Batato bhajjunu Upkari (Potato Stir fry)

Batato bhajjunu Upkari is a very simple dish. In konkani, batato means potato and bhajjunu means frying. This is a very easy dish and perfect for beginners. Potato lovers will surely love it!!


Ingredients:

• Potatoes (big sized)- 3
• Oil- 2-3 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp (adjust according to your taste)
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut it lengthwise or any other desired shape. Sprinkle little bit of salt on it and keep aside. 
Now heat oil in a pan and once it gets heated add mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add chopped potatoes and red chilli powder. Mix well. 
Heat should be on medium or lesser than that (water is not added to this dish. Hence we are adding more oil. Those who prefer less oil can reduce it and add water). The potatoes might take 15 minutes to cook (time taken depends on the potato). Add more salt if required. Batato bhajjunu Upkari is ready!!

This can be served as a side dish for rice. Above measurement serves two people.

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Vaali Ambat (Malabar Spinach Curry)

Vaali Ambat is a very popular konkani dish. This dish is rich in protein, fiber and minerals. Try making this delicious healthy dish.


Ingredients:

• Malabar Spinach- 1 bunch
• Toordal- 1/4 cup
• Onion (medium sized)- 1 (1/2+1/2)
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/2 cup
• Roasted Red Chillies- 3-4
• Tamarind- A very small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Oil- 1 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Note: This dish is more popularly made as Vaali-Papashpala(raw papaya) Ambat i.e they also add pieces of raw papaya while cooking, which goes very well with malabar spinach. Even yellow cucumber can be substituted for raw papaya (I didn't add both of them).

Procedure:


Clean the malabar spinach and separate the leaves from the stem. Cut the stem into 1-1.5 inches long. Wash toordal thoroughly. Take the stem of the malabar spinach, toordal and chopped onion (half of it) in a cooker. Add sufficient water and salt to taste. 

Cook them for two whistles. Meanwhile chop the leaves of the malabar spinach and cook them separately  by adding it in boiling water (use a small vessel). The leaves will take less than 5 minutes to cook. Add the cooked leaves to the cooked dal-stem mixture and mix well.

For the masala- Grind the grated coconut,red chillies and tamarind to a smooth paste by adding little water. Add this masala to the above cooked mixture and bring it to a boil. When it comes to boil, continue heating for five more minutes. Turn off the heat. 

For seasoning- heat oil and once it gets heated, add the chopped onions (remaining half) and fry until its turns slight brown. Add this to vegetable and dal-masala mixture. Mix it well. Vaali Ambat is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice, idli. Above measurement serves two people.

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Losne Chutney (Garlic Chutney)

Losunu in konkani means garlic. If you are searching for a different variety of chutney then this is one such!! Its a very delicious chutney, with less ingredients and can be done within few minutes. Garlic lovers will surely like this. Its an all time favorite chutney of ours. 


Ingredients:

• Grated coconut- 1 cup
• Roasted red chilli- 4
• Tamarind- A small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Garlic pods- 9-10
• Oil- 1/2 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:


Roast the garlic pods using oil, until it turns light brown (or little more than that). Now grind all the ingredients using little water to a consistency somewhere between coarse and fine (Just like other chutney,do not make the chutney watery and fine). Transfer it into a bowl. Losne Chutney is ready!! 

It goes well with panpolo, dill roti, rice, undi, dosa or just as it is:-) (we finish half of it as soon as it is done). Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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Vaali-Kulitha Koddel (Malabar Spinach-Horsegram Curry)

Vaali in konkani means malabar spinach. Malabar spinach is a healthy vine which is popular among the konkanis. Many people in and around Mangalore grow this vine in their backyard. It is very rich in fiber and minerals and low on Cholesterol. Vaali-Kulitha koddel is nothing but malabar spinach and horsegram cooked in a coconut gravy with garlic seasoning. Malabar spinach and horsegram, together makes this dish very healthy. 

Ingredients:

• Malabar Spinach (vaali/basale)- One bunch
• Horsegram- 1/4 cup
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 3/4cup
• Roasted red chillies- 4-5
• Tamarind- A small piece (gooseberry sized)
• Garlic pods- 5-6
• Oil- 1-2 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:


Clean the malabar spinach and separate the leaves from the stem. Cut the stem into 1-1.5 inches long. Wash the horsegram thoroughly. Take the stem of the malabar spinach and the horsegram in a cooker. Add sufficient water and salt to taste.

Cook them for two whistles. Meanwhile chop the leaves of the malabar spinach and cook them separately  by adding it in boiling water(use a small vessel). The leaves will take less than 5 minutes to cook. Add the cooked leaves to the cooked horsegram-stem mixture and mix well.

