Rava Upma

Rava is the tamil name for powdered semolina. It is coarser than semolina flour but finer than small pasta. Upma is the tamil name of this dish, which can be made with rava, vermicelli, tapioca or cracked wheat.

Upma is a staple in any south indian home and my comfort food! It is typically eaten as breakfast but could also be eaten as supper.

I grew up eating this dish on most weekends and my mom is “THE” expert of making this. This is my humble attempt at being half as good a cook as her! Making this transports me to my mums kitchen in Chennai, India and makes my kitchen smell amazing!

A great combination is to fill Pesarattu with rava upma inside and eat for breakfast. But either pesarattu or upma on their own makes a meal by itself.

2 cups rava (also known as sooji or suji in indian stores)
1 large onion, diced
2 potatoes, washed and diced
1/2 cup peas (I use frozen peas thawed to room temperature)
You can improvise and add more veggies like carrots, corn, string beans.
5 dried red chillies (You could also use any green chilli you have in hand. You will need 4 serranos or 2 jalapenos, or 5-6 indian green chillies)
3 tbsp butter (you could use canola oil, butter makes it extra delicious)
1 tsp asafoetida powder
1 tsp urad dal (split black gram dal)
1″ piece ginger, minced
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp salt
4 cups water
3-4 tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat and add the rava. We are dry roasting the rava, so no oil. Keep roasting the rava by stirring it continuously to prevent the bottom from burning. Roast for 5 minutes until some of the rava turns opaque/slightly golden. Remove and set aside.

Melt the butter in the saute pan over medium heat until it starts turning slightly golden. Add in the mustard seeds and just when they start to pop, add the urad dal and asafotida. Fry for a couple of seconds until the urad dal start to turn golden brown. Roughly break the red chillies and add them in. Saute for another few seconds and add the onions and ginger. Cook until onions turn slightly brown, around 5 minutes.

Stir in the potatoes and peas, add a tsp of salt, cover and cook for 7-8 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

Add the roasted rava and remaining salt to this and mix well together. Add in 4 cups water and keep stirring well until the water is well incorporated with the rava mixture. It is important to keep sitrring in this step to avoid any lumps. If you do find the rava clumping, then lower the heat and break all the lumps gently.

Cover and cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes. Uncover, stir the mixture gently to check if it’s done. The rava must be soft, creamy, slightly fluffy and importantly must not be sticky. If you think it is still a bit watery or too dense, then drizzle in some canola oil and stir well and cook uncovered for another 10-15 minutes.

Sprinkle chopped cilantro over the top, add the lemon juice, mix well and serve warm with any chutney you like. I had some Onion chutney to serve with.

I have entered this dish for the Food For Thought event hosted by Erin at The Skinny Gourmet.

Green peppers and Orzo with garlic – brown butter sauce

1 pound Orzo pasta
2 green peppers, seeds removed and diced 
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 jalapenos, chopped ( I include the seeds for extra heat, you could remove seeds or skip using this pepper)
4 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp dried mint 
1 tsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp salt 

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and add the pasta. Cook until al dente, around 8-10 minutes (Follow your package for instructions.)

In the meanwhile, in a large non-stick skillet melt 4 tbsp butter on medium heat. Add garlic and jalapeno and let cook for a minute. Keep stirring to avoid burning the garlic. The butter will become a golden brown and this is brown butter or ghee. Add in the coriander and cumin powders and fry for a few seconds. This is your brown butter sauce.

Add in the onions and keep stirring for another 5 minutes to slightly brown the onions. Add in the green peppers, salt and let cook for 5-7 minutes or until the peppers are soft but not soggy. Add the mint and cilantro mix once and take off heat and set aside.

Drain the pasta well and transfer into a mixing bowl. Add the green pepper garlic brown butter mixture and mix it all together. Check for salt and serve.

I have entered this post to the Foodie Films Event hosted by Joelen’s Culinary Adventures

Beetroot Pulao

Beets are one of my favorite vegetables. It’s sweet, juicy and works great with indian flavors. This is my version of an Indian Pulao with beet roots, onions and warm indian spices and herbs. It’s a no fuss one pot dish that packs in explosive flavor!

2 cups Basmati Rice
3 tbsps butter
4 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp dried mint
3 large beets, sliced lengthwise 1/2 inch thick
3 indian green chillies, finely chopped
2 medium onions, sliced thin
4 cups water
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 1/2 tsp salt

In a large non-stick pan melt the butter over medium heat and add the chopped chillies and garlic, cloves and cinnamon. Stir for a minute and then add in the onions.

Cook for 5 minutes until the onions just start softening and turn light brown. Add in the sliced beets, add salt, dried mint stir and cook covered for 8 minutes or until the beets have just softened.

Add in the raw rice and stir well together and keep stirring until rice turns opaque. (and yes it will be red) After about 5 minutes of stirring, add in the measured water.

Bring this to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook covered for 20 minutes without lifting the lid. Then check to see if all the water is absorbed by stirring gently so there is no water remaining in the bottom of the pan. Turn off heat and let rice sit for another 10 minutes. 

