Pico de gallo ( Fresh Tomato Salsa )

Pico de gallo is like a salsa made of chopped tomatoes, onions and jalapenos.It can either be used as a dip with tortilla chips or filling for burritos and tacos.

Ingredients: 

• Chopped Tomatoes - 1 cup
• Chopped Onions - 1/4 cup
• Jalapeno - 1 or 1/2 ( seeded and chopped )
• Garlic - 1 clove
• Lime Juice - 1 tbsp
• Cilantro - 2-3 springs
• Salt -to taste
• Pepper - to taste

Directions: 

• Mix everything in a bowl.
• Refrigerate for half an hour before serving.

Enjoy !!

Spicy Black Beans

Spiced black beans is good side dish to Mexican entrees or a filling for burrito wraps or in burrito bowls.
You can decide the consistency depending on your taste. You can make it dry or add more broth or water if you want gravy consistency.

Ingredients: 

• Black Beans Can - 1 ( 15 ounce )
• Olive Oil - 1 tbsp
• Onion - 1 small
• Garlic - 1 clove
• Jalapeno - 1 ( seeded and chopped )
• Toasted and ground Cumin - 1 tsp
• Broth or water - 1/2 cup ( adjust according to your preference )
• Salt - to taste
• Cilantro - 2-3 springs

Directions: 

• Heat oil in a pan.
• Add chopped onion and saute till translucent.
• Add chopped garlic, chopped jalapeno and cumin and fry for another minute.
• Add beans and water and cook covered on low-med heat till all the water is evaporated. If you like gravy consistency , then add more water and don't let it dry completely.
• Add salt and mix .
• Mash some of the beans with the back of the spoon.
• Add chopped cilantro.

Mexican Lime and Cilantro Rice

This mexican lime and cilantro rice is used as a filling in the burrito wraps or burrito bowls.
You can make it either with white rice or brown rice. I have used brown rice here.

Ingredients: 

• Long Grain Brown Rice - 1 cup
• Water - 2 cups
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Onion - 1 small
• Garlic - 1 clove
• Cilantro - 1 handful
• Lime juice - of 1 Lime
• Salt - to taste

Directions: 

• Soak rice in water for 10 minutes, drain and keep aside.
• Heat the oil in a deep pan or pot. 
• Add chopped onions and saute till translucent.
• Add chopped garlic and saute for another minute.
• Add rice and fry for 2-3 minutes.
• Add water and bring it to boil. Then simmer it and let it cook covered till done. Note that brown rice takes longer to cook when compared to white rice.
• Turn off the heat and add chopped cilantro and lime juice and salt. Give it a mix.

Juicy Lemon

Few tips to extract lemon juice:

• Microwave a lemon for 15 seconds before squeezing and extract double the juice.
• Before squeezing the lemon, roll it on the countertop applying pressure with your palm. Then slice into half and squeeze.
• Place the lemon in warm or hot water for 5-10 minutes before you need the juice. Then slice it into half and squeeze.

If you know of any other tip, please mention in the comment section. 

Tomato Perugu Pachadi

Ingredients:

• Yogurt - 2 cups
• Tomatoes - 4-5
• Red or Green Chillies - 2
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Hing - 1/8 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 spring
• Turmeric Powder - a pinch
• Red Chili Powder - to taste ( optional )
• Oil - 1 tbsp
• Cilantro - for garnish
• Salt - to taste

Directions:

• Beat the yogurd and keep aside.
• In a pan, heat oil and splutter mustard seeds.
• Add chillies, hing, curry leaves.
• Add chopped tomatoes and cook till they are totally mashed up.
• Add turmeric, red chili powder and salt. Cook till the oil starts to separate.
• Add this paste to the beaten curd. Mix well. Adjust salt. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
• Serve with dal rice or plain rice.

Alternatively, if you want to cook the curds, you can add beaten curd to the tomato paste in the pan and cook for a couple of minutes. Both ways work just fine.

Soyabean Crisps

I love to snack while watching movie. This is a nice , yummy and crunchy snack and also most importantly, healthy.

This is a Tarla Dalal recipe with a little variation to suit my taste. I like it spicy so I added chili powder and chat masala too. But if you do not prefer spicy then you can just add salt as in the original recipe.




Ingredients:

• Soya Beans - 1 cup
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - to taste
• Red Chili Powder - to taste ( optional )
• Chat Masala - to taste ( optional )
• Oil - 1-2 tsp

Directions:

• Soak the soya beans in water for about 2-3 hours. Drain and discard the water.
• Add turmeric powder, salt and chili powder and chat masala to the soya beans, mix well and refrigerate overnight i.e about 6-8 hours.
• Sprinkle oil to the beans and mix well.
• Place the beans on a microwave safe plate and microwave for 5 minutes. Mix it in between after 2 and a half minutes.
• If your plate is small, do it in batches, say, half at a time.
• Let the soybeans sit for a while till they reach room temperature.
• Store in air tight container and munch on them when u like.

Lauki Kheer

I was a little skeptical about this dish. This is a kheer made of lauki or bottle gourd and I am not quite a fan of this vegetable. However, I decided to give it a try. And.. to my surprise I just loved it. Moreover, my daughter, who is a picky eater, loved it too.. So, now this is something I am gonna  make more often.

Ingredients:

• Lauki ( Bottle Gourd )  - 1 medium
• Milk - 5 cups ( I prefer whole milk )
• Sugar - 3/4 cup or to taste
• Cardamom Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Dry Fruits ( Cashew Nuts or Raisins or Pistachios or Almonds ) - to garnish
• Ghee - 2 tbsp

Directions:

• Peel, slit lengthwise and deseed the bottle gourd. 
• Shred it and keep aside for 10 minutes. 
• Squeeze out all the water from the shredded lauki.
• Heat ghee in a pan and add shredded lauki. Stir fry for about 5 minutes and turn off the heat.
• Boil milk in another pan or pot. Cook till the milk is reduced a bit. Keep stirring occasionally to avoid sticking at the bottom of the pan.
• Now add the lauki to the milk and cook for 8-10 minutes stirring often.
• Add sugar and cardamom powder. Mix well and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
• Garnish with your favorite nuts and serve either at room temperature or chilled.

Enjoy !!