Vegetable Sagu

Sagu is an accompliment with Set Dosa served in most of the Bangalore restaurants. This is my version of Veg Sagu which goes with Rice also pretty well.

Ingredients :

• Grated coconut : 3-4 tbl spn
• Fried grams : 2 tbl spn
• Fennel Seeds : qtr tea spn
• Ginger : half inch & Garlic 4 pods
• Onion : 1 No.
• Mustard seeds : 1 tea spn
• Urad Dhal : 1 tea spn
• Peas, Carrot, Beans, Potatoes ( 1 cup together)
• Green chillies : 4 Nos.
• Curry leaves : 1 string
• Coriander leaves
• Salt

Method of preparation :

• Grind coconut, fried grams, fennel seeds, ginger and garic into a coarse paste.
• Heat oil in a pan, add Mustard seeds, Urad dhal once the mustard splutters add curry leaves, green chillies and onion. 
• Once the onion turn translucent add the vegetables and ground mixture, salt and little water.
• Close the lid and cook till the veggies are done. 
• You can use a pressure cooker to make things easier. Adjust the taste and add coriender leaves. Serve with Set dosas / Rice
  

Preparation time is around 15 min.

read more "Vegetable Sagu"

Read complete post...

Chicken Curry - Simple version

I learnt to make chicken gravy in only one way from my mom. Once i moved to Germany after marriage, I started to browse for recipes as I had to cook a different dish every day. Only when I realized how difficult it is for moms to decide on what to cook on particular day. Earlier when my mom asked what to cook for the day, mostly I would bluntly say anything, but now I know how irritating an answer that is...

This version of chicken curry goes well with rice and any kind of Indian bread. I feel when there are not many of them for the meal then its best to try this version out. Say just for 2 or 4 of them this would be apt.

Ingredients :
Marination :

• Chicken : 200 gms
• Potatoes : 2 Nos. (Optional)
• Ginger Garlic paste : 2 tbl spn
• Coriander Powder : 1 tbl spn
• Chilly Power : 1 tal spn
• Turmeric Powder : 1 tea spn
• Curd : 5 to 6 tbl spn
• Salt

-------------------for Gravy :

• Garam Masala powder : 1 tea spn
• Pepper powder : 1 tea spn
• Onions : 4 Nos. Medium sized
• Oil : 2 tbl spns
• Curry leaves : 1 string
• Mint Leaves : 3 stings
• Coriander leaves

Method of preparation :

• Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients given in marination list and start doing the rest of the chopping tasks which would be enough.
• Heat oil in a thick iron / nonstick pan once its hot add curry leaves
• Add finely chopped onions (chop onion as finely as possible) once the onions turn golden brown
• Add the marinated chicken and fry it for 5 min and then add water, close it with a lid and stir it once in every 3 to 4 min.
• Add more water if the gravy is getting dried.
• After 10 min add garam masala powder and mix well and allow the chicken to cook tender.
• When the chicken is almost done then add Pepper powder, mint leaves, coriander leaves and close the lid for 5 min.
• If the water is too much in the gravy then cook it without the lid on till you feel its in the right consistency. Serve Hot

The chicken gravy tastes great when you cook for around 30 min in medium flame.

read more "Chicken Curry - Simple version"

Read complete post...

Roti - Mechanised

Found this pics interesting sent by a friend. Mechanised roti making.

read more "Roti - Mechanised"

Read complete post...

Modakas / Kollukattai / Kadubu (Spiced)

One of the offerings for Lord Ganesha on the day of the Ganesha Chaturthi is Kadubu. This is done in quite a lot of varieties and here we look at the Spiced Version or the Khara Kadubu in Kannada. This is how my mom prepares Kadubus at home. Few do it with the Rice flour but this is the recipe that I got from my mom and it came out perfect at my first trial.

I made this with a variation. I added Peas to it so that its colourful and as i made this for dinner, didnt want this plain. In Karnataka as a variation they add avarekalu.