For the masala - Grind the grated coconut,red chillies and tamarind to a smooth paste by adding little water. 
Add this masala to the above cooked mixture and bring it to a boil. When it comes to boil, continue heating for five more minutes. Turn off the heat. 
For seasoning- Heat the oil and add crushed garlic to it. Fry it until light brown and add it to malabar spinach-horsegram-masala mixture. Mix well. Vaali-Kulitha koddel is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice, idli or dosa. Above measurement serves two people.

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Magge Ambat (Yellow Cucumber Curry)

Magge in konkani means Yellow cucumber. It is one of the vegetables which stays longer and doesn't require refrigeration. A dish is called ambat when it has a masala, dal and onion seasoning. In general ambat is a very mild dish and my favorite!!

Ingredients:

• Chopped Yellow cucumber- 1 1/2 cups
• Toordal- 1/4 cup
• Onion (medium sized)- 1 (1/2+1/2)
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/2 cup
• Roasted Red Chillies- 3-4
• Tamarind- A very small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Oil- 1 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Cook toordal in a cooker by adding sufficient amount of water (2 whistles should be enough). Then once it cools down, add the chopped yellow cucumber, chopped onion(half of it) and salt to taste. Cook it along with cooked dal for one whistle (cooking the dal again will not hurt in any way). Turn off the heat and allow it to cool.

To make masala- grind the grated coconut, red chillis and tamarind to a smooth paste by adding little water. Add this masala to the cooked mixture and turn on the heat. once it comes to a boil, continue heating for 5-6 minutes. Then turn off the heat.
For seasoning- heat oil and once it gets heated, add the chopped onions (remaining half) and fry until its turns slight brown. Add this to vegetable-masala mixture. Mix it well. Magge Ambat is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice. It also goes well with dosa and idli. Above measurement serves 2-3 people. I served it with boiled rice (red rice), vodi (made by my amma(MIL)) and Yogurt. It is a heavenly combination!
 

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Kolmbo (Konkani Sambhar)

Kolmbo is a popular konkani sambhar. I learnt to make this from amma. It is a healthy dish (be it the dal or the veggies or the spices. Each one adds some goodness to the sambhar). I always prefer making a dish from scratch. Preparing from scratch always demands more effort but the end product is always very tasty.  
Try making this sambhar and enjoy the freshness of the spices!!


Ingredients:

• Chopped Vegetables- 2-3 cups
• Toordal- 1/2 cup
• Coriander leaves/Cilantro- 5-6 sprigs
• Oil- 2-3 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Curry leaves- few
• Salt- To taste

Masala for Kolmbo :

• Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 Tbsp
• Chana dal/Split chickpeas- 1 1/2 Tbsp
• Asafoetida- A pinch
• Fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Cumin/Jeera seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Grated coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/2 cup
• Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
• Roasted Red Chilli- 4
• Tamarind- A small ball (goose berry sized)

Vegetables which I used was- Ivy gourd, suran (Indian yam), beans, onion and carrot. You can also use brinjal (green colored), drumstick or any vegetable of your choice.


Procedure:

Wash the vegetables and cut them into desired shape.

Now take a cooker and add washed toordal and chopped vegetables. Add salt to taste and sufficient water. Cook this for 2-3 whistles.
To make Masala- All the spices needs to be roasted but the frying time for each spice is different. First add 1/2 Tbsp oil in a small pan. When it gets heated add chana dal. Fry for 1/2 a minute and then add coriander seeds. Fry till the two spices turn slight brown in color. Now add asafoetida, cumin and fenugreek seeds. Fry until everything looks fried. Now turn off the heat. Allow these spices to cool on a plate. 

Now in the same pan start frying the grated coconut without adding oil. Once it starts turning slight brown, add turmeric powder. Continue frying for half a minute. Turn off the heat.

Now grind the spices, fried coconut, roasted red chilli and tamarind with little amount of water (you should get a fine paste). Add this masala to the cooked vegetable and dal mixture. Mix well and bring it to a boil. Check for salt and adjust the consistency of Sambhar  by adding water. Once it comes to boil, continue heating for 5-6 minutes. Add Chopped cilantro and turn off the heat.
For seasoning- Heat 1 Tbsp oil. To this add mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add curry leaves. Fry for few seconds and turn off the heat. Add this to the sambhar. Mix well. Kolmbo is ready!!

Serve it hot with idlis, rice, ragi mudhe or dosa. Above measurement serves 3-4 people.

