BEANS USILI

Beans usili is a traditional dish prepared in South India more particularly by the brahmins. It's a lovely combination of lentil prepared in a particular way and mixed with beans. Its packed with nutrients and can be made with very little oil. Beans usili can be a good side dish for sambhar rice or mix it with hot rice with little ghee. It's delicious!

Usili is usually prepared using beans, cluster beans or banana flower. At home we use either cluster beans or beans.

INGREDIENTS

Beans - 30 nos

Toor dhal - 3/4 cup

Dry Red chili - 5 

Asafoetida - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
Split Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves

Salt 

METHOD

Wash and soak the toor dhal for an hour. Meanwhile, wash and cut the beans into small pieces. Cook beans with water and salt till done and keep aside. 

Drain the dhal of water and grind it to a coarse paste with cumin seeds, asafoetida, dry red chilies and salt. 

Heat oil in a kadai and add split urad dhal and curry leaves then add the ground paste with little turmeric and fry on low heat for about 11- 15 mins. You can also steam the ground paste in an idli maker. 

When it reaches a crumbly texture, add the beans and stir well. Check for salt. 

Cook for another 5-10 mins and beans usili is ready. 

CHAPATHI AND BELL PEPPER STIR FRY

Usually, when I have left over chapathis's at home, I make kothu parota or make rolls with a filling or simply eat it with any left-over gravy. This time I wanted to make something different and also make use of the lovely and fresh bell peppers I bought. My kitchen is open to all kinds of culinary experiments and so I tried to cook something interesting with chapathi and bell peppers. It was a hit!

When I gave some to my parents, they asked me what it was. Since naming my dish dint really occur to me, I just called it - Chapathi & Bell peppers Stir Fry. Name it however you want but try this out and I'm sure you'll like it. 

INGREDIENTS

Chapathi/roti - 4 torn into pieces

Onion - 1  

Bell peppers - 2 (one of each yellow and red)

Cumin Pwd - 1/2 tsp

Chili Garlic sauce - 1 tbsp

Soya Sauce - 1 tbsp

Salt 

METHOD

• Chop the onions and the bell peppers roughly

• Heat oil in a Kadai and add the chopped onions and bell peppers. Cook in high heat for 3- 4 mins. Add the cumin pwd and mix well. 

• Add the chapathi pieces, soya sauce and Chili garlic sauce. Give it a nice stir and switch off the heat. 

The picture above may not be very appealing but it definitely tastes nice. The slight crunchiness of the bell peppers and the mix of cumin pwd with the sauces gives it a different taste. 

CREAMY KADAI VEGETABLES

This creamy kadai vegetable dish tastes good with rotis and pulao. Its a mild gravy cooked with milk and cream and made without onion and garlic. Yes, it does not have onion and garlic and still tastes yummy. At home, we use onions for almost all our dishes in our daily cooking so I was wondering if I can cook something tasty and satvic - without onion and garlic. Determined to try a gravy without the 2 main (family.. lol) ingredients.. I got into my kitchen. Ingredients and method follows. 

INGREDIENTS

Potato - 2 small if big 1

Capsicum - 1 (I've used green, yellow and red. So one of each) 

Peas - 1/2 Cup

Paneer - 10 cubes

Tomato - 2

Green chili - 1

Mint leaves/ Pudina- 20

Coriander - 1 tbsp chopped

Turmeric pwd - 1 tsp

Coriander pwd - 1/2 tbsp

Chili pwd - 1/2 tbsp

Garam masala - 1 tsp

Dry methi leaves - 1 tsp

Jeera/ cumin seeds- 1 tsp

Ginger paste or chopped ginger - 1 tsp

Milk - 1/2 cup

Cream - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1 tsp

Salt

Please use your choice of vegetables to it. Also, you can do away with the cream if you don't prefer. 

METHOD

Parboil* all the vegetables in little water with salt. 

Heat 1 tsp of oil in a pan and saute the chopped tomatoes, green chilies, chopped coriander and pudina/ mint  leaves one by one. Let it cool and grind it to a paste.

Heat a kadai, add oil and crackle jeera seeds. Add the garlic and saute for a minute, add the dry methi leaves, ground paste and after 3 mins add all the masala pwds. Add the parboiled veggies and cook for 5-10 mins in low heat adding little water. Add necessary salt and 1 tsp sugar. Once the veggies are cooked and the raw smell of the masalas go add the milk and cream. Stir and mix well in low heat for a minute and switch of the heat. 

