Onion Tomato Chutney ( South Indian Style)

Onion Tomato Chutney ( South Indian Style)
Onion Tomato Chutney is one of the most popular or traditional chutney recipe of South Indian. We can add ginger,  garlic, with onions and tomatoes. A very easy recipe, which goes as a side dish for Idli, Dosa, Pongal, Chapati, Parathas, even you can have it will rice or curd rice.

This Chutney can be stored for 2-3 days in room temperature, if it is prepared with exact proportion's you can store  in refrigerator for 10 days.
My mother use to prepare this chutney, when we travel by train or even bus for long journey or tours.

Ingredients:

Onions - 2 big size
Tomatoes - 3 big in size
Ginger - 1 inch
Roast and grind masala:
Mustard - 1/2 tsp
Channa dal - 1.5 tsp
Urud dal - 1 tsp
Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli's - 6-7
Oil -1 tablespoon
Asafoetida - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Tempering:
Oil - 3 tablespoons
Mustard - 1 tsp

Method:
# Roughly chop onions, tomatoes, and ginger.

# Heat a pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil, add mustard, channa dal, urud dal, red chilli, pepper, salt and asafatedia and roast well one by one. Remove from stove.
# Add little oil, roast chopped, onions, tomatoes and ginger. Remove from stove.

# In a mixer jar blend dry roasted masalas and make powder.

# Add roasted onions and tomatoes with the grinded masala and make a fine paste.

# Heat 3 tablespoons of oil, let mustard crackle well, add the paste and mix well.

# oil should separate from chutney, at that stage switch off the stove.
# Allow it to cool and serve, or store in an airtight container.

Hope you all like it!
Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!

Lemon Pickle

Lemon Pickle
One of the easy and traditional pickle is Lemon. Which you can store for months and use it with roti, Indian bread, rice, curd rice...etc. I am sharing an easy way to prepare this pickle.

   There are certain things which you should follow while preparing any pickle such as:
# Always use dry vessel, when you mix ingredients together.
# Wash your lemon well and put it in kitchen towel and ensure that it is completely dry (not even a single drop of water).
# Wooden spoon or spatula should be dry.
# Sterilize your glass bottle well. It should be dry.
# For pickles, jam, sauce etc we need to use glass bottles or containers.
(Pl. avoid plastic, which is not good for health)

Ingredients:

Lemon - 18-20 medium size
Salt - 2 tablespoons
Turmeric powder - 1 tablespoon
Hing/ Asafoetida - 2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 .5 tablespoons
Fenugreek powder - 1 tsp
Gingerly Oil - 3 tablespoons / 50 ml

Method:
# Cut lemon into 4 pieces.

# Add salt and turmeric powder and mix well, keep it in glass container and cover it tightly ( for three days shake well and keep it a side). 

# After 3-4 days, put it in a wide vessel.

# Add chilli powder, asafatedia, Fenugreek powder / methi seeds powder, and mix well.

# Heat gingerly oil and switch off the stove. Allow it to cool completely.

# Mix oil with other ingredients and mix well, store it in sterlized bottle.

In another 2-3 days your pickle is ready to serve.
Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!

Kasuri Methi / Dried Fenugreek Leaves

Kasuri Methi / Dried Fenugreek Leaves in microwave!

It is very easy to dry herbs or leaves on microwave without changing its colour.
We can also Sun dry leaves, but it takes some time or days...but this is the easiest way to dry Kasuri Methi.

Method:
# Wash methi leaves / fenugreek leaves, and spread on a kitchen towel for about an hour, as it will absorb all the water.

# Take 2 tissue paper, place one above the other.

# Spread the methi leaves / fenugreek leaves on one half of the tissue paper.
Cover it with other half.

# Microwave for 2 min. In every 30 sec you need to check.

# Within 2 min, Kasuri Methi will be dried without losing its natural colour.

# You can store in an airtight container, and use when ever you want.

In the similar way you can dry mint leaves, corriander / cilantro, curry leaves etc.
Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!

