Cauliflower - Black Pepper Curry

Ingredients

To chop:

1. Onion chopped - 1/4 cup
2. Cauliflower chopped - 3/4 cup

To dry grind:

1. Black pepper whole - 1 tsp
2. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
3. Garlic pods - 2

To temper:

1. Oil - 3 tbsp
2. Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
3. Red chillies - 1
4. Channa dhal - 1/2 tsp
5. Urad dhal - 1 tsp
6. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
7. Asafoetida - 3 pinches

Method

1. Cook chopped cauliflower with salt and as little water as possible.
2. First way is to heat a pan with water and salt, when it start to boil add chopped cauliflower and immediately switch of the stove and close the lid and leave it until it is soft and firm. Do not keep the lid closed for a long time, there is chance of getting mushy. Cool it on a plate.
3. Second way is to cook in microwave.
4. Keep it aside.
5. Heat a wide pan. Do tempering, to this add the dry ground mixture and fry for a minute and immediately add the chopped onions and fry until it is translucent. No need to fry the onions until it changes to dark brown in color.
6. To this add the cooked cauliflower, give a nice stir.
7. Yes! you are done. Enjoy with hot white rice or chapathi.

Ribbon Pakoda

Ingredients

Rice flour - 1 and 1/4 cup

Besan - 1/2 cup

Ghee - 5 tsp

Oil - 5 tsp, and to deep fry

Asafoetida powder - 5 pinches

Salt - to taste

Red chilly powder - to taste

Method

1. Sieve rice flour and besan.

2. To this add asafoetida, salt and red chilly powder. Mix it well.

3. In a small pan heat ghee and oil together until it smokes, immediately add this to the above mixture and mix it well once again.

4. Now add water little by little and make a stiff dough.

5. Divide these dough into several small sized balls according to the size of your ribbon pakoda making press and deep fry in hot oil until it is crispy.

6. Store this in an air tight container and enjoy for a week with a cup of hot coffee or tea.

7. Also this goes well with hot rice with rasam and sambhar.

Idly Rava - Moong Dhal Upma

Ingredients

Oil - 1/4 cup

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 3/4 tsp

Curd chillies - 3

Green chillies - 3

Red chillies - 3

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Fresh or dry coconut grated - 3 tbsp

Moong dhal -1/4 cup

Idly Ravva - 3/4 cup

Salt - to taste

Method

1. Pressure cook moong dhal seperately with 3/4 cup of water and keep it aside.

2. In a wide pan, heat oil, to that add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dhal, curd chillies, green chillies, red chillies and curry leaves.

3. Once all these fry, immediately add 2 and 1/2 cups of water, coconut, salt, cooked moong dhal and bring it to boil and slowly add idly ravva stirring continuously the boiling water.

4. Close the lid immediately, and cook it in medium flame for 1/2 an hour, stir it now and then.

5. Serve it with any pickle or dhal rasam.

Green Pepper / Capsicum Pickle

Ingredients

Green Peppers - 3

Green Chillies chopped - 5

Lemon Juice - 1/4 cup

Oil - 1/4 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves - 1 sprig finely chopped

Asafoetida - 3 pinches

Salt - to taste

Method

1. Chop green peppers as small as possible or you can use electrical vegetable chopper.

2. To this add lemon juice, salt and green chillies.

3. Now temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida in hot oil.

4. Add this and mix it well and leave it for 6 hours.

5. You can refrigerate it.

6. This stays good for 3 weeks.

7. This goes well with upma, salted oats, white rice, curd rice and curd semiya.

Cauliflower-Potato-Green peas Curry

Ingredients

1. Cauliflower florets - 3 cups
2. Potato chopped - 1 and 1/2 cups
3. Green peas - 3 tbsp
4. Garlic - 3 pods
5. Ginger - 1/4 Inch piece
6. Green chillies - 7
7. Grated coconut- 3 tbsp
8. Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp
9. Oil - 3 tbsp
10. Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
11. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
12. Asafoetida - 3 pinches
13. Cilantro chopped - 3 tbsp
14. Salt - to taste
15. Turmeric powder - a pinch

Method

1. Heat a wide pan, add oil, when oil is hot enough to crackle mustard seeds, add mustard seeds,

curry leaves and asafoetida.

