Onion/ pyaaz/ kanda

Did you know onion belongs to the Lily family botanically speaking? Its scientific name is Allium Cepa.

Onion is used to give bulk in gravies in many dishes. It gives an excellent taste but onion has a limitation. The foods in which it is used get spoilt quickly owing to creation of moisture.

 Onions once cut or made into a paste start spoiling quickly, so must be used immediately. Some people 'immerse' it in turmeric powder but may not be a foolproof solution.
 Even with this it is difficult to preserve it for long.

Onion has medicinal uses too! It is used in eye drops for curing cataract.


Onion

Chocolate cake

Ingredients:

Eggs 4
Baking powder 5gms
Vanilla Essence 1tsp
Cocoa powder 175gms
Butter 125 gms
Castor sugar/Powdered Sugar 130 gms
Maida 100gms

Method:
Sift maida with cocoa powder with baking powder.
Beat sugar and butter, add eggs to this and beat again.
Add 2 tbsp flour mixture and beat. Repeat adding and beating till the batter is ready and falls with ribbon consistency.
Bake in a preheated oven or cooker till an inserted toothpick or knife comes out clean

Kitchen blunder -burnt cake

After ages I was trying baking a cake in a pressure cooker instead of my convection microwave oven.
I was really lazy to do anything but desperately wanted to have a home baked cake.

Given that I was not in a state to bake a cake and forgotten how to use the pressure cooker the cake was bound to go wrong and it did because I increased the heat to max much before I place the batter in and it remained high through out thus burning the outer part with and uncooked inside!

Egg burji in less than 10 minutes

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1sprig fresh methi leaves
2-3 dry red chillies(according to your preference)
1/2 inch ginger
3 pods garlic
1 1/2 tbsp oil

Steps
Blend chillies, methi, ginger and garlic to coarse paste
Heat the oil in a pan and add the spice paste to the oil
Let the spices get cooked
Break the eggs in the pan and cook till the eggs are done
Serve with chapati/roti

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Green Tea

Darjeeling Oolong Tea (Oolong Tea)

Indian Breads and Other Cereal Based Meals

Indian Breads and Other Cereal Based Meals Avarekaalu Akki Rotti
Indian Bread

Sol kadi/kokum kadi/ Amsol Kadi

Ingredients;
5pieces of kokum
1/2 cup of curd
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp chilli garlic paste
organic salt o taste
3/4 cup of water

Tempering
1tsp of oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
pinch of asafoetida

Method :
If u have dried cocum soak atleast for 2hrs.
Make a paste of the kokum.
churn the curd and water together
Heat some oil add mustard seeds and when they splutter add cumin seeds. and asafoetida
Remove from flame and add ginger, garlic-chilli and the kokum pastes when still hot and then stir in buttermilk


Punjabi Kadi

Indian Food History

Indian Food History

Tips to fix cake batter

1. If the cake batter is too thin adjust the consistency with this mixture:
     10:10:1:: milk powder: maida  : baking powder
  If it is chocolate based recipe replace milk powder with cocoa powder
2.If the cake batter has thicker consistency, adjust consistency with
   1:1::milk:honey
or 2:1::milk:condensed milk

When you dont have an oven

If you want to bake but don't have an oven at home pressure cooker can take its place.

Fill the pressure cooker with one inch sand and preheat. The cake mould can be placed on this directly or with a small aluminium stand.
Do not close and seal the cooker, just place a heavy thali on it.
A 1/2 kg cake takes 30-40 minutes with flame on sim.

Eat and let Eat

This is probably the most important subject people should learn about in these days.
People seem to be thinking eating is a crime and waste of time and eating desserts an unpardonable sin! Even our Gods are sweet toothed yar! Always in Indian festivals and pujas the main offering or naivedyam is a sweet dish, surely there is a reason to attach importance to it.
  If people sit at a table together in a warm and friendly atmosphere and share their food joyfully there is nothing to worry about the ill effects of food.  And even if you are eating heavy foods or weight gaining foods if you are eating eat wholeheartedly and don't let guilt creep in.
   The presence of element of love and absence of guilt is important to digest all foods and give health than all the nutritions newspapers and magazines speak of. Even the most nutritios food will not do any good when eaten with disturbed state of my mind while even food laden with sugar, preservatives and added color can be beneficial when offered or eaten with love.
 People from our older generation ate together at a big table table and the families were often big ones with three different generation, there was a lot of joy and laughter at the dinner table. Nowadays all that is a forgotten story. Televeision sets have become the centre of the household, families are nuclear in nature, food is had in front of the TV with the dominant member in family switching channels using the remote and nobody concentrating on what they are eating.

