Lemon Rice [Southern Indian style]

Last few days, Aunt V is visiting us. She is a great cook. I learned this and few other recipes from her. Lemon rice is very flavorful and very easy to make. Lemon rice is great for picnics or as a journey meal. I would like to share this simple yet authentic recipe with you all.

Ingredients:
For Lemon rice [4 servings]
Rice (Basmati) – 4 cups [Cooked] left over is even better
Cashews – ½ cup (halved) [Optional]
Raw peanuts – ½ cup (halved) [Optional]
Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp
Lemon/ Lime juice – 3 tbsp
Salt to taste

For Tempering:
Cooking oil for tempering -1.5 tbsp
Dry red chilies [torn into halves] – 4
Mustard seeds [Rai] – 1 tsp
Chana dal – 1 tbsp
Urad dal [white]-1 tbsp
Hing [asafoetida] – ½ tsp
Curry leaves – 6
Cilantro fresh – 1 tbsp [finely chopped] for garnishing (optional)

Method:

• Wash and cook basmati rice as usual. i.e. Cook 1.5 cup raw rice with 3 cups of water. Let the rice cool completely or let it sit in the refrigerator for couple of hours after cooking. This recipe is good for using leftover white rice too.
• Heat oil in a pan and add peanuts or cashews. Fry for couple of minutes. Drain the nuts and keep aside. 
• In the same pan add all the tempering ingredients, Mustard seeds, red chilies, chana dal, urad dal, hing, and curry leaves. Fry till it all crackles. Add turmeric powder and the fried nuts, mix well.
• Add the above tempering to the cooked rice. Add Lemon or lime juice to the rice and mix again.

Garnish:
Garnish the prepared rice with freshly chopped cilantro. Enjoy with any meal, anytime of the day.

Aloo Patties [Fried potato balls]

Aloo Patties [Fried potato balls]
These aloo patties reminds me of Vijaywala’s chat in Indore [India]. I feel nostalgic eating them. Although this is an altered recipe for those patties but still worth trying. I have learned these patties from my mother-in-law. And I wanna share the recipe with all of you.

Ingredients:For Aloo-Patties [10 patties approx.]
Potatoes – 5 medium
Coconut [fresh] – 1 cup grated
Raisins [Kishmish] – 1 tbsp
Cashew nuts – 1tbsp coarsely chopped
Green chilies – ½ tbsp finely chopped
Amchur powder – 1tsp
Sugar – ½ tsp
Black pepper powder –1 tsp
Oil for frying
salt as per taste

Method:

• Boil and peel the potatoes and keep aside.
• Mash all the potatoes into smooth dough.
• For stuffing, combine grated fresh coconut, cashews, raisins, salt, sugar, green chilies, amchur powder and black pepper powder. Mix well. Make marble sized balls of the stuffing.
• Take one drop of oil on both the palms and take lemon size mashed potatoes and stuff it with the stuffing balls and make round even patties.
• Heat oil in a pan on medium hot. Fry the patties in the hot oil till they become golden brown.
• Drain the patties on a kitchen towel.

Serve hot patties with tea or coffee with green chutney or ketchup on the side.

Bread Rolls

Bread roll is one of the most common snacks we had as a kid. It is great with a cup of tea or coffee. Usually it is stuffed with potato based stuffing but you can add any vegetable or nuts for kids. Kids love this easy to eat snack in their lunchbox too. So try this yummy snack anytime of the day.

Ingredients: For Bread Rolls [8 rolls]

White or brown bread -8 slices
Potatoes – 3 medium
Onion- ½ chopped
Green chilies – 2 [finely chopped]
Cilantro – 2 tbsp [finely chopped]
Vegetable oil- 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Cooking oil for deep frying

Dry Ingredients:

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Chaat Masala – 1 tsp
Red chili powder – 1 tsp
Amchur(Dried mango powder) -1.5 tsp
Garam masala -1 tsp
Roasted Cumin seeds – 1 tsp (powdered)
Sugar – 1 tsp
Salt as per taste

Method:
To make stuffing:

• Boil and peel potatoes. Mash them coarsely and keep aside. 
• In a bowl, combine boiled potatoes and all dry ingredients and mix well.
• In a pan heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Add cumin seeds and let it crackle. Add chopped onions and green chilies to it. Fry it, till onions become translucent.
• Add the potato mixture in the pan and mix well for couple of minutes. The stuffing is ready.

