Narayan Kataar ( NanKhatai / Butter Cookies)  

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narayan katar
What you will need:
Maida/All purpose flour - 2 cups
Powdered sugar - 1 cup
Ghee/Clarified butter - 3/4 cup
Green Cardamom - 8 ,Skin removed and the seeds crushed
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

How to prepare
Mix the flour, baking soda and sugar together in a bowl. Add the crushed cardamom and mix well. Melt the ghee. Add a little at a time, while mixing and kneading the dough it reaches the consistency of chapati dough.
Cover and keep the dough aside for 4 to 6 hours.
Make small balls out of the dough, around the size of a small lemon and slightly flatten them between your palms and place them on a greased baking sheet. Maintain some gap between the cookies.
Preheat the oven at 200°C. Bake them for about 15 minutes or until u see small cracks on top. Take the tray out of the oven and wait until the cookies cool completely. Store in an air-tight container.

Chicken Sukka  

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What you will need:
Chicken - 12 pieces, cut into small cubes
Whole dry red chillies - 12 to 15 (or less if you do not like it too hot)
Onions - 2 medium, finely chopped
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Coconut grated - 1.5 cups
Clarified butter / Ghee - 3 tbsp
Tamarind - lemon sized, exctract a thick juice
Garlic - 12 - 15, finely chopped (Use 6 - 8, if using american garlic)
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Poppy seeds - 2 tbsp
Black peppercorns - 6 to 8
Caraway seeds (shahi jeera) - 1 teaspoon
Green cardamoms - 2 to 3
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Dry roast poppy seeds, black peppercorns, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, green cardamoms, fenugreek seeds and cumin seeds. Cool and grind with coconut and 12 red chillies to a coarse paste, adding the tamarind juice. Add the cumin seeds and grind coarsely. The coconut mixture should be dry and coarse.
Heat half of the ghee in a pan. Add chopped garlic and 2 whole dry red chillies. Add salt and turmeric powder. Now add the chicken pieces and cook until the chicken is almost cooked on a low flame without adding water. Add the coconut and spice mixture and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes until the chicken is completely done.
Heat the remaining ghee in a pan. Add the curry leaves, stir-fry briefly and then add the chopped onion. Fry the onion until golden brown and pour it over the cooked chicken. Serve hot.

Tinglavare Kolombo / Sambar  

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What you will need:
Tingalavaro - 1/2 cup
Toor dal - 1/4 cup
Vegetables - 1 cup (potato, beans, carrots etc)
Tamarind - lime sized, soaked in water
Green chillies - 3 to 4
Sambar powder - 2 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Mustard seeds - 2 tsps
Jaggery - 1 tbsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Cook the beans, toor dal and vegetables with some salt, jaggery and green chillies.
Squeeze the juice out of the tamarind soaked in water. Mix the sambar powder with the tamarind juice and add to the beans and vegetables. Bring it to a boil and turn the heat off.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add the curry leaves. Pour the seasoning over the sambar.
Serve with rice, idly or dosa.

Vaingana song (Eggplant / Brinjal in a spicy tangy sauce)  

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What you will need:
Onions - 5 small, sliced
Tomato - 1 medium, roughly chopped
Eggplant/Brinjal - 1 medium sized, cut into small cubes
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Tamarind - lime sized, soaked in water
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Squeeze the juice out of the soaked tamarind and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan. Add the onions and fry until the onion is slightly brown in color.
Now add the chopped tomato, salt, red chilli powder and tamarind juice. Add 1/4 cup of water if you dont like it very dry.
Cook until the tomato is completely cooked and is completely mashed. Now add the eggplant and cover and cook.
When the eggplants are cooked, turn the heat off.
Serve hot with chapati or naan.
Also, if you make it a little watery, you can even mix it with rice and eat it.

Jhalke Fry (Fried Fish seasoned with garlic)  

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I had been to US to visit my husband's cousin. That is where I first had this fish preparation. It was nice and spicy. I have been wanting to try preparing this at home for a long time. Finally, I prepared this fish last night and the whole house smelled of fish and garlic. The combination of curry leaves, asafoetida, fish and garlic brings out a great flavour.


What you will need:
Fish (Mackrel) - 6 to 8 pieces
Red chilli powder - 3 tsp
Rice flour - 3 tsp
Gram flour (besan) - 1 tsp
Asafoetida - dissolved in water
Garlic - 8 to 10 pods, finely chopped
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Oil - 3 tbsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Mix the red chilli powder with rice flour, salt and gram flour. Add the asafoetida dissolved in water to make a paste. Apply this paste to the fish and leave it to marinate for 2 to 3 hours. I usually leave it in the refrigerator overnight.

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Heat oil in a wide pan. Add curry leaves. Place the fish pieces in the oil one by one. Cover and cook until the first side is cooked. Now carefully flip the fish pieces.
Sprinkle the chopped garlic on the fish. Cover and cook the other side.

