Feb 24, 2014

Mushroom - Bell Pepper Stir Fry


Simple ingredients put together and  brought to your table!!!

Mushrooms and bell peppers are those veggies that  cooks very fast in about 2 minutes which retains both crunch and flavor. Both of these vegetables have high water content, cooking too much makes mushrooms leathery and capsicum soggy. Just to add a little kick, these veggies  are tossed  in coriander powder, chat masala, green chilies and curry leaves.

Thanks to my sister Vaishnavi (we fondly call her as Indu :-) ) shared this recipe with me.

Ingredients

200 gms Mushrooms, diced
1 Green Bell pepper, cubed
1 Small Onion, diced
3 Green Chilies, finely chopped
Few curry leaves
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp  Oil
1/2 tsp Coriander powder
1/4 tsp Chat Masala
1/4 tsp pepper (optional)
Salt

Method

  • In a wok, on high heat; add oil, Mustard seeds, curry leaves,  and green chilies. Give a little stir. Immediately add onions and bell pepper. Stir in for a minute

  • Add coriander powder and chat masala

  • Add mushrooms and toss it on high heat. Season it with salt and pepper

  • Serve immediately as a side dish

Additional Notes:
Use grape seed oil or Extra virgin olive oil to make it a guilt free recipe. 

Feb 17, 2014

Aloo - Channa Chat


A low calorie and oil-free snack made effortlessly. Pre-cooked boiled potatoes and dry black chick pea are tossed in a spicy tangy sauce. I prefer to make the sauce fresh because all the flavors are imparted in this chutney. The savory sauce is made up of tamarind pulp, sugar, red chili powder, chat masala, coriander powder and cumin powder. 

This recipe can be either served as a salad or as a evening snack. It tastes best when served cold.  



Ingredients

1 Potato
1 cup Dry Black Chickpea
1 Lemon
Few sprigs of Cilantro

For the sauce
1/4 cup Freshly squeezed tamarind pulp
1/2 tsp Raw sugar (or any sweetener)
1/4 tsp Coriander powder
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1/4 tsp Red chili powder
1/4 tsp Chat masala
Salt

Method

  • Cook potato in a pot of boiling water until fork tender. Peel of the skin and cut into small cubes
  • Soak dry black chickpea in water for 3-5 hours. Then wash chickpea in running cold water. Cook in a pressure cooker for 10 -15 minutes with 3 cups of water. Drain excess water. (you can retain this water which can be used as a base to prepare soups and curries)
  • In a pan, mix all the ingredients  and bring it to boil
  • In a bowl, mix potatoes, boiled chickpeas and sauce. Season it with salt, then add lemon juice and garnish with coriander
  • Serve wither warm or chilled
Additional notes~
Further in this recipe, you can embellish with chopped red onions and pomogranate

Feb 13, 2014

Capsicum Varuval


Capsicum varuval is a simple and a tasty side dish for yogurt rice (Thayir Sadham ). We make this scrumptious and juicy dish when capsicum is cheap and available in abundance. 


This veggie delicacy  just needs dry rub to coat capsicum and shallow fry in oil. The dry rub consists of turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Capsicum is slow cooked until it sweats in oil and becomes translucent. The lightly colored brown spots in capsicum adds an additional bonus to the flavor.

Ingredients

4 Medium sized Green Bell peppers
4 tsp Oil
1/3 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Coriander powder
1/4 tsp Red Chili powder
1/4 tsp cumin powder
Salt

Method

  • Cut the bell peppers in quarts with crown intact

  • Make a smooth paste of all the spices with a little water and season it with salt

  • Apply the spice mixture inside the capsicum without breaking it

  • Heat oil in a pan. Place the bell peppers close to each other and cook in low heat. Rotate occasionally until it turns transparent
  • Serve it as a side dish with curd rice, sambhar or type of lentil curry

Feb 11, 2014

Thayir Sadham


Thayir Sadham is called yogurt rice is a simple and easy meal mostly in southern states in India. Warm rice is mixed with yogurt and seasoned with different condiments. In particular,  freshly grated raw ginger is added to boost its flavor which has several health benefits. 

This recipe is prepared in Bhramin style  which means no onion & no garlic. In many temples, curd rice is served as prasadam. It is also said that curd rice aids digestion. Usually in weddings or in any functions, after a heavy course meal; it is finished with curd rice.

Tip:

  • In summer milk is also added to prevent yogurt getting sour
  • Fruits like pomegranate and grapes are also added. Apart from these even roasted cashew nut are also added
Cooking time: 35 -40 min | Serves - 2

Ingredients

1 cup of Rice (uncooked)
4 cups of Yogurt
1/2 cup of Milk (optional)
1 inch piece Ginger, grated
1 Green Chili, finely chopped (optional)
 Handful of Cilantro, finely chopped
Salt

For Seasoning~
2 tsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Channa dal
A sprig of Curry leaves
2 nos Red chili

Method

  • Cook rice with 2 1/2 cups of water. After rice has cooked mash rice with a ladle
  • Mix rice with yogurt, milk, ginger, green chili, cilantro and salt
  • In a pan, heat oil. Add mustard seeds, channa dal, curry leaves and red chili. When it starts to sizzle, pour the seasoning to the curd rice and mix well

Additional Notes:
  • Adjust the thickness of yogurt and rice as per your choice. Rice tends to absorb yogurt when left for long. You can add little water or milk to brng down to right consistency.
  • I have used fat free yogurt. You can use yogurt from whole milk to make it more creamy