Pathrode Dosa | Uppu Menasu Dosa | Uppu Khara Dosa

Happy Weekend Guys!!

Isn't it a wonderful feeling that you get to wake up when you want and for once your life is not ruled by technology. No alarms to snooze, no water heaters to be turned on, no bus / train to miss. So Saturday breakfast is usually something relaxed, that does not need too much effort, but definitely not something like a zero effort cereal. I love cooking traditional recipes on weekends when we get to sit down and enjoy a meal while it is still hot.

Pathrode Dosa also sometimes called Uppu Khara Dosa or Uppu Menasu Dosa is a dish from Mangalore and its surroundings. Rice grows abundantly there and almost every meal out there has rice as their hero.

Pathrode Dosa is a very similar to the Menthe Pathrode recipe, the only difference being there the entire batter is steamed and then fried, while here it is spread on a tava or a griddle and cooked.

To make Pathrode dosa, you need to soak rice for 2-3 hours and then grind it as fine as you can. Let that rest for 30 mins to an hour. For the masala, you can either use fresh coconut or onion depending on what you have available with you. Grind the onion or coconut with tamarind pulp, red chillies and coriander powder to make a coarse thick masala. Add the masala to the rice batter along with some salt and chopped up fenugreek or methi leaves to make Pathrode Dosa batter. Add water to adjust the consistency. You can replace the methi leaves with spinach or any peppery leaf, or just leave it out. Spoon out the batter and spread it a little on a hot greased tava or griddle. Flip when one side is cooked and cook until the other side is browned.

If you don't want to wait 3 hours for your breakfast, I don't, just soak the rice the previous night for 2-3 hours or you can soak it the previous morning. Grind it at night and leave it covered on the counter overnight at room temperature. Make the masala fresh in the morning and add it to batter just 10-15 minutes before making. Don't add any salt to the batter if leaving it overnight and don't add the masala overnight either.

You have to serve this dosa hot like all other dosas. You can serve this dosa with chutney or butter, or even just plain. It has enough flavour to stand up on its own.

Try out this Tondekayee Chutney to go with the Pathrode Dosa.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Mysore Masala Dosa - A rice and lentil pancake that has a chilli and garlic chutney spread on the inside and stuffed with a potato bhaji.
• Instant Ragi Dosa - Instant dosa or crepe  made with rava or semolina and ragi flour (finger millet flour).
• Instant Wheat Dosa - Instant savory dosa or pancake made with whole wheat flour.

Pathrode Dosa | Uppu Menasu Dosa | Uppu Khara Dosa

Pathrode Dosa is a pancake made with rice, spices and fenugreek or methi leaves. It is vegan and gluten free. 

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     3 hours
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                8 to 10

Ingredients:

1.5 cups Dosa Rice or any Regular Rice
1/2 cup grated fresh Coconut or 1 Onion
2 tsp Coriander Powder
3-4 dry Red Chillies or 3/4 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Tamarind pulp
A handful of Fenugreek leaves or Methi leaves
1 cup Water
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Method:

Soak the rice for 2 hours.
Drain out the water from the rice and grind it with very little water to get a smooth batter. Let it rest for 30 mins to 1 hour.
Grind together the coconut or onion along with the coriander powder, tamarind and the dry red chillies into a fine masala paste. Use 1/4 cup of water to help the grinding.
Wash the methi leaves thoroughly and chop it finely.
Add the masala paste and the chopped methi leaves to the rice batter.
Add salt and the remaining water and mix well.
Heat a griddle and grease it.
Once the griddle is hot, pour a ladle of the batter on to the griddle and gently spread it.
Cover and cook for 45-60 seconds on medium heat.
Spoon a little oil on the top and flip the dosa.
Cook for another 45-60 seconds or until the dosa is cooked through.
Serve hot.

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Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha

Today was day 1 of my long long weekend. Yesss!!! I have a 4 days weekend. I used to wonder if there is anything better than a long weekend, there definitely is, this 4 days weekend. 4 full days, well 3 now, I'm so excited.

Day 1 was very fruitful. I finished all my festival shopping. The market place was crazzzy. People everywhere. I guess everyone wants to finish off all their Diwali shopping this long weekend.

Let's talk about the Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha. Paratha is wholewheat flatbread that is usually stuffed with either vegetable or cheese. It is a popular breakfast dish across North India. Just as I say that, I must also say I'm a big fan of all day breakfast. Breakfast for lunch, Breakfast for dinner - I'm all for it.

I made this Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha for dinner. It was a busy day, and I wanted something hearty and filling yet easy to make. Don't let the number of steps below frighten you, the paratha is actually very easy to make. Let me take a minute to tell you just how tasty this Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha is - It is super delicious. They have that slight sweetness of the sweet potato, the hit of heat from the green chillis and the saltiness of the melting cheese all enveloped in a crispy wholewheat covering.

