Bhindi Do Pyaaza ~ Tried & Tasted

It is truly said that things that are easily available to us are the one's that we ignore the most. One such instance is that of this vegetable. I never cared much for Bhindi during my growing years. It was always there at our dinner table but was never special to me until I got married and we moved to Shanghai. Bhindi was not easily available. Even in summer we had to travel by metro, four station across to a farmer's market but  it would get sold out easily. It was available at Thai stores but was very very expensive. Suddenly my love for bhindi increased and everytime I would search for bhindi on Indian restaurant's menu card. During one such visit I fell in love with Bhindi Do Pyaaza. I wanted to make it at home but as always I kept pushing it forward until next time. Yesterday when we got some fresh bhindi I decided to make it. I searched for the recipe and reached at Sailu's food.I was bowled over by her great pictures and immediately decided to do it. Thank you Sailu it turned out to be wonderful and was loved by everyone at home. I just modified the recipe a little. To view the original recipe click here.
Here is how I made it.

What's needed:
1/2 Kg Bhindi/Okra - washed and dried
6 medium Onions sliced
2 Tomatoes chopped
2-3 tbsp Red chilli powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1/4 tsp Ginger & Garlic paste
1/2 tsp Garam masala powder
1/2 tsp Corainder powder
1/4 tsp Amchur powder
a generous pinch of Kasuri methi
a pinch of Asafoetida
1/2 tsp Sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
Oil
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves chopped for garnishing

Procedure:
1) Trim the edges of bhindi and chop into bite sized pieces.
2) Heat 1 tsp oil and fry bhindi until it is just done yet crunchy. Keep aside.
3) Heat oil,add cumin seeds. When it splutters add sliced onions, ginger paste and fry until they are transparent. Add the spice powders,salt and saute.
4) When done add the chopped tomatoes and cook until they are soft. Add the fried bhindi and cook further until well incorporated.
5) Add the kasuri methi, lemon juice and sugar. Mix well.
6) Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Thanks Sailu, We too reached out for second helping of this wonderful dish. This recipe is a keeper :) I added Amchur powder and avoided curds. 

Capsicum and Potato side dish ~ Quick side dish

I just love capsicum. It lends a complete different flavor to simple dishes. This is one such dish that can be made on a weekday with no much effort, yet a tasty option. Have it with Chapathi or simple rice and dal :) I learnt this from my dear friend S. If you love capsicum then this dish is for you. There is no exact measurements for this dish just play with flavours as you wish :)

Here is what's needed :

2 medium green Capsicums thinly sliced

2 medium Potatoes thinly sliced

1 medium Onions thinly sliced

2 medium Tomatoes roughly chopped

1/4 tsp jeera

1 tbsp ginger garlic finely chopped and crushed

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

Red chilli powder, Garam masala powder and Kitchen king masala to taste

Salt to taste

Oil

Procedure:

1) Heat oil. Add jeera. When it splutters add onion and fry until done.

2) Add the powders,capsicum and potato. Fry well for 2-3 mins.

3) Add chopped tomato and salt. Mix well, cover and cook till done without adding water.

4) Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Dill Roti with Bhindi Masala

I first tasted Dill leaves in my hubby's aunt's house. She had added it to normal Dal vada along with onions. It tasted great. Though Bangaloreans use dill leaves a lot in cooking it was new for me. My MIL uses dill leaves whenever it is available. One day while just shopping I found a batch of nice green dill leaves which were inviting me to pick them up. I just bought them without having any particular dish in my mind. After coming home, I went through my bookmarks and saw Asha's dill paratha's and decided to go ahead with it. Since I did not have lot of ingredients in hand I altered it as per my availibility of ingredients. To go with the paratha's I made simple bhindi masala. 

To make Dill paratha's :

1.5 cups Wheat flour

1/2 cup chopped Dill leaves

1/4 cup Milk

1/2 tbsp Ajwain

1/2 tsp Jeera and Coriander powder

Salt to taste

Procedure:

1) Mix all the ingredients together to form a non sticky dough. Add water if required. Let the dough rest for sometime.

2) I rolled them as per directions given in Asha's blog.

Served them hot with bhindi masala.

Bhindi's are not usually available here. If we are lucky we get few tender bhindi from the imported section. When ever I buy bhindi I make only my tried and tested recipe so as to not to fail. This time I decided to make something other than my usual recipe and made this. I  just added ingredients as I felt like with no specific recipe in mind and the outcome was really good. 

Here is what's needed:

Fresh tender okra -20

2 medium Onion - Sliced

1 medium Tomato - chopped

1/2 tsp jeera

1/2 tsp Cumin and Coriander powder

1 tsp red Chilli powder

1/4 tsp Amchur powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp Garam masala

Salt to taste

Oil 1 tbsp

Procedure:

1) Wash and pat dry the okra. Slice the okra into long pieces. 

