Keera molagootal

This is the quintessential Kerala Iyer comfort food. I make keera molagootal so often that my blog feels incomplete without giving it a mention. Stated very simply, it is a gravy that is made by combining cooked spinach with a mildly spiced coconut-chilli mix and tuar dal. It is almost always served as an accompaniment to rice, though some people(including yours truly) also serve it with rotis.
What you need:
Spinach - any kind - 1 bunch (Iam partial to red spinach) - chopped fine
Tuar dal - 1 cup, cooked
To grind :
Red chilli - 3
Urad dal - 2 tsp
Fresh grated coconut - 3/4 cup

Heat a tsp of oil. Fry the urad dal and red chilli in it until reddish brown. Let it cool and then grind it to a smooth paste along with the coconut.
Take the chopped spinach in a kadai. Add sufficient water, turmeric powder and salt. Let it boil until the spinach is well cooked and soft. Mash it a little with a masher or the back of a ladle at this point. Stir in the ground mixture and let it boil for 5-6 minutes or until the raw smell goes away. Add the cooked tuar dal and heat for a minute or two.
Heat a tsp of coconut oil. Season it with some urad dal and mustard seeds. When the seeds sputter, pour it over the molagootal.
Molagootal is usually served with rice. Since it is not too spicy and has no tamarind to add tanginess, it is accompanied by either a tangy rasam or spicy thogayal or pachadi. I like my molagootal to be paired with spicy mango pickle.
Molagootal can also be made using other vegetables like ash gourd, snake gourd, carrot, potato and cabbage. The difference between keera molagootal and molagootal made with other veggies lies in the ingredients that are ground together. One of my earlier posts on cabbage molagootal has the recipe that can be followed while using other veggies.

This goes to Sra who is hosting the 4th helping of My Legume Love Affair which was started by Susan.
It also goes to Suganya's Vegan Ventures, Round 2.

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Nahari (Chicken)

Nahari is a traditional hyderabadi dish that is had with hot parathas or nan.Its made with Goat's trotters called paya traditionally,its a speciality to serve this dish with Goat's tongue and tender part of the head.Because of the hot nature of this dish its usually made in winters.Here in riyadh the winter has just started,as the weather isn't cold yet i thought i will try a variation with this recipe ,n tried making it with chicken.It tastes superb with chicken too .inshallah i will post the Paya recipe soon.
INGREDIENTS:
STEP 1
For the handi

1. Chicken 1 whole



2. Onion 1 medium(sliced finely)



3. Red chilli powder 1Tspn



4. Turmeric powder 1/4th Tspn



5. Ginger-Garlic paste 2Tbspns



6. Green chillies 6-8



7. Cilantro/coriander leaves 1 bunch



8. Mint leaves 1/2bunch



9. Peppercorns 1Tspn



10. Salt to taste

STEP 2

For the shorba

1. Onion small 1 sliced



2. Ginger garlic paste 1Tbspn



3. Green chilles 8-9



4. Garm masala powder 1Tspn



5. Wheat flour 2 handfuls



6. Nahari masala 1/2 packet or potli ka masala



7. Curry leaves few



8. Cilatro and Mint leaves few



9. Salt to taste

METHOD:

• Pressure cook chicken with step 1 ingredients with 2-3 cups of water for 10mins on low flame.(if ur using potli ka masala u can put the masala in a muslin cloth tie it out in shape of a potli and pressure cook it with the chicken,remove the potli once ur chicken is condensed)this completes ur step 1



• Now coming to step 2. Heat 5-6Tbspns of oil in a big vessel and add ginger-garlic paste and fry till it turns brown in colour.



• Add the onions and fry to golden brown ,now add curry leaves ,green chilles.



• Later add wheat flour and fry for about 4-5 minutes,note that the flame of the stove should always be low.



• Add garam masala,red chilli powder,turmeric powder.



• If ur using ready made nahari masala ,Add about 1/2 packet,keep tasting when u add the masala.



• Add the step 1 ingredients that you have pressure cooked and boil with mint and coriander leaves for sometime.



• Serve hot with paratha or nan.

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From Chitra Amma's kitchen to mine

Have you ever seen something and then craved it so badly that you set out to make it even though you do not have enough of the main ingredient?

That's what happened to me once I saw Dibs' recipe for Bournvita fudge. The fact that I had only a teeny weeny bit of maida in the pantry did nothing to deter me from trying it out. I used half a cup of maida and half a cup of besan and proceeded with the recipe. This is an absolutely fantastic dish which is guaranteed to disappear even before it is completely cooled. I heated it a little longer than Dibs suggests because I wanted it to be of burfi consistency. Despite using the tiniest glass in my home to measure out the ingredients, I was able to turn out a decent number of fudge squares.
This recipe is definitely a keeper. Thank you Dibs.

