Beetroot Upkari (Beetroot Stir Fry)

Beetroot Upkari is a simple and healthy stir fry. I got this recipe from my SIL. I got hooked to this simple stir fry after staying with her for a month. 

Beetroot is not my favorite veggie but I always appreciated its beauty, color and bought it once in a while to make cutlet and saaru. I even tried making stir fry but never liked it much. But this version of stir fry really tasted awesome and hence thought of sharing with all of you. Do try making this simple, healthy stir fry and get the goodness of beetroot :-)

Ingredients:

• Beetroot, big sized- 1
• Onion, small sized- 1
• Oil- 1 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Green chilli- 2-3
• Curry leaves- Few
• Urad dal/ Split Black gram- 1 tsp
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Wash and peel the beetroot. Then chop it into small cubes. In the same way, chop the onions. 

Now heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds. Once it starts popping, add the chopped onions, green chilli, curry leaves and urad dal. Fry for 1-2 minutes. 

By this time, the onions slowly starts to turn brown. Now add in the chopped beetroot and mix well. Then finally add salt and water. 

Close it with a lid and allow it to cook for 12-15 minutes on a medium flame.

Beetroot Upkari is ready!!

Serve it hot as a side dish to rice. Above measurement serves two people.

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Sakre Khichidi (Semolina- Split Chickpeas Pudding)- Makara Sankranthi Special!!

Sakre Khichidi is a popular konkani dessert. It is very simple and 'easy to make' dessert. The chanadal and semolina makes a wonderful combination. I got this recipe from a cook book written by Jaya Shenoy. Try making this humble dessert and I am sure you will love it:-) You can find my other versions of khichidi here.
I wish all my readers A Happy Makara Sankranthi.

Ingredients:

• Chanadal/ Split Chickpeas- 1/4 cup
• Semolina (Sooji)*- 1/2 cup
• Sugar- 3/4 cup (adjust accordingly)
• Ghee (Clarified butter)- 3-5 Tbsp
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/4 cup
• Raisins- 1 tsp
• Cardamom Pods- 3-4

*The original recipe called for coarse variety of semolina. I just used the fine variety.

Procedure:

Fry the chanadal until you get a nice flavor (for 3-4 minutes on a medium flame).

Then add 1 cup of water and allow it to cook till it gets cooked (don't overcook it. It should be soft and still hold its shape).

While the chanadal is getting cooked, fry the semolina in another pan with one portion of the ghee. A nice flavor is got after 3-5 minutes (take care not to burn or brown it). Then turn off the heat.

Once the chanadal looks cooked, add one more cup of water and bring it to a boil. Once it starts boiling, add the roasted semolina and mix it well. Wait till all the water is absorbed.

Once there is no moisture left, add raisins and sugar. Mix well.

Once the sugar comes together, add the grated coconut. Mix well. Add the remaining portion of ghee and turn off the heat. Finally add the cardamom powder and mix well. 

Sakre Khichidi is ready!!

Serve it hot or cold with a drizzle of ghee over top. Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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Beans Talasani (Beans Stir Fry)

Beans Talasani is a simple stir fry. I always make Beans Upkari but never tried making this. It is very easy and requires only few ingredients. The garlic seasoning really makes the stir fry very tasty. A perfect recipe for beginners as well as for garlic lovers:-)

Ingredients:

• Fresh Beans- 1 lb (1/2 kg)
• Oil- 2 tsp
• Garlic pods, big sized- 5-6
• Dry red chili*- 2
• Salt- To taste

*I used chilli flakes instead of whole red chilli.

Procedure:

Wash and chop the ends of the beans. Then cut it into 1.5 -2 cm long.

Then crush the garlic pods slightly with the peel. Now heat the oil in a kadai on a medium flame and then add crushed garlic.

Once it starts turning pale brown, add the broken red chillies and fry for few seconds. Then add the chopped beans. Add salt and mix well. 

Then add little water and close it with a lid and allow it to cook for 10- 15 minutes on a medium flame.

Add more water, if required. Once cooked, turn off the heat. Beans Talasani is ready!!

Serve it as a side dish to rice or rotis. Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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Mosaranna (Curd Rice)

Mosaranna is a very popular South- Indian dish. I got this recipe from my mother. In kannada, Mosaru means yogurt and anna means rice. 

Mosaranna is a very mild dish and hence generally served with pickle. In Bangalore, Mosaranna is commonly served with Bisi bele bath and boondi. Try making this simple rice. It is a perfect recipe for a beginner. It is very hard to go wrong. The cashew nuts in it gives a good crunch and the pomegranate seeds gives it a wonderful taste.

Ingredients:

• Rice- 2/3 cup
• Yogurt- 2/3 cup + 2 Tbsp (Sour less)
• Pomegranate seeds- Handful
• Cilantro/ Coriander leaves- 2-3 sprigs
• Oil- 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Cashew nut- 5-6
• Urad dal/ Split black gram- 1 tsp
• Chana dal- 1 tsp (optional)
• Curry leaves- Few
• Green Chilli- 1-2
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Wash and cook the rice (I cooked in a microwave oven).

While the rice is getting cooked, separate the seeds of pomegranate.

Now add yogurt to the cooked rice (allow the rice to cool completely) and mix well. I added few tablespoons of water as the curd was very thick. Then add salt accordingly.

