Easy mooli paratha recipe (Radish paratha)

I already have a stuffed version of mooli paratha. But this is an easier way of adding the grated radish while making the dough itself. Last year when we went to Bali for a weekend along with a friend’s family, I went just to take a break from cooking and all the usual daily chores, so didn’t bother to make something to carry for eating there. But the friend’s family brought mooli paratha with pickle. Their maid makes awesome parathas they said and I agree with them as the parathas were delicious. I asked them how she makes and wanted to try that for a long time. But never found a chance to make. 2 weeks back, I was not interested in having the usual menu for lunch so wanted to have some parathas. I had 2 organic radish sitting in the fridge. So I thought I will try mooli paratha and blog too. It was so so delicious and I enjoyed the lunch to the core, with pickle and curd.

Easy mooli paratha recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Dinner/ Lunch
Prep Time: 5 mins    |  Cook time: 15 mins    |  Makes: 4

Ingredients

Grated radish	3/4 cup
Wheat flour/ Atta	1 cup
Red chilli powder	1 & 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder	1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder	1/4 tsp
Jeera/ cumin seeds	1 tsp
Salt	As needed
Oil/ ghee	As needed

Method

1. Peel and grate the radish in a grater and mix little salt with it, keep aside for 10 mins.

2. You will be able to squeeze out a whole lot of water from this grated radish, do not discard this water, save it. Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl, use the squeezed out water to make dough instead of water.

3. You may not need all the water as radish itself is moist, so carefully add water. Make equal sized balls out of it.

4. Roll out to thick parathas. Not too thick, just with 2 chapathi’s thickness. Dust generously with flour while rolling out.

5. Heat tawa and cook on both sides drizzling some oil or ghee each side, until golden brown spots appears.

Notes

• I used 2 radish for this, but depends on the size of the radish.
• You can add green chillies too in the dough.
• Important : Make parathas as soon as you prepare the dough. If you keep the dough for a while, it will leave water and becomes sticky and it will be difficult to roll.

Healthy and tasty parathas goes well with simply pickle and curd, you wont even know it has radish. I love it hot.

Technorati Tags: mooli paratha recipe,radish paratha recipe,paratha recipes,north indian parathas,indian flatbread recipes,flatbreads,easy dinner ideas,easy indian paratha recipes

Lunch menu 42 - Vadai payasam sappadu

Today is aadi perukku / aadi 18 and like I made this aadi perukku lunch menu last year, this year too, being a Sunday, I made special lunch and offered God. But unfortunately Vj had to go for work today, so I finished cooking soon and he had directly lunch and left to office. This lunch menu is similar to the full meals I had already posted, so I am not elaborating on how I prepared this menu. Just I am linking the recipes. Though I made sambar, rasam, curry, kootu, I offered God only the items that had no onions in it. Apart from this lunch offering, we pray early in the morning too, with raw rice soaked with jaggery and tie yellow thread too around neck.



And here is how my mom, performs her pooja at the motta maadi (Terrace) in our home at Salem, assuming as the holy river bank Cauveri . She brings manal (river sand) and makes a square out of it and keeps manjal pillayar ( Ganesh made out of turmeric powder) and offers the fruits, rice soaked and mixed with jaggery, a black glass bangle coupled with pink tainted dried palm leaf strip, a new saree with blouse bit, some jewels, mirror, flowers, etc..along with the holy yellow thread above.



Check out the links below. Our lunch had the following items

1. Paruppu (Dal in south Indian style)
2. Carrot thayir pachadi (Carrot raita)
3. Potato curry recipe
4. Cabbage kootu recipe
5. Cluster beans sambar (Check similar broad beans sambar recipe)
6. Rasam recipe
7. Ulundhu vadai recipe
8. Vendakkai varuval recipe (crispy ladies finger fries)
9. Aval payasam recipe ( Poha payasam) - I made with sugar this time
10. Appalam
11. Curd
12. Pickle recipes

Technorati Tags: aadi perukku recipes,aadi perukku,lunch menu,south indian,aadi 18 recipes

Kuthiraivali upma | Barnyard millet upma | Millet recipes

   
Barnyard millet upma recipe (Kuthiraivali in Tamil / Jhangora in Hindi / Odalu in Telugu / Oodalu in Kannada) was the first millet recipe I tried in my kitchen. But posted thinai paniyaram first. This upma is very easy and basic to cook, can start with this if you are new to millets. Need not worry that cooking millet is complicated. Its really easy and not tricky at all. This tastes similar to arisi upma. You can make it same way as no onion and without vegetables too. But I added veggies. Even bachelors can try this. This is a healthier option for rice upma coz of its nutritional values -  improve  metabolism of our body. Good for diabetics too. It is rich in calcium, phosphorous, iron and rich in fibre content. When cooked, it gives a lot of volume. Keeps you feel full for long time too.

