Month: December 2009
Capsicum Kairas
Capsicum (Donne mensinkai in Kannada) is a very popular veggie of the modern kitchen. We prepare variety of dishes like the Capsicum salad, Capsicum Roti and Bhajis. This dish I am putting up today is a popular dish from Northern Karnataka dishes.
What you need to have
1. Capsicum chopped – 2 cups
2. Potato chopped – 1 cup
Chopped Veggies
Ingredients of dry Masala powder:
1. Chick peas dal – 1 tablespoon
2. Coriander seeds – 2 teaspoons
3. White sesame seeds – 2 teaspoons
4. Fenugreek seeds – 1/4 teaspoon
5. Fresh grated coconut – 4 tablespoons
6. Red chillies – 3
Ingredients of Masala powder
What you do with what you have
1. Wash and chop capsicum. Also peal, wash and chop potatoes.
2. Place a skillet on medium flame and dry roast chick peas dal, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, wash and dry roast sesame seeds and using a few drops of oil fry red chillies. Dry roast grated coconut till light brown and till you get a pleasant aroma on low flame. On cooling, powder it together in the mixer.
Dry ground Masala powder
Ingredients of Seasoning
3. Place a pan on low flame with 3-4 teaspoons of cooking oil in it. On heating add mustard seeds to it. On sputtering, add peanuts, cashews and fry it till done. Add curry leaves as well.
Seasoning stage-1
Seasoning in progress
4. Prepare a thick syrup with tamarind, jaggery and salt and keep it aside. Once the seasoning is done add chopped capsicum, potatoes to it and fry for a while.
5. Now add the tamarind-jaggery-salt mix syrup from step 3 to it. Close the lid and cook for a while.
Veggies being cooked in seasoning
6. Finally add the dry masala powder from step 2 to it mix well and let it cook on low flame till done.
Veggies being cooked with Masala powder
Ready to serve Capsicum Kairas is as shown in the image below. Decorate it with chopped coriander leaves. One can enjoy this dish with rice and dal as well.
Ready to serve Capsicum Kairas
Capsicum Kairas with chapati
Number of servings: 4-5
How long it takes: 45 minutes
Masala Rasam
I have already put up the normal Tomato Rasam using Rasam powder with Toor Dal. But today I would like to put up yet another Rasam which is prepared with a little masala, without dal and yet really very tasty. This rasam is prepared in most of the temples for pooja food and is also a must in most of the weddings in Coastal Karnataka. Its a great combination for rice/curry/papad. It is also called “Devasthana Saru”/”Devala Saru”.
What you need to have:
1. Fresh grated coconut – 2 tablespoons
2. Tomato -1
3. Coriander seeds – 4 teaspoons
4. Bengalgram Dal – 2 teaspoons
5. Cumin sdds – 1/2 teaspoon
6. Fenugreek seeds – 1/4 teaspoon
7. Asafoetida (Soft) – A pinch
8. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
9. Tamarind – size of a half lime
10. Red chillies(Byadgi) – 2-3
11. Curry leaves – a few
12. Jaggery – A little
Ingredients of Masala Rasam
What you need to have:
1. Place a spatula with 3-4 teaspoons of cooking oil in it on low flame. On heating, add bengalgram dal to it. When fried add coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek sdds, asafoetida, one by one. Add red chillis, curry leaves to it and fry for a while. Add grated coconut and fry till it turns light brown in colour. Finally add turmeric powder, tamarind and switch off the flame. Fried ingredients is as shown in the image below.
Masala ingredients being fried in oil
Fried ingredients of wet masala
2. Grind the fried ingredients on cooling in the mixer adding water in steps to a medium fine consistency and the masala is as shown in the image below. 
Ground wet masala
3. Place a broad based bowl on the flame with 2 cups of water with chopped tomatoes. Cook it till smooth.
Tomato being cooked in water
4. When tomato is cooked add the ground masala from step 3 to it and add sufficient quantity of water to bring it to the required consistency. Add required quantity of salt, one or two strands of tender curry leaves to it and jaggery if required and bring it to boil. Finally add chopped coriander leaves and switch off the flame.
Masala rasam being boiled
5. Place a spatula with 3-4 teaspoons of cooking oil in it on the flame. When heated add mustard seeds to it. When it sputters add fresh curry leaves to it. Switch off the flame and season it to the Masala Rasam.
Ready to serve Masala Rasam
Serve hot with rice and papad. yum enjoy!!!!
