Varutha Chena Erissery

Varutha Chena Erissery( Yam/ Suran Erissery)

Erissery is a unique vegetarian dish of Kerala which is a combination of any vegetable like pumpkin,raw banana, snake gourd with red beans or black eyed beans.What makes it special is the seasoning with roasted coconut.I have already posted one with pumpkin, but this recipe is different. I got this recipe from Dhuythi and Swathi. Thanks to both my dear friends for this lovely recipe.This is a really delicious and I am sure every one will love it.

Ingredients
Chena/elephant yam- 2 cups
Vanpayar/Red Gram- 3/4 cup
Pepper powder- 1 tsp
Grated coconut- 3/4 cup
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Cumin- 1/3 tsp
garlic - 2 cloves

For seasoning-
Shredded coconut- 1/3 cup
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Whole Pepper - a few
Dry red chilly -2
Curry leaves- 2 springs

Soak beans for at least three hours and cook them and set aside.
Chop chena/suran into cubes and cook it along with 1/2 cup of water, turmeric, pepper powder and salt.
Make a fine paste of coconut (3/4 cup) along with cumin and garlic and add this to the cooked yam. Add the cooked cooked red beans. Simmer for two minutes and switch off the flame.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When the splutter add dry red chilly, pepper corns and curry leaves and fry for a minute. Add shredded coconut 1/3 cup and roast till brown. Add this to the cooked vegetable and mix. Serve with rice.


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Kothu Parotta

Kothu Parotta

 If you have  left over parotta or parathas here is a recipe which will not fail to interest you. It is a wonderful dish.Kothu parotta is a street food and is common in fast food joints in South India, especially Tamil Nadu. This is made by chopping parattas into small pieces and stir frying along with onions,tomatoes,spices,shredded chicken or scrambled eggs.

Ingredients

Frozen Kerala Parotta or paratha-4

Egg 1 (optional)

Chicken cooked and diced- 1/2 cup
Tomato-1
Onion-1
Green chilly-2

( I used Jalapeno pepper)
Ginger garlic paste- 1 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/3 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp

Chicken curry or kurma gravy- 3 tbs ( optional)

Garam masala- 1/3 tsp

(If you are not using chicken gravy add

more of chilly powder and garam masala)

Coriander leaver- a little

Cook chicken along salt, turmeric powder and pinch of pepper powder. When cooked cut into small bite sized pieces and keep aside.
Tear parattas into small pieces. If you are using frozen reheat it using microwave or tawa.
Heat oil in a pan. Beat one egg and add into the hot pan and scramble it. Remove this into a plate and keep aside. In the same pan add little more oil and saute onions till it changes color. Next add ginger garlic paste and continue to saute till onion turns golden brown. Add tomatoes, green chilly, turmeric powder, chilly powder and saute for a minute. Next add the chicken and the kurma gravy and allow all this to mix well. Finally toss in parattas, scrambled egg,garam masala and stir fry in high for about a minute.Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve warm.

You might also like
Chicken Shawarma 
Paneer Kathi Rolls
Artichoke Chicken Pasta Salad
Chicken Spring Rolls
Erachi Puttu
Shrimp Vermicelli

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Paneer Malai Kofta Curry

Paneer Malai Kofta Curry

Paneer Malai Kofta curry is a creamy rich dish with mild aromatic sauce and fried paneer/cottage cheese dumplings. The sauce consists of cashew paste and cream..This goes well with rotis or naan.

Recipe inspiration: Chef Harpal Singh 

Ingredients
1)For the Kofta balls

Grated  Paneer- 200 gram
Boiled potato- one small
Green chilly finely chopped-2
Khoya - 1/3 cup
Cardamon powder- 1/3 tsp
Garam masala- 1/3 tsp
Corn starch- 2 tbs
Salt to taste
Oil for frying the koftas

2)For the sauce
Onion- 1 medium
Ginger Garlic paste- 1 1/2 tsp
Green chilly- 4
Cashewnut - 1/3 cup
Cream- 1/3 cup
Whole spices- cardamon 2, clove-3, cinnamon- 1 stick
Bay leaf-1

To make the kofta ball grate paneer and boiled potatoes. Add all the rest of the ingredients listed under one except corn starch and oil. Press and make into a smooth dough like mixture. Make small balls, roll in corn starch and fry in medium low flames. Fry till the ball become light golden brown color.

