Soya chunks Curry

Soya chunks tastes so good in curries and it's such a good and healthy alternative for meat and it's really delicious as well ...this curry was the one the tried the other day when my fb friend Priya R Shenoy had posted it's was yumm and I simply loved it as a side dish for my chapathis ...So Do try this and don't forget to leave in your feedback as well !

Ingredients

1 cup of med sized soya chunks

1 onion (finely chopped)

1 tomato (finely chopped)

1 cup coconut

1' ginger

2 cloves of garlic 

1/4 tsp roasted Jeera Powder

1 tsp Red chilli powder

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

2 sprigs of curry leaves

2 tbsp coriander leaves

2 tbsp oil 

salt to taste

Method

• Add hot water to soya chunks and leave it aside for 30 mins. 
• Then squeeze out all the extra water from soya chunks and bring it to a boil till it is cooked.
• Grind coconut, ginger, garlic, Jeera powder and Red chilli powder.
• Heat oil add mustard seeds add in curry leaves then add chopped onion and fry till translucent then add in the tomato and fry well till oil then add the ground coconut and fry till it leaves out oil completely then add in little garam masala.
• Add in precooked soya chunks, Add in little water and cook till and the masala in well incorporated with the soya chunks and its coated beautifully with it.
• Add in coriander leaves . Serve it with chapathi / Poori .....it's yumm ! 

Aloo Methi Pakoda

These Gorgeous pakodas are absolutely melt in your mouth and with amazing flavour of methi it's Surely a burst of beautiful flavours in my mouth and  when I took the first bite these became my favourite too  ...Just couple of weeks back I did try my hands on these aloo pakoda had a bunch of methi leaves  lying in my pantry  so this was the idea which came up in my head and ....then what else can I say sipping hot cup of coffee these aloo pakoda vanished in no time my family absolutely gorged on these , this is actually 3rd time in a row I am making these yes on request and thought of sharing it with my readers too....:D ...Please don't forget to share in your feedback !

Ingredients

2-3 med sized potato (cut into thin roundels)

large pinch of ajwain 

1/2 cup gramflour 

2 tbsp fine riceflour 

1 tsp hot oil 

1/4 cup methi leaves (washed and finely chopped)

1/2 tsp Red chilli powder

1/4 tsp haldi (turmeric Powder)

salt to taste 

oil for deep frying these pakoda /fritters

Method 

• Chop methi leaves finely and keep aside. In a bowl add in Gram flour, rice flour, ajwain, red chilli powder, haldi, salt  and give a good mix . Now add in enough water and whisk well such that you have a lump free batter which is free flowing , batter should be of medium consistency here (not too thick nor too thin).
• Add in methi leaves and mix well.
• Peel the potato and slice them into thin sized roundels and keep aside.
• Now heat oil till the smoking point , take a spoonfull of this oil and pour on the batter this is to ensure that they come out crispy, now when the oil is heated up then simmer a bit dip these roundels in the batter and deep fry till golden brown.
• Serve with Ketchup / Spicy Chutney and don't forget ur hot cup of tea or coffee with it ....no one can beat this heavenly combo :D

Spring Roll

There is no need of any intro for this famous Chinese starter which is a hot favourite of any party ...Yes it's spring roll , it's crispy, little spicy and perfect starter for any occasion and like me I am sure many love it . It's so easy to prepare that I usually buy the spring roll sheets from local supermarket , make the filling in bulk and use all the wrappers in the pack and freeze them and viola you can use them at anytime whenever you have some uninvited guests around . So here is a quick way of making these spring rolls here is the recipe

Ingredients

1 cup thinly shredded cabbage

2 -3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1/4 cup Spring onion (chopped)

1/4 cup Spring greens (chopped)

1/4 cup grated carrot

1/4 cup green capsicum (thinly sliced)

