May 6, 2012

Pav Bhaji





Pav Bhaji is a very popular fast food recipe in India, liked by almost everyone.  In Mumbai , you can find ‘Pav Bhaji ki Gaadi’ (Hand cart) anywhere on the streets.This cheap and filling Pav Bhaji can be eaten for Breakfast, lunch dinner- anything.

 Addition of vegetables takes care of the nutrition aspect of this dish. So when you make it at home add vegetables of your choice (mostly the so called ‘English vegetables’ like carrots, cauliflower, peas etc.) to boost its nutritive value.

 The Pav is heated on the griddle and buttered generously. This gravy is served hot in a flat dish with a tablespoon of butter on top. 

In restaurants some more varieties are available including;

Cheese Pav Bhaji,  - in which the bhaji had an additional garnishing of cheese

Paneer Pav Bhaji, Paneer as one of the ingredients in the bhaji along with the vegetables.

Mushroom Pav Bhaji,  - mushrooms as one of the ingredients in the bhaji along with the vegetables.

Khada Pav Bhaji, ('खडा'). Vegetables are not mashed, but small pieces cooked with masala gravy.

Jain Pav Bhaji, replacing the potatoes with unripe bananas, Onion and Garlic is not added either.

Kathyawadi Pav Bhaji   - with buttermilk, eaten particularly in the Kathyawadi.

Dry fruit Pav Bhaji   - with added dry fruits.


I am sure everyone knows how to make Pav Bhaji. My method is going to be the simplest of all.
 
Ingredients: 

 Vegetables:

 Big Potatoes                                            3 no
Green Peas                                             a handful
Grated carrot                                           1 no
Finely chopped/grated capsicum               1 no
Finely chopped Jalapenos (optional)          2 nos

Other ingredients
 Organic Tomato sauce                             3/4-1 tin
Pav Bhaji Masala powder                          2 tbsp.
Kashmiri red chili powder                         1 tbsp.
Butter                                                       2 tbsp.
Jeera                                                        1 tsp
Salt                                                         to taste
Coriander leaves                                     to garnish
Lemon juice                                            1 tbsp
Pav buns                                                (sweet dinner rolls or Potato buns)
Butter                                                     to toast the buns

Method:
  • Peel the potatoes. Pressure cook carrot, peas, cauliflower and potatoes together for 3-4 whistles.   Take out from the cooker and strain the water and mash the vegetables  well. ( Keep the vegetable water for pavbhaji).
  • Heat two tablespoons of butter in a tava, temper the jeera, once it starts crackling, add  ginger paste, Jalapenos  and finely chopped capsicums,  and sauté for few more minutes.Add, chili powder and pavbhaji masala Sauté for three minutes.
  • Now add tomato puree and little butter, and cook over medium-high heat until the oil begins to separate.
  • Now add the mashed vegetables, vegetable water and the salt in it and mix it well. Very carefully, using a potato masher or the back of a ladle, mash the  very well.
  • Bring the mixture to a boil, turn down the heat, and simmer another 20 minutes or until the vegetables are really tender.
  • Be aware that the mixture can spurt up as it boils, so keep a lid on it while you are not actively stirring it. Simmer for 15-20 minutes to really get the flavors to meld together.
  • Switch off the gas. Garnish with coriander leaves. Squeeze lime and add tiny bits of butter.
  • Toast pav buns lightly with some butter and serve with Bhaji.





May 1, 2012

Keerai Adai (Spinach adai)

Have you tried Keerai adai (spinach adai)? Its a crispy thick dosa with a lot of lentils. I love spinach adai , so flavorful, colorful and yummy adai.  The best part is that there is no fermenting required.
My  husband Paddy loved this adai with homemade ghee and jaggery... So yummy. Here I used spinach , but you can use Fenugreek leaves ( Methi leaves) also.

Ingredients:
Boiled rice                            ¾ cup
Raw rice                              3/4 cup
Urdh dhal                             ¼ cup
Bengal gram                         ½ cup
Tovar dhal                            ¼ cup
Moong dhal                           ¼ cup
Cumin seed                           ¼ tsp.
Red chillies                            10 no
Ginger grated                         2 tbsp
Curry leaves                          2 stem
Hing                                    ½ tsp
Salt                                    as required
Finely chopped spinach           1 ½ cup
Finely shredded carrot            3 tbsp  ( Optional)
Finely chopped cilantro          1 tbsp.
Oil                                      as required

Method:
  • Soak rice and dals together for 5 hours. Soak red chilies separately.
  • Drain it and grind it with ginger, red chilies, curry leaves, Hing, cumin seed and salt together.
  • Grind it slightly coarsely. No need to ferment the batter.
  •  To the batter, add finely chopped spinach leaves,  and shredded carrots (optional)
  • Mix everything well and the batter is ready to use
  • Heat the griddle and pour 2 ladle of batter and spread in a circular motion.
  • Spread 2 tsp. of oil around the dosa and cook both sides.
  • Serve with sambhar , Chutney  and Millaghai podi.
Spinach Adai

Nei Payasam / Aravana Payasam

This payasam is served as prasadam / Neivedyam in temples of Kerala. Nai payasam has thick consistency than the usual payasam and prepared in lots of ghee(clarified butter), the more ghee you add, the better it tastes. This nei payasam also called as Aravana Payasam, and Kadu Mathura payasam i.e. very sweet payasam.  For health reasons, I reduced ghee and jaggery amount in my recipe. If you want you can add more ghee and jaggery.

