Paruppu Urundai kuzhambu

Parupu urundai kulambu / kuzhambu or lentil dumplings in tamarind and coconut sauce, is a delicacy of the kongu region or the kongu nadu region. This is a family recipe that was passed from my grandmother to my mother and then to me. I can confidently say that the parupu urundai kulambu made by my grand mother should be the world’s best followed closely by mother’s for the second spot. When we are away from home such recipes is one more reason for us to feel homesick.

Click here for the Parupu Urundai Kuzhambu Recipe

Vatha Kuzhambu

The last two weeks had been quite busy with official and personal things. Added to this routine, we had guests over on the weekends and hence did a lot of eating out at the restaurants. This Saturday I tried to cook a complete vegetarian meal with menu comprising of tomato dal, vatha kulambu and a potato curry. I strongly believe that any vegetarian thali/ meal is not complete without a vatha kozhambu and sutta appalam.

Vatha kuzhambu is a south Indian dish served mainly with rice and papad. It has a single vegetable/ vathal as a base and is a simmered stew of tamarind with a set of spices. Usually it is prepared with brinjal/eggplant or okra/lady’s finger. Vathals can also be used. I guess vathals are the reasons for the authentic taste. Vathals are dried vegetables and can be bought from any Indian grocery store. Sundakaai vathal, manathakkali vathal or vendakaai vathal are some examples.




To Grind:
Corriander seeds 1 tbsp
Methi seeds – ½ tbsp
Urad dal – 1 tbsp
Channa dal – 1 tbsp
Red chillies – 3/ 4 (depends on the spice level)

Ingredients:
Shallot / Pearl onions – 9 or 10 (You can substitute half of a red onion if shallots are not available.)
Garlic pods – 4 /5 (This is optional)
Tamarind – A small lemon sized ball
Vathal/ Vegetable of your choice(I used sundakaai vathal)
Sambar powder – 1 tbsp
Turmeric
Salt
Oil - 2 tbsp
Pepper - 1 tbsp
Asofetida / Hing – 1 pinch
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Procedure :

1. Soak the tamarind in water and extract the tamarind pulp. To make your work easier you can microwave the soaked tamarind for 30 seconds.
2. Dry roast all the ingredients that has to be ground and make them into a smooth dry powder.
3. In a heavy bottomed pan (traditionally a cast iron kadai is used), heat few spoons of oil. Usually sesame oil or gingely oil is used , but any oil would do good. If you are planning to use vathals instead of vegetables, now is the good time to fry those. Once done take it and leave it aside. You can add it at a later time to the kuzhambu.
4. Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves, asafetida, urad dal and channa dal to the oil.
5. Now add garlic, fry till its raw smell goes off add then add onions, fry till they turn to golden brown color. Add the sambar powder, tumeric , salt and sauté for 2 mnutes.
6. If you are planning to add vegetables add it now and sauté for few more minutes.
7. Now add the tamarind pulp and let it simmer for around 10-15 minutes.
8. Then add the dry ground masala powder, stir well. Add the vathals immediately after the masala powder and allow it to boil for 10 more minutes.
9. If vatha kolambu is too watery add 1 tsp of rice flour and allow it to boil to get the required consistency.
10. Enjoy vatha kuzhambu with hot steamed rice and sutta appalam.

Potato Capsicum Curry / Kurma / Korma

I made potato capsicum kurma / curry to go along with the jeera rice on Saturday. My friend like it so much she had packed enough for the next day.

It really went well with jeera rice and chappathi’s made that day. I did not add any chilli powder, so I did not get the bright red color that I usually get for most of my recipes.

Vegetables:
Capsicum – 2
Medium sized Potato – 3
Onion – 1
Tomato’s – 2
Any other vegetables of your choice can also be added.

Spices:
Cloves –
Cinnamon – 2
Cardamom or elaichi – 2
Chilli powder
Salt
Corriander Powder
Turmeric
Garam masala ( optional)
Ginger Garlic paste



To Grind :

Grated coconut – 2 or 3 tbsp
Cashews – any amount of your choice(I added a fist full of them since I wanted the curry not to be spicy).

1. In a wide bottomed pan drizzle it with oil for the tadka and add cloves, cinnamon and elaichi.
2. Then add the diced onions and fry till it is transculent. After that add the ginger garlic paste and tomatoes. Saute it till the oil separates from the onion tomato mixture.
3. Now add the coriander powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt.
4. Add the diced potatoes and cook till it is half done.
5. After the potatoes are almost done, add the capsicums. Stir it well and immediately add the coconut, cashews ground paste.
6. Bring the gravy to boil, once the raw smell of coconut is gone and vegetables are cooked garnish the curry with coriander leaves.




Serve potato capsicum curry with roti, pulao or jeera rice.

