Ridge Gourd Peel Chutney

 

Instead of discarding the ridge gourd skin, the fresh peels can be used to make traditional South Indian chutneys. It goes well with rice, chapati, and dosas.

Ingredients

Peeled skin of two ridge gourds

1 tbsp Udad dal

1 tbsp chana dal

1 tbsp tuvar dal

1tsp oil to roast the dals

3 tbsps grated coconut

1/3 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

¼ tsp cumin seeds

3 cloves of garlic

Water as sufficient

Instruction

-          Roast the dals in the oil till the color changes and nice aroma comes. Remove and let it cool.

-          In the remaining oil, roast the ridge gourd peel till the color changes. Let it also cool.

-          Grind all the ingredients together, adding enough water to get the consistency you like.

-          You can season it the usual way, with mustard seeds, red chilli pieces, curry leaves and cut onion.

-          Serve with dosa or idlis.

Ridge gourd peel chutney served with Handvo

Fried Moringa Leaves (Theluli Fai)

 

Theluli Fai is a traditional Maldivian preparation of fried moringa (drumstick) leaves, usually combined with onion, garlic, and chilli. It is traditionally served with rice.

Moringa leaves are exceptionally nutrient-dense. They provide:

Iron and folate – useful nutrients for normal red-blood-cell formation.

Calcium – contributes to maintaining healthy bones and teeth.

Vitamin A precursors – important for normal vision and immune function.

Vitamin C and other antioxidants – help protect cells from oxidative stress.

Plant protein and fibre – can contribute to a nutritious, satisfying meal.

Moringa also contains various polyphenols and other phytochemicals that are being studied for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Ingredients

 

2–3 cups fresh moringa leaves, separated from the stalks

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

5–6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2–3 dried red chillies, broken into pieces (I don’t use the chillies)

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

Instruction

The traditional version is wonderfully simple. The leaves, onion, garlic and chillies are fried separately until crisp and then mixed with salt.

-          Prepare the moringa leaves: Remove the leaves from the tough stems and wash them well. Drain and dry them thoroughly. This is important because moisture will cause the oil to splutter. I kept the leaves under Sunlight for a couple of hours

-          Fry the onion in oil until golden and crisp. Remove and drain.

-          Fry the garlic until lightly golden and crisp. Remove.

-           Fry the dried red chillies briefly. Be careful not to burn them.

-          Finally, fry the moringa leaves in small batches until they become crisp. Traditionally they are deep-fried.

-          Combine the crispy moringa leaves, onion, garlic, and chillies. Add salt and mix gently.

Allow it to cool completely before storing in an airtight glass container.

                           Fried moringa leaves served with sago khichdi, butter milk, and pickle

Curry Leaves Chutney Powder

 

Curry leaves are highly valued in traditional medicine for their rich profile of antioxidants, alkaloids, and essential minerals. They are primarily used to promote healthy digestion, regulate blood sugar, support cardiovascular health, and nourish hair and skin. Here is the recipe for curry leaves chutney powder which can be stored in air tight bottle to be used for weeks.

Ingredients

1 cup chana dal (Bengal gram dal)

1 cup udad dal (black gram dal)

A few pepper corns

A gooseberry sized ball of tamarind

2 tbsps sesame seeds

2 tbsps gingelly oil

2 red chillies broken to pieces

4 handfulls of curry leaves

¼ tsp asafoetida

Salt to taste

Instruction

-          Wash, drain, and spread the dals in a plate to dry

-          Clean and wash the curry leaves and separate the leaves, spread them to dry

-          Dry roast the dals and sesame seeds separately till they turn slightly red and nice aroma comes.

-          Roast the tamarind and the salt

-          Fry the broken chilli pieces in a little oil

-          Fry the curry leaves in the remaining oil till they become crisp

-          Let all of them cool down, add the asafoetida and grind to a slightly coarse powder

-          Cool and store in an airtight bottle. It can be mixed with either curd or ghee while serving with boiled rice or dosa/idli.

Courtesy Recipe : Nisha Sridhar

Savoury Carrot Rice

 

I make sweet carrot rice occasionally and we all enjoy it. Suddenly the idea came to prepare savoury carrot rice, and it turned out to be as delicious too!

Ingredients

1 cup rice ( I use sona masuri rice) washed, cleaned and soaked for 10 minutes

2 cups water

Salt to taste

1 tsp ghee

A cinnamon piece

1 bay leaf

1 star anise

2 cloves

To prepare carrot

1 large carrot washed, peeled and grated

2 tbsps ghee

¼ tsp cumin seeds

 A few cashew nuts

1/3 tsp turmeric powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp coriander powder

Salt to taste

Instruction

-          Keep the 2 cups of water, soaked rice, salt, ghee, cinnamon piece, bay leaf, star anise, cloves in a large pan and bring to boil.

       Reduce the flame and cook for 10 minutes. Alternately, you can pressure cook for 5 minutes too.

-          Meanwhile, heat ghee in a pan, add jeera when ghee is hot, add cahews and the grated carrot and salt. Stir and keep the flame low, sprinkle some water, close with a lid and let it cook. Check in between and sprinkle more water if needed.

-          Add all masala powders to the cooked carrot, mix well, remove from fire. Now  add the cooked rice to this.

