Edible Garden

Arachuvitta Sambar

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 06:47:00 +0000

Arachuvitta sambar literally means sambar to which ground spices are added. The name itself is so traditional and delicious to me! This is a tried and tested recipe that works like a charm. The last time I made it, I made a note of the amount of ingredients I am putting in because normally for sambar, I throw in stuff and it comes out well invariably. This is a slightly more tedious sambar than how I normally make it but well worth the effort, as always :) TH loves to have this with curd rice, since I make it slightly thicker than normal.

What I Used:

Toor dal / tuvar dal / thuvaram paruppu - 1/2 cup
Shallots / small onions - 1/2 cup, halved or quartered
Tamarind paste – 3 tbsp (or a marble sized amount soaked and squeezed in half cup water)
Asafoetida / hing / kaayam / perungayam - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Salt - to taste
Oil – 2 tsp
Chopped fresh coriander leaves - for garnishing

Roast, cool and grind for masala mix

Coriander seeds / malli – 2 tbsp
Grated coconut (fresh or dessicated) - 2 tbsp
Chana dal – 1 tbsp
Dried red chillies – 6
Fenugreek seeds / methi seeds / uluva / menthayam – ¼ tsp (or a little less)
Curry leaves - a few
Oil - 1 tsp

How I Made It:

1. Pressure cook the dal in 3 cups water for 3 whistles.

2. Roast and grind the masala mix and set aside.

3. Heat 2 tsp oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and temper mustard seeds until they pop. Add curry leaves and chopped shallots and fry for a minute. Then add turmeric and hing.

4. Add the cooked dal and tamarind paste to the above. Adjust water to get the right consistency. Bring to boil.

5. Now add the ground masala mix and stir well, reducing the fire to sim. Add salt. Let the sambar boil for about 2-3 mins.

6. Remove and garnish with chopped coriander.

Goes well with vada, dosa, idli and steamed rice.

Kandi Podi / Gun Powder / Andhra Style Paruppu Podi

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 04:50:00 +0000

This is my dad's favorite accompaniment to anything. So much so that each time I visited home from Hyderabad, he would request for this and only this. I try it when we go to Andhra thali restaurants but recently I started craving them and decided to make some.

Andhra Paruppu Podi

What I Used
(Recipe from here)

Toor dal / Tuvaram paruppu /Split gram - 1 cup
Moong dal /Paasi paruppu / Cherupayar Parippu - 1/2 cup
Chana dal / Kadala paruppu / Bengal gram - 1/2 cup
Red chilli powder - 2 tbsp
Black pepper powder - 2 tsp
Hing / Asafoetida / Perungayam - 1/2 tsp
Jeera / Jeerakam - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Dry fry all the dals separately until they turn golden brown. Mix well.
2. Add the jeera and hing to the dal mixture when its still hot and keep aside to cool.
3. Once cool, grind to a course/fine powder depending on preference.
4. Add red chilli powder, pepper and salt to the ground mixture and store in an airtight jar.

Serving suggestions:

- With steamed white rice and hot ghee.
- Mix with some curd or oil and serve with dosa.
- Some variations include adding dry fried curry leaves to the powder. I am sure that's yummy as well, I just didn't have enough curry leaves in hand.

This is my entry to the 7th helping of Legume Love Affair being served by Srivalli this time.

Basic White Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 03:46:00 +0000

The best way to start baking after a long time - from the basics. I have always loved the simplicity of plain cakes, or tea cakes, as they are sometimes called. My mom used to make them quite regularly as a snack when we were in school. She used those manual egg-beaters that formed beautiful white peaks when the egg whites have been beaten for about 45 minutes.

This recipe doesn't call for beating the egg too much cuz since I don't have an electric beater, I go for such recipes mostly.

What I Used:
(Makes about 16 cupcakes)

Butter - 1/2 cup, at room temperature
All purpose flour / maida - 1 3/4 cups
Powdered sugar 1 cup (measure after powdering)
Egg - 1
Milk - 3/4 cup, at room temperature
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp

How I Made It:

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Cream butter and sugar together until nicely mixed.

3. Use a fork and whisk the egg for about 10-15 minutes. The more you beat, the softer the cupcakes turn out. I lose patience at the end of 15 mins or so.

4. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt until blended well. I didn't have a sieve until recently so before that, I just used to put the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.

5. Once the flour mixture is well blended, add to the butter-sugar mixure.

6. Mix well, in one direction. Then add the beaten egg and milk little by little making sure the batter is nicely blended. You don't need to eccessively mix at this time, just make sure the ingredients are blended.

7. Once the milk and egg have been completely added, mix in the vanilla essense.

8. Grease a muffin tray or line it with muffin paper cups. Pour batter 2/3 of the way.

9. Bake in a 375 degrees oven for about 20-25 mins until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.

Notes

- In case you don't have a muffin tray, you can use a regular cake try to make a normal cake.

- This recipe, with a little less sugar can be used to make layered cakes with frosting in the middle.

Quick and Easy Rasmalai Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 07:49:00 +0000

Here is a recipe I have been dying to post. Its from my mother-in-law and its the most easy and quick rasmalai recipe ever! Promise!

But wait, what is rasmalai? Its sweetened, flattened or round balls of paneer (Indian cottage cheese) soaked in milk cream. Sounds yummy? That's 'cuz it is!

So in case you want to celebrate the holidays with some Indian dessert, whose sweetness level you can control, then this one is for you. Did I mention its super easy?

The recipe does use eggs, which would probably make the inventors of rasmalai turn in their graves, but the taste is not compromised one bit and there is no 'eggy' smell at all.

What I Used:

For the pieces

Milk Powder - 1.5 cups
Egg - 1

For the liquid base

Whole cream milk - 4 cups
Sweetened condensed milk - 1/2 tin (adjusting according to the size of your sweet tooth)
Crushed cardamom - 3
You can use other flavoring of choice like rosewater, pistachios, almonds, saffron, etc.

