Methi Paratha

At a loss of what to pack for lunch tomorrow?

Travelling somewhere and need to carry along your own food?

Or

Just wondering what to make for breakfast tomorrow?

TA-DA!!!

Presenting Methi Paratha -  A humble, healthy, whole wheat flatbread flavored with spices and Methi leaves or Fenugreek leaves.

Methi Paratha is perfect for boxed lunch or breakfast. Number one reason being - it doesn't leak!! So you don't need to worry about a messy lunch bag. Also, it doesn't spoil for a long long time (by long long, I mean at least 2 days in tropical weather, much more in cooler weather). And the dough stays great in the fridge for at least 4-5 days. So you can make it ahead of time and store it.

And guess what's the best part?? Leftovers.... Seriously... Just cut them into small triangles and follow this recipe to get your own flavored Whole Wheat Nachos. Complains, anyone?

I've been making Methi Paratha for a long long time and I've faced certain issues with the way I was making them earlier. I never cooked the Methi leaves, I just chopped them and added it to the dough. All was well until I added the salt. After that though, my dough would just keep getting watery and sticky and I had to just keep adding more and more wholewheat flour to try and stiffen the dough a bit. And by the end of it the paratha would have the methi leaves to the flour ratio all messed up. Also, I'd end up with a messy rolling pin which would have bits of dough stuck to it that I had to clean before rolling out the next paratha.

If you are facing the same problems, read on.

Gee (in her big sister wisdom) showed me how to overcome this. Such a simple solution. Just cook the methi leaves slightly. Cooking them makes the leaves release the water in them. Also adding a little bit of salt during the cooking ensures almost all the water in the leaves is out where you can see it. This leads to a smoother dough that does not turn to sticky in a few minutes. The dough retains it's consistency and is super easy to handle. No sticky rolling pin either.

As for any paratha, Methi Paratha needs to be cooked on a medium to high heat. Cooking them on low heat, makes them hard and brittle. You may need to be watchful that you don't burn them while cooking on higher heat, but hey, you get soft parathas as a result of it.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Baked Wholewheat Chips - Perfect way to finish off those leftover parathas
• Szechwan Paratha - An Indian-Chinese fusion paratha

Methi Paratha

Methi Paratha is a whole wheat flat bread flavored with fresh Methi or Fenugreek leaves and spices. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                Makes 8-10

Ingredients:

3-4 cups Methi Leaves (washed and chopped)
2 cups Wholewheat Flour
1/2 cup Water
1 tsp Coriander Powder
1/2 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
2 tsp Oil
Salt as required
Oil or Ghee for cooking the Paratha

Method:

In a pan or kadhai, heat the 2 tsp of Oil.
Add the chopped methi leaves into it and stir well.
Cover and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until the methi leaves have wilted.
Now add the coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder. red chilli powder and 1/4 tsp salt and mix well.
Cover and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and keep it aside.
In a big bowl or plate, mix together the whole wheat flour and the methi leaves mix.
Now add salt as required and water. Knead it into a smooth dough.
Made small balls of the dough and roll it out into parathas (about 1-2mm thick).
Heat a greased tava or a griddle on medium high heat. Place the paratha on it and spoon oil.
Flip and cook the other side when the first side has cooked (small brown spots appear on it).
Serve hot with butter, pickle or yogurt.

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Grilled Paneer Sub Sandwich

Two crusty chunks of  rye bread, a generous helping of creamy tartar sauce and the hero - a garlic and chilli marinated slab of Paneer that is grilled to perfection. Oh ya and lettuce too. That's what is in this Grilled Paneer Sub Sandwich. Eat that and tell me if you complain!!

We had this absolutely amazing cookout event in office organized by Slurp Studio where they had grilled Paneer, caramelized onions, sauted mushrooms, fresh tomato slices and many more mouth watering ingredients along with a variety of breads and spreads. We had to build our own sandwich and I tried this Grilled Paneer Sandwich that left me obsessed with it even after the day was over.

I had to HAD to have it again. I mentioned it to my sister Gee who got super excited. More than me I think to have this sandwich, it's funny, she did not even have it the first time. But then, that's her. She's totally obsessed with sandwiches. She hacks into my Pinterest account searching for mouth watering juicy sandwiches. I think she's trying to find the ultimate vegetarian Moist Maker just like Monica Geller's.

Building a sandwich is so much about the perfect bread than about the filling I feel. I'm sooo into Artisan breads. That hard crust and soft crumb makes my mouth water. I could probably eat warm Artisan bread with some extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper all day long. And I really NEEDED an artisan bread loaf to recreate the Sandwich of my dreams. Yes! that's what I shall call it, Sandwich of my Dreams!!! 

Now Bangalore's a big city where you get pretty much anything but you don't get it everywhere. So my hunt for Artisan bread took me to many famous bakery in South Bangalore, but I was sorely disappointed by the results.