I used regular processed cheese cubes. Use any sharp salty cheese that melts when heated. Hard or very creamy cheese will not go well with this Paratha.

I usually knead the dough well in advance and keep in the fridge. The same dough is used to make chapatis or rotis. The dough stays good for 3-4 days in the fridge. So go ahead and make it in advance and remove it around 30 mins to 1 hour before you make the parathas so the dough is pliable.

I also made the stuffing in advance and kept it in the fridge. This also stays good for 3-4 days. So for dinner, all I had to do was the assembling part, where you roll out the dough to a small circle, fill the stuffing in the center and then just fold the edges of the dough until the filling is sealed in the dough. Exactly, as you would seal a wanton or momo. Then gently roll it out as thin as you can without all the stuffing coming out. Then just pan fry it and ta-da, hot crispy parathas are ready to be eaten. Never skimp on oil while making parathas, you will lose out on flavor.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Methi Paratha - Wholewheat flatbread flavored with fresh Methi or Fenugreek leaves and spices. 
• Szechwan Paratha - Wholewheat flatbread stuffed with a mix of cabbage, onions, capsicum and carrot cooked with chinese sauces. 
• Sweet Potato Chaat - Sweet Potato Chaat is a flavorful street food inspired snack that is made with baked sweet potato, sweet and spicy chutneys, finely chopped vegetables, spices and sev.

Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha

Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha is an unleavened Indian whole wheat flatbread stuffed with a mixture of cooked sweet potato and cheese.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     45 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:                6 parathas

Ingredients:

For the Dough:

2 cups Wholewheat flour / Atta
1.5 cups Water
0.5 tsp Salt

For the Stuffing:

1 medium Sweet Potato
0.5 cups grated Cheese
1-2 Green Chilli, finely chopped
2 Tbsp chopped Coriander Leaves
0.5 tsp Mustard Seeds
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
3 tsp Oil
Salt to taste

Others:

Wholewheat flour for dusting
Oil to fry the Parathas

Method:

To make the Dough:

In a large bowl, take the wholewheat flour. Add salt and half cup of water.
Bring the mixture together and knead into a smooth soft dough. Add more water as required. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and keep aside for 30 minutes.

To make the Stuffing:

Boil and peel the sweet potato and keep aside to cool.
Once the sweet potato has cooled, mash or grate the sweet potato. Ensure there are no large chunks in there.
Heat oil in a pan or kadhai and add the mustard seeds.
Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the finely chopped green chillis and fry for 30 seconds.
Add the turmeric powder and mix well.
Now add the mashed sweet potato and salt. Mix well and remove from heat.
Allow it to cool to room temperature and add the chopped coriander leaves and grated cheese. Mix well.

To assemble the Sweet Potato and Cheese Paratha:

Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and roll them into balls.
Divide the stuffing into 6 equal portions.
Take a ball of dough and flatten it. Dust it with wholewheat flour.
Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a circle of about 3.5" to 4" diameter. Dust with wholewheat flour as required so that the dough does not stick to the counter or the rolling pin.
Place the stuffing into the center of the rolled out dough and using your fingers, bring all the edges together and seal the stuffing inside the dough.
Dust the stuffed dough ball with wholewheat flour and roll it out again until the paratha has a diameter of 5" to 6".
Heat a griddle or tava and grease it with oil. Always cook parathas on high heat, cooking them on low heat will make them hard.
Place the paratha on the hot tava. Once the first side has developed small brown spots i.e. it has cooked, spoon oil on the uncooked side and spread it using a spoon.
Flip the paratha and allow the second side to cook.
Repeat the same with the remaining 5 portions.
Serve hot. Parathas taste great with butter, yogurt, chutney or pickle.

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Sabudana vada | Sabakki vada | Sago Poppers

Hi folks, what's cooking this week?

Now that Navratri is here, what are your plans? Has that gorgeous "Ghagra-Choli" come out of the wardrobe ? Did you go for Garba or Dandiya?

I'm not sure I'll ever wear a Ghagra-Choli, but dancing the Dandiya is definitely on my bucket list and I wish to cross it off soon. 

You know what I enjoy about festivals in India? The colors. I love to see people dressed up in colorful attire. Colorful flowers in markets and adorning houses. Large "Pandals" where community or sarvajanik celebrations happen. The diyas or lanterns that are lit up outside houses. Beautiful Rangolis everywhere. It sets such a festive mood, you want to celebrate. What is it about festivals that excites you?