Kuthiraivali (Barnyard millet) upma  recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Breakfast
Prep Time: 5 mins    |  Cook time: 20 mins    |  Serves: 2

Ingredients

Barnyard millet	1/2 cup
Water	1 & 1/2 cups
Onion (skip on fasting days)	1
carrot, finely chopped	2 tblsp
Beans, finely chopped	4
Ginger, very finely chopped	1 tsp
Green chilli	2
Salt	As needed

 

To temper

Coconut oil/ or any cooking oil	1 tblsp
Mustard	3/4 tsp
Urad dal	1 tsp
Channa dal	1 tblsp
Curry leaves	1 sprig

 

Method

1. Wash the millet once or twice and drain water completely.
2. 
3. Heat a kadai with oil, temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order. Followed by onion, green chilli and ginger. Fry till onion turns transparent. Add veggies and fry for 2 minutes in low flame.
4. 
5. Add water and salt. Bring to boil and add the millet. Mix well.
6. 
7. Cook covered in low flame for 8 to 10 minutes or until all water dries up.
8. 

Notes

• Can be garnished with grated coconut.
• Coconut oil and ginger adds nice flavor.
• If making without onion and veggies, add asafoetida while tempering and add pepper powder for flavor.

Serve hot with any spicy coconut chutney or even sugar. I had with peanut chutney.

Technorati Tags: millet recipes,kuthiraivali upma recipe,kuthiraivali recipes,how to cook kuthiraivali,how to cook millets,how to cook baryard millet,Jhangora in Hindi / Odalu in Telugu / Oodalu in Kannada

Vada curry recipe - Steamed version

As I posted last in the breakfast menu11, here I am  with the vada curry recipe . This is perfect for dosa for me, loved it a lot with soft spongy dosa. Some suggest this for appam, poori or chapati too. I tried with chapati, it was good. Yet to try with poori and appam. I can eat vada curry as such even though its a side dish. It gives so much volume, so its perfect when you have get-togethers  or have guest at home. You follow the same recipe and make with left over masala vadais too. Again thanks to Vilasini & Viji for the recipes.

Steamed vada curry recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Side dish
Prep Time: 3 hrs soaking time    |  Cook time: 30 mins    |  Serves: 6

Ingredients

Channa dal	1/2 cup
Red chilli	4
Fennel / Spambu/ Saunf	1 tsp
Onion	2
Tomato	3
Ginger garlic paste	1 tsp
Red chilli powder	1 & 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds powder	1 tsp
Turmeric	1/8 tsp
Salt	as needed
Mint leaves	10
Coriander leaves, chopped	2 tblsp
Curry leaves	1 sprig

 

To temper

Oil	2 tblsp
Cinnamin	1 inch piece
Cardamom	1
Cloves	1
Bay leaf	1
Jeera/ cumin seeds (optional)	1 tsp

 

Method

1. Soak channa dal for 3 hrs. First grind chilli, fennel and salt.

2. Then add the drained channa and grind coarsely. Do in batches to ensure even grinding. Do not grind smoothly.

3. Grease idli plates and fill the moulds with the ground mixture, make a dent at the middle to ensure easy cooking. Steam cook for 8 minutes.

4. Once cooled, break it roughly. I forgot to add curry leaves before steaming, so added after breaking. Heat a pan with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order.

5. Add finely chopped onion and fry till transparent. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute in medium flame. Add finely chopped tomatoes and all the powders – red chilli powder, dhaniya powder (coriander powder) and turmeric powder. Add required salt for the gravy.

6. Fry for a minute or until the masala blends and becomes mushy. Add 3 cups water.
   
   
7. Bring to boil and add the crumbled dal and simmer for 10 minutes.

8. Once the oil floats on top and the gravy becomes thicker, garnish with chopped coriander and mint leaves.

Notes

• Add enough water as it requires lots of water.
  
