Agathi Keerai Curry

  
Ingredients

Agathi keerai ( only leaves) – 3 cups

Grated coconut – 1/2 cup

Oil – 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Split urad dal ( black gram/ ulundhu) – 1 tsp

Chana dal ( Bengal gram/ kadala paruppu)- 1 tsp

Red chillies – 2

Moong dal ( Pasi paruppu) – 3 tbsps

Sugar – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

  
Methods

Wash and soak the moong dal for 15-20 mins. Drain it and keep it aside.

Chop the keerai and wash well.

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add split urad dal, chana dal and red chillies. Sauté for few seconds. Add the moong dal and the chopped keerai. Add salt to taste and mix well. Cook till the moong dal and keerai becomes soft and dry. Add the sugar and grated coconut, mix well and sauté for few more mins.

Serve the keerai warm or at room temperature:)

  

Dahi Bhindi

Yogurt is known as dahi in Hindi and thair in Tamil and Lady’s finger( okra) is known as bhindi in Hindi and vendakai in Tamil.
I remember seeing this dahi bhindi recipe long back in a TV show. I came across this recipe again yesterday when I saw looking through my recipe note book.

I haven’t made this for a long time. It’s slightly different from the regular bhindi fry. The spices instead of being added directly, is mixed with dahi and then added. The dahi gives a very subtle sour flavour and richness to the bhindi. 

It came out really well and everyone at home really loved it:)

  

Ingredients

Bhindi ( lady’s finger/ vendakai) – 1/2 kg

Dry mango powder( amchur) – 1/2 tsp

Onion – 2 medium sized

Oil – 3 tbsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Fennel seeds ( saunf/ sombu) – 1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds ( methi/ vendayam) – 1/2 tsp

Yogurt – 1/4th cup

Coriander powder ( dhania powder) – 2 tsps

Red chilli powder- 1 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste.

Method

Wash and cut bhindi into 1- 11/2 inch pieces and let it dry for sometime.

Peel, wash and slice onions.

Heat 2 tbsps oil in a pan. Add the chopped bhindi, salt to taste and dry mango powder.

Mix well and cook till the bhindi turns dark and crisp.

  
Heat the remaining oil in another pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add fennel seeds and fenugreek seeds. Sauté for few seconds and then add the sliced onions.

Sauté till the onions turn slightly golden.

Mix the yogurt, turmeric powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder and little salt. Beat well so that there are no lumps.

Add this yogurt mixture to the onions. Sauté till the oil starts separating from the masala.

  
Mix this with the crisp bhindi and sauté on a high flame for few mins.

Serve hot with roti / rice and dal.

  

Simple Lunch Menu 8

Another simple South Indian lunch menu from my kitchen. 
The best thing about South Indian cooking is that the amount of oil used for cooking is very less. Oil is basically used only for tempering. 

Generally when I make morekuzhambhu( South Indian Kadhi), I add tomatoes to it. Today, I have added banana stem. Bansna stem is known as vaazhathandu in Tamil. 

Banana stem is very healthy vegetable but my kids are not so fond of it. Since they like morekuzhambhu very much, I thought of combining both to make it more appealing for them.

Today’s lunch menu

——————

Vendaikai curry ( ladies finger / bhindi dry curry)

Vaazhathandu morekuzhambhu ( banana stem Kadhi)

Pudina kothamalli thogayal ( mint and coriander chutney)

Salad 

Rice, yogurt, cornflakes mixture and peanut chikki 

  
Vendaikai Curry

———————

Ingredients 

Vendaikai- 1/2 kg

Oil – 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Split urad dal ( black gram/ ullundhu)- 1 tsp

Red chillies – 2

Dry mango powder( amchur) – 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste 

Method

Wash and chop the vendaikai. 

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add urad dal and red chillies. Sauté for few seconds and then add the chopped vendaikai. Mix well. 

Add the dry mango powder and salt to taste( dry mango powder is added to avoid the vendaikai becoming sticky. Instead of dry mango powder, lemon juice, chopped tomatoes or a tbsp of yogurt can also be added).

