Gobi Chana Masala

Hi Readers,

This recipe is a special one for me. It was prepared by my granny. After, long time I tried her dish. This one uses Gobi, aloo and Chana dal to make the curry. I do not know whether to call this a curry or a dal fry.

Lets now have a look at the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

1 cup chana dal soaked for 1 hr

10 to 15 florets of cauliflower into medium size pieces

1 medium sized potato cut into cubes

1 large onion chopped into thin slices

2 medium tomatoes chopped

1 inch ginger chopped 

4 flakes garlic chopped

few coriander leaves

1 tbsp cumin seeds 

salt to taste

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

2 tbsp oil

1 green chili chopped

1/2 tbsp garam masala

Powdered masala - 

1/2 tbsp saha jeera

3 to 4 cloves

2 small cardamom

1/2 stick cinnamon

Method :- 

Pressure cook chana dal for two whistles . Add salt and turmeric to it before pressure cooking. Leave it aside. Dal should keep its shape intact. Heat a pan, add one tbsp oil and add potato and cauliflower. Add turmeric powder and salt as per taste and cook till cauliflower is half cooked. Keep aside and heat the pan. Add oil, when oil is hot add cumin seeds, when it starts to splutter add green chili, onion. When Onions turn pink, add chopped ginger and garlic. Cook till the raw smell is gone. Add chopped tomato, salt, turmeric powder and cook till oil starts to separate. Add in the cauliflower and potato. Add the cooked dal and water if needed. Add in powdered masala and 1/2 tbsp garam masala. Cook till cauliflower is done. Serve hot with steamed rice or hot chapati.

Subz Hyderabadi

Hi Readers,

I am back again with another Indian recipe. This is a mix vegetable curry cooked in curd based gravy and sprinkled with a spice mixture that gives its authentic aroma. I tried this recipe for the first time on Christmas eve. Well, my husband(one who tastes everything that I make and is best critic for me) liked it very much. Winter is best season for this curry as all ingredients are available fresh in this season.

Lets now have a look at the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

Carrots - 2 medium size- chopped roughly

10 -15 french beans - Chopped 

1 medium long brinjal or eggplant  - slit in middle and then cut into 1/2 inch size

1 medium size potato - cubed

1 cup green peas

10 -15 florets of cauliflower

Gravy :- 

3 medium onions finely chopped

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

1 cup Curd whisked

1 tbsp turmeric powder

1/2 tbsp red chili powder

2 dry red chili 

2 bay leafs

Oil for frying

salt to taste

Powdered Ingredient :- 

2 Cardamom or Chhoti elaichi

3 to 4 clove or Laung

1 inch Cinnamon or Dalchini

1 tbsp Saha Jeera or Big Cumin seeds

Method :- 

Heat Oil in a pan. Fry all the vegetables( potatoes at a time, similarly other vegetables one by one) except peas and keep aside. Boil peas and keep aside. Now in a pan take 1 tbsp oil. Add bay leaf & dry red chili, when it starts to change colour, add Onions and fry till it turns pink. Add ginger and garlic paste and cook for 2 to 3 mins. Add turmeric powder, red chili powder and mix it well, sprinkle little water if it sticks to bottom. Make a paste. Add fried vegetables, 1 cup whisked curd and cook over medium low flame. Add water if required. Add salt and cook till all vegetables are done. Sprinkle powdered spices and serve hot with Chapati, nan or steamed rice.

Note :- In above recipe I have added about 50 gm of Paneer cubes. The authentic recipe do not have paneers,however, adding paneer do not make in changes to the aroma and flavor of recipe. 

Stuffed Bitter Gourd or Karela

Hi Readers,

Despite the bitter taste of Bitter Gourd or Karela, it is usually a favorite vegetable for most Indian's. I like the Karela crispy fries made along with potatoes. Though, stuffed Karela is not my favorite, it is one of the favorite dish of my husband. So, yes Karela or bitter gourd finds a  place in my kitchen quiet often.

I am not providing you the ingredients for this recipe below, because I am going to provide few different types of stuffing. The common & major ingredient is whole Karela or bitter gourd. For the stuffing, depending upon the number and size of Bitter gourd, please adjust the quantity of ingredients. So, here goes the recipe for you.

