Cauliflower Curry / Cauliflower Poriyal - Type 1

Cauliflower Curry / Cauliflower Poriyal - Type 1

Cauliflower is low-fat, low-carb but high in dietary fiber and also loaded with folate, water, vitamin C and reduced the risk of Prostate Cancer. When I got introduced to this vegetable, my mom used to make this version of Cauliflower Poriyal. We loved to grab the small trees / florets of this Cauliflower and imagine eating a small tree. Though I have been making different versions of Cauliflower Curry, Gravy and Fry, this first version always have a unique place in my favourites list. Its a simpler version but it retains the taste of the vegetable perfectly and it goes well with the meals.

Ingredients

Fresh Cauliflower - 1 medium

Green Chillies - 2 or 3  ( cut into small squares )

Fresh Coconut Flakes - 2 tbsp or 1 handful

Oil - 3-4 tsp

Hing/Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Urad Dal / Ulutham Paruppu - 2 tsp

Curry Leaves - 4 or 5

Salt - To Taste

Coriander Leaves - For Garnishing

Method

1. Take out the Cauliflower florets from the stem and wash them thoroughly with warm water just to kill any germs or insects if present.
2. Drain the florets and keep them ready.
3. In a kadai / pan, add oil first. When it gets heated up, add Hing, Mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves, green chili pieces and fry them.
4. Add the Cauliflower florets, peas into the pan and sprinkle very little water on its top. Cover the lid and allow them to cook for 3-4 minutes.
5. After the cauliflower florets and peas are cooked thoroughly, add required amount of salt to it and fry them for another 2-3 minutes. Add the fresh coconut flakes and mix them well.
6. Switch off the flame and garnish the Curry with some coriander leaves.
7. Serve this simple and nutritious cauliflower curry along with hot rice and Sambar.

Tips/Variations

You can microwave the Cauliflower florets and Peas and then add them into the kadai to quicken the preparation process.

Mamidikaya Pappu \ Mango Dal \ Maangai Paruppu

Mango, an Indian Native fruit is widely used in Indian cuisine. Ripe Mangoes can be eaten as it is and also be used in the preparation of  Desserts, Shakes, etc. whereas Raw Mangoes are widely used in regular cooking. Dishes made out of these raw mangoes always have an unbeatable flavour and they are mouth watering. In Andhra cuisine, a Dal based dish called "Mamidikaya Pappu" is very famous which is made with the combination of Lentils and raw mangoes.  Whenever we get fresh mangoes in our  market, I try to make this tangy, spicy pappu at home definitely. With these raw mangoes, I do make "Mangai Sambar", "Mangai Mor Kuzhambu" sometime..I will share these recipes too in the following week.  I am sure you will love all the Raw Mango recipes.

Ingredients

Raw Mango - 1 Medium ( Sour )

Toor Dal \ Kandhi pappu  - Half a cup

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Salt - To Taste

Green chillies -- 2 Medium

Red chilli powder -- 1 tsp

For Tempering

Oil - 1 tbsp

Hing \ Asafoetida -- 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds -- 2 tsp

Cumin Seeds \ Jeera -- 1 tsp

Urad Dal \ Ulutham Paruppu \ Minna Pappu - 1 tsp

Channa Dal \ Kadalai Paruppu \ Senaga Pappu - 1 tsp

Curry Leaves -- 5 or 6

Dry Red Chillies -- 2

Garlic Cloves --- 1 or 2 crushed.

Method

• Wash and peel the skin off the raw mango. Cut the mango into different medium pieces and keep them ready.
• In a pressure cooker, cook the raw mango along with the toor dal, turmeric powder, green chillies and some water in a vessel inside. Cook them for 4 whistles and switch the flame off.
• When the cooker gets cooled completely, take out the vessel and mash the dal and the cooked mango but leave some pieces of the mango as it is.
• Add required amount of salt and red chilli powder to the Pappu and allow them to cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Finish the tempering process separately and pour them over the cooked mango dal\ pappu.
• Mix them well and its ready to eat with hot white rice with a side of papads.

Tips

If the raw mango is not sour or has ripen a little bit, don't try to make this dish with that mango as the pappu's taste will not be as expected.

Don't add more toor dal while making this Mamidikaya pappu as the dal might inject more blandness to the dish.

Variations

If you don't like to use garlic in the tempering, you can omit Garlic and do the tempering process with the rest of the ingredients.

Urundai Kathirikai Pepper Fry \ Guthu Vankaya Pepper Fry

We can do any magic with the small purple brinjals  at any time. This time, I made Brinjals Pepper fry on a cold winter night with garlic rasam. It was indeed a good combo and the meal satisfied our taste buds very well. Try this out on a rainy, gloomy day with just a rasam and you will enjoy the meal happily. This spicy pepper fry is too good for people especially for those who suffer from running nose, sore throat and severe cold.