2) Heat oil and shallow fry the okra until brownish and crisp. Keep it aside. This prevents the end result from turning into gooey mixture.

3) In the same pan heat 1 tsp oil. Add cumin seeds when they splutter add in the onions. Fry until they turn gloden brown. Add in tomato's and cook until mushy.

4) Add in all the powders and stir for a minute before adding the fried bhindi. Saute well until masala is uniformly distributed.

5) Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Stuffed Capsicum ~ Amchi style

Our cuisine is mainly dominated by coconuts. Though I love traditional food I try to avoid the use of coconuts as they are not easily available here and for health reasons too. So once in a week or twice I make dishes with coconut. This is one of my mom's signature dish. I had almost forgotten this dish as I had not made it for almost a year. The other day when I was chatting with amma I was asking her for idea's for dinner. It was then she suggested this dish. We love capsicums in any form so I decided to make this for dinner. This can either be served with plain rice and Daalithoy or with phulka, dosa. 

Here is what's needed:

3 small green Capsicums 

2 large Onions chopped

1.5 cups grated coconut

6-8 red chilli's

a small piece of Tamarind

1 tbsp Coriander seeds

1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds

Salt to taste

1 tsp Mustard seeds

6-8 Curry leaves

Procedure:

1) Wash the capsicum well and pat dry. Cut off the top. Keep aside.

2) Heat 1 tbsp oil. Fry coriander seeds and Fenugreek seeds until they turn pinkish. Remove and keep aside. In the same pan fry the red chilli's until slightly crisp. Take care not to burn any spices.

3) Grind grated coconut + red chilli's + coriander seeds + fenugreek seeds + tamarind + salt with little water until it forms a smooth paste.

4) Add 1/2 of the chopped onions to the ground masala. 

5) Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add curry leaves and fry for few seconds. Add the rest of the chopped onions with little salt and fry until golden.

6) Meanwhile fill the capsicums with the ground masala. Reserve the remaining masala. (I had large capsicums in hand so I cut them and filled).

7) Slide the stuffed capsicums into the Onions. Keep the heat on low. Add the remaining masala and water. Mix slightly and let it cook covered till done. The capsicums taste good when they are done but still crunchy. Do not overcook it. 

Batate Bhajjun Upkari ~ Simple Potato Side dish

Batate Bhajjun upkari is simple Potato side dish. This was one of the dishes that amma resorted to when there were not many veggies or during the days when she observed fast. Me and anna always looked forward to this meal. Whenever she made this we were sure that we would have steaming hot white rice and daalithoy. The combination of the these three is heaven for us. Even today when we are at home she makes sure that she makes this atleast once. When amma makes this she generously uses oil and believe me it tastes much better than the way I do it as I always reduce the oil and try cooking with one tsp of oil. 

Here is what's needed:

4 medium sized Potato washed thoroughly, peeled roughly and chopped into small thin pieces and soaked in cold water until used.

Oil 2 tsp

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/4 tsp Urad Dal

2-3 red Chilli torn

salt to taste

Procedure:

 Heat oil. (I normally use 2tsp for this dish but it needs more than that to get a very good crispy taste) Add mustard seeds, when they splutter add in the urad dal and fry until slightly golden. Throw in the torn red chilli and after 20 secs add the drained potato pieces and salt to taste. Cook covered on medium flame until crispy and done. You can add little amount of water for the Potato's to be cooked. Tastes best when hot and served with rice and daalithoy!

Tomato Gojju

Some dishes are so simple to make, yet they taste great. One such according to me is this. It does not need too many ingedients and still is full of flavour and aroma. This recipe is from my granny's kitchen. My grandfather was an Ayurvedic pandit and most of the simple health problems were treated with change in diet. This gojju was prepared whenever anyone at home suffered from mouth ulcers. You may find some helpful information here. 

I make this gojju when I am bored of making the usual Saaru, Daalithoy or sambar. 

What's needed:

2 medium sized Tomato

1 small Potato 

1 green Chilli

a pinch of Asafoetida (Hing)

1 tsp grated jaggery

Salt to taste

For Seasoning

Oil

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

5-6 Curry leaves

1 red Chilli torn 

finely chopped Corriander leaves to garnish

Procedure:

1) Pressure cook tomato,Potato and green chilli with suffecient water until done. When cooled mash it thoroughly. 

2) Add water to bring it to desired consistency. Keep the pot on gas. Add salt, jaggery and hing.

Give it a rolling boil.

3) Prepare seasoning by heating oil and adding mustard seeds in them. When they splutter add 

in the curry leaves and red chilli if using. Switch off and pour the seasoning into the gojju. Garnish with chopped corriander leaves. Serve hot with rice.

