Kachori

One of my favorite snacks of all time and so easy to make!


INGREDIENTS

Oil to deep fry

FILLING

1 and 1/2 cup Moong Dal
Mustard Seeds
Cumin Seeds
Fennel Seeds (Saunf)
Coriander Powder
Garam Masala Powder
Red Chilli Powder
Salt

SHELL

1 cup Maida
2 tbsp Oil
Salt
Water

PROCEDURE

Mix all of the shell ingredients and make a soft dough similar to chapati dough. Keep this aside for atleast a 1/2 hour.
At the same time, soak the moong dal in water and keep it aside for a 1/2 hour.
Pressure cook the dal until it softens. If you are using a pressue cooker, one or two whistles should be enough.
In a pan, heat about a tbsp of oil and add in the seeds and wait for the mustard seeds to splutter. Coarsely mash the cooked dal and add it to the pan. Add in all of the masala ingredients and salt, mix everything well and let it cool.
Take a small ball of the maida dough and roll it out into the size of a puri. Place about 2 tbsp of the dal mixture in the center and join the edges to make a ball.
Deep fry all of the kachoris until golden brown on low to medium heat.
Serve hot or cold.

Eggplant Curry

INGREDIENTS

3 medium sized Eggplants
3/4 medium Onion -- finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder (or to taste)
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Salt (or to taste)
4 Tbsp Oil

PROCEDURE

Grind and make a paste of the chopped onion, chilli powder, turmeric and salt.
Part each eggplant on the top into fours and add in the grinded onion mixture.
In a pan, heat oil, and add in the stuffed eggplant.
Cover and let it cook for about 5 minutes or until the eggplants are soft. Remove the cover and let it cook for a further 10 minutes, to get all of the rawness of the onion and the eggplant to go away.
Serve with roti or rice.
The curry is usually supposed to be a little oily, mine came out too dry, so you could also try adding a little extra oil.

Double Ka Meetha

I'm sure everyone has their own version of this simple yet yummy sweet, but here's mine...
Sorry abput the picture, but it was the best I could do, I just couldn't wait to dig into the sweetness.

INGREDIENTS

4 Bread Slices
Butter for toasting
1 cup Milk
1/2 cup Sugar
3 pods Cardamom

PROCEDURE

Make the cardamom into a fine powder and keep it aside.
Toast each bread slice with a little bit of butter until lightly brown. I used a pan, but you can use a traditional bread toaster if you'd like. If you do use a toaster, put the butter on the slices after they come out. Cut each piece of bread into 4 pieces in your desired shape, I chose to cut them diagonally to form triangles.
In the microwave, heat the milk until it comes to a boil, about 2 minutes, add in the sugar and put it in the microwave again for about 30 seconds until the sugar melts, add in the cardamom powder and mix it well.
Arrange the toasted bread slices in a serving bowl and pour the milk mixture on top.
It is best to put this dish aside for at least 30 minutes before you serve it to your guests. This will help the bread soak in all the delicious flavors.
From the picture it looks like the bread slices are still preety hard, but as soon as you put a soup into it, you can see just how soogy it is.
Serve hot or cold, it's just as good.
I was going to send this to SriLekha's Sweet Event, but it looks like I missed it by a day. Oh well, there's always next time!

Carrot Kurma

INGREDIENTS

4 medium Carrots -- chopped into desired size pieces
1/2 medium Onion -- finely chopped
1 medium Tomato -- cubed
1/2 cup Peas -- I use the frozen kind
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 cup Milk (or Yogurt)
2 tbsp Oil
Salt

PROCEDURE

Microwave the chopped carrots for about 5 minutes in a bowl with water. The water will help the carrots maintain their color and it will make them soft faster.Heat the oil in a pan and add in the chopped onion and ginger-garlic paste. Cook until the raw smell goes away and the onion are translucent.
It is now time to add the tomatoes. Cook the tomato until it turns a light red and add in carrots and peas. If the carrots seem under-cooked, leave them covered in the pan for a little while longer.
Once the peas and carrots are cooked add turmeric, salt, red chilli powder, garam masala powder and mix everything well.
Add in milk and let it come to a boil and reduce. Once you have a gravy like consistency, the kurma is ready.
Serve with rice and/or roti.
Note: If you are using yogurt, mix it with some water to make it a liquid consistency first.

