Ghugni Masala | Kala Chana Masala [Video]

Ghugni Masala is a vegan and healthy curry made from black chickpeas or kala chana. The chickpeas are simmered in a masala made from pureed onions, tomatoes and spices. A perfect gluten free accompaniment to roti or naan bread.

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What's a better way to start of a week than with a healthy meal? And this Ghugni Masala or Kala Chana Masala is as healthy as it gets.

Kala Chana or Ghugni are desi black chickpeas. If you aren't Indian, there is a possibility you haven't seen the black chickpeas. Black chickpeas are smaller, denser and have a rougher skin than their cousin, the more popular, white chickpeas. Black chickpeas have more fiber and a lower glycemic index and make it perfect for someone trying to lose weight or just lead a healthier life. 

Also, I just love them!

I enjoy eating the black chickpeas way more than the lighter variety, also known locally as Kabuli Chana. And what I love even more than the black chickpeas? the water it is cooked in or the aqua faba. The black chickpeas release a lot of umami into the water that they were boiled in, making it perfect for using in curries. Which is why in this curry, we don't use regular water, we use the water in which the chickpeas were boiled. The water adds color as well as an oomph to the curry. 

Ghugni Masala is a very simple curry to make and stores brilliantly in the fridge. 

The curry is simply made by simmering boiled black chickpeas in a masala made from pureed onions and tomatoes that have been flavored with 4 simple spice powders - coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and garam masala. Whole spices are also used in the recipe to make the dish even more fragrant. If you don't have all the whole spices, just use what you have.

Kala Chana Masala fits right into the vegan diet as well as a gluten free diet. To make the dish fit the plant based diet, just replace the oil with water.

Kala Chana Masala tastes best when served with Naan bread or Roti, but you can also serve it with rice. In case serving with rice, adjust the consistency of the gravy.

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 upto.

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

Video Recipe

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Ghugni Masala | Kala Chana Masala

Ghugni Masala is a vegan and healthy curry made from black chickpeas or kala chana. The chickpeas are simmered in a masala made from pureed onions, tomatoes and spices. A perfect gluten free accompaniment to roti or naan bread.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     8 hours
Cook time:     30 minutes
Total time:     8 Hours 30 Minutes
Yield:                2-3

Ingredients:

1 cup Black Chickpeas or Kala Chana
2 medium Onions
2 medium Tomatoes
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
0.5 tsp Mustard Seeds
0.5 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 Bay leaf
2 Cloves
1 Mace
1" Cinnamon
1 tsp Coriander Powder
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
0.5 tsp Garam Masala
1 Tbsp Coriander leaves (finely chopped)
1 Tbsp Kasuri Methi (Optional)
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

1. Soak the dried black chickpeas overnight. Pressure cook them the next day with 0.5 tsp salt until they are cooked.
2. Puree the onion and tomatoes separately.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds.
4. Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the bay leaf, cloves, mace, cinnamon and cumin seeds.
5. Add the ginger garlic paste and saute until fragrant.
6. Add the onion paste and saute until slightly browned.
7. Now add the tomato paste and all the spice powders and cook on low heat for 5-7 minutes while stirring frequently.
8. Add 1 cup of water in which the chickpeas were cooked.
9. Add salt to taste.
10. Cover and cook on low heat for 5-7 minutes.
11. Add kasuri methi and mix well.
12. Garnish with the chopped coriander leaves.
13. Serve hot with roti or naan bread.

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Alsane Tonak

Lobia Masala

Double Beans Masala

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Shalgam Ke Kebab | Vegan Turnip Chops [Video]

Shalgam ke Kebab or Turnip Chops are crumb coated pan fried patties made from fresh seasonal turnips and mashed potatoes, flavored with spices. Perfect for winter evening tea !!

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It feels so good to eat seasonal!!

I cannot remember the last time I ate turnips. Being seasonal, turnips start coming into the market around this time, and because the demand isn't so high I guess, they tend to be available in very few shops across Bangalore. I'm lucky I found them in my vegetable store. 

