POHA

During his bachelor life Sush used to cook breakfast every weekends and when he calls me on weekends I often ask him what he had for breakfast. Most of the time his answer was poha. I used to wonder what this poha was and was under the impression that it was something special and I never asked him what it was …
Months passed by and after our marriage one day he wanted to cook poha for me and I was hopefully waiting to taste this wonderful recipe. Finally poha was ready and when I tasted all my anticipation and imaginations crushed . It was the modified version of AVILU UPMAV my grandmother used to make !!!

Ingredients

Poha (Avil or Rice flakes) -250gms

Onion -2

Green chillies 4-5

Turmeric powder (a pinch)

Salt
Mustard seeds

Redchillies 3-4

peanuts 4-5 tablespoon

Curry leaves (few)

Preparation

In a colander take poha and soak poha in water . Drain the water completely.

In a pan sputter mustard seeds and add redchillies. Add chopped onions to this pan and saute till onions turn pink and then add chopped green chillies and curry leaves to it. Finally add soaked poha , turmeric powder and salt. Cover the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes.Turn off the fire and garnish with peanuts.

CHERUPAYAR CURRY( MOONG DHAL CURRY)

My hubby always prefer cherupayar curry along with puttu, for me I like both kadala curry and cherupayar curry . I also like to eat puttu with bananas...I put some sugar and also a bit of ghee with bananas...Ghee makes puttu very tasty and I never think about the calories when I am having tasty food :) But afterwards guilt starts haunting me. I start thinking about work outs. Most of the times such good thoughts will bury deep inside without any affect.But few times I tried work outs ,used to do it regularly for one week and then again I will be back to square 1. In malyalam there is an old saying "Shankaran pinneyum thengil thanne "

INGREDIENTS

Moong dhal _1/4 cup

shallots - 6-7

green chillies - 3 nos

Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp

turmeic powder - 1/4 tsp

Pepper powder - 3/4 tsp

Curry leaves

Mustard seeds

Ground coconut 1/4 cup

salt

PREPARATION

Soak moong dhal overnight and pressure cook the dhal adding chopped shallots. Add red chilly powder, turmeric powder, salt, pepper powder, curry leaves, green chillies and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the ground coconut and when it starts to boil turn off the fire.In a pan sputter mustard seeds and add redchillies. Add this to the curry.

PARIPPU AND MURINGA CURRY

Weekends are always busy for me...I dont know how the time goes..After friday night when I open my eyes it will be monday...Oh I hate monday mornings..

Parippu with Muringa is a Nadan curry that I make...I love the combination of parippu and muringa so much...Dont think that there is any other veggie that goes so well parippu.

INGREDIENTS

Toor Dhal - 1/4 cup
Drumsticks 3
Onion 1
green chillies 3
curry leaves
Ground coconut - 1/4 cup
Turmeric powder-1/4 tsp
Red chilly powder -1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds

Red chilly - 3 no

PREPARATION

Pressure cook Dhal adding chopped onions along with it. Add drumsticks, green chillies,red chilly powder,turmeric powder and salt to dhal and cook for 5 minutes or until done.Finally add the ground coconut and when it starts to boil turn off the fire. Heat oil in a pan and sputter mustard seeds,add red chillies and curry leaves to it and add to the curry.

GINGER GARLIC FISH FRY

I usually make fish fry by marinating fish in redchilly powder, turmeric powder and salt.The easiest fish fry!! This fry is not very special..only difference is that I have added few more ingredients which gives the fry a good aroma ...

INGREDIENTS

Fish 4-5 pieces

Red chilly powder -1 1/2 tsp

Turmeric salt - 1/4 tsp

Salt -1 tsp

Ginger- Garlic paste- 1 tablespoon

Curry leaves (chopped) 1 tablespoon

Ani seeds (perum jeerakam) - 1 1/2 teaspoon

PREPARATION

Marinate fish in the above masala and keep it aside for 1/2 an hour.

Fry the fish in coconut oil.

A PIECE OF MY ART WORK

After my graduation I had a few months gap before I joined for p.g, so I joined an art school to learn some art work which is one of my favourite interest. I learned flower making, nib painting,glass painting,metal embossing ,ceramic painting and fabric painting .I am posting an image of my metal embossing work . It took me nearly 20 days to complete this work.

