RAVA DOSA

RAVA DOSA

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

55 mins

 

rava dosa – easy crisp dosa made with semolina, rice flour and all purpose flour.

Author: GOPINATH VELCHAMY

Recipe type: breakfast

Cuisine: south indian

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

• ½ cup unroasted rava/suji/fine semolina
• ½ cup rice flour
• ¼ cup maida/all purpose flour
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
• ½ inch ginger, finely chopped
• 8-9 curry leaves, chopped
• 1-2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• ½ tsp crushed black pepper
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1.5 to 2 cups water or as required
• salt as required
• oil or ghee or butter for frying the dosa

Instructions

1. mix all the ingredients mentioned above except oil.
2. keep aside for 30 to 40 minutes.
3. heat the tava or non-stick pan.
4. spread 1 or 2 tsp oil.
5. if using non-stick pan then no need to spread oil.
6. with a ladle pour the batter from the edges towards the center.
7. sprinkle ½ or 1 tsp of oil from the top.
8. let the base becomes golden or crisp.
9. flip and cook the other side.
10. when both the sides are cooked, remove the dosa from the pan.
11. prepare all the dosas this way.
12. serve the rava dosa hot with coconut chutney.
13. rava dosa has to be served immediately.
14. otherwise they become dry once they become cold.
15. rava dosa is best had when they are hot.

Russian Salad

                                                      Russian Salad   




Despite the name, this is one of the most typical Spanish salads, mainly eaten in summer time, ideal for outdoor parties, and fabulous as cold starter. We like to make "tapas" with it. Better when 1 or 2 days old as flavors mix and mellows

 Ingredients

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• 4 eggs
• 4 medium whole potatoes
• ¾ cup peas (canned or frozen steamed)
• ½ cup carrots (canned or frozen steamed), diced
• ¼ cup canned or roasted red bell pepper, peeled and chopped
• ½ cup canned white asparagus, drained, diced
• 1 (16 ounce) can tuna in olive oil, do not drain as olive oil is tasty
• ½ cup green pitted olives, chopped
• 1 to 2 cups mayonnaise, or as neededshopping lst
• ½ tsp sweet paprika for dusting (can be ommited)

---

• Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 15 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, and peel.
• If using raw vegetables, steam until firm, drain and reserve.
• Boil potatoes in their skins for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and cool, then peel and dice.
• In a big bowl flake tuna. Add potatoes and the rest of ingredients, except mayonnaise. Add salt to taste.
• Spread enough mayonnaise just to add moisture, about 1 cup, reserving 1 cup for garnish. Mix well.
• Chop two eggs and carefully fold in the potato and veggies mixture.
• Arrange the salad on a big shallow serving plate, giving it a nice oval or round cake shape.
• Spread enough mayonnaise on top to cover, same as frosting a cake.
• Slice reserved 2 boiled eggs and nicely arrange on top, as well as some cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper stripes, olives and greens for garnish.
• Dust with paprika if you like.
• Chill for at least 1 hour before serving. It must be served cool. Keep tightly covered in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. It gets even better the following days.

       

Andhra Chicken Pickle Recipe

             Andhra Chicken Pickle Recipe

Andhra Chicken Pickle

Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook time: 40 Minutes
Total time: 45 Minutes

Shelf Life: 4-5 days

Ingredients:
Chicken Pieces (with bones) - 1 kg
Salt - 1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tbsp
Oil - 1/4 kg
Red Chilli Powder - 3 tbsp
Ginger-Garlic Paste - 2 tbsp
Chopped Cilantro - 1/4 Cup [optional]

To Temper
Asafoetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Dry Red Chillies - 3
Curry Leaves- Few

To Roast and Grind
Coriander Seeds - 3 tbsp
Cloves - 3
Cinnamon Stick - 2 (2 inch pieces)
Poppy Seeds - 1 tbsp
Fenugreek Seeds - 1 tsp
Green Cardamom - 2
Cumin Seeds - 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Dry roast all the ingredients under 'To Roast and Grind' cool and grind to fine powder.
2. Mix salt and turmeric powder with chicken pieces well. In a pan or wok add chicken pieces and cook for 10-12 minutes in slow to medium flame, stir in intervals. With chicken water itself it get cooked so we don't have to add water.
3. In a another pan or wok heat oil and add 1/4 of cooked chicken pieces and fry well until fully cooked and brown. Take out and add next batch of chicken and repeat same until we fry 1 kg of chicken so we will fry it 4 batches.
4. In the same pan add items 'To Temper' and allow mustard to splutter. Add ginger-garlic paste and saute until raw smell goes off.
5. Now add fried chicken pieces, red chilli powder mix well and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Add spices powder we prepared on step 1, mix and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Add chopped cilantro if using and off flame.

Note ~

• Shelf life of this pickle is less so it's better if you consume with in 2-3 days.
• This pickle is little on spicy side, reduce chilli powder if you don't eat spicy food.

Have a nice day.