1 tsp black pepper powder

1/4 tsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp oil

salt to taste

15-20 spring roll sheet

For sealing the spring roll

3 tbsp maida /Plain Flour

2 tbsp water

Oil for deep frying these spring rolls

Method

For the filling

• Take a wok heat oil add in garlic, fry for 1 min then add in spring onion fry well now add in cabbage, carrot, Capsicum fry well for 1- 2 mins then add in freshly ground pepper powder, soya sauce, spring onion greens toss well for a min  add is salt to taste and give in one final mix and switch off the gas and keep it aside.
• Take a spring roll sheet (easily available in any supermarket ) Make sure they are at the room temperature,  then spread the filling on the corner of sheet and roll in the way shown in the picture below . Seal the corners with the help of slurry made with water and maida (Mix Maida / Plain flour with water and make a semi thick paste).
• Repeat with the other sheets and  shape them in rolls and deep fry and serve with any sauce of your choice , I have serve with Sweet chilli sauce here :D

Special Beetroot Upkari

Love beetroot this vegetable can be used in so many different ways this is one special way to use it which I learnt it from my sister Soumya ...simple stir fry it tastes so good you can have this healthy stir fry just like that without even Rice....very healthy and very tasty too ...Do try this simple stir fry you will love the taste that is for sure !

Ingredients 

2 med sized beetroot (peeled and grated thickly)

1/2 tsp Jeera (Whole Cumin seeds)

3 green chillies (slit cut into 2)

3-4 garlic flakes (finely chopped)

2 tbsp coriander leaves

2 onion (finely chopped)

1 sprig of curry leaves 

1/4 tsp Red chilli powder

1/4 cup scraped coconut 

salt to taste 

2 tbsp oil 

Method

• Grate beetroot  and keep aside. In pan add oil  Jeera /Cumin seeds when it splutters add in garlic and green chillies and fry well . Now add  in onion, curry leaves and fry well for 4-5 mins. 
• Now add in coriander leaves,  little red chilli powder and grated beetroot and fry well for couple of mins ( No need of adding water as you have grated beetroot it will cook fast.
• Now add in salt to taste.  Garnish with freshly grated coconut and give in a good mix. Done ....so simple yet fab !

Stuffed Bhindi (okra) Fry

Stuffed Bhindi I love try so many dishes with Okra fav being stuffed bhindi there are many variations which I have tried but this one really tickled my taste buds was perfect ! Thanks to Veena Mallya akka for contributing such a lovely recipe , I have tweeked a recipe a little bit and end result was a wow So thought of sharing this recipe with my readers.....Do try this you will find it absolutely yummy and as it's shallow fried so you can just enjoy it guilt free too :)

Ingredients 

12 -15 Okra / Bhindi / Lady's finger

1/2 cup gramflour

1 and 1/2 tsp Red chilli powder

Juice of 1/2 lemon 

1/4 tsp haldi 

1/2 tsp Garam masala

2 tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves 

1/2 tsp Jeera / Cumin seeds

2 tbsp desiccated coconut 

salt to taste

1 tbsp oil  +  2 tbsp Oil to shallow fry okra

Method 

• In a wide mixing bowl add in gram flour, red chilli powder, haldi, Garam masala , salt mix well.  Add in desiccated coconut and mix well.
• Take a pan add in little oil when it's hot add in cumin seeds, when they sizzle add in coriander leaves fry well. Now add this to the gram flour mix add in juice of half a lemon , add little water and mix to form a thick paste like shown in the picture below.
• 
• Wash the okras , trim the tops slit it to the end making sure u don't break them into two the fill the okra with prepared gramflour paste. Repeat the same with all the remaining okras .
• Now take a non stick pan add in 2 tbsp of oil and spread it evenly add in this okra may be 6-7 at a time and roast in on a simmer flame on both the sides till well roasted you will notice the gramflour mixture being crisp.
• Serve as an accompaniment with Rice and dal ...Yumm !

Beans Potato Palya

I Love stir frys they are low fat and so good to incorporate in your daily diet isn't it ...this is one of the spicy version of traditional karnataka style palya . I am sure there are different versions of this  recipes of every house ...here is the one I have tried and loved it so thought of blogging it for mine and my readers reference . You can use any veg of your choice here like beetroot, cluster beans . I have tried with beans and potato here which is my fav combo. Without much fuss let's go on the recipe ...Do try this I am sure you will love it as much as I did .Please do drop in a feedback if you do try, I would love to hear from you . 