To make the sauce
Soak cashew-nuts in hot water for half an hour and grind into a smooth paste.
Make a paste of the onion ( use white onion for better results)
Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices and saute till there is a nice aroma. Add onion and green chilly and fry till onion is soft and changes color. Add ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw flavor disappears.Now add the the cashew nut paste and continue to stir for about 5 to 7 minutes till oil starts separating and mixture becomes one mass. Add one cup of water and bring to a boil. Add cream and simmer and finally salt and the kofta balls and switch off the flame. Serve with naan or chapatis..

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Bread Pakoda

Bread Pakoda/Pakora

Bread pakora is simple and easy to make a recipe. Are you looking for an easy and comforting snack? Pakoras or pakodas are made throughout the length and breadth of India. Indians love their crispy fried pakoras. There is a high level of creativity when it comes to ingredients to make pakoras- an uncanny ability to turn anything available at home into pakoras. There is nothing that can beat spicy pakoras and hot piping tea during the monsoon season. Are you already picturing in your mind enjoying the rains with a cup of tea and a crispy snack?

 Here is my attempt to recreate a popular street food. Now some call these bread pakora snacks others call it is breakfast. But to me, it represents the best of Indian street food. It has a taste all to its own and is quite addictive.Pakoras are delightful savory snacks. I had vague memories of having bread pakora as a child, but somehow completely forgot about them till I saw this recipe in a magazine. It brought back some childhood memories. This one has an interesting twist to it. It has a filling that takes this simple snack to the next level. It is like a bread sandwich with a yummy potato filling. Combine it with any kind of spicy or sweet chutney/sauce and the flavor profile of this snack will amaze you and you cannot stop munching.

Potato stuffed bread pakoras is a hassle-free recipe and you can whip up with very little ingredients. Now let's talk about the batter. Bread pakoras can be made by dipping bread slices in spicy flavorful batter and deep-fried. The batter is made with chickpeas flour, chilly powder, flavored with hing and cilantro. The batter has to be a perfect consistency, not too thick and not to thin to get the best crispy bite. 

Now coming to the filling it is mashed potatoes spiced with ginger, green chilly,asafetida, coriander leaves and chat masala. You can get creative with the filling. Try mashed beans, cheese, paneer, eggs or any kind of filling of your choice.
Now let's talk about the other fun part of this recipe. It is the chutney. The chutney is optional, but it adds depth of flavor. It is not like the sweet chutney for the chutney sandwich. But it is a zingy flavorful chutney made with mint and coriander. It adds freshness and flavor with a kick from green chilly. You can also get creative with the chutney. If you are not a fan of spicy chutney you can substitute with dates tamarind chutney which is sweet and mildly spicy or tomato chutney.

Bread Pakoras/Pakodas

Cooking time- 25 minutes
Recipe type- Snack
Cuisine- Indian

Ingredients
Bread slices-8
Gram flour-  1 1/2 cup

Rice flour- 1 tbs
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder-1/8 tsp
Asafetida- a pinch
Ginger garlic paste- 1/2 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves- 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

For the filling
Boiled potatoes- 2 medium
Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp
Onion chopped- 1/2
Ginger chopped- 1 tsp
Green chilly finely chopped -2
Asafetida- a pinch
Coriander leaves chopped- 1 tbs
Chat masala- 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder- a pinch

For the chutney
Coriander leaves chopped- 1 cup
Mint leaves- 1/2 cup
Green chilly-3
Ginger- 1 inch thick
Shallots- 2
Tamarind- a small ball
salt to taste

To make the filling heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions, ginger and green chilly. Saute till slightly golden. Add turmeric, asafetida, salt and cumin powder and saute for a minute. Add mashed potatoes and mix well. Sprinkle chaat masala and coriander leaves and mix well. Allow this mixture to cool down. If you do not have chaat masala you can add 1 tsp of lemon juice.

