Garlic & Pepper Rasam

Rasam is one comfort food we enjoy in all seasons. I always prefer pepper rasam on a cold rainy day with hot piping steamed rice and some side dish like potato fry, or bhindi fry. In 365 days of a year, sadly I have cold for 300 days, so I end up making rasam pretty often to feel better!!

 
Ingredients

Pepper- 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds- 1/2 tsp
Garlic pods- 5 
Red Chillies- 2
Toor Dal- 2 tsp
Tamarind lemon sized ball

Tampering 
Ghee- 1 tsp
Oil- 1tsp
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves
Red chillies 2

Method:

Soak tamarind for 30 mins in 1 cup of warm water, remove the thick pulp out of it and keep it aside.

Dry roast all the ingredients mentioned above into a fine powder. 

Boil the tamarind juice in a bowl with 1 cup of water with salt as required. Add the powdered masala and let it cook for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile heat ghee, oil and add all the ingredients under tampering. Add the tadka to the rasam and let it simmer for another 5 minutes.

Garnish with fresh coriander and serve with hot steamed rice and any side veggie fry!

Palak Pakoda

(Spinach Fritters)

Foggy mornings!! It has been so cold this season, temperatures are going low every where. Getting out of the bed is so difficult! All I want to do is have garam garam chai with some spicy pakodas, cuddle in a warm blanket and watch some feel good movie!! Pakodas are great company for this weather. If you are bored with regular onion pakodas, make these healthy palak pakodas. Kids who are usually not found of palak will also love these pakodas surely!!

Ingredients:-
Palak leaves- 1 cup
Onion- 1 cup
Coriander leaves- 2 tsp
Besan- 1 cup
Rice flour- 1/2 cup
Ginger garlic paste -1 tsp
Chilli powder- 1 tsp
Salt as needed
Oil for deep frying

Method:-

Wash spinach leaves, drain the water and chop them finely. 

In a bowl, mix together chopped onions, chopped palak leaves, coriander leaves, gg paste besan, red chilli powder, salt, rice flour and some oil and mix with your hands.

The onions will ooze out some water so use few drops of water only to mix everything. Heat oil in a kadai. Reduce the heat to medium and drop roughly shaped balls directly into the oil. 

Remember to fry them on medium flame only, this helps the palak to cook well. Fry until golden brown. Remove pakodas from the oil and drain them on a paper towel and enjoy this awesome weather with hot and crispy palak pakodas!! 

Sarva pindi a savory pan cake is an authentic telangana dish. The origin of the name for this dish is interesting, here “Sarva” means a deep vessel and “pindi” means dough. So you are basically cooking dough/batter in a vessel! My mom used to make it on rainy days and we would enjoy them with hot cup of tea.

Sarva Pindi

(Spicy Rice Flour Pancakes)

Sarva pindi a savory pan cake is an authentic telangana dish. The origin of the name for this dish is interesting, here “Sarva” means a deep vessel and “pindi” means dough.  So you are basically cooking dough/batter in a vessel! My mom used to make it on rainy days and we would enjoy them with hot cup of tea. 

The recipe is very similar to the chekkalu recipe I posted last month. The only difference is this one needs a lot of patience as we cook this on low flame.   

Ingredients:-

Rice flour - 1 cup

Channa Dal/Urad dal Fistful

Green Chilli paste 1 tsp

Onion - 1 finely chopped

Curry & Coriander leaves - Few finely chopped

Chilli powder - 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste 1 tsp

Warm Water as needed

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

Method:

Soak channa dal for 30 mins. Drain it and put it in a mixing bowl along with chilli powder, onion , green chilli paste, ginger garlic paste, curry leaves, coriander and salt and mix everything thoroughly. Add flour and make dough using very little water (Remember not to add too much water, few drops would be enough. The more water you add the dough becomes gooey and it gets difficult to work with)

 

Grease a non stick pan and place the dough in the center and press gently on the pan with your hand into round shape. 

Make small holes all over and add oil on top of it. Cover with a lid and cook on slow flame for 15 minutes till it is golden brown colour and look crispy. 

