Surna Adigai (Yam Pickle)

Surna Adgai means Suran or yam pickle. This is a konkani instant pickle, quite easy to make and simply delicious!

I had this after long at the “CHUDI” pooja we had here at Konkani Sabha. Chudi or Tulsi Pooja is a festival we have in Shravan month( usually falls in Aug) & we do this every Friday & Sunday through out the month. You basically make a small bouquets of Dirbankur ( Arugampul / Grass that u keep for Ganesh Ji) & 4 other flowers all ties together. Actually there r typical flowers but I make do with what is available! You basically give this to other ladies & if older seek their blessings, if they r younger u get to bless them :-)

So this long forgotten Adgai was there & hence I made it & posting it for my dear blogger friends!

I am also sending this to , as my second entry to RCI - Konkani,hosted by Deepa of Recipes n More.

Ingredients:

Suran / Yam – a small piece
Red Chillies – 5
Tamarind – a small ball
Coconut – 3 tsps (if desired)
Salt – to taste

Method:

1. Take a small piece of suren & cut it into thin strips, about 1/2" long. Apply salt & let it sit for 15-20 minutes. Then squeeze these & deep fry them till nice & crispy.

2. In the same oil deep fry the chillies till they turn slightly brown.

3. Now put the chillies & tamarind in a mixer & grind to a fine paste. Add water as required. Use as less water as possible.

4. At this stage you can add the coconut & grind in too or leave it. It does not matter. Adding coconut means you have to finish of this pickle in a weeks time. Minus the coconut it stays longer. Coconut just brings in a thickness to the pickle. I added some to the one I made.

5. Now transfer the ground paste to a bowl, add required salt & fried suran.If u want u can season with oil & mustard seeds.

Let it stay for a day before u can eat it, as all the chillies & salt will blend well & the suran wil get to soak well in this spicy mixture.

You can have this with idlis & dosas.. Yes, its spicy, add a drop of coconut oil on top & its heavenly!! Or just simply enjoy it with curd rice.. its delicious!!!!!!!!

Soy Bhajili Ghassi

Soy Bhajili Ghassi means literally fried coconut curry. This is a typical dish made more by Konkani speaking people in Kerela & very tasty. This is not very familiarly present in the Mangalore side, though now people are more aware & try different stuff!

So heres my First Entry to RCI - Konkani hosted by Deepa of Recipes n More.

Ingredients:
Black Channa – ½ cup
Raw Banana – 1
Drum stick – 1
Potato – 1
Toor Dhal – ½ cup
Salt - To taste

For Masol or Gravy:

Coconut – 1 cup
Red Chillies – 5
Dhania – 2 tsps
Udad Dhal – 1 tsp
Haldi – ¼ tsp
Tamarind – a small piece

Method:
1. Soak channa over night and pressure cook well.

2. Wash the toor dhal & pressure cook & set it aside.

3. Cut the banana & potato into big cubes & drumstick into 2 inch pieces. Cook these vegetables in a pan with enough water. Add just a little salt.

4. Once the vegetables are cooked, add the pressure cooked channa to it.

5. MASOL : Fry the coconut in a pan till it turns brown. This will take a good 10-15 minutes. Do it on a medium flame as otherwise it will get burnt out. Fry the other ingredients too & grind all these to a fine paste adding very little water. The masol is ready.

6. Add the masol to the veggie & channa & bring to a good boil. Then add the cooked dhal & salt & bring everything to a good boil.

Authentic & delicious Soy Bhajjili Ghjassi is ready.Enjoy it with rice & a simple upkari – Vegetable & pappad on the side!

Arusuvai Friendship Chain & The Secret Ingredient !!

The Arusuvai friendship chain has been going on for quite sometime now in India. It was started here, in the US, recently by The Yum Blog, Bhags & Bharathy. Thank you all, for starting this chain...... its fun watching people send & receive the "Secret Ingredient" & wait till a dish comes out of it!

So finally today i got my secret ingredient, sent by Deepa of Recipes N More.

It was a big chunk of Jaggery! I was excited on seeing it & quite a few dishes crossed my thoughts..... i wanted it to be something very different & i landed up making - Soornali. Its a kind of dosa - I made the salty & sweet version.. enjoy !!

Ingredients:

Raw Rice - 2 cups

Coconut - 3/4 cup

Poha - 1/2 cup

Butter milk (Sour) - 1 cup

Methi seeds - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Cucumber - 1 (If desired)

For Sweet Soornali : Jaggery - acc to taste.

Method:

1. Soak rice & methi seeds together for about 2 hours.

2. Grind it to a fine paste along with the coconut.

3. Wash the poha & set aside. Once it fluffs up, add to the ground mixture & grind well. Add the butter milk & salt.

Now transfer half the batter to a vessel & add in grated cucumber & mix it in well. This batter is for the "Salty Soornali". Cucumber can be omitted too if you dont want them, but it imparts a nice flavour & taste.