To make bread rolls:

• Take 1 cup of water in a shallow bowl and keep aside.
• Cut the brown edges of all the bread slices. Now take one slice of bread on your palm and sprinkle some water from the bowl kept aside. Make both the sides wet but not soggy. Press it gently to remove excess water.
• Now put 1 tbsp of stuffing on the wet bread. And very gently roll the sides of the bread to cover the stuffing. The stuffing should be completely covered. And try to make the seam even.
• Once the bread roll is even on all the sides, place it on a dry plate. Repeat the process with rest of the bread slices.
• Heat oil in a pan for deep frying the rolls. Oil should be medium-hot.
• Carefully fry the bread rolls in the oil. Keep turning after couple minutes, till done. They should be brown and crispy. Drain the bread rolls on the kitchen towel.

Serve hot with ketchup or green chutney.

Zaykedar Bharwan Mirch (Stuffed Indian chilies)

I was thrilled to see these gorgeous long green chilies at our local Indian store. I immediately thought about my next recipe for the blog. After a long time, I have tasted these bharwan mirch. And it was truly awesome. So how can I not share the recipe with you? Hope you enjoy it as I did.

Ingredients:
For Zaykedar Bharwan Mirch [6 servings]
Green long Mirch [chilies] – 4 big ones
Potatoes – 2 medium size
Besan (Bengal gram flour) – ½ cup
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds -1 tsp
Asafoetida (Hing) powder -1/4 tsp
Olive oil – 4 tbsp

Dry Spices:
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Red chili powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tbsp
Garam masala powder – ½ tsp
Amchur powder(dried mango powder) – ½ tbsp
Kitchen King masala – 1 tsp
Salt as per taste

Method:

•  Wash and dry green mirch. Make a slit lengthwise in the mirch and remove all the seeds.
•  Boil and peel potatoes and keep aside.
•  In a pan heat 2 tbsp oil. Add cumin seeds, mustard seeds and asafoetida powder. When it crackles, add boiled potatoes and mash it. Sauté for another 2-3 minutes mix well and cover the pan with the lid. Turn the heat to medium-low for 2 minutes.
• Add one spoon at a time besan to the potatoes and mix well. After adding all the besan to the pan, cover it for 4-5 minutes to cook the besan thoroughly.
• Add all dry spices (turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, amchur powder and salt). Mix well and cook for a minute. Stuffing is ready.
•  Take the stuffing off the flame and cool it down.
•  Preheat oven at 375 degrees for bake.
• With the help of dry spoon fill up the mirch with stuffing. Arrange stuffed mirch in an oven proof shallow pan, drizzle 1 tbsp vegetable oil and bake it in the oven for 15 minutes. Keep checking few times.

Once done, enjoy with fresh roti or paratha.

Aloo-Palak Paratha (Stuffed Indian bread)

Aloo-Palak Paratha (Stuffed Indian bread)
Aloo – palak paratha is great for brunch, breakfast or anytime meal. Instead of aloo-palak, only palak can be stuffed for different taste. Leftover aloo palak subzi can be used for stuffing. This paratha is a hit for lunch box meal too.

Ingredients:
For Aloo-palak Paratha [8 parathas]
Whole wheat flour – 2 cups
Spinach – 1 bunch fresh or 1 packet frozen
Potatoes – 2 medium sizes
Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1 tbsp
Red chili powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder -  ½ tsp
Coriander powder – 1/ 2 tbsp
Garlic -1/2 tbsp finely chopped
Green chilies- ½ tbsp finely chopped [OPTIONAL]
Asafoetida powder – ¼ tsp
Ajwain – 1 tsp
Water (enough to make dough)
Salt as per taste

Method:

• Combine whole wheat flour, half cumin seeds, ajwain seeds and 1 tbsp vegetable oil.
• Mix together well and add water slowly to make soft dough. Knead well to make it even.
• Keep the dough aside for 10-15 minutes.
• Peel and cut potatoes in small cubes and keep aside. Clean and cut fresh spinach finely or thaw frozen spinach.
• To prepare stuffing, in a pan, heat 1 tbsp of cooking oil and add remaining cumin seeds to it. Let it crackle. Add asafetida powder, garlic, green chilies to it. Cook for a minute. Add cut potatoes and spinach. Mix, cover and cook for 5-7 minutes on medium heat.
• Add red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder to it. When potatoes are fully done, cook it uncovered for 7 more minutes. Take off the flame and let the stuffing cool down. Mash the stuffing and divide it into 8 equal parts.
• Divide the dough into 8 parts.
• Take one part and make a ball of it. And then with the help of rolling pin, roll it and stuff the golf ball size stuffing into the dough. Roll the parathas lightly into 6-7” diameter.
• On the hot griddle, fry parathas one at a time till it becomes golden brown on both the sides. . Repeat the process with the remaining 7 parts of dough.

Serving Suggestions:
Enjoy with fresh yogurt and your favorite pickle anytime of the day.

Onion-Green Chilli Uttapam

Uttapam is one of the great tasting South Indian snack or breakfast. It has many different versions but Onion-Green Chili is one of my all time favorite. Instead of onion-chili, you can add any fresh vegetable of your choice .


Ingredients:
For Onion-Green Chili Uttapam [6 uttapams approx.]
Idli / Dosa Batter – 2 cups [ Ihave used Idli batter ]
Sweet Onions – 1 cup finely chopped
Green Chilies - 3-4 chopped
Cilantro -1/3 cup chopped
Cooking oil for shallow frying
Salt as per taste

Method:

• Heat griddle or tawa. Take one ladle of Idli batter and pour in the middle of the griddle.
• Spread the batter as pancake and add one teaspoon of oil along the edges.
• On the top spread chopped onions, green chillies and chopped cilantro evenly. Let it cook on the medium flame for a minute and then  cover the uttapam with a lid. Cook for another 2 minutes.

• Remove the lid and add few drops of oil on top of onion and chillies.
• Gently flip the uttapam to the other side and cook for couple of minutes.
• Uttapam is ready when it is golden brown in color.

Serve hot with  green/coconut chutney and sambhar.

Shahi Hara Chana (Green chickpeas)

I have tasted this recipe in Indian wedding menus, especially in central province [Madhya Pradesh]. This recipe calls for fresh green chana but frozen is fine too. Green chana is rich in protein and high in flavor. It can be cooked dry or with gravy, here I’m suggesting the gravy version to go with flavorful basmati rice or Paratha/Roti. Hara Chana has a great combination with potatoes, which makes it kids friendly too.

Ingredients:
For Hara Chana: [for 6 servings]
Hara Chana (fresh or frozen) – 2 cups
Potatoes- 2 medium

Dry Ingredients for gravy:
Whole garam masala – 1 tbsp
Red chili powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tbsp
Garam masala powder – ½ tsp
Kasoori methi(dried fenugreek leaves) – 1 tbsp
Chana Masala -3/4 tbsp
Cashews – 2 tbsp (powdered)

Wet Ingredients for gravy:
Onion -3/4 (pureed)
Tomato puree -1 cups
Ginger paste – 1 tbsp
Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Green chili -1 tsp (finely chopped) [Optional]
olive oil – 2 tbspn
Salt as per taste

Method:

• Wash dry fresh or frozen hara chana a couple of times and keep them aside.
• For gravy, heat olive oil in a pan. Add whole garam masala. Let it crackle. Then add pureed onions and sauté it, till turns light golden. Add ginger paste, garlic paste and chopped green chilies (optional). Cook for 2 minutes.
• Add tomato puree, turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder, coriander powder in the gravy. Add cashew powder to the gravy and let it simmer for 5-6 minutes on medium-low heat.
• Peel and cut potatoes in medium size chunks and keep aside.
• In the pressure cooker add washed hara chana, potatoes, prepared gravy, salt and 1.5 cups of water. Cook it for 15-20 minutes on medium heat.
• Finally, add chana masala and kasoori methi and let it simmer for 2 more minutes.

Garnish:
Garnish Hara chana with freshly chopped cilantro and serve with halved lemons.
Enjoy with fresh naan, paratha or steamed basmati rice.