Coorg Pumpkin Curry

This Coorg style pumpkin curry is made with ripe pumpkin, coconut and spices. It is a spicy curry unlike most other pumpkin curries.

I don't usually crave pumpkins, at least not like I crave chocolate. But recently after eating a small bowl of pumpkin curry in office, I wanted more. And telepathically, my mother in law gave me a huge organic homegrown pumpkin. What's better than a pumpkin? A HOMEGROWN one.

The thing I hate most about pumpkins is actually peeling them. By the time I got through peeling this huge pumpkin, my palms were sore with the knife handle rubbing against them, my arms ached with all that effort. But the slightly sweet yet hot spicy coconut-ty curry made it totally worth it.

I usually make a simple dry pumpkin curry by boiling diced pumpkins with some fresh green chillies and garnishing it with freshly grated coconut. Simple and easy. It lets the sweetness of the pumpkin shine through. But this time I did not want a very sweet pumpkin curry. I wanted a change. I had something in mind but absolutely no idea how to make it.

Coorg is this beautiful place nestled among the Western Ghats of India. A bunch of friends went there several years ago and we stayed in this humble but beautiful homestay with a wonderfully warm family. The family cooked up all the traditional Coorgi delicacies and I remember one of them was this pumpkin curry with coconut, unlike I had ever eaten before. So I searched online for this curry and as usual Google spewed off many results, so I had to mix and match recipes to find the ONE. I tried this dish until I made something closer to the one in memory. 

Coorg Pumpkin Curry

Coorg style Pumpkin curry made with ripe pumpkin, coconut and spices.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     40 minutes
Yield:                Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

3 cups diced Pumpkin
3-4 tsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds
6-8 Curry Leaves
1 Onion
2-3 Garlic cloves
2 tsp Coriander Powder
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 cup grated Coconut or 1 cup of Coconut milk
1 tsp Tamarind pulp
3-4 dry red Chillies or 1-2 tsp of red chilli powder
1-2 tsp of Jaggery powder or Sugar
1 cup Water
Salt
Fresh Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they splutter, add the curry leaves, finely chopped onion and garlic. Fry until the onion is translucent.
Add the pumpkin.
Add the turmeric and water and cover and cook until the pumpkin is done.
If using grated coconut, grind together the coconut, tamarind, dry red chillies or chilli powder, cumin powder and the coriander powder with a little bit of water to make a fine masala paste.
Add it to the pumpkin in the pan and cook for 6-8 minutes.
If using coconut milk, then add the coconut milk along with the coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilli powder and the tamarind paste to the pumpkin and cook on low heat for 3-4 minutes.
Add salt and the jaggery powder or sugar and mix well.
Serve hot.

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Matar Dhokla

Dhokla is a steamed savory cake that is a favorite of western India. They are usually made of semolina and chickpea flour. They are light and fluffy and taste delicious with a tangy green chutney.

I never knew there was so much variety in something this simple.

I was browsing through cookery books in the library when I glanced upon Tarla Dalal’s Non-Fried Snacks. I’m a big fan of non-fried snacks. The book has some good recipes, majorly it has different types of dhoklas and muthias. And this Matar Dhokla or Green Peas Dhokla was a featured recipe.

It is still just as simple to make as the regular dhokla, but now has the added goodness of green peas. You can use either fresh or frozen peas, according to what you have available. 

The addition of peas gives it that lovely vibrant green colour and the slight sweetness of peas. 

Some people like to soak their dhoklas in a diluted syrup of sugar and lime juice, while some enjoy it with creamy yogurt. It tastes awesome with both.

Step-by-step Instructions:

1) Puree the green peas with a little water.

2) Mix together the chickpea flour, semolina, pea puree, salt, ginger- chilli paste, yogurt and salt into a smooth batter.

3) Now add the fruit salt or eno to  the batter. Pour the remaining water over it and mix well. It should start getting frothy.

4) Grease a shallow vessel that fits inside the steamer and add the batter to it.

5) Place the vessel in the steamer and steam on medium flame for 12-15 mins. Insert a knife in the middle and if it comes out clean, it is done.

6) Turn off the stove and allow it to rest for around 2-4 mins.

7) Then remove slowly and cut into desired shape.

8) Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.

9) Once they splutter, add the curry leaves and chilli and fry for 20-30 seconds.

