Brinjal in peanut gravy

I love brinjal, and though my love is not shared by my family, I never tire of trying out new recipes. I got this one from a site which caters to recipes with little or no oil, but since my steamer is still missing, I ended up frying it. As far as I'm concerned, with peanuts and brinjal, you can't go too wrong. This recipe is proof of it.

Baby baingan - 12  nos

For stuffing:

1 cup peanuts

1/2 cup grated coconut

2 red chillies

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp urad dal

A few curry leaves

1 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp amchur powder

Salt to taste

1 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

Roast the peanuts till slightly brown. 

Add jeera, dhania, red chilli, urad dal, and roast till urad dal is browned

Add coconut and roast till brown

Dry grind he mixture. Add the spices and salt and mix well

Slit the brinjal s crosswise, keeping the stems intact. Stuff with the mixture.

Heat the oil, add curry leaves, and stuffed brinjal and saute for 5 minutes. 

Add the remaining masala, and sufficient water to cover the brinjals. Being to boil, cover, reduce the flame and allow it to simmer for 5 minutes. 

Serve hot with roti or rice. 

Elephant foot fry

My friend Ameeta used to get this for me often. The first time I had it, I thought it was fish fry, but even after I knew what it was, I could get fooled. Tricky to make, but well worth it.

1 yam/ suran/ elephant foot

1 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp red chill powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

Salt to taste

2 tbsp rawa

Cooking oil

Method:

Wash the yam, clean it well, peel off the skin and cut into slices that resemble fillets. This is the tricky part, because yam itches- wear gloves or cost your palms with oil. 

Boil 2 cups water with a little salt. When it comes to a boil, add yam slices, and cook on a low flame for 5 minutes till 75% cooked- you should be able to prick with a fork, but it shouldn't break apart. 

Drain, dip in cold water and keep aside. 

Make a paste of the spices with a bit of water. Smear over the yam slices, and marinate for 15 minutes. 

Heat some oil in a pan. Cost the yam with rawa, and shallow fry on both sides till crisp and brown. 

Serve hot, with a slice of lime. 

Capsicum subji

This is a dish I tasted in someone's lunchbox at work, and decided to replicate at home.

250 gms capsicum

1 small onion, chopped fine

3 tbsp roasted peanuts

3 tbsp grated coconut

1 tsp jeera

1 green chilli

1 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

1 tsp cooling oil

Method:

Deseed the capsicums and chop into inch size pieces. Bring 1 cup water to boil, add capsicum and blanch for 2-3 minutes. Drain and keep aside. 

Coarsely grind the peanuts and green chilli

Heat the oil, add jeera seeds. Once they stop spluttering, add onions and sauté till transparent. 

Add ground peanuts and coconut, with spices. Sauté till the raw smell goes. 

Add capsicum. Mix well and cook covered with constant stirring for 10 minutes. 

Missal pav

Living in Maharashtra, it was only a matter of time before our love affair with misal started. Normally, we buy it, but when I saw a packet of mixed beans at the grocer, I decided to try making it myself. It turned out really good, and the kids enjoyed it because I could control the spices. 

3 1/2 cups mixed sprouts*

1 large potato cut into small pieces

1 large onion chopped fine

1 green chilli chopped fine

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

1/2 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp dhania powder

1 tsp jeera powder

1 1/2 tbsp godh masala

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp jeera

1 sprig curry leaves

1 marble sized ball of tamarind

1 tbsp jaggery

1 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

Wash the sprouts well, and pressure cook with potatoes, 1/4 tsp haldi powder and sufficient water to cover the sprouts. I reduced the flame after the first whistle and cooked for 15 minutes. 

Meanwhile, soak the tamarind in hot water for 20 minutes, squeeze out the pulp and keep aside. 

Heat the oil. Add mustard seeds, and when they stop spluttering, add jeera and saute till it releases its fragrance. 

Add chopped onions and curry leaves. Sauté till transparent. 

