Raw Banana Kofta Curry

I always wanted to try North Indian style curry using raw banana. I had been formulating this recipe for a while. The idea for this recipe st-ricked me when I made Vada Curry. In Vada Curry, vadas are made in advance and they are dunked in gravy.  So using this concept, why not try making koftas using raw bananas? Some of the ingredients are very much similar to vada curry. 

This is a simple and straightforward recipe. Its a spicy vegetarian curry made with deep fried raw banana dumplings soaked in cashew-coconut curry mix.

Ingredients

For the Kofta

1 Raw banana

1 small onion, finely chopped

4 tsp Chickpea Flour

2 Green Chilies, finely chopped

3 Sprigs of Cilantro, finely chopped

1 small piece of ginger, finely chopped

1/4 tsp pepper powder

salt

Oil for deep frying

For the gravy

1 small stick of cinnamon

2 Cardamom

2 Cloves

1 small piece of Ginger, minced

1 Onion, finely chopped

1 Tomato, finely chopped

1/4 tsp Garam masala

1/2 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Paprika

1/2 tsp Red chili powder

10 Cashew nut, soaked in water for 1 hour

1 Cup of Coconut milk

Salt

3 tsp Oil

Cilantro

Method

Making Koftas

• In a large pot, cook raw banana in water for 15 minutes. Remove the skin and shred banana

• In a mixing bowl, add shredded banana, onions, chickpea flour, green chilies, cilantro, pepper, ginger and salt. Mix well. Take a small portion of this mix and roll it into balls about 1 1/2 thick

• In  the meantime, heat oil for deep frying. Gently leave raw banana balls in oil and fry in medium heat until it turns brown

• Use absorbent paper and drain excess oil

Making Curry

•  In a blender, make a smooth paste of soaked cashew nut. Add very little water if required

• Heat oil in the same pot for cooking banana. Add cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and ginger. Saute for a minute and then add onion. fry until onions turns transparent

• Add tomatoes, garam masala, coriander powder, red chili powder, and paprika. Saute until tomatoes are completely cooked

• Add cashew nut paste, coconut milk and 1 cup of water. Adjust salt as per taste. Simmer for 10- 15 minutes until oil separates out from gravy. Add cilantro

• Add koftas to the grave just 10 minutes before serving

• Serve hot with Naan or chapathis

Garlic Pepper Chicken

Garlic Pepper Chicken  is a trademark recipe of my dad and I want to honor my dad on occasion of Father's Day by dedicating this recipe on Shruchi's Kitchen. At home,  its a family tradition to make this recipe at least once a month. It is my favorite chicken recipes of all, and would love to eat it with just steamed rice. 

My dad's favorite ingredients are garlic and pepper; and infusion of these two ingredients brings out magnificent flavors in this recipe. I am always first in line whenever my dad cooks at home and I have admired my dad's  style of cooking; that's one of the reason why I started Shruchi Kitchen.

Ingredients

500 gms Chicken

1 Pod of Garlic, peeled and crushed

4 Green chilies, finely chopped

4-6 sprigs of Cilantro, finely chopped

2 medium sized Onions, thinly sliced

1 tsp Black peeper powder
1 cup Water

Salt

4 tsp Oil

Method

• In a large pot, heat oil, add garlic , chilies, cilantro and onions. Fry until onions turns transparent

• Add Chicken and pepper powder. Cook for 15 minutes and cover the pot

• Add  water and adjust salt as per taste. Cook for another 20 minutes in medium heat

• Turn off heat. Serve hot with steamed rice

Raw Banana Kebabs

Raw banana kebabs  is a new recipe which I learnt from my dad. My Dad's style of cooking is -  simple ingredients with magnificent flavors. 

This is a very simple kebab recipe. Raw bananas are coated with spiced batter, which is then deep fried and served with freshly sliced onions. 

Ingredients

1 Raw Banana, (peel just outer layer of skin) cubed

1 1/2 tsp Corn Flour

1/2 tsp Rice flour

1/4 tsp Red Chili powder

1/4 tsp Paprika

1/4 tsp Pepper

1/2 tsp Ginger- Garlic paste

Salt

Oil for deep frying

Chat Masala

1 Onion, thinly sliced

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Method

• In a large mixing bowl, mix corn flour, rice flour, red chili powder, paprika, pepper, ginger - garlic paste and adjust salt as per taste. Sprinkle little water and make a smooth batter; not too think not thick

• Add raw banana cubes

• Heat oil for deep frying
• Gently leave raw bananas one by one in hot oil. Fry in medium heat evenly until it turns brown

• Drain excess oil using absorbent paper
• Sprinkle some chat masala and lemon juice on top and serve hot with sliced onions

Chettinad Chicken Curry

Chettinad is a region from southern state, TamilNadu in India which is acclaimed for Chettinad cuisine. The Chettinad cuisine is known for one the oldest and traditional cuisines in southern India. Now a days many restaurants include Chettinad recipes in their menu and the most popular recipe is chicken Chettinad. The specialty of this recipe is, masalas are made freshly from  herbs and spices.

I wanted to make spicy and meaty gravy for Idli which is my husband favorite combo. So I decided to make this recipe. This cuisine is known for its authenticy and most of the dishes are peppery which has a very strong taste. In order to make the masala, I gathered different kinds of spices like, cinnamon, cloves, mace, fennel, cumin seeds, pepper, red chilies, and coriander seeds.  A perfect blend of these spices gives it distinct aroma and a  sharp taste.