I haven't cooked much with turnips in the past. But this year, I've been buying them every week. I made a dry curry with grated turnips, I added them to sambar, I made parathas, and lastly, I made these delicious, crispy kebabs.

Here are the details.

Since, they are called Shalgam ke Kebab, they have to taste of Shalgam (turnips). Turnips are slightly sharp or bitter in taste, but they are much milder than the daikon radish. At the peak of the season, they are actually sweet, which would be the best time to cook with them. You can either boil the turnips and use in this kebab or you can grate them like I did. Boiling them dilutes the flavor slightly as they combine very easily with the other ingredients. I grated them because I wanted the turnip flavor to be dominant in the kebabs. So, peel the turnips and grate them. Make sure you squeeze out as much water as you can from the turnips, this will prevent the kebabs from getting soggy on the inside.

We need binding agents to make the kebabs. And here, we are using two of them - potatoes and gram flour (besan). Use just enough to bind the mixture.

I mildly spiced the kebabs with turmeric powder, red chilli powder and some homemade garam masala. I added coriander leaves, because, well, I add coriander to pretty much everything. I love the freshness it adds. You can skip it or replace it with herbs like dill or parsley. 

In the absence of an egg wash, because I don't eat eggs, I made a simple plain flour slurry. This helps in crumb coating the kebabs. If you want to use eggs, you can.

The crumb coating - I ran out of bread crumbs, which would have been ideal, so I replaced them with coarsely powdered rolled oats. What can I say, it was fantastic. The oats behaved more like panko bread crumbs and they gave the kebab a nice crunchy outer layer. And may be made it feel a little healthier too. 

I shallow fried the kebabs until they were nice and brown. I've never tried baking them, so I don't know if that will work. But if you have already baked something similar, I'd say go ahead and bake them. If you do, leave me a comment so it helps out other readers who may want to bake.

Top the kebabs with some chat masala or squeeze some lime juice on them while eating. 

These Shalgam ke Kebab also go fantastically with green chutney. 

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 upto.

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

Video Recipe

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Shalgam ke Kebab Recipe

Shalgam ke Kebab or Turnip Chops are crumb coated pan fried patties made from fresh seasonal turnips and mashed potatoes, flavored with spices.

Recipe Type:  Snacks
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     15 minutes
Total time:     30 minutes
Yield:                5

Ingredients:

3 small Turnips
1 boiled Potato
2 Tbsp chopped Coriander leaves
2 Tbsp Gram Flour (Besan)
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
0.5 tsp Garam Masala
2 Tbsp Plain Flour (Maida)
0.5 cup Bread Crumbs or coarsely powdered Oats
Oil to fry
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

1. Peel and grate the turnips. Squeeze out as much water from the turnips as possible.
2. Mash the boiled potato and add it to the turnip.
3. Add in ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, chopped coriander leaves, garam masala, gram flour and salt.
4. Mix well until completely combined.
5. Divide the mixture and shape into kebabs or patties.
6. Mix together flour with 2-3 Tbsp of water to make a thick smooth slurry.
7. Dip the kebab into the slurry and coat it fully.
8. Dip the kebab into bread crumbs or powdered oats and coat it completely.
9. In a shallow pan, heat up oil.
10. When the oil is hot, add the kebab. Keep the stove on medium heat.
11. Fry until one side browns, then flip over and continue to fry until the other side browns.
12. Remove from the pan onto paper napkins.
13. Serve hot with chutney or ketchup.
14. Demould and serve hot with chutney or sambhar.
15. All rottis may not puff up completely, but do not worry, they are still cooked.
16. Serve the rottis hot/warm with curry.

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Banana Blossom Cutlets

Vegetable Cutlet

Millet Cutlet

Sabudana Vada

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Achari Bhindi Dahiwali | Spicy Okra Curry with Yogurt [Video]

Pan fried okra cooked in a curry made with pickle spices and yogurt.