• Min leaves adds very nice flavor to the gravy.
  
• If using masala vada, use 8 vadais.
  
• You can add 2 slit green chillies if you want extra hot gravy.

Serve hot with hot set dosa  - the dosa you see below is nothing but soft thick dosas, made from idli dosa batter.  

Technorati Tags: vada curry recipe,steamed,restaurant style,saravana bhavan style,vada curry,steamed vada curry,how to make vada curry

Badam kheer recipe | Almond dessert | Indian dessert recipes

I know my readers have been expecting this recipe for a long time now. Really long time, for years. I wanted to post it for long time too, as my readers Google and search as “ Badam kheer Raks kitchen”. Still it took this much long for me to post this, I am really sorry. But now I got a chance to try this dessert for a friend who came here for a short stay. I also wanted to picture this in the new serving bowl set I got from Currim boys.  I am making this for only may be second time in my life, so curelessly I made with 1/2 cup of badam and got a lot of kheer that I kept in the fridge and had for few days . So I have halved the recipe here to keep it simple.  And this post is on time for Ramzan, and I wish all the reader friends who ever celebrating a Happy Ramzan
I will post the vada curry recipe, next, I promise .

Badam Kheer recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Dessert
Prep Time: 15 mins    |  Cook time: 25 mins    |  Serves: 4

Ingredients

Badam / Almonds	1/4 cup
Milk	2 & 1/2  cups
Saffron	A pinch
Cardamom	1
Sugar	1/4 cup
Ghee	2 tslp

Method

1. Bowl milk and soak the saffron separately in lukewarm milk. Keep boiling the milk in low flame.

2. Boil water and add almonds to it. Let it boil for a minute. Switch off the stove, drain and wash under tap water to cool down.

3. Now you will be able to peel off the skin. Peel all the almonds.

4. Reserve some 6 almonds for garnish. Grind rest of the almonds with little milk to a smooth paste.

5. Add the ground almond paste, soaked saffron and sugar and mix well.Bowl until you get the desired consistency. Keep stirring every now and then, to avoid burnt bottom. It could take around 8 to 10 minutes in medium flame.

6. Slice the reserved almonds into thin strips. Heat ghee in a pan and fry the almonds for a minute and add it to the boiling kheer. Switch off the flame.

Notes

• Adjust sugar as per your need.
• The consistency can be adjusted as per your wish. If you want more thicker side, use less milk.If you want it like badam milk, you can use less badam.
• Be generous in adding elachi and saffron as it lends a nice flavor to this kheer. Otherwise the smell of almonds may be dominating.
• Tastes best when served chilled, preferable the next day.
• If you want to make badam milk, add a small piece of cinnamon, 1 clove and a mustard size edible camphor to the boiling milk and reduce the badam to half.

Serve chilled as it taste best when served chilled. I love this badam kheer especially with the badam garnish which adds a nice touch this here and there.

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Breakfast menu 11 - Vada curry, dosa, mint chutney, coffee

Before I went to Chennai this time, for a while I made list of places where I should go, what I should buy, what I should eat etc… Yes, when ever I go to India, many things will be in my mind that flashes now and then but will forget everything when I go there. So I make a list. The shops I should go and buy cloths, the restaurant I should go and eat, the places I should go and see… Though I make a big list, I will be able to do only few things. Still no regrets, there is always the next time. So this time, eating vada curry is one such thing in my to try list in restaurant.
So once when we went to Anna nagar for shopping, we went to Saravana bhavan and I ordered this set dosa with the choice of vada curry. And this is the first time I am eating vada curry in a restaurant. It was very mild looking and tasting similar to mixed veg kurma. I could not see any vada in that, everything looked mashed up. I don’t know if that’s how its supposed to be, still loved it. It was completely different from what I posted here as vada curry recipe. When I posted that recipe itself, two readers (Vilasini & Viji) had left their recipes, asking me to try and both were very authentic. I loved that concept of steaming too as its less fat. I guessed that would come out similar to what I tasted in saravana bhavan. So I tried it that way this time and surprisingly I could totally relate to the vada curry I ate and it was delicious. And I will post this separately as a new post sure tomorrow or Tuesday. Now on to how I prepared this breakfast menu.

