DHODDAK

(FINE RAVA PANCAKES WITH ONION & TOMATO)

My M-inlaw prepares this for breakfast and I keep eating it for lunch, for tea, and for dinner. This is my fav dish. It should be eaten with chutney powder and lots of fresh butter.

 Ingredients

Fine rava/sooji or Bombay rava nearly 3 cups

Onion 2 big chopped finely

Tomato 2 medium sized chopped finely

Green chillies 5 slit lengthwise and chopped

Coconut ¾ cup grated

Cooked rice ½ cup for softness

Dhania leaves chopped (optional)

Oil

Salt to taste

Butter as needed

Preparation

Prepare a thick mixture of rava, onion, tomato, green chilli, coconut, rice, salt and water as needed. Keep aside for ½ hr.

Heat a tava, take a palm full of this mixture and place it in center of tava, flatten it as thin as possible by dipping hand in water into a circular shape.

Leave oil on sides of dhoddak and cover it for 2 min on medium flame. Turn it on other side and fry for 2 min.

Serve immediately with lots of fresh butter.

AMBLI KHUVULL

(RAW MANGO SIDE DISH)

This is a very mouth-watering recipe and easy to make “khatta-meetta” recipe. Very good for women who are pregnant (crave for something sour) as it contains jiggery or gud (rich in iron).

Ingredients

Raw mangoes 5 small to medium size, cut into small pieces

Green chilli 4 chopped big

Curry leaves a few

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Jeera 1 tsp

Hing a pinch

Urad dal 1 tsp

Gud / jiggery 250 gm grated

Salt to taste

Oil

Preparation

Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds, as they splutter add jeera, hing, urad dal, curry leaves and green chillies. Sauté. Add cut raw mango pieces, salt and gud. Add ½ cup of water. Cover and cook till raw mango is fully cooked and gets yellowish in color. Switch off gas & let it cool.

Store in an air-tight container and can be kept in fridge for 15 days. 

GIRMIT

(PUFFED RICE/KURMURA SOUTH INDIAN STYLE)

This is my home town specialty and can be eaten with any kind of pakodas as accompaniment. This is a South Indian style bhelpuri. I just relish Girmit with “mirchi baje”(green chilli pakodas). It is yummy combo…

Ingredients

Puffed rice/kurmura 3 cups

Onion 1 +1 small big (chopped)

Green chilli 2 (chopped)

Curry leaves a few

Tomato 1 medium (chopped) optional

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Jeera ½ tsp

Hing a small pinch

Besan/chana flour 2 tbsp

Oil 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Lemon juice 1 tsp

Dhania leaves for garnishing (chopped)

Preparation

Heat oil, add mustard seeds. As they splutter add jeera, hing, green chillies, curry leaves, and onion. Sauté. Add tomato at this point. Add haldi and salt to taste. Let the mixture cool.

Take a deep mouthed vessed. Add kurmura, onion mixture, and a small onion chopped. Mix it well. Add besan, lemon juice and mix it again. Put it in plate like a heap and garnish with dhania leaves.

Serve immediately with pakodas and hot tea.

ALOO PARANTHA

This is a very simple recipe and can be prepared with very few ingredients.

Ingredients

Potatoes (peeled & boiled) 2

Green chillies 2 (chopped)

Hing a pinch

Wheat flour 2 cups

Salt to taste

Oil

Ghee

Preparation

Mash the potatoes, add green chillies chopped, hing and salt to taste. Mix well. Make 4 portions of lemon-sized balls.

Knead wheat flour, oil and salt with water into a chappati dough. Keep aside for ½ hr. Make 4 protions. Take 1 portion, roll the dough like puri and fill in aloo mix. Seal  and roll again like chapatti.

Roast on a hot tava with ghee and serve hot with pickle or any sauce. 

DAL AND SPRING ONION PARANTHA

This recipe originated when I fell short of vegetables and had only spring onion in the refrigerator and some left over dal. These paranthas taste yum with any chutney or sauce or cheese spread.

Ingredients

Spring onion 2 bunches

Left over dal 1 cup

Haldi 1 tsp

Red chilli powder ½ tsp

Garam masala powder ½ tsp

Wheat flour as needed

Salt to taste

Oil to knead

Preparation

Wash & cut spring onion. Heat nonstick pan, add spring onion and sauté till it turns to half the quantity. Remove and keep aside.

In a bowl, add sautéd spring onion, dal, haldi, red chilli powder, garam masala powder and salt. Mix well. Add wheat flour knead like a chapatti atta.  Add oil and knead well. Cover and keep aside for 1 hour.

Make balls of the dough and roll like chapatti. Heat a tava, roast like a chapatti on both sides with oil or ghee.

Serve hot with any chutney or sauce or any kind of cheese spread. 

APPE

(Urad dal & rice dumplings prepared in moulds)

My M-in law prepares Appe/ phud on my demand. I got recipe from her and tried it. This is my favorite breakfast.

Ingredients

Urad dal 3 cups

Dosa rice 1 cup

Poha (flattened rice) 1 tbsp

Oil

Salt to taste

Onion 1 big chopped finely

Dhania leaves chopped (optional)

Preparation

Soak urad dal and dosa rice separately for 6 -7 hours. Soak poha 10 min before grinding.

Grind rice & poha finely. Grind urad dal separately with less water. Mix both batters. It should have a consistency of idly batter. Cover and let ferment. At salt, onion and dhania at this point.

Heat Appe mould tava on low to medium flame. Add ¼ tsp oil and add batter as required.

Cover for 1 min. Turn them around. Keep for 1-2 mins.

Remove and serve hot with coconut chutney.

DAHI KARELA

(Spicy bitter gourd sabzi)

I always hated eating anything made with “karela” and made faces. My mom tried this dish and now it is my favorite. My husband had not tried karela before marriage and now he relishes this dish. This dish is for all those people who Hate karela.

Ingredients

Karela 4

Onion 2 big chopped

Green chilli 2 chopped

Dahi 1 ½ cups (thick & sour)

Dhania powder 2 tsp

Haldi 1 tsp

Red chilli powder 1 tsp

Garam masala powder ¼ tsp

Salt to taste

Oil

Preparation

Wash & cut karela into thin circles. Add salt (more than required quantity). Keep aside for 1 hour. Squeeze out karela out of all salt water. Heat a pan, dry roast karela on medium flame for nearly 15 mins. Keep aside.

Heat oil, add chopped onion and green chilli. Sauté till onion turns transparent. Add haldi, red chilli powder, and garam masala powder. Sauté. Add dahi on a low flame and fry till oil separates on sides of pan. Add karela. Stir well and add salt if needed. Cover and cook for 5 mins. garnish with dhania leaves.

Serve with hot chappatis or rotis.