Mushroom Gravy

Ingredients
Mushroom - 2 small boxes
Onion - 3
Tomato - 3
Chili powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tbs
Amchur powder - 1 tsp
Garam Madala - 1tsp
Cashews - 3 tbs (powdered)
Cracked pepper - 1/4 tsp
Coriander Leaves - Handful chopped
Salt
Oil

Method.
Slice the mushrooms. Cut the onions and tomatoes into small pieces.Keep oil in a frying pan
and sautee the onions till it is translucent. Add the tomatoes and little salt.
Cook the tomatoes till the oil oozes out . Add chili powder, coriander powder, little amchur powder
and pinch of garam masala and let all the masala marry well with the gravy. Add chopped coriander leaves and the sliced mushrooms to the gravy. Let it cook for 5 minutes . Add Garam masala. As mushrooms let out lot of water add water only if necessary. Finally add cashew powder and freshly cracked pepper and let it cook for few more minutes and switch off the flame.

Serve mushroom gravy with roti or with pulao .

Swiss Chard with Channa Dal

Swiss Chard  Channa Dal

Spring Beauty from my Garden

Nutrient Rich Swiss Chard

Getting shower

Ready to cook

Ingredients

    Channa Dal               - 2 cups
    Swiss Chard             - 1 bunch
    Onion                       - 1 big
    Tomato                    - 3
    Green Chili               - 4
    Garlic-Ginger Paste  - 2 tbs
    Red Chili Powder     - 1 tbs
    Coriander Powder   - 1 tbs
    Amchur Powder      - 1 tsp
    Garam Masala
          Powder             - 1 tsp
    Turmeric                  - 1/2 tsp
    Potato                     -  2 small boiled , cubed
    Salt
    Butter                      - 1 tbs
    Kasoori Methi         - 1 tbs


Method :

              Pressure cook Channa Dal with 4 cups of water with little turmeric. Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and let them crackle. Add the chopped onion and green chilies to the pan. Saute them well. Add garlic-ginger paste . Once the raw smell goes, add tomatoes and salt. Once the tomatoes are well cooked and oil starts to ooze out to the sides, add the chopped Swiss Chard . Let it cook for few minutes and then add all the powders to the gravy.  Once the pressure is released, take out the Dal and add it to the gravy along with the boiled potatoes. Add more water if necessary. Add butter and crushed kasoori methi  at the end and switch off the stove.

Yummy Dal

Roti, Dal and Raita - Our Dinner Today

Sweet Potato Leaves Kootu

I didn't know until recently that sweet potato leaves are edible. I thought they are poisonous like the regular potato leaves. My chinese friend told me that the leaves are edible and she brought me some sweet potato leaves from the chinese farm market.
She also told me that I can plant the stems after the leaves are removed as we would plant a mint . I removed all the leaves from the stems except the very tiny ones and I planted it deep into the soil leaving the very end tip above the soil.

When I googled and collected information about the leaves, I came to know they are good source of vitamins A and K .

I tried kootu (cooked with Moong in coconut+cumin+green chilli Masala) with the tender leaves. It came out really tasty and Iliked it better than spinach kootu.

Ingredient
Sweet Potato Leaves - 2 cups
Moong Dhal -1/4 cup

To Grind
Coconut - 2 tbs
Cumin seeds -1 tsp
Green chillies-2
Garlic cloves-1

For Tampering
Mustard seeds
Curry Leaves
Red Chili-1

Method.

Wash the greens and chop them. Boil the moong in little water. Once it gets half cooked add the chopped greens. Grind together the "to Grind " ingredients. Add the paste and turmeric to the greens and let it cook for few more minutes . Tamper the Mustard seeds in oil . Add broken red chili, curry leaves and hing to the pan and add it to the gravy.

Collard Greens Poriyal

My Garden Bounty




Poriyal

Saag & Maize Roti

I had tried Broccoli Rabe subzi couple of times. The leaves are little
harder and it's slightly bitter in taste. Usually I make it with lot of onions and freshly grated coconut to enhance the taste. Mr.B had it as a healthy food but he is not a great fan of it.

