July, 2018 - Vinaya's Culinary Delights

Curd Rice Recipe

Posted on July 27, 2018 by vinaya

A comfort meal for most Indians is the Curd rice. Mosaranna, Thayir saadam, Bakala Bhath, Dahi Bhath as it is called in the various regions of India, it is eaten at the end of a meal. Curd being a probiotic, helps in digestion and this is one item which one finds on every menu in a South Indian household everyday. The seasoning varies depending on the preference.

Ingredients :

100 gms rice
4 tbsps grated coconut
2 green chillies
1inch piece of ginger
1 tbsp Ghee/ clarified butter
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Urad dal/Black gram Dal
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds
3 sprigs curry leaves
1 broken Dry red chilly
Coriander leaves
Pomegranate seeds
Thick set curd as required

Method :

Cook rice as usual. Allow to cool thoroughly. Grind together coarsely the grated coconut, green chillies, ginger and salt. Tip it into the rice. Add thick set curd and mix well. Heat the ghee. Add a spoon of mustard . After it crackles add the Urad dal. After this turns golden yellow add the jeera toss, drop in the broken red chilly and a couple of sprigs of curry leaves. Toss. Drop the seasoning into the curd rice. Mix well. Garnish with coriander leaves and pomegranate seeds. Serve slightly chilled.

Thali Meal – 15

Posted on July 27, 2018July 27, 2018 by vinaya

A Satvik Thali of Rice, Sindhi Kadhi, Carrot Kismuri, Curd rice, Sweet Flattened Poha and Tender Mango Pickle on the auspicious occasion of Guru Purnima.

Godu Phovu / Sweet Flattened Rice Recipe

Sindhi Kadhi Recipe

Carrot Kismuri /Salad Recipe

Tender Mango Pickle Recipe

Curd Rice Recipe

Godu Phovu / Sweet Flattened Rice Recipe

Posted on July 27, 2018July 27, 2018 by vinaya

Sweet Flattened Rice is traditionally made in most South Indian homes either on festive or auspicious occasions. The Konkani community offers it as Naivedya or offering to the Lord, during Tulsi Pooja and on Krishna Janmashtami. It is a must during the Baby Shower.

Ingredients :

1 coconut grated
200gms jaggery
1tsp Cardamom powder
2 tbsps black sesame/til
Fresh home made Ghee
Poha / Flattened Rice

Method :
Drop the jaggery into 2 glasses of water. Make a syrup by boiling it vigorously till all the jaggery melts and tiny bubbles appear on the surface of the melted jaggery. Strain it. Add the grated coconut and boil it for a couple of minutes. The mixture should not be dry nor watery. Dry roast the sesame seeds till they splutter. Drop them into the coconut, jaggery mixture along with the Cardamom powder. Allow it to cool thoroughly. To this cooled mixture add as much poha as required. The consistency should be a little wet as the poha absorbs the moisture and turns dry. Add ghee and serve with banana slices.

Snacky Peanuts Recipe

Posted on July 25, 2018July 25, 2018 by vinaya

Snacky Peanuts, Congress Kadlekayi Beeja, Spicy Peanuts are the various names given to this delicious peanut snack. One can go on snacking on it as the right amount of spices and the sweetness of the peanuts is irresistible!

Ingredients :

250 gms roasted peanuts, deskinned and halved
4 tsps oil
1/4 tsp Hing/asafoetida
4 sprigs curry leaved
1/4 tsp Haldi/turmeric powder
1 tsp Chilly powder
Salt

Method :
Heat the oil in a pan. Drop in the curry leaves and roast them on a gentle flame till they are crisp. Add the Hing, roasted peanuts, haldi, chilly powder and salt. Mix it well and continue roasting for a couple of minutes on the same gentle flame. Once it is cool enough to handle, crush the curry leaves thoroughly with your fingers. Mix well. Store when thoroughly cooled.

Sun basked Asafoetida Chillies

Posted on July 25, 2018July 26, 2018 by vinaya

This is the small thick variety of spicy chilly which is generally used to sunbask as the skin is thick. A small bite of this sunbasked chilly adds the necessary zing to curd rice or Dal rice. Extremely easy to make, delicious and can be stored for a year.