Remove the lid, add in chopped cilantro, mix well and serve hot with chilled cucumber raita.

Jeera(Cumin) Pulao

2 cups Basmati Rice
1 onion, sliced thin
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 inch piece of giner, finely chopped
2 Indian green chillies, split into two( I use the seeds as well) Remove seeds if you don’t want any heat
1 cinnamon stick
4 cloves
1 dry bayleaf
2 tsp cumin seeds (Jeera in Hindi or Jeeragam in Tamil)
3 tbsp ghee
1 tsp Salt
2 1/2 cups Water
Cilantro for garnish

In a nonstick pan, heat the ghee over medium heat. Add in cumin seeds, cloves, bayleaf and the cinnamon stick. Fry for a minute and add in the sliced onions, garlic, ginger and chillies. Fry until the onions turn translucent and slightly golden brown.

Now add in the raw basmati rice. Fry this mixture over low heat continously stirring it for a few minutes. You will notice the rice slowly starts turning opaque and it smells insanely good!

Transfer this mixture into the cooking vessel of an electric cooker. Add in 2 1/2 cups of water and salt. Mix well and turn on the cooker.

Once cooked remove from the vessel spread it out in a serving platter top with chopped cilantro and serve with just about any Indian curry you feel like!

Palak Paneer

 

Know anyone who dislikes spinach? Make this creamy, delicious version of spinach with paneer(indian cottage cheese) and I guarantee they’ll become a spinach lover!

2 cups cubed paneer ( I buy fresh block of paneer and cube it myself. You could buy precubed partially fried paneer as well)

2 bags of baby spinach ( yes it seems like a lot, but it greatly reduces volume when cooked)
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 large tomato, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic
1 inch piece ginger
1 tsp coriander(dhaniya)seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 cloves
5 indian green chillies
1/2 stick of cinnamon
1 bayleaf
1 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
3 tbsp heavy cream
5 tbsp ghee

Wash the baby spinach leaves well, drain them and grind them in a blender to a paste and set aside. Use as little water as possible. You want a thick spinach paste, not a runny liquid.

Into the blender, add in the onion, tomato, garlic, ginger, chillies, dhaniya seeds, cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon, cilantro and garam masala powder. Blend all of it together with a few tablespoons of water to make a smooth paste. Set aside.

Heat a pan with the 3 tbsp of ghee over medium heat, add in the bayleaf and pour in the ground masala paste. It will splutter so be careful! Over medium-low heat keep stirring the masala and let it cook uncovered for 15-20 minutes until the raw onion-garlic smell dissappears.

Now add in the ground spinach paste and mix well together. Add in salt and let it cook uncovered on medium heat for another 20-25 minutes until all the flavors blend together.

In the meanwhile, in another non stick pan, heat the remaining 2 tbsp ghee over medium heat. Shallow fry the cubed paneer 4 or 5 pieces at a time so that it turns golden brown on a few sides. Fry all the pieces and set aside.

Once the spinach gravy is cooked and ready, add in the heavy cream and stir it in evenly.  Add in the cilantro, then immerse all the fried paneer pieces in and mix well.

Remove from heat after a couple of minutes and serve. I personally love to serve it with any kind of Pulao or Naan.

Aaloo Curry (South Indian version)

Here is one of my all time favorite side dishes to serve with Pooris or any Indian bread. This was a standard Sunday feast my mum used to make when I was a kid. It brings back endearing memories and the smell of home whenever I make it.

3 large potatoes ( I use yukon gold)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 green chillies, finely chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1/3 cup curry leaves, finely chopped
1 1/2  inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp channa dal ( Bengal Gram Dal)
1/2 tsp Split Urad Dal ( split Black gram Dal)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Asafoetida powder
3 tbsp ghee
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp salt

Fill a large pot of cold water, salt liberally and add in the potatoes. Place over high heat and boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until fork tender. Drain, cool and peel them.

In a nonstick pan, heat the ghee over medium heat and add in the mustard seeds. Just when it beings to splutter, add in the channa dal and Urad dal. Let the dals slightly brown. Now add in the chillies, ginger, turmeric and asafoetida powders. Fry on heat for about a minute and then add in the chopped onions. Fry until the onions are translucent and just begins to brown.

Break all the boiled potatoes with your hands over the onion mixture. You do not want to mash the potatoes, just roughly crush them with your hands so that there are still big chunks of potatoes in the curry. Sprinkle the salt and stir everything well together. Be gentle, over stirring could make the potatoes mushy and break down.

 The mixture will be quite dry now, add in 1/2 cup of water to give it more of a gravy consistency.

Let it boil over mediumlow heat for 5 – 10 minutes just so that all the flavors blend in well together. Finally add in the cilantro and curry leaves, stir one final time and Serve with hot Poori, Chapathi or Naan

Mini Samosas

Samosa in the traditional fashion is quite big and the dough is made from scratch. It’s a long and hard process. Although I do love to make it that way, sometimes you just want to find a faster and simpler way to do it without compromising its flavor. This is the recipe I came up with to solve that problem. It is ideal to serve as an appetizer because it is bite-sized.

