Wishing all readers and friends a very happy Sankranthi.
Chakrapongali and mango rice, today's specials.
Sankranthi Subhakanshalu
Wishing all readers and friends a very happy Sankranthi.Chakrapongali and mango rice, today's specials.
Methati Pakodi
4 large Onions10 - 12 Green Chilies -Optional
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic-Chili paste
2 scoops Besan - Senaga pindi
1 tsp Rice flour
2 tsp Curd
Few curry leaves
Cashew nuts
Chop onions into small pieces. Add chili-ginger-garlic paste, salt and let it sit with a closed lid for 7-10 min. Onions sweat out water and excess water is not required to mix the flours. Also the pakodi will absorb less oil.
Add besan, rice flour, curry leaves, a pinch of turmeric(optional), 1/2 tsp red chili powder, cashew nuts and mix with 2 tsp of thick curd thoroughly. Chopped green chilies can be added for spicy lovers!
Heat oil in a kadai (I personally prefer a traditional concave shape kadai for maximum usage of space with less oil) and never let the oil be screaming hot! It burns the first batch.
Drop a spoon of hot oil in the mixture; this will make the fried item light(gullaga). A pinch of cooking or baking soda can also be used.
Take hand full of batter and gently drop by small amounts in the oil. Wait for 2 minutes before the batch hardens and then turn back and forth so that they will not burn.
Fry till they all turn into golden yellow, remove from the oil. Place them on paper towels so the excess oil is absorbed.
These are sponge, soft pakodi that are very soft, crispy and tasty. Might wonder if I am contradicting myself, yes crispy on the outside and sponge/soft like inside. Serve with ketchup of choice of mint or coriander chutney. Plain tastes just fine too. Enjoy with a hot cup of tea.
Happy New Year 2010
A new year, a new decade dawns and makes yesterday a history, a memory
Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning; but a going on cycle
Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow
Let it be felt; I’ve made of it a happy year.
A very happy new year to all my friends and readers.
Vegetable Puffs
Around 4 O'clock trays of freshly baked puff's and samosas used to arrive at a popular bakery in Chennai. It was hard to resist the temptation. They flew off the shelf like hot cakes. Well, they had yummy pastries too, difficult choice!
I never realized it is such a simple procedure to make them and all we needed is an oven to bake them. So, you can imagine my state when I was baking my first batch of puff's. Now, it has become a common thing as my son enjoys them more than his mom.
I never realized it is such a simple procedure to make them and all we needed is an oven to bake them. So, you can imagine my state when I was baking my first batch of puff's. Now, it has become a common thing as my son enjoys them more than his mom.
I use Pepperidge Farm pastry sheets. They are available in the freezer section of regular grocery stores.
Pastry sheets5 Potatoes
2 Onions
1 tsp Chili Ginger paste
Few Curry Leaves
Lemon Juice
Boil potatoes with salt and turmeric, peel and mash them well.
Take 4 tsp of oil in a skillet and make tadka (poppu) with ½ tsp mustard seeds, ½ tsp jerra and then add chopped onions, chili ginger paste and curry leaves. When onion turns translucent, add the mashed potatoes and mix well.
Check for salt and seasonings remove from flame. Add lemon juice and chopped coriander and mix well.
Keep the pastry sheets outside for sometime. Cut them in desired size, bite size or medium serving size. Place 2 spoon fulls of the curry on one half of the pastry sheet and fold it. Repeat the process for all. Wet your fingers and bring the edges together.
Spray PAM or grease a baking tray, place the stuffed pastry sheets and bake in a preheated (350 degrees) over for 20- 25 minutes or till the layers are crispy on the outside.
Serve warm with ketchup. Perfect as a starter or as a snack. Easier to prepare for a large group. Prepare the curry in advance and bake the puffs just in time for a starter. Do not re-heat puffs in micro oven, use a toaster oven for better quality.
The curry in puffs should be a dry variety with potato as a base. It can be tweaked to suit personal taste, by adding garam masala, certain vegetables like peas, peppers etc.
Majjiga mirapakayelu - Dried chilies
Sun dried green chilies that are soaked in sour curd are called majjiga mirapakayelu. These are the regular type without any stuffing. The whole procedure takes about 6 days, 3 days to soak and 3 good sunny days for drying. Prepare in bulk to last a whole year. A speciality side item, usually served with dal and rice as an accompaniment.
5 lbs Long Green chilies1 Gallon Yogurt - curd
2 tsp Vammu
Make fresh curd and leave it outside for a day to make it sour. Add salt, turmeric and vammu and beat it well. Do not add water.