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Bibbo-Tendle Upkari (Tender cashew- Ivygourd side dish)

Bibbo in konkani means tender cashews and tendle means ivy gourd. Bibbo is a favorite item of the konkanis and they prepare this dish especially on the occasion of Ugadi. I had mentioned about this in my post -Madgane. Some people are so fond of these tender cashews that they store the sun dried tender cashews, so that they can have it throughout the year (Not all can afford to store in huge quantities as they are expensive).
This dish is also prepared for marriage and other special occasions. Try making this dish and I am sure even you will fall in love with it!!
I have used the dried tender cashews.

Ingredients:

• Tender cashew- 1 1/2 cup
• Ivy gourd- 250g (i used frozen)
• Oil- 1 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Dried red chilli- 1-2
• Grated coconut,fresh/frozen- 1-2 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

If you don't have tender cashews (fresh/dried) then, use the ordinary cashews which are soaked for 2-3 hrs. 


Procedure:

Wash the tender cashews and remove the peel (if they are fresh). If it is dried, then let it sit for 15-20minutes in hot water (this helps to remove the peel easily).

Chop the edges of cleaned ivy gourd and cut it lengthwise.Take a wide bottomed pan and heat oil. To this add the mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add the broken red chillies and fry for few seconds. Now add the tender cashews. Mix it well.

Now add salt and sufficient water. Let it cook for 5-10 minutes (because cashews take more time to cook). After 10 minutes add ivy gourd and mix well. Add more water, if required.

Continue cooking until the ivy gourd is tender (also there is a change in its color). This might take another 10-15 minutes. When everything looks cooked, add the grated coconut, mix well and turn off the heat. Bibbo-Tendle upkari is ready!!

Serve it hot, as a side dish to rice and dalitoy. These three make an excellent combination!!
Above measurement serves 2-3 people.


Note: You can also make bibbe upkari omitting the ivy gourd. If you don't want to use cashews then you can replace it with potatoes (but cook it together). Procedure remains the same for both and of course result is different:-)

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Madgane (Split peas/Chanadal Pudding)

I wanted to post a sweet dish for the Independence Day. Hence i am posting the recipe for Madgane which is nothing but chanadal payasam. This is a traditional dessert which is usually made on the ocassion of Ugadi. It is a very healthy dessert when compared to many sweet items which have lots of ghee and sugar in it. Jaggery is considered to be much healthier than sugar (know more about it here). 
As i told we make Madgane for Ugadi, celebrated in the month of march and thats the time when bibbo (tender cashew nut) is available. Tender cashew nuts is an all time favorite of the konkanis!! We usually make bibbe upkari and madgane (which has tender cashews in it) for the New Year.


Ingredients:

• Chana dal- 1/2 cup
• Tapioca/Sabudhana/sago- 1/2 cup
• Jaggery- 1/2 cup (adjust according to your taste)
• Coconut milk (thick)- 2 cups (or 1 can)
• Cardamom powder- 1 tsp
• Cashews and Raisins
• Ghee- 1tsp (for frying the nuts) (optional. you can add directly without frying)

Procedure:
Fry the Chana dal for couple of minutes until you get a light aroma of it. After it cools, transfer  it into a cooker. To this add tapioca/sabudhana and add water to it generously (like you add while cooking toordal). Chanadal and tapioca will get cooked for two whistles. 

If the resulting mixture after cooking is very sticky and solid (because of less water), then add little water and mix well. Now again turn on the heat and add jaggery. Keep stirring constantly. Once it comes to a boil, then continue heating for two more minutes and turn off the heat. Now add the coconut milk and cardamom powder.Mix well. Garnish it with fried cashews and raisins. Madgane is ready!!

Above measurement serves 5-6 people.


Note: Tapioca is mainly added to give thickness to the payasam. If you don't like it then you can replace it with rice or semolina. Just soak 2-3 Tbsp of rice for an hour and grind it to get a smooth paste. Add this paste to the cooked chanadal. Cook it for few minutes and then add jaggery. Semolina can be added directly to the cooked chanadal. Rest of the procedure remains the same.

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Batate Song (Potato curry)

Batate Song is a very popular konkani dish. I learnt this version of batate song from my mother in law (I will post the other version soon). This dish requires very less ingredients and can be made very quickly ( we are not adding coconut to this dish. Finally one side dish without coconut!!). My whole family is a fan of this dish. Potato lovers should try this!!