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Turn the heat off and keep the pan covered for an additional 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Mooga upkari / Moong sprouts palya  

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What you will need:
Moong sprouts - 1 cup
Dried red chillies - 2
Green chillies - 2
Fresh shredded coconut - 2 tbsp
Asafoetida, dissolved in water - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Heat oil. Add mustard seeds. When they crackle add the curry leaves and red chillies. Now add the moong sprouts, salt and green chillies. Add 1/4 cup of water and cover and cook until the moong is almost cooked. Now add the shredded coconut. Cook until the moong is done and is not mashed up. Turn the heat off and add the asafoetida dissolved in water.

Masala Mandakki / Charmuri upkari (Puffed rice with onions)  

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What you will need:
Puffed rice - 2 cups
Onion - 1 chopped
Coriander leaves - 5 strands, finely chopped
Coconut oil - 2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Fresh shredded coconut - 2 tbsp
Lime juice - 2 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
In a large bowl, add onion, coriander leaves, red chilli powder and salt. To that add the shredded coconut. Now mix the puffed rice and coconut oil. Garnish with coriander leaves. Squeeze the lime juice and serve.
This is best eaten fresh as the puffed rice gets soft after a while.

Mooga ambat (Moong sprouts with cashews in coconut sauce)  

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Mooga ambat

What you will need:
Whole moong sprouts - 1/2 cup
Cashews - 10 - 12
Coconut shredded, fresh or frozen - 1 cup
Dried whole red chillies - 6 - 8
Tamarind - size of a chickpea
Onion - chopped 1 cup
Salt to taste

For seasoning:
Oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands

How to prepare

Grind the coconut, red chillies and tamarind into a smooth paste.
Boil water in a pan and cook the moong sprouts together with the onion and cashews. Cook until the moong is almost cooked, but is still firm and not mashed up.
Remove the excess water from the moong. Add the ground masala to the cooked moong. Add salt and bring the mixture to a boil and turn off heat.
In a pan heat oil. Add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add the curry leaves and pour the seasoning over the mooga ambat. Serve hot with rice.

Cauliflower butti (Cauliflower with onions and coconut)  

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What you will need:
2 cups cauliflower florets
1 cup grated coconut, fresh or frozen
2 medium onions
8 fried red chillies
2 tsp coriander seeds
small piece of tamarind(or 1 tsp tamarind paste)
6 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
salt to taste

How to prepare:
Cook the cauliflower florets with a little salt and set aside. Cut the onions into thin slices and keep aside. Grind coconut, red chillies and tamarind into a paste. The paste does not have to be very smooth. Then add the coriander seeds and grind again. Head oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds begin to cracke, add the sliced onions and saute for a minute. After the raw smell of the onion goes away, add the ground masala and some salt and fry for a minute. Now add the cooked cauliflower. Cook the mixture for about 5 minutes. Serve hot with rice.

Masoora Randayi (Lentils in spicy sauce)  

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This is a recipe from my mother-in-law. Everyone back home loves this dish. It is also very easy to prepare. It can be served with pan polo /Neer dosa , poori , chapati or parantha.

What you will need:
Whole masoor (Black lentils) - 1 cup ( you can even use any other beans)
Potato - 1 small
Onion - 2 small
Garlic - 4-5 pods
Ginger - 1" piece
Coconut - shredded - 3/4 cup
Cinnamon - 1" piece
Black peppercorns - 3 to 4
Green chillies - 5 to 6
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Cook the masoor and potato in a pressure cooker until soft. Peel and cut the potatoes into small cubes. Grind together onion, garlic, ginger, coconut, cinnamon, peppercorns and green chillies into a fine paste.
Heat a pan. Add the cooked masoor, potatoes, salt and the paste. Mix well and bring it to a boil. Heat oil. Add mustards seeds and when they crackle, add the curry leaves. Pour the tempering over the dal.

Rulavu /Vegetable Upma / Uppittu  

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Uppittu Upma Rulavu

What you will need:
Rava / Sooji - 1 1/2 cups
Onion - 2 medium sized, chopped
Vegetables - 1 cup (beans, carrot, peas etc , this is optional)
Coriander leaves - few, finely chopped
Shredded coconut,fresh - 1/4 cup
Sugar - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Urad dal - 2 tsp
Green chillies - 4 to 5
Warm water - 2 1/2 cups
Oil/Ghee - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Cook the vegetables with a little salt. Drain all the water and keep aside.
Heat oil/ghee in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds crackle, add urad dal, green chillies, curry leaves and onions.
Fry until the onions turn golden brown. Now add the rava. Fry the rava until a nice aroma comes out. Now add the sugar, salt and cooked vegetables and stir.
Pour the warm water into the pan and mix it well with the rava. Cover and cook on low flame for 5 minutes. Add the coconut and coriander leaves and mix well. Cook until all the water is absorbed by the rava. Serve hot.

Potato onion bhaji / Aloo bhaji  

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Aloo Onion bhaji

What you will need:
Potatoes - 3 medium sized
Onions - 2 medium sized, sliced
Green chillies - 6 finely chopped
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Lemon juice - 2 tsp
Coriander leaves - few finely chopped
Oil - 5 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare

Cut the potatoes into small cubes.
Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. When they crackle, add chopped green chillies, curry leaves, turmeric powder and sliced onions. When the onion turns slightly brown, add the cubed potatoes and salt. Cover and cook. Add little water if required. When the potatoes are done, add the lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves.

