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...

The post Kolai er dal - Bengali Urad Dal with Aloo posto appeared first on My Veg Fare.

MOONG DAL IDLIS

INGREDIENTS:
3 and 1/2 Red Rice ( Kaikuttu Rice ) or white Idli Rice / Sona Masoori Rice
1 Cup Moong Dal
1 Cup Urad Dal
1/2 Cup Cooked Rice
1 tsp Fenugreek seeds
1/2 tbsp Whole Pepper
1 tsp Salt
1/4 to 1/2 cup water

METHOD:
Soak separately Red Rice or White Idli Rice in enough water, Urad Dal in an other bowl, Moong Dal in an other bowl for at least 5 to 6 hours.
Grind Rice, cooked Rice, fenugreek seeds and Moong dal together, If you have a grinder like mine a small one, it is better to grind each of them separately which is a better option. Grind Rice, fenugreek seeds and cooked rice together.This way you can grind Moong dal a bit coarsely. At the end you can add pepper into the grinder  or you can coarsely grind pepper then add it to the batter. 
Grind Urad dal very well to a very smooth consistency.
Do not add too much water while you are grinding for Idli batter, use around 1 and 1/4 cup of water that would be more than enough.
Mix together all the batters with salt and leave it to ferment overnight or around 7 to 8 hours.
Once the batter is fermented grease the Idli moulds and make Idlis as you always do, steam Idlis around 12 to 13 minutes, do not steam more than that, Idlis become hard.
Updated on 12th : I had missed two things when I typed yesterday so I have updated it today :), sorry for this.
I served with Tomato and Ridge gourd chutney, a microwaved version, will post it soon.

sending this to Magic Mingle #7 of Kalyani's - Moong dal and Pepper..

The post Moong Dal Idlis (Yellow split Dal & Red Rice steamed Dumplings ) appeared first on My Veg Fare.

Absolutely yummilacious!!, You will never want to try one more recipe, divine taste, and gorgeous.., I could say a lot more to this chutney powder.  If you are from Bangalore, Karnataka, everybody would know of Subbamman Angadi in Gandhi Bazar and definitely would have bought this kind of chutney powder.  I can promise you this recipe beats that recipe. This is second version with this kind of chutney powder. The first one is here.  You would love that too..., But this one is outstanding.
Last time when I went home, I stayed in my sis home, her MIL who is also related to us in many ways!!, makes this chutney powder my kids had fallen in love with this.  She is a very good cook, and she thinks I am the good one, bless her, she asks me what do you do with this, with that vegetable and things like that :). Basically she is a fantastic lady, very helpful, very understanding and I could write a lot more about her. She has a special place in whole of the family and everybody loves her to bits.

This post and this recipe is dedicated to her, she has a very special place in my Heart - I love you so much Leela aunty. The last time I was making this, I was chatting with Lata and told her I got tired of grating nearly a kg of Copra and my hands were paining, she asked me why are you grating so much, I said I miscalculated and I have ended up in making this Chutney pudi in Kgs!!. She thought I have gone completely bonkers.  Well, any way I made around 1 and 1/2  to 2kg of Chutney pudi I think, I did not measure, and it lasted more than 4 months.., I have to make it again, kids are demanding.., I got all the things only thing is I have to make it again (dreading to grate Copra though!!).
Here is the recipe details, hope you like it and enjoy it as we all do....

CHUTNEY PUDI - BANGALORE STYLE
Recipe source : Leela Aunty

 INGREDIENTS:

175 gms Channa dal (3/4 Pav)
115 gms Urad dal (1/2 + 2 tbsp Pav)
375 gms Copra/Dry Coconut
50 gms Guntur
50 gms Byadgi
12 gms Mustard seeds
40 gms Tamarind
1/2 cup / around 120 gms - Acchu Bella (Square Jaggery)
5 to 6 twigs of Curry leaves (around 1/4 cup)
2 gms of Hing/Asafoetida
1 and 1/2 tbsp Salt ( adjust accordingly)
Oil as required

SEASONING:
2 to 3 tbsp of Oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds

METHOD:
In a pan with a tsp of oil, fry each one of the Ingredients separately and in a low flame.
When you are frying dals & mustard seeds, add Dry red chilies with them and fry this way, Frying only chilies will  give that spicy aroma, which is quite harsh, and makes your throat tickle and you might start coughing.
Frying chilies in portions with other ingredients makes it more subtle and easy to handle the Ghaatu (or harshness).
First of all add a 1/2 tsp of oil fry Channa dal to golden colour.
Next Urad dal with a 1/2 tsp of oil to golden colour.
Then fry Tamarind until they become too soft, when they cool down they harden up.
Then fry mustard seeds they too change colour to a darker colour and starts spluttering.
Then fry curry leaves
Then grate Jaggery and keep aside.
Grate Copra/Dry coconut and fry them without oil into a golden colour and keep aside.
Allow all the ingredients to cool down completely, this way your mixie will not get spoiled.

