Cauliflower Masala

Ingredients

• Cauliflower - 1/2 of the flower
• Onion - 1
• Tomato - 1
• Channa dal - 3 tspn
• Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tspn
• Curry powder - 1 tspn
• Chilli powder - 1/2 tspn
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn
• Fennel seeds & curry leaves for seasoning

health tip

Cauliflower and other vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, and kale contain compounds that may help prevent cancer. Sulfur-Containing Phytonutrients in cauliflower promote liver detoxification. It is rich in Vitamin C, K and folate. Spicing cauliflower with turmeric helps promote men's health. Channa dal adds protein to this dish.

Cauliflower Masala

method

1. Soak the channa dal in water for 30 minutes.
2. Dice the onions & tomatoes. Cut the cauliflower into florets & soak them in warm salted water.
3. Heat some oil in a pan & season it with fennel seeds & curry leaves.
4. Saute the ginger garlic paste, onion & tomato. Add turmeric powder, salt, curry powder, chilli powder & drained channa dal. Saute them till the oil separates.

Adding split gram dal(pottukadalai) powder at the final stage will absorb extra moisture & make the cauliflower nice & dry.

5. When the oil separates, drain & add the cauliflower. Cover the pan with a lid & cook till the florets are 3/4th done. Sprinkle water if needed. Open the lid & let the masala dry out. Garnish it with coriander leaves.
   

Mor Kuzhambu

Ingredients

• Sour Yogurt - 2 cups
• Green Chillies - 2
• Channa Dal - 1/2 tspn
• Toor Dal - 1/2 tspn
• Rice - 1/2 tspn
• Coconut - 3 tspn
• Coriander seeds - 1/2 tspn
• Cumin seeds - 1/4 tspn
• Hinge - a pinch
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn
• Curry leaves - for seasoning
• Garlic - 1 pod (or) Ginger - 1/2 inch

health tip

Yogurt is rich in Calcium, Vitamin B2, B12 & protein. Yogurt has a friendly bacteria Lactobacillus which helps to regulate the digestive system & boost the immune system. Daily consumption of 3 oz of yogurt helps to lower LDL(bad cholesterol) & increase HDL(good Cholesterol). It helps to prevent stomach ulcers & reduce the risk of colorectal(colon) cancer.

Mor Kuzhambu

method

This dish is very famous in all the southern states of India. This dish goes very well with white rice & paruppu usili. You may make this recipe simple with all the ingredients as listed above or you may enhance it further by adding any available vegetables.

1. Soak the channa dal, toor dal and rice for 30 minutes.
2. You may add veggies to this dish but if you do so you need to cook them separately by adding some salt. Refer to the tips section below for more information.
3. Whip the yogurt for few minutes and set aside.
4. Grind coconut, cumin, coriander, ginger (or garlic), green chillies and all the soaked ingredients into a fine paste.
5. Heat some oil in a pan and season it with curry leaves and hinge.

   You may create many different variations of this dish by adding different vegetables. Some of the suggested vegetables are potatoes, white pumpkin, chow chow, okra, yam and Dal koftas(urundais). Remember to fry the Okra before adding to this dish. You may also add dried vathals like manathakkali, sundakkai, okra and eggplanths to this dish but they also require prior frying.

   
   
6. Add the ground paste & turmeric powder to the pan and saute it for two minutes or until the raw smell goes off.
7. Add the whipped yogurt to the mix & heat them all for couple more minutes. Do not let it boil as the yogurt will curdle with excessive heat.

Eggplant Avial

Ingredients

• Indian eggplant - 4-5 or 3 cups diced(if using other varieties)
• Medium Potato - 1 or 1 1/2 cups diced
• Medium onion - 1
• Medium tomato - 1
• Coconut - 3/4 cup
• Sombu(fennel seeds)- 1/2 tspn
• Cumin seeds -1/2 tspn
• Chilli powder - 1/2 tspn
• Poppy seeds(optional) - 1 tspn
• Garlic paste - 1/2 tspn
• Roasted split gram dal(Pottukadalai) - 2 tspn

health tip

Eggplant is an excellent source of dietary fiber, vitamins B1, B6 and potassium. It is also a good source of copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, niacin and folic acid. The skin is rich in antioxidant called Nasunin which helps nourish the brain cells. Potatoes are rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, copper, potassium, manganese, and dietary fiber. They are very high in carbohydrate.

