Garlic Pepper Vegge Balls

The vegetarian pepper balls are  wonderful finger food and a great starter too . These balls can also be added to any gravy to make a nice kofta curry .

Recipe Source : Vahrehvah.com 


Vegge Balls 
Raw Banana - 3 , boiled , peeled and grated
Ginger - 1/2 inch , grated
Garlic - 2 , big one , grated
Onion - 1/2 cup , chopped fine
Sahi Jeera - 1/4 tsp
Chili Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander Powder - 3/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Amchur / Mango Powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

1. Wash the banana well and cut  into half and remove the top and bottom .
2. Boil and cook the banana till fork tender.
3. Remove the peel , cool and grate the banana.
4. The peels  can be used to make banana-peel-stirfry .
5. Heat oil and add s. jeera and cook for  30 seconds.
6. Then add onion and ginger garlic paste and stir well.
7. When onion turns translucent add chili , turmeric and coriander powder.
8. Stir and add the grated banana, amchur and salt and mix well.
9. Cool and mash with your hands and form small balls.
10. Pour a tbsp oil on a baking tray and roll the balls .
11. Arrange the ball on the tray and bake till golden at 350 F.

Tempering
Onion - 2 tbsp , chopped
Garlic  - 2 tbsp , sliced
Green Chilli - 1 tbsp , chopped
Green Onion - 1/2 cup , chopped
Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup, chopped
Curry leaves  - a few , torn
Pepper Powder -  1/2 tsp
Soya Sauce - 2 tsp or more to taste
Amchur /Mango Powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp

1. Heat oil and add the onion , garlic and chili .
2. Cook till the garlic turns light golden on the corners.
3. Add curry leaves, amchur and pepper powder and mix.
4. Add the green onion , coriander leaves and soya sauce.
5. Add the balls and mix everything well for few minutes.
6. Add you are ready to serve.

PS: Original recipe has used a cup of grated carrot and a cup of grated lauki too.

Happy Christmas

WISH YOU ALL A VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS ! 

Methi and Toor Dal

Methi greens is another vegetable that  is winter staple in India. And when cooked with dal makes a wonderful combo with rice and papad. This is yet another recipe from my favourite cook book "cooking with Pedatha".

Methi Leaves - 1 cup ,chopped

Toor Dal - 1/4 cup

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp

Asafoetida Powder - 1/4 tsp

Green Chillies - 2 , slit

Lemon Juice - 3/4 tbsp

Ghee - 1 tsp

Oil - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Curry leaves a few

Tempering

Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp - 1/2 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1/4 - 1/2 tsp

Whole Red Chilies - 2

1. Cook dal with a cup of water and turmeric till soft , churn well and set aside.
2. In a pan , heat oil for tempering  and pop mustard and cumin.
3. Add the red chillies and wait for 30 seconds and add the greens.
4. Cook  covered till the methi is well done.
5. Add the cooked dal , green chilli and curry leaves and continue to cook for few minutes.
6. Add the lemon juice and remove from fire.

Quick Aloo Parwal

Parwal is abundantly available in market  during winter and my favorite  recipe is dal stuffed parwal  but it takes a little time and preparation. But this is one of my goto parwal recipe which is quick and goes well with roti paratha. 

Parwal - 10 -12

Potato - 2 , yukon gold medium sized

Onion - 1/4 cup, chopped fine

Tomato - 1/2 cup, chopped fine

Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tsp

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp

Chili  Powder - 1/2 tsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Peel parwal  and potato and cut into one inch pieces.

Heat oil and add onion and ginger garlic paste.

When onion turns golden add the turmeric and chili powder.

Cook for 30 seconds and add the tomato.

Cook covered till the oil separates.

Add the parwal and potato and mix well.

Add 1/4 cup water and cook till parwal is tender.

Garnish with coriander leaves and you are ready to serve.

Tendli (Kovakka) - Andra Style

This recipe is from "cooking with Pedatha". I have used kovakka ( tendli in hindi) where as she had used a different vegetable in the original recipe . This recipe will go very well with rice and very good for lunchbox too.

