Veg Kurma(restaurant style)

Veg kurma/Veg korma is the popular indian curry.This veg kurma can be made into 2 styles one is north indian style where in curd is used as curry base and the other one is south indian style in which coconut paste is used as curry base.Today i will show the south indian style of making kurma.This exotic veg curry can be prepared with all the easily available ingredients at home and goes very well with paratha,roti or even puri or pulao.

          Ingredients (serves 3-4)

• 4 tbsp grated coconut
• 8-10 cashewnuts
• 2 tsp poppy seeds
• 1/4 th tsp fennel seeds(saunf)
• 2-3 tablespoons oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 star anise
• Few strands of mace (javitri)
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds(jeera)
• 2 green cardamoms(elaichi)
• 2-3 cloves(lavang)
• 1 inch cinnamon stick(dalchini)
• 2 medium size onion (chopped)
• 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 medium size tomato(made into puree) 
• salt (as per taste)
• 5-6 french beans(cut into 1/2''pieces)
• 1 carrot(cut into cubes)
• 5-6 cauliflower florets(cut into halves)
• 1 medium size potato (cut into cubes)
• 1/4 th cup green peas
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• coriander leaves( for garnishing)
• water(as per requirement)
• 2-3 tablespoons milk cream

          Method of preparation

• Soak poppy seeds and cashewnuts in some warm water for half an hour.
• Make the paste of grated coconut,fennel seeds,soaked cashewnuts and poppy seeds by adding little water and keep it aside.
• Heat a pan and add some oil,fry all the dry spices(cumin,cinnamon,cardamom,cloves,bay leaf,mace,star anise)until they sizzle.
• Next to the pan add chopped onions and shallow fry until it becomes translucent.
• Now add ginger garlic paste and saute till raw smell goes off.
• Put tomato puree into the pan saute till raw smell goes off.
• Add all the chopped veggies as well as the masala powders(chilli powder and garam masala)  to the pan.
• Add salt as per taste.
• Also add the ground masala to the pan.
• Mix everything together add little water if required and let it cook covered on low medium flame for 10-12 minutes.
• After 8-10 minutes uncover the pan and check if the veggies are cooked properly.
• Once the veggies are done finally add the milk cream, mix and cook for 2-3 minutes more.
• Put off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve hot with paratha,puri or pulao.

          Note

• I have used tomato puree in my recipe but you can substitute it with chopped tomatoes also.
• If you want kurma to be more spicy you may increase the amount of garam and chilli powder.
• You can use the veggies of your choice to make this recipe.
• In the absence of cashewnuts you can use soaked almond.

Banana chips/wafers

                                                                                 

Banana chips are my most favorite snack since childhood.Though we get readymade banana chips in indian stores in US ,i am little skeptical about the oil used by them for frying.I always wanted to try this recipe at home since a long time but was not possible as the special kind of surti banana used to make these chips are hard to find in indian stores here.

Surti raw bananas have a hard, green peel, and a slightly yellowish flesh inside.They are thicker than normal raw bananas, and longer as well.The peel too is thick and needs to be cut using a knife or peeler.They are also called as kerala banana or Nendran banana.This weekend when i had visited indian store i could luckily find some of these bananas.If you make chips with banana which have just begun to ripe,it will give little sweet taste to wafers.I borrowed this recipe from my aai and i am very much happy with the end result.

          Ingredients

• 2 Surti banana(unripe)
• Coconut oil for frying
• 1-2 tsp Salt
• 4-5 tablepoons water

         (Serves 2-3)

         Method of preparation

• Heat the oil in a deep non-stick pan on a slow flame.
• Apply some oil to your hands before cleaning the banana
• Cut both the edges of banana and make light vertical slits on the raw banana peels while taking care not to slit the raw banana.
• Remove the banana peel using your fingers.
• Mix 2 tsp of salt with 4-5 tbsp of water in a bowl and mix well till the salt dissolves completely and keep it aside.
• Slice half the raw banana using a slicer directly into the hot oil.
• If this step looks difficult for some, then they can slice the banana on a plate and they fry them taking care not to stick the pieces together while frying.
• Allow the banana slices to cook for a while and then add 1 tsp of salt-water mixture to the oil.Be careful while doing this as there is spluttering of oil during this step.
• Continue cooking the chips on a medium flame till they turn crisp from both the sides and the spluttering sound of oil-water stops,while stirring occasionally. Remove the banana chips from the oil and drain the excess oil.
• Repeat the same procedure to fry remaining banana chips. 
• Cool completely and serve or store in an air-tight container.

          Note

• I have used coconut oil for frying as it's more healthy and tasty,you can opt for other varities of cooking oil as per your choice.
• Use good slicer to make this banana slices, as thinner the slices more crispier the chips.
• This variety of banana gives natural yellow color after frying so no need to add turmeric powder to the salt water.
• If you want chips to be more spicy you can sprinkle some chilli powder or pepper powder as per your choice after frying.