Now Mix them all together with Hing , and grind them in batches as it is a large quantity to a very coarse powder, then in the end with the last two batches Grind the ingredients first then with one batch add grated jaggery and give a little pulse just to ensure it is mixed, don't run it too much. Next  batch of the powder ingredients grind Copra with a pulse, that is quick movements, to the first setting for a minute, come back and run the mixie again for a minute this way it will not become too soft and too oily.
Take all the Grinded ingredients into a large bowl now add required quantity of salt, mix them well together with you hand so that every thing is well incorporated.

Taste and adjust Salt and give a thorough mix.
Heat a pan , heat oil then add mustard seeds when they splutter switch it off.  Give it few minutes so it cools down add this seasoning to the Chutney powder, Mix well again.
It is now ready to be served.
This Chutney powder is Semma tasty ( very tasty), goes very well with Idlis, Dosas, Chapatis, my fav is with Rottis (Akki or Ragi rotti).
You can even enjoy like my friend U who sits on my breakfast bar with my pickle and chutney powder in front of her puts little on her palm, and starts licking it up!!, she is regular customer for this powder especially!!

MY TIPS:

In Bangalore, you get powdered Tamarind, you can substitute that instead of Tamarind which is very easy process.

This Chutney powder is the second entry for my Blogging Marathon started by Srivalli, check out all my other friends who are running this marathon with me.., Hope my friends and you all enjoy this as much as we do...
adieu.., c u soon with an other recipe....

Take an other look at my Chutney powder and I will sign off...

An update for this post:
As everybody is asking me what are those two different chilies I have and always have used in many of my recipes, I would like to elaborate about them a bit..

BYADGI CHILIES: It is very popular chili from Karnataka, It is grown in Byadgi town, in Haveri district of Karnataka. These chilies are crooked in shape and long, they give a deep colour to the dishes and mild in flavour.  These chilies have are not too spicy and gives a sweetness to the dish (don't get confused they are spicy too but not as spicy as the other varities - more like kashmiri chilies you can substitute kashmiri chillies )

GUNTUR CHILIES: These chilies are grown in Guntur, Andra pradesh, they are very spicy, you can see it in the left side of the photo.

So I usually combine both it to give the rich colour to the end product!!.., If are anytime in Bangalore get these Byadgi chilies and try it in your dishes you will notice the difference.  As I don't get them here I bring it from India!. You can only use just the Byadgi chilies and you will see the difference you find with the colour and the taste of the dish!
Try it out and tell me if you liked it....

As some of you have been asking me about Jaggery, I am doing an other update you can try using any other kind - I have give few links I found googling click on them.
Jaggery / Goor / Bella . I have found that you get in powder / block and some other forms. You just have to break them down. I measured the 1/2 cup jaggery which I had mentioned and weighed it was around 120 gms.  Hope this helps

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15

The post Chutney Pudi - Bangalore style appeared first on My Veg Fare.

Hi everybody, you must have heard of the famous south Indian Healthy breakfast Idli and you know its most delicious accompanist , Yup two of them One is healthy but the other one is unhealthy because its fried in Oil otherwise the ingredients in it are very healthy too.. Idli always goes with Vada and Sambhar.
I don't think any south Indian would say no to this dish its a favourite dish of the Indians..,
Best part is when you are sick Doctors prescribe medicine and ask you to eat only Idlis and Bread..., so you know why Doctors prescribe Idli too in their prescription :), Idli is healthy because it is steam cooked.
Well, of course we are not talking about Idlis today in this page we are talking about the best friend of Idlis which are the Vadas.., Even though it is made of Dal, very health conscious people prefer not to eat as it is a deep fried snack.., well, now you can be rest assured with this recipe you can have at least a few of them..., I can guarantee you.., you will love this recipe...
Last Sunday I had made Idli, vada and sambhar for breakfast, every time when I make them.., I just eat only one vada,  I control myself  even though it is so tempting, (which is too hard)!. you know what I mean.
That too.,  when the doctor says your cholesterol level is on its first step!. , if people look at me they would never believe . But, unfortunately it is true..., that was when I decided I will try to cut down on my snacking fried goodies. This was just a sudden thought and  I tried this method.., I thought if it is doesn't work, I can always deep fry it!, So, tried this method it worked absolutely fantastic. The taste was their, not too crispy as when you deep fry them.., but I can really enjoy.., what more can you ask for right ?
So here is how I made it, and my kids loved it.., I was happy as kids said mum you could making this as an evening snack when ever we want it., and you don't have to worry any more thinking that you are making your kids eat deep fried snacks.. as they are totally guilt free...
Hope you all like it and and enjoy it as we do...
This recipe is for the Blogging Marathon - Kid's delight - under 30 minutes

