Tomato Rasam

Tomato Rasam
South Indian cuisine, a thin spicy drink or thin lentil soup, either mixed with rice or drunk by itself (rasam means flavor)

Ingredients

• Cooked Tur Dhal...........................1 cup
• Tomato .......................................3
• Tamarind....................................Small size
• Rasam Powder.............................2 tsp
• Hing( Asafoetida)............           .1/2 tsp
• Turmeric Powder.............            1/2 tsp
• Mustard and Cumin seeds....        1 tsp each
• Ginger..........................................1 small piece
• Curry Leaves................................ few
• Coriander leaves(chopped) ....... 3 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method

• Heat a pan with water add tamarind, turmeric, rasam powder(red chilli powder and coriander powder).
• Add cut tomatoes salt and hing.The tamarind smell should go.
• After 3 minutes remove the tomatoes and blend the tomatoes, curry leaves and ginger into puree.
• Add this puree and cooked dhal(dilute with 2 cups water ). Stir it well.
• Heat a pan with oil add mustard and cumin seeds.
• When the mustard crackle ,add to the rasam.
• Lastly sprinkle with chopped coriander.(lastly add 1 tsp pepper jeera powder and 1 tsp lemon juice to the rasam) optional)

Masala Box

Stainless steel masala Box with Spices included: Coriander seeds(cilantro) Coriander powder adds freshness to the many spicy dished used in India. The flavor complements many foods

Red chilli powder
Turmeric powder
Jeera(cumin seed
Mustard seeds

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Urad dhal
Red chillies
Coriander seeds
Chana dal
Methi seeds Jeera
Sambar powder

Pav Bhaji

Ingredients

• Potato ................................ 4
• Cauliflower ......................... 200 gms
• Tomato ...............................4
• Onion finely chopped ..........2 cups
• Green chilies .......................3
• Ginger Garlic paste .............1 tsp
• Pav bhaji masala ................1tsp
• Red chili powder ................1tsp
• Turmeric powder ................1 tsp
• Lemon pieces ..................... 8
• lemon juice............................2 tsp
• Coriander leaves chopped ....3 tsp
• Green pepper chopped ....... 1cup
• Peas ................................. ..1/2 cup
• Butter ................................. 3 tbsp
• Pavs(Indian/hamburger) bread..6
• Salt to taste

Method

• Boil, peel and mash the potatoes coarsely and keep separately
• Cook cauliflower and peas with little salt and keep separately
• Heat a pan with ghee, add garlic ginger paste onions, capsicums and fry them 5 minutes
• Add pav bhaji masala and red chili powder and fry for 5 more minutes.
• Add cooked potatoes, cauliflower and peas and sauté them nicely.
• When all vegetables are cooked add 2 cups of water and lemon juice. Continue to cook and mash them nicely.
• Cut the pavs in the middle and apply butter and roast them in tava till the pavs become crisp on both sides.
• Serve the hot pavs with bhaji in a plate garnished by lemon pieces coriander leaves, chopped onions and 1 tsp of butter .

Chole



Chole



This is a punjabi dish.Chole is accompanied by roti/naan/poori. We all like chole with poori.

Ingredients

• Chick Peas.......................1 tin or
• (Cooked Chickpeas..........2cups)
• Potato...............................2 (cooked)
• Onion...............................2 (finely chopped)
• Tomatoes..........................3 (chopped)
• Red Chili Powder..............1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder..............1/2 tsp
• Chana Masala Powder......2 tsp
• Green Chilies....................2
• Garlic Ginger Paste...........1 tsp
• Garam Masala..................1/2 tsp
• Amchur powder...............1/2 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method

• Soak the chana(chick peas) overnight.
• Cook it with salt in pressure cooker
• Heat a pan with oil add garlic ginger paste, chana masala, onions and saute them till they become red.
• Add the dhania-jeera powder and red chili powder and fry again.
• Add the boiled chanas, salt, the garam masala powder, amchur powder and cook for two minutes.
• Last add the mashed potatoes and tomatoes and cook for another two minutes.
• Garnish with chopped coriander leaves, green chilies.
• Serve hot with poori or chapathi

Shreekand

Shreekand

Shreekand is an Indian dessert specially Maharashtrian/Gurathi cuisine, It is very tasty dish and very easy to make at home

• Yogurt/Curd.....................................1 tin
• Powdered Sugar.............................. 2 cups
• Saffron............................................ few strings
• Cardamom Powder.........................1/2 tsp
• Pistas and Almonds(Powdered).......3 tsp
• Salt.................................................a pinch

Method 

• Tie the yogurt in a muslin cloth and hang it for 8 hours .
• Remove it add sugar ,salt and mix well till the sugar is dissolved.
• Sieve this dough through filter (Puran)to remove the lumps and smooth the shreekand.(You can use beater).
• Soak the saffron in warm milk.
• Add saffron water,cardamom powder and powdered nuts and mix well.

