Gobi Manchurian

Ingredients

        

1 cauliflower cut into florets

2 onions chopped finely

1 tbsp finely chopped garlic

2 tsp spring onion / green capsicum for garnishing

2 tbsp corn flour

2 tbsp maida

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

1 tsp soya sauce

2 tbsp tomato sauce

1 tsp red chilli powder  

Oil for deep fry

A pinch ajunamoto (optional)

Salt to taste 

                                                                               

Method

Boil water and add cauliflower florets with salt and turmeric powder.

Cook till half boiled, drain water and keep aside.

Now sprinkle corn flour, maida and a pinch of chilli powder to

boiled cauliflower mix well.

Marinate the boiled cauliflower florets for 10 minutes.

In a pan heat oil deep fry the above cauliflowers and set aside.

In another pan add 2 tsp of oil in that add garlic, and onions sauté.

Now add ginger & garlic paste and salt fry for 2 minutes.

Add soya & tomato sauce mix well.

Add ½ cup water to the above allow to boil.

In a small cup take 1 tbsp of corn flour and mix it with little water.

Add this to the above and cook well.

Finally add fried cauliflower and ajunamoto to this and mix well and

cook on low flame for 5 minutes.

Garnish with spring onions / green capsicum.

Serve hot.

Asoka Halwa

Ingredients

1 cup moong dhal

1 cup wheat flour

2 cups sugar

1 cup ghee

A pinch kesari powder

¼  tsp cardamom powder

Few fried cashew nuts

Method

Pressure cook moong dhal with little wate mash it well and keep aside.

In a pan add 2 tbsp of ghee in that

add wheat flour and fry till nice aroma comes out.

Add the cooked dhal to the above and mix well.

Cook it in medium or low flame.

Add sugar and stir well.

Add ghee little by little and keep on stirring

till it leaves the sides of the pan.

Finally add kesari powder, and cardamom powder mix well.

Garnish with fried cashew nuts.

Baigan Bharta (Egg plant)

Ingredients

1 Big branjal (Baigan / egg plant)

1 Finely chopped tomato

1 Finely chopped onion

½ tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp masala Powder

¼ tsp turmeric Powder

3 tbsp  oil

Few chopped coriander leaves

Salt to taste

Method

Grease oil over the brinjal. (Baigan )

Roast it on a gas burner over medium heat.

Rotate the brinjal around to cook evenly.

Once done, allow to cool and then remove the outer skin slowly. 

(or you can dip brinjal in a bowl full of water)

Mash the flesh of brinjal well and set aside.

Heat oil in a pan add onion and fry until light golden brown.

Add red chilli powder and  turmeric powder mix well.

Add tomatoes and cook until tender.

Now add mashed brinjal and salt stir well.

Cover with a lid and cook on low flame for 10 minutes, stir in between.

Finally add masala powder and mix well.

Garnish baigan bharta with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Goes well with roti / naan.

Karadaiyan nombu - Sweet adai

Ingredients

2 cups raw rice

2 cups Jaggery

4 cups water

2 tsp chopped coconut

2 tsp boiled karamani ( black eyed bean - soaked in water over  night & pressure cooked)

2 tbsp chopped jack fruit (optional)

¼ tsp cardamom powder

Method for rice flour

Wash and soak raw rice for 2 hours.

Drain the water, spread it on a cloth for 1 or 2 hours.

Dry it in the shade ( don’t dry in sun light) grind it to a fine powder.

Sieve it and dry roast the flour till light brown color.

Now rice flour is ready.

(Store it in an air tight container and use whenever you want)

Method  for Sweet Adai

In a pan boil 2 cups of water, add jaggery, melt and filter it.

Add coconut, karamani and jack fruit to the jaggery water.

When it starts boiling, reduce the flame, add rice flour slowly and mix it well.

When it cools mix it well again and make small balls out of it and flatten it. 

Steam the sweet adais in idly cooker for 10 minutes and cook on low flame for 5 minutes.

Serve hot with butter.

Stuffed Brinjal (Ennai Kathrikka)

Ingredients

½ kg small brinjals

Tamarind lemon size(Soaked in warm water and extract the juice)

1 tbsp gram dhal

1 tbsp urad dhal

5 red chilli

A pinch asafetida

A pinch turmeric powder

3 tsp gingelly oil

Few curry leaves

Salt to taste

Method

Wash the brinjals and slit them into four.

Apply a pinch of salt in each brinjal .

Boil the tamarind juice with a pinch of turmeric powder till

raw smell goes and keep aside.

In a pan add  a tsp of oil in that add gram dhal & urad dhal fry them

till brown colour, now add red chilli & asafetida.

Once it's cooled grind them coarsely.

Stuff the above powder in each brinjal.

Heat oil in a  pan , add the stuffed brinjals one by one gently, add turmeric powder.

Cover it with a lid and cook on low flame for 10 minutes. Stir in between gently.

Then add boiled tamarind juice with little water and salt.

Now add the left over dhal powder and cook on low flame for 5 more minutes.

Finally season it with mustard & curry leaves.

Goes well with hot rice.

Tip for working women

Prepare the stuffing powder previous day night, for next day morning.

You can even stuff the brinjal and keep it in the fridge, in an air tight container.  

So that, you can save the preparation time next day morning.

