Mysore Rasam

Hi All,

I am posting this recipe after and long gap of time from blogging. Firstly, i thank all my followers and non-members commenting my posts and cheering my spirit!!! Its very hard to post recipes with my 1 1/2yr old kid, no jokes! she keeps me on my toes.....Hence, i am in Happy Parenting stage....!!

I have come with a tasty, soupy menu: Mysore Rasam



Ingredients:

Tamarind- goose berry sized
Tomato- 1big size
Thoor dal - 1tbspn
Hing- 1 small piece (gum base)
Coconut scrape- 1tbspn
Red chillies- 3nos
Black pepper seeds- 8-10nos
Cumin seeds- 1tbspn
Oil
Mustard
Coriander leaves
Coconut scrapes (for seasoning)

How to make:
1) With a little oil heated up in a pan, saute the thoor dal, pepper, cumin, coconut scrapes, red chillies and hing until golden brown
2) Powder them in mixer and keep aside.
3) Extract tamarind pulp and heat it until the raw smell goes off.
4) Chop the tomatoes into pieces and put it in the tamarind extract and allow to boil nicely.
5)Add a pinch of turmeric powder and sugar in the boiling state.
6) Add necessary salt and then put the ground powder to it.
7) Let this mixture comes to a boiling point and before it bubbles remove from the fire.
8) Season with spluttered mustard, coriander leaves, and sauteed coconut scrapes.

Mysore Rasam is ready!

Gobi Manchurian (DRY)

Last sunday i made Gobi Manchurian as a side dish for Fried rice. It came out very nice and hence sharing with you all...

Ingredients
Cauliflower florets- 1cup
Corn flour- 2tbsp
Ginger Garlic paste- 1 spoon
Tomato ketchup- 1tbsp
Dark Soy sauce- 1tbspn
Chopped onion - 1 big
Chopped ginger and garlic- 1 small cup
Ajinomoto (if preferred)- a small pinch
Spring onions - 2 bunches of leaflets
Green chillies - 3nos
Lime juice- 1tspn
Oil for frying
Salt

How to make:
1) Wash and cut cauliflower into florets and immerse them in boiling water for few minutes.
2) Prepare a batter with corn flour, ginger garlic paste, a pinch of salt, 1 spn lime juice.
3) Drain water from cauliflower and let it cool down.
4) Heat oil in a pan for deep frying and dip the florets into the batter and fry until golden brown
5) Strain the excess oil and meanwhile prepare the sauces. Heat 2 tbspn of oil in a pan and saute the onions, green chillies until half done then add chopped ginger and garlic. Let them be little crispy.
6)To that add tomato sauce and dark soy sauce, and add the fried fritters to the pan.
7) Spinkle some MSG (Ajinomoto), salt to taste and saute them well.
8) As a finishing touch, garnish with spring onions.

Serve hot with Fried Rice, Pulav etc.,

Venpongal

Venpongal !!
A popular breakfast dish of Tamilnadu. I am addicted to the taste of this pongal which was given as prasadams in many Perumal Temples during the month of Margazhi. Its divine to have his Hot, with an apt accompaniment, say, Ghotsu or Gojju. I tried many combination and finally got a successful outcome which tastes just like 'kovil pongal'. Hence I share with you all....

Ingredients:

Raw ponni rice- 1cup
Moong dal or Payatham paruppu- 1 fist full
Hing- a pinch
Peppercorns- 1 spoon
Jeera or Cumin- 2 tbsp
Salt
Ghee
Cashews
Curry leaves

How to make:
1) Wash rice and dal together.
2) Crush little bit of pepper and cumins coarsely.
3) Add 3 cups of water to 1 cup of rice and dal together.
4) In that, add ground powder, hing salt
5) Pressure cook for an extra time than cooking the rice.
6) After its done, mash well.
7) Heat ghee in a pan, fry cahews till golden brown and add the remaining pepper, cumin seeds.
8) Add curry leaves and mix well.

Tasty, Hot, lip smacking Pongal is ready for breakfast !!

Dry fruits Pilaf

This dish was pending in my list and one fine day i tried this and came out very nice!!
This pilaf i followed the Arabian style of cooking rice. In middle east i know people prefer rich food even for everyday menu. The blend of spices and ingrdients is very different from Indian cuisine. I tried this rice recipe and sharing this with you all.

Ingredients:
Basmati rice- 1cup
Dry fruits- 1 cup (mixture of Almonds, Raisins, Cashews, Pistachios)
Potatoes- 2 Sliced round
Saffron- 1 pinch
Ghee- 2tbspn
Salt

How to make:
1) Wash and cook basmati rice outside, in a pan.
2) Remove it once its half done, (Do not cook fully). Drain water and wash in cold running water.
3) Soak the saffron in water, or if u prefer can be soaked in rose water. (Not the coloured rose water)
4) In a pan, heat ghee and sautee the dry fruit till golden brown.
5) Peel a raw potato and cut it into round pieces.
6) In the same pan heat ghee and spread the potatoes as a bottom layer and sprinkle some salt.
7) Then put one layer of the rice covering well the potatoes, add salt to taste.
8) Then spread the nuts. Likewise, do layers of all these alternatively and pour a the saffron soaked water.
9) Cover and Dum these for 5mins. Check for rice if its done.
10) Take the rice portion seperately and mix well.
11) Serve the potatoes seperately.
12) A colourful, rich, tasty Pilaf is ready for serving !!

Carrot Thogaiyal

This one i tried with carrots because i had only that veg in stock. I had done vathakuzhambu and my husband wanted a thogaiyal. A this came up as an accompaniment.

Ingredients:
Carrots- diced, 1 cup
Urad dal- 2 tbspn
Redchillies- 4nos
Hing- a pinch
Coconut scrapes- 3tbspn

How to make:
1) In a pan heat 2 tbsp oil, and saute carrots well until the become tender.
2) To the same oil add urad dal and fry till its become golden brown.
3) Then add redchillies and then at last saute the coconut scrapes.
4) Allow them to cool and then grind them with little bit of hing, salt.

Here goes a simple and delicious thogaiyal !!

Coriander Rice- Kothamalli Sadam

This is one easy variety rice i prefer to make when lot of coriander is available. Nice menu to treat guests too...

Ingredients:
1) Coriander leaves- 1bunch
2) Basmati rice- 2cups
3) Green peas- 1/2 cup
4) Green chillies- 3nos
5) Ginger Garlic paste- 1tbsp
6) Potato-1nos
7) Onion- 1 big size
8) Salt to taste

How to make:
1) Pressure cook the rice until its half done.
2) Grind the coriander leaves, green chillies together.
3) Add oil to a pan and saute the ginger garlic paste, shredded onions and the ground paste until its all done.
4) Add boiled potatoes and green peas with this sauteed mixture and allow it to cook well.
5)Finally add rice, salt and mix well. Cover and cook until the rice and the masalas blend with each other.
6) Serve with onion raita!