Cabbage Curry with peas

Cabbage is not a favorite for many and that is because it is not cooked the right way. The way it is cooked and the vegetables added along with it make a huge difference of what cabbage tastes like. I started liking cabbage after I started enjoying cooking and experimenting with food. This is a curry I tried in one of the restaurants and I liked it. So tried out in my kitchen and it was really good.
I followed sudha’s recipe, the only additional ingredient I used to the one mentioned in the list is shredded coconut. I cooked the cabbage in a microwave for a while to make it soft, so that the cooking time is reduced. Follow the same procedure do the tadka, cook the cabbage (the more it is crispier, better the taste), and add the peas. Finally before 5 minutes add the shredded coconut and sauté it for a while.

Enjoy the curry with roti or rice.


Click here for Cabbage Curry with Peas recipe

Spinach / Keerai Masiyal

Spinach can easily be termed as the best known of all green leafy vegetables. Some historic facts point to India as the origin for this healthy vegetable. Spinach can be had just as simple as a salad or with any other vegetables to form a vegetarian curry or gravy. Spinach is a good source for lot many nutrients like vitamins A and C, minerals, fiber and Iron. Though spinach has iron content, it is a myth that it has an extraordinary amount of iron content.


In USA, you can get spinach in any super market in any of these forms : Freshly packed, Canned or Frozen. You can also find the ready-to-eat ones which have pre-washed spinach packed in bag.

If you are buying the freshly packed ones, be sure to look for green and crips ones and avoid those that are damaged or spotted.

Here is my recipe for Keerai Masiyal. It makes an excellent combination with white rice.

Spinach -1 bunch
Green chillies – 2
Coriander seeds – 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1 tbsp
Pearl onions – 7 (Can be replaced by a small red onion)
Salt – as required
Garlic – 2 cloves
Asafetida or Hing - pinch

1. Wash the spinach and place it in a non stick pan. Cover and cook it till soft, take care to make sure it is not burnt.
2. Finely chop the onion, green chillies and garlic.
3. Then add 1 tsp of oil and add coriander seeds, cumin seeds, garlic and finally the onions. Saute all these for a while.
4. Mash the spinach into a smooth paste and add along with the mixture. Alternatively you can skip the onions , add spinach and finally mash it into a smooth paste(I grind it in a mixer). The final texture depends on my mood and how I plan to have the Keerai masiyal with. I usually go with the onions and not grinding the mixture, but very rarely like today I grind it when I want it smooth.
5. Your masiyal is ready and enjoy it with steamed white rice or roti.

Bitter Gourd Curry / Pavakkai / Pavakka Kuzhambu / Kakarakaya Pulusu

Bitter Gourd is one vegetable which is not popular among the masses mainly because of its bitter taste. Occasionally I have seen a few people like me, who have acquired a taste for this veggie. Several years ago, bitter gourd was part of my lunch not by choice but only when my mother insisted.

Bitter gourd is better known for its medicinal properties, especially in containing Diabetes and several other blood disorders. It is widely believed that it has most properties equivalent to that of insulin.

The bitterness in this vegetable can be reduced to a considerable level by smearing salt and turmeric powder to the sliced pieces for 15 minutes and then washing it thoroughly in water. I exactly followed the VKN’s recipe from ‘MyDhaba’. I remember my mom cooking this pulusu/ kuzhambu without coconut and the amount can be adjusted as required. The taste is much better if the onion paste is made from pearl onions or small onions are used, instead of the big onions.




Click here Bitter Gourd Curry Recipe

Vegetable Jaipuri / Mixed Vegetable Curry / Mixed vegetable Kurma

This is a recipe I tried and loved a lot, now I make the masala powder in excess and store it in an airtight container, for it comes handy when I want to try the dish again. I am from the southern part of India and we do not use much of tomatoes in the gravy, but we have a more of tamarind and coconut base. So any dish with a dash of coconut and has a tomato base I am for it, since I find it as a blend of north Indian and south Indian gravy.

Different combination of vegetables can be used and I have tried it with carrot potatoes and peas as mentioned or also with beetroots and beans. I do not pressure cook the vegetables because I hate to loose all the boiled water which is rich in nutrients, instead I cook it in a separate wide bottomed vessel with very less of water. Finally when the vegetables have to be added to masala mix, add the vegetables along with the water left. (Usually it will be very less)
I have to mention few words about kajal’s blog, pictures speak more than words in her blog. She has patience to photograph each and every step of the recipe. This helps an amateur cook like me a lot.

Enjoy vegetable jaipuri with roti.

