Vegetable Platter: July 2020

Quick One Pot Chana Pulao From Leftover Chole

I always somehow seek comfort in One Pot Meals, especially One Pot Rice dishes that get done in a Pressure Cooker & under 30 minutes.

Sometimes, I also convert leftover gravies into Pulao, like this Biryani that I made with leftover Vegetable Kurma & I immensely enjoy putting it together because it tastes amazing & a fewer vegetables to cut & fewer dishes to clean

I make One Pot Meals several times a week, & I do have a few favorites that I keep going back to.

I made this Chole Pulao made with leftover Chole/Chana Masala. This is perfect when there is leftover Chana Masala but I am not really in a mood to roll some Chapatis.

Just a bit of sliced Onions, some Tomatoes, A bit of spices, Some Rice & leftover Chole & this gets done in 20 minutes. This makes for a perfect weeknight dinner with a Raita & Salad on the side

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup Basmati Rice
1.5 cups Leftover Chole
1 large Onion - sliced lengthwise
2 tablespoon Tomato Paste or 1 large Tomato - chopped
2 Bay leaves
1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
1/2 teaspoon Red Chili Powder
1 teaspoon Chole Masala
1 teaspoon Kasuri Methi
1/2 teaspoon Kitchen King Masala
Salt as per taste
2 tablespoon Cooking Oil

Method:

Wash Basmati in several changes of water until the water runs clear. Drain & Set aside for later use

In a Pressure Cooker, Heat oil. Add Bay Leaves & Splutter Cumin seeds

Add sliced onions & sauté with pinch of salt for 3-4 minutes

Add leftover Chole/Chana Masala, Tomato Paste/Chopped tomatoes, Red Chilli Powder, Chole Masala, Kasuri Methi & Kitchen King Masala & sauté until the spiced are well cooked for about 5 minutes

Add Basmati Rice & add 1.25 cups of water & Add salt

Mix well, Deglaze the Pot & close the lid & cook for 1 whistle

Let the pressure settle down & after it cools down a bit, fluff gently with a fork

Garnish with some chopped Mint & fresh coriander if you wish to

Serve with Raita & some sliced cucumbers on the side

NOTE:

You can also add additional vegetables if needed. I usually do not add anything extra. But I I feel that it can do with some more chickpeas, I soak a little bit of chickpeas for a 2-3 hours & then add them before pressure cooking

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Brunch

Uddina Kadubu For Naga Panchami + { Video }

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Appetizers

Sihi Kadubu for Naga Panchami + {Video}

Sihi Kadubu is a traditional steamed sweet dumpling & in Karnataka, these are made on the day of Naga Panchami. These Kadubus are made out of Rice Flour wrappers & filled with a Coconut & Jaggery filling.

Though a bit time consuming to make, these are delicious & we eagerly wait for Naga Panchami to make them

They are a bit tricky to make especially for a beginner, but if you get the consistency of the dough right, then the rest is a breeze.

I have added 2 tablespoons of Maida so that the delicate wrapper doesn't tear. But, traditionally, Maida is not added

The recipe can be divined into 4 parts

Making the Filling(Hoorna)
Making the Dough for the Wrapper
Making the Kadubus
Steaming

I have also added a video so that Its easier for you to follow the steps

Coconut & Jaggery Filling (Hoorna)

You Will Need:

1 Cup Grated Coconut (Fresh/Frozen)
3/4 Cup Powdered Jaggery
1/4 teaspoon Cardamon Powder

How To:

In a pan, Melt Jaggery along with 3 tablespoons of water. Once it starts boiling, Add grated coconut & sauté them till the water content evaporates & it becomes a dryish sticky mixture.

Add cardamom powder & Mix well. Turn off the heat & allow it to cool

Rice Flour Wrapper

Makes About 30 Kadubus

You Will Need:

2 Cups Rice Flour (I used the traditional Paavu Measurement)
2 tablespoon Maida/All Purpose Flour
2 Cups Water
1/4 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoon Oil

How To:

In a heavy bottomed pan, heat 2 cups of water. Add Oil, & Salt. When it comes to a boil, quickly add in the flour & whisk swiftly such that no lumps are formed

The ratio of Water:Flour should always be 1:1

Sprinkle some water on top & cover with a lid & let it cook for 1 minute on low flame

Turn off the heat & after 10 minutes, transfer the cooked flour onto a wide bowl

When cool enough to handle, apply oil to your palms & knead well to form a soft dough

You will want to knead for about 5 minutes

Transfer the dough into a bowl & cover with a damp kitchen towel

Stuff the Wrapper with the Coconut Jaggery Filling

Pinch lime sized balls from the dough & dust them with rice flour & roll into a longish wrapper with the help of a rolling pin.

