your fast.

Click on individual recipe name for detailed recipe

For NAVRATRI sweet dishes which can be made as naivaidya during navratri ,
pls click on NAVRATRI SPECIAL SWEET RECIPES

Pls click on Navratri special recipe dishes for complete main course thali menu

SWEET KACHORI UPWAS BHAJANI THALIPEETH

UPWAS BATATA WADA ARVI/ARBI SURAN TIKKI

UPWAS KACCHI KELI VADA UPWAS ALOO PATTICE

UPWAS KACHI KELI KABAB RATALA THALIPEETH

FALAHARI SABUDANA CHIWDA RAJGIRA WADA

SABUDANA BATATA CHAKLI SUN DRIED BATATA KEES

UPWAS BHEL
RAJGIRA POORI

UPWAS SABUDANA APPE UPWAS DOSA

SABUDANA CHIKODI /PAPAD                                      BATATA WAFERS






UPWAS SHENGDANA AMTI UPWAS BHAGAR/VARICHA BHAT

KACCHI KELI SABUDANA CUTLET SHENGDANA LADOO

SABUDANA WADA SABUDANA KHICHDI

KACHI KELI BHAJIA/PAKORA UPWAS BATATA RATALA BHAJI

UPWAS GULABJAMUN KELE KE WAFERS

RATALA /SHAKARKAND HALWA SURAN (YAM) THALIPEETH

PEANUT COCONUT CHUTNEY DAHI SHENGDANA CHUTNEY

RATALA KEES /GRATED SWEET POTATO SABUDANA THALIPEETH

UPWAS KOFTA CURRY RATALA ( SWEET POTATO) LOLLIPOP

UPWAS BHAJANI CHE WADA MOSAMBI JUICE

RATALA TIKKI CUTLET

UPWAS SURAN (YAM) TIKKI - CUTLET SABUDANA BATATA POORI

UPWAS RATALA CHAT APPLE MALPUA

FRUIT CHAAT

KHAMANG KAKDI

SABUDANA BATATA PURI
RATALA (SWEET POTATO) KACHORI

SABUDANA ROLL ARBI BHAJI

UPWAS KONPHAL BATATA BHAJI

Navratri - Goddess Durga festival | Celebrations -Importance

2016-09-30T02:59:00.000-07:00

Navratri is a festival dedicated to the worship of a Hindu deity Shakti ,Goddess Durga,.The word Navaratri literally means nine nights in Sanskrit, nava meaning nine and ratri meaning nights.During these nine nights and ten days, nine forms of Shakti/Devi are worshiped. The 10th day is commonly referred to as Vijayadashami or "Dussehra."

It is one of the important Hindu festivals. It is dedicated to the worship of the deity of Power. Like other festivals of India, Navratri also has a significance and meaning attached to it. Each day of the nine-day festival are dedicated to the worship of different forms of Goddess Durga, which unfolds the religious importance of the occasion. It comes twice on a year, once around March-April and the second time, around September-October. The nine days and nights of Navratri are entirely devoted to Mother Goddess. Throughout this period, fasts, strictly vegetarian diets, japa (chanting mantras in honor of the Goddess Shakti), religious hymns, prayer, meditation and recitation of sacred texts related to Devi Maa (Mother Goddess) form the order of the day. The festival is celebrated with true devotion and purity all over the country. People from various sections of the society irrespective of caste and creed celebrate this festival by visiting temples and offering pujas at the Mother’s feet.

According to the Hindu calendar, Navratri begins from the first day of the bright fortnight of Ashwin which usually coincides with the end of the rainy season.The nine days have great religious significance as Goddess Durga, the divine mother, had destroyed the evil force (in the form of the demon Mahishasura) during this period.

Significance of Navratri

The First Three Days of Navratri
The first three days of Navratri are devoted to the worship of the Goddess Durga. This is the period, when her energy and power are worshipped. Each day is dedicated to a different appearance of Durga. Kumari, which signifies the girl child, is worshipped on the first day of the festival. Parvati, who is the embodiment of a young woman, is worshipped on the second day. The destructive aspects of Goddess Durga symbolize the commitment to acquire triumph over all the evil tendencies. Hence, on the third day of Navratri, Goddess Kali is worshipped, who represents the woman who has reached the stage of maturity.

Fourth to Sixth Days of NavratriWhen a person acquires triumph over evil tendencies of ego, anger, lust and other animal instincts, he/she experiences a void. This void is filled with spiritual wealth. For the purpose, the person approaches Goddess Lakshmi, to acquire all the materialistic, spiritual wealth and prosperity. This is the reason why the fourth, fifth and sixth day of Navratri are dedicated to the worship of Lakshmi - the goddess of prosperity and peace.

Although the individual has acquired victory over evil tendencies and wealth, he is still deprived of true knowledge. Knowledge is required to live the life of a humane, even though he/she is prospered with power and wealth. Therefore, Goddess Saraswati is worshipped on the fifth day of Navratri. All the books and other literature materials are gathered in one place and a 'diya' (earthen lamp) is lit in front of the deity, to invoke the goddess and seek her blessings. Till the time the books are kept at the puja room, the students would not study.

Seventh and Eighth Day of Navratri
The seventh day is dedicated to worshipping Saraswati, the goddess of art and knowledge. Prayers are offered with an aim to seek spiritual knowledge. A 'yagna' is performed on the eight day. This comprises of a sacrifice honoring goddess Durga as well as bids her farewell. The sacrifice or offering is made out of clarified butter (ghee), rice pudding known as kheer and sesame seeds.

Ninth Day of NavratriThe ninth day is the final day of Navratri celebrations. It is also known as 'Mahanavami'. On the day, Kanya puja is performed to worship nine young girls, who have not yet reached the stage of puberty. These nine girls symbolize one of the nine forms of goddess Durga. The feet of girls are washed to welcome the goddess and show respect to her. The girls are offered a set of new clothes as a gift from the devotees at the end of the puja.

SNAPS OF NAVRATRI POOJA AT MY HOME :

Navaratri Celebrations

Bengal

During Navratri, Bengalis in India worship huge idols of the Goddess, perform devotional songs and dances and finally take out grand processions on the tenth day, when the idols are immersed in water. The last four days of the festival are most important for them. People worship pre-pubescent young girls, known as 'kanyas', as the embodiments of Goddess Durga. 'Ayudha Puja' is performed on the ninth day, where one worships the tools, implements of their livelihood and places it on the altar of the Goddess for her blessings of success and prosperity. Even children place their study books and writing tools on the altar and the families spend whole day in contemplation of the Goddess. On the tenth day of Dussehra, devotees perform 'Saraswati Puja' for blessings of knowledge and mental peace. During Navratri, thousands of devotees visit Dakshineswar Kali Temple in Kolkota, West Bengal

Gujarat

In Gujarat, Navratri is a community event, where people perform devotional songs and dances that are popular by the names of 'Dandiya Raas' and 'Garba Raas', and observe Jaagran (waking through the night), to please the Goddess. Amba Mata Temple at Junagarh, Gujarat, is a favorite pilgrim for devotees, during Navratri. Here, painted earthen pots are used to represent the Goddess and Garba dances are performed by the Gujarati women around those pots, in circles. The pots are valued as the abode of the Goddess. The Rasa has its origin in the life scenes of Lord Krishna and is associated with the agricultural rites, while Garba is performed only by men and is related with the agricultural fertility.

