Rajma Masala Curry (Kidney Beans Delight)

Ingredients:
2 cups Rajma (raw red kidney beans), soaked over night and pressure cooked
2 tbsps vegetable/canola/sunflower cooking oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 medium-sized onions chopped fine
2"piece of ginger diced
3 cloves of garlic minced
2 large tomatoes chopped into 1" cubes
3 fresh green chillies chopped fine
2 tsps coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
A pinch of asafetida
Chopped coriander leaves to garnish

Preparation:

-Heat the oil in a deep pan and add the cumin seeds. When they stop sizzling, add the onion and fry till soft.
-Add the ginger and garlic and fry for 2 minutes.
-Add the green chillies, tomatoes, coriander, cumin, turmeric and garam masala powders and fry till the oil separates from the masala.
-Add the soaked overnight and pressure cooked rajma (kidney beans), 4 cups of warm water, asafetida, salt to taste and cook till beans are very soft (aproximately 10 minutes).
- add one spoon of powdered groundnut and cashew nut mixture for flavour
-Mash some of the beans roughly (this thickens the gravy).
-Garnish with corainder and serve hot with rotis or rice.

Alu Tikki (Potato Patties)

Ingredients-

Filling:
1 medium onion (chopped)
½ cup green peas (boiled)
3 tablespoon coriander (cilantro) leaves (chopped)
2 fresh green chili (seeded and chopped) (according to preference)
1 teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste

Outer Cover of Patty:
2 cups potatoes (mashed)
1 teaspoon garam masala powder
½ spoon pepper
2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
salt to taste


Preparation
Outer cover for the Patty:

1 Add garam masala, pepper, lemon juice and salt to mashed potatoes. Knead the mixture thoroughly.


Method


2 Divide potatoes mixture into 24 equal balls.


3 Flatten each ball in the greased palm and put one tablespoon of filling on the flattened ball. Close it with another potato ball and flatten it to patty.


4 Repeat for each patty.


5 Heat a tawa or frying pan and grease it with oil.


6 Put patties in the pan and heat over medium heat and one spoon of oil until light brown. Turn over (with a flat spatula) and heat on the other side.

OMPODI

OMPODI:

INGREDIENTS:

Gram flour - 1 cup
Rice flour - ¼ cup
Butter - 1 tsp.
Red chili powder -1/8tsp
Asafoetida - a pinch
Omam - 1/4 spoon
Oil for frying - 3 cups
Ompodi press
Salt to taste.

METHOD :
• Sieve gram flour and rice powder and make a soft dough using salt , chili powder, asafoetida and water.
* Soak omam for an hour and grid with little water to a smooth paste and add to gram paste.
• Heat oil in a kadai. Over medium heat( put the dough in the sev press) and press the sev machine on the surface of the oil so that it covers the oil.
• Turn it with the long handled ladle. Fry until crisp. Remove and drain. Make the rest of the dough in the same way. Store in an air tight container after they are slightly cooled.The disk with the small holes should be used.

RAVA LADDU

Ingredients: (for 15 laddoos)
1. Rawa - 1 cup
2. Sugar - 1 cup
3. Ghee - 1/4cup + 3 tsps.
4. Elaichi Powder
5. Cashew nuts - broken - handful
6. Badam pieces (Optional).

Method:-
1. Roast Rawa till good smell comes, cool it and make a fine powder in mixer.
2. Powder sugar in a mixer or use readymade sugar powder (Pura Sarkkarai).
3. Melt 3 tsps of ghee and fry cashews and keep it aside.
4. Mix Rawa, Sugar powder, Elaichi Powder, Fried Cashews.
5. Melt Remaining Ghee and Pour over this mixture and mix well.
6. When it is still hot make balls.

Note:
1. Ghee should be hot so that making laddoos will be easy.
2. Increase the proportion of Sugar, if you want this Sweeter.
3. Rawa powder and Sugar powder can be made and stored for future use to make Ladoos in a hurry.

