Dark Chicken

This recipe, as I remember was the first one i learnt to cook.Thanks to my aunt for teaching me this :) I named it Dark Chicken :)

It's simple and tasty.. You should definitely try it..

You will need :

Chicken - 2lbs/1 kg Boneless or with bone cut into eatable sizes

Ginger garlic paste - about 1tbps

Coriander powder - 2 tsp

Cumin powder - 2tsp

Chilli powder

Salt

Curd - about 1/4th -1/2 cup

Lemon - one med squeezed

Oil

For Garnish :

Onions 1 big cut into rings

Green chillies - about 6-7 chopped or sliced

Garlic cloves - about 5-6 finely chopped

Curry Leaves - optional

Cilantro

Oil

This is how you do it :

1. Mix all the above ingredients and marinate for atleast an hour.

2. In a kadai, heat oil and fry the marinated peices on a medium flame till the chicken is cooked.(keep stirring in between)

3. In a seperate pan heat oil and saute the garnish ingredients.( It ll be good if the onions are crisp)

4. Add this to the chicken and mix well.

So here you go :)

This goes well as a side for Rasam/Sambar rice. It also tastes good white plain white rice/Jeera rice.

Enjoy :)

Coconut Rice

Here's one more easy and a tasty recipe

You will need :

Rice - 1 cup soaked for atleast 30 min and cooked

Coconut - 1 cup grated

Green Chillies - 4- 5 slit

Dry Red Chillies - 4-5

Channa dal - about 1tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Cumin - 1tsp

Curry leaves

Cashewnuts (optional)

Hing

Salt

Oil

This is how you do it :

1. Heat oil in a kadai and add everything except for rice and coconut and fry well.

2. Add the grated coconut, salt and fry for about 1-2 min.

3. Add the cooked rice and mix well.

And here you go...

Have Fun :)

Simple Raitha

This is one very simple side dish for many varieties. 

Here's what you need :

Mix all of these well  :)

Curd (not too thick)

Onion - finely chopped

Pepper powder or green chillies (i like the pepper powder though:))

Cucumber - chopped (optional)

Tomato - chopped (optional)

Carrot scrapped

Cilantro finely chopped

Salt

Lemon Rice/Nimmakaya Pulihora

This is one food i used to hate.. but eventually started loving it. This is also very easy to  make. Actually this reminds me of the prasadams we used to get in the Temples back in India ;)

You will need :

Rice - 2 cups (soaked and cooked and let it cool down)Tip: add some oil while cooking.. this helps in the grains not sticking to eachother :)

Lemons - 1-2 medium sized squeezed (or more if you like it more sour)

Green Chillies - 6-7 slit

Dried Red Chillies - 4-5

Groundnuts

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Cumin seeds - 1tsp

Channa dal - 1tbsp

Curry Leaves

Hing

Turmeric Powder - about 1tsp

Salt 

Oil

You will need to do :

1. To the cooked rice, add salt and lemon juice and keep aside.

2. In a small kadai or pan heat some oil and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, channa dal, dry red chillies, green chillies, curry leaves, groundnuts, hing and turmeric powder and fry well. (Make sure you don't burn them).

3. Add this seasoning to the rice and mix well.

Enjoy it with pappad and you will really love it :)

Cheers!!!

Mint Rice/Pudhina Rice

Here is one more easy and tasty recipe. Mint.. mmm the name itself sounds refreshing.. so here we go...

You will need :

Mint leaves - 2 bunches

Rice - 2 cups (soaked in water for atleast 30 min)

Green Chillies - 4-5

Cumin seeds - about 1tbs

Cashew Nuts (optional)

Green Peas (optional)

Salt

Oil

To be done like this :

1. Grind the mint leaves, green chillies and some cumin seeds (add as little water as possible) and keep aside.

2. In a pressure cooker, heat oil and add cumin seeds and fry.

3. Add the mint paste and fry well for about 2 min an o low flame.

4. Add salt and add the soaked rice and mix well and fry for about 2 more min.

5. Add water (Measure : for 2 cups of rice add 3 cups of water including the mint paste).

6. Pressure cook on high for about 3 whistles.

7. Mix well and serve hot.

This one tastes really good with a raitha.


P.S I'm sorry I will be unable to post the pictures because I happened to misplace my camera charger :( 

Vellulli Avakaya/Garlic Pickle

Well i am like getting too addicted to garlic. So i thought i'll make some pickle out of it.So here it is.This recipe was provided by my cousin Roopa.Thanks to her :).It is pretty easy to make.And its tasty too :)


Ingredients :

Garlic - 150 grms(coarsely gring some pods and the other pods,slit by using the fork or knife)

Red Chilli Powder - 3 Tbs
Mustard seed powder - 3 Tbs

Fenugreek Powder (Dry Roast and powder) - 1 Tbs

Lemon/Lime - 1 juiced

Salt -2-3 Tbs or to taste

Sesame Oil - 6-7tbs (until the garlic soaks)


Here's how to do it :

1. Add Red chili powder ,Mustard seed powder  , Menthi/ Fenugreek Powder, salt, lime/ lemon juice mix well and the add the garlic pods. 