Ingredients :

• Rice : 1 cup (Idli Rice / Parboiled rice)
• Oil : 1 tbl spoon
• Mustard seeds : 1 tea spn
• Urad Dhal : 1 tea spn
• Curry Leves : 2 stings
• Green / Red chilles : As per taste
• Peas /Avarekalu : Optional
• Salt

Method of preparation :

• Soak Rice for about 4 to 5 hours and grind it into a smooth batter, add sufficient salt while grinding. You can chose to have it coarse also. 
• Add a table spoon of oil in non stick deep pan, once its hot add mustard seeds followed by Urad dhal, Curry leaves and finely chopped chillies. 
• Add cooked peas now if u wish. When you add peas you gotta add some salt to it and mix well, reduce the flame and pour in the ground batter into it and mix it continiously such that it becomes a thick dough. Remove from flame and rest it till you feel you can handle the dough with your hands.

Now take small portions of the dough and mold it to the shape you wish, normally its done in the shape shown in the pic and is called as pidi kollukattai. Keep these in the idli cooker and steam cook it for about 7 to 10 min. I have microwaved it for 6 min.

WISH ALL MY VISITORY A VERY HAPPY GANESHA CHATHURTHI

read more "Modakas / Kollukattai / Kadubu (Spiced)"

Read complete post...

Neer Dosa

Long Long ago when one of my colleague used to get this white coloured dosa and thats how first and last I tasted Neer Dosa.
Recently found the receipe for this and tried out and it amazingly came out very well.

Ingredients (Makes around 10-12 dosas)

• Rice : 2 cups ( 250 gms) Basmati or any rice used to make plain boiled rice
• Cocount : 1 cup
• Salt
• Oil

Method of preparation :

• Wash the rice well and soak it for about 3 to 4 hours. 
• Add grated coconut and grind it to a smooth batter. Add salt and rest it for an hour. 
• Later make the batter to a thick buttermilk consistency. Pour a ladle full of batter on the hot tava and spread the batter by lifting the tava. 
• When the batter is of right consistancy the pores form immediately on the dosa. Close it with a lid and cook till done. This is normally cooked single side.

Serve with Chicken curry or any spicy chuttney.

read more "Neer Dosa"

Read complete post...

Tomato Sambar for Idli

This is one of the common combination thats made by my mom for Idli. It goes well with Rice also.
I have never tasted similar sambar else where like in hotel or at any friends place. Probably this is altered and changed to suite the taste of my family by mom. :)

Ingredients :

• Tomato : 2 Nos.
• Onions : 1 Nos.
• Curry Leaves : 1 string
• Coriander leaves : for garnishing
• Mustard seeds : 1 tea spn
• Urad dhal : 1 tea spn
• Chilli powder : 1 tbl spoons
• Oil : 2 tbl spn
• Salt to taste

For grinding :

• Tomato : 1 No.
• Grated coconut : 6 tbl spns
• Fried grams : 4 tbl spns
• Fennel seeds : half tea spn

Method of preparation : 

• Grind the ingredients mentioned for grinding and keep it aside. 
• Add oil in a pan, add mustard seeds once it splutters add urad dhal and curry leaves. 
• Now add onions and once it turn translucent 
• Add tomato and fry it till the raw smell goes away completely. 
• Now add the ground mixture along with enough water, chillipowder and salt. Boil this for around 10 minutes. 
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rice idlis / chappatis

read more "Tomato Sambar for Idli"

Read complete post...

Idly - The comfort food

Its like every time I try to make Idlies I just keep wishing that it has to come out well. However for long it did not turn out well while I used the same proportion of ingredients that was being used at my home in India. Well for this European weather it does not really work. Well it did not work for me.

I started searching through many of the blogs and most of them out of India used a different proportion of rice and urad dhal.

I mix and matched and took this proportion and to my surprise it came out perfectly fine. I almost had tears in my eyes.
Blogs that I referred Priyas and many others.

Idli Rice : 2 portions
Urad Dhal : 1 portion
Aval : 3 table spoons
Salt : 1 table spoon
Baking powder : 2 pinch

Soak Rice and Urad dhal separately for about 6 hours and grind Urad dhal finely for a longer time in the mixer or grinder. Remove this into bowl. Now grind the rice coarsely (not too fine). Mix this with Urad dhal batter along with salt. Mix it in your hand so that the heat helps fermentation. Close it and keep it in a owen overnight for fermentation. Add baking powder mix well and make idlis the next day. It has to come out soft and fine hopefully ;) Serve with chuttney or any kind of sambar. We had it with tomato sambar the other day.


I feel for getting soft idlies we gotta be lucky. Once it might be fine, but with the same proportion things might not work on another other day.

read more "Idly - The comfort food"

Read complete post...