Muttai Milagu Masala (Egg pepper masala)

This egg recipe is hot, spicy and full of flavour! The main ingredient is the black pepper powder and gives a very good taste.. a bit of chettinad style..

My favorite egg recipe and learnt this from my mom.. She makes a similar one with chicken too.. both dishes are equally good and are very authentic..

Ingredients:

• Eggs - 6
• Onions - 1 medium
• Tomato - 1 medium
• Ginger/Garlic Paste - 2 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
• Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Corriander Powder - 2 tsp
• Black pepper powder - 6 tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Procedure:

• Boil the eggs, cut them into half and set aside.
• Heat oil in pan, season with Mustard, fennel and cumin seeds.
• Add onions, ginger garlic paste and fry for a few mins..
• Add half of the pepper powder, turmeric, corriander powder and chilli powder and fry with the onions for a few mins.
• Then add tomoatoes and fry until the tomato becomes a paste.
• Add 1/2 cup water, salt and cover it for a few mins in low heat.
• When the onions are well cooked, add the egs and mix gently..
• Add the remaining pepper powder and fry until the egg mixture becomes dry.

Goes well with Rotis as well as rice.

Cashew-Pista Halwa

There's always room for dessert! I prefer desserts especially after a spicy meal, as they will cool down my taste buds and let me relish!

This recipe is again a simple and quick one. Back in India, I used to do this in the traditional way with milk and it takes hours to boil down to the required consistency. Thanks to the condensed milk cans, now its done in a few mins... yet, same delicious taste!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Cashews
• 1/2 cup Pistachios
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 2 tbsp ghee

Procedure:

• Grind together cashews and pistachios with 3 tbsp of water to a paste.
• Heat ghee in a pan, add the paste and fry in low heat until it starts turning into golden brown color.
• Add condensed milk and evaporated milk and sitr gently until they all mix well.
• Bring it to boil, reduce the heat and keep stirring occasionally until it reaches a semi solid consistency (somewhat similar to kesari consistency).
• Add some more ghee and mix well. This is optional.
• Garnish with nuts.

Serve warm.

Home-made Mushroom Soup!

I have been in a mood to make soups lately! My craving for soups increases in winter. I haven't tried fresh home-made soups in a long time.. and just the thought of making a home-made soup from scratch sounded interesting! Y'day, during a regular phone chat with my mother-in-law,I heard about this soup recipe! She is a great cook and I've learnt a lot of tips from her. This mushroom soup sounded very easy, yet tasty!

This evening I shopped some mushrooms on my way from work and started preparing it right after I entered home.. it turned out great... indeed yummy!. Give it a shot!

Ingredients:

1. Mushrooms - 1 lb
2. Potato - 1 medium sized (boiled)
3. Onions - 1 medium (very finely chopped)
4. G.Chilly - 1
5. Milk - 1 cup
6. Vegetable Stock - 3 cups (You can also substitute with water)
7. Butter - 1 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Grind half of the chopped mushrooms, boiled potatoes & green chilly along with some veg stock to a coarse paste.
2. Heat the butter in a pan and fry the onions until golden brown.
3. Add the rest of the chopped mushrooms and fry for a few mins.
4. Now add the paste, veg stock, salt & milk and let it boil.
5. Simmer the soup for 10 mins.

Serve hot in a cup after sprinkling some black pepper powder.

Rava Tomato Bath

This is a quick and easy tiffin. An ideal one when I run out of vegetables or not in a mood for a big cooking..

Ingredients:

1. Rava - 1 cup

2. Onions - 1 medium

3. G.Chillies - 4

4. Ginger - 1 inch piece

5. Green peas - 1/2 cup

6. Tomatoes - 2 medium

7. Tomato puree - 2 tbsp

8. Cashews - 10

9. Mustard, Ulutham paruppu (Urad dal) - 1 tsp each

10. Curry leaves & Corriander leaves - a few.

Procedure:

1. Roast the Rava in medium heat until you smell the roasted flavor and set aside.

2. Heat ghee/oil in a pan, season with mustard seeds, ulutham paruppu & cashews.

3. Add onions, g.chillies, curry leaves and grated ginger and fry for a few mins.

4. Add Green peas, tomatoes and the tomato puree and fry for a few mins.

5. Add 2 cups water and salt and let it boil. Lower the heat for 5 mins or until the tomatoes and peas are cooked well.

6. Now slowly add the rava while stirring the mixture to avoid lumps.

7. Cover it for 2 mins in low heat.

8. Finally add corriander leaves, a tsp of ghee and mix gently. Immediately remove from heat.

Goes well with coconut chutney.