Maharashtra
In Maharashtra, Goddess Durga is worshipped continuously for nine days of Navratri. On the tenth day, Goddess Saraswati is worshipped and on this day, school-going children worship the tantrik symbol of the goddess for her blessing in their studies. This day is also considered auspicious to begin any new thing or to buy new ornaments. Puja is performed on each day of Navratri and devotees offer the flower garland to the idol or image of the goddess Durga.

Kashmir
In Kashmir, Hindu minorities of Kashmiri Pandits celebrate Navratri. People generally observe fast for nine days and stay on water and fruits or eat the food specifically made for the fast, only in the evening. They usually visit the temple of their guardian goddess Kheer Bhawani, on all nine days of Navratri. Aarti is held on the last day of Navratri at the temple and it is only after which, people break their fast. Many devotees also go to the mountain cave of the Vaishno Devi Temple, during Navratri.

Kerala
In Kerala, there is a tradition of beginning of formal education for every child aged 3-5 years on the auspicious occasion of Durga Puja. On Ashtami, according to the custom, tools are not used and are worshiped on this day. Goddess Saraswati is honored by worshiping the books and records at home, on Navami. Thousands of devotees visit Saraswati temple at Kottayam, during Navratri, to take a dip in the mysterious holy pond. People also visit the famous temples at Thekkegram (Palghat).

Mysore, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka & Andhra Pradesh
In Mysore, Chamundi, the royal deity of the Mysore royalty is worshipped during Navratri, with pomp and pageantry. There is a magnificent procession of elephants, horses, chariots and costumed attendants on the tenth day, when Maharaja goes to worship the hilltop temple of the goddess. In Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, women arrange 'Bommai Kolu', a special placing of dolls decorated with flowers and ornaments on specially prepared steps. Nine young 'kanyas' or virgins are offered new clothes and sweets. The married women share flowers, kumkum and snacks among themselves. Thus, Navratri is celebrated in almost every region of India, with little difference.

Pineapple halwa ,Annanas sheera, pineapple kesari

2016-09-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

Todays recipe is a sweet dish which was in my to do list since many days...Pineapple halwa, annanas sheera or pineapple kesari

Halwa is a very popular dessert of India .
Here is a tongue-tickling dessert thatsends your taste buds into a tizzy with its tangy flavour and rich consistency, while still being very easy to prepare and ready to be served within minutes!
In most Indian states halwa or kesari is made and enjoyed on festivals and on daily basis.

Pineapple halwa can be made either with fresh pineapple or tinned pineapple .You can add chopped pineapple or can add coarsely crushed pineapple puree , but I prefer to add both pineapple pieces and coarse puree in pineapple halwa.
I had tasted this first in cousins marriage

Ingredients
1 cup Pineapple / Annanas pureed
1/4 Cup Pine apple pieces
1 cup Semolina / Sooji
1/2 cup Clarified Butter / Desi Ghee
2.5 cup Water / Paani
1+1/4 cup Sugar / Chini (adjust as per sourness of pineapple)
1/4 tsp Cardamom Powder / Elaichi Powder
pinch of Saffron / Kesar
1 tbsp Pistachio or almonds chopped
1 tbsp Cashew Nuts / Kaju toasted

Method:

1. chop 2 slices into small pieces and grind 4 pineapple slices coarsely in the mixer jar, no need to make a smooth puree.

2. Heat water and sugar in a pan and cook till sugar melts completely. Now switch off gas and add saffron and pineapple crush(1 cup ) and pinepple pieces into it and mix. keep aside till pineapple soaks sugar

3. Heat ghee in a heavy bottom kadhai /pan and roast the cashew nuts to a nice golden colours and then take out from the pan and keep aside. Now add semolina/rava in the pan and roast on low heat till it is golden in colour and start giving a nice aroma.

4. next add the sugar syup and keep stirring and mix well till it start to thicken.cover with lid and cook for 5 to 7 minutes on low to medium heat. Now add cardamom powder and mix well

5. Garnish with sliced pistachio ,cashew and tuti fruity slices.

tips
1.can add raisins and charoli to above sheera
2.can add chopped pineapple or can add coarsely crushed pineapple puree , but I prefer to add both pineapple pieces and coarse puree in pineapple halwa.

Paneer Kulcha Recipe |Amritsari paneer kulche

2016-08-07T06:44:00.000-07:00

I am addicted to punjabi cuisine .I love chola bhatura , punjabi kadhi, aloo matar ,palak paneer ,parathas and ofcourse kulchas...list goes on and on.

I have blogged about aloo kulcha earlier .todays recipe is Paneer Kulcha

I wanted to make this paneer kulcha since long time but somehow kept on postponing & ended in other paneer dishes.Last weekend both milk packets got spoilt & I made paneer from them.

Obviously taste of home made paneer is definitely different & nowadays I refrain from buying paneer from market as I make it at home only.Pls chk out here for recipe of how to make paneer at home ?

Coming back to recipe Paneer Kulcha recipe is simply Indian flat bread stuffed with cottage cheese - paneer along with few spices.Sounds yummy, right?

We can enjoy this Paneer kulcha just with pickle or Raitha or pain curd (dahi) .it is a easy lunch box menu & kids favorite too

Paneer is known as indian cottage cheese, very much common in Indian Cusine. I love to eat paneer in any form

After tasting this kulcha all i can say is "Step out of the stereotype, set aside the aloo and pyaaz and make paneer kulchas instead! use fresh, homemade paneer to transport yourself to seventh heaven. "

Kulcha (Urdu: کلچه, Hindi: कुलचा; Punjabi: ਕੁਲਚਾ) is a type of leavened north Indian flatbread made from maida (wheat flour). It is particularly popular in India and Pakistan, and is usually eaten with chole.
Kulcha is a typical Punjabi recipe, originating in Punjab. Amritsar is known for its Amritsari kulchas or Amritsari naan. Flour dough is rolled into a flat, round shape and baked in an earthen clay oven until golden brown. When baked, it is usually rubbed with butter, and then eaten with spicy chole (chickpea curry).

. The leavened maida or refined flour flat breads called kulchas are stuffed with potatoes (aloo),onion and lots of spices and anardana(pomegranate seeds) , are rolled into a flat round bread and baked in an earthen clay oven until golden brown and served with channa(yoghurt),dahi or pickleThe ingredients are similar to aloo paratha except the outer covering is all purpose flour.It is rubbed with butter and then eaten with spicy chole...

Serves 7 kulchas

Ingredients :

Kulcha
Maida (white flour/all purpose flour) - 400 gms. (3 cup)
Curd - 3 table spoon.
Baking soda - 1/3 tea spoon.
Baking powder - 1/2 tea spoon.
Sugar - 1 tea spoon.
Oil - 1 table spoon.
Salt - 3/4 tea spoon (or according to the taste)
Carom seeds (Owa/ajwain) or cumin seeds (jeera/jira) - 1 tea spoon.

Filling /stuffing

1 cup grated paneer
1 tbsp chopped coriander (dhania)
1/2 tsp roasted and ground cumin seeds (jeera)
2-3 finely chopped green chillies
1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
1 tsp ajwain owa
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp dried mango powder (amchur) /chat masala
1 tsp anardana (optional)
1 tsp pepper powder (optional)
1 tsp finely grated ginger (ala)
1 tsp coriander (dhania) powder
pinch sugar
1 onion chopped finely (optional)
salt to taste

Method :

1.Sieve the maida in a bowl and mix curd, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar, oil in it. Mix the ingredients well with hands.

2.Knead the flour with luke warm water to make a smooth dough. Apply oil to the dough and keep it in a covered bowl at a warm place. Within 3-4 hours the dough will rise.