Finally, I took to online shopping. I found this amazing looking herb crusted artisan bread, and I ordered it ASAP. Imagine my disappointment when it came pre-sliced like a regular bread loaf. I had imagined this Sub and I got teeny tiny slices. I immediately returned it. Luckily for me Gee was gracious enough to go all the way to the center of the city to get me this beautiful looking German Rye Bread. Two Thumps UP!!!

Bread sorted out, now let's get on to my Grilled Paneer. This super easy grilled paneer is marinated in a very simple marinade made of ingredients found in your pantry - Oil, Paprika or Red Chilli Powder, Garlic Paste, Cumin powder and salt. Marinate the paneer for 30 mins to 1 hour. I grilled the paneer on a grill pan to get that beautiful char lines, but you can grill it in the oven or a greased pan as well. A coal barbeque is actually the best way to cook it, as it will add that wonderful smokey flavor. The paneer really doesn't need to be cooked for any particular amount of time. The cooking is only to soften it on the inside and char it on the outside.

You can replace the Paneer with Haloumi or Tofu (for a vegan version). It needs to be a hard cheese that won't melt when grilled at high heat.

I also made my own Tartar sauce. It is super simple, just chop and add. If you don't have the ingredients, you can just use Vegetarian Mayo.  You can also use add some mint puree to regular mayo to get mint mayo. Mint mayo goes really well with this sandwich.

Lastly the fresh ingredients, I kept it simple with just lettuce, you can add sliced tomatoes and onions.

The instructions for building the sandwich are as per what I made. Take them as just general guideline and feel free to adapt it to your style of sandwich making.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Beetroot and Cauliflower Burger
• Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich
• Breakfast Bruschetta Duo

Grilled Paneer Sub Sandwich

Sandwich made with rye bread and grilled marinated paneer along with a home-made tartar sauce and lettuce. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            International
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     15 minutes
Yield:                Serves 4

Ingredients:

For Grilled Paneer:

400gms fresh Paneer
1.5 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1.5 tsp Garlic Paste
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
0.5 tsp Cumin Powder
Salt to taste

For Home-made Tartar Sauce:

1 cup vegetarian Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp chopped Dill Pickle
1 tsp Lime juice
1 tsp finely chopped Dill leaves
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

For the Sandwich:

2 loaves Rye Bread (or any Artisan Bread loaf)
Grilled Paneer
Tartar Sauce
Lettuce leaves

Method:

For Grilled Paneer:

Mix together the extra virgin olive oil, garlic paste, red chilli powder, cumin powder and salt to make a marinade.
Slice the paneer into slabs, about 0.8-1 cm thick.
Marinate the paneer. Cover and keep aside for at least 30 minutes.
Heat up a grill pan or on a barbeque grill, grill the paneer for 1-2 minutes on each side until char marks appear.

For Home-made Tartar Sauce:

Mix together all the ingredients to make a simple tartar sauce.
Adjust lime, salt or pepper according to your taste.

For the Sandwich:

Halve the bread lengthwise.
Layer the lower half of the bread with lettuce.
Place the grilled paneer slab on it.
Spread the tartar sauce on the paneer.
Cover with the other bread slice to make the Grilled Paneer Sandwich.

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Baby Corn Masala (Vegan)

Baby Corn Masala is a semi dry curry made by tossing stir fried Baby Corn in a North Indian style tomato masala gravy.

I’m all into Baby Vegetables this week. First came the baby potatoes simmers in a delicate creamy gravy a.k.a Punjabi Dum Aloo. In case you missed it, check it out here.

Now it is the time for Baby Corn to shine in this super simple Vegan Baby Corn Masala.

I go through phases in my cooking. One week it is the all down to earth pure South Indian meals with simple vegetables cooked in their own juices with just a simple tempering of mustard, green chilli and curry leaves and finished off with a generous helping of grated coconut. Ah! I just LOVE love love fresh Coconut. I even made Raj get me some fresh Coconut oil from Karkala and it tastes amazing.

Anyway, my next week is all full blown Masala curries or other cuisines I love – Italian, Chinese or Thai. This last week was full on North Indian week. I’ve been busy making grilled Paneer, Punjabi Dum Aloo and now Baby Corn Masala.

Now this recipe is very similar to most North Indian curries you have made and very similar to the Vegatable Jalfrezi that I made earlier (which was super AWESOME, btw). 

It is made by sautéing onions, ginger-garlic paste and tomato puree until the oil separates. But don’t be upset if this never happens for you. It rarely happens when I cook too. For oil to separate, there needs to be sufficient quantity of oil in the pan before you add the ingredients, and I usually skimp on the oil. As far as you fry it sufficient enough, the oil-no oil should not be any problem. 

Then add the tomatoes and cook them until oil “separates”, but seriously, don’t worry about it separating, just as long as the tomatoes are cooked and the flavor has intensified, you should be good to go.

I stir fried the baby corn separately and added it. I’ve found that baby corn never softens, no matter how much I cook it. I like that in a way, since I don’t need to worry about over cooking it, but sometimes I wonder if I’m doing it wrong. But I’m still okay with it since it tastes great with that crunch.