Festivals always bring good food with them. So does Navratri. A lot of people fast during Navratri where they avoid rice, wheat, meat etc. Sabudana Vada is very popular during such "upavaas" or fasting. I don't fast, I've never done so till date and considering the foodie I am, I doubt I'll ever be able to avoid food for too long. But that does not stop me from eating all the yummy snacks like Sabudana Vada. In fact, I make them very often for breakfast or tea time snacks. They disappear quicker than I can cook them. 

Sabudana Vada is a popular Mahastrian snack made by frying balls of sabudana (sago), mashed potato and crushed peanuts. While traditionally, the vadas are deep fried, I pan fry them or shallow fry them. 

To make the Sabudana Vada, first the sabudana needs to be soaked for around half hour and then drain out the water and leave the sabudana in a box or a covered bowl for 1-2 hours until they fluff up. Then add in the mashed boiled potato, crushed peanuts, curry leaves, chopped green chilli, chopped coriander leaves and salt and mix. Take lemon sized balls of this mixture and flatten them gently and place on a hot greased pan. Spoon in 1 tsp of oil on them and cook until one side browns, then flip and cook until the next side browns. If you are in a hurry, or you don't mind deep fried snacks, then go ahead and deep fry them and enjoy the traditional taste of Sabudana Vada.

Sabudana Vada tastes awesome with chutney or ketchup. I don't bother with either, as no one in my family cares what comes with it, as I said it disappears quicker than it appears. 

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Sabudana Khichdi - Another popular Maharastrian fasting meal made with the exact same ingredients as this vada.
• Sabudana Chana Vada - Sabudana Vada where Potatoes are replaced with Chhole or Chickpeas.
• Millet Cutlets - Shallow fried cutlets made from foxtail millet and mixed vegetables.
• Curried Brown Rice and Zucchini Fritters -  Fritters or Tikkis made with mashed Brown Rice and grated Zucchini. Spiced with Garam Masala and pan fried. 

Sabudana Vada / Sabakki Vada/ Sago Poppers

Sabudana Vadas are shallow fried vadas or poppers made with Sabudana/Sago, Peanuts and mashed potatoes.

Recipe Type:  Snacks
Cuisine:          Indian/ Maharashtrian
Prep Time:     2 hours
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:              Makes 12-15 vadas

Ingredients:

1 cup Sabudana/Sago
2 medium sized Potato
2 finely chopped Green Chilli
8-10 Curry Leaves
0.25 cup Peanuts
2 Tbsp chopped Coriander leaves
A pinch Garam Masala (Optional)
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder (Optional)
4-5 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Method:

Wash the sabudana and drain all the water. Let it rest covered for about 2 hours or until the sabudana have softened.
Boil the potato and peel it.
Roast the peanuts and grind into powder in the mixer.
Mash the potato, add the sabudana, curry leaves,coriander and green chilies. Mix well.
Add salt, red chili powder, garam masala, peanut powder and mix well.
Shape into balls and flatten them gently.
Heat a tava or frying pan and grease it.
Place the sabudana vada hot tava and spoon around 1-1.5 tsp of Oil per vada. You may need more or less oil depending on your liking and the tava you have used. I used a non stick tava.
Flip them when they brown on one side.
Remove from heat once both the sides are browned.
This can be served with chutney or ketchup.

Read more ...

Mixed Dal Handvo Recipe | Lauki Handva Recipe | How to make Gujarati Handvo

Mixed Dal Handvo or Lauki Handva is a popular gluten free Gujarati breakfast or snack, made from mixed lentils, rice and bottle gourd. Handvo is made with a rice-dal fermented batter and grated bottle gourd (lauki / ghiya). Handvo is steamed / pan fried in a frying pan or a kadhai. Handvo is suitable for a Jain diet.

In a hurry? Jump to Video or Jump to Recipe

I had been waiting for this long weekend for ages and it has gone in a poof.. Somehow, all my long weekends seem busier than my regular 2 day weekends. Any of you out there with me on this one?

So, what did you do this Ganesh Chaturthi? I hope you all had a wonderful Chaturthi.

I spent my days cleaning the house before the festival and then just cooking, cooking and more cooking. Whew! Does life get busy around festivals!

I made these super delicious Steamed Modaks. I love them sooo much more than the fried ones. I think I ate more than all others combined. 

To add to this Raj has a potluck in office and he wanted to take these Almond Chocolate Brownies. Thanks to my small oven, we had to keep baking it batches and it kept us in the house watching the oven for a long time.

But the festivities are done, the sweets have taken a toll on my weight for sure. It's now time to get back to something nutritious and healthy. These Protein Packed Mixed Dal Handvo or Handva as it is sometimes called, was just the thing I had in mind for Tuesday breakfast. 