3. Punch the dough once again to fix it. The dough to make kulcha is ready.

4. In the meantime mix all the ingredients for stuffing in a bowl .taste seasoning & adjust accordingly The filling to stuff the kulcha is ready.

5.Make 8-10 round balls of the dough. Make equal amount of small balls of the paneer mixture also.

6.Take one ball of the dough and roll it into a flat disc of 3 inch. Put the paneer mixture ball on the disc and press it with hands so it settles down on the dough. Fold and close the disc from all the sides as shown below.

7.Dust the kulcha with dry maida and press it with light hands to increase its size upto 3 inch. Now roll the kulcha into a flat disc of 6-7 inch with the roller. Fix some carom seeds or cumin seeds over the at the top of the kulcha.

8.You can bake the kulcha in oven, pan (tawa) or tandoor.

9.Heat a tava /pan . Put the kulcha in the pan and roast it until it turns brown from the bottom surface. Pour some oil or ghee on the upper surface once the lower surface turns brown. Roast it till both the surface turns brown in colour. Prepare all the kulchas in the same manner.

10.Serve the Paneer stuffed kulchas with curd, chutney,mango pickle or chole recipe.

Tip /variation:

1. For baking kulcha in an oven grease a tray with oil. Put 2 kulchas in the pan and pre-heat the oven at 300 centigrade. Place the tray in an oven and bake the kulcha for 2 minutes. Flip the side of the kulchas after 2 minutes and bake again till both the surfaces turn brown in colour. Now take out the tray from the oven and serve the hot baked kulchas with curd, aloo matar, pickle or chole recipe.

2. can use black sesame seeds /kalonji/owa /jeera to top up the kulcha

Shrawan upwas marathi recipes | shravan month fasting food |sravan vrat recipe

2016-07-07T00:28:00.000-07:00

Shravan Maas is the fifth month in a traditional Marathi calendar followed in Maharashtra and is a highly auspicious month.

Shravan Month 2013 is from August 7 to September 5.

The month is highly auspicious and staunch Hindus do not eat meat products and perform different types of pujas. Mondays is dedicated to Shiva Pooja and on Tuesdays women perform Mangala Gowri Puja. Other important festivals and auspicious days include Nag Panchami, Narli Purnima, Sri Krishna Jayanti and Dahi Handi.

Shrawan Somvar Vrat is observed by married women for happy marital bliss and her family’s wellness. Unmarried women perform Shrawan maas somvar vrat to get good life partner. Men also worship Shrawan Somvar vrat for their academic, professional success.Sawan Somvar Vrat is observed by married women for happy marital bliss and her family’s wellness. Unmarried women perform Shrawan maas somvar vrat to get good life partner. Men also worship Shrawan Somvar vrat for their academic, professional success.
The month of Shravan according to the Hindu calendar has started. Shravan is considered an auspicious month for the Hindus.

In India, during this month, most Hindus abstain from eating non vegetarian food. It is the month of vegetarianism and most women observe fast on every Monday during this month.
Heres a collection of few upwas dishes which can be eaten during your shravan fast.

Click on individual recipe name link for detailed recipe

SWEET KACHORI UPWAS BHAJANI THALIPEETH

UPWAS BATATA WADA ARVI/ARBI SURAN TIKKI

UPWAS KACCHI KELI VADA UPWAS ALOO PATTICE

UPWAS KACHI KELI KABAB RATALA THALIPEETH

FALAHARI SABUDANA CHIWDA RAJGIRA WADA

SABUDANA BATATA CHAKLI SUN DRIED BATATA KEES

UPWAS BHEL RAJGIRA POORI

UPWAS SABUDANA APPE UPWAS DOSA

SABUDANA CHIKODI /PAPAD BATATA WAFERS

UPWAS SHENGDANA AMTI UPWAS BHAGAR/VARICHA BHAT

KACCHI KELI SABUDANA CUTLET SHENGDANA LADOO

SABUDANA WADA SABUDANA KHICHDI

KACHI KELI BHAJIA/PAKORA UPWAS BATATA RATALA BHAJI

UPWAS GULABJAMUN KELE KE WAFERS

RATALA /SHAKARKAND HALWA SURAN (YAM) THALIPEETH

PEANUT COCONUT CHUTNEY DAHI SHENGDANA CHUTNEY

RATALA KEES /GRATED SWEET POTATO SABUDANA THALIPEETH

UPWAS KOFTA CURRY RATALA ( SWEET POTATO) LOLLIPOP

UPWAS BHAJANI CHE WADA MOSAMBI JUICE

RATALA TIKKI CUTLET

UPWAS SURAN (YAM) TIKKI - CUTLET SABUDANA BATATA POORI

UPWAS RATALA CHAT APPLE MALPUA

FRUIT CHAAT

KHAMANG KAKDI

RATALA (SWEET POTATO) KACHORI SABUDANA ROLLS

ARBI BHAJI

Hyderabadi khatti Dal ,Khatti Dal Hyderabad style

2016-07-03T04:35:00.000-07:00

Mention of hyderabad makes me nostalgic , today another recipe from hyderabadi cuisine that is hyderabadi khatti dal

this khatti dal is a popular lentil recipe made from split pigeon peas or arhar dal or toor dal
the word ‘khatti‘ translates to ‘sour’ in english. so the exact translation of ‘khatti dal‘ will be ‘sour lentils’.

Hyderabadi Khatti Dal is kind of like a lentil soup with a slight tangy flavor due to the addition of tamarind concentrate

this khatti dal goes well with basmati rice, jeera rice, chappati or rotis.

Ingredients

1 Cup Tuvar dal (Yellow lentils)/Masoor Dal (Red Lentils)
1 Tomato (finely chopped)
½ inch Ginger
2 garlic crushed
1 tbsp Red chilli powder
pinch Turmeric powder

other ingredients
1 tsp coriander powder/dhania powder
2-4 green chillies finely chopped
Raw Tamarind juice (imli ka khata)/Lemon juice
1/4 tsp turmeric
Salt – to taste

For seasoning (Baghar)
4 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tsp Black mustard seeds
6-8 Garlic Cloves smashed
2 Dried Red chilliies
6-8 Curry Leaves
pinch hing

For Garnish

Coriander leaves (finely chopped )

Method :

1. In a pressure cooker add tuvar dal tomato,ginger, garlic paste red chilli powder & turmeric powder.Let pressure cook for about 8-9 whistles until the lentil is tender(paste).mash the dal with a madani, wooden spoon or hand blender till smooth.

2.Then in a large saucepan at medium heat ,add the lentil paste,imli ka khata,coriander powder, green chilli,salt to taste, curry leaves along with salt.stir in the ¾ or 1 cup water .

3. keep the dal on a low flame and simmer for 8-10 minutes till the raw aroma of the tamarind goes away and the all the flavors have blended well and the dal has reached a medium consistency.cover and keep the cooked dal aside.

4.heat oil in a small frying pan. crackle the cumin seeds first.then add the garlic and fry for 4-5 seconds. add the dry red chilies, curry leaves and asafoetida.fry till the red chilies change their color and the curry leaves become crisp.pour this tempering and stir.cover and keep aside the khatti dal for 5-6 minutes for the flavors to mingle.

5 Garnish with coriander and serve with basmati rice

Aloo Black Chana Chat recipe |Alu kala chana chaat

2016-05-27T01:38:00.000-07:00

when you have a yummy ,chatpata and a healthy homemade chaat in your hands, why to go to chaat stalls to eat it out?

yes you are right today back with another chat recipe namely ALOO BLACK CHANA CHAT.

