Plain Dal Curry

Ingredients :

1. Toordal - 1 cup 
2. Oil - 1 tbsp
3. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
4. Urad dal - 1 tsp
5. Red chillies - 3 nos
6. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
7. Onion - 1 no
8. Tomato - 1 no
9. A pinch of hing
10. Green chillies - 3 to 4 nos
11. Garlic - 2 pods
12. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
13. Corriander leaves for garnishing

Direction to cook :

1.   Heat oil in the pan, add mustard seeds, urad dal, hing, red chillies, curry leaves & finely chopped onion.  Saute.

2.  Meanwhile cook the dal along with the tomato, green chillies, garlic pods & turmeric powder.  Smash it.

3.   Once the onion is cooked, add the dal & salt to taste.  Garnish it with corriander leaves & serve.

Serve with rice.

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Eggplant curry - Andhra style

Ingredients :

1. Eggplant - 1 no
2. Oil - 1 tsp & for frying
3. Red chillies - 3 nos
4. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
5. Cumin seeds -1 tsp
6. Onion - 2 no
7. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
8. Green chillies - 2 nos
9. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
10. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
11. Tomatoes - 3 nos
12. Corriander powder - 1 tsp
13. Chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
14. Salt to taste
15. Peanuts, roasted - 1 tsp
16. Sesame seeds, roasted  -  1 tbsp

Direction to cook :

1.   Heat oil in the frying pan & deep fry the cubed eggplants till golden brown in color. Drain the excess oil in the kitchen tissue.

2.   Heat 1 tsp of oil, add red chillies, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, ginger garlic paste, finely chopped onions & salt to taste.  Saute till tender.

3.   Add turmeric powder, chilly powder, finely chopped green chillies, corriander powder and finely chopped tomatoes.  Saute for 5 mins.

4.   Add fried eggplant & stir fry it.

5.   Meanwhile, grind the roasted peanuts and sesame seeds to fine powder.  And add them to the eggplant mixture & fry them till done.

Serve it with rice.

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Shaku Shaku Chicken Curry

Easy and very fast to make this delicious chicken curry.  Perfect side dish for both rice and rotis. 

Ingredients :

1. Chicken - 1 Kg
2. Oil - 1 tbsp
3. Cinnamon stick - 1 no
4. Cloves - 2 nos
5. Cardamom - 1 no
6. Onion - 2 nos
7. Tomaotes - 2 nos
8. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
9. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
10. Chilly powder to taste
11. Corriander powder - 1 tbsp
12. Corriander leaves for garnishing
13. Salt to taste

Direction to cook :

1.   Heat oil in the pressure cooker, add cinnamon stick, cloves and cardamom.

2.   Add finely chopped onions and then turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste.

3.   Add finely chopped tomatoes and salt to taste.

4.   Add chilly powder and corriander powder and finally the chicken pieces.

5.   Pressure cook the chicken curry  till done.  Garnish it with corriander leaves.

Serve it with rice or rotis.

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Tomato Curry - Perfect side dish for rotis

 Simple, easy, delicious & my comfort side dish which taste absolutely perfect with rotis.

Ingredients :

1. Tomatoes - 5 nos
2. Salt to taste
3. Oil - 1 tbsp
4. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
5. Urad dal - 1 tsp
6. Green chillies - 3 to 4 nos (to spice)
7. A pinch of hing
8. Salt to taste
9. Corriander leaves for garnishing

Direction to Cook :

1.   Cube the tomatoes & keep aside.

2.   Heat oil in the pan, add mustard seeds, urad dal, hing & green chillies.

3.   Add the chopped tomatoes & salt to taste.  Cook until done.

4.   Garnish it with corriander leaves.

Serve it with rotis.

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Hot & spicy raita - A perfect Dip

Raita the most popular south Indian dip can be made in different variations.  This is simple & easy way of making raita just with onion & tomato as the main ingredients.  Addition of grounded coconut spicy paste adds the flavour & taste simply delicious.  Perfect side dish for biryani & I served it with chicken biryani this weekend.

Ingredients :

1. Curd - 1 cup
2. Onion - 1 no (Finely chopped)
3. Tomato - 1/2 no (chopped)
4. Mint leaves - 1/4 cup ( Finely chopped)
5. Corriander leaves - 1 tbsp (Finely chopped)
6. Grated Coconut - 2 tbsp
7. Green chillies to spice
8. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
9. Chaat masala to sprinkle
10. Salt to taste

Direction to cook :

1.   Grind together the coconut, cumin seeds & green chillies.

2.   Combine all the ingredients together along with the grounded masala.  Adjust the salt to taste.

Sprinkle the chaat masala & serve it with biryani.

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Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu / Fried dal in spiced coconut gravy

Fried dal cubes cooked in the spicy and tangy coconut sauce, perfect with rice and rotis as well.

