Veggie Manchurian

Todays recipe is my family favorite that is loved at anytime of the day and a popular party appetizer that is loved by all. After the  holiday season, I am back to my regular schedule. we have an  Indo-Chinese delight today. What we have is Veggie Manchurian, where all the veggies complement each other to bring out the unique flavour with their friendly combinations. What a delight it is! Just perfect to serve as a starter or as a side dish along with noodles or fried rice or a simple steamed rice  and see your family being bowled over by this sensational Indo-Chinese delight!

Veggie Manchurian for lunch

Ingredients

• 1 cup finely diced Cabbage
• 1 cup finely diced Carrots
• 1 cup finely chopped green beans
• 1 bell pepper diced (optional)
• 1 Chopped Spring Onion
• 2 Chopped Green Chilies
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 3-4 Crushed Garlic Flakes
• 2 tbsp Corn Starch
• Oil for deep frying
• 1 tbsp Soya Sauce
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp Pepper Powder
• Few curry leaves
• 3-4 Green chilies

Veggie Manchurian process

Directions

• Mix all the veggies in a bowl and microwave for 3 min with the lid covered .
• In a bowl take all the boiled veggies (some squeeze the water out of the boiled veggies, I don’t prefer that way since we will loose all the nutrients, instead I add some cooked rice to the veggie mix so that the rice will absorb the moisture), mix 1 tbsp corn starch, soya sauce, salt and black pepper
• Make small balls (like koftas) of the mixture .
• Heat oil in a kadhai and deep fry the balls till golden brown, drain and keep aside.
• In a separate pan heat 2 tbsp oil. Sauté onion, garlic, green chilies, curry leaves and spring onions.
• Add water, salt, pepper powder, sugar and soya sauce. Bring it to a boil.
• Mix 1 tbsp corn four with half of a cup of cold water and stir into it. Gently add the fried balls to the gravy.
• Cook the vegetable Manchurian for 3-4 minutes and serve hot garnished with chopped coriander.
  

  Veggie Manchurian served with steam rice

Brussel stir fry

Many of us don’t know how to cook brussel sprouts till I dared to cook it today. I was little skeptical initially but gave it a shot anway and we enjoyed it very much. I usually use seasonal American vegetables during winter season, but I been little sensitive to this brussel sprouts. Every one describes them as mini cabbages and I don’t disagree with them. Infact I would add a point to it saying they are mini cabbges with a deep flavor. Add less spices to enjoy its taste. It goes very well as a side to rasam or sambar or any dal dish.
Brussels sprouts can be cooked in many ways, like stir frying, boilied or roasted.

Ingredients-

• 12-15 Brussels sprouts (Frozen or Fresh)
• 1 medium onion, diced thinly
• salt as per taste
• 11/2 tbsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin/jeera/jeelakara
• 1 tsp mustard seeds/rai/avaallu
• 2-3 dried red chillies, roughly torn into two pieces
• 3-4 curry leaves
• 2 garlic cloves roughly chopped
• 2 tbsps roasted chick pea powder (Senagapodi) / Roasted spiced peanut powder

Brussel stir fry

Directions

1. Clean the brussels sprouts, remove any loose leaves, chop them into bite size and boil them in microwave for 5 min with lid covered.
2. Heat 2 tbsps oil in a heavy bottom pan, add mustard and jeera. When they splutter, add garlic, red chilies and curry leaves.
3. Add onions and a dash of salt to sweat them. When they turn little pink, add boiled brussel sprouts.
4. Sauté for about 3 minutes. Add salt and chili powder, sauté it for another 2 mins. Sprinkle some water, cover and cook it further till the brussel sprouts are well cooked.
5. Lastly add roasted chick pea powder (Senagapodi) / Roasted spiced peanut powder
   and cook for another two minute until it is mixed well.
6. Enjoy with steam rice with rasam or dal or roti.

Brussel sprouts stir fry

Mutton Kheema Fry

Kheema fry is a sure favorite for every non-veg lover and my mom makes the best kheema fry with cashews coming into every bite and the fresh ground garam masala armoa invites us to dig in more.

