Pakodas

I found this snap as I was going through my old photos and decided to upload it to my blog and include the recipe. Pakodas are so famous in the Indian household that you just need an excuse to make them. We make it during the monsoon a lot and also nice to eat them on a cold day with a cup of chai.



Ingredients

2 cups Besan (Chickpea) flour
salt to taste
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 green chilly chopped
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 onion chopped
I have used onions here but you can use almost any vegetable.
oil to fry

Method:

Mix besan, the spice powders and salt with enough water to make a thick batter.
Add the chopped onion into the batter.
Heat oil to fry.
Scoop up a spoon of the onion batter and pour into the oil.
Fry till crisp and red.
Enjoy with ketchup.

Puris

Ahh Puris ! My mom used to make them on a weekend and we would devour them by the dozens. It is best eaten hot with a nice spicy gravy dish. I made it a fortnight ago with a dish called Alu Tamatar Rasedar (Potatoes in tomato gravy) which unfortunately I forgot to take a good snap of. So the recipe will have to wait until I make it next time. The below snap has a small bowl of it.




Ingredients:

2 cups wheat flour
water to knead
1 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
Oil for frying

Method:

Knead the wheat flour with the water to make a nice soft dough.
Add the ghee to the dough and knead it together.
Roll the dough into small balls.



Roll it with a rolling pin into a flat circle.



Heat oil in a thick pan.
Fry the puris and serve hot with a spicy gravy dish.

Jeera Pulav (Cumin Pilaf)

I make this pulav when I am lost as to what to cook for dinner. This is so easy to make and also so tasty that one cannot go wrong. You can eat it with daal or even with a pickle and raita.



Ingredients:

1 cup basmati rice washed and soaked for 30 mins.
salt to taste
2 bay leaves
4 cloves
1 inch cinnamon stick
4 green cardamoms
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 green chilly
2 cups water
2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)

Method:

Heat ghee in a pan.
Add the cumin seeds, green chillies, cloves, cardamoms, bay leaves and cinnamon.
Saute for a few minutes.
Optional : Add 1 onlion sliced and saute till pink.
Add the drained rice and salt.
Saute for a couple of minutes.
Add the 2 cups of water.
Cover and cook on medium flame.

Serve hot and enjoy.

Ravai Uppma (Semolina)

This is one of my all time easy to make and hence most made breakfast. I usually always have a packet of frozen mixed vegetables in the freezer and Roasted Rava is always in my pantry. You can use different veggies for this uppma. I make it with just onions some days and also sometimes with just peas.


Ingredients:

2 cups Roasted Uppma ravai
1 cup mixed vegetables (beans,carrot,peas)
1 inch piece of ginger sliced
water
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil
2 green chillies chopped
1 red chilly cut in half
a sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp urad daal (black gram)
1 tsp chana daal(bengal gram)
1/4 tsp Hing (Asafoetida)

Method:

Heat oil in a pan.
Add the mustard seeds, urad daal, chana daal, curry leaves and red chilly.
Add the mixed vegetables and saute for a few minutes.
Add the green chillies, ginger and hing.
Add enough water to cook the vegetables and salt. (I usually boil water in the kettle and pour as needed)
When the vegetables are cooked, add the roasted ravai.
Reduced to low heat and cover to cook.
Serve hot.