Cucumber Archives - My Veg Fare

Poha with Cucumber and Walnuts

Jayasri Ravi — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 23:30:00 +0000

This month Kalyani gave us the two Magic Mingle Ingredients, when she announced I was a bit worried and wondered how will I incorporate these two together as we all loveeeeee Cucumber but Walnuts Mmmm....?, how will I , My kids are not very interested in consuming them even though I keep telling them it is good for your heart.., Teenagers not an easy task to please them..,
The best thing was my kids when they came to know about my combo they immediately said Mum no bread , Cake or Muffin no sweet Pleaseeeee.... Ok! I had to put my thinking cap on and started to think day and night :)), that's a bit too exaggeration right ?.
You will not believe I made four dishes out of it and actually we all totally enjoyed it. This was one such dish which I started with a quick, delicious and healthy Breakfast what else do you need to start your day with..Flattened Poha does not need pre soaking as they so flattened, which is used for making Chivda, they absorb everything quickly.
This is a quick breakfast which I used to have when I used to go to Sringeri around Malnad in my friends house. They make different varities in this, May be some day I will post them all.

POHA WITH CUCUMBER AND WALNUTS
Serves 3
Preparation time 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
1 and 1/2 cup Flattened Poha*
3 tbsp of Oil
1 fist full of Peanuts
1 tsp channa dal
1 tsp Urad dal
1/2 tsp mustard seed
1 sprig curry leaves
3 tbsp of freshly chopped Coriander leaves
Salt as required
2 tbsp Lemon juice
1/2 Cup Grated Cucumber

Grind together:
fist full of Walnuts
3 tbsp of dry Coconut (copra)

METHOD:
Grate Cucumber and keep aside, Chop Coriander and keep aside.
In a Pan dry saute walnuts for a couple of minutes, when it cools down, Grind it with grated dry copra into a coarse powder do not grind too much it will become sticky as the walnuts release oil of their own. Keep them aside.
In the same Pan heat oil add all the seasonings one by one in a low flame, Mustard seeds after they splutter add Peanuts and saute them when they start crackling add the dals and fry for few minutes when they change colour, add curry leaves and switch off the stove give a quick stir and add this to Poha then add the Grinded walnut and copra powder add required amount of salt and Lemon Juice then add grated cucumber to it.
Mix well and serve it immediately.
Do not leave it for a long time, it becomes a bit hard..
Enjoy...
will post the other recipes soon.., stay tuned in....

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Kolai er dal - Bengali Urad Dal with Aloo posto

Jayasri Ravi — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 22:38:00 +0000

Rainy days and sun peeping now and then behind the clouds, doesn't tell you that it is summer time here, Poor kids not happy about their summer hols at all, Days seems to just crawl for me, of course I seem to get little lazy as mum around, she is cooking and I tend to other things these days, particulary my little garden.
Weather Forecast says it is going to be 2 days of sunshine from tomorrow, fingers crossed.
Around these things it is Blog Hop Wednesday again, it is so quick and you wouldn't believe it right ?, Last time I was a little late in posting as I had nobody at home and felt very sad to cook or bake. This time it is nice to have everybody at home, and I am immensely happy because mom is going to enjoy different cuisines too.
Radhika of Tickling palates assigned me to Suchi-Kitchen Karma, I was really happy, I have a special love for Bengali Sweets I think I have mentioned it n number of times in my blog. I have made a few Bengali sweets and some Bengali cuisine too..
Suchi has some lovely recipes, loved her write ups and she lives in UK!!, discovered a blogger right here, thanks to radhika. Hope I will meet her some day. She has beautiful photos to make it more interesting, Totally loved her blog, As always when I go to a blog, particularly Indian blogs I always look for bloggers background that is where they come from and I search for all the authentic recipes. Looking for all the vegetarian recipes in her blog this recipe got stuck to my mind, I kept going back to the same recipe again and again because I had never tried this recipe before.
Urad Dal is the main Ingredient in this recipe - Urad Dal as it says a Dal and as all of you know Dals, Lentils and pulses are rich in proteins. Urad Dal is available in dehusked, husked, split husked and gotta ( dehusked round ) varieties, I use it in all ways using in Dosas, Idlis and many other ways. But I never used it in cooking it like a Dal.
Urad Dal has lot of good things in it, It is used in different ways according to the region you live in India, for postpartum food in women. That is it is consumed after child birth, it has low glycemic index so it is said it is good for diabetes, It is said that Proteins are well observed with citrus so using lemon, lime, tomatoes etc.., helps in the better absorption of the proteins consumed.
As she was saying that in Bengal they make this during summer with Aloo posto which helps the body in cooling effect. She says that this is an acquired taste, she also says that this dish is not usually served warm and with a dash of lime juice and with no turmeric while cooking.. Ok let me come to the recipe now....
I made a little change in this recipe, I used one cucumber with this, as I really didn't know how my family would like it with just Urad dal, Once they know the taste, I could do this without any veggies, turned out that it was delicious. one of my kids was not too really into it she said, but as suchi says it is an acquired taste, making this often they might get used to this taste, and definitely I am going to make it again and again.
As she had no recipe for Aloo posto I took the recipe from Hamaree Rasoi of Deepa's.