Tendli - 1/2 kg 
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1/4 tsp
Red Chilli Powder - 1/4 tsp

Jaggery - 1 tsp

Sesame seeds - 1 tbsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste


Tempering
Urad Dal - 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Red Chilies  - 2-3 ,broken
Green Chilies - 2 ,slit
Hing - a pinch
Curry Leaves a few

1. Roast sesame seeds till golden , cool and coarsely grind and keep aside. 
2. Wash and cut tendli into half and slice thin.
3. Heat oil in a big enough pan and  add urad dal and when it turns golden add mustard.
4. Lower the flame and add chilies , curry leaves , hing turmeric,coriander and chili powder.
5. Add the vegetable  and mix well and cook till tender.
6. Then add sesame powder, jaggery  and salt and stir .
7. Cook for another 2-3 minutes and you are ready to serve.

    Kerala Style Tendli : kovvaka-mezhukvaratti

    Maharastrian Style : 

Oven baked potato chips

Who doesn't  love potato chips to snack and i'm no exception and when i saw oven roasted potato chips at tastejunction.blogspot.com i knew what i wanted to try for this week's BlogHop from Anamika's blog.

 Yukon gold - 4 medim sized

 olive oil - 2 tbsp

 Salt - 1/2 tsp

 Ground black pepper - 1/2 tsp (I didn't use)

 Vinegar for drizzling (I didn't use)

Method:

1. Clean the  potatoes  and  slice them (with the skin) to about 1/8 inch thickness .
2. And leave it on cold water for half an hour.
3. Remove from water and let it dry.
4. Then toss it  with oil, salt & pepper.
5. Preheat  oven to 425F.
6. Line the baking tray with parchment paper.
7. Now line potato on the baking tray in a single layer and bake for 5 mins.
8. Flip them over and then let the other side too get golden, another 3-4 mins.
9. Take it out, and drizzle with vinegar (if using) and serve 

Sending it to 


Baking Fest #2 @ sangeethaskitchen.blogspot.com

 "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.

Bharva Bindi / Okra stuffed with Spices.

Vidhu Mittal is one of my favorite author. I am a big fan of her home style simple recipes. This bharva bhindi is simple and tasty.

Bhindi/Okra  - 10 -15

Stuffing

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 2 tsp

Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp

Fennel Powder -  2 tsp

Dry Mango Powder - 3/4 tsp

Salt to taste

Seasoning

Oil - 2 1/2 tbsp

Asafetida - 1/8 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

1. Wash and wipe dry , cut the top and bottom.
2. Slit vertically by keeping the shape intact.
3. Mix the stuffing ingredients together and fill each bhindi

1. Heat oil and add asafetida , cumin seeds and stuffed bhindi.
2. Cover and cook and keep stirring occasionally until bhindi is tender.
3. Serve with roti or rice.

Rajastani Gatte / Chickpea noodles in spiced curd gravy

For this weeks bloghop i visited Neetu's blog "www.hobbychef.in " and liked her quick and authentic Rajastani Gatti and decided to prepare it . We all loved it.  

Recipe Source :  www.hobbychef.in

For Gatte
Besan /chickpea flour - 1/2 cup
Red chili Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1/4 tsp
Dry Mango Powder - 1/4 tsp
Ajwain - 1/4 tsp (optional)
Water - 2 cups  and few tbsp to make dough

1. Keep  two cups of water in a deep pan with half tsp salt to boil.
2. Mix  together besan, ajwain, red chili, coriander, garam masala and  mango powder.
3. Create a soft dough adding one tbsp water at a time  to the mixture .
4. Fill the dough into the SEV/ MURUKU MACHINE  with THICK SEV MOULD.
5. Drop the sev into the boiling water and cook till the noodles float to top.
6. Skim the foam from the top and keep aside.

For Gravy


Curd - 1/4 cup
Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder -  2 tbsp
Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp
Hing - 1/4 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tsp
Dry Mango Powder - 1/4 tsp
Chat Masala - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

1. Mix curd , mango powder and chat masala and keep aside.
2. Mix red chili , coriander , garam masala powders with one tbsp water and keep aside.
3. Heat oil , add cumin seeds and hing.
4. When cumin turns golden add the masala mixture and cook till oil seperates.
5. Add the cooked gatte and water in which it was cooked  and simmer for a while.
6. Add the curd mixture and mix well and remove from heat.
7. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with roti paratha.

I'm sending this entry to "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.

Kerala Style Raw Banana & Potato Curry

This curry is called mezhkuvaratti in malayam and can be done with any vegetable. Here i have used a combo of potato and raw banana. Its quick curry and goes well with rice and roti and perfect for lunch box.

