Ragi duddali/finger millet pudding

Ragi Duddali/pudding 

Ragi/ finger millet is a rich source of Calcium, Iron, Protein, Fiber and other minerals. The cereal has low fat content and contains mainly unsaturated fat. It is easy to digest and does not contain gluten; people who are sensitive to gluten can easily consume Finger Millet/Ragi is considered one of the most nutritious cereals. It has different names in local languages. It is known as Ragi in Telugu and Kannada, Kelvaragu/aariyam in Tamil, and Madua/Mangal in Hindi. Ragi is an extremely nutritious cereal and is very beneficial for maintaining a good health. 

                      Ragi could be enjoyed in different forms and preparations. Ragi Roti, Ragi Dosa,Ragi Porridge, Ragi Upma, Ragi Cakes, Ragi Biscuits are few popular dishes of Ragi. Few months back one of my friend prepared dish and i love her dish so much because it was easy and quick to make. whereas my mom used to prepare this by soaking whole Ragi and then she used to grind it, strain the liquid again, straining the milk from Ragi must be done 2-3 times until the milk goes very light ....my god it was a such a long process but when i gone through her recipe i was really amazed and yesterday thought of trying this pudding as my kids wanted to have something sweet so tried this Healthy, filling and yummy, pudding .

Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 15-20 mins
Ingredients

• 1cup Ragi flour
• 3cups Full cream milk
• 3cups Water
• 11/2cup Sugar
• 1/4ts Cardamom powder

Cooking Directions

1. Mix ragi flour,water and milk,make a smooth batter.
2. Now transfer this mixture to a heavy bottomed kadai or pan.
3. Cook the mixture over a low flame,Stirring briskly and continuously till the mixture becomes thick and dark in colour,add cardamom powder,mix it well.
4. Remove from the flame and transfer onto a greased mould or plate.
5. When cool cut into bits.

Konkani style Urad-rava dosa

 

Here's a simple, crispy rava/semolina dosa recipe that can be made instantly.This dosa tastes almost like medu vada,no need of fermenting the batter,just grind the soaked black gram dal and prepare this crispy dosa just like any other dosa

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: Approximately 2 mins for each dosa
Ingredients

• 21/2cups Bombay Rava/semolina
• 3/4 cup Urad dal
• 2 Chopped green chillies
• 1tbsp Chopped fresh coconut pieces
• 1tsp Hing/asafoetida
• 1tbsp Chopped curry leaves

Cooking Directions

1. Soak Urad dal overnight or at least 4-5 hours.
2. Next day morning grind it to smooth paste.
3. Now mix in rava/semolina little at a time to avoid any lumps.Mix it well to make a smooth thick batter using water as required( batter should be thick like idli batter)
4. Add all the remaining ingredients and let the batter stand for 30 minutes.
5. Heat a griddle and pour a ladle full of the batter and lightly spread it to make a 6-7" round pancakes and pour a spoonful of ghee or oil and cover it for a minute.
6. When the one side is cooked add 1/2 a tsp of oil and turn over and cook on a medium flame till crisp and golden
7. serve hot with ginger or Asafoetida chutney.

Tip: you can use fermented urad dal batter but this fresh batter tastes just like our medu vada.So my mom calls it ambado(medu vada) pitta polo

Healthy and delicious Oatmeal-choco smoothie

Smoothies have the added convenience of one-handed drinking--no spoon required,Carry them in a thermos or thermal beverage cup, and they'll stay chilled for hours. They're easy, can be stored in the fridge for several days; and they can be frozen . Oatmeal smoothies are also very filling; have one for breakfast and they will help you fight the hungries all morning.

Prep time: 5-6 mins
Cook time: 0
Yield: 4 cups
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Instant oat meal
• 2tbsp Coco powder
• 2cups Skimmed Milk
• 1 cup Yogurt
• 1/2tsp Cinnamom powder
• 1/2cup chopped banana

Cooking Directions

• Blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth .It only takes a few seconds. The finer your grind them, the smoother your smoothie will be.There is a lot of hidden nutrition that is masked by the sweet flavor of fruit.You can have it anytime of the day.

Mosaru vade/ tayyir vade

South indian style dahi vada/mosaru vade/tayyir vade

Medu vada is a traditional favourite of south indians.It is almost like dahi balle but we do not add any chat masala or any kind of chutney ,it is indispensable part of the menu on festivals and puja days. Now it is  served along with lunch in any functions and marriages.I love the combination of this cool dahi vada which complements well with a full fledged spicy meal and it can be even served as an appetizer .When I generally make vada's for breakfast I prepare one extra batch to make dahi vada's which are generally savored without dahi,plain with ginger chutney.This will be a wonderful food in summer's as we do not like eating hot and spicy food in that hot weather.Even though it is deep fried,as it is soaked in dahi it will be a perfect soothing snack on those hot days.