Click here Vegetable Jaipuri / Mixed Vegetable Curry / Mixed vegetable Kurma Recipe

Baby Potatoes Fry

With the change in climate and temperature fluctuations I had sinus for the past two days and could not update the blog properly. Today I wanted to have something spicy and yet not a lot of hassle to prepare. If you have to meet this condition baby potatoes fry is a good choice, so I settled rasam and the potato fry. Regular potatoes can be used if you do not have baby potatoes, but baby potatoes some how is good, maybe because of the texture.

I followed the exact recipe as from “Vcuisine” with only one alteration, that too since I was lazy. I added the sesame seeds along with the grind mixture so that the work is easily done. Prick the potatoes with a toothpick, so the masala gets in. A fork can also be used but still a toothpick will be better.

Enjoy the baby potatoes fry with rice or roti.



Click here for Baby Potatoes Fry Recipe

Yellow Pumpkin Dal

Yellow pumpkin dal with rice and papad (microwaved – Remember I eat only one deep fried item per week. I wish I can resist deep fried food) was the sweet simple dinner I had for dinner today. I like yellow pumpkin for the sweetness it adds to the dish and it use it in avail or a stir fry so I get the sweet taste in the dish. In this recipe the pumpkin blends well with the masoor dal and is easy to cook on a weekday. Masoor dal was not common in were I grew up and after tasting it I feel I have missed it long enough. Now I compel my mom to give it a try once, I know she would like it. If you want more of a sambar taste then tamarind paste can be added while the pumpkin is cooking. Even a little bit of sambar powder can be added the end and simmered for few minutes but if you want to have it with roti or pulao as suggested by sudha, do not make any changes to the recipe. Enjoy the dal with rice or roti.



Click here Yellow Pumpkin Dal Recipe

Carrot Capsicum Masala

I had bought two capsicums with the idea I would make some fried rice during the week, but could not make it. Since with capsicum I usually end up with a fried rice or manchurians of some form, I wanted to try something different this time. Carrot capsicum masala was a name catchy enough to get my attention today. This was a quick recipe and the idea of adding a chole masala to a sidedish was a good idea. And the corn starch added thickens the gravy, but make sure to add the corn flour dissolved in water, do not add it directly the curry. If added directly to the curry, there it a definite possibility to form lumps. I added the capsicum a bit late after the carrots were half cooked, since the capsicums cook fast. Prepare the curry and enjoy it with roti, by garnishing with lemon juice and coriander leaves.


Click here for Carrot Capsicum Masala Recipe

Gobi Chole / Curried Cauliflower and Chickpeas

I have never heard of gobi chole until today, when I went through the blog of shaheen. I wanted to try this recipe for several reasons, first I know very less cauliflower dry recipes which are not deep fried. Second the exquisite photo with the book in the background, quite creative and third, it was from the Tyler Florence’s latest cookbook. As mentioned any readymade mix can also be used, so I just made my work easy by adding the Badshaah chole masala. If you are using canned chickpeas make sure you wash them properly, otherwise chickpeas can also be soaked overnight and pressure cooked. The gobi chole masala turned out great. Enjoy gobi chole with chappathi or roti.




Click here for Gobi Chole / Curried Cauliflower and Chickpeas recipe

Drumstick Leaves Stir Fry / Murunga Keerai Poriyal

I think this recipe is more familiar to people from Kerala or Tamil Nadu. Drumstick leaves are a rich source for potassium, iron and proteins. It is a natural ailment for diarrhea and heart diseases. This was my grandmother’s home made remedy for the first signs of diarrhea to anyone at the house. And this recipe would taste great especially when made by her in the earthen pots with the fresh drumstick leaves and the even more freshly grated coconut. I liked the post by karthi kannan of making a stir fry of these leaves, because he also inspires us to grow the leaves in-spite of the extreme climate in Pennsylvania. Again the only alteration I made was not to boil the leaves separately since I did not want to loose any of the nutrients. Instead added the water after seasoning and allowed it to cook in the pan. Enjoy the drumstick leaves curry with rice.




Click here for Drumstick Leaves Stir Fry recipe

Doi Machh / Doi maach / Fish in Yogurt Sauce

This is a bong delicacy, where fish is cooked in a yogurt sauce. I would have never thought of this unusual combination if not from this blog. I love seafood a lot, so wanted to cook something different and so gave this recipe a try. One useful tip while preparing fish is to marinate in lemon juice for five minutes and then wash the fish .By doing this any strong flavors from the fish is removed. Traditionally the recipe is prepared in mustard oil and in that case the oil should be heated till it is smoking hot and then cooled down. Then proceed with the usual cooking procedure. Enjoy the doi machh along with hot steamed rice.