3 large yukon gold potatoes, washed and cleaned well
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed to room temperature
2 Indian Green chillies ( Substitute with 1 serrano pepper) Use half the quantity to make it milder)
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1″ ginger piece, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dhaniya(coriander) powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp ghee
Oil for frying

12 Wonton wrappers (available at most grocery stores)

Boil the potatoes in a large pot of water for 12-15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked until fork tender. Drain, let them cool and peel .

In the same hot water blanch the peas for 2 minutes. Drain and lay it on paper towels to slightly dry.

In a large mixing bowl add the ghee, cumin powder, dhaniya powder, chilli powder, cilantro, lemon juice,garlic,ginger, salt and green chillies. Add in the cooled, peeled poatoes and mash it all together. Dont over mash, you want some chunky peices of potatoes. Taste for salt, adjust according to your taste and then add in the peas and mix them all together. This is your filling.

Heat a pan filled with canola oil for deep frying over medium heat. While the oil is getting heated, place a small amount of the filling in each Wonton wrapper and wrap according to package instructions. Line them on a baking pan with greased with cooking spray.

After about 3-minutes of preheating the oil, drop the heat to medium-low or low heat. Fry each samosa about a minute or two on each side until golden brown.

Drain on a paper towel and serve with Cilantro or Mint chutney.

Potato Balls ( Eastern Indian style)

This is literally the easiest, tastiest and quickest potato dish that exists! It’s has very simple, clean and subtle flavors. Delicious is the word.

 

2 large idaho potatoes
1 tsp mustard seeds
3 indian green chillis, minced
2 tbsp ghee
1 tsp ginger, minced
1 tbsp cliantro, finely chopped
salt to taste ( 1/2 to 1 tsp)

Cook the potatoes in salted boiling water for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Drain, peel and set aside.

Crush the mustard seeds in a small mixer ( or mortar & pestle if you have one) to a powder. Mince the chilli and add it to the mustard powder. Add the ghee, ginger and cilantro to the mixture and let it sit for a while until the potatoes cook and cool down. This will also help the flavors to blend together.

When the potatoes are cool enough to handle (but still warm) Mash them, then sprinkle with salt and the mustard mixture. Mix well and shape into little balls.

The authentic recipe uses only the regular potatoes. As a variation I tried the same recipe with exactly the same ingredients but with sweet potatoes. It turned out to be very unique! The sweet-salty-spicy combination was fantastic!

Serve them room temperature. It makes for a healthy and tasty snack. I personally love to eat them with ketchup.

Dhokla

Dhokla is an Indian (Gujarathi) dish that can be served as a snack, appetizer or if you love it as much as me, dinner! If you haven’t eaten one before, now is the time to get started.

1 cup chickpea flour, Ask for “Besan” (Hindi for chickpea flour) in your local Indian store.
½ cup yogurt( the more sour and tangier the better)
2 Tbsp finely grated ginger
2 Indian green chillies, finely chopped
½ onion, finely chopped
1 tsp baking powder
3 Tbsp canola oil for greasing
salt
water as needed, for steaming

Garnish:

1/4 cup fresh or dry grated coconut
1/2 Onion, finely chopped
1 Indian green chilli, finely chopped
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 Tbsp chana dal ( Also known as Bengal Gram Dal)
1 Tbsp ghee
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/3 cup chopped cilantro

Mix together the flour, yogurt, ginger and salt, stir gently to remove lumps to make a fairly thick pancake like batter; cover with a paper towel or a kitchen towl and leave overnight in a warm place.

The next day when ready to cook add the green chillies, onion, baking powder and salt (according to your taste) to the chickpea batter and stir gently till well incorporated.

This dish is a steamed dish. The traditional Indian way is to use a special steaming mould and a pressure cooker made just for this purpose. If you don’t have this, there is a simple alternate way of steaming.

Grease individual stainless steel cups with cooking spray and pour in the batter and fill only 1/2 the cup. Place these filled cups in a very large pan (with raised sides). Pour in hot water slowly along the sides of the large pan filling half the pan. Put this pan on medium heat and cover tightly. Steam for 10-15 minutes. check for doneness by inserting a knife in the center, it should come clean. If not Steam for another 5 minutes and check again. Remove the cups from the steamer, let it cool for a few minutes. Use a spoon or a knife , dip it in hot water and run it along the sides of the cup and nudge it out , it should come out easily.

You could bake this into one big cake sized dish in a cake pan too. I use regular stainless steel cups and bake it into individual pieces because It’s easier to serve as an appetizer in bite size pieces.

Garnish :

Heat the ghee in a pan, add the chana dal, when it just starts to turn slightly brown, add the mustard seeds. The mustard seeds will being to splutter. At this stage add the cumin seeds, green chillis and onion and sautee for 5 minutes on low heat. Turn off heat, add the coconut and stir well and let it brown in the residual heat of the pan.

Sprinkle this garnish all over the plated dhokla and top it with the chopped cilantro. Serve with coriander-mint chutney.