This Baby Corn Masala tastes really good with Naan bread or Roti. 

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Punjabi Dum Aloo - Baby potatoes simmered in a creamy yet vegan tomato based sauce.
• Vegatable Jalfrezi - Mix vegetables in a tomato based sauce.
• Baby Corn and Capsicum Masala - Baby corn and capsicum cooked in a restaurant style masala gravy made with browned onions.

Baby Corn Masala

Semi-dry North Indian style curry made with Baby Corn tossed in a tomato based masala gravy.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

18-20 Baby corn cobs
1 large Onion
1 large Tomato
1 tsp Ginger Paste
1 tsp Garlic Paste
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Coriander Powder
1/2 tsp Kitchen King Masala or Garam Masala
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds or Jeera
4-5 tsp Oil
1/4 cup Water
Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Cut the baby corn cobs into chunks.
Heat 1-2 tsp of oil in a pan. Once it is hot, add the baby corn and stir fry for 3-4 minutes.
Remove from heat and keep aside.
Chop the onion finely and puree the tomato.
Heat the remaining oil and add the cumin seeds.
Once the cumin seeds brown slightly, add the onions and fry until translucent.
Add the ginger and garlic paste and fry for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
Add the tomato puree and cook on low heat for 5-6 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Add all the spices and salt. Mix well. Cook on low heat for another 3-4 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Add the fried baby corn and the water. Cook on medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with Rotis.

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Restaurant Style Dal Fry | How to make Dhal Fry

I simply love Dal... Especially the restaurant kind. You know, with that hint of ginger and fragrance of the garlic combined with the slight heat from the green chilli and tartness of the tomatoes?

Have you had a tiring day cleaning that cupboard or working on your taxes? Do you crave comfort food? How would you like a warm bowl of hearty, filling and guilt-free healthy Dal? That's my go-to comfort food when I'm short for time, hungry (cranky too...) and tired. Some warm dal with white rice and a side of mango pickle. Yummm... Getting the picture? 

As much as I love dal with rice, my love for Dal-Roti is even greater. Almost a must-order when we visit a restaurant. I almost always order Dal with roti in restaurants, mostly because they get it spot on and with all that spicy food on the table, sometimes you need something to tone it down. 

There are so many ways in which you can make dal, the simplest being with just a tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chilli or you can try this recipe for a more flavorful version.

If you remember the universal truths from my previous post - Avarekalu Uppit . This dal fry totally satisfies that truth. It is one of the basic Indian dishes your mom will expect you to know how to cook.

Dal is also probably the simplest Indian dish you can make and let me tell you the biggest plus point - You cannot mess it up!!! Well, as long as you are tasting for salt along the way, that is. And if you by chance did mess up, worry not, it is equally easy to fix it too.

Dal or Dhal can me made from any type of lentil, although there are a few popular ones based on the region. North Indians make dal from Chana Dal or Moong Dal while the South Indians swear by the Toor Dal. You can make this recipe with any other type of lentil or dal you have and it will taste just as good. Promise!!!

If you liked this Dal Fry recipe, you may also like:

• Pancharangi Dal - Curry made with 5 different types of lentils.
• Heerekai Tove - Dal with ridgegourd pieces.
• Dal Makhani - Creamy and rich dal made with black lentils.
• Spinach or Palak Dal - Dal flavored with spinach.

Restaurant Syle Dal Fry

Dal or Pigeon Pea Lentils cooked in restaurant style. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Toor Dal or Arhar Dal or Pigeon Pea Lentils
1 Onion
1 Tomato
1-2 Green Chilli
1 tsp Garlic Paste
1 tsp Ginger Paste
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds or Jeera
1 pinch Asafoetida or Hing
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
8-10 Curry leaves
2-3 tsp Oil
Water as required
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Wash the dal at least twice.
Pressure cook the dal in 1.5 cups of water until done.
Mash the dal and keep aside.
Chop the onion and tomato finely.
Chop or slit the green chilli.
Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they start spluttering, add the cumin seeds.
Add the onion, ginger paste, garlic paste and green chilli and fry until the onions are slightly browned.
Add the curry leaves and fry for 1 minute.
Add the tomatoes and fry for 2-3 minutes until they become soft.
Add the turmeric powder and the asafoetida powder and mix well.
Add in the cooked dal, salt and water as required. Adjust the water according to the consistency you desire.
Simmer for 5-6 minutes.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or rotis.

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Avarekalu Uppit | How to make Hyacinth Beans Upma

Avarekalu Uppit or Upma is a basic South Indian breakfast made by cooking toasted semolina in a vegetable broth containing boiled Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans.

