Gobi Manchurian

Gobi Manchurian...hmm...I was missing all the chats and fast food back in India and decided to try this at home on a Friday evening. This one is for all my friends and colleagues who loved the recipe.

Here are the ingredients -

1 1/2 cup - Besan/Chick pea flour

1 tsp Corn flour

1 tsp of Red chilly powder

1 Cauliflower, cut into bite size florets

1 Green/Red capsicum chopped (whichever you have, I used both half and half)

1 cup Cabbage shredded

2 medium Onions chopped

1/2 cup of Tomato ketchup

2 tbsp Tomato chilly sauce

3-4 Green chillies (may reduce according to taste)

1 Jalapeño chopped (optional)

2 cloves of Garlic, finely chopped

Finely shredded Cilantro

Oil for frying

Salt to taste

Method -

1. Wash the cauliflower florets thoroughly under running water.

2. Add one cup of water to a microwave safe bowl, cauliflower florets, a pinch of turmeric and a little salt. Cook them in the microwave for 3 mins. They should be half cooked.

3. Make a thin batter of besan, corn flour, a spoon of hot oil (used for frying), salt, chilly powder and water. The batter should be thick enough to coat the cauliflower florets evenly and stick to it.

4. Heat a broad pan with a teaspoon of oil. Add garlic, onions, jalapeños and green chillies. Saute them on high heat for a minute.

5. Reduce the heat to medium, add chopped cabbage cook for 2-3 mins or until they become transparent.

6. Add chopped capsicum and saute for a minute.

7. Salt the veggies as needed and add tomato ketchup and tomato chilly sauce.

8. Mix them well and cook the gravy for another minute.

9. Meanwhile heat oil for frying. Drain water completely from cauliflower and add them to the batter.

10. Fry the florets in oil until they turn golden and crispy.

11. Add the cauliflower florets to the gravy and mix well. Top it with chopped fresh cilantro and serve hot.

Tomato Peas Utthappa

Inspired by one of the Udupi hotels, tried to make this one at home :) Tomato-Peas utthappa!

Here are the ingredients -
1-2 tomatoes finely chopped
1 cup of boiled peas
Oil
Salt to taste
Soak the below ingredients overnight or for atleast 6hrs-
1 cup of Rice
1/2 cup of urad daal
2 Tbsp of chana daal
1 tsp of Fenugreek seeds
1/2 of Beaten rice/ poha


Method -
1. Grind the soaked ingredients into a fine batter(normal dosa consistency)
2. Allow thebatter to ferment for 6-7 hours.
3. Add salt to taste just before making the utthappa.
4. Pour a laddle of batter onto a hot griddle/pan and spread lightly in circles
5. Sprinkle chopped tomato and peas evenly on the utthappa.
6. Add a tsp of oil over the edges and close a lid.
7. When the utthappa is golden brown, remove and serve it upside down with peas-tomato on top.
8. Serve it with any chutney of your choice :)

Vegetable Stir Fry

This would be one colourful dish for your potlucks and parties and it is as healthy as it looks. You can use up all left over vegetables at once, incase you were wondering how to finish them. I have tried to make the dish with as less oil as possible, so that I can make it regularly with Chapathis and Rotis. Goes well with Plain rice too...try it out. Here is the recipe -

Ingredients-

Fresh vegetables - I used

2 Carrots - Thinly Sliced

1 Green Pepper - cubed

1 Red pepper - cubed

1 Yellow pepper - cubed

1 Onions - cubed

1 Medium sized Potato - cubed

8-10 Beans cut into 2 inch pieces

8-10 1 inch cubes of paneer (optional)

1/2 cup - Tomato ketchup

2-3 Tbsp Hot Maggi sauce

Red chilly powder to taste

Garam masala to taste

Chaat masala to taste

Salt to taste

Lime juice to taste

Oil

Method -

1. Potato and beans take a little longer to cook than other veggies. So start off by cooking the potato cubes with 1/4 cup of water and salt to taste in the microwave for 3-4 minutes.

2. Remove them from the microwave and give it a nice toss and put them back in the microwave until they are half cooked (Soft but not mushy. They should retain the shape. Do not add more water).

3. Drain the water and pat with a paper towel to dry them.

4. Heat a small skillet with 2 tsp of oil. Add beans, little salt and saute until the crunchiness is removed.

5. Once the 2 veggies are cooked, heat a broad skillet with 2 tbsp of oil. Add the onions. After a minute add peppers, carrot and paneer cubes. Saute on high heat until the veggies are crisp and turning slightly brown. Add salt to taste. (Avoid adding salt in the beginning because the veggies leave water while cooking and become soggy)

6. Add the potatoes and beans, cook all veggies on high heat for 2-3 mins.

7. Now reduce the heat to low, add red chilly powder, garam masala, chaat masala. Mix well.

8. Add the tomoto ketchup and Maggi hot sauce and mix until all the spices and masala are well incorporated.

9. Turn of the heat and garnish the mixture with lemon/lime juice.

10. Serve it hot with Chapathis or Rotis.

11. They can also be served as appetizers.

Tips -

1. You can also use cauliflower, okra, brinjal for this.

2. Alternately you can deep fry potatoes, okra, brinjal and cauliflower until they are half cooked and then add it to the remaining veggies. But it sounds a little less healthy ;)

Green gram curry

Whole green gram is mainly known for its nutritional values. It is the most popular sprout worldwide. Green gram in its split form is used to make khichdi, dal, barfi, payasam (a sweet dish) and other sweets. Deep fried and salted moong dal (green gram) is a popular Indian snack. Processed green gram is a common soup base, and gram flour is a common ingredient in many fried snacks.
Here is the South-Indian version of green gram curry -

Ingredients -
2 cups Whole green gram, soaked overnight
1/2 cup Shredded coconut
3-4 Dry red chillies
1 tsp Coriander seeds
1/2 tsp tamarind paste
1 Onion
1 Tomato
1/2 inch Ginger, grated
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
2-3 Chopped Green chillies (0ptional)
2 tsp Oil
3 cups of Water
Salt to taste
A pinch of Sugar
Chopped Cilantro for garnishing


Method -
1. Wash the whole green gram thoroughly and soak it overnight. (Can use sprouted dal too)
2. Pressure cook the green gram for 1 whistle in 2 cups of water. Drain water and keep it aside. (Same water can be used for gravy)
3. Make a coarse paste of red chillies, coconut, onion, tomato, coriander seeds, tamarind paste and ginger with little water.
4. In a pan, add oil, mustard seeds and allow it to splutter. Add the masala paste to it and saute it oil until the raw smell disappears. Add salt to taste, green chillies and sugar.
5. Now pour the cooked green gram into the pan. Adjust the gravy consistency by adding water as required.
6. Bring the mixture to a boil.
7. Garnish it with cilantro leaves and serve hot with chapathi, dosa or rotti :)

Thank you Swapna for sharing this award :)