Restaurant style Dal Fry

Dal fry is a combination of soft cooked dal with a tampering. Many of us must have tasted the best dal fry on road side dhabas😊. Dal fry is usually thick as compared to dal tadka and is a mix of 2 or more different types of dals or lentils. This is a non-spicy version so even kids can enjoy it.

Follow these steps with the given tips and tricks and get the exact flavour of dhaba style or restaurant style dal fry. 

Ingredients-

1) 3 tbsp Tur/Arhar dal

2) 2 tbsp each moong dal and masoor dal. 

3) 2 medium sized onions cut into long pieces

4) 1 medium sized tomato chopped into fine pieces

5) 1 green chilli cut into 2-3 pieces. 

6) 7-8 garlic cloves finely chopped

7) 1/2 inch garlic finely chopped

8) 10-12 Fresh curry leaves 

9) Cumin- 2 tsp

10) Salt and turmeric as per taste

11) 2 dried red chillies

12) Oil -1 tbsp

13) Ghee- 4 tbsp

14) Kasoori Methi as per taste

Method-

First of all wash the dals thoroughly and put in a pressure cooker with sufficient water but the consistency should be thick after cooking. Also add green chilli, ginger, garlic, tomatoes and turmeric powder. Pressure Cook till the dals are soft.

Tip- Mix it with a spoon but do not mash it too much. 

In a kadhai, take 1 tbsp oil and 3 tbsp ghee, add half of the cumin seeds and let is splutter. Now add onionand fry till it starts turning brownish. Add turmeric and the cooked dal. Mix well and let it boil. 

You can add red chilli powder if you want it to be spicy.

Tip- Adding ghee gives it a pleasant flavour. 

At this step, add 1 tsp crushed Kasoori methi. This step is optional. I know many people who doesn't like the peculiar taste of Kasoori methi so this can be skipped also.

For tampering-

In a small pan, add remain ghee then add cumin, curry leaves and dried red chilli. Pour it over the boiling dal. Add salt and water, if needed. Mix it well.

Serve dal fry with jeera rice or hot tandoori rotis 😋

Multi grain Chile/Pancakes

This is one of those dishes which gives you nutrition with less calories and the best thing is it gives you satiety. So it goes well for those who wants to follow a weight loss regime but consume healthy food.  Have it for lunch or dinner or as a snack in the evening. Adding multiple flours makes it more nutritious.

Ingredients-

* Wheat flour - 2tbsp

* Jowar flour - 2tbsp

* Rice Flour -2 tbsp

*Suji (Rawa) -1tbsp

* Besan- 1tbsp
You can use whatever flours you want like ragi flour, bajra four, oats etc.

* Oil- 2 tbsp, if you are using non stick just a few drops of oil for each turn should be fine.

* Red chili powder- 1tsp

* Ajwain-1/2 tsp

* Aamchur powder- 1tsp

* A pinch of sugar to balance the sweet and tangy taste.

* Finely cut onion-1/2cup. Here you can add other ingredients like methi leaves, grated carrots or cucumber.

* Salt as per taste

* Water


Recipe-

* Mix all the dry ingredients first then slowly add water to make a thick but flowing batter. Let it sit for 10 minutes.

* Pour a few drops of oil on a non stick pan. Take a spoonful of this batter and pour on the pan. With the back of spoon spread a little bit. If you want to make thin ones then spread more. I made pancake kind of chile so it were a bit thick. I added the onion after putting the batter but it doesn't make any difference in taste.

* Flip the sides till both sides turn brown. You may have to drizzle some oil on the sides.


And in no time yummy and healthy chile are ready :-)

Boneless Chicken Masala

Whenever I face the big question what to cook today or planning for the next day lunch and running out of options, chicken dishes comes to my rescue. It is liked by everyone in the house and the advantage is that I only have to prepare one dish with rice or roti so its a win-win situation. Though I like the chicken with bones I decided to make a boneless dish on kiddos' demand.

So here's a step by step process for the same.

