Cherry Tomato-Corn Salad

Delect-O-Mania!

Ingredients

Cherry tomato 20 or 25

Green chilli  3

Corn kernels (frozen or fresh) ½ cup

Cilantro (finely chopped) 3 tbsp

Lemon juice  1 tbsp

Pepper powder ½ tsp

Salt  ½ tsp or to taste

Method

• Stone the chillies and dice them finely.
• Add a pinch of salt to corn take in a bowl and add chillies to it. Blanch them for a minute or two in microwave oven and cool it.
• In a bowl add the halved tomatoes, blanched corn/chilli, salt, cilantro, pepper and add lemon juice. Mix very well and chill for 30 minutes at least.

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Pesarettu

Moong dal 2  cups

Raw rice 1 handful (¹⁄³  cup)

Chana dal 1 handful

Green chillies  4

Ginger 1″ piece (shred to small pieces)

Coconut grated 2 tbsp

Onion 1 big ( Finely cut)

Curry leaves 3 sprigs

Coriander leaves 2 tbsp (Finely chopped)

Salt 1 tsp

Oil to cook

Soak the dals and rice in a bowl for about 2 hours.

Transfer coconut, ginger, curry leaves, chillies, and a handful of the soaked dal to the blender and grind them finely.

Transfer to a bowl and now grind the remaining dal to a smooth batter. Transfer the batter to the bowl and add salt and mix well.

Heat a spoon of oil in a wok and saute the onions for 2 minutes or so till the color starts changing. Switch off the flame, add a pinch of salt and the coriander leaves and mix well.

Heat the griddle, grease with a little oil and pour a ladle of batter to the griddle. Spread the batter on the skillet and cook on a low flame. Add a little oil to the edge. When the pesarettu is half cooked, add a spoon of the onion mix f and spread evenly. Press it slightly with the spatula and flip the sides . When the pesarettu is cooked evenly serve with a chutney of your choice (Tomato/onion chutney, ginger chutney) or milagai podi.

Rava Dosai

Semolina (Sooji− preferably chiroti rava i.e. fine rava ) 1 cup

Rice flour ½ cup

Maida (All purpose flour) ¼ cup

Thick buttermilk/curds  ½ cup

Asafotida ¼ tsp

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Salt ¾ tsp

Curry leaves  2 sprigs (finely cut)

Finely chopped coriander leaves  1 tsp

Green chilli 1 (deseeded and finely cut or as paste)

Onion 1 (medium-sized) …finely cut or grated

Cooking oil  (as required for cooking)

Water app. 2 cups

Add all the flours to a bowl, a teaspoon of oil and mix them well. Add salt, asafotida, curds, and water and stir well to avoid lumps in the batter.

Keep the batter aside for at least an hour and allow the batter to ‘rest’ to get a smooth batter. Add the remaining ingredients: cumin seeds, curry leaves, coriander leaves, chilli and onion and mix well. Ensure that the batter is of pouring consistency (not spreading consistency) and thinner in consistency than the ‘traditional dosai’.

Grease and heat the griddle and when hot enough pour the batter in a circular motion from the outer rim of the griddle to the center. As you spread the batter ensure there are small spaces in the dosai. Cook the dosai on a low flame and add drops of oil in the spaces and around the edge. Carefully flip the dosai with a spatula to cook the other side and serve with chutney of your choice (Coconut or onion/tomato chutney).

Chef’s Note:  If you prefer pepper to chillies add finely crushed pepper in place of chili.

In place of cumin seeds you can add tempered mustard seeds.

Resting the batter for 2 to 3 hours gives excellent dosais. Excess batter can be kept in the fridge and used later.

Tomato Kurma (4 Servings)

Ingredients

6 medium-sized tomatoes (350 gm)

2 big onions (Indian size)

To grind:

1 green chilli

1″ cinnamon stick

Cloves 4

Cashew nut 10 OR Roasted Bengal gram 2 tsp

Coriander seeds 1 tsp

Poppy seeds 1 tsp

Coconut 3 tbsp

Fennel seeds 1 tsp

Chilli powder ½ tsp

Sugar ½ tsp

Salt 1 tsp

oil 1 tbsp

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Cream or yogurt 2 tbsp (Optional)

Method

Blanch the tomatoes and puree in a blender.

Cook the onions with a little water and blend to a paste.

Roast cinnamon, cloves and saute the chilli in a few drops of ghee.

Grind to a paste the roasted ingredients along with soaked cashew, coconut, fennel seeds, poppy seeds, and coriander seeds.

Heat oil in a wok and temper the cumin seeds. As soon as they splutter add the onion paste and saute for two minutes. Add salt and chili powder and saute for another two minutes.

Add the tomato puree and sugar and let it boil for a minute or two. Add the ground masala and  some water to get semi-paste consistency.

Boil for another three minutes or so for the raw flavor to go and for the gravy to thicken.