Kheema is very healthy for kids, for adults watch out the quantity (I know it is hard with the irresistbale taste) as it is not figure friendly.

Kheema curry is a popular dish in restaurants menu, but I hardly find this kheema fry in restaurants.

Ingredients:

• 1lb of ground meat (kheema), washed and drained
• 1 large onion finely chopped
• 11/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 5 green chilies slit length wise
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• Fresh ground garam masala powder (dry roast- 3 cloves, 1″ cinnamon stick, 1 tbsp coriander seeds, let them cool and make a fine powder)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
• salt to taste
• tbsps oil
• Few curry leaves
• 10 cashew nuts
• Coriander leaves for garnish

Directions-

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, Add kheema (ground meat), chili powder, turmeric powder, 1 tsp salt, ½ tbsp ginger garlic paste and let it cook with the lid closed for 3 min’s (to release water). Close the lid and let it whistle for 2 times.
2. Let all the pressure cool off by itself.
3. In a heavy bottom pan, add cumin, curry leaves, cashew nut pieces and sauté till cashew turns light brown. AddA green chilies, and chopped onions. Sauté until the onions turns slight brown.Add 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste and sauté for another 2 min’s. Add cooked kheema (ground meat), and cook it without lid for 3 min’s. Stirring in between.
4. Add salt, chili powder to taste and sauté it without lid till the curry leaves oil.
5. Add the fresh ground masala powder, combine well and Turn off heat.
6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with steamed rice and rasam or roti.

Kheema (ground lamb) fry

chicken-65

Chicken 65 is a spicy, deep-fried chicken dish popular in South India as an entree, or quick snack.

There are many stories for how the name came out, I heared that it is simply the 65^th item on the menu, not sure of how true it is though. If we keep the question of how the name came about , the taste is certainly delectable to all non-veg lovers.

I call this, the Indian version of chicken nuggets.

I don’t stock Azinomotto in my pantry because of its controversies. Instead, I use the regular salt.

Let’s whip up this ever popular comforting food.

Ingredients -

• Chicken – 1 lb( Boneless chicken cut in to small pieces, I always use thigh portion as it is juicy and soft, one can use the breast piece  )
• 2 tsp Corn Flour
• 1tbsp All purpose (maida) flour
• 1 Egg
• 1 tbsp Ginger Garlic Paste
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp Red Chili Powder
• 1/2 tsp Red Food Colour
• 2 tsp Vinegar
• Curd (Yogurt) – 1/2 to 3/4 cups
• Oil – For Deep Frying
• 5 Green Chilies slit length wise
• Curry Leaves – 20
• Lemon juice – 4 tbl spoon
• 2 dry red chilies
• 1 tbsp ginger finely chopped
• 1 tbsp Garlic chopped
• 1 stalk of green onions

Directions-

1. Wash and cut chicken into ½ inch pieces.
2. To the chicken add yogurt , salt, ginger garlic paste, black pepper, salt and mix well. Leave aside for 20 min.
3. Add corn flour and all purpose flour, mix well and leave aside for 10 minutes.
4. Break egg into the chicken and mix (Caution: Do not whip the egg, just mix it.)
5. Heat oil in a frying pan  and fry the chicken in batches (while frying do not over crowd). Immediately after adding chicken reduce heat and fry for 3-4 minutes. ( don’t over fry, 5 minutes is more than enough to cook the chicken).
6. Keep the fried chicken aside.
7. In a wide skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil, add Jeera (cumin) and one red chili, add ginger and stir fry in low heat for 15 seconds.Add chopped garlic and stir fry to light brown, add curry leaves stir and add chopped green  chili.
8. Add black pepper powder, cumin and chili powder stir (remove from heat time to time to prevent burn out)
   Add vinegar , keep stirring. Taste the sauce and add required salt to taste. ( The chicken already has some salt)
   add red color mixed in 1 tbsp water, stir and add 3 tbsp water or more to make a thick sauce. ( The sauce consistency should be such that after mixing the chicken, it should not be too dry or too sticky and fluid.)
9. Stir the sauce well and with heat, add the chicken and mix well under low heat so that the sauce is well coated. Remove from heat and keep mixing.
10. The water in sauce will percolate into the chicken to some extent. So wait for some time to assess if you need more heating to drive some extra moisture out.
11. Garnish with chopped green onions and lemon juice ( optional)
12. Eat as a starter, snack or with roti, rice.
13. NOTE: Dont over fry chicken. This size of the pieces should be tender within 3 minutes and one can eat straight after frying. Unnecessary frying will make the chicken hard and  dry.

