Banana blossom and white peas subzi

Banana blossom or banana flower is the maroon tear drop shaped thing we probably see in our vegetable shop. It is found at the end of a banana cluster on the tree. I never knew how to cut it or cook it having never eaten it. But a thai place around my house serves banana blossom cakes and they added lemongrass and all those wonderful thai spices and made an awesome cutlet out of it. I simply loved that. I have not yet tried making that but I'm sure that will be soon on the menu. Meanwhile, I got this recipe from my mom which works out great for me. It is the Goan way of cooking banana blossom. It must be good, coz hubby dearest wants it again soon :)

Ingredients:

Banana blossom - 1
White peas/ Green peas - 1 cup (dried)
Fresh grated coconut - 2 tbsp. (Optional)
Oil - 2-3 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder / Haldi - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Salt

Method:

The important thing with banana blossom is knowing how to peel it and cut it
Discard the maroon layer and keep the small buds at the bottom of the stem. We only use the buds. Cut the buds into smaller pieces and soak in water to avoid oxidising.
Keep removing the layers until you can. After a point it is difficult to separate these layers.
Once the maroon layers are over, the layers will turn white. These are difficult to separate.
Start cutting the blossom into slices once you cannot remove any more
Soak this in water overnight. You can keep this in the fridge.
Squeeze out the water in the morning and pressure cook for around 2-3 whistles (10-12 mins)
Separately pressure cook the white peas for 1-2 whistles (8-10 mins) until done
Heat oil in a kadhai and add the msutard seeds.
Once they splutter add the cooked banana blossom and the white peas.
Add a cup of the water the peas were boiled in.
Add turmeric powder, chilli powder, garam masala and salt
Cook until the water evaporates.
Garnish with coconut and serve

Read more ...

Jhunka

Jhunka Bhakri is a simple but thoroughly enjoyed meal in North Karnataka. Jhunka takes hardly 10 mins to prepare and is a welcome substitute to the regular sabzi once in a while. So on Friday night, tired of cooking ,once again, and bored of eating out. once again. This was the quickest fix for dinner.

Jhunka

Quick Maharastrian curry made from chickpea flour/ besan and tomatoes.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:          Indian / Maharastrian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:              2-3 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Besan / Gram Flour
1 cup Water
1 Tomato
4-5 Curry Leaves
2 Green Chillies
1 tsp Cumin Seeds / Jeera
2 tsp Oil
1 tsp Turmeric Powder / Haldi
Salt

Method:

Heat oil in a kadhai and add the cumin seeds
Once they brown slightly, add the curry leaves, chopped tomatoes and chopped chillies and fry for 2 mins
Add 1/2 a cup of water and cook until the tomatoes are soft
Add the turmeric powder
Mix the besan in the remaining water until it is a smooth paste
Add this to the kadhai and add salt
Heat on low flame until the raw taste of the besan disappears. Keep stirring to prevent the jhunka from burning
Add more water if desired
Eat with jowar rotti or phulka

Read more ...

Dal Makhani

Friday nights call for something special. With the heavy rains, eating out was out of question. Who's ready to battle Bangalore traffic when it rains? So it was time to make something easy and special at home. So here comes Dal Makhani. Although the name suggests makhan aka butter, it really does not have too much. Infact, I made it without any butter. You can add a spoonful at the end.

Ingredients:

Whole black urad dal - 1/2 cup
Red kidney beans / Rajma - 2 tbsp
Tomato - 2 medium
Onion - 1 medium or 2 small
Ginger - 1" piece
Garlic - 1-2
Coriander powder / Dhania powder - 3-4 tsp
Cumin powder / Jeera powder - 1-2 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Cumin seeds / Jeera - 1 tsp
Oil - 3 tsp
Salt
Water

Method:

Soak the urad dal and the rajma for around 6-8 hours.
Pressure cook them in water until soft. Urad dal cooks very soon, around 3-4 whistles or 10 mins. Rajma, however, takes much longer. It took me around 45 mins on low
flame after 1 whistle to cook rajma.
Also, while cooking rajma, do not use the water that it was soaked in. Use fresh water.
Puree the onion along with the ginger and garlic
Puree the tomato
Heat oil in a kadhai and add the cumin seeds
Once they brown, add the onion paste and cook for 2-3 mins
Add the tomato puree and all the spices and cook on low flame for 10-12 mins. Add 1-2 tbsp water if it starts burning.
Add the urad dal and rajma.
Add salt and water.Adjust water according to the desired consistency.
Cook for another 5-7 mins.
Serve hot with rice or roti

Read more ...