To tell you the truth, I wasn't convinced about Handvo when I watched it on TV. I wondered if it could taste so good as the show presenter was saying. Then, I tried it at home, following this recipe from Tarla Dalal and I must say, those guys on TV weren't lying, it is absolutely delicious. And healthy too... Now I can have my cake and eat it too!!

What is Handvo or Handva?

Handvo is a pan-fried or steamed savory cake made with a fermented batter of rice and mixed lentils. Rice and a variety of lentils or dals are soaked for 6-8 hours and then blended to form a thick coarse batter. To this batter, yogurt or curd is added to help it ferment better.

You can tell that the batter is fermented by looking at it, it should be light and fluffy and should have risen. If the temperatures in your region are high, this may take as less as 5-6 hours and if they are cold, it may take 10 hours or longer. 

Lauki or Bottle gourd or Ghiya is lightly fried in a tempering of mustard, curry leaves, asafoetida (hing) and turmeric powder before adding to the batter. If you cannot find bottle gourd, you can replace it with Zucchini or skip it too.

This batter is then steamed on a greased pan until cooked.

The side facing the pan first is crispy and the inside is soft. 

You may add a tempering before serving, it is highly recommended.

Handvo tastes best with pudina chutney, but you can also serve it with ketchup or just plain.

If you made this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment here or on Facebook,  tag your tweet with @oneteaspoonlife on Twitter and don't forget to tag your photo @oneteaspoonoflife on Instagram. You can also email me at onetspoflife@gmail.com I'd love to see what you are up to.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family! 

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Mixed Dal Handvo Recipe | Lauki Handva Recipe | How to make Gujarati Handvo

Mixed Dal Handvo or Lauki Handva is a popular gluten free Gujarati breakfast or snack, made from mixed lentils, rice and bottle gourd. Handvo is made with a rice-dal fermented batter and grated bottle gourd (lauki / ghiya). Handvo is steamed in a frying pan or a kadhai.

Recipe Type:  Snacks
Cuisine:            Gujarati
Prep Time:     16 hours
Cook time:     30 minutes
Total time:     6 minutes
Yield:                Serves 4 to 5

Author:                Anupama

Ingredients:

1 cup Rice
0.5 cup Moong Dal
0.5 cup Toor Dal
2 Tbsp Urad Dal
2 Tbsp Chana Dal
0.5 cup thick Curd ( yogurt / dahi)
0.25 tsp Baking Soda (meetha soda)
2 cup Bottlegourd (Lauki / ghiya), grated, loosely packed
2 Tbsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 Tbsp Curry leaves, chopped
0.25 tsp Asafoetida (Hing), gluten free
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Sesame seeds (til)
Oil to grease the pan
Salt to taste
Oil to grease the pan

For the tempering:

1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Sesame seeds (til)
1 sprig Curry leaves

Method:

1. Mix the rice, moong dal, toor dal, chana dal and urad dal in a large bowl. Wash 2 to 3 times and soak in water for 6 hours.
2. After 6 hours, drain the water and blend to a thick coarse batter without adding any water. The dals would have soaked up water and that is sufficient to blend. If you still are struggling to blend, add very little and blend.
3. Remove the batter to a large bowl and add in the curd and baking soda. Mix well and cover and keep aside to ferment overnight or for 6-8 hours.
4. Next morning, heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds.
5. Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the chopped curry leaves, hing, turmeric powder and grated bottle gourd. Mix well and cook on low heat for 5 minutes or until the bottlegourd softens a little.
6. Add this to the batter and add salt. Mix well.
7. In a shallow kadhai or in a frying pan add 1-2 Tbsp oil and spoon in the batter. Sprinkle sesame seeds. You will have to cook the handvo in batches. The size of your frying pan or kadhai will determine how many batches. I made 2 handvos in a 24 cm frying pan.
8. Cover and cook on low heat until the top is almost cooked. It should look somewhat set. This may take 8-10 minutes.
9. Carefully flip the handvo and cook on high heat until the second side is cooked and has brown spots.
10. Cool the handvo a little before slicing. Handvo will appear to be sticky when hot, it will set better as it cools.
11. Just before serving, make a tempering by heating oil and adding mustard seeds, curry leaves and sesame seeds and pour on the handvo.
12. Serve warm with pudina chutney.

If you liked this, you may also like:

Matar Dhokla

Kothimbir Vadi

Sabudana Vada

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Methi Paratha

At a loss of what to pack for lunch tomorrow?

Travelling somewhere and need to carry along your own food?

Or

Just wondering what to make for breakfast tomorrow?

TA-DA!!!

Presenting Methi Paratha -  A humble, healthy, whole wheat flatbread flavored with spices and Methi leaves or Fenugreek leaves.

