Monday, April 28, 2008

Coconut Milk Rice

Here is the recipe for the delicious coconut milk rice. My mom makes this excellent n is my favourite n simple 1 too...Here goes the recipe..

All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Basmathi Rice - 2 cups
2. Coconut milk - 2 cups
3. Cinnamon
4. Cloves - 2
5. Bay leaf
6. Oil - 2 tsp
7. Ginger - 4-5 pieces finely chopped lengthwise
8. 1 Big Onion finely chopped lengthwise
9. Curry Leaves
10. Green Chillies - 2-3
11. Salt to taste

How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Wash the Basmathi rice and keep it aside.
2. In a non stick pan add 2 tsps of oil and once it turns hot add cloves, cinamons and bay leaf.
3. Keep the pan in low flame and add onions, Garlic and green chillies.
4. After the raw smell goes add the basmathi rice to this and mix well. Add salt too.
5. Now add all this to the electric cooker and add 2 cups of coconut milk and 2 cups of water and mix well.
6. Once the rice is cooked server hot with spicy curries.

Cabbage Poriyal


There are various dishes that could be done with cabbage...like..cabbage kootu...cabbage poriyal..cabbage soup...
here is the recipe for cabbage poriyal....


All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Cabbage - 1/2 (either grated or cut into small pieces)
2. Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
3. Onion - 1(Cut into small pieces)
4. Mustard - 1/2 tsp
5. Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
6. Hing
7. Red Chillies - 2-3
8. Curry leaves
9. Cilantro
10. Turmeric Powder
11. Oil - 2 tsp
12. Salt to taste


How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Wash and grate the cabbage and keep them aside.
2. Heat a non stick pan. Once it turns hot add 2 tsps of oil.
3. Now add mustard and when it starts to splutter add cumin seeds and hing.
4. Add the cut onions and red chillies and curry levaes and fry them.
5. Once onion turns brown add the grated cabbage and add a pinch a turmeric powder and salt according to ur taste.
6. Sprinkle water and close the lid and cook for sometime till the cabbage becomes soft n the raw smell goes.
7. Then add the grated coconut and mix them well n keep in sim for 5mins.

Cabbage poriyal is ready. Serve hot with any rice varieties.

Cauliflower Peas Kurma

Cauliflower being low in fat, high in fibre, water and Vitamin C, possessing a very high nutritional density. It can be roasted, boiled, fried, steamed or eaten raw by some people.
Here is the recipe for cauliflower peas kurma.

All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Cauliflower - 1
2. Peas - 1/2 cup
3. Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup
4. Onion - 1
5. Tomato - 1
6. Ginger Garlic paste - 1 1/2 tsp
7. Green Chillies - 3
8. Curry leaves
9. Cloves - 2
10. Cinnamon
11. Bay leaves
12. Turmeric powder
13. Red Chilli powder
14. Oil - 2 tsp
15. Salt to taste

How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Cut the cauliflower into smaller florets , clean n pressure cook them.
2. Also pressure cook the peas (If not use the frozen 1)
3. Heat the non stick pan and add 2 tsp of oil.
4. Once it turns hot add the cloves, cinamon sticks n bay leaves.
5. Add onion and fry them.
6. Add ginger garlic paste and green chillies.
7. Fry them till oinion turns golden brown.
8. Then add tomato and fry till raw smell eases.
9. Add cauliflower and peas n mix them well.
10. Now add a pinch of turmeric and 1-2 spoons of red chilli powder and mix them well along with salt and heat in medium flame for 10mins.
11. Add the coconut milk with little amount of water and mix well. Keep in sim for 5mins.
12. Cauliflower peas kurma is ready. Add cilantro and serve hot.

It goes well with any mixed rices like veg rice..coconut rice..else with rotis n Naans..


Spinach Dhal dish

Spinach as such has a very high nutritive value, especially when fresh, steamed, or quickly boiled.Here is the recipe for Spinach n Moong dhal dish.

All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~
1. Spinach - 1 pack
2. Moong dhal - 1/2 cup
3. Mustard - 1/2 tsp
4. Jeera - 1/2 tsp
5. Hing
6. green chilli - 2
7. Curry leaves
8. Onion - 1 chopped
9. Tomato - 1 chopped
10. Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
11. Oil - 2 tsp
12. Salt to taste


How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Pressure cook the Moong dhal with 1 cup of water n keep it aside.
2. Clean n cut the spinach leaves.
3. Heat non stick pan in medium flame. Once it turns hot add 2 tsp of oil.
4. Add mustard. Once it splutters add jeera n hing.
5. Add chilli n curry leaves to them.
6. Add Onions n fry them for sometime.
7. Then add tomato and fry them till raw smell eases.
8. Add cooked Moong dhal to the above.
9. Now add the Spinach leaves with the above contents n mix them well.
10. Add a pinch of turmeric powder and salt according to ur taste.
11. Close the lid and leave it for 15-20mins in medium flame.


Spinach n Moong dhal dish is ready.
Have it with potato , cabbage curry or any side dish. Server hot.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Tamarind Rice

Here is the recipe of the sour, hot, spicy Tamarind rice.