Number of servings: 3-4
How long it takes: 30 minutes
Garlic Masala Peanuts
Almonds to the rich as opposed to peanuts to the poor, or so the saying goes. Peanuts, in one form or the other, is a great timepass to just about anybody. It is also used in the preparation of chutney powder (dry), in Chivda (mixture) and dry roasted peanut powder is used in so many veg-curries for extra flavour and to thicken the gravy. I have already put up the normal masala peanuts before and today I would like to put up this variation – Garlic Masala peanuts.
What you need to have:
1. Peanuts – 2 cups
2. Oil to fry – 2 cups
Dry roasted Peanuts
What you do with what you have:
1. Place a broad based bowl on low flame and warm up peanuts for about 10-15 minutes adjusting the flame till you can peal the nuts easily. (Just check if you can peal with your hands. Make sure you do not burn it though.) The warmed up peanuts is as shown in the image 1.
2. Peal the peanuts.
Roasted & Pealed Peanuts
3. Place skillet with two cups of cooking oil on the flame. When heated, deep fry roasted peanuts in oil in 3 or 5 lots depending upon the quantity of peanuts. Place a spatula in the heated oil and pour the pealed peanuts and fry till done as in image below.
Dry roasted Peanuts being deep fried in oil
4. When the first lot of the peanuts is fried just place the crushed garlic pods in it. Keep adding the remaining lot of the fried peanuts to it. Due to the heat the garlic pods turn out crispy.
Ingredients of Masala :
1. Chilli powder – 2 teaspoon (adjust as per preference)
2. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
3. Black Salt powder – 1 teaspoon
4. Salt – As per taste
5. Pealed and crushed Garlic pods – 10
Ingredients of Masala
5. Just warm up a seperate skillet and pour the fried peanuts from step 4 into it. Add chilli powder, turmeric powder, black salt powder and salt. Stir well and immediately switch off the flame.
Ready to serve Masala peanuts is as shown in the image below. Store it in a dry, air tight container on cooling and this will ensure that they remain fresh if fresh oil is used for frying.
Ready to serve Garlic Masala Peanuts
Good to remember:
1. Do not over roast the peanuts afterall they have to be deep fried again !
2. Check for salt and add additional salt since you have already added black salt to it. Chilli powder should not be too strong.
How long it takes: 45 minutes
Puri
This dish doesn’t need any introduction. More popular than chapati, simpler than tandoori rotis and widely available, Puri is a deep fried small wheat atta bread. It is infact popular even among kids. I have already put up the recipe of stuffed puri and readers have taken very well to it. Here now is the simpler version – plain puris. You may have this with vegetable kurma, vegetable sagu, potato bhaji or even coconut wet chutneys.
What you need to have:
1. Plain wheat atta – 3/4 cup
2. Maida (All purpose flour) – 1/4 cup
3. Cooking oil – 3-4 teaspoons
Ingredients of Puri
What you do with what you have:
1. Sieve both wheat atta and maida together in the atta siever adding salt.
2. Transfer the sieved atta to a bowl and add required quantity of cooking oil to it and mix well. Now add water slowly in steps to make it a little hard dough.
3. Pinch out the required quantity of the dough and roll it with the rolling pin to a medium thick consistency to the size of around 4″ diameter.
The dough, pinched out ball and the rolled disc
4. Place a skillet with 2 cups of cooking oil on medium flame. Deep fry the rolled disc in it.
Puri being deep fried
5. Reverse and fry it again to make it crispy. Roll out the remaining discs and deep fry all of them one by one or two at a time.
Puri being fried on the reverse
Puri with Veg-Sagu
Number of servings: 8
How long it takes: 30 minutes
Vegetable Sagu
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Vegetable Sagu is a side dish for Puri and also for chapathi. In some restaurants they serve it as a side dish with set dosa as well. I have put up vegetable kurma before that looks similar but is actually a bit different in the sense that I don’t use ginger/garlic and less onion in Sagu.
