Cholley Batura

                            

                             



Ingredients for Cholley:                                                             

White Kabuli Channa           1 cup                                                 

Onions                                 3 Big                                                 

Tomatoes                             2 Big                                                  

Ginger                                  a small piece                                   

Garlic                                   7 or 8 flakes                                      

Tamarind                              a small lemon sized                             

Jaggery                                 1 Tbl spoon                                        

Salt                                       as required

Green chillies                         2

Chillie powder                       1 1/2 tsp

Cardamoms                           3

Cloves                                   few pieces

Cinnamon                              1 inch piece

Cut coriander leaves              1 Tbl spoon

For Garnishing:

Finely cut onion & Lemon pieces.

Method :

Soak channa for 10 hours, with little soda bi carbonate. Wash well & cook it in pressure cooker with enough water for nearly 20 minutes, after the channa has been kept. Grind onion, ginger, garlic, along with cardamom, clove & cinnamon. Blanch tomatoes in hot water, remove skin & grind separately. Heat ghee in a frying, shallow pan, add cumin seeds when it splutters, fry the masala paste in medium flame, till ghee separates from it. Add tomato puree & keep stirring constantly till the moisture is completely absorbed. Now add salt, chillie powder, tamarind extract, jaggery & boiled channa with that water. Boil till the gravy is thick enough to serve. If you want you can add 1 spoon everest channa masala also. Remove from fire, garnish with fried green chillies & cut coriander leaves. Serve hot  for batura's accompanied with finely cut onions & lemon pieces.

Ingredients for Batura:

Maida                    2 cups. 

Cooking Soda        1 pinch

Curd (Beaten)        1/2 cup  

Sugar                     1 tbl spoon

Ghee                      2 tbl spoon  

Water                     1/2 cup [warm water]

Oil                          For deep frying.

Method: 

Take one big bowl, add a pinch soda with maida. Mix sugar with curd, heat it & pour the mixture to the maida along with salt & melted ghee. Now mix well with warm water & make a dough. Keep this dough for 4 hours. After that make big puries & fry in hot oil.

Kerala Dishes:

1.                                                           Yellysery

Ingredients:

1/4 k.g.                       -   Elephantroot [Senaikelangu]
3 number of                -    Raw Banana [Vazhaikkai]
Blackpepper               -    1 teaspoon
Redchillie                    -    3 to 4
Salt                             -    According to taste
Turmeric powder         -   1/4 spoon
Fresh grated coconut   -   1 cup
1Teaspoon                  -   Jeera
Little Currey leaves
Ghee                           -  2 spoons

Method:

Take 1 Cooker Vessel, add senai & vazhaikkai & cut them into big pieces. Along with it, add salt, turmeric, crushed pepper powder, little sugar & 1/2 glass water (see ingredients). Close the cooker. In the mean time, take fresh grated coconut, add jeera, red chillie & grain them in the mixer.When the vegetables gets boiled, open the cooker & add the grained masala & mix well. Before removing from the gas, take a fry pan, add ghee, heat it & add jeera. When it spilts, add little fresh grated coconut & fry it till it becomes red. Now pour it on the vegetables & add some curreyleaves.The sabhji is ready. Enjoy with sambar rice .
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2.                                              Mambazha Puliesery

Ingredients :

Ripe Mango                                           2
Curd                                                       1 1/2 cup
Green Chillie                                         3
Jeera                                                       1/4 sp
Salt                                                         As per taste
Jaggery                                                   1/2 sp
Fenugreek [Methi]                                 1/2 sp
Mustard seeds                                         1sp
Dry Red chillies                                      2
Grated Fresh coconut                             1
Turmeric powder                                    1/4 sp
Coconut oil  [for thaduka, thalieka ]     2 Tbl sp
Fresh curry leaves                                   Little.

Method :

Cut the mangoes & pour 2 glasses of water & bring them to boil. When it becomes cool, crush the mango with your hand & remove the pulp. In mixer, put the fresh coconut, green chillie, jeera, & grain  them smoothly. Add mango pulp along with beaten curd. Then put one kadai on the gas, add coconut oil & heat it. Then add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, dry chillie, & curry leaves.When it splutters, pour the grained masala gravy on it, add salt, turmeric powder, little jaggery & mix well. When the kuzhambu gets ready, remove from the gas. Have it with hot steamed rice & papadam.

Sindhi Sabhji. [Thansa Baji].

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Bunch of  Palak Leaves[Cut into pieces]
• 1/2 bunch of Methi leaves [Cut into pieces]
• 1/2 cup Soaked Bengal gram [Kadalai Parupu]
• 2 number of big onion [Cut in to small pieces]
• 10 number of small onion [Cut in to small pieces]
• 3 medium size red tomatoes [Cut in to small pieces]
• Salt to Taste
• 3 spoons red chillie powder
• 2 spoons daniya jeera powder
• 1 spoon of sugar
• 1 spoon fresh curd or little fresh cream.