There are 2 kinds of people in the world, one who love Okra or Bhindi and one that wouldn't be caught dead eating it. I was a latter, I hated bhindi all through my childhood - I mean which kid really enjoys the slime? Until about 5 years ago, when I had run out of veggies to cook for the day, I picked up some fresh bhindi and decided I could try to convert the hate to at least a tolerable feeling. Frankly, all I needed to do that was learn how to cook the okra correctly. See my tips below.

I have the following tips to cook the okra, just right:

• The first tip for cooking okra, if you don't like slime, is to never cover it while cooking. Cook the okra in an open pan, always.
• Preferably use a flat pan and do not crowd it. A wok or a kadhai, ends up steaming a few pieces of okra at least, and when steamed, okra tends to get slimy.
• Be liberal with the oil. If cooking on a stove, use sufficient oil. The oil helps make the okra crispy and stops it from steaming. If you want to use less oil, grill the okra in a pan in the oven. This recipe tastes equally delicious with grilled okra.
• Cook okra on medium to high heat stirring regularly. Okra cooked in low heat, again, tends to get slimy.
• Avoid adding water to the okra while cooking. Okra loves oil, let it cook in oil alone. Don't add any water or any ingredients that may leave their juices (like tomatoes) until the okra is almost cooked.

Once I had mastered the art of cooking okra, there was no turning back. I've made okra innumerable times since then, and loved it.

This Achari Bhindi Dahiwali translates simply into Pickled Okra in Yogurt. This curry uses the pickling spices used in North Indian pickles. While the okra is not pickled, it is cooked with a spice blend made inspired by the pickles. Pickle spices usually include - fennel seeds (saunf), carom seeds (ajwain), mustard seeds (rai), fenugreek seeds (methi dana), asafoetida (hing) and dried mango powder (amchur). I have reduced the quantity of fenugreek seeds as they are bitter in taste. 

To make this recipe vegan, use vegan yogurt like cashew yogurt or coconut yogurt.

To make Achari Bhindi Dahiwali, we first slice the okra lengthwise. You can chop it how you please, lengthwise just made it visually appealing to me. The okra is pan fried with oil. I've made it before by grilling the okra in the oven, the curry tastes the same and uses a lot less oil.

Then the gravy is made by cooking onions and tomatoes with the pickling spices and blending it. Whisked yogurt is added to the gravy to finish it off. Toss in the cooked okra and serve it hot with rotis.

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 upto. 

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

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Achari Bhindi Dahiwali

Okra cooked with Indian pickle spices and whisked yogurt. Bhindi curry made with North Indian achaar masala and dahi.


Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:          North Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              2-3 Servings

Ingredients:

25 small Okra (bhindi)
1 Onion
1 Tomato
1 cup Yogurt (dahi)
4 Tbsp Oil
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
0.5 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 tbsp Fennel Seeds (Saunf)
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Carom seeds (Ajwain)
4-5 Fenugreek Seeds (Methi dana)
1 tsp Dry Mango Powder (Amchur)
Pinch of Asafoetida (Hing)
Handful of Coriander leaves
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Dry roast the fennel seeds, mustard seeds, carom seeds and fenugreek seeds.
2. Grind them to a fine powder along with the asafoetida and the dry mango powder. Keep aside.
3. Heat 2 Tbsp Oil in a flat pan and add the chopped bhindi to it. Saute until the bhindi are soft and cooked. Never cover the bhindi while cooking, it will tend to get slimy. Remove and keep aside.
4. Heat 1 Tbsp Oil in the same pan and add the ginger garlic paste.
5. Once the ginger-garlic is fragrant, add finely chopped onions and fry until translucent.
6. Add in chopped tomato and stir well.
7. Mix in the achari spice blend we made earlier along with salt and turmeric powder and cook until the tomatoes are soft.
8. Blend into a fine paste with little water once cooled slightly.
9. Heat the remaining oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
10. Once they brown slightly, add the blended paste and cook on low heat for 4-5 minutes.
11. Stir in whisked yogurt and red chilli powder. Adjust seasoning if required. Cook for 2-3 minutes on low heat.
12. Add the pan fried bhindi and mix well. Simmer for 4-5 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis.