Ingredients:

• Potatoes, medium sized- 3
• Onion- 1
• Tomato- 1
• Red Chilli powder- 1/2-1 tsp 
• Oil- 2 Tbsp
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Peel the onions and cut it lengthwise (or chop it very small). Now wash the potatoes and peel them. Cut them into small pieces (this will help them to cook faster).
Heat oil and add onion. Fry until it turns translucent. Now add the chopped potatoes and fry for 2-3 minutes on a medium flame. 
Then add chopped tomatoes, chilli powder and salt. Mix it well. Add sufficient water (it may require more than 2 cups of water). Let it cook for 10-15 min or till the potatoes cook (consistency of the dish shouldn't be too watery or too dry). Batate song is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice, dosa, idli, roti, undi etc. Batate song goes very well with Panpolo (Neerudose). Above measurement serves two people.


Note:

•  Some people make this dish very dry. I make  it little watery, so that it has little gravy. You can make it according to your preference.
• This dish is considered to be very spicy but I have added very little chilli powder(We prefer it mild). You can vary the amount of chilli powder.
• If you are adding more chilli powder then I recommend to add little bit of tamarind because we will not get enough sourness from the tomato.  

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Gajbaje (Mixed Vegetable Curry)

Gajbaje is a very simple and healthy konkani dish. It is generally prepared during special occasions like festivals, marriages because it doesn't contain onion and garlic. Enjoy this dish, wherein each vegetable contributes its own flavor.


Ingredients:

• Chopped Vegetables- 4 cups
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1 cup
• Roasted Red chillies- 4-5
• Tamarind- A small ball (goose berry sized)
• Oil- 2 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Curry leaves- Few
• Salt- To taste

(I have used 7 kinds of vegetables- Cow pea beans (alsande), potatoes, beans, carrot, yellow cucumber (magge), ivy gourd (tendle) and Suran (or Indian yam)). You can also use ridge gourd (ghosale), pumpkin (duddi), lady's finger (byanda), raw banana (randayi kyane) or any vegetable of your choice. Don't add onions and drumsticks, as they give a very different flavor to the dish.

Procedure:

Wash and chop all the vegetables into desired size and shape.

Transfer all these vegetables into a cooker. Add sufficient water (all the vegetables should be well dipped in water) and salt to taste. Cook the vegetables (2-3 whistles should be enough).

For the masala- Grind together grated coconut, red chillies and tamarind with required amount of water so as to get a smooth paste. Add this masala to the cooked vegetables and mix well. Bring this to a boil. After it comes to a boil, continue heating for 7-8 minutes until the rawness of the masala goes off . Then turn off the heat.
For the seasoning- Heat oil and add mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add curry leaves. Fry for few seconds and add this to cooked vegetable and masala mixture. Mix well. Gajbaje is ready!!

Serve hot with rice, idlis or rotis. Above measurement is for serving 2-3 people.

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Tomato Rasam

This is a very simple rasam. I got this recipe from a cook book written by Jaya V Shenoy and made slight variations. This rasam comes to your rescue, when pressed with time.

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes- 2
• Rasam powder- 2 tsp (I used MTR)
• Garlic pods- 4-5
• Coriander leaves/Cilantro- 5-6 sprigs
• Red chilli- 1-2
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Oil- 1 Tbsp
• Curry leaves- Few
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Chop the tomatoes into small pieces. Put it in a container and add 2 cups of water to it. Smash the tomatoes roughly using hands. Then keep this mixture for heating. To this add crushed garlic. Let this cook for a while (say 10-15 minutes). Now the tomatoes will get cooked well (Add water if required). Now add rasam powder, salt and chopped cilantro. Let it boil for couple of minutes. Then turn off the heat.

For seasoning- First heat the oil. Then add mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add the broken red chillies and curry leaves. Fry for few seconds. Add this to the rasam and mix well. Simple Tomato Rasam is ready!!

 Serve it hot with rice. Above measurement is for serving 2-3 people.

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Tukudi (Shankar Pali) - My 25th Post!!

Tukudi/ Shankar pali is a very popular snack. Like all other snack, even this is very addictive!!(I still remember the first time when I made this. Me and my husband literally finished it in two days!). Tukudi can be made spicy or sweet. I like both but always prefer making the spicier ones (its more healthy than the sweet version!! I know both of them are not healthy:-) Atleast the spicier ones do not have ghee and sugar in them). I learnt making tukudis from amma. She used to make it regularly for me and my brother.

Ingredients:

• All Purpose Flour/Maida- 1 cup
• Wheat Flour- 1/4 cup
• Red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp (add more if you want it more spicy)
• Asafoetida- A pinch
• Sugar- 1/2 tsp
• Salt- To taste
• Oil- For deep frying

Procedure:

(The procedure of making tukudi is very simple. Its same as making chapathi/rotis)

Take all the above ingredients in a bowl.