Ingredients :

For Paruppu Urundai :

1. Toor dal - 1/2 cup
2. Urad dal - 2 tbsp
3. Green chillies - 3 nos
4. Salt to taste
5. Oil for deep frying
6. Finely chopped onions - 1/4 cup
7. Finely chopped corriander leaves

For the Gravy :

1. Oil - 1 tbsp
2. Cinnamon stick - 1 small size
3. Cloves - 2 nos
4. Onion - 1 medium sized
5. Tomato - 1 no
6. Coconut - 1/2  (grounded to smooth paste)
7. Chilly powder - 1 to 2 tsp 
8. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
9. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
10. Finely chopped corriander leaves

Direction to cook :

1.   Soak the toor dal & urad for atleast one hour.  Grind together with green chillies adding little water.  Add salt to taste, finely chopped onions & corriander leaves.  Steam cook the batter for atleast 15 mins over medium heat.

2.   Once cooked & cooled, cut them into small pieces and deep fry them in the oil till light golden brown in color.  Keep aside.

3.   Heat oil in the pan, add cinnamon stick, cloves & finely chopped onion.  Saute till tender.

4. Add ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, chilly powder & grounded coconut paste.  Add enough water & bring it to boil.

5.  Once the gravy is cooked, add the fried dal cubes to the gravy & bring it to boil for 10 mins over low heat.  

6.   Garnish it with finely chopped corriander leaves.

Serve with rice or rotis.

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Potato Masala (poori masala)

Simple & spicy curry made with smashed potatoes often served with dosa, chapathi or poori.  Any leftovers can be used as a stuffing inside the samosa or as the breakfast sandwiches.  Potato masala occupies the most prominent role in the south indian breakfast menus at home, hotel & in celebrations.  Its been little long time wish for my DH to serve him complete breakfast like dosa, potato masala, chutneys, sambar & vada for any weekends.  Hope I bring his dreams true shortly :)  

Ingredients :

1. Potato - 2 large sized
2. Oil - 1 tbsp
3. Channa dal - 1 tsp
4. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
5. Finely chopped ginger - 1 tsp
6. Green chillies - 3 to 4 nos
7. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
8. Onion - 2 nos
9. Tomato - 1/2 
10. Green peas (or) carrot - little less than 1/4 cup (optional)
11. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
12. Chilly powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
13. Cashewnuts (roasted) - 1 tbsp
14. Salt to taste
15. Corriander leaves for garnishing

Direction to cook :

1.   Boil, peel & smash the potatoes.  Add salt & chilly powder (optional) and keep aside.

2.   Heat oil in the pan, add channa dal, mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chillies, chopped ginger & onions.  Saute till tender.

3.   Add green peas (or) carrot & turmeric powder.  Cook till done.  

4.   Add tomato & smashed potatoes.  Adjust the salt.  Cook for 5 mins on low-medium flame.

5.   Garnish with corriander leaves & roasted cashewnuts.

Serve warm.

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Bisibilebath

One of my favourite & comfort dish, taste great with pappads.  Healthy way of adding vegetables & simple to make.  This dish will be served in most of the south indian functions & celebrations.  I use store bought  bisibilebath powder, yet taste delicious.  

Ingredients :

1. Raw rice - 3/4 cup
2. Toor dal - 1/4 cup
3. A pinch of hing
4. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Oil - 2 tbsp
6. Ghee - 2 tbsp
7. Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
8. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
9. Red chillies - 2 nos
10. Curry leaves - 2 tbsp
11. Vegetables (Carrot, beans, drumstick, green peas, potato) - 3/4 cup
12. Bisibilebath powder - 2 tsp
13. Tamarind extract - 1 tsp
14. Onion - 1 no
15. Tomato - 1 no
16. Dessicated coconut - 1 tbsp
17. Cashewnuts - 1 tbsp
18. Salt to taste

Direction to cook :

1.   Combine & pressure cook the rice, toor dal, hing & turmeric powder together.

2.   Heat oil in the heavy bottomed pan, add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds & curry leaves.

3.   Add finely chopped onions & saute.  Add tomatoes, salt & vegetables.  Cover & cook till tender.

4.   Add tamarind pulp, bisibilebath powder & dessicated coconut.  Cook for 2 more mins.

5.   Add the cooked rice & dal mixture & enough water for the desired consistency.  Adjust the salt.

6.   In a separate pan, heat the ghee add 1 tbsp of curry leaves, red chillies & broken cashewnuts.  Pour it in the rice & switch off the flame.  

Serve warm with pappads.