Ingredients
Raw rice                                1 cup
Water                                   2 1/2 cup
Powdered Jaggery                   – 2
Ghee/ clarified butter             - 3 tbsp.
Grated coconut                       1/2 cup
Cardamom powder                 1 tsp.
Dry ginger powder                 1/2 tsp.

Method:
  •   Soak rice for at least 30 minutes. Drain and roast in a pressure cooker for 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Add water and pressure cook for up to2 whistles. Cook the rice such that the grains are separate, not over-cooked or sticky.
  • In the meanwhile, heat a heavy bottom vessel; add the powdered jaggery and about ¼ cup of water.
  • Cover it and cook on medium heat until the jaggery melts.
  • When the jaggery dissolves completely, strain for impurities and pour it back into the same vessel.
  • Let this jaggery syrup boil for a few minutes till the syrup starts thickening,.
  • Mash the cooked rice , add the rice into the jaggery syrup , keep stirring for few minutes.
  • Add about 2 tablespoon of ghee. Mix well. Continue cooking on low heat. Keep the mixture lubricated by adding the ghee at frequent intervals. Keep stirring as the water evaporates and the bubbles splatter furiously. Do not cook for very long as this will become very hard once it cools down.
  • In a small frying pan, heat 1 tbsp. of ghee, add the grated coconut and fry till golden brown. Add these to the payasam. Also add the cardamom powder and dry ginger powder and mix well. 
  • Delicious nei payasam is ready to eat.

Apr 18, 2012

Strawberry and Honey Pudding

On a warm summer’s day what could be more refreshing than a luscious fruit dessert making the most of fresh seasonal produce, and yet still remaining deliciously low in fat?.
A quick and easy pudding made from fresh strawberries topped with Greek yogurt, drizzled with honey and sprinkled with almonds.

Ingredients:
 Fresh strawberries                        - 8 no
Low fat Greek yogurt                      - 1- cup
Honey                                              2 tbsp
Agave syrup                                   - 2 tbsp
Chopped, unsalted almonds            – 2 tsp.
 For strawberry cream:
Fat free cream cheese                   - 2 tbsp
Strawberry syrup                          - 2tbsp
Fat free Cream                              - 4 tbsp
Method:
  • Wash and chop the strawberries and place in the bottom of glass   mug or individual dessert bowls.
  •  For strawberry cream. Beat the cream cheese, cream, strawberry syrup with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended.. 
  • Stir well the Greek yogurt.
  •   Put the chopped strawberries bottom of the glass, then layer the strawberry cream. Put the Greek yogurt in the Top each glass or bowl of strawberries.
  • Drizzle the honey and agave syrup over each dessert and sprinkle with the almond nuts.
  • Cover the glass with aluminum foil.  Chill until ready to serve.



Apr 16, 2012

Khamon Dhoklas

Khaman Dhokla is one of the popular dishes in Gujarati Cuisine. These dhoklas are very soft and spongy.  Adding Eno salt (fruit salt) to the batter is the main factor for the sponginess. These spongy Khaman have been infused with a sugar-lime juice solution to give it that authentic street taste.... Dhoklas can be served as breakfast, evening snack or even as an appetizer. A Dhoklas can be made with different variations. Suji Dhokla is white colored recipe made of semolina. Chawal Dhokla is made of rice powder. The most popular one is the yellow colored Besan Dhoklas made of gram flour or chickpeas.
Ingredients
Besan (Bengal gram flour)         1 cup
Semolina (rava)                       1 1/2 tbsp.
Sugar                                     4 tsp.
Ginger-green chillis paste        1 tsp.
Lemon juice                              1 tsp.
 Salt to taste
Fruit salt (ENO Salt)                2 tsp.
Oil for greasing and cooking    3 1/2 tsp.
Seasonings
Mustard seeds                        1 tsp.
Sesame seeds (til)                  1 tsp.
Chopped jalapenos                2tbsp
Asafetida (hing)                     a pinch
 curry leaves                         2 to 3
Sugar                                 – 1 tsp
Lemon juice                        – 1 tsp
Water                                -4-5 tbsp
Decoration
Grated fresh Coconut           1 tbsp.
Chopped Coriander leaves    1 tbsp.     
Green chutney                  1 tbsp.
Method
  • Combine the besan, semolina, sugar, ginger-green chillis paste, lemon juice and salt along with little water (approximately ¾ cup) in a bowl and mix well with the help of your hand to get a smooth and thick batter.
  • Keep the steamer or cooker ready on gas.
  • .Add 1 tsp. of fruit salt to a portion of the batter and mix gently.
  • Divide the batter into 2 equal portions and keep aside. Pour the batter immediately into a greased dish
  • Steam in a steamer for 12 to 15 minutes or till the dhoklas are cooked. Keep aside.
  • Repeat the steps  and make one more thali of dhoklas.
  • While the Khaman are cooling, prepare the solution and tadka.
  • Chop the jalapenos into small pieces.
  • Heat 3 tsp. of oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds.
  • When the seeds crackle, add the sesame seeds. Green chillis, Jalapenos, Asafetida and curry leaves, mix well and saute on a medium flame for a few seconds.
  • Mix the sugar, lime juice in the water and stir, make sure all the sugar dissolves. Mix it into the seasoning.
  • Cool slightly and cut into equal sized pieces.
  • Pour this tempering over the dhoklas.
  • Serve hot  with decorations.