To the rest of batter i added about 1 cup of grated jaggery & ground well again. Check the batter for sweetness & accordingly adjust. This batter is for the "Sweet Soornali". You can add some elaichi powder if you like, but traditionally we dont add it.

You spread it like regular dosas, little thick & cover & cook only on one side. The sweet soornali, try taking with ghee.. it comes out real yum!

Soornali can be eaten with home made fresh butter or with any chutney of your choice. Ofcourse the sweet soornali - needs no accompianment! So heres the Soornali ready to be enjoyed!

The Secret Ingredient is now again on the move from my place to...

Maya of Konkan World.

Dhivya of Dhivyas Kitchen &

Red Chillies

Thank you Maya, Dhivya & RC for participating & continuing the chain. Good luck & awaiting the superb dishes you will come up with.

Batata (Potato) Song

With The Potato Fest (Dhivya) & Ode to Potato (Sia) being announced, i wanted to participate in these events! So many of you,have already sent their entries for this event.. heres mine - Batata Song - A konkani Potato dish, which is delicious & easy to make.
LINK: http://culinarybazaar.blogspot.com/2008/01/yet-another-event-potato-feast.html
http://www.monsoonspice.com/2008/01/announcing-ode-to-potato.html


Ingredients:

Potato - 2
Onion - 3
Tamarind - Small lime sized (soaked in water)
Chillie Powder - 1 tsp
Salt - To taste
Oil - 2 tsp

Method:

1.Pressure cook the potatos. Peel them & cool them completely. Cut them into medium sized cubes.

2. In a pan add the oil. Cut the onions into small cubes & saute them till slightly transparent.

3. Then add the chillie powder & mix it well. Now pour in the tamarind water & bring to a boil.
4.Then add the potatoes, salt & mix well. Add little water & bring it to agood boil.

You will see the gravy thickening a little. Serve hot with rice & dhal...This is a perfect combination! Simple & yet delicious.

Garlic Parmesan Flatbread With Homemade Salsa!

I was thinking of what to make for the Game night event hosted by Mansi of Fun & Food. For more details on the event check out at: http://funnfud.blogspot.com/2008/01/announcing-event-game-night-party.html

I was shopping at Traders Joe & came across the Garlic & Parmesan crusted flat bread. Sounded interesting & i thought of a very simple & delicious snackfor the event that will be ready in less than 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

Garlic & Parmesan Flat bread - 1 packet (Traders Joe)

Red onion - 1

Tomatoes - 2

Bell pepper - 1/2

Cilantro - 3 tsps (finely chopped)

Salt - to taste

Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp

Lemon juice - 1/2 lemon

Habanero sauce - optional (to make it spicier!!)

Method:

1. Chop all the veggies into small cubes.

2. Mix it well with salt, pepper, lemon juice & cilantro. Add habanero sauce if desired to suit your spice level.

3. Preheat the oven / toaster-oven & cook the flat bread as instructed in the box.

4. Cut the flat bread into wedges & serve with the home made spicy salsa.

A perfect snack to munch on & ready very quick. You can make the salsa before hand itself & just cook the flat bread, once your guests start to arrive.. its will be reasy in minutes all hot & delicious!

Also use the salsa for chips too... add some melted cheese on top of your tortilla chips & you have one more game night food ready!

Simple Konkani Jovan !!

Its over 3 weeks since the new year began & i have been not blogging at all. Just too many things going on... first the new year hangover :-), then my dad visiting us, plus my dad & daughter's birthday - yes they share their b'days !!

All of a sudden we decided on a vacation & off we flew to Cancun, Mexico. Oh! man its so beautiful, peaceful, laidback & relaxing.. most importantly - WARM!!! I hated coming back to St.Louis.. its so cold....:-(

So after 8 days of vacation & all junk food - lived on chips & salsas - the best salsas i've ever had.. tried in lot of different places... from posh restaurants to road side small cafes....the cafes make the best i feel! Their spice levels are so high.. its amazing...but irresistable too & one goes on & on..... crunch crunch!! With a nice drink on hand, beach, ocean ..... what more to ask for.

Finally back to base & we are craving for a simple hpome cooked meal. So today its basic konkani food...Rice, Dali Thoy, Thendle upkari & Avalla Gojju.

Sending this to Meeta's Monthly Mingle - http://whatsforlunchhoney.blogspot.com/

This months theme is - COMFORT FOODS. Thanks Meeta for hosting a lovely event.

DALI THOY:

A staple in Konkani cuisine, its made from Toor dhal. Very easy & simple, but tasty.. a must for any festival & loved & hated by many!