Now prepare the seasoning. First heat the oil. Then add mustard seeds. Once it starts popping, add the cashews, chana dal and urad dal. Once it starts to turn slight brown, add the chopped green chilli and curry leaves. Fry for a minute and turn off the heat.

Add the above seasoning to the rice mixed with yogurt.

Mix well. Then add the chopped cilantro and pomegranate seeds.

Give a good mix.

Mosaranna is ready!!

Serve it with lemon pickle. Above measurement serves 1-2 people.

Note: # You can substitute pomegranate seeds by fresh grapes.
# You can completely omit the fruit, if you wish. Instead you can use peanuts to give an extra crunch.

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Celebrating 250th Post With Condensed Milk Delight (Microwave Method)

Condensed Milk Delight is a quick dessert. It just requires three ingredients and a microwave oven. This dessert comes to your rescue when you are pressed with time. 

I got this recipe from a food group (posted by Chandrika). She had just given the recipe but not name. Hence I gave a name of my own :-) I was amazed at the simplicity of the recipe and wanted to try it soon. Hence thought of posting it as my 250th recipe. No doubt the taste was good. It tasted like a peda and trust me if you have a sweet tooth, you will end up eating more (don't forget that its high in calories).

Ingredients:

• Condensed Milk- 1 can (397g)
• Milk Powder- 5 Tbsp
• Ghee (clarified butter)- 3 Tbsp
• Almonds, Pistachios, Saffron- For Garnish (optional)

Procedure:

Take a big microwave safe bowl (bigger the bowl, better it is)

Now put the milk powder, condensed milk and ghee into the bowl.

Mix well to get a uniform mixture. Then microwave it on high for 6-8 minutes. Stir the mixture for every two minutes (keep an eye on the mixture. There are high chances of the mixture spilling out after 3-4 minutes. My mixture got spilled twice and its hard to clean up the mess). 

The mixture after 6-8 minutes turns pale brown in color and becomes little thick. As it cools down, it thickens further.

Transfer the mixture into a clean bowl. Condensed Milk Delight is ready!!

Garnish it with chopped nuts and saffron. Serve it hot or cold. Above measurement serves 3-4 people.

Note: If you don't have a microwave oven then try making it on stove top. It might take a little longer and a little more effort.

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Masala Puri

Masala Puri is a very popular Indian street food. People always prefer to eat this chaat either at the street vendor or at a restaurant. But I always like making it at home (as usual). I got this recipe from a very good friend of mine and have been making it for more than a year now. Posting this recipe was in my to-do list since a long time. It is not that difficult to make this chaat. Clicking the pictures was a challenge for me. Whenever I made either I would be too lazy to click the pictures or the final product would vanish within few minutes :-) This time I was very much determined to click a picture of each step.

This chaat is a favorite of ours and all the effort it takes in making it is worth at the end:-) You will realize it once you make it. So try it soon:-)

Ingredients:

For the Masala:

• Green Peas (dried)- 1 cup
• Onion, medium sized- 1
• Tomato, big sized- 1
• Potato, small sized- 1
• Red chilli powder- To taste
• Garam Masala- 1 tsp
• Oil- 2-3 tsp
• Salt- To taste

For Toppings:

• Papdi/ Puffed Chaat Puris- 18-20
• Onion, chopped- 1/3 cup
• Cilantro, chopped- 3-4 Tbsp
• Thin Sev- 1/2 cup
• Date- Tamarind Chutney- As required
• Green Chutney- As required (I didn't use)

Procedure:

To Make Masala:

Soak the green peas for 6-8 hours and then cook it in a pressure cooker, in enough water for three whistles (add salt before you close the lid of the cooker). I also cooked the whole potato (de skinned) along with the green peas.

Chop the onions and tomato.

Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions.

Fry until it turns light brown. Then add chopped tomatoes.

Mix well. Sprinkle little salt and continue heating until the tomato becomes mushy.

Then turn off the heat and allow this mixture to cool. Then make a paste of this mixture without adding water.

Add this paste in the same pan and start heating it.

Heat it for 3-4 minutes, until it loses some moisture. Then add the cooked peas along with water (save a fistful of the cooked green peas).

Mix well. Let this mixture come to a boil. Meanwhile make a coarse paste of the saved cooked green peas. Also mash the cooked potato using your hand or using a fork. Now add the coarse paste of cooked green peas and mashed potatoes to the above mixture.

Mix well. Then add red chilli powder and garam masala. Check for salt at this point. If this mixture has boiled for a good time then turn off the heat. The final consistency of the masala should be medium thick (not too thick or watery). Now the masala is ready.

Next comes the assembling part:

Arrange the chopped onions and cilantro on a plate. Also put the sev (I used store bought one), date- tamarind chutney and green chutney in small bowls.

Now arrange the papdis on the plate as shown below. I used the store bought ones (if you are using puffed chaat puris, then crush them lightly using your hand).

Now put the prepared masala all over the papdis (or crushed puffed puris), as required.

Then add the date- tamarind chutney, green chutney, chopped onion, chopped cilantro and sev, one by one (amount of each item to be added is personal preference. Add accordingly).

Masala Puri is ready!!

Serve it immediately once assembled. Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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