Ingredients

• 2cups urad dal
• 1/2 litre Curd
• 1 + 1 tsp Chopped ginger
• 2+1 springs curry leaves
• 1/2tsp Asafoetida /Hing
• 3+3 Green chillies chopped
• 2-3 tsp chopped coconut pieces
• 4 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds

Cooking Directions

1. Wash and soak black gram seeds and rice in water for 3-4 hours.
2. Grind them smooth paste by just using 1/2 -3/4 cups of water( do not use too much of water,otherwise the vadas will become soggy and oily )
3. Now add chopped green chillies, coconut pieces, 2 spring roughly chopped curry leaves,asafoetida and salt to taste.Mix it well and keep it aside.
4. Meanwhile prepare curd masala.lightly crush green chillies and ginger using a tbsp of water and strain it and discard the residue
5. Beat yogurt and add sugar, ginger - chilli water and salt to it.
6. Now prepare tadka with oil, mustard seeds and remaining curry leaves and pour it over the curd.If the curd is too thick add some water,this helps in softening vada and helping it to absorb curd masala.
7. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed kadai on medium heat and mean while grease your left palm(or wet your hands) and place little vada mixture and flatten it and make a hole in it and slowly transfer to the right hand and slip it to the hot oil carefully.(You can do this with right hand if you are expertized in it or you can even try patting it on a greased banana leaf or greased plastic sheet).
8. Repeat the same process for the remaining mixture.Drop 4-5 at a time,do not drop in more or else they will stick to each other.
9. Let them fry on medium flame until crisp and golden brown in color on both sides and drop them into the curd mixture and let it soak in it for 10 -15 mins .

Raw plantain cutlets

Plantains are available all year round.I love trying different dishes of these lovely plantains.On the occasion of Navratri i am here with one interesting plantain dish specially for those who avoid onion and garlic,specially during 9 days of durga puja Actually i prepared this with my leftover filling of stuffed capscicum which is one more special dish without onion and garlic.These cutlets turned out to be so delicious.

Prep time: 20-25 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Total time: 40-45 Mins
Yield: 15
Ingredients

• 4 Raw plantain /banana
• 1tbsp Corn flour
• 2tsp Maida/all
• 1tsp finely chopped ginger
• 2 finely chopped green chillies
• 1tsp chilly powder
• 1/2tsp Roasted cumin /jeera seeds
• 1tsp Curry or garam masala powder
• 1tbsp Chopped coriander leaves
• 1tbsp Roasted and crushed ground nuts
• 1/4tsp Asafoetida powder

Cooking Directions

1. Cook the plantains in boiling water for 20 mins on medium flame or till it is soft but not mushy.
2. Peel them and mash them into a smooth mixture while they are still warm.
3. In a pan, heat some oil. Then add cumin seeds, asafoetida/hing and chopped ginger and green chilly ,stir it well.
4. Add some chilly powder and curry powder,mix it well.
5. Now add the mashed plantain,salt and coriander leaves and mix it well in the masala.Cook for a couple of minutes.
6. Turn off the stove and add Roasted and crushed ground nuts and coriander leaves and mix well.
7. Let the mixture cool and shape them into desired shape. Roll the cutlets in corn flour-maida mixture and shallow fry them on a skillet. Fry both sides till they turn golden brown in color.
8. Serve hot with chutney or sauce

Thrimadhuram...

Thrimadhuram ... a special prasadam offered to goddess laxmi

As far as I know, "thrimadhuram" is a "prasada"offering made to God and then distributed to devotees in some temples in south india.Today one of my friend told me exactly what all goes into this.In Thrimadura banana is used as the base and the other 3 ingredients are honey,cardamom and ghee combination that i have prepared today for nivedhya.But,there are other combination also like honey,milk and raisins or jaggery,milk and ghee.

Thrimadhuram is usually a dryish mixture of banana pieces ( of the "Kadali" variety), honey and ghee .Thrimadhuram signifies three from "thri" and sweet from "madhuram". 