Majjige huli

Every woman needs a day off from cooking. I decided it was today as I was bogged down with office work (the woes of IT world). I handed over the kitchen to my dearest hubby. Menu was decided as majjige huli and rice. My favourite huli/sambhar is majjige huli. It's base is not with lentils or dal but buttermilk or curd. Hubby promptly called up his mom for the recipe and whipped up an awesome dinner. Ahhh heaven...:) It is my mom-in-law's recipe that follows...

Ingredients:

White pumpkin - 2 cups (peeled, deseeded and cut into cubes)
Fresh grated coconut -  3 tbsp
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
Green chillies - 1-2
Ginger - 1/2" piece
Cumin seeds/ Jeera - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Chana dal - 2 tbsp
Curd - 1 cup
Curry leaves - 5-6
Oil - 3 tsp

Method:

Soak the chana dal in half a cup of water and keep aside
Boil the pumpkin in 2 cups of water. Add around 1 tsp salt to the water. The water should cover the pumpkin. Add more water if needed.
Boil the pumpkin until done, it should still be stiff but allow a knife to pierce smoothly through it. Don't let it become too soft, it should still have a bite to it.
Grind together coconut, coriander leaves, ginger, cumin seeds, chana dal (drain out the water), turmeric powder, green chillies and 1 tsp mustard seeds with a little water into a fine paste
Add this paste to the pumpkin and cook for 2 mins
Churn the curd or blend it in a mixer to remove all lumps and add it to the pumpkin. Lower the flame and cook for another minute. Do not cook on high flame else the curd will split.
Add salt as needed.
Heat oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds.
After the mustard seeds splutter, add the curry leaves and pour this tempering into the majjige huli.
Enjoy with rice

Read more ...

Gobi Mussallam

Gobi mussallam is actually an entire head of cauliflower or gobi cooked in a tomato and cream based gravy. I searched the internet for this recipe but nothing looked similar to the one I eat at a restaurant near my house. So I decided to use the ingredients mentioned and just make it with instinct. Well, that worked, and I got a yummy gobi mussallam. I did not use an entire head of cauliflower as I was looking at making a smaller quantity, so I just cut it into florets and used.

Gobi mussallam

Steam and fry the gobi

Fry onion, ginger, garlic paste along with the whole spices

Add tomato and all the powder spices and cook for 15 mins

Add milk and cook until desired consistency is reached

Serve hot with roti or rice

Gobi Mussallam

Head of cauliflower cooked in a tomato and cream based gravy. Vegetarian cauliflower curry.
Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2-3


Ingredients:

1/2 large or 1 small Cauliflower
3 Tomatoes
3 Onion
4 cloves Garlic
1" piece of Ginger
1/4 cup Cashew nuts (Optional)
4 tsp Coriander powder / Dhania powder
1-2 tsp Cumin powder / Jeera powder
1 tsp Garam masala
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder / Haldi
1 tsp Red chilli powder
1 Bay leaf /Tej patta
1-2 Clove / Lawang
1 Star anise
4-5 Peppercorns
1 small piece Cinnamon / Dalchini(about 1.5")
1 Cardamom / Elaichi
1 cup Milk
5-6 tsp Oil
Salt
4-5 Almonds (Optional)
A handful of Coriander leaves

Method:

Soak cashew nuts in warm water. If you don't have cashew nuts you can skip this.
Break cauliflower into large florets.
Soak cauliflower in hot water with 1 tsp of salt added to it for around 2 mins.
Steam or boil the cauliflower until almost done. It should not be completely cooked and it should still be crunchy. I steamed it for around 3-4 mins.
Remove the cauliflower and pat them dry using a kitchen towel
Heat 3 tsp of oil in a kadhai and fry the cauliflower until they slightly brown
Remove the cauliflower form heat and keep aside
Puree the onion, ginger and garlic in the mixer
Puree the soaked cashew nuts using a little water
Puree the tomatoes
Heat the remaining oil in a kadhai and add the onion paste
Add the bay leaf, clove, star anise, peppercorns, cinnamon and cardamom and fry until the onion turns slightly brown. Add more oil or a little water if the paste starts sticking to the bottom of the kadhai
Add tomato and cashew nut puree
Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilli powder and garam masala and cook on low flame for 10-15 mins. Keep stirring to avoid the paste from burning or sticking to the bottom of the kadhai. I cooked for almost 15 mins.
Add the milk and salt and continue cooking on low flame until the gravy obtains the consistency needed. I cooked it for around 5-10 mins more.
Add the cauliflower and cook for 2 mins
Garnish with chopped almonds and finely chopped coriander leaves
Serve hot with roti or rice

Read more ...

Spinach Dal | Palak Dal

Howdy!! How did the weekend treat you? Are you in mood for some piping hot Palak Dal and Rice?