Potato  - 1 cup , peeled and cut  into 1/2 cubes 

Raw Banana - 2 cups , peeled and cut  into 1/2 cubes

Pearl Onions - 5 , peeled and sliced

Whole red chili -  3 , broken

Curry Leaves - a few

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Red Chilli Powder - 3/4  tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

1. Boil potato, banana, turmeric , salt and 1 cup water till fork tender.
2. Drain and keep aside.
3. Heat oil  and add mustard and let it pop.
4. Add curry leaves and onion.
5. When onion turns translucent add whole broken chili .
6. After a few seconds add the  chili powder.
7. Mix well and add cooked potato and banana.
8. Mix well and cook for another few minutes and serve.

Sending it to veggie/Fruit A Month –  RAW BANANA or PLANTAIN hosted at madscientistskitchen

Peas masala sundal

Sundal is one of my favorite south indian snack and when i saw this variation  at  VardhinisKitchen  i knew what i wanted to try for this blog hop. I have used frozen peas but vardhini's masala will make any thing like rehydrated  and cooked  peas , chickpeas, rajma , fava etc exrtra special.

Recipe Source : VardhinisKitchen 


Frozen or Fresh Peas - 2 cups ( OR Dry peas - 1 cup)
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp


Masala :
Oil - 1/2 tsp
Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp
Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
Channa Dal - 1/2 tsp
Red Chili -2
Dry Coconut  - 1 tbsp


Tempering :
Oil - 1 tsp
Musard Seeds - 1/4 tsp
Hing - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Curry Leaves - a few
Red Chili - 2 
Salt to taste

1. Heat oil and add coriander seeds, chana dal , urad dal and red chili .
2. Cook till the dals turns golden.
3. Cool the mixture and add coconut and grind it well.
4. Heat  a tsp of oil and  add mustard and let it pop.
5. Add the curry leaves and  chili and mix well.
6. Add the peas , salt and masala and mix well.
7. Cook for a few more minutes and garnish it with lemon juice.

PS : If using dry peas soak it overnight and cook till tender.


I'm sending this entry to "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.

Muringa Manga Thenga Aracha Curry - Kerala Special

Thenga aracha curry is a Kerala home staple. Thenga aracha curry means vegetable cooked in coconut gravy . Today's recipe is raw mango and drumsticks cooked in coconut gravy. Any firm vegetable can be used. Drumsticks is my favorite which gives the curry a very unique flavor. You will use some kind of souring agent in this gravy .Traditionally it is tamarind ,mango ,nellipuli etc. Mordern recipes use tomato too as souring agent.Today i have used raw mango.

Drumsticks /Muringa- 1 cup, chopped to 3 inch pieces
Raw Mango/Manga - 1/4 of a very sour mango  , chopped
Coconut - 1/4 cup , freshly grated
Hot Green Chili - 2
Curry leaves  - a spring
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Cumin Seed - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste

Tempering:
Mustard - 1/4 tsp
Dry Chili - 2
Pearl Onion - 4 , chopped finely
Curry Leaves - a few
Red Chili Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coconut Oil - 2 tsp

1. Take  drumstick , mango , curry leaves ,green chili , salt and one cup water in a saucepan.
2. Cook till drumsticks are tender and keep aside.
3. Grind coconut , turmeric , cumin , green chili and few curry leaves to a fine paste.
4. Now add the paste to cooked drumstick and mango.
5. And simmer on low for 3-4 minutes.
6. In the mean time heat oil and add mustard seeds.
7. When mustard starts popping add the dry chili, curry leaves, and onion .
8. Cook till the onion turns golden add the chili powder .
9. And pour over the simmering curry and remove from fire.
10. Serve with rice and papadam.

Bitter Gourd Curry - North Indian style

For this blog hop i cooked from a wonderful blog santoshbangar.blogspot.com . I loved santoshji's  bittergourd recipe and thought of cooking it for the family today. I modified the original recipe a bit to my family's taste  but used the same masala's as santoshji has in her recipe.

Recipe Source : santoshbangar.blogspot.com 


Bitter Gourd - 2 , sliced thin into 3 inch long pieces  (about 2 cups)
Onion - 1  , sliced thin  (about 1 cup)
Coriander Powder - 3/4 tsp
Chili Powder - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Dry Mango Powder - 1/4 tsp ( OR 2 tsp lemon juice)
Garam Masala Powder - 1/4 tsp
Fenugreek /Methi Seed - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil - 1 tbsp

1. Heat oil and add the methi seeds.
2. Add coriander, chili,turmeric powder and cook for 30 seconds.
3. Add sliced bitter gourd and salt .
4. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes by mixing it now and then .
5. By now  bitter gourd should be half done .
6. Add the onion and cook till onion is  golden.
7. Check if bitter gourd is tender too .
8. Now add garam masala and mango powder and mix well.
9. Serve with roti or paratha.