Eggplant Avial

method

1. Dry roast the coconut, fennel, cumin, roasted split gram dal, poppy seeds & grind them with chilli powder into a fine paste.
2. Dice the eggplant, potato, onion & tomatoes.
3. Heat some oil in a pan & season it with 1/2 inch cinnamon stick, some fennel seeds & curry leaves.
4. Add the garlic paste & saute the diced onion & tomato. Add some turmeric powder & salt. When the tomato gets mushy, add the diced eggplant & potatoes. Saute them for 2 more minutes & mix in the ground paste. Dilute it with water to make a gravy &. Add chilli powder & salt if needed. Cover it & cook till the veggies are soft.

   You may accelerate the whole cooking process by pressure cooking for 1 whistle

5. Garnish it with coriander leaves & serve it with Idli or Dosai.
6. This recipe serves 4 people

Eggplant Fry

Ingredients

• Baby eggplant - 4
• Chilli powder - 1/2 tspn
• Rice flour - 1 1/2 tspn
• Corn starch - 1/2 tspn
• Salt - 1/4 tspn or as per taste
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn

health tip

Eggplant is an excellent source of dietary fiber, vitamins B1 and B6 and potassium. It is also a good source of copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, niacin and folic acid. The skin is rich in antioxidant called Nasunin which helps nourish the brain cells.

Eggplant Fry

method

1. Wash & cut the eggplants into thin slices.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together, toss the eggplant slices & sprinkle little water to the mix. Adding little water helps to hold the dry powder stick to the eggplant while frying.
3. Deep fry the slices till the outer layer is crisp.
4. Chinese eggplant may also be used for this recipe.

Stuffed Eggplant Curry

Ingredients

• Purple eggplant - 10
• Large onion - 1
• Garlic pods - 4
• Chilli powder - 3/4 tspn
• Coriander powder - 3/4 tspn
• Cumin powder - 1/4 tspn
• methi powder - 1/4 tspn
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn
• Salt - 1 tspn
• Jaggery 1 tspn
• Tamarind paste - 1 tspn
• Roasted peanuts - 1/4 cup

health tip

Eggplant is an excellent source of dietary fiber. It's a very good source of vitamins B1, B6 and potassium. It’s a good source of copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, niacin, and folic acid. The skin is rich in antioxidant called Nasunin which helps to nourish the brain cells.

Stuffed Eggplant Curry

method

This is a tangy & spicy dish. The eggplants are quartered, stuffed & cooked in tamarind juice. The very look of it will make you drool. This recipe is in response to the Vegetable Marathon Eggplant event. For this recipe you will need fresh baby purple eggplant with no bruises. This dish goes well with rice & Paruppu masiyal (Dal).

1. Dry roast the peanuts & let it cool.
2. Heat a teaspoon of oil in a kadai & saute the diced onion & garlic till they become tender or translucent. Let them cool. When cooled, grind into a fine paste adding roasted groundnuts, all the powders & salt.
3. Wash & cut the eggplants. Cut them from bottom halfway through top with the stem intact.
4. Stuff the eggplants with the ground paste. Keep the remaining paste aside.

Eggplant gets oxidized & turns brown when exposed to air. To prevent this soak the sliced eggplant in water till it is ready to cook.

5. In a kadai heat some oil & season it with cumin seeds & curry leaves. Add the stuffed eggplants & remaining paste with a cup of water. Cover the kadai & cook the eggplants turning from time to time not to let the bottom burn.
6. When the eggplants are 3/4th cooked add the tamarind paste & jaggery with another cup of water. Taste it & add salt if needed. Cover the pan & cook them till completely soft. Garnish it with coriander leaves & serve with rice.
   