Prep time: 5-6 mins

Cook time: 0
Total time: 5-6 mins
Ingredients

• 2 Banana ( kadali/elakki bale hannu)
• 2-3 tsp Honey
• 1tsp Ghee
• 1/4tsp of cardamom powder (optional )

Cooking Directions

1. Slice 2 kadali ( small yellow variety)
2. Take one bowl and combine all the ingredients and serve 

This was my 1st day nivedhyam to goddess durga..thanks to my friend Nisha Baliga for this divine easy to make traditional prasadam.

Godu povu ( sweet beaten rice)

          

       Navratri is a combination of two words. 'Nav' means nine 'ratri' means night. Therefore, this celebration is literally translated as 'nine nights'. The celebrations begin on the first day of the month of Ashvin according to the Hindu calendar. Navratri always falls in the month of October. The exact date differs from year to year though.

         As i mentioned Navratri lasts for nine whole days. However, each day has its own special significance and is celebrated separately. Along with the nine forms of Durga, obeisance is paid to the Trinity of goddesses as well. Different varieties and special cuisine are made during Navratri celebration. Since in most of the communities, people observe fast during Navratri and eat only one meal a day at sunset, the Navratri meal has special courses and is strictly vegetarian. 

 Today i am here with one of the important naivedyam/ prasada that we konkani's offer to devi durga during "Ayud puja" 9th day of Navratri and also during ganesh chaturthi,Deepavali and it is also offered to lord as prasadam in many hindu temples in Karnataka and some other parts of south india.

Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Ingredients

• 3 cups Beaten rice/avalakki/poha ( thin)
• 1 cup Jaggery
• 1 cup Coconut (freshly grated)
• 1/4 tsp Cardamom powder

Cooking Directions

jaggery syrup

One string syrup

1. Prepare jaggery syrup using jaggery and a cup of water.
2. Heat crushed jaggery along with water till it dissolves completely , strain to remove all the impurities.
3. Boil again till either one string consistency is reached,Test the syrup between thumb and forefinger. It will form one string,at this stage switch off the fire.
4. Now add grated coconut and mix it well with the syrup.
5. Then add cardamom and beaten rice and mix it well,till beaten rice absorbs all the syrup.Do not cover it unless it is completely cool.

You can store it for couple of day without refrigeration.You can serve this along with chana upkari/sundal

Spirali pasta with spicy sauce

Fresh tomatoes, onion, tomato puree and olive oil make this basic pasta sauce. It great for any use - as a base for Spaghetti Bolognese, as a pizza topping, or with fried chicken.You may add dried red mirchi flakes to add spice to your pasta

 Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 30 mins
Ingredients

• 500 gms Spirali Pasta
• 500 gms Tomato
• 1 big Garlic Pod
• 2 Onion ( chopped)
• 2 tsp Chilly powder
• 1/2 tsp Oregano
• 1/4 tsp Basil powder
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce,
• 2 cups Bell pepper ( red,yellow and green)
• 3 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• Salt to taste
• 2 tsp Sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Puree 1/2 tomatoes in a blender and keep aside
2. Heat a tbsp olive oil in a saucepan over low heat.
3. Pour in the tomatoes, add the basil powder and tomato puree to thicken it up.
4. Then add chopped garlic, salt, Worcestershire sauce and chilly powder mix thoroughly.
5. Add the lemon juice and diced onion. Simmer for 5 - 10 minutes over a low heat and the basic pasta sauce is ready.
6. Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8-10 minutes, or according to the pack instructions, until tender.
7. Drain the pasta in a colander and toss in a tbsp of olive oil
8. Meanwhile, heat remaining olive oil in a sauce pan, Add the pepper cubes and cook for about 2-3 minutes.
9. Now mix pasta sauce and the cooked pasta and the chopped coriander or parsley and oregano Season to taste. Toss well to combine and serve at once.

tip: Find yourself with an abundance of tomatoes? Make several batches of this basic sauce and then freeze in meal-size portions!

Stuffed squid/calamari with prawns

I first had this stuffed calamari at our friend's place in Goa for holiday at one of my friends place.My kids enjoyed this so much so that they were only 3-4 pieces left on the plate.It was really very tasty.So this time when i got this fresh calamaris only one dish came to my mind that is Stuffed calamari.This makes very good party appetizer .Make-ahead appetizers help you relax and enjoy your own party.