Halve whole karelas lengthwise in the middle. Wash and boil in water, adding salt and haldi. Discard the excess water.
When a little cool, scoop out the middle seedy portion from the boiled karela pieces to make space for the stuffing.
Fill the stuffings* into each half of boiled karela. Heat a little oil on a flat non-stick frying pan and fry the stuffed karelas on low fire  - first on karela side and then on stuffing side. Press lightly on each stuffed karela while frying the stuffing side to flatten it as much as possible. Fry till nicely brown. Serve as side dish with rice.

*Variations of Stuffing :
1 : Heat mustard oil – add finely chopped onion. Fry a bit and add mashed boiled potato, salt, red chilli powder. Fry well on sim stirring the mash till it leaves a nice fried aroma and turns brownish.
2 : Heat oil. Add mashed potato, salt, red chilli powder. Fry a little. Add a bit of mustard-garlic-haldi paste and fry well.
3.   Mix together besan, chopped onion, chopped green chilli, salt to taste and a few drops of mustard oil and use this as stuffing.
Variation :  Boil Karelas whole, adding salt and haldi. Take out, cool and make half slit on the body of each boiled karela – in the middle portion on one side. Scoop out the seedy interior and stuff with any of the above three stuffings.
4:Heat oil. Saute onion, green chilli, garlic – all finely chopped. Fry a little. Add crushed badi . Mix well and fry. Use this as stuffing inside the whole karela.
5: Heat mustard oil, add mustard and garlic paste,add hali, salt and red chili powder. Cook till water is removed, take care not to over cook, mustard paste turns bitter if over cooked. Fill in the stuffing and fry the Bitter gourd again over medium flame.
Dust the stuffed whole karelas with a sprinkle of rice flour/cornflour and fry on pan nicely, rolling all over. Or deep fry.
Stuffed Karelas are great accompaniments with plain rice.

Phool Makhane ki sabzi

Hi Readers,

This is a common traditional curry prepared with Phool Makhane(puffed lotus seeds). Usually, Makhane is used to prepare Makane ki kheer during fasting. This is a easy to make curry that turns out be tasty and different. I had tried to make this for the first time, when My Dad was here. He got a packet of Makhane, thinking it is similar to pop-corn. That day for dinner I made this curry along with Chapati. It turned out to be a tasty and different dish. My Dad liked it. So, here goes the recipe for your use.

Ingredients :- 

Makhana  1 1/2 cups 

Matar or Green Peas 1 cup

Tomatoes  2 or 3 Chopped 

Onions 2 medium size chopped

Dhania Powder 1/2 tbsp

Ginger-Garlic Paste         1/2 tbsp

Red Chili Powder

Green chilies 3 or 4

Garam Masala 1/2 tea spoon

Cashew Nuts  10 t0 12 pieces

Resins     10 to 12 pieces

Cumin seeds  1 tbsp

Dhania leaves

Vegetable oil

Salt

Method :- 

Put two spoons of vegetable oil in a kadai and heat on medium fire.

When the oil becomes hot, add makhana and saute till the makhanas become a little brittle.

Remove from fire and allow it to cool. Add cumin seeds to remaining oil. When it starts to splutter, add chopped onions and fry till it turns pink. Add ginger-garlic paste and cook for 5 mins till the raw smell is removed. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for another 2 to 3 mins. Add green peas, cover and cook till peas are half cooked. Add coriander powder, red chili powder and little water.

Add makhanas, split cashew nuts, resins, green chilies slit length-wise,  stir and  cook till all the ingredients get properly mixed. 

Add water and cook till done.

Add garam masala powder and remove from fire.

Pour in a serving bowl. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. When finished the curry should be thick.

Gatte ki kadhi

Hi Readers,

I am back again with more recipes from my kitchen. My dad was here, and I just gave all my time to him. I was literally away from all sorts of social sites, just checked and did my office work. Now, that he returned back, .I am back to my normal schedule. Well, in the meanwhile I had been trying new recipes, I have taken pictures but yes sis not get time to blog.

