Grated Mango pickle

Mango Thokku / grated Mango pickle

Ingredients

Mango - 3
Mustard seeds - some
Asafoetida powder - 1/4 tea spoon

Chili powder - 5 tea spoon

Gingelly oil - 15 tea spoon
Methi powder - 3 tea spoon
Mustard powder - 1.5 tea spoon
Salt to taste



1. Fry methi seeds in a kadai without oil and finely powder them.

2. Grate the mangoes into fine flakes.

3. Heat oil in kadai and add mustard seeds, once it splutters ,add the grated mangoes and asafoetida powder. Fry them in oil and allow it to cook.

4. Once its half cooked, add chilly powder and salt. Allow them to cook in low flame.

5. When completely cooked, add methi powder and mustard powder and remove.
(Oil oozing out is the correct state, to remove).

6. Preserve in air tight dry container and serve with rice.


Note: If mango is too sour, increase the chilly powder.

Sweeeet Pongal

Sweet pongal made without using pressure cooker.

Ingredients

Rice - 1.5 cup
Moong dhal - 1.5 cup
Water - 10 cups
Milk - 1 cup
Powdered jaggery - 2 cup
Ghee - 200 ml
Borneo-camphor (Pacha Karpooram) - pinch
Salt - pinch
Cashew nuts - 3 tea spoon
Almonds - 5 pieces (optional)
Raisins - 3 tea spoon
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tea spoon


1. Wash dhal and rice separately and strain the water.

2. Powder refined jaggery finely. If using unrefined jaggery, clean with water and filter the impurities.

{ Measuring cup is depicted above.... }

3. In a wide bottomed pan, add 2 tea spoon of ghee and fry dhal until good aroma comes out.

4. Remove them and fry rice until crispy by adding with 2 tea spoon of ghee.

5. Add fried dhal to the rice and add 9 cups of water and 3 tsp of ghee.

6. Close with lid and cook until done..Add boiling water in case water content is not suffice.

Note : If narrow bottomed vessel is used, liquid may come out.... If so, keep stirring with a ladle.
           If you are not using non stick pan, continue stirring as it may stick at the bottom.

 


7. Boil 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of water.

8. Once rice and dhal are cooked, add boiled milk to it. Mix and stir well.

9. Add powdered refined jaggery and mix well. The mixture will turn to liquid state.

10. Fry cashew nuts, almonds and raisins in the remaining ghee and add to the pongal.

11. Add cardamom powder and mix well, remove in semi solid state.

12. Yummy sweet pongal is ready to serve..

Quick pongal

If you want to make in pressure cooker, pressure cook fried rice and dhal with 5 tea spoon of ghee (Same water level as indicated in step 5) until 6 whistles. Follow from step 8 on wards..

Refreshing watermelon tomato drink

A refreshing healthy drink made of tomato,water melon  and apple..

Ingredients

Water melon chopped - 2 cups
Apple chopped - 1 cup (1/2 piece of whole apple)
Tomatoes - 2
Milk powder - 3 tea spoon (optional)
Sugar  - 6 tea spoon


1. Chop the above said fruits into smaller pieces.

2. Finely blend them in a hand blender or a juicer.

3. Mix skimmed milk powder in some water to make smooth paste.
Note : Milk powder is added just to get creamy texture...

4. Add the paste to the blended juice and add sugar. Mix well.

5. Refrigerate for 1/2 an hour and serve chilled.

To get an icyyy drink..

6. Pour some juice in ice trays and allow it to set.

7. Blend/crush the ice till slushy and combine with the remaining chilled juice and serve.

Quench the thirst this summer.,with this refreshing drink..........

Lemon Rice

Lemon rice is a common Indian food served for breakfast , sometimes as a quick lunch too..

Ingredients
Lemon - 2
Rice - 5 cups
Dried red chilies - 4
Curry leaves - 10 pieces
Peanuts - 3 tea spoons
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Gingelly oil - 5 table spoons
Salt to taste

1. Boil the rice (make sure that the rice is not overdone, should not stick with each other) and allow it to cool in a wide bottomed pan.

2. Extract lemon juice and cut the dried red chilies into pieces.. of course with hand.

3.Heat gingelly oil in kadai and once hot, add mustard seeds & once it starts popping out, add dried red chilies , when chilies turn dark reddish color, add curry leaves and peanuts (peanuts can be fried and skinless also - optional).

4.Usually I switch off the stove at this stage to avoid over heating.. After switching off the stove, add pinch of turmeric to the oil and add the lemon juice. Now turn on the stove and boil the contents for 3 minutes, add enough salt having the content of the rice in mind.

Now add this mixture to the rice, little by little, and mix well properly.This will go well with the potato fry listed in the fry items.. :-)

Potato fry

Potato fry is ever time favorite dish and here it goes

Ingredients

Potatoes - 5
Chilly Powder - 1/2  tea spoon
Coriander Powder - 1/2 tea spoon
turmeric powder - a pinch
Green chilies - 2
Onions - 1
curry leaves and coriander leaves
Salt to taste


1. Cut the potatoes and boil them along with a pinch of turmeric powder and salt in cooker (2 whistles) .
2. Peel the skin once it is cool.

3. Place the kadai on the stove and add 5 spoons of cooking oil, when the oil is hot add mustard seeds followed by green chilies,curry leaves and onions. Fry until the onion turns brown.