Cooking in summer

The summer has already begun, with the temperature soaring, options for cooking get narrower and narrower.
Best ingredients in summer for Indian cooking:
Moong dal
Turai/ridge gourd
lauki/bottle gourd
Inclusion of cucumber salads and buttermilk/chaach/mattha/majjige(See buttermilk masala recipe)

Black Currant jam

This is not the kind of jam with the jelly like settingin commercially available jams, it is more of a grape preserve. Grapes contains galactose one of the healthiest of sugars and usage of black grapes and currants makes it an iron packed jam.

You need:
grape juice 250 ml without sugar
1tsp jaggery optional
100gms black currant/sultanas/munakka

Mix all the ingredients and heat in a thick vessel till the juice thickens and u get a very thick consistency

tip for crispy rice roti

To make nice crispy rice rotis use cucumber juice to knead the dough

Rich chocolate cake

Ingredients:
Chocolate 200gms
Unsalted butter 140gms
8 Eggs(yolks and whites seperated)
Castor sugar 140gms
salt 2gms
Orange zest 5gms

Method:
Preheat oven to 180C

Lightly butter and dust a round cake mould.
Melt chocolate and butter in double boiler to get a smooth mixture.
In another bowl mix the egg yolks, salt, sugar well again place this in a double boiler till mixture becomes pale yellow and the sugar and egg yolks have blended well. Remove from double boiler.

Add greated orange rind to the egg mixture and mix well and fold this mixture into the chocolate mix

Bake at 180C for 30 minutes. Test with a toothpick which when inserted should come out clean.

Eggless custard

Ingredients:
1/4 ltr milk
1 1/2 tsp corn flour
1 1/2 tsp milk powder
1/2 tsp vanilla powder or any other flavour of ur choice
powdered sugar as per your taste

Procedure:
Take 1/2 a cup of milk and mix rest of the ingredients thoroughly in it
Boil the rest of the milk and when it comes to a boil, add the mixture and stir continously.
The mixture should thicken and should be thouroghly cooked.

Serve with cut fruits

garnishings for soup

1. Fresh cream
2. Bread croutons
3. Egg drops
4. Grated chase

Pomegranate seeds

Who can resist these rubies with heavenly sweetness and attractive red or pink colour?
  Pomegranate along with its skin is used in many homemade remedies in India. Pomegranate skin is an excellent remedy for diarrhea. Pomegranate is good in curing urinary problems. A  highly nutritious and rich in fibre fruit
  Pomegaranate seeds are extensively used in curd rice, salads, raita, chats, snacks like daabeli.
Indian housewives have innovatively used it in kitchens as an ingredient instead of just limiting its consumption as a mere fruit.

Pomegranate

Creme brulee

Ingredients:
1 teacup cream
2 egg yolks
2tbsp sugar
2tsp golden brown sugar
1 vanilla pod/vanilla extract/essence

Method
Pour the cream into a heavy bottomed sauce pan. Scrap the vanilla beans into it, also drop in the pod. Beat the yolks with the sugar. Now bring the cream  to a boil on a low flame, when it's barely simmering slowly pour in the yolks. it is important to keep the flame low and stir continously. when the custard is fairly thick(this should not take more than 5 mins of cooking), take off the fire. Have ready two small ovenproof ramekins. Strain the custard into the bowls. Now place the bowls in a pan of water and bake at 175 deg for about 20 mins. The custard should be still wobbly. Once done, allow to chill in the refrigerator.
  When ready to eat, sprinkle the tops of the ccustard with the brown sugar and place under a hot grill  for about five mins for the surface to caramelise. Chill again briefly or serve right away

Vanilla Bean

Milk masala

Ingredients
1/2 cup badam
1/2 cup powdered misri/sugar(alter according to you requirement)
1/2 nutmeg
1 tsp elaichi powder
5 finely chopped dates
5 finely chopped dry fig
edible camphor(optional)
1/4 tsp kesar

Powder all the ingredients in a food processor and store in an airtight jar.

