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Thứ Hai, 31 tháng 10, 2011

Semiya Pulao/Indian Style Stir Fried Noodles

uss free food is always welcome but quite often these recipes are very underrated. We make them quite often whenever we are racing against the clock to put food on the table but when it comes to showcasing your work we often put them in the back burner as 'yeh to ainvayi hai'. This is one such dish atleast in my household. I cannot remember how many times I have made it. Many different occasions - be it a quick lunch or dinner, pack something in a hurry for hubs occasional lunchbox or on kiddo's sudden demand of 'noodles'.  Every time I made it I always got applauded on how good it was. Never gave it much thought. Gradually it started to grow on me. The proverbial last straw was when I saw several foodies on the world wide web talking about how their semiyan got soggy and sticky when they tried this dish. That is when I decided it was time. So here goes - a savory indian noodle dish kicked up a notch with indian spices and ready in no time.

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Thứ Bảy, 29 tháng 10, 2011

Cool Blue (Cafe Coffee Day) Favorites #1

Cool Blue from cafe coffee day is my new favorite I love the citrus flavor and taste I  have this craving for citrus fruits lately unusual pick for this month I know but I loved it. that's because I've been doing a lot of shopping, cooking, festivals, relatives and friends ufffffff....so much to handle for the past couple months I'm engaged only in this activity and to top it we are house hunting all this work the only spot I found where I could relax and enjoy was at cafe coffee day...:)

Check out their web link http://www.cafecoffeeday.com/ to purchase all goodies and locate a store near you next time you visit cafe coffee day try their cakes, Hot or Cold Choco Lattes...Enjoy...:)


This review is not sponsored by cafe coffee day its solely done by me...:)

Thứ Năm, 27 tháng 10, 2011

Instant Jalebi!


realize this is a day after Diwali but festivity is still in the air, right! Hope all you guys had a very prosperous and fun filled Diwali!
Diwali or Deepawali is the Festival of Lights. It is a time that is much awaited all year round by children and adults alike. A time of celebration, prayers, holidays, family, fun, fireworks and of course food - lots of it. It is one of the most important religious and cultural festivals in India bringing family and friends together. Diwali is one of the biggest and most celebrated Hindu festivals. In my Chandrakala post on Dussehera a few weeks ago I spoke about Lord Rama and his victory over evil. After vanquishing the evil Ravana, Lord Rama along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana come back home after 14 years of banishment. Since then, that day is celebrated by Hindus all over the world as Diwali!
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Thứ Năm, 20 tháng 10, 2011

Cauliflower Soup

One of my friends gave me this recipe when I was in Delhi  this recipe is complete meal on a winter night or rainy season over the years I've done minor changes to the recipe making it with the ingredients available at home. the recipe calls for 1 cup of blanched almonds and cream if you have almonds at home you can add since i added full fat milk avoided cream and butter. instead of cream cheddar cheese can be added adding pepper powder is upto you i like the extra heat.


Please click here to see how to clean cauliflower follow that step to prepare any cauliflower based recipe yes its important to follow...

Ingredients:
250 Grams Cauliflower
3 Green Chillies
6-7 Pods Garlic
1 Large Onion
3-4 Cups Milk

1/4 Tsp Pepper Powder
10-20 Cashew nuts (soaked in warm water for 1 hour)

Salt to taste
Coriander to garnish

Method:
  • Heat a heavy bottom pan add 1 cup water bring to boil add cauliflower, chilies, garlic, onion and milk. add very little salt cover and allow the cauliflower and other ingredients to cook till mushy consistency on a medium flame.

  • Add milk if needed to cook the veg do not add water you will not get a creamy soup.
  • Once cooked allow the cauliflower to cool.
  • Add to a blender and blend to a smooth puree.








  • Add the puree back to the pan or wok add water little by little to get the right consistency bring to boil. if you dont like bits and pieces of veg of nuts in the soup then strain it and boil.
  • Add pepper powder and salt stir well garnish with cheese and coriander serve hot...Enjoy...:)

Do watch recipe demo video...:)



Thứ Ba, 18 tháng 10, 2011

Murungai Keerai Muttai Poriyal

My fav side dish for rasam rice...there are so many interesting facts to talk about murungai tree other than health aspects there are many stories about murungai maram which are really famous and narrated over and over again one very ancient story is vikram aditya and vethalam.