Stuffed Brinjals

Stuffed eggplant or stuffed brinjals is a favorite of many. For this you need small size tender brinjals.
On my usual Thursday vegetable shopping spree, I came across pretty purple tiny eggplants at Indian store.  I made this Karameethu on next day itself.

Ingredients:
 Tender small brinjals -20 no
Salt to taste
Stuffing powder
For stuffing powder 
Coriander seeds                1/4 cup
Bengal gram / Chenna dal – 6tbsp
Urad dal                         – 4 tsp.
Black Pepper                   1 tsps
Cumin Seeds                   1 tsp
Dry Coconut                    1/2 cup
Red Chillies                   - 20 no (according to spice level)
Salt                              to taste
Oil                               1 tbsp
Curry leaves                 a few
Asafetida                    ¼ tsp
Seasonings:       
Oil                            4 tbsp
Curry leaves             1 stem
Mustard seeds           ½ tsp

Preparation:
  • Wash and dry the brinjals. Keep aside. Prepare the stuffing first.
  • Roast all stuffing ingredients in oil. Grind them coarsely in a mixer. Now stuffing powder is ready.
  • Cut the brinjals into 4 pieces (not fully-leave little stem part.)
  • Simply stuff the slit brinjals with spice powders.
  •  Arrange them in a microwave steamer and steam for about 6 minutes.



  • Remove it from microwave and. Keep aside.
  • Heat the oil in a cast iron pan, fry all seasonings.
  • Place the stuffed eggplants and cover the pan with a tight lid. Sprinkle salt.
  • Cover and cook the eggplants in a low flame for about 10 - 15minutes.
  •  After 10 minutes, remove the lid . Again cook it for 5 more minutes.
  • Throughout the15 mins, turn the eggplants every 3 or 4 minutes so all the sides get evenly cooked.
  • Do this carefully without breaking the brinjals.
  • When the brinjals are well cooked and soft to touch.  Switch off the stove.
  • Garnish with chopped curry leaves.
  • Serve hot with rice, Sathuamuthu, Kozhambu.



Tip 
  • Use low to medium heat; not high. High heat spoils the taste.
  •  You can store the left over stuffing powder in an air tight container for future use.


stuffed Brinjals


Apr 8, 2012

Paruppu Vadai (Lentils Vadai)/ Split chickpea fritters



Paruppu vadai is a south Indian specialty snack that is prepared on every single occasion. This is a snack which I always enjoy with tea. In olden days people prepare this using Ural. Nowadays it is prepared quickly using the mixie/blender/food processer. Making a good vadai is all about the consistency of the batter. When you make this vadai, remember this key point, batter should not be very loose dough. When you deep fry very loose dough, you won’t get the rough crunch that is key to this dish. There are a lot of variations in preparing these vadai. It depends on the proportion of dals used.   If you want make Masala vadai, you can add Sombu, Cinnamon powder in this Batter. My version of vadai, here you go…


Ingredients: 
Toor dal                               - 1 cups
Chenna dal                           - 1 cup
Urdh dhal                              – 1 cup
Dry Red chillis -                      10 – 12 (depending on how hot you want)
Asafetida powder                  – ½ tsp.
Grated ginger                       – 1 tsp
Crushed Black pepper            – ¼ tsp
Chopped curry leaves              – 2 tbsp.
Chopped Coriander leaves/Cilantro
Salt                                     to taste
Oil                                      for deep frying


Method: 
  • Soak all dals together in water for 3 hours. Once soaked, the lentils should break easily if you pinch them. Wash them in water, and drain.
  • In a food processor, add the red chillis, Asafetida powder, and salt, ginger and curry leaves. Grind for a second.
  • Now add the dals and grind this in a blender adding very little water so it is roughly blended.
  • The dal should be partially ground. (i.e., half the dal is should be just broken and the remaining dal remains whole.)
  • Add chopped coriander leaves/cilantro and mix dal well.
  • The thick batter should be formed into silver dollar sized patties, rounded on top and bottom, and should hold their shape in your palm. Deep fry both sides until it turns golden brown.
  • Eat it with Sāmbhar and chutney, Tea and anyone will be happy.



Beetroot Masala

Beetroot is a very good healthy vegetable especially for increasing the HB count. It also helps to prevent macular degeneration, ...