Methi and Spring Onion Paratha / Thepla - Indian Flat bread with fenugreek leaves and Spring onions

Fenugreek brings remarkable health benefits! Its seeds, leaves(both fresh and dried) is extensively used in Indian cuisine.

Fenugreek leaves helps increase the good-cholesterol levels (HDL-C), the seeds helps ease stomach aches and I've heard that fenugreek helps new mothers boost lactation capacity.

But be careful not to use too much of fenugreek as they leave a bitter taste in the end-product.

Methi Parathas / Teplas

What you need to make Methi Parathas / Teplas -

Fresh Fenugreek leaves

• Methi / Fenugreek leaves/ Mendaya Keerai - 1 and 1/2 cups
• Spring Onions - 1/4 cup (chopped) - Just my addition, you could skip if you do not have them in hand! They do add to the taste though.
• Whole wheat flour - 4 cups
• Green chillies - 2 (finely chopped)
• Ginger (shredded) - 2 tsp
• Coriander powder / Dhania - 2 tsp
• Cumin + pepper powder (Milagu-jeera podi) - 3/4 tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp (Adjust to your preference, according to the hotness of green chillies)
• Omam (Ajwain seeds ) - 1 tsp
• White sesame seeds - 1 tsp (Gives added flavor)
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Sugar - 1/2 tsp ( to counter the bitterness of methi)
• Salt - to taste

• Water - as required (~ 1 cup)
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Yogurt / Fresh curd - 2 tbsp

• Ghee - 2 tsp (optional)

How To Make the Dough -

• First wash the fenugreek leaves (shake off excess water) and remove the leaves alone discading the stalk.

• Take whole wheat flour in a big mixing bowl and add all the ingredients listed above, upto salt. Add water, in steps and mix everything together to form a dough.  Add yogurt as well. Keep kneading and bring all the flour together, adding water as and when required. Add oil towards the final stages and get a soft, pliable dough. Cover the bowl and let rest for an hour.

The dough is ready!

To Make Teplas -

• Flour a clean, dry surface, take a lemon-sized ball of dough and roll it into a circle using a rolling pin (also floured). Sprinkle flour in between to prevent the tepla from sticking to the surface or the pin. Repeat until the dough is all used up. The quantities given yield about 12-14 teplas. 

• Heat a tawa and place a rolled-out tepla on it. When the underneath surface starts to show brown spots (in about 10 seconds), flip it and press the corners with a flat wooden spatula. Flip again after 10 seconds and ensure the teplas are cooked well. Finish with a drop (or two) of ghee on each tepla for that enhanced taste! :-)

Store the teplas covered with aluminum foil in a keep-hot casserole.

Teplas are best enjoyed with Yogurt!

Serve with fresh yogurt (plain)/ curd. You can also make dal or any simple gravy to go with these. I can eat this for breakfast, lunch or dinner (of course, not all 3 times on the same day, too boring :P ).

Theplas stay good for about a week. I used to make a big batch of these on Sundays when I had exams the following weeks.You might want to heat them up again on a hot pre-heated tawa (microwaving doesn't yield great results according to me, unless you're gonna eat it immediately) before serving.

Baby Brinjals in Tomato-Coconut Masala ~ For Eggplant fans!

Yes! I'm back with another Brinjal recipe :) My hubby is a big fan of eggplants and I'm trying new ways of serving his favorite veggie. I looked at these awesome baby brinjals in the market and was pulled towards them. They were smooth and shiny and really tiny, as if plucked fresh from the garden, before they could become bigger! :D

Look at the dish...these Baby Brinjals cooked in spiced Tomato-Coconut gravy paste...ah, so flavorful and cooked till soft  :) Don't you want to make this for the brinjal-lover in your family?

Baby Brinjals in Tomato-Coconut Masala

Ah...the gravy is the winner here :)

A Closer look...