Flip over and cook for another 5 minutes without the lid. Serve hot sarva pindi with any pickle and some masala chai!

Milagayi/Idli Podi (Gun Powder)

Gunpowder for Idli's is one of the best combination, its pretty versatile food item also. We can use both as a seasoning, or even as a powder for any of your choice of potato or vegetable fries and fish fry also!!

This particular recipe is from my mom, she is excellent in preparing homemade podis I will post curry leaf powder soon. 

Do not get overwhelmed with so many ingredients, trust me this is an easy and quick recipe.

I am dedicating this recipe to my best friend Sheeza. She loves this and we both always salivate talking about how great this podi tastes :)

Ingredients:-

Chana Dal 1 cup
Urad dal 1/2 cup
Curry leaves Fistful
Coriander seeds 1tsp
Methi seeds pinch
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Peppercorns 1 tsp
Red chillies 10
Tamarind a small piece
Salt to taste
Oil

Method:-

In a non stick pan add 2 tsp oil and fry chana dal, urad dal, mustard and methi seeds and mix well. Once they change colour add red chillies, peppercorns, coriander seeds, curry leaves and fry until they turn into golden colour and your kitchen is filled with lovely aroma! 

Now add tamarind and cook for another 5 minutes. Once this mixture is cooled down, blend it into a fine powder adding salt as per your taste.

Ta da...mouthwatering idli podi is ready, smear on hot idlis with ghee and enjoy!!

Tangy Gongura Pachadi 

(Pickle with sorrel leaves)

As you all know I am big fan of pachadis/pickles,  hot rice with pickle and some papads makes me extremely happy!! Today I made gongura pachadi, and it turned out delicious, tangy and spicy. An incredible pickle to enjoy thoroughly with curd rice, or just plain rice. Also gongura is a very rich source of iron, vitamins and anti-oxidants essential for human nutrition! 

Ingredients-

Fresh gongura 2 bunches
10 whole dry red chilies
1/2 tsp methi / fenugreek seeds
1 tbsp  urad dal
1 tbsp channa dal
1 tbsp coriander seeds
10 garlic cloves
Salt to taste
Oil

Tempering

4 tbsp oil 

1 tsp of chana dal & urad dal

1/2  tsp mustard seeds
1/2  tsp cumin 

5 garlic cloves chopped finely
1 stalk of curry leaves

Generous pinch of hing

 

Method:

 

Wash and separate leaves from the stalks and leave them out to dry.

In a non stick pan,add 2tsp oil and fry the leaves till they turn soft. Remove them in a plate and keep aside. 

In the same pan add more oil and fry chanal dal, urad dal, methi seeds, red chillies, garlic pods and coriander seeds together. Once they change colour turn of the flame and let them cool.

In a mixer jar add this mixture and grind them coarsely, now add the gongura leaves and some salt and make a fine paste of the chutney and remove it into a bowl.

Add 4 tsp  of oil, and add all the ingredients under tempering and let them fry for a minute. Once the tadka has cooled down add the same to the chutney.

 

Store in an air tight container and serve hot with ghee rice and some papad!

 

Note 

You can also adjust the spiciness of the pickle with the red chillies

 

Another way to make this pickle is with green chillies, but the flavour with red chillies is even more tastier and give a lovely colour as well.

 

When we use red chillies, its important to be generous with the use of oil while tempering. Otherwise the pickle can get dry quickly.

Masala Poori

Poori and me have some funny connection. When I was in school, I was made fun of my last name Chepuri, which in telugu may also mean jhaado!! So to stop them from troubling me, I told them my last name means "che" 6 puris :) hehee

Also, I am super accident prone, so at home I was not usually allowed to make anything that has to be deep fried.. so only after marraige I started making all these fried bites specially for my husband. 

Today I made spicy masala pooris for breakfast and they turned out pretty well. These puris can be served for breakfast, mealtime or as a tea-time snack. As a variant, you can make crispy puris by pricking them and then frying on a medium flame and can stock these in jars.