Add ginger garlic paste and green chillies and sauté till onions are well browned. 

Add the spices, and mix well. Add tamarind paste, and sauté till the raw smell of tamarind goes away. 

Add the drained sprouts and potatoes to the masala, stir and add 1 cup water. 

Add salt and jaggery, mix well, and cook with regular stirring for 10 minutes

Serve with pav, mixed farsan, finely chopped onions and a wedge of lime. 

* half a cup of mixed beans soaked overnight and sprouted for 1 1/2 days 

Nachani Ladoo

I was having lunch with a colleague and she told me about the various flours that are used in traditional Maharashtrian cooking. Ragi or nachani flour is apparently very high in calcium, and iron, and I was tempted to try out this simple recipe as soon as I heard about it. I loved it, but next time, I think I will go easy on the sesame seeds- it might just taste better without it.

1 cups ragi flour
¼ cup sesame seeds
¼ cup peanuts
¼ cup coconut
1/4 cup jaggery
2 tbsp ghee

Method:
Heat 1 tbsp ghee and fry the flour till you get a nice aroma of ragi. Set this aside to cool.
Dry roast peanuts, cool, remove the skin.
Dry roast sesame seeds, cool.
In a blender, powder together peanuts, sesame seeds and coconut.
Add the jaggery, and powder it well.
Add the flour and ghee, and mix well in the blender till the oil oozes from the mix.
Make balls while the mix is still warm. If needed add melted warm ghee and make balls.

Chicken curry with a hint of coriander

It is only recently that I found that where the traditional Punjabi/ North Indian gravy uses ginger-garlic paste, the Maharastrian version uses ginger-garlic-green chilli- coriander paste. Almost everything else is the same, but this takes the flavour to a different dimension. With the hubby home for the weekend, I had to make chicken curry rice at least once, but this time I made it the Maharashtrian way, and it was a huge hit. Most of it got consumed before I could click a picture, so the picture will have to wait for another day.

1 kg curry cut chicken

For marinade:

3 tbsp curds

1 tbsp ginger-garlic-green chilli- coriander paste*

1 tsp haldi powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

For gravy:

3 small onions, chopped

1 tbsp ginger-garlic-green chilli- coriander paste

2 tomatoes, chopped fine
4 tsp dhania powder
2 tsp jeera powder
1 tsp garam masala powder
salt to taste
2-3 tbsp cooking oil

Method:
Wash and clean the chicken. Marinate for at least 1 hour.

Take onion and tomatoes in a blender and grind to a fine paste
Heat the oil, lower the flame, add the onion-tomato paste and the g-g-gc-c paste, and cook on a low flame till the raw smell goes, and the masala starts leaving the sides of the kadhai.
Add the marinated chicken, mix well, cover and cook. The chicken will release water, so keep stirring occasionally so it doesn't stick to the vessels- add water, if required. The chicken will be nice and tender in about 20 minutes.
Serve hot with rice or rotis.

* Grind equal quantities of ginger and garlic, with green chillis to taste and double the quantity of coriander leaves and stalks. It can be stored for 2 weeks, and makes a great addition to any gravy. 

Aambatti

Another dish I first tasted in office and liked enough to ask for the recipe. Full of proteins and packed with taste, it is a winner of a dish.

1/3 cup channa dal, soaked for 3 hours

1 green mango

1 green chillie

1 tsp jeera seeds

Salt to taste 

Method:

Soak the dal overnight, or atleast for a few hours. 

Grind coarsely and keep aside

Grate the raw mango and keep aside

Mix mango, pulses, salt and jeera powder. 

Serve with roti or as a stand alone snack 

Tambdi Bhaji

Red amaranthus leaves have flooded the market this season, and after moving past the veggies for a couple of weeks, I finally gave in to temptation and bought a big bunch today. A quick search of available recipes gave me the idea for what I could make, and I sort of winged my way after that.
Really loved it, but with mustard oil and garlic, what is not to like?

