Cabbage Fry / Poriyal

Ingredients:

• Shredded Cabbage - 2 cups
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
• Chana Dal - 1 tsp
• Curry Leaves - 1 spring
• Green Or Red Chillies - 2
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Hing - a pinch
• Grated Coconut - 1/4 cup
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Salt - to taste

Directions:

• Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, chana dal, urad dal. Let the seeds crackle and dals turn reddish.
• Add curry leaves, chillies, hing and turmeric powder.
• Add cabbage, salt and sprinkle a couple of tbsp of water. Cook covered on a low-med heat.
• Keep stirring often and cook till tender.
• Add coconut , mix well and turn off the heat.

Variation:   Sprinkle little mustard powder on the curry for a completely different flavour altogether.
Sprinkle it just before turning off the heat. Do not cook for long after mustard powder is sprinkled, the curry might turn bitter.

Kandi Podi ( Gun Powder )

Kandi Podi is a classic Andhra recipe made of dry roasted dals and other spices. It gives out a nice aromatic fragrance which fills the entire house and goes extremely well with plain steamed rice with a dollop of ghee . Mmmmmm.... It is as yummy as it sounds and is relished by almost every Andhraite.
It is customary in Andhra Pradesh to eat Kandi Podi with rice as the first item of the meal followed by curry, dals, rasam or sambar and end with curd rice. You must try this if you haven't yet.


Ingredients:

• Toor Dal - 1 cup
• Chana Dal - 1/2 cup
• Red whole chillies - 7-8 or to taste
• Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
• Garlic Cloves - 3-4
• Curry Leaves - 1 spring ( optional )
• Hing - 1/4 tsp
• Salt - to taste

Directions:

• In a heavy bottom pan, dry roast all the ingredients except salt and hing on a very low heat. Keep stirring ocassionally, making sure none of the ingredients burn.
• Roast till the dals turn reddish, red chillies turn crispy and the entire house is filled up with a nice aroma. It takes time as it is roasted on low flame, but be patient, the result will be satisfying, I assure you :)
• At the end, add hing, roast for a minute more and turn off the heat.
• Let it cool down .
• Grind into a slightly coarse powder, neither too fine nor too coarse.
• Add salt and combine.
• Store it in an air tight container.
• Serve with hot steamed rice and a dollop of ghee.

Aloo Simla Mirch Sabzi

Ingredients:

• Potatoes - 2
• Bell Pepper( Capsicum ) - 2
• Onion - 1 medium
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Fennel Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Grated Ginger - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - to taste
• Red Chili Powder - to taste
• Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Directions:

• Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and fennel seeds. Let them sizzle.
• Add chopped onions and grated ginger, saute till golden brown.
• Add turmeric powder.
• Add cubed potatos and cubed bell peppers. Mix well. Cook covered. Keep stirring ocassionally.
• After the curry is 3/4th cooked, add garam masala, red chili powder, salt. Mix well and let it cook till done.
• Do not over cook, the potatoes might get mushy. Turn off the heat just when the vegetables are well cooked .

Vegetable Quesadilla

Quesadilla is a mexican dish made with toasted tortillas stuffed with a mixture of vegetables and cheese and other ingredients.
Traditionally, they only have melted cheese inside , however, you can add various vegetables and sauces of your choice to suit your taste.

Ingredients:

• Flour or Corn Tortillas - 2
• Grated Cheese ( any )
• Oil Spray
• Guacamole - 1 tbsp
• Chopped Spring Onions - 3 tbsp
• Chopped Onions - 1 tbsp
• Chopped Tomatoes - 1 tbsp
• Baked Beans - 3 tbsp
• Chopped Bell Pepper - 2 tbsp
• Chopped Jalapenos - to taste
• Salt - to taste
• Pepper Powder - to taste
• Taco Seasoning Mix - to taste

Note : You can have veggies of your choice. Other options for filling could be mushrooms, olives,  sweet corn, spinach etc. You can have your own permutations and combinations.
Also, I like my veggies crunchy, so I use them raw. However, you can saute them if you wish so.

Directions :

• In a bowl, combine all the veggies ( spring onions, onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, jalapenos and baked beans) and mix well. I prefer all my veggies chopped very finely.
• Add salt, pepper, taco seasoning mix and combine. This is the stuffing for the quesadillas.
• On a skillet, spray little cooking oil and place a tortilla. Let it heat for 10-12 seconds and flip it over.
• Reduce the heat to low-medium, as we want it to turn crispy and golden brown without getting burnt.
• On the surface of the tortilla, spread guacamole, spread the vegetable mix evenly and spread the grated cheese.  ( Click here for the recipe of Guacamole )
• Take another tortilla and place it over and cover it. Spary some oil on the second tortilla and slowly and carefully flip the entire thing over.
• Cook until crispy and golden brown.
• Cut into 4 quarters with pizza cutter and serve with salsa, tortilla chips, guacamole dip or cheese dip.

Guacamole

Guacamole is a dip made of ripe avacados, originated in Mexico and is perfect for dipping tortilla chips or nachos or serving with tacos .

