Bisi Bele Huli Anna

This has been a childhood favorite of mine.., I remember coaxing my aunt (who is a specialist in making Bisi) to make some for me whenever she was visiting.. :).., So it comes as a surprise to me that I took such a long time to get this posted on my blog!! :) Bisi Bele Huli Anna., which is also known as Bisi Bele Bath I guess is originally a dish of Karnataka.., I remember the times when we were in Bengaluru and how I loved to gorge on Bisi.., so much so.., that Raj literally grew tired of it!! :D This tangy, Sambar type rice with all the veggies is a very healthy recipe (if one goes easy on the ghee and the nuts).., ideal for kids who fuss around veggies.., :) :) :).,

Happy Reading!!!

Bisi Bele Huli Anna

Serves: 4

Preparation Time:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Rice
• 1 cup Toor dal
• 1/2 cup Ghee
• 1 Potato, Cubed
• 2 Carrots, Cubed
• 1/2 a Cauliflower, Cubed ( You can avoid Cauliflower if you think the dish will get mushy.., but I myself personally lovee Bisi with all the veggies)
• 1/2 a cup Green Peas
• 1/2 a cup Chopped French Beans
• 1 Onion Diced
• Any other vegetable of your choice
• 1/2 a cup of Mint and Coriander Leaves ( you can choose to avoid the mint leaves if you want)
• 1/2 a cup of nuts ( Cashew, Almond, Groundnuts.., whole.., not chopped)
• Tamarind.., the size of a lemon
• 2 tsp Mustard seeds
• 2 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 2 tsp Coriander Seeds
• 1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
• A few each of Cardamom, Pepper seeds, Cloves
• 1/2 inch Cinnamon stick
• A Star Anise
• A tbsp each of Urad Dal, Chana Dal and Raw rice ( for tempering)
• 2 Dried red Chillies
• A few Curry leaves
• Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the tamarind in warm water. Pressure cook the rice and dal separately (add the vegetables to the dal and pressure cook it.) Simultaneously., toast (NOT BURN NOT ROAST.., JUST TOAST) the dry spices together along with the red chillies and curry leaves.. You can choose to dry toast them or you can add just a tsp of ghee and toast them. Let the mixture cool. Once cooled, grind the spice mixture into a coarse powder. Extract the tamarind pulp and to the tamarind juice add the spice mixture and bring it to boil. Add the cooked dal and carefully fold in (try not to break the veggies). Now add the rice to fold in.., Season with salt and check for taste. Add in some more water( the amount of water depends on how watery or thick you want the Bisi to be) and pressure cook for about 10 mins or till two whistles go by.. Turn off the stove. Transfer contents into a serving bowl. Heat the ghee, add the nuts and half the coriander/mint leaves.., fry for a minute and add garnish the Bisi Bele Hili Anna with the nut/ghee/coriander mixture..., Serve piping hot with Papad/ Potato Chips/Boondi/ Sev.., :D :D :D Have a yummy meal... Slurp slurp..

Pani Puri / Gol Gappa / Phuchka :)

In Mumbai, they are called Gol Gappas.., In Kolkata, they go by the name of Phuchkas.., we Hyderabadis call them Pani Puris.., and I bet there are only a very very few people who wouldn't like them.., they very name of Pani Puri send all the glands in the mouth to work.. :) i myself have been involved in so many Pani Puri eating contest (yeah!!) throughout the years.., The Pani puris which are served at the road side bandis taste heavenly.., but, of late., the hygiene levels are drastically coming down. So it does make me stop and think twice before heading out for some pani puris. I decided to make this yummy snacks at home and it was an instant hit. :D Everyone loved it.., I bought ready made puris butif you have a bit more patience than I have, you can as well make these at home.. :D

Pani Puri:

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

• A bag of ready made Puris
• 250 gms Green Peas /Batana soaked overnight
• 2 tsp Chat Masala
• 1/4 tsp each of Black salt, Cumin powder and Coriander powder
• 1 tsp Pani Puri Masala
• Salt and Chilly pwd to taste
• Paste of 4 Green Chillies
• Paste of 1/2 a bunch each of Coriander and Mint leaves.
• 1 Onion, finely chopped (for garnishing)

Method:

Boil the green peas along with a pinch of salt. Lightly mash the boiled peas. Add salt and chilly powder as per taste. Keep aside. To 1 litre water, add the chilly paste along with the coriander and mint paste. Add the Chat masala, the Pani puri masala, Black salt, Cumin and Coriander powder. Add salt to taste. Stir gently. Keep aside.

Assembling:

Prick the puri in the center to form a small hole. Add the green peas stuffing. Fill in with the water mixture. Add some onions on the top. and gulp it down in one go.. :D.. Fun!!!!