How I Made It:

1. Mix the egg and the milk powder together to form a thick, sticky dough-like mass. Divide into lemon sized balls and flatten gently on palms. If too sticky, dampen palms. Lay these flattened pieces without overlapping, on a tray.

2. Heat a wide bottomed pan and bring the milk to boil. Once it starts boiling, bring the heat to sim and gently, very gently, add the milk powder-egg discs to this.

3. You don't need to mix or stir much, but be careful to give the discs enough space from each other in the liquid. They will expand a bit when they start cooking.

4. After about 10 mins, add the crushed cardamom and. Let it cook for another 10 mins.

5. When the pieces have expanded considerably and seem soft and cooked through (take out once piece, break and check inside if the dough is still sticky), remove from fire.

6. Add the condensed milk when still hot and mix gently. Adjust amount according to sweetness required.

Chill before serving.

Now you can tell me you love me for this quick and easy rasmalai recipe :)

I am sending this to FIC - White over at Kitchen Flavours.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 01:59:00 +0000

One of my friends had this picture of baked sweet potatoes in her Facebook album and of course I immediately wanted the recipe. Not that I hadn't come across the dish online but to see someone you know had tried it and with success, made me want to try it too. She passed me the link and I tried it the next day! I am nothing if not a sucker for "immediate" action when it comes to trying out simple recipes ;)

Oven-baked sweet potato 'fries'

The potatoes came out quite well and though TH would have preferred it with normal potatoes, I enjoyed the subtle sweet flavour and contrasting heat form the chillies. I also loved the fact that it requires very little time to prepare and most of the work is done by the oven anyway! We had it as a quick snack at about 6 in the evening but next time I want to try this with russet potatoes and serve with dinner.

Oven-Baked Sweet Potato Fries Recipe
From Country Living

What I Used:

Sweet potatoes - 3 (about 300gm)
Red chilly flakes - 1.5 tbsp
Cumin / jeera powder - 1 tsp (optional)
Olive oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Cut the sweet potatoes length-wise and then into 3" long pieces/wedges. Transfer to a bowl.

2. Add the olive oil, salt, chillies and cumin to the sweet potatoes and mix well until the pieces are well coated.

3. Preheat the oven to 200 degree C (about 400F). Line a tray with a baking sheet and lay out the potato pieces in one layer without any overlap. Bake until the edges are crisp and the pieces are cooked. Took about 30 mins for me.

*Notes*

- You can follow the same recipe with russet potatoes as well.

- Substitute the cumin with any dried herbs for a different flavour.

Curry Leaves Chutney / Kariveppilai Chutney

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 08:32:00 +0000

Curry leaves are one of the staples of Indian cooking. Its the one herb that we cannot do without and you will find this in practically every Indian kitchen, or shall I say refrigerator :) However limited space people have around their houses and apartments, its not uncommon to see at least one curry leaves plant that is carefully watered and tended to. My mom has about three plants around the house and my sis has practically a tree growing out of her backyard.

The house we moved into first in Singapore had 3 plants outside the front door. A neem plant, a money plant and curry leaves! The other 2 died when I went to India for 3 weeks but the curry leaves plant harbored on and was still standing strong and healthy when we moved out 2 weeks back. I miss breaking out fresh sprigs of curry leaves while cooking but some good things must come to an end.

However, I didn't leave before I made this super-quick chutney one day. As we know, curry leaves are just added for flavor to dishes and most of us remove them from our servings before we eat, but they are said to have high iron content. No wonder my grandma used to force me to eat them and promised a head full of lustrous hair if I did! Our maid of so many years, Mary, loves the flavor of curry leaves and any dish made by her is sure to have a generous amount of these lovely-smelling leaves.

I have gone on and on, quite uncharacteristically (cuz I do all the ranting here) but I guess that shows my love for curry leaves.

Curry Leaves Chutney Recipe

What I Used:

Curry leaves - 2 cups (just throw them in loose)
Grated coconut (fresh or frozen) - 3/4 cup
Tamarind paste - 1 tsp (mix in 1 tbsp warm water to a marble-sized amount and squueze well)
Dried red chillies - 2 to 3, depending on taste
Hing / asafoetida / kaayam / perungayam - a pinch
Garlic - 2 pods (optional)
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Heat oil and add the red chillies and garlic (if using), making sure they don't burn by lowering the heat.

2. Now add all the other ingredients and fry for about 5 minutes, until the curry leaves turn slightly brittle and the coconut turns a light brown.

3. Remove from fire, cool and grind well.

I am sending this to Andrea's Grow Your Own.

Kathrikka Podi Curry / Brinjal Cooked in Roasted Spices

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 09:23:00 +0000

I apologize to all those brinjal haters out there for posting so many brinjal recipes but these are quick and easy and one of the vegetables that are available at all times for me. Also, I love brinjals :D

This one is a traditional Tamil Brahmin Recipe except that I made a slight twist in it and added pureed onions. You can omit that and you will get a dry fry dish. I wanted something that was slightly soft and not fried.

What I Used:

Brinjal / eggplant - 2 cups, cubed
Onion - 1 small, ground to a paste or chopped fine
Mustard seeds - 1/8 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp (preferably gingelly/sesame oil)
Salt - to taste

To dry-roast and grind:

Dhania / malli - 2 tsp (or 3 tsp dhania powder)
Bengal gram / Chana dal / kadala parippu - 1 tbsp
Urad dal / uzhunnu parippu / uzhutham paruppu - 1 tsp
Dried red chillies - 4, adjust to taste
Curry leaves - a few

How I Made It:

1. Dry roast the list of ingredients until golden brown, cool, grind and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a pan. temper mustard seeds and lightly saute the onion paste. Then add the brinjal pieces and fry until they turn colour and get soft. Add salt.