 PS : Peel bittergourd. Rub salt and leave for one hour. Wash and wipe dry and use it in the curry if you want to reduce the bitterness of Karela.


I'm sending this entry to "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.

HAPPY DIWALI

WISH YOU ALL AND YOUR FAMILY A VERY HAPPY DIWALI.

Amara Payar Curry /Guvar Phalli Curry

Amara Payar /Guvar Phalli   like which baigan , you either  like it or hate it . I happen to like it and my family likes it too :). I used a new masala  Fenugreek masala from madhoosfood.wordpress.com for this preparation and loved it.

Fenugreek (Methi )Masala
Chana dal - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Coriander seeds - 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Hing - 1/2 tsp
Whole Red chili - 4
Dry roast each ingredient  till fragrant and grind it to powder.


Amara Payar/ Gavar Phalli - 1 cup , cut into 2 inch  pieces
Onion - 1/4 cup , chopped
Saunf - 1/4 tsp
Fenugreek/ Methi Masala -  1 tbsp ( Or use coriander - 1 tsp , chili - 1/2 tsp)
Garam masala - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Aam Choor  - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

1. Take half a cup of water in a sauce pan.
2. Add amara payar , salt , turmeric .
3. Cook till tender , drain and keep aside.
4. Heat oil and add saunf and cook for 30 secs. 
5. Add onion and cook till onion turns light golden.
6. Add the aam choor, fenugreek masala and garam masala.
7. Add drained amara payar and mix well.
8. Cook for few minutes , till all the masala gets mixed with the vegetable.
9. Serve with roti or paratha.

Ghee Roast and Ridge Gourd Chutney

For blog hop i visited Divya's  blog  DIVYASCOOKBOOK  last week and Jayshri's blog  SAMAYALARAI  this  week and enjoyed reading through their posts. When i saw how to prepare the restaurant style rocket shaped ghee roast i knew what i wanted to try  from divya's collection and then came across the ridge gourd chutney in jayshri's collection thought it would be a wonderful combo with the dosa and every one at home loved it with dosa and even rice.

In the picture chutneys are tomato (red colored) , coconut (white colored), ridge gourd( light brown colored) , chutney podi ( drak brown colored).

Nei (Ghee) RoastRecipe source : DIVYASCOOKBOOK

Idli rice – 3 cups
Urad dal – 1 cup
Methi seeds – 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Ghee – as required to make dosas

1. Soak the rice  for 4- 6 hours and dal-methi for 45 minutes separately .
2. Grind to a  smooth paste and mix both together with salt .
3. Keep the batter for fermenting overnight.
4. Place a dosa tawa on flame and make dosas.
5. Spread the dosa as thin as possible and pour a tsp of melted ghee on top.
6. When dosa starts becoming brown and crisp, lower the flame.
7. Cut a radius shaped slit.
8. 
9.  Now remove the dosa and fold it like a cone along the slit and ghee roast is ready.

RIDGE GOURD CORIANDER CHUTNEY

Recipe Source :SAMAYALARAI 

Ridge Gourd  - 1/2 cup peeled, deseeded and cubed

Coriander seeds - 2 tspPearl Onion -  4 , slit into quarters
Red chilies - 2
Channa dal - 2 tsp
Coconut - 2 tbsp grated
Tamarind  a small piece
Salt to taste

1. Heat oil in a deep pan and roast the dal , coriander and red chilies . 
2. Now add the onions and saute till translucent
3. Add the ridge gourd, coconut ,salt and mix well.
4. Cover and cook till gourd is tender .
5. Add the coriander leaves and saute for a second or two.
6. Turn off heat, cool.
7. Blend  the mixture and chutney is ready.

I'm sending this entry to "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.

Pomfret kerala style on grill

This summer we wanted to try fish on the grill and thought of using this very famous Indian fish "pomfret". We were able to find it in the local Japanese market. This fleshy fish is really good for grilling. Another fish which i have tried is "trout" and it too works well on the grill.