Aloo Black Chana Chaat is oil free and a great snack to have as a salad or as tea time snack.

This fantastic chaat surprisingly does not call for curd or yogurt like others chaat do but is blended well with sweet and tangy tamarind chutney to give a tickle to the taste buds. Sweet and green chutneys are an integral part of most chaat recipes which enhances the flavours of the chaat.

Aloo black Chana chaat is a very popular Indian street food where Aloo means Potatoes and Chana means the chickpeas or garbanzo beans and chaat means snack.
Normally you find this variety of snack prepared more often on the streets of North India.

I had tasted this one of the local restaurants in mumbai ,thats when i decided to simulate in my kitchen and result was mindblowing.
you can assemble this in minutes if you have boiled white chana(chickpeas or chole in hindi),boiled potatoes and chat chutneys ready in your kitchen.

I have added three chutneys:
◾green chutney
◾sweet tamarind chutney
◾spicy red chili garlic chutney

If you are short of time to make chaat chutneys, then just add the spice powders and still enjoy the chaat but in that case squeeze some lemon juice while serving.

the recipe can also be made into a salad. just add some grated carrots, cucumber,boiled corn, beetroots, zucchini to the chaat. skip the papdi and sev, if serving as a salad.

Ingredients

½ cup dried black chickpeas or 1.5 to 2 cups cooked black chickpeas/ kala chana/ brown chole
2 medium potatoes/aloo
1 small onion, chopped
1 small tomato chopped
1 green chill sliced
2 to 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves/dhania patta
mint coriander green chutney as required
sweet chutney as required
red garlic chili chutney as required
chaat masala as required
roasted cumin powder as required
some chopped coriander leaves
a few crushed papdis
yellow sev as required
salt as required
lemon juice as per taste

Method:

1.Cook and boil potato, peel and cube it into bite sized pieces.

2 soak dried brown chickpeas overnight in enough water. drain very well. pressure cook the black chickpeas in 2 cups water and ¼ tsp salt till they are completely cooked. when the pressure settles down on its own, open the lid and strain the chickpeas. let them come to room temperature.

3.To the chickpeas, add chopped boiled potatoes.add green chutney, tamarind chutney and red chili chutney as per your taste preferences.

4.add ¼ cup finely chopped onions and ¼ cup finely chopped tomatoes.mix everything very well.

5.Place a portion of the kala chana chaat on a serving plateor bowl .sprinkle a pinch or two of chaat masala, roasted cumin powder and black salt/regular salt as required.

6.sprinkle some crushed papdi on top.sprinkle some sev on top.lastly add a touch of chopped coriander leaves. drizzle some lemon juice .serve aloo chana chaat immediately.

Tips:

Aloo black chana chaat can be served at room temperature or chilled. if serving chilled, then add the crushed papdis, sev and coriander leaves while serving.
You can alternatively use white channa (chole) too.
This can be served as salad too skipping the chutneys alone
instead of boiled aloo you can use leftover aloo sabji too

Green Peas Mint Masala Gravy,Pudina Matar Masala,Fresh peas mint curry,

2016-05-26T05:28:00.000-07:00

Fresh Green Peas / Matar are abundantly available in the winter season . I had prepared lots of recipes using fresh peas like dry curries,tikkis,parathas and various gravies using green peas.

This fresh peas minty gravy was in my to do list since a long time
In Kannada this Pudina Peas gravy is called 'Hasi Batani Kaalu Gojju' where 'Hasi Batani Kaalu' stands for 'Fresh Peas' and 'Gojju' is typically a South Indian style 'Gravy'.

This green peas mint gravy is really refreshing and a very delicious gravy.This is a typical south Indian gravy which is really delicious and is well balanced with the sweet fresh peas spiced up in the aromatic mint gravy

Recipe source :chef and her kitchen. I have followed exact recipe with few minor changes in the original recipe
I strongly recommend you to try this with fresh green peas atleast once

Ingredients:
1.5 cups fresh shelled Green Peas
1 cup loosely packed fresh Mint leaves
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh Coriander leaves
1/4 cup grated fresh Coconut
7-8 Green chillies(adjust the quantity)
half inch ginger , 2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp Fried gram ( i didnt use it)
Lemon juice squeezed of a half lemon
1/2" Cinnamon
2-3 Cloves
a sprig of Curry leaves
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
2 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Grind mint leaves with coriander leaves,grated coconut,fried gram,cinamom,cloves ,ginger ,garlic and green chillies to a smooth paste.Open the mixer jar and keep otherwise you will loose the green color if it is closed for long.
2 Microwave the fresh green peas for 3-4 mins with a pinch of sugar.This will make sure the peas retain their green color through out the cooking process.Drain and keep them aside.
3 Heat oil in the kadai and crackle mustard seeds and add hing let them splutter.Add curry leaves and boiled and drained fresh green peas and fry for 2-3 minutes.
4 Add ground mint masala and fry the masala for 5-6 mins until the oil leaves the edges and the raw smell disappears.
5 Add 1 cup of water and salt to it and mix well and let it simmer for another 5 mins. cover it with lid slightly so that the gravy does not splutter outside.Do not cover the kadai/pan completely with the lid otherwise you will loose the lovely green color of the gravy.Switch off the flame and add lemon juice to it and mix well.
6 Serve it hot with triangular Chapati or even Jeera rice.

Rava Vermicelli Upma

2016-05-24T03:42:00.003-07:00

Upma is a popular maharashtrian breakfast dish Upma is usually made with Semolina (called Rava or Suji in India).

A huge number of variations of Upma are made with whole or refined ground wheat and rice of varied grain size, vermicelli, Durum wheat semolina or pearl sago. A wide range of vegetables may be added, and may be garnished with a variety of beans (raw or sprouted), cashew and peanuts.
For a variation called masala upma, sambar masala or garam masala is added along with red chilli powder, instead of green chillies.

todays recipe is made with combination of rava and vermicelli and i have used greenpeas to increase nutritional value. you can add any veggies like tomato , carrots ,beans etc

Ingredients
• half cups semolina (rava-medium size) + half cup vermicelli
•2 1/2 to 3 cups water,
•1 chopped tomato
•1 onion chopped + 1/4 cup green peas
•3-4 red/green chilies,
•1/4 cup soaked and shelled peanuts or broken cashewnuts,
•2 tsp sugar,
•salt to taste,
•2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) /oil,
•2 tsp mustard seeds or 2 tsp split black gram (udid dal),
•1/2 teaspoon asafoetida,
•10-12 curry leaves,
•coconut and coriander leaves plus lemon juice for garnishing.

Method
1.Put 1 tsp ghee in a pan. Roast rava over medium heat till the color changes to golden brown and it gives out nice aroma. (for 10 to 15 minutes)
2.Keep water to boil in a pan
3.Heat ghee/oil in a pan.add hing. Add udid dal or mustard. As the dal turns reddish, alternatively, when the mustard seeds crackle, add asafoetida, chilies, curry leaves and peanuts or cashewnuts. Fry for some time. Add tomato & chopped onion, & saute for 2 minutes.next add rawa and semolina & mix it well. Add salt and sugar and keep stirring
4.When the water comes to a boil, add water slowly mixing after each addition, to keep from forming lumps.. Remove the lumps, if any
5.Now cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Add 2 tsp ghee and again sprinkle some water over the uppama to make it soft. Cover for a minute.squeeze 1 tspn lemon juice.
6.Garnish with coconut and coriander leaves. Serve hot with mango or chili pickle.