Pooris


Ingredients

• Wheat Flour............ 2 cups
• Salt..........................1tsp
• Oil for Mixing..........2tbsp
• Oil for Frying

Method

• Mix the flour salt and oil in a bowl and make a thick dough adding water.cover it
• Heat a pan with oil. Divide the dough into small balls and roll them into a small round shape.
• Deep fry the pooris, turn them and fry till puffed up and golden in color
• Keep them in a paper towel.
• Serve them with  shreekand

Lasagna



Tomato Sauce

Cook the noodles

cheese, tomato sauce and spinach

A dish made by baking pasta with layers of tomato sauce and fillings such as cheese , spinach, carrot or meat. If anyone visits Italy realizes, pasta and pizza are the famous dishes, Italian cooks have making varieties of pastas and pizzas from region to region: In America most of the people like this dish.Lots of vegetables used in this dish and easy to prepare.You can use ragu tomato sauce instead of making it.The word "lasagna" is derived from the Greek word "lasanon" meaning chamber pot. The word was later borrowed by the Romans as "lasanum" to mean cooking pot. The Italians then used the word to refer to the dish in which what is now known as lasagna is made. The word lasagna or lasagna (plural) now simply applies to the dish itself. The British generally use the plural "lasagna" to mean both the dish and the pasta while the Americans commonly use the singular "lasagna".http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lasagna

Ingredients

• Chopped Spinach........ ...1 pack
• Carrots Diced..................3
• Garlic Cloves...................3
• Onions Cut......................1 cup
• Tomato Chunks...............1 can (12 0z)
• Ttomato Paste.................2 cans(6 0z)
• Parmesan Cheese............1/4 cup
• Salt.................................2 and 1/2 tsp
• Pepper............................1/2 tsp
• Basil and Oregano.......... 1tsp
• Pizza Cheese .................. 1/2 lb
• Bay Leaf..........................1
• Lasagna Noodles..............1 packet

Method

• Preheat the oven.
• Heat a pan with olive oil add garlic and onions cook until becomes tender.
• Add tomato,pepper,basil,oregano bay leaf, salt and simmer for an hour.
• Cook noodles for 5 minutes adding little salt in the water.
• Grease the lasagna pan.
• Spread, in the layers of lasagna noodles,tomato sauce,carrot, spinach.
• Repeat till the last layer noodles tomato sauce.
• Put Parmesan cheese on the last layer
• Bake this at 350 degree for 30 minutes.

Kaalan

Kalan This dish mainly from Kerala Nambuthiri( Kerala native Brahmins) They use pepper instead of chillies. Now we use pepper and chillies for this recipe. This kalan is main dish for Onam festival.

Kaalan

Ingredients

• Thick Buttermilk.............. 4cups
• Pepper Powder................2 tsp
• Jeera(Cumin Seeds)........ 2tsp
• Yam or Plantain banana
• (Nentrakai).............. .......100gms
• Turmeric.Powder............. 1/4 tsp
• Grated oconut................. 1 cup
• Green Chilies................... 6
• Mustard................... 1tsp
• Red Chili..................2
• Curry Leaves.............few
• Salt to Taste

Method

• Cut the yam /banana into small pieces and cook them in water and remove the water.
• Boil the buttermilk with turmeric,pepper jeera powder cooked yam/ banana pieces till it becomes thick. (You can prepare this well in advance)
• Grind the coconut, chilli into coarse paste and mix with the buttermilk.
• Boil it,When it becomes thick add salt and change the kalan in to a serving bowl.
• Heat a pan with oil add mustard, chilli and curry leaves. When it splutters add to the kalan.
• You can keep this kalan for one month.
• Eat with rice and roasted pappads.

Vazhakkai Podimas (Banana curry)



Boiled Vazhakai

Vazhakai ready to grate



Ingredients

• Raw Banana........................6
• Grated Coconut...................half cup
• Green Chilies,......................5
• Chopped Ginger..................2 tsp
• Curry Leaves.......................few
• Salt .....................................to taste
• Mustard Seeds....................1 tsp
• White Dhal (Urad Dhal).......2 tsp

Method

• Boil the bananas . When the colour of the banana skin becomes black remove the skin and grate it in grater.
• Mix the coconut and chillies in a blender (only one round).
• Heat a pan with oil add mustard seeds, urad dhal and curry leaves.
• When the mustard splutters add the grated banana and coconut. Mix it well.
• This is a side dish for sambar rice or rasam rice.