2. Immediately add potatoes, salt and turmeric powder.

3. Fry for 3 minutes, close it with a lid, put the flame to the medium.

4. After 3 more minutes stir it, check whether the potatoes are cooked 3/4th.

5. Now add the chopped cauliflower and green peas, close the lid, cook for another 3 minutes.

6. Make sure that the cauliflower will not get mushy.

7. Meanwhile grind garlic pods, ginger, green chillies, coconut and cumin seeds.

8. Add this ground paste and salt and stir altogether once.

9. Switch of the stove and add the chopped cilantro.

10. This goes well with plain hot white rice with ghee, chapathi, poori, salted oats, raagi ganji, wheat ravva ganji, curd rice and curd semiya.

Idly Podi

Ingredients

1. Urad dhal - 1/2 cup
2. Channa dhal - 1/4 cup
3. Red chillies - 15 to 20
4. Cumin seeds - 3/4 tsp
5. Sesame seeds - 1 tsp
6. Asafoetida - 3 pinches

Method

1. First fry channa dhal, when it is half fried then add urad dhal and fry.
2. When urad dhal starts to change its color then add the remaining ingredients and fry again until both the dhals changes its color to reddish brown.
3. Cool it completely.
4. Mixie it to a coarse powder by adding salt.
5. Store it in a air tight dry jar.
6. This goes well with idly, dosa, uthappam and gunta ponganalu.

Tomato Chutney

Ingredients

Tomatoes - 3

Onion - 1

Garlic pods - 5

Fresh cilantro chopped - 1/4 cup

Channa dhal - 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds - 8

Whole dry red chillies - 5

Whole black peppers - 5

Fresh or dry coconut - 3 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Asafoetida - a pinch

Curry leaves chopped - 3 tbsp

Tamarind paste - 1/4 tsp

Salt - to taste

Method

1. Chop onions, garlic, tomatoes.

2. In 1 tbsp of oil, fry garlic, onions.

3. To that add tomatoes and fry until all the water from tomatoes dried up.

4. Cool it, add cilantro to that.

5. In another pan, fry masala items each separately, channa dhal, urad dhal, cumin seeds, red chillies, black peppers, fenugreek seeds. Cool it.

6. First dry grind fried masala items to a powder in mixie then add the fried vegetables along with tamarind, coconut and salt and grind once again.

7. Temper with mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves in hot oil. Mix it.

8. This goes well with idly, dosa.

Idli

Ingredients

Idly rice - 4 cups

Urad dhal - 1 cup

Fenugreek seeds - 1 tbsp

Castor oil seeds - 7

Method

Soak each separately for 6-8 hours:

Idly rice

Urad dhal

Fenugreek seeds and

Castor oil seeds

Grind:

First grind:

Castor oil seeds and then add idly rice to that and grind to a sooji rava like consistency batter.

Remove it to a large bowl, such that it fits when it ferments.

Second grind:

Fenugreek seeds and then add urad dhal to that and grind to a smooth batter.

Mix everything and leave it for fermentation depending on the climatic conditions.

Making idlies:

Now add salt to the batter and make idlies. The reason why adding salt is done at the last is to avoid the batter becoming sour. As usual, make idlies.

Pesarattu

Ingredients and method

Wash & soak in water for about 8 hours:

Whole green moong dal - 1 cup

Raw rice - 1/2 cup

Grind:

First grind:

Green chillies - 5

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Chopped Ginger - 3 tbsp

Chopped raw onion - 5 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Then add and grind to a smooth batter:

soaked dal and rice

Chop these items into very tiny pieces and set aside to sprinkle on top of dosa:

Onion

Ginger

Green chillies and

curry leaves

How to make dosa

Heat dosa pan, pour a ladle full of batter and spread it out in circular motion, sprinkle a tsp of oil and items to sprinkle on top of dosa, once the bottom is done, flip it over and add another tsp of oil and wait for a minute. Again, flip it over and put upma inside and fold it and serve with ginger chutney.

Cucumber Dhal

Ingredients:

Cucumber -1

Toor dhal- 1/2 cup

Salt - to taste

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Oil - 3 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Urad dhal - 1/4 tsp

Fenugreek seeds - 8

Garlic chopped - 3 pods

Curry leaves - a sprig

Tamarind paste - 2 tbsp

Green chillies - 3

Red chillies - 2

Red chilly powder - 1 tbsp

Cilantro chopped - 3tbsp

Asafoetida - a pinch

Method:

1. Wash, peel, deseed, chop, check for bitterness, the cucumber.

2. Cook it with salt and turmeric powder.

3. Pressure cook toor dhal, mash it.

4. In a wide pan, heat oil, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, urad dhal, red chillies, chopped garlic, curry leaves and asafoetida and fry for a second.