KOLAI ER DAL / BENGALI URAD DAL

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 Cup Urad Dal/ Black gram split Dal
1 whole cucumber
1/2 tbsp Panch poran ( I used panch poran as it has fennel seeds in it)
3 to 4 Red chilles
1/2 '' crushed Ginger
curry leaves
A pinch of Hing/ Asafoetida
1 tbsp oil
salt to taste.

METHOD:
Soak Urad Dal around two hours, peel and chop cucumber into cubes.
Cook Dal and cucumber in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water in a low flame for at 3 to 4 whistles just to make sure that the dal is well cooked.
Then In a pan heat oil and make tadka with Panch poran , Red Chilles and curry leaves. saute add this to the cooked Dal.
Add Crushed Ginger, Hing / Asafoetida and salt to the Dal and cook for few minutes until everything is well combined.
Serve it with hot rice or pulka.

ALOO POSTO / POTATOES IN POPPY SEED PASTE

INGREDIENTS:
7 to 8 Aloo / Potatoes
2 tbsp Poppy seeds ( actually used 4 tbsp )**
4 to5 Green chillies
1/2'' ginger crushed
1 tsp Kalonji seeds / Onion seeds
curry leaves
2 to 3 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Ghee
Salt as required
1/2 tsp red chilli powder ( I omitted )

How to make posto Bata ( Poppy seed Paste ) : Soak poppy seeds in water for few hours or over night, this helps in making it into a nice paste. As little water as possible grind it with the chllies and ginger.
** I had only 2 tbsp poppy seeds so I had to just use that but if you are making use 4 tbsp poppy seeds.

METHOD:
Cut Potatoes into small pieces, Heat oil add onion seeds and curry leaves, I crushed ginger and chillies into paste fried them for a minute then add chopped Potatoes, add finely ground poppy seeds paste, add some water mix everything very well, close a lid and cook until well done.
serve it with Kolai er Dal or with rice or pulka.

Notes: Check out suchi's blog for the perfect recipe, as I have made few changes, I did not crush fennel seeds as my family do not like the taste of it too much so instead I used Punch pooram as tadka / seasoning.

Thanks to Suchi and Deepa for these two lovely recipes, so we had a lovely Bengali cuisine and thanks to Radhika for giving this opportunity. My family loved both the recipes, the posto was well consumed because of the potatoes :))
Enjoy...

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Subway Sandwich - Indianised !!