2. Add sesame oil until the garlic soaks.

3. Rest it for 4 days in a dry place and enjoy.

P.S  Donot use a steel container to store it.

Rava Upma

I used to hate upma when i was small. But now i don't know why i love this :).Especially the one my mom makes..After many attempts i got this one close to my mom's(finally!!)

So here's how it is done..

You will need :

Rava/Sooji - 1cup    Water - 2 cups (ratio sooji : water = 1 : 2)

Onions - 1 big sliced

Green Chillies - 5-6 big ones sliced

Ginger - about 1inch finely chopped

Mustard Seeds - 1tsp

Cumin seeds - 1tsp

Chana Dal - 1tbsp

Curry Leaves

Cilantro

Cashewnuts - few roasted in oil/ghee(optional)

Hing

Salt

Oil

You will have to do :

1. Dry roast the sooji on a medium flame till the raw smell is gone(Don't burn it) and keep it aside.

2. In a kadai heat oil and fry the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, ginger, channa dal, curry leaves and hing.

3. Add the cashewnuts, green chillies and onions and fry (they don't have to turn golden brown).

4. Add water and let it boil.

5. Add sooji and stir well so that no lumps are formed.

6. Let it cook on a low flame for about 10 min with the lid on.

7. Garnish with cilantro.

And here it is..

                                     

Enjoy it hot with tamarind pickle or tomato pickle..It should taste awesome :)  

Bellam Dosalu/Jaggery Crepes

Nothing comes close to spending a pleasant evening over the weekend with my husband and hot Bellam dosalu :).

Very easy to make (except for scrapping the jaggery :( ).

This makes 4 crepes

You will need :

Jaggery - 1/2 cup scraped (you could even use more if you like it sweeter)

Wheat flour - a little less than 1 cup

Warm water- about 1 1/2 cup

Oil

This is how you make it :

1. Add warm water to the jaggery and mix well so that the jaggery is completely dissolve and there are no lumps.(use your hand to mix)

2. Add the wheat flour little by little and mix well so that no lumps are formed.

3. See that you don't add more water.

4. Heat the griddle, brush some oil and pour about 2 ladles of batter. 

5. Cover with lid and cook on a low flame till both sides are golden brown.

                            

So there you go..Enjoy when they are hot :)

P.S You can add elaichi powder for a good aroma:)

Pasta -- Mamma Mia!!!

This is one thing you can have fun with :).I never like Italian much.But with a little desi touch.. this is one thing i would die for ;).Easy to make. You can just thrown in any spices you have in your pantry or any sauce you have in your refrigerator. Add some veggies hmm yumm. It would taste good :)

I have not given the measurements for this one.So you can go ahead.. mix n match and play around :)

Here s how i made my pasta :)

Pasta

Onions sliced

Green chllies sliced

Garlic finely chopped

Cumin seeds

Mustard seeds

Amchur powder(like a substitute for lemon :))

Oregano

Dry Parsley

Some Marinade which was sour( u can put in soy sauce, vinegar, tomato ketchup or any other sauce you like)

Red chilli powder

Salt

Olive Oil

1.Cook pasta in boiling water(don't cook for too long as they can get mushy).Add some salt to the water so that they don't stick together and get some flavor.Drain water and keep aside.

2. In a pan heat oil and add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, garlic, chillies and onions.

3. I like my onions crispy.So just stir fried them.

4. Add the oregano parsley salt chiili powder and other spices and mix well.

5. Add the marinade(or sauce)

5.Add the pasta and sir well.

 So here's how it came out

P.S The other time i added dry red chillies, curry leaves, ginger garlic paste, cumin powder, corriander powder and it tasted awesome.

Enjoy:)

Vada Pulusu

So I  made Masala Vadas the other day... I had some of them left.So i made Masala vada pulusu which is made using tamarind sauce. It s simple and delicious. You should try it out :)

You will need :

Masala Vadas - 5

Onions - 2 finely chopped

Tamarind - big lemon sized soaked in water and juiced(or more if you like it sour)

Green chillies - 4 big ones chopped finely

Curry Leaves

Ginger garlic paste - 2tsp

Cumin powder - 1tsp

Corriander powder - 1tsp

Red chilli powder 

Turmeric Powder

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1tsp

Fenugreek Seeds - 1/2tsp

Dry red Chillies - 2-3

Cilantro

Salt

Oil

This is how you do it :

1. Heat oil in a kadai.Add mustard seeds(let them splutter) Red chillies and Cumin Seeds

2. Add the chopped Onions and fry till they are light brown.

3. Add the chopped green chillies and curry leaves and fry.

4. Add turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste and fry for about 2-3 min or till the raw smell is gone.