Mix well again. Close the pan with a lid and cook till the vendaikai becomes soft.

  
Vaazhathandu Morekhuzhambu

———————————

Tender banana stem- 12 inches long piece,1

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Yogurt – 1+1/2 cups

Chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

To grind to a paste

———————–

Grated coconut – 1/2 cup

Green chillies – 4-5

Ginger – 1/2 inch

Cumin seeds ( jeera) – 1 tsp

Almond flakes – 2 tbsp

Roasted chana dal ( chutney dal/ pottukadali)- 2 tbsps

For tempering

——————

Coconut oil – 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds ( methi/ vendhayam) – 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves – few

Hing ( asafoetida/ perungayam) – 1/8th tsp

Method

Remove the thick outer skin of the banana stem.

Before starting to cut the banana stem, mix little yogurt in a bowl of water and keep it ready.

Cut the stem into slices. When you cut a slice, you will find that there will be lot of fiber coming out. Remove it with your fingers.

Put the slices in the yogurt water mixture to prevent the discolouring of stem ( prevent oxidation).

Chop the slices into small cubes and again put it in the water yogurt mixture till required.

Before cooking, drain the banana stem well.

In a pan add the banana stem, turmeric powder, 1 cup of water and little salt and cook till the stem becomes soft.

Meanwhile grind the coconut, green chillies, ginger, cumin seeds, almond flakes and roasted gram to a smooth paste adding the required amount of water.

Beat the yogurt till it becomes smooth. Add the ground paste and 1/2 cup water and mix well.

Add this mixture to the cooked banana stem. Add salt to taste and mix well. Check for the seasonings and let it simmer.

Heat the coconut oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add the cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves and hing. Sauté for few seconds and add the tempering to the Morekhuzhambu.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with steamed rice:)

  
Pudina Kothamalli Thogayal 

——————————

Pudina – 1 cup

Chopped coriander leaves – 1 cup

Curry leaves – 1/4th cup

Grated coconut – 2 tbsps

Oil – 2 tsps

Urad dal – 2 tbsps

Red chillies – 3-4

Green chillies – 2 

Ginger – 1 inch

Tamarind – little

Salt to taste.

Method 

Wash the pudina, coriander and curry leaves well.

Wash and chop green chillies.

Wash, peel and chop ginger.

Heat oil in a pan. Add the urad dal, red chillies, green chillies, ginger and tamarind. Sauté till the urad dal becomes golden brown. Let it cool. 

Drain the oil and remove the roasted ingredients. To the same pan, add the washed leaves and sauté for few mins. Let it cool. Add the coconut and salt to taste.

First grind all the ingredients except the urad dal to a coarse paste. Then add the urad dal and water and grind it for few more mins.

  
  
  

Cabbage Senagapappu Vepudu

Cabbage stir fry is a very common dish made at home. Today, for the first time,I have made it in Andhra style. I followed the recipe from sailusfood.com. I did make few small changes in the recipe.
Senagapappu means chana dal ( Bengal gram/ kadalai paruppu) in Telugu and vepudu means fry.

Chana dal really compliments this dish very well. It’s easy to make and very tasty indeed. It’s very heathy and can be served as a salad as well:)

  

Ingredients

Chopped cabbage – 4 heaped cups

Chana dal ( Bengal gram/ kadala paruppu)- 1/2 cup

Turmeric powder- 1/4th tsp

Salt to taste

Oil – 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – few

Hing ( asafoetida/ perungayam) – 2 pinches 

To grind 

—————- 

Grated coconut – 1/2 cup

Green chillies – 2

Chopped coriander leaves – 2 tbsps

Ginger – 1/2 inch

Method

Wash and soak chana dal for 30 mins. Drain and keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add curry leaves and hing.

Sauté for few seconds and then add chopped cabbage, soaked chana dal, turmeric powder and salt. Mix well and add 1/2 cup of water. 

Close the pan with a lid, reduce the flame and cook till the cabbage and chana dal becomes soft and dry.