Recently my friend's Punjabi nanny made saag and Makki ki roti and I liked it. I used three bunches of greens to make the Saag (Mustard Greens, Brocolli Rabe & Spinach)


Ingredients



sarson
(mustard greens) - 1 bunch
Spinach - 1 bunch
Brocolli Rabe - 1 bunch
Ginger - 1 inch grated
onion - 1 chopped
garlic - 2 grated
green chilies - 4-5
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
red chili powder - 1 tbs
Corn Flour - 1 tbs
Salt

Method

Wash all the greens and chop them roughly. Heat little oil in the Pressure pan(cooker). Add the green chillies, garlic & ginger and stir it for few seconds . Add greens and little salt (just to retain the color) to the pressure pan and add a cup of water and pressure cook the greens for one whistle. Mash it with a hand blender and keep it aside. Take some ghee in a skillet over medium heat. Add the finely chopped onions and fry them till golden brown. Add garam masala, chilli powder ,saag and salt to the pan. Mix the corn flour with water to make a paste( add more water if the saag is too thick) and add it to the saag and simmer it for 15-20 minutes.

Serve hot with Makki Ki Roti.

Verdict :

I enjoyed having the dish with Makki Ki Roti. Mr.B hates corn in any form. So he had the saag with plain Roti. Just got 3 out of 5 stars.

Notes

Sarson greens(Mustard Leaves) and Brocolli Rabe(rabe or rapini)
are totally different. But you can use Broccoli rabe as a substitute for Mustard Greens . I guess the taste would have been better if I had omitted the Mustard greens and used Indian brand corn flour(BRAD) instead of Mexican brand Maseca.

Palak Paneer

Ingredients:

Spinach - 2 bunches (triple washed at home)
Green chillies - 4
Paneer - 1 small block
Dhana-Jeera Powder - 1 tbs
Chilli Powder - 1 tbs
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Garlic-Ginger Paste - 1 tbs
Tomato Puree - 1/4 cup or 2 medium Tomatoes
Onion - 1 Medium
Half&Half - 2 tbs
Salt to taste

Method:

Roughly break the washed spinach with hands. Quickly fry the Green Chillies in little oil , add Spinach leaves to it. There is no need to add water. Add a pinch of salt to the leaves to retain the green color. Cook for about 3 minutes and set to cool. Coarsely puree them using a Hand Blender.

Meanwhile Cube the paneer and fry them in oil till golden grown on both sides and keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Fry the onions first and then add G-G paste. Once the raw smell goes add tomato puree, red chilli powder, Dhana-Jeera Powder, Turmeric Powder and salt. Cook them well till the oil oozes out to the ends of the pan. Now add the Coarsely pureed spinach to the pan and cook for few more minutes. Add the panner cubes and Half & Half(or Cream) at the end for a creamier taste.





Serve with Naan or Roti.

Snake Gourd Kootu (Gravy)

Snake Gourd is one of my favorite Childhood Vegetables. I am a lover of Vegetables since my childhood and love them even more if it's picked freshly from the garden. I remember my uncle would bring fresh snake gourds everytime he visited us from the village and I would make gourd fry immedietly and consumed it just like a snack.

Though it is available here in US, it is not as fresh as we get back in INDIA. Snake gourds are of INDIAN origin and widely used vegetable in Saiva Pillai's Cuisine. I bought some seeds from INDIA two years back. But I missed to plant them last year. This year I was reluctant to plant thinking that the seed would have lost its potency. As my mom insisted , I thought of giving it a try. I sowed the seed in a small pot inside the home and once I got the little plants out, I repotted in a large pot and kept at the backyard near one corner of my home. I had plans of putting trellis but never got time to do that.

As the Saying goes " Vallavanuku Pullum Ayutham", meaning A smart man needs no weapons, it crept almost close to my rooftop holding the vinyl sides, smiling at me from there. Last week I harvested one 3 feet Snake gourd. My mom asked me to tie a small stone to the end so that it will grow even more longer. But I wanted to take it before it gets woody and hard. As usual I wanted to make it fresh. I decided to make Snake gourd Kootu(Gravy) so that everyone gets to eat. If I fry , quantity will become very less.

I didn't leave out anything out of my lovely serpentine vegetable. I made Kootu, Pudalangai Thayir Pachadi and Sponge chutney.