Methi Paratha is perfect for boxed lunch or breakfast. Number one reason being - it doesn't leak!! So you don't need to worry about a messy lunch bag. Also, it doesn't spoil for a long long time (by long long, I mean at least 2 days in tropical weather, much more in cooler weather). And the dough stays great in the fridge for at least 4-5 days. So you can make it ahead of time and store it.

And guess what's the best part?? Leftovers.... Seriously... Just cut them into small triangles and follow this recipe to get your own flavored Whole Wheat Nachos. Complains, anyone?

I've been making Methi Paratha for a long long time and I've faced certain issues with the way I was making them earlier. I never cooked the Methi leaves, I just chopped them and added it to the dough. All was well until I added the salt. After that though, my dough would just keep getting watery and sticky and I had to just keep adding more and more wholewheat flour to try and stiffen the dough a bit. And by the end of it the paratha would have the methi leaves to the flour ratio all messed up. Also, I'd end up with a messy rolling pin which would have bits of dough stuck to it that I had to clean before rolling out the next paratha.

If you are facing the same problems, read on.

Gee (in her big sister wisdom) showed me how to overcome this. Such a simple solution. Just cook the methi leaves slightly. Cooking them makes the leaves release the water in them. Also adding a little bit of salt during the cooking ensures almost all the water in the leaves is out where you can see it. This leads to a smoother dough that does not turn to sticky in a few minutes. The dough retains it's consistency and is super easy to handle. No sticky rolling pin either.

As for any paratha, Methi Paratha needs to be cooked on a medium to high heat. Cooking them on low heat, makes them hard and brittle. You may need to be watchful that you don't burn them while cooking on higher heat, but hey, you get soft parathas as a result of it.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Baked Wholewheat Chips - Perfect way to finish off those leftover parathas
• Szechwan Paratha - An Indian-Chinese fusion paratha

Methi Paratha

Methi Paratha is a whole wheat flat bread flavored with fresh Methi or Fenugreek leaves and spices. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                Makes 8-10

Ingredients:

3-4 cups Methi Leaves (washed and chopped)
2 cups Wholewheat Flour
1/2 cup Water
1 tsp Coriander Powder
1/2 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
2 tsp Oil
Salt as required
Oil or Ghee for cooking the Paratha

Method:

In a pan or kadhai, heat the 2 tsp of Oil.
Add the chopped methi leaves into it and stir well.
Cover and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until the methi leaves have wilted.
Now add the coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder. red chilli powder and 1/4 tsp salt and mix well.
Cover and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and keep it aside.
In a big bowl or plate, mix together the whole wheat flour and the methi leaves mix.
Now add salt as required and water. Knead it into a smooth dough.
Made small balls of the dough and roll it out into parathas (about 1-2mm thick).
Heat a greased tava or a griddle on medium high heat. Place the paratha on it and spoon oil.
Flip and cook the other side when the first side has cooked (small brown spots appear on it).
Serve hot with butter, pickle or yogurt.

Read more ...

Avarekalu Uppit | How to make Hyacinth Beans Upma

Avarekalu Uppit or Upma is a basic South Indian breakfast made by cooking toasted semolina in a vegetable broth containing boiled Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans.

I had a nice chat with one of my friend's in the bus yesterday. We were chatting away about food, we are both obsessed foodies and were super hungry by the time we reached halfway, thanks to our little chitter chatter. During our extremely animated food talk, we realized some universal truths:

•  "What to cook?" is a more exhausting question than actually cooking that "What" on a daily basis
•  Every Indian mother thinks their children should stop cooking "Special" dishes and learn to make the basic mundane daily food.

Do you agree with me? Or have some more universal truths? Leave me a comment and we can discuss it in length.

"What to cook next week?" is a regular question I ask myself and the people around me every weekend so I can stock up on the raw material. And pretty much every woman I ask, asks me back the same question. Sigh. 

And the second point takes me back almost 15 years in time when I was still living with my parents and had recently discovered I love to cook. I'd flip through the magazines at the library and find some new recipe and rush home to try it. And my mom had just the same response my friend's mom had - Learn to cook basic everyday food and then learn the "Specials". 

The wisdom in those words dawned on me much later in life when I moved to Bangalore for a job and had to eat out everyday. I craved for simple home cooked meals like my mom made. So now I balance my simple meals with my special meals. And sometimes, I mix the two.

This Avarekalu Uppit is my version of special and simple, all combined together. Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans are extremely seasonal and make their appearance for a short time in the winter. Imagine my surprise when I found street vendors selling it at this time of the year. I had to pick them up. Addition of avarekalu made my simple uppit, special for me. 

Avarekalu is a local name for Hyacinth beans. They have a very subtle delicate flavor. In winter, there is a fest dedicated just for Avarekalu in Bangalore where the creativity of the chefs is displayed as they make anything and everything using avarekalu. Ah! Simple special moments in life!!!