Ingredients

• 10 Medium sized squid
• 1 cup Chopped prawns
• 1/2 cup Chopped onion
• 1 tsp Ginger chopped
• 1tsp Garlic chopped
• 1/2tsp Green chillies chopped
• 1/2tsp Pepper powder
• 1/2tsp Red chilly powder (optional)
• 1tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• 1tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 3tsp Soya sauce
• 1tbsp Oil

Cooking Directions

1. Wash and clean the squid.While cleaning do not discard tentacles,instead chop the head and chop the tentacles into tiny pieces and use it in stuffing along with prawns.
2. Heat 2tsp of oil ,add chopped onions and saute for a minute.Then add chopped ginger,garlic and green chillies and saute again for 2 mins or till you get nice aroma of garlic and ginger.
3. Add chilly powder and  chopped coriander leaves ,mix it well.
4. Now its time to add our chopped prawns and tentacles and mix it well with the masala.
5. Now add soy and Worcestershire sauce and mix it well and sprinkle some pepper powder and cook on high flame for 2 mins or till the stuffing is dry.
6. Now check the seasoning and add salt if required( i have used only a pinch of salt as both the sauces contains salt) .
7. Let it cool completely,then start stuffing each squid with this filling and then secure it with toothpick.so the stuffing stays inside when you stir fry them.
8. Now heat remaining oil and slowly place the stuffed calamari in the frying pan Let them cook for about 5 Min on one side and then turn them over and cook again for a 10 mins with a lid.

Serve hot as an appetizer

King fish curry without coconut( kerala style)

Kerala style King fish curry without coconut

Kerala fish curry

Amma (mom) just can not live without fish .When i was a kid i used to hate fish as she used to cook fish,every single day. Now its my kids turn,they like only fried fish ... Amma ( mom )is a excellent cook, has got so many konkanis as well as typical Kerala style fish recipes as she hails from a small town called kannur,Kerala.Today i am here with an authentic kerala fish curry without coconut.I like it so much as it is quick and easy to make and my kids love it too as it is not like our usual coconut based curry.This is dish is perfectly balanced with the right amount of spices.In this i have used some kokum to give it that extra punch to the gravy though amma never used kokum/ birinda in her recipe but one of my friend told me her version, so i tried this dish with both kokum/ birinda and tamarind.I have prepared this dish in a earthen pot/matthi kulle which really enhances the taste and the flavour of this dish.

Ingredients

• 1/2 kg Salmon/ king fish
• 2 Onion ( chopped )
• 1 heaped tbsp Chilly powder
• 2tsp Ginger- ( finely chopped )
• 5-6 Garlic cloves - ( roughly crushed )
• 2 Green chilly - ( chopped )
• 1 Tamarind - marble sized ball
• 4-5 Kokum
• 1 spring Curry leaves
• 1/2tsp Turmeric powder
• 2 tsp Coriander powder
• Salt to taste
• 2 - 3tsp Coconut oil

                            

Cooking Directions

1. Soak tamarind and Kokum in warm water separately in 1/2 cup of waterfor 10 mins.
2. Now squeeze all the pulp from the tamarind and discard the residue.
3. Marinate the fish with turmeric powder,salt, onion,ginger and garlic for 30 Min
4. Heat heavy bottom kadai / pot with 3tsp of oil.
5. Add red chilly powder, coriander powder , curry leaves and pour the tamarind pulp and soaked kokum along with water and boil.
6. Now gently drop the marinated fish into the gravy along with the marinade .
7. Mix it well with the gravy and cook on medium low flame till done.
8. Serve hot with red boiled rice.

Kerala fish curry

Kadambuttu ( coorgi style rice dumplings)

Kadambuttu is a signature dish of kodavas/coorgis.This dish is normally prepared along with coorgi chicken curry or pandi (pork ) curry .You can have it with any other curries as it is prepared with simple rice-rava or idli rava/Rice semolina.Usually kodava's prepare this right from the scratch.But in this recipe i have used readily available rice rava which is as good as home made rava.

Ingredients:
Idli rava / rice rava - 2cups
Water-6 cups
Salt to taste
Sugar-1/2tsp
Cardamom -1 crushed

Method:

• Wash and soak rava with 6 cups of water for 30 mins.
• Now take a deep kadai or heavy bottom pan and cook the rava along with water on low flame.
• Add salt,sugar and crushed cardamom and keep stirring all the time to avoid any lumps.
•  Continue to stir till the mixture is fully dry and resembles soft dough, immediately  turn off the gas and cover it for few mins with a lid.
• Now take a bowl of water and mix in a tsp of oil.
• Dip the fingers into the water and rub onto both the palms.
• Now take about a heaped table spoon of this rice dough and roll into nice round balls.
• Now heat idli cooker or steamer and place all the balls inside the steamer and steam like idli for about 30 mins.
• Serve hot with coorgi pandi curry or any other curries of your choice.