SCHEZWAN FRIED RICE

Rice -- 1 cup
Salt -- 1/2 teaspoon
Oil -- 1 teaspoon


Oil -- 2 tablespoons
Garlic -- 1 teaspoon (chopped)
Celery -- 2 tablespoos ( chopped)
Vegetables -- 1 cup (like carrots, capsicum, cabbage)( finely sliced)
Bean sprouts -- 1/2 cup

Schezwan sauce -- 2 tablespoons (or to taste)
salt to taste


Wash and soak rice for 20 minutes. (I have used jeera rice here which is aromatic as well as medium grain.)
Bring water to boil and add salt and oil in it. Pour the rice in and cook until cooked but firm and each grain seperate.
Now drain it and run cold water and make sure no water is left in the rice.
Keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Add garlic and brown it.Add celery, vegetables and saute for 2 to 3 minutes.

Now add the schezwan sauce and cook for one more minute.Add the rice, bean sprouts and salt and mix well.

Toss for a minute until all the ingredients are mixed nicely.

Serve hot.

VEGETABLE HONG KONG STYLE

Oil -- 2-3 tablespoons

Mixed vegetables -- 2 cups
(carrots, French beans, baby corn,) (choppped and parboiled)
Capsicum -- 1 (chopped )

Ginger -- 2 teaspoons (grated)
Garlic -- 1 teaspoon (finely chopped)
Red chillies -- 2-3 (broken)
Soya sauce -- 1 tablespoon
Vinegar -- 2 teaspoons
Red chilli sauce -- 2 teaspoons (to taste)
Vegetable stock / water -- 1 cup
Cornflour -- 2 tablesspoons (mixed in 1/4 cup water)
Sugar -- a pinch

Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
MSG -- 1 pinch (optional) (I don't use it!)


Heat the oil in a wok on a high flame. Add the vegetables, capsicum, ginger, garlic and dry red chillies (and MSG) and stir-fry over a high flame for 2 minutes.

Add the soya sauce, vinegar, chilli sauce, sugar, salt and pepper and mix well.

Now add the cornflour paste and stock and simmer for some time, till the sauce thickens.

Serve hot.

POORI

Wheat flour -- 1 cups
Semolina -- 1/2 cup
Chickpea flour -- 1/4 cup
Oil/ghee -- 2 tablespoons
Salt to taste

Oil for deep frying


Mix both the flours and semolina. Add salt and oil/ghee and mix it into the flour.

Now add water and make dough.

Take a small portion of the dough, and roll it out into discs of 4-5 inches diameter.

Heat oil and fry the poories untill golden brown on both sides.

Serve hot with Chana Masala or any other side dish.

ALOO - METHI

POTATO WITH FENUGREEK LEAVES

Potato -- 4-5 big
Fenugreek leaves (methi) -- 1 cup (fresh and chopped)

Oil -- 4-5 tablespoons
Cumin seeds -- 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste -- 1 teaspoon
Onions -- 2 medium (finely chopped)
Tomatoes -- 2 big (finely chopped)

Turmeric powder -- 1/4 teaspoon
Red chilli powder -- 3/4 teaspoon
Coriander powder -- 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida -- 1 pinch
Garam masala -- 1/2 teaspoon

salt to taste
Boil potatoes, peel and cube them.

Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. Once the cumin starts crackling add the ginger-garlic paste and onions. Saute until the onion turns brownish.

Now add the tomatoes and saute until the tomatoes are soft. Now add all the powders and cook until oil seperates.
Mash the tomatoes lightly with a ladle and add methi leaves. Cook for some more minutes until the methi leaves wilt.

Now add the potatoes, salt and mix all the ingredients nicely. Saute for a couple of more minutes and torn off the heat.

Serve hot.

AVIAL

Mixed vegetables all cut into 2 inch sticks

Drum sticks -- 4
Raw Banana -- 2
Carrot -- 2 (medium)
Ivy gourd (tondekai) -- 1/2 cup
Cucumber -- 1
French beans -- 1/2 cup
Snake Gourd –- 1/4 cup
Coconut oil -- 2 tablespoons
Curry leaves -- 2 stems
Chilly Powder -1 tsp
Turmeric Powder -1/2 tsp


Coconut(grated) -1 cup
Green Chilly -3
Turmeric Powder -1 tsp
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves -- 2 stems


Curd – 4-5 tablespoons
Coconut oil – 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Heat coconut oil in a pan and add all the vegetables. Add turmeric powder,curry leaves and chilli powder and cook it on low flame covered for 10 minutes.
Now add a little water and cook all the vegetables until they are tender.

Grind together coconut, cumin seeds, turmeric, curry leaves and green chilles together to a coarse paste.
Add this to the cooked vegetable. Add curd and mix it together. Pour 2 more tablespoons of coconut oil on top, add salt and water and bring the mixture to boil.

Simmer it on a low flame until the raw cumin smell disappears (for about 15-20 minutes).

Serve hot with rice.