10) Pour over this tempering on the dhoklas. 

11) Garnish with the fresh coconut and the coriander leaves. I also sprinkled a few pomegranate seeds to add some freshness.

Matar Dhokla

Steamed savory cake made with green peas and chickpea flour.

Recipe Type:  Snacks

Cuisine:          Indian / Gujarati

Prep Time:     15 minutes

Cook time:     30 minutes

Yield:              Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

Dhokla

1 cup Fresh or Frozen Green Peas

1.5 cups of Chickpea Flour / Besan

4 Tbsp Fine Semoline / Chiroti Rava

1 tsp of Ginger-Green Chilli Paste

2 Tbsp of Yogurt / Dahi

1/2 cup of Water

1.5 tsp Fruit Salt (Eno)

2 tsp of Oil for greasing

Salt to taste

Tempering

4 tsp of Oil

½ tsp of Mustard Seeds

10-15 Curry Leaves

1-2 Slit Green / Red Chillies

Garnish

2-3 Tbsp of grated Fresh Coconut
2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander Leaves

Method:

Puree the green peas with a little water.
Mix together the chickpea flour, semolina, pea puree, salt, ginger- chilli paste, yogurt and salt into a smooth batter.
Prepare the steamer. (see note)
Now add the fruit salt or eno to  the batter. Pour the remaining water over it and mix well. It should start getting frothy.
Grease a shallow vessel that fits inside the steamer and add the batter to it.
Place the vessel in the steamer and steam on medium flame for 12-15 mins. Insert a knife in the middle and if it comes out clean, it is done.
Turn off the stove and allow it to rest for around 2-4 mins.
Then remove slowly and cut into desired shape.
Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they splutter, add the curry leaves and chilli and fry for 20-30 seconds.
Pour over this tempering on the dhoklas. 
Garnish with the fresh coconut and the coriander leaves.

Notes:

STEAMER - I used an idli steamer. You can use a pressure cooker without the whistle or any deep saucepan with a lid. 

1) To prepare it, add around 2-3 cups of water to the steamer and cover and cook on high flame until the water boils. 

2) Next place a small flat bottomed vessel or bowl upside down in the steamer. The top of this bowl should be above the level of water.

3) Place the plate / vessel with the dhokla over this upturned bowl. The purpose of the bowl is that the dhokla plate / vessel does not touch the boiling water directly and is slightly higher than the water level.

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Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Sauce

This pumpkin sauce is AMAZING with not just pasta, but with lots of other  things too. Toss in some stir fried veggies and make it a delicious and vibrant orange CURRY to pair with rice. Or DRIZZLE it over some grilled vegetables to liven them up.

This creamy- silky smooth-delicious-orange sauce filled with the goodness of those freshly picked farm pumpkin is completely VEGAN. Yesss!!! I mean you can make your own non-vegan version by replacing the coconut milk with some cream, but according to me, the coconut milk adds a lovely taste to the regular pumpkin sauce.

Did I tell you how easy to make this was? Or how you could finish making this before your TV serial/sitcom reached its credits? Yup, it’s THAT simple!!!

What do you need, you ask? Just some olive oil, pumpkin, garlic, coconut milk, oregano and anything to add some heat to this baby. I used some dried red chillies, you can add hot sauce or green chillies or paprika or totally skip  it.  And of course, salt. 6 ingredients, including salt and oil. Nothing gets simpler than that.

After you assemble all your ingredients, it is just chop, saute and blend. 3 steps. So now 6 ingredients and 3 steps – no reason at all to not try this at all.

I added it over some cooked farfalle pasta and tossed in some stir fried vegetables like broccoli. I love broccoli. Feel free to add or not add anything at all. It doesn’t really demand anything, it is just as good being plain.

If you plan on drizzling this on veggies or using it as a dip, I suggest adding less of the coconut milk to keep it nice and thick. If it is curry you plan to make, you can add other spices – cumin and coriander go well with it.

Oh oh oh – This would make an interesting SALAD DRESSING too. Some zucchini ribbons, some julienne carrots and some fresh salad leaves with this slightly sweet pumpkin sauce – DELICIOUS and healthy!!!

Step by Step Instructions:

1) Heat oil in a pan and add the minced garlic. Saute for 1 min. 