GODHAMBHU PUTTU

This is another recipe which I got from my mother in law. Before marriage I hardly knew cooking. Only thing I used to do was making tea and rolling chapathies. So after marriage when I moved with hubby I used to call my mom almost daily  to ask for the recipes, Slowly I learned basic recipes from my mom. Thank god for one thing whatever I cooked even before I knew cooking my hubby ate without any complaint.... :)

During my college days I went to my friends house for a visit and her mom gave me this godhambhu puttu ,before that I never had that puttu before.My mother doesn't make it.I liked it very much but I didn't ask her mom for the recipe because I was not keen to cook at that time.

Hubby told me that his mother used to make this puttu at home and it was just like rice puttu. so I decided to try it like our rice puttu,but it was an utter flop!! First time when I tried it puttu podi was so wet and big big lumps came out and I couldn't break it,so I added more water and made dosa,dosa also didn't came well as there was lumps :( I tried one more time but it was again a flop so I dropped the idea to make puttu.

After a few months my mother in law came to stay with us for few months and at that time she told me that there is a measurement for adding water and atta.We have to boil water and then add the atta to boiling water and stir continously so that lumps doesn't form. Finally I learned to make godhambnu puttu.

Ingredients

Wheat flour - 3 cup
Water - 1 cup
Grated coconut
Salt

Preparation

Boil water adding salt ,when it starts to boil add wheat flour and stir continously.Then take the puttu maker and layer grated coconut and puttu podi and steam it for 5 minutes.

MALABAR FISH CURRY

Ingredients

Fish - 1/2 kg

Grated coconut - 1 1/2 cup  ( half of a coconut)

Chopped Ginger - 2 teaspoon

Green chillies - 3-4

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Red chilli powder -1/2 tablespoon 

Kashmiri red chilli powder - 1 tablespoon

Salt to taste

curry leaves - 3-4 strands

Cocum - 2 small pieces 

Fenugreek powder - 1/8 tsp

Preparation

Add turmeric powder to grated coconut and grind it into  a very smooth paste in a mixie.

Add coconut paste , chopped ginger, green chillies, curry leaves, cocum ,chilli powders and salt to the chatti/claypot.

Add enough water to this  and boil.. When it starts to boil ,add fish and cook for 5- 10 minutes.

Add a pinch of fenugreek powder and a tsp of coconut oil and remove from fire.

Garnish with fresh curry leaves.

CHICKEN BIRIYANI

INGREDIENTS

For marinade

Chicken - 1kilo

Curd -2 tablespoon

Lime juice - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1/4 teasppon

Red chilly powder - 2 teaspoon

Coriander Powder - 2 teaspoon

Chicken masala - 2 teaspoon

Salt

Marinate chicken with all the above ingredients and keep it aside for 1/2 an hour

For Gravy

Oil - 1/2 cup

Onion 5-6 (medium)

Tomato -2

Green chillies 4-5

Chopped Ginger - 1 tablespoon

Garlic paste - 1 tablespoon

Garam masala - 1 teaspoon

Pepper powder - 1 teaspoon

For Rice

Basmathi rice- 3 cup

Ghee - 2 tablespoon

Onion - 1 medium

Cinnamon sticks 3-4

Cardamom pods 4-5

Cloves - 4-5

Lime juice- 1 tablespoon

Salt

Water - 6 cup

For garnishing

Onion - 1

Ghee - 1 table spoon

Cashew nuts - 25 gm

Kismis - 25gm

Coriander leaves

PREPARATION

Chicken masala

Take Oil in a pan and saute the onions till it becomes slight brown in colour. Add chopped tomatoes,green chillies,chopped ginger and garlic paste and saute for few minutes. Add the marinated chicken and cook . Add pepper powder and garam masala to the gravy and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Rice

Heat ghee in a pan and add cinnamom sticks,cardamom pods,Cloves and chopped Onion.Saute the onions till it become slight brown. Add salt and water to the pan and boil.To the boiling water add basmathi rice and a tablespoon of lemon juice.Cook the rice.

For Garnishing

Fry onions in oil till it become dark brown

Saute cashewnuts and kismis separately in ghee

Mixing

In a serving dish spread the cooked rice as a layer. Above that layer put the chicken masala and above it add fried onions,cashewnuts and kismis. Repeat the layering. Finally garnish it with fresh coriander leaves.