Bhel Puri

Preparation Time:  15 minutes

Mixing  time : 5 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups puffed rice

1 finely chopped onion

1 finely chopped tomato

2 spoons finely chopped raw mango 

1 Boiled & mashed potato

½  cup fine sev

1 tsp  roasted peanuts

½ tsp black salt

½ tsp chaat masala powder

10 crushed papdies

2 spoons green chutney

2 spoons tamarind & sweet chutney

2 spoons coriander leaves

Salt to taste

Ingredients & Method for green chutney

1 cup fresh coriander leaves

1 cup fresh mint leaves

1 green chilli

2 spoons lemon juice

Grained coriander leaves & mint leaves  with 1 green chill.

Add 1 spoon lemon juice & salt mix well.

Ingredients & Method for tamarind & sweet chutney

Small lemon size tamarind (soaked in hot water for 10 minutes)

10  dates (soaked in hot water for 10 minutes)

1 small cup Jaggery  

¼   tsp chilli powder

½  tea cup water

Salt to taste

Grained  tamarind, dates & jaggrey with little water.

Add red chilli powder to this and boil all together for 5 minutes.

Method

In a large bowl add puffed rice, chaat masala, crushed papdies, peanuts & sev mix well.

Now add onion, tomato, black salt & regular salt mix well.

Add green & sweet chutney each 2 spoons and mix well.

Finally garnish with coriander leaves &  sev.

Serve immediately.

Dhal Makhni

Ingredients

1 cup black urad dhal 

2 tsp red kidney beans (rajma)

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp ginger finely chopped

1 tsp garlic finely chopped

3 tbsp Butter                        

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp jeera

2  onions chopped  

1 slit green chilli

2 tomatoes chopped

1 tsp masala powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

¼ tsp dhania powder

Salt to taste

Method

wash and soak urad  dhal and rajma overnight in  water.

Pressure cook urad dhal and rajma in three cups of water. (5 whistles)

Heat butter and oil in a pan, add jeera, ginger, garlic and onion fry till golden brown.

Add slit green chilli, tomatoes and sauté till tomatoes are soft.

Now add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, dhania powder and salt sauté for a minute.

Now add the boiled urad and rajma mix well.

Allow to boil and cook on low flame for 10 minutes.

Finally add masala powder &  butter and mix well.

Ready to serve hot dhal makhni.

Goes well with rice / roti / naan.

Sakkarai Pongal (Sweet pongal)

Ingredients 

1 cup rice

2  tbsp moong dhal

2 cups Jaggery

2 tbsp ghee

¼ tsp cardamom powder

2 tsp cashew nuts 

2 tsp raisins

                  

Method

Dry roast moong dhal for 5 minutes.

Pressure cook rice and dhal with 3 ½ cups water and mash it well. (4 whistle)

Melt jaggery with very little water and filter it, allow to boil for 5 more minutes.

Now add the cooked rice and dhal to the above and mix well.

Cook on low flame for 10 more minutes, stir in between in between.

Now add  cardamom powder mix well.

Heat ghee in a pan add cashew nuts and raisins, add this to pongal.

Tasty sakkarai pongal is ready to serve.

Bread Tikki

Preparation time 5 minutes

Cooking time 10 minutes.

Ingredients

Bread slices 10

5 tsp mayonnaise or butter

2 Finley chopped tomatoes

2 green chillies

1 spoon kalonji (onion seeds) or black sesame seed

For batter

1 cup gram flour or maida

1tabs idly batter (optional)

¼ tea spoon red chilli powder

4 spoons oil

Salt to taste

Method

Add idly batter and gram flour mix well with water.(like bajji batter consistency)

Now add red chilli powder & salt mix well.

Spread ½ spoon mayonnaise or butter in each bread.            

Heat tawa, dip the bread slice in the batter both sides and put on the tawa.

Now on the top add tomatoes & green chilli sprinkle a pinch of salt & few Kalonji or black sesame seed.

Now add a tsp of oil around, cook well, flip it over and add another tsp of oil and cook well both sides.

Ready to serve hot bread tikki.

Variation – You can top it with any of the following.

Onions, capsicum, corn, mushrooms, cheese, paneer & olives.

Rava Kesari (Suji)

Ingredients

1 cup rava

3 tabs ghee

1 ½  cups sugar (or 2 cups)

3 cups water

Few cashew nuts & raisins

¼  tsp cardamom powder

A pinch kesari powder

Method

Dry roast rava for 2 minutes and set aside.

Boil 3 cups of water, add rava and mix well,

close it with lid, cook in a low flame for 5 minutes.

Now  add sugar and mix well till it dissolves.

Add  kesari powder, ghee and cardamom powder mix well.

Garnish with roasted  cashew nuts, raisins.

Ready to serve hot kesari.

 

Vegetable dhal kichadi

Ingredients

1  cup  rice

1  cup  toor dhal

1 tomato chopped

1 onion chopped

2 bay leaves

1 cup mixed vegetables (potatoes, green peas, beans & cauliflower)

4 spoons oil or ghee

1 spoon finely chopped garlic

1 spoon red chilli powder

A pinch turmeric powder

1 spoon masala powder

½ spoon black salt

salt to taste

1  red chilli

2 pieces of cloves

2 pieces of cinnamon

Few cashew nuts (optional)

Method

Mix rice and dhal cook with 3 ½ cups of water and a pinch turmeric powder.

Pressure cook it for 5 whistles.

Boil mixed vegetables with little water, turmeric powder and salt.

In a pan add ghee once it’s hot add bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, red chill

and cashew  nuts sauté for a minute.

Now add onions sauté, add red chilli powder and masala powder mix well.

Finally add tomatoes, black salt and normal salt sauté.

Now add this with cooked rice and dhal mixture and the mixed boiled vegetables.

Add 4 or 5 spoons of water and cook on a low flame for 5 more minutes.

Ready to serve hot vegetable dhal kichadi.