Besan/gram flour

Bonda, bajji, chakli, pakoda, dahin ni kadi, kadi pakore, jhunka, bhujia, dhokla.....mmmm . What is common in all these? Yes it is gram flour or besan a very important base ingredient in Indian cooking.
 Besan can be used as a thickening agent when curries or dals get too watery.
  Channa dal is saied to be very good for the brain and used in preparation of prashhaad for Ma Saraswati Puja.
  Besan can be used to prepare snacks like bhujia, chakli, pakoda, gathiya etc
while you can also prepare breakfasts such as dhokla
It can also be used to prepare accompaniments such as kadi, gatta and jhunka.
Which ingredient is so versatile where it can be a snack, a nutritious breakfast and also a roti/rice accompaniment?

urad dal

Urad dal a protein rich dal. In English it is called as black gram  lentil.
  Used in Indian food as a fermentation agent.
In idlis  and dosas the sponginess is achieved by soaked urad dal.
In ancient India, it was also used in preparation of intoxicating drinks.
 All over India paapads made out of urad Daal are very popular
 The golgappas used in paani puri also have urad dal as their ingredient which renders the round well puffed pooris.

Sol kadi

Ingredients;
5pieces of kokum
1/2 cup of curd
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp chilli garlic paste
organic salt o taste
3/4 cup of water

Tempering
1tsp of oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
pinch of asafoetida

Method :
If u have dried cocum soak atleast for 2hrs.
Make a paste of the kokum.
churn the curd and water together
Heat some oil add mustard seeds and when they splutter add cumin seeds. and asafoetida
Remove from flame and add ginger, garlic-chilli and the kokum pastes when still hot and then stir in buttermilk

Usage of sugar in tea

Just like ghee shouldn't be heated too much, sugar similary should not be be boiled along with tea to minimise the ill effects of tea. Sugar must be mixed after tea is done. If you have complains that the tea might cool off  by the time it is stirred and mixed in the tea powdered sugar can be used.

Bread bonda

Ingredients:
Leftover bread slices
besan
water
chilli powder to taste
pinch of turmeric
a pinch of powdered ajwain
Oil for deep frying

Method:
Mix besan, salt, chilli powder, ajwain and turmer
Heat some oil and pour on the mixed flour
Now make a batter of thick consistency by adding water
Dip the bread slices in the batter and deep fry.

Serve with tomato ketchup and green chutney

Banana pancake

Ingredients:

1tbsp oats
2tbsp wholewheat flour
2 tbsp jaggery/sugar/honey
1 cup milk
2 eggs beaten
1 whole banana mashed or pureed
Pinch of salt for taste

Butter for frying



Method:

Mix well all ingredients except butter to batter consistency. Heat tawa, grease first with little butter and pour the batter, cook till holes appear and cook on the other side.

Serve hot with sweet sauce

kokum/sol/amsol

Kokum also known as Sol or Amsol is a fruit popular in coastal Karnataka and Goa.
  Rasam, Curry, sherbet, Sol kadi, chatni and a lot more can be prepared from this.
Kokum is a healthier option can be be alternatively used in recipes using tamarind if you are looking for healthy cooking options.

   Sol is available both in wet and dry forms.

Maroon or nearly purple colour is rendered to foods where this ingredient is used.

More to come............

Shrikhand

A Maharashtrian dessert also popular in Gujarat. Just the ideal dessert for summer in hot weather of Maharashtra and Gujarat. Shrikhand can be had alone or served accompanying other desserts. Shrikhand poori is a favourite in Gujarat. The flavours can be varied to give variesties of Shrikhand such as Kesar Shrikhand, Elaichi Shrikhand, Almond Shrikhand and Mango Shrikhand.
I got this recipe from a badam mix pack which i have altered.

Ingredients:
1 standard cup hung curd
2 tablespoon sugar
saffron soaked in tsp of milk
1/2 tsp elaichi powder

Method:
Mix well all the ingredients

Sprinkle chopped almonds and brown pistachios for garnishing.

Reduction of sodium intake/Sodium-potassium balance in body

Though sodium and potassium are trace minerals, their ratio of presence in our body makes a big difference. We imbalance this with consumption of salt(NaCl), baking soda and baking powder.
This is how you can do it:
1.Replace Common salt with organic salt/sendha Namak/Rock salt
2.If you are using egg in cakes, u can use minimum baking powder or entirely do without it too.
3.In some recipes baking soda is used to make
  1.to retain fresh colour of vegetables.
  2.help in cooking faster
  3.get a crispy texture in fried items
  4.sponginess in idlies, dosa, dhokla and other fermentation based foods.
    It is easy to do without baking soda in these dishes, as they will not make much difference in taste and worth because they have great health benefits.

