.....From My Palate

Curries/Daal

Kadhi With Methi Pyaaz Pakodas

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Kadhi or karhi is a yogurt based North Indian dish with gram flour fritters called pakodas. Kadhi chawal are as famous in North India as Pasta in Italy. Sweet or tangy, thick or thin, spicy with chillies or without, who can resist Kadhi Chawal in a sunny afternoon over a spicy talk with friends and family. Its method of cooking are different in different states of India.
In Punjab Kadhi is preferred as spicy and sour whereas in Gujarat its more sweeter and thin with a dash of jaggery. Sindhis like their kadhi watery and without yogurt and maharastrians have their recipe with mustard seeds and curry leaves. What ever the recipes are, you still crave for the kadhi recipe of your mother. That’s the best recipe because your childhood memories are still fresh with the bowl of steaming kadhi chawal with a mirchi ka tadka(in north tempering with red chillies and hing over kadhi is a must thing)made by you mom. How much you try still that taste is missing…guessing that’s her love.

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This Kadhi is slightly different from my mom’s version. I added methi and pyaaz pakodas in place of plain gram flour pakodas.

Ingredients

For Pakodas

  • 3/4 cup Besan (Gram Flour)
  • 1 medium Onion, chopped
  • 1 cup Methi (Fenugreek leaves), chopped
  • 1 teaspoon Ajwain (Carom Seeds)
  • 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder (Haldi)
  • Red chilli powder to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil to fry

(You can also add green chillies and garlic if you like the taste)

For Kadhi

  • 1 cup Dahi (Yogurt)
  • 1/4 cup Besan (Gram Flour)
  • 1 teaspoon Haldi (Turmeric Powder)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Methi Dana (Fenugreek Seeds)
  • 1/4 teaspoon Jeera (Cumin Seeds)
  • Red chilli powder to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tablespoons Oil
  • 2 dried Red Chillies
  • pinch of Hing (Asafoetida)
  • Ginger, Chopped inch piece
  • 3 cups Water

Method

  • Mix all the ingredients for pakodas with a little bit of water at a time.
  • Make it in to a thick batter consistency for fritters.
  • Heat sufficient oil in a kadai. Drop small portions of the pakoda mixture with a help of a spoon or hand and deep fry till golden brown.
  • Drain and place on a kitchen paper and set aside. (you can taste one or two with a cup of tea while doing other preparations :-)) Mix first four ingredients for kadhi in a big bowl.
  • Whisk it thoroughly to make sure that there are no lumps. Add three cups of water and mix it well again.
  • Heat two tablespoons of oil in a kadai. Add fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds and red chillies.
  • Pop for few seconds. Add hing and ginger, fry for sometime. Add yogurt mixture. Bring to a boil, add salt and simmer on low heat for about twenty minutes, stirring occasionally.(cooking time is different in different households according to thick or thin consistency)
  • Add fried pakoras and continue to simmer for four to five minutes. Tempering by choice- .
  • Heat ghee in a large ladle or small pan. Add asafoetida and red chilli pd.
  • Stir quickly with a teaspoon and be careful it should not burn. Pour it over the kadhi.
  • Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
  • Serve hot with steamed rice or roti.

Ghiya Chane Ki Dal

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Lauki/Ghiya/Bottle Gourd with chana dal

This dal is easy, quick, light and tastes good with both chapatis and rice. My husband is not very fond of chana dal so I don’t make it that often, but on some lazy days with lot of sunlight this food will make my day.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Chana Dal
  • 1 cup Ghiya/lauki/Bottle Gourd
  • 1 tsp Ginger-grated or crushed
  • 2 Green chillies-chopped
  • 1/2 tsp Turmeric pd
  • 2 tsp Ghee
  • 3/4 tsp Cumin Seeds
  • Pinch of Hing/Asafetida powder
  • 1/2 tsp Red Chilli Pd
  • 1/2 tsp Amchoor Pd
  • Pinch of Garam Masala PdFinely Chopped Coriander Leaves

Method

  • Wash and soak Chana dal for at least 15 minutes or more.
  • Peel, wash and cut lauki in to small cubes.
  • Pressure cook dal with lauki, turmeric pd, salt, green chillies, ginger and 1 and 1/2 cup of water. Cook it till the dal is soft and done.
  • Heat ghee in a pan, add cumin seeds when they start to crackle, add hing and chilli pd.
  • Add boiled dal in it. Mix it well
  • Add water if needed. give it a boil and add amchoor pd and garam masala.
  • Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.
  • Serve hot with rice or chapatis.

