Bandakopi Bhaja - Cabbage Stirfry

I search here and there so many places for some bengali dishes but somehow anything didn't catch my eye. After much of brainstorming I settled for Bandakopi Bhaja or Cabbage fry. I followed the recipe as it is except that in the end I didn't add powder mustard as I have used mustard seeds and mustard oil for cooking.

Talking about mustard oil, while using this oil make sure the oil is heated properly(heat till smoking point) before adding anything in the oil. If the oil is not heated properly then in the food there will be strong oil smell which most of the people don't like.

Paach Phoron is the main ingredients in this recipe and which is made from equal proportion of Cumin seeds, Fennel seeds, Nigella seeds, Mustard seeds, Fenugreek seeds. Since I needed only 1tps of paach phoron I used a pinch of all the 5 seeds and the proportion was just perfect. The recipe took less than 10mins to cook including the cabbage cutting part. So do try this simple but tasty bandakopi bhaja.

Okra Fry & Cucumber Salad

This Bindi/Okra fry is very simple and fast recipe and made for varat or chu masa. This one is made by my sis.

Ingredients:

Okra - 300gms
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tps
Dry red chilli - 3-4
Salt - to taste
Oil - 3 tbs

Method:

1. Wash the chop the okra in small pieces.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and allow it to splutter.
3. Add the red chilli and fry until they turn golden brown.
4. Add the okra now and fry until it turns soft and cook. Do not over fry, the okra needs to have little raw flavor.
5. Add salt, mix well and cook for 2 more mins and Okra fry is ready.


Now coming over to Cucumber Salad, this one is done by my sweet nephew Kedar. Cutting, arranging, garnishing everything is his work :)

So here it is, wash and peel the cucumber and cut in round slices. Arrange in severing dish, add salt, pepper powder. Cucumber salad is ready to munch.


Also sending my very own and favorite Mint Chutney :)

And also sending Lognbean Curry


...

Broken Wheat Halwa

This post is for Priyanka's FestiveFood: Onam Celebration. I'm finally managing to send across my entry for the event. There is so much written about Onam in many blogs that I do not wish to write anything further ;). This is a simple wheat halwa recipe and made with only few ingredients.

Ingredients:

Cracked/Broken Wheat/Dahiya - 1 cup
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Ghee/Classified butter - 3-4 tbs
Water - 1 1/2 cup
Cardamom - 3-4
Fry fruits - optional

Method:

1. Make powder of sugar and cardamom by grinding them together.
2. In a pan heat ghee, add broken wheat and roast until wheat color changes to golden brown.
3. Once the aroma start coming, add water and mix well. Cook for 2mins.
4. Add the sugar powder and mix well. Mix briskly the halwa and cook for 5-7 mins or until the ghee start floating on top.
5. Yummy halwa is ready, garnish with fry fruits of your choice.




Also checkout Broken Wheat Halwa with Jaggery.

Dosa & Chutney plus awards

When it comes to breakfast or tiffin items the first thing comes to mind is dosa, idli; at least for me ;) So when Aprana announced the WBB:Grains in my breakfast, I knew what am going to send across. Dosa is one of the regular item in most of the South Indian household and being in Chennai we do make dosa some time too. I follow my own set of measurements to prepare the dosa or idli batter so there is not hard n fast role to follow this measurements. But most of the time the battles always make nice and soft dosas and soft idli. The chutney here is a bit different from regular one, over to recipe now:

Ingredients for Chutney:

Coconut - 1/2 cup (chopped)
Roasted Channa Dal - 3tbs
Greenchilli- 7-8 or as spicy required
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tps
Ginger- 1' or one small piece
Garlic - 3 medium size pods
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Sugar - 1/2 tps
Oil - 1tps

For tempering:
Oil - 2 tps
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tps
Curry leaves - few
Urad Dal - 1/2 tps
Dry red chilli - 2

Method:

1. In a pan heat oil and add all the ingredients except coconut and fry for 2mins.
2. Off the stove and add the coconut pieces and mix with everything.
3. Grind it with little water to make a fine paste.
4. For tempering heat oil and add all the ingredients and cook until mustard seeds splutters.
5. Pour over the tempering mix into the chutney.




Ingredients for Dosa:

Parboiled or Idli rice - 2 cups
Urad Dal/black gram lentils - 3/4 cup
Fenugreek Seeds/Methi - 1/2 tps
Salt - to taste
Baking soda - 1tps
Water
Oil - to make dosa

Method:

1. Wash & soak rice and lentil with fenugreek seeds for 4-5 hours.
2. Grind lentil and rice separately. Mix both the battles together with 1tps of baking soda and let it ferment overnight.
3. Take the desire amount of batter, add salt and water (if required) and mix well.
4. Heat a tawa/griller, pour 1 laddle of batter and spread in circular motion making it as thin as possible.
5. Apply oil in the corner of dosa and cook for 1-2mins or until the edges starts leaving the tawa.
6. Turn over to other side and cook for 1more min.
7. Crispy, nice dosa is ready.