Thiruvathirai Kali and Talagam (Kozhambu)

Roasted rice flour and Jaggery

Ellu,Roasted coconut,Red chili Tamarind and dhals

Kali and Thalakam

Jaggery and coarse rice powder

coconut,tamarind, sesame seeds, red chillies, urad dal, chana dal, tur dal and rice

pumpkin, okra, carrot, eggplant, tomato, potato, sweet potato
capsicum( can add many vegetables)

Thiruvathirai Kali

We celebrate Thiruvathirai the birthday of Lord Shiva.It is also called Arudra Darshanam.This is an important festival for young girls. Early morning we take bath and go to the Shiva temple and worship lord Shiva.Prepare Kali and Talakam do puja with naivedyam and arathi..
Keralites celebrate with dance and feast.

Ingredients

• Raw rice .................................2 cups 
• Jaggery .................................. 2cups 
• Cardamom(Elaichi powder)..... half tsp
• Grated coconut....................... half cup
• Ghee ......................................2 tsp
• Water......................................4cups

Method

• Soak the rice for an hour.
• Dry it by spreading them on a white cloth and roast the rice in a simmer flame until it turns light red colour. Powder it into coarsely when it cools down .
• Heat a pan with water, add powdered jaggery.
• When it boils add the rice powder . 
• Add cardamom powder and coconut, mix it well

Talagam Kozhambu

Ingredients

• Potato.....................................................1
• Chenai(yam)............................................50 gms
• Cheppangkizhangu(Colacassia Roots) ........6
• Avarakkai................................................50gms
• White Pumpkin.........................................50gms
• Yellow Pumpkin.......................................100gms
• Sweet Potato ..........................................2
• Drumstick...............................................1
• Vendakkai/Okra......................................50gms
• Carrot.....................................................1
• Tamarind.................................................1 lemon size
• Powdered Jaggery....................................3 tsp
• Mustard Seeds.........................................1tsp
• Urad Dhal.................................................2 tsp

Salt to taste

Method

Masala

• Red Chilli......... .............6
• Urad Dhal.....................3 tsp
• Tur Dhal........................3 tsp
• Raw Rice.......................3 tsp
• Chana Dhal(Spiltgram)...3 tsp
• Sesame Seeds ..............2 tsp
• Grated Coconut.............1cup
• Curry Leaves.................few
• Oil ..............................3tsp

• Fry the above ingredients with oil till they become red in colour.
• Roast the sesame seeds with out oil. 
• Grind all together into a thick paste.

Method

• Cut the vegetables into big pieces. Soak the tamarind in water and remove the tamarind juice.
• Boil the vegetables with tamarind water, turmeric powder and salt.
• When the vegetables are cooked add the ground paste , jaggery and mix well.
• Heat a pan with oil add mustard seeds, urad dhal and when it turns red add to the kozhambu. 
• This kozhambu is very tasty and enjoy this with kali .
• This kozhambu goes with rice and pappads.

Puli Inchi

Puli inchi

Jalapneo Puli Inchi

Ingredients

• Green Chillies.....................................................100 gms
• Tamarind( imli, Tamarindus indica) ................       big lemon size
• Inchi(ginger,ginger root))....................................  1 big piece
• Hing(Asafoetida) ...............................................  1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder...............................................  1tsp
• Mustard seeds.................................................... 1 tsp
• Urad dhal............................................................2 tsp
• Chana dhal..........................................................2 tsp
• Powdered Jaggerry(Vellam).................................3 tsp
• Oil......................................................................3 tsp
• Salt to Taste

Method.

• Soak the tamarind in 1 cup of warm water and remove the juice.
• Cut the green chillies and ginger into small pieces.
• Heat a pan with oil add mustard seeds, urad dhal and chana dhal and fry. 
• When the dhals become red , add the chillies and ginger. 
• When the chillies fried little add the tamarind water, powdered jaggery hing, salt, and turmeric.
• When the mixture is thick,cool and pour it into bottle. 
• This is a pickle. You can keep this pickle more than a month.
• Eat with curd rice, chapathi and poori.

Use jalapeno and make this pickle. Fry them well and add little more jaggery.
It tastes very good