Jayasri Ravi — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 03:29:00 +0000

My kids love Subway Sandwich so much.... Just because, as they can add any thing they like in it likes olives, onions, Jalepenos, corn, tomatoes etc..., and can choose the bread they like, I was planning to bake some Khara bun that day, and the bread was in its processing state.., as my kids were talking about Sandwiches I decided to change this recipe into subway rolls and made Indianised subway sandwich !! for a change.
My memory always goes back to those days I would love to eat a Khara Bun on a rainy day with a hot cup of tea/coffee. My mind always revolves around those flavours which I so love... so why not give this a go ?.
I exactly made 4 big ones don't laugh looking at those rolls as they were too big, that was one hearty meal of the day for my kids and they so enjoyed it. One wonderful Sandwich and also they had a fantastic smoothie which was the next thing they had a go at which I will post soon, That was one complete brunch . They relished it so much and I was a very happy mum.

Their is no step wise photos for making these rolls, as I was planning not to take any photos, as I keep making these Khara (spicy) buns and I already have drafts of them which haven't seen the day yet!!. well, anyways this is how the recipe goes..

SUBWAY SANDWICH - INDIANISED

INGREDIENTS:
450 (50 gms etc.., for kneading ) grms All Purpose Flour
2 1/2 tsp Fast action yeast
1and 1/2 tsp sugar
1and 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp of Oil
2 tbsp of fresh Herbs ( coriander, dill )
1 and 1/4 Cup water

METHOD:
In a large bowl add yeast with 1 or 2 tbsp of luke warm water with sugar and leave it in a warm place for few minutes, within few minutes you will start noticing bubbles in it, add oil freshly chopped herbs and salt then add the flour mix well.
Now start adding water until a nice soft dough is formed, knead the dough for 10 minutes with the help of extra flour just for dusting your hands, do not keep adding too much flour, when you are kneading the gluten in the flour stretches and even if the dough is a bit sticky it totally disappears, yeast is such a lovely product, it is not a problem at all to work with it.

Oil the bowl place the dough in it and cover it with a cling film and leave it in a warm place until the dough is double in size it might take 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours depending on the outside temperature.
Once raised punch it down and release the gas then knead it softly handle it like a flower!!, then shape them into desired shapes, as I was planning to make subway rolls I rolled into 4 long rolls and placed them each between grease proof papers in a large tray then covered them with a tea towel.
Leave the shaped rolls for a second rising for an other half an hour
Meanwhile preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6 spray some water inside the oven carefully not to touch the bulb or on the gas ( even if you don't do this the bread will still bake not to worry).
Place a oven proof bowl with warm water underneath, after 1/2 an hour decrease the oven temperature to Gas Mark 4 and place the tray inside the oven giving it a milk wash ( or you can use egg wash ) and bake for 25 to 30 minutes depending upon the way your oven works or after 25 minutes insert a skewer and check if it is baked, if not leave it for an other 5 to 10 minutes assessing the baking of the bread roll.
Once done, immediately remove them from the oven and place them on a wiring rack after 5 minutes or so remove them from the tray and place them directly on the wiring rack so that that they cool down , otherwise they become soggy underneath.
That's it your rolls are ready now.

Now to Assemble the sandwich you need to keep some ingredients ready.
Make Coriander and Mint Chutney:
1/2 Cucumber ( thinly sliced )
2 carrots grated
1 small Mango ( thinly sliced )
2 small Red onions
2 Tomatoes
1/2 Cup Fresh Roasted sweet corn kernels
Cheese as needed

Slice the rolls in half, apply chutney on both the sides then start placing the veggies one by one of your choice, I placed Mango then cucumber, onions, tomatoes and sweet corn kernels then cheese on top of it close the other half on it and grill them on a panini grill or a sandwich maker for 3 to 4 minutes according to your gadget , Ooohh..., that's it job done, cut them in half place them on a plate and serve it.