Eggplant Kuzhambu (Ennai Kathirikkai Kuzhambu)

This Kuzhambu is a variation of regular puzhi kuzhambu. The gravy is thicker than regular kuzhambu. No other type of eggplant other than Indian one will go well with this. The eggplants are slit from bottom, halfway towards top letting them hold the pieces together. Choose the smallest eggplant you can get. This is a chettinad specialty. Back in India, whenever we attend a function like marriage or 60th birthday they will either serve this kuzhambu or Pakoda kuzhambu for lunch. I love both of them so I would skip other dishes & wait for this kuzhumbu to be served. Now I guess I wouldn't wait like that. I found the recipe almost closer to original one. Here goes the recipe.......

Ingredients

Small Brinjals (Eggplant) – 6-7

Tamarind paste– 1/2 tspn

Coriander leaves
Garlic - 4

onion - 1/2 medium

Tomato - 1

Mustard,Urad dhal, Cumin seeds, asafoteida(hing), Curry leaves for seasoning

Salt – To taste

Oil

To Grind:

Dry chilli – 3-4 count

Whole pepper – 1/2 tspn

Fenugeek seeds – 1/4 tspn

Cumins seeds – 1/2 tspn

Dhania(Coriander seeds) – 1 spoon

Kasa kasa(Poppy seeds) - 1 tspn

Coconut – 3 piece

Chopped onions – 1/2 medium

Method

Roast all the ingredients given under grinding with little oil. Blend them into a fine paste when it gets cooled. Chop the onion,garlic & tomato & slit the eggplants according to instruction given in introduction. Heat 1-2 tbspn of oil preferably sesame oil in a pan & add the seasonings. Saute the onion,garlic & tomato along with some salt till tomato gets mushy. Add turmeric powder & the ground paste & keep it stirring till the oil separates. Now add the eggplants, saute it  till the eggplant turns colour a little bit. Finally add tamarind paste & some jaggery  along with some water. Let it boil till eggplants are cooked & the gravy thickens. It tastes better when the oil floats on the top. If not, add a tspn of oil at the end. Serve it with rice & poriyal.

Vendakkai(Okra) Mandi

Mandi is a tangy and spicy stew of vegetables. Traditionally, Mandis are made using water used for washing rice. This water is called arisi (rice) mandi (remnants) and is not normally discarded. Husk of the rice contains an essential  vitamin called Thiamine (Vitamin b1). Washing the rice with water will wash out this vitamin. Hence, it is common practice to not discard the water but reuse it for making Mandis. However, not many reuse washed rice water because nobody knows what chemicals were used to treat that rice. Therefore, the Mandi recipe that I am going to share with you will use a teaspoon of rice flour instead of the washed rice water to get that same authentic Mandi taste. This dish can be kept for more than a day since it uses lots of tamarind. This dish goes very well with yogurt rice.

Ingredients
Okra(Vendakkai) - 1 pound or 1/2 kg
Medium Potato - 1
Motchai (Val lilva beans)  - 1 handful(optional)
Small  onion(preferable) - 7 or medium sized onion - 1
Garlic - 7 pod
Green chillies - 6
Tamarind paste - 1/2 - 3/4 tspn
Rice flour - 1 tspn
Mustard & urad dhal for seasoning

Method
Soak the motchai overnight & cook it  with a teaspoon of salt. Cut the okra & potatoes into cubes. Remove the skin from onion & garlic & cut it into small cubes. Slit the green chillies lengthwise. Heat some oil in a pan & season it with mustard and urad dhal. Saute the onions, garlic & green chillies. Drain them and keep it aside. In the same oil add the okra & saute it till the sticky substance goes off. In the meantime microwave or boil the potatoes till tender. When the okra turns dry ( not mushy anymore) add the sauteed onion mix, potatoes, cooked motchai along with tamarind paste & rice flour mixed with some water. Let it boil till the veggies takes up the flavor & taste. Taste the mandi & adjust the salt & spice. If you want it little more hotter, fry some red chillies & add it to the mandi. This dish is usually in tangy side. So adjust the tamarind as per taste.

Variation:
There is no set rule to make the mandi with just okra. Any veggies can be added. Some of the most commonly used veggies are plantain, mango, eggplant, drumstick & beans like black eyed bean& chick peas.