Ingredients:

Toor dhal - 1 cup

Green chillies - 4

Red chillies - 1

Curry leaves - few

Hing - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 2 tsps

Mustard Seed - 1/2 tsp

Salt - to taste.

Method:

1. Pressure cook the toor dhal very well. Mash it & add water till u get a desired consistency - not too thin!

2. Now add to it salt, green chillies & bring it to a boil.

3. Season it with mustard seeds , curry leaves, hing & red chillies.

Your Dali Thoy is all ready to be served!!

THENDLE UPKARI: (TINDORA CURRY)

Thendle is also made quite often in konkani cuisine & there are few varieties we make out of it, most popular being Thendle Thalasan. Will post recipe for it soon.. todays its an upkari or dry curry.

Ingredients:

Tindora- 1/2 pound

Coconut - 3 tbspn

Oil - 2 tsps

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Jeera - 1/4 tsp

Channa dhal - 2 tbspn

Green Chillies - 4 (finely chopped)

Curry leaves - few

Salt - to taste

Method:

1. Wash the tindora & cop it lenth wise into strips.

2. In a pan add oil & once it heats up add mustard seeds, jeera, chopped green chillies & curry leaves & saute for a minute. Then add the channa dhal & saute for 2-3 minutes, till it changes colour.

3. Now add the tindora & mix everything well. Add required salt. Sprinkle water & allow to cook slowly. It will take some time - check in between & sprinkle more water if necessary.

4. Finely add coconut when its almost done, mix well & serve.

AVALA GOJJU :( GOOSEBERRY CHUTNEY)

This is a simple one & as long as you can find or have on hand salted gooseberrys in brine water, its easy to make. People in India, usually in the gooseberry season, but it & soak it in brine solution. It lasts for years....But here its difficult to find gooseberry.But i recently found it in the Indian store - PERIYAR brand sells gooseberry in brine solution. The minute my eyes were on it, i knew i had to have it as we love this gojju!!

Ingredients:

Gooseberry - 5 no

Green Chillies - 4

Coconut - 2 tsp

Curds - 1/2 cup

Salt - if u need

Oil - 1 tsp

Garlic - 1

Method:

1. Drain the gooseberry from the liquid & chop it, throwing away the pit. Add to this green chillies & coconut & grind to a fine paste.

2. Transfer to a vessel & add to it curds. Mix well. Check & see if u need salt. Remember the gooseberrys were soaked in salt solution.. it might be too salty too!! So be careful!!

3. Heat oil in a pan & add to it chopped garlic. Saute till its slightly brown in colour. Pour it on top of the gojju, mix & serve.

Enjoy a simple & delicious meal !!

BEST OF 2007

Another year gone by... it was as though just few days back we were in 2007 & celebrated the new year & in a flash i feel a whole year of 365 days has gone past...

Nupur of One hot stove has this event called Best of 2007. Check out more details at :

http://onehotstove.blogspot.com/2007/11/announcing-best-of-2007-event.html

So here i am all set to take part in the event hosted by Nupur! Thanks Nupur for creating & hosting this event. Its a wonderful idea & sure lots of our blogger friends will be taking part in this. Though i am into the world of blogging for just 3 months, i still had so much fun, meeting & making so many new friends & trying out so many recipes! Each one of you has your own special idea, creativity & zillions of recipes & methods. Loved them all & hope to try atleast few recipes from each blog....

So here my Best of 2007 - Top 10 Recipes.

1. Fruit Pizza : This is a very nice dessert & quite easy to make. A crowd pleaser & loved by all. It has a whole bunch of fruits, so a perfect way to get those fruits into our diet.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/10/fruit-pizza.html

2. Pavakkai Theeyal : A very nice dish if you like Karelas! It’s got a perfect blend of spices & flavours & goes well with both rotis & rice.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/10/pavakkai-theeyal.html

3. Seven Cups Burfi : A very easy to make sweet & always loved by all. Its my family favourite dessert & i make it often compared to other sweets!

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/11/seven-cups-burfi.html

4. Sanna Polo : A dish you can call a complete meal in itself. An easy to make & healthy dish. Batter can be stored for 3 days.. my kids love this one.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/11/sanna-polo-cabbage-onion-dosa.html

5. Chicken Curry : Non-veg anytime is loved here. This dish is easy to prepare & comes out great too.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/11/chicken-curry.html

6. Black eyed bean curry : This is another tasty & slightly different flavoured dish. Easy & tasty!

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/12/black-eyed-bean-curry.html

7. Mochakottai Kolumbu : Aah!! This is an all time favourite at my place.. my better halfs favourite i must say! This tastes so creamy & soft.. it literally melts in your mouth. A tasty bean & perfect gravy.. cant ask for more!