2) Add the diced pumpkin and cover and cover and cook on low heat until the pumpkin is done. Cut into smaller pieces to get it cooked sooner. 

3) Add the oregano, chopped red chillies, coconut milk and salt.

4) Cook for around 2-3 mins on low heat.

5) Allow it to cool and then blend into a smooth sauce.

Pumpkin Sauce [Vegan]

Versatile vegan pumpkin sauce that can be used for pasta, as a dip or as a base for curry.

Recipe Type:  Sauce

Cuisine:          International

Prep Time:     10 minutes

Cook time:     20 minutes

Yield:              Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

For Pumpkin Sauce:

2.5 cups or 125gms of diced Pumpkin

1 Tbsp of finely minced Garlic

3/4 tsp of dried Oregano

3/4 cup of Coconut Milk

1.5 Tbsp of Olive Oil

1 tsp of dried Red Chillies

Salt to taste

Pasta:

250gms of Pasta

1 cup of assorted stir fried Vegetables (Broccoli, Peppers/Capsicums etc.)

Method:

Heat oil in a pan and add the minced garlic. Saute for 1 min.

Add the diced pumpkin and cover and cover and cook on low heat until the pumpkin is done. Cut into smaller pieces to get it cooked sooner.

Add the oregano, chopped red chillies, coconut milk and salt.

Cook for around 2-3 mins on low heat.

Allow it to cool and then blend into a smooth sauce.

Boil the pasta according to the packet instructions.

Toss with the sauce and the vegetables and enjoy it hot.

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Vegetable Stew Recipe [Video]

Vegetable Stew recipe with video instructions. Vegetable Stew is a mildly spiced vegan stew made by cooking colorful peppers, cauliflower, carrots and beans in coconut milk. Vegetable Stew is a gluten free curry.

In a hurry? Jump to Video or Jump to Recipe

The weather is confusing, on some days it feels like summer and on others it looks like the monsoons are already here. Today was one such a day. It started out sunny and ended up wet.

When it rains, I feel like having some warm comfort food. Don't you?

And a vegetable stew is just that. It is comfort food personified. I made it with rainbow veggies. You can make it with what you have available, but I find that colorful food cheers me up. I watched this food truck on Eat Street that seemed to have the same thinking. It was a healthy food truck where the chef served everything with a colorful salad. Oooh! today's newspaper is saying food trucks are in town. Yeah, baby! I hope I find myself in the neighborhood of one interesting truck. Let me know if you try one out. Until then our little bhel puri carts will have to do.

Anyway back to the stew. I will not call this a Kerala veg stew, but it is inspired from Kerala. I made this stew with coconut milk like a lot of Kerala curries. This is my sister's recipe. So its been tried and tested on other people before me :)

I made it with cauliflower, tri-colored peppers, carrot, and french beans. You can add green peas, potatoes, frankly, any vegetable you fancy in a curry. Anything tastes good with coconut milk, I swear. This curry is mildly spiced, so it does not take you away from the delicate taste of coconut milk and the vegetables.

It can be eaten with rice or bread. The choice is yours. We enjoyed the stew with rice and spicy jeegujje podi. Ummm... my mouth is watering just remembering my lunch.

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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Video Recipe

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Vegetable Stew

Mildly spiced vegetable stew made by cooking colourful peppers, cauliflower, carrots and beans in coconut milk 

Recipe Type:  Main Course
Cuisine:          South Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              3 Servings

Ingredients:

1 cup Capsicum ( red, yellow, orange, green)
0.5 cup Cauliflower florets
1 Carrot, diced
6-8 Beans, chopped
2 cups Coconut Milk
3 tsp Oil
2 Cloves
0.5 tsp Black Pepper
0.5" Cinnamon
1 sprig Curry leaves
1 Onion, sliced
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1-2 Green Chillies, sliced
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices and curry leaves.
2. Once curry leaves splutter, add the sliced onion and fry until translucent.
3. Add the ginger garlic paste and saute until fragrant.
4. Add the vegetables that take longer to cook like the cauliflower, carrot and beans.
5. Add half a cup of water and salt and cover and cook until the vegetables are partially cooked.
6. Then add the capsicum or bell peppers and cook until all the vegetables are cooked.
7. Add in the coconut milk and salt to taste.
8. Simmer the stew for 3-4 minutes.
9. Enjoy it hot/warm with rice/bread.