What I Used -

Baby Brinjals - 15 nos
Ripe Tomatoes - 3
Ginger-Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Grated coconut - 3 tbsp
Fresh coriander / Cilantro - a few
Oil - 1 tsp + 1 tbsp

Whole Spices -

Black mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin / Jeera - 1 tsp
Fenugreek (mendayam) - 1/2 tsp
Dried Red Chillies - 2 nos

Masala powders -

Fennel powder (Sombu)- 1/4 tsp (Do not increase this, as it tends to be over-powering)
Kitchen King masala - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Pepper-Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp

And the standard ones...

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 3/4 tsp
Salt - to taste

How To -

• Take a deep, non-stick kadai/wok and heat a teaspoon of oil. Let mustard seeds splutter. Follow with cumin, fenugreek, red chillies (stem removed and then broken into two) and funnel powder.
• Chop tomatoes fine and add to the kadai. Mix well with the whole spices. Keep the pan covered for 5 minutes.
• After tomatoes are cooked, add ginger-garlic paste and mix well.
• While the tomatoes are getting cooked, remove the stems of brinjals, slit them vertically and horizontally (don't quarter them!) while retaining them as whole.
• Add the baby brinjals now and cover the pan. Let them cook for 3 minutes.
• Add the masalas - Kitchen King, Coriander powder and Pepper-Jeera powder. I like to sprinkle the powders with my (clean!) fingers.
• Add turmeric, red chilli powder and salt. Mix well and let cook for 2 minutes.
• Toss the brinjals gently (without mashing them or breaking them) so that they get coated with the gravy. You may also try to fill in some paste into the brinjals.
• Drizzle some oil around the brinjals and toss once again. Close the pan and let them cook well for about 10 minutes. Make sure the veggies don't get burnt. Add some oil in-between if you need.
• You can see that the color of the skin of eggplants has turned from purple to brown. Sprinkle grated coconut and toss the veggies carefully. Cook covered for another 3 minutes. Switch off the flame.
• Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves. 

Serve with white rice as such, or with rasam. I love this with Garlic/Poondu Rasam.

Baby Brinjals in tomato-Coconut Masala

Kovakkai/ Dondakaya/ Tindora/ Ivy-gourd Masala

Kovakkai is not my favorite vegetable but somehow felt like picking it up when I saw it after a long long time (never bought it even once as hubby darling detests it) at Mustafa last week. My mom makes kovakkai fry that tastes awesomely crispy,  however, that requires a lot of patience! Hence, I decided to use onions n tomatoes with spices to make it palatable to my hubby as well as save time for myself . It did taste wonderful with Garlic Rasam.

Kovakkai Masala/ Ivy gourd Masala

 
What I Used -

Ivy gourd / Kovakkai

Kovakkai / Ivy gourd - 500 g
Onions- 2 medium/big
Tomatoes - 2 big/medium
Ginger-Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 3 or 4
Turmeric powder / Haldi - 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Home-made Curry powder - 1.5 tsp
Garam masala/Pav Bhaji masala - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste

To Temper-

Oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Jeera / Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves  - a few (optional)

How I Made It -

• Heat oil in a deep kadai and temper with mustard and jeera. Throw in some curry leaves if you like.
• Add chopped onions and fry until light-brown.
• Add ginger-garlic paste, fry for 3 mins.
• When the raw smell goes off, add chopped tomatoes. Alternatively, you can pour juice of 1 tomato and add the other one chopped.
• Slit each kovakkai into 4 height-wise and add to the kadai.

Slit tindora / kovakkai

• Add all the spice powders - curry powder, garam masala (or pav bhaji masala or channa masala, whichever is available), turmeric, red chilli powder and salt. 
• Add 1/2 cup water and close the pan with a lid. Allow the vegetable to cook on low-medium flame for 15 minutes.
• Mix them together so that the spices get incorporated with kovakkai giving it a better taste.
• You can either serve at this stage like a gravy or add 2 tsp of oil and let it get a bit crispy and dry after another 30 minutes.

As you might have guessed, I took the easy, first route . Garnish with coriander leaves.  Serve with Rice or Roti varieties.

