Banana Chilly Curry / Malu Miris

I bought some banana peppers for making Milagai Bajji and had a few left. One of my  blogger friend, also my lovable Akka suggested this  Sri Lankan recipe. Its so quick and delicious. Give it a try! :) 

Ingredients

Banana peppers/ Bajji milagai - 6

Onion -1 

Garlic - 2 cloves

Few curry leaves

Chilli Flakes - 21/2 teaspoons (adjust to taste)

Turmeric powder - 1/8teaspoon

Tamarind paste - 1/2tablespoon (or) Thick tamarind water - 3tablespoons

Salt

Sugar -1/2teaspoon

Oil

Method

Wash, pat dry the chillies and slice them. 

Slice the onions thinly. 

Combine the chillies, onion, curry leaves and turmeric in a bowl.

Heat oil in a pan, add the chilli flakes and crushed garlic. 

Saute for 30 seconds, add the chillies -onion-curry leaves and turmeric. Add the thick tamarind extract too. 

Add enough salt and sugar, toss everything well. Close the pan with a lid and cook on medium heat for 6-8 minutes or until the peppers are cooked.

Serve as a side dish for rice or roti. Personally this goes well with rice and plain dal. 

Recipe Source : HERE , As the author quotes, "///Banana chilli or pepper is called malu miris in Singhalese because ‘malu’ means cooking/side dish and ‘miris’ mean chilli, so it’s translates to the ‘cooking chilli’. ///" :)

 I have altered the recipe a little bit according to my convenience. :) 

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Aaloo Paratha

Ingredients

Aatta/Whole wheat flour- 2cups

Oil - 2teaspoons

Salt 

Water 

For stuffing

Boiled potatoes - 31/2 [Refer the pictorial..sorry about the measurements!! ;)]

Onion, finely chopped -1

Green chilly, finely chopped -1

Ginger, finely chopped - 1teaspoon

Chopped cilantro - 1tablespoon 

Chilly powder - 1/2teaspoon 

Coriander powder - 1/2teaspoon

Salt 

Oil 

To crush

Coriander seeds - 1teaspoon

Cumin seeds - 1teaspoon

Method

Combine the aatta, salt and water, make a soft dough. Finally add 2 teaspoons oil, knead well. Keep it covered at least for 30 minutes.

Peel the skin of the potatoes and mash them well. Alternatively you can grate them too. 

Chop the onions, green chilly and ginger. 

Crush the cumin and coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle .

Heat oil in a pan, once its hot add the crushed seeds and let them brown slightly.

Then add the chopped onion, ginger and green chilly. Sauté for  2-3 minutes. Now add the salt and chilly-turmeric- coriander powders, give it a quick mix. 

Add the grated potato and mix it well.

Switch off the stove, add the chopped cilantro and let it cool.

Make lemon sized balls out of the dough. Make the potato stuffing also as same size balls.
Slightly flatten the dough ball, keep the stuffing, gather the edges and seal it carefully. Flatten it slightly, dip in in dry flour and keep it aside.

Likewise do the rest of the dough. 

Roll each stuffed paratha balls gently, dusting with dry flour.
Heat a griddle, add cook the paratha. Add little oil, and cook on both sides.

Tasty aloo paratha is ready to serve. Serve along with plain yogurt and some pickle.

Goes well for trips too. 

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Cauliflower & Broccoli Stir fry

This curry can be made only with Cauliflower or the combination of broccoli and cauliflower. Either way, it tastes good. Perfect quick fix when you run out of tomatoes in hand and looking for some dish for roti or rice.

Ingredients

Cauliflower and broccoli florets - 11/2cups

Pepper powder- 1/2teaspoon

Fennel seed powder - 1/2 teaspoon 

Onion (chopped) -3 tablespoons

Desiccated coconut - 11/2 tablespoons

Green chilly -1

Few curry leaves

Mustard seeds - 1/2teaspoon

Channa dal & Urad dal - 1/2teaspoon each

Sugar - 1/2teaspoon (optional)

Salt

Oil 

To Grind 

Almonds -10

Small piece of ginger

2-3 cloves of garlic 

Method 

Soak the almonds in warm water for about an hour. Then peel the skin, and grind it as a fine paste with ginger and garlic. Keep it aside. 

Make the pepper powder and fennel seeds powder and keep it ready.

Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds. Let them pop up, add the channa dal and urad dal and fry until they turn golden in color. Add the chopped onion, slit green chilly and curry leaves. 

Saute for few minutes, until onion slightly changes in color. Now add the almond paste and cook until the raw smell goes off.

Add the veggies with pepper powder and fennel powder, salt. 

Sprinkle little water, close the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes in high flame.

Add the sugar (optional) and coconut, give it a quick stir and put off the flame. 

Delicious cauliflower and broccoli curry is ready. The veggie should be crunchy, so keep the flame in high and keep an eye. 

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Quick Radish Sambar

If you are looking for some quick fix in a hurry or tired to cook an elaborate lunch, here is the solution. This quick sambar will be handy and ready in 15-20 minutes. :) It goes well with rice as well as idli and dosa. 

Ingredients

Toor dal / Thuvaram paruppu - 1/4cup

Radish (peeled,sliced) -1/2cup 

Onion (sliced) - 3 tablespoons

Tomato (chopped0 -2 (medium size)

Small piece of tamarind 

Turmeric powder-1/4teaspoon

Sambar powder -2 teaspoons 

Salt 

Sugar -1/2teaspoon (or) a small piece of jaggery  [optional]

To temper

Oil 

Mustard seeds -1/2teaspoon

Cumin seeds - 1/2teaspoon

Generous pinch of Hing/asafoetida

Red chilly -1

Few curry leaves & Cilantro

Method

Combine all the items in the ingredient list in a small pressure cooker. Add about a cup to 11/4cups of water. 

Here is another look..dal, veggie, onion, tomato, tamarind, turmeric powder and sambar powder, salt, sugar all in the cooker. :) 

Cook for one or 2 whistle in medium flame. Let the pressure suppress by itself. Make the tempering and pour it over the sambar and garnish with cilantro.

Tasty sambar is ready to go with rice.

If you want to serve it with tiffin items, increase the water quantity little bit. 

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Brinjal Stir-fry with Peanuts

Ingredients
Brinjal - 5
Chopped onion - 2tablespoons
Green chilly-1
Chilly powder-3/4teaspoon
Turmeric powder- 1/8teaspoon
Mustard seeds- 1/2teaspoon
Urad dal -1/2teaspoon
Channa dal- 1/2teaspoon
Roasted Peanuts - 1 tablespoon
Grated coconut -1tablespoon
Salt
Oil

Method 
Slightly heat the roasted peanuts in a pan and let it cool.
Slice the brinjals and keep them immersed in water till use.
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and let them pop. Add the channa dal and urad dal, and fry until they turn golden in color.  Then add the chopped onion and green chilly, fry for 2-3 minutes.

Add the brinjal slices along with chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt.  Sprinkle some water and close the pan with a lid. 

Meanwhile crush the peanuts in a mortar and pestle or mixie jar. 

Once the brinjal is cooked, add the peanut powder and coconut. Give it a quick mix and put off the flame.

Delicious peanut-brinjal stir fry is ready to serve. Goes well with rice and roti. 

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Chilli Egg Parotta

Ingredients

Frozen Parotta -2

Onion -1 (small)

Green chilly -1

Capsicum - 1

Tomato -1

Egg- 1

Ginger Garlic paste -1/2 teaspoon

Few curry leaves and cilantro 

Chilly powder -1/2teaspoon 

Coriander powder - 1/2teaspoon

Curry masala powder -1 teaspoon 

Maggi hot and sweet sauce - 3 teaspoons 

Salt

Oil 

Method 

1. Thaw the parotta and cook it as per the instructions on the pack. Let it cool down completely, then cut them into small pieces. I have used my kitchen scissors, you can tear them or cut them according to your convenience.  

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and toast the parotta pieces. 

2. Toast the parotta on low medium heat until it turns little crispy, keep it aside.

3. Cube the onion, tomato, capsicum ( its missing in the immediate photo below) pieces. Finely chop the green chilly. Heat ( should be high flame)another tablespoon of oil, add the  ginger garlic paste, fry for a minute, then add cubed onion and green chilly pieces.  

Then add the cubed tomato and capsicum pieces..sauté in high flame until the tomato pieces becomes soft, add the chilly powder, coriander powder and curry masala powder. 