If you liked this, you may also like:

Punjabi Dum Aloo

Raw Banana Kofta Curry

Eggplant Coconut Curry

Read more ...

Menthe Pathrode | Methi Pathrode

I never knew gardening could be so much fun. My heart swells with pride every time a seed I sowed, breaks the mud barrier and rises up to face the earth. Those two little green leaves soaking in the sunlight, fill me with hope and love. Some of the easiest things to grow have never worked with me - tomatoes & chillies. For some reason these just refuse to bear fruit in my garden no matter what I do or how much nutrition I give them :( But there are some others which ask for nothing and just give give and give. Spinach is one of them and the other is Fenugreek or Methi or Menthe. I had my own fresh bunch of methi leaves, so I decided to make something special.

I love Pathrode. Traditionally, pathrode is made by rubbing a paste of rice, lentils, coconut and spices onto 

Colocasia leaves/ Kesavina ele, rolling and steaming them. Colocasia leaves are a little difficult to find in Bangalore, they are more common along the Konkan coast of India. In their absence, Methi makes for a good substitute. Here instead of rubbing the leaves with the spice paste, the leaves are chopped and added to the paste and steamed wrapped in banana leaves. If you cannot get banana leaf, do not worry, you can just just steam them in greased bowls.

Clockwise L-R: Ground rice, Spice paste, Steamed pathrode, Pathrode to be steamed

Once they are cooked and cooled, crumble them and stir fry with a tempering of mustard and curry leaves. And don't forget to garnish with desiccated fresh coconut.

Menthe Pathrode | Methi Pathrode

A traditional Mangalore snack made by steaming rice and fenugreek/methi leaves together with a spice paste

Recipe Type:  Snacks / Appetizer
Cuisine:          South Indian / Mangalorean
Prep Time:     8 Hours (Includes soaking of rice)
Cook time:     90 minutes
Yield:              3-4 Servings

Ingredients:

1/2 cup White Rice
1/2 cup Red Rice
2 cups chopped or 1 bunch Methi
2-3 Tbsp Coriander seeds
1 tsp Tamarind paste
3-4 dry Red Chillies (I used 3 red chillies and added 1/2 tsp of chilli powder)
1/2 tsp Jaggery (You can use sugar instead)
1/2 Tbsp Urad dal
2-3 cloves Garlic
4 Tbsp dessicated Coconut
2-3 Tbsp Water
3 tsp Oil
8-10 Curry leaves
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
Salt

Method:

• Soak rice overnight.
• Drain out all the water and grind it. It should not be fine, it should remain coarse. It will attain a sticky consistency.
• Dry roast the urad dal and coriander seeds until they are slightly brown.
• Add 1 tsp of oil and fry the red chillies until they are crisp.
• Allow them to cool and then grind into a powder along with the coriander seeds and urad dal.
• Add the coconut, jaggery, garlic and tamarind and grind into a paste along with 1-2 tbsp of water.
• Add this masala to the rice and mix well. Preferably just mix in the mixer.
• Add salt.
• Add the chopped methi leaves and mix well.
• You now need to steam this.
• If using a cooker or an idli steamer, allow it to heat up and produce steam before placing the pathrode in it.
• It is better to steam it wrapped in banana leaves, but if you don't have it steam in bowls. Grease the bowls before you spoon in the pathrode.
• Steam on medium flame for 18-20 mins until it is cooked. Depending on the size of the parcels or the bowl, you may need more or less time. If using banana leaf, the change in colour is a good indication that it is cooked.
• Allow it to cool and then crumble it using your fingers.
• Heat the remaining oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds once the oil is hot.
• After they splutter, add the curry leaves and pour this tempering into the crumbled pathrode.
• Add dessicated fresh coconut and mix well.
• Serve hot as a snack/ appetizer.

Read more ...

Coconut Laddoo

We Indians love our sweets. I don’t think there is any other place in the world that has as many varieties of sweets as much as we do. Every festival or any good news is marked with at least one type of sweet. We even invented the art of refining sugar from sugar canes. So our love story with sugar and sweets is a long and strong one. 