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Dried Sundakkai Vathakuzhambu

Vathakuzhambu is most frequently made south indian dish either with fresh / dried sundakkai or with vegetables.  Tangy dish best served with appalam (papad).  Sometimes, I like to have it with curd rice.  Amma makes it with fresh sundakkai & freshly ground vathakuzhambu powder.  Rarely, I make this dish & prefer to use sambar powder for this preparation.  It taste awesome with homemade vathakuzhambu powder.  

Ingredients :

1. Dried sundakkai - handful
2. Oil - 1 tbsp
3. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
4. Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
5. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
6. Jeera - 1/4 tsp
7. Onion (finely chopped) - 1/4 cup
8. Garlic - 3 pods (optional)
9. Tomato - 1 no (finely chopped)
10. Tamarind (soaked in water) -  golf sized ball
11. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
12. Chilly powder - 1 tsp (to taste)
13. Sambar powder - 1 tbsp (or vathakuzhambu powder)
14. Salt to taste
15. Jaggery - a pinch

Direction to cook :

1.   Heat oil in the pan, add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, jeera (cumin seeds) & curry leaves.  Add finely chopped onion & saute till tender.  Add garlic (optional).

2.   Add finely chopped tomato, turmeric powder, chilly powder & salt to taste.

3.   Add tamarind pulp & water (approx 1/2 cup).  Cook till done.

4.   Finally, add sambar powder, dried sundakkai & jaggery.  Cook for 5 more mins.

Serve with rice.

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Tomato pulav

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Tomato pulav is one among the south indian traditional rice variety. It taste great with potato fry & best with potato podimas. I like to serve them with onion raita too. Very simple to make yet taste great.

Ingredients :

1. Rice - 1 cup
2. Tomatoes - 4 large nos
3. Cinnamon stick - 1 no
4. Bay leaf - 1 no
5. Cloves - 3 nos
6. Onion - 1 no
7. Mint leaf - 1 tbsp
8. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
9. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
10. Chilly powder - 1 tsp
11. Oil - 1 tbsp
12. Salt to taste

Directions to cook :

£ Cook the rice & keep aside.

£ Cook the tomatoes in the water. Remove the skin & grind them to paste. Keep aside.

£ Heat oil in the kadai, add cinnamon, cloves, bay leaf, mint leaf & onion. Saute it for 2 mins.

£ Add ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, chilly powder, tomato paste & salt to taste.

£ Once cooked, add the rice & mix together till well combined.

Serve warm with potato fry.

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Idli sambar

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Sambar is the traditional & authentic south Indian dish served with almost breakfast menus like idlies, pongal, dosa, vada, upma & so on. We make different varieties of sambar to match the menu. There will be little variations in the consistency & ingredients as well.

I make this variety of sambar especially to serve with Idlies. The consistency will be little thin & would be perfect when served along with the chutneys.

Ingredients :

1. Toor dal - 1/2 cup
2. Onion - 1 no
3. Tomato - 1 no
4. Green chilly - 2 nos
5. Ginger - 1 inch
6. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
7. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
8. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
9. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
10. Chilly powder - 1 tsp
11. Corrainder powder - 1 tsp
12. Sambar powder - 1 tsp
13. Oil - 2 tsp
14. Water
15. Salt to taste
16. Corriander leaves for garnishing

Directions to cook :

# Pressure cook the toor dal (1 cup water) & keep aside.

# Heat oil in the kadai, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds.

# Add finely chopped onions, green chillies, curry leaves & ginger. Saute till golden brown in color.

# Add finely chopped tomatoes, chilly powder, turmeric powder & salt to taste. Saute it for 5 min.

# Add the cooked toor dal, sambar powder & water (sambar should be little thin in consistency). Cook for 3 more mins or until done.

# Garnish with corriander leaves.

Serve with idlies.

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Madrasi chicken

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My hubby asked me to do something new in chicken, which I never tried before. And, he himself browsed the Internet & gave this wonderful recipe to cook for our weekend lunch. Though, the list of ingredients is little big, yet simple to make & taste awesome.

Ingredients :

1. Chicken - 1 kg
2. Curd - 2/3 cup
3. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
4. Chilly powder - 2 tsp
5. Garlic paste - 1 tsp
6. Lemon juice - 1 tsp
7. Bay leaf - 1
8. Cinnamon - 1 stick
9. Cloves - 3 nos
10. Black pepper - 1 tsp
11. Onions - 1 cup
12. Grated coconut - 2 tsp
13. Tomatoes - 1 cup
14. Corriander leaves
15. Oil - 2 tbsp
16. Salt to taste

Directions to cook :

£ Clean & marinate the chicken in curd, turmeric powder, chilly powder, garlic paste, salt & lemon juice for atleast one hr.

£ Heat 1 tbsp of oil in the pan, add bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, onions & saute.

£ Add tomatoes & grated coconut & saute till cooked. Allow it to cool & grind them to the fine paste.

£ Heat 1 tbsp of oil in the pan, add the grinded masala & the chicken along with the marinated masala. Ajust the salt. Cover and cook until tender.