You can garnish with cream or yogurt (optional). Garnish with coriander or mint leaves and serve.

Vaangi Baath (Six servings)

Rice 2 cups

Onion 2 (medium-sized)

Eggplant 2 cups (diced)

Sesame 2 tbsp

Mustard seed or cumin seeds 1 tsp

Turmeric powder ½ tsp

Masala ingredients:

Cinnamon 2″ piece

Clove 4

Dried red chillies 5

Pepper corns 10

Coriander seeds 1½ tbsp

Chana dal 2 tbsp

Urad dal 1 tbsp

Desiccated coconut or grated coconut 4 tbsp

Curry leaves 5 sprigs

Tamarind  4 to 5 scales

Ghee 1 tsp

Oil    2 tbsp

Salt  1¼ tsp (heapful) or 2 level tsp

Take the rice in a bowl, rinse well, add a spoon of oil, 1/2 tsp salt, and 3 cups of water. Cook the rice till done. Do not open the cooker for at least 10 minutes. Then transfer  the rice to a big platter or a wide bowl and let it cool.

While the rice is cooking dry roast the sesame  and keep aside. Powder the sesame after it cools.

Add  a few drops of ghee to the hot pan and roast cinnamon and clove. Transfer to a plate;  add a few drops of oil and roast red chillies, and in the same pan roast the pepper corns and dhania seeds. Transfer to t he plate and roast the dal till it changes color. Let all the ingredients cool. Transfer all the ingredients to the blender and add coconut, tamarind and curry leaves too. Powder them finely and keep it ready.

Heat oil in a frying pan and temper with mustard seeds or cumin seeds. When it starts spluttering add the onions and saute well. When the color starts changing add the turmeric powder and mix well. Add the diced eggplant, salt and cook on a low flame after covering with a lid.  Switch off the flame when the vegetable is cooked and add the condiments powder and also the sesame powder and mix well.

Transfer the mix to the cooled rice and mix well.

Chef’s note: If you want a variation and more color to the rice, use 2 medium-sized tomatoes in place of tamarind. Add the finely cut tomatoes to the sauteed onions and when cooked add the eggplant and proceed as directed.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo

Baby potatoes  15 to 20/ Chunks of big potatoes  15 to 20

Tomato puree 1 cup

Curds 1 cup

Cinnamon 3 sticks (½” pieces)

Clove 4 to6

Green cardamom 8

Fennel powder 1/2 tsp

Kashmiri chillies 6

pepper corns 10

Roasted cumin powder 2/3 tsp

Salt 1 tsp

Cashew nuts 10 to 12

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Sugar ½ tsp or honey 1 tsp

Oil 2 tsp

Peel the potatoes, prick them on the surface with a fork and leave them in a bowl of salted water for about 15 minutes.

In case of baby potatoes, boil them in steam before peeling. Drain the water and dry the potatoes  (If you do not mind more oil, you can deep fry the potatoes instead of microwaving).

In a glass bowl add 1 tbsp oil and add the dried potatoes. Cover the bowl with a lid and cook in the microwave for 8 minutes.

While the potatoes are getting cooked, heat a skillet and dry roast all the condiments one by one on a low flame. Powder the chillis and pepper corn separately and all other ingredients together.

Make a thick paste of cashews and keep aside.

Similarly, add the powdered condiments, cumin powder and fennel powder to the curds and mix them well.

Heat the remaining oil in a wok and add the cumin seeds to it.

When the seeds start spluttering, reduce the flame and add the tomato puree. Let the puree cook for 3 to 4 minutes and add the cashew paste. When the gravy starts boiling add the curds mix, sugar (honey) and also salt.  When the mix starts boiling add the fried pieces of potatoes and let it cook on a low flame for 3 to 5 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve with chapattis.

Kabab Vadai

This idea was conceived after a lot of thought to avoid deep frying coz Ad kept insisting that she cannot use so much of oil and let it go a waste. She   wondered if vadais can be baked but it would not have really tasted like vadai. Also she was looking at masala vadai.

It then occurred to me that as a child I used to enjoy looking (gaping) at the tikkis being shallow fried in the market and the lovely aroma spreading for miles. I thought why not?!!

I realized I could keep her happy and also ensure that the taste is still that of authentic vadai. Turned out pretty decent and also got to be “healthy” snack 🙂

Chana dal ½  Cup (Two handfuls)

Arahar dal ½  Cup (Two handfuls)  Cup (Two handfuls)

Green chilies 3 (medium-sized)

Ginger 1″ piece (grated)

Curry leaves 3 sprigs

Cilantro leaves 3 tsp

Finely shredded cabbage  ½  Cup

Finely cut onion ½  Cup

Saunf (fennel) powder 1 tsp

Salt  1 tsp

Chili powder ½ tsp

Oil ½  Cup

Soak the two dals in a bowl for 45 minutes and drain off the water. In a blender cup transfer the chilies, curry leaves, ginger pieces, a small amount of dal and grind well till a paste is formed. Transfer the remaining dal and grind well to get a coarse mix (when a bit coarse the vadai will be crisp) and avoid adding extra water.

