Erra Kaaram Dosa

When Pratibha published this recipe a week ago, I had the burning desire to try it out. The photos also made my interest grow. I tried this recipe last weekend. Everybody in my home liked it. We had this for breakfast for two days.

Dosa:
Ingredients:
Sona Masoori Rice - 4 cups
Urad dal - 1 cup
Poha - 1 cup
Moong dal, Tuvar dal, chana dal - 1 cup (each 1/3 cup)
Fenugreek/Methi seeds - 1 tsp.
Salt (to taste)

Erra kaaram chutney (red chutney):
Ingredients:
Onions - 2 (diced)
Garlic - 2 big pods
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp (I used Kashmiri) or 3-4 red chillies
Tamarind pulp - 1.5 tsp.
Salt (to taste)
Sesame oil/ghee - 1 tbsp.
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp.

Chutney dal powder:
Ingredients:
Pottukadalai/chutney dal - 1/3 cup
Garlic - 1 big pod
Salt (to taste)

Method:
Wash and soak dals, rice and methi seeds for 8 hours. Soak poha before 1 hour of grinding.
Grind into a smooth batter in a wet grinder.
Mix salt and ferment overnight or for 8 hours.

For erra kaaram chutney:
Grind onions, garlic, red chilli powder, tamarind pulp and salt into a smooth paste. If you don't like the raw smell of this chutney, saute all the given ingredients for chutney in oil and grind. Temper the mustard seeds and mix with chutney.

For chutney dal powder/podi:
In a dry jar add dal, garlic & salt and powder them.

For dosa:
Take a ladleful of batter and spread on a medium-hot tawa and sprinkle oil on the sides. Cook on both sides. Place the dosa on the plate and spread the red chutney all over the dosa and sprinkle chutney dal powder, ghee (optional). Serve immediately with chutney or without chutney.
Continue this process with the remaining batter.

Sent off to "Bookmarked Recipes-Every Tuesday" event.

Read More

Spinach Stir-Fry

Ingredients:
Spinach (medium size) - 1 (chopped with stems)
Onions (small) - 2 (chopped)
Garlic - 8 pods
Dry red chillies - 2 (broken into half)
Grated coconut - 2 tbsp.
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp.
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp.
Urad dal - 1 tsp.
Chana dal - 2 tsp.
Salt (to taste)
Oil (as required)

Method:
Heat oil and add mustard,cumin seeds and dals and temper them. Add onion, garlic and dry red chillies and saute till the onions turn translucent.
Add chopped spinach and continue to saute.
While sauting, the spinach will wilt and release its juice. Continue the process till the stems are well cooked.
Now sprinkle required salt and saute, followed by sprinkling grated coconut and till dry.
Enjoy as a side dish with rice or chapathi.

Read More

VICTORY YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!! INDIA WON THE ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP 2011 AFTER 28 YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here are the pictures which I captured from TV. Indian team bagging The World Cup. We are proud of you Guys!

 Captain Dhoni getting ready to hit a six for VICTORY!

Note:
Again, All photos are taken from television with my camera.

Read More

Egg Fried Rice & Gobhi/Cauliflower Manchurian

I had some capsicums left in the refrigerator and I just wanted to get rid of them by throwing them in some dish. I also remembered that my kids asked me to make a manchurian dish for a long time. Then I raided the fridge to find out if there were required ingredients. Fortunately there were some and I was too lazy to make vegetable stock for gobhi manchurian and instead I used water. As a surprise, I made these two dishes and served them as today's lunch.

Egg fried rice
Ingredients:
Rice - 1 1/2 cups
Eggs - 3
Spring onions (big white bulbs) - 2 (chopped)
Carrot - 1/3 cup (finely chopped)
Beans - 1/3 cup (very finely chopped)
Cabbage - 1/3 cup (shredded)
Capsicum (tri-color) - 1/3 cup (finely chopped)
Ginger - 1/4 inch (grated)
Garlic - 1 big pod (grated)
White pepper powder - 1/4 tsp.
Salt (to taste)
Sesame oil - as required
Tomato ketchup - 1 tsp.
Sweet red chilli sauce - 2 tbsp.
Soy sauce - 2 1/2  tbsp.
Spring onions (green part) - chopped (to garnish)

Method:
Cook rice till 75% and keep aside. Grains should be separate.
Beat the egg and warm a tawa. Pour the beaten eggs into a thin omelette. Chop them into pieces and keep aside.
Heat the oil in a wide pan or wok and add white bulb, ginger and garlic in high flame. Saute till the raw smell fades away.
Now add the veggies and saute for a few minutes.
Add the chopped eggs and saute. Now add the sauces, ketchup and mix.
Add the cooked rice, white pepper powder, required salt and toss or mix.
Garnish with spring onion and enjoy hot.

Note:
Instead of making omelette, you use scrambled eggs and continue the process.
I have used uzhakku for measuring rice.
Spoons & cups are US measurements except for rice.


Gobhi/Cauliflower Manchurian

Ingredients:
Cauliflower florets (medium size) - 3 cups
All purpose flour - 1/2 cup
Cornflour/cornstarch  - 1/3 cup
Ginger-garlic paste - 2 tsp.
(Kashmiri) Red chilli powder - 1 tsp.
Salt (to taste)
Oil (for deep frying)

Method:
Drop the florets in hot water and let it sit for 10 minutes. Strain and keep aside.
Mix all the ingredients into a smooth paste/batter except cauliflower and oil.
Dip the florets in batter and drop in the hot oil.
Deep fry till golden brown.
Place them on an absorbent paper and keep aside.