Tips and Variations:

1)Chopped onions, green peas, chopped carrots, tomatoes can be added for a different taste. If you add tomatoes, you may skip the yogurt.
2)The proportion mentioned here is for medium size semolina. You may use coarse semolina. Then, for 2 cups of semolina, use 4 to 5 cups of water. For fine rava, reduce the amount of water to 3 cups.
3)Drizzle a little bit of ghee on top before serving.
4)Try garnishing with 'shev/sev' (fried noodles).

Kasuri Methi Paratha Recipe ,Dried fenugreek leaves parathe

2016-05-12T04:00:00.001-07:00

sometimes simple small things give us happiness ,Like these Kasuri Methi Parathas, which are extremely simple and make for the most wonderful breakfast or dinner.

kasuri methi means dried fenugreek (methi) leaves.

you can make kasuri methi easily at home too,though it is easily avialable in market .i had made this paratha with skp chicken curry.

you can enjoy it with chole,paneer butter masala or even with plain curd and pickle.

i equally enjoy methi paratha and methi thepla ,but when you are running short of fresh methi ,the kasuri methi comes to your rescue ..try it and it will be a regular item in your lunch box....

i have kept spices minimum as i wanted a dominant flavour of methi ,but you can add any spices of your liking like garam masala,coriander cumin powder ,pinch of turmeric or red chilli powder ..

Ingredients:

Wheat flour (Atta) - 2 cups
Kasoori methi - 3/4 cup
green chilli chopped - 2-3 or Red chilly powder - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/8 tsp (optional - i didnt add as i wanted my parathas to be whitish in colour)
Ginger grated - half inch
pepper powder - 1/4 tsp
amchoor powder /chat masala - 1 tsp
oil /ghee - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Water - to knead into a dough

other ingredients
oil /ghee to roast - as needed
flour for dusting

Method:

1.Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.Add just enough warm water to make into a dough which is smooth (but not sticky).
2.Keep aside for 10 minutes.Divide the dough into 8-10 balls.

3.Roll out each dough ball into a circle of about 6-7 inches diameter,use some flour for dusting while rolling paratha .Heat a griddle and place paratha on the hot griddle.

4.Cook until light brown spots appear on the first side.Flip the paratha over and cook until the second side is cooked, and light brown spots. now again flip paratha and Drizzle a bit of ghee/butter/oil if needed on both sides and serve in plate

5.if not serving immediately, put in a caserrole .serve with pickle,curd and any spicy chicken curry or paneer curry

tips
1. can replace kasuri methi with ,fresh methi leaves in that case use 1.5 cups methi leaves.

2. i have kept spices minimum as i wanted a dominant flavour of methi ,but you can add any spices of your liking like garam masala,coriander cumin powder ,pinch of turmeric or red chilli powder ..

Batata pohe recipe,how to make aloo poha

2016-05-11T03:16:00.000-07:00

Todays recipe is a twist to normal kanda pohe where I have added boiled potato cubes and skipped onion to the traditional poha recipe. also i have boiled potato and cut into cubes.

Normally while making regular poha recipe ,kanda is a must but here i have skipped it .but you can add onions if you like the taste ...also in regular poha i add slices of potato (kachrya) and cook them along with onion ,but here i have used boiled potato cubes and i cook them till they become slightly crunchy in tempering and then i proceed with regulkar poha recipe.

Aloo Poha also known as the Batata Pawa.It is spicy from green chillies,sweet from potato,crunchy from peanuts and tangy from lemon juice

POHE!!! a common 10- minute-recipe of maharashtrians. It's a very popular Dish in Maharashtra. Maharashtrian people makes it for Breakfast or any time as a snack.

A word 'Kande pohe' is used as a term for marriage talks. It also has a traditional symbol attached to it - in an arranged marriage when a boy goes with his family to the girl's house for the first time the dish which is generally served is "kande pohe!" .....' Actually the reason is that this dish takes less time to be prepared,tasty to eat and satisfies the hunger completely. So here's KANDE CORN POHE for u...

There is one famous song from marathi movie "Sanai Choughade"
"Aayushya he chulivarlya kadhaitale Kande Pohe………..."

……. Life is like kande pohe in kadai, that means tasty and colorful.

Ingredients

•2 cup Pohe (Flaked, beaten rice),
•2 medium size onions,1/4 cup green peas
•1 cup rolled oats (i used quaker oats)
•3-4 green chilies,
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
•1 tsp lemon juice
•2 tsp sugar,
•salt to taste,
•2 tbspoon oil,
•2 teaspoon mustard seeds,
•1/2 teaspoon asafoetida,
•2 teaspoon turmeric powder,
•coconut and coriander leaves for garnishing.

Method:

1.Rinse Pohe in water and drain. Set them aside for 10 minutes.
2.Add some salt, sugar and lemon juice to them.
3.Chop green chilies finely. Chop cilantro/coriander leaves. Chop onion and potatoes into medium pieces.
4.Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. As they start spluttering, add asafoetida, turmeric powder, chopped onion, oats,green peas ,peanuts and green chilies.
5.Cover and cook on medium heat till potatoes turn tender. Then add pohe and stir.
6.Cover for 5 minutes. Remove the lid, stir and let them cook for another 2-3 minutes.
7.Garnish with coconut,rolled oats ,and coriander leaves. Serve hot with mango or chili pickle.

Variation:
Try different versions of batata pohe by adding one or more of vegetables such as curry leaves, chopped tomatoes, green peas, chopped brinjal pieces and cabbage.
Add any of these vegetables at the time of tempering and follow the rest of the method same as above.
Add 1 teaspoon black Maharashtrian masala for a different flavor.
Drizzle a little bit of ghee on top before serving.
Choosing a thicker variety of the flattened rice is better than the very thin variety. I use a medium thick variety .
You can even add 1 chopped onion in tempering along with the boiled potato

pineapple raita recipe, how how to make pineapple raita recipe

2016-05-10T00:59:00.000-07:00

My first summer season recipe of this year with pineapple raita.

had bookmarked this two years ago but somehow forgotten to make it .last week had got pinepple slices from which i made pineapple sheera ,and had some slices remaining so without wasting time i rushed to make this interesting raita.

Pineapple raita is a cooling and refreshing side dish for any meal; it is a perfect blend of pineapple chunks and creamy yogurt. Learn how to make ananas ka raita by following this easy recipe.

pineapple raita is the best raita i have had till date. i will recommend making this once and i am sure you will be hooked to it.

trust me, you and your family are going to love it. and with the summers approaching. refresh yourself with this cool, salty and sweet pineapple raita.

Ingredients
1 cup fresh curd/yogurt/dahi
½ cup chopped pineapple cubes
¼ cup pomegranate arils, optional
½ tsp red chili powder/lal mirch powder or pepper powder (kali miri powder)
1 small green chilli chopped finely
1 tsp roasted cumin powder/bhuna jeera powder
1 to 2 tbsp sugar or add as per taste
salt or rock salt or black salt as required
1 to 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
few chopped pineapple pieces,pomegrante arils , few coriander leaves for garnish

Method
1 Take the curd in a bowl. Add sugar, cumin seed ,red chilli or pepper powder and salt. Beat the curd until it becomes smooth.Add chopped green chili in it and mix well.
2 Add pineapple chunks and half of the pomegranate seeds in it and mix well.
3 chill the pineapple raita before serving.
4 garnish the pineapple raita with the remaining pomegranate and chopped coriander leaves.

Poha idli recipe ,Soft fluffy Aval Idli

2016-05-05T23:52:00.001-07:00

being an idli dosa fan ,I keep on searching for variation in Idli recipes or dosa recipes
todays recipe is poha idli which i referred from Tarla Dalal website .