Today, I will start with a Rajasthani dish, Gatte ki Kadhi. Kadhi is made in same way as I had described in Dahi Kadhi Pakora. Kadhi is a thick gravy made by blending gram flour with curd and simmering it gently. Here, I have added Besan Gatte one of the Rajasthani food, that is made of gram flour dough.

Ingredients :- 

Gatte :- 

1 1/2 cup gram flour(besan) 

1 tbsp curd

a pinch of baking soda

3/4 tbsp carom seeds(ajwain)

3/4 tbsp coriander seeds( dhania)

1 tbsp anardana

2 tbsp oil

1 green chilli chopped

1 tbsp green coriander finely chopped

1 tbsp salt to taste

Kadhi :- 

2 cups curd

2 tbsp gram flour(besan)

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp mustard seeds

1/2 tbsp fennel

a pich asafoetida

5 to 6 Curry leaves

1 tbsp turmeric powder

2 tbsp red chili powder

1 tbsp coriander powder

salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

Method :- 

Mix all ingredients for gatte together and knead a hard dough using about 4 to 5 tbsp water. Shape the dough into long cylinders. Boil water in a thick bottpmed vessel. When water starts to boil, add gatte cylinders and boil till they turn yellowish white. Remove and keep them aside. Cut them into 1 inch long pieces. For Kadhi mix the curd and besan. Add turmeric and salt. Simmer this and keep stirring so that curd does not separate water. When this liquid thickens and starts boiling add the Gatte pieces. Now, in a tampering vessel, take 2 tbsp oil and heat it. When its sufficiently hot, add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, fennel and wait till it starts to splutter. Add asafoetida, curry leaves , red chili and remove from heat. Add this tampering mixture to Kadhi and serve with rice or roti.  

Gota Potala Bhaja (Stuffed Potala)

Hi Readers,

I am again back with another very well known recipe of Potala. My mom used to make this when some guest would visit us for lunch or dinner. Though this is not very difficult recipe, it has quiet a number of steps, and you need to use two pans, may be that's why my Mom used to prepare only when she wanted to entertain guests. Like other stuffed vegetable recipes, in this also we need to prepare a stuffing. In my In-laws place, they make a stuffing of Besara(mustard based). I will some other time, prepare that stuffing and post it. Today, I am going to describe the one my Mom used to make.

Ingredients:

6 pointed gourds (parval / potal) 

2 spoon refined oil

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder 

1 medium sized boiled potato 

           

For stuffing:

2 teaspoon poppy seed (soaked in water for 15 mins and then make a paste)

1 medium size onion finely sliced 

5 cloves  of garlic chopped

1 teaspoon cumin seeds  

1 dry red chilli 

Method:

First peel all the parvals and wash thoroughly. Then cut one side of the parvals and remove all seeds from inside.  Mash the  boiled potato after removing the skin. Now place a pan/kadai on the gas-stove and after heating put oil and cumin seeds followed by onion. When onion turns pink add chopped garlic,seeds extracted from Potala and posta or poppy seed paste. Add turmeric, salt, red chili powderand mashed  potato. Fry upto 3 minutes. The stuffing is ready. Keep it aside.

Then take 1/2 tea spoon of salt and a pinch of turmeric powder with little water and spread it thoroughly inside the parvals/potala through the opening made by cutting one side of each parval. After that fill these parvals with the stuffings. Then put a  the pan /kadai on the gas-stove, heat oil and then put the parvals and cover the pan. Cook it on medium flame. After 5 minutes just stir gently and cover it again. 10 minutes later switch off the gas. Parvals might take a little longer to cook, so check if it has turned soft and brown in colour,before removing from gas. Stuffed parval is ready. 

Potala Korma

Hi Readers,

Presenting another tasty dish made from Potala or Pointed Gourds. The interesting part is when I visit near by Vegetable vendor, he says," Madam we have Potala, Green papaya and large brinjals for Odia customers and we import it from Odisha." Today, when Odisha is sort of vegetables due to cyclone Phailin and flood, Koraput district has still been sending its vegetables to Andhra Pradesh.  Its amazing, but thanks to the growing population of Odia's in Hyderabad, we get our favorite veggi's readily available.