1 big bunch red amaranth leaves
4 large garlic cloves
1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup grated coconut
1 green chilli
1/2 tsp haldi powder
2 tbsp mustard oil
water as required
salt as per taste

Method:
Pluck the amaranth leaves with the tender stems, rinse well, chop finely and keep aside.
Chop the onion, garlic and green chilli.
Heat the oil, add chopped onions, garlic and green chillis and saute till onions become transparent.
Add ¼ tsp turmeric powder and stir.
Add the amaranth leaves, stir, add salt and mix well.
Cover with a lid and let the amaranth leaves cook on a low flame. Keep checking at regular intervals to see if the water has dried up- if it has, add some water, and cover again.
After the amaranth leaves are softened and cooked (about 10 minutes), add ⅓ cup grated coconut, stir well, cover, and simmer on a low flame for 2 minutes
Switch off the flame, and evaporate the water, if any is left.
Add salt to taste and mix well. Serve with rotis or with dal-rice

Dhirde- Maharashtrian dosa

I had this in office, and really loved the mix of flavours. I was told that the flour had to be freshly ground, so put it out of my mind. Coincidentally, a couple of weeks later, I located a grocer who did grind flour to your proportions, so got the flour made. It was one of the best things I did, because now, I can whip up a tasty meal whenever I want, without the need to plan.

1 kg whole wheat
200 gms channa dal
25 gms methi seeds
25 gms jeera seeds

Method:
Roast the methi seeds, jeera seeds and channa dal till fragrant.
Grind with 1 kg wheat, to get the basic flour for dhirde

To make dhirde:
Mix the flour with- 
- Green chilli paste
- Ginger paste
- Onions, chopped fine
- Curds
and make a runny batter. Add some water if required- the consistency should be similar to that of dosa batter.
Heat the tawa, and spread the batter as you would for a dosa. Sprinkle oil along the edges, and allow to cook on a medium flame. Flip over, and cook the other side.

Tilkut- til gud ladoo

Til-gud khaya, god god bola./ Have tilkut ladoos, and say only sweet things all year.
The traditional greeting on Sankranti, in my adopted state involves one of my favourite sweets. One that I have never even attempted making, because I saw no need to. Today, however, I felt like making it, and after finding that most recipes were pretty similar, picked one at random and went ahead and made it. The trick, of course, is in finding the 'end point', which I got surprisingly easily today.

1 cup sesame seeds
2/3 cup jaggary
1/3 cup water
2 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp cashenuts

Method:
Roast the sesame seeds in a pan on low heat till they are golden brown in colour. Keep aside.
Heat the water, add the jaggery, and simmer over low heat till it starts caramelizing and forms a ball when you add a drop of syrup in cold water. This should take 4-5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
Add the sesame seeds, broken cashewnuts and ghee, and mix thoroughly.
Let the mixture cool down a bit, then take one tablespoon of mixture in your palm and pat into a round shape.
Make all the ladoos while the mixture is still warm, and leave it to set.

Maharashtrian inspired hot and sweet drumsticks

I've had two drumsticks sitting in my fridge for almost a week. I'm not sure why I bought them, but I know that once it got home, I couldn't think of anything I wanted to make with them, and they languished. I finally invented this recipe to put the drumsticks out of their misery, and it actually turned out pretty good!

2 drumsticks

1/2 onion, chopped fine

1 tsp ginger-garlic paste

1 tsp mustard oil

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/2 tsp Maharashtrian godh masala powder

1 tsp jaggery

Salt to taste

1 tbsp black sesame seeds

Method:
Cut the drumsticks into 2 inch long pieces, and boil in water (with a bit of salt), for 5 minutes.
Heat the oil, saute the onion pieces till it turns transparent, then add ginger-garlic paste, and fry a bit more. Add drumsticks along with some of the water it was cooked in and mix well.
Add chilli powder, godh masala powder, jaggery and salt and mix well.
Cover, and let the curry bubble for 3 minutes or so. Uncover, and boil off the water, if required.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Maharashtrian Amti

I am always looking for new dal recipes to try out, so when I saw a packet of goda masala in the store, I picked it up, and then looked for a recipe that I could try out. This dal was a major hit, and it is definitely going to be my "go to" dal in future.

