Tindora / kovakkai chutney

                                            I tasted this chutney first time in my co-sister's house which was my MIL recipes. I had this chutney with kolukattai. Me and my husband like it and i thought of trying it when i come home. When i prepared it by myself, it came out well. It goes well with dosa,uttapam,idli,chappathi and even we can have it with rice .The taste will be  combination of spicy and tangy.

Ingredients:

Jeera - 1 tsp
Red chilli - 2 nos
Green chilli - 2 nos
Small onion - 7 nos
Tindora - 20 nos
Tamarind - small gooseberry size
Coconut - 3 tbsp
Salt - as per taste
Oil - 2 tbsp

Recipe:

* Wash tindora and chop it in round circles.
*  Chop small onion into small pieces.
* Soak tamarind in little water.

1.Take a thick bottom kadai , pour 1 tbsp oil and fry tindora for few minutes till tindora get bit crispy.
2.In another kadai add 1/2 tbsp oil ,when oil is hot add jeera,red chilli,green chilli and small onion.Fry for few minutes.Add grated coconut and fry till coconut moist less. Finally add tamarind ,mix and switch off the flame.
3. Transfer all fried items into mixie jar,add little water and enough salt.Grind it into course paste.
4. In a small pan,pour 1/2 tbsp oil,Once it is warm enough, add mustard seed and once it splatter add urad dhal, hing ,red chilli and curry leaves.Pour the tadka on top of tindora chutney and mix well.
Have it with dosa,idli and chappathi.

Note:

* We can avoid green chilli and add more red chilli ,if we want the chutney to be more spicy.
* Instead of tamarind ,we can add chopped tomato in step 2.
* If the tindora is fired till crispy  and grinded, the taste will be different than the tindora fried half crispy. The half crispy tindora chutney will  give bit raw smell of tindora .

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Mattar paneer gravy

                              Mattar paneer gravy is creamier and rich gravy. This is served either with some indian roti's or jeera rice.  When i tasted it first in restaurant, i just love the taste of creaminess and combination of paneer and peas. I had some leftover paneer and some dried green peas, I prepared this for dinner to go with jeera rice. Taste is so good. My kid like the panner and he said after tasting it " i love cheese(paneer) "

Ingredients:

Paneer  -  1 packet
Peas / mattar - 1/2 cup
Jeera - 1 tsp
Ginger - 1 " piece
Garlic - 3 no
Onion - 1 small
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder  - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
Can tomato puree - 1 can / tomato - 3 no
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Kasuri methi / fenugreek leaves - 1 tbsp
Half and half / full cream -  1/2 cup

Recipe:

* Chop onion into very fine pieces.
* Chop garlic and ginger and crush it.
* If you are using dried peas,soak it for 7 hours. Cook it in microwave for 4 or 5 minutes.
* Cut paneer in cubes or into thin strips.
* If not using canned tomato puree, chop tomato and grind it in blender.

1. Take 3 or 4 tbsp oil and fry the paneer till it turns slight brown color. Once it is fried, remove excess oil and soak it in warm water. We can also use unfried paneer too. ( I used both fried and unfried paneer in this dish).
2. Take a wide pan and pour enough oil. Add cumin and let it splatter.
3. Add crushed ginger and garlic . Now add finely chopped onion. Cook it till the onion turn translucent.
4.Now add all the powders(Turmeric , chilli and coriander powder). Add enough salt and mix it well. Cook till the raw smell of the powder reduces.
5.Add tomato puree,garam masala ,mix well and cover the pan. Cook for 5 more minutes till oil oozes out.
6.Add green peas/mattar and mix well.
7.Take dry kashuri methi leaves in your palm and crush it with other palm and spread it over the gravy. Mix ,cover the pan and cook for 2 more minutes.
8.Finally add paneer and cook for 2 more minutes.
9.Final stage add half and half/ heavy cream ,mix the gravy and switch of the flame and cover the lid.
 Mattar paneer gravy is ready.


Note:

1.We can use both fried and unfried paneer in this dish but i prefer the unfried one.
2. Instead of adding just crushed kashuri methi on gravy, i like to fry it in little bit oil in separate pan and add that one to the gravy. The aroma when adding the kashuri methi to oil is awesome.

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Homemade pav

                           Next to masala pori,i love pav bhaji. I miss masala pori in US but i am satisfied that  i am getting pav bhaji in chat shops here. Intially i used to buy ready made pav in shops and will make bhaji in home. But recent days, i like to prepare pav too in home. If i make pav, i will use it for pav bajji, vada pav and misal pav. My son have it as bread and sauce or bread and jam. For his sake, nowadays i either prepare it in home or buy it and keep it in stock. The ingredients needed for this pav is very less and easy to make.

Ingredients:

All purpose flour/Maida - 3 cup
Yeast -  1 1/2 tbsp
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Salt - 1/2 tbsp
Butter - 1 1/2 tbsp
Milk - 1 1/2 cup
Warm water - 2 tbsp

Recipe:

1.Take a small bowl,add 2 tbsp water and add yeast and sugar.Mix well and leave it for 10 minutes.
2.After 10 minutes, check whether yeast is foamy.Mix one more time.
3.Take a large bowl,add all purpose flour,Salt,warm milk,proof yeast and mix well. If needed,add some warm water to it.
4.Knead the dough very softly.Don't knead like chappathi dough(hard)..
5.Transfer the kneaded dough in a glass bowl, apply melted butter on top and cover the dough with damp cloth and rest it in a warm place like conventional oven.