These days with our hectic lives, we mostly  end up buying sweets outside except may be on festivals. What if we could make an awesome sweet in less than 30mins? Yes, 30 mins aka half an hour. I saw this easy coconut laddoo recipe on Fox Traveler’s Food Safari when they showed the India episode. Since the day I saw how easy it was, I wanted to make it. And to think I didn’t even like coconut laddoos (until of course, I made it myself and ate it). So on a weeknight, when I came home early from office, I thought why not make these yummy laddoos. It needs only 4 ingredients. I always have cardamom at home and butter/ghee is also generally available. So I needed to just buy the coconut powder and condensed milk. I found the coconut powder at Nilgiris. I know that FoodWorld also stocks it. I’m sure a lot of supermarkets stock it. Coconut powder is not the same as coconut milk powder. Coconut powder is just desiccated coconut but it is slightly dried. You get this in all Indian stores abroad.

The below recipe made 20 small laddoos.

Coconut Laddoo

Sweet Indian fudge made with coconut.

Recipe Type:  Dessert
Cuisine:          Indian
Prep Time:     5 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:              20

Ingredients:

200gms Sweetened condensed milk
1.5 cups Coconut powder
2-3 pods Cardamom
½ tsp Ghee / Unsalted butter


Method:

• In a kadhai or a pan (preferably nonstick), pour the condensed milk., 1.25 cups of coconut powder to it and mix well.
• Add powdered cardamom and mix.
• Place this on the stove and on low heat cook for around 8-10mins stirring occasionally. Be careful and don’t let it burn. 
• Remove from heat and allow it to cool for 5 mins. 
• Grease a plate with ghee/ unsalted butter.
• Now very carefully, take little of the mix and make a ball with it. Remember, the mix is hot but this can only be done when it is hot/warm. It will set as it cools. 
• Roll it in the remaining coconut powder and place it in the greased plate. 
• Leave it to cool for 20-30mins. 
• Serve it with love

Read more ...

Mirchi Ka Salan

Did you know, that India is the largest producer and consumer of chillies?  And Andhra Pradesh accounts for 30% of production... No wonder when we think of Andhra food, we think spicy... It is fitting that AP has a dish showcasing their favorite hot chilli. This is generally served as an accompaniment with Biryani. Now, although, I can eat spicy food, I cannot go all the way and eat it as spicy as the Andhraites, so instead of using spicy green chillies, I stuck to using the yellow ones which are generally used to make bhajjis. I also cut them into chunks rather than use them whole, this just made it easier to eat with chapati... 

Mirchi Ka Salan

Spicy Andhra curry made with chillies and peanuts. Usually served as an accompaniment to Biryani.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:          South Indian / Andhra
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              2-4 Servings

Ingredients:

4-5 Banana pepper / Wax chili / Bhajji mirchi
4 Tbsp Peanuts
3 Tbsp Coconut (desiccated)
1.5 Tbsp Sesame seeds
½ cup Curd/ Yogurt
1 tsp Tamarind
1 Onion
2-3 cloves Garlic
1” piece Ginger
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1-2 tsp Red chili powder
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Cumin seeds
2” stick Cinnamon
1 Cardamom
1-2 Cloves
2 dry Red Chilies
5-6 Curry leaves
1 tsp Jaggery or 1/2 tsp Sugar
5 tsp Oil
Water
Salt


Method:

• Heat a tsp of oil in a kadhai and add the peanuts once the oil is hot.
• Fry the peanuts on low flame until slightly brown.
• Add the sesame seeds and continue frying until the sesame is slightly browned.
• Now add the desiccated coconut and fry until the coconut browns slightly.
• Do this on low flame and not on high. You want them to cook, not just color.
• Keep this aside to cool.
• Soak tamarind in half a cup of water.
• Crush and grind the ginger and garlic into a fine paste. Alternatively, you can use 1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste.
• Heat 3 tsp of oil in a kadhai.
• Once it is hot, add the red chilies (either whole or you can break them), cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.
• Fry for about 20 secs and then add the mustard seeds.
• Once the mustard crackles, add the cumin seeds.
• After the cumin seeds have browned, add the onions and fry until the onions are golden brown.
• Now add the curry leaves and ginger-garlic paste and fry until fragrant
• Add the coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder and red chili powder and fry for 30 secs – 1 min.
• Add ½ cup water and cover and cook until the oil oozes out.
• Now add the whisked curd, tamarind water and jaggery and cover and cook until the oil oozes out. I did not add all the tamarind juice at once, added ¼ cup first and tasted it later and added the rest.
• Grind the coconut, peanut and sesame into a fine paste with some water.
• Add this paste and salt and cover and cook for 15-20 mins until the raw taste disappears.