5. Immediately add cooked dhal and cucumber, green chillies, tamarind paste and red chilly powder.

6. Add water and salt if needed and bring it boil.

7. Garnish with cilantro.

8. This goes well with white rice with ghee, curd rice, dhadhojanam, chapathi, poori, toasted bread, salted oats, rava ganji, raagi ganji, dosa, rava dosa, idly, wheat rava upma, sooji upma and guntaponganalu.

Sooji Guntaponganalu

Ingredients

Channa dhal - 1/4 cup

Sooji rava - 1/2 cup

Red chillies - 7

Coconut - 3 tbsp

Asafoetida - 3 pinches

Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Cilantro chopped - 3 tbsp

Onion chopped finely - 1

Method

Wash & soak:

1. Channa dhal for at least 3 hours.

Grind:

I. Grind red chillies, coconut, asafoetida, cumin seeds.

II. Then add soaked channa dhal and grind coarsely, like rava using very less water.

To this add and leave aside for 3 hours:

1. Sooji

2. Curry leaves chopped

3. Cilantro and

4. Chopped onion

Final step:

1. Check for the pouring consistency, if it needs, add water and salt.

2. Make it and serve hot with onion chutney.

Celery-Black Pepper curry

Ingredients

1. Celery - 1 bunch
2. Ghee - 1 tbsp
3. Garlic pods - 3
4. Black pepper powder - according to your spice level
5. Salt - to taste

Method

Wash & chop:

1. Celery
2. Garlic pods

Now, heat pan, add ghee, chopped garlic pods, once it turns to slight brown, then add chopped celery, cook on medium heat until it is well cooked. Add salt and black pepper powder. Stir it. It is ready to eat.

Celery-Spinach-Dhal Curry

Ingredients

1. Celery - 1 bunch
2. Spinach - 1 bunch
3. Toor dhal - 4 tbsp
4. Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
5. Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp
6. Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
7. Red Chillies - 10
8. Garlic pods - 5 pods(optional)
9. Grated coconut - 2 tbsp(optional)
10. Salt - to taste
11. Turmeric powder - a pinch
12. Curry leaves - 1 sprig(optional)
13. Chopped Cilantro - 3 tbsp(optional)

Method

Cook

1. Cook toor dhal with very little water.
2. You should see each dhal separately after you cook.
3. Do not overcook.

Wash & chop

1. Celery
2. Spinach
3. Garlic pods
4. Cilantro

Now, heat oil, add:

1. mustard seeds, once it crackle,
2. add cumin seeds,
3. urad dhal,
4. red chillies,
5. garlic pods,
6. chopped celery,
7. salt
8. turmeric powder and
9. curry leaves

And, stir it - cook on medium flame until it is half cooked - now, add chopped spinach - cook well - then add cooked toor dhal - grated coconut - stir it - check for salt - adjust it according to taste. Taste it!!!

This curry can be eaten with salted oats, raagi ganji, chapathi, poori and white rice.

How to eat with white rice:

Mix this with white rice, eat with any pickle.

Beetroot Curry

Ingredients

Beetroot - 3

Onion - 1

Garlic - 3 pods

Green chillies - 3

Red Chilly flakes - 1 tbsp

Grated coconut - 1 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Turmeric - a pinch

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Cilantro finely chopped - 3 tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Urad dhal - 1/4 tsp

Method

1. Chop beetroot, onion, garlic, green chillies and cilantro.

2. In hot oil, add mustard seeds, once it crackles add green chillies and garlic, wait until it turns golden brown, now add curry leaves, onions, salt and turmeric powder.

3. Fry until onion turns little bit brown, now add beetroot, cover it, cook it on medium flame until it is cooked well. If needed, add 2 to 3 tbsp of water.

4. Now add coconut and cilantro. Mix well. Check salt and adjust it to taste. You are done!!!

5. This goes well with white rice, chapathi, poori and salted oats.

6. If you diet, just skip main dish, just eat this curry as much as you can.

Peanut Chutney

Ingredients:

Peanuts - 1/4 cup

Coconut - 1/2 cup

Red Chillies (to grind) - #7

Garlic pods - #2

Tamarind - little bit

Salt - to taste

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1/4 tsp

Red chilly (to season) - #1

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Asafoetida - a pinch

Method:

1. Fry Peanuts.

2. Cool it.

3. To that, add coconut, salt, red chillies to grind, tamarind and garlic.

4. Wet grind.

5. Add to hot oil - mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dhal, red chilly, curry leaves and asafoetida. Add this seasoning to the ground chutney.

6. Mix well and serve it.