4.Add chilly powder,coriander powder and salt and fry for 2 mins.
5.Add the boiled potatoes to it and fry for 15-20 minutes in low flame. frequently stir the contents to avoid sticking.

6.Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Lamb/Goat Leg curry (Paaya)

Lamb/Mutton leg curry (Aatu kaal paaya) recipe in just 10 steps....

Ingredients

Lamb legs ( Medium sized ) -  4
Cumin seeds - 1/4 tea spoon
Pepper - 1/4 tea spoon
Ginger garlic paste - 5 tea spoon (fine ground - out of 3 inch ginger, 2 medium sized garlic)
Onions - 2 medium sized
Green chilies - 2 (longer size)
Coconut - 1 cup of grated coconut (grated from 1/4 th of full coconut)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon
Chilly powder - 1 tea spoon
Coriander powder - 1/2 tea spoon
Pepper powder - 1/2 tea spoon
Cinnamon - 2 pcs
Cloves - 4 pcs
Bay leaves - some
Garam masala - 1/4 tea spoon
Salt to taste


1. Clean the lamb legs thoroughly in water

2. Pressure cook them along with pinch of turmeric powder, cumin seeds & pepper by adding more water.
Cooking until 15-20 whistles is needed for the lamb legs to cook finely.
Keep the stove in medium flame and cook.

TIP : If needed, the clear soup out of boiled legs can also be consumed by adding some salt..

3. Out of 2 onions, ground 1 onion to a coarse paste and another as chopped finely.

4. Place kadai on stove and add 4 tea spoon of oil. Add mustard seeds, once splutters, add green chilies, fry and add the finely chopped onions. Fry until onions turn brown.

5. Add ginger garlic paste, fry them and add the onion coarse paste. Fry for 3 minutes until the raw flavor goes. Add cinnamon, cloves and bay leaves and fry them.

6. Add pinch of turmeric powder, garam masala, chilly powder, coriander powder. Fry for 1 minute.

7. Add boiled lamb legs (along with the soup) to this and mix well. Add salt as per taste.

8. Mean while finely grind the grated coconut to a very smooth paste.

Note : Fine grinding is needed here..to avoid granular appearance of coconut in the curry.

9. Add this to the boiling curry and add some water if required. Boil this for 5 minutes.

10. Garnish...Yummy Lamb leg curry is ready... Goes great with idly/dosa..

Quick Dhal

Simple & quick dhal...

Ingredients

Thoor dhal - 1 cup
Tomato (chopped) - 1
Onions (chopped) - 1
Green chilies - 2
Tamarind juice - extracted from 1 small Amla size tamarind
Coriander powder - less than 1/4 tea spoon
Chilly powder - less than 1/4 tea spoon
Turmeric powder -  pinch
Cumin seeds - 10- 15 pieces.
Hing - pinch
Salt to taste.

1. Clean and cook dhal with some water, turmeric powder, chilly powder, coriander powder

2. Once cooked, mash thoroughly.

3. Heat oil in kadai, add mustard seeds once it splutters add cumin seeds,hing, green chilies, curry leaves, onions and fry until onion turn brown.

4. Add tomato, mash and fry until the raw flavor goes.

5. Add cooked dhal, tamarind extract, salt and some water. Let this boil for 3 minutes and remove as a semi solid gravy.. Serve with rice..

Gongura Pachadi

Gongura / Pulicha Keerai Pachadi recipe..

Ingredients

Gongura leaves - 1 medium sized bunch
Cumin seeds - 1 tea spoon
Coriander seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
Broken Urud dhal - 2 tea spoon
Mustard seeds - 1 tea spoon
Methi (Fenugreek) seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
Red chilies - 7
Gingelly oil - for frying
Tamarind - lemon size
Shallots (small onions)  - 15 pieces or 1 big onion (optional)
Garlic - 30 pieces
Salt to taste


1. Wash gongura leaves thoroughly in water.Drain them under fan for 1 hour by spreading the leaves.
No water should be left out.

2. Heat 2 tea spoon of gingelly oil (cooking oil as an alternative) and add cumin seeds, coriander seeds, broken urud dhal, methi seeds , red chilies and fry them until they turn brown..(No over frying). At the end add mustard seeds and fry for a minute.

                               { The tea spoon which I use to measure is depicted above... }

3. Remove the fried items and in the same kadai, fry peeled garlic.

4. Fry the small onions till they turn brown,remove them and keep aside..

5. Now add 2 tea spoon of gingelly oil and fry gongura leaves. Fry till they shrink and turn completely brown.

6. Grind all the fried items from step 2 into smooth powder. Do not add water.

7. Now add gongura leaves ,3/4 th  of fried garlic pieces,salt , tamarind extract .

8.  Mix well with spoon and grind to a coarse paste. No addition of water.
Note:  No over grinding...gongura leaves should look like mashed..

9. Finally add fried onions and whip the mixer 2 rounds.
Note : Adding onions is optional.

10. Transfer the contents to bowl. Heat 8 tea spoon of gingelly oil and add to the ground pachadi.

11. Add remaining 1/4 th of fried garlic pieces.

12. Mix well and serve with rice.

Note : Add some more hot oil to preserve this for 1 week...