  
Grind coconut, green chillies, coriander leaves and ginger coarsely and add it to the cooked cabbage. Mix well and check for the seasonings. Cook for 2-3 mins and take it off the gas.

   
 
Serve it with rice and rasam ( chaaru )/ sambar/ dal 🙂

  

Potato Roast

Potato roast is my family’s most favourite dish and a part of our weekend lunch menu. Actually it will be very rare to find someone who will not like potato roast.

Every family will have their own recipe and way of making this dish. Today,

am sharing my recipe with you all:)

  
Ingredients

Baby potatoes – 1/2 kg

Oil – 2-3 tbsp so

Mustard – 1 tsp

Split urad dal- 11/2 tsps

Asafoetida( hing/ perungayam) – 1/4th tsp

Curry leaves – few

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder- 2 tsps

Dry mango powder- 1/2 tsp

Method

Wash the potatoes well and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

Let it cool. Peel the skin. Cut those potatoes which are big into two. 

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add urad dal, hing and curry leaves. Sauté for few seconds and then add the baby potatoes.

Add all the masala and salt to taste, mix well. Cook on a medium flame, stirring once in a while till the potatoes becomes crisp.

Serve hot with rice and sambar/ rasam/ dal or rotis:)

   
 

Stuffed Snake Gourd in Spicy Yogurt Gravy

Snake gourd is called as pudalangai in Tamil and chichinda in Hindi. It’s a very healthy vegetable but not a popular one. 

Snake gourd is very high in water content and has a cooling effect on the body, hence it helps in handling the summer heat.

Snake gourd is low in calories, fat-free, and good to include in weight-loss diets.

Even diabetics can include safely to reduce weight by getting enough nutrition.

It is rich in fiber to keep your digestive system healthy, wards off constipation with ease.

Fresh leaves juice are strongly laxative in effect to treat children who are suffering from constipation.

Snake gourd is good in source of minerals and vitamin contents like calcium, iron, phosphorus and substantial amount of carotene, traces of riboflavin, thiamine and niacin.

Fresh leaves juice are useful in treating heart disorders like irregular heartbeat and heart pain. 

Snake gourd leaves juice is very effective in treating dandruff and alopecia (- a hair fall problem that could lead to partial or complete baldness). The juice should be massaged into the scalp. This is an easy home remedy for dandruff.

Today, I have created a very different and an interesting recipe with this healthy and humble vegetable. 

I wanted to make stuffed snake gourd. I decided to use chana dal as the basic ingredient for stuffing. As I started with the initial preparation, the recipe just fell in place. It was really fun making this recipe and when the result was as exactly as I had visualised it, I was so happy. I have no words to explain the joy I felt at that time 🙂

  

Ingredients

For the stuffing 

——————

Chana dal ( bengal gram/ kadalai paruppu) – 1/2 cup

Red chillies – 2- 3

Aniseed ( saunf/ sombu) – 1/2 tsp

Hing – 2 pinches

Salt to taste

Oil – 2 tsps

Finely chopped onions – 1/4th cup

Snake gourd – 2 small sized 

For the gravy

—————

Onion – 1 

Tomatoes – 3 medium sized

Garlic – 4-5 cloves

Grated coconut – 2 tbsps

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Kashmiri red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder – 2 tsps

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Yogurt – 11/2 cups

Salt to taste

Sugar – 1 tsp

Oil- 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Cumin seeds ( jeera) – 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds( methi/ vendhayam)- 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves – few

Chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

Methods

For the stuffing

——————

Wash and soak chana dal for 1-2 hrs.

Drain completely. Add red chillies, aniseeds, hing and salt to taste. Grind this to a coarse paste.

  

Heat 2 tsps of oil in a pan. Add the finely chopped onions. Sauté till it turns pale and then add the ground paste. Mix well and cook till the dal is cooked ( when you touch the dal, it should not be sticky). 

  
Wash the snake gourds well. Cut off the ends and discard. Cut the gourds into 3 inch sized pieces. Scoop out the seeds. 

Fill each piece with the stuffing and pack it tightly. 

Steam the gourds till it becomes soft.

Cool and cut into roundels.