I had a nice chat with one of my friend's in the bus yesterday. We were chatting away about food, we are both obsessed foodies and were super hungry by the time we reached halfway, thanks to our little chitter chatter. During our extremely animated food talk, we realized some universal truths:

•  "What to cook?" is a more exhausting question than actually cooking that "What" on a daily basis
•  Every Indian mother thinks their children should stop cooking "Special" dishes and learn to make the basic mundane daily food.

Do you agree with me? Or have some more universal truths? Leave me a comment and we can discuss it in length.

"What to cook next week?" is a regular question I ask myself and the people around me every weekend so I can stock up on the raw material. And pretty much every woman I ask, asks me back the same question. Sigh. 

And the second point takes me back almost 15 years in time when I was still living with my parents and had recently discovered I love to cook. I'd flip through the magazines at the library and find some new recipe and rush home to try it. And my mom had just the same response my friend's mom had - Learn to cook basic everyday food and then learn the "Specials". 

The wisdom in those words dawned on me much later in life when I moved to Bangalore for a job and had to eat out everyday. I craved for simple home cooked meals like my mom made. So now I balance my simple meals with my special meals. And sometimes, I mix the two.

This Avarekalu Uppit is my version of special and simple, all combined together. Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans are extremely seasonal and make their appearance for a short time in the winter. Imagine my surprise when I found street vendors selling it at this time of the year. I had to pick them up. Addition of avarekalu made my simple uppit, special for me. 

Avarekalu is a local name for Hyacinth beans. They have a very subtle delicate flavor. In winter, there is a fest dedicated just for Avarekalu in Bangalore where the creativity of the chefs is displayed as they make anything and everything using avarekalu. Ah! Simple special moments in life!!!

Uppit or Upma is a dish usually had for breakfast in South India. It is made my cooking toasted semolina or rava in a vegetable broth. You can make uppit with just onions and tomatoes or load it up with veggies like carrots, peas, green beans, cabbage, capsicum or like in this recipe - Avarekalu. To make a simple Avarekalu Uppit, you can skip all the other vegetables except the avarekalu, onion and the tomato.

You may also like to check out the recipes for Uppit/Upma or Avarekalu Saaru.

Avarekalu Uppit or Hyacinth Beans Upma

Avarekalu Uppit or Upma is a basic South Indian breakfast made by cooking toasted semolina in a vegetable broth containing boiled Avarekalu or Hyacinth beans.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup Semolina or Rava or Sooji
1/2 cup Avarekalu
1 small Carrot
6-8 Green Beans
1 small Potato
1 Onion
1 small Tomato
1 sprig Curry leaves
1-2 Green Chilli
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
2.5 cups Water
4-5 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
1 tsp Lemon juice
2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves for garnish
1 Tbsp grated fresh Coconut for garnish

Method:

In a kadhai or pan, toast the rava for 4-5 minutes on low heat until fragrant.
Chop the onion, beans, carrot, potato, tomato and the chillies.
Heat oil in a kadhai and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add the curry leaves.
Immediately add the onions and green chillies and fry until the onions are translucent.
Add the other vegetables along with the avarekalu to the kadhai and stir for 1-2 minutes.
Add the water and cover and cook until the avarekalu and the beans are cooked.
Add salt.
Add the rava while stirring continuously to avoid forming lumps.
Cover and cook on low heat for 3-4 minutes.
Turn off the heat and allow the uppit to rest for another 5 minutes.
Now add the lemon juice and garnish with coriander and coconut and mix well.
Serve hot.

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Cucumber Pakoda or Khire ka Pakoda

Cucumber Pakoda or Khira Pakoda is my latest offering in the junk-food-meets-healthy-food recipes.

I've grown up on cooked cucumbers more than uncooked ones. I know, not a lot of you have heard of cooking cucumbers. But if you are from around Mangalore, you know your cucumbers well. My mom used cucumbers in sambar, palya, kadabu and my favorite -Akki Rotti.

I've recently started experimenting with cucumbers. I've made Cucumber Dhokla recently. But never in my wildest thoughts had I imagined I would be making Cucumber Pakodas and ENJOYING it too !!!

I was introduced to them recently at a temple that refrains from using root vegetables. I was unaware of this fact and very unsuspectingly ate it assuming they were potato pakodas. I was pleasantly surprised that they were cucumber. I have been waiting to make them since then. Saturday was the perfect day. It was raining. Well, it'd been raining the whole last week, and heavily, I must add. Eating pakodas and sipping hot tea is my favorite thing to do when it rains.

So on Saturday, I dragged my bean bag as close to the balcony, that little spray of rain on my face gets me all excited. Took my plate of cucumber pakodas and my steaming hot cup of tea and plonked on it. I also had this really exciting English Regency romance novel by Sophia Nash that made a perfect read considering the stormy weather outside. Ah! Simple pleasures of life. 

Let's get back to the Cucumber Pakoda. This pakoda is made just like all the other pakodas, only this time instead of an onion or a potato, we dip sliced cucumber into the batter and fry it. I used regular cucumbers that we use in salads. Not the Mangalore Cucumber. Preferably, use something that has a lower water content to get an even tastier pakoda.