Now, coming to the recipe, this is another preparation from Potala, that is usually made during festivals and large ceremonies. Fried Potala is cooked in milk and cashew based gravy. It has a nice aroma and flavor. Let's now look at the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

Potala/Parval - 6 nos washed and peeled

2 tbsp mustard oil

2 tbsp ginger garlic and cumin paste

1/2 tbsp coriander powder

1/2 tbsp cumin powder

1/4 tbsp turmeric powder

1/4 tbsp red chili powder

salt to taste

3 to 4 tbsp milk

1 bay leaf

whole garam masala - 1 stick cinnamon, 3 t 4 black pepper, 2 to 3 cloves, 1 to 2 cardamom

1/2 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp char magaj or pumpkin seeds

1 tbsp cashewnuts

Soak char magaj and cashewnuts for 2 hours and make a smooth paste.

Method :- 

Slit Potala till the mid from both sides. This will form four parts joined together at mid. Add salt and turmeric to it. Then deep fry or shallow fry till Potala turns brown. Remove and keep aside.

Heat mustard oil in a pan, when hot add the bay leaf and whole garam masala. Add ginger garlic paste. Cook in medium flame till oil separates. Add the cashew and magaj paste, milk, turmeric powder, salt, red chili powder to form a gravy. Add the fried Potala,cover and cook for another 5 to 10 mins in low flame. Add garam masala and serve hot.

Turai Punjabi masala (Ridge gourd Punjabi curry)

Hi Readers,

This is a recipe inspired by Punjabi style cooking. Punjabi cusine uses lots of Ghee, here I have not used any ghee and have replaced that with refine sunflower oil. Though it might sound like a heavy curry with lots of time required to cook, it does not take that amount of time. You can also use pressure cooker to cook and reduce the time required in cooking.

So, here is the recipe for your use.

Ingredients :- 

 2 Ridge gourds(Turai or Janhi) peeled and chopped into thick slices.

1 potato cut into cubes

2 tomatoes chopped 

1 medium size onion chopped

1 tbsp garlic

1 tbsp ginger

1 green chili chopped

2 tbsp oil

1/2 tbsp cumin seeds

1/2 tbsp mustard seeds

1/4 tbsp turmeric powder

1/2 tbsp coriander powder

1/2 tbsp amchur powder

1/2 tbsp garam masala

salt to taste

1/2 tbsp red chili powder

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 tbsp oil

Method :-

 Heat Tawa and add oil, when oil is hot, add cumin and mustard seeds. Once the seeds starts to splutter, add green chili, ginger paste, garlic paste and onion. Fry till onion turns pink. Add tomatoes, and all powdered masala. Fry till tomato is cooked. Add potatoes and little water, cover and cook till potato is half done. Add the Turai or ridge gourd, cover and cook for another 2 mins. Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves. 

Note:- You can use pressure cooker to cook this, all you have to do is, add potatoes and turai mix well, add water if required and cook in medium flame till 1 whistle. 

I have removed the outer peel of Turai or Janhi completely, you might like to keep the peel intact. I have cut it into thick roundels, you can otherwise cut it into thick pieces cut into half of round. 

Spicy Cabbage curry Odia style

Hi Readers,

This is a traditional curry of  Odisha, it uses lots of spices and is a delicious recipe. It generally uses potato with cabbage.

Ingredinets :- 

1 Cabbage shredded

2 medium size potato cut into cubes

1/2 cup green peas shelled

1 Onion chopped

2 green chili chopped

1 tomato chopped

1 1/2 tbsp garlic ginger paste

1/2 tbsp red chili powder

1/2 tbsp coriander powder

1 tbsp garam masala

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp cumin and mustard seeds

2 tbsp oil

Method :- 

Heat oil in a frying pan, when oil is hot add cumin and mustard seeds. When it starts to splutter, add bay leaf, green chili, ginger-garlic paste. Add onion and fry till onion becomes pink. Add chopped tomato, turmeric powder,garam masala,red chili, coriander powder and fry till tomato is cooked. Add potatoes and green peas. Cover and cook till potato is half done. Now add shredded cabbage, mix well, add 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook till cabbage and potato is done. Serve hot with rice or chapati.