Iru Pulli Kuzhambu

Iru Pulli Kuzhambu
Iru Pulli means two sourness together...such as tamarind and curd. 

This is one of the popular Kuzhambu recipe of Tamil Nadu. We can use vegetables like, white pumpkin or Ash guard, drumsticks, brinjal,Potata etc... Very simple, without any dhal and masala.

Ingredients:
Ash guard - 1/2 cup chopped
Tamarind - small gooseberry size
Curd - 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Red chilli - 3-4
Raw Rice - 1 tsp
Fenugreek / methi seeds- 1/2 tsp
Mustard - 1 tsp
Oil for Seasoning
Curry leaves few
Salt to taste

Method:
# Squize tamarind juice add, ash guard, salt and boil well.

# In 1/2 tsp of oil roast grated coconut, fenugreek seeds or methi, with red chillies and raw rice.
# Make a fine paste adding little water.

# Once ash guard cooks well in tamarind juice and raw smell of tamarind goes, add the paste and boil well.

# Add curd, when forth starts switch off the stove.

# Seasoning should be done with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Serve with rice dosa, idli, idyappam etc.
Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!

Rava Ladoo / Semolina Ladoo

Rava Ladoo / Semolina Ladoo

Rava Ladoo or Semolina Ladoo's are very easy to prepare...even begginer's can try. 

This is one of the traditional dessert recipe of South India. Some add condensed milk, sugar syrup....but without that if you prepare.....you can store in an airtight container for more than a month....it will remain fresh. Certain things you need to remember....

# I use 3/4 cup of sugar for 1 cup of rava, it depends on your taste you can even add 1 cup.
# After roasting rava, it should come to room temperature before you make a powder.
# Sieve the rava flour, so that you get a nice texture.
# Sieve i the powdered sugar.
# Mix rava flour, sugar powder, cardoman powder.
# Take one portion of the mixture and pour the hot ghee in batches...
# This is done because rava soaks ghee very soon..
You will get the same texture and taste of a sweet stall.

Ingredients:

Rava or Semolina - 1 cup
Sugar - 3/4 cups
Ghee - 3/4 cup
Cardoman powder - 1 tsp
Cashew and badam - few

Method:
# Dry roast rava on medium flame.

# Once the aroma comes switch off.
# Allow it to cool, make a fine powder in Mixie or handmill.
# Sieve rava powder and powdered sugar for fine texture.

# Fry cashew's and badam and keep it a side.

# Mix rava powder, powdered sugar, cardoman powder well.

# Heat ghee, take one portion of the mixture, add one portion of fried cashew and badam mix well.
# Once ghee is heated well, smoke should come... when you pour in the mixture...ghee should sizzle.....mix well with spoon or spatula.

# It will be very hot, once it becomes warm mix with your hand and prepare laddo's.

Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!

Pudina / Mint Rice ( South Indian style)

Pudina / Mint Rice ( South Indian Style)
One of the simplest way to prepare a variety rice is Pudina /Mint Rice, without Onion and without Garlic. You can even Prepare this rice item with mild masala's, onion and garlic.
Today I am sharing a very easy recipe with minimum ingredients in my kitchen.

Ingredients:
Pudina / Mint - 1/2 bunch
Cooked Raw Rice - 2 cups
Grated coconut - 2 tablespoons
Green chillis - 2 nos
Ginger - 1 inch
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 2 tablespoons
Mustard - 1.5 tsp
Urud dal - 1 tsp
Peanuts - 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste.

Method:
# Pudina, grated coconut, green chillis, ginger...put it in Mixie and make fine paste adding very little water.

# Heat a pan, add oil, fry Peanuts, mustard should crackle well, add urud dal and add the mint paste and saute well by adding turmeric powder, salt, garam masala till  the raw smell of Pudina / Mint goes.

# Switch off the stove, mix cooked rice with Pudina / Mint masala and serve.

A very easy recipe can be served during Lunch Box.
Pl. do try and provide your comments.
Thank you!