Ingredients

2 cups beans chopped into 1 inch bits

1 big potato (cut into small cubes)

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

1 onion (chopped)

1 sprig curry leaves

2 green chilli (finely minced)

1/2 tsp haldi

2 tbsp oil

salt to taste

To grind to a fine powder

1 tbsp Daria dal/ Kadale pappa / Fried gram / Chutney dal

2 tbsp dry coconut 

1 tsp Red chilli powder

pinch of haldi

very small piece of tamarind 

Method

• Grind daria dal, coconut, red chilli powder, pinch of haldi, small piece of tamarind to a fine powder.
• In pan add oil add in mustard seeds, urad dal. chana dal fry till dal starts changing colour then add in onion and fry well.
• Now Add in curry leaves, green chillies, haldi , fry well now add in beans, potato salt . 
• Stir fry and keep it on a low flame . Keep stirring in between so that all the vegs are evenly cooked.
• Now add in 3 tbsp of ground powder. Mix well.
• Serve with Rice and dal it's so fab ...I can eat the whole stir fry just like that :) 

Kali tori and piyav sukkhe

This is one of my mamama's style  traditional delicacy which I recently learnt on my mom and I loved it to core ...it was so delicious you will absolutely love it with chapathi / Rice and dal . Kali tori / black pigeon peas can be easily found in any Mangalore stores which I always get and store in my pantry for use ....Do try this it's absolutely delicious and a forgotten delicacy as well which I am blogging for my and my reader's future reference :)

Ingredients

1 cup Kali Tori / Black Pigeon peas (soaked in water overnight)

2 onions (finely chopped)

1 and 1/2 tbsp urad dal

8-10 seeds of methi

small piece of tamarind

1/2 cup coconut

5-6 Red chillies ( + or - as per your spice tolerance )

salt to taste

1 and 1/2 tbsp oil +  1/2 tsp ghee for frying the onions

1 tsp oil for frying the spices

Method

• Pressure cook Kali tori which you have soaked overnight for 1 -2 whistles till cooked such tht when you feel the grain it gets mashed up easily . Now drain out all the water ( Don't discard the water can be used to make tasty rasam with this )
• In oil fry urad dal, methi seeds well on a very low flame when it gives out nice aroma and grains slightly start to change colour add this to the mixer grinder along with coconut, red chillies, tamarind and grind to a coarse paste  adding little water. (Make sure all spices are ground when you feel the paste !)
• In pan add in cooked tori and this spice paste and mix well.  Allow it to come to a boil such that all masala coats all the tori well. ( You can add litte water if it is too dry )
• Now in a pan add in oil fry chopped onions and fry till nice aroma and the onions turn slightly brown ( don't over roast it )  . Add this roasted onion to the cooked tori  and mix in lightly till everything is incorporated well and keep it to a simmer flame . ( This is a semi dry dish so don't add in too much of water ). Serve with Rice and dal....it's become my fav do give it a try and enjoy this dish with your family :)
• Note /Tip : Do try out with other lentils if you can't find Black Pigeon peas I am sure it would taste awesome !

Karathe Kudko /Pathrado

I simply love Bitter gourd / Karela (in hindi) / Karathe (konkani) and though it's little bitter in taste it's my fav and has got great health benefits like good dietary fiber, good in vitamins , low in fat and it's definitely proven to lower blood sugar levels . Nevertheless I love this veg and try to do various dishes out of it and this was the one recipe I was hooked too which was contributed by Priya R shenoy ...on my  recent visit to India I prepared this for my mom and she absolutely loved it and told me that she used to prepare this dish earlier and it was called as karathe Kudko and they used to add a thick slurry of tamarind and Jaggery so the 2nd time when I prepared it I prepared the way she told me and it was surely a wow tasted even better the next day when the flavours got mixed in so well ....was a perfect blend of sweet, tangy and bitter flavour just the way I love it to be....Thanks to Priya for contributing such a lovely recipe which is featured in KKAJ blog and I have tweaked the recipe and loved it ...so here goes the recipe for this and this recipe is truly a winner and a must try for those who love this veg like me :D...Do drop in your feedbacks and comments on the space below would love to hear from you :)

Ingredients 

4-5  med sized Karela (snip of the tips and cut into halves remove the seeds and cut into small strips)