Pasi Paruppu Payasam

             Pasi Paruppu Payasam (Moong Dal Kheer)

                                         

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup Pasi Paruppu (Moong Dal/Split, skinned Mung Bean)
• 1/2 cup Jaggery, or as per taste
• 1/4 cup boiled Whole Milk, or as needed - See Tips
• 3-4 Cashews, broken, see Tips
• 1-2 tsp Ghee, see Tips
• Pinch of Cardamom Powder

Optional Additions
• Pinch of Edible Camphor (Pacha Karpooram)
• 3-4 Raisins

Tips

1. Whole Milk: Addition of Milk gives a rich taste and I personally prefer a little amount along with water. But you can increase the amount if you prefer cooking the dal with milk, instead of water as I have done. If Vegan or avoiding milk, opt for Coconut Milk instead. Many households prefer it over whole milk.

2. Ghee: Homemade Ghee or Ghee made from cultured butter is better health wise than regular commercially sold ghee. If Vegan, use coconut oil or simply dry toast the lentils and Cashews.

3. Nuts and Dairy Free: If you are on an Nut free or Dairy free diet, simply omit the nuts and replace the Milk with any safe options you would use. You can make this with just water instead of milk as well. Yes, there would be a difference in taste but it would still be a nutritious and tasty option to add to your menu.

Method

1

In a skillet, heat about 1/4 tsp of ghee and toast the lentils for 2-3 min in low-medium heat until aromatic. It should not change color since that would increase the cooking time. You can dry roast it as well although a little bit of Ghee makes it immensely aromatic and better tasting.

2

Now pressure cook this in about 1 cup water for 6-8 minutes in high heat (or until 1 whistle). You can otherwise cook this in just milk (or a mix) to give it a richer taste.

3

You should be able to mash it with your spatula.

4

The amount of Jaggery would depend on your taste buds and the kind of jaggery you get at the stores. For us, I take about 1/2 cup worth (when broken)

5

break it into tiny pieces (if available as slabs)

6

Place it in a bowl and pour boiling water on top of it - just enough to submerge the jaggery. I do this in order to remove any impurities in the jaggery. Its not necessary per se though I would personally recommend it. If you don't want to do this, go to step 12

7

The hot water will help to dissolve the jaggery. Using the back of a spatula, break lumps if any.

8

Now sieve it into another bowl. You can break up those few jaggery pieces remaining in your sifter and add it along with. Set aside.

9

In the same skillet that you used to roast the lentil, add the remaining ghee. I use about 1.5 tsp of Ghee in this recipe. You can add more or less as per your need. Roast the cashews

10

and when it slightly starts changing color, add the raisins, if using. Set aside.

11

Take the cooked lentil and heat it up (low-medium heat ) over stove top. Add the jaggery water.

12

Stir to combine and cook for 3-4 minutes for the flavors to combine. Since the jaggery is already melted, the heat can be at low. If  you skipped step 6, then you would have to add the jaggery pieces directly to the lentils but keep the heat medium and keep stirring so that the jaggery can melt. The stirring is to avoid the lentils burning.

13

Once the jaggery has melted / mixed well, add the milk.  The amount of milk would depend on the consistency you prefer. We prefer the "pour-in-your-tumbler-and-drink" consistency;  tumblerhere (not Tumblr! ) referring to South Indian way of saying cup! :).  But if you prefer the "enjoy-with-a-bowl-and-spoon", then simply add few tbsp or skip the milk completely.

14

Add the cardamom powder and the roasted nuts (and raisins). Mix and stir for another 2-3 minutes.

15

until combined. Though adding Saffron is traditional in almost all festive desserts, this one is an exception. It just does not need saffron since it does not provide that distinctive color or taste that it normally does to more milk based desserts. Add a pinch of Edible Camphor, if using. Be careful about the amount. A wee bit goes a long way.

It tastes best when the flavors are combined well. If you get more lentil type earthy taste, then it means you need to give it time for the flavors to combine.  Just let it sit at room temperature for few minutes and tada - you have a warming, nutritious and festive dessert ready. We love it warmed and believe that it tastes way better than when chilled or at room temperature. So serve it warm.

Badam Halwa Recipe

                              Badam Halwa Recipe

                    

Badam Halwa Recipe - Ingredients

Preparation Time : 2 hrs | Cooking Time : 25 mins | Serves : 2
Recipe Category: Sweet | Recipe Cuisine: South Indian

Badam - 1/2 cup heaped
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Ghee - 4 tbsp
Condensed Milk - 1 tbsp (optional)
Milk - 1/8 cup + 1/8 cup
Cardamom powder - a pinch(optional)
Saffron - a tiny pinch
Yellow food color - a tiny pinch

Method:

1. Soak almonds for 2 hrs. Then peel off the skin and make it ready.
   
2. Then grind the almonds along with 1/8 cup of milk to a fine/semi coarse paste as per your preference.I wanted mine grainy so grinded it to a semi fine paste.Take another 1/8 cup of warm milk crush saffron and add it.Add the yellow food color also,set aside.
   
