The combination of Soya nuggets and Spinach is very healthy with added nutrition from Soya proteins. Soya is an excellent source of protein including all amino acids, being the only vegetable whose protein is complete. It is also a good source of calcium, vitamins, omega-3-fatty acids and dietary fiber.
I prepare this curry quite often in my house as a replacement for Palak Gosht. The Soya nuggets that I have used here taste yummy paired with spinach. They are available at various food stores very commonly.
Wash the palak thoroughly. Spinach, coriander leaves and green chilli in a mixie and blend to form a smooth puree.
Boil water in a pan, add a little salt and release the soya granules in the boiling water. Boil the granules for 5 mins. Remove from flame, cover the pan and let the soya granules soak in hot water for 5-10 more mins.
Drain the soya granules and also squeeze the excess water by pressing the granules firmly with hands. Keep aside.
Take a non stick pan, heat oil and saute the chopped onions till light brown.
Add the ginger & garlic paste and fry for 2 mins.
Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes are mixed with the onion and ginger & garlic paste.
Now add the spinach puree and mix well. Cook for 2-3 mins. Add the drained soya granules, salt, coriander powder, red chili powder and garam masala and mix well. Cover and cook for a few minutes.
Transfer in a serving dish. Garnish with whipped cream and chopped coriander leaves.
Making breakfast remains one of the most important tasks of the day…..in many ways also the most important meal of the day. Uttapam is one of the great tasting South Indian snack or breakfast. Uthappam is a thick pancake (dosa) made with regular dosa batter topped with onions. It has many different versions but Onion is one of my all time favorite. Instead of onion, you can add any fresh vegetable of your choice .
Ingredients :
Raw rice – 2 cups Urad dal – 1 cup Chopped onion – 1 cup Black Salt - 1 tsp
Method :
Soak urad dal and rice separate overnight. Grind to a fine paste in next day. Mix all together. Add salt. Keep it for the whole night.
Mix the batter well next morning till it is sufficiently thick.
Mix the chopped onion and black salt in a bowl. Heat a flat griddle and rub some oil on it. Pour some batter on it with a ladle and spread it to a thick circle. Sprinkle some onion mixture on the top side. When the base is golden brown, overturn the side and cook till done. When it is roasted enough, put it down on a plate.Repeat the process. Serve hot with Sambar or Mango pickel...
Sabudana vada is a popular and traditional snack from Maharashtra, India. Sago or Sabudana is a common ingredient that is used in some recipes made during the fast and recipes like Sabudana Khichdi, Sabudana Vada, Sabudana Kheer are made. Sabudana kichidi and vada are most common dishes made during fasting time. It is very easy to make with very little preparation.
Here it’s getting cold & chilli in the evenings and what more could be better than hot and crispy fried snack and garam chai( hot tea).Fried dumplings of sabudana, potatoes, green chilies serve with tomato sauce...
Ingredients ~
Sabudana/ Sago : 1 cup Potatoes : 3 – 4 Onion : 2, medium, finely chopped Green chillies : 1-2, finely chopped Ginger : 1 tsp, finely chopped Lime juice (optional) : 2 tsp Coriander leaves : 2 tsp Salt to taste oil for frying
Method ~
Wash sabudana and soak it in 2 cups of water for 2-3 hours, drain the water and keep aside. In a big bowl mix all the ingredients together to make soft dough.
Divide the sabudana dough into 10 parts.
Lightly grease palms and roll each one into lemon sized balls, flatten between palms of your hands.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Gently slide the sabudana vada into the hot oil. Fry sabudana vada until golden brown, turning them occasionally. Remove sabudana vada drain on paper napkin. Serve hot with Tomato sauce & Enjoy.........
Tips #
The Sabudana/Sago has to be really soaked well. Not even a little hardness should be left in the sago.I used small size sabudana if you used big size sabudana then it soaked for 6 hours. The water needs to be drained well. Use a seive or a colander to drain the water. The sabudana vada mixture is dry.
If there is moisture in the mixture, then you won’t get a proper shape of the sabudana vadas and they will become soggy from inside. The oil has to be neither too hot nor warm. If its hot, the vadas will burn from outside leaving the inside portion uncooked. If warm, the vadas will absorb oil, making the vadas loaded with oil.
watermelon juice is the best way to beat the summer heat. The sweetness, fleshy texture and juicy pulp of watermelons make them a hot favorite for dessert and salad dishes. Watermelons contain more water and less sugar or sodium, besides being excellent sources of vitamins.