Paasi Payiru Kurma - Sprouted Lentils Kurma

This is a very different and nutritious gravy. But requires a little extra work. Yes, I am not a fan for time consuming items :-) But this one is definitely worth the time! I picked it up from a magazine and was very reluctant to try it as it requires 48 hrs ahead of planning to prepare the sprouts. But since combination in the recipe sounded very interesting, I just wanted to give it a try. It came out pretty well and we enjoyed it. Hope you all like it too.

Ingredients

1. Pasi Payuiru/Whole Moong dal - 1/2 cup
2. Potatoes - 2 medium
3. Tomatoes - 1
4. medium
5. Onion - 1 medium
5. Ginger/Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
6. G.Chillies -
7. Cinnamon - 2
8. Cloves - 2
9. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Procedure:
1. Soak the lentils overnight. Next morning drain the water and wrap the lentils in a wet bounty paper towel and leave it in a vessel covered for 10 - 12 more hours.
2. Cook the potatoes, peel, dice and set aside.
3. To cook the sprouted lentils, tie them in a cloth and apply a tight knot or you can use a rubberband too.. (I actually use bounty paper towel for this too, it comes out perfect!) and immerse the pouch in boiling water. Turn off the heat and leave it covered for 30 mins. Cooking this way, doesn't break the sprouts and the lentils retain the shape.
4. Remove the lentils and save the boiled water for later use.
5. Heat oil in a kadai and season with cinnamon and cloves.
6. Add onions, ginger/garlic paste, green chillies, turmeric and fry for a few mins.
7. Add the lentils, salt and fry for a few more mins... Add the saved boiled water and cover it for 5 mins.
8. Now add the tomatoes and potatoes finally.. Stir well and let it boil for another 10 mins in low heat or until the gravy reaches your required consistency.
9. Garnish with Corriander leaves.

Awesome and nutritious side dish for Rotis/Parathas!!

Vendai-Urulai Varuval (Potato & Okra roasted with mild spices)

A simple, yet tasty vegetable... I do this frequently and Okra-potato is one of my favorite combinations.

Ingredients:

1. Okra (Ladies finger/Bhindi) - 1 lb
2. Potato - 1 medium
3. Onions - 1/2 medium
4. Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Corriander powder - 1 tsp
6. Corriander leaves - to garnish

Procedure:

1. Chop the okras into round shaped pieces.
2. Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes.
3. Finely chop the onions.
4. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan fry the okras for about 10 mins in medium heat or until the stickyness is mostly gone.
5. Add onions, chilli powder, corriander powder, salt and the potatoes and mix well.
6. Sprinkle some water and cover it for a few mins.
7. Open the lid, increase the heat, add corriander leaves and fry until they turn dark brown...

Can be enjoyed with Rotis as well as with any kind of rice...

Honeydew Mint smoothie

I learnt this from my younger sister who lives in California... She made this once when she had visited us this winter. It was awesome! I especially liked the honeydew-mint combination as it brings out a unique flavor. The mild mint flavour with a little sour taste... very good!

On a busy morning, I take this for breakfast to save time (I prepare it the previous night and regregirate). A good and easy way to have a few servings of fruits.

Ingredients:

Ripen Honeydew - half

Honey - 2 tbsp

Milk - 1/4 cup

Limejuice - 1 tsp

Yogurt - 2 tbsp

Mint leaves - 4

Procedure:

1.Remove the seeds and skin from honeydew and cut them into cubes.

2.Blend everything in a blender to a smoothie .

Serve Chilled.

Eggplant cashew masala

This is an excellent dish with eggplants. I was too tired of my regular eggplant curry because thats the only dish I knew with eggplants. I was so ready to try something new with eggplants and there it was! I got this from a tv show and it sounded very interesting.. I tried it the next day and I just loved it! Shallow-frying the eggplants in the beginning gives a whole new flavour to the item. Hope you all enjoy it!