1 measure green moong dal
1 tbsp tamarind paste
2 tsp goda masala
½ tbsp powdered jaggery/gur or as required
½ tbsp chopped coriander leaves/dhania
salt to taste

For tempering:
½ tsp mustard seeds/rai
1 sprig curry leaves
1 to 2 green chilies
¼ tsp haldi powder
a pinch of hing
1 to 1.5 tbsp oil or ghee

Method:
Wash the dal, and pressure cook it with water and a pinch of haldi till soft. Mash the dal.
Heat the oil, add mustard seeds, and after it stops crackling, add the haldi powder and hing.
Add curry leaves and green chilies, stir for a few seconds, then add the dal and stir.
Add sufficient water to get a good consistency.
Season with goda masala, jaggery, tamarind pulp, and salt. Simmer for 10-12 minutes on a low flame with frequent stirring (so that the dal does not stick to the bottom of the cooker) till the desired consistency is reached.
Check the taste and add more salt, jaggery or goda masala if required.

Serve with rice.

Maharashtrian inspired Dry Chicken

One of the side effects of having a dog in the family is the fact that you often have chicken in the freezer. This was something I invented as a top up dish.

500 gms chicken

1 medium onion, chopped fine

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp Maharashtrian Goud masala

1 tsp sesame seeds

1 red chillis

1 sprig curry leaves

2 tbsp cooking oil

Salt to taste

Method:

Heat the oil. Splutter the mustard seeds, add onions, red chilli and curry leaves and saute till the onions turn transparent.

Add chicken, and fry on high heat to fix the juices.

Remove the onions, and reserve them. Add sesame seeds, masala and salt to taste, mix well, cover and let the chicken cook. When almost done, return the onions, and fry for another minute or two.

Serve with rotis and dal.

Fried Modak

Ganesh Chaturti is always synonumous with the regular kozakottai for me, but over the last few years, I have been seeing lots of pictures of fried modak, and was tempted to give it a try. It is much easier to make than kozakottai, and I am definitely making it again soon.

1 cup scraped coconut
1/2 cup jaggery grated
1 tsp til( sesame seed )
1 tsp khaskhas
2 pinches of cardamom powder
3 tsp pure ghee
1 cup wheat flour Oil for deep frying

Method:
Dry roast the til and khaskhas .
In a bowl mix scraped coconut jaggery, cardamom powder, til and khaskhasTake a pan heat 2 tsps of ghee and add this mix until the jaggery gets dissolved , keep mixing it with a spoon to avoid the burnt taste .
Knead wheat flour with remaining ghee and water .
Roll puris of 1.5" diameter and place the cooled stuffing at the centre and give the shape of modak . Deep fry till they turn wheat brown in colour

Patra/ aluvadi

ISomewhere along the course of my stay in the city, I discovered 'patra' and grew to love it. Even though it looked as if it was drenched in oil, I couldn't resist picking it up for lunch a couple of times a week.

It was only about a year back that I learnt how to make it, and it took me about a year after that to actually buy a bunch of colocasia leaves and make it. 

And now I wonder why I never attempted it before!