Ingredients :

250 gms short and the thick variety spicy chilly
Sour butter milk enough to soak them in
Salt
Hing/ asafoetida
Haldi / turmeric powder

Method :

Wash and dry the chillies on a cloth. When completely dry drop them into the buttermilk to which haldi, hing and salt have been added. Allow the green chillies to absorb the Buttermilk for a couple of days. Remove the chillies and dry them in the sun. In the evening toss them inside the Buttermilk and cover them and keep them aside. Repeat the process of sunning them again in the morning. Continue this till all the buttermilk gets absorbed. Dry them for a day more and store them. Deep fry them as required. Serve them with dal rice or curd rice. A tiny bite with rotis is simply Delicious!!

Khotto/ Urad and Rava batter steamed in Jackfruit leaves Recipe

Posted on July 23, 2018November 16, 2020 by vinaya

Khotto translated means basket in Konkani. A basket of Jackfruit leaves is woven and a batter of either Idli made with Rice and Urad Dal or Semolina and Urad Dal is poured into it and they are steamed. Served with chutney, Sambhar or pickle. Recipe Link to the Sambhar and Chutney given below.

Ingredients :

250 gms Urad Dal/Black gram Dal
400 gms Semolina
Salt

Method :

Wash and soak the Urad dal for five hours. Wash again and grind it to a smooth batter in the wet grinder, adding a little water at a for half an hour. The batter should be of dropping consistency. Remove in a vessel and keep aside. Add salt and mix thoroughly. Allow the batter to ferment for ten hours. Tip the Semolina in a thin cloth. Tie it up and steam it for about fifteen minutes. Remove and allow to cool overnight. The next morning drop the semolina in a bowl. Crumble it well. Add two glasses of water in it and mix thoroughly. Drop it into the fermented batter. Add water if necessary so that the batter is somewhere between dropping and pouring consistency. Mix thoroughly. Pour the batter into the basket woven of Jackfruit leaves. Steam them in steamer for about twelve minutes. A knife inserted in the khotto should come out clean. Serve with Chutney and Sambhar.

Okra Sambhar Recipe

Coconut Chutney Recipe – 2

For more vegetarian recipes please join Vegetarian Culinary Delights by Vinaya on Fb.

Gantye Ghashi/ Knotted Colocassia leaves and Hog plums in Coconut gravy Recipe

Posted on July 22, 2018 by vinaya

This is a traditional Konkani recipe which calls for the Wild Colocassia Leaves to be tied into knots. The leaf is rolled tightly and formed into a knot. Hog Plums are added instead of tamarind and are cooked along with the knotted leaves. I have added a few peanuts too as I like the crunch.

Ingredients :

15 Wild Colocassia leaves
3 Hog plums
A fistful of raw peanuts.
1/2 of a coconut grated
7 roasted dry red chillies
Salt
2 tbsps Oil
1 tsp Mustard
3 sprigs Curry leaves.

Method :
Wash and pressure cook the peanuts with a little salt. Devin the leaves and wash them thoroughly. Roll each leaf tightly and tie it into knots. Crush the Hog Plums. Drop the knotted leaves and Hog plums along with salt into a pan. Add two glasses of water and cook on a high flame till done. Drop in the cooked peanuts. Grind the coconut and roasted red chillies to a smooth paste with the water used to cook the peanuts. Drop it into the cooked leaves. Adjust consistency. It should be neither too thick nor runny. Boil well. Heat oil in a pan. Add the mustard and after it splutters drop in the curryeaves. Boil for a few seconds. Keep aside for half an hour for the flavours to infuse before serving.

Digestive Chutney Recipe

Posted on July 22, 2018 by vinaya

This Chutney is usually made during the monsoon months in India, as stomach upsets are common during that period. Served with Curd rice, it settles the stomach because of the Cumin seeds and Garlic which are known to not only have digestive properties, but also to clean the gut. A special thanks to my dear friend Nutan Shenoy-Kini who has generously shared her mother’s recipe with me.