Ingredients:

Wheat flour 2 cups
Gram flour 1 cup
Chilli powder 1 tsp
Green chillies paste 1 tsp
Coriander powder 1/2tsp
Jeera powder 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves and Coriander fistful
Oil to fry

Method:

Take both flours in a large bowl and mix salt, chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, gg paste. Finely chop curry leaves, coriander and green chillies paste and mix them with the flour, now add water little by little and knead to form a soft and smooth dough, the dough should neither be too sticky nor too firm.

Cover the dough with a wet cloth and leave it for 15 minutes. Alternatively, heat oil in a kadai to fry the pooris.

Divide the dough into small equal balls. and roll out small pooris. Remember to not make them very thin, they can turn crispy. Carefully cook on both sides till you get the desired golden colour.

Serve hot with any chutney or also raita.

Chekkalu (Rice Crackers)

Chekkalu are one of the most prepared savoury dish on festivals. They are pretty simple to make and you can store them in an air tight container for few days. This is my moms recipe, and its very close to my heart, I have fond memories of looking at dad helping mom in making them at home and it was always a wonderful sight!! 

So, I sweetly asked my husband also to help me this time while making these crackers and he was more than ready :)  Cooking with loved ones is always fun and enhances the flavours also. 

Ingredients

Rice Flour 2 cups
Chana Dal(Soaked) 1 cup
Carrom seeds(Ajwain) 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste 1/2 tsp
Green Chillies 4
Curry leaves fistful
Coriander leaves few
Ghee/ Butter 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil to fry

Method:-

Soak chana dal for an hour. Coarsely grind chillies, curry leaves and coriander leaves.

In a bowl add flour with carrom seeds, salt, gg paste, chillies paste and mix them well.

Add soaked chana dal, ghee and mix the mixture again. Ghee will help the dough to bind well. 

With help of very little water knead the dough thoroughly. (Remember not to add too much water, few drops would be enough. The more water you add the dough becomes gooey and difficult to make chekkalu)

Mean while, In a kadai heat oil to fry the crackers.

Take a plastic sheet/foil and grease your hand and the sheet. Divide the dough into small balls, take a ball and press gently on the sheet with your hand into round shape.

Now drop it in the hot oil and fry on medium flame until golden brown. Repeat the same procedure for the rest of the dough.

Serve them with hot cup of tea and no one can eat just one!!

         Namak Paree      

(Crunchy Salty Crackers)

Namak Paare is a savoury snack. This is my moms recipe, I remember we used to trouble her to make this all the time as they are a lovely accompaniment to tea/coffee.

In these days when everything is readily available, we always end up buying some namkeens from malls, but home made namkeens have that unique flavour and food cooked at home with love tastes anyday better than the ready made quick bites.

Also when we have guests at home, instead of serving them same boring biscuits and tea, make these and believe me guests will be extremely happy with namak paare- quick, easy, tasty salty crackers.

Ingredients

1/2 cup All purpose flour (Maida)
1/2 cup Wheat Flour
3 tsp Semolina Flour (Sooji)
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/2 tsp Carrom seeds (Optional)
Pinch of Chaat masala
Warm water 1 cup
Ghee 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil to fry

Method

In a bowl add all the flours together, roasted cumin and carrom seeds, ghee, chaat masala and salt. Mix well with warm water and kneed it like a roti dough, not too soft not too hard. Cover it with a wet cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes. 

Make small balls of the dough and roll it like a roti. With help of a knife cut the roti in diamond shapes. Please see the image below. You can make any shape as you wish. (I once made "I Love You" and small hearts with the dough and surprised my husband, cheesy yes but definitely romantic :-))

Now deep fry them in batches into light brown colour. Remember to always fry them on medium flame as they can get brown quickly but may not cook properly. 

Store in an air tight container and enjoy them with some hot tea or coffee.

Note:

Shakkar Paare are also made in similar style. Do not add cumins,carrom seeds, salt in the dough. After deep frying them, drop them in sugar syrup, soak them for a minute.Put them on a plate and leave to rest for some time and then enjoy the crunchy shakkar paare!!