Method:

Take 1 Small cooker, add 3 spoons of oil & put 1 spoon jeera. Fry for 2 seconds & add onion, then tomatoes, channa dal & fry for 5 mins. Now add salt, turmeric, chillie powder, daniya jeera powder, sugar & mix well. Then add the leafy vegetables (mentioned above in ingredients) & add curd or cream. Pour little water [if required], mix well, close the cooker & wait till 3 whistle comes. Open the cooker & shift it to serving bowl. You can have it either with roti or with rice.

Tea Time Snacks.

 Masala Puri

    

Ingredients :

 Maida                       - 7 Cups.

Crushed Black Peper - 2 Table Spoon

Oil Plus Ghee Mixer  -  1 cup

Jeera                          - 1 Table spoon

Salt                            - As required

Cooking Soda            - 1 teaspoon

 Little Warm Water     - For mixing (kneading) flour.

Method :

Take 1 vessel & mix all the ingredients together with warm water & make a thick dough. Then make small balls (from the dough) for making puri & fry them in a hot oil till it becomes brown in colour. Your masala puri is ready. 

I learnt this from my close Gujarati friend Rita.                                                                                                

Rotis & Parotas

1.                                               Palak Paratha (Parota)

Ingredients:

Wheat flour               2 glasses
Spinach leaves          10 leaves
Coriander leaves      1/2 cup
Green Chillies          3-4
Ginger                      1/2 inch
Garlic                       2 flakes (Optional for those who don't eat garlic.)
Salt                           According to taste
Oil                           3 sps
Little water             For mixing dough.

Method :

Mix all the ingredients (except oil & flour), grain together with water & make a paste. Add the paste on the flour with 3 spoons of oil & make a dough. Now make small small balls & make parathas, put it on the tava & heat it till it becomes brown. Apply ghee or oil on both the sides of parathas. Ready.
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2.                                                       Nan
                                                                                                                                  
Ingredients :

Maida                                             2 cups
Cooking Soda                                1/2 teaspoon
Dry Yeast                                        3/4th tbl sp
Curd                                                1/2 cup
Warm Milk                                      1/2 cup
Ghee                                                2 tbl sp
Salt                                                  According to taste
Warm Water                                    1/2 cup.

Method:

Take one big vessel & put maida. Add salt, cooking soda in the maida & mix well. Take a warm milk, add dry yeast in the milk, mix well & keep aside for 10 mins. Then add 1/2 cup curd on the milk & beat well. Pour this mixture in maida. Take 2 tbl sp of ghee, heat it, add it to maida & mix well. Knead the dough with warm water. Keep the dough for 1 hr in a big vessel & close it with a lid. After 1 hr the dough will become double in size.
Make big balls & spread it like parota [the parota (nan) should be in 1/2 inch thick]. In order to get a proper shape, drag the end portion of nan slightly.
Keep 1 aluminium tava on the gas. Apply little water on one side of nan & put the wet side of nan on tava. After 2 mins, just show the tava directly to the high flame. When the nan gets ready, remove from the tava & apply butter on it, & sprinkle roasted sesame. Your nan is ready.
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3.                                            Paneer Parota

Ingredients :

Paneer [Grated]                                     1cup
Wheat flour                                           2 cup
Onions [Grated]                                    2
Green chillie [finely chopped]               2
Ginger [chopped]                                 1/2 inch
Oil                                                     1/2 cup for rosting & kneading
Salt                                                     As per taste
Corriander leaves
[finely chopped]                                  2 tbl sp
Black pepper powder                          1 tsp.

Method :

Take one bowl, put grated paneer, grated onion, chopped chillies, ginger, little salt, chopped coriander leaves, black pepper powder & mix well. Keep this mixture in the oven for 5 mins. After it becomes cool, add wheat flour to that & mix well. Add 2 tbl sp of oil to that, & pour some warm water & form a dough. From that make big balls & spread the parotas. Put it in hot tava, roast  both the sides of it well, in a low flame. When your parota gets ready, remove from the gas. Serve it with a cup of curd & pickle.
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4.                                            Aaloo Parota

Ingredents :


Wheat flour                                     2 cups
Boiled smashed
potatoes                                         4
Green chillie, ginger,
garlic paste                                     1 tsp
Salt                                                As per taste
Turmeric powder                           1/2 sp
Red chille powder                          1 sp
Dhania jeera powder                       1 sp
Ajwain [omam]                              1/2 sp
Cut coriander
leaves                                            Little
Oil                                                As required.