Hinga Chutney ( Asafoetida chutney)  

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What you will need:
Coconut - fresh/frozen - 3/4 cup
Fried dry red chillies (sukki mirsang) - 4
Asafoetida - a pinch (1/4 tsp if using powder)
Tamarind - size of chana

For seasoning:
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 strand
Oil - 1 tsp

How to prepare
Heat 1/2 tsp oil in a small pan. Add the asafoetida. Fry for around 10 seconds and keep aside.
Grind coconut, red chillies and tamarind into a smooth paste. Add the asafoetida and grind again.
Heat the remaining oil in the same pan. Add mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add the curry leaves. Keep aside the seasoning for a couple of minutes to cool and then pour over the chutney.
Add water to get the desired consistency. This chutney can be served with dosa and idlis.

Vegetable Korma  

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What you will need:
Vegetables - 2 cups ( beans, carrot, peas, potato, cauliflower and beetroot)
Green chillies - 4
Coriander leaves chopped - 1/2 cup
Coconut - shredded fresh/frozen - 1/2 cup
Cinnamon stick - 1" piece
Garlic pods - 4
Pepper corns - 6
Oil - 3 tsp
Salt to taste

How to prepare

Cook the vegetables with half teaspoon of salt. Keep aside.
Heat the oil and then fry the cinnamon, garlic, green chillies, coconut and then the coriander leaves. Grind them all with peppercorns into a smooth paste.
Add this paste to the cooked vegetables. Bring the mixture to a boil.
Serve with puri/chapati.

Phova upkari / Sweet and spicy poha  

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What you will need:
Thin Poha - 1 1/2 cups
Sugar - 3 tsp (you can also use a small amount of jaggery)
Freshly grated coconut - 3 tbsp
Sambar powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 strands
Oil - 2 tsp

How to prepare
In a bowl mix coconut with sugar, salt and sambar powder. Now add the poha to it and mix well.
If the poha is too dry, you can sprinkle some water.
Heat oil. Add mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add curry leaves. Allow this to cool for a couple of minutes.
Now add to the poha and its ready to be served.

Optional: You can also add one finely chopped onion to the poha.

Donne mirsang bajo / Capsicum bajji (Green pepper fritters)  

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What you will need:
1 capsicum (green pepper) - cut into 1" cubes
Besan / gram flour - 1/2 cup
Asafoetida - 1 small piece
Red chilli powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Oil for deep frying
Salt to taste

How to prepare
Soak the asafoetida in water until it dissolves completely.
In a bowl, mix the besan, red chilli powder, cumin powder and salt.
Add asafoetida dissolved in water. Add more water if required to make a thick paste. The consistency should be such that when you dip a capsicum piece in the paste, it should be well coated. Now dip the capsicum in the paste and deep fry until golden brown. Serve hot.

Rava dosa  

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What you will need:

Riceflour-1 cup
Rava or sooji- 1/2 cup ( or 3/4 cup for more crispy dosas)
Maida- 1/4 cup
Salt to taste

For seasoning

Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Green chillie-1 chopped finely
Curry leaves- a few
Ginger- a small piece finely chopped
Coriander leaves- a few finely chopped
Onion- 1 cup finely chopped
Oil / ghee - 2 tsp
Butter - 2 tsp

How to prepare:

Mix the rice flour, maida and rava. Add salt, chopped green chillies, chopped ginger and coriander leaves. Add water or buttermilk and make sure that the batter is of a very watery consistency . Heat 1 tsp of oil in a pan and add cumin seeds and mustard seeds, when it splutters add curry leaves and then the onion.Fry the onion until it turns transparent. Allow it to cool for a couple of minutes and then pour it over the batter.
Heat the griddle and grease it with oil/ghee. Take one ladleful of batter and pour it on the tawa. This dosa cannot be spread like normal dosas. Put some butter on top. Cover and cook. After the first side is cooked and is golden brown in color, fold the dosa and remove it from the griddle. This dosa is only fried on one side.
Serve hot with coriander chutney or hing chutney.

Poori / Puri (Fried South Asian unleavened bread)  

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Poori is deep fried Indian bread made with wheat flour. I have always loved poori bhaji for breakfast. My brother and I always used to compete against each other on who can eat more pooris. Even to this day I can eat 10-15 pooris easily. When I started making puris, they would never puff up. But with a little practice I can say that I can make pretty good puris. In the picture I have served poori with aloo bhaji and vegetable korma. I will post the recipe for vegetable korma soon.

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What you will need:
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp oil/ghee
2 cups wheat flour

How to prepare:
In a bowl add the salt and ghee. To this add 1 cup of warm water. Now add the wheat flour. Mix everything and knead the dough.
Add a little more wheat flour if the dough is too soft. The dough should be a little harder than the chapati/roti dough.
Make lemon sized balls with the dough. Flatten each ball in your palms and dust with some wheat flour so that it does not stick when rolling. Roll the puris and keep them covered.

Heat oil in a pan. Deep fry one poori at a time. Slightly press the pooris and they will puff up.
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Serve hot with vegetable korma or aloo(potato) bhaji.

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