Ingredients:

Japanese Eggplant - 2 medium
Onion - 1 medium
Ginger/Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Tomato - 1 large
Cashew paste - 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Chilli Powder, Corriander Powder - 1 tsp each
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Olive Oil - 1/4 cup
Corriander leaves - a handful

Procedure:

1. Chop the eggplant 2 inch pieces lengthwise.
2. Heat the olive oil in pan and shallow fry the eggplants well, until they are fully cooked. You will see the skins shrunken and the eggplants become brown. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add1 tsp oil in the same pan, season with cumin seeds.
4. Then add onions, ginger garlic paste and fry for two mins.
5. Add all the powders and fry in low heat for 2 mins.
6. Now add the eggplants, salt and tomatoes and mix well.
7. Add 1 cup water, cashew paste and boil for a few mins until your desired consistency.
8. Garnish with Corriander leaves.

Goes well with Rotis.

Mango Pachadi

Ingredients:

Raw Mango - 1
Toor Dal - 1/2 cup
G.chillies - 2
Curry leaves - few
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Corriander powder - 1 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger/Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Mustard, Cumin seeds - 1 tsp each

Procedure:

1. Pressure cook the dal with turmeric powder.
2. Peel the mangoes and chop into small cubes.
3. Slit the g.chilles.
3. Heat oil in a pan and season with mustard and cumin seeds.
4. Add G.chillies and curry leave, fry for a few mins.
5. Add the mangoes, salt and fry well.
6. Add all the powders, ginger/garlic paste and cover for a few mins until the mango is fully cooked.
7. Add the cooked dal and add 1/2 cup water and boil it for a few mins.
8. Season with Corriander leaves..

Enjoy with Rotis or rice!

Keerai Kootu (Spinach Dal)

Spinach is one of my favorites, because there are so many possiblities with spinach and so much healthy!

Cooked spinach is an excellent source of iron, a mineral essential for women. Boosting iron by eating spinach is a good idea, because, in comparison to red-meat - a well known source of iron, spinach provides iron for less calories and totally fat-free!! cool!!

I make sure that I cook spinach atleast 3 times in a week.. this Keerai kootu is a very authentic south indian dish that is commonly cooked in every house.. Very easy, try it!


Ingredients:

Spinach - 1 bunch
Toor Dal - 3/4 cup
Onion - 1 medium
Garlic - 4 pods
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Tomatoes - 1 cup (chopped)
Red chillies - 2
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tsp

Procedure:

1. Pressure cook toor dal, rougly chopped onions, chopped garlic, chopped tomatoes and turmeric powder together. Mix with 1 cup water and set aside.
2. Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan and season with mustard seeds, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds.
3. When they splutter, add red chillies and fry for a min.
4. Add chopped spinach, chilli powder and salt and fry well.
5. Cover and cook for a few mins in low heat.. until the spinach gets cooked and the water completely evaporates.
6. Add the cooked dal to the spinach mix and boil it for 5 mins. You can add more water if you need to.

Serve hot with plain rice or chapathis.

Briyani

This is one of the first recipes that I learnt to cook.. The good thing about this recipe is this can be the base of any kind of briyani - Vegetable, Egg, Chicken or Mutton.

Ingredients:

Basmati rice - 2 cups

Onions - 2 medium (thinly sliced)

G.chillies - 4 (Sliced)

Ginger - 1 inch

Garlic - 4 cloves

Curd - 3 tbsp

Corriander leaves - 1/2 cup (chopped)

Mint Leaves - 1/2 cup

Grated coconut - 2 tbsp

Cinnamon - 1 inch

Cloves - 4

Nutmeg powder-1/4 tsp (optional)

Cardamom - 1

Bay Leaf - 1

Fennel Seeds (sombu/Saunf) - 1 tsp

ghee/oil - 2 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Soak the rice in water for 15 mins.

2. Grind Ginger, garlic, 2 cloves and cardamom together. Also grind the grated coconut eparately to a paste.

3. Heat oil/ghee in a pan. (I use 50/50 oil and ghee)

4. Season with Cinnamon, fennel seeds and the remaining cloves.

5. Once they splutter, add onions and fry until golden brown.

6. Add g.chillies and fry for a few mins.

7. Add the ground paste and fry until the raw smell goes away (approx 3 mins)

8. Now add the chopped corriander leaves and mint leaves and fry for a few mins..

9. Add curd & mix well... at this point you can add the main ingredient (vegetables, Egg or Meat)

For veg briyani - add 1 cup of mixed vegetables (potato, peas, carrot, french beans etc)

10. Fry until the masala mixes well with the vegetables / meat.

11. Add the soaked basmati rice, salt and the ground coconut to this mixture and cook together in a rice cooker.

Serve hot with Veg kurma or Onion Raita.