4 tsp Red chilli powder ( I have used mild kashmiri chilli powder here)

2 tsp Hing water ( You can use Hing powder but I have used Hing water ...dissolve fresh hing in little water and mix well till dissolved )

lemon sized Tamarind ...or 3 tbsp tamarind paste

3 tbsp Jaggery ( It should be same size as lemon)

salt to taste

For tempering 

2 tbsp coconut oil ( you can use any oil but i highly recommend coconut oil)

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal 

6-7 methi seeds 

Method

• Heat 1/2 cup water add in tamarind and jaggery and boil till Jaggery is melted and with the help of the masher bring to one boil and switch off the gas and keep aside.
• Add salt to the bittergourd strips and keep it aside for 10 -15 mins then squeeze out the water and keep it aside. Boil this bitter gourd strips in water till cooked then drain in all the water.
• Then add in red chilli powder, hing water and mix well till all the karela / karathe is well coated with this powder. Leave in the marination for 5- 10 mins .
• Take a kadai add in coconut oil when hot add mustard seeds, methi, urad dal and when dal slightly changes the colour then add in marinated karela then simmer and cook till the masala gets cooked well add in salt if required. Add in thick slurry of Jaggery and tamarind and give it a good mix and cook on simmer flame till the gravy thickens and coats all the karela well .
• Done !....Allow it to rest for 2 hrs and then try as I said earlier tastes even better the next day ..I loved it with Chapathi or you can even serve as a side for rice and dal ...Too good !

Jatpat Mushroom Capsicum Masala

Happy New Year to all my readers ....hope you all have a lovely and blessed year ....and this is one special post for you :) .....I love experimenting with curries and this is one of my fav one which my family loved ...actually this happened when i fell short of time and wanted to cook some curry in a jiffy and this was what I came up with.... you can add any vegs of your choice in this dish ....feel free to experiment and use the vegs of your choice, I have used mushroom and capsicum as this is one of my fav combo of vegs and this dish is truly a winner too ...Do try this and do leave in your feedback would love to read in your comments :) 

Ingredients 

10 - 12 button Mushroom / chestnut Mushroom (cut into Quarters)

1 green capsicum (cubed) 

1 med sized onion 

2-3 big cloves of garlic 

1' small ginger 

2 Red chilles (used Bedagi /Kashmiri Chillies here)

1/4 tsp Kasoori Methi

1 Green chilli

1/2 tsp haldi 

1/2 tsp garam masala

1/4 tsp Jeera  / Cumin seeds

2 tbsp broken cashews 

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tbsp oil + 1 tbsp ghee

2 tomatoes pureed 

1/4 cup cream 

salt to taste

Method 

• Grind ginger, garlic, green chilli, haldi, red chilli, Garam masala, kasoori methi, cashew nuts, onion ...grind all this to a fine paste.
• Heat oil in a kadai  add ghee when it's hot add little jeera when it splutters add in the paste and fry in for 10 -12 mins till it leaves out nice aroma and leaves out oil too  do it on a simmer flame( this is very important step as u have ground raw onion to a paste so you need to fry till it's nicely cooked. 
• Now add in pureed tomato and fry well till it leaves out oil add in coriander leaves and fry well  till it's well cooked . Add in salt and taste it if you feel it's a bit less spicy then add in 1/4 tsp Red chilli powder.
• Now add in cream  and mix it well. Add in 1/2 cup water and simmer and cook for 10 mins . Base of the curry is ready ...Now it's time to saute vegs :)
• Now take a non stick pan add in mushroom , capsicum and fry well now add in to the curry . Serve this with chapathi ....I seriously enjoyed this curry as tasted so yumm ! ...Try it you will love it too :D

Mumbai style Usal Pav

Here is one of the most delicious and authentic style recipe of usal pav which I tried from the recipe contributed by Vidya shenoy akka....its was finger licking good , delicious and so good to taste that it has been regular on our dinner table from since the very first time I tried...I have tweaked the recipe a little bit hope you all love this version and try this at your home as well....Happy cooking and if you did love it please leave in your feedback .....So here goes the recipe for this...