The batter is very simple. Take some gram flour or besan and add salt, red chilli powder, salt and water to get a smooth batter. The consistency of the batter should be thick enough to coat the cucumbers. I added ajwain or carom seeds as I love the flavor in pakodas. You can skip this or replace it with coriander powder or cumin seeds. I also added a pinch of baking soda, this can be avoided too. 

Sprinkle chat masala while serving or serve it with some delicious mint coriander chutney.

Send me an email or leave me a comment on this Post or Facebook or Tweet to me if you tried these awesome pakodas. I love hearing from my readers, so write to me.

Cucumber Pakodas or Khire ka Pakoda

Cucumber slices dipped in a batter made of besan or gram flour and spices and deep fried until golden brown.

Recipe Type:  Appetizer
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

1 Cucumber
4-5 Tbsp Besan or Gram Flour
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/4 tsp Ajwain seeds or Carom seeds
1/2 cup Water
Salt to taste
Pinch of Baking soda
Oil to fry
1/2 tsp Chat Masala(Optional)

Method:

Slice the cucumber into thin slices.
Mix together the besan, red chilli powder, ajwain seeds, baking soda and salt.
Add water by the spoonfuls until you get a batter of desired consistency. The batter should be thick enough to coat the cucumbers.
Heat oil in a deep pan or kadhai. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small spoonful of batter in the oil. If it immediately rises to the top, then the oil is ready for frying the pakodas.
Dip the cucumbers in the batter and carefully drop them into the oil.
Cook them on medium heat until one side is golden brown. Flip the pakodas and cook until the other side is done.
It takes around 3-5 minutes per pakoda. Cook them in batches and do not crowd the pan.
Sprinkle some chat masala over them and serve hot with mint coriander chutney or ketchup.

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Instant Ragi Dosa

Continuing with my Instant recipes with this Instant Ragi Dosa. It is an instant dosa or crepe  made with rava or semolina and ragi flour (finger millet flour).

As much as I love Bangalore, I also love getting out of Bangalore once in a while. There are but only a few roads that lead out. One of them is the Mysore road. I'm not too fond of the Bangalore-Mysore highway. Too many speed breakers and way too many vehicles. Barely feels like you have left Bangalore. But it has some silver lining, in the form of the various eating joints all along the way. There is this Kamat restaurant on the way where I first ate the Ragi Dosa. And it was love at first bite. Crispy dosa served with some coconut chutney. I'd never imagined Ragi could taste sooo good.

I'd had ragi in the form of Ragi Rotti or the Ragi Mudde, but never the Ragi Dosa. I simply loved it and when we came back, I was off to buy Ragi Flour to make it. Ragi Dosa is made exactly like the Rava Dosa, only the rice flour is replaced with ragi flour.

Ragi Dosa is perfect for those mornings when you haven't planned ahead for breakfast. All you do is mix stuff together and throw them on a hot griddle or tava. Yup no spreading it with love like the regular Dosa or pancake, you have to throw it on and let it take the shape it likes. No obsessing over the round shape. 

It is also perfect for that 5pm hunger of mine. A great alternative to all that fried stuff around. 

Making awesomely crispy Ragi Dosa requires patience, something I lack, so sometimes I'm just okay with soft ones. But I have the following tips to making a great Ragi Dosa. The same work for Rava Dosa as well.

• Mix and make the dosa immediately. Do not leave it to soak. Soaking allows the rava or semolina to soak up all the water and it won't get crisp.
• The batter needs to be thin. Make a few and try, you will know if you need to add more water. The consistency should be similar to that of buttermilk.
• Pour the batter when the tava or the griddle is really hot and then lower the heat and leave it to crisp up.
• Don't skimp on the oil. The dosa needs oil to crisp up, at least 1-2 tsp per Dosa. Oil-less Ragi Dosa is just not as tasty. 
• I add onions, curry leaves, cumin seeds, coriander leaves and chilli. A well seasoned Ragi Dosa does not even need any accompaniments, it tastes delicious on its own. All these are optional and you can leave them out to make a plain Ragi Dosa

Buttermilk consistency Batter

Spoon the mixture on a hot tava. Flip when browned.

Instant Ragi Dosa

Instant dosa made with Ragi flour and Semolina

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                5-6 Dosas

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Semolina (Rava)
1/4 cup Ragi flour
1 Tbsp All purpose flour (Maida)
1 Tbsp Yogurt (Curd)
1 small Onion (finely chopped)
5-6 Curry leaves
2 Tbsp Coriander leaves (chopped)
1 tsp Red chilli powder
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1.5 cups Water
Salt
Oil for frying

Method:

Mix together all the ingredients except oil and whisk until free of lumps
Heat a tava and grease it
Pour spoonfuls of the batter on the tava
Allow it to cook on low flame
Spoon oil on the dosa
Once the dosa is cooked, it will leave the sides of the tava, else use a spatula to loosen the dosa from the tava
Flip and cook for 1 minute
Serve hot with chutney

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Instant Paneer Tikka (Vegan Option Available)

I absolutely LOVE these Instant Paneer Tikkas. Just what I needed to brighten up a really boring week.

