Author: sarapaka

CURRY LEAVES CHUTNEY POWDER

| sarapaka
Lack of time, lazy to cook….here it is, a wholesome recipe that comes in handy just for you when in a hurry…a spicy hero that sits smart by the side of idlis, dosas and steaming hot rice. And listen, don’t hesitate to sandwich this spread between slices of bread!

Curry leaf is a rich herb with excellent nutritional value and a key ingredient in countless varieties of dishes. Yet, more often than not, it is discarded while eating. This spice powder can therefore be sneaked into most types of dishes….gives that added “zing” making them delicious, nutritious and full of flavour.

 

Dish type: Spice powderCurry Leaves Chutney Powder

Preparation time: 5 min

Roasting time: 10 min

Cooling time: 15 min

Quantity: 100 gms

Ingredients

Curry leaves                       1 big bunch (washed and dried indoors)

Black gram                          50 gms

Pepper corns                     10 gms

Jeera                                     10 gms

Red chillies                          2 nos.

Tamarind                             A small piece (marble size)

Dry coconut grated         200 gms

Salt taste                             1 tsp approx.

Directions

Roast all the above ingredients separately over low flame in a pan. After each ingredient is roasted keep transferring to a plate. Let them cool thoroughly at room temparature.

Dhals have to be roasted till they turn light brown.

A drop of oil can be used for roasting red chilies only.

Dry coconut can be roasted last. When you are done with roasting all other ingredients, turn off the flame. Heat that still remains in the pan after switching off the flame is enough to roast dry coconut.

Powder them coarsely. Store in an absolutely dry air tight container.

Also view recipes of many other spice powders in this blog: Bisi Bele Bath Powder, Dry Chutney Powder (Type 1), Dry Chutney Powder (Type 2), Gojju Powder, Sambar Powder, Vangi an Bath Powder

Note:

Curry leaves have to be washed and dried thoroughly (keeping it indoors) before roasting them.

Seasoning for this powder is optional.

Curry Leaves Chutney Powder is especially good for health during winter season.

While preparing any masala powder, it is always advisable to dry fry ingredients separately due to variance in size, thickness and texture of ingredients.

Healthy Tip:

Dry fry washed and dried (indoors) curry leaves with jeera seeds, powder it and have a tsp of this powder first thing in the morning and/or just before going to bed. This helps regulate bowel function.

Please note that this tip is not a medical prescription from us but mere sharing of a leaf from our life experiences!

KHARA KOOTU

| sarapaka
You just can’t miss cooking this Kootu! A veritable vegetable medley, this South Karnataka speciality is the spiced up version of sambar. Kootu befriends almost all vegetables, pulses, cereals, grains etc. Together, they make a nutritious, sumptuous, delicious dish that is served even during special occasions.

Dish Type:  South Indian Vegetable Stew                                          Khara Kootu 1

Preparation Time:  20 min

Cooking time:  30 min

Serves:  4 persons

Ingredients

For pressure cooking:

Tur dhal                       50 gms

Water                          250 ml

Turmeric powder        A pinch

Ghee                            A drop

Groundnut                   50 gms (raw variety)

Beans                          50 gms

Cluster Beans              50 gms.

Field Beans                  50 gms.

Cabbage                      50 gms.

Peas                             50 gms.

Potato                          1 no. (medium size)

Sweet Potato               1 no. (medium size)

Knol Khol                     1 no. (medium size)

Carrot                          1 no. (medium size)

Onion                          2 nos. (medium size)

While  boiling

Salt to taste                 3 ½ tsps approx. (3 tsps at the start of boiling + ½ tsp when you add ground masala)

Water                          500 ml

For grinding: (to prepare Kootu Powder)

Black gram dhal                      1 tsp

Bengal gram dhal                   3/4th tsp

Cumin seeds                            ½ tsp

Pepper corns                           ½ tsp

Khus Khus                                1 tsp

Red chillies                              4 nos.

Dry coconut                             100 gms

For seasoning:

Ghee                            1 tsp

Mustard seeds                        ½ tsp

Red chillies                  2 nos.

Curry leaves                1 sprig

Asafoetida                   A pinch

For garnishing

Coriander leaves

Directions

Wash dhal with water, drain and keep aside.

Wash all vegetables, curry leaves and coriander leaves in salt water. Drain and keep aside.

Cook dhal in a pressure cooker along with water, turmeric powder and a dash of ghee.

While dhal is getting cooked….

Peel the skin of Knol khol, carrot, sweet potato and onions. Remove the ends of beans. Chop potato, knol khol, carrot, cabbage and onions into cubes and beans into 1” long pieces.