-          Mix well and serve with pickle, papad and raita

                                    

          Carrot rice served with pickle, mango pulp, jackfruit seed sabzi, pumpkin sbzi, ans banana chips

Mango Sticky Rice

 

This is a very yummy dish from Thailand. The moment I had it there, I was determined to prepare it at home.

Ingredients

For sticky rice:

1 cup glutinous rice, Indrayani rice is good

2 cups water

¾ cup coconut milk

1/3 cup sugar

A pinch of salt

For coconut sauce

¾ cup coconut milk

2 tbsps sugar

A pinch of salt

1 tsp corn flour mixed with 1 tbsp water

While serving

1 or 2 ripe sweet mangoes

1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Instuction

-          Wash the rice nicely  at least 4 times, soak in water for 4 hours

-          Pressure cook the rice with 2 cups water, cool and open

-          While the rice is being cooked, Heat water in a pan and keep a bowl with the coconut milk and sugar in the water. Keep medium flame and stir the coconut milk till the sugar dissolves.

-          Remove from heat, add a pinch of salt and mix.

-          Pour this warm coconut milk mixture over the cooked rice and mix gently

-          Cover the rice and let it sit for 15 minutes, letting it absorb all the liquid.

-          Now prepare the coconut sauce, which will be poured over the rice while eating

-          Heat water in a pan, pour coconut milk , 2 tbsps sugar in a bowl and keep inside the pan with boiling water.

-          Keep stirring, when the sugar dissolves, add the corn flour water mix.

-          Keep stirring till the sauce thickens and the corn flour is cooked.

-          Remove from heat and pour into small cups.

-          Toast the sesame seeds.

       Serving

-          Peel and slice the mangoes. Arrange nicely on one side of the serving plate.

-          Pack the sweet sticky rice onto a small bowl and invert it onto the serving plate and garnish with toasted sesame seeds

-          Keep the small cup with coconut sauce also on the plate and serve.

 

 

 

 

Black Matar Pulao

 

                                  Black matar pulao served with banan chips, mango chunda, 

                                      bitter gourd potato sabzi, salad and onion tomato raita

Black matar (or kala vatana) are small, dark green-to-black dried peas known for their earthy, nutty flavor and firm texture, often used in Indian cuisine. These high-protein, fibre-rich legumes are staples in Maharashtrian usal, Sindhi matarpao, and Himalayan dishes, providing a healthier, iron-rich alternative to green peas that stays firm when cooked. They are low in fat and, due to high fiber and low-glycemic index, excellent for managing blood sugar, heart health, and weight loss. Known for excellent shelf life, lasting up to three years, making them a sustainable crop. They are highly nutritious, fiber-rich legumes providing significant protein, iron, and essential minerals per serving.

My husband loves its sabzi and I keep preparing it. My daughter said once that delicious pulao can be made too. So I ventured to prepare black matar pulao and it turned out very tasty.

Ingredients

½  cup black matar soaked overnight, pressure cooked for 20 minutes with salt and 1 ½  cups water.

1 cup rice washed, cleaned and soaked for ten minutes

2 tbsps oil or ghee

¼ tsp cumin seeds

1 bay leaf

2 cardamoms

A small stick of cinnamon

1 onion finely cut

½ inch piece ginger peeled and finely cut

2 tbsp moringa leaves (optional)

Salt to taste

2 cups water

Insturction

-          Keep the black matar ready after cooking. Soak the rice for ten minutes before starting to make pulao.

-          Heat oil or ghee in the pressure cooker and when heated, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cardamoms, cinnamon stick, and oinion.

-          Stir and when the onion becomes transparent, add the moringa leaves, cooked black matar, soaked rice and salt.

-          Stir well and add 2 cups of water. Any water remaining after cooking the matar should be part of this 2 cups.

-          Pressure cook for 5 minutes, allow it to cool and open.

-          Serve with curd or raita, pickle and papad.

 

Bitter gourd Potato Sabzi

 

After making the bitter gourd scramble, two bitter gourds were still lying in the refrigerator. For two days, it almost felt as though they were silently calling out to me, guiding me toward a new preparation.

A clear image of the dish had already formed in my mind—I could almost see how it would look once cooked. Strangely, I could even sense its taste beforehand, as though the flavors had already touched my tongue.

On the third day, I finally decided to prepare a sabji using bitter gourd and potatoes. And when the dish was ready, it looked exactly the way I had visualized it in my mind’s eye. Even more surprising, it tasted precisely the way I had imagined. It was such a beautiful and almost magical experience.

So, here is the recipe.

Ingredients

2 bitter gourds, washed, cleaned and slit longitudinally and sliced, Remove any hard seeds

1 large potato, cleaned, peeled and cubed

1 onion finely cut

1 tomato cut into small pieces

1 tbsp oil

A few mustard seeds

¼ tsp Turmeric powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp coriander powder

½ tsp dried mango powder

Salt to taste

½ cup water

Instruction

-          Heat the kadai with oil, ad mustard seed. When they splutter, add the potato cubes           

          

       Stir for a few seconds, add the cut onion, stir.

-          When the onion becomes transparent, add the cut tomato and the bitter gourd, salt and the masala powders.

-          Mix well for a few seconds, add water, reduce the flame, cover the vessel and let it cook for ten minutes. Check in between and add more water if needed. When the potatoes are cooked, remove from fire.

-          Serve with chapatis, or with rice and dal.