Ingredients-

* Boneless Chicken- 250gms
* Curd-1/2 cup
* Ginger garlic Paste- 2 tbsp
* Onion-3 to 4 chopped into pieces
* Tomatoes- 2 to 3 chopped into medium pieces
* 1/2 cup fresh coconut- cut into small pieces or desiccated coconut
* Green chillies- 5 to 7 slit vertically
* Dry spices- Turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin and coriander powder- about 2 tsp each
* Garam masala or any curry masala as per choice
* Salt as per taste
* Oil and water

Recipe-

* Wash the chicken thoroughly and marinate with curd, ginger garlic paste (1tsp), red chili powder, turmeric powder, cumin and coriander powder. Keep aside for an hour.

* In a large wok heat oil and add onion, fry till it turns brown, then add remaining ginger garlic paste, tomatoes, green chillies, chopped coconut.

* Fry all the ingredients for 5 mins then take it from heat and let it cool down.

 * Run though a blender making a fine paste.

* Add oil in another pan and fry this paste till oil separates from sides then add turmeric powder and marinated chicken. If you want it spicy, add more red chilli powder, curry masala and finally salt.

* Add water depending on the consistency you want. I like to keep thick gravy so I had added only a cup of water.

* Cover and cook for 10 mins. If its not cooked you may cook it in pressure cooker for 1 whistle.


Yummy boneless chicken is ready. Enjoy with roti or rice :-)

Beetroot Paratha

And finally I found out a beetroot dish which my 5 years old ate without any fuss. As such he is a healthy eater and easts mostly whatever is made at home. Like every other kid there are demands for junk food and I do allow it but its very limited. Feeding him junk food makes me so guilty that for the following few days there is a doze of only healthy foods. Yeah I have accepted that I am crazy :-)

Anyway coming to beetroot, husband and I consume it regularly but kiddo didn't like it in any form whether its soup or salad or just the shallow fry slices of beet (recipe leant from MIL). So thought of giving a try to these parathas. While I was making the dough he was nearby and also asked why the dough is looking red and mentioned that he is not going to eat it at any cost :-)


Ingredients-

* 4 beetroots peeled and boiled
* 2 cups whole wheat flour. You can also take a mix of different flours like jowar, bajra, ragi etc which will increase the nutritional level.
* Few garlic cloves, grated
* Pinch of hing
* 1/2 tsp chat masala
* 1/2 tsp aamchur powder
* 1/2 tsp ajwain
* Salt and red chili powder as per taste


Recipe-

* Mash boiled beetroot though a blender or with a potato masher. Add all dry ingredients into it.
* Now add the whole wheat flour and knead with water making a smooth dough.
* Take a small ball and roll it into paratha just like any other paratha and fry from both sides putting oil.
* It hardly takes any time to make parathas if you have the dough ready.

Serve with green chutney and onion :-)

Chicken Biryani

   The benefit of making chicken biryani at home is I can adjust the spice level so that my kiddo can enjoy it and then I don't have to cook anything for him separately. Although it takes a bit of time and preparation for making biryani the result is worth the wait and effort :-)

Here's a simple recipe for making biryani at home--  

Ingredients-

For marinating chicken-

1. Chicken-200 gms (with bones or boneless as per preference)
2. Curd- 1 cup
3. Ginger-garlic paste- 2 tbsp.
4. Turmeric, red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder- 1 tbsp. each

Marinate the chicken with ginger-garlic paste, curd and all dried spices, mix well and keep aside for 30 to 45 minutes. The longer you keep it marinated the better it tastes.

Ingredients for making the Birayni-

1. Basmati rice - 2 cups
2.  2medium sized onion cut horizontally into thin pieces
3.  2 medium sized tomato or 1 cup tomato puree
4.  Ginger-garlic paste-2 tbsp
5.  2-3 green chilies
6.  2-3 cloves, cardamom, 1 tej patta
7.  Oil - 2tbsp 
8.  Ghee- 2tbsp 
9.  Salt as per taste 
10.  Garam masala or biryani masala, if using.