Preserving freshness of fish

Take the cleaned fish
Apply little salt and vinegar
Wash and rinse well

Bengal fish curry

Fry the fish lightly with salt and turmeric.
Heat oil and throw in a little kalonji, a little grated ginger, red chilli powder and cumin powder.
Saute, add some chopped tomato if desired.
Pour in water, bring to a boil and then add the fish.
Cauliflower and potatoes can be added as well

Fish curry

Fry thinly sliced onions, ginger, garlic, curry leaves and green chillies.
To this add peeled and chopped tomatoes, fry well and add red chilli powder, coriander powder and cumin powder and turmeric.
Once the masala is well fried add hot water and make a gravy.
Bring it to a boil.
Slip in the cleaned and sliced fish and cook till the fish is done.

base ingredients for gravy

1. tomato onion paste
2. milk extracted out of American corn
3. coconut milk
4. cashewnut paste
5. sesame and poppy seeds paste

cleaning a tea strainer thoroughly

If your tea strainer is made out of plastic or metal just soak in water with very little washing soap or 1 tsp of vinegar and allow the all the blockages of the stariner to disintegrate for atleast half an hour and the wash off

A metal strainer can be immediately cleaned just holding it over a gas flame and allow the particles to burn off and then just cool off with flowing water

Breakfast planning

Why only breakfast planning? Why not lunch or dinner planning?
  The reason is time flies of quickly during mornings, and if you are indecisive about what to prepare you have lost nearly 3/4th of the preparation time.

Here are some tips to plan:
1.Reserve time consuming breakfasts with lots of veggies for the weekends.
2.If you have some leftovers which you would like to utilise, innovate and prepare a new breakfast.
3.You could make a list of breakfasts in alphabetical order and go by that order.


Some more to come .................

Mangalorean fish curry

Masala ingredients:
1tbsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp jeera seeds
8 red bedege and Kashmiri mixed chillies
7 cloves garlic
10 pepper corns
1 medium onion
1/2 inch haldi piece
1/2 a coconut scraped
lime-sized tamarind

 1 kilo fish cleaned
1 onion
curry leaves

Method:
1.Heat oil and fry one onion. Throw in some curry leaves, put the masala in and fry a little while then add water and keep boling lastly put in the fish and slowly bring it to a boil, simmer a bit and remove.

Crackling Spinach

Wash the spinach and dry completely. Then shred finely and deep fry in batches. Put the spinach on absorbent paper. Move the spinach around and change the paper till as much oil as possible is removed . To serve sprinkle with salt, a little sugar, toasted sesame seeds and finely chopped green chillies.

Egg - the versatile ingredient

Hmmm... I love boiled eggs, egg masala, plain omelette, cheese omelette, tomato omelette, egg scramble, cake, custard, pancakes, crepes, pudding ....mmmm my mouth is watering just at the thought of these delicacies and all are simple and easy to prepare. And all of them are egg based.
  Egg is a versatile ingredient because it is an emulsifier, gives fluffiness in cakes, blends well with other ingredients, lends good taste.
  Egg is used in mayonnaise to mix the oil the oil and vinegar and hold them. An eggless mayo can never be as good as the one with egg.
  It is the same case with cake too. Eggless cake needs condensed milk and more baking powder. Thus cake with egg in it has more natural products and cost effective too.
When cooked alone does not need to many ingredients to make it tasty unlike non-veg and veg food which generally need seasoning, spices oil etc.
  But boiled egg can be eaten even without salt and what more it is wholesome food! But it must be eaten with bread or other carbohydrate source to make it whole.

Egg

Spiced Cafe Au Lait

Ingredients:
2 cups milk
3 cinnamom sticks
20 whole cloves
150g good quality milk chocolate, chopped
60g bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
3 cups freshly brewed strong coffee
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chilled whipping cream
pinch of nutmeg

Method:

Place the milk, cinnamom sticks, and whole cloves in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat  and add all the chocolate and whisk until melted. Cover and let stand for 15minutes.
Then, bring milk mixture back to a simmer and add coffee, 2tbsp of sugar and vanilla. Stir over medium-low heat for five minutes. Do not boil.
Meanwhile, beat the cream, pinch of nutmeg, and remaining sugar until soft peaks form.
Pour coffee mixture into mugs and top with cream. Sprinkle with nutmeg and serve.

Festive special eggnog

Ingredients:
1 fresh egg
Sugar to taste
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp premium whisky or brandy
1 cup full fat milk
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of grated nutmeg

Method:
Seperate the egg, beating the yolk and the white seperately. Add the sugar and salt to the yolk, then the whisky or brandy, milk and vanilla. Lastly add the white of the egg. Mix and strain into a tall glass and serve cold. Top with grated nutmeg. This makes one eggnog.