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/12/mochakottai-curry.html

8. Zucchini & bell pepper sweet & sour curry : A blend of 2 veggies with some onions & peanuts.. you get a smooth texture from zucchini, yet a cruchy peanut inbetween, along with the sweet & sour gravy.. goes very well with rotis.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/12/zucchini-bell-pepper-sweet-sour-curry.html

9. Shrimp Curry : Loved this one.. it was just great masala & shrimp all cooked together to form a spicy jhatpat masaledar shrimp.. vanished with some malaysian parathas!

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/12/shrimp-curry.html

10. Sweet Appo : Appo is loved by all & there r many versions, i stick to this as it comes out good. Easy & fast sweet dish.

http://myrandap.blogspot.com/2007/11/sweet-appo.html

So here are my top 10 dishes.. hope you all liked them !! Will keep more dishes coming in 2008...
WISHING ALL MY FRIENDS & FAMILY, A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR, FILLED WITH GOOD HEALTH, HAPPINESS & PROSPERITY.

Black Eyed Bean Curry

Black eyed bean, also knows as Chowli (North) , Karamani (South) are very high in protein content. There are quite a few dishes one can make from this & here's my first one.

Sending this to Susan, from the " Well seasoned cook" who's hosting the event - MY LEGUME LOVE AFFAIR. Check more details at :

http://thewellseasonedcook.blogspot.com/2008/01/my-legume-love-affair-event.html

Thanks Susan for hosting a lovely event!

Ingredients:

Black eyed bean - 2 cups

Onion - 3 no

Tomato - 2 no

Ginger-garlic paste - 1tsp

Chili powder - 1 tsp

Channa Masala - 1 tsp

Cilantro - finely chopped

Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp

Salt - to taste

Oil - 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Soak the bean overnight & pressure cook. Be careful not to over cook these.

2. In a pan add oil & finely chopped 2 onions. Grind the other onion into a fine paste.

3. Once slightly done, add Ginger-garlic paste & saute few minutes. Now add the onion paste & fry till the raw smell goes off.

4. Then add chili powder, Channa masala & tomato finely chopped or as puree. Mix all well & bring to a boil.

5. Then add the cooked bean & salt & add little water & bring to a good boil. Add little garam masala & cilantro.

Your curry is ready & this goes well with rotis. Serve a raita as an accompaniment & your all set!

Rajma Masala

North India is famous for its Rajma / Channa masalas. Heres my version of the same dish.. sure my fellow blogger friends have their versions too.

Sending ths to Susan of the Well Seasoned Cook - who's hosting My Legume Love Affair. Check out more details at :

http://thewellseasonedcook.blogspot.com/2008/01/my-legume-love-affair-event.html

Thanks susan for hosting a great event!

Ingredients:

Rajma - 1 cup

Onion - 2 no

Tomatoes - 2 no

Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp

Jeera-Dhania Powder - 1&1/2 tsp

Chillie powder - 1 tsp

Salt - Acc to taste

Garam masala - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 2 tsp

Method:

1. Soak Rajma overnight & pressure cook for 2 whistles & set aside.

2. Grind together- onion, ginger-garlic paste, tomatoes to a fine paste.

3. In a pan add oil & fry this paste till slightly brown & raw smell of onion goes off. Then add chillie powder & jeera-dhania powder & fry well. Add little water if necessary.

4. Then add the cooked Rajma & salt & bring to a good boil. Add Garam masala & cilantro & serve hot.

You can add in a boiled potato to the gravy.. goes well & gives quantity too.

Sanna Polo (Cabbage-Onion Dosa)

"Sanna Polo", a traditional Konkani dish, is loved by one & all. Its a healthy & complete meal in itself. It easy to prepare & the batter can be stored for 2-3 days. Its tasty & nutritious as well.

This is my entry to JFI - Toor Dhal hosted by Linda.

Ingredients:

Raw rice - 1 cups
Toor dhal - 3/4 cup
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Tamarind - A pinch
Hing - 1/4 tsp
Dry red chillies - 4 no.
Onion - 2
Cabbage - a big piece.
Oil - for frying dosa
Salt - acc to taste

Method:

1. Soak rice & dhal together for an hour.

2. Fry red chillies in a pinch of oil, till slightly brown.

3. Grind rice, dhal, red chillies, coconut, tamarind, salt & hing to a slightly coarse paste. Use as little was as possible. It must be a thick mixture.

4. Transfer to a vessel & add to it finely chopped onions & cabbage. Mix all well.

5. Heat a dosa pan & take a hand full of the batter in your hand and spread on dosa pan with hands. It must be 1/4 inch thick. Put oil & coverwith a lid to cook. Takes about 3-4 minutes.

6. Then turn & cook other side too till golden brown.

Serve hot or cold.. yummy always! Goes well with rice & dhal, or just eat it as such. You can use the same batter & fry like vadas. They are called Cabbage Ambodos. Another way is steam the same batter like idlis & its called Sanno Khotto... so its a 3 in 1 dish!!