Beans Paruppu Usili / Beans Usili

Ingredients
Beans - 250 gms
Oil - 1 tablespoon
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1/2 teaspoon
1 string of curry leaves
A pinch of asafoetida
Turmeric powder - a pinch

TO GRIND:
Bengal gram (chana dal) - 1/4 cup
Tur dal - 1/4 cup
Whole red chillies - 5
Salt to taste

Method

• Wash and chop the beans into small pieces. Cook them well with water, salt and turmeric powder till soft (not too mushy). Once the beans are cooked, drain out the water and set aside.
• Soak bengal gram dal and tur dal in water for an hour. Drain the water completely. Grind them with red chillies, salt and asafoetida without adding water to a coarse mixture. Ensure not to make a paste or else you won't get the perfect texture.
• Steam the ground mixture in a idli steamer for 10 minutes and keep aside.
• Once cooled, crumble the steamed paruppu with your hands and set aside.
• Heat oil in a pan. Temper with mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves.
• Add crumbled paruppu and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add turmeric powder and salt and mix well.
• Add cooked beans and saute for another 3 to 4 minutes. Beans paruppu usili ready.
• Beans paruppu usili serves as a good accompaniment for rice.

Homemade Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamun is one of the most popular and a traditional Indian desserts featuring spongy milky balls soaked in sugar syrup. It is  very easy to prepare and also tastes great. Try this recipe by yourself at home and enjoy. 


Ingredients

1 cup Milk Powder
1/2 cup Flour
2 tbsp Melted Butter
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 Spoon Baking powder
2 cups Sugar
1 cup Water
1/2 cup Oil

Method

• Mix milk powder, flour, baking powder, butter and milk to create the dough.
• Divide the semi-hard dough into 15 pieces each of the shape of a round ball.
• Heat the oil at a very medium temperature.
• Put the dough balls in heated oil and fry them for 5 mins till they rise to the surface of the pan, the color of the balls should be golden brown by now.
• On a separate container, mix the sugar and the water and heat it under medium temperature. to make it taste even better, you can add kesar, elaichi or cardamom.
• Once the sugar syrup is ready, drop the jamuns into the syrup and leave it to soak. Jamuns will adsorb the sugar syrup.
• Serve hot in a bowl or cool it for some time and enjoy.

Eggplant Bell Pepper Sauce / Brinjal Capsicum Gravy / Baingan Masala

Ingredients

3 Eggplant / Brinjal
1 Green Bell Pepper / Capsicum
1 Onion (Finely Chopped)
2 Tomatoes (Finely Chopped)
2 Green Chillies
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
2 tbsp Oil
Few Coriander leaves

Method

• Heat oil in a pan. Add onions and saute till it turns golden brown and add green chillies, tomatoes and saute for few minutes.
• Add brinjal, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt. Saute for a minute, then add water and allow it to cook.
• Finally add capsicum and saute for 3 - 4 minutes on a high flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Broad Beans Coconut Curry / Avarakkai Thengai Kuzhambu (without tamarind)

Ingredients

1 cup Broad Beans / Avarakkai (chopped into small pieces)
1 Onion (Finely chopped)
2 Tomatoes (Finely chopped)
1 Green Chilli
2 tsp Chilli Powder
1 tsp Coriander Powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 1/2 tsp Salt or as per taste
1/2 cup Coconut (Finely shredded)
Few Curry Leaves
Oil

Method

• Heat oil in pan, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. After mustard seeds splutters add curry leaves and onions. Saute for 2 minutes or till onion turns golden brown in color.
• Add tomatoes and green chilli and saute for few minutes. Now add turmeric, salt, chilli powder, coriander powder and Broad Beans (Avarakkai). 
• Add required amount of water and stir it. Allow it to boil until broad beans (avarakkai) gets cooked. Now add finely shredded coconut and mix well. Let it be in heat for 3 - 5 minutes. 
• Now serve this curry with hot steamed rice or chapati or with any other Indian breads and enjoy. 

Mixed Vegetable Sambar

Ingredients

1 Cup toor dal
4 Cups water
3 Cloves garlic
1/4 Tsp turmeric
1 Tsp Chilli powder / Sambar powder
2 Tbsp oil
1/4 Tsp mustard seeds
1/4 Tsp cumin seeds
1 Big onion, sliced
2 Green chillies, split
1 Tomato
1 Cup mixed vegetables chopped (Carrot/ Beans/ Drumstick/ Bottle gourd / Raddish/ Potato)
4-5 Tbsp tamarind juice
1/4 Tsp asafoetida
Salt to taste

Method

• Pressure cook rinsed toor dal, cubed potatoes, garlic, asafoetida  and turmeric with 4 cups of water.  
• Once the dal is done, remove the potatoes, mash the dal well and keep it aside.
• In a vessel heat oil and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. After mustard splutters add green chillies and curry leaves. Saute for a minute.
• Now add onion and saute for 2 minutes, then add tomatoes and all vegetables along with salt and stir well.
• After 5 minutes add chilli powder and required water and leave it for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables get cooked . (it should not get too soft or mushy)
• Add cooked dal, tamarind juice and water to the vegetable mixture and stir well. At this stage add salt or sambar powder if required and allow it to boil until the sambar thickens a little.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve it with steamed rice.