3. Mix in the ground spice mixture and fry well for 3 to 4 mins. Remove from fire.

Serve hot with steamed white rice and spicy baby potatoes.

Black Eyed Beans Thoran

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 09:58:00 +0000

This recipe is adapted from Das Sreedharan's Fresh Flavours of India. Das is a Malayali who runs the Rasa chain of hotels in England. His restaurants are supposedly popular and when I mentioned it to a couple of friends in England, they knew it instantly. I first came across this book in the National Library and borrowed it for 2 weeks. I loved the simple recipes, beautiful illustrations and the general 'feel' of the book. What I liked best about the pictures was that they gave the dishes a very 'easy-to-make' look which need not necessary be true for a beginner in Indian cooking. However, like I mentioned, I felt it was more for non-Indians or beginners to learn the basic recipes and not necessarily for me 'cuz I'd like to believe I have graduated from the beginners' level :) But after seeing my enthusiasm over the pictures, TH got it for my birthday this year, so I have one anyway!

This is one of the recipes that caught my eye immediately. Black eyed beans thoran. The basic thoran recipe includes coconut, shallots, jeera, green chillies and curry leaves, along with a vegetable (or two) of choice. This one is not much different but the use of black eyed beans with this recipe, was new to me.

What I Used:

Black eyed beans - 1 cup
Grated coconut (dessicated works too) - 1/2 cup
Shallots / small onions - 1/3 cup, chopped
Dried red chillies - 4
Turmeric powder - 1 pinch
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Oil - 2 tsp (I used coconut oil)
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Soak the beans overnight or atleast for 5-6 hours. Pressure cook for 3 whistles (or cook in little water for about 15 mins, until soft).

2. Heat oil in a pan and temper mustard seeds. Then add urad dal, curry leaves, turmeric and the red chillies, each torn into three. Fry for 2 mins. Then add the shallots and fry for another 3 mins.

3. Now add the grated coconut and cooked beans. Add salt and mix well. Let it cook for another 2-3 mins. Remove from fire.

Serve with rice and curry of choice.

This dish goes to Ramki's Recipes For The Rest Of Us that's trying to bring together simple, easy recipes. That's what this blog is all about anyway :)

Dum Aloo / Potatoes in Yogurt-Tomato-Onion Gravy

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 08:09:00 +0000

'Dum' cooking is a traditional method of slow-cooking, normally on a bed of coal with pots over them, sealed with flour and water so that no heat escapes it. Sometimes coal is spread out on the pot lid to distribute heat evenly. Thanks to our modern-day cooking accessories, nothing takes that much effort, though the difference in change is definitely debatable. Dum aloo is not something I make often because I try to avoid using the mixer on weeknights and normally don't buy pureed stuff in cans (or anything in cans for that matter, except milkmaid!).

This was made on a weekend a few weeks back when I was in a lovely mood to cook and I followed the recipe I had scribbled down from mom-in-law, to the last letter.

What I Used:

Baby Potatoes / New potatoes - 15 nos
Tomato - 1 large, chopped
Onion - 1, chopped
Green chilly - 2
Ginger - a 1" piece
Garlic - 3 cloves (or 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste)
Yogurt / curd - 2 Tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Coriander (cilantro) leaves - for garnishing

Spices:
Coriander / malli powder - 2 tsp
Red chili powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
All purpose curry masala - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam - 1/2 tsp

How I Made It:

1. Wash the potatoes and boil in water till cooked. Cool, peel and keep aside. (I cooked them in the pressure cooker for 3 whistles.)

2. Puree the tomato and keep aside.

3. Grind the onion, garlic, ginger and green chilly to a paste.

4. Beat curd to remove any lumps and mix all the spices in it. Stir well to make a paste. Add a little water if too thick.

5. Heat oil in a pan and when hot, add the cumin seeds. When it starts spluttering and turns brown, add the onion-chilly-ginger-garlic paste and fry for about 3 mins.

6. Now add the yogurt mix and stir continuously for 4 mins.

7. Mix in the tomato puree and the add the potatoes. Cook covered for 2 mins and then leave pan open on a medium flame and cook till the oil separates from the gravy. Add salt.

8. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve with rotis/chapatis.

Padavalanga / Podalangai Koottu

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 06:49:00 +0000

Padavalanga / Podalangai Koottu is one of my favourite types of koottu. I always say that koottu is the Tamil version of thoran, a staple recipe in Kerala cooked with a variety of vegetables. I make that as often as I make koottu, to balance out the Tamil-Mallu couple that we are. TH doesn't like too much coconut in his food either way, so I compromise by toning it down a bit.

What I Used (Serves 2):

Snake gourd / podalangai / padavalanga - 2 cups, cut into 1" squares
Chana dal / kadala parippu - 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Shallots / small onions / chinna vengayam / ulli - 4 nos
Green chillies - 2 nos
Cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Salt - to taste

For tempering:

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Shallots - 3 nos, chopped
Oil - 2 tsp

How I Made It:

1. Cook the snake gourd and chana dal in little water until both are soft. This will take about 15-20 mins. I pressure them for 2-3 whistles to make it quicker.

2. Meanwhile, grind the coconut + shallots + green chillies + jeera withvery little water. Set aside.

3. Heat oil in a pan and temper the mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and chopped shallots and fry for a minute.

4. Add the cooked snake gourd - dal mixture to the above and mix well. Add very little water if its too dry. (I added a little too much, as is obvious from the picture!)

5. Now add the ground coconut paste and turmeric + chilly powder. Fry for another about 5 mins. Add salt.

Remove and serve hot with steamed rice and vathal kuzhambu.

Brinjal Cooked in Green Chilly - Coconut - Shallot Paste

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:24:00 +0000

If you are a brinjal lover like me, then you will surely enjoy this dish. It was an impromptu one that my mom-in-law made when she was visiting and I loved it! I made it again last weekend following her precise recipe word by word.