Ingredients

500gms of Chicken, with bones

10- 12 Pear Onions (sambar onions), thinly sliced

2 Large tomatoes, diced

4 cloves of Garlic

1 piece of Ginger

1 cup Coconut milk

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1 sprig of Curry leaves

3-4 sprig of Cilantro, finely chopped

Salt

5 tsp Oil

For the spice mix

2 tsp coriander seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

4 red chilies

1 tsp pepper 

1 stick Cinnamon

2 Cloves

1 Cardamom

1 large piece of Mace

Method

• Dry roast all the ingredients listed under spice mix. Cool it and grind it to powder

• Make a paste of ginger, garlic and cilantro

• In a large pot, heat oil, add ginger-garlic-chili paste. Saute for few seconds and then add onions and curry leaves. Fry until it turns transparent

• Add tomatoes and turmeric powder. Saute until tomatoes are cooked

• Next, add ground spice powder and chicken. Mix well and cook for 10 to 15 minutes

• When chicken is half way done, adjust salt as per taste. Add coconut milk and cook for 15 to 20 minutes

• Add cilantro and serve hot

Idli Sambar

Idli sambar  is one of the standard recipes in many homes across Southern India and this is a traditional combo in Indian breakfast recipes. Sambar is specifically made for Idli using toor dal, sambar onions (pearl onions) and different spices. 

Whenever I visit my grandparents house, my aunt's used to make idli and sambar for breakfast. This sambar which my grandmother makes is exclusively for idli and even the sambar powder entirely is different. The amalgamation of hing, curry leaves, red chilies and  coriander seeds is so bold that, I can even sense its smell before I even step inside the house. I remembers all our cousins sit in a row with stomach rumbling and screaming for idli :-) Whenever I make this recipe, I feel nostalgic which brings back memories of my childhood.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup Toor Dal 

10 - 12 Sambar onions (pearl onions)

2 Tomatoes, chopped

2 tsp sambar powder

1/2 tsp Jaggery or sugar

3-4 sprigs of Cilantro, finely chopped

1 samll piece of tamarind

Salt

3 tsp Oil

For seasoning

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin  seeds

1/4 tsp hing (asafoetida)

1 sprig of curry leaves

Method

• In a pressure cooker, add washed toor dal and 4 cups of water. Cook for 15-20 minutes

• In a bowl soak tamarind in hot water for 5 minutes and mash it to extract put. Discard skin and excess fiber

• In a large pot, heat oil, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, hing and curry leaves. When mustard seeds starts to sizzle add onions, fry until it is transparent

• Now add tomatoes. Saute until it is cooked

• Add sambar powder, jaggery and tamarind pulp. 

• Add cooked dal and 1 cup of water. Adjust salt as per taste.  Simmer for 10 minutes

• Add chopped cilantro 
• Serve hot with Idli

Idli recipe with Idli rava

Idlis are the most common South-Indian breakfast recipes. It is made with rice and urad dal and sometimes made with idli rava. Idli's are paired with different kinds of chutneys, lentil based curries like sambhar or even with meat curries. There is no limit to accompaniments for idlis. 

Idlis are traditional South-Indian breakfast recipes, made often almost on daily basis. It is highly economical and most often dietitians recommend idlis for breakfast because it contains no fat, no cholesterol and no saturated fat. It is a good source of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. 

The recipe below is a fast food style idly. I love idlis made with idli rava. It is very soft and the texture is coarse unlike rice idlis. This batter is simple and very easy because you don't need a grinder. The batter can be easily made using a blender. Often my friends ask me whether they need grinder or not. In many hotels and fast foods, they don't grind idly rava, they just mix it with ground urad dal batter. 

Ingredients

3 cups Idli Rava

3/4 cup urad dal

1/2 cup Beaten rice (poha)

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp Baking Soda

Method

• Soak idli rava, urad dal and beaten rice separately for at least 6 hours

• Wash urad dal and beaten rice in water for 2 to 3 times. Grind both urad dal and beaten rice. Add little water if required

• Then wash idli rava with water and drain excess water. Use a cheese cloth to squeeze excess water. Add it to urad dal - beaten rice batter

• To this, add salt and baking soda. Mix well. Cover it with a lid and keep it in warm place for atleast 8 to 10 hours for fermentation

• Now swirl the batter gently. Lightly grease idly moulds and pour a spoon full of batter on molds. 

• Steam it using pressure cooker without using whistle or using idli steamer. Steam for 10 to 15 minutes

• Wet the spoon and scoop out idli from the moulds 
• Serve hot with Chutney and Sambhar

Naan

Naan is an Indian flat bread baked in clay oven. It is a world famous Indian bread recipe. It has a crusty bottom and fluffy on the top smeared it with butter. There are different kinds of naan like garlic naan, kheema naan, onion naan and sometimes different kinds of vegetables are stuffed in naan.

Naan is served mostly with comfort foods like kebabs, tandoor, meat curries or vegetable curries. It tastes best when it is hot from oven.

I have tried to recreate naan recipe using tawa or a griddle. It came out pretty well. This recipe has minimal ingredients and quite easy to make. 

Ingredients

2 cups Maida or All purpose flour

1/2 tsp dry yeast

1/2 tsp sugar

Water

Salt

2 tsp Oil

1 beaten egg (optional)

Method

• In a small bowl, mix yeast and  warm water. Stir until yeast dissolves completely

• In a large mixing bowl, add maida, sugar and salt. Mix well

• Then add yeast and egg (optional). Add water to knead dough. The dough should be very soft. Finally, add oil and knead well

• Keep dough in warm place for at least 2 hours
• After dough has fermented, knead it again. Divide the dough into equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball. Take a ball and dust it with flour and roll it flat using rolling pin

• Gently place in on a griddle or flat pan. roast it evenly on both the sides. Smear oil or butter

• Garnish with cilantro and serve hot