Mushroom Masala

Ingredients
Mushroom - 1 pound or 1/2 kg
Large onion - 1
Tomato - 1 1/2
Ginger garlic paste  - 1 tspn
Curry powder - 1/4 tspn
Chilli powder - 1/2 tspn
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn
Hand full of almond or cashew ground to paste.

Method
Chop the mushrooms, onion & tomatoes. In a kadai heat some oil & add ginger garlic paste. Saute the onions & tomatoes along with 1/2 a teaspoon of salt till the tomatoes gets mushy. Add all the powders & saute till the oil separates. Now, add the mushrooms & saute it for some more time. Mushroom usually gives out lot of water so cook it with lid open until 3/4 of the water evaporates. When 3/4th of the water is evaporated, add the ground paste & mix it in the masala. Leave the stove on, till the masala gets dry. Garnish it with fresh coriander leaves & serve hot.

Chettinad Eggplant Masala

Ingredients
1. Eggplant - 2 pounds
2. Onion - 1 nos
3. Tomato - 1 nos
4. Coconut - 4.tspn
5. Fennel seeds - 1/2 tspn
6. Red chillies - 4 nos
7. Garlic - 2 nos
8. Roasted split gram dhal - 1 tspn
9. Black pepper - 1/4 tspn

Method
Grind the ingredients from number 4 to number 9 above into a fine paste and set aside. Dice the eggplant, onion & tomato into cubes. Heat some oil in a pan & season it with 1/2 inch cinnamon stick & some curry leaves. Add the onions & tomatoes & saute it till the tomatoes get mushy.You can add some salt to fasten the process. Add the eggplants & saute it for 5 more minutes. Mix in the ground paste along with some turmeric powder.

Cover the pan with a lid & cook till the eggplants are 3/4th cooked. Open the lid & let all the water in the masala dry out. Remaining one fourth cooking will be done in this process. Turn off the stove & garnish it with coriander leaves.

Variation
          You can add diced potatoes along with eggplant. Since the vegetables cook time varies add the potatoes first & let it cook for some time, then goes the eggplant & the ground paste. This dish goes well with any type of rice.

Mutter paneer masala or Mutter tofu masala

Ingredients

Paneer or Tofu - 1 box
Red onion  - 2
Tomato sauce - 5 tbspn
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tspn
Green chilli - 1
curry powder
Chilli powder
Cashew paste - 2 tbspn
Methi leaves or coriander leaves - for garnishing

Procedure

Dice the onion & chilli finely & tofu or paneer to cubes. Fry the paneer pieces till golden brown. In a kadai heat some oil & add curry leaves, ginger garlic paste, onion & chilli one by one. Saute them for sometime & add the tomato paste, chilli powder & curry powder. Add salt to taste. Let it simmer for sometime & mix the fried paneer pieces & almond paste. Add some water if needed & cook for another 10 minutes. Garnish it with methi leaves or coriander leaves.

Pakoda Kuzhambu

Ingredients

For Gravy

Onion   - 1
Tomato  - 1
Red chilli - 4 nos
Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Poppy seeds - 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds - 1 tsp
Roasted channa dhal -1 tsp
Hing - a pinch
Coconut - 3 tsp

For Pakoda

Onion finely chopped - 1/2
Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Hing - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Besan - 1/4 cup
Curry leaves
Coriander leaves

Method
Dry roast all the ingredients for gravy except coconut. Let it cool. In the meantime make the pakoda by mixing all the ingredients from the "For Pakoda" section above with water. The mix should not be like a dough. It should be crumbly & should barely hold them together. Spread the pakoda mix over hot oil & fry them. You don't have to worry about shapes. Keep the pakodas aside.

Grind the roasted ingredients along with coconut. Heat some oil in a pan (you can use the fried oil as it gives nice flavor). Season it with hinge & curry leaves. Saute the ground paste & add salt & water to it. Add some tamarind juice & a pinch of sugar. When the gravy starts to boil, add the fried pakodas & simmer for another 5 minutes. Pakodas will absorb some of the gravy. So make the gravy little watery.