Thursday

Happy 61st Independence day to my Indian Buddies...

Have a very Happy 61st Independence day to all my Indian buddies .

Take some time to respect the nation and culture we belongs to. From the bottom of my heart I salute those who took steps to bring freedom to India and helped it to preserve the rich culture we belongs to.


(image source- Unknown)


Here are some more entry for Theme - Independence day.


Bhindi Do pyaaza is the a dish name which you may find in some Indian restaurants serving Punjabi food. Although , one of my Punjabi friend thinks that they don't make it at all :D . Well there are many confusions about Punjabi food we find in restaurant menu and the things they really eat in Punjab.
I dont know if its really "punjabi" dish or not, what I know is I just love the combo of Bhindi with Onion . And One such day I made it using my own Imagination with the ingredients I like. I used white onion to make this so that it can go prefect with the theme- Independence day . Here is how I make it .
Ingredients :
2 medioum sized onion
1 pound Okra (Bhindi) - the tender the better .
2 tsp oil,
1 tsp mustard seeds ,
1 tsp cumin seeds,
a pinch of asafoetida,
pinch of turmeric ,
1/2 tsp of red chilli powder.

salt to taste
Method :
Wash the okra , and cut in to 1 inch or little bigger size .
Cut the onion into long slices , not too thin.

Next in a pan heat the oil , add mustard seeds and cumin seeds, when they start spulttering add asafoetida powder and little bit of turmeric powder to it and then immediately add cut okra to it.
The purpose of adding turmeric powder to it first is to preserve the green color of okra, cooking it without adding turmeric powder will give dull green color to okra when you cook it. so rather than adding it after okra is cooked add it first.

cook okra on medium heat, and when it is half cooked (i.e - not sticky) add sliced onion to it. Mix it well and cookt it together on medium heat . cover it with lid, stir occasionally and cook till okra is fully cooked, by that time onion will be tender but not fully cooked. Giving very nice aroma of its cooking. add some red chilli powder n salt to it. Mix it together cook for one more minute and remove from heat serve hot.
Makes a wonderful and quick curry to enjoy any day.



Some more entry from me for this theme-

~A full fledge Indian thali~
Okra with Potato curry, Green peas pickle , Gujarati Kadhi with a pinch of turmeric added to it. With Gajar ka Halwa(carrot halwa), Phulka roti, Papad and beat root and white radish salad on side.
I made this dish without any idea for this event, later on find that it has all 3 colors suitable to event so just clicked it n thought to post it for the theme - I Day.
Also its very rare when I make such full fledge Dish for meal now a days :D .

Carrot and coriander Uttapam -another entry for I day.





P.S.- As my sister is visiting us (yet another excuse for lazy me :D ) , I am busy roaming around with them (and having a hell of wonderful time together with them and niece too :) ) .
It may take some time for me to post the round up.
If you have anything yet left to send for the theme- Independence day
you can send it by the end of 15th August 2008 . But no late than that.Please follow the rules carefully when you send it .





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Monday

Mango pulp - Theme of the week Saffron white n Orange




Although I am not a sweet lover, I always loved sweet mangoes, specially the one which we get in season , ripe and firm , not too sweet (yeah you heard it correct- not too sweet ) and full of flesh .

Ever since my childhood I like little sour and sweet mangoes. Ripe and firm , not too sweet and full of flesh . All sweet is somewhat detesting for me.


But the one with little sour along with its original sweetness is really my weakness.
While in India it was easy to get my choice of mangoes and enjoy it throughout the summer , its not possible here.Sometimes you get good mangoes and sometimes you don't.
But till then I never got my taste in Mangoes here :( . It was just a month ago that I happen to get mangoes which tasted just like the way I love them .I immediately went to the store next day and got another box to make pulp out of it and kept it frozen to enjoy any day :D .

I used to make pulp and keep it frozen when I was in India too, but here I literally took care to do not waste a single drop of pulp :O .

Wash the mangoes peel the skin of it and then roughly cut the mango into large pieces. Using mixture make the pulp of it without adding a single drop of water or anything else.
Pour it in a clean air tight container, tightly close the lid and keep it in freezer. I normally keep some of the curd container washed and dried -ready to store such things for frizzing . I find it best for this specially as its long enough to store pulp of more than 10 mangoes in it and do not occupy much space of freezer.