3-4 medium sized colocasia leaves

For the batter:

1 tsp ginger paste

1/2 tsp dhania powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp jeera powder

1 tbsp tamarind pulp

3/4 cup besan

2 tbsp jaggery

Salt to taste
Water as required

For tempering:
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp white sesame seeds
Grated coconut for garnish

Method:
Wash the colocasia leaves, pat dry and remove the stem. Turn over, and slice out the mid vein with a sharp knife, taking care to ensure the leaf itself remains intact.
Make a batter with the ingredients, add water only sparingly- the batter should be thick.
Cut each leaf along the midrib.
Spread batter on the first leaf, then place the next leaf so it points the other way, and spread batter on it. Continue till all the leaves are used up.
Press the vertical edges in, then start rolling tightly. Once completely rolled, tie it with some twine, and place on a greased steamer (I used an idli stand).
Steam for 20-25 minutes.
Remove the twine, and slice finely with a sharp knife.
Heat some of the oil, and lightly brown both sides of the patras.
Heat the rest of the oil, temper the mustard seeds, then add the sesame seeds. Pour over the patra.
Serve garnished with coriander and grated coconut.

Kaddu ki Subji

I love to drool over pictures of pumpkins, and day-dream over recipes of pumpkin soup. So when I saw a pumpkin at my vegetable stall, I picked it up, even though I had no idea what to do with it. It was after getting back home that I looked for recipes, and I rather liked this one, and decided to try it out. The jury is still out on whether or not the family likes it!

1 small pumpkin/kaddu
¼ tsp methi seeds
1 tsp jeera
1 or 2 dry red chilies (optional)
½ tsp red chili powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp garam masala powder
1 tsp amchur
1 tsp sugar or 2 tsp crushed jaggery
2 tbsp oil or ghee
¾th cup or 1 cup water
salt to taste

Method
Wash, peel and chop the pumpkin. Remove the seeds and keep aside either for planting or for making roasted pumpkin seeds
Heat oil/ghee in a pressure cooker, temper with methi seeds and jeera, and fry for a minute on a low flame. Add red chilli, chopped pumpkin, and haldi and red chilli powder. Mix it well, add sugar, salt and water, cover the cooker, and let it cook for 8 minutes (after the first whistle).
Mash the cooked pumpkin, add garam masala and amchur powder. Stir the mashed pumpkin well and cook for minute or two. If the sabzi still looks watery, evaporate it by cooking it without the lid- the sabzi should not be dry nor watery, just in between.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve kaddu ki sabzi hot with puris

Cucumber cake

Cucumber cake? If we can have a zucchini cake, why not a cucumber cake?
Cucumber cake, a traditional recipe from Maharashtra. Now, that really got my attention, and since the recipe had so many of my favourite ingredients, I just had to try it out. There were very many recipes on the internet, but I based mine on SNT's recipe, though I halved the quantities.
The result was, well, different. We alternately loved it and merely liked it, but it was something new! And new is sometimes welcome.

Ingredients :-
3 Cups Grated Cucumber( do not drain its water, that lends more taste, will help moisten the cake and prevent it from becoming dry)
2 Cups of Rawa/Suji
2 Cups of Jaggery ( now depending on the sweetness of the jaggery , do reduce or increase the amount)
2 Cups Freshly Grated Coconut
1 Tsp Cardamom Powder
Handful of Broken Cashewnuts
½ a Cup of Raisins ( I didn’t add them)
Pinch of Salt
2 1/2 Tbsp of Ghee
1 Tsp of Baking Powder
½ Tsp of Baking Soda
 
Method:-
Grease your pan with ghee and keep aside.
Mix the cucumber, rawa, jaggery and coconut with your hands till the jaggery has melted well into the mixture. 
Then add ghee, cardamom powder, salt, cashewnuts, raisins. Keep aside for the rawa to absorb the liquids for about 10/15 mins. 
Add the baking powder and baking soda and mix lightly but well. 
Pour into the greased tin, and steam for 15 minutes. Let it cool a while before demoulding it. 
 Serve when totally cooled without any garnishings or sauces

Sabudana khichdi

Sabudana khichdi was one of my childhood favourites. Not made too often in our house, I nonetheless looked forward to the times when it would be made. Not always, though- sometimes, what would emerge would be a gelatinous mass, that was difficult to stuff down your throat!
When I moved to Bombay after marriage, I discovered sabudana vada, which had all the taste of the sabudana khichdi, with the convenience of being available at practically every joint. But I still missed the khichdi, though I never had the guts to try it out for myself.
Then, I got a Maharashtrian maid, who taught me exactly how it should be done- wash the sabudana till the water runs clear, then keep it aside for a couple of hours before using. No soaking, no nothing- just washing and keeping wet. It works, and I can proudly say that this is one of the few things I make that comes out well consistently.