When tur dhal splits, add the chopped vegetables. Also add salt. Switch off the flame when you hear 1 whistle from the pressure cooker. Let it cool.

While dhal and vegetables are being cooked….

You can do dry frying. For this, first, grate the dry coconut.

Heat a medium sized kadai. Dry fry the grated dry coconut. Transfer it to a plate. Let it cool.

Now start dry frying the rest of the ingredients listed under “For grinding” one after another separately and keep transferring each of them to a plate. Let them cool thoroughly.

Grind the dry fried ingredients (except dry coconut). Now add dry coconut and grind to a fine powder. Mix this powder in a bowl of water uniformly . Add this to the cooked dhal and vegetables. Also add ½ tsp of salt and tamarind paste. Boil for about 5 to 10 min. When you get the fragrant flavour of kootu, its the right time to get ready for seasoning.

For this, heat ghee in a small skillet. Put mustard seeds. When they crackle put broken red chillies, curry leaves and switch off the flame. Add asafoetida. Immediately pour it on to the boiling kootu.

Garnish it with thoroughly washed and chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Khara Kootu is now ready.

Also view in this blog recipes for “Beetroot Sambar“, “Gherkins Sambar“, “Onion Tomato Sambar“, “Brinjal Sambar” and “Ridge Gourd Huli Thovve”

Note:

Onions can also be fried separately and then added to other vegetables and dhal towards the end of boiling.

Other names for a few ingredients are listed below:

Tur dhal: Also known as pigeon pea

Groundnut: Also known as peanut

Knol Khol: Also known as Navala kosu, Navalkol, Alkul, Nookul, Ganth Gobi, Kohlrabi

Cabbage: Also known as Patta Gobhi, Paat Gobhi, Muttai kosu, Ele kosu, kobi, band gobi

Field Beans: Also known as Flat Beans, Broad Beans, Indian Beans, Hyacinth Beans, Avareka. This is mostly available in winter season from October to January

DRY CHUTNEY POWDER (TYPE 2)

| sarapaka
Marathon morning sessions driving you mad? Relax….here comes a recipe to your rescue! Can be prepared in advance and stored for long. Gives you comfort and generously offers company to idlis, dosas, bread, hot steamed rice when they long for one. Combine it with plain yogurt and serve with crispy South Indian snacks as a dip!

Just a minute….don’t miss reading a tip or two that we share at the tail end of this recipe.

 

Dish type: Spice powder        Dry Chutney Powder (Type 2)2014-12-20 17.59.05

Preparation time: 5 min

Roasting time: 10 min

Quantity: 1000 gms (approx.)

Ingredients

Red chillies                  100 gms (Byadagi variety)

Red chillies                  100 gms (Guntur variety)

Black gram                  250 gms

Bengal gram               250 gms

Tamarind                    25 gms

Crystal salt                  1 tbsp

Groundnuts                 50 gms

Roasted gram             50 gms

Curry leaves                1 bunch

Dry coconut grated     250 gms

Asafoetida                   5 gms

Jaggery                        1 tsp (optional and if used, no need to roast)

Directions

Before you begin…

Wash curry leaves in salt water and dry them thoroughly (keeping it indoors) before roasting them.

Make sure your hands, all ingredients, plates, spoons, kadai, container for storing etc. are all absolutely dry all through the process right from preparation till storage of the powder.

Grate dry coconut and keep it aside.

Measure and keep all ingredients required for roasting, ready in different plates.

Now you are ready to start roasting….

Roast all the above ingredients separately (in the same order listed under ingredients) over low flame in a pan.

After each ingredient is roasted keep transferring to respective plates.

Let them cool thoroughly at room temparature.

Dhals have to be roasted till they turn light brown.

Dry coconut can be roasted last. When you are done with roasting all other ingredients, turn off the flame. Heat that remains in the pan after switching off the flame is enough to roast dry coconut.

Grind the ingredients in a mixie in the following order: Dry chillies, bengal gram, black gram, groundnuts, tamarind, salt, curry leaves, roasted gram, dry coconut, asafoetida, jaggery. Powder them neither too coarse nor too fine. Store it in an absolutely dry air tight container.

Also view “Dry Chutney Powder (Type 1)” in this blog

Note:

While preparing any masala powder, it is always advisable to dry fry ingredients separately due to variance in size, thickness and texture of ingredients. The time and temperature required for each ingredient also varies.

Roasting tips:

Roast byadegi (or Kashmiri) variety of red chillies for approx. 2 to 3 min. These chillies don’t change colour easily. Hence, as soon as you smell the roasted flavour of chillies, remove them from the pan. Roasting Guntur variety of red chillies takes even lesser time as they are not wrinkled like the former. However, the exact time for roasting depends on the amount and type of heat (depends on gas burner, electric stove or microwave). Best method to judge the roasting time for chillies is by sensing the smell.