Flattened rice (also called beaten rice) is a dehusked rice which is flattened into flat light dry flakes.poha is known by various names

It is known by a variety of names: Pauaa/Paunva (પૌંઆ) in Gujarati, "Poya" in Rajasthani, Chuda in Oriya, Atukulu in Telugu (Atukulu), Aval in Tamil(அவல்) and Malayalam(അവൽ), Chiura in parts of Bihar and Jharkhand, Chira in Bengali (চিঁড়া) and Assamese, Chiura (चिउरा) in Maithili, Nepali, Bhojpuri and Chhattisgarhi, Poha[1] or Pauwa in Hindi, Baji in Newari, Pohe in Marathi, Phovu in Konkani, Avalakki (ಅವಲಕ್ಕಿ) in Kannada

Super soft idlis made with a combination of broken and beaten rice, the Poha Idli is also relatively convenient to make compared to the traditional idli because idli rawa is used instead of whole idli rice. This helps you make the batter quicker and also ensures a perfect consistency, without having to worry about how coarse the rice has to be ground. Remember to grind the poha-rice mix and the soaked urad separately, to get perfect idlis. Enjoy hot and fresh with your favourite chutney and sambhar.

Ingredients
1 cup rice semolina (idli rawa)
1/4 cup beaten rice (poha)
1/4 cup urad dal (split black lentils)
salt to taste
oil for greasing

Method
1.Clean, wash and soak the idli rava and beaten rice in water for at least 2 hours.
2.Clean, wash the urad dal thoroughly and soak it in water for at least 2 hours.
3.Drain the idli rava and rice, combine together and blend in a mixer to a smooth batter.
4.Darin and blend the urad dal separately to a smooth paste using a little water.
5.Combine the two batters, add salt and mix well. Cover and keep aside to ferment for 6 to 8 hours.
6.Put spoonfuls of the batter into greased idli moulds and steam for 10 to 12 minutes.
7.Repeat with the remaining batter to make more idlis.
8.Serve hot WITH SAMBHAR OR CHUTNEY

Aloo Anardana Kulcha recipe,Amritsari aloo anardana kulcha

2016-05-03T23:50:00.000-07:00

I am addicted to punjabi cuisine .I love chola bhatura , punjabi kadhi, aloo matar ,palak paneer ,parathas and ofcourse kulchas...list goes on and on.

I have blogged about aloo kulcha earlier .todays recipe is Aloo Anardana Kulcha which has the addition of anardana ie dried pomegranate seeds as the souring agent which imparts a diffferent flavour to this kulcha.

i had got anardana to make some aloo chole recipe and used the balance to amke this flavourful aloo anardana kulcha with some mint chutney...

i followed the same recipe of aloo kulcha only with the addition of anardana
Kulcha (Urdu: کلچه, Hindi: कुलचा; Punjabi: ਕੁਲਚਾ) is a type of leavened north Indian flatbread made from maida (wheat flour). It is particularly popular in India and Pakistan, and is usually eaten with chole.

Kulcha is a typical Punjabi recipe, originating in Punjab. Amritsar is known for its Amritsari kulchas or Amritsari naan. Flour dough is rolled into a flat, round shape and baked in an earthen clay oven until golden brown. When baked, it is usually rubbed with butter, and then eaten with spicy chole (chickpea curry).

.The leavened maida or refined flour flat breads called kulchas are stuffed with potatoes (aloo),onion and lots of spices and anardana(pomegranate seeds) , are rolled into a flat round bread and baked in an earthen clay oven until golden brown.
served with dahi(yoghurt),dahi or pickleThe ingredients are similar to aloo paratha except the outer covering is all purpose flour.It is rubbed with butter and then eaten with spicy chole...

Serves 7 kulchas

Ingredients :

Kulcha
Maida (white flour/all purpose flour) - 400 gms. (3 cup)
Curd - 3 table spoon.
Baking soda - 1/3 tea spoon.
Baking powder - 1/2 tea spoon.
Sugar - 1 tea spoon.
Oil - 1 table spoon.
Salt - 3/4 tea spoon (or according to the taste)
Carom seeds (Owa/ajwain) or cumin seeds (jeera/jira) - 1 tea spoon.

Filling /stuffing
Potato - 300 gms. ( 4 boiled)
Salt - 1/2 tea spoon (or according to the taste)
Green chilli - 1-2 (chopped)
Ginger - 1 inch long piece (grated)
Amchoor powder - 1/2 tea spoon.
Coriander powder - 2 table spoon spoon.
Red chilli powder - 1-2 pinch.
Garam masala - 1/4 tea spoon
Coriander leaves - 1 table spoon (chopped)
mint leaves chopped - 1 tbspn
anardana - 1.5- 2 tbsp

Method :

1.Sieve the maida in a bowl and mix curd, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar, oil in it. Mix the ingredients well with hands.

2.Knead the flour with luke warm water to make a smooth dough. Apply oil to the dough and keep it in a covered bowl at a warm place. Within 3-4 hours the dough will rise.

3. Punch the dough once again to fix it. The dough to make kulcha is ready.

4. Peel and mash the boiled potatoes. mix salt, green chilli, ginger, coriander powder, amchoor powder,anardana, red chilli powder, garam masala and coriander leaves. Mix all the spices well with the mashed potatoes. The filling to stuff the kulcha is ready.

5.Make 8-10 round balls of the dough. Make equal amount of small balls of the potato mixture also.

6.Take one ball of the dough and roll it into a flat disc of 3 inch. Put the potato mixture ball on the disc and press it with hands so it settles down on the dough. Fold and close the disc from all the sides as shown below.

7.Dust the kulcha with dry maida and press it with light hands to increase its size upto 3 inch. Now roll the kulcha into a flat disc of 6-7 inch with the roller. Fix some carom seeds or cumin seeds over the at the top of the kulcha.

8.You can bake the kulcha in oven, pan (tawa) or tandoor.

9.Heat a tava /pan . Put the kulcha in the pan and roast it until it turns brown from the bottom surface. Pour some oil or ghee on the upper surface once the lower surface turns brown. Roast it till both the surface turns brown in colour. Prepare all the kulchas in the same manner.

10.Serve the Potato anardana stuffed kulchas with curd, chutney,mango pickle or chole recipe.

Tip /variation:

For baking kulcha in an oven grease a tray with oil. Put 2 kulchas in the pan and pre-heat the oven at 300 centigrade. Place the tray in an oven and bake the kulcha for 2 minutes. Flip the side of the kulchas after 2 minutes and bake again till both the surfaces turn brown in colour. Now take out the tray from the oven and serve the hot baked kulchas with curd, aloo matar, pickle or chole recipe.

Pyaaz pakoda,Onion pakora south style,how to make andhra style onion pakora

2016-05-03T23:49:00.000-07:00

Pyaz pakoda ,yet another any time favourite recipe of mine.

But this is slightly different in taste than our marathi kanda bhaji or khekda bhaji even though it uses onions..

Onion Pakoda is a deep fried batter snack made of gram flour (besan), other spices and onions. Unlike the potato bajji or the banana chilli bajji, the batter for the onion pakoda is different.

It is more of a south ,specially andhra style pyaaz pakoda.

The addition of green chilies ( no red chilli powder) , ginger julienes , Jeera, curry leaves and cashew nuts make it different than our khekda bhaji.
also read the process carefully as some oil is added to dry besan flour along with some soda which gives it a crumbly texture.