Ingredients :

Half of a large coconut
1 level tsp Jeera/ Cumin seeds
5 flakes Garlic
7 Green chillies
1/2 tsp Tamarind paste
Salt
A pinch of turmeric powder
1 tbsp Ghee/clarified butter
A bunch of Coriander leaves.

Method :

Wash and keep the coriander leaves aside to drain well. Grate the coconut. Crush the garlic gently. Chop the green chillies. Heat ghee in a pan. Add the Jeera and the crushed garlic cloves. Roast till the Jeera crackles. Drop in the chopped green chillies and toss till they change colour. Tip in the coriander leaves. Sauté till they wilt. Drop in the turmeric powder, tamarind paste and grated coconut. Saute for about three to four minutes. Add salt. Allow to cool, before grinding it to a coarse paste without adding water.

Kashmiri Mix Vegetable/ Korma Recipe

Posted on July 20, 2018July 16, 2020 by vinaya

This Kashmiri Mix Vegetable or what is also known as Korma is a family favourite. The blend of spices and the Cashew paste that adds texture is absolutely perfect! Non vegetarians may substitute it with Chicken though the Kashmiris usually make it with lamb meat.

Ingredients :

50 gms Peas
50 gms Sweet corn
1 large potato
1 carrot
15 French Beans
20 peeled cashews
1/4 cup water to blend the cashews
1 inch piece ginger
10 garlic cloves
15 pepper corns
10 dried Kashmiri red chillies
1 tsp Jeera/cumin seeds
3 tsps coriander seeds
2 inch piece of cinnamon
6 cloves
3 Cardamoms
1 black Cardamom
2 large onions
1/2 tsp Haldi /turmeric powder
3 tomatoes
4 tbsps oil
2 tbsps Ghee/clarified butter
Salt
Coriander leaves.

Method :

Deskin the carrot and potatoes. String the beans. Wash all the vegetables and chop them into tiny cubes. Pressure cook the corn. Boil the vegetables in three glasses of water with a little salt till done. Slice the onions thinly. Puree the tomatoes. Blend the cashews into a paste with one fourth glass of water. Grind the ginger, garlic, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, pepper corns, Cardamom, cinnamon and cloves fine. Heat the ghee and oil mixture in a pan. Drop in the sliced onions and roast them to a golden brown. Add the ground spices and sauté till the raw smell is gone. Add the Haldi, toss and then add the tomato puree. Boil well. Add the cooked vegetables along with the water in which they were cooked, adjust salt and boil thoroughly. Tip in the Cashew paste. Mix thoroughly. Boil and garnish with coriander leaves.

Spicy Appo/ Black gram and Rice Appo Recipe

Posted on July 20, 2018 by vinaya

Though the batter for Idli, Uthappa, Appo or Dosa contains the same ingredients of Urad Dal/Black gram Dal and Rice, the taste varies because of the consistency. The Rice is ground fine for a Dosa, it is semi coarse for an Appo, and coarse for Idli and Uthappa. Most people make a big batch of Urad and Rice batter by grinding it to a fine consistency and use it to make Idli, Dosa Appo or Uthappa, but I personally prefer making a small batch of the right consistency.

Ingredients:

250 gms Urad Dal
500 gms Rice
Salt
16 Green chillies
2 inch piece of ginger
A kidney Bean sized piece of Hing /asafoetida
5 sprigs Curry leaves.

Method :

Wash and soak the Urad Dal and Rice separately. Grind the Urad dal to a smooth batter in the wet grinder non stop for half an hour adding water at regular intervals. Remove. Grind the rice to a semolina like consistency. Tip it into the Urad batter. Add salt, mix well and ferment for 10 hours. Make a coarse paste of the green chillies, hing and ginger. Chop curry leaves fine. Drop them into the batter and mix thoroughly. Heat the Appam pan. Pour a little oil into each mould. Pour a ladle ful of batter and roast to a golden brown. Flip and roast on the other side too. Remove. Serve hot with chutney of your choice. The Recipe for chutney can be found under the Catagory ‘Chutneys ‘ of this website.