Sending this to "Subzis for Rotis" event hosted by Tickling Palates

Malai Kofta (Deep fried paneer & potato dumplings in rich creamy sauce) - Step-by-Step recipe

Malai Kofta is a rich dish popular in North India, originally from Punjabi cuisine. It's very delicious, loved by everyone and best suited for lunch/dinner parties. Who wouldn't like something that has paneer, cream and potatoes in it? ;)

My hubby loves Malai Kofta :)  Sadly, the only Indian restaurant closest to our place doesn't list Malai Kofta on its menu.  Hence, I have been wanting to try and make this at home for a long long time. Inspired by Geetha chithi's mouth-watering pictures and simple recipe, I was much tempted and finally made this today for lunch.  I modified the recipe slightly and was immensely happy that it came out very well and we both enjoyed our meal. I served it with chapathis but Malai Kofta goes equally well with rice varieties.

Malai Kofta

What You Need -

For the Koftas -

Paneer - 150 g
Potatoes - 3 small/medium
Green chillies - 3 (finely chopped)
Jeera/ Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Black pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Raisins - as required

Maida/All-purpose flour - 4 tbsp (Can substitute with corn flour)
Oil - for frying

For the gravy -

Onions- 2
Tomatoes - 2
Ginger-Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Cashewnuts - 12  nos.
Raisins - 20 nos.

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 3/4 tsp
Salt - to taste

Cream - 4 to 5 tbsp
Cilantro - to garnish

How To -

• Boil potatoes. Peel the skin and mash them.
• Mash paneer and mix it with mashed potatoes, along with chopped green chillies, jeera, pepper and salt.

• Mix maida in some water. This makes our batter. 
• Divide the dough into small ping-pong sized balls. 
• Stud each ball with 3-4 raisins.
• Dip and roll the balls into maida batter and deep fry in hot oil.

• Make sure the oil is hot enough else the balls might disintegrate!

• A batch of 4 koftas would take about 5-7 minutes to get cooked and fried enough on all sides. You can remove and drain the koftas on kitchen tissues when you see them turning golden in color.

Golden Koftas - yummy as such :)

• These are just yummy as such and you can eat them right away with tomato-ketchup or any chutney :) But, save them if you want to eat them with the rich creamy gravy!

• To make the gravy, you need 4 kinds of pastes/juices. 

(1) Soak chopped onions in hot water for 15 minutes and grind them to a paste

(2) Blend ripe tomatoes in a juicer
(3) Ginger-garlic paste (you can go with the store-bought version too)
(4) Soak cashews and raisins in hot water for 15 minutes and grind to a paste

• Take a kadai, heat 2 tsp of oil and fry the onion paste and let it cook for 5 minutes.
• Next goes the ginger-garlic paste.
• Now, add tomato puree and add salt.
• Follow with all the masala powders - turmeric, garam masala, coriander and red chilli powder. Let boil.
• Once all these are well incorporated, mix in the cashew+ raisins paste and boil for another 2-3 minutes. 
• Finally, add in cream and garnish with coriander leaves/cilantro.

To Serve : Pour the gravy over the koftas just a few minutes before eating, to prevent them going soggy. I like soaked koftas in my gravy, so I soaked just 2 koftas right from the beginning and then crumbled them in the gravy. This also gives some thickness and texture to the gravy.

Happy to send this to Sinful Delights! Very apt description, indeed for Malai Kofta :)

Brinjal Peanut Masala (Eggplant masala with toasted peanuts & sesame seeds powdered)

One of my Chinese friends offered me a bite of the traditional Chinese "Peanut Sesame Candy" and they were just amazing! I enthusiastically responded by telling her about our peanut balls (கடலை மிட்டாய் popular in South India) and the Laddoos made out sesame seeds(तिल), common in North India. Of course, all these are not really similar, as they're not sweetened using the same ingredient; the Chinese use brown sugar and we use jaggery and sugar respectively. However, I like all of them and virtually anything sweet!

Peanuts or Groundnuts are truly Mother Nature's storehouse of Vitamins as they are said to contain about 13 different vitamins and essential minerals like Calcium and Iron! Plus, when it comes to Proteins, nothing can beat peanuts! That's why it's usually a big hit among vegetarians. I add roasted peanuts in Ladies finger/Okra dry curry, which is a tip learnt from Bindu mami (aunt). I also love boiled peanuts too and it makes a very nutritious snack. 

