Bitter Gourd kaakarakaaya Masala

Bitter Gourd - 6-7, peel, wash and cut into 1 inch rings
 buttermilk - 1 cup
2 spoons tamarind paste
1/4 spoon turmeric
1 small onion, sliced length wise
Masala:
Ingredients for Masala:
1 spoon peanuts
1 spoon red chilli powder
1 spoon coriander powder
1 spoon ginger garlic paste
1 spoon white gingelly seeds (thella nuvvulu)
Grind all the ingredients into a paste
Method:

1. In a pan, add 2 cups of water, buttermilk, a pinch of turmeric, tamarind and bitter gourd pieces and boil till the gourd pieces are soft. Drain and keep aside. This process removes the bitterness from the gourd pieces
2. In another pan, add 3 tb spoons of oil and once medium hot, add curry leaves and bitter gourd pieces, a pinch of turmeric and salt as per taste and fry till golden brown
3. Add onion pieces and fry till onions turn gold brown. 
4. Add the above masala paste to the curry and fry on low heat
5. Add coriander leaves before switching off the stove

This curry is very tasty and goes well with rice

Zucchini Pappu or Zucchini Dal

Ingredients:
Zucchini 1 medium size, peeled and cut into small pieces
Toor Dal 1/4 cup
1/4 onion cut into pieces
15 Green Chillies
Salt to  taste
Water 1 cup as required
Turmeric - 1/8 tbsp
a small lime size Tamarind or 1/4 raw mango, cut into pieces

For Tempering:
Oil 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Channa Dal and Urad Dal 1 teaspoon each
Curry leaves 3-5 leaves
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tbsp
Red chillies - 2
Garlic pods - 2 crushed



Method:
1. In a Pressure cooker add dal, zucchini pieces, greenchillies, onion pieces, tumeric, Tamarind/Raw mango pieces and 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 5 visils.
2. Once the cooker cools off, mash the cooked dal and add enough salt3.In a pan, add oil and once its hot, add crushed garlic, red chillies, cumin and mustard seeds and fry till they are brown. Add curry leaves to the tempering and switch of the stove.
3. Add the tempering to the dal and mix well and garnish with cilantro.

Zucchini gives a unique taste to dal and is very good with hot rice and ghee. It goes well with Roti.

Cucumber Pappu or Cucumber Dal

Ingredients:
 
Cucumber 1 medium size, peeled and cut into small pieces
Toor Dal 1/4 cup
1/4 onion cut into pieces
15 Green Chillies
Salt to  taste
Water 1 cup as required
Turmeric - 1/8 tbsp
a small lime size Tamarind or 1/4 raw mango, cut into pieces



For Tempering:
Oil 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Channa Dal and Urad Dal 1 teaspoon each
Curry leaves 3-5 leaves
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tbsp
Red chillies - 2
Garlic pods - 2 crushed



Method:
1. In a Pressure cooker add dal, Cucumber pieces, greenchillies, onion pieces, tumeric, Tamarind/Raw mango pieces and 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 5 visils.
2. Once the cooker cools off, mash the cooked dal and add enough salt3.In a pan, add oil and once its hot, add crushed garlic, red chillies, cumin and mustard seeds and fry till they are brown. Add curry leaves to the tempering and switch of the stove.
3. Add the tempering to the dal and mix well and garnish with cilantro.


This dal is very soft and is very good with hot rice and ghee. It goes well with Roti.

Tomato Pappu or Tomato Dal

Ingredients:
 
Tomatoes 4 medium size, peeled and cut into small pieces
Toor Dal 1/4 cup
1/4 onion cut into pieces
15 Green Chillies
Salt to  taste
Water 1 cup as required
Turmeric - 1/8 tbsp
a small lime size Tamarind or 1/4 raw mango, cut into pieces



For Tempering:
Oil 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Channa Dal and Urad Dal 1 teaspoon each
Curry leaves 3-5 leaves
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tbsp
Red chillies - 2
Garlic pods - 2 crushed






Method:
1. In a Pressure cooker add dal, Tomato pieces, greenchillies, onion pieces, tumeric, Tamarind/Raw mango pieces and 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 5 visils.
2. Once the cooker cools off, mash the cooked dal and add enough salt3.In a pan, add oil and once its hot, add crushed garlic, red chillies, cumin and mustard seeds and fry till they are brown. Add curry leaves to the tempering and switch of the stove.
3. Add the tempering to the dal and mix well and garnish with cilantro.