  

For the gravy

—————-

Peel, wash and chop onion and garlic cloves.

Wash and chop tomatoes.

Grind the chopped onion, garlic and tomatoes along with coconut to a smooth paste.

  
Sauté again for few mins and then add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, kashmiri red chilli powder, sugar and salt to taste. Mix well and cook till oil starts floating on top.

  
Beat the yogurt well( there should be no lumps at all) and add to the gravy. Mix well. When it starts simmering, add the stuffed snake gourds and let it cook on s medium flame for 10-12 mins.

  

Transfer to a serving dish, drizzle some beaten yogurt over it. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with roti or rice:)

   
 

Baingan ka Salan

As usual, when I was looking through my recipe note books, I came across this recipe of Mirchi ka Salan, a very famous dish from Hyderabadi cuisine. This is Tarla Dalal’s recipe. 
I didn’t have the green chillies. But I had the small brinjals (baingan).  The recipe seemed to almost similar to bhagare baingan. So I thought of using brinjals instead of the mirchi in the salan recipe. 

The only change that I did in this recipe was to add Kashmiri red chill powder in the tempering. I did that to give a rich and beautiful red colour to the gravy.

 It came out very well and all of us enjoyed eating this with hot steamed rice drizzled with melted ghee. Hope you all would enjoy too:)

  
Ingredients

Small brinjals – 250 gms

Oil – 2- 3 tbsps

For the masala paste

————————-

Garlic – 5-6 cloves

Onion – 1 

Tomatoes – 2

Ginger – 1 inch

Grated coconut – 3 tbsps

To be ground to a powder

——————————

Sesame seeds – 2 tbsps

Peanuts – 2 tbsps

Cumin seeds – 1 tbsp

For tempering

—————–

Oil – 2 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Kalonji ( onion seeds) – 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek ( methi) seeds – 1/2 tsp

Cumin ( jeera) 1/2 tsp

Kashmiri red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves – few

Coriander powder – 2 tsps

Cumin ( jeera) powder- 1 tsp

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Tamarind – amla ( goose berry) sized

Salt to taste

Method

Wash and slit each brinjal lengthwise into four, leaving the stems on so the brinjals remain joined at the stem. Keep it immersed in water.

Soak tamarind in 2 cups of water.

Add all the ingredients mentioned for the masala paste in a blender and grind to a smooth paste.

Dry roast the ingredients mentioned for the powder. Cool and grind to a powder.

Heat 2 tbsps of oil in a pan. Drain the brinjals and wipe it. Add it to the hot oil. Add little salt and sauté the brinjals till it becomes soft. Remove the brinjals from the pan and keep it aside.

  

To the same oil ( if required add little more oil) add the ground paste. Sauté for few mins. Then, add the ground powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander and cumin powder and salt to taste. Mix well and let it cook till oil starts floating on top. 

  
Squeeze the tamarind well and take the extract. Add this to the cooked masala and let it boil well till the raw smell of tamarind goes away. Add the sautéed brinjals and mix well. Check for the seasonings and let it simmer on a medium flame for few 10 mins.

  
Heat 2 tsps of oil in a pan. Add the mustard. When it starts spluttering, add the kalonji, cumin seeds, fenugreek and curry leaves. Sauté for few seconds and then add the Kashmiri red chilli powder. Sauté for few more seconds. 

Pour the tempering over the simmering gravy and mix well. Let it simmer for few more mins and then take off the gas.

Serve baingan ka salan hot with steamed rice drizzled with little hot ghee:)

   
 
 

Stuffed Brinjals

There are many recipes of stuffed brinjal. Today I have made very traditional Tamil Brahmin recipe with some changes ( my personal touch). It’s one my most favourite dish, something that I look forward to eat while making . It always comes out well and today was no different. 
Am very happy to share my most favourite recipe with you all today. Hope you all would enjoy:)

  
Ingredients 

Violet Brinjal ( small sized) – 1/2 kg

Oil – 3 tbsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Split urad dal ( ullundhu) – 1 tsp

Chana dal ( kadalai paruppu) – 1 tsp

Asafoetida ( hing/ perungayam) – 1/4th tsp

Curry leaves – few
Masala for stuffing

Coriander seeds( dhania) – 3 tbsps

Chana dal – 2 tbsps

Split urad dal – 1 tbsp

Sesame seeds- 1 tbsp

Grated coconut – 2 tbsps

Red chillies – 8-10

Salt – to taste

Dry mango powder- 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Oil – 1/2 tsp 

Method

Wash the brinjals well. Wipe it dry. Cut off its stem. Make two vertical slits and keep it whole. Don’t forget to check for worms.