          
          Happy frying !

Dahi bhindi

Dahi Bhindi is a great way to enjoy okra in tangy creamy sauce.Dahi Bhindi is simply delicious, and easy to make.This goes well with Jeera Rice,or paratha.
This dish is made in south indian style.It's my personal favorite.

As i have already mentioned in my other posts i am a great fan of Tarla dalal madam and this is her recipe.Even though the basic ingredients is same like her recipe,i have made necessary changes in ingredients proportions and method of preparation as per my need.

         Ingredients

• 2 cups okra(cut into 1/2"pieces)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp urad dal
• 2 red bedgi/kashmiri chillies(broken into pieces)
• 5 to 6 curry leaves
• 1 medium onion(chopped)
• 1 medium tomto(chopped)
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• 1/2 cup fresh curds (dahi)
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt to taste

          Make paste using following ingredients

• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder 
• 1/4 cup freshly grated coconut
• 2 tbsp broken cashewnuts

          Serves (2-3)

          Method of preparation

• Clean and cut the okra in 1/2 inch pieces.
• Apply little salt to it and mix nicely.
• Heat the oil in a pan and saute the okra in oil.
• Shallow fry on medium flame until crisp.Remove it from pan.
• Heat the oil again and give tempering with hing,cumin seeds,mustard seeds, urad dal, red chillies and curry leaves.Saute for a while.
• Add the onions and saute until it is golden brown in colour.
• Add the tomatoes and saute for 2-3 minutes then and paste made using coconut,chilli powder, turmeric powder,and cashewnut.Mix well together.
• Add the sauted bhindi and cook for a few minutes on medium flame.
• Also add some sugar to the mixture.
• Add 1 cup of water to the curds, beat well and add it to the mixture.
• Add salt and cook for around 5 minutes.
• Serve hot.

          Note

• You can even deep fry bhendi till it becomes crisp but i feel shallow frying is the healthy option.
• I had applied some salt to bhendi while frying so adjust salt accordingly after adding curd.

          Happy cooking !

Carrot curd raita/ Carrot pachdi

                                                                                   

Carrot raita/Carrot pachdi

Carrot raitha/Pachdi  is a great way to include raw carrots in our diet and also can be prepared in a few minutes.Carrot adds crunch plus lovely orange color to this raita along with little sweetness. It is very quick to make and goes very well with parathas,rotis or even biryani.

Pachdi can be considered as synonym of raita.Pachadis are tongue-tickling accompaniments, the preparation involves combining curds with veggies and/or spices and tempering it with mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves.Pachdi is very common in south indian cuisine.This raita is easy and can be made using few ingredients easily available in our kitchen.


         Ingredients

• Chilled Curd/Yogurt – 1 cup
• Carrot grated – 3/4 cup
• Coriander leaves – few leaves finely chopped(optional)
• Chat Masala powder – 1/4 tsp
• Cumin powder- 1/4 tsp
• Salt – to taste

          Serves 2-3 people

         For tempering

• Oil – 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal – 1/2 tsp
• Cumin seeds– 1/2 tsp
• Green Chillies – 1 chopped
• Few karipatta leaves
• Hing – a small pinch

         Method of preparation

• Wash, peel the skin and grate the carrot. 
• Take curd in a mixing bowl and beat it nicely, add grated carrot to it and mix well.
• Now prepare tempering. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds,cumin seeds,udad dal,hing,karipatta and chopped chillies.Once it splutters, Saute for a minute and remove from flame.
• Pour the tempering into the carrot curd mixture along with required salt, chat masala and cumin powder.Mix well and garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve chilled.

          Note

• Carrot should be fresh for raita.
• I have not added sugar in this recipe but if you want you can add as per your taste.
• As this recipe involves curd it can not be stored at room temperature for long time.You can keep leftover raita in fridge.

          Happy Cooking !

Banana stem stir fry(Vazhaithandu Poriyal)

     
   

The stem of the banana plant is widely used in south India which is called as Vazhaithandu.Most of the people will be unaware that banana stem is in fact edible.It has been used for a long time in Asian cuisine,especially South Indian for making soup,salad,raita and other form of curries.It is well known for its numerous health benefits and it’s highly fibrous nature.Some of the important health benefits are

• An excellent cure for Kidney stones
• Good for weight loss.
• Good for diabetic people.
• High in fibre content.
• Good in some of the stomach ailments like acidity, constipation etc.

The common recipe made using banana stem is 'vazhathandu poriyal' a dry side dish where coconut and spices like mustard, jeera etc are tempered in oil, and then freshly chopped veggies are tossed in and sautéed until cooked.The best part of a poriyal is that the tempering and spices are mild and the real flavor of the veggies is left to shine through.