Brinjal in a shallot-green chilly-coconut base

What I Used (serves 2):

Brinjal / eggplant - 2 cups, cubed
Shallots / small onions - about 12 to 15
Green chillies - 5 or more
Tomato - 1/2 of 1, chopped (optional)
Grated / dessicated coconut - 2 tbsp
Cumin / jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander / malli powder - 1 tsp
Jaggery - 1/2 tsp powdered
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Cook the brinjal in very little water until soft. Drain and set aside.

2. Grind the shallots, coconut and green chillies to a paste.

3. Heat oil in a pan and temper mustard seeds. Add the urad dal next and fry till golden brown.

4. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for a minute until soft. Then add the cumin and coriander powders and fry for another minute.

5. Now add the ground paste and cooked brinjal. Continue to fry for 3-4 mins until the raw smells disappears.

6 Add salt and jaggery, mix well and continue to fry for another minute. Remove.

Goes well with steamed white rice and any gravy, or even rotis.

Related Posts

Quick Brinjal Curry
Ennegayi Palya
Aviyal

Spicy Baby Potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 05:00:00 +0000

This recipe has been totally and completely flicked from my sister's blog. I didn't have curry leaves in the house and mine didn't come quite as delicious-looking as hers, especially the gravy, but both TH and I licked the bowl clean. The simplicity of this dish makes me wonder why I've never tried this version before.

What I Used (to serve two):

Baby potatoes /new potatoes – 15 nos
Onions - 2 medium sized ones, chopped
Garlic paste - 1 tsp (or 4 pods, minced)
Sambar powder - 2 tbsp (or 2 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp jeera, 1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds, 2 tsp red chilli powder)
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsps
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Wash the potatoes. Pressure cook for 3 whistles (or put in a heavy-bottomed pan with sufficient water and let cook on a medium fire). Cool, peel and set aside.

2. Add sambar powder, salt and turmeric to the potatoes with very little water and leave to marinate for half hour.

3. Heat oil and temper mustard seeds. Fry the urad dal next until golden brown and then add the onions and garlic. Fry well till the onions turn a dark brown (I like mine just short of burnt so that's how I made it).

4. Add the curry leaves and the potatoes. Add about 4 tbsp water and toss well.

5. Cook open for about 25 mins until the potatoes look yummy and you can't wait a single second longer to serve it already!

Serve hot with rice and curry of choice. Goes weil with coconut based gravies, like kaalan.

Vazhakka Bajji / Fried Raw Banana Snack

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 07:46:00 +0000

I love vazhakka in any form. Be it stir-fried, as a thoran, in kaalan, even podimas or better still, as a steaming bajji dipped in tomato ketchup on a rainy day. Bliss! TH loves them too so this time his parents visited, we made vazhakka bajji. We just used 2 raw bananas and still there was more than enough for the four of us and we weren't hungry at all for dinner.

This is a great party snack for kids and adults alike. Who can resist the golden, crispy goodness of bajjis?!.

What I Used:

Vazhakka / Raw bananas - 2
Besan / Kadala mavu / Chickpea flour - 2 cups
Whole jeera / jeerakam / cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Hing / Asafoetida / kaayam - 2 pinches
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Water - enough to make a thick batter
Oil - to deep fry

How I Made It:

1. Cut the banana midway and then slice them length-wise. The idea is to get thin (really thin!) slices of them about 4 inches long.

2. Mix the chilli, salt, hing, jeera and besan well in a bowl and make a thick batter with just enough water. Make sure the consistency is a bit thicker than pancake / dosa batter, but not too thick that it doesn't leave your hand when you raise it above the bowl.

3. Heat oil until nice and warm. Dip the banana slices in the batter and make sure its coated on all sides. Drop gently into the hot oil and wait for 2 mins before turning them over.

4. When the bajjis turn golden brown, transfer to a tissue-lined container and serve immediately with some steaming tea.

Goes well with tomato sauce / ketchup and the monsoon rains. Enjoy!

Paneer Peas Pulao / Paneer Matar Pilaf

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:46:00 +0000

Though I collect dishes-to-cook-over-weekend all through the week, come Sunday and I am too lazy to do anything much. I hate myself for that cuz I am letting all the lovely natural light go away when I could cook something new and photograph it!

Anyway, on this particular Sunday that I made the peas pulao, I was too lazy to make a side-dish with the paneer I had so I added it to the pulao! The light was just too perfect for me to pass on taking food pics. No harm done and so much time saved, right? Well, TH would have still preferred Palak Paneer to go with the peas pulao but when one's wife is lazy occasionally, one can't complain too much, right? ;)

What I Used:

Basmati rice - 1 1/2 cups
Onion - 1, chopped fine
Green peas - 1/2 cup
Paneer cubes - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 3
Ginger garlic paste - 1.5 tbsp
Cumin / jeera / jeerakam seeds - 1 tsp
Whole black pepper - 1/2 tsp
Cloves - 4
Cardamom - 2
Cinnamon stick - a 1″ piece
Bay leaves - 1
Ghee / Clarified butter (or veg oil) - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Soak the basmati rice in enough water to cover it, for 15 mins. Meanwile, grind the pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon together. If you have a pestle and mortar, that will be best.

2. Heat the ghee in a pan and throw in the cumin seeds. Once they splutter, add the ground ingredients. Tear the bay leaf into 3 and add toss that in too.

3. Now add the onions, split green chillies and saute until onions turn transparent.

4. Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute well for a minute.

5. Add the peas and paneer cubes and mix well for another 2-3 mins.

6. Drain the rice completely and add to the pan. Mix thoroughly.

6. Add 2 cups water to the above and let it cook until the rice is done. Alternately, you can add equal ratio of water (1.5 cups rice : 1.5 cups water) and pressure cook for one whistle. Once the pressure leaves, open lid immediately and transfer to another bowl.

7. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with side-dish of choice.