Enjoy the dosa and chutney with ginger pickle.

Chicken Masala with Capcium & Baby Corn

So this time is Chicken Masala with capcium & baby corn. This one is from my sis again. I have brainstorm a lot of what to give the name other than masala to tag along but I still settle myself with the Masala tag ! So here presenting the chicken masala with capsicum & baby corn. (The pic is not gud but the taste was yum)

Ingredients:

Chicken - 300gms (or as required)
Baby corn - 5-7
Capsicum - 1/2
Onion - 2 large (sliced)
Tomato - 1 large
Giner-garlic paste - 1tbs
Cinnamon - 1 stick
Cloves - 2-3
Cardamom - 2
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tps
Redchilli powder - 2tbs
Turmeric - 1/2 tps
Oil - 3tbs
Water
Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves - 2tps chopped

For marination:
Curd - 1/2 cup
Giner-garlic paste - 2tbs
Lemon juice - 1tbs
Salt - 1tps
Redchilli powder - 1tps
Turmeric - 1/2 tps

Method:

1. Marinated chicken (cut in medium size cubes) with all the migration ingredients for 1-2 hrs.
2. In a pan heat oil, stir fry capsicum and baby corn separately and keep them aside.
3. In the same pan add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves.
4. Add sliced onion and saute it, add ginger garlic paste and mix well.
5. Add chopped tomato and cook for 2-3mins.
4. Now add all the powder masala and cook until oil starts leaving the edges.
5. Add the marinated chicken, mix everything and with lid on for 3-5mins.
6. Add 1cup of water or as water required, salt and cook until chicken becomes tender. Add the capcium and baby corn now and cook for 2more mins.
7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
This curry goes well with roti or rice.

Wholegrain Pancakes

I was thinking of making banana bread/cake and was fully prepared for it then suddenly Anitha's pancake crossed my mind. I have bookmarked this recipe for very long time and wanted to give a try. So at last manage to prepare Anitha's Express Wholegrain Pancakes. This is simple and easy to make, as the title says..express and indeed it's express.

I was thinking if Kedar will eat this pancake but to my surprise he liked it very much :) and am so happy about it. I have followed almost everything as per her blog only with minor changes. So here is the recipe of my version:

Ingredients: (To make 8 medium size pancakes, good for 4 people)

Cornmeal - 1/2 C (I used small cup/katori)
Wholegrain flour/atta - 1 1/2 C
All purpose flour - 1/2 C
Redchilli powder - 1tps
Cinnamon powder - 1tps
Baking soda - 1/2tps
Baking powder - 1 tps
Salt - 1tps
Sugar - 4 Tbs
Buttermilk - 4-5C
Milk - 1C
Banana ripe - 2 (mashed)
Cheese - 1/2 C (shredded)
Oil - 2-3 Tbs
Raisins and almonds - few

Method:

1. In a bowl mix buttermilk, milk, 1Tbs of oil.
2. In another bowl mix all the dry ingredients.
3. Add the buttermilk mix into dry ingredients along with mashed banana and cheese.
4. Mix everything together well.
5. In a hot tawa/pan/griller pour 1C of the batter, garnish with few raisins and almonds.
6. Apply 1tbs of oil in the corner of pancake and cook both side until done or golden brown.

Server with maple slurp or honey. It taste very good with maple slurp than honey.

Tandoori Chicken Tikka | Chicken Tikka Recipe

Chicken Tikka or tandoori chicken tikka is easy starter recipe and specially good for chicken lovers. This is very easy to prepare with minimal ingredients, my sister made this and it was really delicious. Try it to know what I am talking about.

Ingredients:
Chicken - 250 gms (or as required, boneless)
Capsicum - 1/2 of each colour (we couldn't find all colours in store so used only green)
Onion - 1/2
Tomato - 1 medium
Butter - 1 tbs
Skewers - few

For marination:
Thick Curd - 1 cup
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Cinnamon powder - 1/2 tsp
Clove power - 1/2 tsp
Black pepper - 1/2 tsp (freshly crushed)
Salt - to taste

Method:

1. Cut chicken in large cubes, dice onion (separate each layer of onion), tomato, capsicum in same size and shape too.
2. Marinate chicken with marination ingredients for 1-2 hrs. The longer marination the better it tastes. We have done 6hrs + of marination.
3. Preheat the oven at 200c
4. Take a skewer or tooth pick and place chicken piece, onion, tomato, capsicum as you like.
5. Grill the skewers for 12-15mins. Turn the skewers to other side and grill for another 12-15mins.
6. Yummy Grilled/tandoori chicken is ready to attack.