Recipe-

1. Wash rice in water 2-3 times and put it on a strainer so that excess water drains out.
2. Heat oil +ghee in a pressure pan or cooker or you can use a thick-based pan also. You can either one of them as well but I used both. Add tej patta, cloves, cardamom, then add onion and fry till it turns brown.
3. Now add ginger, garlic paste, tomatoes, slit green chilies and fry again.
4. Then add turmeric powder, red chili powder and cover it for a minute or two.
5. Keep a spoonful of this mixture aside that will be used for making curry.
6. Now add the marinated chicken, mix well with little water. Let it cook so that chicken becomes tender but its not cooked complete. This usually takes 10 minutes.
7. Add rice now and mix lightly taking care that the rice grains are not broken.
8. Add salt, garam masala or biryani masala and water. Cover the lid and cook for 1 or 2 whistles. Rice should not turn mushy. Alternatively you can also use semi-cooked rice and then just hard boil it by closing the lid.

While the biryani is getting ready lets make the curry for accompaniment. Grind the onion, tomato mixture into a smooth paste. Fry it in little oil, add water, salt and garam masala and boil it.

 Garnish biryani with coriander leaves.

Serve with papad and raita of your choice. Yumm:-)

Patodi chi Bhaji

Patodi as we call it in Marathi is made up of chickpea flour mixture rolled and cut into pieces and then boiled in a curry. I tried it for the first time and it turned out tasty. This dish is a good option when one is out of veggies like me today :-)
It quick and easy to make. So lets see the step by step procedure.


For Making Patodi-

Ingredients-
1) Chickpea flour (besan)- 2 katori
2) Ginger paste- 1 tsp
3) Garlic paste- 1 tsp
4) Chilli powder- 1 tsp
5) Turmeric- 1/2 tsp
6) Coriander powder- 1 tsp
7) Salt
8) Ajwain- 1 tsp
9) Oil


Recipe-
1) Take besan in a deep pot wherein you can make a dough easily.
2) Add all dry spices.
3) Add 2 tbsp hot oil into it, mix well with little water.
4) Dough should not be very soft otherwise patodis will break when put in curry.

5) Now roll it with a rolling pin but it should be very thick as compared to chapati. Then cut into shape of your choice.

For making curry-

Ingredients-
1) 1 medium sized onion
2) 7-8 garlic cloves
3) 2 tbsp grated coconut
4) Turmeric, red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, dry mango powder- 1 tsp each
5) Garam masala or any other curry masala as per preference.
6) Salt
7) Oil

Recipe-
1) Grind onion, garlic and coconut into a paste.
2) Heat oil in a pan and add the above paste. Fry till oil starts leaving from sides.
3) Then add turmeric, chilli powder, coriander, cumin powder. Add garam masala.
4) I used black masala or kala masala which is typically used in Maharshtrain households.
5) Add salt and dry mango powder.
6) Once this curry start boiling, add patodi pieces and boil again for 5 mins.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with roti :-)

Add a glass or buttermilk to your meal to make it complete :-)

Chatpate Aalu

This is a quick recipe I have saved for those days when I am out of veggies or don't have any other recipe in mind. Be it breakfast or lunch or dinner, this potato recipe will surely come handy.

Ingredients-

1) 10-12 baby potatoes boiled, peeled and cut into halves
2) 1 onion and tomato chopped finely
3) 1 small tomato chopped into 8 pieces
4) 2-3 green chillies slit vertically
5) 6-8 garlic cloves grated
6) Cumin and mustard seeds-1/2 tsp
6) Dry spices-turmeric powder, red chili powder, and salt as per taste
7) Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
7) Coriander leaves for garnichinsg


Recipe-

1) Peal the potatoes, cut into half and keep aside
2) Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds once the oil is hot enough for seeds to crackle then add cumin seeds.
3) Add onion and saute till it turns translucent then add garlic cloves, green chillies and tomatoes.
4) Mix potatoes and  all dry spices except salt and remaining tomatoes which are cut into big pieces. Cover for 5 minutes
5)Finally add salt and mix well
6) Garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve hot with rotis.

Classic Chicken curry

In my household, Sunday is not complete without eating chicken curry. And in many other homes, I know Sunday is chicken curry day :-) So heres a simple but classic chicken curry recipe which everyone will relish.