Do you like my subway treat if so do tell me.....
Checkout my other sandwich recipe which was amazing here
Make it vegan, using vegan cheese or just omit it :))
Sorry friends was not able to respond to your comments immediately as I was down with Migraine,
Sending this to
1. Kalyani's Healthy Sanwich Diet : Sandwiches, started by priya's Healthy diet event
2. Priya's Celebrate Olympic games started by Jagruthi of cooking odyssey
3. Kalyani's WTML event started by Gayatri of Gayatri's cook spot
4. Sayantani of Home maker's Dairy hosting JCO's - Monsoon of India
5. This Sandwich is also yeastspotted
6. Let's cook breads # 17 of Radhika's
7. Kid's delight evening snacks of co-hosted by vardhini initially started by srivalli
8. Sandwich recipes of Dr.Sameena

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Apple-cucumber Gojju

Jayasri Ravi — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 07:51:00 +0000

Hi everybody,
Hope the sun is shining in other parts of the world !!, My sun still hasn't completely into us still !!, still the cold air lingers around, just to keep telling that I am still their, Almost a month back, I planted some seeds and all of them have come up, and I want to put them in the garden, well I can't plant them in my garden as the soil is clay !!, So I have to keep them in pots, hoping them will survive there!!, The sun seems to play tricks all the time still, Once the summer is in full fledge I can bring all my pots out, they are all still in my conservatory!!. Coming back to the recipe, This gojju I prepared with my Museli-branflakes Dosa, I thought the combination went quite well, I think it might go well as a side dish than eating with rice as other gojju's I make.

APPLE-CUCUMBER GOJJU

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE GOJJU:

1 Cucumber

3 Apples (I used Granny smith)

4 sprigs of Coriander leaves

1 sprig of curry leaves

salt as required

2 tbsp oil for tempering

a pinch of turmeric

a pinch of Asafoetida/hing

Gooseberry sized Tamarind

FOR THE GRINDING:

2 tsp Channa Dal

2 tsp Urad dal

3 tsp Black sesame seeds

2 tsp Methi Seeds

3 tsp Dry Copra/dessicated coconut

4-2 Red chillies (Badgi-Guntur)

FOR SEASONING:

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp channa dal

1 tsp urad dal

1 Red chilli broken

METHOD

Wash and cut the cucumber and apples with their skin (or without their skin if you wish), Take a wok, heat 2 tbsp of oil add mustard seeds once it starts spluttering, add the ingredients in the seasoning section and saute them a minute when they start changing colour add the vegetables with a cup of water and curry leaves. If the water evaporates before the vegetables are cooked, keep adding water.

Meanwhile soak tamarind in water and extract the juice out of it.

Then take an other wok and a tsp of oil and roast all the Ingredients in the Grinding and fry them one by one starting from Methi seeds, Once the Methi seeds change colour and the dhals and chillies, do not fry the coconut, fry sesame seeds saperately until it starts making a spluttering sound, then keep the roasted ingredients aside to cool before grinding them a smooth paste.

Once the vegetables are nearly done add the tamarind extract and allow it to boil for few minutes so the raw smell disappears, Add another 2 cups of water.

Then add the Ground paste and required quantity of salt mix well and allow it to boil and get thickened for further 5 to 10 minutes in a low flame.

Add water as needed so the Gojju should be in the consistency of vegetable Gravies you prepare, Once the paste is added the Gojju might become too thick add little more water so it has the consistency of a Gravy

Add washed and finely chopped coriander leaves to garnish and serve it with hot pooris, chappatis, dosas or Idlis.

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Cucumber-moongdal Koshumbari/Kosambari (Salad)

Jayasri Ravi — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 01:05:00 +0000

What so special ?, you must be thinking, why has she posted this ?, Of course everybody in India, know what koshumbari is, there is nothing special about it, But then why did I post it ? As my daughter said, ''because it is an authentic recipe which my mom, paati made and it will be their always when ever I need it, mummy post what ever you cook''. well, that is how my koshumbari has come to the blog!!, and of course my daughters are my photographers, they always arrange them and take some pictures and upload them to the computer ( but sometimes I have to keep asking them if they have uploaded so I can post !!). Well, what ever it is or however long time they take to do it, they always don't forget to take pictures before they eat and upload them, I must thank them for that. Thank you so much girls, I love you.
This is a simple salad, which is so delicious, you can just munch it any time. It is quite filling as well, you can do lot of variations with this recipe.