While using first keep the container out of freezer for 30 minutes, and scoop out the amount of the pulp you need in a separate vessel.
Close the lid of container and put the rest back to freezer .
Now you wont need to rely on those smelly ready made pulp available in market when you feel like eating mangoes. Do you also store mangoes the same way ? it would be interesting to know your way of storing Mango


This light Saffron colored mango pulp goes as my own entry to Theme of the week -Saffron, white and green.
(click on logo for more details, check for more ideas here and here )
stay tuned for Bhindi do Pyaaza and some more for theme of this week :) .

So what are you making with tri colors to celebrate our Independence day with ?


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Wednesday

Vegetable of the Week -Bottle Gourd Round Up

Bottle gourd round up.

55+ delicious dishes…

12 such dishes which you might have never heard of it .

Above all do u know that bottle gourd can make a wonderful one dish dinners too?
We have 8 to cherish :) .

Good chance to start eating this humble veggie and for its lovers nice recipe to enjoy your love for bottle gourd :D .


Dear friends Pratibha and Jigyasa reminded me of how much Ramdevbaba emphasis on eating bottle gourd in all possible way. Check out what I recently came through, this article, it says bottle gourd's price has shot up from Rs 4 to Rs 15 a kg.

I couldn’t control my laugh after reading it . Before its prices start rising here too get some now, keep some stored and enjoy your favorite dishes from below…. And when you are done checking round up don’t forget to vote for you favorite entries in all 3 categories.

Use the poll widget in the sidebar .


Bottle gourd as Soup & Starter




Bottle gourd Bajji by Rekha
Lauki bites by Madhavi
Bottle gourd Rajgara paratha Canape by Pooja( It's me :$ )

Bottle gourd as Side dish / accompaniments


Dudhichi Kosimbir By Sheetal
Bottle gourd Raita by Trupti
bottle gourd chutney by Divya
Lauki Raita By bhawana
Sorakaya Pachadi / Bottle Gourd Chutney by Usha
Sora appalu by Vijaya

Bottle gourd as Main Course

Sorakaya Pulusu Kura / Sweet and Sour Bottle Gourd In Spicy Tamarind Sauce By Kalva
Sorakaya Masala by Rekha
Dhapalam by Asha
Sorakkai Spicy curry by Radhika
Lauki Kofta by Sheetal
Yerinja Kootu By Priya
Bharwan Lauki By Sia
Bottle Gourd Koottu by Shriya
Aal kai Gatte- Bottle Gourd Dumplings by Manisha soni
Potatoes in bottle gourd gravy by Madhavi
Sorrakai curry by Srilekha
Bottle gourd kootu bu Kamalika
Jeera kaddoo by Medhaa
Bharwa lauki by Medhaa
Dudhi masala subji(Maharashtrian style) by Trupti
Dudhi muth nu shaak by Meera
Bottle gourd Bajji by Rekha
Rassedaar Lauki by Nidhi
Bottle gourd Porucha kozhambu by Srimathi
Calabash (Sorakkai) curry by Vani
Bottle Gourd Kurma (Chettinad Style) by Srivalli
Daal Lauki By Priti
Lauki ki Sabzi by Priya
Thoom tamate mein kadhoo(bottlegourd in garlic tomato gravy) by Alka
Sorakaya kootu by Rekha
Arachuvitta Surakkai Kulambu(Bottle gourd in Rich Coconut Sauce) by Ramya
Sorekayi hesaru bele sihi kootu by Mythreyee
Bottle-Gourd Curry with Peanut-Sesame Powder by Sailaja
Kadhoo jha kofta by Alka
Doodhi Mung by Jan
Bottle Gourd Stew/Sorakaya Pulusu by Pallavi
Bottle gourd with mix beans by Pooja( me again :D )

Bottle gourd as Sweet dish

Lauki kheer by Notyet100
Bottle gourd Payasam by Ramya
Dudhi Halwa By Meera
Sorakaya Payasam by Suma
Doodhi Halwa by Sheetal
Bottle Gourd Pudding by Pallavi
Lauki Kheer by Sowmya

Bottle gourd as One dish dinner

Lauki pancakes by Sheetal
Vegetable Khichadi by Kalva
Bottle gourd Wrap by Divya
Lauki in Pita pockets by Geeta
Lauki Roti by Shifa
Bottle Gourd Paratha by Sowmya
Bottle gourd Dosa(Sorrakaya Attu) by Sailaja
Haandvoh by Me

Hope you had fun checking the round up .

Send in your entries for tri colored theme soon. Just 8 days are left . For more details click on the logo in the left side bar or check it here.



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