Ingredients-
1) 1 kg chicken (with bones)
2) 1/2 kg onion cut vertically.
3) 5-6 big tomatoes cut into medim sized pieces.
4) Garlic paste- 3 tbsp
5) Ginger paste- 3 tbsp
6) Curd- 1 cup
7) Other spices like turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and garam masala -  2 tbsp each
8) 2 bay leaves
9) 2-3 cloves
10) 2-3 green cardamom
11) 1 black cardamom
12) Oil
13) Salt as per taste


Recipe-

1) Wash and clean chicken. For marination, add curd, 1 tbsp ginger and garlic paste and 1 tbsp each of dried spices. Mix well and keep it aside. You can also marinate it overnight in refrigerator.

2) Take sufficient oil in a wok, add onion, tomato and remaining ginger-garlic paste, and fry till the raw aroma goes away and onion becomes slightly brown. You can also add 4-5 green chillies here, if you want the curry to be more spicy. Let this mixture cool down and then grind it to make a fine paste.

3) Now add oil in a big wok/kadhai and add bay leaves, cloves, cardamom. Add the onion paste and fry, once the oil start leaving from sides, add remaining dried masala and fry again.

4) Add marinated chicken, salt and 1 cup water, cover and let it cook for 10 minutes.

5) Now depending on how much curry you need, add water again and cook till the chicken is tender. I normally cook it in pressure cooker for 2 whistles.

6) Garnish with coriander and serve with chapatis.

Gobi Masala

Gobi or cauliflower is prepared in more than one ways from starters to main course to north indian preparations to chinese dishes. Gobi masala too can be made in different ways and is mostly liked by one and all.

Ingredients-

1) 2 cups cauliflower- cut into medium sized pieces

2) 1 small onion finely chopped, 4-5 cloves of garlic grated or finely chopped.

3) 1 small tomato finely chopped

4) 2 tbsp each coriander and cumin seeds

5) 1 dried red chilli

6) Salt, turmeric powder and garam masala as per taste

7) Coriander leaves finely chopped for garnishing

8) 2 tsp ginger juice, grate the ginger and squeeze out to take out the juice

9) Oil for cooking

Recipe-

1) Make a coarse paste of cumin seeds, coriander seeds and red chili by grinding it together. Add little water while grinding. Keep It aside.

2) Heat oil in a wok, add onion and garlic and fry till it becomes translucent followed by tomatoes.

3) Now add the coriander-cumin paste and fry till the raw smell goes away.

4) Now add cauliflower, mix well and cover till it becomes tender. Add water, if required.

5) Finally add turmeric powder, garam masala, salt, ginger juice and cook.

6) Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with roots or parathas.

Drumstick Brinjal Masala

This one is for drumstick lovers. Brinjal and drumstick are cooked with potatoes and simple ginger garlic paste.

Ingredients-
1) 8-10 pieces of drumsticks cut into medium pieces and semi boiled.
2) 3-4 brinjals cut into small pieces
3) 1 small potato cut into medium pieces
4) 1 small onion and tomato chopped finely
5) 1 tsp ginger paste
6) 1 tsp ginger and green chili paste
7) 1 tsp kasuri methi
8) Turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, cumin and coriander powder as per taste.
9) 2 tsp oil
10) Moong wadi- handful (optional), I have used fried urad dal wadi


Recipe-

1) Heat oil in a wok , add mustard seeds. Let it crackle then add onion, garlic paste, ginger paste
2) Add potatoes, half of tomatoes and cover till the potatoes are tender
3) Now add drumsticks, brinjal, turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt and remaining tomatoes
4) Add 1/2 cup water, cover and cook
5) Now mix crushed kasuri methi, cumin powder, coriander powder, moong wadi (if using).

Drumstick brinjal masala is ready to be served with hot rotis :)

Rice stuffed capsicum

This dish came out while I was thinking of making something similar to veg sizzler but because of time constraint I had to settle on this non-sizzling version 😉. I only had to get veg pulao done (which my toddler also likes) which is simple and quick😋

Lets check out the recipe of veg pulao-

Ingredients-

1) 2 cups rice washed and drained

2) 1 cup veggies of your choice- I opted for onion, carrots and cauliflower; chopped finely

3) Ground spices like bay leaf-1, star anise-1, 1 inch piece of cinnamon, 1 black cardamom, 2-3 cloves.