URAD DAL VADA - A GUILT FREE SNACK



INGREDIENTS:
1 Cup Urad dal (I used unsplit)
2 tbsp Channa dal
2 to 3 green chilies or 1/2 tsp coarsely crushed Pepper (optional)
A pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
1'' Ginger
1 stalk curry leaves
1 and 1/2 tsp salt
A big pinch of Baking soda
Oil
Guntapanganalu skillet /Aebleskiver Pan

METHOD:
Soak Urad dal and channa dal for an hour or two, Grind into a smooth paste.
You can Grind chilies and Ginger also with the dals or chop the green chilies and grind the ginger with it.
If you are going to use Pepper crush it coarsely and add it to the batter.
Chop the Curry leaves and add salt as required.
So hope you understood..
Now mix them all well together, and keep the batter ready.
Heat the skillet on the stove top brush it with oil, pour the batter in each of the holes and close the lid, cook undisturbed for 6 to 7 minutes remove the lid and with a spoon or a small stick comes with the skillet turn them over add a little oil into each hole around the vada that way it talks to the bottom of the skillet this makes the vada  more crispier.
That's it your urad dal vada is ready to gobble with out guilt....
Sorry guys my clicks are not doing justice..

You too make this, eat , enjoy..., and do tell me if you tried and how it turned out.....did you like it..?

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#14

The post Urad Dal Vada/ Urad Dal dumplings a Very guilt free version appeared first on My Veg Fare.

QUINOA AND MILLET PANIYAARAM / GUNTAPANGANAALU / POPOVERS

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Millet
1/4 Cup Urad dal
2 tbsp Channa Dal
1/4 cup Chopped Dill leaves
2 Medium sized Onions
1 Green chilli finely chopped (optional)
1 and 1/2 tsp Salt
1 Sprig curry leaves
1 tbsp coriander leaves
A Pinch of of Eno or Baking soda (optional)
oil as needed

Wash and soak Quinoa, Millet, Urad dal and Channa dal for 1 to 1 and 1/2 hour.
Grind them into a smooth paste using around 1/2 cup to 3/4th cup of water into a Dosa/Pancake  consistency.
Chop onions, dill leaves and chillies into fine pieces.
Add these to the batter with enough salt and curry leaves chopped and leave it for 1/2 an hour

Add a 1/4 tsp of Eno or Baking soda in a tbsp of water and mix it well into the batter before making these.., which is totally optional Or you can even add 1/4 cup of sour yogurt which is also optional.
You can make these without fermenting too. I have made these just like that still it turns out very well crispy on the outside and soft in the inside.
Fill up the Guntpanganalu holes with the batter to its full lightly sprinkle oil on top of it, close the lid and when it cooked 1/2 way through turn it around with the help of a wooden stick which comes with it or with a tooth pick, as mine is a non-stick coated.
If you do not have this gadget you can make little pancakes.
You can even use Aebleskiver Pans for making these kind of Pancakes or popovers.

Serve them hot with Coconut chutney or any chutney of your choice.

Check out my other blogger friends running this Marathon with me from here...
Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#14

The post Quinoa & Millet Paniyaaram / Quinoa & Millet popovers appeared first on My Veg Fare.

HUSKED GREEN GRAM IDLIS





INGREDIENTS:
3 and 1/2 Cups Idli Rice (or Sona Masoori)
1 and 1/2 cup Husked Green Gram
1 Cup Urad Dal
1 tbsp Fenugreek seeds

METHOD:
Soak everything under Ingredients previous night, Soak Rice and Fenugreek seeds together and Urad dal and  Husked Green Gram separately.
I have asked you to soak the dals separately because they require more water than the rice.
In the morning Grind the rice for few minutes until they become grain like then add the dals and grind together, you might feel that the rice is still grain like but it is alright.
Do not add too much water when Grinding  for Idlis it should not be like Dosa batter, it should be more thicker in consistency.
You can leave it to ferment for few hours or over night.
Grease the Idli plates with little oil every time you steam the batter this helps everytime Idli to come off easily from the plate and with a ladle full fill them up and steam them for 10 to 12 minutes without a weight on the pressure cooker, If you have a Idli cooker no need to bother about the time then as it pops on its own once done.
Serve the Idlis with chutney or sambhar.

LITTLE NOTE : You can use Idli Rice or Sona Masoori, as the rice which you use is very important, sticky rice or pudding rice won't work. You can use Ground rice/ Idli Tari sold in some supermarkets or Asian shops, use the same measurement but you don't have to soak like rice, you just have to soak the dals and grind  it to a smooth paste. Just 1 hour before you grind the dals soak Ground rice or Idli Tari in warm water, the warm water should be just to the level of the rice or a bit more 1/2'' more. If you add more water the Idlis become like Dosa batter.
After the dals are grinded add this to the tari, mix well and keep aside for fermentation, later on carry on as you do for steaming Idlis.
If satya hasn't done her round-up I would like to link this to her Twist the Traditional - Idli event.

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