To make the chutney grind all ingredients under chutney into a fine paste. Start with coriander and mint leaves. When it is a fine paste add the rest of the ingredients and make a fine paste.

Now you need to make the batter. Mix gram flour, rice flour, chilly powder asafetida, and salt well. Add water little by little to make a smooth lump-free batter. It should not be too thick or too thin. Add the chopped coriander leaves and ginger garlic paste and whisk well.
Heat 2 cups of oil in a pan.
Cut edges of the bread and make it even. Spread the chutney evenly on the bread slices. Place the filling in an even layer and then one bread slice on the top like a sandwich. Stick the edge using a little water with your fingertips. You can also cut the bread into an equal part. Dip each sandwich in prepared batter, coat evenly and gently slide into hot oil and fry this on both sides till it is evenly crispy and golden brown on both sides. This will take around three to four minutes on medium flame. Once fried place on a paper towel so that the excess grease is removed.
Serve this with dates and tamarind chutney or tomato ketchup along with tea.

You might also like,
Spinach Onion Pakoras
Samosa
Vada Pav
Masala Peanuts
Bread Vada
Paneer Pakoras

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Coriander Pepper Chicken

Coriander Pepper Chicken

This is one chicken dish which is super easy to make and tasty.Here I have used the stir- fry method and the fresh flavor of coriander and the right amount of kick from the black pepper makes it very appetizing. You can substitute coriander with the herbs you like or add more veggies. I have one left over boiled potatoes which I have added. You can add celery or bell pepper too.

Ingredients
Boneless chicken- 1 lb
Shallots- 4-5
Garlic- 4 pods
Ginger- thinly sliced- one thin slice
Green chilly-2
Soya sauce-2 tbs
Oyster sauce- 1/2 tsp
Pepper- 1 1/3 tsp
(adjust according to taste)
Coriander leaves chopped- a hand full
Sugar- 1/2 tsp
Vinegar- 1 tsp

salt to taste

Cut chicken into bite size pieces. Marinate with half of the pepper powder and a pinch of salt and keep aside for ten minutes.
Heat oil in a pan and add ginger and garlic and stir fry for a few seconds and add finely chopped shallots and green chilly. Fry till it changes color and now add the chicken. Stir fry this for seven to eight minutes. Add sauces, rest of the pepper powder,sugar and vinegar and fry till the chicken get well coated with the sauce and slightly brown up. Finally add coriander leaves and saute. Serve with rice.

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Tangy Spring Onion Rice

Tangy Spring Onion Rice

This is a pretty simple dish to make and believe me its bursting with flavor.This is a very versatile recipe and comes handy if you are short of time. You can alter this recipe in which ever way you like..add some garam masala and get an Indian flavor to this rice or you can add some Italian spices or herbs to give another unique flavor. Here I have used soya sauce and pickled chilly. Pickled chilly has vinegar and garlic in it. If you do not have it you can use chilly sauce instead.Give this recipe a try, you will surely love it.

Ingredients

Jasmine Rice ( cooked)- 2 cups

Spring onion- One bunch

Garlic clove- 3

Celery chopped- 3 tbs

Soya sauce- 1 tsp

Chicken bouillon powder- 1/3 tsp ( optional)

Pickled ground red chilly- 1 1/3 tsp

( or chilly garlic sauce one tsp)

Lemon juice- 1 tsp

Chop spring onions and keep the white part and green part separately.Heat oil in a pan and add garlic cloves and stir fry for a few seconds. Now add the white part of the spring onion and celery and stir fry for a minute. Add the cooked rice and saute in high for another minute.Mix in soya sauce, pickle chilly and chicken bullion and finally the green part of the spring onion and lemon juice and saute for a few more seconds.