Also green chilli should be cut length wise ,dont cut it round.

i had tasted this bhajiya in a restaurant in bangalore while watching cricket matches.

I am so glad that i found this recipe on vah re vah chef sanjay thumas video.
definitely a must try recipe ,so if you are a bhajiya lover like me than go for it

Ingredients
curry leaves 2 sprigs ( about 10-15 leaves)
oil To Fry
salt To Taste
Ginger finely sliced 1 inch Piece
big Onion 1 Cup
Green chillies 3-4 Numbers
baking pdr 1/2 Teaspoons
oil or butter 2 Tablespoons
Rice Flour 1/4 Cup
Gram Flour Besan 1 Cup
jeera - 1 tsp
cashewnuts - 10 pieces ( soak in water for ten minutes before adding to batter)

Method:

1.Take a bowl add very thin sliced onions, green chillies, ginger sliced, curry leaves, if you want to add cashewnuts soke in water for 10min and then add it to the onions, add salt and mix well.

2.In another bowl add besan, rice flour, salt, jeera, baking powder, 2 tbsp oil and mix it nicely with your fingers.

3.Now add the onion mixture. Mix well if need sprinkle water and mix well again so that besan sticks to onion mixture .

4.Heat oil ,reduce flame to medium and throw spoonful of bhajiya with a spoon in hot oil , deep fry till it is golden brown.

Kala chana pulao| Brown chickpea pulav|black gram pilaf

2016-04-18T00:33:00.000-07:00

Kala Chana Pulao…. one of the rare pulaos which I saw in a marathi cookery show.. The taste of the pulao was just heavenly.

Give a twist to your usual pulao/biryani by adding chick peas. Legumes are not only rich in protein, but also high in fiber. Channa pulao is mild, aromatic and full of flavor!

The chickpea or chick pea (Cicer arietinum) is a legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. It is also known as gram, or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, and sometimes known as Egyptian pea, ceci, cece or chana(in Nepal), or Kabuli chana (particularly in northern India). Its seeds are high in protein

The pulao has to be made with basmati rice and ghee or else something will be a little amiss if you do not use basmati rice and ghee. Hmm frankly speaking, its a little time consuming process to make this pulao. But I bet you would not regret the time spent. Trust me, it tastes simply fantastic.

You can use fresh black /brown chickpeas or even use leftover kala chana curry for this pulao.

Ingredients:
1.5 cup cups boiled brown gram/uble kala sukha chane/ukadlela kale chana
2 cup rice
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
½ cup curd
2 onions sliced
1 tomato
1 or 2 green chilies
1 tsp kasoori methi
few strands of saffron
2 tbsp warm milk
1 tsp red chilli powder
½ cup chopped coriander and mint leaves
salt
water 4 cups

Garam Masala to be ground in mixer
½ tsp caraway seeds (shahjeera)
1 black cardamom ( badi elaichi)
2/3 small green cardamom (elaichi)
1/2 strands of mace (javitri)
2 tsp badishep (fennel seeds)
2 cloves
1 inch cinnamon

Tempering2 tbsp ghee
1/2 tsp black jeera (shahijeera)
1 bay leaf
2 cloves
1 black cardamom
1/2 inch cinnamon

Method:

1. Wash basmati rice till water is clear & keep it soaked in water for atleast 30 minutes .Drain & keep aside.

2.Soak the chickpeas overnight in water and pressure cook them for 4-5 whistles till done. Add some salt while pressure cooking the chickpeas.

3.Chop onions, tomatoes, chillies, coriander and mint leaves and keep aside.

4.Smoothen the curd and keep aside. Soak the saffron in warm milk. Grind all ingredients under garam masala to fine powder in mixie.

5.In a kadhai heat the ghee and splutter the caraway seeds. Next add whole garam masala – bayleaf ,cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves.Fry the whole garam masala for few seconds and then add the onions. & fry till it is golden brown.

Now add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell of the ginger-garlic disappears. Add the chopped tomatoes & green chillies.Add red chilli powder ,garam masala powder prepared in step 4

6.Saute for a minute and add. the basmati rice. Mix well and saute the entire mixture for a minute. Add the curd, saffron-milk mixture and boiled black chana, coriander and mint leaves,kasoori methi with 1.5 cups of water .

7.Season with salt and allow the rice to cook on medium flame. Once water gets absorbed cover with lid & cook till done.

8.Serve hot with raita, pickle, papad or any veg salad. I had served with pickle papad,spinach pakoda & masala chas

Dhaniya paratha,coriander leaves parathe,kothimbir parantha

2016-04-16T05:43:00.000-07:00

sometimes simple small things give us happiness. when you are lazy enough to clean a bunch of methi or palak these Coriander leaves paratha comes to your rescue

they are extremely simple and make for the most wonderful breakfast or dinner.
I had made this paratha with skp chicken curry.

you can enjoy it with chole,paneer butter masala or even with plain curd and pickle.
i equally enjoy methi paratha,Kasuri methi paratha,palak paratha and methi thepla ,but when you are running short of fresh methi or palak, coriander leaves akka dhaniya patta or kothimbir saves you ..try it and it will be a regular item in your lunch box....

i have kept spices minimum as i wanted a dominant flavour of coriander leaves ,but you can add any spices of your liking like garam masala,coriander cumin powder ,pinch of turmeric or red chilli powder ..

Ingredients:

Wheat flour (Atta) - 2 cups
coriander leaves - 3/4 cup
green chilli chopped - 2-3 or Red chilly powder - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/8 tsp (optional - i didnt add as i wanted my parathas to be whitish in colour)
Ginger grated - half inch
pepper powder - 1/4 tsp
amchoor powder /chat masala - 1 tsp
oil /ghee - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Water - to knead into a dough

other ingredients
oil /ghee to roast - as needed
flour for dusting

Method:

1.Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.Add just enough warm water to make into a dough which is smooth (but not sticky).

2.Keep aside for 10 minutes. Divide the dough into 8-10 balls.

3.Roll out each dough ball into a circle of about 6-7 inches diameter,use some flour for dusting while rolling paratha .Heat a griddle and place paratha on the hot griddle.

4.Cook until light brown spots appear on the first side.Flip the paratha over and cook until the second side is cooked, and light brown spots. now again flip paratha and Drizzle a bit of ghee/butter/oil if needed on both sides and serve in plate

5.if not serving immediately, put in a caserrole .serve with pickle,curd and any spicy chicken curry or paneer curry

tips
1. can replace coriander leaves with fresh methi leaves.
2. i have kept spices minimum as i wanted a dominant flavour of methi ,but you can add any spices of your liking like garam masala,coriander cumin powder ,pinch of turmeric or red chilli powder ..

Plain cheese sandwich,Easy grilled cheese sandwich

2016-04-15T02:40:00.000-07:00

I am a sandwich lover ,both plain and grilled sandwiches.

This is a simple plain cheese sandwich which i tried from Mrs VAH RE VAH chef you tube video.

you can even make grilled cheese toast sandwich with below recipe by applying some butter on top of it and grilling it in a toaster or on tava

It is easy quick sandwich seasoned with cheese , butter, pepper powder , pasta seasoning .i havent used apple slices as mentioned in the original recipe ,but you can use the apple slices too

good option for kids tiffin box.

you can use any bread namely white sandwich bread,multigrain or wheat bread .i generally dont remove the edges of bread while making sandwich.

but in case you dont prefer you can trim bread edges. you can use mozarella cheese or processed cheese. i used britannia cheese cubes.

