Tomato Rasam

 

This rasam recipe is simple, easy and quick to make at home. Rasam is commonly served with plain rice and a vegetable side dish. It can also be served as an appetiser. Try the recipe below!!

What you need:

• 2 tomatoes (medium sized)

• 2 green chillies (finely chopped)

• 2 tsp rasam powder 

• 1 tsp jaggery

For tempering:

• 2 tsp oil

• 1 tsp mustard 

• few curry leaves 

• 1 tbsp coriander leaves 

Method:

• Wash the tomatoes. Cut into 4 pieces and put them in the mixer jar and run the mixer just for 30 seconds. Remove.

• Heat oil in a small pan. When it’s hot, add the mustard, curry leaves and green chillies. Fry. Add the tomato paste. Fry the tomatoes for 10 minutes on low flame by adding rasam powder. Add 2 cups of water. Check the salt and add jaggery. 

• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice. 

Croaker Fish Curry

 

This dish is simple, flavourful, delicious and easy to prepare!

What you need:

• 6 pieces of croaker fish (medium sized)

• 1 cup coconut 

• 4 long red chillies 

• 1/2 tsp coriander seeds

• 2 seeds of garlic (peeled)

• 4 pepper corns

• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

• 1 onion (small sized)

• 1 tsp tamarind

For tempering:

• 1 onion (small sized)

• 2 tsp coconut oil

Method:

• Clean and wash the fish. Apply 1/2 tsp salt and keep it aside.

• Grind the masala to form a fine paste.

• Take a heavy bottomed pan. Add oil and the sliced onions and fry until it turns golden brown. Add the ground masala and fry on low flame for 5 minutes. Add water and stir to form a gravy-like consistency. 

• Add salt. Do not add more salt as you have already added salt to the fish. Close the lid and bring the gravy to a boil. Add the fish. Check the salt. Add more salt if required. 

• Boil for 2-3 minutes and switch off the flame. Serve hot with boiled rice. 

Cauliflower Stir Fry

We need

1 small cauliflower cut into florets

1 onion thinly sliced

1 tomato finely chopped

Little ginger finely chopped

Half tsp chilli powder 

Pinch of turmeric powder

Boil two cups of water with a teaspoon of salt and pinch of turmeric. Add florets and boil for two minutes. Cool and drain. Keep it aside. (Blanching)

Heat a tbsp oil, add ginger. In a minute add onions. Saute till they are tender. 

Add tomato. Increase heat, add chilli powder, salt and turmeric. Saute till tomatoes get soft.

Now add drained cauliflower. Mix slowly taking care not to break the florets.

Sprinkle lemon juice, check the taste. Turn off heat. 

As cauliflower is pre-cooked no need to boil much. If necessary sprinkle little water. Cauliflower doesn't taste good if over cooked. 

Sprouts & Ridgegourd Stir Fry

 

We need

A cup of sprouted greengram

A cup of  ridgegourd peeled and cut into small pieces

1 medium onion sliced

One green chilli cut in to small pieces

Little grated coconut (optional)

Let's begin

Heat a tsp of oil in a pan, add mustard, curry leaves and chilli one by one giving a gap of 30 seconds.

Add sliced onion, saute for a minute and add ridge gourd. Cook for 5 minutes on low heat stirring once in between. Add a teaspoon of water or two in between if need be.

Add sprouted green gram and salt. Mix well.  Cook for 2-3 minutes, add coconut. Check the taste and adjust salt and chilli. Add coriander leaves if available. turn off heat. Let it cook on its for a few more minutes. Serve with rice or roti.

Quick Chicken Balls

 

Chicken snacks are loved by both, kids and adults. This dish is easy and quick to prepare and can be served as a snack on a rainy evening. 

We need:

• 100 gm Boneless chicken 

• 1 medium Potato 

• 1 tsp Chilli powder 

• 1 pinch of garam masala

• Salt to taste

• Oil to fry

Preparation:

• Boil the potato, peel and mash well.

• Wash, cut the chicken in to small pieces and run in small mixer jar for a minute.

• Mix the minced chicken, mashed potato, salt, chilli powder and garam masala.

• Mix well. Wash hands and apply oil on the palm. Roll the above mixture in to small balls.

• Take shallow tava and add oil. When the oil is medium hot, slip in the chicken balls. 

• Fry them well, rolling on all sides. Alternatively deep fry the balls if in a hurry.

• Serve with mint chutney or ketchup on a rainy evening.

Note: Separate the chicken from bones to get boneless chicken. Increase the chicken and potato if more chicken balls are required. If the mixture is soggy, add a spoon of corn floor/maida. 

Golden Sambar

We need:

• Quarter kg pumpkin 

• Pinch of turmeric powder

• 1 tsp sambar powder

For seasoning:

• 1 tsp oil

• Mustard seeds

• 1 broken chilli

• Little hing

• Curry leaves

Method:

1. Wash the pumpkin, peel and cut in to pieces.

1. Boil in cooker till 3 whistles or for 5 minutes with turmeric.

1. Once the cooker is cooled, mash the pumpkin well with a ladle. Keep aside.

1. Heat the oil in thick bottomed vessel, when hot add mustard, hing, chilli and curry leaves.

1. Now add mashed pumpkin. Add water and adjust the consistency. Add salt and sambar powder.

1. Check the taste. Serve with rice. 

1. To accompany with chapathi/poori make it thick (adding less water).

Pepper Chicken Dhaba Style

 

Quick to cook without much preparation this dish tastes good with fried curry leaves, garlic and onion. Serves as a side dish as well as starter.