I was too lazy that Sunday which is why instead of using up the paneer to make a side dish, I added it to the peas pulaoa and served it with just cucumber raita and pickle ;)

Aloo Palak - Potatoes in a Spinach Gravy

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 06:46:00 +0000

I really can't believe how fast time is flying. Its been week since my last post. I have been making mostly simple sabzis the past week since we have been apartment hunting almost every evening after work. A subzi and some steamed rice is all I have energy for after work and poking around strangers' houses.

Aloo Palak

Aloo Palak is a sure-shot winner at home since TH loves both potatoes and palak. And its generally a quick recipe for me since I chop the spinach during weekends and freeze it or sometimes buy it chopped.

Aloo Palak is originally a Punjabi recipe, (which reminds me - what happened to RCI??) and the authentic recipe includes addition of some methi or fenugreek leaves to it. My version is very customized to my laziness so you may or may not find it to resemble something you would get in a Punjabi restaurant ;)

What I Used:

Palak / Spinach / Cheera - 2 cups, chopped
Potatoes / Aloo - 2, cubed
Onion - 1 small, chooped (I used 5-6 shallots so that works as well)
Garlic pods - 2 to 3, minced (or 1/2 tsp garlic paste. This is optional but I love the flavour so added it)
Ginger - a small piece
(Alternately, you can use 1 tsp ginger garlic paste but the taste is going to differ by a lot, downwards!)
Cumin / jeera / jeerakam powder - 2 tsp
Coriander / malli powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp, or to taste (I used 3 green chillies)
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Oil - 1.5 tbsp (I used 1 tbsp ghee / clarified butter for a better flavour)

How I Made It

1. Heat oil in a pan and fry the onions till they turn soft and transparent. Add the cumin, coriander, chilli and turmeric powders and fry for another minute.

2. Mince the garlic and ginger together. Add to the above.

3. Add the potatoes and very little water. Keep covered and cook till potatoes are almost done. (A fork inserted should come out clean)

4. Now add the spinach and some salt. Mix well and cook on a low flame for 15 to 20 mins.

This goes very well with phulkas, chapatis, rice and even dosa.

I am sending this over to Mansi's Vegetarian Thanksgiving Event.

Related Recipes

Thakkali Chutney / Tomato Chutney

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 10:17:00 +0000

This is one dish that has many many memories associated with it. My grandma used to make it quite often since me and my bro love it. And we call it 'thakkali oorindi' where the word 'oorindi' comes from saying 'noorindi' very often. 'Noorindi' in "our" telugu means ground (past tenst of grind!). Ok this explanation is getting way too confusing so I will fill you in on why I call the word "our" telugu and where in India I am actually from. 'Cuz that's a long (long) story.

My sis took the recipe from amma last summer and I took the picture. Because of that, I get to post it first, I guess. Thanks sis, for sending the recipe over email 'cuz god knows I wouldn't have been able to remember it otherwise. Don't get put off by the roast-remove steps in the directions of the recipe, really. Its worth it!

What I Used:

Ripe red tomatoes, slightly sour - 500gm, diced
Big onions-3, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Grated coconut - 1 tbsp (optional)
Red chillies - about 12, depending on taste
Mustard seed - 1/8 tsp
Hing/Asafoetida/Kaayam -1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Oil (preferably gingelly/sesame) - 3 tbsp + 2 tsp + 2 tsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. There are four ingredients that need to be fried separately and kept aside. So follow this order.

- In a broad frying pan and 2 tsp oil and the coriander seeds. Fry for 30 seconds and remove.

- Red chillies - roast for a minute - remove.

- Coconut - roast for a minute - remove.

- Now add another 2 tsp oil and fry the onions till golden brown and soft. Remove.

- Finally add the tomatoes and saute them for about 10 minutes on a medium fire, until they are half cooked.

2. Transfer all the roasted ingredients in a blender and add the garlic raw. Blend till smooth, adding not more than half a cup water. The mixture should be thick than watery.

3. Add the 3tbsp oil into the same pan, temper mustard seeds and add curry leaves and hing. Transfer the blended mixture into the pan, add salt and stir occasionally until the oil separates and you left with a thick, red chutney that smells mouthwatering.

This tomato-onion-garlic chutney has a good shelf life and goes well with rice, dosa, idly etc. I have posted a similar yet simpler tomato chutney here before. You can try it in case you are pressed for time.

I am sending this family favourite to Suganya for her Vegan Ventures Round 2.

Kaalan - The Kerala Specialty

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 05:00:00 +0000

Its been a while since I posted any Kerala recipes in here so I fished this out from my drafts. I make this quite often since this is one dish with coconut that TH doesn't mind too much. Not that I refrain from any other coconut-heavy Kerala dish 'cuz of his slight dislike :)

Kaalan is a staple in any Kerala Sadya. The usual kaalan recipe has both elephant yam (chena) and raw bananas (pachakkai). I add only yam since that's more readily available here. Also, its important that the curd is slightly sour, otherwise the curry will taste a bit 'flat'. Adding a bit of tamarind might take care of this, I haven't tried that though.

Kaalan

What I Used:

Curd - 1.5 cups lightly beaten to remove lumps, best if slightly sour
Elephant yam (chena) - 1/2 cup, cubed
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Green chillies - 2 to 3
Fenugreek seeds (uluva) - 1/4 tsp
Dried red chillies - 2
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - a few

How I Made It:

1. Heat 1 cup water with the yam pieces and cook till almost done. (A fork inserted should come out easily. Make sure that the pieces are not mushy, just cooked). Meanwhile, grind coconut with green chillies well, with very little water.

2. Add salt, pepper powder and turmeric powder to the pan.

3. Lower the fire to minimum and add the beaten curd along with the ground coconut. After about five minutes, removed from fire and set aside.

