Corn cheese pakoda

when you have sudden guest visiting you... these pakodas can be a hit... its easy and quick to make.
so here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1. American Sweet corn kernels   --  1 cup
2. Brown bread  --  4 pieces
3. Garlic cloves  --  2
4. Chili flakes  --  1 tsp
5. Oregano  --  1/2 tsp
6. Cheese cubes  --  2
7. Besan / Gram flour  --  1 cup
8. Turmeric powder  --  1/2 tsp
9. Ajwain  --  one pinch
10. Cumin seeds  --  one pinch
11. Asafoetida  --  a pinch
12. Salt to taste
13. Oil to fry

Method:

• First in a mixer jar put the corn kernels, garlic, 4 brown breads and crush them all together do not make it a smooth paste. It should be coarsely ground. 
• In a mixing bowl put the crushed corn mixture, chilli flakes, oregano and just a pinch salt(remember bread contains salt) to taste and mix together.
• In another bowl mix besan, turmeric, ajwain, cumin, asafoetida and salt to taste and mix together adding water to make a smooth pakoda batter.
• Next take a small quantity of the corn bread mixture shape it into round make a dent in between and stuff a piece of cheese cube and again cover it give it a round shape.
•  Make the cheese stuff corn pattice out of rest of the corn mixture and keep it ready.
• Heat oil in a deep kadai and when its perfect hot dip each rounds in the besan batter and deep fry the pakodas.
• Serve hot with mint coriander chutney and tomato sauce. Enjoy it hot!  

Moong Dal Halwa

First let me thank each one of you for your support to inspire me to post my simple recipes. I am a simple house wife who would like to share all those recipe in its authentic form, I may not have a high definition attractive professional food photos, but each of my recipes will have genuine and realistic food photos and recipes. Most of the time its so difficult to click pictures being in kitchen all alone cooking as well as clicking, and then when its time to take final click of the finished product my kid will be waiting anxiously and impatiently to attack on it as soon as possible. That's why I call its genuine.. :-)
Just your one comment to my efforts will surely give me a hope to posts more and more recipes.
Today I will share a yummy delicious and healthy (I am specifying healthy in terms of pulses only...). Its moong dal ka halwa. Its soft, silky and melts in your mouth... so this festive season do try this recipe and specially serve it to kids they are going to love it for sure... It can be a good option for your kids tiffin too.

Ingredients:

1. Yellow moong dal  --  1 cup
2. Ghee melted  --  2/3 cup
3. Sugar  --  1 and 1/4th cup
4. Milk  --  3 cups
5. Cardamom powder -- 1 tsp
6. Almond sliced  --  just a few as much you like.
7. Saffron  --  few strands.

Method:

• Soak moong dal for 4-5 hours and grind them into paste not that smooth it should be a little coarse.
• Soak saffron for 1-2 hours in warm milk.
• In a deep bottom vessel boil 3 cups of milk and reduce the milk to half. 
• In a another nonstick kadai heat some ghee add the moong dal mixture and stir nicely in low flame till its golden brown.
• Next add sugar to the moong dal mixture and mix well.
• Add reduced milk to the moong dal sugar mixture and stir nicely till the halwa leaves the kadai and rolls up neately.
• When the ghee starts to leave the sides add cardamom powder and saffron milk to the halwa and combine it nicely to the halwa.
• Top it with sliced almonds and serve hot or cold as you wish.

Mixed Veg Pulav

Aah! This is a great rice dish for veggies and well as for non veggies. The soya chunks in this pulav gives it that super twist of taste. Its one of my mom's signature dish! Here's a lovely fulfilling rice dish specially for you!

Ingredients:

1. Long grain Rice or any Basmati Rice  --  2 cup
2. Water  --  3 and half cup.(measure the water with the same cup which you have used to measure the rice.)
3. Star Anise  --  2
4. Cinnamon Sticks  --  2-3
5. Cloves  --  3-4
6. Black Pepper  --  4-5
7. Green Cardamom seed  --  2 crushed
8. Green Beans  --  sliced 1 cup
9. Carrot sliced  --  1 cup
10. Green Peas  --  1 cup
11. Soya Chunks (Boil in sufficient water and then discard the water and squeeze the chunks)  --  1 cup
12. Cauliflower  --  1/2 cup
13. Paneer  --  100 gm small cubes.
14. Ginger paste  --  2 tsp
15. Garlic paste  --  2 tsp
16. Green Chilli paste  -- 1tsp
17. Coriander and Mint paste  --  2 tablespoon. (Take about one handful of each herb.)
18. Turmeric Powder  --  1tsp
19. Coriander Powder  --  1tsp
20. Garam Masala Powder  --  1tsp
21. Salt  --  as per taste
22. Oil  --  3 tbsp
23. Ghee  --  2 tbsp
24. 2-3 drops of kewra essence.(optional)
25. Lemon juice
26. Sultanas/Raisins and Cashews to garnish  --  8-10
27. Sliced Fried Onions to garnish.

Method:

• First lets quickly clean the vegetables and chop them. I had chopped the carrots in medium cubes and french beans in 1 cm long pieces. 
• I usually wash the cauliflower and then make small florets out of the cauliflower then soak them in hot water with some salt and turmeric for some time and then discard the water and use it for any recipes. 
• Next squeeze the water from soya and fry the chunks using just little oil do not add much oil as soya will consume all the oil and then our dish will be unhealthy. 

• Just shallow fry the paneer using very very little oil :-)
• shallow fry the sliced onion till golden brown I fry the cashews and raisins along with the onions as its for garnishing. 
• Now in a deep heavy bottom vessel heat some oil and 1 or 2 tsp of ghee then add our whole garam masalas to it from ingredients 3 to 7 and just saute for half a minute and then add the coriander mint and chili paste along with ginger garlic paste and fry nicely until it raw smell goes and you get a perfect good aroma.
• You can now add the chopped veggies and soya except green peas and paneer. and saute them nicely for about 2 or 3 minutes.

• At this time add the tumeric, coriander and garam masala powder and mix well.
• Add the rice to the veggies masala mix and fry nicely.
• Just after couple of minutes you should add three and half cup of boil/hot water to the rice veggie mixture and the green peas to it.

     

• Add salt to taste. Now when you taste the water it should taste a pinch salty than your usual taste just a pinch because once its cooks with rice the salt will be perfect to your taste.
• Squeeze lime to it and also 2-3 drops of kewra water to it.
• Cook in high speed till it gets the boil and then reduce to low flame and let it cook with the lid.
• Check and stir periodically.
• Continue to cook in low flame till the rice is fluffy and soft.
• Garnish with fried onions, cashews, sultanas and paneer.
• Enjoy with raita and pickle of your choice.
   
  
   
  
  

Vattayappam

Hi friends this time I'm back with this traditional keralite snack. Its steamed sweet healthy snacks that is usually made during christmas and easter. I really love its soft spongy texture and prefer to carry while travelling by train. Its really a good option for train travelling. Next time do prepare this and take it along with you for a hustle free journey. Here is the recipe...

Ingredients:

1. 1½ cup of raw white rice/ pachari
2. 3/4 cup of cooked rice
3. 1½ cup of freshly grated coconut
4. ½ teaspoon of instant yeast
5. 2-3 tbsp of sugar
6. ½ teaspoon of salt
7. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
8. 4 to 5 cardamom seeds
9. Water to make thick batter like that of idli
10. raisins and cashews for garnish

 

Method:

• Wash and soak rice in water for 2 hours.
• Grind the soaked raw  rice along with cooked rice, 1 cup of coconut, yeast, sugar and salt in water to form a thick and smooth batter. (Water should be added carefully as we want the batter to be thick)
• Pour the batter to a large bowl and keep it overnight for fermentation.
• The fermented batter will rise and look foamy.
• Grind 1/2 cup of grated coconut, cardamom seeds and a cumin in few teaspoon of water and add this to the batter.
• Mix the batter well. Batter will be thick and keep it aside for 20-25 minutes.
• Pour the batter to a flat bottom round pan which is greased with oil. Half fill the pan.
• Top it with the raisins and cashew nuts
• Heat up the steamer. Once the steam starts to come, keep the pan into the hot steamer and the close the lid. Simmer it for 20 to 25 minutes.
• Take out the pan. The sweet and delicious vattayappam is ready for serving.
• Enjoy.
  