Uppit or Upma is a dish usually had for breakfast in South India. It is made my cooking toasted semolina or rava in a vegetable broth. You can make uppit with just onions and tomatoes or load it up with veggies like carrots, peas, green beans, cabbage, capsicum or like in this recipe - Avarekalu. To make a simple Avarekalu Uppit, you can skip all the other vegetables except the avarekalu, onion and the tomato.

You may also like to check out the recipes for Uppit/Upma or Avarekalu Saaru.

Avarekalu Uppit or Hyacinth Beans Upma

Avarekalu Uppit or Upma is a basic South Indian breakfast made by cooking toasted semolina in a vegetable broth containing boiled Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup Semolina or Rava or Sooji
1/2 cup Avarekalu
1 small Carrot
6-8 Green Beans
1 small Potato
1 Onion
1 small Tomato
1 sprig Curry leaves
1-2 Green Chilli
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
2.5 cups Water
4-5 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
1 tsp Lemon juice
2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves for garnish
1 Tbsp grated fresh Coconut for garnish

Method:

In a kadhai or pan, toast the rava for 4-5 minutes on low heat until fragrant.
Chop the onion, beans, carrot, potato, tomato and the chillies.
Heat oil in a kadhai and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add the curry leaves.
Immediately add the onions and green chillies and fry until the onions are translucent.
Add the other vegetables along with the avarekalu to the kadhai and stir for 1-2 minutes.
Add the water and cover and cook until the avarekalu and the beans are cooked.
Add salt.
Add the rava while stirring continuously to avoid forming lumps.
Cover and cook on low heat for 3-4 minutes.
Turn off the heat and allow the uppit to rest for another 5 minutes.
Now add the lemon juice and garnish with coriander and coconut and mix well.
Serve hot.

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Instant Ragi Dosa

Continuing with my Instant recipes with this Instant Ragi Dosa. It is an instant dosa or crepe  made with rava or semolina and ragi flour (finger millet flour).

As much as I love Bangalore, I also love getting out of Bangalore once in a while. There are but only a few roads that lead out. One of them is the Mysore road. I'm not too fond of the Bangalore-Mysore highway. Too many speed breakers and way too many vehicles. Barely feels like you have left Bangalore. But it has some silver lining, in the form of the various eating joints all along the way. There is this Kamat restaurant on the way where I first ate the Ragi Dosa. And it was love at first bite. Crispy dosa served with some coconut chutney. I'd never imagined Ragi could taste sooo good.

I'd had ragi in the form of Ragi Rotti or the Ragi Mudde, but never the Ragi Dosa. I simply loved it and when we came back, I was off to buy Ragi Flour to make it. Ragi Dosa is made exactly like the Rava Dosa, only the rice flour is replaced with ragi flour.

Ragi Dosa is perfect for those mornings when you haven't planned ahead for breakfast. All you do is mix stuff together and throw them on a hot griddle or tava. Yup no spreading it with love like the regular Dosa or pancake, you have to throw it on and let it take the shape it likes. No obsessing over the round shape. 

It is also perfect for that 5pm hunger of mine. A great alternative to all that fried stuff around. 

Making awesomely crispy Ragi Dosa requires patience, something I lack, so sometimes I'm just okay with soft ones. But I have the following tips to making a great Ragi Dosa. The same work for Rava Dosa as well.

• Mix and make the dosa immediately. Do not leave it to soak. Soaking allows the rava or semolina to soak up all the water and it won't get crisp.
• The batter needs to be thin. Make a few and try, you will know if you need to add more water. The consistency should be similar to that of buttermilk.
• Pour the batter when the tava or the griddle is really hot and then lower the heat and leave it to crisp up.
• Don't skimp on the oil. The dosa needs oil to crisp up, at least 1-2 tsp per Dosa. Oil-less Ragi Dosa is just not as tasty. 
• I add onions, curry leaves, cumin seeds, coriander leaves and chilli. A well seasoned Ragi Dosa does not even need any accompaniments, it tastes delicious on its own. All these are optional and you can leave them out to make a plain Ragi Dosa

Buttermilk consistency Batter

Spoon the mixture on a hot tava. Flip when browned.