Cabbage Pakoda

Ingredients

1 cup Chickpea flour/ Besan flour
1/2 cup Rice flour
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/2 cup Finely shredded cabbage
1/4 cup Finely sliced onion
2-3 Green chillies
1 tsp Red chilli powder
finely chopped coriander
few curry leaves
salt
oil

Method

• Combine both the flours with cabbage, onion, cumin seeds, green chillies, chilli powder, chopped coriander, curry leaves and salt. Add 1 tsp oil and mix well.
• If required add a tbsp of water and mix well. The batter should just coat the onions and cabbages. It should not be watery.
• Heat oil in a deep frying pan and add this mixture slowly. Fry til it turns golden brown and crispy.  Remove from the heat and drain the excess oil in absorbent tissue paper.
• Serve hot.

Quick Rasam

Ingredients

1 Tomato
1 small lemon sized tamarind
5-6 red chillies
4-5 crushed garlic pods
few curry leaves
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp rasam powder (for homemade rasam powder recipe click here)
1/4 tsp Asafoetida 
chopped cilantro (for garnishing)

For Seasoning :

1 tsp oil
1/4  tsp mustard seeds


Method

• In a vessel add all ingredients together in hot water except rasam powder, asafoetida and cilantro.
• Leave it for 10 mins. Then knead it well and keep it aside.
• In a small pan heat oil and splutter the mustard seeds.
• Pour this seasoning over the rasam and add rasam powder and asafoetida. Let it be in the stove for 3 mins.
• Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve it with hot rice.

My hubby love this recipe . He even drink it as a soup ;)

Easy Homemade Rasam Powder

Ingredients

3/4 cup Black Pepper
3/4 cup Cumin seeds
1/4 cup Toor daal
1/4 cup Coriander seeds


Method

• Dry roast all the ingredients till they turn aromatic or color changes slightly (it should not burn).
• Cool this completely and grind together in a mixer grinder to a fine powder.
• Store this rasam powder in a airtight container. 

This is my grandma's homemade rasam powder recipe for easy and quick rasam in 10 mins. This tasty rasam recipe really saves my time. Try this, save time and enjoy. 

For quick rasam recipe click here.

Chicken Fajitas at home

Ingredients:

2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast 
1 lemon
1 large onion (sliced into 1/2 inch pieces)
3 bell peppers of various color (sliced into 1/2 inch pieces)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin powder
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
8 tortillas (corn or flour)
Guacamole, salsa and sour cream for serving.

Method:

• Cut the chicken into long thin stripes.
• Marinade chicken with olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, chilli powder, cumin powder,  ground black pepper, and salt. Cover and leave it for 20 minutes.
• Place a skillet on medium-high heat. Add a tbsp of oil.
• As soon as oil begins to smoke lay the marinated chicken pieces. Let the chicken cook for 2 - 3 mins. (toss in between)
• Add sliced onion and bell peppers. Leave it for 15 - 20 mins or until chicken cooked well. Sprinkle chopped cilantro and switch off the stove.
• Now serve the chicken fajitas on tortillas with guacamole, salsa and sour cream.

(Note : Instead of tortillas we rolled this chicken fajitas with our Indian bread and it tasted good. )

Easy and Healthy Carrot Milkshake

Ingredients

1 cup grated carrot
1 cup milk
Sugar (as reqd)
Water (as reqd)
1 pinch cardamom powder (optional)
Nuts and saffron (for garnishing)


Method

• In a blender add grated carrots, milk, sugar and little water.  Blend well until smooth and creamy.
• Transfer this into a glass and sprinkle cardamom powder. Add ice cubes.
• Garnish with nuts and saffron and serve chilled.

Homemade Zaxby's Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 cup Mayonnaise

1/4 cup Heinz ketchup

1/2 tsp Garlic powder

1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

 Ground black pepper

Method

• In a bowl mix Mayonnaise, Heinz ketchup and Garlic power together and blend well.
• Add Worcestershire sauce and stir.
• Then sprinkle ground black pepper enough to cover the mixture and stir.
• Again add black pepper and stir until blended well.
• Refrigerate at least 2 hours prior to use to allow the flavors to mingle.
• Serve it with chicken fingers.

Semiya Payasam

Ingredients

100 gm semiya /vermicelli,un-roasted
2 ltr whole milk
2 ltr water
150 gm sugar
2-3 tbsp ghee (may increase the level as well)
handful of cashews & raisins
1 tsp cardamom powder

Method

• Heat 2 tbsp ghee in an  deep bottomed vessel and roast the vermicelli in low flame.Roast till the vermicelli change it's color to light red.
• Meanwhile heat 1 liter water in another vessel.Once boiled,reduce the heat and drop the roasted vermicelli to this.Cook the vermicelli in medium heat and drain.Be careful not to overcook the semiya/vermicelli.
• Bring 2 liters of milk and one liter water to  thick bottomed vessel and boil.Stir the milk in between to avoid forming lumps over.
• Once boiled reduce the flame to medium and cook for 8-10 minutes till the volume reduces to 3/4.
• Now add sugar and mix well.When it start boiling again add the cooked vermicelli and mix well.
• Cook for another 8-10 minutes till the payasam comes to medium consistency.In between this process sprinkle the cardamom powder and check the taste.
• Switch off and heat 1 tbsp ghee in a small pan to roast the cashews and raisins.
• Pour this along with ghee to payasam and keep it for a while till all the flavors are well - blended.

Serve hot or cold.