Mixed Vegetable Curry

This is a recipe I like to make when I don't have a lot of time, but still gives me that slow cooked taste.

INGREDIENTS

Mixed Veggies - your choice (I used a 1/4 bag of frozen veggies that had beans, corn and carrots and 1 medium potato peeled and finely cubed)
1/2 finely chopped Onion
1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 cup Milk
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tbsp Chilli Powder
1 tbsp Garam Masala
3/4 tbsp Coriander Powder
Salt
Oil

PROCEDURE

I first washed the frozen veggies in warm water and put them in a microwave safe bowl. I added the cubed potatoes to this bowl and put everything in the microwave for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, I heated about 1 1/2 tbsp of oil in a pan and added the chopped onions. Let this cook for about 5 minutes or until the onions soften, add the ginger-garlic paste and cook again until the raw smell goes away.
It is now time to add in the microwaved veggies. Mix everything together well and let the pieces cook. The beans usually take the longest, so keep an eye on them. The best way to check to see if all the pieces are cooked is to take a wooden spoon and cut a piece. It should split in two without much effort.
Once the veggies are all cooked, it should take about 5 minutes, add the turmeric, salt, chilli powder, garam masala and coriander powder. Mix everything well and add in milk. Yogurt (or curd) can be used also, but I was out of curd so I used milk instead.
If the curry tastes too spicy, or too salty, more milk can be added. You can also use more milk if you want a gravy curry.
Serve with rice and/or roti.

Potato Curry # 2

If you haven't figured it out yet, I just love potatoes! I could eat them every day. Here's another version of the potato curry. I'm sure more will come later.

INGREDIENTS

4 large Potatoes
1/2 Onion - finely chopped
5 Green Chillies
a pinch Turmeric
Salt
Chilli Powder - optional
2 tsp Cumin Powder
2 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 tsp Lime Juice
2 tbsp Oil

TADKA

Mustard Seeds
Jeera
Urid Dal
Channa Dal
Red Chillies
Hing

PROCEDURE

Peel and cube potatoes and put them in the microwave for about 6 minutes (this just helps the curry cook faster, but isn't necessary, if you have a lot of time on your hands).
In a pan, heat oil and add the tadka ingredients. When the mustard seeds splutter, add the onion and green chillies.
After the onion turn translucent, add in the potatoes and let them brown a little.
Add in the turmeric, salt, garam masala and cumin powder. Chilly powder can also be added at this time if you prefer spicy food.
Add the lime juice. Be sure not to cook the lime juice for too long or add too much because it will turn the curry bitter.
Serve warm with rice or roti.

Curd Rice

INGREDIENTS

4 cups Cooked Rice
2 1/2 cups Yogurt or Curd
4 Green Chillies - chopped finely
3 Curry Leaves
Salt

TADKA

Mustard Seeds
Jeera
Channa Dal
Urid Dal
Red Chillies

PROCEDURE

Mash warm rice until it feels soft, but not a paste. You can just mix it by hand. Add salt and yogurt and mix everything well with the rice.
In a small tadka pan, add all the tadka ingredients. When the mustard seeds splutter, add the green chillies and curry leaves.
After the freen chillies cook, remove from heat and add to the rice. More salt can be added at this time, if needed. Mix well and serve immediately.
Note: If the mixture looks too thick, you can add more yogurt or water.
Leftover portions are good in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Tomato Rice

INGREDIENTS

4 cups Cooked Rice
1/2 Onion - finely chopped
1 Tomato - cubed
4 Green Chillies - slit lenghtwise
4 Curry Leaves
2 tbsp Oil
a pinch Turmeric
Salt

TADKA

Mustard Seeds
Jeera
Urid Dal
Channa Dal
Red Chillies
Hing - optional

PROCEDURE

If using rice that was made on a previous day, you'll need to heat it up first. I put the rice in the microwave for about 5 minutes (the time may vary depending on your microwave).

In a pan, heat oil and add all the tadka ingredients. When the dals brown and the mustard seeds splutter, add the onion, green chilli and curry leaves.

Once the onion turns translucent, add the tomato pieces. When they soften add salt and turmeric and mix everything thoroughly.

Mix in the heated rice and serve warm.