Aloo -Gajar-Matar ki Subzi

It is getting very hot these days, wonder whether it’s a result of the global warming phenomenon … some people say that the Swine flu –pandemic is a result of this global warming. The flu virus is supposed to be able to mutate better and faster in the hot weather. Wonder what the world is coming to …. All the panic that is happening all around us…the news is full of headlines about people being quarantined just because they happen to be of a certain nationality …widespread culling of pigs in spite the fact that there is no scientific proof that the flu is being transmitted through these animals ….it all reminds me of some sad futuristic movie showing a paranoid world in 2050, where people are living the lives of animals and worse. I wonder whether all this “progress” is actually leading us to that stage. I sincerely do hope not, I hope that people come to their senses and start respecting nature and the world around them. I do try to do my bit, by trying to reduce, reuse and recycle. I hope it does make a difference somewhere :-)

Coming back to the heat all around …. This hot weather makes me lose my appetite and as a result we are consuming lots of cold fruits and salads, but then a person needs something more substantial than fruit salad to sustain himself/herself and therein comes these simple dishes which need simple ingredients and less time to cook. They are healthy, nutritious and easy to make.

One of our favorite side dish is Aloo-gajar-matar ki Subzi . Although most of the ingredients in this dish are traditionally associated with winter season in India and that is when it is usually made back home, I have the benefit of getting great frozen /fresh vegetables and hence we have it almost through out the year. Serve it with hot chapattis and cool cool cucumber raita and you are ready to beat the heat :-)

Ingredients: -

Aloo/ potato – 2 medium sized, chopped into squares
Gajar / Carrot – 1 big or 2 medium sized, chopped into half circles or cubes
Matar / peas – ½ cup
Ginger – 1.5 inch piece, chopped finely
Green chili – 1-2 as per taste, chopped finely
Oil – 2 tb sp
Turmeric powder – ½ t sp
Red chili powder – ½ t sp
Garam masala powder – ¼ t sp
Salt- as per taste
Chopped coriander – 2 tb sp for garnishing

Wash, peel and chop the potatoes and carrots, keep aside. In a thick-bottomed pan, heat the oil, once slightly hot add the chopped ginger and chilies. Sauté for a minute, till it becomes fragrant. Then add the potatoes and carrot, stir and add the peas. Add all the seasonings except garam masala powder and turmeric powder. Lower the flame to minimum and cover the pan. Let is cook for 8-10 mins till the vegetables are cooked and soft. Uncover and sauté till all water evaporates and the vegetables become glossy with the oil . Add the garam masala powder (I add this only for the fragrance and flavor hence the small quantity, if you want you can add more). Garnish with coriander leaves and serve as accompaniment with roti/parantha/rice.

Bharwan Karela - Stuffed bittergourd

Bitter - is one of the five basic tastes , the other four being sour, salty, sweet and savory. We love karela or bitter gourd, but the time it takes to prepare it is the main reason for us not having it as often as we would like to. When LG of Tasteofmysore announced SWC-Meals on wheels I knew I had to take out the time and make these . I still have memories of train travels which would last for a couple of days and we would eat the stuffed karela packed by my grandmothers . These do not get spoilt for 3-4 days and thus are perfect as food for travels.

I made these after a long time yesterday and here goes the recipe for them -

Ingredients -

Karela / bitter gourd - 6-7 medium sized ones

Onion - 2 sliced

Nigella seeds / kalaunji - 1 tsp
Fennel seeds / saunf - 1 tsp
Fenugreek /methi - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1.5 tsp
Dry mango / Amchur powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder/ haldi - 0.5 tsp
Red chili powder/ laal mirch - 0.5 tsp
Salt to taste
2 tbsp mustard oil
2 tbsp tamarind/ imli pulp (soak imli in half a bowl of water and use the residue )

Thread - as much as required

Peel the bitter gourd with a light hand , slit them vertically and take out all the seeds to create a pocket. Rub lots of salt and keep aside for at least 4-5 hours . Apply salt to the outer peel also and keep aside.

After 4-5 hours squeeze out all the fluid from the bitter gourd and the peels and wash with water.

In a pan heat about 1 tbsp of mustard oil, add the nigella seeds and fennel seeds. Heat till they become aromatic, then add the sliced onions . Saute till the onions become translucent. Then add the squeezed out bitter gourd peel and saute for a minute. Then add all the other spices. Saute for 2-3 minutes then add the tamarind pulp with some water . Saute the mixture till oil starts separating from it.

Now with the help of a spoon, stuff this prepared filling into the bitter gourd. Once well stuffed wrap a thread around the bitter gourd to ensure that the filling does not come out. Once all the bitter gourds are filled and wrapped , shallow fry them till well cooked.

Serve with roti/parantha /rice :)

This is my entry for SWC-Meals on wheels and I hope LG accepts it.

Killing three birds with a stone - That's what its all about

Isn't it great when we can prepare three absolutely different dishes , while making effort for just one .....