Choux pastry

Ingredients:

250ml water
125g butter
150g flour
4 eggs


Method:
Boil water and butter. Shoot in the flour, stir till flour cooks to form a ball and pulls away from the sides of the cooking pan. Remove from heat and beat in the eggs one at a time. It should end up smooth, satiny paste. Pipe into desired shape.
Bake at 200C for 20 minutes and lower it 180C continue for 8 to 10 minutes.

Kheer/Paayas/Payesh/Rice Pudding

Kheer is derived from the Sanskrit word क्षीर  "Ksheer" meaning milk. Alternate name is again derived from the Sanskrit word पयस "payas" meaning milk and paayas means milk derivative. In Bengali kheer gets the name Payesh and in South India it is Payasam/Paayasa.
  One of the oldest recipes surviving which is mentioned even in ancient texts. One of the ancient texts describes a Goddess in Kashmir as Paayasannapriya.
Did you know that the English rice pudding is believed to be inspired by our own kheer?

Goda Masala

A deviation from the actual recipe, I have used whatever available with me, and some ingredients of my own

Ingredients

dhaniya powder-1/4 tea cup
jeera powder    1/4 tea cup
dalchini pwder 1/2 tbsp
clove powder 1/2tsp
haldi 1/2 tsp
hing  1tsp
Red chilli powder 1/2 to 1tsp
dagad phool powder 1/2 tsp
saunf 1/2 tsp
kalonji 1/2 tsp
bayleaf -2 small leaves powdered
mustard 1/2 tsp
shahjeera 1/2 tsp
methi ( preferably dal methi) 1/tsp

oil-1tbsp
water 1/4 cup
dessicated dry coconut 1/2 cup
sesame seeds(roasted) 1/2 cup


Method.
Heat oil in a pan and add all the powderes masala ingredients and when the oil is hot.
Add water and roast till water evaporated
Add coconut and sesame seeds  and roast till dry.

Preserve this masala and add to sabzi or curry. This roasted masala is helpful for quick preparation of sabzi

Fruity pancake

Replace apple with raisins, chopped prunes, dates, figs and chopped almonds in the apple pancake recipe


Dates

a href="http://www.foodista.com/food/R4HWMCYJ/dried-figs" style="display: block; padding: 10px 0 0 0; width: 260px; background: transparent url(http://cf.foodista.com/static/images/widget_red.png) no-repeat scroll 0px -10px; text-decoration: none;">Dried Figs

Kindness cookies

I found this recipe in cooks.com, the reason I like it is


1.minimum use of oil

2.use of honey instead of sugar and

3.absence of baking powder



KINDNESS COOKIES



1/3 c. honey

1 tsp. oil

2 eggs

1 tsp. grated orange rind

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 c. oatmeal

1 cookie sheet

You may also add 1/2 c. raisins or other dried fruit, 1/2 c. chopped nuts, or 1/2 c. grated carrots or zucchini



Mix the honey, oil, and eggs. Add the grated orange rind, salt, and oatmeal. Drop spoonfuls of cookie dough on the oiled cookie sheet.

Bake in 400 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes.



Serves 8. Be kind! Share your cookies!

Honey-jam sauce

Ingredients:

Any jam of your choice-2tbsp
Honey                          -2tbsp
water                           -2to 3 tbsp

Method:
Since pectin is added to jams for setting first jam and honey should be mixed well with a spoon to make a solid paste. Add  boiling water to this gradually as ur  mixing and reheat.

Apple Pancake

Ingredients:
1tbsp oats
2tbsp wholewheat flour
2 tbsp jaggery/sugar/honey
1 cup milk
2 eggs beaten
1 apple grated
1/2 tsp vanilla extract(optional)
Pinch of salt for taste
Butter for frying

Method:

Mix well all ingredients except butter to batter consistency.  Heat tawa, grease first with little butter and pour the batter, cook till holes appear and cook on the other side.
Serve hot with sweet sauce

Dont have a double boiler?

You may come across recipes where you are asked to melt chocolate, cheese or butter in a double boiler.

U need not go and purchase a new kitchen item for this. A milk cooker will do the job. Even if you dont have a milk cooker just heat water in a big pan and place a preferably thick walled utensil in this and use it as a double boiler. The advantage with this arrangemnet is u will be able to use utensils of any size depending on the quantity of cooking

Dear Readers

Hi Readers,
I have started this blog to share recipes and kitchen tips I have collected and created some of my own.
Some recipes I have not tried but I may publish them. I also I m interested in writing about food science and eating habits.