Heat 1/2 tsp of oil in a pan. Add all the ingredients mentioned for stuffing except salt, dry mango powder and turmeric powder. Sauté till the dal turns golden.

Cool and grind along with salt , dry mango and turmeric powder to a coarse powder.

 

Stuff this powder into the slit brinjals.

Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add urad dal, chana dal, hing and curry leaves. Sauté for a few mins.

Arrange the stuffed brinjals on the pan. Reduce the heat. To the left over stuffing add little water, mix well and pour over the brinjals. 

   
 

Close the pan and cook till the brinjals become soft.

Remove the lid and cook till the brinjals become dry. Sauté gently taking care not to break the brinjals.

  
Serve the stuffed brinjals warm with rice and rasam / sambar / morekuzhambu or rotis 🙂

   
 

Chow Chow Kootu

Kootu is a tamil word which means ‘add’ i.e. vegetable added with lentils and cooked together. It is semi-solid in consistency, less aqueous than sambar but more so than dry curries.

 Some cook the vegetable and lentil separately and then mix it. But I prefer to pressure cook both together as it saves time and cooks much faster. 

Chow chow ( chayote ) kootu is something that I make regularly at home. My son is very fond of this dish 🙂

  
Ingredients

Moong dal ( Pasi paruppu) – 3/4th cup

Chopped chow chow ( chayote)-  21/2 cups

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Oil – 2 tsps

Mustard- 1 tsp

Split urad dal – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – few 

Hing- a pinch 

To grind to a paste

Coconut- 1/2 cup

Jeera – 2 tsps

Red chillies- 4

Method

Wash the moong dal well. Add 2 cups of water, chopped chow chow, turmeric powder and salt to taste.

Pressure cook for 3 whistles.

  
  
Grind coconut, red chilies and jeera to a smooth paste.  

Add this paste to the cooked moong dal and chow chow mixture. Mix well. Check for the seasonings and let it simmer for few minutes. 

   
 

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add split urad dal, hing and curry leaves. Sauté for few seconds and pour the tempering over the gravy. Mix well and serve hot with rice or roti:)

   
 

Vaazhaikai Masala Curry

Raw banana is known as Vaazhaikai in Tamil and Kacha Kela in Hindi.
It is very low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. It is also a good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin C, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin B6.

Today I have made a spicy stir fry with Vaazhaikai. It can be served with rice and rasam or rice and sambar:)

  
Ingredients 

Cubed Vaazhaikai – 3 cups ( keep it immersed in water till its used).

Oil – 6 tsps

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder- 11/2 tsp

Dry mango powder – 1/2 tsp

Besan ( chickpea flour/ Kadalai maavu) – 4 tbsp

Rice flour – 1 tbsp

Curry leaves – few

Mustard- 1 tsp

Split urad dal( ullundhu) – 1 tsp

Hing ( asafoetida/ perumgayam)- 2 pinches

Salt to taste 

Method

Heat 4 tsp oil in a heavy bottom pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add urad dal, curry leaves and hing. Sauté till the dal turns golden. 

Drain the Vaazhaikai and add to the pan. Add salt to taste, turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, dry man do powder and mix well. Add little water. Reduce the flame. Close the pan with a lid and cook till the Vaazhaikai becomes soft.

  
Add the besan, rice flour and 2 tsps oil and mix well. Close the pan with the lid again and cook for 10 mins till the besan is cooked well.

  
Transfer to a serving dish and serve warm with rice and rasam or sambar:)