For sauce:
Ingredients:
Spring onions (big white bulbs) - 4 (chopped)
Bell pepper/capsicum (red and green) - few (cubed)
Green chillies - 2 (chopped)
Garlic-ginger paste - 2 tsp.
Vinegar - 2 tsp.
Soy sauce - 4 tbsp.
Water - 2 1/2 cups.
Salt (as per taste)
Cornflour/cornstarch - 1/4 cup
Sweet red chilli sauce - 1 tsp.
Tomato ketchup or sauce - 1/4 tsp.
Spring onions (chopped) - to garnish
Sesame oil

Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add onions, green chillies, bell peppers, ginger-garlic paste. Saute till the raw smell fades completely.
Add the sauces and salt to taste and mix
Add 1.5 cups of water and bring it to a boil.
Mix 1/4 cup of cornflour with 1 cup of water without any lumps.
Add the cornflour water to the boiling mixture.
When the sauce starts to thicken, immediately drop all the fried cauliflower, vinegar and mix fast.
Garnish with spring onions.
Enjoy hot with fried rice.

Note:
Sauces already contain salt, so add the salt according to taste.
If dark soy sauce is used adjust the quantity.
Spoons and cups used are US measurements.
No added MSG (Aji-no-moto).

Read More

Kadhai/Kadahi/Kadaai-Chicken/Kozhi/Murgh (v2.0)

This dish is one of my family's "chicken favourites". As soon as I begin to cook, the aroma instantly wafts through the whole house. Everybody enter the kitchen and ask, "Are you finished, yet? Are you finished, yet?" And time intentionally passes so slow, that I burst into a beaming smile when I'm trapped with this one question. The plates are clean within moments when served. I recommend busy people to make this on weekends, because it takes time and it passes so slow.

Ingredients:
Chicken - 750 g (cut into bite-size pieces)
Tomatoes (Roma) - 4 (big)
Onions - 3 (sliced)
Garlic paste - 3 tsp.
Ginger (finely chopped) - 1 tbsp.
Kashmiri red chilli powder - 1 tsp.
Curd (thick) - 2 tbsp.
Salt (as per taste)
Kasoori methi/dry fenugreek leaves - 1 tbsp.
Coriander powder - 1 tsp.
Oil
Coriander leaves - few (chopped)
Capsicum (3 colours) - 1/4 each (diced)
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp.

To grind into powder:
Whole dry red chillies - 4 to 5 (or as per taste)
Coriander seeds (whole) - 1 tbsp.
Cloves - 3
Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp.
Peppercorn - 1/4 tsp.
Black cardamom - 1
Desi cinnamon - 1/2 stick

Method:
Marinate chicken with curd, 2 tsp. garlic paste, little salt and 1 tsp. kashmiri red chilli powder.
Cover and keep aside.
Powder the ingredients from the given list "to grind".
Make a + on the top of the tomatoes (not deep cut) and boil them.
Cool and peel the skin.
Grind the tomatoes with water if any left.
Keep aside.
Heat the oil in a kadai and add the dry spice powder and saute for 3 minutes.
Add 1 tsp. of garlic paste and saute without burning.
Add the onions and saute till translucent.
Add ginger, tomato puree and salt.
Saute till the tomato releases oil.
Now add 1 tsp. of coriander powder, marinated chicken, kasoori methi, and saute for 5 minutes.
If required, add water (I added 1/2 cup)
Cover and cook the chicken completely. Stir in between.
When the chicken becomes tender, remove the lid and cook till the gravy thickens.
Add capsicum cubes, coriander leaves and sprinkle garam masala.
Mix well.
Cook for another 2 minutes.
Remove and enjoy with chapathi or roti or rice.

Note:
Adjust the spices according to your taste as this dish is very "HOT".

Read More

Fried Moong Dal with Murmure (Puffed Rice)

My sharp eyes captured this recipe in a cookery show when I was rounding around different TV channels. I made this snack the next day. I prepared 2 batches - 1/2 cup of moong dal each. One batch took 10 minutes and the other 8 minutes (Time varies according to the type/power of microwave). We usually consume puffed rice as a regular snack whenever in stock. This time we added the moong dal. My family loved this snack and enjoyed it very well.

Ingredients:
Moong dal - 1/2 cup
Pori/Puffed Rice/Murmure - 1 cup
Onion - 1/2 ( chopped)
Garlic - 3 pods (crushed)
Kashmiri Red chilli - 1/2 tsp.
Salt (to taste)
Coriander leaves - few
Turmeric powder - a pinch

Method:
Soak moong dal for 5 hours or overnight. Strain and let the dal sit in strainer for 5 minutes.
In a microwave container (I used corningware) spread the moong dal.
Mix red chilli and salt.
Microwave for 2 minutes.
Remove the lumps with a spoon and stir well.
Continue till the dal becomes crispy (you can hear the clinging/kala-kala noise)
Break the lumps every 2 minutes.
Once they are crispy, remove and keep aside for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile saute the crushed garlic till golden color.
Mix all remaining ingredients with moong dal and toss well.
Serve immediately.


Note:
In step 6, I'm not so good in guessing onomatopoeiac words, but at least it makes that sound when mixing.

Sent off to "Kurinji's HRH-2 Puffed Rice" event.

Read More