CURD VADA

Ingredients for Vada:
1. Urad Dal - 3/4 cup
2. Green Chillies - 4
3. Small Piece of Ginger
4. Salt to taste
5. Oil to Deep Fry
6. Warm Water - 5 cups ( To soak vada)

Ingredients for Curd Mixture:
1. Grated Coconut - 1 tablespoon
2. Green Chillies - 4
3. Salt to taste
4. Grated Carrot - 3 tablespoons
5. Boondhi (Optional) - 5 tsps.
6. Coriander Leaves
7. Water - 1/4 cup
8. Thick whipped curds - 3 cups + 1/4 cup milk

Method:
1. Soak Urad dal for an hour and Grind it along with Chillies, Ginger and Salt.
2. Add one spoon ghee to the ground Mixture and mix well.
3. Make vadas without hole in centre and deep fry in oil.
This measure makes 16 to 18 vadas.
4.Grind grated Coconut, Chillies and Salt and add to the whipped curds.
5. If it is too thick add 1/4 cup of water and Milk.(Milk to avoid sour smell in the curds) Make this into 2 portions. (In One portion mix grated Carrot and chopped Coriander leaves)
6. Temper Mustard Seeds and Curry leaves in 1 tsp of oil and pour over curd mixture.
7. Soak these Vadas in warm water for 5 minutes and remove excess water and put these Vadas in plain Curd mixture.
8. Pour remaining Curds and chill in fridge till use.

MULLU MURUKKU (CHAKLI)

It is the spiky murukku made of rice flour and dhall flour. Use the Star Nostle of the murukku maker to get a fine shape.
Ingredients:
1. Rice flour (packed flour can be used too) Alternatively, wash the rice, Dry and owder it. - 2 Cups
2. Dal flour 1 cup. (Fry one cup Channa dal and Moong dal on empty tawa till red, Cool and Powder it ) (alternatively gram flour clone can be used if grinding is not possible) -1 cup
3. Butter 2 tsp
4. Jeerakam (cummin seeds) 1/4 tsp
5. Salt to taste
6. Hing
7. Oil to deep fry.

Method:
1. Sieve Rice and Dal flour together - 2 times.
2. Add Salt, Butter and Sesame seeds and mix well.
3. Take a small portion, Mix with water like Puri dough.
4. Put some of this dough in the Murukku maker (Apply little Oil in the murukku maker beforehand) and make small size Murukku on a plastic sheet/paper.
5. Deep fry these Murukkus till golden brown.
6. Cool and store in air tight containers.

Please note that:
- When more Butter is added, while making, Murukku will break. So add flour to compensate.
- If Butter is less, Murukku will be harder.
- Sieving is important to remove the air content.
- When Oil is clear and Murukku floats on top then we can know that Murukkus are fried properly.

RAVA DOSAI

1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup maida / All purpose flour
3/4 cup rava (Can use fine rava or coarse rava or 1/2 cup fine rava and 1/4 cup coarse rava)
Salt to taste
1 medium size onion (Finely chopped)
3 green chillies (Finely chopped)
1/2 tsp jeera
1 tbp oil.

Method:
-Mix rice flour, maida and rava with salt.
-Add enough water to make a thick batter without forming lumps.
-Add chopped onion, cilantro and green chillies, add more water and make a thin batter of buttermilk consistency.
-Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. Fry for about 10 seconds till nice aroma comes out. Pour it over the dosa batter and mix well.
-Heat a pan. Pour a laddle-full of batter in a circular motion and make the dosas.
-Add very little oil and fry till golden.
-Turn over and fry for another minute.
-Serve hot with chutney.

COCONUT BURFI

Ingredients:
2 Cups grated coconut
1 Cup sugar
1 tbsp Ghee

Method: (Microwave)
1. Mix the coconut, ghee and sugar in a bowl. 2. Keep in microwave for about 8 minutes on high power of 800 watts. 3. Remove and transfer immediately to a greased tray. 4. Cut into pieces when hot.

Method: (Stove)

Ingredients:
Grated coconut 1 Cup
Sugar 1 Cup
Water 1/4 Cup
Cardamom Powder 1/2 Teaspoon
Ghee 1 Teaspoon

Making:

Keep heavy bottomed pan on gas. Add sugar and pour the water . Dissolve the sugar and bring it to strings make it sugar syrup. Add the grated coconut and cardamom powder, mix well. Keep mixing till the coconut sticks on side. Spread ghee on a tray grease it nicely and pour the coconut. Make the slices immediately and cool it