Stuffed Indian Eggplant / Bhareli Vaangi

Here's another Maharastrian delicacy which R shared with me recently. One of the main ingredients of this recipe is goda masala ( a Maharashtrian spice blend ), I got the masala from R. This masala can also be made at home, the link for the same is here ( I haven't tried to make it). Also in case you don't have small eggplants (Indian eggplants) you can also use regular eggplants cut into cubes, and can also add potatoes to the same.

Prep Time : 20 mins

Cooking time - 35 mins

Ingredients :

Indian eggplants  - 7 small sized

Peanuts - 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp

Sesame seeds - 3 tbsp

Coconut - 3 tbsp, grated

Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Goda masala - 1 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp [ or as per taste ]

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Jaggery - 3/4 tsp, crushed [ or as per taste ]

Cilantro - 2 tbsp [ for the gravy ] + 2 tbsp [ for garnishing], finely chopped

Salt - as per taste

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Asafoetida - 1/8 tsp

Lemon juice - 1 tsp [ or as per taste]

Oil - 1 tbsp

Procedure :

Wash the eggplants and make 2 vertical slits in each eggplant. Do not slit till the end, stop 1- 1.5 cm before the stem.

Now in a small pan on medium heat, dry roast peanuts, sesame seeds and coconut till they are golden brown. Keep stirring constantly and take care that the coconut doesnt get burnt. Another option is to dry roast each ingredient one by one to make sure of that. Once they turn golden brown , keep aside and cool. Ground into a fine powder once cool.

  

To this powdered mix, add salt and 1/2 tsp of turmeric and give it a good mix. Slowly stuff this mix into each eggplant [ there will be about half of the powdered mix left after the eggplants are stuffed ].  Keep the eggplants and the powdered mix aside.

In a large wok, heat oil on medium . Once hot add the mustard seeds, and once they splutter add asfoetida, onions and remaining turmeric powder. Stir till the onions turn golden brown, add the ginger garlic paste and stir till the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes off. Now add 2 tbsp of chopped cilantro and give a quick mix. Now turn the heat to low and slowly add the stuffed eggplants, sprinkle some water and cover with a lid and cook for 3-4 mins. Open the lid and stir again, sprinkle water if necessary. Keep doing this till the eggplants get half cooked.

Now add the remaining powdered sesame - peanut - coconut mix, red chilli powder, goda masala and sprinkle some more water. Mix properly and again cover with the lid and cook for 2-3 mins. Open the lid and stir again , sprinkle water if necessary. Keep repeating this process till the eggplants and masala is completely cooked and you will also get a nice aroma from the gravy. [ Insert a toothpick near the stem of eggplants, if it goes in easily without resistance, the eggplants are done. For the masala, when the oil floats on top of the gravy, the masala is done. Check for both these signs].

Now add in the powdered jaggery and again give a good mix. Turn off the heat and sprinkle lemon juice and garnish with cilantro.
 

Mysore Rasam

Here is a flavourful, spicy and sweet smelling rasam. Whenever I plan to cook something special , mysore rasam is on the list. D's mom shared this recipe with me.

Prep time - 3 to 4 mins
Cooking time - 20 -25 mins

Ingredients :

Tomato - 1 medium , chopped
Tamarind*  - rolled into a size of grape or as per taste
Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Water - 2 to 4 cups
Jaggery - 1/2 inch piece
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cilantro - 2 to 3 sprigs
Curry leaves - 5 to 6
Tuvar dal - 4 tbsp
Oil - 2 tsp

To grind :

Tuvar dal - 1 tbsp
Coriander seeds - 1 and 1/2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1tsp
Pepper - 1 tsp
Dried red chillies - 6
Coconut - 1 tbsp

Procedure :

Pressure cook tuvar dal untill mushy.

In a medium sized bowl add about 1.5 cups of water, chopped tomatoes, tamarind, asafoetida and salt . Cook on medium heat till the tomatoes are cooked ( they should become soft and mushy ).

Meanwhile in a small skillet , heat a tsp of oil and roast all the ingredients under the " to grind " section except coconut till they turn golden in color. Keep stirring continously and me sure you dont burn while roasting. Cool and grind along with coconut.

Add this ground mixture to the cooked tomatoes and add another 1.5 cups of water as the water added before would have reduced. Let the water come to boil and now add the cooked tuvar dal , mix and cook for a min. Turn off the heat and add the jaggery piece.  Wash and add the curry leaves and cilantro.

In a small skillet heat oil , once hot add the mustard seeds  and let them splutter. Turn of the heat and pour the oil and mustard seeds over the rasam.