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Bharwan Bhindi | Stuffed Okra Fry

It was a hatrick of stuffed bhindi two weeks ago. Bhindi(Okra) is our least favorite vegetable at home, so it is brought into the house once every blue moon. The way I can eat it, is the way hubby dearest hates it. The way he likes it, I don't. So tired of these bhindi wars, when I was grumbling to my friend about cooking bhindi, she gave me a couple of recipes. I tried her first one, and both of us seemed to like it. Next day, I tried something a colleague at office suggested, that tasted a little better... and finally i tried stuffing the bhindi with coconut and coriander as per Tarla Dalal (a variation also suggested by my friend), this version was our favorite of the 3 we tried...

Bharwan Bhindi | Stuffed Okra Fry

Okra/Bhindi stuffed with spice powders and pan fried.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:          Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              3-4 servings

Ingredients:

20-25 Bhindi or Okra
3 Tbsp grated fresh Coconut
2 Tbsp fresh Coriander leaves (chopped)
1 Tbsp Chickpea Flour or Besan
1/2 tsp Jaggery or Sugar
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp Cumin powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Amchur (dry Mango powder)
2Tbsp Oil
1-2 tsp Water
Salt

Method:

• Trim the bhindi and make a slit lengthwise on one side of the bhindi.
• Mix together all the ingredients for the stuffing.
• Stuff the bhindis with the stuffing.
• Add at least ½ - 1 tsp per bhindi.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a flat pan or a tava with high edges.
• Place the bhindi in a single layer in the pan. The bhindi should not overlap each other.
• Pour the remaining 1 tbsp oil over the bhindi.
• Keep turning the bhindi until they are cooked.
• Serve hot with rice or roti.

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Matki Usal

Matki or Moth beans are look very similar to moong beans but are brown in colour and are slightly smaller in size. They are a high source of protein and as most beans, very low in calories. I usually use these to make Misal, but on days I have less time, I am content with just the usal. You can make the same recipe with sprouted moong beans too...

Matki Usal

Maharastrian curry made with sprouted moth beans and fresh coconut.

Recipe Type:  Main Course
Cuisine:          Indian / Maharastrian
Prep Time:     15 minutes (Does not include sprouting time)
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              3-4 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup dried or 2 cups sprouted Matki beans / Moth beans
1 Onion
1 Tomato
2-3 Green chillies
5-6 Curry leaves
A handful of Coriander leaves
3 tbsp desiccated Coconut
3 tsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds
Salt
Water
Method:

• To sprout the beans yourself, soak in matki beans in 2 cups of water overnight
• Next morning, drain out the water from the container and cover the container with a steel plate and allow to rest in a warm place for 2 days or until the beans sprout.
• Alternatively, you can also tie the beans in a muslin cloth and allow them to sprout.
• Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
• Once they splutter, add the curry leaves, slit green chillies and chopped onions
• Fry until the onions are done
• Add chopped tomatoes and cook until they are done
• Add the sprouts and enough water to cover them
• Add salt and cover and cook until the beans are done.
• Keep checking the beans, if it feels dry and the beans aren't done, then add more water and cover and cook longer. If the beans are done, and there is excess water, then remove the lid and cook on high flame until the water evaporates. This can take anywhere between 20-30 mins to cook.
• Once the beans are done, garnish with desiccated coconut and finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with chapati

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Kadle Bele Payasa | Chana Dal Payasam

Guysss !!! "100" H-U-N-D-R-E-D... This is my 100th post on OneTeaspoonOfLife...

My first milestone in my blogging journey. Ever since I reached the nervous 90's, I started thinking about what my 100th post should be. I asked for suggestions from family, but I was more confused than ever. I wanted it to be something sweet, something influenced by my roots and most of all, something I love.