Keerla Bhaji ~ Bamboo Shoots stir fry

My MIL has a collection of recipes that are easy to make, yet healthy. This is one such dish that I learnt from her, which does not involve too much work apart from the chopping part. I love to make this on a cold winter night paired with simple rice and Dal or even Phulka. .This dish needs very few ingredients and can be fixed within minutes.

Here is what's needed:

2 cups Bamboo shoots finely chopped

1 medium Onion finely chopped

1 tsp Mustard seeds

Salt,Chilli powder to taste

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

Oil

Chopped coriander leaves to garnish

Procedure:

1) Wash chopped Bamboo shoots and keep them in water until it is used. Heat oil in a kadai and add the mustard seeds.

2) When they splutter, add chopped onion and fry until done. Add turmeric powder,chilli powder and salt. Drain the bamboo shoots and add it with little water and stir fry until done. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot. 

P.S: Do not add to much water as the bamboo shots will lose their crunchiness. 

Batate Song

Batate Song is a very authentic Konkani dish. Song as pronounced as "English Song", has no relation with it! I still do not have any idea as to why it is called song. If anyone does please let me know. 

It is a very spicy dish and pairs well with Rice & Dalithoy. Ofcourse it tastes good even with Dosa's or Chapathi. I make song either from cubed Potato or whole baby Potato's as in pic or also with cauliflower,tender cashews etc etc.

What's needed:

10-12 baby Potato's or 3 medium sized boiled, peeled and chopped Potato. If using baby Potato after peeling them prick them with the fork all over.

2 medium Onions chopped fine

1 big Tomato chopped fine

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1 small marble sized Tamarind soaked in warm water

½ tsp crushed Coriander seeds

1-2 tsp Chilli powder (Increase or decrease based on your spice level)

¼ tsp Turmeric powder

Oil

Salt to taste

Chopped Coriander leaves to garnish

Procedure:

1)Heat oil and add mustard when it splutters add chopped onions and little salt. Fry until they turn brownish.

2)Add chopped tomatoes and cook until mushy.

3)Add crushed Corainder seeds and other powders and fry for sometime.

4)Add Tamarind juice and stir well.

5)Add little water and let the onions cook until done but yet crunchy.

6)Add chopped/whole Potato and salt. Mix well until Potato gets coated with the masala. I usually add little water and let the Potato's boil so that they absorb the flavour.

7)Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot!

Happala Kismuri

Kismuri also known as Koshimbir/Kosumbari is often a part of Konkani cuisine. We make kismuri with a Bittergourd (Karathe Kismuri), Carrot, Surnu (Yam) etc. One among such quick fix kismuri is made from Happolu. Happolu is  Red coloured Chilli Papad. In earlier days during summer, ladies used to make Papad's from Wheat, Urad Dal, Red chilli and Urad Dal and different types of sandige. This was basically done so that they could preserve this for rainy season when it was difficult to get vegetables easily. We do not make these at home and usually buy from stores. Traditionally happolu is fried on charcoal stove and coconut oil is smeared over it. 

Anyways, This kismuri is one of our fav's. It is very simple to make and goes well as a side dish with simple pej (Rice Porridge/Konji) or White rice with some dal.

What's needed:

5-6 Red Happolu deep fried

3/4 cup grated Coconut

1 small Onion chopped fine

Salt to taste

Procedure:

Mix salt + Grated coconut + Onion pieces well. Crush Happolu and add it to the mixture. Serve immediately as the happolu turns soft and soggy after a while.

Pineapple Rasam

The first time I saw this on their site was actually impressed and made a mental note that I will have to try it next when I get Pineapple. After this I forgot about it for a while and again saw the this rasam making its rounds through the blogosphere. Everytime I saw it I was remembered that this is on my to do list. Finally one day I went ahead and bought the Pineapple and came back home to make it. Thats when I realized that the recipe called for Canned and I had Fresh one!! Yes this is what I do don't read the recipe properly and then continue!

But since I had not planned anything else I as well thought that I will go ahead and give it a shot with fresh Pineapple. It really came out well and hubby dear was impressed :) Happy me.

To  see Jai's recipe Click here.

The modifications that I made was to boil Pineapple with water until its colour changed to a lighter shade (or alternatively as my friend, Smitha suggested pressure cook it for one whistle) and while adding crushed Pineapple to Rasam I added jaggery to taste. 

This is definitely a change from the usual Rasam or Dal and has a sweet,spicy and tangy taste. Using a canned Pineapple would definitely be an easier way to do but I did not want to wait until I buy one next time. I am definitely going to make this often! Thanks Jai for this wonderful jhatpat recipe. 

Duddhya Upkari ~ Pumpkin Stir-fry

Pumpkin was not one of the vegetables that I loved eating growing up. Until one day I had the upkari made with this at our Venkataramana temple feast. From then on I have been eating this vegetable regularly and love it too. We usually use Pumpkin while making Valval, Sambar etc. When I had been to market here in Shanghai, I was actually surprised to see Pumpkin :) From then on this has been a regular veggie in our kitchen. 