Serve hot with rice.

[* Alternatively, if you dont want tamarind pieces in your rasam, you can soak tamarind in a cup of hot water for 4-5 mins and squeeze out the pulp and cook along with the tomatoes.]

Kadhai Bhindi

One of oldest memories of kadhai vegetables I have is from the winter wedding  parties, where the server would have different vegetables on one side of a large skillet and the kadhai masala on the other side.I would go and tell him my choice of vegetables ( which apparently were potato, carrots and peas most of the time) and he would mix the vegetables, masalas and flip them fancily in air once they were done. Somehow I still happen to remember the taste of kadhai vegetables and thought I would give it a try. Even though I am not a great fan of Okra / bhindi / lady fingers, I thought eating kadhai bhindi would make me like bhindi. It did work finally!

The recipe is as follows:

 

Prep time - 10 mins

Cooking time - 30 mins

Ingredients:

Okra / bhindi / ladyfingers - 2 cups, cut into 1 inch piece.

Capsicum / bell pepper - 1 medium , cut into 1 inch piece

Onion - 1 medium, chopped

Tomato - 2 medium, chopped

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp, crushed coarsely

Cumin powder - 1 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Green chillies - 3 to 4, slit [ or as per taste ]

Chili powder - 1/2 to 3/4 tsp 

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Salt - as per taste

Oil - 4 to 5 tbsp

Garam masala - 1/2 to 1 tsp [ or as per taste ]

Cilantro - 4 to 5 sprigs

Lime juice - 1 tsp

Procedure :

Cooking kadhai bhindi is a bit tricky as bhindi / okra has a tendency to get slimy/gooey when cooked. And to prevent that, I cooked it separately.

In a pan on medium heat, heat oil. Add the okra / bhindi and pan-fry till they loose all the slime and get 70% cooked. I also added some lime juice to the okra ( as it helps in loosing the slime faster ) . Also do not add too much of lime juice as the okra would turn sour.

Once done, keep the fried okra aside and drain the excess oil. 

In the same oil ( on medium heat ) add the cumin seeds, wait till they splutter and then add the crushed coriander seeds. Add the onions and stir till they turn transparent. At this stage, add the turmeric and ginger-garlic paste and stir again till the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes off. This should take a minute or less. Now, add the tomatoes, green chillies and cook till the tomatoes turn little mushy. Make sure that the heat is between medium to low. 

Now add the cumin powder, coriander powder and chili powder and again cook till the tomatoes are real mushy and ooze out oil. This should take 3-4 mins on low heat. At this heat level, the tomatoes without adding any extra water shouldn't get burnt, but if you still feel it might, sprinkle very little water.

Add in the bell peppers / capsicum and cook covered  for 4-5 mins , stir and add the cilantro and again cook for a minute. Now add the pan fried okra, stir and cook covered for 3-4 minutes.

Sprinkle the garam masala and turn off the heat. Serve hot.

Chole / Chana Masala

This is an easy to make, delicious Punjabi side dish for chapathi or puri. It is also high in protein/fiber content.

Inactive prep time - 8-10 hrs
Active prep time - 20-30 mins

Ingredients :

Chickpeas / Garbanzo beans / Chole - 16 oz / 500 gms approx [ I used canned beans ]
Onion - 1 medium, chopped finely
Tomato - 2 large, chopped finely
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Green chillies - 4 or as per taste
Chole masala - 2 to 3 tbsp [ I used MDH masala, make sure that your chana/ chole masala contains pomegranate seed powder ]
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Oil
Salt to taste

Whole spices:

Cloves - 2
Cardamom - 2
Cinnamon stick - 1 inch stick
Bay leaf - 1

Garnishing :

Cilantro - 4 to 5 sprigs, chopped
Onion - as needed, cut into slices
Lime juice - 1 to 2 tbsp or as per taste

Procedure :

Wash and soak the chole overnight for 8- 10 hours. Since I used canned beans I didn't follow this step.

Wash again and pressure cook the chole until soft. [ It should take 5-6 whistles to soften the beans ] . Keep aside .[ If you want the chickpeas to look plump you can add baking soda while pressure cooking ].

In a large wok on medium heat, add oil . Once hot add the cumin seeds, once they start to splutter add the whole spices and stir for few seconds. Add the onions and stir till they turn transparent. Add the ginger-garlic paste and stir again till the onion turn golden brown and the raw smell of ginger - garlic paste goes off.