Place a teaspoon of the filling in the center & wrap the dough into a crescent shaped Kadubu

Repeat this till you finish off the dough & the filling. You will get about 30 Kadubus with this measurement

Steam The Kadubus

Place all the kadubu onto a plate in one line without overcrowding the plate & steam them for 10 minutes

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, by Deepthi Shankar

After School Snacks

Baked Aloo Tikki Using Leftover Potato Stuffing

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Beverages

Immunity Boosting Turmeric Ginger Tea

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Smoothie

Jackfruit Banana & Turmeric Smoothie

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Indian Breakfasts

Davangere Benne Dose (ದಾವಣಗೆರೆ ಬೆಣ್ಣೆ ದೋಸೆ)

Yet another Dosa/Dose very popular in Karnataka is the Davangere Benne Dose. Originated from Davangere, Karnataka, this Dose is slightly thicker yet very crisp & smaller in size compared to Masale Dose.

They are usually served in sets of two along with a very different tasting Coconut Chutney & a relatively bland tasting Potato Palya. But they all combine really well with the crisp Dosas

Also, These Dosas are cooked only in Butter, giving it a crisp texture & a buttery taste

This recipe is definitely a keeper. Huge Thanks to my friend R for the detailed recipe. I will be making this regularly

Though originated in Davangere, These Dosas are very popular in Bangalore as well & there are various joints across the city selling Davangere Benne Dose, my favorite being Sri Guru Kottureshwara Benne Dose in Basavangudi. Its worth a visit, if you live in Bangalore.

For the Batter

------

Makes Around 22-25 Dosas

You Will Need:

2 cups Sona Masuri Rice -550-560 Grams
1/2 Cup Urad Dal - 155 Grams
1/2 Cup Sabudana/Sabbakki - 125 Grams
1.5 teaspoons Methi/Menthya
4 handfuls of Puffed Rice/Kadle Puri/Murmura
Salt to Taste

Measure everything & put it a wide bowl except Kadle Puri. Wash with several changes of water until water runs clear

Soak in a wide bowl with enough water because Urad Dal will swell upon soaking. Soak for 4-6 hours

Soak 4 handfuls of Kadlepuri 15 minutes before you plan to grind, squeeze out all the water & put it along with the rest of the ingredients 

Do Not discard the water used for soaking as it aids in fermentation

Use a wet grinder or a mixer to grind into a smooth batter. I use a mixer & grind the batter in 3 batches, adding little water at a time

Pour the batter into a large vessel, Add Salt & mix with your hands, cover & set aside in a warm place. It should take anywhere between 8-16 hours to ferment depending on the weather.

The Chutney for Davangere Benne Dose is White & does not have any tempering. If you are used to eating regular coconut chutney, this one is very different & has a totally unique flavor

You Will Need:

2 cups Grated Coconut
3 Green Chilies
1 teaspoon Poppy Seeds
2 Cloves
1 Cardamom Pod
Salt to Taste

Method:

Put everything together in a Mixie & grind into a Smooth Paste using 1/2 cup water

Alugadde Palya/Potato Palya for this Dosae is very plain compared to the Masale Dose Playa. It has no tempering, no turmeric, Just plain potatoes & Onions mashed together with some salt & Green Chilies for the heat

You Will Need:

3 medium sized Potatoes
1 large White Onion- sliced lengthwise
4 Green Chilies
Salt
1 tablespoon Oil

How To:

Cut the Potatoes into halves. Pressure cook in salted water along with green chilies for 2 whistles.

Once the pressure is released, drain the water & once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, coarsely mash them & discard the green chilies

Put a pot of water to boil, Add the sliced Onions into water & boil for 2 minutes. Drain the water completely & set aside

In a Pan, heat oil, add the Onions & mashed potatoes & some salt & sauté on medium heat for 2 minutes

To Make Dosas

You Will Need:

Dose Batter (Recipe Above)
Some Melted Butter in a small cup
A few very tiny pieces of butter to be put on top of the dosas (Refer Video)
Palya (Recipe Above)
Chutney (Recipe Above)

Heat a good cast iron griddle or a non stick griddle, once hot enough, Set it to medium flame.

Pour a ladleful of batter in the centre & spread into a slightly thick circle.  Drizzle melted butter  along the edges. Place 4-5 really time pieces of butter on the dosa as shown in the video.

Roast on medium flame until it turns golden brown 

After the Dosa is cooked, loosen the Dosa with the help of a spatula & fold into a semi circle

Serve alongwith Chutney & Palya

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Baking

The Best Eggless Chocolate Banana Mug Cake + Video

Remember the Eggless Chocolate Brownie Mug Cake that I shared a couple of years ago? Well, That mug cake has a serious competitor now

This Super Moist Banana & Chocolate Mug Cake is the best I've eaten so far. Its Super Moist thanks to the Bananas, very decadent with all the chocolate chips, Its Eggless & it gets done in 90 seconds.

You Have to try it right now, Believe me, you are going to love this one

Microwave Eggless Chocolate & Banana Mug Cake

This recipe makes 2 servings, perfect to be divided amongst 2 adults/kids. You can also make it in one huge mug but I like diving them into 2 medium sized mugs so that the sharing becomes easy.