All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~

1. Basmati Rice - 2 cups
2. Tamrind - 1 cup
3. Mustard - 1 tsp
4. Jeera - 1 tsp
5. Hing - 1 tsp
6. Chenna dhal - 1/2 tsp
7. Curry leaves
8. oil - 4 tsp
9. Red Chilli - 7-8
10. Peanut(optional)
11. Turmeric powder
12. Salt to taste

How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Cook Basmati rice n keep it aside.
2. Soak tamarind and extract thick pulp out of it
3. Heat the pan. then add 3-4 tsp of oil.
4. Add mustard. When it splutters add jeera, hing, red chillies and curry leaves.
5. To the above add a pinch of turmeric powder and the extracted tamarind.
6. Heat the pan till the raw smell of tamarind eases and until it is thick(depends on the consistency of the extract)
7. Once this is done add this extract little by little to the rice along with salt.
8. Depending on the taste add tamarind extract n salt accordingly.
9. Add roasted peanuts.

Serve hot.

Tamarind extract can be refrigerated and stored for about 2-3 weeks.

Lemon Rice

Here goes the traditional south indian lemon rice...My moms recipe
All u need..!!!
~~~~~~~~~~

1. Basmati rice - 2 cups
2. Lemon juice - 2tsp (quantity depends on taste)
3. Turmeric powder

4. Mustard
- 1tsp
5. Jeera
- 1tsp
6. Curry leaves
7. Green chillies

8. Ginger

9. Cliantro

10. Urad dhal
- 1/2 tsp
11. Chenna dhal - 1/2 tsp
12. 2 tsp of oil
13. Salt to taste
14. Roasted Peanuts(optional)

How u go on making it....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Cook basmati rice and keep it aside.
2. When rice turns warm add turmeric powder and salt. Mix them well.
3. Add lemon juice to the above and mix well.
3. In a pan heat 2 table spoons of oil.
4. After it turns hot add mustard seeds.
5. Once mustard splutters add jeera, green chill, curry leaves, ginger, urad dhal, chana dhal n fry them until dhal turns brown.
6. Add these to the mixed rice.
7. Mix them well n finally dress it with peanuts & cilantro.

Sever hot with raita or any side dish.





Poli

Poli...1 of the south indian sweet..which we make on Sankaranthi..Ugadhi..Diwali...
My mom makes excellent poli's n now i learnt from her n tried...It came out well...
Here is my moms recipe...

All u need...!!!
~~~~~~~~~~

For Stuffing
------------
1. 1 cup chana dhal (Bengal gram dhal) soaked in water for 2-3 hours and drained.
2. 1 cup jaggery
3. 3/4th cup of Grated coconut
4. 1 1/4 cups of maida flour
5. Cardamon - 2-3 pieces
6. 1 tsp Ghee
7. Pinch of salt
8. 2-3 tsp of oil

How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Pressure cook the chana dhal for 2 whistles. Dont overcook.
2. Add jaggery, coconut, channa dhal and grind them. Dont overgrind to a fine paste. It should be 3/4th ground.
3. Add cardamons to the prepared stuff.
4. Add a pinch of salt to them.
Prepare small balls of this stuffing and keep them aside.

5. For the batter add maida flour, pinch of salt, 2 tsp of oil and enough water to make a soft and sticky dough.

Grease ur hands with oil and take a small portion of the dough and flatten them to the size of ur palm. Now take 1 piece of the stuffing and place it in the middle of the flattened dough and fold them. C that the filling doesnt come out. They should be completely stuffed inside the dough.
Now roll out the dough into thick puris making sure that the filling doesnt come out.

Meanwhile take a non stick tawa. Keep them on a low flame. When it turns hot place the
poli on the tawa pouring ghee around it. Cook on both the sides until brown spots appear.
Serve hot.

Vegetable Cutlet


All thru' the years i've been thinking that cooking is difficult...n then came a day i stepped into the kitchen to try my hands on different recipes...only reason is now tht im married n im forced to..:)..Only after i tried certain dishes did i come to know that cooking is n art..n things seemed to be easier than i imagined...
Now tht i've got the interest in it..trying differnet dishes..sme seems to come out well too..than i imagined...
n sterday was when i tried veg cutlet n to my surprise it seemed to be dam easy n less time consuming...n here u go with the recipe..


All u need..!!!
~~~~~~~~~
For stuffing
------------
Ur choice of vegetables..I used ..1 big potato, Cauliflower, beans, peas..can add carrot, paneer..
1 big onion chopped
Curry leaves
Green Chilli
Turmeric powder
Red Chilli powder
Garam Masala(Optional ...depends on ur tatste)
Cilantro
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp (optional...depends on ur taste)
Salt to taste
Oil

For Dip
-------
Maida flour - 4 tsps
water
Bread - 3 pieces

How u go on making it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Wash, cut and boil all the vegetables.
2. In a non-stick pan add 2 tsp of veg' oil. Add the chopped onions and fry them till golden brown.
3. Add curry leaves along.
4. Add Ginger Garlic paste along with it and fry till the raw smell eases.(This step is optional)
5. Add all the cooked vegetables with the fried onion and keep frying all of them for 5mins in low flame.
6. Add a pinch of turmeric powder and 1 tsp of red chilli powder(amt depends on ur taste).
7.Add 1 tsp of Garam Masala along with the other powder (optional..)
8. Add salt according to ur taste.
9. Keep frying all these for certain time till the raw smell goes.
Keep this stuffing aside n let them cool down.

10. In a bowl add 1 tsp of Maida flour and mix this well with 10 tsp of water.

11. Toast the bread and make bread crumbs by grinding them.

12. Now make small balls using the veg stuff n flatten them. Dip this in the maida flour and then roll them in bread crumbs. Make 4-5 pieces and place them in a roasting sheet and place them in oven in 400F for 45mins or until gloden brown.
U can deep fry them in oil, as u like.
U can also turn balls into different shapes as u wish.

Veg Cutlet is ready. Serve with tomato sauce or pudin chutni.