Egg Curry With Curried Rice

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I decided to make Egg curry for my husband one evening. Egg curry means left-overs for me. Somehow I’m not able to develop taste for this curry. While I was making it I realised amount of curry is too much for 3 eggs. Then and there I decided to make Curried Rice.
EGG CURRY
Ingredients
  • 5 Boiled Eggs
  • 1 Chopped Onion
  • 3-4 cloves Garlic
  • 1/2 inch piece of ginger
  • 1 green chili (u can add more if want spicy)
  • 1/4 cup Tomato Puree
  • 3 tbsp  yogurt
  • Masala- Turmeric, coriander, roasted jeera pd, chili pd, garam masala, salt
Method
  • Fry Boiled eggs in hot oil until light brown in color. Keep them aside to cool.
  • Grind onion, garlic, ginger and green chilies in to a smooth paste.
  • Heat oil, add onion-garlic paste and fry till golden brown.
  • Add all the masalas fry for sometime and add tomato puree in it.
  • Fry till you can see oil on the edges.
  • Add yogurt mixed in a cup of water (if making curried rice later add 2 cups of water 🙂 ) and boil on a medium flame. (stir in between if necessary)
  • Cut the eggs in to halves (vertically) and add them in to gravy.
  • Simmer it for 5 minutes or until it reached to the thickness of your choice.
  • Garnish egg curry with garam masala and coriander leaves.
  • Serve hot with paratha, roti, naan or rice.
Tip- After mixing yogurt if u see little chunks of it in the gravy or if the gravy is not smooth, Blend it in the blender before adding eggs.

 

CURRIED RICE

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Few cloves and whole black pepper
  • Left over curry
  • 1 cup Rice (soaked in water )
  • 2 cups Water
  • Garnishing of your choice

Method

    • Heat oil in a pan, add bay leaf, cloves and peppers.
    • Add curry and fry it for few seconds.
    • Now add rice and mix it well. Add water and salt (if needed) cover and cook till done.

  • Serve hot with Egg Curry or Curry of your choice.

This recipe is going for Think Spice..Think Pepper.. event hosted by Dear Divya from Dil se..

Thank You Divya, Thank You Sunita-Sunita’s World

Veg Yellow Thai Curry… Thai Kitchen Se

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Veg Yellow Thai Curry with LemonGrass Saffron Rice

I made my fresh curry paste and veg curry with the help of this wonderful link-
http://thaifood.about.com/od/thaicurrypasterecipes/r/yellowpaste.htm
Omitting few ingredients to make it vegetarian.

Vegetables I used for the Curry-

Sprouted Beans, BokChoy, Green Peppers, Beans, Carrots, Mushrooms, Broccoli, Baby Corns.
All fresh and cut in to big chunks.
Coconut Milk 1 Cup
3 Tbsp Curry Paste
Salt

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add Curry paste and saute until becomes fragrant. If it thicker in consistency add 1/2 cup of coconut milk and fry atleast 1 minute. Now add the rest of coconut milk, keep stirring and add all the vegetables except Bokchoy and Brocolli and salt.
Put it on a medium flame and cook it for 10 minutes or until vegetables are done.
Add water or Coconut milk if it becomes thick and cook it till u can smell the aroma.

(I kept a very light hand on Coconut Milk. You can add more coconut milk if u want but I added water when needed.)

When ready to serve stir-fry Brocolli and Bokchoy with some salt and add it to Curry.
Serve hot with Thai Jasmine Rice or LemonGrass saffron Rice.

Recipe for LemonGrass Saffron rice is Next.