What you need to have:
1. Chopped vegetables – 2 cups (Green Peas, French beans, carrots, Turnip, Chayote and potatoes chopped fine)
2. Onion chopped – 1 small
Chopped Veggies
Ingredients of Wet Masala:
1. Fresh grated coconut – 2 tablespoons
2. Bilimbi – 2
3. Green chilly – 1
4. Red chilly – 1
5. Dalia Dal – 2 tablespoons
6. Coriander seeds – 2 tablespoons
7. Poppy seeds – 1 teaspoon
8. Cumin seeds – 1 teaspon
9. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
10. Cardamoms – 2
11. Cloves – 2
12. Cinnamon – 2″ piece
Ingredients of Wet Masala
What you do with what you have:
1. Wash and chop all the vegetables and keep it aside as shown in the image .
2. Cook all the vegetables in the cooker adding little salt so that the veggies are not over cooked.
Cooked veggies
3. Grind all the ingredients of wet masala in the mixer adding sufficient quantity of water to a medium fine consistency.
Ground Wet Masala
Ingredients of Seasoning:
1. Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
2. Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon
3. Cashews – A handful
4. Kishmish – A handful
5. Tomato – 1
6. Curry leaves – 3-4 Strands
Ingredients of Seasoning
4. Place a skillet with 4-5 teaspoons of cooking oil in it on a medium flame. On heating, add mustard seeds to it. When it starts sputtering add cumin seeds and curry leaves to it. When done add cashews and kishmish to it. Add chopped tomatoes to it.
Seasoning of the dish
5. When done add ground wet masala from step 3 and a little water to it to make a thick gravy and bring it to boil.
Wet Masala being cooked
6. Add cooked veggies from step-2 to it and bring it to boil adding required quantity of salt to it.(check for salt since already added to the veggies while cooking.)
Cooked veggies added to the Masala gravy
7. Add water and adjust the consistency of the gravy and bring it to boil on low flame stiring continuously else it may burn.( since dalia dal is added to the masala) Decorate it with chopped coriander leaves.
Ready to serve Veg-Sagu
Time taken : 45 minutes
Serves 5-6
Snake Gourd Stir Fry
Snake guard is one among the seasonal veggies available here. Though not a popular vegetable, it sure is a very healthy one. I have already put up snake gourd cutlet, snake gourd seeds chutney and today I would like to put up the stir fry which is a good combo for rotis, chapathi and also with rice and dal. One needs tender snake gourd for this dish that is mostly seedless. Have fun.
What you need to have:
1. Chopped snake guard(tender) – 2 cups
2. Chopped potaoes – 1/2 cup
Ingredients for Seasoning:
1. Garlic pods – 8-10
2. Chilli powder – 1 and 1/2 teaspoons
3. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
4. Dhania Jeera powder – 2 teaspoons
Snake guard
Chopped veggies with the seasoning ingredients
What you do with what you have:
1. Scrape the outer skin of snake guard a little with the blunt side (back) of the knife, wash and chop it lengthwise as shown in the image 2.
2. Peal, wash and chop potatoes as well lengthwise, peal garlic pods and keep it aside.
3. Place wide pan on medium flame with 4-5 teaspoons of cooking oil in it. When heated, just crush the garlic pods a bit and add to it. When it turns light brown, lower the flame and add turmeric powder, chilli powder, Dhania-jeera powder one by one. Stir well and chopped potatoes from step 2 to it with required quantity of salt to the dish and close the lid for a while.
4. Keep observing to see that the potatoes do not get burnt. (If not cooked sprinkle a little water to it.) When it turns a little soft add chopped snake guard from step 1 to it and keep the lid closed.
5. When done enjoy hot with either rice or even rotis or chapathi. Ready to serve snake-guard potato stir fry is as shown in the image below.
Snake guard Potato stir fry
How long it takes: 30 minutes
Number of servings: 4
Puffed Rice Upma
Puffed rice needs no introduction at all since the most popular street food that is available is the bhel i.e. puffed rice ! I have already put up Konkani bhel, Puffed rice mixture and Puffed rice laddoos. Today I am putting up upma made of puffed rice – not all the well-known but tasty anyway.
What you need to have:
1. Puffed Rice – 4 cups
2. Capsicum – 1
3. Green Peas – 1/2 cup
Ingredients of Puffed rice Upma
Ingredients of Seasoning:
1. Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
2. Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon
3. Blackgram Dal – 1 teaspoon
4. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
5. Red chilli -1
6. Dalia Dal – 2-3 tablespoons
7. Peanut seeds – a handful
8. Curry leaves – 4-5 strands
9. Green chilli – 4
10. Lemon juice – 1-2 teaspoons
Ingredients of Seasoning
What you do with what you have:
1. Clean puffed rice and wash it in clean water and keep it in a collander.
Washed Puffed rice in a collander
2. Wash and chop capsicum, onion fine, chop green chilli fine as well keep it aside.
3. Place a skillet on medium flame and dry roast peanuts till you get a pleasant aroma and on cooling peal and powder them. Also warm up dalia dal in the same skillet and powder it to a fine consistency.