Banana stem (we use only central round part) 

Banana stem is extremely high in fiber content and good for your tummy. The only hard part with this recipe is cleaning and prepping the banana stem. Once you get that done, this poriyal doesn’t take you more than 10 to 15 minutes from start to finish.I got to know about this banana stem dish from my patient cum friend Nandini who is native from kerala.Last Sunday when I had been to local vegetable market I found fresh banana stem and thought of trying the recipe,which turned out to be really delicious.

      Ingredients (serves around 3-4)

• Onion - 1/4 cup (finely chopped)
• Salt - 1/4 tsp (adjust per taste)
• Banana stem - 2 Cups (cleaned and finely chopped)
• Turmeric - 1/8 tsp
• Freshly Grated coconut - 1/4 Cup

Ingredients for seasoning

       
        For tempering

• Chopped garlic (2-3 bulbs)
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Hing – 1/8 tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal – 1/2 tsp
• Jeera - 1/2 tsp
• Dry Red Chili - 1
• Green chili - 1 (slit)
• Curry leaves (4-5)      

                                                                                                                                                                               

Slit and Remove outer hard part

Inner soft part used for making dish

  

Inner soft part cut into discs

                               
        How to clean the banana stem

• The banana stem is usually available in 8 to 10 inches long sizes. The outer fibrous layers have to be removed.
• Lay old newspapers on the kitchen platform before starting to cut this vegetable.
• Wear an apron as this leaves stains that cannot be removed.
• Remove the outer porous layers. Sometimes you may have to discard two to three layers until you reach the hard and firm inner layer.
• Take a wide bowl and fill it with water, add the curd into this and mix and keep aside. Now you have a cylindrical inner stem, cut this into discs and put them inside the curd-water.
• After the entire stem is cut into round discs, take 2 to 3 discs and stack them on a chopping board and cut them into small pieces.
• Put the pieces back into the curd-water. Drain this water while making the dish.                                                                                                                                 

  

  Discs are then chopped and soaked in water

        Method of preparation

• Heat a pan with oil.Once the oil is hot enough add all the ingredients given in tempering one by one. Saute until the urad dal turns golden brown.
• Add the onion to the pan along with the salt and sauté until the onion turns translucent.
• Now, add the banana stem and saute for 30 secs. Add the turmeric powder, grated coconut and mix well and cook covered in medium flame for about 10-15 mins or until the banana stem is cooked nicely.
• Serve hot as a side dish with rice.

        Note

• Banana stem will appear hard because of high fiber content, but will cook quickly. You do not need to add additional water for cooking but you can add very little water if required.
• Cut banana stem into thin slices. If long, thread like fibers are seen between the slices, wind them round your forefinger and discard. Very tender stems do not have these fibers.

      

        Happy cooking !

Masala Tendli talasani

‘Talasani’ are the dishes prepared by shallow frying the vegetables in oil.So water should not be used at any point.Tendli (Ivy gourd) talasani is the konkani dish prepared by stir frying tendli in oil,it is very easy to make and amazingly delicious dish.Me and my aai are big fan of this dish.

The original recipe of this dish is very simple which my mother taught me but I have added some spices in the dish to make it more chatpata (tasty).Hot rice,a simple dal and fried ivy gourd is a complete meal i would cherish anytime.

Talasani tastes best if coconut oil is used as it imparts a very nice flavor to the dish.However coconut oil is not a must and any other cooking oil can be used.The flavor of the tendli,oil and seasonings used takes these tiny gourds to another level.

                                                   

Tendli cut into long pieces and apply salt 

        
        Ingredients

• Ivy gourds/ tendli 2 cups (cut in long pieces)
• Red chili powder (1tsp)
• Turmeric powder (½ tsp)
• Coconut Oil (3-4 tablespoons)
• Chat masala powder (½ tsp)
• Coriander powder (½ tsp)
• Jeera powder (½ tsp)
• Lemon juice (1-2 tsp)
• Salt (as per taste)

        Method of preparation 

• Wash tendli well.Remove both the ends and cut into long  pieces.
• Apply salt(as per taste)and set aside for 10 minutes.
• In a kadhai, heat oil and transfer the tendli into it.
• On the medium flame fry them slowly,uncovered.Stir them in between.
• When they are half done add chili powder,turmeric powder,chat masala powder,jeera powder,coriander powder and mix well.Now fry them for some more time on low medium flame.
• When the tendli(ivy gourd)turns crispy brown and cooked well sprinkle some lemon juice.Mix well.
• Put off the flame.Serve hot with rice and dal.

      Note

• These should be fried on low medium flame.If they are not fried till they become crispy brown they remain tender from inside and do not taste good.
• While selecting the tendli for talasani all the ripe ones should be discarded as it will not taste good.
• If you like to make simple version of this dish the just add salt,chilli powder and turmeric powder to the dish and omit all the other ingredients.

        Happy cooking!