BHEL PURI

Puffed rice –- 2 cups

Carrot -– 1
Potato -- 1 (boiled )
Cucumber -- 1
Raw mango -– 1/2
Tomato -– 1
Onion -– 1

Chat masala – 2 teaspoons
Black salt/salt – to taste
Green chutney -- 2 tablespoons |Recipe is given below|
Sweet chutney -- 2-3 tablespoons |Recipe is given below|

Coriander leaves -– a small bowl for garnish
Sev –- 1/2 cup


| For green chutney |

Coriander leaves -- 1 bunch (medium)
Mint leaves -- 1 bunch (small)
Ginger -- 1" piece
Green chillies -- 4-5
Lemon juice -- 2 tablespoons
Black salt -- 1/8 teaspoon

Grind all the ingredients to a fine paste. Add minimum water. It can be diluted while using. Store the chutney in freezer.

| For Sweet chutney |

Dates -- 10 (seedless)
Tamarind -- 1 lemon size
Jaggery -- 4 tablespoons
Chilli powder -- 1/2 teaspoon
Black salt -- 1/8 teaspoon

Soak tamarind and jaggery in warm water for 15 minutes and extract the juices of tamarind. It should make a thick paste. Blend it with dates , strain and add salt and chilli powder. Use as required. Store it in the freezer.




Finely chop tomato, onion, mango and cucumber. Roughly mash the potatoes. Grate carrot.

Just before serving add the vegetables, chutneys , salt, chat masala and puffed rice in big bowl. Mix all the ingreadients nicely with a spoon. (The puffed rice will turn soggy if u mix it in advance)
Serve it immediately topped with sev and coriander leaves.

MILK BURFI

Milk -- 2 liters (around 8 cups)
Lemon juice -- 2-3 tablespoons
Sugar -- 2 1/2 cups (more if u like it sweet)
Vanilla pod -- \1 / cocoa powder -- 2 teaspoon -- for flavoring (optional)
Coconut -- 4-5 tablespoons ( grated )



Boil milk and simmer it for 5-10 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Add lemon juice to the milk once it is a bit cool. Now reheat the milk, which will curdle.

Continue to boil the milk on low flame stirring once in 2-3 minutes until almost all the water evaporates.

Now add the sugar and the vanilla or cocoa flavoring and coconut.
Keep stirring the mixture until it thickens and starts leaving the bottom of the pan.
When the mixture starts rolling around in the pan like a ball turn off the heat and spread it in a greased plate. Parchment paper and rolling pin can be used to give burfi a smooth look. Cut in to any shape of your liking.

Cool it to room temperature and serve.

SPICY GARLICKY POTATO

Baby potatoes -- 500 grams

Oil -- 3-4 tablespoons
Fenugreek seeds (methi) -- 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds (jeera) -- 1/2 teaspoon
Mustard seeds -- 1/2 teaspoon
Garlic -- 15-20 pods (small)
Green chillies -- 2 (slit)
Asafoetida -- 1 pinch
Turmeric powder -- 1/4 teaspoon
Coriander -cumin powder -- 1 1/2 teaspoon
Garam masala powder -- 1/2 teaspoon
Chilli flakes -- 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

Curd -- 2-3 tablespoons
Coriander leaves for garnish


Cook potatoes, peel them and keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add methi seeds and cook it for 2 minutes. Now ass cumin and mustard seeds and let it crackle.

Add garlic and green chilles and cook it for 2 minutes. Now add the potatoes and asafoetida. Mix nicely to coal the potatoes with the spices.

Add turmeric powder, coriander-cumin powder, garam masalaand chilli flakes. Add salt and mix all the ingredients nicely.

Before serving beat the curd and mix it with the potatoes. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with roti/phulkas.

AKKI ROTTI

RICE ROTI

Rice flour -- 2 cups + 1/2 cup for kneading and rolling
Water -- 2 3/4 cup
Cucumber -- 1/2 cup (grated)(optional)
Coconut oil (optional)
Salt to taste


Boil water in a pan. Add salt. (Add cucumber if u r using it and cook it for 5 minutes. Use more water for cooking cucumber. Cucumber gives a nice aroma to the roti.)

Lower the heat and slowly add the rice flour, continuously mixing. Cook it on low heat for a couple of minutes, all the while mixing the dough. Turn off the heat.

Let the mixture stand for 5 minutes. Keep it covered.

Now remove the cover and let it cool. Once sufficiently cool knead the dough nicely. Add a little rice flour if required. Dough should be little tighter than the pulka dough.

Now take a small portion of the dough and make a round ball and flatten it slightly with your palm. Dip it in rice flour and roll it out on a parchment sheet.

Cook it slowly on a hot griddle until both side are cooked. Drizzle with coconut oil for extra flavor. Serve hot with coconut chutney or Hesaru kalu bhaji .

CELERY SOUP

I had some celery and didn't know what to do with it. Finally i tuned to the net and found this nice looking soup recipe. It turned out very nice even as i omitted a couple of ingredients.

This recipe is from 101 cookbooks, chunky celery soup



Onion -- 1 large
Potato -- 1 large
Carrots -- 2-3
Celery -- 10 medium-length stalks
Extra-virgin olive oil -- 2 tablespoons
Garlic -- 2 cloves(chopped)
Vegetable stock -- about 5 cups /or water
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (optional)

Celery leaf pesto -- 1/2 cup (optional)

for pesto
Celery leaves -- one cup (lightly packed)
Garlic -- 1 large clove
Salt -- 1 pinch
Olive oil
Puree all of these ingredients in a food processor for about 30 seconds.


Chop the onion, potato, carrots, and celery into pieces that are about 1/2-inch or smaller.

In a large thick-bottomed pan over medium high heat combine the olive oil, onion and garlic and fry for a couple of minutes.


Now add potato, carrots, celery and salt. Saute for about ten minutes or until the onions and celery wilt a bit.

Stir in the stock. Bring to a simmer and let cook for another 10 minutes or until the celery, carrot and potatoes are just cooked. Do not over cook them.

Remove the soup from the heat and ladle into soup bowls. Top each with a generous drizzle of the celery leaf pesto (opt) and/or some Parmesan cheese.