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Aloo Paratha

INGREDIENTS:

For the Dough:

1. Wheat flour 2cups




2. Olive Oil 2Tbspns




3. Water as required




4. Salt to taste

For the Stuffing

1. Potatoes 3Medium(boiled and mashed well)




2. Red chilli powder 1Tspn




3. Turmeric powder 1/4th Tspn




4. Cumin powder 1/2Tspn




5. Roasted cumin 1/2Tspn




6. Roasted coriander seeds 1Tspn




7. Green chilles 3-4(chopped finely)




8. Garam Masala 1Tspn




9. Coriander leaves/cilantro 1bunch




10. Salt to taste

Method:

• Mix the wheat flour with oil,water and salt and leave it aside for 20minutes.




• Knead the dough to soft,and make small balls out of it.




• Mix all the powders to the potatoes and keep your stuffing ready.




• Roll to make paratha (roti)of 3 inch diameter.




• Fill lots of potato in the middle and with the help of your fingers spread it till the ends




• .Fold the Paratha and again dipping ur fingers in oil press the paratha lightly till its round shaped.Do it carefully or the stuffing will come out.




• Heat a non stick pan or Tava .Roast both sides of paratha to golden brown,applying ghee/oil what ever you like.

Serve hot with Achaar or any chutney.

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Marag

Asalam-wa-lekum all you beautiful people,here comes my first attempt at making this awesome recipe and let me tell you it turned out really great.Marag is basically an arabic dish which has now become very popular in Hyderabad.People love Marag for its tender meat and delicious soup.It is one of the must have starter in all the parties.My husband had made a special request to make this one when he saw it at the RCI event from mona's blog,My recipe is the outcome of 2 recipes from Different sites and 1 from my friends chef ,so here's the outcome, a new recipe.,
Hope you all will like it and also try it. Its really easy to make it and it tastes really awesome!!
INGREDIENTS:
Step 1
For the handi

1. Meat with bone 1/2kilo



2. Ginger-Garlic paste 3Tbspns



3. Turmeric powder 1/4th Tspn



4. Ajinomoto 1/2 Tspn



5. Peppercorns(whole) 2Tspns



6. Shazeera 1Tspn



7. Coriander leaves 1bunch



8. Mint leaves 1/2 bunch



9. Water 5 cups



10. Salt to taste

Step 2

For the shorba

1. Onion 1medium(Fried to light brown)



2. Roasted Khopra(dessicated coconut) 4Tbpns



3. Cashew nut (handful)(Grind and make it to a paste)



4. Dalchini 1inch



5. (Cardamom)Elaichi 4-5



6. Coriander powder1 Tspn



7. Cumin Powder 1Tspn



8. Garam masala powder 1Tspn



9. Green chillies 6



10. Curd 200grms



11. Black pepper powder 1-2 Tspns



12. Coriander leaves 1/2 bunch



13. Oil 5Tbspns



14. Ghee 1Tspn

METHOD:

• Pressure cook Mutton with step 1 ingredients for 10minutes and set aside.



• Heat oil in a vessel and add ghee to it,also add dalchini and cardamom.



• Fry for a while and add ginger-garlic paste and green chilli paste,keep frying till the ginger-garlic paste becomes brown.



• Add cashwenut paste,Onion paste and khopra and fry till oil starts leaving sides.



• Later add coriander leaves and curd and keep frying till 30minutes on low flame.The more you fry the masala the tastier the Marag will be.Keep adding water say about a cup while frying if ur masala starts sticking at the bottom.



• Add Coriander powder,cumin powder and garam masala.



• Finally add black pepper powder and fry for 2 more minutes and mutton shorba which you pressure cooked with step 1 ingredients.



• Boil for 5-10minutes ,Serve hot with Rumali roti.

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Sheer Khorma

Asalam-wa-lekum,i have been planning to post this recipe for long,but was feeling lazy to take a picture.Here in Saudi Arabia we have a week off from work and all we do is sleep,shop,party celebrating Eid for a week,have sheerkhorma daily saying you only have it only in Eid. Everyone has a different way of making this traditional recipe,here's my version....hope u all will like it,i know i am late in posting this one...sorry for that.Hoping you all will still give it a try...

INGREDIENTS:

1. Milk 1liter


2. Thin vermicelli(Roasted one) 3/4th cup


3. Ghee 4-5Tbspns


4. Sugar 1 and 1/2 cups


5. Elaichi 2


6. Dry fruits(fried to golden brown in ghee)

Almonds soaked overnight and skin removed(handful),Cashewnuts(handful),Chironji 3Tspns(soaked overnight and skin removed by rubbing in a soft cotton cloth),Pistachios 2Tspns(you can use the dry fruits u like),Khajoor(soaked overnight and cut to small).

All the Dry fruits need to be sliced thinly.

METHOD:

• Fry the dry fruits in ghee to golden brown and set aside.(these are called magziyaad)


• Fry vermicelli to deep brown colour in the same ghee and set aside.