This dal is very conventional and is very good with hot rice and ghee. It goes well with Roti.

Hyderabadi Bagara Rice

Ingredients:-

250gms Basmati rice
2 small Cinnamon sticks
3 Cloves
2 Bay leaves
1 tbsp Shahi jeera
1 big Onion
6 Green chillies
Few Curry leaves
Few Pudina leaves
3 tbsp Ghee
Salt as per taste
1/2 cup Green peas
 

Method:

1.Soak rice for 30 min.

2. Heat Ghee,add all the whole masala and curry leaves

3. Saute for a minute and add onions, green peas and slit green chillies

4. Add mint and ginger garlic paste and saute till the ginger garlic leaves its raw smell

5. Strain water from rice and add it to the pan and fry for 2min

6. For one cup of rice, add 2 cups of water

7. Add juice of half lemon to this rice and let it cook.

This rice goes very well with any curry.  I like it with Mutton curry. Now sit back and enjoy the meal!

Squash Pappu Or Squash Dal

Ingredients:
 
Squash 1 medium size, peeled and cut into small pieces
Toor Dal 1/4 cup
1/4 onion cut into pieces
15 Green Chillies
Salt to  taste
Water 1 cup as required
Turmeric - 1/8 tbsp
a small lime size Tamarind or 1/4 raw mango, cut into pieces



For Tempering:
Oil 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Channa Dal and Urad Dal 1 teaspoon each
Curry leaves 3-5 leaves
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tbsp
Red chillies - 2
Garlic pods - 2 crushed


Method:
1. In a Pressure cooker add dal, Squash pieces, greenchillies, onion pieces, tumeric, Tamarind/Raw mango pieces and 1 cup of water and pressure cook for 5 visils.
2. Once the cooker cools off, mash the cooked dal and add enough salt3.In a pan, add oil and once its hot, add crushed garlic, red chillies, cumin and mustard seeds and fry till they are brown. Add curry leaves to the tempering and switch of the stove.
3. Add the tempering to the dal and mix well and garnish with cilantro.

This dal is very soft and is very good with hot rice and ghee. It also goes well with Roti.

Drumstick & Mutton Curry

Ingredients:-
Mutton 500gms 

1 onions
1 big Tomato
1/4 bunch coriander
1 spoon coriander powder
2 spoons Ginger garlic paste
Bay leaf 2
Cinnamon 2
Clove 1
Red chilly powder 2 tsp
a pinch of turmeric powder
Salt as per taste
Canola oil 3 tbsp

Poppy seeds 1 tbsp

For Garam masala powder:-
Cinnamon 1
Clove 4
Big elachi 2
Shah jeera 1 spoon
Nutmeg - small piece
Make a fine powder of the above.

Method:
 Add tbsp ginger-garlic paste, 1 spoon coriander powder, 1/4tbsp salt, a pinch of turmeric, 1/2tbsp garam masala to mutton pieces and pressure cook for 5 vigils. No need to add water as mutton gives away water. Set it aside to cool

Add a cup of water to Drumstick pieces and Microwave drumstick pieces for 5 min or till they are semi soft

 In another pan, add oil, bay leaves, 1 small cinnamon stick, 2 cloves and 3 black pepper

Add onion, slit greenchillies, curry leaves and fry for 2min

Add salt, turmeric, ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell vanishes

Add chopped tomatoes and mix well and cook till tomatoes become soft

Add boiled drumsticks and cook for 5min

To this, add cooked mutton, add remaining garam masala powder, chilli powder and stir well and add 1/4cup of water and cook for another 10min on low flame.  

 In a coffee grinder, add 1tbsp of poppy seeds and grind to a smooth powder.

 Add this powder to the curry and mix well and cook for 2min

Before you turn off the heat, add chopped coriander leaves to the curry.  

 

This goes really well with Plain rice, Bagara rice, Roti and naan. This curry can be made without drumsticks but adding drumsticks gives a very unique and tasty flavour to the curry.

Aloo Kurma

Ingredients:

6 Small white baby potato- 6 (you can use any kind of potato)
1 Medium onion
3 slit Green chilies

2 Medium tomatoes
½ tbsp Ginger garlic paste
2 Cloves
2 Cardamom- 2
 ½ inch cinnamon stick
2 Small bay leaves
1 cup Yogurt

1 tbsp cumin powder

1 tbsp chilli powder

2 pinches of turmeric

Salt to taste
¼ bunch coriander leaves (chopped finely)

Method:

Chop potatoes into medium size and steam cook in microwave or on stove till they are soft.  