Chana Dal Ki Kheer

(Sweet Sunshine)

Everyone who has sweet tooth like me looovveee halwas and kheers!! Being a hyderabadi I have heavy influence of muslim culture and food. Their food is so rich in taste and full of flavours especially deserets. At all my friends weddings I would finish my dinner quickly to gorge on the deserts. Most famous deserts in a muslim weddings and household are double ka meetha, kaddu ka kheer and the all time favourite Qubani ka meetha.

So last month at work, my colleague Ramiza got this delicious kheer and I totally loved it. She then told me this is a famous desert in bangalore muslim weddings and is a very easy to make, So I tried this recipe and it turned out very well and was instant hit at home!

Ingredients

Chana Dal 1 1/2 cup
Khova/ Mawa 1 cup
Sugar 1 cup
Milk 2 cups
Cardamon powder 1 tsp
Ghee 2 tsp
Dry fruits( Cashew, Badam, pista, Walnuts)
Pinch of food Colour Yellow or Orange(Optional)

Method:

Wash and soak Chana dal for few hours. Cover and pressure cook soaked dal on medium heat and allow it to whistle 2 times.

In a mixer jar, add cooked chanal dal with some milk and make a smooth paste, add more milk if the consistency is too thick. 

In a non stick pan/thick bottomed vessel add ghee and cook dal for few minutes untill the raw smell leaves. Add the remaining milk and continue stirring the dal for few more minutes.

Now add khova and mix it thoroughly with the dal. Cover and let it cook for another few minutes.

While stirring continuoulsy add sugar, cardamon powder and food colour and cook on low flame for few more minutes.

Turn off the flame and add all your nuts, you can also optionally roast them in ghee to make the dish more rich. Serve it warm, it enhances the flavors in the kheer. And dry fruits/nuts are considered to be 'warming' in nature, so this is perfect for a cold winter day.  Actually you can give me a bowlful anytime of year, I would be equally happy :)

You can make a barfi of this kheer too. On a greased plate or a baking tray spread thick layer of kheer and let it sit in refrigerator for an hour or so, cut in desired shapes and garnish with some nuts and serve. 

Masala Chai

Today is one of those tiring days, where all I want to do is cuddle in the bed, under a blanket. Festivals are always fun but the after effects are pretty tiring, especially if you have been traveling and then get back to work :(

I am actually a coffee person more than tea, but at home we always have morning tea together and talk about our plans for the day, when I was getting married the first thing that made me miss my family the most was making tea for everyone at home and spending that few minutes of family time from our busy schedules as all of us were working and that's the only time of the day we usually sit together. 

So today I made the regular chai with a twist, this is a simple recipe to make a masala chai. Not very fussy to make and all the ingredients are usually handy at home. And you can play around with the flavors, you can add some cardamon, cinnamon if you wish, I personally love the ginger flavor so I always use lots of ginger. The aroma that fills in the kitchen will instantly make you feel fresh and active.

Ingredients

Milk 2 cups
Water 1 cup
Mint leaves 1 or 2
Pepper 2 tsp
Fennel Seeds(Saunf) 1 tsp
Fresh Ginger slices 2 or 3
Tea powder 1 1/2 tsp
Sugar/ Honey 2 tsp

Method

Coarsely grind pepper and fennel seeds and keep the powder aside. In a small saucepan boil 1 cup of water and add the pepper and fennel powder, mint leaves, tea powder, sugar and ginger. I prefer using Red Labels Natural care, it has a mix of 5 Ayurvedic ingredients like Tulsi, Ashwagandha, Mulethi, Ginger and Cardamom that are proven to improve immunity. You can add any tea powder you have at home also. 

Boil this mixture on low flame for few minutes, now add milk accordingly and leave it to simmer for few more minutes. Once you see desired colour, turn off and pour into a cup through a fine mesh sieve.

Enjoy this masala chai with some onion pakodas or any tea cake or biscuits.