Ingredients

1 cup of Dried white peas

For Gravy

2-3 cloves

2 small stick of Cinnamon

1 tsp Jeera

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp Khus Khus / Poppy seeds

1/2 tsp saunf /Aniseeds

1 small piece Ginger

7-8 small cloves of garlic 

6-7 Bedagi Red chillies

1/4 cup coconut

3 big onion (thinly sliced)

4 tbsp oil

For Other Ingredients

1 big tomato (finely chopped)

1/2 tsp Haldi /Turmeric Powder

1/2 tsp Chilli powder

1 tbsp coriander leaves

salt to taste

For Tadka

4-5 big flakes of garlic sliced

1 tbsp ghee /oil

For Serving

chopped onion, Lemon wedges

Method

• Soak white peas overnight and pressure cook for 1-2 whistles till cooked make sure it doesnt get mashed.
• Take a non stick pan add in oil simmer and add in cloves, cinnamon , Jeera, coriander seeds, khus Khus , saunf , ginger, garlic fry till nice aroma then add in coconut and fry till a bit roasted . Remove and keep aside.
• In same pan add in 3 tbsp oil for roasting onion and roast till onions are very well roasted and you get a brown colour.
• Now Grind this roasted onion and the roasted spices to a smooth paste adding 1/4 cup water .
• In cooker when peas is cooked add in chopped tomato, ground paste, add haldi, salt, chilli powder and close the lid and cook for 1 whistle till cooked.
• For tadka : Take a ghee or oil in pan add in galic and roast well till golden brown and pour on this cooked peas.
• Add in coriander leaves for garnish and simmer and cook for 10-12 mins.

For serving

• Slit the pav apply generous amount of butter and roast in on chapathi tawa then keep aside.
• Take this on to a plate now put generous amount of Usal in the serving bowl top it up with chopped onion , little coriander leaves with a lemon wedge . .......It was a spicy and superb treat for me and my taste buds....Awesome !

Kadai Paneer Masala

Kadai Paneer is a beautiful curry which is needs no intro it's the special blend of aromatic spices which goes in gravy which makes it so special...you will absolutely will love this ..I have tried so many versions of the recipe but I absolutely loved the curry I had recently tried from Hebbar's kitchen ...the flavours was too good and it was nevertheless perfect Hotel Style ...my whole family esp my hubby absolutely loved it . I have done a small change to this recipe and have tried it twice in a row....Perfectly gorgeous recipe and truly a keeper too :D...So do give it a try and don't forget to leave in your feedback if you try !!

Ingredients

For Kadai Masala  (Dry spice blend)

2 tsp Coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

10 - 12 black peppercorns 

3 Kashmiri Red chillies

For the Masala

2 tsp oil 

1 ' ginger

3-4 big cloves of garlic (sliced)

2 med onion (finely sliced)

1 big tomato (roughly chopped )

8-10 cashewnuts

1/2 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp Red chilli powder

Other Ingredients 

2 tbsp oil

1 big onion (cut into med sized cubes)

1 cup cubed Paneer

1/2 cup sliced Green and yellow capsicum

1/2 tsp Kasoori Methi 

3 tbsp Cream 

Method

• In a non stick pan add in coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorn, red chilli and fry on a low flame till you get a very nice aroma. ( make sure you don't burn them).
•  Now cool and grind it to a fine powder.

For Masala

• In a non stick pan add in oil  add  ginger and garlic fry for a min or two then add in onion and fry till they turn golden brown . 
• Now add in tomatoes and fry till tomatoes get well cooked and it gets mashed add in cashews fry again .
• Now add in haldi, red chilli powder and fry well. Now cool and grind this to a fine paste. 

For  Kadai Masala Gravy

• Take a kadai add in a tsp od oil fry cubed onion and sliced capsicum fry and keep aside.
• Now add in 1 tsp oil and 1 tsp ghee when the heat melts the ghee add in the ground Masala and fry well till it oozes out oil and leaves the edges of the pan .
• add in 2- 3 tbsp oil this Ground kadai Masala*
• Add in salt , Kasoori methi . Paneer, fried onion and capsicum and mix well .
• Add in Cream and serve with Ghee rice or Paratha .....it's simply Gorgeous !