Urad Ki Dahl

Ingredients :

• Urad dal - 1 cup
• Red medium size tomatoes - 2 to 3
• Onions large - 2 [ chopped ]
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1 1 / 2 tsp
• Green chilli - 1[ finely chopped ]
• Ginger, garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Garam masala - 1 / 2 tsp [ optional ]
• Ghee - 2 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Fresh coriander leaves - little
• Water 2 to 3 cups

Method :

Soak the dal for 1 hour and drain. Then heat ghee in deep frying pan. Add chopped onion and fry for a minute, add ginger garlic paste, turmeric,chilli powder and green chillies. Mix well. Cook in low flame for 2 to 3 minutes and then add chopped tomatoes, and soaked dal and mix again. Then pour all the indredients to  a  small cooker, add salt and water. Close the cooker and wait for 3 whistle to come. When the pressure leaves open the lid and add garam masala and cook for another 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and 2 tsp of ghee. Serve with roti, paratha, and cooked rice.

Cauliflower Delight [ subji ]

Ingredients :

• Cauliflower - 1 medium size
• Onions - 2 to 3 big
• Tomatoes - 4 to 5 medium size
• Ginger garlic paste - 2 tsp
• Fresh coconut - 1 / 4 cup [ grated ]
• Fresh curd - 1 / 4 cup
• Coriander powder - 1 tbl. sps.
• Chilli powder - 1 1 / 2 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 tsp
• Ghee and oil - 4 table spoon
• Chopped coriander leaves - little

Method :

Cut cauliflower into small flowerets. Wash thoroughly. Then pressure cook adding little salt in it until tender and soft. Keep aside. Then grind onions, ginger garlic paste, coconut and tomatoes. Take one deep frying pan, heat oil and ghee together. Add the ground masala and mix well. Add salt, turmeric, chilli powder. Beat the curd, after a minute, add curd and cook in a low flame for 5 minutes, or till the water evaporates and become thick paste. Finely add the boil cauliflower to the paste and mix well. After 2-3 minutes, remove from the gas. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with pulkas.

New tipe Vathal Kuzhambu

Ingredients :

• Thick tamarind pulp - 1 / 4 cup
•  Seasame oil [ gingilli oil ]  - 2 table spoon
• Small onion - 10 [ peeled ]
• Drumstick - 1 [ cut into 1 / 2 inch pieces ]
• Salt - as required
• Jaggery - little
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Sambhar powder - 1 tsp

Grind together :

• Coriander seeds - 1 / 2 tsp
• Black pepper - 1 / 4 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 / 2 tsp
• Cashewnuts - 5 to 6
• Fenugreek seeds - 1 / 4 tsp
• Broken black gram dahl - 1 / 2 tsp
• Thur dahl - 1 / 2 tsp
• Red chillies - 10
• Fresh grated coconut - 2 table spoon
• Curry leaves - little

 [Fry all the ingredients in little oil, grind with fresh coconut and keep aside]

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Asafoetida powder - little
• Fenugreek - 1 / 2 tsp
• Broken red chillies - 2
•  Bengal gram dahl = 1 1 / 2 tsp

Method :

Take one deep bottom kadai, heat oil, add seasoning and then fry onions, drum stick together and fry for few minutes. Add  sambhar powder in the oil itself. Add diluted tamarind extract, salt, turmeric, redchilli powder and jaggery. Boil till vegetable becomes soft.Then add ground masala with enough water. Cook till raw flavour is lost and the kuzhambu becomes thick. Garnish with curry leaves. Serve hot with steamed rice and melted ghee on top.

Nawabi Paneer Curry

 

Ingredients :

• Paneer or cottage cheese - 200 gms.
• Boiled green peas - 1 cup
• Garlic - 3 flakes
• Chopped cashewnuts - 3 tbl.sps.
• Ginger - 1 / 2 inch piece
• Onion - 2 big [ chopped ]
• Coconut milk - 1 cup
• Ghee - 4 tbl. sps.
• Green chillies - 4 to 5 [ finely chopped ]
• Bay leaf - 2
• Beaten curd - 3 tbl. sps.
• Chopped coriander leaves - little
• Fresh cream - 1 / 4 cup
• Salt - as required

Grind toghter :

• Cumin seeds - 1 / 2 tsp
• Cloves - 2
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 tsp
• Cardamom - 2to 4
• Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Grated fresh coconut - 1 / 4 cup

Method :

Cut paneer into cubes and deep fry. Soak cashewnuts in boiling water for an hour. Heat ghee andfry onions till brown, add ginger and garlic paste, bay leaf, ground masala and fry well. Add green chillies, coconut milk, curds,cashewnuts, paneer, peas,salt and coriander leaves. Simmer for 10 minutes and mix beaten  cream and bring to boil. Serve hot with chappathis.

Variation :

Instead of paneer, use cubes of potatoes and green peas, mixed vegetables. 

Lapsi [ Broken Wheat Pongal ]

Ingredients:

• Broken wheat - 2 cups
• Milk / water - 4 cups
• Sugar or Red Jaggery - 2 1/2 cup
• Fresh ghee - 1 cup
• Cashew nuts, almonds - 1/4 cup [finely grated]
• Cardamom powder - 1 1/2 tsp
• Cinnamon - 4 [small pieces]

Method :

Take one kadai or a small cooker, heat the ghee, add cinnamon and stir. Add broken wheat and stir again till it turns into light brown colour. Pressure cook the broken wheat adding either water or milk to soften the same. Allow the wheat to cook upto 2 whistles from the cooker. When the cooker becomes cool, mix sugar or jaggery and cook in medium flame. Add remaining ghee and cook in low flame till the jaggery or sugar melts and ghee gets separated. Add cardamom powder and grated nuts. Serve hot as desert in lunch or dinner.

Churme Ke Ladoo

Ingredients :

• Wheat flour [ jada ] - 4 cups
• Mawa or khoya - 1-2 cups
• Castor sugar - 600gms
• Fresh ghee - 3 cups
• Nuts [ together]
• [ cashewnuts, almonds,raisins together grated ] - 1 cup
• Cardamom powder - 2 tsp

Method :

In a kadai heat 1 / 2 cup of ghee. Add wheat flour and stir slowly in a low flame. When the wheat flour gets a pink colour, remove from the fire and keep aside to cool. Grate the khoya and roast in a pan. Mix the cooled wheat flour, cooled khoya, castor sugar, remaining ghee, nuts, raisins and powdered cardamoms. Mix well and make small balls in the form of ladoos.

Sweet Bean Seed Chundal [Thotil Payaru]

Ingredients:

• Red small variety bean seed [or]
• Whole green gram dal               } - 1/2kg
• Freshly grated coconut - 1/4 cup
• Powdered jaggery - 1 kg
• Cardamom powder - 1 tsp
• Fresh ghee - 2 tbl sp

Method:

Fry the whole dal in a kadai (preferably non-stick kadai) till nice aroma comes. Then soak the dal for minimum 3 to 4 hours. Then wash and pressure cook with enough water. After 4 whistle comes, remove from the gas and keep aside. Then heat jaggery with half cup water in deep bottom kadai. When it melts, strain through a strainer and reheat. When it thick syrup comes, add cooked dal and stir continuously. Cook till it becomes thick and allow all the moisture to evaporate. Finally add grated coconut, cardamom powder and ghee. Mix well and remove from the heat. When it comes into room temperature, transfer to a serving dish.

Note : Generally in South India, people make this dish for new born baby's barsa [Cradle Ceremony] as a prasad for Lakshmi Devi (Goddess) in Aadi (Shraavan) month.