5. Add some water and mix well.

6. Add Cumin powder, corriander powder, chilli powder and salt and mix well.

7. Pour in the tamarind juice and mix well and let it cook for abot 10-15 min on a low flame.

5. Add the vadas and cook for another 5 min.

6. Garnish with cilantro .

This tastes good with hot rice.I love it as a side for dosas too :)


P.S : Vadas in this recipe can be replaced with any other vegetables like the drumstick, okra or even egg :)

Ragi Dosa

Here s one health recipe which tastes just awesome

You will need :

Ragi Flour- 2 cups

Urad dal - 1/2 cup 

Rice Flour - 1/4 cup

Salt

For Garnish :

Onions chopped

Green Chillies chopped

Cilantro

This is how you do it :

1. Soak urad dal for 3 hours and grind it to a fine paste, 

2. To this paste add the rice flour, ragi flour and salt to taste and mix well. 

3. The batter has to be like that of dosa. This has to ferment overnight or for 6 hours.

4. Do it just like you do the dosas and sprinkle the onions, chillies and cilantro on the dosa.

5. On a low flame, cover it with a lid and let it cook well.

4. Serve them hot with any chutney of your choice.

P.S u can make the batter a bit thick and make uthappams as well :)

Eat healthy Stay Healthy :)

Masala Vada

I love my mom's masala vadas. I was missing her so much today.And also with  Mother s day this weekend, i thought i'll make something and dedicate it to here:). Well i was a bit worried about the outcome.. but they turned out just fine :).So here you go..

You will need :

Channa dal - 3 cups soaked in water for about 3-4 hrs

Onions - 2 large ones finely chopped

Green Chillies - 6-7 finely chopped

Ginger - 1 inch peice

Curry Leaves

Cilantro

Dried red chillies - 6-7

Salt

Oil for deep frying

Patience ;)

This is how you do it :

1. Grind together dried red chillies ginger and channa dal coarsly without adding any water.(dont grind it too smooth :))

2. Take it in a separate bowl and add the onions, chillies, curry leaves, cilantro, salt and mix well.

3. Heat oil in a kadai.

4. Now wet your hands with water and take small balls of the mixture, flatten them and put them in the oil.

    ( Be careful with the hot oil.I ve had very bad incidents :) )

5. Fry them on both sides till golden brown.

This is how they look :)

How about having them with a cup of hot tea or coffee ??

Tomato Dal/Tomato Pappu

This one is my all time favourite. This is the first time i made it and it turned out awesome.you should try it too.It is very easy to make :)

You will need :

Toor Dal - 1/2 cup boiled (see that you don't mash it)

Onion - 1 medium finely chopped

Tomatoes - 2 medium finely chopped

Green chillies - 5-6 sliced

Garlic - 4-5 cloves chopped finely

Red Chilli powder

Turmeric Powder

Salt

Oil

For the Tadka :

Dried red chillies - 4-5

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Cumin seeds - 1tsp

Urad dal - 1tsp

Curry leaves

Hing

Butter about a tsp (optional)

Cilantro

This is how i made it :

1. Heat oil in pan and add chopped garlic and fry till light golden color.

2. Add chopped onions, green chillies and fry for about a minute or two.

3. Add salt turmeric powder and red chilli powder and mix well.

4. Add the chopped tomatoes and let them boil well.

5. Now add the boiled dal and mix well.

6. In a separate pan heat oil and add red chillies, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal , cur ry leaves hing and fry well (make sure you don't burn them)

7.Then add butter.

8. Add this mixture to the dal and stir well.

9. Garnish with cilantro.

And there you go :)

                      

Have it with hot rice and with a hint of ghee.. you will not stop licking up your fingers ;)

Potato Fry

Yesterday being a weekend, I had some friends over for lunch.So i thought i ll prepare something quick.I made potato fry. My friends loved it and coudn't resist eating more :)

Ingredients :

Potatoes - 2 large peeled and chopped finely

Red Chilli powder

Turmeric Powder

Cilantro

Salt 

Oil

For Tadka :

Dry red chillies - 4-5

Garlic - 4-5 cloves chopped

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Urad Dal - 1tbsp

Hing

Curry leaves

Do like this :

1. Heat oil in a pan.

2. Add all the tadka ingredients ad fry.(make sure you don't burn them)

3. Add the potatoes and stir well.

4. Add salt turmeric powder, salt, chilli powder and fry on medium heat well till the potatoes are done.

5. Garnish with Cilantro.

Have it with hot rice and it just tastes awesome. It goes well as a side for rasam/sambar rice too :)

Have fun

Sry, I din't take a picture of this :(