4. Give a quick toss, let the masala get coated with all the veggies. Now add the toasted patotta pieces. 

5. Add in the egg. 

5. Mix and cook for a couple of minutes, then add the maggi hot and sweet sauce.

6. Finally add in the chopped cilantro and curry leaves, and put off the flame.

Yummy quick fix dinner is ready..Serve hot with raita.

Note

If you want an egg free version, follow the process up to step - 4 and then add the sauce, curry leaves and cilantro and serve as plain chilly parotta.

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Moong Sprouts Kurma

Updating my blog after a reasonable time! Shifting the house and other personal works kept me away and happy to be back on track! Today I am sharing healthy and delicious sprouts kurma! 

Ingredients 

Moong Sprouts -1/4cup

One small potato

Half of an onion 

Green chilly -1 

Tomato -2

Ginger-garlic paste - 2teaspoons

Bay leaf -1

Cinnamon - 2" piece 

Curry masala powder-1tablespoon

Chilly powder-1/2teaspoon

Sugar-1/2teaspoon

Salt

Oil

To grind

Coconut -2tablespoons

Cashew-5

Elaichi-1

Fennel seeds -1/2teaspoon

Method 

Take the moong sprouts and cubed potato in a pan. Add enough water and cook until both of them are   cooked. They should be soft but not mushy. 

Heat oil in a pan, add the cinnamon and bay leaf. Sauté it for a few seconds and add sliced onion & green chilly. Fry for a minute, add the freshly crushed ginger and garlic. Sauté until onion turns slight pink color. Then add the tomatoes, cook until they become soft. Add the curry powder, chilly powder and half a cup of water. Let it boil nicely.

Now add the cooked sprouts and potato, add water if needed and let it cook for few more minutes.

Meanwhile make a paste of the items to be grind. 

Add the coconut paste to the kurma and enough salt, sugar & water. Let it boiler 6-7 minutes on medium heat. 

Reduce the heat to low and simmer the kurma until the oil floats on the top.

Protein packed delicious kurma is ready to serve. Tastes grate with chapatti as well as rice dishes.

Recipe Inspiration : HERE

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Maida Burfi/ Maida Cake

Ingredients
Maida / All purpose flour -1/2cup
Sugar - 3/4 cup (adjust to sweet, up to 1 cup)
Ghee - 1/4cup
Food color - few drops
Tutty fruity - 1/8 cup (optional)
Elaichi -2

Method
Heat the ghee and roast the maida. You will get nice aroma and the color of the flour should not change it.
Add a cup of sugar and 3/4 cup of water and start heating.
Once the sugar syrup reaches one string consistency, remove it from stove. Immediately add the roasted maida, food color, tutty fruity and elaichi powder and start mixing.
Keep on mixing it(off the stove), until the flour+sugar syrup reaches halwa consistency.
It will be like liquid, but when cooling it slowly becomes a nonsticky halwa.
By then pour it on a greased plate and level it with a greased spatula.

 Here I have added 3 drops of green food color and red color tutty fruity. Once it cools down completely, remove it from the plate and cut it into desired shape.

This is the recipe from Rak's kitchen. I just followed her recipe. You can check here for step by step pictures and a video.  I felt the sweetness was little more for our palate. Next time  I will reduce it to 3/4 cup. :) 

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Diwali Sweets & Snacks 2015

 Hope everyone had a nice Diwali. Here are the sweets and snacks I prepared this year.

 Maida cake/burfi

 Dry gulaab jamoon

Murukku

Mixture

Click on the names to get the recipes..Will post the sweet recipes soon. 

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Multigrain Dosai

Ingredients

Wheat flour -1/4cup

Ragi maavu/ Finger millet flour -1/2cup

Kambu maavu/ Bajri flour - 1/2cup

Idli maavu / Idli batter - 1 big ladle

Salt

Water

Oil

Method

Combine wheat flour, ragi flour, bajri flour and salt in a bowl.

 Add a ladle of idli batter..

 Add enough water and mix it like dosa batter without lumps

 Heat a griddle and make dosa. Sprinkle some oil around the dosa, and let it cook.

 Flip the dosa after a few seconds and cook the other side.

Healthy dosa is ready to serve. Serve hot with some tangy, spicy chutney. We had it with tomato chutney. 

Note 
This dosa can be made instantly, just mix  the flours and make dosa right away, how ever you can let it ferment overnight and make dosa too. Personally I prefer the later. :) 

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