4) Oil or ghee for cooking

5) Salt as per taste

6) 1 1/2 tsp cumin powder

You can also add 1 tsp biryani masala. However I chose to keep the pulao simple and less spicy.

Recipe-

1) Heat oil or ghee in a pan or pressure cooker, add ground spices and fry for a minute

2) Add veggies and a pinch of salt 

3) Check if  the veggies are a bit tender, add rice, stir well, add salt and cumin powder, add water and cook. As we are going to bake the rice again with capsicums, make sure it has sufficient moisture when it is cooked.

Preheat the oven to 200 C. 

In the mean time, deseed the capsicums and grease it with oil inside and out.

Let the pulao cool down, stuff it into the capsicum (make sure you remove bay leaf otherwise it may get burnt), drizzle some oil/ ghee over it and put it in the oven for 12-15mins.

While it is getting ready, cut few carrots into thin long strips, boil them in water for 10 mins. Drain the water, drizzle salt and pepper generously over them. (This left water can be used for making soups or as a vegetable stock).

Once the capsicums and baked, serve it along with carrot salad and fried egg 😀

Bread Uttappam

Prepare this instant uttappam with readily available items in your kitchen - bread slices, curd, maida and rawa and make a tasty breakfast/snack dish.

Ingredients-
1) 4 slices of bread
2) 2 tbsp rawa/sooji
3) 2 tbsp maida
4) 3 tbsp curd
5) 1 small onion
6) 1 small tomato
7) Coriander leaves
8) Salt and chat masala as per taste
9) Sesame seeds- 1 tsp
9) Oil for cooking

Recipe-

1) Cut bread into small pieces and put it in a bowl. Add maida, rawa, curd, mix well.

2) Blend it together though a mixer. It the mixture is very thick, add little water. Set it aside for 10 minutes.

3) In the mean time, cut onion, tomato and coriander leaves finely and add salt, chat masala, sesame seeds.

4) Add these over the bread mixture and mix well.

5) Grease a non stick pan with little oil and spread a ladle full of mixture.

6) Pour some oil around the sides while it is getting cooked. Cook both the sides till they are slight golden brown but not over cooked. Serve hot :)

Veg fried rice - indo chinese fusion

My intention was to cook a rice dish other than the regular pulao or khichdi for dinner because my toddler isn't fond of eating rice. He only loves roti, puris and paratha:). With a few variations, this dish came out very well. To increase the nutritional value, I added different veggies which were available with me and also added Indian ground spices to make a fusion.

Ingredients-

1) 1 cup raw rice
2) Finely chopped french beans, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, onions, peas etc or any other vegetables of your choice- 1/4 cup each
3) Finely chopped garlic cloves- 6-8
4) Soya sauce- 2 tbsp
5) 1 bay leaf and 1 star anise/chakra phool, 1/2 inch piece of cinnamon (You can skip these if you want to give only chinese flavour to rice).
6) 5-6 cashew nuts coarsely chopped and fried
7) 8-10 raisins soaked in warm water for 10 mins
8) Oil for cooking
9) Salt as per taste


Recipe-

1) Boil 5-6 cups of water in a pan and add rice to it. Add 1 tbsp salt. Once cooked, drain the water and spread in a plate so that the rice grains doesn't stick together.

2) Heat 2-3 tbsp oil  in a pan, add bay leaf, star anise, cinnamon. Once it turns brown, add garlic, onions, french beans,carrots or all those veggies which are going to take time to become tender.

3) Keep the burner flame on high or medium high (if you cant handle high flame) and keep tossing continuously. Then add  remaining veggies.

4) Add soya sauce, cooked rice and just a pinch of salt.

5) Mix lightly making sure the rice grains are not broken. Finally add fried cashew nuts and raisins.
   
                           

Indo chinese veg fried rice is ready to be served.