HASI GOJJU (Cucumber and Onion)

| sarapaka

Healthy, crunchy, cool, light to dark green colour thin skin, filled with fibre , a range of minerals, moisture filled flesh, rich in vitamins and folic acid, slight sweet taste, soothingly super food for overall health…catch hold of this Cool Cucumber…team it with this verily versatile veggie Onions…get into action right away and see the magic that unfolds!

Dish Type: South Indian Side Dish (gravy)        Cucumber Onion Hasi Gojju copy     

Preparation Time: 10 min

Cooking time: 10 min

Serves: 5 persons

Ingredients

Onion                          2 nos.

Cucumber                   2 nos.

Salt to taste                 ½ tsp approx.

For grinding

Raw grated coconut    ½ of a coconut

Red chillies                  5 to 6 nos.

Coriander seeds          1 tsp

Mustard seeds                        ¼ tsp

Asafoetida                   A pinch

For seasoning:

Oil                               1 tsp

Mustard seeds             1 tsp

Curry leaves                1 small sprig

Asafoetida                   A pinch

Directions Chop onions into fine pieces after peeling the skin. Transfer them to a bowl. Wash cucumber, curry leaves and coriander leaves in salt water. Transfer them to a colander to drain the water. Chop cucumber into fine pieces along with the skin. Transfer to the bowl. Grind all ingredients listed under “For grinding”. Transfer the ground mixture also into the bowl. Add salt. Mix them thoroughly. Now season it. For this, Heat oil in a small skillet. Add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add curry leaves. Switch off the flame. Add asafoetida and immediately pour on to the bowl. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves. Cucumber Onion Hasi Gojju is now ready. Note: “Hasi” is a kannada word which means “raw”

Tiny tip for “No Tears” with onions Chill the onions for 15 to 30 min. before cutting. This mitigates the activity of the enzyme that is responsible for the tears, which is produced when the ruptured cells of onions are exposed to air.

LIME JUICE GOJJU

| sarapaka
Yup…feeling lost without vegetables at home? Yet you wish to dole out a dish in a jiffy.

Smile if you can spot some limes and lo! here it is…instant “Solution” to your problem!

Sweet n sour, spicy, zesty, gorgeous looking Lime Juice Gojju is utterly simple to make, pleasantly piquant to the palate and hoarded with benefits that heal your health in more ways than one.

This cool cuisine is a classic Karnataka delicacy, relished along with hot steamed rice, idlis, dosas, khara pongal etc. Bonds well with bread too! Bow to this beauty…..

 

Dish Type: South Indian side dish (gravy)       Lime Juice gojju 2014-12-11 12.08.29

Preparation Time: 10 min

Cooking time: 10 min

Serves: 5 persons

Ingredients

Lime                4 nos.

Jaggery            50 gms

Gojju powder  4 tsps

Water              500 ml

Salt to taste     2 tsps approx.

For seasoning:

Oil                               1 tsp

Mustard seeds                        1 tsp

Red chillies                  2 nos.

Curry leaves                1 small sprig

Asafoetida                   A pinch

Directions

Wash lime in water. Drain the water. Cut each lime into half. Extract juice from them. Keep it aside in a bowl.

(Do not throw away the lime peels. Instead slice them into pieces. Use them for making “5 Tastes Lime Pickle”)

Take a small bowl. Put gojju powder in it. Keep adding small quantities of water and mix them thoroughly till you get a slightly dilute yet flowing consistency. Add salt and jaggery to this mixture.

Boil it in a vessel. When the bubbles start appearing, switch off the flame. Add lime juice.

Now you can season it.

Heat oil in a small skillet. Put mustard seeds. When they crackle, add red chillies and curry leaves. Switch off the flame. Add asafoetida and immediately pour it on to the gojju.

Lime Juice Gojju is now ready.

Health Tip:

Place whole lemon in the freezer overnight. Grate and use it for meal next day. This enhances the taste of food, helps one live longer and healthier. Consuming a whole lemon is far more enriching than just the juice.

5 TASTES LIME PICKLE

| sarapaka
Finding cooking boring? Step out of the stereotype….step in straight into this recipe. Delicious delicacy created just for you! Before you begin, whisper for your ears only – “No cooking, no oil”.Pickle with a difference….lime, the prime ingredient here, hogs the limelight. But the thrill lies in experiencing not one or two, but 5 different tastes. While lime rinds render the sour and bitter taste, salt making its statement in style, jaggery  melting itself gracefully, leaving no choice but to call it “Oh so sweet” and red chillies spice up to make it savory, together creating a mouth melting medley, calling themselves “Hum Paanch Pickle”!

