I learnt this tomato chutney from my friend Tharunya's mum. She is an excellent cook and I relished almost everything she prepared. I spent close to 15 days during my college exam days at Tharu's home and had an awesome appetite. Tomato chutney is one of favourites that she prepared that I have shared here...Enjoy!
Ingredients
Tomato (medium) - 3 (chopped lengthwise)
Onion (medium) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Garlic - 3 pods
Curry leaves - 10
Tamarind extract - 1 Tablespoon
Urud dahl - 1 Tablespoon
Channa dahl/Yellow split peas - 1 Tablespoon
Dry Red chilli - 2
Salt - to tast
Oil - 1/2 Tablespoon
For Tempering
Oil - 1/2 Tablespoon
Mustard seeds - 1/2 Teaspoon
Urud dahl - 1/2 Tablespoon
Channa dahl/Yellow split peas - 1/2 Tablespoon
Curry leaves - 10
Method
1. Heat oil in a pan and and add the urud and channa dahl and roast until they become golden yellow.
2. Now add the onion, tomato, garlic, tamarind extract, red chilli and salt and sauté until they are cooked completely. Allow them to cool and grind them into a fine or coarse paste.
3. Heat oil in a pan and allow the mustard sees to splutter. Then add the curry leaves followed by urud dahl and channa dahl and roast until they become golden brown in colour.
4. Now pour the tempered mix along with the oil on top of the chutney and give a mix.
Tomato chutney is ready to be served with idli and dosa.
Note
* Half a cup of grated coconut can be used and ground along with this chutney if you need more quantity.
Coconut chutney is one of the first and foremost breakfast recipe at any south Indian home or restaurant. I have shared the recipe of this common chutney. Enjoy!
Ingredients
To Grind
Coconut - 1 cup (grated)
Fried yellow split peas/pottukadalai - 3 Tablespoon
Green chilli - 3
Ginger - 1/2 inch
Salt - to taste
For Tempering
Oil - 1/2 Tablespoon
Mustard seeds - 1/4 Tablespoon
Urud dahl - 1/4 Tablespoon
Channa dahl/yellow split peas - 1/4 Tablespoon
Curry leaves - 10
Method
1. Grind all the ingredients mentioned under the to grind header into a fine paste with little water.
2. Heat oil in a pan and allow the mustard sees to splutter. Then add the curry leaves followed by urud dahl and channa dahl and roast until they become golden brown in colour.
3. Now pour the tempered mix along with the oil on top of the chutney and give a mix.
Coconut chutney is ready to be served.
Note
* Dry dessicated coconut or frozen coconut can also be used.
Peanuts/Ground nuts always remind me of my childhood days which was mostly spent at my grandmother's place. During the ground nut harvest season, we spent the whole day at our farm house with our grandparents, collecting all the harvested peanuts in gunny bags and loading them in the trucks. The fresh smell of the harvested peanuts would be all over. We would come back home late in the evening and boil the peanuts with salt and have them sitting at the open front area of our home. My grandmother would make chutney out of the dried nuts which was enjoyed by all of us. Here I have shared my grandmother's recipe for this chutney. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Peanuts/Ground nuts - 1 cup (de-shelled)
Coconut - 1/4 cup (optional)
oil - 1/4 Tablespoon
Onion (medium) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Garlic - 2 pods
Tomato (medium) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Tamarind juice - 1 Teaspoon
Salt - to taste
For Dry Roast
Pepper corns - 5
Cumin seeds - 1 Teaspoon
Coriander seeds - 1 Tablespoon
Dry Red chilli - 2
Curry leaves - 15
Method
1. Dry roast peanuts and all the items mentioned under the dry roast header one by one in a medium hot pan and allow them to cool.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add the onion, garlic and tomato and sauté until they are cooked (approx. 5 mins) and allow to cool.
3. Now grind the dry roasted items and the onion mixture along with coconut, salt and tamarind juice into a paste.
Peanut chutney is ready to be served with rice, dosa or idli.
Note
* If you need a longer shelf life do not add coconut.
Chinese chicken is yet another recipe which I learnt from Sushma and it was passed on to her by her mother who is an awesome cook. This chicken will be hot and sweet and goes well with pulav. This dish is basically a desi version of the authentical Chinese recipe. I have already passed on this recipe to my cousins and in-laws who simply loved it. Credentials to Sushma! Hope you love it too... Enjoy!
Ingredients
Chicken - 1 kg
Oil - 1 Tablespoon
Onion (medium) - 2 (chopped)
Ginger garlic paste - 1 Tablespoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 Teaspoon
Balsamic vinegar - 50 ml (optional)
Red chilli - 4
Green chilli - 5
Scallion/Spring onions - 2 (chopped)
Capsicum - 1/2 cup (diced)
Salt - to taste
Sauces
Soya sauce - 1 1/2 Tablespoon
Red chilli sauce - 1/2 Tablespoon (optional)
Tomato sauce - 2 Tablespoon
Method
1. Heat oil in a pan and add the onions and sauté until they are completely cooked and mashed.
2. Add the ginger garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes off.
3. Now add the chicken along with turmeric powder and salt and stir until the chicken start to ooze out water.
4. Then add the balsamic vinegar, give a quick stir, reduce the heat and slow cook the chicken for 45 minutes with a lid on top. Stir the chicken occasionally.
5. Meantime grind the red and green chillies into a fine paste and add it to the chicken in between, say after 20 minutes of its cooking.
6. After 45 minutes, open the lid, turn the heat to high and allow the stock to reduce by constant stirring.
7. Once the stock is reduced, add the sauces, scallions and capsicum and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, so that each chicken piece is coated well with the sauces. Turn the heat off.
Chinese chicken is ready to be served.