You can fry excess amount of chicken and store in deep fridge for future use, not only for this also for all kinds of Indo-Chinese chicken dishes.
Add as much chili as you want. The red color is a traditional addition to dish and has nothing to do with the taste. But without the red color, no one will recognize it as chicken 65

chicken-65

Brinjal fry with ginger and green chilies, vankay allam vepudu

Allam vankaya (Brinjal / eggplant) fry

One of my family favorite “Eggplants aka Vankaya aka brinjal aka Aubergine” is a must for any special occasion, be it a simple get together or a lavish wedding, egg plant holds a very special place in south Indian community.

The weather is getting quite chilly and the earthy ginger gives an extra boost.

This is a very Quick and simple eggplant stir fry, the key to this recipe is a blend of ginger and green chili that gets the best of both ginger and eggplant (vankaya).

Ingredients:

• 7 medium long egg plants, cut into an inch long pieces
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 11/2 inch ginger piece
• 7 green chilies
• 3 tbsp fresh shredded coconut
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 3 tbsps oil
• salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin
• 1 stalk of curry leaves

Directions-

1. Make a paste of ginger and green chili before hand.
2. Heat oil in a skillet, add mustard seeds and let them pop. Add cumin, curry leaves, turmeric and onions and sauté till the onions are translucent
   Add the eggplants (brinjals) and stir fry them for 5 mins without lid, keep stirring in between to prevent from burning or sticking to the pan.
3. Add the ground ginger-green chili paste and combine well. Sauté without lid till all the ingredients are well cooked.
4. Add red chili powder (if needed) and cook the curry till the eggplant pieces have cooked completely and turned soft.
5. Add shredded coconut and saute it for 1min.
6. Serve it with steam rice and a dash of ghee.

Goruchikkudu (cluster / guvar beans) pesarapappu (moong dal) fry

This round of cluster beans will be my last crop to harvest for the season (I stored some cluster beans in freezer to use for winter) i sure miss them, But hope i can find some in the Indian groceries. Goruchikkudu aka Guvar aka Cluster beans are rich in fiber and one of the delicate vegetable in the bean family.

It is best to cook these beans when tender as they could get very stringy and tougher. When they are tough cook them in pressure cooker for 2 whistles, let them cool and string the sides. If the excess fiber is not removed, you might get uncomfortable while eating the curry.

This is a fiber and protien packed dish.

Cluster (Gorchikkudu / guvar) beans plant from my back yard

Ingredients-

• Goruchikkudu / Guvar / cluster beans- 1/2 lb
• Moong Dal (pesara pappu) – 1 cup
• 1/2 small Onion diced
• Salt – as required
• Chili powder – 1 tsp (adjust according to your taste)
• ¼ tsp Turmeric
• Oil – 2 tbsp
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp of jeera
• 2 dry red chilies
• 1 stalk of curry leaves

Directions

1. Soak Moong dal in water for .30 min, and microwave it with 1 cup water for 5 mins.(you can also cook it on stove top till dal is ¾ cooked)
2. Wash cluster beans,  cut them into 1/3 inch pieces, sprinkle 1 tbsp of water and micro wave for 3 min with lid closed.(can be cooked on stove top till 3/4 cooked)
3. Heat oil in a wide pan, add mustard seeds, red chilies, curry leaves and jeera.
4. When mustard starts to splutter, add turmeric, onions and fry until light brown.
5. Drain all the water from cluster beans ( Don’t throw off the water, we can use it to sprinkle on the curry, if it is becoming too dry) and add to the onions. Fry for about 2 minutes.
6. Now add moong dal to this and fry for another 5 minutes, until both cluster beans and moong dal is thoroughly cooked (if the curry is getting too dry, sprinkle in little water)
7. Add salt, chili powder and saute it until all the ingredients are well cooked.