Paneer Koliwada

Koliwada style masala marinated and pan seared paneer / fish is one of the famous dish from amchi mumbai... Yes! you can't resist the juicy soft paneer / fish and that masala... Dil Mange More!
So here is that recipe you can make using paneer or fish... today I'm posting this recipe in vegetarian version so everyone can try it! I'll surely post in fish version no matter I'll have to repeat the recipe ;-)

Ingredients:

1. Paneer  --  250 gms cubed
2. Kashmiri Chilli Powder  --  1tsp
3. Cumin powder  --  1/2 tsp
4. Turmeric powder  --  1/4th tsp
5. Ginger Garlic paste  --  1tsp each
6. Besan (Gram flour)  --  2 tablespoon
7. Garam Masala powder  --  1/2 tsp
8. Lemon wedges for garnish
9. onion rings for garnish 
10. salt to taste
11. Oil to shallow fry

Method:

• First in a bowl add ginger garlic paste, turmeric, cumin powder, chilli powder, garam masala powder and mix the ingredients using some spoons of water just to make it a nice smooth paste.
• Next add the besan powder and salt to taste and mix thoroughly again add water just to make a thick nice smooth paste.
• Marinade the paneer in this mixture and you can keep it for some time just incase you don't have much time you can start frying the paneer soon after marinating.
• Now in a non stick pan sprinkle some oil to shallow fry and then add the paneer and fry both side of the paneer till golden brown.
• It will not take much time to fry the paneer. 
• Paneer should not lose its texture. It should be soft juicy and tender.
• Serve it with some lemon wedges and sliced onions. You can also serve some coriander pudina chutney along with this.
• Have it while its sizzling hot! Just squeeze a lime and enjoy it. Yummy!!! Hurray!!

CHICKEN FRY

Today I'm gonna post traditional ever time favorite kerala style spicy crispy chicken drumstick fry.
I have shallow fried the chicken as I don't prefer deep fry. So not going to talk too much here's my recipe for chicken fry.

Ingredients:

1. Chicken drumstick  --  4-5
2. Shallots  --  4-5
3. Ginger- Garlic paste 1 tsp each
4. Chili Powder  --  1 tsp (as per your spice tolerance)
5. Turmeric powder  --  1/2 tsp
6. Fennel  --  1/2 tsp (perum jeeragam)
7. Ajwain roasted and powdered  --  1/2 tsp(aimodhakam)
8. Half a Lemon 
9. Salt to atste
10. Oil to shallow fry

Method:

• First clean and dry the chicken drumstick properly.
• In a mixer jar add shallots, ginger garlic, chili powder, turmeric powder, fennel, ajwain powder, salt and grind well adding very little water to make thick paste.
• Marinade the chicken drumstick nicely with this masala and let it rest for sometime.
• Now heat oil in a sauce pan and fry the drumsticks nicely till golden brown in low flame.
• Squeeze fresh lemon and serve it hot... Enjoy every bite.

Mushroom Potato Masala (Naadan Koon Vattichadh)

When you want to make something that make simple authentic tasty and quickly then this is the best option... its just yummy and goes perfect with hot chapati or steaming rice...


Ingredients:

1. Button Mushroom  --  400 gms cleanes and chopped
2. Potato  --  1 large cut into cubes.
3. Onion   --  1 large
4. Tomato  --  1 medium
5. Red Chili Powder  --  1 tsp(adjust spice according to your taste)
6. Turmeric  --  1/2 tsp
7. Green Chilies  --  2 slit
8. Curry Leaves few twigs
9. Coconut Oil  --  3 table spoon
10. Salt to taste.

Method:

• In a mixer jar grind together Onion, tomato, red chili powder and turmeric powder into fine paste.
• In a Kadai heat about 2 tablespoon of coconut oil when the oil is hot add the masala and saute well in low flame. You don't have to cook it for long time. 
• Next add the mushrooms, chopped potatoes, Green Chilies and salt to taste to the masala along with little water and let it cook in low flame with the lid.
• After 10 to 15 minutes the water mushrooms and potatoes must have cooked well also the masala would have been thickened. At this stage garnish with some curry leaves and sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of raw coconut oil(its optional avoid if you don't like raw coconut oil taste but trust me it tastes divine.) 
• Serve this delicious yet simple hot mushroom with steaming rice or chapati... perfect combination.