Ingredients:

• Ripe Avacados - 2
• Red Onion - 1/2
• Garlic - 1 clove ( optional )
• Jalapeno / Serrano chili - 1
• Chopped cilantro - 2 tbsp
• Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
• Salt - 1/2 tsp or to taste
• Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Tomato - 1/2

Directions:

• Cut avacados in half , remove the seed and scoop out the avacado and discard the skin. Watch this video I found on youtube on how to cut and scoop out avacado.
• Mash the avacado in a mixing bowl.

• Add minced onion, minced jalapenos, minced garlic and very finely chopped cilantro.
• Add salt, pepper and lemon juice. Mix well.
• Remove the seeds and pulp of the tomato and chop them very finely. Mix these with the guacamole just before serving.

Variation: Add some sour cream in the guacamole dip for creamy texture

Radish Raita

Radish Raita is a very popular dish in Maharashtrian cuisine. It is called  ' Mulyachi Koshimbir ' in Marathi. I learnt it from a Maharashtrian friend of mine back in India. So let me pass on her recipe to my readers :)

Ingredients :

• Red Radish - 10-12 small
• Yogurt - 1 1/2 cup
• Chopped Cilantro - 2-3 tbsp
• Salt - to taste
• Oil - 1 tsp
• Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Green Chillies - 2 or to taste

Directions :

• Wash and grate radish and let it stand for 5 minutes.
• Squeeze the water from the grated radish. Do not throw away the water you squeezed out. Save it. I use that water for making the chapati dough.
• Beat the curd till smooth. Add salt and chopped cilantro. Mix well.
• Add the grated radish to the curd and mix well.
• Heat oil in a small pan, splutter mustard seeds. Add chopped green chillies.
• Pour this over the curd and give it a slight mix.
• Serve this with any paratha or chapati.

Variation:   You can make it with white radish ( daikon ) instead of red ones.

Dahi Wada ( Aavadalu )

Dahi wada is a melt-in-mouth appetizer, called aavadalu in telugu. Deep fried wadas are soaked in spiced yogurt and served cold. This is a south Indian dish and is similar to it's north Indian cousin, Dahi Bhalla.  They both are mostly same with few variations. The main difference being the shape. Wada is the one with the hole, Bhallas are round dumplings. There is a slight variation in the curd. The curd of dahi bhalla is slightly sweetened and is seasoned with red chili powder and roasted cumin powder whereas, the curd of dahi wada is seasoned with mustard seeds, urad dal, etc.
Here's the recipe of Dahi Wada.

Ingredients :

For Wada:

• Urad dal ( slit black gram ) - 1 cup
• Salt - to taste
• Black Peppers - 1/2 tsp ( optional )
• Oil - to deep fry

For Dahi:

• Curd - 4 cups
• Green Chillies -4-5
• Ginger - 1 inch
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Curry Leaves - 1 spring
• Fenugreek Seeds - 4-5 seeds
• Urad Dal - 1 tsp
• Mustard Seeds - 3/4 tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Red whole chillies - 2
• Salt - to taste
• Chopped Cilantro - for garnishing
• Boondi - for garnishing

Directions :

For Wada Batter:

• Wash and soak urad dal for about 5-6 hours.
• Grind the dal using the minimum water required for grinding. The consistency should be thick and not runny.
• Add salt to taste and pat and beat the batter with hands in a mixing bowl for aeration. This is important for getting soft wadas. When you put a small amount of batter in a cup of water, it should float. If the aeration is not done well, the batter sinks and sits at the bottom.
• You can add black peppers to the batter, if you like.
• Keep the batter aside while we prepare the curd.

For Dahi:

• Whisk the curd in a bowl. Add salt. Mix well.
• Grind green chillies, ginger and cumin seeds. Add this paste to the curd and mix well.
• Add chopped curry leaves to the curd.
• Heat oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds, let them splutter. Add urad dal, fenugreek seeds and let them turn reddish. Add asafoetida and torn red chillies.
• Pour this tempering over the curd and mix well. Keep aside while we make wadas.

For Wada:

• Keep a bowl of water ready. We shall dip the wadas or garelu in water for about 1-2 minutes after deep frying. This will make the wadas soft.
• Heat oil in a pan for deep frying.
• Wet your fingers and take a portion of batter and make a hole in the center and drop it into the hot oil.
• The wadas will float on the surface of oil after a couple of seconds of dropping in the oil.
• Make around 2-3 wadas at a time. Do not over crowd the pan.
• Turn the wadas to the other side after a minute, and fry till golden brown.
• Remove from heat and drop then into the bowl of water for a couple of minutes , then remove them on a serving bowl.
• Pour the spiced dahi over the wadas into the serving bowl and let it soak for around 30 minutes to 1 hour before you serve. The wadas will absorb the spiced curd and will become soft and melts in mouth.
• Just before serving , garnish with chopped cilantro and boondi.

Variation:

• The wadas soaked in sambar is yet another delicacy, called Sambar Wada. When I make sambar wada, I prefer to make sambar without any veggies, just onions and tomatoes.
• They can also be soaked in rasam and are called Rasam Wada.

Enjoy !!!

Click here for the recipe of  Dahi Bhalla.