Ingredients

Small fresh Purple Brinjals - 12 -15.

Red Onion - 1/2

Coriander Leaves - To Garnish

Oil - 2 tbsp

Hing/ Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Urad Dal / Ulutham Paruppu / Minna Pappu - 2 tsp

Curry leaves - 6-7 ( I did not add due to unavailability )

Salt - To Taste.

For Grinding

Urad Dal / Minna Pappu / Ulutham Paruppu - 2 tsp

Channa Dal - 2 tbsp

Jeera / Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Black Pepper - 1 tbsp

Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp

Method

• Roast the ingredients for making the powder first in the kadai / vessel. Then grind them using a mixer grinder and keep the powder ready.
• Wash the brinjals and make four or five slits in its round bottomed portion without breaking the brinjal totally. Follow the same process for all the brinjals. Cut the red onion also into small pieces and keep them ready.
• In the kadai / vessel, add oil first. When its heated, add Hing, Mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal in succession. When it sputters, then add the finely cut red onion, curry leaves and fry them till golden brown.
• Add the brinjals next into the pan / kadai and mix them well with the onions and sprinkle some water and allow them to cook inside for few minutes.
• When the brinjals are cooked to three fourth, add the grounded powder into the kadai/pan and coat the small cooked brinjals with the spice powder.
• Add required amount of salt to the fry and allow them to cook with the lid closed for another few minutes.
• Open the lid and fry them on a low flame till they get fried to golden brown and blended well with the spice powder.
• Now the Spicy Hot Brinjal Pepper Fry is ready. Garnish with some coriander leaves and serve.

Tips

You can cook the brinjals in the microwave too and add them into the kadai along with the spice powder at one shot in order to fasten the process.

Okra Fry / Bendakaya Fry / Bindi Fry - Andhra Style

Ladies Finger / Okra / Bindi / Bendakaya / Vendaikai, the green vegetable is mostly liked by all. This vegetable is rich in fiber, loaded with plenty of vitamins like Vitamin A, C, iron and calcium. Okra is mainly suited for diabetic people and for people who suffer from constipation. There are hundreds of reasons for including Okra in our regular cooking due to its high nutrient source. Though we make many varieties of food items using Okra, Okra fry ( Bindi Fry) is the most common and one of the favourites in any household as it goes well with rice, rotis. This time i made the Okra fry in andhra style, as served in many andhra restaurants in their traditional food thali. I loved this recipe and sharing with you all....

Ingredients

Fresh Tender Okra / Bindi - 1 Full Vessel or Around 40 to 50 Okras.

Oil - 2 tbsp

Hing/Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 2 tsp

Urad Dal / Mina Pappu / Ulutham Paruppu - 2 tsp

Curry leaves - 5 or 6

Red Onion finely cut - 1/2 cup

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Red Chilli Powder - 2 tsp

Groundnut Powder ( grounded coarsely for good taste ) - 3 -4 tbsp

Method

• Wash the Okra and cut them into small size and keep them ready.
• Make the groundnut powder using a mixer grinder and keep it ready too.
• In the kadai or frying pan, add oil first. When its heated, add Hing, Mustard Seeds, Cumin seeds first. When it sputters, add the urad dal, curry leaves and fry them for few seconds till they become slightly brown in colour.
• Then, add the cut red onions and fry them till they become translucent. Add the cut okra to the kadai now and fry them in the oil for a minute.
• Add the turmeric powder, salt now and cook the okra with the lid closed for few minutes. NO NEED TO ADD WATER.
• When the cut okras become little softer and cooked, open the lid and add the red chilli powder and groundnut powder to the frying pan.
• Fry the okra mix on a low flame till they get fried uniformly with all the spices coated. Stir the fry in the middle so that they get fried uniformly. No need to add any besan ( Bengal Gram Flour ) to make it crispier. The taste of the fry is definitely unique with the mix of red chilli powder and groundnut powder..
• When you are satisfied with its fried level, switch off the flame.  Serve the Okra with hot rice or rotis.

Tips / Variations

You can add more red chilli powder to have a very spicy Bindi fry.

If you add little coarse groundnut powder ( Peanut powder ), the fry looks good with small pieces of groundnuts in the middle and the taste is also much better. I made a fine paste of groundnut powder this time.

HOW TO MAKE Mulaikeerai Poriyal / Amaranath Poriyal

Mulaikeerai Poriyal / Amaranath Poriyal

Amaranth leaves also called as Mulai Keerai in Tamil and Thottakura in Telugu have high nutritional benefits and rich anti-oxidant values. They can be available in either green, purple or reddish colours.

These amaranth leaves are widely used in Indian Cuisine along with Lentils. I tried to make dal, vadais, poriyals with these amaranth leaves so far. Out of the varieties I tried and liked, this poriyal variety is simpler, tastier, quicker and fits in any good South Indian Thali as a healthy side.

