Rava Dosa

Hi everyone,

This is the first of many South Indian delicacies to come! We are making rava dosa with onions but it is just the same to make it without. Here is the recipe:

Serves two-four people.

 Ingredients

• 1 cup roasted rava/suji (semolina).
• 1/2 cup rice flour.
• 1/2 cup maida (flour).
• 1/2 cup sour curd/buttermilk.
• 1 tsp mustard seeds.
• 1 tsp cumin seeds.
• 2 green chillies, finely chopped. 
• Curry leaves.
• 2 onions, finely chopped (optional).
• Salt to taste.

Method

• Mix the flour, rice flour and semolina and add the sour curd. Add water to get the batter to a runny consistency.
• Heat the tava and to two teaspoons of oil, add the mustard seeds. When it crackles, add the cumin seeds, green chillies and curry leaves.
• Mix this with the batter. Add salt as desired.
• At this stage, you can add your finely chopped onions to the batter if you wish.
• Now heat your tava. With a ladle, mix the batter and take a spoonful. Pour it on your tava, from the outside to the center (i.e., start from the sides and go to the middle).
• Add some oil on the edges and once it is cooked, flip it around.
• Remove after it has cooked on the other side as well, and serve hot with a delectable chutney and sambar! Stay tuned for simple recipes for a coconut chutney and easy sambar :)

Et voilà! Leave your feedback below please! 


With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).

Heavenly Paneer Dish #2 : Paneer capsicum surprise!

Hi everyone,

I made one of my most favourite paneer dishes a few days back and I wanted to share this recipe with you all. Everybody at home absolutely loves this, give it a try! The icing on the cake is how simple it is...

Serves two people.

Ingredients

• About 5 big green capsicums (simla mirch in Hindi), chopped.
• 2 medium-sized onions, chopped finely.
• 200g paneer (cottage cheese), cubed.
• 2 big tomatoes, chopped.
• 2 tbsp oil.
• 1 tsp red chilly powder.
• 1/2 tsp haldi (turmeric) powder. 
• 2 tsp garam masala.
• Salt to taste.

Method

• Heat oil in a kadai and fry your paneer cubes till lightly brown. Remove from fire.
• Fry the onions till translucent. Next, add the tomatoes and fry well. Now add the chopped capsicum.
• Add salt and chilly powder.
• Keep it covered till the veggies are cooked well.
• Now add the paneer cubes and garam masala. Fry for a couple of more minutes and serve hot hot hot with chapatis.

Et voilà! Leave your feedback below please! 

With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).

Karela-curd sabzi

Hello everybody!

Today I'm going to make a unique karela (bittergourd) dish! Great way to add this nutritious veggie in your diet. Have a look here to see the amazing benefits of karela http://www.stylecraze.com/articles/amazing-benefits-of-bitter-melonbitter-gourd/

Serves two people.


Ingredients

• 4 medium-sized karelas (bittergourd).
• 2 medium-sized onions, chopped finely.
• 1 tbsp oil.
• A small lemon-sized ball of tamarind soaked in water.
• 1 tbsp besan (gram flour).
• 1/2 cup thick curd (beaten).
• 1 tsp each of jeera (cumin) powder, red chilly powder.
• 1/2 tsp haldi (turmeric) powder.

Method

• Wash your karelas. If desired, lightly scrape off the top skin. Cut them into thin, round slices and punch out the seeds. Sprinkle salt and after 10 minutes, squeeze out the water.  Pat dry.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and fry (if you prefer to removie the bitter taste, deep fry in hot oil).
• Remove the karela from the oil, and add your onions. Fry well.
• Squeeze tamarind juice and add to the friend onions. Also add all the masala powders and salt to taste.
• Now add the karela discs and allow it to boil. Add the beaten curd to the mixture, let it boil for a few minutes.
• Mix besan with a little water and add to the gravy. Simmer till it thickens lightly. 
• Remove from heat, and serve hot.

Frying the onions. Next, after adding the tamarind juice, masalas and karela. Last, after adding curd.

After adding the besan.

Et voilà! Leave your feedback below please! 

It is of a runny consistency, but it is not watery. Not sure if that comes across in the picture.

You could pack it in a tiffin for work or school too :)

With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).

Heavenly Paneer Dish #1 : Mattar Paneer!

Hi everyone,

This is the first recipe from my new Heavenly Paneer (paneer: cottage cheese) series of dishes. Perfect for the vegetarian looking to add protein to their diet!

Ingredients

• 150g green peas (boiled).
• 4 large tomatoes.
• 2 big onions.
• 1 pod of garlic (optional).
• A small piece of ginger.
• 100g paneer (cubed).
• 2 tbsp refined oil.
• 1/2 teaspoon each of dhania (coriander) powder, jeera (cumin) powder, red chilly powder (you can add more if you'd like it spicy!), garam masala.
• A pinch of sugar.
• Fresh coriander leaves.

Method:

• Blend the tomatoes, onions and ginger (and garlic, if you're using it) into a smooth paste.
• Heat the oil in a karhai and fry the paneer till it turns golden brown. 
• After removing the paneer, add the paste and the masala powders except the garam masala. Fry on medium flame for about 10 minutes. Keep it covered to avoid spluttering.
• Add the peas and the fried paneer cubes and also the garam masala. Allow it to simmer for another 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Et voilà! Leave your feedback below please! 

With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).

2 Step Pudina Chutney

Hello everybody!

Time for my second post! This one is a quick and delish 2 step pudina chutney.

Ingredients:

• 50g of coriander leaves.
• A few sprigs of pudina leaves.
• Juice of half of a big lemon.
• One long green chilly.
• A pinch of sugar.
• Salt to taste.

Method:

• Wash the leaves well.
  
• Combine all ingredients in a mixer and grind grind grind until you reach a smooth consistency!

With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).

Easy to do DIY Beetroot Lip Balm

Hi everyone,

This is a great recipe for a healthy (and eatable!) all natural lip balm to help you brave the chill of the winter. Here it goes!

Ingredients:

• Half of a big beetroot (more than enough to fill three medium containers). Have a look at the pic of the containers below for a better idea.
• Coconut oil - about 2 tablespoons
• Lemon Juice - 1 teaspoon roughly
• Glycerin - 1 teaspoon, you can even add more if you like.
• Some sugar [Optional] - just to improve the taste. Use a bit, taste, then add more if you like. Do remember, the glycerin itself offers some sweetness.
• Container of choice

Method:

• Boil the beetroot to soften.
• Heat the coconut oil in a double boiler to melt it if it is frozen.
• Add all the ingredients and mix well with a hand blender or mixie. Blend well until smooth consistency is achieved. If you live in a really cold place like I do, do this step quickly as the coconut oil takes hardly a minute to refreeze and then it doesn't mix!
• If it does freeze up again, not a problem. Just reheat the mixture in the double boiler, stirring continuously.
• However much you blend it, you might still have lumps in your mixture. If you want it really smooth, you could push the mix through a sieve. I skipped this step as I wanted the lumpy beetroot-y goodness in mine! :)
• Pour into whatever container of choice and stick it in your fridge!

 Et voilà! Leave your feedback below please!

With love,
Suja

PS: I'm always looking to get comments and feedback (who doesn't?!) I appreciate constructive criticism (and compliments of course! ;) ).