Paneer Dosa

I know I know.., these are real pathetic snaps of something that is sooo delicious. But I couldn't help it.., I didn't even have the time to serve them out properly.., leave aside taking a decent snap.., By the time i made one Dosa.., the previous one was long gone.., :D Well these are the paneer dosa.., and no., I didn't take all the trouble of making the Paneer stuffing for the Dosas., i just used the left over Paneer Butter Masala to make these yummy Dosas.. Yeah.., its fun what you can do with leftovers.., When I was a child I was told that "Annam Parabrahma Swaroopam".., in simple words., that " Food is GOD "., we were never allowed to waste food., in any form.., leave aside throwing it.., We were not even allowed to ignore food ( No tantrum throwing/fussing over food) as it was considered, ignoring the God Almighty.., So whenever there were leftovers., Amma used to think up some lovely ideas so that the food wouldn't go waste.., I, am merely following tradition.. :D :D :D So., the recipe of these Paneer Dosas goes this way.. :)

Paneer Dosa

Makes: 12 Dosas

Preparation Time: 15 Minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 cups Parboiled Rice (washed and soaked overnight)
• 1 cup Urad Dal/Black Dal (washed and soaked overnight)
• 1/2 tsp. Soda bicarbonate
• Salt to taste
• Paneer Butter Masala (recipe http://snackandyum.blogspot.com/2010/04/paneer-butter-masalacottage-cheese-in.html)

Method:

Soak both rice and separately, wash well with plenty of water. Grind Dal to a very fine paste. Grind rice till fine grains are left (like very fine semolina). Mix both rice and dal together after grinding. Add soda bi-carb and salt and beat well. Add a little water if necessary. The batter should be fairly thick. Cover and keep aside for 7-8 hours, undisturbed. (preferably in a warm place). Add more water if required. The consistency of the batter should be thick enough to thickly coat on a spoon when dipped. Heat the iron griddle or non-stick tawa well. Pour a spoonful of batter in the centre, spread with the back of the spoon to a thin round. Pour a tsp. of ghee or oil over it. Add the stuffing to the center of the Dosa. Remove with spatula when crisp. Serve hot with Coconut chutney and Sambar. :D

Veg Manchurian with Indianised Salsa

Summer vacations are on in full swing.., my place is flooded with kids of different ages.., and I am simply LOVING IT!!!Time flies so quickly when kids are around.. Their innocent talks and mischievous pranks make my day!! :D The only annoying thing about kids is that they fuss over food.. and HOW!! But not always., if you really know what would please them., then you wouldn't have any problem at all.., So yesterday., I made some "Veg Machurian" with the "Salsa Dip". The recipe is as follows...

Veg Manchurian:

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Chopped Cauliflower
• 1 cup Grated Cabbage
• 1/2 cup Grated Carrot
• 1 Spring Onion (greens) finely chopped
• 6-7 finely chopped Green chillies
• 2 tsp Ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tsp Chopped Garlic flakes
• A pinch of Ajinomoto (optional)
• 1 tsp Vinegar
• 1 cup Maida/all purpose Flour
• 3 tsp Corn Flour
• 2 tsp Chilly sauce
• 2 tsp Tomato Ketchup
• 1 tsp Soya Sauce
• 1/2 a bunch of chopped Coriander leaves
• Salt to taste
• Oil for frying

Method:

Boil the Cauliflower, the carrots and the cabbage till soft. Strain all the water from them (squeeze really hard :D) and then transfer them into a mixing bowl. Mash the boiled vegetables. To this mixture add half of the the ginger garlic paste,a few of the chopped green chillies, the maida, vinegar, salt and the corn flour. Add the Ajinomoto if you wish.., but try to avoid using it as much as possible. Mix properly to form a soft and thick batter. Make small, round balls ( the size of over grown cherries) from the batter and deep fry them till they turn golden brown. Strain the oil and keep the fried Manchurian balls aside. In another pan., heat 3 tbsp oil. Add the rest of the ginger garlic paste, the chopped green chillies, the chopped greens of the spring onions, Chilly sauce, Ketchup, Soya Sauce, the chopped Garlic flakes and the chopped coriander leaves. Add a drizzle of water and stir.., Now, add in the manchurian balls and shallow fry them till they are nicely coated. Remove from fire.., serve hot with the "Salsa Dip" coming up..

Salsa Dip: Well the salsa dip is generally made out of fresh tomatoes, onions, chillies and garlic flakes.., but I Choose to make my Salsa with ketchup.., for the simple fact that kids' love ketchup. My niece eats her Chapatis with Ketchup!! So here is the simple, yet yummy recipe of my version of the Salsa..

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Tomato Ketchup
• 2-3 very finely chopped green chillies
• 2-3 flakes of finely chopped Garlic
• 3 tsp chilly-Vinegar
• A few sprigs of finely chopped Coriander

Method:

To the Ketchup, add the chillies, the garlic, the coriander leaves and vinegar. Give it a light stir. Transfer the contents to a serving dish and refrigerate for half an hour. Serve chilled with Hot Manchurian Balls..

:D The kids at home loved the Manchurian.., hope you would too..,

Till next time...,

Byeeeeeeeeees.