Sorakaya Senagapappu Kura

INGREDIENTS:

Sorakaya/Bottle gourd- 1 cup small pieces

Chana dal- 1 and ½ cup

Onions- 1 large finely chopped

Tomatoes – 1 large or 2 small finely chopped

Green chillies- 2-3 slit

Red chili powder- 1tbsp

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder- ½ tsp

Garam masala – ½ tsp

Curry leaves- a few sprigs

Mustard seeds- ½ tsp

Asafoetida- a pinch

Oil- 4-5 tbsp

Salt -acc to taste

METHOD:

-Soak senagapappu(chana dal) for 1 hr.Drain and keep aside.

-Heat oil in a pressure cooker, crackle mustard seeds.

-Add hing, green chillies and curry leaves and fry for 30 secs.

-Add chopped onions and fry until they are transparent, now add chopped bottle gourd pieces and fry for 2-3 mins.

-Add chopped tomatoes amd cook for 3-4 min till the tomatoes are mushy, add the soaked dal and saute for 2-3 mins.

-Add coriander powder, red chili powder, garam masala, turmeric powder and salt fry for till the raw smell goes.

-Add 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 1-2 whistles. Chana dal should be firm to touch but it should be cooked.

-Serve hot with rice.

I am sending this to Dish Name Starts With-S Hosted at Akhilas Kitchen 

                                                   

Gongura Pandumirchi Pachadi

Gongura...the name itself tickles the tastebuds. Thats the speciality of this tangy leafy vegetable that is famous throughout Andhra Pradesh. It is called as Sorrel Leaves in English. Gongura can be used to make a variety of dishes like Gongura pappu(dal), Gongura Mutton , Gongura Pachadi. Gongura pachadi is the signature dish of Guntur dist of Andhra Pradesh , any Andhra Meal is incomplete without this tangy pachadi. Guntur is famous for its red chillis, during the red chilli season these ripen red chilles are crushed and combined with cooked and ground gongura to make a spicy tangy pickle.

INGREDIENTS:

Ripe Red Chillis – ½ kg

Gongura – 1.5 cups

Tamarind- ½ cup

Salt – acc to taste

Methi seeds- 1tbsp (roasted and powdered finely)

Pickle Oil ( Sesame Oil) – 1.5 to 2 cups

Chana Dal- 3tbsp

Jeera- 2tbsp

Mustard Seeds- 2tbsp

Garlic cloves – 10 crushed

Curry Leaves- 4-5 sprigs

Dry red chillis – 5-6 broken

METHOD:

-Clean the chillis and and dry them on a clean cloth. 

-Similarly clean and dry the gongura leaves.

-Heat 4tbsp of pickle oil, once hot add the gongura leaves. After the leaves leave water add the tamarind and let them cook till dry. Keep aside.

-Grind the chillis and keep aside. Grind the gongura and tamarind to a smooth paste. Add to the chilli mixture.

-Mix the gongura and chilli mixture well.

-Add the methi powder and salt. Mix well. Keep tasting for the salt. Once done keep aside.

-Heat the remaining oil in a kadai , add the chana dal and fry for 1 min till the dal turns light golden , add the mustard seeds, jeera , garlic cloves and  dry red chillis fry for 2-3min. -Add the curry leaves and switch off the stove.

-Let the oil mixture cool completely. Once the oil is cool add to the chilli and gongura mixture and mix well.

-Store in a dry glass bottle and serve after 1 day with hot rice and a dash of ghee.

-This pickle stays for a good 5-6 months.

Tomato Upma

This is the simplest and quickest breakfast foods you can prepare.I prepared this in the regular method and added finely chopped tomatoes , i used the salad variety as they don’t impart the sour taste as the regular ones.

So enjoy this delicious upma with a dash of lemon juice.

INGREDIENTS:

Semolina/Rawa – 1cup

Onion- 1 sliced finely

Tomato- 1chopped finely

Ginger- 1” finely chopped

Green chilli- 2 finely chopped

Curry Leaves- 1 sprig

Chana Dal- 1 tbsp

METHOD:

-Heat oil , once hot add the chana dal and fry for 1 min , add the jeera and mustard seeds. Let them splutter. Add the ginger, green chillis and onion and fry for 2 min.

Add the tomatos and cook for 3-4 min till the tomatos are cooked.

