Beans Poriyal

Beans poriyal is a common dish in South Indian Cuisine and most predominant in states of Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Andhra Pradesh. Also, it is a common recipe in every household in southern states of India. It is usually served as side dish with rice and sambhar or chapathis. This recipe is one of my favorites and it is very easy to make.

Preparation Time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb Beans, chopped about 1 cm 

1/2 tsp. Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Channa dal

4 nos Green Chilies, chopped lengthwise

1 string of Curry leaves

1 Onion, chopped 

1/4th cup Grated coconut or desiccated coconut powder

Small bunch of Cilantro, chopped

Oil for seasoning

Salt

Preparation

• In a skillet cook beans in water and add 1/4th tsp. of salt. Drain excess water from beans (don't throw  this water, you can use it to make curries or soup). I used pressure cooker to cook beans and turned off flame after one whistle

                   

• In a skillet, heat 2 tsp of oil, add mustard seeds, when it starts crackle add channa dal. Leave it for 5-10 seconds. then add green chilles and curry leaves. Saute for few seconds and then add chopped onions. fry onions until it turn transparent (I have used dried curry leaves which I add added it later)

• Add beans, salt and grated coconut. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice and sambhar or Chapathi

                                                 

Chicken 105

Total preparation time : 40-45 min

Ingredients 

250 gms of Chicken

Small stick of Cinnamon

Cloves 2 nos

½ tsp. of ginger, chopped

½ tsp of garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp. of Coriander powder 

½ tsp. of Kasturi methi

1/4^th tsp. of Turmeric powder 

½ tsp. of Chilli powder

1/4^th tsp Garam masala

1 cup of yogurt

1 cup water

A small bunch Coriander, chopped

Salt

Oil

1 tsp butter

Recipe 

·         Heat oil in a skillet and add cinnamon and cloves. Then add chopped ginger, garlic and turmeric powder

·         Add chicken and sauté for 5 - 10 minutes

·         Now add chopped onions , crushed kasturi methi, chilli powder , Garam masala and coriander powder 

·         Fry in medium heat until all the raw flavors disappears. 

·         Add a cup of curd and a cup of water. Bring it to boil. Now add chopped coriander ,butter  and cook in low heat with lid covered

·         Let it cook slowly for 25-30 min until all the oil separates out from the gravy

·         Once it's cooked add salt and mix it well. Garnish with coriander leaves 

Total preperation time : 40-45 min

Best served with rice, chapaties, naan & kulchas.

Chicken Sauté with Mushrooms

On an auto show weekend I went to meet my friend after a long time. She had invited me to a Lebanese restaurant, and Lebanese cuisine is one of my favorites’ among many others.  We ordered for Chicken Sauteed and the description in the menu card for this course was displayed something as “Chicken sauteed with mushrooms in a spice mixture…….”.  When it was bought in to our table, it looked heavenly and the aroma from the sauce wanted to make you eat more and more. The moment I tasted, it was more delicious than I initially taught. After I got back home, I searched for Lebanese chicken sauté recipe online and I found many versions. So, I decided to create my own signature recipe for chicken sauté. I enjoyed creating it, but still experimenting…..

Total preparation time: 35 – 40 min

Ingredients

250 gms of Chicken

100 gms of diced Portobello mushrooms

½ cup Buttermilk

2 tsp. of minced garlic

½ tsp. of ground black pepper

4 tsp.  cup olive oil

3 tsp. lemon juice

½ tsp. lemon zest

2 tsp. of dried/ fresh parsley or cilantro

Salt to taste

Procedure

●     Marinade chicken for 20 minutes with buttermilk, 1/4th tsp. of ground pepper powder and 1/4th tsp. of salt

●     In a skillet, heat 2 tsp. of olive oil. Pour the chicken marinade into hot oil. Sautee for 10 to 15  minutes

●     In a separate bowl whisk remaining 2 tsp. of olive oil, minced garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, parsley or cilantro and 1/4th tsp. of pepper powder. Pour  the zesty lemon sauce over chicken

●     Cook chicken for 20minutes more until the liquid evaporates.  Now add diced mushrooms. Adjust salt to taste. Sautee another 2 to 3 minutes. Don’t allow mushrooms to over cook

●     Toss in parsley or cilantro and serve hot

Delicious Tomato Soup

Tomato soup is a quick and easy to make recipe.  This soup is most common in every household around the world. Also, the ingredients, techniques and the recipe itself vary from person to person and place to place. Below is my version of delicious tomato soup recipe.  I created this recipe using minimal ingredients and made it as simple as possible.  ENJOY!!!

Total preparation time:  About 1 hour (including cooling time of tomato mixture)

Ingredients

3 cloves of Garlic

1 nos. of diced Onion

4 nos. of diced Tomatoes

4 cups of Vegetable Broth

1/4^th tsp. of black pepper

1 tsp. oil

Salt to taste

Procedure

• Heat oil in pan.  Add garlic and fry until light brown.
• Add diced onions and cook them until they are transparent. Now add tomatoes and sauté for few more minutes until tomatoes are completely cooked
• Add vegetable broth to the tomato mixture. Season with pepper and salt and adjust to taste. Bring it to boil.
• Cool the above contents and puree the contents with a blender. Filter the contents and discard any contents left in the filter.
• Now in the same pan pour the tomato mixture and bring it boil.
• Other options include- adding butter, ½ tsp. of sugar and  2-3 tsp. of heavy cream to enhance its flavor
• Garnish with croutons and crackers. Serve hot

Bhindi Roast

Total preparation time: 30 min

Ingredients:

·         250 gms Okra slit lengthwise

·         ½ inch ginger

·         3 green chillies

·         Roasted cumin powder ¼ tsp

·         Roasted coriander powder ¼ tsp

·         Turmeric ¼ tsp

·         Small bunch of coriander leaves

·         Salt to taste

·         2 tsp. of water

·         2 tsp. of oil

Procedure:

• Grind ginger, green chillies, roasted cumin powder, roasted coriander powder, turmeric, coriander leaves , salt and water
• Stuff all the okra with the spice mixture
• Heat oil in pan, add the stuffed okra and spread them evenly around the vessel. Saute the okra for 10- 15 min in medium flame
• Garnish with coriander and a slice of lemon or cucumber. Serve hot

*** Note: The preparation time may vary from person to person ***