We can use paneer instead of chicken too.

Egg Drumstick Curry

Today's recipe is egg drumstick curry made by my sis on one of the Sunday. Simple, easy to prepare and yummy to eat. Here goes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Egg - 5 number
Drumstick - 1
Sword Bean. Sem ki phalli - few (optional)
Onion - 2 big
Tomato - 1 big
Green Chilli - 5-6
Redchilli powder - 2tps
Turmeric - 1/2 tps
Coriander powder - 1tps
Curry leaves - few
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tps
Ginger-garlic paste - 2tps
Oil - 3tbs
Salt - to taste
Water - 1 cup and to boil

Methood:

1. Boil egg and remove the shell.
2. Cut drumstick in medium size and boil.
3. Cut sword beans in medium size, chopped onion, tomato, green chilli and keep aside.
4. In a pan heat oil and shallow fry the egg until golden brown, keep them aside.
5. In the same pan add mustard seeds and let it splutters.
6. Add onion, ginger-garlic paste, green chilli, curry leaves mix everything and saute the onion.
7. Add the sword beans, drumstick, chopped tomato and cook for 1-2mins.
8. Now add all the powder masala, mix well and cook until sword beans becomes tender.
9. Add the egg and cook for 2mins.
10. Add salt and water. Bring it to boil and cook for another 4-5mins.

Egg Drumstick curry is ready to server with rice

Aloo Tari

Yes its aloo tari this time. We all love potato, yes I know that. How much ever we try to avoid potato (okie few of us do try to avoid) but it's never really possible I guess. Most of the cuisines all over world use potato and in every Indian household must have potato at home are some of the unspoken rules :-).

So, coming back to the aloo tari, this is one of those sabji which I'm eating from my childhood. The best thing is, it's good for breakfast, lunch, dinner, lunch box or party. Easy to make and tasty to eat. So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

Potato - 2 large boiled
Onion - 1 large chopped
Tomato - 1 large chopped
Redchilli powder - 3tps
Turmeric - 1/2 tps
Salt - to taste
Cumin seeds - 1/2tps
Oil - 3 tbs
Water - 1-2 cup

Method:

1. Boil potatoes, remove the skin and cut in cubes. (Mash few cubes)
2. In a pan heat oil, add cumin seeds & fry until splutters.
3. Add onion and saute it, after this add tomato and cook for 2mins.
4. Add turmeric and red chilli powder, salt mix everything and cook for 2 mins with lid on.
5. Add 1 to 2 cup of water (depending on cup size) and bring it to boil.
6. Add the potatoes now and mix well. Cook for 5mins with lid on.
7. Gravy should NOT be thick but watery. It goes well with roti/paratha.

Prepared chawal ki roti to go along with aloo tari.

Happy Ganesh Chaturthi

Wishing Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to all. We do not celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi :-( but I used to have fun with all the neighbours celebration and ofcourse the festive delights we get to eat :-) and the Visarjan was always use to be highlight. In Chennai there will be so many huge Ganesh Idols installed along the roads and we use to walk over so many places to check the different kinds of Idols. How I wish we can have the same joy here in SG too :-(.

Coming back to today's post since we do not celebrate this festival and I still want to send something for Purva's Ganesh Chaturthi event so sending Vada as there has be vada in the festive food list in all Tamil Nade or lets say Chennai homes :-)

Method:

Urad dal/ black gram - 2 cups
Cumin seeds - 1tbs
Green chilli - 5-6
Black pepper - 10 no.
Ginger - a small piece or 1/2tbs grated
Oil - to deep fry
Salt - to taste

1. Wash and soak the dal over night or 4-5 hours.
2. Grind the dal with cumins, green chilli, pepper, ginger with very little water. (Try not to add any water)
3. Heat Oil in pan, meanwhile take small portion of the dal paste and mix required salt. Give the desire shape and deep fry them until golden brown in medium flame.
4. Yummy vadas are ready.
Tip: I always add salt to dal paste in small portions otherwise the salt start leaving water and the dal paste becomes sloggy becomes difficult to deep fry and observe lot of oil.
This is the traditional way of making vada in our me. If you want add chopped onion, curry leaves, green chili in the dal paste and then deep fry them. They taste yummy too.

So the Vada goes to Purva's Krishna and Ganesh Chaturthi event.


On different note, our fellow blogger has been very kind and showered so many awards on me. I'm yet to put them up ...sorry friends for the delay but I'm starting doing from today :)