4. Heat oil in a pan and temper mustard seeds. Lightly fry the fenugreek seeds (take care not to burn it!) with the curry leaves and the red chillies. Add this to the above curry and mix well.

This curry goes well with steamed rice and (a) Kaya Mezhukkupuratti, (b) Okra fry with Peanuts, (c) Kovvaka Mezhukkupuratti,

Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 03:33:00 +0000

Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu literraly means dal balls in a gravy. As with most tam Brahm recipes, this one has the most common ingredients like toor dal, tamarind, hing and of course sambar powder!

I have mentioned before how new I was/still am to an extend to Tamil Brahmin cooking. My parents-in-law are here for a visit and that means amma takes care of all the cooking and dinner is ready by the time I get back from office. Bliss. But, I told her first off that I wanted to watch her making Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu. The dish features dal balls in a tangy tamarind sauce. Though it looks a bit like kofta curry, the recipe couldn't be further from it. Amma had given me the recipe long back and I tried it once but the dal balls (urundai) dissolved in the sauce and it ended up like sambar in the end. It does take some practise to get it right and what better way to learn than by watching!

What We Used:

Toor Dal – 1 cup, soaked in water for atleast 1 hour
Onion- 1 small, minced
Hing - 1/4 tsp
Dried red chillies - 3 to 4
Salt – 1 tsp

Tamarind water - 2 cups (or 2 tbsp tamarind paste dissolved in 2 cups water)
Grated coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1/4 cup, ground to a paste in little water
Sambar powder- 1 heaped tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Hing - a pinch
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard – 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves – a few
Salt - to taste

How We Made It:

1. Take a heavy-bottomed pan that's preferably evenly shaped at the bottom (so that the dal balls cook evenly). Pour in the tamarind water and add turmeric and salt. Bring to a boil.

2. Then add the hing, sambar powder and ground coconut and let it boil on low flame.

3. Meanwhile, rinse the soaked toor dal completely and grind it with red chillies, hing and salt, without adding any water.

4. Mix in the minced onions to the above dal paste and make small lemon-sized balls with it.

5. Add the dal balls one by one, slowly, into the boiling sauce. Do not mix around too much or else the balls will crumble. If you are trying this for the first time, add one or two balls at a time and then keep adding more.

6. Now its time to be patient and wait for the dal balls to cook. They will almost double in size as they boil in the sauce and the sauce will thicken as well.

7. Once the dal balls are cooked (will take about 15-20 mins), temper mustard seeds in some oil, add curry leaves and transfer to the boiling kuzhambu.

8. Remove from fire and serve hot.

We made this kuzhambu last weekend and though I didn't have a flat bottomed pan which brings out the best results, the kadai worked pretty okay too. We had to keep stirring the balls gently so that it cooks evenly. If you are making this for the first time, you can also try steaming the balls before dropping in the sauce. This will prevent break-age. I will let you know how it comes out when I try it on my own next :D

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There is something else that I kept forgetting to mention in my previous posts so doing so now. Better late than never. Mansi of Fun and Food had hosted a Healthy Recipes Contest and I won! She sent me this amazing book and I want to thank her for hosting and everyone who voted.

But wait! What's the recipe that won? Click here to find out!

Thattai - A Savory Snack For Deepavali

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:18:00 +0000

I wanted to share a Diwali savory snack with you very quickly. So no yada-yada this time. Just a quickie thattai recipe that came out real well, even for a newbie like me.

What I Used:

Rice flour - 4 cups
Urad dal - 1/2 cup, ground to fine powder
Chana dal - 2 tbsp (I didn't use them since didn't have any)
Butter - 1/3 cup
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Sesame seeds (ellu) - 2 tbsp
Curry leaves - a few, each cut into two
Salt - to taste
Water - about 1. 5 cups
Oil - for deep frying

How I Made It:

1. Mix all the ingredients and make a thick dough adding very little water at a time.

2. Divide and shape into marble-sized balls. Normally, the store bought ones are bigger but I made them small so that I can use less oil while frying.

3. Dampen fingers and gently the flatten the dough on a plastic sheet (I cut up the plastic bag in which I got the urad dal), to get a uniform disc of about 0.5cm thickness.

4. Prick the discs lightly with a fork (to prevent puffing up) and deep fry till golden brown.

Tastes awesome with some hot tea on Diwali, while chatting around the family coffee table with family :)

This can be stored in an air tight container for upto a week.

This goes to JFI - Festival Treats this month hosted by Srivalli.

Authentic Tomato Rice / Thakkali Sadam

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 09:40:00 +0000

I have already posted my easy peasy tomato rice recipe here but this one is more authentic and has some grinding and roasting to do before you can enjoy it. And let me also tell you that its totally worth the effort. Of course, if you are too pressed for time or are too tired to be doing anything than some bare minimum chopping and stirring then the first recipe is the one for you.

The paste

This is my aunt's special recipe and she has been using it for ages to impress her guests (and my uncle of course).

Tomato Rice

What I Used (Serves 2):

Rice - 2 cups
Tomatoes - 3 ripe medium-sized ones. If in India, do not use the 'Bangalore tomatoes' but the other firmer, tangier variety.
Onion - 1 medium, very finely chopped
Salt - to taste

Dry-roast and grind:

Coriander seeds (malli) - 1.5 tbsp
Chana dal - 2 tbsp
Red chillies - 5 or 6
Fenugreek seeds (methi/uluva) - 1/2 tsp

For tempering:

Mustard seeds: 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Chana dal - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 3, chopped fine
Peanuts - 1/2 cup (I use slightly more since I like their crunch in the rice)
Asafoetida/hing - a pinch
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Sesame oil (nallennai) - 2 tbsp

How I Made It:

1. Dry roast and grind the list of ingredients under that head and leave aside to cool. Make sure that you don't burn the fenugreek while roasting. To avoid this, add it once the other ingredients are almost roasted.