We need

1/2 kg chicken

2 sprigs of curry leaves

15 cloves of garlic 

1 big onion 

1 small tomato

2 green chillies

1 tbsp pepper powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp lemon juice

Clean and drain the chicken. Cut garlic, onion, tomato and chillies finely.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a nonstick pan. Add curry leaves. 

One by one add green chillies, garlic, onion and tomato. After 2 minutes add chicken, 1 tsp of rock salt  and turmeric powder,  give a good mix, close the lid. Let the chicken simmer in its own juice. After five minutes or so, add a few tbsps of water if needed and add half tbsp pepper powder. 

Let the chicken cook till the gravy dries up. Stir in between to avoid burning. Once the chicken is cooked well and water is dried, raise the heat. Keep stirring till the chicken browns lightly. Put off the heat, check the taste. If need need add powdered salt. Squeeze half a lime and 1/2 tbsp pepper powder. Mix well. Serve.

Note: Increase or decrease the pepper as per your taste. Freshly ground pepper always tastes good.

OMURICE

 A boring rainy evening can be turned tasty with Homo Rice. Use any vegetable available readily with the afternoon's left over rice. Increase the rice, eggs and vegetable as per your needs. Kids love this new tasty rice and ask for more. Add shredded chicken for extra taste. Substitute butter with oil. 

We need

2 cups cooked rice

2 eggs

1 cup Shredded carrot/cabbage/capsicum/onion shoots

10 clove garlic minced

2 green chillies finely chopped

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp soya sauce

1 tsp vinegar

1 tsp pepper powder

Separate the egg white and yolks carefully.

Mix the the egg yolk with cooked and cooled rice. Keep aside.

Heat butter in a non-stick pan, add garlic, saute for a minute, add chillies and shredded vegetables of your preference one by one.

Once the vegetables have fried a bit, little by little add the rice mixed with yolk, tossing the pan and now and then. Increased the heat and keep mixing the rice. At this stage the rice coated with the egg yolk cooks. After 3-4 minutes of tossing, add soya sauce, vinegar and pepper powder and continue tossing. Check the taste. Serve hot with Pepper Chicken

Take a pan, add little oil, when hot add the egg whites, stir well. Add a bit of salt and pepper for taste. Stir well, put off heat. After a minute stir well to make egg whites into small bits. Add this to the homo rice before serving. 

Seemebadane Sukka/Chow Chow/Chayote

Seemebadane Sukka/Chow Chow/Chayote

May be seemebadane kai is the most disliked/undercooked vegetable. It is called chow chow in some parts of Karnataka and Chayote in English which hardy anybody uses. The tender seemebadane cooked into a simple dish actually tastes soooo good. Just poke your nail at the bottom of the seemebadane to check whether it is tender before buying.

You need

1-2 tender seemebadane (medium size)

1 onion sliced thinly

1-2 green chillies slit

1 tbsp or more grated coconut

Little mustard and curry leaves

Salt to taste

·     Wash the seemebadane, trim the head and tail,  slit into two, discard the seed and slice the seemebadane into small pieces.

·     Heat oil in a thick bottomed/nonstick pan. When hot, add mustard, when they splutter add curry leaves, add sliced onions, fry for a minute, add slit chillies.

·     After a minute add sliced seemebadane. Add salt and coconut. Mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes closing the lid. If needed add 2-3 tbsp water.

·     If the seemebadane is tender it cooks within 4-5 minutes.

·     Check the taste after 4 minutes, add lime and chopped coriander if you wish. Put off the stove and serve with chapathi or rice.

Capsicum Sukka

Capsicum Sukka

Easiest and fastest way to cook capsicum with only three things that are readily available in the kitchen. Goes well with the chapathi. Increase or decrease the number of capsicums, it just tastes the same.

You need

2-3 capsicums sliced thinly

1 onion sliced thinly

1-2 green chillies slit

Salt to taste

·     Wash the capsicums, slit into two, discard the seeds and slice the capsicums into thin slices.

·     Heat oil in a thick bottomed/nonstick pan. When hot, add sliced onions, fry for a minute, add slit chillies.

·     After a minute add sliced capsicums and salt. Mix well. Close the lid and let it cook in slow fire.

·     Check the taste after 4 minutes, add lime and chopped coriander if you wish. Put off the stove when capsicum is still a bit crunchy which tastes good.

·     Serve with chapathi or rice.

Macaroons

 

We need

 

1 egg white

75 gm cashew nuts cut into small pieces

175 gm finely powdered sugar

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

 

Let's start

Preheat the oven at 120 C

Take a big glass or steel bowl and carefully separate the egg white from yellow.

Begin whipping egg white  slowly till it becomes  foamy and frothy. Increase the speed till the egg white becomes stiff. (Test: when the whisk is lifted the peaks should not drop).

 

Add sugar spoon by spoon into the stiff egg white. Keep whisking/whipping. [Takes a bit of time. Be patient].

 

Fold in the cashew nut pieces delicately little by little. Don’t mix vigorously. Finally add cardamom powder. Fold it gently.

 

Line parchment paper on a baking tray and drop spoonfuls of batter on leaving sufficient space in between. (10-11 macaroons). Place the baking tray in preheated oven and bake

 

for 20-30 minutes or till the macroons turn light brown.

Let them cool completely and enjoy with hot cup of coffe.

Note: Any yolk (or yellow part) or oil if mixes up with white will keep the white from getting stiff. Hence, wash the whipper/whisk and bowl with hot water before you start the recipe. Add the sugar only after egg white has beaten to a foamy stiff stage.

Can also bake the macaroons in microwave in convention mode. It will take around 15 minutes. Please refer users guide of microwave for correct timing and heating.