I also loved the fact that this cake remained moist for a really long time. I made 2 servings yesterday afternoon, & while we finished one of the cakes right away, I set the other one aside to be had as a late night binge & I was quite pleased with how moist it was.

Servings 2

You Will Need:

4 tablespoon All Purpose Flour
2 tablespoon Cocoa Powder
1/2 or 3/4th of a large Banana
3 tablespoon Sugar
3 tablespoon Milk
1.5 tablespoon Cooking Oil
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
2 tablespoon Chocolate Chips
Additional Chocolate chips for topping
1 teaspoon Peanut Butter (Optional)

HOW TO

Mash the Banana & set aside

In a wide bowl, add All Purpose Flour, Cocoa Powder, Sugar & Baking Soda & Mix well.

To this, add Cooking Oil, Milk, Peanut Butter(if using), Mashed Banana & Chocolate Chips & Mix well to make a smooth Batter. Ensure that there are no lumps

Grease 2 medium or 1 large Coffee Mug with Oil

Pour the Batter so that only half of the Mug gets filled. Top with 4-5 chocolates chips & Microwave for 90 seconds

Once out of the microwave, top with another 3-4 chocolate chips & allow it to cool for 5-10 minutes

Dig In !!

The Best Eggless Chocolate Banana Mug Cake

NOTE:

I microwave One Mug at a time because the cooking time may vary if both the mugs are microwaved together.

You can also divide the batter into 3 smaller cups as Mini servings but you need to reduced the cooking time to one minute else the cakes will turn dry & hard

Do Not skip adding Chocolate chips because the help in keeping the cake moist & decadent

If you do not have chocolate chips, add chocolate chunks or break any chocolate you have into small pieces & add

You can replace Milk with any other non dairy milk to make it Vegan

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Chaat

Mysuru Style Churmuri (ಚುರುಮುರಿ)

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, by Deepthi Shankar

After School Snacks

Prune & Almond Energy Balls

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, by Deepthi Shankar

Indian Breakfasts

Kanchipuram Idli Recipe + Video

As the name suggests, Kanchipuram Idlis originated from the temple town Kanchipuram, in Tamil Nadu.

Unlike regular Idlis, These Idlis are flavored with Ginger, Peppercorns, Cumin, Soaked Chana Dal & curry leaves, lending it a spicy & unique flavor

Kanchipuram Idlis are offered as Neivedyam (Offering) to the main deity at the Varadharaja Perumal Temple & Traditionally, they are steamed in small Bamboo bowls lined with a kind of dry leaves (Muttugada Ele/ ಮುತ್ತುಗದ ಎಲೆ in Kannada) which lends a unique flavor to the Idlis

At home, we can either steam them in small bowls, or steel tumblers or even in round steel plates & cut them into triangles. They are also a popular item in many South Indian eating joints.

Also, You can make the Idli batter from scratch or use your regular Idli Batter (which is what I have done here). It is a great way of using up leftover Idli batter that has slightly gone sour

Once you have the batter in place, it is very easy to make this.

You Will Need

Idli Batter - enough to make about 12 Idlis (The recipe for Idli Batter can be found here)
1/2 cup Chana Dal - Soaked for at least 1.5 hours
2 teaspoon - Crushed Black Peppercorns
2 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
2 teaspoon Grated Ginger
2 sprigs of Curry Leaves - chopped
A handful of Coriander Leaves - Chopped
Salt as per taste (There is no need to add extra salt if the batter already has salt)

HOW TO:

In a bowl, Add in soaked & drained Chana dal, Ginger, Crushed Pepper, Curry Leaves & Coriander leaves into the Idli Batter. Mix well

Take a few small Steel Tumbler (The small kind in which South Indians drink Coffee in) -- Watch Video

Grease them well with Oil & pour the batter until it is 3/4th full.

Place a large pot filled with 2 cups of water on the stove. Place a trivet inside.

Now, place all the steel tumblers filled with the batter inside, turn on the heat & close the lid

Steam for 20 minutes. Insert a toothpick in the middle & if it comes out clean, the Idlis have cooked well.

After 20 minutes, turn off the heat & let it stand for 5 minutes. Carefully remove the tumblers & let it cool outside for 10-15 minutes

Unmould the Idlis by gently tapping them, Serve them with Coconut Chutney

What Kind of Moulds to Use?

You can use small steel tumblers or small steel bowls or you can pour the batter onto a plate, steam & later cut them into triangles.

You can also steam them in regular Idli Plates

How Long Should I steam them For?

If you are going to use steel tumbler or steel bowls, you will need to steam them for 20 minutes

But if you are using regular Idli plates or a steel plate, steam them for 12 minutes

You can also use Banana Leaf as a liner to help unmould the Idlis easily

What side dishes to serve Kanchipuram Idli With?

Though it can be served with both Chutney & Sambar, I feel it tastes best with plain & simple Coconut Chutney as the Idlis are quite spicy & packed with flavor