6.Leave it there till the quantity of dough doubles its volume.

7.Once again knead the dough and divide it into equal portion and roll it into balls.

8.Place the rolled balls on a baking pan and cover it with damp cloth and allow to rest for 1 hour.
9.After 1 hour,check whether the rolled balls double the size.

10.Pre heat the conventional oven for 400 F for 5 minutes.Meantime, apply milk as coating on top of rolled balls. If needed, sprinkle some sesame seed on top.

11.Place the pan inside the oven and bake it for 20 minutes.Check the pav by piercing a tooth pick inside,if it comes out clean without sticking any dough,then pav is ready.
12.After 20 minutes, remove the pav and leave it for 2 minutes inside pan.

13.After 2 minutes,transfer the pav to a drying rack.Apply butter on top when it is warm.
14.Once the pav cool down, cut the partitions and remove individual pav buns.

Note:

*.Don't baked the bun so long,it will make the bun hard.
* Place the pan in middle rack in oven,so that bottom part won't get burned soon.
* Don't cut the pav immediately after removing from oven.
* Adjust sugar and salt according to taste.

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Malai kofta

              Malai kofta is one of the famous gravy which we order in restaurants . It goes very well with jeera rice and roti's. As my family like spicy dishes ,this gravy is sweeter one than other gravies. Once in awhile i used to prepare this gravy for jeera rice and chappathi. This gravy is bit sweeter and creamier . Those who are in diet can avoid adding cream and cashew nut.

Ingredients:

For kofta:
Potato - 2 no
Green peas - 1/4 cup
Onion - 1
Green chilli - 2 no
Jeera - 1 tsp
Paneer - 2 tbsp
Carrot and beans -  4 tbsp
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
Corn flour - 4 tbsp
Oil - for deep frying
Salt - as per taste

Gravy:
Jeera - 1 tsp
Onion - 1 no
Tomato - 3 or canned tomato puree - 1
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 tbsp
Cumin powder - 1 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tbsp
Cashew - 5 no
Half and half or heavy cream - 1 small container
Salt - as per taste.
Kashuri methi - 1 tbsp

 

Recipe:

 For Kofta:
* Boil potato and grate it and keep it in a bowl.
* Chop onion into very fine pieces.
* Boil carrot,beans and green peas and squeeze out excess water and transfer it to same bowl.
* Chop green chilli into very fine pieces.

1.Take all the ingredients which are under " For kofta" in a bowl and mix it well.
2.Make small small balls and coat it with corn flour and deep fry it in oil.
3.Transfer fried kofta balls on a plate layered with tissue.

For gravy:
* Chop onion into very very fine pieces.

1.Take a big kadai,add 1 tbsp oil. Once it is warm, add jeera followed by onion. Fry for awhile till onion turn translucent.
2 Add tomato puree  or chopped tomatoes. Add enough salt and cover the kadai. Cook till tomato is cooked and smashed well.
3.Now add all the powder,cashew and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes till raw smell of powder fades.Switch off the flame.
4.Once the content is cooled down,grind it in blender by adding little water.
5.Take another kadai,add little oil. Add jeera and fry. Now slowly pour the grinded mix.
6. Cook for 5 minutes.Once the mix is cooked,crush kashuri methi and add it to the gravy.Add salt if needed.Switch off the flame.
7.Finally add half and half or heavy cream,mix the gravy and garnish with coriander leaves.Cover the kadai.

Serve hot with roti or jeera rice.

Note:

* Those who are in diet,can avoid cream and cashew,instead can use curd.
* By adding the store bought tomato puree, the gravy gets its reddish color without adding red color. Those who are adding chopped tomatoes,can add food color.
* For kids, who love cheese can add chunks of mozzarella cheese inside kofta and cover it,before frying.
*  Those who feel difficult to fry kofta without breaking,can coat kofta with maida liquid and roll it in bread crumbs and then fry it. My son love this kofta than normal one.

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Chettinad chicken fry/ Chettinad kozhi varuval

                        Its been a myth that for non vegetarian chettiand dish used to be tasty and spicy.So i thought of trying their vegetarian dishes,but i tried non-vegetarian dish for my husband sake.  When i tried this recipe, my son who haven't ate chicken ,first time got impressed with the texture and color of the chicken dish and had three pieces.Second time when i prepared it, he liked it too. So this recipe has become one of the side dish on weekends.. Very easy to make and hope tasty too(My son like it).I got this recipe from the blog " You too can cook ".