Wash and wipe green chilies and sun dry them till they are dry. Using a knife or a pin make small holes/slit on the green chilies at 2 places if they are very long.
Gently place the green chilies in a container with a lid. Add the beaten curd on top of the chilies and gently press on so all of them are immersed well in the curd. Set aside for 3- 4 days in cool dry place and gently turn the chilies once a day so that all of them are covered evenly.
On the 4th day, separate the chilies and the curd. Transfer the curd from the container into an aluminum tray and place the chilies on a polythene cover and sun dry them. At night place the chilies back in the curd in the aluminum tray. Repeat this process till the curd dries or for 2 days. Then discard the remand curd and sun dry the chilies till they are light and completely dried which will take about 2 - 3 good sunny days.
Use a napkin and wipe the curd that dried on the outside of the chili, by doing this the oil will remain clear after frying them. Discard any seeds that are loose. Store in an airtight container. They have good shelf life.
Heat couple of tsp of oil in a kadai and fry the chilies or medium/low heat till they are nicely done, be careful not to burn them. Drain on a paper napkin to absorb the excess oil. They are a good side dish with dal and rice.
Vegetable Dum Biryani
Slow oven or Dum has become one of the most refined forms of cooking in India. Slow oven means cooking on very low flame, mostly in sealed containers, allowing the ingredients to cook, as much as possible, in their own juices.
Whole fresh spices and herbs are used for flavoring. Saffron is used as a condiment to give color and special taste to the dish.
Dum biryani is prepared by marinating the vegetables pieces in plain yogurt, turmeric, cumin- coriander powder, chili powder and cooked only by the dum, or the baking process, which is done along with cooked rice. In the end, Dum food is about aroma, when the seal is broken the fragrance floats in the air.
Whole fresh spices and herbs are used for flavoring. Saffron is used as a condiment to give color and special taste to the dish.
Dum biryani is prepared by marinating the vegetables pieces in plain yogurt, turmeric, cumin- coriander powder, chili powder and cooked only by the dum, or the baking process, which is done along with cooked rice. In the end, Dum food is about aroma, when the seal is broken the fragrance floats in the air.
4 cups Basmati rice
2 Potatoes
2 Carrots
1 Beetroot
2 cups Cauliflower flowerets
Handful whole Beans
2 cups Peppers (any color)
3 Onions
2 cups Mint
2 tsp Ginger-garlic paste
3 Green chilies
2 cups Curd
4 tsp Biryani masala
4 Bay leaves
2” Butter stick
4 Bread slices
Cashew nuts
Coriander
Pinch saffron
Chop vegetables in good big size. Boil beetroot in water for sometime in micro oven. This is to remove color from beetroot. Drain water and add to vegetables.
Cook basmati rice (1:2 water) in a rice cooker. Add couple whole elachi, cinnamon stick, cloves, salt and 2 tsp oil to the rice while cooking.
Marinate the vegetables pieces in plain yogurt, turmeric, cumin- coriander powder, chili powder for 15 minutes.
Take 4 tsp of oil in a skillet add shahi jeera, and whole masala items (star anise, mace, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, elachi) fry for a few minutes then add chopped onions, chilies, bay leaf and fry till the onions are translucent then add ginger-garlic paste, chopped mint and all the marinated vegetables along with the curd. Cook on medium flame till they are just about cooked. Add 4 tsp of biryani masala powder and salt and mix well and cook with the lid on for a few minutes more.
Transfer from the skillet to a baking casserole dish. Spread layers of vegetables and cooked rice alternatively and repeat till everything has been layered. Add a pinch of saffron to 2 tsp of water and sprinkle/spread on the rice. Add some butter or oil and cover with aluminum foil and cook in a preheated oven (350 degrees) for about 20 - 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven mix thoroughly and garnish with fried cashews, fried onions, fried bread and chopped coriander. Or saute 2 onions in 2 tsp of oil and spread on the rice before baking.
Raita or kurma is a good side dish with Vegetable Biryani. A one pot meal that is filling and healthy.
The difference between biryani and pulov is that while pulov may be made by cooking the items together, biryani is used to denote a dish where the rice is cooked separately from the other ingredients. Dum enhances slow cooking.
Longwood Gardens, PA
Magnificent gardens, spectacular horticultural display, refreshing fountains covered acres of pure and serene garden. High energy fireworks, rhythmic fountains and soothing music illuminated the night sky. A pleasure to the eyes and heart.
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