Ingredients:

1 cup sabudana or tapioca pearls
2 small to medium size potatoes, boiled
½ cup roasted peanuts
8-10 curry leaves (optional)

1/2 inch piece of ginger, cut fine
1 green chili

1 tsp cumin
¼ cup grated fresh coconut (optional)
½ to 1 tsp sugar or as required
2 tbsp oil
rock salt as required

Method:
Wash the sabudana well, then keep in wet condition (covered with a wet towel for 1 or 2 hours)
Boil, peel and chop the potatoes

Dry roast the peanuts. 

Put peanuts and green chili in a mixer and give it a single whiz, so it is coarsely powdered.

Mix the coarsely powdered peanuts, salt and sugar with the drained sabudana.
Heat oil, add jeera and wait for it to crackle. Add ginger, and stir till the raw smell of the ginger goes away.
Add potato and saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add the sabudana, and keep stirring the mixture till the sabudana becomes translucent. 

Turn off the fire, add grated coconut and mix well.

Serve hot, with curds mixed with sugar.

Kanda Poha

Poha was another of those things that I could never get right, which made it take on the mantle of "exotic", even though it doesn't really deserve it. The trick is in the soaking part- you are not supposed to soak it, as much as being required to wash it well, and let the water seep in. Now that I have a lovely steel colander for that purpose, poha is something that can be rustled up in a jiffy.
This poha is special, because it formed a part of my "carbo-loading" before the Mumbai Marathon.

1.5 cups poha
1 large onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup peas shelled
¼ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp mustard seeds
Handful of peanuts
10-12 curry leaves
1 green chilli,chopped
1 tsp sugar or as required
1 or 1.5 tbsp oil
salt as required
1 tbsp lemon juice

Method
Rinse the poha in water till they soften. Put them in a colander, and let the water drain and the poha soak for about 15 minutes
Add sugar, salt and turmeric powder to the poha and gently mix.
Dry roast the peanuts in a pan till they become crunchy and keep aside.
Heat oil, temper with mustard seeds. Add curry leaves, green chilli, onions and peas and saute till onions turn translucent.
Add the roasted peanuts and the poha and stir. Cover and steam the poha for 2-3 minutes on a low flame.
Switch off the fire and let the poha remain covered for 1-2 minutes.
Add the lemon juice, stir well, and serve

Policha ladoo

I don't like wasting leftovers, and now that I make my own rotis, it tears my heart everytime I have to get rid of the fruit of my mehanat (however inedible it might have become). But there is only so much roti upma you can eat, and the roti pizzas don't quite turn out as wonderful as you hope they would.
Which is why, I jumped with delight when I found that the Maharashtrian Policha Ladoo actually uses leftover rotis as the base.
Since they were pretty easy to make, I was certain the kids would hate it (one doesn't get lucky all the time, does one?), but both of them loved it. I don't need a crystal ball to predict that there isn't going to be too much roti upma for me in the near future.

3 Left over rotis
A lemon sized ball of soft Jaggery
1 1/2 tsp posto/ khus khus
1-2 tsp Shredded, un-sweetened coconut
1 tbsp Ghee


Method
Tear the roti into small pieces, and grind in the mixer with the jaggery.
Dry roast the poppy seeds, and once they start getting brown, add the coconut and roast till dry.
Mix the poppy seeds, coconut, ground roti mix and ghee to make a slightly sticky mass.
Roll into balls.
Enjoy!