Today I am sharing with you one..no no actually three such ways of utilising / consuming one simple Moong daal pakodas . It has been raining cats and dogs here since the last couple of days .....perfect season for a plate of hot sizzling pakodas with a steaming cup of tea . Yesterday I made Moong dal pakodas ..and as always I made a whole lot of pakodas ( you will soon know why ).

Moong dal pakodas take a little planning in terms of having to soak the split moong dal ( yellow one) for atleast 30- 60 minutes before hand . But once you have done it ....you can sit back and relax as you can have these pakodas as starters , main dish or a very good accompaniment.

Let's start with the pakodas first , I made a whole lot of these , but here I am giving you the recipe for about 10 - 12 medium size pakodas -

Moong dal pakodas

Split moong dal ( yellow one) - 1/2 cup

Green Chillies - 2-3 ( depending on how hot you want the pakodas to be )

Ginger - 1/2 inch , chopped fine

Salt - as per taste

Baking soda - 1/2 t sp.

Red chili powder - as per taste

Oil for deep frying

Soak the moong dal in sufficient water for about an hour . Then rinse it well with water and grind in the blender with about 1 tbsp of water ( you can add a couple of green chillies and ginger while grinding also , however I like to add them later) . Grind the dal to a batter , which is grainy when you feel the texture of the batter , it should not be absolutely fine. Now pour the batter in a relatively bigger vessel and add the salt, chili powder , green chili , ginger and the baking soda . Whisk the batter briskly with hand or a flat spoon so that it becomes a little fluffy . This would make the pakodas soft and light . Heat the oil in a deep wok and once it is hot spoon the batter carefully into the oil. The pakodas would immediately rise up . Keep frying them till they become a lovely golden color . Take them out of oil and drain the excess oil by keeping them over tissue paper / kitchen towels.

Serve them hot with tomato ketchup / coriander chutney or any other sauce of you liking.

Chances are that you wouldn't be left with any left overs , but just in case you do have some pakodas left do no fret .....you can use them to make either of these two dishes .

Moong dal pakoda Curry

Dahi pakodi

I always make a lot of pakodas when I get the chance ( this happens rarely because of the concerns about getting over weight etc etc) . I make some pakodas with salt and some without salt as I use the salt less pakodas to make a wonderful curry and I find it easier to adjust the salt levels .

Moong dal pakoda Curry

Moong dal pakodas - 10-15

Onion , large - 1

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Garlic - 8-9 small pods

Green chili - 2-3

Curd - 1/2 cup

Turmeric - 1/2 t sp

Red chili powder - 1 tsp

Garam masala - 1/2 t sp

Cumin seeds - 3/4 tsp

Tomato - 1 large

Salt - as per taste

Oil - 1 tb sp

Water - as required

Grind the onion, ginger,green chillies and garlic to a paste in a blender . Keep them aside.

Then grind the tomato to a paste also.

Then heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan . Once hot add the cumin seeds . As the cumin seeds splutter add the onion,ginger,green chillies and garlic paste and saute the same till it becomes translucent. Then add the turmeric and red chili powder , saute for 2 minutes till the water in the paste almost dries up . Add the tomato paste and keep sauteing till the oil starts to separate from the masala . Then slowly add the beaten curd into the masala , 1 tbsp at a time . Mix the curd well into the masala and keep sauteing the masala at low flame till oil starts to separate from it. Then add about 1 cup water to it and cover the pan. Let it simmer for 5-10 minutes over low flame till the gravy is well cooked ( keep the gravy a little thin . because when we add the pakodas , they soak up some water ) . Then add the garam masala and salt to the gravy .

( if you are using pakodas with salt then add a little less salt to the gravy and in case you are using unsalted pakodas then add a little more salt as the pakodas would soak up some salt).

While the gravy is cooking , soak the pakodas in hot water for 5-10 minutes ( this makes the pakodas soft and also helps in taking out some oil from them) . After 10 minutes , drain the pakodas and squeeze them lightly between the palms before adding them to the ready gravy .

Let the pakodas soak in the hot curry for about 15 minutes before serving .

You can garnish the curry with coriander leaves . This tastes amazing with roti/ parantas .

And last but not the least a great accompaniment to a meal ......Dahi pakodi...

This is one of my favorite ways of having the pakodas .... even after 2-3 days of refrigeration ....just dunk the pakodas in warm water and let them soak for 5-10 minutes . In the meanwhile prepare the yogurt ....take about 2 cups of yogurt ( curd) , beat it well ,add salt , red chilli powder , roasted ground cumin powder , a little black salt ( all as per taste) ....mix it all well . I even add a pinch of sugar ( I think it makes the taste interesting) . Take out the pakodas ( about 6), squeeze them lightly between your palms and soak them in the ready curd mix. Garnish with red chili powder , cumin powder , coriander leaves . Serve them as an accompaniment or separately as chaat or snack ...they taste great !! ;-) and the best part is that no one would complain about being served left overs ;-)