Then peel them and keep aside

Now take a pot, add 2 spoons of oil. Once the oil is heated, add bay leaves,cinnamon stick, cloves and cardamom. Fry for few seconds and then add green chilli, onion and fry till onion is translucent.

Add ginger garlic paste and turmeric and fry till the raw smell is gone.

Now add chopped tomato and cook till the tomato is soft. Add red chilli powder, cumin powder and potatoes pieces and fry for 2min.

Now add yogurt and chopped coriander and cook for 3-4 more min. Hot and tasty aloo kurma is ready! It goes well with Veg Biryani, coconut rice and Mushroom rice!

Onion Pakora

Ingredients:
2 cups of chana (Besan)  flour
1 thinly sliced onion
10-11 slides green chillies
3 tbspns of Ginger thinly sliced
10-11 curry leaves
1 cup of cashew nuts
1 tbsp jeera
2 pinches baking soda
oil for frying
4 tbsp of rice flour/Jowar flour
1/4 spoon of  Coriandar seeds
salt to taste

Method:
Take a bowl,  add very thin sliced onions, green chillies,ginger sliced,curry leaves and mix well
In a bowl soak cashew nuts for 10min in water and add them to the above mixture
In another bowl, add chana flour, 4 spoons of rice flour, salt, baking soda, jeera, coriander seeds, 2 tbspns of oil and mix well. To it add the onion mixture and again mix well. If needed, sprinkle a little bit of water and mix again.
Heat oil and deep fry till it is golden brown.

Now very crispy and tasty pakora is ready! It stays fresh for more than 10 days if stored in a air-tight container

Squash/Zucchini Pacchadi

Ingredients:

1 Squash/Zucchini– peel the skin and cut into medium size pieces and wash it

15-20 green chillis (as per your spice levels)

½-1 bunch of coriander (Adjust to the size of squash)

2 tbsps cooking oil

2 garlic pods

1 tbsp split urad dal

1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)

1 tsp dhaniyalu (coriander seeds)

¼ spoon fenugreek seeds

Salt to taste

1 small lime sized tamarind

1 tsp cooking oil

¼ onion – Finely chopped

Method

Heat 1 tbsps of cooking oil in a pan.  

On low flame fry urad dall till the dal turns light gold/red in color.

Add jeera, coriander, fenugreek seeds and fry for a few seconds (about 30 secs).

Add Squash/Zucchini pieces and green chillies and fry for about 10min.

Now add coriander and tamarind and fry for 2 more min. Now Turn off the flame and set aside to cool.

In the mixie jar, grind 2 garlic pods and salt coarsely. And add the mixture and grind it coarsely.

Transfer the chutney from the mixie jar into a dish and add chopped onions and serve with hot rice and ghee. Believe me it tastes heavenly! 

Curd Rice: Daddojanam

Ingredients:

Rice --- ½ Cup (125 ml)
Water --- 1 cup (250 ml)
Curd --- 1 cup (adjust it )
Oil --- 1  tbsp
½ tbsp Channa Dal
½ tbsp Urad Dal

¼ tbsp Mustard Seeds
Curry Leaves --- a few
2 tbsp finely chopped Ginger

4 Green Chillies slit

Coriander Leaves --- a few (chopped)

Method:

Clean the rice with water and Add twice the water to the rice.Cook in a cooker till done.
 Let it cool.
Add curd and enough salt to the rice and mix well.
Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan (it takes less oil for this recipe), add slit green chillies and chopped ginger and fry for a min. Now add channadal, urad dal, mustard seeds and curry leaves and fry till chana dall turns brown. Add this seasoning to the the rice mixture. Simple yet very tasty curd rice is ready!

Sambhar Andhra Style

Ingredients:

1 cup tur dal(split red gram,kandi pappu)-washed and boiled till soft or pressure cooked
1 chopped big tomato
5-6 baby onions (peeled)
15 Drum Stick pieces ( boiled for 10min)
3-4 slit green chillis
2 tsp sambhar pwd(MTR is a good brand)
2 tbsp tamarind paste (or big lemon sized tamarind pulp soaked in warm water to remove the extract)
1 tbsp salt

1/4 bunch Coriander

Seasoning:

2-3 Red chillies

1/4 tbsp mustard seeds, cumin seeds

10 fenugreek seeds

3-4 Garlic pods

Curry Leaves

Method:

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a deep vessel. Add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, dry red chilli and Garlic pods and fry till fenugreek seeds turn brown.