VEGETABLE STEW

INGREDIENTS

Onion - 2 no
Potato - 3 no
carrot - 2 nos
Green peas 1/4 cup
Green chillies 2-3 no
Chopped Ginger -1 teaspoon
cinnamon -2 sticks
cloves -3-4
cardamom pods- 3-4
Pepper powder- 1 -2 teaspoon
coconut milk - one cup
Ghee - one table spoon
Salt to taste
Coraiander leaves

PREPARATION
Cook all the vegetables adding chopped ginger,chopped onions, green chillies and salt. While cooking add cinnamon sticks,pepper powder,cloves and cardamoms. When all the vegetables are cooked add coconut milk and cook for few more minutes. Switch off the gas when it starts to boil.

For garnishing

Chop onion leangthwise and saute them in ghee till it becomes brown .Garnish the curry with onions and chopped coriander leaves.

Serve it with Palappam,Chapathy etc

BISCUIT PUDDING

INGREDIENTS

Biscuit -2oogm

Icing sugar- one cup

cashew nut- 50 gms( grind it in milk into a thick paste)

milk (1/2 cup)

milk maid(1/2 tin )

butter 100gm(unsalted)

Grated chocolate

fresh cream 200gm

icing sugar (one cup)

PREPARATION

Beat butter,grinded cashewnut and icing sugar into a fine paste.

Soak biscuits in the mixture of milk and milkmaid for few minutes and place them in flat bottomed dish.Above that biscuit layer spread the paste of beated mixture. Add some grated chocolate above it.Repeat the process using biscuits , beated mixture and grated chocolate .Keep it in a refrigerator for 2-3 hours.

Beat fresh cream and icing sugar to a fine paste and serve the pudding with this cream.Serving with ice cream is an alternative.

TOMATO CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS
Tomato - 3 no
shallots - 3-4 nos
Onion-1 medium
redchilly powder(1/2 tsp)
Garlic cloves -1 -2
curry leaves ( few)
Salt to taste


PREPARATION

Take oil in a pan and saute onions and shallots for few minutes. Add tomatoes, curry leaves, red chilly powder, crushed garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Let it cool for some time. Add salt and grind. Do not add any water.

Serve with dosa, vada, idly etc

Vellappam/ Appam

Ingredients

Raw rice/ Pacahari - 2 cup

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

cooked rice - 1/2 cup

Instant yeast - 1 tsp

sugar- 2 tsp

salt

Preparation

Soak rice in water for 5-6 hours and grind them with grated coconut and cooked rice adding water.Take luke warm water and dissolve the yeast and add sugar. Add this mixture to the grinded batter. Keep it aside for fermentation for atleast 12 hours. Add salt as per your taste and make soft appams.

Notes

I prefer crispy vellappam, so I cook it longer  to get  cripsy ones, If you like soft ones, just cook on a medium flame until cooked.

BRINJAL PEPPER THORAN

Hi all

I still cant believe I have created a blog.Till yesterday I had no idea about creating a blog.After creating this blog also I dont have much idea about what to post here.I think its better to start with recipes.I love cooking very much and like to try out new recipes.

I will make my recipes more colourful next time,I dont have any picture of my recipe with me right now..Please excuse.

The name of my recipe is Brinjal pepper thoran .I got this recipe from my mother in law.I love this recipe very much...


Here goes the recipe

BRINJAL PEPPER THORAN

Ingredients

Brinjal 1/2 kg( finely chopped)

Onion 1 large

Garlic cloves 4-5(crushed)

curry leaves (1-2 strands)

Grated coconut (2-3 teaspoon)

Pepper powder(1 tablespoon)

turmeric powder( 1/4 tsp)

salt to taste

Preparation

Marinate the finely chopped brinjal with turmeric powder ,pepper powder and salt.Keep it aside for half an hour.

Heat oil in a pan and saute the onions till it become pink in colour.Add the marinated brinjal and crushed garlic cloves to it.Donot add any water.Stir occasionally.Let it cook for 5 - 10 minutes.Add grated coconut to it and stir for few seconds and finally add curry leaves and switch off the burner.