Transfer the mix to a bowl, and add the finely chopped onions, cabbage, cilantro, saunf powder, chilli powder, salt and mix well to get a smooth vadai mix. Take lemon-sized balls of the mix and flatten them in the palm to get circles of ½ cm thickness.

Heat about 4 spoons of oil in a frying pan and when the oil is hot enough place three or four pieces of flattened vadai and shallow fry o a medium flame till a golden color appears.  With a spatula turn the sides and let the other side also cook well. Remove with a slotted spatula to a dish and enjoy with coriander chutney or tomato sauce.

Pudina Thogaiyal

Although I categorize this as chutney I prefer to call this “thogaiyal” as it is meant to be a mix for rice and not a side dish.

2 cups of fresh mint leaves (clean and wash them in plenty of water)

1medium-sized onion (cut to any size but not too big)

Small lemon sized ball of tamarind (soaked in just enough water)

5 red chillies

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp salt (or to your taste)

2 tbsp chana dal

1 tbsp urad dal

1½ tbsp oil

Heat 1  tbsp oil in a wok and let the cumin seeds splutter. Transfer the tempered cumin to a bowl and in the same wok add the remaining oil. When the oil is hot add the onion and saute till color changes.

Transfer the onion to the mixie bowl and add the chilies and saute them on a low flame till the color changes and the aroma starts. Add the dals and roast till done.

Transfer the  roast to the  mixie bowl and on a very low flame stir the mint leaves till the aroma whiffs and switch off the flame. Let the mint remain in the wok for sometime.

add the tamarind scales also to the mixie bowl and grind all the ingredients to a smooth paste. If needed, add a spoon of water.  Add the mint leaves and salt and grind to a nice paste.

Transfer to the bowl containing tempered jeera and mix well.  Serve with rice.

Cook’s Note: In case you want to store the paste for a week or two, instead of sauteing the leaves in the heat of the wok, grind the green leaves with the remaining ingredients. make the mix a little thin.

Heat oil in a wok, splutter the jeera and and add the mint paste and saute well on a low flame for 5 minutes or longer (till the color changes to dark green) and the paste thickens. If the need be add a little more oil and saute till the past leaves the sides of the wok.  Store in a dry container.

Peas Pulao (4 servings)

2 cups Basmati rice
2 cups peas (shelled)
2 green chilies (slit)

1 tsp garlic (optional)

1 tsp ginger paste/grated
1  big onion, chopped
2 tbsp ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 cloves

2 cardamom pods
1 cm cinnamon stick

2 bay leaves
Salt to taste

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves (optional)

Soak the rice and drain to remove excess water and keep aside for 15 min.

Crush the condiments (cinnamon, clove, cardamom) and keep aside.

Heat the ghee in a kadai  on a medium flame and add the jeera. When it starts spluttering add t he garlic paste and saute till the raw smell is gone. Add the crushed condiments, bay leaves and ginger and saute fir a minute. Add t he chopped onions and saute till translucent. Add the peas,  salt and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes. Add the rice to this pan and fry until the rice turns opaque/white (takes around 3 minutes).  Add 2 1/2 cups water  and cook until done in a cooker.

Let the rice cool a bit till the grains separate and garnish with coriander leaves.

Cook’s Note: In case you want to flavor the pulao with pudina add a teaspoon of mint paste along with the peas.

In case you want the pulao to taste rich add 1/2 a cup of coconut milk and only two cups of water.

Aloo Morkuzhambu (4 Servings)

Soured curds 1 cup

Grated coconut 4 tbsp

Green chilies  4 (medium)

Peppercorns 1 tsp (optional) [If pepper added three chilies shld suffice]

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Chana dal 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp

Raw rice 1tbsp

Curry leaves 3 sprigs

Ginger 1″ piece

Mustard seed 1tsp

oil 1 tbsp

Boiled potatos 3 (medium)

Salt to taste (1tsp)

asafotida 1/4 tsp

Soak the rice and dal in a bowl in a small amount of water for 30 min.

Peel the potatos and cut them into 2″ pieces.

Add the following in the blender and and make a nice paste of the same: Jeera, chillies, curry leaves, soaked dal and rice, pepper corns, coconut, sliced pieces of ginger. Make a puree of curds, add to the ground masala and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard. When the seeds start spluttering add 1/3  cup or less water. Add the potato pieces and turmeric powder.  When the potato starts cooking add the ground masala paste in curds, rinse and add more water (depending on the thickness), add salt and asafotida and bring it boil on slow fire.

When the mix starts boiling switch off the flame and transfer to a bowl.

Cook’s note: You can add boiled pumpkin (white/yellow), okra, beans in place of potato for variations.