-Add the water , i use 2 cups water for 1 cup rawa.

-Add salt to water and let the water come to a boil.

-Once the water starts boiling slowly add the rawa , keep stirring as lumps may form, mix well and make it smooth.

-Once all the water is absorbed remove from stove and serve hot. Just before switching off the stove you can add finely chopped coriander , I didn’t have them handy so didn’t use.

Sending this dish to Spotlight:One Pot Meal Hosted by Indrani

Semiya Payasam

INGREDIENTS:

Semiya- 1cup
Milk- 1 cup
Sugar- 3/4th cup (can be adjusted to one's taste)
Raisins- 1tsp
Ghee- 2tbsp
Water- 1/2 cup

METHOD:
-Heat ghee in a kadai , add the raisins and fry for 20 secs. Remove and keep aside.
-In the same ghee roast the semiya till they turn golden.
-Once they turn golden add water and sugar. Mix well and let the semiya cook.
-After the semiya cooks in water for 5 min add the milk and cook till done.
-Mix the raisins in the payasam and serve hot or cold. 

Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamun is the most famous sweet of India. It is made using fresh khova but these days we get these instant packs with which we can make them in less than 1/2 hr. But these instant packs dont taste as good as the khova jamuns. I made these delicious beauties using the instant as we wanted to eat them as soon as possible. So just follow the instructions on the pack. I used MTR. Be careful while frying as the jamuns have to be fried on really low heat to cook through.

Tandoori Chicken Masala

This dish is a curry version of the famous Tandoori Chicken. Wanted to have tandoori chicken but also gravy , so tried this on the basis of Chicken Tikka Masala and surprisingly the curry turned delicious and everything was over in no time. Please try it and let me know. This dish goes with Butter Naan.

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken- 1/2 kg big chunks
Curd- 1/2 cup
Garam Masala- 2 tbsp
Red Chilli Powder- 1 and 1/2 tbsp
Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp
Pepper Powder- 1tsp
Salt- as required
Kasoori Methi- 2tsp fine powder
Coriander Powder- 1tbsp
Lemon Juice- from 1 big lemon
Onion - 1 big finely chopped
Green Chillis - 2-3 chopped
Tomato - 1 big finely chopped (use the hybrid variety)
Oil- 4tbsp
Butter - 3tbsp

METHOD:
-Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients except the last 5 ingredients.
-Leave the marinated chicken for 4-5 hrs.
-Heat a kadai , add oil and butter. Once hot add the chicken pieces. Dont add the curd marinate , only the chicken pieces.
-Cook till the chicken is done, it will take around 20-25 min to cook till tender. 
-Once done carefully remove the chicken pieces and leave the oil in the kadai.
-To the hot oil add the onion , green chilli and cook till the onion is transparent. Add the tomato and cook till the tomato dissolves in the onion , add the left over curd marinate and cook till a nice aroma is released.
-The gravy will leave oil once everything is cooked well.
-Add the tandoori pieces, mix well and see that the gravy coats the chicken well. Cook for 5 min.
- Add 1 cup of water close with a lid and cook for 2 min till the gravy thickens a bit.
-Serve with Butter Naan.

Thattukada Chicken Fry

I made this yummy chicken fry from Live to Eat. Click HERE to go to the page, The pictures looked very tempting and i had chicken so without a second thought followed the recipe as given and enjoyed this tasty dish. Thank You Sig for the delicious dish.

Vegetable Momo's

                                    

                                     

Momo’s have their origin in Nepal and Tibet. Previously momo’s were served only in Yo China in Hyderabad , but these days every Chinese restaurant in Hyderabad has them in the menu , so popular are these little steamed dumplings.

Generally momo’s are made using Maida but health conscious people can make them with whole wheat flour also. The stuffing can be either meat based or vegetable based. I made vegetable stuffing. Momo’s are eaten along with a spicy tangy sauce that compliments the taste of momo’s very well.  I made the vegetable version and we ate all of them without any sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

For outer layer

Maida - 1 1/2 cups

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Water 

For Filling 

Cabbage - ½  cup finely chopped

Carrot - ¼  cup finely chopped

Onion - 1 small finely chopped

Green Chilies – 2 finely chopped

Freshly Grounded Pepper - 1 tsp

Soya Sauce – ½  tsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt - to taste

METHOD:

-In a bowl mix all the ingredients for outer layer, add water in small quantities and make smooth dough.  Cover with damp cloth and keep aside till the filling is ready.