Kadle Bele Payasa has been a favourite since childhood. And to top it, this was a part of the naivedyam (offering) to Lord Ganesha for Ganesh Chaturthi. I made it long back, but held on, on posting it, so I could make it my 100th. So blessed by Lord Ganesha, comes my 100th recipe on this blog for the simple, delicate and delicious Kadle Bele Payasa or Chana Dal Payasam.

Kadle Bele Payasa is a South Indian Kheer or pudding made using Chana Dal (Split Bengal Gram) and Rice. The dal and rice are cooked in coconut milk along with cardamom and jaggery.

The base of this payasa or kheer is the Chana Dal. The dal needs to be soaked for at least 2-3 hours to make cooking it easier. I pressure cooked it, but you can easily cook it in a deep saucepan. Usually, dal is cooked until it disintegrates and is mushy, but not in this case. The dal should be just cooked. It should still retain its shape and should still have a slight bite to it.

The other major ingredient here is the rice. And just like the chana dal, it needs to be just cooked. The rice grains should not be mushy. They should still have a bite to them.

Coconut is the soul of South India and also of this Kadle Bele Payasa. The Kadle Bele Payasa gets its creaminess from coconut. You can add coconut milk or finely ground coconut flesh. I sometimes add coconut milk and sometimes the ground coconut. The difference is not in taste, but in texture. Coconut milk gives it smooth creaminess while the ground coconut gives the payasa a coarse texture.

Jaggery is unrefined cane sugar. If you don't have access to jaggery, you can add palm sugar or brown sugar or any unrefined sugar. If you are using jaggery, I suggest using the darkest variety you get. Dark jaggery has the least amount of additives it in and has a richer taste.

No Indian sweet is complete without ground Cardamom. Just the fragrance of cardamom reminds me of dessert.

Dry fruits are totally optional for this Kadle Bele Payasa, but I don't know any dish where the addition of dry fruits has ruined it. Add them just chopped or fry them in ghee like I did. If you are vegan or want to make a vegan dessert, skip the ghee and just lightly toast the dry fruits. I added cashew nuts and raisins, you can add almonds as well.

If you are making this for Naivedyam or as an offering to god, refrain from tasting it. Follow the recipe and you should be good. Hold off on the jaggery if you are concerned it being too sweet while offering it in Naivedyam. You can heat a little water and dissolve jaggery in it and mix it to the payasa while eating.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Modak - Modaks are traditional steamed Indian dumpling made from rice flour, coconut and jaggery. Served as an offering to Lord Ganesha in West and South India. 
• Coconut Laddoo - Instant Fudge balls made with coconut and condensed milk.
• Mavinahannu Seekarne - Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras is a simple traditional dessert made with mango pulp and milk and flavored with cardamom.

Kadle bele payasa | Chana dal payasam

Kadle Bele Payasa or Chana Dal Payasam is a South Indian kheer or pudding made with rice, lentils and fresh coconut.

Recipe Type:  Dessert
Cuisine:          South Indian
Prep Time:     2 Hours (Includes lentil soaking time)
Cook time:     60 minutes
Yield:              2-3 Servings

Ingredients:

0.5 cup Kadle bele / Chana dal
2-3 Tbsp Cooked rice
0.5 cup desiccated fresh Coconut or 1 cup Coconut Milk
0.5 cup Jaggery (grated or shaved)
1 tsp or 4 pods of Cardamom
8-10 Cashew nuts(Split) (Optional)
8-10 Kismis / Raisins(Optional)
1 Tbsp Ghee (Optional)
Water as required

Method:

Soak the kadle bele for 2-3 hours.
Pressure cook it with water until done. It should be cooked but not mushy. I cooked it in 2 cups of water for around 10 mins/ 2-3 whistles.
Pour the kadle bele along with 1 cup of the water it was cooked in, into a kadhai. Keep the flame low.
Add the cooked rice to it.
If using coconut milk, just pour it to the kadhai with the kadle bele and rice. If using fresh cococut, grind it with water until it is is fine and then add this to the kadhai.
Add the grated jaggery and cardamom and cook for 5-10 mins until the jaggery melts and mixes evenly. I suggest adding it by the spoonful until the sweetness is right for you. Add water as required. The consistency is usually on the thicker side.
In another small pan, heat the ghee and lightly fry the cashew nuts and raisins until the cashews are light brown and add this to the payasa. If you are vegan, toast the cashews lightly instead of frying in the ghee and add to the payasa.

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