2. Cook the rice. Make sure that its not overcooked or too mushy. I used ponni rice but basmati brings out a nice flavour and unique taste to the dish.

3. Heat the oil and temper mustard seeds and urad dal. Add the chana dal, green chillies, peanuts and chopped onions and saute for about 2 to 3 mins.

4. Then add the turmeric, hing and the curry leaves. Fry for another minute or two.

5. Add the ground powder (masala) and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes.

6. Now add the chopped tomatoes and mix well. Keep the fire on low and cook till the raw smell leaves the mixture. This should take about 10 to 12 mins. Add salt. The oil will begin to separate. Make sure that the mixture is a thick paste and not watery (in short, don't add water).

7. Once done, mix in the rice, stir well until blended well and serve hot with raita, achaar and papad.

This rice dish goes to Srivalli's Rice Mela.

Easy Vathal Kuzhambu

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:25:00 +0000

This tangy South Indian specialty gets its name from Vathal which is vegetables sun dried and then added to the gravy for flavour. The common vathal is made with sundakka (Turkey Berry), vendakka (Okra) or manathakkali (interestingly known as black nightshade in english). You can also add vegetables like brinjal or drumsticks for a different flavour.

I had been using the MTR ready mix since I came to Singapore but decided to make the authentic version. I wasn't very confident since this is a very authentic recipe and may not come out well during the first try. I searched online and came across this relatively simple version that didn't require any grinding or roasting and decided to give it a shot.

It came out much better than I expected so this one is definitely a keeper.

What I Used:

Shallots -12, halved or whole if not too big
Vathal/Drumsticks/Aubergine - 1/2 cup (you can add pretty much any of these in the kozhambu for a unique flavour)
Tamarind paste - 2 tbsp (or half cup tamarind water made by squeezing a lemon sized tamarind ball in luke warm water)
Fenugreek/venthayam/uluva - 1/4 tsp
Sesame oil - 3 tbsp
Peppercorn - 1tsp
Sambar powder - 2 tsp
Salt - to taste

For tempering:
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - a few

For thickening:
Either 1 tbsp urad dal roasted and powdered OR 1 tbsp rice flour mixed with some water.

How I Made It:

1. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pan temper mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves.
2. Then add the shallots and any vegetable or vathal you are using and fry for about 2 minutes.
3. Add the sambar powder and peppercorn and fry for another 30 seconds.
4. Add the tamarind water and water and allow to boil on low flame for 8-10 minutes.
5. Add the thickening ingredients of choice and let boil for another 3-4 minutes.

Serve hot with steamed white rice and ghee drizzled on top.

Bibimbap - A Korean One-Dish Meal

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 06:04:00 +0000

Its been over 5 months since we moved to Singapore and since then I have been eating out quite a bit. TH and I have lunch out and while he finds it difficult to find good food outside (he is a vegetarian), its slightly easier for me. I am a very selective non-veg eater and after marriage, have been mostly sticking to vegetarian food. I mostly ask restaurants to customize their dishes by removing any red meat and substituting with vegetables if possible, or sometimes chicken. This is not easy considering South East Asian Cuisine has meat and seafood atleast in a hidden way, in the form of fish sauce or pork lard used for cooking.

Anyway, since I normally experiment on different kinds of cuisines, I thought I will document some of the dishes here. The pics are going to be a bit fuzzy since I don't carry my camera with me everywhere and use my phone mostly.

The other day, I went with 2 of my colleagues to a Korean restaurant called Seoul Kool and I tried the popular one dish Korean meal called Bibimbop (bee-beem-bop). Though normally served with beef, they also served the chicken version.

While we waited for our orders, they brought in 6 bowls with different starters. Unfortunately, I was only able to take a picture of half of them. There were steamed asparagus with chilli flakes, cabbage in some vinegar-chilly paste, mashed potatoes with some sort of seeds and white raisins, red beans in some sweet sauce (which was yummy), julienned carrots with spinach, tiny fish dried and fried (which I didn't try since I don't like dried fish).

The bibimbop came in a metal pot which was on a metal tray and it was *hot*. The dish looked pretty and colorful with all the components arranged in a nice manner. There was shredded chicken, fried seaweed, bean sprouts, cucumber, mushrooms, spinach, carrots, and some more unidentifiable vegetables and chilli noodles, all served on a bed of rice. We were supposed to mix it all well before eating. There is a also a leafy soup that can be added to it, along with some chilli paste. I tasted the soup and didn't like it - the leaves tasted like they were dried before cooking.

Though the serving looked small, once I started eating it, I found it quite filling. Also, they kept refilling the starters too. It was wholesome and flavorful. I loved it!

Cost: S$ 12.90

Seoul Kool

Jong Gat Jip Holdings Pvt Ltd

Icon Village

12 Gopeng Street

Singapore - 078877

Ph: +65 6327 7761

For bibimbap recipes, click here, here and here.

Aloo Paratha

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:10:00 +0000

Aloo Paratha really doesn't need an introduction to any Indian cuisine lover. I remember having it in an Indian restaurant in Dublin and though everything else tasted nothing (much) like Indian food, their Aloo Paratha was very near the real one. The best Alu Paratha I have ever tasted was in a well-known dhaba in Gurgaon lovingly called the Convergys Dhaba. Darsh took me there during one of our many visits to Gurgaon and I will never forget the taste of that paratha which was super-thick, soft, oozing in butter with a square butter piece on top that melts around the paratha as you eat. And they serve it with a really nice achaar (pickle). The paratha was hot till I finished eating it, that's how thick it was. Bliss..

As with most street food, its impossible to get that taste at home for me. I chicken out and add very little butter and I guess that's for the best anyway. I like my parathas nicely browned and with avakka pickle while TH also takes curd with his.