Here, in this recipe, we add powdered peanuts and sesame seeds to brinjals (eggplants) and you'll marvel at the whole new dimension it gives to the boring tomatoes+onions masala! Trust me, even those who hate eggplants should try this recipe. My sister, who belongs to that category just loves this :) 

The source is from a TV cookery show by Mallika Badrinath.

What You Need -

Purple brinjals - 250 g

Onions - 2

Tomatoes- 3

Oil- 3 tsp

Tamarind extract - 2 tbsp

Ginger-garlic paste - 1.5 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Peanuts/Groundnuts - 1 tbsp

White sesame seeds (வெள்ளை எள்ளு) - 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp

How To -

• Slice brinjals and 1 onion length-wise and chop the tomatoes.

• Microwave all the 3 together with 2 tsp oil for about 8-10 minutes, after which, it would look something like this -

•  Take a kadai/tawa, heat 1/2 tsp oil and cube an onion and fry it for 3 minutes. Allow it cool and then grind to a paste. I've used yellow onion here. But I'm sure red onion goes well too.

• Take a small ball of tamarind and extract thick juice from it. 

• While the brinjal gets cooked in the microwave, dry roast together, peanuts, sesame seeds and coriander seeds (No oil). You can use peanuts with or without its skin.

• Powder after cooling them for about 10 minutes.

• Now get back to the tawa. Boil tamarind extract along with fried onion paste and ginger-garlic paste. Add red chilli powder and salt. To this mixture, add the microwaved brinjals +onions +tomatoes. Add some water if you feel the mixture is getting dried up.

• Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
• Finally, add our special powder (peanuts+sesame seeds +coriander seeds).

• Mix well and add 50 ml of water and let them cook for another 5 minutes. Voila! Your Brinjal Masala is ready!

Please do try and let me know if you liked it! :)

Beetroot kurma (Beetroot masala)

The goodness of beetroot is that it contains no fat, very few calories and is a great source of fiber. Beetroots are a rich source of magnesium, sodium, potassium and some Vitamin C and its juice is said to lower blood pressure and therefore can prevent cardio-vascular problems.

We all know that beetroots taste sweeter and there is a particular variety called sugar beet which has a high concentration of sucrose.

My mum-in-law leveraged on the attribute of beetroots to taste sweet and combined it with traditional Indian spices and concocted a recipe that's also quite rich because of the addition of coconut and cashewnuts.

This is the first recipe I learnt from her and I've made it numerous times, given that my hubby loves it and doesn't take beetroot in any other form! It goes well with both rice and roti.

This is How She Makes It :-

Wash and clean 2 beetroots and 1 potato. Cut off the stalks from beetroots and scrap off the skin from the vegetables.

Make small cubes and add a tsp of finely chopped ginger. Now, pressure cook the chopped vegetables with some salt.

Don't worry if the potatoes take on the color of beets and turn pink too. When you drain the excess water, save some stock to add to our gravy later.

Heat 1 tsp ghee in a deep pan. Allow mustard seeds to splutter and then add a few cloves(grambu) and fennel seeds (sombu).  Meanwhile, make a paste out of onions, bayleaves, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, poppy seeds(khus-khus).

Add this onion + spices paste to the pan. This should get cooked well. We do not want the raw smell of onions in our dish.

Add ginger-garlic paste to this and pour the juice of 2 tomatoes.

Mix well and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Now is the time to add the boiled vegetables. Sprinkle salt, red chilli powder, garam masala, turmeric powder, as necessary. You can add the stock now if the mixture looks too dry. Mix well and keep the pan covered for 10-12 minutes. 

.

Now, grind together 3 tbsp of grated coconut along with 10-12 cashewnuts and be ready.

Open the pan and check for salt and spice level. Finally, add the cashew + coconut paste and stir for 3-5 minutes. Your beetroot kurma is ready to eat :)

This is a good way to make kids eat beetroots. Optionally, you can increase the quantity of potatoes.

Hope you try this and your family likes it too :)