Snacks & Finger Foods – Vinaya's Culinary Delights

Spicy Puffed rice

Posted on February 6, 2021February 6, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

This snack is ideal for the weight watchers. Puffed rice roasted to a crisp, spiced with a few green chillies and Kashmiri chilly powder. Groundnuts too for that extra crunch , curry leaves and hing/ asafoetida for flavour. Add finely chopped onions, tomatoes ,coriander leaves and a little lemon juice and your Sookha Bhel is ready. , Thank-you so much dear Girija Vishnu Vardhan for the delicious, easy to make recipe.

Ingredients:

5 cups of Kurmura/ puffed rice

Salt

1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilly powder

For the tempering:

5 tsps oil

1 tsp mustard

5 tbsps Peanuts

A big pinch of Hing/ asafoetida

3 sprigs curry leaves

2 green chillies finely chopped

Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Drop in the mustard seeds and after they splutter, add the peanuts and toss for a minute. Drop in the green chillies, curry leaves and Hing. Toss and add the puffed rice, Kashmiri chilly powder and salt. Mix thoroughly and roast on a very gentle flame till crisp. Store in an airtight container after it’s thoroughly cooled.

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Roasted FoxNuts/ Phool Makhana

Posted on February 1, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

These are nothing but puffed lotus seeds or fox nuts. They are the simplest snack to prepare when one is hungry. Highly nutritive and extremely delicious.

Why is it so easy to make?
Most of the hard work for this dish is done by the people collecting the lotus seeds in Bihar and some parts of Northern India. First is the laborious process of collection of seeds. Next they are cleaned and stored. Post this is gradation and getting the white puff at a certain temperature. That’s the reason for it being a little pricey.

Ingredients:

50 gms Phool Makhana

2 tbsps Ghee/ clarified butter

Pepper and salt as required

Method:

Heat the ghee in a pan Drop in the Phool Makhana and sprinkle the pepper and salt. Keep roasting on a very gentle flame till they are crisp. Takes just five minutes. Cool and store in an airtight container.

This portion serves three.

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Diwali Special

Posted on November 14, 2020December 6, 2020 by vinayaprabhu2

Diwali the festival of lights sees a burst of activity in Indian households. The household is thoroughly cleaned and a variety of sweets and savouries are made to welcome Goddess Lakshmi. On the platter are Urad dal Ladoos, coconut burfi, Potato Rava Ladoo, Chirote, Potato and Besan Sev, Maida Chakli, Crispy Kodbale, Chevda and Tikha Gathiya. Recipe links to all the items are given below.

This post is very special to me as it is the 1000th post in my website in a span of 38 months. Thanking everyone for the encouragement and support shown.

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Maida Chakli

Posted on November 13, 2020November 15, 2020 by vinayaprabhu2

These melt in the mouth Chaklis can be prepared in no time. No grinding, roasting or any laborious task involved as while making the other Chaklis. You may even add a mashed potato if you wish to, but I skipped it this time as I have already made a potato and Besan sev.

Ingredients :

250 gms Maida /All purpose flour

1 heaped tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds

1 heaped tsp Til/Sesame

1/2 tsp Ajwain/Carom seeds

1 tsp pepper powder

1 heaped tsp butter

Salt

Method:

Tie the Maida in a muslin or any thin cloth and steam it for fifteen minutes. Remove and allow to cool thoroughly. Break the lump formed because of steaming and sieve it. Add the pepper powder, Jeera, Ajwain, Sesame and butter . Crumble it well. Add a little water at a time and make a semi soft dough. The dough should neither be too soft nor too hard. If the dough is too soft the Chakli absorbs a lot of oil. If it’s hard then the Chakli breaks while pressing. Put the dough into the Chakli press and press the Chaklis on a butter paper or plastic sheet. Heat oil in a pan. Gently slide in the Chaklis around two at a time and fry on a medium flame till it turns golden yellow and crisp. At this time the frothing of the oil stops. Remove it from the oil and drain on a kitchen towel. Allow to cool thoroughly before storing it in an airtight container.

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Crispy Kodbale

Posted on November 11, 2020November 12, 2020 by vinayaprabhu2

Kodbale is a rice crispy made by most of the communities in Southern India. The addition of spices varies, depending on the region. Posting a recipe which is traditionally made in Mangalore by the Konkani community. No spices other than cumin seeds are added to this crispy. It is the sweetness of butter and milk that makes it absolutely amazing!

Ingredients :

250 gms of rice flour

A large lemon sized ball of butter

1 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds

Milk as required to bind a soft dough

Salt

Oil to fry the Kodbale

Method:

Take the rice flour in a bowl. Add the salt and Jeera. Melt the butter and add it to the rice flour. Crumble the mixture. Add milk a little at a time to make a smooth and soft dough. Keep aside for ten minutes. Pinch small pellets of the dough and roll into the shape of a wick on the back side of a plate. Bring the edges together as shown in the picture. Heat oil in a pan. Drop in the Kodbales and fry to a golden orange on a medium flame. Remove from the oil and drain on a kitchen towel. Store in an airtight container when it has cooled down completely.

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Potato and Besan Sev

Posted on November 10, 2020November 10, 2020 by vinayaprabhu2

This is another type of Sev which is very popular with young and old alike. I have posted the recipe of the traditional way of making Sev too in this website which I normally prepare during Diwali. This year decided to make this one.