Click here for Doi Machh / Doi maach / Fish in Yogurt Sauce recipe

Spicy Potato Fry

Do you ever get tired of potatoes? I don’t, even if I have it daily. There are so many ways potatoes can be cooked but the easy and the most popular way is to make a spicy fry out of this vegetable. It goes so well with curd rice, or rasam & rice, that I make it on Sundays when I am not in a mood to cook an elaborate meal.
The crispiness of potatoes, blended with the spices, the aroma of curry leaves and cumin seeds along with any variety of rice is a comfort food for me. Not much of an explanation needed for this recipe, but for me a look at the picture posted on sizzlingkitchen is good enough to motivate me to cook this wonderful recipe. The only alteration I made to the recipe was to add cumin powder instead of saunf or fennel powder. Enjoy the potato fry with curd rice or pulao.


Click here for Spicy Potato Fry Recipe

Instant Chole Masala

Last week there was a post on an elaborate preparation with dhaba style chole curry. Whenever I need a quick recipe to go with rotis, I usually go with tinned chickpeas and readymade mix(add water and microwave). It never tastes perfect, but it's just an easy fix for a quick meal. Since I do not like readymade mix much, I loved the idea of chole in jiffy by vidya. It was a no hassle recipe and had no chopping and grinding involved but I still could not convince myself completely not to add any of the usual ingredients, so I just added half a sliced onion. The recipe turned out so good, and it sure is true, there is no necessity for onions or tomatoes.



Click here for Instant Chole Masala Recipe

Tindora Fry / Dondakaya Fry

Tindora / Gherkin is a wonderful vegetable if known how to cook it properly. I never got introduced to the vegetable during childhood, but learnt the way to prepare this vegetable from few of my kannadiga friends. It can be prepared in a variety of ways and I love it the most when deep or shallow fried and seasoned with coconut and crushed garlic. I followed the recipe of prabha’s , but modified a bit at the last step. Instead of besan flour and rice flour I added paruppu podi or dal powder usually made at home. I also replaced coconut powder with grated coconut , since I did not have any coconut powder at home. Enjoy tindora fry with steamed rice and dal.



Click here for Tindora Fry / Dondakaya Fry Recipe

Brinjal, Spinach and Brussels Sprouts Curry

This is again a peculiar combination of brinjal, spinach and brussel sprouts. The nutty flavor of brussel sprouts gives a fantastic taste to the dish. You can skip the brinjals if you want, but the brinjals cooked in spinach, tamarind, brussel sprouts and onion masala tastes magnificent, you wouldn't want to. The brinjal cooked in this masala really tasted great.
Got to accept, I would have never thought of this combination, though I like to try to peculiar combinations. It tasted heavenly with parathas. Enjoy the brinjal, spinach and brussel sprouts curry with roti.



Click here for Brinjal, Spinach and Brussel Sprouts Curry Recipe

Spring Onions with Tomato

When I think about spring onions two dishes that strike my mind is fried rice or any form of manchurian with spring onions in it. A dish with just out of spring onions and tomatoes sounded different and creative as the name of the blog indicates. This is similar to the thakali/ tomato pachadi posted before, but you have to replaced onions with spring onions. How simple is this and why did I not think of this before. Believe me, try this recipe with spring onion and you would not regret. If you do not like the raw smell of the spring onions make sure it is fried enough. What is wonderful about this recipe is that, this recipe can by itself form a sidedish or can be used as a base to cook other vegetables in the sauce. Enjoy the spring onions curry with roti while it is hot.


Click here for Spring Onions with Tomato Recipe

Egg curry with Coconut / Egg Kurma / Egg Rassa

Egg kurma and chappathi are a favorite combination for a lot especially the ones from southern India. Gravies usually occupy the place of stir fry vegetables as a combination for rotis in South Indian meals. Many vegetarians still love egg and adding egg to the recipe makes a dish special, though the preparation would be simple. If you do not eat egg, it can be replaced with vegetables and usually potato and cauliflower is an excellent combination. Half a tomato can be chopped into small pieces and added along with the eggs. The boiled chunk of tomatoes along with the eggs and curry is a perfect combination. Enjoy egg kurma with rice or roti.





Click here for Egg curry with Coconut / Egg Kurma /Egg Rassa Recipe

Chole Masala / Kabuli Channa Curry

Chole masala is a classic vegetarian North Indian dish, originated in Punjab. Following this recipe gives you a dhaba style curry and tastes great. The reason for getting a scrumptious taste is because of the amla, the way tomatoes are cooked and the tomato ketchup added. Amla can also be replaced by tamarind. Don’t forget to remove the tamarind as done for amla. If the chole needs to be brown in colour, tea bags or tea leaves can be added to the water when pressure cooking them. If tea leaves are added water cannot be used for further use in the cooking, instead grind half a cup of boiled chick peas and add to the curry. Enjoy chole masala with puri or batura.


Click here for Chole Masala / Kabuli Channa Curry Recipe