CUCUMBER-MOONGDAL KOSHUMBARI

INGREDIENTS:

1 whole cucumber
2 to 3 green chillies
4 to 5 sprigs of coriander
salt as required
A fist full of moong dal
a pinch of asafoetida
1 tbsp of oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 or 2 tbsp of fresh grated coconut

METHOD

First of all soak Moong dal for an hour or so, it becomes quite soft when you break with your nails it just splits, you would know it , It even swells up. Once it is well soaked, drain the water completely and keep it aside.
Cut the cucumber into thin slices just as shown in picture, you can use the skin too, if you don't mind eating it, and is definitely good for health.
Mix Moong dal, cucumber, grated coconut and finely chopped coriander leaves
Take a kadai heat oil in it and then add mustard seeds once they splutter add the chopped green chillies, once they slightly change colour, pour it on top of the cucumber mixture, on it add the pinch of asafoetida
Just before serving add the required quantity of salt and mix everything together and serve immediately.
You can also add a squeeze of (1 to 2 tbsp) lemon juice which is optional, and of course it gives a great taste to the koshambari

Note: If you add salt prior to the Kosambari it gives out water and you wouldn't be able to enjoy the real juicy taste of the kosambari. I am not saying it won't be nice later on but it tastes more delicious with the juice still in it, even today when all of us (my sisters and me) when we go to amma's house, we actually fight for the juice, so daddy would share it to all of us, that juice mixed with every thing tastes so nice we mix it with rice and eat, when my hubby saw this first time after our marriage, he was surprised and asked us how can we eat that, and he hates koshambari as they give out water. I don't do it as often as we used to do in mom's house, mom always makes different types of kosambari's and they are on her everyday menu list!!, like the pulkas, My hubby never eats any kosambari's !!, (Mom he doesn't know what he is missing - poor chap - says my daughter). Bless her, we love it and we enjoy it, whenever I make it.

You all agree with me right ?, If you haven't tried it...., go ahead and try it out.. you will be hooked.

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Cucumber Pachadi

Jayasri Ravi — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 19:47:00 +0000

Of course everybody knows how to make this pachadi, I make it in two ways, I made this method on Thiruvaadipooram, with rava kesari, lemon rice, Aloo curry, my children loved it all! This is a very simple learnt it from mom, and is our all time favourite, when I started making it in my in-laws house my Brother-in-laws used to say, you could just give it in a cup it is delicious to eat just like that !

CUCUMBER PACHADI

Ingredients:

1 cucumber
2 to 3 sprigs of coriander leaves
a pinch of asafoetida
salt as required
2 tbsp of freshly grated coconut
2 flakes of Tamarind
2 tbsp of Roasted gram or chutney dal/daria dal
1 tbsp of Black Til seeds
Piece of Jaggery
4 to 5 green chillies
1 & 1/2 to 2 cups of Plain curds or Yogurt

Seasoning :

1 tbsp of oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 sprig of curry leaves

METHOD

Peel the skin ( if you don't mind having the skin then it is fine too) cut both the ends rub each piece against each end (I will tell you why in my notes)
Wash both the ends and now it is ready to cut, chop them into thin pieces just you make for Kosambaris, and keep it aside
In a wok fry til seeds, till they start like popping up, then allow it to cool
with a tongs hold the tamarind flakes directly on to the fire and just roast it a little bit (i will tell you why in my notes)
In a mixer add all the ingredients , the Til seeds, washed Coriander leaves, Roasted gram dal, Tamarind flakes, green chillies, grated coconut, grind all these into a smooth paste in the last round add jaggery too.
Take this ground paste and mix it with plain curds or yogurt with a pinch of asafoetida and salt as required.
Heat oil in a wok, add mustard seeds, once they start spluttering add sprig of curry leaves saute for a minute and add it to the pacchadi

CUCUMBER PACHADI II

Ingredients:

1 cucumber
3 to 4 green chillies
salt as required
pinch of asafoetida
sprig of curry leaves
3 to 4 sprig of coriander leaves

METHOD

The method is almost the same only thing is I will not use all the ingredients in the above said method and here I do not chop cucuber into thin pieces but either I grate them or grind the whole cucumber with all the above said ingredients and mix it with curds or plain yogurt and then serve it with seasonings just as in the above method, If you want you can even add 1 tsp of chenna dal & urad dal in the seasoning.