If you liked this, you may also like:

Lahsuni Methi Mushroom

Tomato Curry with Okra

Punjabi Dum Aloo

Read more ...

Lahsuni Methi Mushroom | Mushrooms in Garlic Fenugreek Masala [Video Recipe]

A vegan curry made by simmering mushrooms in a fragrant garlic and fenugreek flavored masala gravy.

Do you all have a case of Monday blues? I definitely do, a very strong one. I would love if there were no Mondays. I'm just back from a long weekend, so Monday blues were a lot stronger yesterday. But there was one shining hour that kinda got me out of it. We had potluck at work today and what a blast it was. I took Pani Puri and while it was tasty and all, it is so difficult to carry in a bus. I had to double pack my puris so they would be intact by the time I reached in the bus. Every little hump and bump on the road freaked me out. Luckily, none broke. So hey, all's well that ends well.

I also learnt some very interesting recipes that my friends got, that I hope I can recreate for you guys pretty soon!

Also, can you guys believe its been more than a month that I shared a curry recipe? I checked, it's true. I'm such a curry person, that it surprised me. I've been so lost in making Tofu and cooking with Tofu, like this Chilli Tofu that I shared last week, that I'd completely left the curry train. 

So today I present to you - Lahsuni Methi Mushroom. This literally translates to Garlic Fenugreek Mushroom, so you understand what's the dominant flavor here. This recipe is inspired from Prash's Lahsuni Methi Paneer. I loved the idea of adding coconut milk over cream. It kept the recipe rich yet surprisingly light and non greasy. 

If you love garlic, this curry has a strong potential to become you favorite. For once, don't count the cloves of garlic you add. The more the merrier in this case. So garlic is the first dominant flavor here and it is something all of us are familiar with and have easy access to.

The second dominant flavor here is Methi Leaves or Fenugreek leaves. This is easily available in India and probably the middle east where it is used in cooking. However, this may be a little tricky to find in the rest of the world. If you cannot find fresh fenugreek leaves, use dried ones. Dry methi leaves are sold as "Kasuri Methi" and should be available in Indian stores. Since the dried leaves are more potent in taste, use half the quantity and add more later if required. You can also replace methi leaves with any other herb that is fragrant. 

Lastly, if you don't eat mushrooms, you can make the same curry with potatoes, cauliflower, paneer or tofu.

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 upto. 

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

Video Recipe

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Lahsuni Methi Mushroom

A vegan curry made by simmering mushrooms in a fragrant garlic and fenugreek flavored masala gravy.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     40 minutes
Total time:     50 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

200 gms Mushrooms
12 cloves Garlic
1.5 cups Methi leaves, loosely packed
0.5 cups Coconut Milk
1 Onion
1 Tomato
0.5 tsp Garam Masala
0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
3 Tbsp Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

1. Clean the mushroom and cut them in half or quarters.
2. Chop 10 of the garlic cloves finely.
3. Roughly chop the methi leaves.
4. Heat 1.5 Tbsp oil in a pan and add the finely chopped garlic.
5. Once the garlic is fragrant, add finely chopped onion and fry until it is translucent.
6. Add finely chopped tomato and half of the methi leaves. Cook until the tomatoes are soft.
7. Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt and cook for 1 minute.
8. Remove from heat and keep aside.
9. Once it is cool, grind to a fine paste using little water.
10. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil and add the garam masala to it.
11. Immediately add the ground paste. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
12. Add the coconut milk, mushrooms and remaining methi leaves.
13. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are cooked.
14. If the curry is too thick, add more coconut milk. Adjust the salt as required.
15. Slice the remaining 2 cloves of garlic and fry in 0.5 Tbsp oil and top the curry with it.
16. Serve hot with rotis.