• Boil milk with elaichi on low flame for 30mins atleast.


• Add vermicelli to milk and cook for about 10minutes.Later add sugar.cook for 5 more minutes.


• Garnish with dryfruits(magziyaad) and serve warm.

TIP:

When you serve the desert make sure the serving bowl has lotz of milk and less vermicelli ,atleast 1 khajoor and few magziyaad(dryfruits).

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Best Chicken Biryani.

CHICKEN BIRYANI.

1 Whole Chicken (cut into large pieces)
3 cups of Basmati Rice
6 large Onions (thinly sliced)
A bunch of Mint Leaves (Podina) (chopped)
A bunch of Fresh Coriander/Cilantro Leaves (Hara Dhania) (chopped)
1.5 tsp. Ginger Paste (Pisi Adrak)
1 tsp. Garlic Paste (Pisa Lehsan)
2 cups of Plain Yogurt
3 tsp. Coriander Powder (Pisa Dhania)
1 tsp. Turmeric Powder (Pisi Haldi)
2 tsp. Red Chilli Powder (Pisi Lal Mirch)
1 tsp. Cumin Powder (Pisa Zeera)
5 Green Chillies (Hari Mirch) (more or less may be used depending on spice preferance)
9 Cloves (Loung)
6 small Cardamom Pods (Choti Ilaichi)
2 Cinnamon Sticks (Dal Cheeni)
½ tsp. Garam Masala Powder
Lime Juice or Lemon Juice (to taste)
Salt (to taste)
A few strands of Saffron (Zafran) (optional)
4 tbsp. Whole Milk (optional)
20 Cashew Nuts (Kaajoo)
20 Raisins (Kishmish)
4 Eggs
½ cup of Clarified Butter (Ghee) or Cooking Oil
Cooking Oil (for deep frying) .

Method

Beat the plain yogurt well. Marinate chicken with the plain yogurt , ginger paste, garlic paste, turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, chilli powders, and salt. Let it marinate for about one hour. Meanwhile, slice onions very thin, and deep fry in oil mixed with ¼ cup of clarified butter or cooking oil until crisp. Clean and wash the rice, drain, and set aside.
Clean and chop the mint leaves and coriander leaves. In the same oil, fry the chopped cashew nuts and raisins until golden brown, drain and set aside. Slit green chillies, and mix into the marinated chicken. Put chicken and marinade into a kadai or pot in which the onions and cashew nuts were fried. Add a little water, cover and cook until the chicken is half done. Remove the chicken pieces with a slotted spoon and measure the stock. Add enough water to make it six cups. Put the rice into a rice cooker, add the whole spices, arrange the chicken pieces on top, sprinkle three-quarters of the fried onions and all the chopped coriander/cilantro and mint leaves. Pour in the measured stock into which the garam masala powder has been added. Pour the remaining quarter cup of clarified butter or oil over the whole mixture. Cover and cook until well done. Meanwhile, hard-boil and shell the eggs. Soak the saffron in milk (if using it). When the biryani is done, open the rice cooker, and sprinkle the saffron-soaked milk on top. Mix carefully and cover and leave on very low heat for a few minutes. Just before serving, mix in the juice of half a lime or lemon. Arrange on a serving dish and garnish with the remaining fried onions, cashew nuts, raisins, and boiled eggs.

Serve it with Raita and Pickle.

Please feel to discuss the results. Your feedback and suggestions are Welcome.

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Mirchion ka Saalan

INGREDIENTS:

1. Green chillies 15(Big ones)




2. Khopra/Dessicated coconut 1 and 1/2 cups




3. Til 3/4th cup




4. Phalli 3/4th cup




5. Onion 1 medium(Fried to light brown in colour)




6. Cumin powder 1/2Tspn




7. Coriander powder 1Tspn




8. Tamarind Pulp 2Handfuls




9. Cumin whole 1Tspn




10. Rai whole 1Tspn




11. Kalonji 1/2Tspn




12. Methi whole 1/2Tspn




13. Curry leaves 10-15




14. Salt to taste




15. Oil for cooking

METHOD:

• Roast Khopra,phalli,til without oil and grind it to a fine powder.




• Mix cumin powder,coriander powder in it.




• Heat 6-8Tbpns of oil in a vessel,Slit the Green chilles a bit and fry for 2-3 minutes,remove them in a plate and keep aside.To the same oil add zeera,rai,kalonji,methi seeds and curry leaves.This makes your bagaar.Fry for 1-2mins.




• Cook on low flame only and make sure oil is not too hot otherwise your masala will get burned when u add the powders..Add the grinded powders along with tamarind pulp and 2-3 cups of water.




• Fry till oil starts leaving sides,also add salt and green chilles.




• Keep tasting the saalan ,add more tamarind pulp if required.Cook on low flame for 20mins approximately.Keep stirring the saalan as well.The trick is to keep stirring Masale wale recipes (bhuno)to make it even more tastier.

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