-To make the filling heat a pan, add oil , after the oil is hot enough add onion and green chillies and sauté until light pink add the carrot and sauté for 3-4 min till the raw smell is gone.Now add cabbage and mix well, cook for 2 minutes.

-Add salt and pepper and cook for a minute. Cook till no moisture is left in the mixture.

Finally add the soya sauce and cook for 2min , switch off the flame and wait till the filling is cool.

-Take lemon size pinch from the dough Keep rest of the dough covered with damp cloth.  Roll into a roti. The roti should be not very thin it should be a little thick. 

-Use a steel bowl cut into rounds puri.  The size depends on how big you want your momos to be. Add enough  filling each puri  and bring the sides together in the center, pinching firmly together make a ball.  

-Heat water in steamer brush the plates with little oil and place momos on them, give space in between as the momo’s will expand a little and steam for 8 to 10 minutes or until it gets cooked.

Serve hot with a spicy dipping sauce or eat them as they are like us.

Thootla Pulusu

This dish is a traditional bottle gourd dish from the Godavari Dist. of Andhra Pradesh. I learnt this dish from my DH's paternal grandmother. She is an amazing cook, what ever she makes turns out delicious. Even a simple dish turns delicious maybe that's the magic of grandmother's hand. So today am sharing this authentic recipe with everyone. One important thing is the bottle gourd has to be very tender only then the real taste of this recipe will come out. Thootlu means holes in telugu , as we poke holes into the bottle gourd this dish dish is called thootla pulusu.

INGREDIENTS:
Bottle Gourd - 2 cups (big chunks)
Onion- 1 large
Ginger Garlic Paste- 1 tbsp 
Coriander seeds - 1tsp
Jeera - 1tbsp
Cinnamon- 1" piece
Cloves - 2
Milk - 4-5tbsp
Tamarind juice - 4-5 tbsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Red Chilly powder - 1-2tbsp (please adjust acc to taste , i added 2 tbsp). 
Oil- 5-6 tbsp

METHOD:
-Take the bottle gourd and fork and poke holes into the bottle gourd.These holes help the flavors penetrate the gourd well.
-In a mixer take the cinnamon , cloves , coriander seeds , jeera , ginger garlic paste and grind to a fine paste, finally add the onions and grind once again to a smooth paste.
-Take a pressure cooker , heat oil , add the left over jeera and curry leaves , fry for 1 min.
-Add the onion paste, add the salt and turmeric and cook till raw smell goes.Add the red chilli powder and cook for a further 2-3 min.If the mixture goes dry add 1-2 tbsp of water.
-Now add the bottle gourd pieces, mix well and cook for 5 min.
-Add the milk and tamarind juice and little water.Let the curry come to a boil.
-Close the lid and wait for 2 whistles.
-After the pressure is down open and serve with rice.

Idly Sambar

Idly  and dosa are the most breakfast preparations in South India.  Every household has a batch of either batter in the fridge. Idly is our favourite for breakfast , I grind a big batch of idly batter that will last atleast a week.  Making soft and airy  idly’s requires practise and we cannot achieve it in the first time.  Even i failed many times before i finally made the perfect idly.  Idly can be accompanied with coconut chutney , tomato chutney ,sambar or even a simple podi will do with hot idly  smeared with ghee. So here is my recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

Urad Dal – 1cup

Idly Rawa- 3 cups

Salt – 1tbsp

Water ad required

METHOD:

-Clean and soak the urad dal for 5-6 hrs.

-Soak the idly rawa for 2 hrs before grinding.

-In a wet grinder grind the urad dal till a smooth consistency is reached. Add little by little water while grinding. The batter should be thick and smooth. Do not make it runny , idly's will not come out fost if the batter is thin.

-To the ground dal add the drained rawa , mix well and let it ferment overnight.

-Add salt to the fermented batter and mix well.

-Take an idly plate and fill till till 3/4^th to the idly plate.

-Steam for 15 min , you will know by seeing if they are done.

-Serve hot by smearing little ghee on each idly with chutney or sambar. We had our with sambar.