Note
* Balsamic vinegar is optional but it lends an amazing taste to the dish.
* Sauces can be adjusted according to your taste.
* Cooking the chicken in medium or low heat will make it soft, juicy and tender.
* If you need more gravy then do not allow the stock to completely dry.
I learnt this pulav dish from my friend Sushma and we had it along with chinese chicken and raitha on almost all Sundays during our stay at Chennai. We normally took turns to cook in our apartment. I cooked during the week days and Sushma and Maha cooked during the week ends. We had awesome fun at our apartment... cooking, shopping, watching movies together... gosh! it was whole lot of fun...Enjoy the recipe!
Ingredients
Rice - 2 cups
Water - 3 1/4 cups
Oil - 1 Tablespoon
Butter - 1 Tablespoon
Frozen or fresh Peas - 1 1/2 cup
Mint Leaves - 1 cup
Fresh coriander leaves - 1/2 cup
Onion (big) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Green chilli - 3 (split lengthwise)
Ginger garlic paste - 1 1/2 Tablespoon
Lemon juice - 1 Tablespoon
Cloves - 5
Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
Bay leaves - 2
Fennel seeds - 1/2 Teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 Teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Method
1. Heat oil in a pressure pan and fry the cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, fennel seeds and cumin seeds for 30 seconds.
2. Add the green chillies and onions and sauté for 6 minutes. Then add the ginger garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes off.
3. Now add the mint and coriander leaves and cook until the aroma of the mint shows up and then add the peas and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Now add the washed rice and butter, stir well so that the butter is melted and each rice is coated well with it.
5. Add the salt and water,cover the pressure pan with its lid, put the weight on top and cook on high heat until you hear 2 whistles. (approximately 7 to 8 minutes)
6. Turn off the heat and when the pressure is completely released, open the pan and drizzle the lemon juice all over and give a good stir so that all the ingredients are evenly mixed.
Peas pulav is ready to be served.
Note
* Basmati rice or any long grained rice can be used.
* Vegetables like carrot, beans and cauliflower can also be added with peas.
* Once the pressure is completely released after cooking the rice, do not have the lid on for a very long time else the rice will be over cooked and become mushy.
* This pulav can also be prepared in a normal thick bottomed, deep pan. Just follow the same procedures and allow the water to dry completely with a lid on the pan. Do not stir constantly when the rice is cooking which will break the rice.
Aloo dum is one of the famous north indian dishes which I recently tried with my own twist. It had a rich creamy texture and the baby potatoes looked beautiful in the cream. It went very well with roti. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Baby potatoes - 10
Oil - 1 Tablespoon
Turmeric powder - 1/4 Teaspoon
Red chilli powder - 1/2 Teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 Teaspoon
Garam masala - 1/4 Teaspoon
Fresh coriander leaves - to garnish
Water - 1 cup
Salt - to taste
To grind
Onion (big) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Tomato (big) - 1 (chopped lengthwise)
Garlic - 3
Ginger - 1/2 inch
Cashew nuts - 10
Fennel seeds - 1/2 Teaspoon
Method
1. Sauté all the items mentioned under the to grind header with 1/2 tablespoon of oil for 5 minutes and allow them to cool. Grind them into a fine paste.
2. Clean and wash the baby potatoes and boil them completely with water for 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Heat rest of the oil in a pan and add the ground paste to it along with 1cup of water, salt, turmeric, coriander and chilli powder and cook for 10 minutes.
4. Now add the boiled baby potatoes and the garam masala and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
Aloo dum is ready to be served.
Note
* If you do not have baby potatoes any potato variety can be used. Peel the skin and cut them into bite sized chunks.
I studied in a convent which was run by Malayali nuns. Buttermilk curry was served on every Wednesday afternoon for lunch along with fried fish. The curry used to be in a nice yellow colour with big chunks of ash gourd in it. The rice, buttermilk curry and fried fish combo was unbeatable and I also liked it with lemon pickle. After my school days I never got to taste this curry for the next six years. During my last year of working days in Chennai, I stayed in a hostel which was again run by a Malayali couple who prepared excellent version of this curry. This curry can be cooked with veggies like okra, raw banana, ash gourd and cucumber. I have shared my version of the curry, Enjoy!
Ingredients
Yoghurt - 1 cup
Okra/bindhi/Lady's finger - 1 cup (cut into roundels)
Onion(medium) - 1 (chopped)
Red chillies - 3
Curry leaves - 15
Mustard seeds - 1/2 Teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 Teaspoon
Oil - 1 Tablespoon
Salt - to taste
To grind
Red Lentil/yellow lentil/Toor Dahl - 1 Tablespoon
Channa dal/yellow split peas - 1 Tablespoon
Coconut - 1/4 cup (grated)
Green chilli - 2
Cumin seeds - 1 Teaspoon
Garlic - 2 pods
Method
1. Soak toor and channa dal in 1/2 a cup of water for 30 minutes and grind it into a fine paste along with the items mentioned under the to grind header.
2. Take a big bowl and mix the yoghurt with 2 cups of water along with turmeric powder, salt and the ground paste. Mix properly without any lumps and the buttermilk should be neither thick nor thin.
3. Now heat 1/2 tablespoon of oil in a pan and fry the okra in medium heat until the mucilage of the okra is completely dried and the okra should be crunchy. Transfer them to a plate.
4. Heat the rest oil in the same pan and allow the mustard seeds to splutter. Then add the curry leaves and red chillies and fry for 15 seconds.
5. Now add the onion and sauté until its cooked and then add the okra and cook for another 5 minutes.
6. Add the yoghurt mix to the pan and bring it to a boil. This should not take more than 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
Butter milk curry is ready to be served.
Note
* Different vegetables like raw banana, cucumber and ash gourd can be used.