Mix Vegetable Kadhi With Zeera Rice

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Mix Vegetable Kadhi with Zeera Rice

Mix Vegetable Kadhi

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cup yogurt
  • 3 tbsp besan
  • 1 3/4 cups of water
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 5 or 6 curry leaves
  • ½ tsp fenugreek seeds
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • ¼ tsp Hing (asafetida pd)
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric Pd
  • 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pd
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 cup chopped mix vegetables
  • (carrots, potatoes, beans, peas any other veggie of your choice)

Method

  • Mix the yogurt, besan and water and stir until the mixture is smooth. Set aside.
  • Heat the oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafetida Pd and curry leaves.
  • When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the onions and sauté for a minute. A
  • dd turmeric, cayenne and coriander and stir for a minute..
  • Add the vegetables and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Now add the yogurt mixture, give it a boil and cook it till done.
  • Garnish with coriander leaves.
  • Serve hot with Rice.

Jeera Rice

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Basmati rice
  • 2 tsp Jeera (cumin seeds)
  • 3 Whole peppercorns
  • 2 Bay leafs
  • 3 Cloves
  • 2 Cinnamon sticks
  • 1 Onions, sliced
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • Salt to Taste
  • 2 cups water

Method

  • Wash the rice and soak in water for half an hour.
  • Heat oil in a heavy saucepan, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon sticks and peppercorns and fry for a while.
  • Now add onions and fry till nice and brown.
  • When onions are done add rice, salt, water and stir.
  • Cover with a lid and simmer the flame.
  • Cook until the rice is done.
  • Serve jeera rice with Mix vegetable kadhi.

Matar Mushroom

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This is one of my tested, trusted & most appreciated recipe. When guest are on the way and u have to cook something in a jiffy, this recipe is always handy.
Originally this is Tarla Dalal’s recipe ( I started cooking with her recipes)
http://www.tarladalal.com/
This is one of my favorite.

Matar Mushroom
Author: Bhawana
Ingredients
  • Boiled green peas- 1 tea cup
  • Fresh mushroom (sliced) – 200 gms
  • Onion (chopped) – 1
  • Tomato (chopped) – 1
  • Garam Masala – ½ tsp
  • Fresh curd – 1 cup
  • Garlic Paste- 1 tsp
  • Ginger Paste – 1 tsp
  • Oil – 3 tbsp
  • Salt to taste
  • To be ground in to a paste
  • Poppy seeds – 2 tbsp
  • Cashew nuts – 2 tbsp
Instructions
  1. Heat oil in a pan & fry onion until golden.
  2. Add Ginger-garlic paste & tomato, cook until soft.
  3. Add garam masala, cashew nut paste & salt, sprinkle little water and cook until the fat leaves the sides.
  4. Add peas & mushroom, cook for 5 minutes and then add curd.
  5. Cook for another 4 minutes till it done.
  6. Serve Hot.

Vrat Ki Thaali – Aloo Matar

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Aloo Matar

Aloo Matar, Boondi Ka Raita, White Pumpkin Bhaaji, Masalewaali Bhindi With Dal Parantha & Salad)

Fasting is done on Monday as it is considered very auspicious to fast for four to five Mondays in the month of Sawan. This fasting is considered equivalent to 16 Monday fast, that is why every body tries to appease Lord Shiva by adulating or meditating these days. Young girls also perform “Gauri puja” to get their dream boy. Every devotee deifies Lord Shiva for one reason or the other.
I am fasting on these auspicious days of Sawan. I cooked food with out onion & garlic on this day. Recipes are very simple & fast to cook.

Vrat Ki Thaali – Aloo Matar
Author: Bhawana
Ingredients
  • 2 medium Potatoes, cubed
  • 1 cup Green Peas
  • 2 Tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 cup Cilantro, chopped
  • ½ tsp Jeera (Cumin Seeds)
  • 1 tsp – Garam Masala
  • 2 tsp Lal Mirchi ( Red Chili) Powder pd (acc. to taste)
  • 1/2 tsp Haldi (Turmeric) Powder
  • 1 tsp Dhaniya (Coriander) Powder
  • 2 1/2 tbsp Oil
  • 1 1/4 cup Water
  • Salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Heat oil and add cumin seeds.
  2. When they spluttered add chopped tomatoes.
  3. Add garam masala, chili powder, turmeric, coriander & salt.
  4. Stir well and fry for a minute Add potatoes & peas.
  5. Pour in water and bring to a boil.
  6. Lower heat, cover the pan and simmer gently for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are done.
  7. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.
TIP
  1. You can use frozen peas also.