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Note

*Partially cooking the vegetables and removing from water once they are soft and before they are fully cooked. 

YAM FRY

I've already posted a recipe with yam/chena kilangu and this is just another variation.

INGREDIENTS

Chena kilangu/ Yam - 250 gms

Sambhar pwd - 2 tbsp

Turmeric pwd - a pinch

Salt to taste

Oil - 2

METHOD

Cut the yam into small cubes.

Boil them in water with required salt and turmeric till its cooked about 70% (it should not get too soft or mashed)

Drain the water and cool the yam cubes (it should dry completely) 

In a pan add oil, yam cubes, sambhar pwd (you can use plain chili pwd too, in that case reduce the quantity to 1 tbsp) and salt.

Toss it and cook till crisp.

This dish goes well with sambhar sadham/rice, curd rice or as an evening snack all by itself.

NOTE

Yam should not be cooked completely while boiling.

A few curry leaves can be added while frying to enhance the flavour.

CHEESY MINT SANDWICH

This sandwich can be prepared in no time. Actually feels silly to write ingredients and method for this post. Nevertheless, I hope it helps beginners. Here goes the recipe for an utterly simple and utterly delicious mint and cheese sandwich. 

INGREDIENTS

Bread slices - 4

Pudina/ mint chutney - 2 tbsp

Cheese slices - 2

Ghee or Butter to toast

METHOD

Spread the mint/pudina chutney on a bread slice, place a cheese slice and close it with another slice of bread. Toast it on a tawa or a sandwich maker. Use a little butter or ghee if you're using a tawa to toast. This is too simple and can be made in a jiffy with left over mint chutney at home and tastes yummy. 

PANEER DOSA

INGREDIENTS 

Paneer (grated) - 100 gms/ 1 cup

Onion (finely chopped) - 1

Tomato (chopped) - 1

Red chili pwd - 1 tbsp

Turmeric pwd- a pinch

Curry leaves - 4

Mustard - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds/ Jeera- 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

METHOD

Heat a kadai and add 1 tbsp of oil. Add the mustard, cumin seeds, curry leaves and throw in the chopped onions once it crackles. Saute and wait till it turns light pink. Now, add the chopped tomatoes and the chili pwd. Mix well and cook for ten mins or till it turns mushy. Add the required salt and mix the grated paneer into it. Stir and cook for about 2 mins. Let it cool and just smear a generous portion on your dosa (just before serving it from the tawa) and roll or pack as shown below to enjoy yummy paneer dosa. Alternatively, it can also be used as a side dish for dosa. 

Note*

Do not add water and cook in medium flame. 

Paneer can also be cut  into very small cubes instead of grating

  

CARROT AND ROASTED PEANUT RAITHA

Though I've tried a variety of raitha recipes, something with peanuts was little unusual and that intrigued me. I ended up preparing it the very next day for bisi bela bath and trust me it was simply superb and heavenly for this summer heat. It tastes too good that it could be eaten without any roti or rice preparation. 

A little information about peanuts wouldn't hurt. Despite their name, peanuts are not actually nuts, they are legumes. Peanuts contain mono unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that keep the heart healthy. Peanuts are an extremely high source of plant protein. Peanuts contain high concentrations of the antioxidant polyphenols, primarily a compound called p-coumaric acid and oleic acid, that not only protect the heart but inhibit the growth of free radicals, keeping infection at bay.  Peanuts provide our body with essential vitamins, that also help in regulating metabolism, converting fat and carbohydrates into energy, and facilitating bone and tissue formation. A good source of folate, peanuts reduce the incidence of birth defects, and anemia related conditions. The number of peanuts health benefits match the number of ways it can be consumed.

Here's the recipe to yummy and healthy peanut and carrot raitha. 

INGREDIENTS

Carrot (grated) - 1

Peanuts - a handful

Curd/ Yoghurt - 2 cups

Mustard - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds/ Jeera- 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves- 4-5

Salt 

Oil - 1 tsp

METHOD

Mix the grated carrots, curd and keep it aside. In a pan, add the peanuts and toss for about 3-4 mins in medium heat without oil. In case you're using roasted peanuts then this step can be skipped. Add the roasted peanuts and required salt to the curd mixture and give it a good mix. In a small pan heat oil and add mustard and cumin. Once they crackle add the curry leaves, switch off the heat. Pour this over the curd mixture. Roasted peanut carrot raitha is ready to be served. Tastes good when chilled.  