The first time I had this Spinach or Palak Dal was when I was around 8 years old. My friend's mom, my next door neighbor made it. As we played in the kitchen, she cooked it right in front of us showing us how it is made. The moment she added the ginger-garlic and fried and the aroma wafted over to where we were playing, our mouths started watering and we did not leave the kitchen until the entire dal was made. I did not even go home for lunch that day, I ate at my friend's place.

Being from Mumbai, my friend's family was used to eating spicy and hot food. To my near bland palate, it was like an explosion in my mouth and I ate the dal while my eyes watered. But I loved every spoonful of it. I loved it so much, I ran back home and asked my mom to learn how to make Palak Dal.

I've since, learnt how to make it and it is regular occurrence in my house. While I have grown up, my palate is still not accustomed to extremely hot food, so I never add as much green chilli or ginger my friend's mom added, I only add enough to tantalize my tongue. If you are fond of hot food, feel free to add in more or if you prefer your food to be lighter in taste, you can remove the seeds of the chilli before grinding it into a paste.

For added flavor, you can add half a cup of dill leaves or suva sabzi to this dal as well. I add it at times if I have it and it gives this Palak Dal a different dimension. Highly recommended addition, I say!

I personally love dal with roti or naan as much as I love my dal rice. If you plan on eating this with roti, reduce the amount of water you add, to get a thicker consistency. To eat with rice, a thinner consistency is preferred. 

I cook this dal entirely in the pressure cooker, partly because it is quicker and partly because I am lazy to wash many dishes. If you do not have a pressure cooker, you can use a kadhai or a sauce pan with a lid to make this Palak Dal. You will find that this does not alter the taste or texture of the Palak Dal, however, it does take longer to cook the dal. And that means you have to wait longer to eat this awesome curry!!!

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Pancharangi Dal - Curry made with 5 different types of lentils.
• Heerekai Tove - Dal with ridgegourd pieces.
• Dal Makhani - Creamy and rich dal made with black lentils.
• Dal Fry (restaurant style) - Plain simple dal made in restaurant style.

Spinach Dal | Palak Dal

Spinach Dal or Palak Dal is a spiced dal made from pigeon pea lentils (toor dal) and spinach. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     40 minutes
Yield:                Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

5-6 cups chopped Spinach (Palak)
1 cup Pigeon Pea Lentils (Toor Dal)
1 Onion
2 Tomato
3-4 pods Garlic
1" piece Ginger
1-2 Green Chilli
1 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Cumin Seeds (Jeera)
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder (Haldi)
3 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
Water

Method:

Boil the toor dal with 2.5 cups of water in a pressure cooker. Remove the dal and clean the pressure cooker for re-use.
Wash and chop the palak leaves.
Chop the onion and tomato and keep aside.
Grind the ginger, garlic, and the green chillies into a paste.
Heat oil in the pressure cooker, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter.
Now add the cumin seeds and let them brown slightly.
Add the chopped onions.
Fry the onions until translucent.
Add the ginger-garlic-chilli paste and fry until fragrant.
Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add garam masala and mix well.
Add chopped palak and stir for 1-2 minutes.
Add the boiled dal, turmeric powder, salt and 1 cup of water.
Close the pressure cooker and cook for 1-2 whistles or around 5 minutes after the pressure builds up.
If you want it to be thinner in consistency, then add more water.
Serve hot with rice.

Note:

If not using a pressure cooker, you can just use a regular deep sauce pan with a tight lid. There will be no difference in taste or texture, however, it will take longer to cook the Spinach Dal.

Read more ...

Raw mango gojju

Raw mangoes... just thinking of them makes my mouth water. I'm sure they have the same impact on a lot of us. The recipe that follows is something my mom used to make in the summers and would always leave me craving for more. Generally made with a fruit called "amtekai" or "ambade", in its absence, it was made using raw mangoes. Since "amtekai" is only available along the konkan coast, I decided to make my childhood favourite using raw mangoes. And it paid off, my husband loved it too and did not seem bored after this made an appearance multiple times this summer.

Ingredients:

Raw mango - 1

Coconut - 1.5 cups

Sambhar powder - 1.5 tbsp

Hing - a pinch

Urad dal - 2 tbsp

Methi seeds - 1 tbsp

Jaggery - 2-5 tbsp

Chilli powder - 1 tsp

Turmeric - 1 tsp

Oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 8-10

Salt

Method:

Dry roast 1.5 tbsp urad dal and .5 tbsp of methi seeds.

Grind the coconut and the sambhar powder to a coarse paste using little water. Add the dry roasted urad dal and methi seeds and continue to grind to a fine paste.