Add all the veggies along with slit green chillies and fry for 2min

Now add Turmeric powder, Sambhar powder and salk and mix well.

Add the pressure-cooked tur dal along with 2 cups of water and cook for 4 more minutes.

Once the mixture begins to boil, add tamarind pulp, add two crushed garlic pods and ¼ bunch of coriander leaves and let it boil till the rawness of tamarind disappears. Now the hot piping and very tasty sambhar is ready to be served.. you can have it with Rice, idli or Dosa. 

Edible Fire: Mango Avakaya Pickle

I know! I know! I am as shocked as you are..I never thought I would one day think of preparing this pickle...but I did and it feels great..I just had a hearty meal with it and I feel good about my culinary skills :) Here is the recipe, if you would like to try it out. I would have taken some pictures of the preparation if I knew it would turn out this well..may be, next time :)


Spices required to prepare the pickle:
3 tbsps Mustard Powder
1 tbsp Fenugreek Powder
1/4 tbsp Fenugreek Seeds
4 tbsps Red Chilli Powder
1 1/2 tbsp Salt-if required more salt can be added at a later stage
4-5 tbsp of Nuvvulu noone (Til or Sesame Seed Oil)

Mix chilli powder, mustard powder, fenugreek powder, seeds and salt.Take a wide vessel, add the above spice-mixture and the chopped mango pieces. Mix the mango pieces well with the spice-mixture and slowly add the oil and combine with the pieces till well coated. The mango pieces should be well coated and wet with the spice mixture and oil but not dripping with oil. Store it in a cool dry place for 48 hours ( I didn't touch or didn't mix it) and on the third day it is ready to use! Enjoy it with hot steamed rice, Ghee and Dal as I did just now :))

Store the pickle in a clean glass jar for future use!

Hot Palate: Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani

Well..Every Hyderabadi would know this recipe..What makes it special is the way it brings out the nostalgia about Hyderabad. This recipe is not new..its an age old nawabi dish but revived by me (I did add my style of cooking here and there). My idea was introduce a spicy yet authentic dish to my non-indian co-workers and it did turn out well!!!

Ironically, when I prepared it for the first time for a potluck at work, it was on a Thursday and as I don't eat non-vegetarian on Thursdays as it being my SAI's day, I did not know how it came out. I was really worried that it might spoil everyone's appetite. However all ended well and spicy! :)

I got good feedback from almost everyone who savored it, but this comment from a white co-worker lingers :)
'This is so hot..I almost feel fumes coming out of my ears. But this is so yummy, I can't help but continue to eat this damn thing...' :)

I also remember my friend Annie gulping down ten bottles of water to beat the spice! LOL..




Ingredients:
Chicken drumsticks - 14
Basmati rice - 6 cups
Onions - 1 (big size)
Cardamom - 6
Cinnamon - 2 sticks
Cloves - 6
shahjeera - 1 teaspoonful
Thick curd - 1 cup
Chilli powder - add per your spice levels
Turmeric powder - two pinches
Ginger garlic paste - 2 table spoons
A bunch coriander &mint leaves
green chillies - 5
Ghee - 2 tablespoons
oil - 1 cup

Garam Masala Ingredients: (Grind them to powder)
Cardamoms - 6
Cinnamon - 2
Cloves - 6
Shahjeera - 1 spoon

Green Masala: (Grind them to paste)
Green chillies - 10-15
Coriander - 1/2 bunch
Mint - 1/2 bunch

Method:

1. Marinate chicken with curd, turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste, Garam masala powder,red chilli powder, green masala paste, juice of one lime & salt.
2. Fry finely sliced onion, till brown & crisp and add to the marinade and let it stand for 4-8 hours.
3. Cook rice separately (1 cup of rice :1 cup of water ratio)
4. In a pan, add oil and when it is hot, add whole garam masala and fry for few seconds. Now add the marinated chicken to the pan and fry till oil starts showing on the sides of the pan and chicken is well cooked. This takes about 20 minutes. Switch off the heat and keep the pan aside
5. In rice cooker, layer the cooked rice and chicken in alternate layers. Ensure that the first and last layer should be rice.
6. Heat 2 or 3 spoons of ghee and pour on top of the layers and cook till the rice cooker turns from cook to Warm (usually takes around 45min)