Ingredients of seasoning being chopped, powdered being set aside
4. Place a skillet on medium flame with 4-5 teaspoons of cooking oil in it. On heating add mustard seeds to it. When it sputters, add black gram dal, cumin seeds one after the other to it. When it sputters add chopped green chillies from step 2 to it. Add curry leaves and broken red chillies to it.
5. Add chopped onions from step 2 to it and add required quamtity of salt and stir well. When it turns transparent add green peas to it and stir well.
6. When done add chopped capsicum from step 3 to it and let it cook on low flame till done. The seasoned mixture is as shown in the image below. Now add peanut powder, dalia dal powder to it and stir well.
Seasoned Mixture with veggies
7. Finally add puffed rice from step 1 to it and squeeze lemon juice to it and serve as evening tiffin.
Ready to serve Puffed Rice Upma
Puffed Rice Upma with a few Onion rings
8. Serve it with a few onion rings.
Number of servings: 5-6
How long it takes: 60 mins
Kutta Avalakki ( Spicy Ground Beaten Rice Snack )
Beaten Rice is one of the products of Paddy. It is available in so many varieties like the medium, thick and the nylon. I have already put up a few of the beaten rice items like the Alu Poha, Konkani Poha and Poha upkari before. Today I would like to put up Kutta avalakki – meaning dry spicy ground beaten rice powder. It can be enjoyed with either toppings of chopped onion and coriander leaves or grated coconut or even with curds. This is a North Karnataka dish. I borrowed this recipe from my mom-in-law. Like many spicy foods, it is a monsoon recipe.
What you need to have:
1. Medium beaten rice – 2 cups
2. Grated dry copra – 2 cups
3. dalia dal – 1 cup
4. Jaggery – a handful (chopped)
5. Salt – As per taste
6. Tamarind
7. Coriander seeds – 4 tablespoons
8. Cumin seeds – 3 teaspoons
9. Chilli powder – 1 tablespoon
Ingredients of Kutt Avalakki (Dry roasted)
What you do with what you have:
1. Place a skillet on medium-low flame and pour beaten rice into it. Just dry roast it for about 5-10 minutes till you get rid of the raw smell and keep it aside in a plate.
2. In the same skillet dry roast dalia dal as well. Make sure that you do not burn it or cause a change of color. Keep aside.
3. Dry roast grated dry copra on a low flame till you get a pleasant aroma and to a light brown colour.
4. Powder both Coriander seeds and cumin seeds (raw) to a medium fine consistency.
5. Dry grind roasted Beaten rice, copra, dalia dal seperately in the mixer to a medium fine consistency along with the powdered coriander and cumin from step-4 and also salt, turmeric powder, tamarind, jaggery and run the mixie once more to get a homogenous mixture. The powdered mixture is as shown in the image below.
The powdered Mixture
Ingredients of Seasoning:
1. Mustard seeds – 2 teaspoons
2. Red chillies – 2
3. Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
4. Curry leaves – 4-5 strands
3. Peanuts – A handful
4. Dalia dal – A handful
5. Cooking oil – 5-6 teaspoons
Ingredients of Seasoning
6. Place a skillet on medium flame. When heated dry roast peanuts till you get a pleasant aroma and also make sure you are able to peal it. On cooling peal it and keep it aside.
7. Place the same skillet with 5-6 teaspoons of cooking oil in it. On being heated add mustard seeds to it. When it sputters add broken red chilli pieces, curry leaves and turmeric powder, dalia dal and also roasted peanuts from step 6 to it one after the other.
8. Simmer the flame and add the beaten rice mixture from step 5 to it and keep stirring at regular intervals of a few seconds for about 20 minutes. But make sure that you do not burn it.
Ready to serve Kutt Avalakki is as shown in the image below. On cooling, Store it in air tight containers and will remain afresh for more than 15 days.
Ready to serve Kutt Avalakki
Or you may enjoy with grated carrot, chopped onion and coriander leaves.
Kutt Avalakki with toppings
One can also enjoy with fresh grated coconut and chopped coriander leaves.
Kutt Avalakki with toppings
How long it takes: 45 minutes
Number of servings: 4-5
The Indian Food Court 