Ingredients ~
Watermelon - 1 cup (Remove the skin and chop it) Mint leaves - 5-6 Sugar to taste Lime juice - 2 tbsp Ice cubes - 1 cup Water - 1 cup
Method ~
Peel the water melon skin & remove the seeds within it.
Cut and keep the pieces in the mixier. Add sugar, mint leaves and lime juice, blend it.
A sensible blend of spices, flavor and taste, dhania chicken is a tempting chicken recipe with coriander leaves. Chicken cooked with fresh coriander leaves and it is not too spicy!! Coriander chicken is goes well with paratha, pulao or roti.
Ingredients ~
Chicken : 1 kg Coriander(dhania) leaves : 1 bunch Curds (dahi) : 1 cup Garlic (lehsun) paste : 11/2 tbsp Ginger (adrak) paste : 2 tsp Onion paste : 4-5 tbsp Tomato puree : 3 tbsp Green chillies : 1 tsp, chopped Oil : 1 tsp. Salt to taste
Method ~
Cut the chicken into small pieces. In a bowl marinate the chicken pieces with ginger-garlic paste and yogurt. Let it stand for 30 min.
Blend the coriander and green chilli with slight water till it forms a smooth-green puree. Heat oil in a large pan and add the onion paste. Fry till the water is absorbed and till it gets a slight brown color.
Add the marinated chicken pieces to the fried onion.
Add salt to the pan, cover and cook the chicken over low flame till all the water is evaporated and the chicken is soft.
Mix tomato puree with little water and pour it on the cooking chicken. Cook the chicken over medium flame till all the water is soaked.
Pour the green puree to the chicken and let it cook. The color changes from green to greenish brown when the dish is cooked.
Cook minced beef with 1/4 tsp turmeric powder ,salt to taste and sufficient quantity of water.If any liquid remains,cook over low heat until it is dry.
Heat oil in a pan ,add onion,green chilies,ginger and garlic.Saute until onion turns golden brown.
Reduce the flame to low,add garam masala,red chili powder,1/4 tsp turmeric powder and pepper powder.Saute for almost a minute.
Now add cooked beef ,mix well and saute for 3 to 4 minutes.Adjust salt to taste.
Add mashed potato and mix well.Let it cool slightly.
Divide this into small balls and flatten it lightly with your fingers.
Lightly beat the egg in a bowl.
Dip the cutlets in the beaten egg and roll it in the bread crumbs.(You store these cutlets in the freezer for almost a month,if desired)
Hara Bhara cauliflower is easy to cook and looks like you labored over it. It tastes great with freshly made, hot Chapatis!
Ingredients :-
Cauliflower - 1 big (cut them as if you can see the heads of the flower along with the stem) Onions - 1/2 Chillis - 5 Ginger Garlic Paste Curd/ Yogurt - 2tsp Pepper Powder - 1tsp Chana dal - 1tsp Jeera - 1tsp Pudhina / Mint leaves- 1 cup Coriander leaves - 1 cup Pinch of Turmeric Refine oil : 1 tbsp Salt to taste
Procedure :-
In a blender take coriander, pudhina, chillis and grind it into a paste and keep it aside. Cauliflower florets wash and pat dry with paper towels.
Now in a bowl add the cauliflower florets, grinded paste, ginger-garlic paste, curd, pepper powder, turmeric, salt and mix well and keep it aside for 1hr.
Heat the cooking oil in a deep pan on medium heat. When hot, add the cumin seeds, channa dal and curry leaves,ginger-garlic paste,fry for sometimes.
To this add the marinated cauliflower mix, and stir to coat well.
Cover and cook till the cauliflower are tender. Check occasionally and stir to ensure the sauce does not scorch. When done, stir and turn off heat.
Ready to serve with chapati or rice.
I am honourned to received "Best Innovative Recipe Award" from Julie of Erivum Puliyum. Thank you so much Julie for giving me this prestigious award.
Palak Paratha, a well known north Indian dish.This Palak-paratha recipe is a healthy variation of paratha. It is made with fresh Spinach leaves and whole wheat flour and served with curry and pickle. It can be eaten at breakfast, lunch or dinner.It is a perfect food to take for school or office lunch or picnic. It is good to eat even after a few hours. As it contains a few spices, you don't really need any accompaniment such as curry.You can make the dough and keep in the fridge for 2-3 days and make parathas as and when you want.
