Making choclates at Home

Really simple......

All you need is cooking chocolate ...some of these come with added sugar while others don't. Depending on how conscious you are about the sugar content - you can pick up one.

Melt the cooking choclate. Put it in a pan, on heat and then stir for a while till it is ready Add sugar to taste if it doesnt come with one.

Rice Pulav/Rice Pilaaf

2 cups of rice should be enough for 3 people and a little leftover....
Wash them and keep aside.

You need vegetables such as -

Peas - a little
Sweet corn - almost same quantity as peas
(you may dip peas and sweet corn in a bowl of water when you start cooking. This way they would cook very well)
Capsicum - half - nicely cut into thin slices
Cottage cheese - about 5 - 7 small cubes
Potato - one medium sized - peeled and finely cut into nice small pieces
Carrot - about one long carrot - peeled and finely cut into thin slices
Onion - one medium sized - peeled and finely cut into thin slices
Cauliflower - few small lil florets


Some of these vegetables are seasonal and may not be available.. you may pick the ones that are most easily accessible and available. Simplest is with potato, peas and onions.

For the MASALA -

2 tbs cooking oil
3-5 cloves
Cinnamon stick - 2
Moti elaichi / black cardamom - 2
Black Peppercorns - 3- 5
Jawaitri - 1 (traditional indian herb- looking for the english word for this spice)
I clove of garlic
a little / 1/3rd tablespoon ginger paste
alternatively you may add 1/2 tbs ginger garlic paste
Salt - to taste
Red chilly powder - to taste
Garam Masala - a little (for fragrance)


Start by heating the oil in a dry pan. Take cottage cheese and fry a little. Once golden brown, take it out and spread on a tissue paper/newspaper for extra oil.

Now add everything under the MASALA section except salt , red chilly powder and garam masala to the oil and heat a little.

Now start by adding the hardest vegetables the first - start with potatoes and carrot . Toss it for 2 -3 minutes on medium flame.

Now add onions and capsicum, cauliflower and any other vegetable except corn and peas.
Toss them for about 3-5 minutes on medium flame.

Now add salt, red chilly powder and garam masala.

Add peas, sweet corn and fried cottage cheese... toss for a couple of minutes.....

Now add rice to the tossed vegetables. You may increase the flame to high. Stir all the mixture nicely for about a minute or till water has dried up..

Now add 4 cups of water (double the quantity as rice) and cook rice. Some people prefer to transfer the content to a rice cooker... go ahead and do that..

else continue on the cooking gas till water has dried up.
Please make sure that you leave rice in the pan with closed lid even after the water has dried.. it is called DUM and helps leave a brilliant aroma.....

I prefer eating hot rice with cold dahi... you may eat it plain, with dahi/curd/yogurt or with a gravy......

Happy eating!

Poha/Beaten Rice/ Chidwada

Hey there...

Today we are talking about dish called poha/beaten rice/chidwada which serves a lot of purposes --- can be a quick snack or a light dinner or a healthy breakfast..

So here is how to make it..

For one person you would need about a mug full of poha....
Soak poha/beaten rice/chidwada in water for about 5 mins. After that wash them nicely in a seive and set them aside for water to dry..

On the other side heat a little oil in a pan. Add few mustard seeds in the oil. Add finely chooped onion, peanuts and toss well. For roughly about 3-5 mins or till it is slight brown-- not golden brown but less than that. Add finely chopped green chillies (optional)..

Now add salt to taste, red chillies to taste and a touch of tumeric powder.
Add the poha now and heat it on flame for about 5 mins. Add corriander leaves and the dish is ready...

enjoy!!!
:)

Sambar

Take Arhar/Toor daal/lentils (quantity as you see right) I recommend a cup of daal/lentils for two people.

Wash it well.

Put it in a cooker and add water - Make sure that daal is fully dipped.. a grandma estimate would be extra water should be an inch above the daal/lentils surface.

Add salt to tase and a spoonful of turmeric powder/haldi

Boil Toor /Arhar daal/lentils. After one whistles, reduce the heat and let the daal/lentils boil for some time. About 5 - 7 mins should be enough.

Slice & cut fresh onion, beans, drumsticks, carrot, potato, tomatoes and any other vegetables you like.
Take oil in a pan - slightly fry all the vegetable execpt tomato. Once pinkish in color, add red chillies (to taste) and Kari leaf. Add sliced tomatoes and toss well.
leave it on for 3- 5 mins.

Add vegetables mix to the boiled lentils, add sambhar masala and tamarind/imli tyo taste. You can use tamarind powder or fresh tamarind soaked in water (in this case, throw the tamarind and add the water)

Let it boil well till you see all the contents have mixed well or GEL WELL....

Sambhar is ready to eat...

Making Bhindi (ladyfinger)

Get bhindi from market ... One way to check that you have the right bhindi is -- take a bhindi and break the tail a little .. if it breaks easily that means it is just perfect.. if it doesnt that mean its not good....
Wash it and leave it aside for few hours to dry.. You can also wipe off the water using a towel or just let it to dry naturally...
Once dried.. cut bhindi into small pieces - about an inch in size leaving both the edges.. they no good...

Take a tablespoon of oil in a pan... Heat it well... Add the cut bhindi into the same.. Let the gas be on a high flame.. DO NOT COVER the pan.....Let it be on the high flame for about 10 mins... Add onions now.... Let them turn a little soft (Another 5 - 7 mins).. Add Salt and Red chilly powder to taste.. Reduce the flame.. Let it be on the flame for 5 more mins or till you think it looks cooked. Cover it for few mins ( 2 - 3).

You are ready to eat your bhindi!!!!!

Enjoy!

Hello All

Hey all....

Often we run into situations, where we want to make simple stuff which is quick to make and yet delicious and amazing. And in this internet savy world we want to GOOGLE out everyting. Almost all the times, I dont know about you but I end up at places where the simplest of dishes have the most complex ingredients.

So I decided to blog and have simple recipes made with simple ingredients. Hence, this blog is aimed at all those people who love to cook or may be do not love to cook but want to/have to cook, know the theory* but not the practical aspect of cooking!!!!

*I Have a friend who knows how to boil an egg theoretically but when he actually tried.. he put it in the pan and on the stove and even after an hour nothing happening.. reason - NO WATER ADDED!!!!

So all you people try out the recipes that I will post here. I am not an expert but can share what I have learnt from two most amazing people in my life - My Maa and my Paa......they are great cooks....

Do let me know the experiences that you have!!!

Looking forward to great intereactions.

G