Instant Ragi Dosa

Instant dosa made with Ragi flour and Semolina

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                5-6 Dosas

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Semolina (Rava)
1/4 cup Ragi flour
1 Tbsp All purpose flour (Maida)
1 Tbsp Yogurt (Curd)
1 small Onion (finely chopped)
5-6 Curry leaves
2 Tbsp Coriander leaves (chopped)
1 tsp Red chilli powder
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1.5 cups Water
Salt
Oil for frying

Method:

Mix together all the ingredients except oil and whisk until free of lumps
Heat a tava and grease it
Pour spoonfuls of the batter on the tava
Allow it to cook on low flame
Spoon oil on the dosa
Once the dosa is cooked, it will leave the sides of the tava, else use a spatula to loosen the dosa from the tava
Flip and cook for 1 minute
Serve hot with chutney

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Instant Rava Idli

I had an INDULGENT weekend. I-N-D-U-L-G-E-N-T!!!

I'm spelling out stuff, so I guess you get the picture.

Spicy Biryani lunch, Cheesy Pasta for dinner, Deep fried Bread Rolls for snacks and a heavenly TRIPLE Chocolate Milkshake, I’ve had it all. And I cooked none of it. Nada. 

I’m sure it will take me a month to work it off. Sigh!!

All those guilty pleasures made me want to eat a healthier breakfast this Monday morning. I’d never been a Rava Idli fan, regular Idli, give it to me anyday and I’ll eat it. But I wondered why would one eat that hard lump of rava (semolina) for any meal? This was until I made my own.

Eye opener – Rava Idli does not have to be a hard lump. It can be soft like the regular rice Idlis. It can actually be delicious.

All credit goes to Gee, my sis. Someday she got the MTR instant rava idli packet and made it and repeatedly kept telling me how good they had become. MTR is a legendary restaurant in Bangalore that actually invented the Rava Idli when there was food shortage during a war. A place you should visit for some rich South Indian food.

The restaurant rocks, but I won’t accept defeat from a packet. Na-ah.

So I made just to show her that she can make equally good Rava Idlis with just the ingredients she has at home. I had no plans of liking them at all. It was just a competition with the packet, that’s IT. (I'm competitive that way). At least that’s what I thought, until I ate them. I mean if I make them, I have to taste it, right? And what a pleasant surprise it was. Soft smooth Rava Idli. And so easy to make as well. No overnight soaking, no overnight fermenting. Just mix and steam.

I'm always on a lookout for breakfast recipes. And they obviously have to be HEALTHY and EASY to make. These Rava Idlis satisfy all my criteria. So they have been back on the menu time and again since that day. 

Some additional steps that you may have to do if making your own healthy Rava Idlis, and it is totally worth it:

• Toast the Rava / Semolina - You can either toast it when you decide to make the Rava Idlis or you can toast the rava whenever you have time and store it. Toasting helps increase the shelf life of rava. You can then use it instantly while making Upma too.
• Grate a carrot, Chop a chilli - Yup, you will need to grate a carrot and chop some chilli and coriander. 
• Tempering - Heat a little oil, throw in some lentils (dals), mustard seeds, curry leaves and chilli. This is seriously a 10 seconds job.
• Mix once - Mix tempering with the rava.

The rest is exactly like the packet. Mix in the ingredients. Allow it to rest for some time. Then steam them as usual. Ta-da - Instant soft smooth Rava Idli.

Instant Rava Idli

Popular South Indian instant steamed breakfast cakes made from semolina or rava and yogurt.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                8 Idlis

Ingredients:

1.25 cups Semolina or Upma Rava
1 cup Yogurt (Curd)
1 small Carrot
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
2-3 tsp Oil
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Urad Dal
1 tsp Chana Dal
8-10 Curry leaves
1 Tbsp chopped Coriander leaves
1 chopped Green Chilli
1/2 cup Water
Salt to taste 
Oil to grease

Method:

Toast the rava in a kadhai on low flame for 8-10 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning. Remove it into a large bowl once done.
Heat oil in the kadhai and add mustard seeds to it.
Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the urad dal and the chana dal.
Once the dals brown slightly, add the curry leaves and chilli. Pour this tempering to the toasted rava.
Mix well and allow to cool.
Once the rava has cooled, add grated carrot, yogurt, chopped coriander, baking soda and salt and mix well.
Add water by the spoonful. The consistency of the batter should be similar to the regular idli batter.
Leave aside for 10-15 minutes.
In the meanwhile, prepare the idli steamer. The water in the steamer should be boiling when we put in the idli, else the idli will become hard.
Now grease the idli mould, and pour in the batter.
Steam for 10-15 minutes.
Serve hot with chutney or sagu.

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Mysore Masala Dosa

Mysore Masala Dosa is a rice and lentil pancake that has a chilli and garlic chutney spread on the inside and stuffed with a potato bhaji and served with a simple coconut chutney.

Weekends are meant to be slept in. Aren't they? But sometimes, waking up early on a weekend has it's own excitement - that slight chill in the air, the sky all grey and cloudy, birds chirping away from their hiding places and an occasional car or bus on the road. At times like this, all I need is a steaming hot cup of coffee and a blanket to wrap myself as I sit in the balcony watching the world go by. And you know what's better than that? Having a plate of absolutely delicious homemade Mysore Masala Dosa to eat.