This stir-fry is rather easy to make and goes well with steaming hot rice and Dal. Easy to fix during weekday dinner's.

Here is what's needed:

2 cups of Pumpkin chopped into bite sized pieces

2-3 Green Chilli

4 to 5 Curry leaves

2-3 tbsp grated Coconut (Decrease if you do not like it very sweet)

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/4 tsp Urad Dal 

a generous pinch of Asafoetida

Salt to taste

1-2 tsp Oil

Procedure:

1) Heat Oil. Add Mustard seeds when they splutter add in the Urad dal and fry until pink.Add Curry leaves and the Green chilli and fry for a min.

2)Add in the Pumpkin pieces, enough water for it to cook along with Salt and Jaggery to taste. Cook covered until 3/4 done.

3) Add Asafoetida and grated Coconut and mix well. Cook until done.

Batate Bhajjun Upkari ~ Potato Fry

Last week we had quite bad weather. It was drizzling all day long, fog covered which made the day gloomy and the cold winds outside made it difficult for me to step outside the cozy house. Slowly all the veggies disappeared from the fridge leaving behind very few options for cooking. On one such night I made this Potato Fry. This makes an excellent side dish with Rasam & Rice or Dalithoy & Rice. This is originally Archanakka's (My cousin) mother-in-law's recipe which was passed on to me by my sister during our weekend chat. If you are the one who loves Potato like us then this is the recipe for you.

Here is What's needed:

2 Big Potato's cubed

4-5 small Garlic cloves chopped

1/2 - 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder (Increase if you would like it to be spicy ;) )

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

a generous pinch of Asafoetida

Salt to taste

Oil

Procedure:

1) In a vessel boil 3-4 cups of water. When it boils well add in the cubed Potato's and switch off the flame. Cover for 5 mins. Drain all the water using a Colander. Let the Potato's cool.

2) Meanwhile, In a Kadai (preferably non-stick) take 1-2 tbsp Oil. Before it heats add chopped Garlic, Red Chilli powder, Turmeric powder & Asafoetida. Fry for a min and add in the drained Potato's. Add Salt. Do not add water. Cook covered if needed. Keep mixing at regular intervals to prevent it from sticking to the bottom. Fry until at least 2 sides turn golden brown. Serve hot!

Karathe Talasani ~ Bittergourd

Karathe Talasani is a simple Bittergourd stir-fry dish that is usually made with Garlic. Karathe talasani is a mixture of sweet and spice with the right amount of tanginess. 

Here is what's needed:

1 medium Bittergourd deseeded and chopped 

2 red Chillis torn

6-8 crushed Garlic cloves

2 tbsp grated Jaggery (increase/decrease according to your taste)

a small amla sized Tamarind soaked in water

Salt to taste

Oil

Procedure:

1) Sprinkle Salt on chopped Bittergourd pieces and let it stand for 20-30 mins. Squeeze the juice out. This helps in removing the bitterness from it.

2) Heat oil and add crushed Garlic cloves. Fry until golden and add torn Red Chilli's. Fry for a few seconds and add Bittergourd pieces.

3) Add in the Salt,Jaggery,Tamarind and little water. Cook covered until done.

Batate Vaagu - Spicy Potato Side dish

Potatoes are all time favourite at our place. We love anything with potatoes in it. Thus over time I have collected a lot of recipes with potatoes. Batate(Potato in Konkani) Vaagu is one such of them that I learnt from my mom. Vaagu in Konkani means Tiger. I do not know why this side dish is called Vaagu. But this is feircely spicy and goes well either with rice or Chapathi. Last night we had Batate Vaagu with white rice and valval. This dish is a combination of flavours that is imparted from the addition of grated Coconut, Tomatoes Tamarind and Chilli powder. Without further explanation here is What's needed:

4 medium sized Potatoes boiled and cubed.

2 medium Tomatoes chopped.

juice of marble sized Tamarind.

1/2 - 1 tbsp Red Chilli powder (adjust as per your spice level tolerance)

1 1/2 tbsp grated Coconut

1 tsp hing(Asafoetida) water or generous pinch of hing powder

Salt to taste

For tempering:

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

few curry leaves

To garnish

Finely chopped coriander leaves.

Procedure:

1)Heat oil in a non stick pan. Add mustard when they splutter add Urad dal. Fry until pinkish and add curry leaves.

2) Add tomatoes and cook until mushy. To this add chilli powder, Hing water, Tamarind paste, salt and fry well. Mix in chopped potatoes. Sprinkle some water and fry for some time(around 3-4 mins). Add grated coconut and further fry for 10 mins or until all the water is absorbed and the potatoes along with coconut are roasted well. Garnish with corainder leaves and serve hot with chapathi or rice.