Mix it well. Now add water (as required, in small amount) to the flour and make a soft pliable dough (as you make for chapathi). The dough shouldn't be sticky.

Now make small balls of the dough.

Roll the ball in flour (maida or wheat) and start rolling it.Now take a cutter (or a knife) and start cutting the rolled dough. (so as to get diamond shapes).

Deep fry them in oil (I deep fried the diamond shaped pieces of one chapathi in two batches) until they turn moderately brown on both sides.

Drain them on a paper towel, to remove excess oil. Tukudi is ready!!

After cooling, store them in an air tight container. This snack can be stored up to 2 weeks. So try making these simple delicious tukudis and enjoy...

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Tingalavre Gashi (White beans Curry) ತಿಂಗಳವರೆ ಘಷಿ

Tingalavro/White beans is very popular among konkanis. My whole family is a big fan of this dish. The garlic seasoning makes it tastier.

White beans is a rich source of fat free protein and manganese. It is also rich in dietary fiber (reduces cholesterol) and highly helpful for diabetics. Check here for more information.

Ingredients:

• Tingalavre/White beans - 1 cup
• Tender Jackfruit/ Potatoes/Suran- 1 cup
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1 cup
• Tamarind- a small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Roasted Dried Red chillies- 4-5
• Oil- 2 Tbsp
• Garlic pods- 4-5
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Soak the white beans for 6-8 hours.

Cut tender jackfruit/suran/potatoes into medium pieces. I used tender jackfruit. Then cook the soaked white beans along with the vegetable in a cooker with sufficient water. Also add salt to taste (salt should be added during the process of cooking because white beans will not absorb salt, once it is cooked). 4 whistles is enough to cook the white beans/tingalavre.

    

            

To prepare the masala- grind the coconut along with red chillies and tamarind. Add little water while grinding. 
Now add this masala to the cooked white beans and bring it to a boil. Add water if required. Consistency of the gravy should be not too thick or watery.Once it starts boiling, cook it further for 5-7 minutes until the rawness of the masala goes off. Turn off the heat. For tempering/seasoning-heat oil and add crushed garlic to it.Fry until garlic turns pale brown. Add this to the white beans/tingalavre cooked in the coconut gravy. Mix well. Tingalavre Gashi is ready!!

Serve it hot. This dish goes well with rice, rotis, dosa or fresh rice noodles. Above measurement is for serving 3-4 people.

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Mangalore Buns

Mangalore buns is an authentic South Canara dish. It is a popular breakfast item in all local hotels of South Canara. I am a big fan of these buns and have interesting memorable moments associated with it:-) This is one such dish which will make you crave for more (You just can't stop at one!!) This dish doesn't demand special ingredients. So make these delicious buns for your loved ones (and impress them just as I did:-))

Few months back my husband got me a ready mix of Beignet (French doughnuts) from New Orleans which had a similar taste to these buns. You can know about it here and try making them. Even they are very tasty.

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour- 2 1/2 cups (You can substitute half of it with wheat flour)
• Banana (Big,over ripe)- 1 (if small then add 2 of them)
• Yogurt- 2 Tbsp
• Sugar- 4 Tbsp (adjust accordingly)
• Baking soda- 1/2 tsp
• Cumin seeds/jeera- 1/2 tsp (optional)
• Salt- A pinch
• Oil- For deep frying

Procedure:

Take a ripe banana in a mixing bowl. Mash it well . To this add yogurt, sugar, baking soda, cumin seeds, salt and mix well until the sugar dissolves completely (don't add water).Now to this mixture add 2 cups of flour and start mixing. Remaining 1/2 cup of flour has to be added in small quantities. Final resulting dough has to be very soft. If the dough is sticky then add little amount of flour. Knead the dough for few minutes.(Finally I added a tsp of oil on the top of the dough). Keep the dough for 5-6 hrs. 

Now divide the dough into 5 equal parts (only 5!!... ya it has to be much thicker than the poories).

In a small plate take few Tbsp of flour for dusting. Take one ball and roll it in the flour and make a poori (Thicker ones).

Deep fry the rolled pooris on medium heat until it gets a dark brown color on either sides (Since the pooris are thick, it will take more time).

Mangalore Buns are ready!! Serve it hot with any chutney or sambhar (I like to eat as it is, since it is sweet). Above measurement serves two people.

The inner texture of the buns has to look like this (This time I got very good texture. Maybe it knew that everyone is going to look at it!!)

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