Ingredients

Amaranth Leaves / Mulai keerai / Thottakura - 1 Big Bunch

Oil - 1 tbsp

Hing/ Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Salt - To Taste

Sugar - 1 Small pinch

Urad Dal /Ulutham Paruppu / Minna Pappu - 1 tsp

Dry Red Chillies - 2

Channa Dal / Kadalai Paruppu / Senaga pappu - 1 tsp

Fresh Coconut Flakes - 2 tbsp

Method

• Take out the Amaranth leaves along with the stem and keep them separately. Omit the big stem at the bottom and take out till you could use.
• Wash the Amaranth leaves and its stem thoroughly without any sand or dirt particles. Drain all the water and chop them nicely.
• In the frying pan, add oil first. When its heated, finish the tempering by adding all the ingredients for tempering. When its done, add the leaves and a pinch of sugar and sprinkle some water on top of it.
• Close the lid of the pan and allow the leaves to cook for 2 minutes.
• When its cooked , open the lid and fry them for 2 more minutes. Add salt now and fry them again for another minute.
• Switch off the flame and sprinkle fresh coconut flakes on its top.
• Mix them well and serve as a healthy side dish in your special thali. It will look and taste like a Sundal.

Tips / Variations

Soak a tbsp of Thuvar Dal / Thuvaram Paruppu / Kandhi Pappu in water and cook them to a desired level before adding it to the Poriyal. This addition brings in more flavour and sundal taste.

HOW TO MAKE Vankaya Kothimira Karam \ Brinjals in Spicy Coriander Based Gravy RECIPE

Vankaya Kothimira karam, is an another variety made using fresh small baby brinjals.  The gravy for this variety is made using coriander leaves, leftover coriander stems and some lentils and spices. The taste is so fresh and delicious and it also goes well with ghee rice, plain basmati rice or hot white rice and its an excellent choice for parties as its a good combination of colour, aroma and taste. Needless to say the benefits of coriander leaves, its always a good choice to consume coriander leaves in daily cooking.

Ingredients

Small Baby Brinjals - 12 - 14.

Red Onion - 1

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt - To Taste

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp

For the Gravy

Coriander Leaves / Stem - 2 or 3 cups

White Sesame Seeds - 1 tbsp

Green Chillies -  3 to 4 medium

Ginger - 1 Small piece

Channa Dal / Senaga Pappu - 1 tbsp

Urad Dal / Minna Pappu - 2 tsp

Jeera / Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Black Peppercorns - 3 or 4

Tamarind - 1 small pinch.

Jaggery - a tiny piece.

Method

• Wash the baby brinjals and make 4 to 5 slits at the wider portion without breaking the Brinjals. Likewise, carefully make the slits into all the brinjals and keep them temporarily ready in a bowl filled with water. Cut the red onion into small pieces and keep them ready.
• Meantime, in the frying pan, add the ingredients for the gravy as mentioned above and roast them slightly except coriander leaves. Switch off the flame. Add the coriander leaves and stems and fry them in the remaining heat for few seconds. Transfer all the contents from the pan into the mixer grinder and grind them after its cooled down. Keep  the coriander gravy paste ready.
• In a thick bottomed vessel or non-stick pan, add oil first. When its heated, add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds into the oil. When its sputters, add the finely cut red onions and brinjals into the kadai and fry them well in that oil for a minute or two.
• Add turmeric powder, little salt and some water for the brinjals to cook three fourth. Cover the vessel with the lid and allow them to cook for 5 - 10 minutes till the brinjals get cooked.
• Open the lid and add the gravy paste into the kadai. Add a tsp of red chili powder, required amount of salt and coat the cooked brinjals with the greenish thick coriander paste in all directions.
• Cover the lid and allow them to cook for few minutes.  Switch off the flame after you see some oil oozing out of the gravy.
•  Serve the greenish gravy dish with a side of hot rice or ghee rice or rotis.

Tips / Variations

You can add more green chillies to the gravy to make it more spicier.

Cook the brinjals well before adding the gravy.

You can add 1 or 2 tsp of cashewnuts to the gravy when you make it on special occasions. This is turn would make the gravy thicker and tastier.

HOW TO MAKE Methi Chole RECIPE

Chole, a famous Punjabi food is one of our family favorites too.. As I have abundant home grown methi leaves ( fenugreek leaves ), I opted to make "Methi Chole" side dish for my chappathis. This time, I was keen in making the dish in a traditional punjabi way. On a snowy winter day, a plate of hot chappathis/rotis with a side of hot spicy chole definitely adds joy to the day. This time, I referred to my small recipe slip which i have been preserving since years given by my Delhi neighbour. In those days, my punjabi friend used to feed us with so many specialities. Chole was one of them in her list. Thanks to her tips and recipe, I am blogging this Protein Packed Methi Chole with you all...