I've been bored to death this week. A continuing bus strike meant me not going to office. I had to work from home. Alone!! So boring. I miss talking to people. All alone at home means I talk to myself or my TV talks to me. Not so entertaining, really.

I love meeting up my friends at work in the morning over an extended tea break and chatting away. We talk about everything, from real serious technical stuff to light hearted sitcoms. I miss these "Tea Sessions", as we call it, the most. It's my best part of the day in office. There are times I go to office early just so as to reach in time for Tea.

So as I prepared myself for yet another ALONE Tea Session (Sigh), I decided to add some spice into it with something so tasty that I forget I am alone.

When I am dull or bored, I cook. Cooking wakes me up like nothing else can. And especially trying something new is always so much more exciting. I looked through my fridge and I had - Capsicum and Paneer and some Cherry Tomatoes. An idea formed. Voila - Instant Paneer Tikkas.

These Paneer Tikkas need no overnight marination or complicated setup. They took hardly 30 minutes from start to finish. Now that's INSTANT in my dictionary.

I used what I had in my fridge - Capsicum, Tomato and Paneer. You can use anything with the Paneer. The usual combinations are Capsicum, Onion or Tomato. But you can get creative and may be pop in a mushroom or a thick slice of Zucchini.

I liked the idea of individual sized portions, hence I used toothpicks. You can use real skewers to pile on all your favorite things on it. For it to be as Instant as mine, use quick cooking ingredients only, If you want to skewer on Potato or Corn, you may probably want to parboil them first. that makes it a little less instant-ty, but definitely not any less tasty.

For the marination, use thick yogurt or curd, I tend to always have at least a bowl of homemade yogurt in the fridge, so no worries there for me. If the curd or yogurt you have is thin, then place it in a tea strainer or a muslin cloth for around half hour to let the whey drain off and you will have nice thick curd. I've used a bunch of spice powders to made the marinade. If you want it to be even more instant, use store bought Tandoori Masala and it will taste just as good.

Paneer Tikka is always grilled. I grilled mine in the oven. But if you do not have any means of grilling it, then you can shallow fry them. Just don't cook it for very long, they will lose that silky smooth texture of the paneer.

If you are a Vegan, you can replace the Paneer with Tofu and the yogurt with some Lime juice.

Instant Paneer Tikkas

Paneer, Capsicum and Tomato coated in an instant marinade of spices and grilled. 

Recipe Type:  Snacks / Appetizer
Cuisine:            North Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:                9 Tikkas

Ingredients:

For the Tikka:

100 gms Paneer (use Tofu for a vegan option)
1 small Capsicum or Bell Pepper
1 Cherry Tomato per Tikka (Optional)
3/4-1 tsp Oil per Paneer Tikka

For the Marinade:

2 Tbsp thick Yogurt or Curd (use 1-2 tsp lime juice for a vegan option)
1.5 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1.5 Tbsp Besan or Gram Flour
1/4 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Coriander powder
1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/4 tsp Garam Masala
1/4 tsp Amchur or Dried Mango Powder (Skip if using lime juice or if the yogurt is very sour)
1/4 tsp Chaat Masala (Optional)
A pinch of Hing or Asafoetida
Salt to taste

Method:

Mix together all the ingredients for the marinade.
Cut the Paneer into individual bite sized cubes. Cut the Capsicum to the same size as the Paneer.
Add the paneer and capsicum to the marinade and mix well.
Skewer the capsicum, paneer and the cherry tomato onto the toothpick.
Place them in a greased grilling sheet or pan.
Spoon a little oil over each of the Paneer Tikkas.
Grill them for 10-15 minutes, turning them every 3-4 minutes.
They are ready when they char slightly.
Serve hot with some mint chutney.

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Instant Rava Idli

I had an INDULGENT weekend. I-N-D-U-L-G-E-N-T!!!

I'm spelling out stuff, so I guess you get the picture.

Spicy Biryani lunch, Cheesy Pasta for dinner, Deep fried Bread Rolls for snacks and a heavenly TRIPLE Chocolate Milkshake, I’ve had it all. And I cooked none of it. Nada. 

I’m sure it will take me a month to work it off. Sigh!!

All those guilty pleasures made me want to eat a healthier breakfast this Monday morning. I’d never been a Rava Idli fan, regular Idli, give it to me anyday and I’ll eat it. But I wondered why would one eat that hard lump of rava (semolina) for any meal? This was until I made my own.

Eye opener – Rava Idli does not have to be a hard lump. It can be soft like the regular rice Idlis. It can actually be delicious.

All credit goes to Gee, my sis. Someday she got the MTR instant rava idli packet and made it and repeatedly kept telling me how good they had become. MTR is a legendary restaurant in Bangalore that actually invented the Rava Idli when there was food shortage during a war. A place you should visit for some rich South Indian food.