Ingredients :

3 potatoes pressure cooked

250 gms Besan/Chickpea flour

1/2 tsp Chilly powder

1/4 tsp Haldi/Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp pepper powder

1 tsp green chilly paste

Rajma/Kidney bean sized piece of Hing/Asafoetida powdered

1/4 tsp Soda bi carb

Salt

12 tsps oil

Oil for frying

Method:

Peel the potatoes and grate them. Drop in the Besan, chilly powder, Haldi, Hing, salt, pepper powder, green chilly paste, baking soda and oil. Mix thoroughly and prepare a soft dough. The oil itself is enough to bind the mixture together. Heat the oil in a pan. Once it is sufficiently hot, reduce flame. Grease the Sev press with oil. Take some dough and make it into a cylindrical roll. Put it in the Sev press. Secure the lid and press the dough into the hot oil. Fry till the Sev turns golden orange and crisp. Remove and drain on a kitchen towel. After it has cooled store in an air tight container.

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Potato Fritters Recipe – 2

Posted on October 25, 2018October 12, 2020 by vinaya

Potato fritters are an all time favourite whether they are deep or shallow fried. Though either Besan/Chickpea flour, Rice flour or Semolina is used to coat them, the marination used varies, depending upon individual choice. Today I have used the Tandoori Masala of Single Spoon spices in the marinade. Potatoes that I used are the Organic ones by Kedia Organics and the Semolina /Rava is by Satyam Foods. The fritters taste divine!

Ingredients :

2 large potatoes
1 heaped tsp Chilly powder
A large pinch of Haldi/Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Tandoori Masala
Salt
1/4 tsp Amchur powder/Dried Mango powder
Salt
10tbsps Semolina/Rava
Oil for frying

Method :

Deskin and slice the potatoes thinly. Wash them under running water and then drain them. Sprinkle the chilly, turmeric, Amchur, Tandoori masalas and salt. Mix well. You can replace Amchur powder with juice of half a lime if it is unavailable. Mix well and refrigerate for half an hour. Coat the slices with Rava. Heat oil in a pan. Gently slide in the potato slices five to six at a time and deep fry on a gentle flame till crisp and golden. Drain on a paper towel and serve hot with Tomato Ketchup.

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Tikklet Recipe

Posted on September 11, 2018September 12, 2018 by vinaya

After making the Stuffed Snake gourd and the Sweet potato fritters, the filling of the Stuffed Snake gourd and the batter of the Sweet potato fritters was left over. I was just thinking what to do with the little of each which was left, when a thought struck me. Why not combine both and make it into a tikki or cutlet? Well… It was neither a tikki nor a cutlet so called it Tikklet. 😁

Ingredients :

The ingredients are the left overs of both the recipes, links to which are given below.

Stuffed Snake Gourd Fritters Recipe

Sweet Potato Fritters Recipe – 2

Method :

Combine the ingredients of both the above mentioned recipes and mix thoroughly. Add some finely chopped Coriander leaves and onions, pat them into shape and deep fried them to a golden brown. Serve with Tomato ketchup or a mint chutney.
Copyright © 2018 by Vinaya Prabhu. All rights reserved.

Sweet Potato Fritters Recipe – 2

Posted on September 11, 2018 by vinaya

I tried my hand at making these Sweet potato fritters by adding some Semolina to the usual batter. Turned out really crisp and delicious!

Ingredients :

1 medium sized Sweet potato
100 gms Rice flour
100 gms Besan/Chickpea flour
100 gms Rava/Semolina
1 tbsp Chilly powder
1/3 tsp Haldi/Turmeric powder
1 tsp Hing/asafoetida
1/4 tsp Ajwain / Carom seeds
1/4 tsp Jeera /Cumin seeds
Salt
Oil to fry the fritters.

Method:

Deskin the sweet potato, wash and slice into desired shape. Place them in a bowl of water to prevent them from changing colour. Tip Besan Rice flour and Rava in a bowl. Add the Chilly powder, Turmeric, Asafoetida, Ajwain, Cumin seeds salt and enough water to make a batter which is neither too thick nor thin. Remove the sweet potato slices from the water and pat them dry. Heat oil in a pan. Dip the slices in the batter till they are well coated and gently slide them into the hot oil. Fry on a medium flame till they turn golden and crisp.

Stuffed Snake Gourd Fritters Recipe

Posted on September 11, 2018 by vinaya

Two boiled potatoes lying in the refrigerator stared at me every time I opened it. A small fistful of roasted peanuts, left over after making Peanut chutney looked imploringly at me, asking me to finish them off. Semolina, Rice flour and Besan began to wonder what they would be used for when I brought them out and placed them side by side on the kitchen counter top. Little did they know that they would all end up together in some amazingly delicious stuffed Snake Gourd Fritters!

Ingredients :

2 boiled potatoes
2 tbsps roasted peanuts
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds
3 green chillies
Juice of half a lemon
2 tbsps Besan/Chickpea flour
2 tbsps rice flour
4 tbsps Semolina
8 roundels of Snake gourd
Salt
Oil for roasting

Method :

Deskin the Snake gourd. Wash and cut either diagonally or round into slices. Microwave them for a couple of minutes to soften them and so that they shallow fry easily. Peel the boiled potatoes and mash them. Powder the peanuts and add it to the mash. Coarsely grind the green chillies along with the jeera and tip it into the potato and peanut mash along with Lemon juice and salt. Mix all the ingredients well and stuff this mixture into the Snake gourd. Take Besan, Semolina and Rice flour in a plate and mix well. Dust the stuffed Snake Gourd in this mixture and refrigerate for an hour. Heat a tava/ skillet. Brush it with oil. Place the pieces of snake gourd on it and drizzle with a little oil. Roast till they turn a nice golden yellow. Flip. Roast on the other side too. Serve hot.