Dosa, vada curry, mint chutney - breakfast menu 11

Recipe Cuisine: Indian   |  Recipe Category: Breakfast
Prep Time: 12 hr     |  Cook time:1 hr    |  Serves: 4

1. You have to soak and grind for idli/ dosa batter the before day itself and keep the batter ready for next day. The next day, on wake up, soak channa dal for vada curry (mininum 3 hrs).
2. After 3 hours, grind and steam for vada curry. While its steaming do the chopping works. Onion and tomato for vada curry and mint chutney. Clean mint leaves for mint chutney.
3. Keep all the ingredients like coriander, curry and mint leaves for garnishing, ready. Once the steamed vadas are ready, mash it and keep it ready as well.
4. Heat kadai, roast for mint chutney, temper for mint chutney, saute for mint chutney. Cool it as side.
5. Next prepare vada curry and let it be simmered in a stove. Meanwhile which you can grind mint chutney.
6. Once vada curry is ready, when ever your family is ready for breakfast make dosa hot. Remember, for vada curry, soft thick dosas are perfect match.

Breakfast with vada curry, dosa and chutney. I added up a filter coffee to make it more appealing, but its optional to serve along breakfast.



Check out the recipes

1. Idli dosa batter
2. Vada curry recipe ( Will post this version next)
3. Mint chutney with onion tomato
4. Filter coffee recipe.

I didn’t had coconut, if I had I would have made coconut chutney to go with this. Check out the other chutney recipes too.

Technorati Tags: breakfat menu,vada curry dosa,south indian breakfast recipes,south indian breakfast ideas,breakfast menu ideas,breakfast menu rakskitchen,rakskitchen breakfast recipes

Senai kizhangu curry | Elephant yam Recipes

     
I never realized that I loved this senai kizhangu curry when they used to serve in our lunch at our hostel mess (SRC, Trichy). But after I finished my studies, when ever I used to remember this curry I started to crave for this. But We never made it this way in our home. We make senai  kizhangu in dosai kal (Elephant yam roast recipe) otherwise a curry similar to that and mami makes this senai kizhangu chips every time. So I always wanted to try this at home. Since vj is not a big fan of this, I never buy elephant yam. This time, I really wanted to try this, so bought and made this curry. It was different from what I used to eat at my hostel, as I made it in my way. I loved the lunch with this curry and will make it often here after when ever I get a chance.

Senai kizhangu curry recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Lunch - side dish
Prep Time: 30 soaking    |  Cook time: 20 mins    |  Serves: 4

Ingredients

Senai kizhangu, chopped	1 & 1/2 cups
Sambar powder	1 & 1/2 tsp
Fennel seeds powder	1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder	1/4 tsp
Tamarind	1 tsp tightly packed
Salt	As needed

To temper

Oil	2 tblsp
Mustard	3/4 tsp
Urad dal	2 tsp
Curry leaves	1 sprig

 

Method

1. Soak tamarind in hot water for 30 minutes and extract juice. Peel off the skin of the yam and chop it finely as shown in the picture.

2. Wash it with water and boil with salt, turmeric and tamarind water. Cook until done.

3. Drain and keep aside. Heat a pan with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table, in order.

4. Add cooked yam, sambar powder, fennel powder and sprinkle little water. Mix well. Fry for 2 minutes and drizzle over some oil while turning. When the masala powders wafts aroma, transfer to the serving bowl.

Notes

• Buy elephant yam and let it sit in shelf for few days to avoid too itchy yam. As it gets older, less its itchy property.
  
• While chopping, you can smear your hands with oil or lemon juice to avoid itchy feeling.
  
• Cooking in tamarind water is must to avoid itchiness.
  
• You can temper with fennel and avoid the powder.
  
• Instead of sambar powder, you can replace it with red chilli powder 1 tsp and coriander seeds powder 1/2 tsp.
  
• If you dont like fennel smell, avoid it and add a pinch of asafoetida powder while tempering.

Serve as accompaniment for rice. Goes well with any sambar and rice.

Technorati Tags: senai kizhangu curry,elephant yam curry,recipe,elephant yam recipes,senai kizhangu recipes,how to make senai kizhangu curry,how to cook elephant yam