£ Finally, add the corrainder leaves & serve warm.

Perfect for rotis.

Wow !!! Its award again:)

Thanks priya for thinking about me & passing this cute looking award to me. U are simply superb :)

The rules are:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.

2. Nominate at least 7 blogs.

3. Let them know that they have received this Scrumptious award by commenting on their blog.

4. Share the love and link to this post and to the person you received your award from.

I would like to share this awards to : Gita, Kittymatti, Sanghi, A2Z vegetarian cuisine, Leena rashmin raj, Parita, divya Vikram, Ann.

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Plain tomato soup

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I always love to have tomato soup as the appetizer especially during the winter season. The tomatoes are cooked in the Indian spices & seasoned with the basil. Final addition of fried bread crumbs enhances the flavour & its taste.

Ingredients :

1. Finely chopped tomatoes - 5 nos
2. Small sized onion - 1 no
3. Bay leaf - 1
4. Cinnamon - small piece
5. Cloves - 1 no
6. Butter - 1 tsp
7. Garlic cloves - 1 no
8. Tomato puree - 1 tbsp
9. Water / chicken stock / Vegetable stock - 2 cups
10. Basil powder - 1 tsp
11. Salt & pepper
12. Bread crumbs (Fry them in the oil or ghee)

Directions to cook :

£ Cook the chopped tomatoes, garlic, onion, bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves together for 10 min. Keep it aside.

£ Remove the bay leaf, cinnamon & cloves and transfer the cooked tomatoes to the blender & blend until smooth.

£ Heat butter & add the blended tomato, salt and 1 tbsp of tomato puree in the pan. Add water & cook until soup is reduced to the desired consistency.

£ Season with basil & pepper to taste.

Garnish & serve them warm with fried bread crumbs.

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Kadai chicken

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Kadai chicken is most popular chettinadu dish cooked in red gravy. This can be served either with rice or rotis. It taste AWESOME :)

Ingredients :

1. Chicken - 1 kg
2. Corriander seeds - 2 tsp
3. Cumin seeds - 2 tsp
4. Black peppercorns - 10 nos
5. Ginger - 1 1/2 inch piece
6. Garlic - 10 cloves
7. Oil - 2 tbsp
8. Butter - 1 tbsp
9. 1 Large sized onion - Finely chopped
10. Tomatoes - 4 nos (Finely chopped)
11. Water - 1/2 cup
12. Salt to taste
13. Finely chopped corrainder leaves for garnishing

Directions to cook :

# Dry roast the corrainder seeds, cumin seeds & black pepper corns. Keep aside.

# Grind ginger, garlic and red chillies to a fine paste. Keep aside.

# Heat oil & butter in the kadai (Frying pan), add finely chopped onions & saute till light golden brown.

# Add the grounded spice powders & the red chilly paste. Saute it for 5 mins.

# Add the finely chopped tomatoes & continue to saute till the tomatoes become soft.

# Add the chicken & 1/2 cup of water and stir. Cover & cook on medium heat till the chicken is tender.

# Garnish it with corrainder leaves.

Serve hot.

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Tomato chutney

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My husband & myself are not the great lover for idlies. So, I cook them occasionally along with the complete side dishes. Hot idlies with sambar & tomato chutney are the perfect combination which melts & slide inside the mouth.

Amma makes very soft & fluffy idlies for the breakfast with lotz of chutneys predominately tomato chutney would be in the menu. Those days are really memorable :)

Ingredients :

1. Riped tomatoes - 4 nos
2. Oil - 2 tsp
3. Urad dal - 2 tsp
4. Red chillies - 4 nos (as per us spice level)
5. Salt to taste
6. Ginger piece - 1 inch sized
7. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
8. Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
9. A pinch of hing
10. Coconut - 1/2 cup

Directions to cook :

£ Heat 1 tsp of oil in the pan, add 1 tsp of urad dal, 2 red chillies, ginger, chopped tomatoes & salt.

£ Cover and cook them for 5 min or till tomatoes are soft & done.

£ Cool them to the room temperature & grind them with the coconut.

£ Meanwhile, heat 1 tsp of oil in the frying pan.

£ Add mustard seeds, 2 red chillies, 1 tsp urad dal & curry leaves.

£ Add the fried seasonings in the chutney.

Serve them with dosa or idlies.

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Tomato basket

Vegetable carving is an interesting & little art oriented subject. I like playing with vegetables and fruits to decorate my final dish to look little attractive.

Tomato basket looks pretty & would be perfect in salad decoration. Try this & I m sure U will enjoy this art !!!!

STEP 1 :

STEP 2 :

STEP 3 :

STEP 4 :

STEP 5 :

STEP 6 :

STEP 7 :

STEP 8 :

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