Add in the tomatoes along with turmeric and salt. Make sure that the heat is on medium and cook till the onion turn real mushy ( i. e without any chunks ) . This should take 10 -12 mins approx on medium to low heat . At this stage add in  the chana masala  and  cook for another 10 mins or till the raw smell of chana masala goes and you get a nice aroma. If you feel that the gravy is getting dry add some water from the boiled chole.

Once you get a nice aroma add the chole and let it boil for 5 mins. Garnish with cilantro , onions and lime juice. Serve hot with poori / bathura.

Note : My mom always adds about 1-2 tbsp of shredded coconut before serving. This addition can be made if you also feel that your chole masala has turned too spicy.

Mutter Paneer

You will definitely relish every bit of this mutter paneer! We had this rich and creamy side dish with chapatis and has become our recent favorite . 

I followed this recipe from Sanjay Thumma's video.


Prep Time - 15 -20 mins
Cooking time - 30 mins

Ingredients :

Paneer - 14- 15 cubes ( I made my own masala paneer with kasuri methi )
Peas / mutter - 2 cups
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Tomatoes - 2 medium, chopped
Green chillies - 3, chopped
Ginger- garlic paste - 1 - 2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Chilli powder - 1/2 to 3/4 tsp ( or as per taste )
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Cilantro / coriander leaves - 3 to 4 sprigs finely chopped
Kasuri methi - 1 tbsp
Cream - 1 tbsp
Cashews - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste

Whole spices :

Bay leaf - 1
Cloves - 3 - 4
Cardamom - 1
Cinamon stick - 1 inch

Procedure :

Microwave the peas for 2 mins .

In a large wok, heat oil on medium. Fry the cashews till light golden brown, add the chopped onions and fry till golden brown. If you feel that your onions are getting burnt or sticking, add half a tsp of salt as that will create moisture. Once they are golden brown, add turmeric and ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw smell of ginger - garlic paste goes off. This should take approx 30 - 40 seconds. Now add in the chopped tomatoes and on low to medium heat till the tomatoes turn mushy. Turn off the heat and cool this mixture.

When cool, grind into a fine paste and keep aside. In the same wok, add oil and heat on medium. Add the whole spices  and cumin seeds. Once the cumin seeds splutter, add the fine ground paste along with little water, green chillies, salt and stir. Add cumin powder, coriander powder and chilli powder. Stir and cook on low to medium for 10- 15 mins. The mixture will become frothy towards the end of 10th  minute. Crush the kasoori methi and add into the boiling gravy and cook again for 10 mins. By this time the gravy would have turned thicker.

Now add the peas and boil again for 5 mins. Add in the paneer pieces and boil for 2-3 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and cream . Stir properly. Turn off the heat. Serve hot with roti or naan.

Vegetable Sagu

Prep Time - 15 mins
Cooking time - 15 mins

Ingredients:

Mixed vegetables ( potato, peas, beans, carrot, cauliflower, capsicum) - 3 cups, cut into cubes
Onion - 1 medium , finely chopped
Tomato - 1 large, finely chopped
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Salt - as per taste
Oil - 1-2 tsp


For the paste:

Chana Dal- 2 tsp
Coriander seeds - 2tsp
Cloves- 3
Cinnamon stick - 1inch stick
Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Red Chillies - 2- 3 [ you can add more of you want it more spicy]
Coconut - 2 tbsp , grated
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1/2 tsp

For Garnishing :

Cilantro chopped
Lime juice

Procedure:

Boil and cook all the vegetables . Do not pressure cook the vegetables as we don't want the vegetables mashed up.
Take a small wok , when hot pour in 1/2 tsp of oil and fry all the ingredients under the " For the paste " section till they turn golden brown.Cool and grind with little bit of water into a smooth paste.

Take a wok , heat oil on medium. Add onions and fry till light golden brown , add the tomatoes and turmeric and cook till the tomatoes turn mushy. Add in the paste and mix till you get a nice aroma. Add salt and the boiled vegetables . Mix and add little water to get a semi solid consistency, cook till it comes to a boil. Turn off the heat. Garnish with cilantro and lime juice. Serve hot with roti.

Kurma ( South Indian Style)

Prep Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 40 mins

Ingredients :

Vegetables ( Carrots, Potato, Cauliflower, Peas, Beans) - 2 cups, Cut into small cubes.
Onion - 1/2 cup, cut into long strips
Tomato - 1, medium , chopped
Bay leaf - 1
Jeera/ Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp ( optional, I didn't use it)
Salt to taste
CIlantro / Coriander leaves for garnishing.