Pudalangai Kootu ( Snake Gourd Gravy)

Ingredients:

Snake Gourd -1
Green Chillie - 2
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Coconut - 2 tbs
Broken Channa
Dhal - 1/4 cup (Soaked and Pressure Cooked for one whistle)
Garlic -2 Cloves

Seasoning
Shallots - 2 Finely cut
Curry Leaves- few sprigs
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Method :

Slit the Snake Gourd Lengthwise and scoop out the spongy stuff inside the gourd.
Keep it safe. we need it for our next recipe. Cut the gourd into small pieces. Grind together coconut, green Chillies , Cumin seeds and add garlic at the end and keep the paste aside. Pour little oil in a pan, Add the cut vegetable to it and saute it for some time. Once the vegetable becomes tender not brown or crispy, add the coconut paste, Salt and Cooked Lentils and cook for sometime. Heat a pan with a teaspoon of oil . Add Mustard seeds and once it tampers , add broken red Chilli,finely cut shallots , Curry leaves and a bit of hing and return the kootu to this pan and switch off the heat.



Serve with hot rice and pulikozhambu.

Paneer & Peppers in Creamy Sauce

Ingredients

Paneer - 1 small block
Jalapeno - 5
Banana peppers -2
Bell Pepper -2
Onion -1
Garlic Ginger Paste 1 tbs
Cumin Seeds -1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1 tbs
Chili Powder - 1/2 tbs
Coriander Leaves (Cilantro) for Garnishing
Tava Fry Masala - 1 tsp
Heavy Cream - 2 tbs
Salt


Method.

Julienne the onions, Paneer and Peppers. Keep the kadai and pour some oil. Put some cumin seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add julienned peppers and sauté for sometime. Then add the Paneer strips, masalas (chili powder, coriander powder and Tava fry masala) and salt. Mix the pepper and paneer strips so that it’s all coated with the masala. Cover it with lid and cook till the vegetables becomes soft. Add some heavy cream and give a turn or two till the cream gets absorbed well. Turn off the heat . Garnish with finely cut Cilantro.
Serve with Roti and Raita.

Chayote Gravy ( Chow Chow Kootu)

I transform most of the vegetables in the form of kootu to make my two year old eat some vegetables. I usually make with Chayote, Ridge Gourd, Bottle Gourd, Cabbage & Potato combo and Spinach .

Ingredient
Chayote - 2
Moong Dhal-1/4 cup

To Grind
Coconut - 2 tbs
Cumin seeds -1 tsp
Green chillies-3
Small onions-2
Garlic cloves-1

For Tampering
Mustard seeds
Curry Leaves
Red Chillies-1 (optional)

Method.
Peel the Skin of Chayote and cut into small pieces. Boil Moong in a pan with water. Once the Moong gets half cooked add the Chayote Pieces to it. Grind together coconut, Green chillies, Cumin seeds and Garlic Clove. Add the paste and turmeric to the Vegetable. Tamper the Mustard seeds in oil . Add Curry Leaves and hing and add it to the gravy.

Sweet Mango Pachadi

Elders say start anything with the sweet. I remember when I was a kid, my mom used to ask me to writedown the Grocery list as she would start listing orally. The top one on the list had always been be sugar or Gud. If she had both in sufficient Quantities, she would ask me to write Cheeni Karkandu(Sugar candy) or Panang karkandu(Palm Sugar). If I had written something on the top by mistake , I was asked to make a new list. Follwing My Mom's myth, I would like to follow my first blog with Sweet Mango Pachadi. In India, My mom used to make this dish with "Kili Mooku" Mango. But here in US , I make with the mango which is usually available in the INDIAN Grocery Stores. This dish is not only sweet but also sour and savory, indicating that life is a blend of everything. This dish is my all time favorite. We make this dish as an accompaniment to Lunch meal.
Too much Puraanams? Lemme start with the recipe here.

Ingredients:
Raw Mango - 1
Powdered Gud-1 cup
Salt - a pinch

Seasoning:
Red chillies -2
Mustard Seeds
Curry Leaves

Method.

Peel the Mango skin and make thin slices of mango.
Keep kadaai and boil the mango slice in very little water.
Once it gets cooked, add the powdered Gud and let it boil till the gud blends with the mango nicely to form a syrup-like liquid.
Heat oil in a kadaai and tamper the Mustard seeds, add Red Chillies and Curry Leaves.
Add the seasoning to the Mango.
Yummy side dish is ready to serve with rice or chappathi.

Note: Boil Gud in little water and filter it thro a seive to remove the sand and add the filtered gud to the mango.
" Kili Mooku" - A Variety of Mango available in Tamilnadu. I think it got the name from the shape similar to a beak of a parrot, also called Bangalora or Totapuri.