Cauli Flower Chutney

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Ingredients
Cauli flower - 1 (around 3 to 4 cups)
Lemon - 3
Dried fenugreek leaves Powder - 2 Tablespoons
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Chilly powder - 3 teaspoons
Garlic - 4 cloves
Curry leaves
Oil and salt to taste

Method
1) Cut cauliflower into small pieces and soak in hot salt water for 2 min, and dry up the cauliflower pieces.

2) Fry the dried fenugreek leaves Powder 30 second without oil and keep a side.

3) Heat 3 teaspoons oil in a pan. Add garlic, curry leaves, mustard seeds, cauliflower pieces and fry 3 min on medium heat. And then add salt, Chilly powder and fry until cauli flower is cooked.

4) Add Dried fenugreek leaves Powder and keep a side and blend the lemon juice.

Now the Cauli flower Chutney is ready. You can use this as a sidedish for Dosa/Idly/Chapathi/Curd Rice.

Chana Dal- Yogurt Chutney

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

This is another lowfat/healthy chutney which goes great with Dosa/Idly varieties. It is very quick to make

Ingredients:

* 1/4 cup chana dal
* 1/2 teaspoon oil (preferably olive oil)
* pinch of asafoetida
* 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
* 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
* 3 to 4 dried red chilies (adjust to taste)
* 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (menthulu)
* 1/2 cup yogurt
* salt to taste (1/2 teaspoon)

Method

1) Dry roast chana dal until it turns to light brown
2) Heat oil and fry red chillies until they turn light brown, add asafetida, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and fenugreek seeds and stir-fry until seeds crack. Make sure to fry spices at medium heat so that they will not get burnt.
3) Blend chana dal and spices to a powder (not too smooth but to maintain the texture of the podi/chutney powder) and mix with whipped yogurt.


Notes

1) The powder before mixing with yogurt can be stored for couple of months in air-tight container and yogurt can be added just before serving
2) This powder can also be mixed with oil/ghee instead of yogurt

Egg Plant (Brinjal) Chutney

Monday, January 5, 2009

This Chutney is similar to North Indian Baingan Bhartha. We use to eat this with sangati (rice cooked with Ragi flour) which is a great combination. You need to carefully select brinjals (eggplant) for this because we will not cut the brinjals to see if they are infected with worms. Make sure brinjals doesn't have any holes and also they are tender. Also better to use a big brinjal since if you use small one it is tough to burn it on flame/stove top and you need to burn many brinjals. Green Brinjals tastes better but if you don't find them you can use whatever you have

Ingredients

1 Large brinjal
lemon sized tamarind (or 1 to 2 Tablespoons Tamarind paste)
3 to 4 green chillies chopped (adjust to taste)
1 medium size onion chopped
1 teaspoon ginger chopped
salt to taste
1 teaspoon oil

for tempering

1 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon urud dal
pinch of asafoetida
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
curry leaves (optional)

Method

Apply Oil to the eggplant and place it on the gas flame by turning it around so that it is cooked uniformly inside. Place it in the flame/fire until it is soft or you feel it is cooked nicely inside. Remove from the flame and cool the brinjal and remove the skin, mash it and keep aside

Heat Oil in a pan, splutter mustard seeds, add cumin seeds and asafoetida, turmeric powder, urud dal and fry until it turns brown. Now add green chillies, curry leaves, ginger and onions and fry for 3 to 4 mins. Add the mashed egg plant, tamarind paste, salt and let it cook for 4 to 5 mins.

Garnish with coriander leaves and eat with hot Sangati or rice or Roti

Notes:

You can keep the Brinjals in oven and bake/broil at high temp by turning it until you feel the skin is cracked and easy to remove. Make sure Brinjal is soft which means it is cooked nicely inside.

Coriander Chutney

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Ingredients

* 2 cups chopped coriander leaves (washed and drained)
* 3 green chillies (adjust according to your spice level)
* 1/2 inch ginger
* 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
* 3 to 4 cloves garlic
* 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder
* 2 Tablespoon lemon juice
Method

Grind all the ingredients except lemon juice to smooth paste. Adjust salt, green chillies to taste and add lemon juice at the end to retain green color.

Notes

* You can also add 2 Tablespoons roasted Peanuts (or use any nuts of your choice like pine nuts or sunflower seeds)

Pudina (mint) chutney

Ingredients

1 cup mint leaves
2 green chillies
2 Tablespoon fried chana dal
Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 tsp urud dal
Pinch of asafoetida
curry leaves (optional)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Method

Fry mint leaves with 1/4 teaspoon of oil until the quantity reduces and Grind with chillies, chana dal and salt to a paste by adding some water

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds,fry urud dal and then add curry leaves, pinch of asafoetida and add this to ground chutney. Add lemon juice at the end to retain green color.

You can use this as a sidedish for Dosa/Idly or as a spread to sandwich

Coconut chutney

Here is the coconut chutney that i have been making for the past 4 years since my husband likes coconut chutney and don't like groundnut chutney. Men Dominate always :-)

Ingredients

1/2 cup grated/cut coconut
2 Green chillies
2 Tablespoon fried chana dal
Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 tsp urud dal
Pinch of asafoetida
curry leaves (optional)

Method

Grind coconut, chillies, chana dal and salt with some water to a paste

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds,fry urud dal and then add curry leaves, pinch of asafoetida and add this to ground chutney

Serve with Dosa/Idly/Upma

Peanut (Groundnut) Chutney

Groundnut chutney is the only one we use to make at our home since we had lots and lots of groundnuts and groundnuts are main ingredients for most of the curries I make. It really gives a good taste using dry roasted ground nuts with any dish. For dry curries you can make a powder and for gravy you can grind them with other spices and water.

Ingredients

1/2 cup groundnuts
2 to 3 Green/Red chillies
Little bit Tamarind(optional)
2 cloves garlic (optional)
Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
Pinch of asafoetida
curry leaves (optional)

Method

Dry roast groundnuts until they are done and add chillies at the end and roast for a min. Grind them along with garlic, tamarind, salt and water(To your desired consistency)

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds,curry leaves, pinch of asafoetida and add this to ground chutney

Serve with Dosa/Idly/Upma and even with rice if you reduce the amount of water and make it like a think paste