Serve this with any vegetarian side dish or with a spicy non- vegetarian dish. Here I served the spring onion rice topped with roasted chicken

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Mushroom Masala

Mushroom Masala

This is a spicy  and delicious side dish for chapatis and naan. Mushrooms has always been a family favorite as it is low in calorie and fat content.I usually make mushrooms spicy just like any non vegetarian dish and the subtle mild flavor of mushrooms and the roasted spices complement each other so well. Here I have used the saute or pan fry method for the mushrooms and finally mixed in with the sauce. Light browning imparts richer flavor and taste to the mushrooms.Vegetarians will surely love this..



Ingredients

Mushrooms chopped- 2 cups
Onion sliced- 2medium
Tomato -3
Ginger garlic paste- 1 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder- 1 tsp-
Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp
Pepper powder- 1 pinch
Coriander power- 1 tsp
Garam masala- 3/4 tsp
Meat masala- 1/2 tsp ( optional)
Coriander leaves- a little

Heat oil in a pan and fry onions till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste saute stir till there is a nice aroma.Add tomatoes and stir fry till it is mashed up and cooked. Allow this to cool a bit and using a mixer grind this into a fine paste and keep aside.
In a pan add one tsp of oil and stir fry the mushrooms. Season with salt and saute till the juice is reduced and the mushrooms change color to light brown. Drain out and keep aside. In the same pan add the ground masala and fry till oil separates. Add all the spice powder and fry in a low flames. Pour warm water and simmer the sauce for three minutes. Next add the fried mushrooms and simmer for one more minute. Finally garnish with coriander leaves.

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Chemmeen Mulaku Curry

Chemmeen Mulaku Curry

Spicy prawns curry with rice is something you would love to indulge on. This recipe is the same as the fish muluku curry and here I have not used coconut. But you still have its flavor with the coconut oil. I have used kudam puli or Malabar tamarind, so this curry is a bit spicy and tangy.You can also make prawns curry with coconut milk or with grated coconut.

Ingredients

Prawns - 18-20 medium 

Shallots sliced- 3/4 cup

Ginger- thinly sliced- 2 tbs

Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp

Chilly powder- 1 1/3 tsp

Kudam puli- 3-4 pieces

Green chilly-1

Curry leaves a few

Fenugreek seeds- 1/3 tsp

Mustard seeds- 1/3 tsp

Coconut oil- 3 tsp

Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. When they splutter add thinly sliced shallots, ginger, curry leaves and green chilly and fry till it is golden brown. Add turmeric and chilly powder and soaked kudam puli and saute till oil separates. Add 3/4 cup of water and cook till the sauce thickens. Add cleaned and de veined prawns, cover and cook for three to four minutes in medium flame. Finally add fresh curry leaves and a  few drops of coconut oil. Serve with rice.

You might also like,
Chemmeen Masala Varattiyathu
Chemmeen Pollichathu
Chemmeen Theeyal
 Chemmeen Achar/pickle
Prawns Ularthiyathu

Like to try more fish recipes, check my page 100 Fish/Other Seafood Recipes

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Mango/Mambazham Pachadi

Mango/Mambazham Pachadi

This is a sweet side dish made with sweet ripe mangoes and is a perfect for a sadhya menu. You will love flavor and taste of this dish as sweetness and sourness are well balanced. There is another version of mango pachadi which uses yogurt.

Ingredients

Mangoes - 2 small
Coconut grated- 1/2 cup
Jaggery - 3 tbs
(you can add according to taste)
Ginger - a small piece
Green chilly-1
cumin seeds- a pinch
Turmeric powder 1/3 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Red chilly -1
Curry leaves- a few
Coconut oil- 2 tsp

Cut mangoes into cubes and cook along with half cup of water,turmeric powder, chilly powder and salt. Once cooked add jaggery.
Grind coconut, cumin,ginger and green chilly into a paste and add to the mixture. Allow it to simmer for one minute and switch off the flame.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter add curry leaves and dry red chilly and fry till crispy. Pour this over the curry. It is ready to be served.

Note: For a yogurt based mango kichadi,pls check this recipe along with the notes.

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