 

Dish Type: South Indian Side dish      2014-12-10 13.39.24

Preparation Time: 10 min

Marinating time: 60 min

Grinding time: 5 min

Yield: 100 gms

Ingredients

Lime                8 nos.

Red Chillies     16 nos.

Jaggery            50 gms

Turmeric         A pinch

Salt to taste     1 tsp approx.

Directions

Cut each lime into half. Squeeze out the juice and store it separately. Use it for making “Lime Juice Gojju”.

Slice lime rinds into pieces. Keep them in a bowl. Add salt, jaggery and turmeric powder into this bowl. Mix them thoroughly, cover with a lid. Let it marinate for atleast an hour.

Fry red chillies in a kadai with just a drop of oil. Let it cool.

While lime rind mix is marinating, you can make “Lime Juice Gojju”.

After an hour or so, grind the lime rind mix and red chillies coarsely. Now grind it further to desired consistency. (Consistency need not be too fine or smooth).

Check the taste and adjust quantities of salt, jaggery and chili powder if required.

Transfer the contents to an air tight container. Store it in fridge for longer shelf life.

5-Tastes Lime Pickle is now ready for use.

Note:

Lime juice has not been used in this preparation. However, small quantity of lime juice may be added if wet texture is preferred.

This pickle can be used along with hot steaming rice, bread, idli, dosa and chapathis.

Clean tip:

Throw some citrus peels into the garbage bin regularly to deodorize and keep it smelling fresh.

 

ONION TOMATO SAMBAR

| sarapaka
It’s worth taking time off to prepare this simple, spicy mildly sweet sambar recipe, a prime South Indian staple dish that is served with idli, dosa, vada and hot rice too! Idli Sambar and Vada Sambar are “the most called for combination” for breakfast and evening snacks while Sambar when served with rice slots itself in the category of lunch recipe.

Dish Type:  South Indian Vegetable Stew Onion Tomato Sambar

Preparation Time:  30 min

Cooking time:  60 min

Yield: 1.5 litres  (serves 5 persons approx.)

Ingredients

For cooking:

Tur dhal                       100 gms

Water                          1½  litres ( ½  litre to cook dhal + 1 litre after cooking i.e., at boiling stage)

Turmeric powder        A pinch

Tomato                        ¼ kg (4 nos. medium size)

Curry leaves                2 sprigs

Ghee                            A drop

Tamarind paste           2 tsps (add this after dhal is cooked)

For grinding:

Dry coconut (dry fried)           60 gms

Sambar powder                      50 gms (2 tbsps heapful)

(Refer Sambar Powder recipe to prepare the powder)

For seasoning and sautéing:

Oil / Ghee                   1 tsp (Coconut oil or any other cooking oil)

Mustard seeds            ½ tsp

Curry leaves    1 sprig

Onions             2 nos. (regular variety)

Sambar onion  ½ kg (minimum qty required)

Salt to taste     {approx. 1 tsp (while sautéing onions) and 1 tbsp heapful while boiling fried onions with cooked dhal}

For garnishing

Coriander leaves

Directions

Wash dhal, tomatoes and curry leaves separately in water. Drain and keep aside.

Boil them in pressure cooker along with turmeric powder, ½ litre of water and a drop of ghee.

While dhal is getting cooked….

Wash sambar onions thoroughly in water. Peel the skin and keep aside.

Peel the skin of regular onions, chop them (need not be fine) and keep aside.

Heat a medium sized kadai. Dry fry the grated dry coconut. Transfer the coconut to a plate. Let it cool. Then grind it along with sambar powder and keep aside.

Now the seasoning and sautéing…..

For this, heat oil/ghee in the same kadai. Put mustard seeds. When they crackle put curry leaves and chopped onions (these onions help to bind the sambar well). Saute for 5 min. While sautéing, add salt and a pinch of turmeric. This helps onions to cook faster. Now add sambar onions and continue sautéing till they turn transparent.

By now, the contents in the pressure cooker would have cooked well. When the pressure subsides and the cooker cools, open the lid. Peel the skin of tomatoes and mash the tomatoes. Mash dhal also. Let the contents boil. To this, add the fried onions and continue boiling.

While it is boiling….

Mix the ground sambar powder with 100 ml of water in a bowl. Add this to the boiling sambar. Also add salt and tamarind paste. Continue boiling for few more min. Switch off the stove.

Did you hear your neighbour expressing envy about the awesome aroma of this spicy sambar? That’s good!…Go, garnish it with thoroughly washed and chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Ye…. Onion Tomato Sambar is now ready.

Note:

You can adjust the quantity of tamarind paste depending on the taste of tomatoes.

Also view “Beetroot Sambar”, “Eggplant (Brinjal) Sambar”, “Gherkins Sambar” and “Ridge Gourd Huli Thovve”

You can’t afford to forget viewing this….”Sambar Powder”…!

SAMBAR POWDER

| sarapaka
This delightfully aromatic spice powder is the basic ingredient used in making “Sambar” a popular vegetable and/or lentil based gravy. Sambar powder, like many other spice powders can be prepared in advance and stored in an tight container…comes in handy when required! Our take: Prepare the required quantity fresh when needed!!

 

Dish type: Spice Powder2014-12-05 16.25.58

Preparation time: 5 min

Roasting time: 15 min

Yield: 500 gms

Ingredients

Bengal gram dhal       50 gms

Black gram                  40 gms

Coriander                    100 gms

Jeera                           20 gms

Methi seeds                15 gms

Red chillies                  200 gms

Cinnamon                    1” piece

Kapok bud                   1 no. (also known as Marathi Moggu in Kannada)

Dry grated coconut     125 gms or 6 tbsps (i.e., 1/2 of a dry coconut)

Directions

Dry fry each of the ingredients separately in a kadai on low flame till they change colour.  Ensure they are not over roasted since they should not turn black in colour.

Transfer each of them to a plate after dry frying. Allow them to cool well.

Grind them to a fine powder. For better shelf life store it in a completely dry air tight container.

Red chillies alone can be fried using just a drop of oil.

To make 1 litre of sambar, approx. 2 tbsps of sambar powder is required.

For longer shelf life of any spice powder it is advisable not to include dry coconut while making powder. Instead it is better to grind dry fried dry grated coconut with just the required quantity of spice powder used while preparing the dish.

Alternatively raw grated coconut can be used for grinding with this powder while making sambar.

1 fistful of red chillies = approx. 20 nos. = approx. 50 gms

 

View “Onion Tomato Sambar” recipe to see how this powder is used.

Also view other spice powders “Bisi Bele Bath Powder”, “Vangi Bath Powder”, “Gojju Powder” and “Dry Chutney Powder”

CARROT (GAJAR) CHUTNEY

| sarapaka
Pleasant looking, light orange tinted, healthy, flavoury chutney! Tempting to try n taste? Don’t wait…just go ahead and make it. Gives cool company to hot steamed rice, crispy dosas, soft idlis and rotis. Spread for sandwich…why not? Carrot, an excellent source of beta-carotene, high on nutrition, low on cholesterol thanks to its fibres, fills your tummy even though you don’t eat too many.

Dish Type:  Side Dish

Preparation Time:  10 min

Cooking time:  10 min

Serves:  4 persons

Ingredients

For boiling/cooking:

Carrot                          2 nos. (medium size)

Tamarind paste           ¼ tsp

Salt to taste                 ½ tsp (approx..)

For dry frying:

Black gram                  2 tsps

Green chillies              2 nos.

For grinding:

(Dry fried) Black gram and green chillies

Raw coconut grated    ½ cup

(Boiled /cooked) grated carrot

For seasoning:

Oil                               1 tsp

Mustard seeds           ½ tsp

Black gram                  ½ tsp

Red chillies                  2 nos.

Curry leaves                ½ sprig

Asafoetida                   A pinch

Directions

Wash carrot, peel the skin and grate it.  Boil the grated carrot along with tamarind paste and salt for about 10 min. Drain out the water and let the vegetable cool. Store this drained nutritious water in a container and resuse some of it later for grinding. Rest of it can be used the same day for making soup, sambar, rasam etc.

While carrot is getting cooked, roast black gram and green chillies in a kadai till black gram turns golden brown.

Grind these coarsely with raw grated coconut and later again with boiled carrot to a coarse consistency. Transfer all of the contents to a bowl. Don’t forget to reuse the drained water at this stage.

For seasoning, heat oil in a small skillet. When oil is heated, add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add black gram, broken red chillies and curry leaves. Switch off the burner. Immediately add asafoetida and pour it over the chutney.

Carrot chutney is now ready.

Note:

Carrot is generally thought of as being orange in colour. But there are purple, red, white and yellow carrots too.

Orange carrot gets its colour from beta carotene, an organic compound. Human body converts this to vitamin A which is needed for healthy skin and mucous membranes, better immunity, healthy eyes and vision.

Tip:

Soak carrot sticks in hot water spiced with red chilly powder, coriander seeds and salt. Let it cool. Drain and serve. A striking change from the conventional salad!