For stuffing :

Take smashed potatoes in a vessel. Add salt, turmeric, green chillie, ginger, garlic. Grind them together & form a paste. Now add red chillie powder, dhania jeera powder, ajwain, cut coriander leaves. Mix them well & keep aside.

Method :

Take wheat flour & add a pinch of  salt, 3 tbl sp of oil & mix well. Add little water to it & form a dough. Make big balls from that & spread it little. Apply little oil on that & then fill 1 tbl sp of stuff & close it. Again spread it with a 1/2 inch thickness & form a thick paratha. Keep an iron tava on a gas, heat it & put the paratha on the tava & roast both the sides of the paratha well. When it gets ready, remove from the fire. Serve hot with thick curd & pickle. You can also put some butter on the top of parota.

Kadai Bara Sabji.

Ingredients :

Baby Potato            
Baby Brinjal
Ladies Finger
Cauliflower
Tomato
Capasicum
Tendly (Kovakai)
Baby Corn
Paneer Cubes
[All together 300 grm.]

For Masala To Stuff :

2 Onian, 1/2 inch Ginger, 2-3 Green Chillie, 2-3 Garlic Flacks, Coriander Leaves, 2 Spoons of Peanuts, Salt, Turmeric, 2 Spoons of Red Chillie Powder, 1/2 Spoon of Garam Masala Powder.

Method :

Grain all these masalas with little water & form a thick paste. Put all these vegetables in oven for 3 mins or fry in kadai with little oil (for those who dont have oven). Stuff the paste in the vegetables. Again place 1 kadai, pour 5 spoons of oil & put the stuff vegetables & keep the gas in sim position & fry it for 10 mins. By the time, mix 1/4 teaspoon tamarind paste & little jagerry (according to taste) with water & pour on that vegetables. Once u see that the stuff has been quoted well on those vegetables, switch off the gas & garnish it with corriander leaves. Kadai Bara Sabji is ready.

Kitchen Tips.

1. To sharpen your scissors cut a piece of sandpaper several times.

2. To clean burnt utensils rub them with salt.

3. If asafoetida [perungayam] gets hard, store it along with a few green chillies & it will become soft to handle.

4. When your sambar or dal is too salty, add a few pieces of potato and boil. The excess salt taste will go away.

5. Solution of used tea leaves boiled again can be used to clean glasses and mirrors.

6. Mix sodabicarbonate with a little water & apply this solution to outer side of the refrigerator & leave it for 20 mintues & then wipe with wet cloth for a good new sparkle.

7. Before grating cheese, apply a little oil to the grater. the cheese will not stick to grater & drop off easily.

8. If the rice gets over cooked ,don't worry just add some cold water & ghee to it, & let it stand for a few minutes. Then strain & spread it on a big plate, as it cools & dries, the grains will separate.

9. Pour in boiling salted water to open up a choked sink.

10. While using pressure cookers, put a small quantity [marble size] of tamarind [imali] in water which will prevent the inner side of the cooker getting a brownish colour.

11. If the gasket of your pressure cooker has become loose, do not despair, keep the gasket in the refrigerator for 2 days & observe it fit into the cooker lid as tight & firm as ever.

12. Sharpen the knives & scissors by rubbing them across the mouth of glass bottle.

13. Pods of Garlic can be peeled easily by warming them in a pan without oil for 2 mins.

14. To store semiya, roast lightly in a kadai & cool. It can be kept for months together without being attacked by insects.

15. Do not discard the water in which you have boiled potatoes. This water can be used for giving an extra sparkle to your silverware. Dip the silver into yhis liquid & rub thoroughly.

16. Defrosting the fridge is a cold & wet experience. Wipe the dry empty freezer with glycerin, so that when you defrost it the next time, ice will leave off easiily.

17. When brass & silverwares turned black, soak the vessels in the rice kanji for some time, & you will find that the vessels have brightened.

18. By placing corriander leaves in a kerchief & transfering them in a stainless steel container in a fridge, will keep them fresh for 10-15 days.

19. The burning sensation which you get on your hands after handling chillies can be removed with tamarind & sugar.

20. To remove oil stains from your vessels, pour little buttermilk before cleaning them.

21. For more juice, warm an orange or lemon in a bowl of hot water for 15 minutes before squeezing.

22. To stop vegetables from over boiling add a small knob of butter.

23. Lemons can be fresh for about six weekes if kept in the polethene bag in the fridge.

24. Rub a piece of cut onion on to the blade of a rusted table knife, & see the ugly brown spots disappear.

25. To ward off flies, hang a bunch of mint leaves near the windows & strew a few leaves on the table.