Rogini Yam

Hi Readers,

This is a recipe that I learnt from one of the TV shows in Odia. I do not know why the dish was named Rogini? May be it has similarity to Rogan Josh which is a meat curry, so they have named it as such. I remember the movie Bwarachi starred by Rajesh Khanna, who played the role of a cook. On his first day at that family, he made a curry from Yam and everyone thought its meat. The interesting part is if Yam is cooked properly and the way meat is cooked, it tastes similar to meat (boneless meat).

In this recipe the look and color of gravy turns out the same brown color of Rogan Josh meat gravy. If you add a little bit  of meat masala or Rogan Josh meat masala the smell would be same.  Lets now have a look at the recipe.

Ingredients :-

100gms Yam cut into 1/2 inch width rectangular pieces.
3 tbsp corn flour
1 tbsp red chili powder
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tbsp onion paste
1 tbsp garlic paste
1/2 tbsp ginger paste
2 onion blanched and pureed
1 1/2 tbsp cashew and magaj paste(pumpkin seeds)
3 tbsp oil
1 tbsp cumin seeds
salt to taste
1 tbsp Meat Masala (optional)
1 tbsp Garam Masala
1/2 tbsp Amchur powder
Garnish - Coriander leaves

Method :- 
In a bowl take the Yam pieces, add corn flour, pinch of red chili powder, pinch of turmeric powder and little salt. Mix using water so that the corn flour paste sticks to each Yam pieces. Heat a pan and add oil. When its hot, fry these Yam pieces turning each side, so that it turns little brown in color. Remove from heat and keep aside. In same pan add cumin seeds. When it splutters, add Onion paste followed by garlic and ginger paste. Cook in medium flame till the raw smell is removed and masala starts separating oil. Add tomato puree, cashew magaj paste and cook for another 2 to 3 mins till masala is done. Add 1 cup water, turmeric powder, amchur powder, garam masala, meat masala(optional) let it cook till the gravy starts boiling. Add the yam pieces and cook for another 1 min. Serve hot garnished with coriander.

Note :- Corn flour makes it crispy.

Aloo matar satwik gravy

Hi Readers,

In our country, many people do not have onions and garlic especially the Jain community. Apart from that Hindu's also do not have onion and garlic during auspicious occasions. This is Karthik masa in Odisha, and many would be fasting during this holy month. So, here I present you a recipe that do not use onions and garlic but tastes great.

Lets now have a look at the recipe

Ingredients :-

1 cup gree peas shelled

2 medium size potatoes boiled and peeled

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

1/2 tbsp coriander powder

1/2 tbsp gara masla

2 tomatoes chopped

salt to taste

1/2 tbsp red chili powder

1/4 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp oil

Method :-

Cut the potatoes into small cubes. Heat a pan, Add about 1 tbsp oil. When Oil is hot add the Potatoes and cook till all sides turn brown. Remove from flame and keep aside. In same pan add little more oil and when oil is hot, add cumin seeds. When it starts to splutter, add sugar. Now add tomatoes, turmeric powder, coriander powder, garam masala and cook till tomatoes and soft. Add little water if masala starts to stick. Now add the green peas, add 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook till peas are almost done. Add the potatoes and add water if required. let it cook for 2 mins, adjust gravy as per your requirement and serve hot garnished with coriander leaves. 

South Indian style cabbage curry

Hi Readers,

Today, its time again to provide you one easy and less time consuming recipe of Cabbage. In Odisha curry is generally made with lots of spice and potato. However, down south cabbage is just stir fried with other vegetables and tampered with curry leaves, coconut. Well, this is not an authentic South Indian cabbage curry as I have skipped coconut, chana dal in it. Why I did is, I do not prefer coconut and chana dal combination. However, the flavour of curry leaves, asafoetida, red chili tamper is something that I like very much.

Since, this recipe contains less spice and oil, I try to make this instead of Odia style cabbage curry. When I went home for the first time after I started working, I had made this dish and my father and brothers liked it very much. So, lets have a look at it. Next time, I will make the Odia style cabbage curry and provide you the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

1 cabbage head shredded

2 carrot chopped 

1 green chili chopped

1 tbsp mustard and fenugreek seeds

8 to 10 curry leaves

1/4 tbsp asafoetida

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

salt as per taste

Note:- You can use  1/2 cup soaked chana dal and 1/2 cup shredded coconut along with the dish to make it authentic south Indian. You can also add green peas or french beans. 

