Friday 10 July 2009

Sanna Polo ( Spicy Yam Dosa)




This dosa is an authentic South Cannara recipe. Its a spicy dosa and hence doesn't need any chutney to enhance the taste. Its a blend of toor dal , rice and spices. This is commonly made with cabbage , bamboo shoots (my personal favorite) or just eaten plain (without vegetables). The best way to serve this is as a side dish for lunch or dinner (just like palya).

This dish at my home was usually prepared when a coconut would start to spoil and gives away a spoilt smell. A pinch of hing is added to compensate the smell from the coconut. Trust me the dosa as the end result doesn't carry the smell. My mum always served this straight from the skillet with a dollop of butter . As I would take a bite , I would wish for more spoilt coconuts ......



Ingredients
200g chopped raw yam
1 cup toor dal / yellow lentil
1/2 cup rice
3 tbsp grated coconut (fresh ones also taste the same , so don't bother to find for a spoilt coconut)
3 -4 dry red chillies / 1 tsp red chilli powder ( I used 1 tsp hot red chilli powder )
1 tbsp tamarind pulp
1 tsp salt
(For this dosa no hing/ asafoetida is required)

Method
Soak dal and rice separately for 1 hour . Grind together yam , coconut , red chillies , salt , tamarind into a smooth paste. Then add dal and rice , grind into a semi coarse paste. Add 1/2 cup of water to aid the grinding process. This mixture is the dosa batter , so more water can be added for a dosa batter consistency. Heat a non stick skillet and pour a ladle full of batter. Do not spread thin , just spread very lightly. Cook both the sides on a medium flame. Serve dosa with yogurt or with a dollop of butter.







Tuesday 7 July 2009

Spicy Mango / Mango palya






This recipe is from www.aayis.com with a slight variation. For the original recipe visit Pineapple Palya . Thank you for this awesome recipe. I am posting this recipe for the
Mango Mela competition hosted by Cooking for all seasons.



My variation includes ripe mango instead of pineapple and adding ingredients straight from cupboard instead of grinding into a powder (this was a cheat I used without compromising the taste). Believe me this dish will be a hit. This was the second time I made this within a week. Apparently I have ran out of mangoes else I wouldn't hesitate to make it tomorrow again.

Ingredients
1 ripe big mango diced with skin. (I have not used canned ones ever )
1 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
3-4 curry leaves
1 tsp urad dal/ beaten black gram
a pinch of asafoetida / hing
1 tbsp grated coconut
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp black pepper powder
1/2 tsp sweetener/ sugar/ jaggery (I used sweetener for I am a health freak)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp water

Method
Heat oil , add mustard seeds . After they stop spluttering add urad dal, curry leaves , hing , red chilli powder , black pepper powder and coconut. Roast this for a minute or two till you get the aroma of the masala. Now add the diced mangoes , salt , sugar and water. Cook till the mangoes are tender , this would take about 10 mins. Serve this with steaming hot rice.


Monday 6 July 2009

Simple Noodle

This is the basic type of noodles. Its easy and simple to make . Its ready within 20 mins. Noodles is such a versatile and complete dish. Noodles can be made dry or wet with gravy or can be very tasteful in chinese noodle soups. Any type of veggies can be added.

Ingredients

Any quantity and any type of vegetables can be added but I have added
200g noodles (any fresh or dried) I used wholewheat noodles.
1 julienne carrot
1/4 cabbage shredded
6-7 babycorn sliced lengthwise
1 large onion chopped
1 tbsp ginger - garlic- chilli paste
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp rapseed oil
handful cilantro chopped for garnishing (optional)

Method

Heat rapseed oil in a wok . Stir fry onions ,giner - garlic - chilli paste , babycorn, carrot and cabbage. Then add soy sauce and noodles. Put off the flame and add toasted sesame oil and garnish with chopped cilantro. If you feel the noodles are bland , you can add more soy sauce.


Spicy Vermicelli / Shavige Bath




Ingredients

200g vermicelli / mung beans noodles
1 onion chopped
2 tomatoes chopped
6 baby corn sliced
1/2 carrot grated
2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal / beaten black gram
1/2 tsp channa dal / beaten bengal gram
4 mild green chillies slit
1 sprig curry leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp salt
handful of chopped cilantro to garnish

Method

Soak vermicelli in hot water for 15 mins. Heat oil in a wok , to this add mustard seeds . After they stop spluttering add cumin seeds , urad dal , channa dal , curry leaves , green chillies. Saute for a minute. Add chopped onion and saute till they soften and start turning brown. Add tomatoes and cook till they are tender and then add turmeric powder , salt , all the veggies. Cook till the veggies are cooked and tender. Now finally add the vermicelli and stir for 5 mins. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Variations
Any type of veggies (like green beans , peas, sweetcorn , peppers ) and any amount can be added to this.