Ingredients :
Whole wheat flour – 3 cup Gram flour (besan) – ½ cup Palak chopped – 3 cups loosely packed Red chilli powder – ½ tea spoon Garam masala powder – ½ tea spoon Turmeric powder – generous pinch Oil – to cook parathas on tawa
To grind ~
Green chilli – 2 no Garlic cloves – 2 no Ginger – small piece Coriander leaves – few strings Salt – as per taste
Method :
Wash and chop palak leaves; peel garlic, ginger and put it in mixer with green chilli, salt and coriander leaves, make a paste.
In a bowl put wheat flour, add red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder and gram flour. Add water, a little at a time to this mixture, and knead to form a medium-soft, smooth dough. Keep aside for 30 minutes.
Divide the dough into small balls-sized portions and roll between your hands till they are smooth and without cracks.
Very lightly flour a rolling board and roll each ball into a circle.
Heat a griddle and fry the parathas ,drizzle a bit of oil on the top and spread well over the surface of the paratha. Flip again in 30 seconds and drizzle oil on this surface too. The paratha is done when both sides are crispy and golden brown.
Serve hot with Mango Pickel and Black Eyed beans curry.
Tips ~
To knead the dough, you may require less water as greens also have water/moisture. Gram flour (Besan) helps for easy rolling of parathas and gives nice colour.
Rich in nutritional value, Mocha or Banana flower is one of the favourite vegetarian dishes of Bengal. Banana trees are found in great quantity in rural Bengal and in Bengal every part of a Banana tree and flowers are utilized. Stem or pith - Thor in Bengali is made into a tasty vegetarian dish rich in Iron content. Flower-Mocha (in Bengali) is what I made for dinner tonight. Leaves - Traditional plates for food. And they serve as a wrap for preparing smoked or grilled items. Even for religious and social rituals they are utilized. Fruit- of course the banana fruit!!! Raw bananas are used as vegetables.
"Mochar Ghonto" is a uniquely Bengali preparation of the banana flower. It has now made quite a name for itself in the famous restaurants of Kolkata. This signature dish is delicately spiced, has a delicate sweetness and a hint of coconut that compliments the flavor of the banana flower. The fine texture of the banana flower is really unparalleled, nothing comes close and when it touches your mouth you know you are eating an exotic delicacy.
Ingredients :
Banana Flower : 1 medium Potato : 2, medium size Boiled Chana : 1/4 cup Ginger Paste : 1 tsp. Green chilli paste : 1 tsp Turmeric powder : 1/2 tsp Cumin powder : 1/2 tsp Greated coconut : 1/2 cup Garam masala powder : 1 tsp Salt and sugar to taste Oil : 2 tbsp
For tempering ~
Bay leave : 1 Cumin seeds : 1/2 tsp.
Method :
Peeling the Banana Flower ~ Once the tougher, darker outer bracts/ leaves are pulled away, the florets inside are revealed. These florests can be pulled out and used to make several dishes. In each floret, you will find a string in the middle with a tiny head and also a small plastic like white cover around it. Both are not edible. You must remove both from all the florets. This is the inconvenient part of the whole cooking process, but with a little practice you can master it.
Cooking the Banana Flower ~ Once the florets have been cleaned, chop them into small size. Boil this in pressure cooker with little salt till almost cooked. Remove water and keep florets aside. Heat oil in a pan, add the cumin seeds and bay leaves, and once the seeds start to splutter, add the boiled mocha. Add turmeric powder and salt, cover the pan with a lid, and allow it to cook for 10 minutes on a slow flame. In another pan heat some oil and fry the diced potatoes. Set it aside.
Open the lid of the pan, add the mocha and gently cook it by tossing and turning it several times.
Add ginger paste, green chilli paste, cumin powder and mix them well. Also add a spoon of sugar to taste.
Add the fried potatoes, boiled chana and cook till all the ingredients are soft and the water has dried out.
Now add the grated coconut now and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Finally, add the garam masala mix.
Set it on a bowl and garnish with a spoonful of ghee (clarified butter). This dish goes very well with rice, roti or paratha.
Tips ~
When peeling the mocha, apply some cooking oil/mustard oil to your hands to prevent the sticky juices of the mocha from staining your hands.