The restaurant rocks, but I won’t accept defeat from a packet. Na-ah.

So I made just to show her that she can make equally good Rava Idlis with just the ingredients she has at home. I had no plans of liking them at all. It was just a competition with the packet, that’s IT. (I'm competitive that way). At least that’s what I thought, until I ate them. I mean if I make them, I have to taste it, right? And what a pleasant surprise it was. Soft smooth Rava Idli. And so easy to make as well. No overnight soaking, no overnight fermenting. Just mix and steam.

I'm always on a lookout for breakfast recipes. And they obviously have to be HEALTHY and EASY to make. These Rava Idlis satisfy all my criteria. So they have been back on the menu time and again since that day. 

Some additional steps that you may have to do if making your own healthy Rava Idlis, and it is totally worth it:

• Toast the Rava / Semolina - You can either toast it when you decide to make the Rava Idlis or you can toast the rava whenever you have time and store it. Toasting helps increase the shelf life of rava. You can then use it instantly while making Upma too.
• Grate a carrot, Chop a chilli - Yup, you will need to grate a carrot and chop some chilli and coriander. 
• Tempering - Heat a little oil, throw in some lentils (dals), mustard seeds, curry leaves and chilli. This is seriously a 10 seconds job.
• Mix once - Mix tempering with the rava.

The rest is exactly like the packet. Mix in the ingredients. Allow it to rest for some time. Then steam them as usual. Ta-da - Instant soft smooth Rava Idli.

Instant Rava Idli

Popular South Indian instant steamed breakfast cakes made from semolina or rava and yogurt.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                8 Idlis

Ingredients:

1.25 cups Semolina or Upma Rava
1 cup Yogurt (Curd)
1 small Carrot
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
2-3 tsp Oil
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Urad Dal
1 tsp Chana Dal
8-10 Curry leaves
1 Tbsp chopped Coriander leaves
1 chopped Green Chilli
1/2 cup Water
Salt to taste 
Oil to grease

Method:

Toast the rava in a kadhai on low flame for 8-10 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning. Remove it into a large bowl once done.
Heat oil in the kadhai and add mustard seeds to it.
Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the urad dal and the chana dal.
Once the dals brown slightly, add the curry leaves and chilli. Pour this tempering to the toasted rava.
Mix well and allow to cool.
Once the rava has cooled, add grated carrot, yogurt, chopped coriander, baking soda and salt and mix well.
Add water by the spoonful. The consistency of the batter should be similar to the regular idli batter.
Leave aside for 10-15 minutes.
In the meanwhile, prepare the idli steamer. The water in the steamer should be boiling when we put in the idli, else the idli will become hard.
Now grease the idli mould, and pour in the batter.
Steam for 10-15 minutes.
Serve hot with chutney or sagu.

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OneTeaspoonOfLife is a Yummly Publisher

This post is unlike the rest of my posts. There is no recipe in here, there is no story in here. I wanted you all to know OneTeaspoonOfLife is now a Yummly Publisher. Yay!!!

Yummly puts all the recipes in the world in your pocket (in their own words).

The Yum button has been around for over a month now. You can click it to add my recipes to your own Recipe Box on Yummly.

My Yummly personal page will also have all my yummy recipes, you can Yum them from there as well.

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Gobi Manchurian Pizza

You heard that right! Gobi Manchurian Pizza!!!

Your favorite starter "Gobi Manchurian" as a Pizza topping. Dinner does not get better than this!!!

I try to cook healthy an eat healthy most of the times. My regular lunch or dinner is chapati with some vegetables. But then, there are some days (or nights) that all I want to do is indulge. Friday night was just that - Indulgence Night. 

This Pizza was a product of circumstances. Seriously, I had no choice. Na ah. 

I had (still have) lots of cauliflower. I had Mozzarella left over from my UBER-ly delicious Stuffed Potato Skins. Remember those? And I had a small little Capsicum growing in my pot. TA-DA - Gobi Manchurian Pizza.

I love LOVE Gobi Manchurian. The chef that invented it was pure Genius. What a perfect starter to any meal! At any given time, in a restaurant, I believe at least 50% of the people order Gobi Manchurian as a starter. Except in those fancy fine-dines. I wonder what people order there.

I've been told this dish - the Gobi Manchurian Pizza is not my invention (Darn those eye-opener friends!!). To my credit, this Gobi Manchurian Pizza recipe is totally mine. I made Gobi Manchurian the way I always make it, the only difference being I did not simmer the cauliflower with the sauce, instead I just layered them on the Pizza base.

The Pizza was a super hit. This Gobi Manchurian Pizza brings together the best of 2 cuisines (or is it 3) - Indo-Chinese and Italian.

I'm sure everyone knows about Italian Cuisine and Pizzas. No intro needed there. 