Heat oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves, remaining urad dal and methi seeds and wait till mustard seeds have stopped spluttering.

Add the coconut paste and roast for 1 minute.

Add chopped raw mango and water. Add salt, chilli powder, turmeric and hing.

Allow it to cook till mango are done.

Add jaggery depending on how sweet you like it.

Read more ...

Methi Mutter Milk (low fat)

Bored of making methi the same two ways I always do, I decided to try something new. After googling for a while, I decided to make methi mutter malai. Although, I must say my dish does not live up to its name. I have used no malai. The thought of malai makes me squirm. So it has been replaced by milk in my recipe. Extremely easy to make, this simple change in menu got me out of my boredom. Pleased to add a third way to cook methi in my recipe book.

Ingredients:

Fresh green peas - 3/4 cup
Fresh methi leaves - 2.5 cups
Onion - 1 large
Cashew nuts - 5-6
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Green chillies - 2-3
Milk - 1/2-1 cup
Amchur (dry mango powder) - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Oil - 3 tsp
Salt

Method:

1) Heat 2 tsp oil in a pan and fry onion, cashew, ginger, garlic and green chillies until the onions are translucent
2) Blanch the methi leaves in hot water for 5 mins and shock them by adding them to cold water immediately
3) Boil or sauté the peas until done
4) Make a paste of the onion mixture along with a tbsp of methi leaves
5) Heat the remaining oil in a pan and add the ground paste
6) Add the peas and methi leaves to the pan. Add 1/2 cup water and all the dry spices
7) Cook for around 5-8 minutes
8) Add 1/2 cup milk and cook on sim for another 8-10 mins or until the methi is completely cooked. Add more/less milk depending on the desired consistency.
Do not cover and cook once the milk is added. Also, do not cook on high once the milk is added.
Serve hot with rotis or rice

Read more ...

Mushroom in Creamy White Sauce

This is an ex-roomie's recipe. We used to take turns to cook on weeknights and she came up with this extremely yummy and versatile recipe. It is so simple to make and can be altered as per your wish. You can add oregano or rosemary to give is a different twist. You can use this as a sauce for pasta or noodles. This is a perfect weeknight dinner...

Ingredients:

Mushrooms - 2 cups (sliced/chopped)
Onions - 2 tbsp (chopped)
Corn flour - 1 tsp
Soy sauce - 1 tsp  (Increase or decrease as per your liking)
Milk - 1/2 cup
Cheese grated - 1 cube (Optional)
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt
Pepper - Freshly crushed

Method:

Heat the oil in a kadhai and fry the onions until translucent.
Add the mushrooms and saute until cooked. Be careful while cooking mushroom, make sure it does not overcook. They taste best with a little bite left in them.
Add the milk to the mushrooms and allow the milk to boil.
Lower the heat so that the milk does not overflow.
Dissolve the corn flour in 2 tbsp water or milk.
Add it to the mushrooms.
The gravy will begin to thicken, so keep stirring else it will form lumps.
Add the salt, pepper and the soy sauce.
Add grated cheese.
Keep stirring for about 1 minute.
Remove from heat and serve hot.

Read more ...

Palak paneer

Popeye's favourite and mine too... Spinach aka palak is very rich in nutrients and what better way to eat it than palak paneer. Easy to make and delicious. Use homemade paneer for extra taste.

Ingredients:

Palak / Spinach - 1 bunch or 3 cups
Onion - 1 medium
Garlic - 1-2 cloves
Ginger - 1/2" piece
Green chillis - 1-2 (you may increase or decrease depending on your liking and the spicyness of the chillis)
Jeera/cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tsp
Amchur / Dry mango powder - 1 tsp or Lime juice - 1 tbsp
Paneer - 1 cup or 200gms (cubed)
Salt

Method:

Wash the palak leaves until clean.
Boil 4 cups of water in a pan.
Add the palak leaves. Do not cover the pan. Allow the leaves to boil for 3 mins. This gives the palak paneer the bright green color. If you are in a hurry, you can pressure cook the palak for 1 whistle.
Switch off the gas and let the leaves be there for another 2 mins
In another pan, add ice cold water (around 2-3 cups)
Drain the palak and immediately immerse in the ice cold water
Grind the onion along with the ginger and garlic into a paste.
Cool the palak and grind it into a paste along with the green chillis.
Heat oil in a kadhai.
Add the cumin seeds.
Once the cumin seeds splutter, add the onion paste and cook.
After around 2-3 minutes add the palak mixture.
Add salt.
Add water if required and cook for around 5 minutes.
Add the paneer and cook for 2 more minutes.(The paneer can be added as it is or can be fried in a little bit of oil and added)
Serve hot with chapatis.

Read more ...