In the second picture I have used beans and carrots but other pictures do not have beans.

Method :-

 Heat a pan, add little oil. Add turmeric to oil. Then add green chili, carrot and cook in medium flame till carrot turns light brown. Add shredded cabbage, salt and cook till cabbage is properly cooked. This will take around 15 mins, cook in medium flame and occasionally stir so that it does not stick at the bottom. 

For Tampering - Heat a tampering vessel, add 1 tbsp oil, when oil is hot, add mustard and fenugreek seeds. When it starts to splutter add red chili, curry leaves and asafoetida. Now, add this tampering mixture to cabbage curry. 

Note :- When we add turmeric to oil and later add vegetables it will give a light yellowish colour to dish and when we add same quantity of turmeric to the vegetables instead of oil, the colour will be bright yellow. 

If you are using chana dal and coconut. Then add chana dal when you are adding cabbage to the pan. Cook it properly till both chana dal and cabbage is done. Now, add coconut to it cook for another 2 mins and remove from heat add tampering and serve hot. 

Chhachindra Besara Bhaja / Stuffed Snake Gourd

Hi Readers,

This is another Traditional Odia dish. In Odia cusine Besara(mustard paste) is commonly used  to stuff vegetables ad fry it. The interesting part is I never had stuffed snake gourd before my marriage. I had it in my in-laws place for the first time. My mom only used to prepare stir fry with snake gourds. I wanted to make the same dish as by my Mom in law. The best part is my husband taught me how to make the recipe.

So, here goes the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

1 large Snake Gourd (Chhachindra in Odia)

1 tbsp turmeric powder

2 tbsp mustard paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

1/2 tbsp cumin powder

salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves for garnish

Method :-

Wash and cut snake gourd into 3 inch long pieces. Slit one side of it and remove the seeds. Heat a pan and add little oil to greese. Add the snake gourd pieces, sprinkle little turmeric and salt, cover and cook for 2 mins. Keep turning the sides so that it cooks from all sides. Remove the vegetable and in same pan add little more oil , add turmeric powder, mustard paste, garlic paste, cumin powder and salt. Cook in simmer just enough to evaporate the water . Do not over cook otherwise, mustard paste will turn bitter. Remove the paste. Now apply this paste in the inner part of Snake gourd and press gently to stick both sides. Now again fry these snake gourds so that brown spots appear on both the sides. Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves.

Yam and Pumpkin Curry

Hi Friends,

This dish comes from Chattishgarh. I learned about it from my friend Deepa who hails from Chattishgarh. Madhya Pradesh is famous for Yam(Desi alu) and Arvi(Saru). Combining Yam and Pumpkin and making it into a complete dish is something that she taught me. Well, after my marriage when I prepared this dish, my husband was happy. Now a days, he demands to have this dish prepared.

Lets now have a look at the recipe.

Ingredients :- 

150 gms Yam

150 gms Pumpkin

2 tbsp Cumin seeds

2 Onions chopped

4 to 5 flakes garlic

1 inch ginger chopped

4 tbsp oil

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

2 green chili

1 tbsp coriander powder

1 tbsp garam masala

2 tomatoes

salt to taste

Method :-

 Wash, peel and cut the Yam into medium size pieces. Cut Pumpkin into same size. Heat a pan, add about 1 tbsp oil and fry the Yam till it turns golden brown. Remove and keep aside, fry the pumpkins till brown spots appear on it sides.  Remove and keep aside. In same pan add 1 tbsp cumin seeds, when it starts to splutter add green chili, onion, garlic and ginger. Fry till onion turns pink. Remove and using a blender, blend the mixture along with tomatoes to make a thick paste. Now, heat the pan again. Add little oil. Add cumin seeds and let it splutter. Add the paste, turmeric powder, coriander powder , garam masala and salt . Add little water if it turns to be thick. When the gravy starts to boil add the Yam and pumpkin. Cook for 3 to 4 mins. You can make the gravy as you like, if you want more gravy add water. I have reduced the gravy and have made to just coat each Yam and Pumpkin pieces. 

Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves. This goes well with rice and chapati.

Lau/Lauki Kofta Curry

Hi Readers,

As promised in my earlier post Bharwa Lauki/Stuffed Bottle gourd, I had prepared Lauki or Bottle gourd Kofta curry in Odia style, in same method as my Mom used to cook. As a child this was one of my favorite dish prepared by mom. This is a common dish in most of the northern states in India. However, the Kofta preparation varies from places to places. My friend Preeti who belongs to Jharkhand prepares same dish in another method. However, both the taste would vary due to the method of cooking. Ingredients remain same. Mostly, kofta is served with tomato based curry. 

In this recipe, the Lauki filling does not have Besan added to it and it is dipped in Besan or gram flour Batter to form the outer cover. In other method, all ingredients of Kofta and mixed together and is directly depp fried.Lets now have a look at the Ingredients and preparation method.

Ingredients for Kofta :-

1 Bottle gourd/Lauki/Lau/Doodhi - peeled and shredded

4 to 5 flakes garlic chopped

1 green chili chopped

1 tbsp Coriander powder

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder

1/2 tbsp red chili powder (optional)

1/2 cup besan

salt to taste

1/4 cup water

oil to fry

Ingredients for tomato based gravy :- 

2 ripe tomatoes pureed

2 onions, 4 to 5 flakes garlic and 1 inch ginger , 2 green chili-make a paste

1/4 tbsp turmeric powder

1/2 tbsp roasted cumin powder

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp oil

1 tbsp cumin seeds

salt to taste

chopped coriander leaves for garnish

Method :-

Kofta :- 

Heat a pan, add about 1 tbsp oil. When it is hot, add green chili, garlic and saute for 1 min. Now add the shredded bottle gourd, add turmeric powder, coriander powder, salt , red chili powder and mix well. Let it cook over medium flame. Mix this mixture in between and let it cook till all water from bottle gourd evaporates. Now, the filling is ready, take it out and let it cool for about 10 mins or till you can pick it by hand. In another bowl, take besan, salt and water. Mix this to form a batter of Pokora consistency. Take the bottle gourd filling in palm and form small balls give it the shape of your desire and deep it in besan batter and then fry it till all the sides are cooked properly. Remove and keep aside. This would look as shown in the second picture.

Gravy :-

After, all the kofta is done, remove excess oil from pan. In same pan add 1 tbsp Cumin seeds. Then add the paste made of onion,gralic,green chili and ginger. Let it cook over medium flame till the mixture starts separating oil. Add tomato puree, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt to it. Add water if it is too thick and let it cook for 2 mins. Now, add the kofta cover and cook for another 2 to 3 mins. 

Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves. 

Tawa fried Yam

Hi,

Back to Monday again. I wish I could have got one more extra day of holiday.This is my feeling on everyday, and that happens to all people who work. Sometimes, I think of people who have 6 days working day in a week, how would they be managing with just 1 day off. Thankfully, I have two days off but still I want another one. This weekend I had made two dishes of Yam and one south Indian dish. Sunday, I didn't cook much and went outside. I remember someone once told me, when I know cooking, why I eat outside. True, I love cooking, trying new dishes but still eating out has again another charm of getting rest.  \\\

You must have got bored with my schedule, so let me now provide you a recipe of one of the Yam dish that I had prepared. Yam is one of the famous vegetable of Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. This grows in marshy land and both the region have their own specialty of cooking it. In Odisha we normally add it into Dalma, or make a stir fry. Sometimes, we also add rice flour batter to it (that is called Pithau Bhaja) to make it crispy. This one uses that technique to make it crispy. Here, is the recipe for your use.

Ingredients:-

250 gm of elephant yam

3 tbsp of besan ( gram flour) 

1/4 tsp of turmeric powder 

1 tsp of red chili powder 

1/2 tsp of coriander powder 

1/4 tsp of crushed cumin powder

2 tbsp of rice flour 

5-6 of curry leaves, chopped 

salt to taste

4 tbsp + 1 tsp of oil 

Method:- 

1. Cut the yam into thin pieces of about 2" diameter. Cook them in boiling water with turmeric until soft yet they hold their shape (about 4-5 mins). Drain completely.