Serve it with hot rice and any type of dal or roti.

Note-  The same recipe cam be followed with the frozen guvar / cluster beans, as long as they are thawed ot defrosted, but do not boil the beans.

Kakarakaaya/bitter gourd/Karela chips

With bitter gourd / karella / Kakarakaaya, there are only 2 ways to go, either you love it or you have it. People start eating it with all the health benefits it has. I know some peole who start with an easy handling dish like this kakarakaaya (bitter gourd) chips or fry, where it’s not that bitter and actually tastes very good as a side dish for any dal. This dish like many of the other dishes welcomes a new student and always indulgence an old student with its crunchy and unique flavor.

There are so many dishes we can make out of this healthy bitter gourd like Bitter gourd curry, kakarakaaya pulusu, kakarakaaya chips, stuffed kakarakaaya/ bitter gourd, Bitter gourd jaggery fry.

Bitter gourd/ karella / kakarakaaya plant

Here’s a round up for the kakarakaaya chips recipe-

Ingredients-

• 4 long Bitter gourds
• 1 tbsp chili garlic powder (adjust to taste)
• 1 tsp salt ( adjust to taste)
• ½ tsp each of mustard seeds, cumin, urad dal and chana dal.
• ¼ spoon turmeric
• 1 stalk of curry leaves
• dry red chilies

bitter gourd/Karella / kakarakaaya chips thinly sliced

Directions-

1. Wash and cut bitter gourd into thin round slices with a slicer or a mandolin. ( If you cannot handle bitterness, Scrap the rough skin of bitter gourd with a knife or a peeler and cut them into thin round slices. If you still cannot handle the bitterness, add ½ tsp of salt to the chips, mix it thoroughly and let it sit for 10 min with lid closed. Salt extracts moisture, squeeze out the water from chips)
2. Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan, Add chips and fry them till light brown, don’t burn them.
3. In a separate pan heat 1 tbsp of oil. Add mustard seeds, when they crack, add cumin, turmeric, dry red chilies, urad dal and channa dal, fry them until golden brown and add curry leaves.
4. Add the fried chips to this tempering. Add chili powder and salt and sauté it for a min.
5. Serve with rice and any type of dal. Tastes very good with hot rice and ghee.

Bitter gourd/Karella / kakarakaaya chips ready to be served

Taro root (chamadumpa / arvi) fry / chips

Chamadumpa aka Arvi aka Taro root fry or chips is one of the comforting foods my mom makes, by boiling them first and deep frying later, tastes excellent but greasy and not good for health. I love to eat these irresistible dishes with a slight healthy touch by baking and broiling, of course the weather is making me to turn on my oven to bring some warmth to my kitchen. This tastes heavenly with white rice and a dash of ghee and goes very well as a side for any type of dal.

Ingredients-

• 6 chamadumpalu / Arvi /  Taro root
• 1 tsp garlic chili powder ( just chili powder is fine too)
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp oil

Boiled and sliced taro root (chaama dumpa/arvi) chips ready for baking

Directions-

1. Pressure cook taro roots (chamadumpalu)  in water until they become tender (2 whistles).
2. While the pressure cooker is cooling, Let the oven preheat to 350F.
3. When the roots are cooled enough to touch, peel the skins. Cut each, crosswise about quarter to half-inch thickness.
4. In a vessel, take 1 tsp of oil. Add and mix salt, garlic chili powder or just chili powder and turmeric to taste. Add and toss the cut taro root pieces.
5. Spread them in rows neatly on a baking tray (lined with wax paper) and bake them at 350 F for about 15 min. Also broil each side for about 2-3 minutes, until they are golden-brown. Remove and serve hot.
6. Note- Baking time varies depends on the thickness of how you cut the chips. Keep an eye on them while baking and broiling.

Taro root (chamadumpa / arvi) fry / chips baked to golden brown

Chikkudukaaya (Indian Broad beans)

As I am writing these posts, I am learning a lot more about the nutritional values of the vegetables. One very important vegetable that is rich in minerals and protein is ‘Indian Broad bean’ or ‘Chikkudu‘. This is one of the very tasty vegetables available for us.