Notes

Some cucumbers have a bitterness in them, so we need to take this out, that is why you have to cut both the ends, and rub each piece against the cut portion, then you would notice a white foam like thingy coming out from them, once both the ends are done wash them off and then peel and use the cucumber, these days the skin of cucumber is not peeled just to retain the goodness or the nutritive value or that it is edible too!!.
Long back when I was in India I saw in a TV programme that as Tamarind is not very good if used excessively, the alternate method what you can do is if you are using them like this as in chutneys, pacchadi directly, what you can do is hold the flakes to the flame heat them slightly on both the sides and use them in your dishes. Like wise when I use them making powders and chutneys where I involve frying of the ingredients I fry Tamarind also in the wok.
Spiciness, salt, tamarind, jaggery, yogurt depends on how big your vegetable is!!, think how much you need according to that and use, as it may vary.

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CUCUMBER AND PEAS IN MUSTARD GRAVY (KADAG ARACHA KOOTU)

Jayasri Ravi — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 21:16:00 +0000

Kadag means Mustard, Aracha means to grind, Kootu means mixed together.

This recipe uses Mustard which is not roasted and quite a bit of coconut spiced with chillies mixed with veggies cooked to perfection.
This is another dish of my Mom-in-law, this was one of her signature dishes. In Bangalore, we get fresh peas during November and December and the price are quite affordable in the season. But these days everything has changed, peas and Field beans (Averekaayi) being sold in all seasons, I used to wonder where they got it from!.

My Mom-in-law always used to make this when peas were abundant, She always loved to eat raw vegetables, when we both used to sit and open up the pea pods she used to select the really petite fresh ones to eat them, I used to laugh and tell her we need to buy more peas if this way it carried on, she just used to smile and keep popping the fresh particularly the little ones saying it was quite tempting, seeing her A (my eldest daughter) used to eat with her, both of them used to like eating raw vegetables like tender beans, knol-khol, raddish, carrot, cucumber, tapioca, sweet potatoes, onions, tomatoes, cabbage. When I started writing I never thought I would be writing a long list of so many vegetables which can be eaten raw. Let's get back to our Recipe then.

CUCUMBER AND PEAS IN MUSTARD GRAVY (KADAG ARACHA KOOTU)
Cooking time : 30 minutes
Prep time: 5 minutes
Serves : 5
Level : Easy / Beginner
Cuisine : South Indian
Spice level : medium

Recipe Source : Mother-in-law

INGREDIENTS:
1 cucumber (medium sized)
2 Cups or around 300 grms (Fresh / Frozen) Peas
pinch of turmeric
1 sprig of curry leaves

MASALA TO GRIND

1tsp Mustard seeds
2 to 3 red chillies
1 tsp channa dal
a pinch of asafoetida
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 cup pressed fresh grated coconut

METHOD:
scrape cut and cut cucumber into 1/2'' cubes with fresh or frozen peas cook them together with a pinch of turmeric, you can cook in a pressure cooker or cook directly, see to it that they don't get mashed.
Take a pan with a tsp of oil roast all the above ingredients except for mustard and coconut gratings, until they change colour or a nice aroma comes out of them
Grind all the ingredients together with mustard and coconut into a smooth paste and mix it with the cooked vegetables, add curry leaves and allow it cook for another few minutes, add salt to taste.

Temper with a tsp of oil 1/4 tsp of mustard seeds
Serve hot with Rice and ghee it also goes well with Chapatis

It has a sweetness because of the peas and cucumber and takes it to a different level and I love this so much, give it a try and tell me if you like it, I would love to hear from you, I do get fresh peas here only in season and they are quite expensive as well. whenever I make it I use frozen peas but the petit pois of Bird's eye brand or sometimes I get it from Waitrose, These days I buy a lot of stuff from Waitrose I have fallen in love their fresh veggies and fruits.

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