2. Transfer the cooked yam to a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients except the 4 tbsp oil (add the 1 tsp oil into the mixture too). Mix well until the masala coats the yam pieces uniformly. If you have the time, let this sit for a couple of hours or in the refrigerator if you want to keep it longer. Otherwise, proceed to the next step.

3. Heat the 4 tbsp oil in a wide pan or tawa (adjust oil amount to the size of your pan). Lay the coated yam pieces in a single layer over it and lightly roast both sides until crisp and golden here and there. Drain on kitchen towels.

Delicious tawa-fried yam is now ready. Serve hot.

Sweet Potato Pakora Curry

Hi,

In Odisha Pakudi Tarkaari (Pakora curry) is quiet a well known homely dish. I just made a twist by making Pakora with sweet potato. I really don't know much of using sweet potato in dishes. I love to roast it , peel and eat it. Same thing can be done with boiling too. But, since its quiet sweet, i do not like adding or using it in curry. For the first time tried this and somehow, the flavor got balanced and it tasted good, with a tomato based gravy and chatpata Pakora.

Ingredients for Pakora :- 

2 sweet potatoes - peeled and chopped into thin roundels.

1/2 cup besan

1 tbsp carom seeds(ajwain)

1 tbsp chat masala

pinch of turmeric

1/2 tbsp red chili powder

salt to taste

oil for frying

1/2 cup water

Ingredients for gravy :-

1 onion roughly chopped

2 tomatoes

4 to 5 flakes garlic

1/4 inch ginger

1/2 tbsp turmeric powder 

salt as per taste

2 green chili

1 tbsp cumin seed

1/4 tbsp red chili powder

1/2 tbsp garam masala

Method :-

 Mix all ingredients of pakora . Add water to make it thick batter. Heat oil in a pan and fry the sweet potato pakora. Turn each side and let it turn golden brown. Remove and keep aside. In another pan add about 1 tbsp oil, add cumin seeds, onion, garlic , green chili, garkic and ginger. when onion turns pink remove the content to a blender. Add tomatoes and blend it into fine paste. Again heat pan and the paste . Add little water, mix well. Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masla and add Pakora . Cook for another 5 to 7 mins over medium flame. Serve hot garnished with chopped coriander leaves. 

Phula Kobi aloo tarkari ( Cauliflower and potato curry)

Hi Readers,

Now, with the season changing from summer's to winter, fresh Cauliflower is available in market. I like to get the fruits and vegetable that are seasonal so that I can get the fresh and good quality of it. Today, I had prepared Cauliflower and potato curry in Odia style. This is traditional curry and quiet famous as a regular home made curry.

Ingredients :- 
Cauliflower  – 1kg
Potatoes  – 200 grm
Onion – 200grm
Ginger  – 1inch
Garlic – 15 cloves
Green Pea – 100 grm
Tomato  – 100grm
Red Chili Powder – 1tps
Cumin Powder – 1tps
Coriander powder  – 1tps
Turmeric powder  – 1 tsp
Coriander leaves – 40 gm
oil  – 75 grm
Salt to taste

Method :- 
To start with , make a fine paste of onion, garlic and ginger.
Remove the leaves and stem of the cauliflower and cut it into pieces (florets). Peel off the potatoes and cut into cubes .
Remove the niblets and take out the green peas . Finely chop the tomatoes and coriander leaves.
Heat oil (3btps) in a pan, add cauliflower and salt to taste and fry till it turns light brown, take it out and keep it aside.
Again heat oil (1btps) in the same pan. Fry the potatoes till it turns golden brown and take it out of the pan.
Heat the rest of the oil in the pan and add the prepared paste .
Add turmeric powder, chili powder, cumin powder , coriander powder to it. Fry the paste with frequent stirring over medium flame till it turns light brown.
Add the tomatoes and stir well.
Add the fried cauliflower florets, the potatoes cubes, green peas and continue stirring till it gets properly mixed with the paste.
Then add 3-4 cups of water , salt to taste , stir well and cover it with a lid.
Boil it on a lower flame, for another 20 minutes till the vegetables are tender and the gravy thickens to the desired consistency.
Finally remove the pan from flame, garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.