What I Used:

For the roti/bread:

Wheat flour/atta - 4 cups and a bit more while rolling
Warm water - 2 cups (a little more or less)
Milk - 4 tbsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Butter - as needed to cook

For the potato/aloo filling:

Potatoes - 2 to 3, cooked and mashed until soft
Green chillies - 2, finely chopped [if you are not used to chillies and don't want your tongue to fall out when you accidentally bite into them, use 1/2 tsp red chilly powder]
Jeera powder/jeerakam - 1/2 tsp
All purpose curry masala/garam masala - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Ginger - 1/2 tsp, finely minced
Fresh coriander leaves - a generous bunch, finely chopped
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - to taste

The filling is quite flexible and you can add pretty much anything you want. Some people add minced onions, garlic, more spices, etc. Customize it to what suits you best. But the basic idea is to keep it a bit mild and simple.

How I Made It:

Dough:

Mix the salt and wheat flour well. Add the milk to it and mix again. Add water little at a time until you get a soft pliable dough. It should make a soft dent when you press your thumb down. Knead well till you get this consistency. Cover and keep aside.

Filling:

1. Add all the ingredients together in a bowl and mix well. The potatoes should be mashed and any hard lumps removed.

The process:

Make lemon-sized balls of the dough and roll into thick discs. Make balls of half the size with the filling and place inside the dough discs. Cover completely with the dough and make into a ball again. Press lightly with the palm of your hand and dust with flour before rolling out into thick flat parathas.

Finish off the dough and the filling in this manner.

The final step:

Heat an iron griddle and cook the parathas with generous dabs of butter on both sides. Sometimes I add some chaat masala to the butter before cooking for a different flavour.

This popular Indian bread goes to Zorra's World Day of Bread Event.

The Indian Recipes Round-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Nags) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:02:00 +0000

This is one event that I almost regretted hosting because of many glitches that happened along the way. I was contacted by an ex-colleague currently with Warner Bros who wanted to promote a movie she was working with. She also promised movie tickets and various give-aways. It seemed like a fun idea and I happily agreed.

But what do we do when people make empty promises and not only let you down but also tens of others who trust you and what you said? I have tried my best to communicate and follow up, but to no avail.

Bottom-line: I promised some gifts for the participants and its very likely that I won't be able to keep that promise. It feels horrible and I sincerely apologize for that. To make things slightly better, I will be randomly picking 2 names from the list and send them a surprise gift with apologies since its the movie merchandise that I had originally promised.

I did, however, manage to send movie tickets to most of the early birds. Again, my apologies to Jayashree for not being able to get her tickets, though she was one of the early birds.

Now, not only because I feel apologies make for a bad blog post, and because there are so many delicious Indian recipes waiting in my inbox ready to pop out, I present to you the lovely array of 28 dishes made and sent by 27 beautiful ladies and one brave gentleman.

Chutneys/Snacks

Swati's Susheela
Supriya's Rice Cutlets
Harini's Vellai Cheedai
Shreya's Onion Pakora
Rachel's Plaintain Fritters

Aparna's Tomato Chutney

Mains

Raaji's Semiya Upma
Sia's Chitranna/Lemon Rice

Side Dishes & Gravies

Aparna's Olan
Soma's Bharma Alu
PG's Badane Ennegai
Geeta's Jiffy Eggplant
Ramki's Andhra Pappu
Jayashree's Muthira Puzhukku

Sailu's Baked Vegetable Jalfrezi

Vij's Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu

Swati's Hyderabadi Dahi Bhindi Masala
Rupa's Khatta Palak Dal and Teaselgourd Stir-Fry

Non-Vegetarian

Neema's Fish Curry
Arundati's Egg Curry
Pallavi's Hyderabadi Kheema

Dessert

Swapna's Sponge Cake
Isha's Semolina Sheera
Happy Cook's Nankatai
Bharathy's Ghee-Roasted Bananas
Divya's Fat-Free Chocolate Pistachio Roll

Non-Bloggers' Contributions

Sreedevi's Gud, aur Ghee [Wheat katli (sweet)]

Ingredients:
1 cup ghee
2 cups wheat flour
1 cup grated jaggery
1 cup cashew nuts

Procedure:
Heat the ghee in a pan until you get the aroma. Put the wheat flour and stir until golden brown. Now add the grated jaggery and mix well for a minute. Remove from flame and pour the contents on a flat plate. Sprinkle cashew nuts on top. Cut into desired shapes and serve once it cools.

This dish can be make in quick time and is good for health too.

She's Tomato Gojju/Chambaal

Total Cooking time : 15 mins

Serves : 3

You need:
Onion – 1 medium, diced finely
Tomatoes – 4 medium ripe ones ,chopped finely
Bay leaf – 1 small (optional)
Ginger-garlic paste – ½ tsp (optional)
Chilli powder – 1 ½ tsp OR Green chillies -2, lightly slit
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Jeera powder – ½ tsp
Garam masala powder – ½ tsp
Hing – ¼ tsp
Coriander leaves – for garnishing
Salt according to taste
Mustard seeds and curry leaves – ½ tsp for tempering
Oil – 1 tsp

Method:
-Heat oil in a kadai/heavy bottomed pan. Add mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add onions and curry leaves. This ensures the curry leaves don’t turn black in the hot oil. Saute the onions for few seconds till it turns pink. [Do not let it turn brown].
-Add the bay leaf . Add the ginger-garlic paste and dry spice powders and stir fry for a few seconds in the oil.
-Immediately, follow with the chopped tomatoes and salt. Stir fry for a minute or so on low heat. The salt helps the tomatoes to become give out water. So, no need to add more water.
-Keep stirring till the tomatoes become mushy. Now add about ½ cup of water and cover. Allow it simmer for about 5 minutes. If the tomatoes chunks are still visible add another ½ cup of water and again simmer for 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
-Serve hot with roti/dosa/idli. This is such a versatile curry that it can accompany any kind of roti, dosa or even idlis.

I thank everyone for participating so whole-heartedly. Please let me know I you sent in an entry and its missing here.