Ingredients

Chickpeas / White Channa / Garbanzo Beans / Vellai Kondakadai - 2 Cups

Onion - 1

Tomato - 1 Big

Salt - To Taste

Sugar - 1 Pinch

Oil - 1 tbsp

Jeera/Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Fresh Fenugreek Leaves / Methi Leaves - 2 Cups

Cinnamon Sticks - 2

Lavang/Cloves - 4 or 5

Bay Leaves - 2 or 3

Turmeric Powder - 2 tsp

Red Chilli Powder - 2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1 tsp

Anardana Powder - 1 tbsp

Punjabi Chole Powder - 1 tbsp

Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp

Green Chillies - 2

Ginger Grated - 2 tsp

Butter or ghee - 1 tsp ( For Flavour, its optional)

Method

• Wash and soak the Chickpeas / white channa in water for overnight or for 6-7 hours in warm water.
• Pressure cook them along with a cinnamon stick for 6-7 whistles till the channa get cooked well. Take 2 tbsp of cooked channa and mash them well and keep the paste aside.
• Meantime, cut the onions, tomato, green chillies into small pieces and keep them ready. Wash the fenugreek leaves thoroughly without any sand and chop them nicely.
• Keep all the required powders aside.
• In any suitable cooking pan of your choice ( mostly i make them in the used pressure cooker itself), add butter/ghee and oil first. When its heated, add cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cloves, bay leaves, onion pieces first.
• Fry them till the onion turns golden brown. Add the fenugreek leaves at this stage. On a low flame, fry the methi leaves for few minutes.
• Add the tomato pieces along with all other powders, little salt, pinch of sugar and a cup of water and cook them well.
• Add the well cooked channa into the gravy along with the mashed channa paste.
• Cover the cooking pan with the lid and cook them for few more minutes. Switch off the flame and garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve with hot rotis/chapathis.

HOW TO MAKE Carrot Curry / Carrot Poriyal RECIPE

Carrots are a good source of Beta Carotene , Vitamin A, antioxidants, dietary fibre and minerals. As we all know, Vitamin A deficiency cause poor vision and night vision loss. By including carrots in the daily diet, this deficiency can be rectified to some level. During my childhood, I used to see carrots in sambar, upma, any subzi, plain subzi, etc.,in my home. Carrots and greens were mostly included in the daily food menu. Well, some people might not consider this Carrot Curry at all and cannot imagine making a separate curry/subzi with carrots alone. !!!!( Even my husband thinks so!!!). Its better for them to have raw carrots in salads, doubly happy to eat carrot halwa as much as they can. But inclusion of carrot curry in the daily menu cannot be avoided by me as I am a veggie lover. So I try to twist the carrot curry in different ways and make it special. This is one of the varieties of carrot curry I make. Try this out with fresh carrots and you will surely enjoy this curry.

Ingredients

Fresh Carrots -  1 Bunch ( Around 6-7 Medium )

White Onion - 1/2

Oil - 3 tsp

Hing / Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Jeera / Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Urad Dal / Ulutham Paruppu / Minna Pappu - 2 tsp

Curry Leaves - 5 or 6

Dry Red Chillies - 2 Medium

Salt - To Taste

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

For the Powder

Groundnuts / Kadalai / Peanuts - 2 tbsp

Black Peppercorns - 2

Cumin Seeds / Jeera - 1/2 tsp

Dry Red Chillies - 1 Medium

Procedure

• Roast the ingredients mentioned under the "Powder" slightly and grind them into a fine powder and keep it ready.
• Wash and peel the carrots and cut them into small squares. Cut the onion into small pieces and keep it ready.
• In the cooking pan, add the oil first for tempering. Add the ingredients for tempering in order and when its done, add the onion pieces and fry them for a minute.
• Add the cut carrots with little turmeric powder and some water.
• Cover the cooking pan with a lid and allow the carrots to get cooked thoroughly.
• After 6-7 minutes, open the lid and add the grounded powder into the pan. Add required amount of salt too into the pan. Mix everything thoroughly for 3-4 minutes.
• Switch off the flame. Serve this with white rice or any other rice combo.

HOW TO MAKE Chholar Dal

ngredients
1 cup chholar dal (chana dal)
Salt to taste

For the tempering
Paanch phoron
Hing
Garam masala powder
Red  chillis
Bay leaf (tej patta) 

Garnish
Raisins
Grated/ nicely chopped coconut
A pinch of sugar
A little grated ginger

Method

1. Pressure cook or boil chholar dal with salt till cooked.
2. Heat some ghee and add paanch phoron, hing, garam masala, red chillis and tej patta for tempering.
3. Add this phoron (tadka/ tempering) to the dal.
4. When the dal is boiling, add the coconut, raisins, sugar and grated ginger.
5. Mix well and serve hot.