Ingredients:

Bread slices(white sandwich bread,multigrain or wheat bread)-2/4
Butter(room temperature)
2-3 cubes of Processed cheese ( use more or less quantity as per your liking)
1 tbsp Apple(finely sliced) - optional
1/2 tsp Pepper powder
1/2 tsp mixed herbs/pasta seasoning
1/4 tsp Salt to taste

Garnishing
Some grated cheese
red garlic chilli chutney or tomato ketchup

METHOD:
1 Take the bread slices ,in case you dont like cut the edges.i prefer to keep edges intact
2 Now apply butter(room temperature) on both slices .Grate processed cheese on it.
3 If using .Add and spread apple slices.Sprinkle little pepper powder,pasta seasoning and salt on it.
4 Just take the other bread slice and cover the stuffed bread slice.Cut it into 2 vertical rectangles or triangles
5 Dot it with ketchup or red garlic chilli chutney ,sprinkle some extra cheese on top of sandwich and serve.

Tips
1. just apply some butter on top of above sandwich and grill above sandwich in a toaster or tava
2.can add veggies to above sandwich like slices of cucumber,beet,tomato,boiled potato,onion

Methamba recipe

2016-04-13T10:06:00.000-07:00

A Maharashtrian quintessential recipe ,tangy yet with a difference .this is my second recipe of the summer season

METHAMBA is supposed to be a combo of sweet/sour/spicy.

methamba is derived from words methi {fenugreek seeds} and amba { mango}
A yummy relish to be paired with some rice and dal and you will have a delicious meal

Methamba, uses very few ingredients and takes no time to cook. You can even make some in advance and store it in the refrigerator for up to a week
Note you will have to adjust the amount of jaggery and red chilli powder as per sourness of mangoes.

Ingredients:

1 raw/green mango
1/4 tsp methi (fenugreek seeds)
1/4 cup jaggery (approximately...this will depend entirely on how sour the mango is)
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp oil
hing (asafoetida)
salt to taste

method:

1.Peel the mango and cut into small cubes. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pan. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and let them splutter.

2. Add asafoetida powder. Add ground fenugreek seeds and wait until they give out their aroma.

3. Add mango pieces. Stir them well, so that they get coated with the seasoning.Add a little bit of salt and let the mango cook. Normally you would not need to add water, but if the mixture starts drying out, only then add a few teaspoons of water to prevent it from burning. Don't add too much because once you add the jaggery it will let out some moisture.

4 Once the mango is completely cooked, and feels mushy, add the jaggery and red chilli powder and cook till everything is cooked together. Check for taste and adjust the salt/chilli powder and jaggery.

5.It keeps fresh outside the fridge for about three days. If stored well-covered in the refrigerator, it should stay fresh for at least a week.

tip:
1) Keep the thickness of sauce according to your choice.

Idli Upma Recipe,Easy South Idli upma with Leftover idlis

2016-04-11T05:36:00.002-07:00

DONT KNOW WHAT TO TO WITH LEFTOVER IDLIS ?

Answer is : "IDLI UPMA"

Idli upma is a very simple and delicious dish made with leftover idlis.This is a very common breakfast dish in South India, which can be prepared in no time.
It is really interesting to see how a simple boring idli turns into this colorful upma...

You can prepare this upma even if your idlis are hard.This upma is so delicious that you will find yourself making extra idlis just to prepare this upma.

Ingredients

Crumbled idli - 2 cups
Onion -1 cup finely chopped
Tomato chopped- 1 small
Finely chopped carrot -2 tblsp
Green chilli -3 finely chopped
Ginger - 1 inch piece finely chopped
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Idli Podi - 1 1/2 tsp (optional but highly recommended)
Salt as required

Seasoning /Tadka

Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp
Mustard -1 tsp
Bengal gram (Chana dal) - 3/4 tsp
Urad dal(urad dal) - 3/4 tsp
Red chillies -2
Hing - generous pinch
Curry leaves - few

Method:

1.Crumble the idlis coarsely with your fingers or you can use the mixie for better results.Cut the idlis into 2-3 pieces and put it in the mixie and pulse it for a few seconds.

2.Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when it splutters, add bengal gram, urad dal, red chillies, hing and curry leaves.

3.When dal turns golden brown, add finely chopped onions, green chillies,Carrots,tomatoes, ginger, turmeric powder, salt needed and saute till onions turns transparent.Then add the crumbled idli, idli podi and mix well.Check for salt.

4.Garnish with coriander leaves .It tastes good by itself but if you prefer you can have it with coconut chutney

Tips

Refrigerating the idlis gives beautiful crumble of the idlies. More you refrigerate, easy to crumble.
Do not prepare this upma with hot idlis.The idlis have to be cold, so that it will get crumbled nicely.
You can add a tsp of coconut with onions which gives a nice flavour.
can add veggies of your choice to above recipe

Gummadikaya pulusu recipe,Andhra Pumpkin curry,Bhopla,kaddu rassa bhaji

2016-04-10T07:15:00.000-07:00

Another Andhra special recipe today - Gummadikaya pulusu recipe .if you are a regular visitor you must be aware of my love for hyderabad and andhra food

Now for all people wondering what is this ,gummadikaya means pumpkin in english,kaddu in hindi and bhopla in marathi and stew .

Pulusu is a simple sweet, sour stew of andhra. pulusu made using gummadikaya is gummadikaya pulusu. It is served with rice and makes a comfort meal .

pumpkin is loaded with an important antioxidant, beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is one of the plant carotenoids converted to vitamin A in the body. In the conversion to vitamin A, beta carotene performs many important functions in overall health.

Pulusu is made mostly with vegetables like potato, drumstick, pumpkin, ladyfinger, yam, bottle gourd and ridge gourd.Some folks use rice flour, methi powder or coriander powder to make the pulusu slightly thick.

This is a No garlic, no garam masala recipe .Yummy is a word which i use to describe it - A perfect healthy balance of sweet,sour and spicy

Ingredients
1 cup of cubed pumpkin pieces
2 green chili sliced
2 red chilli broken into pieces
1 medium chopped onions
1 sprig curry leaves
pinch of mustard
pinch of cumin / jeeera
pinch of fenugreek seeds / menthulu
1 tsp chana dal
1 tsp urad dal
tamarind juice as needed ( about 2-3 tbsp)
2 tsp red chili powder(adjust as per your taste)
1 tsp coriander cumin powder
grated jaggery as needed (1.5 to 2 tbsp)
salt to taste
coriander fistful chopped
Oil 2 tbsp

Method

1.soak tamarind in warm water for 15 minutes, squeeze and extract the thick juice.remove skin of pumpkin and cut into 1 inch cubes ,chop onion and slice green chillies
2.Heat the oil in a deep skillet on medium heat and add channa dal, urad dal, red chilli and fry , add cumin and mustard seeds once the dals starts turning into golden brown and allow them to crackle, add hing and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Now add green chillies, curry leaves, ginger, and sauté for couple of minutes
3.Add onions and sprinkle salt and fry till they turn slightly pink, needs no browning of onions
4.Add the pumpkin pieces, fry on high for 2 mins.
5.Add red chili powder, turmeric and fry for a min.now cover and cook on low flame till pumpkin is slightly cooked
6.Add jaggery and tamarind juice, mix, cover and cook on a low flame for 3 mins. this enhances the taste of the pumpkin pieces.
7.Add 1 tbsp rice flour mixed with 1/4 cup of water enough to cover the pumpkin pieces , add coriander cumin powder.
8.Cover and cook till pumpkin is fully done. cooking on a very low flame makes the pulusu tasty.
9.switch off the heat and add coriander .This goes really well with rice, ghee