If you liked this, you may also like:

Lauki Kofta

Vegetable Jalfrezi

Double Beans Masala

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Mushroom Palak Recipe | Spinach Mushroom Curry

Delicious vegan spinach and mushroom curry that can be cooked up in no time at all. Healthy and tasty!

How has the week been for you guys? Remember, when I told you how awesome last week was? Well, this week's been kinda okay in comparison. I've been alone at home this week with Raj on a long forced vacation. He had to take 2 weeks off work as per company policy and so he did. He is right now spending time with his parents and sis at their house and I'm all set to travel there today. So while he's away I've been watching endless reruns of "Small Wonder". You remember that show? The show is literally as old as me. But I'm loving the simplicity of the show and it is just plain cute. I miss TV of the 90's. Right now there is barely a series on TV that I can watch without wanting to flip channels.

Back to today's recipe. So when Raj is away or skipping a meal, I only have one thing on my mind - Mushrooms!! The man won't eat mushrooms and it is super boring when I have to cook different things for him and me. So I use the few chances I get to hoard up on Mushrooms. I love Mushrooms and I love Spinach, so what's not to love in a marriage of the two.

While I'm utterly disappointed with my photos for this recipe, I really could not seem to get a good delicious picture. I know I tried, I added props, removed props, changed backgrounds, but nothing seemed to work. But I did not want to keep myself from sharing this recipe, so forgive the photos. It tastes much better than it looks.

So this is actually a very simple vegan curry. It starts by making the spinach puree. There are no filters in the photos, the spinach gravy is really that green. And I'm going to share my secret of How to make the vibrant green gravy

• Never ever cover spinach while it is cooking or while it is hot. That's it! Cook spinach in a open pan always. 
• First boil the water, add the spinach and let it bubble for 4-5 minutes, then remove the pan from heat and let it rest for another 3-4 minutes.
• Drain out the spinach and dunk it immediately in cold water. The spinach has to cool down before you move on.
• Once the spinach is at room temperature or cooler, puree it. You can add ginger, garlic or green chillies while pureeing the spinach.
• Now you have the vibrant green gravy. You will be cooking the spinach again, along with the mushrooms in this case, keep in mind to never cover the spinach, else you will lose the vibrancy. 
• Also to store this curry, allow the spinach to cool to room temperature before closing the pan/box, so that the color is retained.

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 upto. 

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

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Mushroom Palak | Spinach Mushroom Curry

Curry made by cooking button mushrooms in a vibrant green spinach gravy.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Total time:     60 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

150 gms Button Mushrooms
300 gms Spinach (3 cups)
2 tsp Oil
0.5 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tsp finely chopped Garlic
1-2 finely chopped Green Chillies
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

1. Heat water in a large pot or pan.
2. Once the water comes to a rolling boil, add washed spinach to it.
3. Allow the water to bubble for 4-5 minutes without covering the pan.
4. Remove from heat and allow to rest for 3-4 minutes.
5. Drain the spinach and submerge it in cold water or wash it with cold water until the spinach comes to room temperature or cooler.
6. Grind the spinach into a puree along with the garlic and green chillies. Keep aside.
7. Clean and halve the mushrooms.
8. Heat oil in a pan and add the mushrooms.
9. Add a little salt and allow the mushrooms to sweat.
10. Once the mushrooms are cooked to your liking, add the spinach puree and simmer for 5 minutes.
11. Add salt to taste and mix well.
12. Serve hot with phulka or rotis.
13. To store the Mushroom Palak for later and not lose the vibrant color of the spinach, allow the curry to cool to room temperature and only then cover it and store in fridge

If you liked this, you may also like:

Chhole Palak

Palak Paneer

Mushroom Cafreal

Read more ...

Lauki Kofta Recipe [Video]

Dumpling made from Bottle Gourd and simmered in a creamy tomato and nut based vegan gravy. 