YUMMY MASALA CASHEWS

We all love this crunchy nut, don't we? This delicately sweet yet crunchy and delicious cashew nut is packed with energy, antioxidants, minerals and vitamins that are essential for robust health. Here are a few health benefits of these super nuts : 

• Cashews have a lower fat content when compared to most other nuts
• They contain soluble dietary fibre 
• Contains magnesium and copper that help to strengthen bones and are good for blood flow.
• Cashews (100 gms) have almost 7 mg of iron while beetroot has only 0.8 mg.
• Cashews keep our arteries flexible, prevent plaque build up.
• Promotes bone health and traditionally used to prevent night cramps.

Source
www.whfoods.com
Rujuta Diwekar ( https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?id=51805188423&story..)

Coming to the recipe. Its a quick evening snack and can be made in a jiffy! I have used chili powder, the same can be prepared using pepper powder too, if you prefer. 

INGREDIENTS

Whole Cashews - 20-30

Chili pwd - 1 tsp

Salt

Ghee for frying

METHOD

Heat ghee in a kadai and when hot drop the cashews. Fry until golden brown in medium flame. Before letting it to cool add the chili pwd and salt and give it a good mix. Let it cool for a few minutes and enjoy your masala cashews with hot tea. 

CHICKEN KORMA

This Chicken Korma recipe is my style and goes very well with idli and dosa. I wanted to try out something different with the marinated chicken I had. Since it was idli for dinner that day I wanted something not very spicy at the same time something that would go very well with idlis. I used the marinated chicken I had to make a korma my style. The ingredients required for marination is also given below. Here's my recipe to a tasty chicken korma/ chicken in a nutty gravy/ vellai (white) korma or however you want to call it. 

INGREDIENTS

Chicken - 250 gms

Onion (chopped) - 2

Tomato (chopped) - 2

Green chili (slit) - 2 [make it 3 if you prefer it spicy]

Ginger & Garlic paste - 1/2 tbsp

Turmeric pwd - a pinch

Coriander pwd - 1 tbsp

Chili pwd - 1 tsp

Garam masala - 1/2 tsp

Cardamom, Clove - 1 each

Cinnamon -  1/2 a stick

Coconut milk - 1/2 cup

Salt to taste 

Coriander leaves for garnish

To marinate 

Turmeric pwd - 1/2 tsp

Chili pwd - 1 tsp

Ginger & Garlic paste - 1 tsp

Lemon juice - 1 tbsp

Salt - 1 tsp

To grind 

Poppy seeds - 1 tsp

Cashews - 6

Add water when grinding to make it a paste. 

METHOD

Marinate the chicken pieces in the above marinade mixture for 30 mins.

In a cooker pan add little oil and add cardamom, cinnamon and clove. Immediately add the chopped onion and slit green chilies. After 2 mins add the ginger garlic paste and saute for about 5 mins. Now add the chopped tomatoes, chicken and all the masalas. Give it a good mix. Add very little water and close the cooker lid. Cook for 4 whistles and switch off. When the pressure releases add the prepared cashew paste. Keep it on medium flame and let it boil. Now add coconut milk, give it a stir and finish it off with chopped coriander leaves. It's a tasty chicken kurma made in a South Indian style- a good side dish for appam(hoppers), idiyappam(string hoppers), idli and dosa. 

IDIYAPPAM - BIRYANI STYLE

This is similar to the Egg Idiyappam recipe posted earlier but this one is without eggs for vegetarians. It can be had with cucumber or onion raitha or even without that as it tastes good even without any side dish or gravy. Excellent dish and quite easy to prepare. This has been one of our favourite dishes at home and we prepare this frequently. If you're using the store bought ready-made idiyappam then steam it or heat it in the microwave and then use.

INGREDIENTS 

Idiyappam (torn to small bits) - 3 cups

Onion (finely chopped) - 2

Tomatoes (finely chopped) - 2

Mint leaves (chopped) - ¼ cup

Turmeric pwd - ¼ tsp

Chili powder - 1 tbsp

Garam masala - 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Coriander (finely chopped) - little for garnishing

Salt

METHOD

Heat oil in a kadai and add the chopped onions. Cook till translucent. Add ginger garlic paste, little salt and sauté till the raw smell of the ginger and garlic paste goes. Add chopped mint leaves, tomatoes, turmeric pwd, chili pwd and salt. Cook till the tomatoes get mushy. Add the garam masala or biryani masala (I use garam masala).Once it gets mushy (this might take about 15 mins in medium heat) add the tiny pieces of Idiyappam and stir well. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot.