Sookhi Moong Dal

                                                                       

When I was younger I was more concerned with trying out new recipes that would be suitable for entertaining. While I still enjoy trying out fancy recipes I am now equally happy when I come across a recipe that I can include in my everyday cooking. This recipe is really, really easy but very different.  Unlike most lentils recipes this is not of soupy consistency and is almost dry. Further, there is no use of onion, garlic or tomatoes in this recipe. Yet it is not bland ...the lemon juice gives a slight tartness  to the dish and the tempering of ginger and cumin gives a nice flavour. 

In India dhuli moong dal ( split and dehusked green gram lentils) is known to be the lightest among the lentils family. It is traditionally the lentils of choice for invalids, aged or those with digestion issues.  Sometime back, when my mother in law was not keeping well, I used to cook this lentils every day for her.... I would combine it with rice to make khichri ( a simple dish in which rice and lentils are cooked together) or serve it like a soup. It was light and easily digestible and at the same time provided much needed nutrition.


Ingredients: 

1/2 cup dhuli moong dal ( split and dehusked green gram lentils)
1/2 inch ginger, finely chopped
1 green chilly ( optional), finely chopped
Salt to taste
1/4 tea spoon turmeric powder
1/2 tea spoon cumin
Pinch of hing ( asafoetida)
1/2 tea spoon red chilly powder
1 tea spoon lemon juice
1 table spoon ghee
Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:  Wash the lentils well and soak in water for thirty minutes. Boil  lentils in about 2 cups of water ( in a pressure cooker or a pan) with turmeric powder and salt till it is cooked but not mushy. Drain excess water, transfer to a serving dish and mix in the lemon juice.

In  a small pan heat ghee and add ginger, green chilly and cumin. Once the cumin starts changing colour add red chilly powder and hing. Pour immediately over the lentils. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Shahi Tukda / Indian Style Bread Pudding

                                                                         
                                                                             

This is a traditional Indian dessert that used to be hugely popular when I was young. It used to often feature at  parties,  functions and even at weddings. Shahi Tukda literally translated  means a " royal piece"as Shahi  means royal in Hindi and Tukda  means piece or portion. And  indeed it lives up to it's name as it is a sublime regal treat. Thankfully though, preparing it  is fairly simple. Milk is simmered on a low flame till slightly thick and then sugar and cardamom powder is added and it is  poured over fried pieces of bread. Easy right?

I mastered this recipe along with a few others when I started taking an interest in cooking in my high school days. I remember the  elation I felt when occasionally I would be allowed to cook, not just for our family, but for guests.  The sense of accomplishment and the praise that was generously given  used to encourage me in my culinary adventures. This recipe never failed to score a big hit ...so very comforting and delicious....a perfect finale to a good meal.

Ingredients: 

2 1/2 cup milk
2  slices of bread
1/4 cup nuts and raisins
1/2 tea spoon elaichi powder ( green cardamom)
2 table spoon sugar
Oil to deep fry

Method: Cut each bread slice into four triangles. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the bread slices. Fry till crisp and golden. Remove and keep aside on an absorbent paper.  Put the milk to boil in a heavy bottom pan. When it starts boiling lower the flame and let it simmer for ten to fifteen minutes. Once the milk thickens, switch off flame and allow to cool a little.  Add sugar and cardamom powder.

Take a serving dish and  place the fried bread pieces in it. Sprinkle part of the nuts and raisins. Cover with the thickened milk and spread the remaining nuts  and raisins on top. Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours and serve.

Vegetable Makhanwala

                                                                           

I have had so many different versions of this recipe, Vegetable Makhanwala, at various restaurants across India and abroad!! At home however, the recipe I have consistently stuck to is this one that I got from a Tarla Dalal cookbook way back. Vegetable Makhanwala  basically means vegetables cooked in butter as makhan in Hindi is butter.  It is a simple recipe in which boiled vegetables are gently simmered in a creamy tomato sauce. This is an excellent dish to serve at dinner parties  and ideal for those occasions when you are in the mood for a restaurant style dish in the comfort of your home.

I have reached a landmark of sorts with this recipe as this is my 200th post!! Honestly, when I started this blog I had thought I would post just a few basic, simple recipes that would be of use to my kids and others new to cooking. Gradually I began to enjoy the whole process and kept adding more recipes. I  didn't realise it initially but it has begun to dawn on my that slowly many of my dear recipes are coming together in one place....some of which were in tattered recipe books, cook books, scraps of paper and some in the deep recesses of my memory.  There were other recipes I used to make by instinct which, for the purpose of sharing, I have had to carefully observe, measure and note down. It has made my life simpler as I find myself  now referring to my blog, without depending on my errant memory or instinct. So, though I set out to help others and share what I knew I have gained a lot too.

Ingredients: 

1 cup cauliflower florets
1/2 cup french beans
1/2 cup carrots
1/4 cup green peas
2  potatoes
3 onions
1 tea cup fresh cream
2 table spoon flour
1 tea cup milk
4 table spoon tomato ketchup
2 table spoon butter
1/2 tea spoon red chilly powder
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying

Method:   Finely chop onions. Cut the cauliflower in florets. Chop the french beans into one inch pieces. Shell green peas. Scrape carrot and cut into rounds and then cut them in  half. Boil the cauliflower florets, french beans, carrot and green peas in salted water for a few minutes. Drain and keep aside. Do not over boil or let them get mushy.  Peel potatoes, cut in long strips ( like french fries) and deep fry.  Mix the ingredients for the sauce - flour, cream, milk and tomato ketchup.

Heat butter in a non stick pan, add the onions and stir till translucent. Add the vegetables, the prepared sauce, salt and red chilly powder. Cook on very low flame for about ten minutes. The sauce will gradually thicken, colour will darken and butter will separate and come on top (see pic below). Serve hot, garnished with a dash of butter.

                                                                         

Tomato And Peanut Chutney

                                                                                 

If you like the taste of peanuts then you will love this chutney! The combination of tomato and peanuts is truly sensational.  It is easy to make and needs very few ingredients. It is currently my favourite chutney.

I have to thank my friend and neighbour Purnima for this lovely recipe.  I had this amazing chutney at her place sometime back.  She had invited me, along with several other ladies, to a puja (prayer gathering) at her place. This chutney was served, as also a whole array of dishes, after the function concluded. At first I thought it was  the Tomato Onion Chutney that I am so fond of, ( I have shared the recipe of that earlier), but then I realised it was vastly different. That day of course I could not bother Purnima as she had other guests to attend but, the very next day I visited her and she gave me the recipe.
                                                                       

Ingredients:

3 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup peanuts, roasted
1 green chilly, chopped
Salt to taste
3 tea spoon oil
1/2 tea spoon mustard seeds
Pinch of hing (asafoetida)
Few curry leaves

Method:    Chop tomatoes and green chilly. Dry roast the peanuts and when slightly cool, pry off the skin.

In a pan heat 2 tea spoon oil and add the chopped tomatoes and green chilly. Stir till tomatoes are tender. Allow to cool. Meanwhile, grind the roasted peanuts to a powder, in a mixer. Add the cooled tomatoes and blend again till smooth. Transfer to a serving dish. Add salt and mix. Now prepare the tempering by heating a tea spoon of oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and when they start spluttering add curry leaves and asafoetida. Pour over the prepared Tomato And Peanut Chutney. I love to have it with Idli or Dosa but it goes well with just about everything.

Instead of green chilly you can use whole dry red chilly. Grind it with the peanuts and then add tomatoes. If you like it really hot then you can use both red and green chilly! If the tomatoes are not sour, add a tea spoon or two of tamarind paste.

Matthe Ke Aloo

                                                                         
                                                                         

This would be a very familiar recipe to most people from UP and other parts of North India. Although we still tend to call this dish Matthe Ke Aloo, it is mostly made with dahi ( yoghurt) these days rather than mattha. It is one of those quickie dishes that comes handy when there are no veggies in the house or one is not in the mood to make anything elaborate or time taking.

Mattha, is what one gets after churning butter. Fresh cream collected from milk is set with  a starter of yoghurt and then churned to make butter.  The sour residue left, after removing butter, is what is called mattha. Butter of course is heated to make ghee.

Till some years back, when our family was still fairly large, with children and parents living with us, our daily milk consumption used to be a lot. We had a milkman, coming on a bicycle from a nearby village, who used to supply milk to us. The fresh milk was boiled and when it cooled, the thick cream that set on top was collected and stored in a container in the refrigerator. When the container was full, it was gently heated and set with a little yoghurt and later churned to make butter. So every few days there was mattha on hand that was utilized in various recipes like kadhi, jeera lassi etc or this perennial favourite, matthe ke aloo.

Ingredients: 

3 medium size potatoes, boiled
1 cup mattha or dahi (yoghurt)
1 tea spoon garlic, finely chopped or crushed
1 green chilly, finely chopped ( optional)
1/2 tea spoon cumin
1/2 tea spoon mustard seeds
Pinch of  hing (asafoetida)
1/2 tea spoon red chilly powder
1/2 tea spoon turmeric powder
1 tea spoon coriander powder
1 table spoon gur (jaggery)
Salt to taste
2 table spoon oil
Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:    Boil and peel potatoes. Keep one potato aside. Using your palms, break up the remaining two potatoes or cut roughly. Finely chop or crush garlic.  Whip mattha  or dahi (yoghurt). Chop green chilly and coriander leaves.

Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan and add cumin, mustard seeds and asafoetida. As it begins to crackle add garlic and green chilly ( optional). Stir. Add the cut potatoes and stir fry for a couple of minutes. Add turmeric powder, red chilly powder and coriander powder. Add 1/4 cup water and when it comes to boil, grate the whole potato kept aside and add. Cook for a few minutes and then add mattha or dahi. Can also add gur at this point. Stir continuously till mixture starts boiling and then lower flame and allow to simmer for a little while. Add salt, mix it in and close flame. Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves.

I like this dish to be of soupy consistency, not thick. If you like it thicker add a tablespoon of besan ( gram flour) dissolved in little water. The grated potato too helps to thicken the gravy. Just let it cook for longer till you get the consistency you want. Alternately, add warm water, if desired, to dilute the gravy. The gur  doesn't sweeten the dish, it just balances the flavours nicely, toning down the sourness.

                                                                         

Chocolate Barfi

                                                                         

If you are looking for a great but super easy mithai (Indian sweet) recipe, then this is as good as it gets!!  All you need is good quality khoya and a few minutes of your precious time and you can make this delicious Chocolate Barfi at home. Seriously, it looks and tastes just like what you would get in a mithai shop. Maybe even better:)

In an earlier post, while sharing the recipe for Kesar Peda, I had mentioned my excitement and joy at the discovery of  khoya here in Dar es Salaam. That led to my trying out various recipes that use Khoya as a vital ingredient. This is one of them which I have now made several times with success.

Home made sweets are integral to festivals in India and with  Holi,( festival of colours) just a few weeks away, it would be a good time to make this lovely sweet and impress your family and friends.

Ingredients:

2 cups khoya  ( dried milk), crumbled
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar, powdered
2 table spoon cocoa powder
2 table spoon almond slivers
1/2 tea spoon cardamom powder

Method:  In case the khoya is frozen, let it come to room temperature and then crumble it.  Powder sugar. Finely slice almonds.

                                                                         

In a heavy bottom pan  heat the crumbled khoya on low flame.

                                                                   

When the  khoya softens add milk and sugar.


                                                                       

Continue to stir until the mixture thickens and leaves sides. Add cardamom powder.

                                                                       

Pour half the mixture in a dish lined with baking paper.

                                                                           

Add cocoa powder to the remaining part and mix it in.

                                                                               

 Gently spread the cocoa mixture over the white mixture.

                                                                         

Sprinkle  almond slivers on top and allow to set.This will take a few hours at room temperature or you could refrigerate for a little while. When firm, cut into squares and store  the Chocolate Barfi in an airtight container. In winter you can keep the container in a kitchen cabinet, away from heat,  but in summer it is advisable to store in the refrigerator.

                                                                         

Garlic Rice

                                                                                    

I had loads of  left overs that I intended to serve the other day when I decided to make another fresh dish! I often do that ...sometimes a nice chutney, a quick side dish or even a different sort of chapati...nothing major, just a little add on that brings a newness to the table. Even delicious food can be monotonous to eat a second time but  introduce a fresh item and it makes all the difference!!

I love garlic and in this simple rice dish that I made, it is the highlight.  If you have cooked rice on hand this takes no time at all and is a great addition to any meal.  In this delicious recipe, apart from the garlic, soy sauce provides the rich colour and hint of flavour and spring onion greens add the finishing touch.

Ingredients: 

3 cups rice, cooked and cooled
2 table spoon garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup spring onion greens, finely chopped
2 tea spoon soy sauce
Salt to taste
2 table spoon oil

Method:   Use cooked and cooled rice for this recipe for best results. Left over rice can be put to good use in this recipe. Or, cook rice beforehand and let it cool.  Crush garlic with the flat part of knife and then finely chop. Wash, drain and finely cut spring onion greens.

Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan and add garlic. Once the garlic begins to change colour, add rice, salt and soy sauce. Stir well. Let it cook for a couple of minutes on low heat. Add spring onion greens and mix thoroughly. Cover with a lid and close flame. Keep the pan covered for a while to infuse all the flavours in the rice. Serve hot.

I prefer to use the locally grown garlic which is small in size but has a lot of flavour. You can use any available garlic but be sure to adjust the amount to your taste. If you do not like a strong garlic flavour then use little less garlic. Also, certain varieties make a dish bitter, if used in excess. So keep that in mind. I used a dark soy sauce but, if you are using a mild soy sauce, you may need to add a little more. 

Kenya Style Cabbage

                                                                           

I make this recipe so often and it is so well integrated into our regular meals that it is hard to remember at times that it is not an Indian recipe that I grew up eating...that it is actually a recipe from Kenya.

I learnt this amazing recipe during my stay in Kenya. We had just moved to Nairobi and were still based at a hotel while we looked around for a suitable house, when I was invited for lunch. I was very pleased with the invitation as I looked forward to some home cooked food after eating hotel fare since several days. My hostess, on my arrival at her place, asked me if I would be okay with Kenyan food as she planned to make Kenya Style Cabbage and Ugali (maize flour cooked with water). I was more than happy to try something new and said it was absolutely fine with me.  I looked on as she swiftly got to work and within a short while the meal was ready.  My first taste of Kenyan fare had me bewitched! So many years later I still remember that cabbage dish as  one of the finest I had.

This recipe uses very few ingredients and takes barely any time to prepare but tastes really great....light and flavourful. My kids, who are not very fond of cabbage, loved this recipe. I hope they, and others too, will try out this recipe and enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingredients: 

1/2 medium size cabbage, finely shredded
1 onion, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves
3 tbsp oil
Salt to taste

Method:  Wash cabbage well and then cut finely.  Slice onion. Cut long strips of tomato. Chop fresh coriander leaves.

In a heavy bottom pan heat oil and add onion. Stir for a minute or two till it softens. Do not brown it. Now add cabbage and stir continuously till the water from the cabbage dries up. Add tomato and salt. Stir for a couple of minutes to allow tomato to soften a little and then add chopped coriander. Mix it in and close flame.

Make sure not to over cook the cabbage. It should retain a little crunch. And don't stint on the coriander leaves. Add plenty of it as they are not merely a garnish here but a vital ingredient that provides a whole lot of flavour.

                                                                           

Methi Dal / Lentils With Fenugreek Leaves

                                                                         

As a kid I thought any meal without dal was incomplete! At my parents' place dal was served at lunch and dinner, everyday of the week. Even if  there were two or more vegetarian dishes or a non vegetarian dish being made, dal was not dislodged from the menu and maintained it's pride of place. After I got married and had my own kids I made sure to include dal in their diet from a young age. Simple boiled dal (without tempering) was one of the earliest foods my kids had as infants.

Much as I enjoy dal I try to avoid tedium by varying the recipes. Fortunately there are just so many types of dal available and innumerable ways to prepare them. In this nutrition rich and delicious recipe, greens in the form of methi are added to dal.  I am probably biased but I feel addition of  methi to any dish transforms it and takes it to another level altogether!!

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup arhar dal ( split pigeon pea lentils)
1 cup finely chopped methi ( fresh fenugreek leaves)
1 tomato, finely chopped
1 tea spoon chopped garlic
2 table spoon oil
1/4 tea spoon mustard seeds
1/4 tea spoon cumin
1 dry whole red chilly, broken in two
Pinch of asafoetida
1/2 tea spoon turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1/2 tea spoon red chilly powder
1/2 tea spoon coriander powder
1/2 tea spoon cumin powder
1 1/2 cup water

Method:  Wash arhar dal and soak in water for half hour. Transfer dal  to a pressure cooker and add salt, turmeric powder and 1 1/2 cups of  water. Lower flame after first whistle and let it cook on slow flame for further five minutes. Meanwhile, wash, drain and finely chop methi. Also chop, garlic and tomato.

In a heavy bottom pan add oil. When oil heats up add mustard seeds, cumin, dry red chilly and asafoetida. As soon as they start spluttering add garlic. Add tomato when garlic begins to change colour. Cook till tomato gets soft and mushy. Add red chilly powder, coriander powder and cumin powder and mix well. Add methi and stir continuously till it wilts and oil separates from mixture. Add the boiled dal and let it simmer on low flame for couple of minutes. Serve hot.

Moong Dal Puri

                                                                         

Sharing an amazingly simple and delicious recipe today that I really like and would love others to try out too. Now it is up to you whether you want to  enjoy it alone or share with friends!! Effort required is minimal and it is guaranteed to please. Trust me on this and check it out.....soon!

While most recipes of Moong Dal Puri have lentils stuffing, this recipe is a little different. In this recipe soaked and ground lentils are mixed with whole wheat flour and spices to make up a dough. Rounds are then rolled out and fried to make these wonderful puffed up and crisp puris. They make a great snack or can be served as part of a meal.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup  dhuli moong dal( split and husked green gram lentils)
1 cup wheat flour
1/2 tea spoon red chilly powder
1 tea spoon roasted cumin powder
Salt to taste
2 table spoon oil + to fry
1/4 tea spoon black pepper powder
Pinch of asafoetida

Method:   Wash moong dal well and soak in lukewarm water for couple of hours. Drain and grind to a paste.  Transfer the  moong dal paste to a mixing bowl. Add red chilly powder, salt, black pepper powder, cumin powder, asafoetida, oil and wheat flour. Knead into a firm dough. There is no need to add water to knead as the moisture from the moong dal  paste will be sufficient. Add more, or less, wheat flour, if required, to make a firm dough. Cover and keep aside for 10 to 15 minutes.

After resting dough, knead lightly again to make it pliable. Now pinch off lemon sized balls. Using a rolling pin, roll out  a small, not too thin, round. The size of the round should be about 3 inch diameter. Roll out a few rounds and keep aside on a plate, ready to be fried. Heat oil in a karahi or a heavy bottom pan. Gently drop a rolled out round into the oil when it is medium hot. Allow it to puff up on one side before flipping it to the other side. Remove when crisp and golden on both sides. Do not overcrowd the pan, putting in just one or two at a time.

If you like you can add finely chopped green chilly and ginger to the dough or grind along with the dal.