3. In a pan - add sugar with water and let it boil until sugar completely dissolves.Then add the badam paste and stir it continuosly to avoid lumps.Once its completely blended with the sugar syrup add saffron milk and condensed milk and mix well.If you are adding cardamom powder add it now.
   
4. Keep stirring in low flame for 5mins, it will splutter so be careful.Then add a tsp of ghee at regular inervals stirring continuously.At one stage spluttering will stop, ghee will be completely absorbed and the halwa will start leaving the sides of the pan and small white bubbles will start appearing.This is the right stage, to switch off.
   

Cool down and store in a clean container.Badam halwa thickens with time.You can also pack as single servings(as kept in the plate in the background)as we get in shops.

My Notes:

• I love my badam halwa with a grainy texture so grinded it semi coarse.You can grind it to a fine paste too as per your preference.
•  I clicked the pics soon after making the halwa but after cooling down the halwa becomes thick
• You can soak badams for few hours for easy peeling or if you want to peel of instantly then add it to boiling water for 10mins then cool down and start peeling.
• If you like cardamom flavour add a pinch of cardamom powder. I love just the plain saffron flavour so skipped cardamom.
• Keep stirring continuously dont stop at all as it easily gets burnt.Use non stick pan to avoid burning and sticking.
• It will splutter so just be careful just a word of caution :)
• Saffron is the main ingredients that gives flavour to the halwa.
• Adding ghee at regular intervals avoids sticking.
• When refrigerated it keeps well for atleast a week but I bet it wont last till a week :)
• The right stage to switch off is when it starts leaving the sides of the pan.

Gulab Jamun ( indian delicacy)

                                                  Gulab Jamun 

Gulab Jamun is among India's most popular desserts! This delicious dessert consists of dumplings traditionally made of thickened or reduced milk, soaked in rose flavored sugar syrup. It gets its name from two words: Gulab which means rose (for the rose flavored syrup) and Jamun which is a kind of deep purple colored Indian berry (the cooked dumplings are dark brown in colour). Serve Gulab Jamun warm or at room temprature; by itself or topped with ice cream!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups sugar
• 6 cups water
• 1 tbsp cardamom powder
• 2 tbsps rose water
• 3 cups powdered milk
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• Approximately 1 cup thickened/ heavy/ double cream
• Vegetable/ canola/ sunflower oil for deep frying

Preparation:

• Mix the water and sugar in a deep pan and boil till all the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the flame and add the cardamom powder and rose water. Mix well and keep aside.
• Mix the powdered milk, all purpose flour and baking powder well. Add a little of the thickened cream at a time to them and knead to make a dough that is medium soft but not sticky. You DO NOT need to use all the cream. Just add a little at a time until you reach the consistency of dough you are after.
• Divide the dough into walnut sized balls and roll between slightly greased palms till smooth.
• Heat the oil for deep frying in a wide pan on a low to medium flame.
• Fry the dumplings, stirring often to brown on all sides. Do not cook on very high heat as the dumplings will burn on the outside and remain raw inside!
• When cooked, drain (with a slotted spoon), remove the dumplings from the oil and transfer immediately into the sugar syrup.
• Repeat this till all the dumplings are cooked and added to the syrup.
• Allow the dumplings to soak in the syrup for at least 2 hours before serving. At this point they can either be removed from the syrup and served or served with the syrup.
• Some serving suggestions: Warm Gulab Jamuns with ice cream; Gulab Jamun with thick cream; Gulab Jamun garnished with shavings of dried fruit like pistachio and almond.

                             EASY TOMATO SOUP RECIPE

                   

Easy Tomato soup recipe

Prep Time: 5 mins    |  Cook time: 25 mins    |  Serves: 2

Ingredients

Red ripe tomatoes	4
Beetroot	2 small slices
Garlic	3-4 flakes
Bay leaf	1
Butter	1 tblsp
Salt	As needed
Black pepper	As needed
Sugar	1 tsp
Corn flour	1 tsp
Cream(Optional)	To garnish
Coriander leaves	1 tblsp

Method

1. In a small pressure cooker or pressure pan, heat butter and add bay leaves, roughly chopped garlic. Add the tomatoes, beetroot and  1 cup water.
2. Pressure cook for 2 whistles and without disturbing much, take out the tomato skin which by now will come easily by itself. Discard the skin. Take out the bay leaf. If you want you can transfer to a sauce pan (another vessel to boil the soup) or continue with the cooker as well. I used my immersion blender to grind. If using mixie, cool down and blend without water.
3. Strain this through a metal strainer to remove the seeds. You can use little water if you need. Again start heating the soup with the bay leaf, sugar and salt.
4. Boil for 3-4 minutes. Add the corn flour mixed with 1 tblsp water and mix well. Boil until thick consistency reaches. Season generously with black pepper, adjust salt and garnish with coriander leaves. Add cream in top if desired.

Notes

• I added about 2 slices of beetroot in size of two potato wedges.
• Add pepper generously or the soup will be so tangy.