So I've had a good last week. My bestie flew in on Sunday and we had one of those "Shop-till-you-drop" evenings, where we managed to fill her empty bag with all sorts of stuff and our tummies with some guilty goodness. She even got me juicy ripe sweet Mankurad Mangoes, a variety only available in Goa and cherished by all back home. I'd forgotten how delicious they tasted. Thank you Nammu!

And then there was a very slow monday at work, which was just fine with me.

Tuesday was Labor Day, so we took full advantage of the holiday and went out to meet more friends.

That's how the week looked like, meeting friends and eating delicious mangoes that reminded me of my seaside state of Goa. And yes, the rains!!!

It's also been raining heavily at nights with strong winds. The kind of nights you want to sit near the window with a cup of hot tea and feel the occasional spray of water on your face. I've been enjoying those.

A good mood also makes me want to cook good food. So I've been whipping up some delicious indulgent treats. Did you check out my last post on Eggless Blueberry Muffins? They are a winner and definitely not to be missed!

While I was onto to cooking good food, I made this Lauki Kofta in a creamy spicy tomato based gravy too. One more into the indulgent basket. The only reason I feel a little less guilty about this one is because of the Bottle Gourd or Lauki - it is super healthy. Bottle Gourd is full of water and fiber and is perfect for summers. It is known to cool down your body plus help you reduce weight.

Although I know it is good for me, I am not particularly fond of bottle gourd. But this is one of the only ways I really enjoy it. It is also a sneaky way to make your kids / family eat this bundle of health.

Traditionally, koftas are dumplings made of meat, but this is a vegan version of the same. Also, koftas are usually deep fried. I tried to make it slightly healthier by shallow frying them in a Paddu Tava. You can bake them or shallow fry them in a regular pan too.

Shallow frying in a paddu tava

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 upto. 

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

You can follow One Teaspoon Of Life on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ or you can subscribe to One Teaspoon Of Life and receive all the latest updated via Email

Video Recipe

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Lauki Kofta

Bottle gourd dumplings in a tomato based gravy 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:          Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:              2-3 Servings

Ingredients:

For the Lauki Kofta

1 whole or 2.5 cups grated Lauki or Bottle gourd
3-4 Tbsp Besan / Gram flour
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
0.5 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Salt
Oil to fry the Kofta

For the Creamy Tomato Gravy

2 medium Onions
2 medium Tomatoes
0.25 cup Cashews
0.5 tsp Garam masala
1 tsp Red Chilli powder
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
2 Tbsp Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required
Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

To make the Lauki Kofta

1. Peel and grate the lauki. Squeeze out as much water as you can from the lauki and keep the water aside to use later.
2. Add the garam masala, red chilli powder, ginger-garlic paste, besan and salt.
3. Mix well. If the dough is too stiff, add a little of the water set aside. If the dough is too watery, add more besan.
4. Shape the dough into koftas.
5. At this point, you can choose how to cook the koftas, you can deep fry them until golden brown or shallow fry them. I fried in a paddu tava. You can use a regular pan to shallow fry, however you may need to flatten the koftas a little bit. You can also bake or deep fry the koftas.
6. Fry them until golden brown and crisp. Keep the kofta aside.

To make Creamy Tomato Gravy

7. Soak cashews in warm water and keep aside. You can use almonds instead.
8. Grind together the onion, tomato and ginger-garlic paste with a little water until smooth.
9. Heat oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
10. Once the cumin seeds brown, add the onion-tomato paste and cook on low flame until the water evaporates.
11. In the meanwhile, grind the cashew or almonds into a fine paste using a little water.
12. Once the gravy thickens, add the red chilli powder, garam masala and cashew paste. Mix well.
13. Add the squeezed lauki water as required. Add more water for a thinner consistency.
14. Add salt and mix well.
15. Simmer for 4-5 minutes on low heat.
16. Add the koftas and garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.
17. Serve hot with rice or roti.

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