Now, the Gobi Manchurian is a purely Indian take on Chinese cuisine. It consists of batter coated cauliflower florets that are deep fried until they are crispy golden brown (I suggest you make extra, they taste awesome just like that). If that wasn't enough of BANG, there is the sauce. The sauce is soy-based and is full of flavors of soy sauce, chilli, ginger and garlic. Getting an idea?

To make the Gobi Manchurian Pizza, I made a whole wheat and honey pizza base. That is 100% whole wheat, nothing else. I have not followed the traditional way of making a pizza base - 2 rises, then either rolling or stretching. I have done it more like - rise, roll, rise. This gave me a nice thick base. If you plan on making a thin crust, then you may need to adjust the dough quantities to match that and your pan size. My directions below are for a 10" thick base Pizza. You can also freeze part of the dough for a later day.

After making the base, I then layered with that delicious spicy sauce and dropped the cauliflower all around. Grated some cheese and VOILA! the Gobi Manchurian Pizza is already ready to be devoured.

I know this does not sound like a weekday kinda meal, when you come back from office battling all that traffic and the rains. The number of ingredients and the number of steps sound daunting. When you start making it you will see that the number of unique ingredients isn't really much. And I've written a very detailed recipe to make your cooking easier. I assure you, there is a time and a place to make this Pizza. I actually made it in like 2 hrs on a Friday night. And the 2 hrs was all rising of the base. The actual cooking took way less.

This Gobi Manchurian Pizza is perfect for you:

If you like quirky fusion food that is delicious.

If you love Asian or Indo-Chinese flavors

If you love Pizza

Gobi Manchurian Pizza

Fusion pizza topped with fried cauliflower and Manchurian sauce. 

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            Fusion
Prep Time:     2 Hours
Cook time:     50 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

For the Pizza Base:

2 cups Whole wheat flour or Atta
1 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1 Tbsp Honey
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp Olive Oil
2-3 cups warm Water
1 tsp Salt

For the Gobi / Cauliflower:

2.5 cups Cauliflower florets
4-5 Tbsp Cornflour
1.5 tsp Soy Sauce
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1 tsp Chilli Sauce
1/2 tsp Tomato Ketchup
1/2-1 cup Water
Salt to taste
Oil to fry

For the Manchurian Sauce:

Leftover batter from the Gobi / Cauliflower
1 Onion
1/2 Capsicum
1 Tbsp finely chopped Garlic
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1 tsp Soy sauce
1 tsp Chilli sauce
2 tsp Oil
1 cup Water
Salt to taste

For assembling:

Pizza Base
Fried Gobi / Cauliflower
Manchurian Sauce
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp chopped Coriander
Mozzarella or Pizza cheese

Method:

To make the Pizza Base:

Add the active dry yeast to 1 cup of warm water along with the honey. Allow it to rest for 5-10 minutes.
Once it is foamy, add it to the whole wheat flour along with 1 Tbsp olive oil and salt and knead into a smooth dough. Knead for around 5-10 minutes.
Now coat the dough with the remaining olive oil and place in a clean bowl. Cover the bowl loosely with a plate of a towel and keep in a warm place to rise. It should double up in size. Mine took around 1 hour.
Once it is doubled in size, punch it down, and roll it into a pizza base. Roll according to if you want a thick base or a thin base. I made a thick 10" base.
Oil the pan in which you will cook the base, and place the rolled out base, prick it with a fork. Cover and keep it in a warm place for its 2nd rise for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200 degree Celsius and bake the base for 12-15 minutes.

To make the fried Gobi / Cauliflower:

This can be made when the base is kept for rising.
In a large bowl, mix together the cornflour, ginger garlic paste, soy sauce, chilli sauce, tomato ketchup, salt and add water by the spoonfuls. We need a medium consistency batter that can coat the cauliflower. I did not need the full cup of Water.
Heat oil in a frying pan. I shallow fried the florets, you can deep fry them.
Once the oil is hot, dip the cauliflower in the batter and drop them in the oil.
Fry until golden brown and crispy on the outside and the cauliflower is cooked on the inside.

To make the Manchurian Sauce:

Heat oil in a pan and add sliced onions and chopped garlic. Fry until the onions are translucent.
Add the sliced capsicum and fry for another 1-2 minutes.
Add the leftover batter from the cauliflower. If there is none leftover, mix together 1 Tbsp cornflour in 1/4 cup of water and add it. You may need to increase the quantity of the sauces accordingly.
Add the ginger garlic paste, soy sauce, tomato ketchup, chilli sauce, salt and 1/4 cup of water and mix well. Add more sauce if required.
Allow it to cook 3-4 minutes. You may need to add more water in as cornflour thickens on cooking.

To make the Pizza:

Spread the sauce on the base.
Place the fried cauliflower all on top of the sauce.
Sprinkle the chopped coriander leaves.
Grate cheese to cover the pizza.
Drizzle over the Olive Oil.
Bake in a 200 degree Celsius preheated oven for 5-8 minutes until the cheese melts.
Serve hot.

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