I personally can never get tired of reading or listening to vikram aditya stories when i was a kid my house had a murrungai maram we used to enjoy the yield so much but at the same time my granny used to close the back door to the the kitchen garden and ask us not to go near that tree after 12 noon she used to tell lot about vethalam on murungai maram which used to fascinate me after reading all that stories but at the same time i used to be really curious and wanted to see if there was any vethalam on the tree.

One fine day in my summer holidays all the kids in my locality and my self had a plan some how to see the vethalam on the murungai maram when all of our parents and elders were fast taking a nap after lunch we some how sneaked out of the house and climbed the parapet wall to reach the back yard guess who was the pack leader meee...I was clueless that our malli/gardener  was cleaning the back yard all of us some how got into the garden and the very first sight was vethalam on the tree all of us screamed so hard and ran as fast as we could hearing us my granny and other neighbors came running outside all of us were crying when the elders asked us what happened everyone of us told the same thing we saw the vethalam on the murungai tree. elders were shocked and they rushed to the back yard to see what is it all about and to everyone's surprise it was our munniswamy(gardener) doing his job everyone burst into laughter...poor munniswamy did not know what really happened he was standing with a shy face...from that day we started calling him vethalam swamy...as kids we were so naughty and playful i miss those days...:(

Ingredients:
2 Cups Murungai Keerai
6 Eggs
1 Large Onion (finely chopped)
6 Green Chilies(finely chopped)
Fist full Coriander leafs(finely chopped)
Oil 2 Tbsp Ghee 1 Tbsp
Salt as per taste
Masala Paste:
5 to 6 Pods Garlic
1 Inch Ginger
1/4 Tsp Pepper corns
1/4 Tsp Fennel seeds
2 Pods Cardamom
  • Add all these ingredient to a mixer-jar and prepare a coarse paste.


  • When purchasing murungai keerai make sure its dark green in color.
  • Pick all the steams and clean the yellow leafs.
  • Rinse thrice before use.
Method:

  • Heat oil and ghee in a wok add ginger and garlic paste fry till raw flavor is gone.
  • Add onion and chilies and fry onions till transparent.
  • Add the greens to the onion and add 1/4 cup water stir and place a cover allow the green to cook on medium flame.
  • Once the greens have cooked allow the moisture to evaporate and oil to surface.
  • Add salt as per taste.
  • Add the eggs and scramble till cooked and oil surfaces on the sides garnish with coriander and serve with hot rice and rasam...Enjoy..:) 



Do watch the recipe demo...:)


                         

Thứ Hai, 17 tháng 10, 2011

Mirchi Ka Salan/Green Chillies in Spicy Tangy Sesame Peanut Sauce

 
es you read it right. A curry of green chillies! If you take my word for it, this curry is utterly lip-smacking and delicious besides of course being... yes... hot! Mirchi, in hindi, means chillies/peppers and salan is hyderabadi lingo for a creamy curry or sauce. This curry is not just something I made up on a day I was overzealous. It in-fact is a very popular curry from the hyderbadi cuisine. So much so that this curry was popular as a favorite of the royalty of the yesteryears.
Hyderabadi cuisine, the cuisine from a region in the south-eastern part of India is highly inspired by the Mughlai cuisine. The word "Nawabi" is as synonymous with the Hyderabadi cuisine as "Shahi" is with Lucknowi. Hyderabadi recipes are famous for their rich taste and unique use of ingredients, roasted spices and aromatic flavors. This  dish has all these components and more... chillies simmered in roasted peanuts, sesame, coconut sauce with lots of indigenous spices cooked to perfection give this curry its unique spicy, sweet and tangy taste. It is very easy to put together and has a very rich creamy taste that will compel you to make it over and over again.It is nutty with peanuts, has a distinct taste of sesame seeds and the  bite and heat from the chillies... ahh.
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Thứ Hai, 3 tháng 10, 2011

Chandrakala/Stuffed Sweet Festive Pastries


ere is another recipe from me that gives me an intense sense of nostalgia.
The start of 'navaratra' marks the beginning of the festive season in India. Navaratra culminates in Dussehera after which comes the much awaited Diwali with Dhanteras and Chhath between and immediately after. These followed by Christmas and of course the welcome of the new year. Festivities in India are associated with pomp and fervor, family, dressing in your finest, prayers and worship, time off from school, carnivals, guests and of course food, lots of food. How is that for nostalgia!

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