There is absolutely nothing like a Mysore Masala Dosa for breakfast. The good thing about Bangalore is you can eat a Masala Dosa morning, evening or night and for as little as Rs.20 and for as much as Rs.200. But this homemade Masala Dosa is sooo much better than the restaurant ones. I swear you won't like those once you have tasted one that YOU made at home.

A Mysore Masala Dosa is crisp and golden brown on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. It has a spicy red chilli and garlic chutney spread on the inside and is always stuffed with a potato bhaji. Served with a simple coconut chutney, it actually makes one of the most delicious breakfast. Sometimes, dinner too. Skip the red chilli chutney, to get a regular Masala Dosa.

In the age of fast food, a Dosa is a mix of both food movements - slow and fast. It needs to go through the slow process of fermentation but after that, it is a matter of minutes to cook it. 

Points to keep in mind:

• There are many recipes out there that replace the rice with rice flour or with all purpose flour, but a Dosa tastes authentic only when it is made with with rice grains as opposed to flour. 
• I ALWAYS use an age old cast iron griddle or tava to make Dosa. It gives it that amazing color and crispness, but my sister swears by her non stick tava or griddle. Either way, a Dosa tava is meant to be absolutely flat, non stick or cast iron. You can also use a flat frying pan. 
• In winters or if the day is cold, you may need more time to ferment the batter. Keeping it near a warm stove or oven helps. If you live in a hot region or it is summer, you may need only 6-8 hours for the batter to ferment. 
• You will know that the batter is fermented when it has risen and tastes sour. 
• If you do not plan to use the entire batter at one go, remove the excess and only add salt to the batter you plan to use immediately. 

Mysore Masala Dosa

Mysore Masala Dosa is a rice and lentil pancake that has a chilli and garlic chutney spread on the inside and stuffed with a potato bhaji.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     24 Hours (Including soaking and fermenting)
Cook time:     5 minutes per Masala Dosa
Yield:                Makes 12-15

Ingredients:

For the Dosa:

1.5 cups Dosa Rice (Use regular rice if you don't have dosa rice)
0.5 cup Urad Dal or Split Black Gram
1 tsp Fenugreek seeds or Methi seeds
Water to grind
1-2 tsp Salt
1.5-2 tsp Oil per Dosa

For the Red Chilli Chutney:

8-10 dry Red Chillies
1-2 Garlic cloves
1-2 Tbsp Water
1/2-1 tsp Salt

For the Potato Bhaji:

3-4 medium sized Potatoes (Boiled and Peeled)
1 large Onion
3-4 Green Chillies
1 sprig Curry Leaves
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
3-4 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander Leaves

Method:

To make the Dosa Batter:

Soak the rice, urad dal and methi seeds for 8-10 hours. To make Dosa for breakfast, soak the grains the previous morning. So you can grind the batter at night.
Drain the water and grind the soaked rice and dal into a fine batter. Use as little water as possible while grinding. Adding too much of water will not allow the batter to become fine. Start with 1/4-1/2 cups of water and then add more if required.
Pour the batter into a deep vessel. Mix well if you ground the batter in batches.
Cover and keep in a warm place to ferment overnight.
When the batter has risen and become sour, it has fermented enough and can be used to make Dosa.
The batter keeps well in the fridge for almost a week. See "Points to keep in mind" above for more information on storage.

To make the Red Chilli Chutney:

Remove the seeds from the dry red chillies and soak them in warm water for 30 minutes.
Grind them into a fine paste along with the garlic, salt and a little water.
Store in an airtight box in the fridge. It keeps well for 2 weeks in the fridge.

To make the Potato Bhaji:

Mash the potatoes into rough cubes.
Slice the onions and chop green chillies.
Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they splutter, add the curry leaves, onions and the green chillies.
Fry the onions until they are translucent.
Add the potato and mix well. 
Now add the salt and turmeric powder. Mix well.
Fry for 1-2 minutes.
Garnish with the chopped coriander leaves.

To make the Mysore Masala Dosa:

Grease a cast iron or non stick griddle and heat it.
Once the griddle is hot (not smoking), pour one ladle full of batter on the griddle and spread it from the inside out into a thin circle.
Drizzle a spoonful of oil on it and allow it to cook on medium heat.
When the side touching the griddle turns golden brown and crisp and the side facing you is cooked and there is no raw batter there, spread 1/2-1 tsp of the red chilli chutney on the dosa.
Place a spoonful of potato bhaji on the dosa and fold the dosa into half.
Serve it hot with coconut chutney.

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