Fish ( Pomfret)  - 2
Chili Powder(mild for color) - 2 tsp
Chili Powder (hot for taste) - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1/4 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp or Water - 1 tbsp
Curry Leaves -  a few sprigs
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

1. Clean the fish inside and out and trim all the fins and scale it too.
2. Sprinkle about a tbsp on coarse salt evenly on both sides .
3. Massage the salt well on the fish and wash it  and keep it to drain.
4. Now make few deep slits on both the side of the fish.
5. Mix lemon juice , salt , turmeric , chilli and garam masala well.
6. Now add a tbsp of water or a tbsp oil to the mixture and  mix well.
7. Mix about two spring of curry leaf into the mixture.
8. Massage the mixture on the both sides of the fish.
9. Fill a few curry leaves in each slit on both sides of the fish. 
10. Leave the fish in the refrigerator for few hours to marinate.
11. And grill it or bothe sides on a hot grill.
12. Or heat a pan and add a tbsp of oil  and cook the fish on both sides.
13. Serve the fish with lemon wedges

Sending this to the Kerala kitchen hosted at yummy food.

Pavvaka /Bitter Gourd Curry

A simple bitter gourd curry which is quick to prepare and goes well with rice or roti. Bitter is one taste that we all lack in our diets and is very important to include when ever possible.

Pavvaka/Bitter Gourd - 1 cup ,slit into four and sliced thin

Green Chilli - 2 , slit into half

Curry Leaves - a few 

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp

Tamarind Pulp - 1 tsp

Jaggery Powder - 1 tsp

Water - 1 1 /2

Salt to taste

For tempering

Oil - 2 tsp

Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp

Pearl Onion - a few , chopped fine

Curry Leaves - a few

Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1 tsp

Fenugreek Powder - 1/4 tsp

Hing Powder - 1/4 tsp

1. Add bitter gourd , green chili , curry leaf, salt , turmeric, tamarind , jaggery and water in a sauce pan.
2. Cook till the bitter gourd slices are fork tender and then get ready for tempering.
3. Heat oil in a pan , add mustard and let it pop.
4. Add curry leaves and onion and cook till onion is golden.
5. Add hing , red chili, coriander powder and cook for a few seconds .
6. And pour over the cooked bitter gourd and simmer for 3- 5 minutes.
7. Finally add the fenugreek powder and remove from fire.
8. And you are ready to serve.

Ragi & Atta Roti and Jeera Aloo

BlogHop is introducing me to so many wonderful blogs and some mouth watering recipes.   I'm posting Neha's  Jeera Aloo from  From My Heart  (visited for bloghop5) and  Umm's Ragi Atta Roti  from Taste Of Pearl City  (visited for bloghop4 ). I missed last bloghop post so friends combined both of them together this week. Neha's sabzi and Umm's roti made a wonderful combo and we all loved it at home.

Jeera Aloo

Oil-1 tbsp 

Cumin seeds-1\2 tsp

Potatoes-2 cups(boiled  till fork tender and cubed)

Coriander powder- 1tbsp

Red chili powder-1\2 tsp

Turmeric powder-1\4 tsp

Garam masala powder-1\2 tsp

Lemon Juice - 1/2 tbsp 

Salt to taste

Fresh coriander-1 tbsp(chopped)

1. Heat oil in a wide pan and cumin seeds.
2. When cumin turns golden add potato cubes.
3. Fry the potato for 2 minutes and add all dry powders.
4. Fry for 3-4 mins and lemon juice and remove from heat.
5. Add chopped coriander and serve with roti

Ragi and Atta Roti

Wheat flour - 1 cup

Ragi flour - 1/2  cup

Dill -  2 tbsp chopped finely (Original recipe used kasuri methi - 2 tsp and ajwain - 1 tsp).
Salt- 1/2 tsp

Oil- 2 tsp
Water- to knead the dough( about 1 cup)

1. Boil a cup of water with salt and oil .
2. Add ragi flour and mix well and cook it for 3-4 minutes covered on low.
3. Remove from heat and when its cool enough to handle add dill.
4. Add wheat flour little by little and  knead to a soft dough.
5. Divide the dough into 8 equal balls.
6. Roll it out into 10 to 12 cm diameter circle.
7. Heat a skillet pan to high. 
8. Cook the chapathi on both sides, until it bubbles and looks lightly brown on top.
9. Serve it with Jeera Aloo :) or any curry of your choice.

I'm sending this entry to "Blog-Hop-Wednesdays" at tickling palates.