Ingredients:

For chettinad powder:

Cumin seed - 3/4 tbsp
Coriander seed - 1 tbsp
Sombu/Fennel seed - 1/2 tbsp
Peppercorns -  1/4 tbsp
Red chili - 6

For frying :

Small onion - 8 no / Large red onion - 1/2
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Chicken - 1 lb
Green chilli - 2
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp( Garnish)

Recipe:

1.Clean the chicken ,slightly apply turmeric powder and coat the chicken.
2.Grind the onion in mixie and take it in a bowl.
3.Dry roast the content in " Chettinad powder" and powder it.
4.In a thick bottom kadai, add gingerly oil and once it is hot,add silted green chili,grind-ed onion paste and ginger garlic paste. Fry for awhile.
5.Once the raw smell fades, add the chicken pieces. Mix well.
6.After frying for 2 minutes,add powder 1 tbsp at a time. Add little bit food color at this time if needed( I add to impress my son who just started having chicken, it is purely optional).Add salt as per taste.Fry it in slow flame.
7.Fry for 2 more minutes first by closing the kadai and 5 more minutes without lid.Fry till the chicken is dry and crispy.Finally garnish with coriander leaves.

Notes:

1. Adding food color is purely optional. If you like dark brown color chicken fry,avoid food color.
2.If needed,we can add some lime juice on top while having.

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Mango salsa

                Few months back, i went to costco on weekend.Generally on weekends,  they use to serve some food items samples to taste. When we were tasting one or other, i saw a lady serving salsa with tortilla chips. I have tasted salsa with tortilla,but after tasting the sample. I just love the taste. Normal salsa won't be sweet,but this one was bit sweeter and also spicy. When i saw the small board which is kept near to her, i came to know it is mango salsa. Nice combination of mango salsa and tortilla. I like to try preparing this mango salsa in home than buying canned one.Going through the net, i came to know the main ingredients for this salsa. I  added few more ingredients according to my taste bud.


Ingredients:

Ripe mango - 1
Onion - 1/2 ( Preferably red onion)
Jalapeno pepper - 1 tbsp
Tomato - 1 ( Medium size)
Cilantro - 5 tbsp
Oregano - 1/2 tbsp
Jeera powder - 1 tsp
Crushed pepper - 1 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Pineapple - few chunks ( optional)
Lemon juice - 1 1/2 tbsp
Olive oil - 2 tsp

Recipe:
* Chop onion into very fine pieces.
* Chop mango into small cubes.
* Chop tomato into small small chunks after scooping inner part.
* Chop cilantro into fine pieces.
* Chop pineapple into very fine pieces.
*  Remove seeds from jalapeno pepper and chop finely.

Mix everything in a bowl and adjust  salt as per taste. Serve it with any flavored tortilla chips or plain one.

Note:
* We can also add red bell pepper( Red capsicum) if needed.
* We can also grind everything in a food processor to get a semi coarse texture.
*  For more spicy,we can also crushed peppers.
*  We can also serve this salsa as stuffing for burritos.

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Masala paal

                          Climate in US is so cold. So recently i was planning to prepare some hot drink which soothe the throat and give a warm feeling. First i thought to prepare some soups , but when i was talking to my friend recently,she said she is going to her friend's marriage in india. When we were discussing about marriage costume,accessories, food ...etc .... i remembered during my childhood in few marriages they use to serve hot badam milk... which used to be my favorite. Nowadays they are serving paruthi paal(I don't have any idea what it is and what they mix )but it gives a complete feel ,drinking this drink after a big feast.  After the conversation, i thought of preparing some different milk drink other than badam milk ,rose milk ,paruthi paal.... i came across this masala milk recently when i was viewing some cooking video's in youtube randomly. I like to give a try. When i start preparing this drink,i don't have any idea how the taste will be ,because it is been long since i had it . But once i prepared and tasted it, i can bring back my memory and felt happy that i could recreate a drink which i like to have for this cold climate.

Ingredients :

Milk - 2 cup
Saffron - 1/2 tsp
Badam - 10 no
Pista - 7 no
Black pepper corn - 1 tsp
Cinnamon - 1 1/2" piece
Cardamom - 1/2 tsp
Cloves - 3 no
Ginger - small piece.
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Yellow color - a pinch(optional)

Recipe:

*Soak badam and pista in a bowl for 10 minutes.After 10 minutes,  remove the skin and grind it by adding little water or milk.
* Chop some soaked badam and pista for garnishing.
* Grind the saffron and little sugar and soak it in 2 tbsp warm milk.
* Crush pepper corn coarsely.
* Crush ginger .

1.Take a heavy bottom pan and pour the milk.Switch off the stove and heat the milk in medium flame .
2.Add pepper corn,cloves,ginger and cardamom . Stir the milk continuously.
3.Add sugar and soaked saffron . Reduce the heat and stir till the milk little bit thickens up.
4.Now add grinded badam and pista paste and mix well. Stir for some more minutes.
5.Finally add cinnamon and yellow color(If the saffron doesn't give required color).Close the pan and leave it for 5 minutes.

While serving strain the milk and serve hot or cold by garnishing with chopped badam,pista and  saffron .


Note:

* Usually in original recipe,they used to add an ingredient called sara paruppu. I couldn't able to find the ingredient,so added pista.
* Adding food color is just optional.
* I don't like over powering taste of cinnamon ,so i added it at last minute and left it in milk only for few minutes. But those who like cinnamon flavor ,can add it at initial stage.

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