Thursday, April 2, 2009

Seemebadnekai/Chayote palya

Ingredients
Seemebadnekai - 4
Onion(chopped) - 1
Green chillies - 4-5
Channa dal - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 2-3 tbsp
Salt to taste
Cilantro - 2-3 sprigs

Method
Peel and cut seemebadnekai into desired size.
In a pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds. After they splutter, add channa dal and fry till they turn golden brown.
Add chopped onion and fry till onions turns golden brown. Add green chillies, salt and turmeric powder and fry for a couple of minutes.
Add semebadnekai and cook covered till done on medium/low heat. Add a little water if necessary.
Garnish with cilantro.

Heser bele/Moong dal paysa

Ingredients
Moong dal - 1 cup
Jaggery - 1 cup
Water - 11/2 cups
Grated Coconut/coconut milk - 1 cup/can
Cardamom - 2-3
Ghee - 2tbsp
Raisins, Cashew nuts - 1/2 cup

Method
In a pan, heat ghee and fry raisin and cashew till it turns golden brown. Strain the dry fruits and keep aside.
In the same pan, roast moong dal till it becomes slightly brown in color.
Add water and pressure cook till done.
If you use grated coconut, blend coconut and cardamom in a mixer to a smooth paste. Do not add a lot of water while blending. And add this to the cooked dal and bring it to boil.
Otherwise, just empty the can of coconut milk into cooked dal and add cardamom.
Now add jaggery and boil it for 5-10 minutes. Keep stirring to make sure lumps are not formed at the bottom of the pan.
You can alter the consistency by adding milk.
Add the fried raisins and cashew nut.

Mosranna/curd rice

Ingredients
Cooked Rice - 1 cup
Yogurt - 11/2 cup
Grapes - 1/4 cup (Optional)
Grated ginger - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 1-2
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Red chillies - 2-3
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Cilantro - 2-3 sprigs

Method
Mix rice and yogurt with salt. Now add grapes, ginger and green chillies.
For seasoning, heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, after they splutter, add urad dal and red chillies and fry till the dal turns golden brown.
Garnish with cilantro.

Tomato chutney

Ingredients
Tomatoes - 2
Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup
Coriander - 1/2 a bunch
Tamarind concentrate - 1/4 tsp
Green chillies - 2
Red chilly - 1
Oil - 1 tbsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste

Method
Grind coconut, tomatoes, coriander, green chillies and tamarind. add salt to this and mix well.
Seasoning:
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds. After they splutter, add urad dal, red chilly and fry till the dal turns golden brown. And mix it with chutney.