I don’t find this often in US. So, the last time I went to India, I made a point to get this seed from my close relative who had a big farm of these.

Now I am having these broad beans right in my back yard. The taste of the fresh vegetable picked from the garden tastes so much better. I am trying to encourage every one to have their own vegetable garden and feel the happiness both from gardening and fresh vegetables.

This is a very simple and healthy stir fry that doesn’t need a lot of cooking.

Indian Broad bean plant (chikkudu)

Ingredients-

• 20 broad beans / Chikkudu
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 small onion chopped (optional)
• 1 tbsp red chili powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp each of mustard seeds, cumin, urad dal, channa dal
• 2 dry red chilies
• ¼ cup of shredded dry coconut (optional)

Directions-

1. Wash the broad beans thoroughly. Trim the ends of broad beans and cut them to 1 inch pieces.
2. In a pressure cooker, add these broad bean pieces with 1/4 tsp of salt and ¼ cup of water. Let it whistle for 2 times. Rest the cooker so that all the pressure is released.
3. Heat oil in a sauté pan. Add mustard seeds, when they splutter, add cumin, garlic, dry red chilies, urad dal, channa dal and sauté them until, urad dal is light brown.
4. Add and sauté the chopped onion for few minutes until they are transparent. (optional step)
5. Add boiled broad beans and Sauté for 2 minutes. Add chili powder, salt. Stir and cook the curry on medium heat for about 2 minutes.
6. Adjust the taste and add shredded coconut. Sauté it for another 2 mins stirring once in a while.
7. Serve hot with rice.

Since the broad beans have been pressure cooked, it does not need much more cooking process. We just need to layer the ingredients and let them sauté together with the spices.

Chikkudukaya (Indian Broad beans) fry

]]> http://simplefoodbowl.com/cooking/featured/indian-broad-bean-stir-fry-chikkudukaya-vepudu/feed/ 0 http://simplefoodbowl.com/cooking/featured/okra-fry-bendakaya-vepudu/ http://simplefoodbowl.com/cooking/featured/okra-fry-bendakaya-vepudu/#comments Wed, 07 Oct 2009 06:44:19 +0000 pavani http://simplefoodbowl.com/?p=894

okra / baendakaaya/bhindi fry

This vegetable is abundant in my back yard and there are always numerous ways to cook it, of all those, I like this simple stir fry we call it vepudu.When ever I make this dish, I remind my brother and SIL as it is one of their favorite dishes.

My husband likes all my dishes and he adores more when I cook this stir fry with some crunchy nuts ( even though he don’t say it, if he goes for a third serving, I can tell that) like peanuts and cashews. Peanuts for my husband and cashews for my son.

TIP-

Okra has a sticky texture when cooked, so, it is best cooked in a wide skillet to reduce the sticky or gooey texture.

Adding a tbsp of yogurt or lemon juice will reduce the stickiness of okra.

Ingredients-

• 25- 30 bendakaya / bhendi /okra/ ladies finger
• 1 small onion, finely chopped ( optional)
• 2 garlic cloves chopped
• 2 dry red chilies
• 1 tsp each of mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal, channa dal
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• pinch of turmeric powder
• 1 stalk of curry leaves
• salt to taste
• 2 tbsps oil
• 2 tbsps roasted peanuts
• 10-12 broken cashews

Directions-

1. Wash the okra, dry them (place this on couple paper towels), chop the tip and tail ends. Chop into 1/2″ pieces.
2. Heat oil in a wide skillet. Add the mustard seeds, let them splutter, add the cumin seeds, urad dal, channa dal, garlic, dry chilies, turmeric powder and let them brown. Add the curry leaves, stir them for a few seconds.
3. Add nuts, let the cashews brown a little bit. Add the chopped onions (optional) and sauté till transparent.
4. Add the okra, mix it well and sauté on medium heat for 5 minutes with lid closed, stirring occasionally to avoid burning.
5. Add chili powder, salt and saute till the okra turns soft.
6. Once okra is soft, saute okra for 3 more min without lid. Adjust the taste accordingly
7. Serve hot with steamed rice.

okra fry/ladies finger/ bendakaaya