For the Paste :

Coconut - 1 cup
Khus khus / Khasa khasa / Poppy seeds - 1/4 cup
Saunf / Fennel seeds / Sombu - 1tbsp
Shredded onion - 1/2 cup
Diced Tomato - 1/2 cup
Green Chillies - 4 ( or as per taste )
Cashew nuts - 1 tbsp
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Garlic - 1 or 2 medium pods

Procedure :

Boil the vegetables and keep aside .

Grind into paste all the ingredients in the " For the paste " section with little water.

In a large wok, heat oil on medium heat . Add the bay leaf and cumin seeds , wait till it splutters. Add onion
and stir till it turns golden brown and add in chopped tomato and turmeric and cook till the tomatoes turn mushy.

Then pour in the ground masala paste with salt. Mix and cook till the raw smell of the masala disappears and you get a nice aroma and you will see the oil seperating. This will approx take 20 - 30 mins.

Add the vegetables and garam masala [ if using] and bring it to a boil. [The kurma should have a semi solid consistency so add water accordingly].Garnish with chopped Cilantro.
Serve with hot puris or parotta.

Navratna Kurma

Prep Time : 15 mins
Cooking Time : 25 mins

Ingredients :

Nine main ingredients (Navratnas):


Potato - 1 large, cut into cubes
Cauliflower - 1/2 medium, cut into medium pieces
Carrots - 2 large, cut into cubes
Beans - about a cup, cut into medium pieces
Pineapple - 1/4 cup, cut into cubes
Paneer - 1/2 cup
Raisins - 2 tbsp
Almonds + Walnuts - 3 tbsp, chopped

Other ingredients:

Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped
Cashews - 2 tbsp
Green Chillies - as per taste, Chopped [ I used 4]
Jeera/ Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Ground black pepper - 1/2 tsp or as per your taste
Oil - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger & Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Heavy cream - 3 tbsp
Saffron - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste

Whole spices :

Cardamon - 2 pieces
Cloves - 2 pieces
Bay Leaves - 1 medium
Cinnamon Stick - one half inch stick

For garnishing :

Pomegranate seeds
Chopped coriander

Procedure :

Soak Saffron in 2 tsp water.

Boil all the vegetables till they get cooked. Do not pressure cook the vegetables as they might get mashed.

In another vessel, add water and let it boil. Once it starts boiling add the cashews and onions and cook till the cashews get tender. This should take approx 5-6 minutes. Once tender, cool and grind the cashew and onions into a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a large pan [on medium heat ], and saute the raisins, paneer, walnuts and cashews separately.
In the same pan when the oil is hot add the cumin seeds and whole spices. Stir for few seconds and add the ginger-garlic paste, giving it a quick stir, add the cashew-onion paste, green chillies cumin powder, coriander powder  and about 1/4 cups of water. Stir and cook this mixture on low heat till the oil oozes out.
Now add in about 1/2 cup of water slowly while stirring and boil the gravy till it gets a sauce-like consistency.
Add the nine main ingredients (i.e. the four vegetables, pineapple, paneer, raisins and almonds and walnuts). Mix them with the gravy slowly. Once mixed add the cream, salt , soaked saffron and pepper.
Mix and cook on slow flame for 15 mins. Remove from heat and garnish with pomegranate seeds and Coriander.

Serve hot with Naan or chapathis.

Asadu - Eggplant and Sweet potato in a tamarind gravy

Prep time - 10 mins
Cooking time - 20 - 25 mins
Serves - 2 approx

Ingredients :

Eggplant / Brinjal - 1 medium, cut into small cubes
Sweet potato - 1 medium, cut into small cubes
Tamarind - one small lemon sized ball
Thuvar dal
Turmeric
Salt to taste

For Seasoning :
Mustard seeds
Urad dal
Curry leaves
Asafoetida
Green chillies - as per taste, finely chopped [ I used 3]
Oil

Procedure :

Cook thuvar dal along with turmeric.
Soak the tamarind in hot water and squeeze out the pulp into the water.
Add in the sweet potato and eggplant cubes into the tamarind water. [ You need enough tamarind water till the sweet potato and eggplant submerge]
Cook the mixture on medium heat till the sweet potato and eggplant become tender . Whisk the thuvar dal and add into the tamarind- vegetable mix along with salt.
Now in another small pan take oil, when hot add the mustard seeds. When they start to splutter add in the urad dal, asafoetida and stir for few seconds. Now add the curry leaves and chopped green chillies. Give it a quick stir and immediately remove from heat and add into the tamarind- vegetable mix. Stir well and cook for a minute and turn off the heat.

Serve with hot rice or with Chapathi.